Axis&Allies set 2+

[Six Sided Dice]

Hi,

I have just ordered two full cases of Axis & Allies miniatures... The Eastern Front, and the D Day sets. Plus I went and bought a 2 player Starter Kit from ebay, and now I am avidly awaiting the goodies to arrive in the post :)

Not knowing anything much about the game, I was just wondering if anyone here can tell me: How important is it to own the first Axis & Allies TMG Base set, or can I get along fine without it?

Obviously, having just spent a small fortune purchasing two cases, (a spare map and counter set) and a starter, I`m not terribly keen on forking out more money right now... but if I am going to need this initial run of miniatures, I`d better do it soon-ish before the set vanishes from the shelves for good.

Can anyone advise me please?


Six

[Six Sided Dice]

Anybody... please?


I really would like to have this question answered by anyone who knows :)

[Chops]

If you have ONE starter with the 2 cases of boosters, you have more that enough to play MANY games without problems. Where many people, myself included, need a lot more minis, is when they try to protray specific battles of time periods. Battles in the early war, say France 1940, you need specific untis that you may not have pulled out of the 2 sets that are part of your initial investment. You are going to have a lot of stuff you may not necessarily want, so go to the A&A Miniature Marketplace and try to trade to fill out what you want. Enjoy the game.

[Six Sided Dice]

Thank you so much for that Chops. It`s what I thought (and hoped) the answer might be... and it was kinda vital to us that we had this answered by someone in the know.

As for the trading, I can hardly wait (Steve doesn`t like the trading bit, and that`s really my bag) :)

A million thanks,


Anny xox

[Mcduncan]

The base set has most of the basic units. Units like: Sherman, Panzer 4, M1 Garand, SS-Panzergrenadier, and the Tiger1. It also has some units that are highly useful: KV-1, T34/76, and the Churchill Crocodile. And if don't like these unit they trade great.

[malcolm_river]

The main problem you might have is fielding basic infantry. The base set has a lot of things that might be used as a backbone for an army: Arisaka Riflemen, Mosin Nagant 1891s, SMLE No. 4 Riflemen, Mauser Kar 98s, and the M1 Garands could be vital to you if you want to create squadrons of with these units.

My suggestion: go to Ebay, buy 4-6 of these guys. That way, you have more than you might ever use.

[Six Sided Dice]

Thank you... thank you, each of you.

I (we) have written down your suggested ebay NEED list, and will endeavour to pick these pieces off. I did a mental check (just in my head) and conclude that your suggestions are about spot on for a balanced force.

.... oh and yes, I am aware it is strange for a girl to be interested in millitary history and gaming. I guess I`m just a bit strange *wink*

Anny :)

[Six Sided Dice]

Many thanks guys,

that`s all invaluable info.

Steve.

[oddfellow]

Take a look at dragonjustice.com You can fill out some of your basic needs for cheap(ish). For example: Sherman tanks, a staple for the Allies, are relatively inexpensive and certain base set units, like Engineers and anti-tank guns, can be had for $0.09 each. Yes, nine-cents! Lots of good infantry units like flamethrowers and mortars hover between $.20 - $.70 cents range. Welcome to the game, its a blast.

[Six Sided Dice]

Thank you so much for those wonderfully complete replies. This information is invaluable to us newbies.

We are particularly interested in two theatres of conflict, Russian Front, and D Day + Which is why we went so mad with joy when we spotted these sets recently (and accidentally) when browsing the net.

If you check carefully, you will see that we actually joined this site back in 2005, but became disillusioned with the game due to the rather simplistic rules and quality of the maps. We swapped the bits and pieces we had in a trade, and never intended to get back to the game.

Wrong Doh!

We since discovered how fantastic this game can be from watching other players in a nearby gaming club, and even learned how to make our own maps at little financial cost or expenditure in time and effort :)

So, kicking ourselves for giving up so easily the first time, we`re back with a vengeance, and intending to enjoy the game to the full.

I think we will indeed pick off the bits and pieces we need from the Base Set on ebay. This way we will have a more rounded collection to play with.

Tournament games (or competitive play) is not really our thing, so picking up the `stronger` miniatures will not really be a priority for us. However, picking up pieces we need to enjoy our scenario specific themed games might well be our greatest priority. I should think (soon enough) we`ll have some pretty good tradable spares left over from our 2 cases, and will be able to make a start filling the gaps in our `need` list almost immediately on the trade forums.

