Cumulative Tech for 1942.2 Map

Hello! I came up with some ideas for a cumulative tech system for the 1942.2 map, largely inspired by Axis_Roll’s “Chicago Rules” system from the Anniversary map, with a bit of help from Der Keunstler’s Hybrid map. I have not had a chance to playtest this yet; all comments are welcome!

PLEASE NOTE THAT THESE RULES ARE NOT FOR THE GLOBAL 1940 MAP.

Setup Changes:
At the start of the game, each Allied nation (i.e. USSR, UK, and USA) gets 2 scientist tokens, and each Axis nation (Germany and Japan) gets 3 scientist tokens. Each team thus winds up with 6 total scientist tokens. Scientist tokens cannot be created, destroyed, or traded between nations.

Research Phase:
At the start of each nation’s turn, that nation assigns any of its idle scientists to a research project. Ordinarily, each scientist will contribute 1d6 tech points toward that project each turn. However, if the same nation has two or more scientists teaming up on the same project, then there is a 2 point penalty. For example, if the UK assigns one scientist to research Radar, it will roll 1d6 each turn, and collect that many tech points toward Radar. If the die comes up “3”, then the UK gets 3 points toward Radar. If Germany assigns two scientists to research Heavy Bombers, then it will roll 2d6 each turn, and then subtract 2. For example, if the dice come up “4” and “5”, then Germany will collect 4 + 5 - 2 = 7 points toward Heavy Bombers. Similarly, if Japan assign all three scientists to research Jet Fighters, then it will roll 3d6 each turn, and then subtract 2. For example, if the dice come up “3”, “1”, "and “2”, then Japan will collect 3 + 1 + 2 - 2 = 4 points toward Jet Fighters.

Each technology has a “target number” of tech points that are needed to discover the tech. If your nation has accumulated enough tech points toward a specific tech, then your nation discover that tech, and your nation can immediately take advantage of the tech’s capabilities. For example, the target number for Radar is 14. If the UK gets 3 points toward Radar on the first turn, then 6 points toward Radar on the second turn, then 5 points toward Radar on the third turn, then the UK would discover Radar on its third turn, because 3 + 6 + 5 = 14. The UK would be able to use radar immediately upon discovery, to defend against Japanese airstrikes on the third turn, and to defend against German airstrikes on the fourth turn. Note that other nations on the same team do not benefit from one nation’s discoveries; i.e., just because Britain has Radar does not mean that the USA gets Radar too. Of course, the USA is welcome to do its own research on Radar if it wants to, either before, during, or after the UK’s research.

Available Technologies:

Land Techs

Improved Artillery (needs 14 tech points): Your nation’s artillery attack at 3 instead of 2. In addition, each piece of your artillery can give +1 attack to up to 2 different infantry. Any given infantry’s attack is still capped at 2, i.e., you cannot support the same infantry with two different artillery pieces.

Mechanized Infantry (needs 16 tech points): Your nation’s infantry can move 2 spaces when paired 1:1 with tanks. This movement can occur during combat, blitz, and/or non-combat as long as the infantry and tanks move from the same place, to the same place, at the same time.

Improved Factories (needs 18 tech points): All of your nation’s factories get +2 to their production caps. This means that valueless islands now have a production cap of 2 units per turn, territories with 1 IPC now have a production cap of 3 units per turn, and territories with 3 IPCs now have a production cap of 5 units per turn. The maximum industrial damage your factories can absorb is likewise increased; for example, London can now absorb up to 20 damage instead of up to 16 damage. Finally, when you pay to repair industrial damage, each 1 IPC that you spend can remove up to 2 damage counters. The production cap, damage cap, and repair cost for each of your factories all return to normal during turns when that factory is occupied by an opponent who does not have this tech.
You do not “release” the scientist(s) who worked on that tech until the end of your turn; i.e., the same scientist can never research two different techs in the same turn.

Radar (needs 12 tech points): Whenever your nation makes any type of anti-aircraft roll, your AA dice hit on a roll of 2 or below.

