I recently purchased this game before going on a week long trip to Maine. My family and I were interested in what was new about this game and all of us intently read the instruction book on the plane ride to Maine. The first time we set up the board, we had a few questions, but after playing it through all the way, those questions were answered for the most part. The new RISK is rife with new strategies, and having played it against many classic RISK players who utlized classic RISK strategies, I have developed quite a few new tactics.

In classic RISK, your first objectives were the easily obtained and defended australia or south america. Not so in RISK 2210 AD since everyone has the ability to select their countries during the set-up phase of the game. In RISK 2210 AD you have a pretty good chance of starting the game with a full country under your belt. That being said, it has become more a game of resource management more then just tactical aquisition of land.

The addition of currency (energy) allows you to bid for your turn order as well as purchase and fire powerful nuclear strikes. Do you hold your energy and try to take first turn or do you use your precious energy to launch a devestating strike against some hard targets? I'll discuss this and many more strategies in detail.

The most effective strategy I have found to date is bid for 5th (or last) on one turn, and keep enough energy onhand to sue for 1st the next year, giving you two consecutive turns. I have rampaged across ASIA with this technique and for the first time in any risk game I have ever played, I started the round with asia's 7 resources with this technique. You can run thin with the knowledge that you will be going immediately afterwards.

Another strategy of RISK 2210 ad is to purchase command cards as often as possible. Because they are the only truely limited commodity in the game (limit 4 per turn) you should stockpile them as early as the first turn. Given that you are allowed a draw after 3 contested victories (bringing your maximum possible command cards per turn to 5), you should still purchase as many as possible.

I am personally a big fan of the land command cards for their spot defence and rapid troop gathering abilities, but my girlfriend is equally fond of the nuclear cards. The disadvantage of either of course is that by merely killing that commander you have destroyed any hope of theirs in playing cards from said commander. Therefore, the best strategy is to diversify which command cards you aquire to 2 or possibly three commanders.

Commander purchase is equally important, especially in the first turns when resources are waning. I often purchase a lunar commander and/or naval commander for my first aquisition because each opens up new frontiers of expansion which is intrigal early, especially in a 4-5 players game. My girlfriend often purchases her nuclear commander on the first turn and immediately begins stock-piling nuclear command cards. My technique is a more othrodoxed, land aquisition technique, hers is a 5th turn oriented resource destruction method. Interestingly enough she has won 4 of the last 5 games we have played, so I have begun to think the money is in nuclear command cards used en masse on the 5th turn.

Never forget the moon. There are 14 territories on the moon, and if you control all three regions there is a bonus of 7 more resources per turn, bringing the total resources the moon has available to 11 per turn for moon domination. Most classic RISK players ignore the moon.

Finally, forget your classic RISK rules and begin experimenting with the possibilities this new RISK has to offer. While it is deceptively similiar, it is almost completely different.


Rating: [5 of 5 Stars!]