Will Johnson:
Thanks for all the hard work in editing Lone Warrior, I appreciate it very much. I hope to have the other article off to you shortly.
Charley, TV wargaming. Thanks for your e-mail. Your small scale set up sounds fun I intend to try Napoleonics in the small scales soon. How soon I don't know! Glad you enjoyed the article. Thank Kenn Hart as he pleaded for magazine articles on the Lone Warrior web site and I thought someone might enjoy this sort of gaming. I have a URL for a website that does "cardboard cut out armies" including 1809 French & Austrian at http://members.aol.com/whitemetal/front.htm. Watch out for a later Lone Warrior article from me on campaigning in the sort of stop/start wargaming we enjoy! Thanks for the message of support. Why don't you write an article on how you wargame and e-mail it to Kenn at kennhart@aol.com?
[Great idea Will. Kenn]
Jon Parshall:
The Imperial Japanese Navy Page has moved to a new home! http://www.combinedfleet.com
Matt Hood
Does anyone know what happened to that wonderful TV series 'Battleground'? Do you remember the wonderful late Peter Gilder and others, his terrain and figures fighting battles from Ancient to modern history. Was it Tyne Tees, Anglia TV or something else I can't remember. It occurred to me after browsing the latest Lone Warrior library (excellent issue Kenn, by the way) – why don't we have videos, and in particular, 'Battleground' in our library? Who do we know collectively who could help us get hold of copies? The series must exist somewhere on video. I'm sure I read somewhere recently, it might have been old Siggins in WI, someone anyway suggesting that copies existed. Lots of questions there, I know. Have a think and pass it around other SWA members you know and then come back to me and let's see if we can't sniff the bugger out! 'Happy games' Matt.
[Can anyone help? I personally would like to see the series again, so please get in touch. Kenn]
Army Wargamers Association. The important addresses:
The website: http://www.bigfoot.com/~the_AWA
E-Mail to the AWA: the_AWA@bigfoot.com
Will Johnson:
Does the society still sell copies of the First Book of Gussie by John Bennett? I purchased both the first and second books at the original time of publication, but have lost the first book in a fire at my home. If the society does not sell this book, can you place an advert in the next Lone Warrior for anyone who can sell me a copy or even a photocopy. Contact Will Johnson wjohnson@freeuk.com or 01782 818224 or 324 Turnhurst Rd, Packmoor, Stoke-on-Trent Staffs ST7 4QN.
[Will, hope someone can assist you. I have never seen the book although know of the series that was run in Lone Warrior, in the early days of the Solo Wargamers Association. Kenn]
Hi all, Just a quick note for all you wargamers. I have been notified by JD McNeil, that the UK National Wargames Convention 2000, will be held at Loughborough, University on the weekend 19th - 20th August 2000. Accommodation is available, and having been to the venue last year, the welcome, and facilities are great. The Nationals is a well run and organised convention and a fun day out. Anyone wishing further information as well as accommodation booking etc, should check out the following website: www.bhgs.co.uk
Jim McDaniel - jmcdaniel@quiknet.com
I'd like to do a solo WWII series of naval actions loosely based on the fighting in and around the Salomon Islands around 1942-43 starting with about DDs upto BBs. I'm not that concerned about air or submarines. Can somebody please suggest any suitable rules to use?
Dave Watson
WWII Naval Help Please From: Balkandave@aol.com
General Quarters appear to be the most popular in the UK for this period. I bought a set of 'Sea Wars' at Triples a few weeks ago for an Adriatic WW1 action I was planning. It covers the period 1894-1944. The rules are well laid out with helpful diagrams. Not overly complex which is a fault with most naval rules. If you want a simple set there are several rule sets published in the magazines. For example Wargames Illustrated 130 July 98 or 134 Nov.98.
Alan Saunders
The best solo game I have ever played is Raid on St. Nazaire, which offers the player plenty of decisions and surprises. Source of the Nile works fine as a solo game, as there is no real player interaction.
Rory O'Connor
Hi All. I've recently moved leaving all my gaming friends behind. I'm big into Japanese Ancients (1000's-1300's) [great taste. Ed] ...and am especially interested in developing a storytelling-type skirmish game. I have to admit that my background was in RPG's but I've been smitten by the great looking Samurai ranges produced by Dixons and Two Dragons.
[Agreed, but also check out 25-28mm Foundry and First Corps new releases. Kenn]
I've been reading a bit about Matrix Games, and was wondering if anyone has used them for solo play. If so, how did you implement the system? Any other suggestions for running solo miniature games would also be appreciated. Again, my interest lies in the storytelling aspect, more so than mass manoeuvres.
In reply:
David Heading
Yes. They work very well - all you need is a set of characteristics for each 'player' - these may be characters in the RPG, countries in a continent or some mix of the two. I used the 'creating characters' chapter from Tony Bath's book to generate my human characters in my campaign world. This leads to maybe half a dozen characteristics of a particular player. You then argue for each player from the particular situation and the player's character as created.
