Watching the clash between the forces below
From up in the planes we’re flying
Survivors are taken as prisoners of war
The others are slowly dying
I shiver as we strap on our parachutes
We line up to jump out the door
We’re already here and there’s no turning back
I fall to scene of the war

–Do Or Die (Testament)

Island Of Death arrived last week. Haven’t had time to even punch the counters, much less play, but here are some general thoughts on the game.

Component-wise it’s a typical Avalanche Press game, which means nice looking counters with a horridly cheap map (Poster paper? Really guys?). Oh, and Avalon Hill circa 1982 called and they want their player aid charts back.

Rules seem rather straight forward if you’ve played wargames before and include typical rules for cohesion in airdrops. I will say the sequence of play seems a little daunting at first, with a grand total of sixty two possible segments (although depending on the turn some segments are skipped). It may not be equal to GDW’s Battles of the Third World War, which was absolutely insane with its turn sequencing, but it’s a lot heavier than check initiative, phasing player moves, phasing player attacks, non-phasing player repeats, advance turn marker. Upon closer inspection though the sequence of play as outlined on the player aid chart turns out to be simply rather comprehensive—enough so that you could probably use the aid chart to jump right into the game.

Island Of Death is about the hypothetical invasion of Malta. I’m a sucker for any type of Mediterranean invasion game, having several games on the invasions of Leros and Kos, so one on Malta was a no-brainer to add to my collection. While it features some chrome with militias, operational pre-planning, and Royal Navy and Air Force security troops I’m disappointed that there are no provisions for naval combat. All you get is a chart to roll on for how the Royal Navy affects the battle.

I’m happy to say the combat results table actually includes losses. One thing I hate about their Panzer Grenadier system is it’s not bloody enough! You end up going back and forth rolling oodles of dice and in the end you get some lame morale check. Push someone out of a hex. Advance into the hex. Get pushed out the next turn. Move back in. Gah, it’s World War One! And since they’re working on a WWI version of the system maybe the CRT will finally fit. Back to Island Of Death….

First impressions it looks like it should be a rather interesting game and I’m anxious to give it a spin. They were nice enough to even include some rules on what needs to be altered if playing solitaire, so that may end up being my first foray into the system.

So yesterday a group of us went to see Iron Man. Highly recommended, even if you’ve never had an interest in the character (I’d fall into that category). As we were leaving the theater there was a marketing group outside handing out feedback forms. The woman hands one to myself and the others in my group and says, “Hi, here’s a really quick survey we’d like you to fill out to find out what you thought of the movie.” We look at this “quick” survey to find it has nearly 70 questions on it, including essay questions. Look at each other. Look back at the questions.

Err, no. Hint: if you post-movie survey resembles a tax form it’s probably time to rethink it. How about five questions answered on a one to ten scale? That sounds a little better, don’t you think?

We had several in our group who are in the SCA so talk on the ride from the theater turned to whether the Iron Man armor would be SCA-legal (the consensus was it would be). Once back we were planning on firing up a long afternoon of gaming but with SCA talk still buzzing decided to break out some long bows and do some target shooting.

Until yesterday I don’t think I’ve ever shot a bow in real life. I vaguely recall maybe firing one once as a Cub or Boy scout. I have fired plenty though in gaming. From rangers striking down evil orcs to legions of bowmen fighting the French at Crecy, many of clothyard shaft has flown at the table. In gaming archery is always easy. Point and shoot, roll some dice. How hard can it be in real life?

Yesterday I learned a couple of things:

1. Archery is fun. I plan on shopping next weekend for a long bow.
2. Archery is not quite point and shoot. Well, it is, but if you want to hit your target there’s a little more to it.

Now obviously as a total noob I wasn’t going to pull off any Legolas-sliding-down-stairs-on-a-shield-while-firing-multiple-shots type tricks, nor would anyone confuse me for Robin Hood. But I was still surprised at my first attempts. We were shooting at a target twenty-five feet away (which is nothing in RPG range increments) and wow, if I was fighting an evil sentient field of grass I would have done all right, but against the actual target? Not so much.

I started picking it up rather quickly though and by the end of the day was putting six shafts out of six into the target, although usually not where I was aiming. I began to learn how much pull to use, how to aim to compensate for the fall of the arrow, which arrows performed better than others. Archery seems to be half physics, half feel.

