LETTER TO THE EDITOR FROM AN EDITOR: SUBJECT: NAPOLEONIC GAMING
All around the hobby various groups are getting together and working out their differences. The North American Society of Ancient and Medieval Wargamers has finally begun the process of opening itself to other rules and ideas. The Civil Wargaming Society is getting started. And yet, the grandfather of the miniature world of wargaming still seems to be stuck quibbling over rules and concepts. When are we going to get are we going to get ourselves moving towards a national Napoleonic wargaming organization? The number of Napoleonic events at conventions has slowly declined over the last decade from a dominant activity to a side line. What can we do to change that trend? Perhaps some of you have ideas? We don't need one set of rules or one dominant concept, we need cooperation and a group to encourage the wargaming public to ex plore the Napoleonic period, Lets talk at HMGS conventions or through the mail.
- --JIM BIRDSEYE. Napoleonic Editor.
LET US NOT RETURN TO THE DARK AGES
I would like to address certain comments made in issue #57 ofThe Courier. Phil Barker mentions that: "You will NEVER EVER find our rules padded out with color photos and pretty boxes to up the price. What you buy is the sweat of our brow." I agree, there is no graphic appeal, "padded" or otherwise, in Phil's rulebooks. But, what I find amusing is that he has had no problem with bombarding us with seven "editions" of poorly-written rules, that have required the purchase of additional army list books in order to play. I personally own five of these editions, as well as the supplements, and can assure you that the money invested was a lot more than for any of the "padded" rules sets, never mind the frustration of ever changing army capabilities and game mechanics. While all game designs can stand improvement, well-prepared rules require few, if any, subsequent "editions." Incidentally, all rules writers sweat blood to produce their work, not just Phil; and to varying degrees we all fail and succeed in satisfying our customers, In my experience, what all of us authors share is a common love for this hobby, though our concepts and book formats represent our personal tastes. Design being somewhat subjective, our products necessarily appeal to different gamers. Let us celebrate our differences; there is room for many points of view.
Dick Bryant is a very important man in our hobby; few individuals have contributed as much to our growth as he. For this reason I am saddened by his latest remarks. When he talks about the trend toward color photos, covers and boxes, he states: "its main purpose is to get distributors and stores who know nothing about the hobbyto buy many copies, most of which moulder on stockroom shelves. "Though Dick did not qualify whose main purpose this is, anyone who produces color rulebooks, or boxed sets, is injured by this unfortunate statement. In response I would say that any publisher/printer who produces wargame rules (or any product) for the purpose of duping dealers will not do well. A disreputable publisher may pull this off once, but in such a small hobby, he would probably be dead in the future. As TACTICA, Fire & Fury and boxed sets like Empire and Napoleon's Battles, have all experienced dealer re-orders, and subsequent re-printings, perhaps some of the rules are leaving the stockroom shelves and being bought by gamers. Certainly, my ever-increasing, daily mail load indicates this. A well-done rulebook, that costs $20.00 to $35.00, is a small investment, considering that it may serve you for years. The rulebook costs pales to insignificance when one considers the cost of assembling a collection of miniatures in any given given period. Face it-our hobby is not inexpensive, but if the end-users did not perceive a value in these works, it is doubtful they would have become popular, regardless of their high presentation quality. With all this, inexpensively produced rules like DBA continue to be successful, proving that there are options available.
Dick feels that printers, "who stand to make more money by printing color works" are keeping new rules ideas out of print. This is not true. Were it not for Dave Waxtel and Quantum Printing, TACTICA and FIRE & FURY would never have seen print. He produced these books at great risk and virtually at cost. Further, Dave has long since invited any and all writers to submit manuscripts of their their work for possible publication at no cost to the writers and with fair royalties if accepted. Todd Fisher of EHQ operates similarly. And there are more rules being produced nowthan ever before. But, without a publisher, the cost of even a tiny print run is prohibitive to the average writer and that is what keeps material out of print--let alone all the work and money involved to market the product. Believe me, Quantum makes its money printing materials in the "other" world, not in wargaming rulebooks where the small print runs often do not justify the printing and labor costs--even with hot-selling items.
I hear a lot of talk these days about the "greying" of the hobby; that there is no new blood; that those professionally produced fantasy books are luring our youth away. Well, by producing first-rate work, we feel we're doing something about that. Rulebooks enable Wargaming to exist. It is a lot easier for newcomers to get interested in the hobby, if the rulebook presentation is professional. When consumers see TACTICA, or Fire & Fury, they are impressed enough to a least look at the rules. Because these works are also readable and fun, some of these guys then purchase a set and become new hobbyists.
This new player may then support the hobby by purchasing figures and products from other manufacturers. He will show the book to friends andnewer players may follow. I know for a fact that TACTICA has drawn a lot of people into ancients ( or back into ancients). Many of these these same people have also gone on to play DBA, Ancient Empires, etc. Sales of historical miniatures are up as a result. These are all positive results. I'm in this hobby because I game with miniatures. I do so because a table full of beautiful figures is is exciting and provides that wonderful sense of grandeur associated with a given period and army. It is in our interest that rulebooks reflect a main feature of our hobby--its beauty.