In fact, in my campaign, I have 3 tables, one for national characteristics, one for personal (or leaders) and one for strategy. A nation would be made up of 2-8 random national characteristics - which might be 'at war' or 'peaceable' or 'mercantile', and the situations were then worked out, and national leaders rolled up as required. For example, a leader with 'peaceable' and 'just' characteristics was unlikely to permit his 'warlike' nation to invade a country, sell the inhabitants into slavery and sow the fields with salt.
Once the situations are worked out, you can sit back and decide how strong the arguments each 'player' has made are, and roll the dice to decide. It is good fun, but can be very frustrating as you see your 'players' (in my case) careering into yet another war while they have just been defeated by another power.
So, I'd use a table of characteristics and about half a dozen specific characteristics for each 'player'. Put them into a situation and argue from the 'players' position. Roll dice and see what happens. For a specifically Japanese setting, you can add all the honour and Bushido like characteristics, and let it roll. I hope this helps. Cheers, David Heading, Moderator SoloWarGame
From: TheAngl
The Vesuvius Incident is one of my favourites! I've been slowly working toward a slightly upsized miniatures version to take to cons.
B-17 is also fun. I used to play it in the office (when I worked in an office) during breaks and crewed the ship with all the other folks from the company. When a critical decision came up (like, do we turn back damaged or do we stay with the formation, or do we jump and abandon the wounded or do we try to land a crippled ship?), I would go ask whoever happened to be in command at that time. I got some weird looks from people at first, but people got into the spirit of it pretty quickly and as word spread through the office people would actually drop in and see how things were going. I posted the phone list with the names of dead and injured crew members highlighted, and it got checked frequently.
I do a bit less solo gaming now that my oldest son is getting old enough to take part. We've had fun playing Solitaire ASL cooperatively (he could never handle it competitively).
Some other games I've found to be very good solitaire: Pelopennesian War (Victory Games) Panzer Command (Victory Games) Across Five Aprils (AH) Age of Empires (TimJim Games -- really excellent) Rise and Fall (of the Roman Empire -- EMS) Source of the Nile (AH or Discovery Games) Ancients (3W) Any and all of the old Zucker Napoleonic games (Nappy's Last Battles, Nappy at War, Nappy at Leipzig, Nappy's Art of War, Dresden 1813, ad infinitum -- these can be played as is or spiced up by adding the random play sequence of Across Five Aprils, which gives them a whole new twist)
But, I've never had any difficulty playing almost anything solitaire without any special rules as long as the game didn't involve a lot of secret deployment or movement. I've even played Up Front solo quite successfully, just by not drawing cards to refill a hand until the next turn (after the other side's turn). When playing side A, you know some of what side B has in its hand, but not everything, and those one or two unknown cards can completely alter the picture (there was no fire card before, but will he draw one?). I rarely spend much time drawing up tables of likely actions just for solo games. I reserve that sort of thing mostly for convention games where several players will be playing against the game system.
I found the Ambush system tedious to use. It was too much work for the payoff. RAF was interesting for the first dozen or so turns, until I figured out the British strategy, and then it became too mechanical for my taste -- every turn was pretty much the same, with occasional excitement when the Luftwaffe would think about switching targets.
J Flores
Have you tried any historical miniatures based rule sets? Two come to mind that lend themselves to solo play: Piquet and Medieval Warfare. There are a number of Piquet web sites out there and MW is hosted on the SAGA web site. The great thing about miniatures is that you can have fun from painting and collecting the figures as well as gaming with them. There is also some historical education that comes along for free. Highly recommended
David Heading
Players Wanted: Greetings, I have a small game set in 1588 which requires groups of 3 players (at least in the first instance) to try out (there may be some play testing, it may work fine). The essential part of it is to design a strategic plan for the Spanish to invade England, given, and is basically what you might call a committee game. Given the wonders of email, of course, geographical location does not matter. All correspondence should actually go through me, as the real life participants were in Lisbon, the Netherlands and Madrid, respectively. If you are interested, drop me a line here. If you doubt my credentials as a PBem Gamemaster, have a look at http://www.1618-something.co.uk (I think) and you will find that all your fears are totally justified. But bear in mind that this will not be an open ended game like that one, I hope, anyway.
Jack Squires jsquires@talk21.com.
Could the following go in "Forum" please with my email address? I am interested in computer rules for both solo and opponent games. I would be pleased to hear from anyone who has an interest in this aspect of playing either with commercial or home written rules. Also to know about bugs you have found in commercial rules. Does anyone have maps for the 1812 war in America and the island of St Helena when Napoleon was there?
