Axis and Allies - The Original Game M.E.M. - by Ris Dnalor - Introduction M.E.M. ...otherwise known as 'Metal Eating Microbes'. The Germans were experimenting with a new weapon. An Engineered microbe that ate metal. The Nazi's were sure it would ensure their victory. It mutated. It escaped. Within weeks, most of the metal on the planet was gone. How will that effect gameplay? Your Battleships sank. So did your transports, carriers, and subs, for that matter. Your pilots, be they tank pilots or air pilots, are left without their vehicles. Your factories, being made primarily of metal, are useless. Your scientists are scrambling madly to find cheap practical alternatives to metal. But things are going to be more costly.