Memoir '44 better than Axis & Allies?

[Iron_Chef]

Just bought the WWII beer-n-pretzels strategy game Memoir '44 (designed by Richard Borg, designer of Battle Cry, which uses the same Command & Colors system, only M44 uses an improved and updated version). I have to say that I am impressed!

This game offers much more replay value than Axis & Allies, because the mapboard is doublesided (beach and all-land scenarios), with customizable terrain (beach, bridge, ocean, river, hedgerow, hill, forest, town/village) and obstacles (bunkers, bridges, sandbags, hedgehogs, barbed wire). Dozens of scenarios (recreating actual historical WWII battles, hypothetical and fictional ones, too) are available with the game and for free online. Best of all, each battle scenario only takes about 30-60 minutes, unlike the 8 hours common to Axis & Allies... The game can be taught much faster than A&A and is much easier to get non-grognards to play with you. Plus, M44 comes with all the cool plastic miniatures (larger than A&A's) beer-n-pretzels wargamers love: infantry, tanks, artillery, sandbags, barbed wire, hedgehogs. Special forces are simulated by adding tokens to units to create French Resistance, German SS, USA Rangers and British Commandos. You issue orders to units in your flanks and center by playing Command cards (which can simulate air strikes and other special actions) that dictate what troops you can move or fight with on your turn. Combat is resolved with dice; you must roll the correct symbol of your target to score a kill. Each die has one symbol on each face: infantry (on two sides), tank, grenade (wild card you use to score a hit against artillery or any unit), star (miss), or flag (causes target unit to retreat). The number of dice you roll is dictated by how far apart the attacker and defender are; the farther apart, the fewer dice you roll. Terrain, line of sight and obstacles all affect how many dice you roll or even if an attack is possible. I found the system easy and fun.

Read reviews at Boardgame Geek (scroll down):
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/10630

Official website:
http://memoir44.com

Days of Wonder published Memoir '44 and it is a gorgeous game full of high quality components (including a fantastic, compartmentalized storage tray) and a full color rulebook (take that, Avalon Hill!). I also recommend Pirate's Cove by this publisher: http://piratescovegame.com

With both these new games I just purchased, Days of Wonder gave me my $50 worth of fun and were the nicest looking, sturdiest games I've ever bought. Days of Wonder is easily the best board game company out there!

 

[Iron_Chef]

Here's a peek at the beach side of the board with a scenario set up. Note the cardholders for displaying your Command cards. These are actually three separate holders (like those in Scrabble or Upwords) with a clever little hook on one end so that they all link together and can be pulled around the tabletop without difficulty as needed (another nice touch).

 

[Crothian]

This looks very interesting but I'm really suprised bt the "8 hours common to Axis & Allies."....Our games take up to 3 hours.

What is a non-grognard?

 

[Iron_Chef]

This looks very interesting but I'm really suprised bt the "8 hours common to Axis & Allies."....Our games take up to 3 hours.

What is a non-grognard?

When you are playing equally experienced and devious opponents, A&A never takes less than 6-8 hours in my experience; sometimes 10 hours or more. We've never played a game that took less time, except once in 1996 (our first and last five player game). Due to the total inexperience of the Russian player, Germany overwhelmingly took Moscow by round 2, effectively ending the game. That was of course, the original A&A and not the Revised Edition, which, with its new map, would theoretically make a repeat of that one awful night a possibility.

A grognard to me is anyone who has been a dedicated gamer (wargame or RPG, whatever) who tend to play games not played by average citizens (who stick to games like poker, checkers or monopoly), who have at least a decade or two of such experience under their belt (can name designers and companies, and, from memory, can quote even obscure rules and if need be, recount product lines in detail), someone who knows rules inside and out and appreciates longer, more complicated games that most ordinary citizens would have no time for or desire to game even if they had time. Under that definition, a non-grognard is someone with minimal experience with games more strategy-oriented and complex than those commonly found in most homes and who games but infrequently. In other words, a grognard is a crusty veteran and a non-grognard a comparitively inexperienced newbie, often much younger.

 

[Iron_Chef]

Okay, now that I've had the game for three days, I've played 6 games of M44 as the Axis and only won Omaha Beach (twice easily) and St. Vith - Ardennes (just barely, once). All other scenarios were an easy to moderate win for the Allies, with the Axis having a hard time eliminating more than 2-3 Allied units: Arracourt, Operation: Luttich, Arhem Bridge (although playing this out "to the death" regardless of medals proved a tough but certain doom to the Allies, just like in history). Is this right? I had bad luck with command cards and dice in some, but that was common to both sides... The Axis had good command cards (tactics) in several, but positioning troops to get the most use out of them (thanks to terrain or fear of Allied artillery fire) prevented them from being used either at all or to maximum effect in many cases. When the Axis gets fewer than 5 Command cards, the Axis seems to have a very rough time of it...

Is defeat after defeat common for the Axis player? I'm no slouch when it comes to beer-n-pretzels wargames (like Axis & Allies, Risk 2210 A.D., Shogun, etc.) and can't believe how badly I keep getting trounced in M44! I mean, it may historically accurate and all for the Axis to lose most battles, but that does not equal FUN in my eyes. I already know how the war turned out. Recreating it under the excact same conditions gets old quick (like Axis & Allies).

Most scenarios seem too unbalanced in favor the Allies (esp. if they have artillery or air strikes). Don't get me wrong; I like Memoir '44 a lot, but I don't care about historical accuracy --- all I care about is playability (meaning fun). I would prefer to see more fictional and hypothetical scenarios that had both sides equally balanced and that offered some victory condition other than just collecting medals (such as "Das Nachshublager/The Depot," which you can download at http://memoir44.com under Scenarios From The Front or from BoardGameGeek.com's M44 page).

Does anybody else feel this way or am I just crazy, LOL? I also would be interested in seeing National Advantages added, as well as some new units like Commanders or Generals (maybe with the ability to gain experience points that you could take with you into later scenarios until killed or defeated).

 

[Iron_Chef]

Played some more M44 scenarios and have come to the conclusion that while M44 itself is a good and fun system, there is a massive problem with unbalanced scenarios leading to the play being no fun for the Axis player. The fan-made scenarios suffer from the same flaw. Has anybody come to either this same conclusion or designed balanced battle scenarios where both sides start off equally matched where skill and luck, rather than predetermined history, decide the outcome?

 

[Iron_Chef]

Talked with Days of Wonder about M44's unbalanced scenarios and they say they have Richard Borg (the creator) working on some balanced ones.

My playtest comments also helped revise a (cinematic rather than reality based) fan-made scenario on the Memoir '44 official site ("Sabotage!!!" by Stuka Pilot) so the Axis now has extra units (and thus an improved victory chance).

If anyone else thinks that M44 is a great game that needs to provide more balanced OPTIONS for those who want them, speak up on the official M44 forum, located here:

http://www.memoir44.com/index.php?t=thread&frm_id=35&rid=30488&S=b24bd14975514e2d08d366b30f93cfff