All the best,


Anny.

[FSSF]

Personnally, D-Day was my least favorite set.
I think it was the only set I didn't buy a case, just a few units on Ebay.
I almost dropped from the game completely.
That was how bad D-Day was for me.

Even on the D-Day map, the Amtrack, Higgins boat and DD-Sherman are useless. 3 rare slots wasted for me. My two regular war buddies never use them. I would have suggested a case of the Base Set for a newbie. All the basics are there. Commanders, basic infantry, MGs, M4A1 Shermans, M1 Garands, SS-Panzergrenadiers, etc

Good luck and welcome to the game!

[Six Sided Dice]

Thats interesting FSSF. Looked at the D Day set photo gallery, I must admit, quite a few of the pieces don`t inspire me in the way I `wanted` them to. Hopefully they will look better in the flesh. But I figure we will get a lot of fun from using the special miniatures from this set when it comes to making up our D Day landings (we go to a lot of detail to make our games in any genre as visually appealing and as intense as possible... winning, losing, and competitive balance are not important to us).

As for the Higgins boats, I imagine we will be using the official maps purely as a guideline for making our own `usable` maps :)

Thank you for your advice SFFS. That`s very cool.


Anny

[Cruizin2000]

A case of the Base Set is a MUST. Maybe even 2 cases. Check out the gallery and you'll see why. The other sets are just good additions for the Base Set.

C2000

[Six Sided Dice]

I`m beginning to see what you mean Cruizin2000.

My D Day case/set (12 boosters) arrived today :)

I pulled all but 3 miniatures... Typhoon, Spitfire, and French Soma S-35.

The ratio of duplicates is pretty good in almost all cases, and all in all I`m pretty satisfied and happy. I even pulled 2 Jagdtigers :) A few more 88mm Flak 36`s would have been nice though :(

Can anyone explain to me why there are Free French infantry (from the desert theater), Japanese, Russians, etc included in the D Day set? It feels kinda weird opening boosters containing models that (historically) never took part in the June 6th landings?

.. or am I just nit-picking?

Cheers,

Steve

[Cruizin2000]

I`m beginning to see what you mean Cruizin2000.

My D Day case/set (12 boosters) arrived today :)

I pulled all but 3 miniatures... Typhoon, Spitfire, and French Soma S-35.

The ratio of duplicates is pretty good in almost all cases, and all in all I`m pretty satisfied and happy. I even pulled 2 Jagdtigers :) A few more 88mm Flak 36`s would have been nice though :(

Can anyone explain to me why there are Free French infantry (from the desert theater), Japanese, Russians, etc included in the D Day set? It feels kinda weird opening boosters containing models that (historically) never took part in the June 6th landings?

.. or am I just nit-picking?

Cheers,

Steve


It's World History According to WOTC. Don't worry about it. The Spitfire that you didn't get is actually a ME-109 painted in British colors. I think that the corrected version is coming out 9/2007 or 12/2007. Maybe.

Welcome to the fun of A&A minis.

C2000

[Six Sided Dice]

Quote:

"It's World History According to WOTC. Don't worry about it."

HAHAHAHAHA, cheers Cruizin2000 :)

I think I might give the ME-109.... I mean the Spitfire a miss and wait until the corrected version comes out :)

Quote: "Welcome to the fun of A&A minis."

Thanks mate *thumbs up*

..... all I gotta do now is wait for the starter to arrive in the post so we can get on with playing.

[Cruizin2000]

Quote:

"It's World History According to WOTC. Don't worry about it."

HAHAHAHAHA, cheers Cruizin2000 :)

I think I might give the ME-109.... I mean the Spitfire a miss and wait until the corrected version comes out :)

Quote: "Welcome to the fun of A&A minis."

Thanks mate *thumbs up*

..... all I gotta do now is wait for the starter to arrive in the post so we can get on with playing.



It's either a Spitschmitt or a Messerspit.:D

C2000

[Six Sided Dice]

Actually, that was one miniature I had been going to hunt down on ebay... along with a few more German 88`s. Shame, becasue I love the whole image of the Spitfire thing, from the imagined sound effects, to the sleek retro design.

Oh well, C` est la vie.


.... looks like I`ll be browsing for a couple of Typhoons instead :D