Actually finally doing something in real life that happens all the time in gaming made me appreciate the game aspect even more. If my character is only hitting eight times out of ten when being attacked by a flock of owlbears, I won’t feel so bad when in real life I’d be fumbling to nock the first arrow while being devoured by the mob.

It also started me thinking about how much “expertise” we gamers proclaim to have when it comes to gaming, but how much do we really have? In historical gaming there are no shortage of experts on tactics and equipment, yet how many folks have commanded a Confederate artillery unit, British tank division, or Roman legion? Same thing with sims. We gamers will argue over how quickly a FW-190 should be able to turn at 15,000 feet but where does that come from? An Osprey book we read once?

By no means am I discounting the value of reference works, but ultimately in the end there is something to be said for real life experience over book cred. I have to wonder if forums will be more civil if everyone on the Internet didn’t proclaim themselves to be ultimate scholars because they can search on Wikipedia.

With GMT’s recent release of Manoeuvre, an abstract light strategy game with a wargame theme, I thought it would be worthwhile to discuss what makes the better gateway game to more serious wargaming: Manoeuvre or the Commands and Colors system.

Before we begin let me tell you how I’m framing this. I’m not going to talk about which is easier to learn, as both systems can easily be handled by your average non-gamer. My goal is to examine both titles from the perspective of which provides a better launching pad into other consims.

Oh, and for C&C I’ll be using Memoir ’44 as the example. Why not Battlecry when Manoeuvre also focuses on pre-20th century warfare? For starters since it’s out-of-print I want to reference a game that everyone can access. I also think that the World War II theme provides a far greater interest level than the medieval/fantasy trappings of Battlelore or the skirt and sandal action of Ancients. Ultimately since the system remains essentially the same from Battlecry through Battlelore any one of the titles could probably be my reference point.

If you’re not familiar with either game both share superficial similarities. Units are ordered by cards. They are variable board configurations (though achieved by differing means). Both are simple enough that a new player could pick up the game within minutes, and the typical session takes less than an hour. Beyond that though Manoeuvre and Memoir ’44 are quite different.

In Manoeuvre players command a set number of units on a grid map. The map is created by assembling four separate map sections, each section having a four by four grid superimposed on it, for a variety of configurations. Except for the creation of redoubts there are no terrain overlays.

Units are either infantry or cavalry, with an emphasis on infantry. The game uses double-sided counters with the name of the unit and its combat strength. Artillery is abstracted through card play.

Each player has a hand of five cards drawn from their unique nationality deck (there are eight different nations to play, allowing for ahistorical match ups). Each deck is comprised of cards that can be used to attack or defend when matched to their particular unit, along with special cards such as leaders and unique actions. The composition of the decks vary according to nationality, so there is some variety with commanding the various combatants.

During a turn players can discard, draw to their hand limit, move one unit (unless having a card that allows an extra unit to move), and then make one attack. Attacks can only be made by playing one or more unit cards that match a unit, meaning that it is entirely possible to go through several turns with having no possible means to attack the enemy even if your men can see the whites of their eyes. Finally, units that have suffered a hit can possibly rally back to full strength through various means such as playing a Supply card.

While there are a few ways to achieve victory there is essentially only one scenario to the game: pick out two armies and go at it. In that sense it’s sorta like DBA—a historical fantasy fight club—although without many nods to modeling realism.

Memoir ’44 uses a standard hex map divided into three sections and creates its terrain by overlaying terrain hexes onto the map. This gives the game a near infinite range of maps. Units are not counters but miniature figures, with damage represented by removing figures from the stand much like in actual miniature gaming. There are three different types of units: infantry, artillery, and armor.

Players command their units through section cards. Each player draws from a common deck to a hand sized determined by the scenario. Each card is either an action card or a section card. A section card allows a player to activate a certain number of units in one or more of the map sections, while an action card can grant special privileges to specific unit types or impact the game in other ways such as representing an air attack.

Victory varies according to the scenario but usually revolves around eliminating a certain number of enemy forces, but the holding of objectives can also play a part.

So how do they stack up against each other in teaching basic wargaming concepts?

In terms of components Manoeuvre offers up its units as counters, which is still the default component for wargames. Memoir 44’s plastic figures have the toy factor going on, but with a few exceptions unless you’re getting into actual miniature gaming you won’t encounter plastic figures with your wargaming.

