France and what should be done about it.

Sounds good to me but I think that blockhouses should only be able to boost one inf. and one artillery, or any combination of the two. I think that better simulates real life, in reality not every troop will be holed up in a blockhouse. That is just my thinking though, loved the airborne idea, sounds very good.

This unit works ONE of two ways:

1. protecting all coastlines from invasion only

2. protecting against attack from all adjacent land territories

I still thind that they shoul only be able to protect one border or coastline.

I would not work too many exceptions. Look at UK. They would have to build many of these just to protect the island

What about france? Allies just invade from another SZ and invalidate the investment. Play the rule out.

Plus for 10 IPC and the limitation of defending Artillery and infantry it does not get out of hand. I think the rule is perfect now…so play it out in your next game. The airborne now works perfectly to give the attacker a counter which AA is all about.

NO, Blockhouses (forts) would be a terrible idea.  One of the reasons the blitzkreig did so well against the KW/Maginot Line was that the French and the Belgian forces relied heavily on border forts, which were made only to defend from one direction, which were in turn easily seized by paratroopers attacking from the rear (look up Fort Eban Emael).  I’d say the Germans gained more from the Allies’ dependence/resources/time spent on building the forts than the Allies did defending them.  At least during WWII.

Just let there be regular dices.  (Or maybe have the French tanks attack at a 1, if we want to be accurate, in terms of mobility and range on a tank of gas.)

Also, I think that defending infantry get TWICE the firepower regular attacking infantry do already.  Yeah, I know artillery balances it out, but it still isn’t as cost effective, at least defensively.

Also, NO BLOCKHOUSES.

Okay lets look at blockhouses realistically.

They were a cheap way to fortify your defense, were useless for attacking and could not move.

So I think 0-4-0-6, they do not help any other piece in any way, and I am undecided on how many borders they should protect.

I think if Larry implements some kind of blockhouse or coastal def (He could change his mind) it would have to be something simple. A blockhouse 0-4-0-6 or pairing units already in the game would be simple enough. As for what boarders it protects, you have to look at a block house as many structures so it should protect all boarders I think maybe raise the cost slightly. We still don’t know the full extent of what a port or air strip brings to the table. There could be some type of def bonus tied to these new concepts which would reduce the need for the things we a now discussing.

I think if you raised the price any more, then the tanks and infantry would become a better investment

@Brain:

I think if you raised the price any more, then the tanks and infantry would become a better investment

Tanks and Infantry SHOULD be a better investment.  WW2 proved that defensive fortifications were a bad investment!  I am against any defensive unit that does not take this into account!

but WW2 is replete with constant examples of them. They existed, why cant they be in the game?

@Imperious:

but WW2 is replete with constant examples of them. They existed, why cant they be in the game?

Ahh, we agree. The game really should have som blockhouses in the set-up, because France did start the game with the Maginot-Line, and since A&A’s purpose is to honor and memory the service-men, this game should have a blockhouse unit too. But also this blockhouse unit should be so expansive and with low combat value that nobody wants to purchase it later in the game. Now you dont see many battleships being purchased do you ? Well thats because carriers are a better buy, but the game still has a battleship unit, right ? So we need a battleship unit and a blockhouse unit, but you dont have to buy it, right ? Let that other guy buy this obsolete stuff and get a lesson.

Are you kidding? Battleships are the perfect piece for finishing off a stubborn UK or a stubborn Japan.

I say they increase rolls of infantry and artillery by one, and cost 6. But to make the number of blockhouses needed accurate, they can only boost two units (any combination of infantry and artillery) and can be destroyed. Now, should the units they are boosting die along with the blockhouse or should they survive it’s destruction? I’m thinking survive it.

@maverick_76:

I say they increase rolls of infantry and artillery by one, and cost 6. But to make the number of blockhouses needed accurate, they can only boost two units (any combination of infantry and artillery) and can be destroyed. Now, should the units they are boosting die along with the blockhouse or should they survive it’s destruction? I’m thinking survive it.

You would be better off just buying tanks.

@Imperious:

@Veqryn:

@Brain:

I think if you raised the price any more, then the tanks and infantry would become a better investment

Tanks and Infantry SHOULD be a better investment.  WW2 proved that defensive fortifications were a bad investment!  I am against any defensive unit that does not take this into account!

but WW2 is replete with constant examples of them. They existed, why cant they be in the game?

Yes, and there should be a blockhouse unit IF and only if that unit is over-priced and not OP in any way. 
A 0-4-0-7 unit that defended only one border, would be a good example of a REAL blockhouse, as the war showed.

A 0-4-0-7 unit that defended only one border

How does this model the Maginot line? You got 6 infantry defending behind something that rolls ONE 4 or less? This is nothing to worry about the model has to reflect some hideous opening fire sequence that can potentially take out alot of the punch of your army, or just lay down and wiff it. Only something that gets a roll of 2 or less for each matching ART and INF can account for the psychology of having one as a deterrent.  This piece has to make people afraid to try to attack, but also possible have a small effect.

@Imperious:

A 0-4-0-7 unit that defended only one border

How does this model the Maginot line? You got 6 infantry defending behind something that rolls ONE 4 or less? This is nothing to worry about the model has to reflect some hideous opening fire sequence that can potentially take out alot of the punch of your army, or just lay down and wiff it. Only something that gets a roll of 2 or less for each matching ART and INF can account for the psychology of having one as a deterrent.  This piece has to make people afraid to try to attack, but also possible have a small effect.

You could build more than 1 blockhouse and the price should be 6.

You can build more tanks too?  You can just not leave france open as well.

Problem is making one unit that just rolls another die is not a solution. The fact that you got something that requires a heavy investment and may not or may pay off when the time comes perfectly models what the fortification unit can do. Another poster mentioned that its a folly to buy them. Yes under the system of having a 2 or less extra die roll in the opening sequence can either be great or a crapshoot. Thats why its a great idea because it can go either way. It poses a psychological risk of the investment and may stop all the silly invasions going on just to double collect income. This is great please try it out.

Blockhouse rolls 3 dice one time only at 4 or less pre-empt. The catch is the the attacking player rolls 1 dice at 3 or less before to see if he just goes around it w/o getting hit.  :-D LOL :-D

@Imperious:

A 0-4-0-7 unit that defended only one border

How does this model the Maginot line? You got 6 infantry defending behind something that rolls ONE 4 or less? This is nothing to worry about the model has to reflect some hideous opening fire sequence that can potentially take out alot of the punch of your army, or just lay down and wiff it. Only something that gets a roll of 2 or less for each matching ART and INF can account for the psychology of having one as a deterrent.  This piece has to make people afraid to try to attack, but also possible have a small effect.

Out of all the ideas for blockhouses, and I do disagree with the unit in general, this one has been the best:

6 ipcs to Fire a 1 out of 6, can be upgraded for another 6 ipcs to fire a 2 out of 6, for a total of 12 ipcs for full version

1 hitpoint and can not be captured (just dies if the controller loses that territory) [could also do zero hitpoints, just like AA gun, and still would not die unless territory is lost]

fires a 1 or 2 out of 6 (depending on normal or upgraded) before combat begins on all attacking land units, up to a maximum of 10 land units more than the total number of defending units (just like shore bombard, the casualties may fire their casualty shots)

once in place, it is pointing at a certain territory border and only defends against attacks coming from that border (the border can be land or sea, and therefore does not matter if it is amphibious or regular assault)

is built in place, but can only be built in territories that contain an IC or are adjacent to a territory that contains an IC.  Only one blockhouse per border.