The Fever Islands

The Game (Part 1)

So Far, So Good

by Peter Lawson

Well, so far, so good. It may be of some concern to one or two readers that the somewhat graphic descriptions of life in the Caribbean during the 18th/19th centuries differs to descriptions found in the Virgin Airways brochure!

The above Character briefings are not essential if one wishes to game a straightforward face-to-face encounter (but who wants to do that any more? Possibly Mr Bean?) but they should certainly help to 'spice things up, a bit.

The writer acknowledges that they are not in the same literary mould as, say, Arthur Harman (a master of the Character-controlled, "concealed" wargame, and if someone out there has yet to play one of his splendid scenarios that have appeared at regular intervals in the wargames press over the last few years, then shame on you....) but they should suffice. (Incidentally, AH took the role of the USN in the second bash of this scenario and, prudently, lived to fight another day (but only just!) when all around him pandemonium ensued....).

SIR PERCY MACDONALD was originally role-played, but one player (who shall remain nameless forever) developed some major 'delusions of "grandeur," so I thought wise to drop it from the briefings and simply GM the role. This is probably just as well, as Governors of this period were virtual deities in reality.

Anyway, no doubt you are all totally confused! In Part Two (if anyone can be bothered to wait for it) there will be two maps for your perusal (one area-of ops and one tactical and the juicy details of "how to wargame" the thing (that is, terrain, choice of figures/conversions as necessary, uniform details (the Jarnacian Regiments are particularly appealing) and the BRILLIANTLY INNOVATIVE GAME MECHANISMS.

THE CHARACTERS

(with defererence to Patrick O'Brien et al)

Fever Islands Part 2: The Game


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