Sea Techs

Improved Subs (needs 16 tech points): Your nation’s subs attack at 3 instead of 2. In addition, at the end of each of your non-combat moves, you may have each of your subs deal one industrial damage to one enemy factory if that factory is adjacent to the sea zone that the sub is currently in. You may inflict this damage even if the sub participated in combat this turn (but not if the sub was taken as a casualty).

Marines (needs 10 tech points): Each of your nation’s cruisers may load, carry, and unload 1 infantry. If playing with pillboxes (see bottom of page), each attacking infantry that unloads from a cruiser cancels one pillbox. If not playing with pillboxes, each attacking infantry that unloads from a cruiser attacks at 2. The cruiser’s combat movement ends when it unloads an infantry. The cruiser may still bombard or participate in naval combat as normal while delivering infantry, but if the cruiser is taken as a casualty in naval combat, then any infantry on board are automatically killed. Infantry on board a cruiser are cargo, and do not participate in naval combat.

Liberty Ships (needs 14 tech points): Your nation’s transports may be selected as casualties during combat. If you have at least two transports in the same sea zone, and that sea zone is attacked, then you may roll one die on defense, which hits on a roll of 1 or less.

AA Cruisers (needs 12 tech points): Each of your nation’s cruisers rolls one anti-aircraft die against up to 2 attacking planes, which hit on a roll of 1 (without Radar) or on a roll of 2 or less (with Radar). Like ordinary AAA fire, these dice kill aircraft before the aircraft get a chance to counter-attack, and the total number of AA dice you can roll (from all sources combined) is capped by the total number of enemy aircraft in the sea zone. For example, if 1 bomber and 3 fighters attack 3 cruisers, you can only roll 4 AA dice against the enemy planes, because there are only 4 enemy planes. Similarly, if 10 bombers attack 3 cruisers, you can only roll 6 AA dice against the enemy planes, because you only have 6 AA dice available.

Air Techs

Air Bases (needs 16 tech points): Your nation can scramble up to 1 fighter or bomber from any territory your nation controls to defend any sea zone adjacent to that territory. In addition, fighters and bombers that begin your turn in a territory with one of your nation’s factories get +1 movement (fighters have range 5; bombers have range 7).

Jet Fighters (needs 18 tech points): Your nation’s fighters defend at 5 instead of 4. In addition, each of your nation’s fighters gets one anti-aircraft die on defense, which hits on a roll of 1 (without Radar) or on a roll of 2 or less (with Radar). Like ordinary AAA fire, these dice kill aircraft before the aircraft get a chance to counter-attack, and the total number of AA dice you can roll (from all sources combined) is capped by the total number of enemy aircraft in the sea zone. For example, if 2 bombers attack 4 fighters and an AAA gun, you can only roll 2 AA dice against the bombers, because there are only 2 enemy bombers. Likewise, if 4 bombers attack 3 fighters, you can only roll 3 AA dice against the bombers, because you only have 3 AA dice available.

Heavy Bombers (needs 18 tech points): Your nation’s bombers attack at 5 instead of 4. In addition, each of your nation’s bombers now deals 1d6 + 2 industrial damage on a successful strategic bombing raid.

Paratroopers (needs 20 tech points): Each of your nation’s bombers may load, carry, and unload 1 infantry. If playing with pillboxes (see bottom of page), each attacking infantry that unloads from a bomber cancels one pillbox. If not playing with bomber, each attacking infantry that unloads from a cruiser attacks at 2. The bomber’s combat movement ends when it unloads an infantry. After unloading, the bomber may choose to avoid combat, attack as normal, or bomb as normal (if the zone where the infantry is unloaded contains an enemy factory). Infantry on board a bomber are cargo, and do not participate in air combat or interception. If the bomber is taken as a casualty due to AA fire from any source or during an interception/dogfight, then any infantry on board are automatically lost.

Cleanup Phase

At the end of each nation’s turn, any scientists who recently finished making a discovery are released back to their nation. They will be available at the start of the nation’s next turn for a new research project. The same scientist can never participate in two different research projects on the same turn.

