Grasshopper's G40 Production System

[Young Grasshopper]

Special thanks to knp, ItIsILeCleric, Baron Munchausen, and Black_Elk for helping me develop this house rule set.

Here is a YouTube video explanation of these rules…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2R-BL8m6GqQ

Production Unit Profiles:

Industrial Complex:
Produces up to 10 units
Maximum damage of 20
Unoperational at 10 damage
May never be purchased
Immediately downgraded to a major factory once captured

Major Factory:
Produces up to 5 units
Maximum damage of 10
Unoperational at 5 damage
May never be purchased
Immediately downgraded to a minor factory once captured

Minor Factory:
Produces up to 3 units
Maximum damage of 6
Unoperational at 3 damage
May be purchased at a cost of 12 IPCs
May be placed on any territory with a victory city (Islands included),
or any territory with an IPC value of 3 or greater (Islands not included)
Immediately removed from the board once captured

Production Unit Rules:

• Only production units on territories that have been captured are downgraded by one level. Production units on territories that have been liberated remain the same level, and must be relinquished to the territory’s original owner.

• Production units may never be upgraded, however there is one exception; the United States will upgrade their major factories on Washington and San Francisco to industrial complexes automatically once they are at war.

• Strategic bombers conducting SBRs only receive a +2 damage bonus if they have departed from an operational air base.

• Nations may only purchase and place minor factories on the board if they are at war with at least one other nation.

Production Unit Setup:

Industrial Complexes
United Kingdom
France
Western Germany
Germany
Northern Italy
Russia
Japan

Major Factories
Western United States
Central United States
Eastern United States
Quebec
Southern Italy
Novgorod
Volgograd
India
New South Wales

Minor Factories
Normandy
Southern France
Ukraine
Union of South Africa

[variance]

Nice rules YG.  You could use the old white factories for minors, greys for majors, and Risk cities for Industrial Complexes.

A couple observations:

• If UK can’t build a factory in Persia/Iraq, South Africa should be a major factory.
• No factory in Normandy will make it hard for the allies to go the D-day route, but it might make people actually want to liberate Paris as the only way to get production happening on the continent.
• A factory on Hawaii will make it as impregnable as Sydney.

Here’s another suggestion to look at:

• Major factories can only be placed in VC territories that are worth $3 or more (i.e. Kiangsu, Kwangtung, and any place that started with a factory but has changed hands a couple times and doesn’t have one anymore)
• Minor factories can only be placed in VC territories that are worth $2 or more (i.e. Kiangsu, Kwangtung, Egypt, Philippines, Poland, and any place that started with a factory but has changed hands a couple times and doesn’t have one anymore)

[Shin-Ji]

This is really, really interesting.  But I wonder what the reasoning was behind requiring one less VC in each theater for the Axis to win.

Also, I share Vance’s concern about Hawaii becoming pretty much impregnable under this ruleset.  On the other hand, Japan being able to build a Major Factory on the Phillipines has some interesting possibilities.  I’d say it makes a J1 attack almost certain, which I would count as a good thing overall.

[Young Grasshopper]

Decided to not allow the purchase of major factories, so the best Hawaii can do is a 3 unit minor.

Decided to remove the modified VC victory conditions for now.

Decided to remove the maximum 3 factories restriction.

Updated video coming soon.

[Tall Paul]

Guys,

––I’m “marking” this thread so I can study it whenever I actually have some time to do so. Seems very interesting & has a lot of potential. Good work, YG.

Tall Paul

[Young Grasshopper]

Here is a YouTube video explanation of these rules…

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2R-BL8m6GqQ

[crusaderiv]

Nice table…

AL

[Young Grasshopper]

@crusaderiv:

Nice table…

AL

Thanks AL, Cheers.

[knp7765]

Hey Grasshopper,
I think I just noticed a possible exploitable flaw.
Okay, so G1 Germany takes France. The Industrial Complex is downgraded to a Major Factory.
Later on, the Allies liberate France. The Major Factory remains.
Now Germany, strong in W Germany and itching for revenge, retakes France. The Major Factory is now downgraded to a Minor Factory.
The Allies, not about to let their poor French buddies suffer Nazi retribution, attack and liberate France again. The Minor Factory remains.
Unfortunately, retaking France was tough and didn’t leave the Allies much to keep it with. Also, the free French guys were already spent in the last liberation. So, Germany sends more units to re-retake France. Now the Minor Factory is removed from the board.

So, now poor France is left with NO factory at all even in it’s capital. Now, even if the Allies liberate France for a 3rd time and manage to keep it this time, France has to first collect income on their turn, buy a Minor Factory and place it in Paris on their second turn (after liberation), then finally they can actually purchase just 3 units to place in their capital.
Now, I’m not sure just how much this might benefit Germany, especially considering how many units they expended retaking France two times and getting it liberated from them two more times, but it’s an interesting way for them to deny the Allies a production facility.

[Young Grasshopper]

Hey KNP, thanks for your comments, to tell you the truth these rules fit our group really well probably for reasons like not playing out scenarios like the one you just suggested. Even if we did, I think I would be OK with the results of the downgrade system considering the punishment facilities would go through after they exchange hands so many times… it would also force the Allies to secure a proper beachhead before going into France. To this day I have never seen France collect money let alone spend it, at least in any game I’ve played, but maybe we have been playing the Allies wrong, we usually get a surrender before all that  :|

[knp7765]

Oh yeah, you need to play the game all the way to the bitter end. Don’t let the Axis surrender. You have to smash ALL their precious units and take that capital. It does take a little longer though. In that case, you will probably end up liberating France early enough so they will have a couple of rounds or so of buying their own stuff.
We even made a new NO specially for France:
$5 for any European Axis territory under French control.

It rarely happens, but it’s a nice thought that France could not only get liberated but actually take some Axis territory.

[CWO Marc]

@knp7765:

Oh yeah, you need to play the game all the way to the bitter end. Don’t let the Axis surrender. You have to smash ALL their precious units and take that capital.

In the immortal words of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Conan the Barbarian (who was himself quoting Genghis Khan): “Crush enemies…see them driven before you…hear the lamentations of the women.”  In the context of Global 1940, “the lamentations of the women” probably refers to the lady of the house saying “Haven’t you guys finished playing yet?” sometime around 2:00 o’clock on a Sunday morning.

[Young Grasshopper]

@CWO:

@knp7765:

Oh yeah, you need to play the game all the way to the bitter end. Don’t let the Axis surrender. You have to smash ALL their precious units and take that capital.

In the immortal words of Arnold Schwarzenegger’s Conan the Barbarian (who was himself quoting Genghis Khan): “Crush enemies…see them driven before you…hear the lamentations of the women.”  In the context of Global 1940, “the lamentations of the women” probably refers to the lady of the house saying “Haven’t you guys finished playing yet?” sometime around 2:00 o’clock on a Sunday morning.

LOL… my drunken games of Classic Edition with 4AM finishes were over years ago, now it’s a 9AM to 9PM time slot (maybe a little longer if ask nicely), but it won’t be long before we’re limited to playing Bridge and Lawn Bowling.