Custom Setups

@Imperious-Leader sorry, no pics this time but the table did feel like this was a way better way to begin the game. Gets the game going a little quicker and with zero 9-12 anxiety for either side. Seems like it would be more fair for tournament play also.

Hello, I have been scrolling threw the HBG website and have found many interesting custom units with either no rules, or a rules pdf that is no longer available. I had a few ideas, and I would love feedback/more ideas.

Mercenary’s - 1IPC/turn/infantry, max 3. This could be cool feature if you need temporary forces in a certain area you could hire mercenarys for 2-3 turns, but if you just left them there it would cost you way more money then they are worth.

Assassins - Infantry that cost 5 IPC, get a target select on 1 on a D12 against a commander (Commanders expansion set)

Military Police - I was thinking they could increase rail transport, and decrease partisan activity. or they could allow transit on damaged rail.

I would love feedback, and more ideas.

I’d rather have cheaper, defenseless transport planes myself.

I think that’s totally reasonable, Midnight_Reaper. You could introduce cheaper air transports into this roster without breaking anything important. My preference is for more expensive air transports because the extra price thematically represents (a) the up-front cost of developing the technology and tactics (nobody has to spend money on researching paratroopers for this roster), and (b) the relatively limited supply of air transport available during World War II. There’s a fun little article below about how most of the American Air Force’s transports were either hastily converted civilian planes, or wooden gliders manufactured in piano factories. If the Americans had to make do with makeshift equipment, you can only imagine what the Italians were using.

https://amcmuseum.org/history/world-war-ii-transport-and-troop-carrier/

Strategically, air transports provide a much deeper threat into enemy territory that requires a much larger garrison. E.g. if you put an assault boat in the English Channel, it threatens Normandy, Holland, Norway, Hanover, and Denmark. If you put an air transport in London, it threatens all of those plus Paris, Marseilles, Gibraltar, Morocco, Milan, Berlin, Poland, Finland, Austria, and Czechoslovakia. It’s not that I expect anyone to fly many air transports into a battle to use as fodder; it’s just that spending 12 bucks on one air transport can force your opponent to spend more than 12 bucks on extra defending infantry.

In terms of rules simplicity, I have tried to eliminate the concept of the “defenseless unit” from my unit roster. I find automatic combat losses to be something of a downer, and I’d rather use that spot in the rulebook for a more interesting rule.

All of that said, again, this is mostly personal preference – if you want a $9 defenseless air transport with 4 movement, that’s almost certainly fine.

Our group has decided to modify the NOs in order to help Italy get something going after Taranto… We are removing the 5 IPC bonus for control of all North Africa, and replacing it with…

5 IPCs if Italy has at least 1 land unit in Africa.

Is there a link to boardgamegeek where these files are now located?!?!
Thanks!

Hello all,
I just decided to make this account to ask these questions:

I get together with my dad, my cousins, my uncle and myself every year on vacation, and we play A&A Spring 1942. Honestly, myself and my uncle are better players than my cousins and my dad. I was thinking that it might be fun if we can get a “challenge” setup. Does anyone have any different setups that might give a large advantage to the allies? It would be more fun for myself and my uncle to team up, because we always play on opposite sides.

Also, does anyone have any extra rules we can add to limit the time games take? We added a timer, and a max time limit of 2 hours to our last game, and it worked out very well.

Also, these have to be for the Spring 1942 version. (Not sure what edition, think its second.)

Thank you for any help ;)

Probably quite a bit, since heavy stacks of infantry can be nuked out of existance instead of slowely killed through attrition.

Anyone tinker with the setup, in order to make the game less linear?

We’re finding  that G1 and J1 pretty much open the exact same every game, decimating allied navies then G going heavy armor.

My buddy has come up with an interesting house rule which we are going to try out next time.  Its a bit complex, but in a nutshell the setup is kinda “Risklike,” in that you alternate unit placement.  Each county has so many IPC’s to spend and you can purchase and place what/where you want; with limitations of course.  You cant just place crap randomly all over the place.  You’ll need to start in countries controlled a the start and adjacent sea zones.  This gives players the option to go heaveir navy or air, or whatever.

I know, it pretty much takes away from historical accuracies, but thats alright.  The idea was to change the opening setup, allow for new strategies and make the game a bit less linear for us.