This is the season that brings Historicon, the flagship Historical Miniatures wargame convention of HMGS. With Historicon 95 comes the selection of a new Board of Directors for HMGS East. Historicon may be run by HMGS East, but is rightly thought of by all HMGS members as THEIR convention, being the largest as well as the longest lived. The founding members of HMGS are all members of HMGS East, which is the richest chapter by far. Therefore the way HMGS East is run and how well its BOD cleaves to the precepts that founded the organization is of prime importance to all HMGS members, and I believe, to all American historical wargamers. There has been some controversy in this area of late, with a general feeling that a younger generation of BOD members is required to relieve the "Old Guard." I feel that new views are important to the growth of the hobby, however I feel that these views must be balanced by a maturity of intellect and a belief in the importance of the "H" in the HMGS title. Therefore, The Courier, for the first time in its existance, is going to take a "political stance." We recommend to our readers who are HMGS members that they vote for Tobey Barrett and Tom Desmond to be on the HMGS East BOD. I have known both of them for much of my wargaming life and know that they both embody the love of the hobby, the mental maturity, the organizational skills, and the committment necessary to grow HMGS and the hobby over the next few years. A biography and a platform for each is detailed: Tobey Barrett and Tom Desmond. IS RULE PLAGURISM POSSIBLE? With much chagrin, I recently read a letter to the editor of another gaming magazine in which the author of one very popular set of rules accused the author of another set of popular rules of copying his use of dice! Come on, guys - don't you know that just about every method we now use to determine casualties, measure morale, apportion moves, apply logistics, etc. has been invented and reinvented since the dawn of gaming. Robert Louis Stevenson used morale dice in a very different way than we do now. The German Krergspiel (various versions 1839-1880) used hidden movement rules, hex grids, dice that were other than D6, and artillery sticks. Jack Scruby used initiative dice, detemination of number of units that could move by dice throw, and variable length turns. Myriad methods of morale dice have been used over and over. If it were not for copyright statute of limitations, all of the modern era rules writers would be plagiarizing to some extent. So lighten up - such accusations sound like sour grapes if not outright slander. Today's innovation is in the assembly of these techniques, in their presentation, and by the introduction of new concepts (e.g. hidden terrain features ala Napoleon's Battles or the limited troop placement of ARMATI). Tomorrow's innovation will probably come from insights and capability provided by the computer. As they become more affordable and compact enough for each gamer to have one at the table, much of the clutter, record keeping, etc. will be handled by this means, allowing us to enjoy the panorama of well painted figures on sculpted terrain. Rumors We have heard that a rumor is being bandied about that issue number 66 of The Courier was the last! Well I hope that the issue now in your hands dispels that chimera. I assume that the rumor started at the meeting of the HMGS National Board where an offer by The Courier of providing support to all the HMGS chapters via an insert with HMGS chapter news that would go with The Courier to HMGS members. Evidently someone took the tack that The Courier needed a bailout and was on its last legs! Nothing could be further from the truth. CANADIAN READERS Canadian readers can now subscribe to The Courier directly from T. D. Imports, 7004R 5th Ave., Calgary, Alberta T2H2G3. Write to them for details. Back to Table of Contents -- Courier #67 To Courier List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1995 by The Courier Publishing Company. This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com