Manoeuvre’s victory at introducing counters to potential grogs who grew up on plastic Risk pieces is slightly reduced by the fact the maps in the game use a grid. You have to go pretty far back in the world of consims to see grids used on any type of regular basis. Memoir ’44 with its hexes will help ease newcomers into the typical wargame map far easier than Manoeuvre.

Then there’s the basic gameplay structure. Manoeuvre only provides players with one way to play. Memoir ’44 is a scenario based system, which like hexes, is rather common in the world of wargaming.

Manoeuvre scores points by having the different armies play differently. Memoir ’44 units are all even across the board, with one or two special cases (e.g. heavy German armor units, French resistance, etc). Since wargames are rarely about two mirror images duking it out, Manoeuvre provides a better idea of what someone can expect from a more serious game.

Mechanic-wise, Memoir ’44 comes off better because of the inherent structure of Manoeuvre with its move one unit, make one attack if you have a matching card. There are some basic wargame mechanics such as line-of-sight and terrain benefits found in Manoeuvre, but overall Memoir ’44 handles the subject of mechanics much better. Examples include the fact that advance after combat is not mandatory, more varied terrain benefits, and the use of combined arms is more transparent.

In the end I think Manoeuvre’s basic game style is what damages it the most. While it is entirely possible in Memoir ’44 to end up with a hand full of useless cards you still can probably at least fight someplace on the map. Manoeuvre is far too luck dependent since you can’t make any form of attack with a matching card. Ultimately the game lives up to its name, as both players move their forces around the battlefield, hoping to be in proper position for when the proper cards are finally drawn. In Memoir ’44 it’s far easier to formulate an overall strategy and go with that, much like what is necessary in deeper games.

Manoeuvre may give players a whiff of cardboard gunpowder, but Memoir ‘44 (or Ancients or Battlelore) has a slight edge when it comes to transitioning to more meatier fare.

It’s another busy Saturday which means rather than presenting you with one huge blog course here are a bunch of bite sized nuggets of observation and sites to check out. Consider it a buffet of geeky goodness.

Khyber Pass’ B-29 Superfortress

My copy arrived on Thursday so I’ve had little time to do anything more than ooh and ahh over it. From what I can tell it looks, feels, and (will) plays a lot like B-17: Queen of the Skies (and no, I haven’t forgotten that I’m planning on doing an AAR series for that game, it’s coming…sometime ). Don’t like the slipcover presentation (good for publishers, bad for gamers) but since the money they saved on the box looks like it went to some really nice counters I guess it’s okay.

Flipping through the chart book (which is thicker than the manual) I was impressed by the level of detail. There’s definitely a lot more meat with B-29 than B-17. I also like the fact that throughout both the manual and chart book there are lots of design notes explaining the rationale behind a rule or table. Frankly I think there should be some sort of Gaming Law that stipulates there should always be designer notes in a game’s manual. I just like seeing the rationale behind some decisions, especially in historical games. Too many cranks (and cranky gamers is a topic I want to address in a full post in the near future) don’t seem to understand that when you design a game it’s a series of compromises to achieve a balance between playability and reality. Yet, there is always someone out there who will rant about the fact that the game doesn’t include rules for the problems King Tigers had when starting in cold weather, or some other mundane piece of trivia that has no real effect on gameplay.

On the subject of solo gaming I’ve put some time into Field Commander: Rommel, although not as much as I’d like. As usual for a Dan Verssen game some rules as presented in the manual are a lot more murkier than they should be. You can figure out what they’re trying to say, but that’s after playing once or twice.

From a decision making standpoint there are some nice choices to make during play. So far I haven’t felt that I’ve discovered the chink in the game system’s armor (the downfall of many solo games). I do question the fact that you make your tactical decisions after seeing what the game system chooses to do.

War Is Hell Issue 2

I’d like to say the second issue improves on the first. It doesn’t. Once again our fearless flyer yearns for action but then once he gets it, he doesn’t like it. At the end of the issue he has an encounter with a French prostitute, but doesn’t seem to hone in on the fact that she sleeps with him for money. How someone this clueless and idiotic could become a pilot at the dawn of the flight age, much less a pilot in a war, is beyond me.

At this point I’m thinking maybe the entire series is meant to be a joke. It’s bad. And not Zombie Strippers kind of bad, but brussel sprout kind of bad.