Pillbox Rules

Whenever anyone makes an amphibious assault against a land territory, the defender automatically gets 2 temporary “pillbox tokens” that are placed on the battle board and removed after the battle. The defender gets exactly 2 pillboxes regardless of how many units participate in the amphibious assault. Pillboxes do not roll combat dice, but each pillbox may be absorbed as a casualty. A pillbox can be spent to absorb a casualty during shore bombardment, or a pillbox can be spent to absorb a casualty during regular combat.

The attacker can cancel 1 pillbox for each infantry, artillery, or tank that attacks from an adjacent land territory. For example, if the UK unloads a transport into German-occupied France, but the UK already controls NW Europe, and the UK has 1 infantry in NW Europe that moves into France to join the attack, then Germany would only get 1 pillbox for that combat. If the UK had 2 infantry in NW Europe and moved them both into France to join the attack, then Germany would not get any pillboxes for that combat.

Similarly, the attacker can cancel 1 pillbox for each infantry that is unloaded into the land territory from a cruiser or a bomber during that combat. Note that there are no separate units in this mod called marines or paratroopers; it’s just that when you unload infantry from a cruiser or bomber, it thematically represents your nation’s marine forces or paratrooper forces.

Bonus Insanity Rules

If you really just can’t get enough house rules, try boosting the standard defensive value of infantry to 3, and the standard non-combat movement of transports and cruisers to 3. These are not techs; they’re just new values for all units that I think would work well with this tech system.

Thanks! I mostly agree with your comment about per-dice research efficiency; the only reason I didn’t include additional penalties for triple-stacking your scientists is for the sake of simplicity. If you want to play with a -3 penalty, or (even better) a -4 penalty that rounds up to a -3 penalty if you roll three 1’s, then go right ahead!

Giving each Axis nation 3 tokens and each Allied nation 2 tokens tends to give the Axis an early edge in research (they will manage their first couple of breakthroughs earlier than the Allies will), but then the Allies will start to catch up and then overtake the Axis later in the war, because the Axis scientists (on average) will be more “crowded” and will take more stacking penalties.

You could bump Radar to 14 pts. or even to 16 pts. if you really want to, but there are limited opportunities to make full use of the potential synergy. E.g., suppose Germany is using a “Dark Skies” approach to ward off Allied fleets with its enormous Nazi bomber squadrons. Britain might want both Radar and Anti-Aircraft Cruisers to help protect its fleet. Russia, on the other hand, only needs Radar – they’re not going to build any cruisers. Similarly, Russia doesn’t have much use for Jet Fighters, since if it’s suffering from a strategic bombing campaign, it won’t be able to afford much in the way of extra fighters. There’s also the concern that “Heavy Bombers” has always been an overpowered technology in every version of Axis & Allies that had tech. I tried to err in the opposite direction by making the anti-aircraft techs roughly as powerful as the aircraft-enhancement techs!

There is an “Improved Artillery” tech in some of the OOB versions of Axis & Allies, and I’ve never seen anyone buy it, except maybe Russia, who really does have to count every dollar and might not be able to afford enough artillery to fully power its infantry stacks. It is really challenging to fully exploit the advantage of 2:1 artillery support is that it’s really hard to maintain the desired ratio. E.g. if I have a stack of 10 infantry and 5 artillery, then after one round of combat, I probably have something like 2 infantry and 5 artillery, and the extra artillery support becomes moot. It stays moot on defense, too, when those artillery try to hold the ground they just captured. But if I have a stack of 20 infantry and 5 artillery instead, then my army is hugely inefficient – even with 2:1 artillery support, I’m only generating 40 pips of punch on 25 units, so I’m going to give you multiple rounds of combat in which to score hits and wear down my army.

You get the same problem in reverse if you want to only boost the artillery’s native attack power. With a stack of, e.g., 8 infantry and 3 artillery, the tech would only give you +3 pips of punch – it’s just not very exciting. You could try attacking with a stack of all artillery, e.g., 10 artillery for $40, but that just seems weird and un-thematic.

Anyway, let me know if you try out the rules, with or without some modifications! I’d be curious to see how they work in live play. I’m defending my rules so you have the benefit of my opinions, but they’re just opinions, and ultimately the house rules are there for everyone to enjoy however they like…if you think you’ll have more fun tweaking the costs or nerfing a couple of the techs, then go with what seems fun! :-)