Richard Fontana
How to get started in solo wargames, right from basics. I have done a bit of basic modeling most of my life and have always been interested in games but have lacked opponents. It seems a bit hard to get into established clubs, especially as my lifestyle and commitments make it difficult to attend regularly and really 'get into it' as I might do under other circumstances. As for computers, I had quite a bit of fun on the old Spectrum but modern computers (I have one made to order) have drawbacks. They're too complicated, a lot of games don't load, the technology dates too fast and computers and the software are far too expensive.
What I am looking for is simple rule sets to get me started, suppliers of those rules, names, addresses etc. Some reviews lacking these! Possibly contacts with like-minded people, possibly also beginners, even correspondence (I have and American contact) for tips, ideas, trade etc.
The great bulk of my figures, AFVs etc, are 20mm plastics which I grew up with, so I am oriented this way and seek rules for fast, simple fun games, to use same. [Guys, if you can help please contact Richard direct. Kenn].
Joe Harris
Why was there no Forum in Lone Warrior 134? I really enjoy reading what other member are getting up to. [No letters to Editor = No Forum. Kenn].
Craig Ambler
At present I have my 6' x 10' table up which has presently my Napoleonics on it and a grand sight it is too! Nearly 2,000 figures and the French cavalry are about to mass charge. Carabiniers leading followed by 2 Cuirassier Regiments, a Lancer Regiment and just in case the Grenadier Horse as well, over 80 figures - can't beat figures - brill!
Ian Duncan
I've recently being playing some crusades games (don't worry I haven't abandoned my samurai!) using a neat set of rules I came across on the Internet called "Ironbow". I've attached a review which you may wish to include in LW. I've had permission from the authors to include a unit card with the review so I've attached that as well; it is in PDF format (hope you can read these files OK using Adobe Acrobat Reader).
Now that my exams are over, feel free to send me stuff for typing. Still don't know when I'll be going to Leeds. It could be some time yet. Apparently, because our main training site (and company HQ) is in the countryside, all courses have been cancelled/delayed because of Foot and Mouth. Would really like to see the terrain Kris made; looks very impressive from the photos in the latest LW.
Apart from a few "Ironbow" games, I had another (non-solo) game with "Killer Katanas". Quite like the rules but I find that although the card system introduces tension (which I like), the move distances with each card are short and the action seems too bitty. Although the game lasted only 4 turns, each unit could potentially move 16 times so it feels like you have taken loads of turns. I keep getting the urge to write my own rules but every time I start typing up some ideas I keep changing my ideas of how troops should be defined. I keep coming back to the same basic types like samurai, ashigaru, warrior monks, ronin and peasants. I'll let you know when I find (or write!) the perfect samurai set.
Colin Mackenzie
I hope you will excuse the brevity of this note, but Lone Warrior always get read cover-to-cover as soon as it arrives. This time I have only got to the foot of page 2, for the risk of missing out next year is too dreadful to contemplate (hence this missive). Will only pause to say that the new colour cover is fantastic, and an inspiration in itself. Many thanks to all and please keep up the good work.
John Barnard
Thanks to all the efforts of the Management Committee and Lone Warrior contributors.
Russell Macintosh
Hope the next year brings me as much inspiration as the last one. I must admit I have never even considered solo RPGing but Aaron Thorne's article has me intrigued. Now where did I put that old copy of Runequest?
Dave Polhill
I enjoyed reading Lone Warrior over the last year and who knows I might even muster the strength to put fingers to keyboard for long enough to contribute one day! [Dave, you just did! Kenn]
Ian Duncan [to Kris Constable]
Looks like a great job you have done on Kenn's terrain. I may be in Leeds in a few months time with work so if I get a chance, I'll pop into Kenn's and see it first hand! [Ian , you are more than welcome and bring those Samurai of yours. Kenn]
Richard Goyder
I suspect I should face some kind of penalty for having attended a club during the last year, but then at least I played a wargame, which is more than I managed in the previous twelve months. Thanks as always to you and the Committee for doing so much work on our behalf. [Richard, I am Chairman and co-founder of my local club, Wargamers of Ripon (WOR), so I get the best of both worlds. Games to my way of thinking when playing solo and the chance to confront an opponent using someone else's rules, which are not necessarily to my way of thinking. No penalty will be imposed as long as you had Fun! Kenn].
Martin Hogg
Hi folks. For those of you in the UK, What a scorcher, eh? (Sorry, 'Sun' speak). Anyway, I have posted some new armies to the paper DBA armies page - DBA 2.0 Roman, German, Dacian and Caledones… more to come I hope; http://www.mogworld.ukf.net/cardwars
By the way, is jpeg okay as a format for you Windows users, or is bitmap (bmp) better? I'm going to have a look at ways of better preserving the detail in conversion into jpeg anyway, and to look at the palette in the drawing package to ensure it's 'printer friendly'. Cheers for now. Martin
Ian Duncan
A recent conversation made me think about the way I play solo games. There have been many great articles over the years in Lone Warrior dealing with an automated opponent. However, in my experience, systems that randomise some game aspects such as terrain, deployment and orders, usually produce unsatisfactory games. I've had Alexander's phalanx holding the left wing while the Companion cavalry attempt to charge through a marsh in the centre. A bit unrealistic, to say the least. So how do I solve these problems? Here's a brief description of the process I normally use.
Starting with a scenario (or it could be a situation from a campaign), I decide on forces, terrain and objectives for both sides. Fairly standard stuff. Next, I make two or three plans for each side with the attacker usually having more options than the defender. This includes deployment and general battle plans such as where to attack/defend and so on. I also try to build in some contingency plans for each side to account for certain possible major events like the loss/gain of a terrain feature or when expected reinforcements arrive. Once this has been done for both sides, I dice to see which plan each side will follow. This planning is usually done throughout the week before I have the game. So when the game starts, I sit back and watch the battle unfold. Sometimes the game develops in unexpected ways and I enjoy seeing how the two plans interact.
What I want to know is; am I in the minority in that I tend to be a passive unbiased (!) observer? Do most soloists play as an active participant against a programmed/random opponent? Are there other ways to play solo games (not counting PBM or computer games) that I haven't even thought of?
The problem with my "system" is that although planning the game is a stimulating exercise in itself, it can be time consuming. What I would like to see is a system for generating a scenario, with terrain, objectives and forces for a quick one-off game. Do any members have ideas on how to tackle these problems? Any feedback through the pages of Lone Warrior would be most welcome.
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