The Sudan
1881-1885

Lynn Bodin:
Theme Editor for Sudan

by Lynn Bodin

Lynn Bodin, age 32, has been involved in miniature wargaming for half his life. Though he plays everything from Ancients to Space War, Lynn's special area of inter- est is the Victorian (Colonial) Era. His decision to specialize in theVictorian Era was made bout 1973, at the time of his graduation from the University of Washington, where he received a B.A. in History.

This commitment to the era became more intense in 1977 when Lynn took over the editing and publishing of Savage and Soldier from Doug Johnson and Ian Cohen of St. Louis. Now in his seventh year of operating S&S, Lynn has continued its high standards of scholarship and historical research. To date, S&S is considered by wargamers and historians of the Victorian Era to be one of the best publications in its field.

Lynn's research and gaming of the Victorian Era did not climax with his take- over of Savage andSoldier, however. In 1979 he saw his name appear on the cover of a major publication, The Boxer Rebellion, part of Osprey Publishing's well-known "Men-At-Arms" Series.

Lynn has made guest appearances in Great Britain, Canada and throughout the Western U.S. speaking on the military history and wargaming of the Victorian Era. He is a member of the Victorian Military Society and has contributed extensively to its Journal, Soldiers of the Queen. He is also a member of The Victorian Military History Institute, The Seattle Military Miniature Society, The Western Washington Wargamers and The international Naval Research Organization.

At present, Lynn has over 5,000 painted 15mm, 20mm and 25mm wargame figures. Over 2,000 of these are Colonials representing almost all of the "Imperial" powers and many of their "native" opponents. In games, he prefers entertaining, but reasonably historical rules. "Wargaming is a hobby, intended for enjoyment. The last thing I enjoy is spending a lot of my gaming time arguing about rules interpretations. It is difficult to relax if you're red in the face from having a disagreement with your opponent."

An extensive library of over 500 volumes, more than 2/3rds on Victorian subjects, aids Lynn in his continuing research. Rare, out-of-print contemporary titles as well as recent works highlight his collection.

Lynn was born and raised in the Pacific Northwest. He now resides in a suburb of Seattle with his wife, Chris, and their 3-year-old daughter, Sarah.

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