I did lvl 1 in 6 turns. Only took half a second to figure it out, but it took at least 20 tries before I could actually do it(it involves the ai messing an attack)

when this thread was made challenge 2 was insane, not crazy

read first post

"It is 5 against 1 and they have 5 times the armies"

that describes insane, not crazy.

I did level 1 in 6 turns. Way I did it did't involve the AI missing just involved lots of luck.

Here's a post to thank the developers and forum contributors for putting this together - it's given me a lot of pleasure.

Having finally managed to beat the Insane level, I'd also like to brain dump what I learned about how to do it (some of which was inspired by other posts in this thread).

1. Take all 3 of the available bonuses on the first 2 turns; start with 8 in India N, 11 in Nigeria N and the initial 8 in Cuba N. From Indian N and Nigeria N, use 4 armies to attack the territory from which you'll be mounting another attack in round 2.

2. Head for Svalbard N by the quickest route possible, and attacking with 4 armies each time (this should be your first deployment every round). I found that when you get to Georgia N it's best to then take the route through Europe, as you'll need to head through UK to Iceland ASAP, and at that point Europe is often more quickly taken than West Russian N and Central Russia N (and yields an extra army bonus). You'll likely encounter an AI in Svalbard N first, but it will likely head West, leaving an easy gain for you.

3. Head for Anadyr N - it's possible to lose a move or two, but use this contingency to sometimes attack with 3 armies rather than 4 if necessary.

4. Another set of armies should also head for Svalbard S, although this can wait a move or two whilst East Africa N and the Caucasus N are taken (make sure you take Takschikistan N at the same time as Georgia N).

5. Around move 4 or 5, you need to be heading into Indonesia N, attacking with 4 armies each time.

6. Take West US N over the course of moves 3 - 7 or so, but no more. If and when the AI arrives from the north, drop in a few armies on the borders of West US N if you can - if all is going well via Iceland and your other attacks, you shouldn't need more than an absolute max of 12 on a territory to hold, and this isn't essential - keep a presence in the US if you can, as this is easy pickings for big bonuses if you can divert the AI attention and erode their army earning power at 'home'.

7. As soon as you encounter a neighbouring enemy when you're in Svalbard S, put 25 armies (or at the very minimum 20, and expect some difficulty later) on there and abandon. This will probably happen around turn 8.

8. It's absolutely vital to hold Anadyr N, and this will come under heavy pressure over the initial contact turns. Expect the AI to be adding 30+ attack strength for a few turns, after which things calm down a little, but still require constant topping up for most of the game. Never run the risk of the AI having anything close to a 2-1 ratio here.

9. Similarly, hold Indonesia N - this comes under much less pressure than Anadyr N, and offers the contingency of retreat back to Asia, but it's best to hold if you can. Don't be too tempted to turn to attack too early - Australasia should be close to the last bonus that you take, and you should be well into the AI world elsewhere before even thinking about it.

10. When an AI appears in Brazil N, it's time to shore up Africa - not absolutely essential, but you're in for a longer game if you don't, and you'll need to be pressuring the AI elsewhere for a win chance. This should only require 20 - 30 armies at maximumum if you're active elsewhere.

11. Don't be too fast to take North Afria N and Middle East N - they can often be taken eventually by moving spare armies and minor topping up, but the point at which they can be taken is usually the point at which you need to be making sure that the choke points are covered, you have some aggressive action, and you also have the Asian bonuses to mop up.

12. Entry point to the AI world is via South Africa S. Opposition is surprisingly minimal - you shouldn't find mega armies, and single figure or small teens attacks should see you taking over Africa piece by piece. Try to keep a solid front line if you can, as a rogue territory lost behind your lines can impede progress.

13. Use your African entry point to chuck some sizeable force into Asia S (as a priority) and Europe S if you can. This should take precedence over defending any African bonuses, as the point is to disrupt the enemy and remove AI bonuses. Set up forces of 20+, and then attack in Asia with 10 or so - this reduces the chance that your major force will be wiped out by a sudden attack.

14. That's it.

Thanks for your post, Shinkicker -- I followed your instruction, which were especially helpful for the opening. Naturally, I had to adapt some of the later strategy to fit the circumstances that arose (specifically, I was forced to abandon South Africa S, and circle round through Brazil S), but I was finally able to beat the Insane based largely on your advice. I also made good use of the Abandon cards in places I would not have expected -- 3 times, I was able to abandon a territory (not a bottle neck) that was just about to be attacked by overwhelming numbers, and significantly reduce the size of the largest enemy forces on the map.