Aaron Thorne (Arlington, Virginia)
Dear Rich. Just today received LW 130. Inside the envelope was a note from you letting me know that I need to renew my membership. At the top you had written "Aaron, what have you been up to lately?" You should know better than to ask such a question. Not too long ago I joined the Civil War Preservation Trust, which is an organisation that buys old battlefields to preserve them for posterity. A worthy cause, I think. It's somewhat ironic because of all historic periods to game, ACW is pretty near the bottom of my list. I have developed an interest in the American revolution though, and being out here in Northern Virginia/D.C. I have lots of places that I can visit with a revolutionary connection.
Actually, I never really got into historical gaming. I much prefer fantasy and sci-fi gaming. I'm not sure why this is, but I think there are multiple reasons, which I will attempt to explain: Elves are cool. OK, they're only cool when they're Tolkien-style "I can kick your butt and not even break a sweat" elves, not Mother Goose-style elves. I enjoy telling stories, and that holds true when I wargame. I like to develop my own personalities, back story etc. I find this more fun to do with fantasy and science fiction scenarios, as I have much more freedom to make up my own stuff. I feel constrained with "historical scenarios" and I don't really enjoy alternate history stuff, as it just feels wrong to me. It is more exciting when I really have no clue who will win the battle, rather than refighting Agincourt, where I know who "really" won.
War is hell. I have played historical games where I find myself completely mortified at the level of carnage that must have existed during the actual battle, due to the way that my forces are being decimated. When my elves get slaughtered, I know that they're all made up anyway, so it doesn't bother me. Granted, it makes for a great education as to the consequences of gunboat diplomacy.
Mile-long interstellar battle cruisers do not exist in real life. They're much more interesting than aircraft carriers. And yes, I've been on an aircraft carrier (the Enterprise, back in the 80's).
I enjoy playing historical board wargames, but when it comes to miniatures, I go the fantasy or sci-fi route. Speaking of board wargames, I really like the ones that GMT (gmtgames.com) puts out. Cataphract is great, and plays well solo. Their solo-only game, Hornet Leader, really rocks. That game is wonderful, and highly recommended to all solo gamers who enjoy modern air warfare. Actually, most of their games are really great. Check them out if you are unfamiliar with the company and like boardgames.
And speaking of miniatures, I had not done anything with any of my minis for over a year until just recently, when I pulled out my copy of Warhammer Quest for grins. Seeing all my little painted adventurers got the juices flowing, and I am now working on my Warhammer wood elves again. I sent some figures off to Renaissance Ink (renaissanceink.net) for jay to paint up for me, and I'm working on some myself. Painting miniatures is fun, but it just takes so much time. Especially when you're slow as molasses like me. Additionally, earlier today I ordered a copy of Fantasy Legend from Black Knight Games (black-knight-games.com, I think). I'll try to review them for Lone warrior when I get them but no guarantees.
But I digress. When jay gets my wood elves finished, I'm going to start a little solo campaign where they take on a Vampire Counts army. I haven't really started on any of the details yet, but I promise to write up my battle reports and solo gaming mechanisms and submit them to the magazine.
Also, I have started running an RPG campaign for my friend Brian Halber, who is the only guy I know in the area who will play "real" wargames with me. It's an AD&D game set in the Al-Qadim game world, which is their "Arabian Nights"-style setting. Very cool. I used an adventure from a boxed set for the first session, and am writing one from scratch for the second session, which will be in about three weeks, after I get back from my trip to Missouri.
On a side note, you published my "Campaign Notes for a Grand-Strategic Game" in LW 127, which I thought was very nice, and probably won the award for the single most poorly-edited piece ever to be published on our little magazine. Unfortunately, you put my name as Aaron Throne, not Aaron Thorne. Of course, I likely did that myself when I submitted the article, but my editor is supposed to catch me when I do silly things like that. Oh wait, you mean I'm my own editor? Curses! Foiled again!
Aaron, mea culpa! I was horrified to look up LW 127 and find that accursed misspelling. Yes, you have a reasonable expectation that your editor will "clean up" your writing. Sorry it didn't happen that time. I promise I'll get it right when you send me your next articles. As for fantasy games, my two youngest sons, Alex and Daniel, have some serious Warhammer armies (Bretonnians, Lizards, Skaven, Undead, High Elf). I enjoy helping them paint and I am very much impressed by the regimental packs coming out in reasonably-priced plastic. These mix and match kits have endless variety in pose and uniform. Just finished painting up some Skaven Clanrats and the results are very pleasing. However, my eldest son and I have great difficulty dealing with magic so we play Warhammer with minimal magic. I also dislike throwing dozens and dozens of dice to inflict a casualty or two but I understand some folks love heaving them cubes. My problem with Warhammer is that each turn seems to go on forever; I enjoy fast-paced games. On the plus side, each force is decidedly different in strengths and weaknesses than its foe. Thus, you must fight each army differently. In many historic games, the forces are mirror images of one another and the same tactics apply. And I love the various army books GDW publishes and White Dwarf is always a treat, if only for the sumptuous color.
Kenn:
For those with the access I can recommend you check out: SoloWarGame-subscribe@onelist.com [FREE].
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