One of the things that Axis & Allies is not particularly concerned about is modeling the rapid technological change that took place during World War II. For the most part, a tank at the start of the game has the same capabilities as a tank at the end of the game, a fighter plane at the start of the war has the same capabilities as a fighter plane at the end of the game, etc.
This is most unlike the actual war. For instance, just look at the proliferation of bombers and their roles during the war: dive bombers, fast bombers, heavy bombers, light bombers, strategic bombers, torpedo bombers. (While tactical bombers were added to later editions of Axis & Allies, they were a new unit available from the start of play.) If you repeat this exercise for fighters, tanks, and other units, you can come up with many dozens of variations (see below).
Instead of anything that complex, Axis & Allies offers a few core technology developments (six in most editions, such as jet power, super submarines, and rockets). These are never a guaranteed purchase but are awarded through an expensive lottery system. In a game that takes as long to play as most versions of Axis & Allies, players often dislike this high-impact randomness. This has led to house rules like Reduced Luck Technology and Technology Bidding.
As an aside, I do enjoy the approach to tech in Axis & Allies & Zombies. As I wrote in my review, “[tech is] randomly awarded here, and the techs are campy and thematically satisfying (e.g., Chainsaw Tanks, Mind-Control Rays, Deadnapper Convoys).”
Now, a computer game, or a traditional hex-and-counter wargame, could easily model the complexity of units over time. But a game like Axis & Allies with a few plastic molds (often of high production value, with different sculpts for different countries) can’t manage this.
Here are the units I came up with for my ABC variant of Axis & Allies 1941.
| Anti-aircraft | Auxiliary Predictor | Anti-aircraft fire in sea zones in the first round and on fighters in the second round, scoring up to 1 hit per destroyer, 4 hits per battleship. |
| Fire-Control System | Anti-aircraft fire in sea zones in the first round and on bombers in the second round, scoring up to 1 hit per destroyer, 4 hits per battleship. | |
| Proximity Fuses | Anti-aircraft fire at bombers on the second round of an attack over a land region. | |
| Radar | Anti-aircraft fire at fighters on the second round of an attack over a land region. | |
| Battleship | Bombardment | In an amphibious assault, each supporting battleship may be able to roll one attack in the first round and can’t be hit itself; however, no more sea units (of all types) can bombard than there are land units disembarking. |
| Heavy Battleship | Battleships attack at 5 if moved no more than 1 sea zone this turn; always defend at 5. | |
| Bomber | Dive Bomber | Can withdraw before defender returns fire; can strike subs without destroyer present. |
| Fast Bomber | Bombers can’t be singled out as hits by interceptors or bomber-destroyers. | |
| Heavy Bomber | Bombers that fly into combat from no more than 2 regions away or in defense of a region can roll twice in initial round of combat. | |
| High-level Bomber | Instead of combat, a bomber over an income-producing region can roll for damage, costing 1 credit of damage if it rolls that region’s income or less; the bomber is still destroyed on a roll of 6. | |
| Light Bomber | Instead of combat, a bomber over a region with a factory can roll for damage, costing 1 credit of damage if it rolls a 4 or less; the bomber is still destroyed on a roll of 6. | |
| Long-range Bomber | Bombers can now fly up to 6 regions away, landing 4 away after combat. | |
| Paratroopers | One bomber per turn can transport one infantry unit that starts with it into combat; a bomber doing so doesn’t attack. | |
| Strategic Bomber | Instead of combat, a bomber over a region with a factory can roll for damage, costing 2 credits of damage if it rolls a 4 or less; the bomber is still destroyed on a roll of 6. | |
| Support Bomber | When paired in combat with a tank, that tank attacks on 4. | |
| Tactical Bomber | Instead of combat, a bomber over a land region without hostile air units gets one unanswered attack then lands elsewhere; on a roll of 1-2, remove an infantry, if any; on a roll of 3-4, remove a tank, if any. | |
| Torpedo Bomber | In naval battles, attacker chooses which defending ship is hit by the bomber. | |
| Carrier | Armored Deck | Carriers attack at 2 and defend at 3. |
| Long-hull Carrier | Carriers can now transport 3 fighters at once (or 2 air units as normal). | |
| Destroyer | ASW Destroyer | Cancel attacking subs’ first-strike ability: each ship struck by a sub can return fire. |
| Combined Bombardment | In an amphibious assault, each supporting destroyer may be able to roll one attack in the first round and can’t be hit itself; however, no more sea units (of all types) can bombard than there are land units disembarking. | |
| Destroyer Escort | Limit attacking subs’ first-strike ability: each ship struck by a sub can return fire, up to the number of destroyers present. | |
| Destroyer Transport | Can transport 1 infantry; can’t move after unloading and generally must follow all transport rules when carrying an infantry. | |
