ORIGINAL: seille
I´ll answer the first question.
The german player decided to attack fast as possible (before the historical date)
At the time he started in November 1939 the Maginot line is his only option to attack.
Benelux countries "sleep" at this time. He cannot move into these hexes before they become active
in April 1940.
He can activate them himself by playing the western offensive card, which is available in april 1940.
That card will occupy Kopenhagen and Oslo for the germans. It will also capture Fort Eben Emael in Belgium
and reduce the readiness of the western defenders by 50% for this turn.
In case you still wonder...If Tom would have waited until April 1940 my forces would have been very ready
in the Maginot and in front of Paris. XP of 10 or 40 makes a big difference in the fights and that´s what he wanted to avoid.
But isn't each XP simply +1% effectiveness, compared to 100% added by the fortifications, iirc?