Certainly Quantum produces quality works, which emphasize this beauty. We wish to continue doing this, and I have been told by many end-users that we should continue doing precisely this. Let the gamer decide what is best for him. But, let us not return to the Dark Ages, unless it is on the wargaming table!
- --ARTY CONLIFFE, Author of TACTICA
My response to Arty's comments are in the editorial, Page 4. -ED
WELL PRESENTED RULES DRAW NEW GAMERS
Look at the the size of the historical miniatures miniatures gaming community relative to the size (and market influence) of the role playing community, or the growing computer gaming community. There are a variety of reasons for this, and I don't believe we will ever have the same power and clout in the industry as they do, but I believe one of the reasons vendors are so successful in recruiting new players is that the rules are professionally produced, printed, and packaged to capture the imagination of prospective players and prospective converts from other genres. In an age where our hobby has to compete with TV, video games, computer games, and slickly produced roleplaying games and accessories, I believe the notion that cheaply printed $10 rule sets is dangerously outdated and will seal our fate as a dying niche within the gaming hobby.
These rules sets, despite their content, appear amateurish and hokey against the competition, and every time I see another set of these rules appear in the the game shop next to professionally done ones I wince. These rules do not attract new gamers or old, failure to attract is a failure to play.
I need a rules set to excite my imagination (through professional art work and illustration), to motivate me to buy and paint figures (through color photos of miniature armies in conflict), and to make digesting and using the rules very easy and enjoyable. That's the ONLY way our products are going to get the shelf space and market share they need to remain viable in a very competitive environment. I suggest you poll the readership on this issue with unbiased questions, and see what kind of response you get.
- --ROBERT WALTON, San Marco, CA
I will conduct a poll. Please send in your response - see VOLLEY FIRE - ED
COVER PRICE CAN BE MISLEADING
Phil comments "You will NEVER EVER find our rules padded out with color photographs and pretty boxes to up the price. What you buy is the sweat of our brow." These two sentences imply that high quality printed publication requires no additional effort, no additional costand has no additional value. Phil states that the only benefit is to increase the publisher's profit margin. Phil is wrong. As a matter of fact, consider the following table:
| Rules | Retail Price | No. of Pages | Price/Page |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ancient Empires | $35.00 | 144 | $0.24 |
| Empire | $35.00 | 196 | $0.18 |
| TACTICA | $20.00 | 88 | $0.23 |
| Age of Reason | $22.50 | 102 | $0.22 |
| Napoleon's Battles | $26.00 | 116 | $0.22 |
| DBA | $7.00 | 20 | $0.35 |
Who do you think is padding the price of his product? It seems to me that we're paying a premium price for Phil's sweat! DBA is a fine little game-simple and elegant. But DBA is simply overpriced. I know that designers such as Scott Bowden, Arty Conliffe, Rich Hassenhauer, Frank Chadwick, Bob Coggins and Tod Kershner have perspired every bit as much as Phil over their rules.
- --JOHN D. BICKNELL, Colorado Springs, CO
I believe it would be fairer to compare the cost using the amount of page space devoted to rules only. --ED
COLOR ILLUSTRATIONS HELP IN OTHER WAYS
Tactical allows neophytes in the hobby to see what painted figures can look like (ie. a short painting guide), as well as giving them an idea as to to how figures should be mounted. Although that may seem elementary to those of us who have been gaming for over 20 years, a newcomer might not know that a 4-man stand of infantry should be mounted 1 x 4, and not 2 x 2. As a matter of fact, there are times when I find such an illustration helpful.
Color photographs also give players ideas about terrain for their wargame table.
- --BOB BURKE, Daly City, CA
AND NOW ON FANTASY GAMES AT HISTORICAL CONVENTIONS
I am Naval Coordinator for H.M.G.S. I am Naval Coordinato rfor H.M.G.S. Pacific South West, (yes Virginia, there is a P.S.W. chapter), and we have made a few changes to attract new historical gamers.
First we are actively promoting simple, beginners level games at our cons. I plan on running Limeys & Slimeys at our October 31st convention and others will run some simple WWII or Ancient games.
Second we have allowed Warhammer and Warhammer 40K at our conventions, only the miniatures. Some of these players have entered historical games and became interested.
(what percentage? How many more Miniature gamers would you get if that table space was given over to Historical gaming? -ED )
In closing, I am asking for help with some research. Does any of you have info on the uniforms and ships flags of the Honorable East India Company Navy, or the embarked sepoy marines? Steve Carpenter, of Minifigs, ran a Limey & Slimey game at the Gamex Con and I got hooked!!