| Hunter-Killer | Surface fleets with destroyers can engage sub-only fleets in combat; block enemy subs from moving through sea zones with your destroyers. | |
| Long-hull Destroyer | Destroyers can move 1 sea zone after combat. | |
| Radar Picket | Destroyers defend at 4 when in a battle against air units. | |
| Six-Gun Destroyer | Destroyers attack on 3. | |
| Factory | Assembly Line | Can pay 2 credits instead of 3 for one tank a turn. |
| Improved Shipyards | Can pay normal production costs to produce one additional sea unit at one factory. | |
| Industrial Expansion | Pay 5 credits to add one factory to a region you control; return this card to the bottom of the deck. | |
| Industrial Productivity | Can pay normal production costs to produce one additional land or air unit at one factory. | |
| Industrial Technology | Pay half your income: All units but infantry can now be produced for 1 less credit. | |
| Rockets | Once per turn, a factory may fire rockets at another factory within a range of 4; on a roll of the target region’s income or less, it causes that many credits of damage. | |
| War Bonds | Permanently increases income by 2 credits. | |
| Fighter | Airbase | Once per opponent’s turn, as defender you can scramble a fighter from an adjacent region where it is not in combat into a region where there is combat. |
| Bomber Destroyer | Upon the start of combat, the attacker can choose that fighters hit and be hit only by air units in a land region, targeting bombers first if desired. | |
| Escort Fighter | Each fighter can travel with a bomber from starting region to combat and when landing, can be taken as a casualty against bomber destroyers instead of a bomber. | |
| Fighter-Bomber | At the end of combat, each fighter over a factory rolls once for damage, causing 1 credit of damage on a hit (not to exceed the maximum income of the region). | |
| Interceptor | Upon the start of combat, the attacker can choose that fighters hit and be hit only by air units in a land region. | |
| Jet Fighter | Fighters attack on 4. | |
| Strategic Fighter | Fighters can now fly up to 4 regions away, landing 3 away after combat. | |
| Tactical Fighter | Each fighter that can be paired with a tank or infantry attacks at 4. | |
| Torpedo Fighter | Defender must allocate each fighter’s hit against a ship if possible; can attack subs without need of a destroyer. | |
| Infantry | Air Support | Each infantry that can be paired with an attacking fighter attacks on 2. |
| Artillery Support | One infantry per battle that can be paired with another infantry attacks on 2 (its companion attacks on 1 still). | |
| Coastal Fire Control | During the first round of an amphibious assault, dedicate defending infantry to coastal artillery: on a 1, the attacker must remove a ship; infantry making this roll can’t roll again this battle. | |
| Combined Arms | Each infantry that can be paired with an attacking tank attacks on 2. | |
| Gun Data Computer | Before any other rolls in an amphibious assault, dedicate defending infantry to coastal artillery: on a 1, the attacker must remove a ship; infantry making this roll can’t roll again this battle. | |
| Marines | Infantry disembarking a transport attack on a 2 or less. | |
| Mechanized Infantry | Infantry can move up to 2 regions into combat (but may not blitz a region). | |
| National Guard | After placing new units, place an infantry in the highest-IPC empty region you control | |
| Rail Transport | Infantry can move up to 3 friendly regions but can’t move into combat if they move more than 1 region (doesn’t cancel Mechanized Infantry). | |
| Other | Fifth Column | No more than once per turn, add a control marker to one neutral country adjacent to your units at no cost. |
| Mines | In a sea zone adjacent to a factory, each opposing ship rolling a 6 in the first round of combat is sunk by a mine, even battleships, but no more than the number of opposing units. | |
| Partisans | Once per turn, remove the lowest priced unit in a region you started the game with but no longer control. | |
| Sonar | Cancel attacking subs’ first-strike ability: all sea units can return fire on subs; additionally, sea units can engage sub-only fleets in combat. | |
| Submarine | Cruiser Submarine | Subs can move 3 sea zones but always defend at 1. |
| Improved Torpedoes | Subs fire once upon sea units moving through their sea zone (doesn’t count as combat and doesn’t end enemy movement). | |
| Snorkel | Subs can move 3 sea zones. | |
| Torpedo Data Computer | Subs attack on 3. | |
| Tank | Cruiser Tank | Tanks cost 2 credits. |
| Heavy Tank | One tank per battle defends at 4. | |
| Infantry Tank | Each infantry paired with a tank attacks on 2, except in battles against either infantry or tanks that have an upgraded ability. | |
| Light Tank | Once per turn, a tank or group of tanks from a single region can blitz after combat into one region. | |
| Transport | Cargo Ship | At the start of the purchase phase, collect one credit in income for each of your transports. |
| Fire Support | In an amphibious assault, each supporting convoy may be able to roll one attack in the first round and can’t be hit itself; however, no more sea units (of all types) can bombard than there are land units disembarking. | |
| Long-haul Transport | Convoys can now transport 3 infantry at once (or 2 land units as normal). |
