Axis & Allies Guadalcanal - Tips & Strategies

Short version

As the end of the game approaches, make sure you do the math on how the last round will play out. How many victory points will you and your opponent earn? What will you need to do to make sure you come out ahead? What will your opponent do?

And make sure you remember that if you’re in position to take out one or more of your opponent’s capital ships (battleships and carriers), getting an extra victory point or two can make all the difference.

Long version

During a game last night at the end of the fourth round I had 12 victory points to my opponent’s 10, and we each controlled four airfields. My opponent had one round to get make up the difference or I’d win 16-14.

He had a stack of eight artillery on one island where I had a small group of infantry and an airfield in my control. He also had at least four bombers nearby. I had a battleship in the water adjacent to that island. Also, I had a group of three aircraft carriers in another sea zone with a few other units.

The promise of taking out three aircraft carriers lured all of his bombers to the sea zone away from the island in question. He attacked my battleship with his artillery, but failed to sink it. The attack on the carriers damaged two of them, sending them back to my base. It went well for an early or mid-game play, but not for a last round play, and no victory points were scored.

Had he managed to take the island (capturing the airfield on it) and sink the battleship, he would have earned six victory points for the round, tying us at 16 points each and sending the game into another round (I was going to build one more airfield that round to keep me earning 4 vp per turn). Instead he spread himself too thin and ended up losing 15-14.