Matrix Games Forums

i've read through the posts and couldn't find answers to the following:

1. How much time does 1 game turn represent?

2. Are there any production delays for different units or do all units become available the turn they are built?

3. It looks like Britain, US, and France are ALWAYS played by the same player?

4. the 5th player in a five player game is China?

- it seems a better choice for player dispositions would have been something like [Germany and Italy] [Japan] [Russia and ComChina] [Britain and France] [US and NatChina]. in a 4 player game the 4th player would take the last two "teams"

- although cooperation between US and Britain could get complicated if the actions are run by two seperate players. ie. it would be hard to execute Operation Overlord over 2 player turns; [Britain] then [US]

5. can a side be completely computer controlled? (like China in a 4 player game?)

that's all for now...

ORIGINAL: MButtazoni

i've read through the posts and couldn't find answers to the following:

1. How much time does 1 game turn represent?

2. Are there any production delays for different units or do all units become available the turn they are built?

3. It looks like Britain, US, and France are ALWAYS played by the same player?

4. the 5th player in a five player game is China?

- it seems a better choice for player dispositions would have been something like [Germany and Italy] [Japan] [Russia and ComChina] [Britain and France] [US and NatChina]. in a 4 player game the 4th player would take the last two "teams"

- although cooperation between US and Britain could get complicated if the actions are run by two seperate players. ie. it would be hard to execute Operation Overlord over 2 player turns; [Britain] then [US]

5. can a side be completely computer controlled? (like China in a 4 player game?)

that's all for now...

1. 3 months
2. all units take time to build, from 1 turn for supply, 2 turns for infantry, 10 for a Carrier or Heavy Fleet.
3. Yes, the Western Allies are one player and include all of the countries you mentioned and several others.
4. Yes, China is the 5th player.
The game will be easily played PBEM by anywhere from 2 to 5 players. With 4, Western Allies and China should be played by the same player. Obviously there were many options for us when we came up with the players, but we came up with this system for several reasons having to do with our game system and given the coordination of Western Allied armed forces, we thought it was a valid system to best recreate the situation.
5. Yes, any or all of the 5 players can be set for human control. Also, due to turn structure, it is easy in games versus the AI or PBEM games to allow different combinations. The turn order is Germany, Japan, Soviet Union, Western Allies and China. In PBEM it works best if sides next to each other are played by the same player (to cut down on number of times the turn must be emailed). So 2 player works great, as does 3, 4 or 5.

that took 12 minutes to get an answer. i'll guess it took 3 minutes to type the answer, so the response time was 9 minutes.

I assume this will improve when the game is released? [:D]







[:D] = just kidding
thanks for the answers

ORIGINAL: MButtazoni

that took 12 minutes to get an answer. i'll guess it took 3 minutes to type the answer, so the response time was 9 minutes.

I assume this will improve when the game is released? [:D]



[:D] = just kidding
thanks for the answers

Sometimes you just get lucky.

1 turn is 3 months? So one year will be just 4 turns? Seems too fast to me.

ORIGINAL: DiRaC

1 turn is 3 months? So one year will be just 4 turns? Seems too fast to me.

heh, doubt it will seem fast when your PBEMing with 4 other players...
It's not how many turns you get, it's what you do with your turn that counts...
want more?

IMO, seasonal turns are perfect for a strategic game covering 6 years of action.

ORIGINAL: DiRaC

1 turn is 3 months? So one year will be just 4 turns? Seems too fast to me.

Er . . . I kind of have to agree with this one.

ORIGINAL: MButtazoni

IMO, seasonal turns are perfect for a strategic game covering 6 years of action.

That still only gives 24 turns for the whole war. That does seem kind of short; especially if some units (like carriers and heavy fleets) take 10 turns to construct! If you want much of a chance to use these, you'd better build them in the first few turns.

ORIGINAL: NorthStar
...especially if some units (like carriers and heavy fleets) take 10 turns to construct! If you want much of a chance to use these, you'd better build them in the first few turns.

...maybe not the first few turns but at least by 1941 or so. That is true of all WWII Strategic games. (i dont count Axis and Allies)

So let's say the game does change to one month turns (which i DO NOT agree with) then ships will take 30 turns to build, and the game will take 3 times longer to play to completion, what have we gained?

Good point. It look anywhere from 24 - 36 months for the US to construct battleships during the war....18 - 24 months to build carriers (Essex). Its more realistic than having the US plop down a completed battle fleet every other turn.

Also, we don't know how many sub-phases are involved with each 3-month turn. I am willing to wait & see before rendering a judgement. Who knows, with all the detail involved, it might take 3 - 5 hours per turn fiddling with everything.

AH Third Reich did OK with 3 month turns

Unfortunately their naval rules were *ahem* abstracted slightly. 9 factor fleets? I suppose the concept was OK for the First Release back in the 1970s but I'm certainly a lot happier with realistic construction schedules.

ORIGINAL: Greyshaft

AH Third Reich did OK with 3 month turns
...

For anyone interested, the latest generation of Third Reich (and Empire of the Rising Sun) has been available for about 9 months now from Bruce Harper and GMT. It is coincidenatlly called "A World at War" and is arguably the best WWII strategic board game out there. I've played WiF and A3R for 10 years and this is an order of magnitude better (and more enjoyable) than those titles.

You can see it at http://aworldatwar.com

I will stay on-topic from now on, i promise [&o]

Thanks for the link. It looks great but at $175 I'll wait for GGWaW!

yes, it's not a lightweight game by any stretch of the imagination. The rule book clocks in at 196 pages.

That still only gives 24 turns for the whole war. That does seem kind of short; especially if some units (like carriers and heavy fleets) take 10 turns to construct! If you want much of a chance to use these, you'd better build them in the first few turns.

Good point, NorthStar.

If turns remain 3 months (my preference is a 1 or 2 month turns) by the summer of '43 there would be no reason to build BB's or CV's.

ORIGINAL: MButtazoni

yes, it's not a lightweight game by any stretch of the imagination. The rule book clocks in at 196 pages.

As I said to a friend I sent the link to; "Look ma! Its complicated!"