- --Chuck Duggie Arcadia, CA
I just couldn't leave your latest (#57) editorial unanswered so here is one. It may be all well and good to hold "All Historical" conventions up there in your Washington-Baltimore-Boston megalopolis, and maybe the Chi-walkie axis has enough draw as well, but just hop into your car some time and DRIVE down here to Nashville, or out to Kansas City or Oklahoma City and you will see that there is an awful lot of country between (with a) population density significantly less than where you are (that's why I retired here!)
Aside from the West Coast you will not find sufficient concentrations of Historical gamers to make an exclusive convention so much as break even, let alone show a positive cash flow. A classic example is Atlanta, where TWO fantasy/sci-fi cons are held each year but the old Asguard miniatures con died.
Even our own Nashcon includes 'Alternate' gaming because that is where we get better than 20% of our attendees, even even though it is sponsored by HMGS Mid-South and the major accent is on historical gaming. Of the 57 new members joining HMGS Mid-South at the convention, over 10% (i.e. 6) were alternate history gamers and we now have a year's worth of newsletters and other opportunities to 'turn them from the dark side of the force'.
Dick, tell us how you started out in gaming. I'll bet you anything that you didn't just decide one day to go out and buy a couple of thousand figures, paint, brushes, rules (if there were any back then) No, you probably had someone invite you over and show you HIS collection and instead of saying ho-hum you said 'Gee, those are neat! I'd like like to do something like that.' And you were bitten by the bug just like the rest of us. What I'm trying to say is that none of us sprang up full grown out of the snows of Russia ready to do battle for the Emperor, each of us had a mentor who introduced us, tolerated us and showed that pushing around toy boats or soldiers was FUN. That is a debt the payback of which can only be made by introducing someone else new into the hobby.
Now, where do these new recruits come from? One fertile ground is from the ranks of those who already possess the ability to 'suspend disbelief'. Why might that be necessary? Try to convince a passer-by, or even your wife that those those blobs of lead and paint are really the 42nd Highlanders or the 21st Panzer Division. Suspension of disbelief is critical. Who might they be who already possess that ability? You know the answer to that already.
I'm on the National HMGS Board of Directors, but I have no say how any cons including Historicon is run. My humble suggestion though is that - if space allows - alternate gaming be permitted. Since this is a HOBBY, and fun and enjoyment are their main pyrpose (and education - for IRS tax status) why not expand participant base?
- --WILLIAM HARTING, President HMGS, MidSouth.
I understand the problems of cons in areas with low density of Historical gamers, but I feel you would be more effective putting on very well run, highly visual historical games at the local Fantasy/Science Fiction cons - ED
Although I would agree that Fantasy Role Playing games might be out of place at a Historical Miniatures Convention, I see nothing wrong with Science Fiction miniature games such as Star Guard or Warhammer 40K being played. These games require the the same kind of strategy and tactics employed in more traditional historical wargames. They are, in effect,"future history" wargames.
I also see no reason not to allow miniature wargames that contain a fantasy component. After all, what is the difference between a DBA game that pits Romans against Aztecs and a Hordes of the Things game based on J.R.R. Tolkien's "Lord of the Rings". Neither one happened historically, so how can one be considered fantasy and the other historical? In my opinion, both are fantasy games.
- --BOB BURKE Daly City, CA
Sorry Bob, but the Aztecs and Romans are painted historically, organized historically, and use historical tactics inso far as we are able to determine by study and research I submit that Fantasy and Science Fiction gaming contain NONE of these elements. Tactics of Orcs are not historically researched, can not be appraised as to a historical result and its anyone's guess what they should look like. I am sure that even the great Tolkein, if pressed, would not be able to come up with a DEFINITIVE description of his Orcs or whatever -ED
ERRATA
MORE "CADILLAC" WARGAME TABLES
As the entries have been petering out, and the last few have been simply very large tables, including one 30' x 8' table obviously used only by professional basketball players, this will be the last entry. I ask that you all send in your votes for the best idea in a warganning table as they have been presented in the last several issues by Nov 15. We will announce the winner and his prize in #60.
TED PEER'S TABLE OFFERS VERSATILITY AND SIMPLICITY
The table is made up in 3' X 6' section that can be bolted together in various combinations, the basic being 6' x 9'. A removeable edging is installed in any configuration to protect the edge of the terrain squares used (would work to hold in sawdusat or light sand terrain also). Moveable shelves attach along the periphery to hold refreshments and parephenalia.
COMMAND AND CONTROL IN THE DAYS BEFORE RADIO ISSUE #56
The author writes that the two columns in the table "Command Chip Costs" were reversed. The higher cost should be under the column titled "Outside Command Radius". The Courier apologizes for any confusion the error may have cost.
WWII COLORS AND MARKINGS ISSUE #57
The color chart on page 50 was inadvertantly split,The section for italy appearing on page 53. The color number for the German Dark Yellow Armory color is GS201. The color number for the German Dark Yellow Tamiya color is XF60
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