Luxembourg 2-Player

[mrblitz]

I've played about 160 of these (finished) so far, and have won around 95 of them. That's about 59%. I don't know if that makes me any kind of expert, but here are some of my observations so far.

No Spoils versus Cards: The spoils might arrive too late to affect the outcome of the game. Flat Rate is probably the most random spoils setting. Escalating rarely gets past 6 or 8 armies. On the other hand, a turn 4, 10-army set after collecting 3 cards in a flat rate game can turn the tide, especially if the other guy is holding all red cards at the time.

Consider this advice to be most applicable to No Spoils games. The other constant settings are unlimited reinforcements, and fog of war off. They're all casual, sequential games.

The Drop: Moving 1st with a good drop can decide the game. If you can get into a territory grouping (+2 or +3 bonus) or Luxembourg City (+1 bonus), with the other player's armies in disarray, the remainder of the game could be a mop-up.

If you move first with a bad drop; a drop where your armies are disconnected by the other player and neutrals, consider fortifying a single spot and waiting to see what the other player does.

Whenever the other guy takes The City or a territory grouping bonus, you have to have a stack ready to respond.

If he gets the good drop, and goes first, and you're faced with an opponent occupying a reinforced territory grouping; wherever at all feasible, make the early counterattack. Ideally, you want to end up with a bigger stack than your opponent's, right in the middle of the grouping. This way, he no longer has a chance of taking it. If possible, seize the entire bonus away from your opponent; take the entire territory grouping.

Often in the case of 'breaking up a continent,' just getting one of the territories is all you can do.

Sometimes, a player gets such a good drop and 1st turn that the player moving 2nd is basically out of the game. It's impossible for the 2nd player to break into the 1st player's bonus.

If you get a drop with say 3 territories on one side of a neutral or opponent block, and 3 territories connected on the other side, attack the connecting territory so you can assemble all of your armies through reinforcement. Sometimes more than one strongpoint is desired.

Usually though, a single strongpoint, combined with neutral hedges, and a few dislocated 3-army territories of your own can keep the territory groupings out of the other player's hands.

Be ready to break up the other player's bonus (territory grouping, or the City), wherever it happens. Try to grab bonuses of your own in the process.

Some games are won by one player simply occupying Luxembourg City, and slowly pushing the other guy back from there.

Many games are decided by a series of see-saw battles where each side builds 3 armies, places it on a 1 for a total of 4, and attempts to either a) secure a territory grouping (or the city), or b) break-up an opponent's bonus, or c) a combination of both a) and b).

The auto-rolls can produce instant victory or defeat.

Rarely is a stack equalling or greater than 20 armies seen in this type of game.

When playing according to a style sheet, I try to follow these rules:

1) Through a combination of (if necessary) link-up attacks, and reinforcement moves; mass the armies at a single point, or sometimes multiple points if the situation requires it.
2) Go for the easy bonus.
3) Always be prepared to take out your opponent's largest stack. No matter what the odds, make that attack.
4) Use the Neutrals to shield bonuses where possible.
5) Break up your opponent's reinforcement routes.
6) Always try to keep a stack of more than 1 army, somewhere on the map, and in a good location to break up bonuses. If you get down to all 1s, and your opponent has one or more stacks of multiple armies, the game is probably over; particularly in No Spoils.

Be proactive; always wipe out their biggest stack if possible. 6:8, 5:6, 11:5, 9:8; whatever the odds, make that auto-roll.

There is a lot of luck in these games, but sound tactics can help win more games over time.

Hopefully these thoughts will be of use to someone.

[mrblitz]

I've found that, whenever posting 20 or 30 of these games, they usually fill up within minutes. With the small battles in each game, and playing several of them simultaneously, you can witness large fluxuations as the dice go for and against.

I can remember a 5-game series against this one dude. There were something like 4 massive auto-battle losses; 1 in each of 4 out of the 5 of them early on, to the point where I was out like a light from the get-go in all 4 games. I barely stabilized the 5th one and managed a win.