Gaming Food and Drink

I’ve been a fan of Jones Soda’s Strawberry Lime for a while but this week decided to try their Green Apple. Wow. Nice kick. It’s like a liquid Jolly Rancher. Both sodas are made with cane sugar. Yay for cane sugar!

I also tried out the new Snickers Charged candy bar, which infuses a Snickers bar with caffeine (is there anything caffeine can’t do?), vitamin B, and taurine. It even includes a warning label for pregnant women and children so you know it’s gotta be good, right? Alas, it won’t provide you with caffeinated bullet-time like perception (as seen in Futurama when Fry blows his Tricky Dick’s fun bucks on one hundred cups of coffee) but it does seem to give you a little boost.

Ogrecave’s GAMA Report

Ogrecave has a brief overview of some of the cool things as the show. Yetisburg and Warball sound cool. In the comments Mike Selinker mentions they’re working on Attack!, also. I had heard about this before but didn’t realize they were the ones doing it. As Attack! was probably the best game to come out of Eagle a new edition isn’t a bad thing.

Jay Adan also has some nice photos from GTS here. The Dust Tactics models are pretty sweet looking, and for you AT-43 fans it will use the same system. Myself, I’m thinking dusting off Gear Krieg and using them with that isn’t a bad idea.

Good Service

I recently purchased the expansion bag for Duel in the Dark at my FLC/GS only to discover the quad flak piece was not present. I dropped Z-Man an email about that and within two days had the replacement piece. Nice!

All righty folks, have a great weekend!

I awoke to the scent of the night’s rain. Stepping outside to the glistening world the azure sky, peppered with soft dabs of white, heralded a day of beauty. A soft breeze rustled through the trees, petals from a Cherry Blossom dancing in mid-air before landing on the slick street. So precise on the tree, now scattered beneath. Chaos from order.

Odin, my dog, and I strode up the street, embracing what the universe had to offer upon this day. Smiling as memories of forgotten days bubbled to the surface, prodded there by sun king and his court: the sky and the wind. The present fades, the future beckons, and the past caresses. Such an excellent day to lose oneself in a fictional reality of cardboard and plastic.

Today is a perfect day.

Today is a perfect day for gaming.

May all days be like this.

It’s always nice to come home to a box on your porch. Those boxes contain many things: promises, acquisitions, that forgotten feeling of a December morning in your youth. Even though you know what’s in the box—you are the one who set the wheels in motion to have it delivered to your door, after all—the thrill of cracking it open is one of life’s simple pleasures.

Today the box held Field Commander: Rommel and Growing Hunger, the expansion for one of my favorite games last year, Last Night On Earth. Very initial impressions follow.

Field Commander: Rommel is the first in a series of solitaire games from Dan Verssen, best known for all his card games over the years (and apparently almost killing GMT with Flagship, a game that I thought was actually fairly good). Covering three campaigns (France, North Africa, Normandy) the player controls the Germans and the system the Allies.

Upon opening the box I was almost knocked cold by the stench emanating. If you thought Duel in the Dark had a bad odor, you ain’t smelled anything yet! Apparently the print ship where it was printed also doubles as a chemical warfare plant. I have no idea if it’s the glue or ink, but wow, talk about an offensive smell!

The components are decent, although the maps border on DTP quality and the counters have a gloss coat to them. It’s almost as if they were laminated, but not really.

I won’t get a chance to give her a test spin until sometime later and will try to post some impressions then on actual gameplay. You can find the rules online. They’re fairly short and easy enough to digest without having the actual game handy.

Growing Hunger hits all the marks an expansion should hit. More characters, more scenarios, more cards, more pieces, more, more, more.

Everything has the same high quality production values as seen in the base game (and unfortunately the expansion costs almost as much). I won’t get to put it into use until the weekend, but from looking it over the expansion avoids messing anything up while adding quite a few cool new things (some of the new cards for use by the zombie player are particularly nasty). If you own LNOE the expansion is a no-brainer.

Mmmm…brrraaaaiiinnnssss…

Yeah, that wasn’t an obvious way to go…

For everyone in the military into RPGs and currently deployed in the Middle East/Southeast Asia be sure to check out what this guy is trying to do this summer.

Of course what we really need is a worldwide Dominions 3 day…