There can be massive swings in fortune if you just go gonzo and play really aggressively.

Again, sound reinforcement/blocking tactics will augment any battle strategy; whether your style with the dice is attack or defense.

[Aurens]

No matter what the odds, make that attack.

I'm having trouble imagining that this statement should ever be true under any circumstances.

[sailorseal]

I am glad to see I am not the only one who likes Luxembourg...

[Jeff Hardy]

how can anyone write that much on a game that is 100% luck?

[The Neon Peon]

how can anyone write that much on a game that is 100% luck?

I used to play a lot of it.

If the person knows anything, then it is all luck. If the person attacks 3v3 a lot, then you win. That is why people have above 50% on games like that, in my opinion.

[mrblitz]

It's a bit more complicated than tic-tac-toe.

There _is_ a tremendous amount of luck. I routinely beat higher ranks, and lose to lower ranks; often based upon the initial drop and a couple of small auto-battles.

It's a tactical exercise; like a small piece of a larger map. It's a microcosm of a big game.

It most often goes to the luckier player, but there are enough tactics to make it interesting in the other games.

8-player terminator on this map is like a gambling casino; I would agree with that.

Over the course of 'a lot' of 2-player games though, sound tactics will raise a player's winning percentage.

Sometimes in retrospect, my own tactics on this map appear as less than completely sound. So I bear down and try to pay more attention, going forward.

This is a great small map. The City, and its location in the center of 3 other, bigger bonuses; it really adds something to the map.

At the risk of comparing apples to oranges, it's probably a better map than Doodle Earth.

Glad to see there other other fans of this one. See you out there, on the virtual battlefield.

GL

[BaldAdonis]

No matter what the odds, make that attack.

I'm having trouble imagining that this statement should ever be true under any circumstances.

The odds for winning individual rolls are still good (he's talking about autoattacking 4+ against any large stack) and they are much better than the odds you would get defending against the same stack. He makes it sound a bit sketchy by referring to "the odds" when he means "the odds of taking over the territory", and that isn't really his objective. He just wants to kill some armies before they kill him, and this is a good way to do it.

What I don't understand is why you would, at once, advocate moving all of your troops to a single point, and attacking any big stack that the enemy puts forward. Won't you lose a lot of armies if you fortify into one place and they assault you?

Mind, I've only played it once, and I ended up starting (with no bonus) and taking 4 territories in the first round. Didn't seem like very attractive settings after that.

[mrblitz]

Well, the reinforcements are dependent on the drop and the attack results.

Say I have an initial drop which includes Frisange, Bous, Bourlingser, and Cappellen.

All of the territorial bonus groupings have at least one neutral; two neutrals in both the 4-territory, upper and central +3 bonuses. So the +2 and +3 bonus groupings are fairly well secure from the machinations of your opponent.

You deploy in Bourlingser for a total of 6 there, and go for the City. If you sweep in, you can reinforce the city with 6 additional armies (2 from each of Frisange, Bous, and Cappellen).

On the other hand, if the city holds out against the attack, you're left with some other plan.

So yes, I would clarify that I used to automatically create stacks through reinforcement, leaving several 1-army territories. It might be worth noting that I don't recall anyone ever getting 4 armies for 12 territories in these types of games.

So with regard to the 3:1 territorial bonus, leaving 1s isn't as dangerous on this map as it might be in say, 2-player World 2.1.

Anyway, with regard to reinforcement; any more I don't always gather the troops together in round 1. Instead, it depends on the situation.

As for the dice, that is correct, any attack which can be made with 3 dice should be considered. Often, destroying their biggest stack gives you a leg up.

Once the odds become 2:2 on the dice, then it isn't generally advised to continue attacking. Maybe if the game is way out of reach, and you have say a couple or three bonuses secured in the south, and you're trying to close out the game up in Troisvierges.

If the situation is touch-and-go though, 2:2 is almost never recommended.