As the summer heat meanders across the country, I hope the El Nino-La Nina-El Kabong weather patterns spare us the ever-increasing cycle of drought and deluge. But whatever the weather, one thing you can count on is the ever-increasing amount of information and ideas coming out of magazines and newsletters, re-inforced by conventions and impromtu get togethers.
Last week, I visited the home turf of a wargame newsletter publisher, Wally Simon, editor for the Potomac Wargamers' PW Review. After many years of reading PWR, which does a first-rate job of dissecting rules (commercial and homegrown), I cannot recall a single game where Wally has been on the winning side. So, off I went to Maryland to find out why...
On the physical side, the gaming table in Wally's Basement (or, more accurately, Wally's Basement II) is surrounded by shelves packed with miniatures of all sorts and scales. Wally says he never throws anything out. I can believe it. And being a rather creative sort, Wally mixes and matches figures to test the latest rules. All of this becomes fodder for the newsletter.
First up was a modern game, using what appeared to be M-1 Abrams and T-72 tanks, plus assorted armored cars, BMPs, and infantry. The rules set was called Sturm, which I believe is for WWII, but can evidently be used for modern as well. Or, maybe we were using modern tanks for WWII tanks. The infantry was a mix which included, and I kid you not, one 16th century Spaniard with muskatoon. This goes to show what a nifty camoflage paint job and putting multiple figures on a stand and many stands can do. I, with T-72s, was the defense, while Wally, with M-1s was on offense. It was here that I became aware of why Wally suffers defeat after defeat--he stacks the deck against himself.
This doesn't come out in the newsletter. Basically, he's attacking at 1:2 odds. After a couple hours of battling, I blunted his flanks and he drove through the middle with stellar morale and combat rolls, sending my otherwise stalwart troops fleeing for their pathetic metal lives. At this point, he declared victory...for me.
Now, he had a reserve which never appeared on the battlefield. He was doing a fine job staving in my center, and was shifting his armor (admittedly battered from a bazooka ambush of mine) to deal with my T-72s. Now, as I write this, I have not seen Wally's description of the battle, although I can just imagine his angle: a bloody loss for the attackers.
Next up was my own set: Snappy Nappy. The modern terrain now became Napoleonic, the troops were Napoleonic, and the rules were, well, Napoleonic. For this battle, a pair of generals, Figlia and Haub, joined in. Unlike the large multi-table Snappy Nappy actions you've read about in MWAN before (see MWAN #88 and #94), we confined it to one table. This was, after all, a test.
This time, I set up the scenario, giving us exactly equal British and French forces. And we marched in on opposite ends of the terrain, so that there would be no inherent defensive advantage. And I explained the movement rules, the command and control radius, firing, etc. As usually happens, the first couple turns are run through with asides and explanations, and then the player runs through the rules with only minor questions.
And then I discovered another aspect of Wally's efforts for PWR. When testing rules, he tries to do something out of the ordinary--I mean, really trying to stress test the rules. I explain that his British commander has an 18" radius and the disadvantages to troops outside the radius. What does Wellington Wally do? He immediately divides his corps into three divisions, puts two in command and the third out of command. He then tries a variety of other ideas: park an infantry brigade in column in front of 24 French artillery guns, frontally charge a supported battery of guns with shaky troops, methodically soften up troops with artillery fire and then charge them with steady infantry, and so on.
Well, you can imagine the results--much of his infantry in disarray and streaming backwards, the well-prepared assaults doing very well (and sending Haub's French troops heading for the hills), his out of command cavalry division under Figlia mostly milling about desperately trying to grab some initiative, and Wellington desperately trying to rally troops. Admittedly, Wally defied the odds repeatedly on morale rolls ("something wrong with our bloody troops today" or something like that), but he placed himself in that position specifically because he played "to test," not "to win."
Now, this explains quite a great deal about the PWR and its at times curmudgeonly tone. Editor Wally doesn't just test rules, he launches search and destroy operations. You see, he enjoys seeing the interaction of rules subsystems, and especially seeing the repercussions if you do something legal but strange...or just pain dumb.
No doubt I'll hear more about Snappy Nappy--initial comments were very favorable except for one aspect: the name, which was echoed by Gen. Figlia. (Hey, I like it because it *is* different). And he asked when the next multi-table Snappy Nappy game was going to be...so, the rules must have made an impression of some sort.
We played another home-spun game, which was like Risk but with light (infantry), medium (1/2 tracks), and heavy (tanks) troops. There was building sequence, attack sequence, and screw-your-opponent-with-rebellions sequence all cleverly using playing cards. I did OK, but Gen. Willtrout won with a barrage of hearts (as in "winning the hearts and minds of your fellow man").
So when you read an article, especially a product review, you have to understand where the author is coming from to understand the information. In the case of one wargaming newsletter, PW Review, the editor delights in torture testing rules mechanics, and providing his take on how well...or poorly...said rules perform on the "real world" tabletop.
Horn Tooting and Recruiting
From time to time, our wargaming hobby gets exposure in the mass media. Many may remember the Wall Street Journal reporter who came to a HMGS Historicon convention several years ago. There was a Sports Illustrated article in the 60s (?). Last year, Smithsonian magazine ran a short piece on wargaming. A&E ran a toy documentary that included an admittedly laughable segment on historical miniatures. There's the occasional local newspaper which does a Sunday feature on a gaming group. Last year, MagWeb.com received a USA Today Hot Site award plus a NJ Technology Internet Excellence award (Media category). Well, we just took another step forward.
NJ Business News does a yearly feature called "40 under 40" in which they pick the top 40 movers and shakers in NJ who are supposed to do wonderful things that year. Guess what? In and amongst the executives from Fortune 500 companies and software and bio-tech entrepreneurs was a wargamer. That's right. Russ Lockwood (that's me) was selected for year 2000 for MagWeb.com.
They sent a photographer, a reporter interviewed me, and end result was I was #20 on the list, which was in the March 14th issue.
And in a double dose of horn tooting, the March 2000 issue of PC Gamer (circ around 200,000 or so) carried an extremely favorable review of MagWeb.com in the "Desktop General" column, which has brought in all sorts of new members who know little about miniatures, but a lot about military history and computers. This includes, and I kid you not, a small research group in a Defense think tank, as well as a small research group in a company dedicated to Sony/Sega/Nintendo systems that want to expand into military history simulations and games.
Conventional wisdom says we're a small, graying group in need of going out and gathering recruits. I say, and have said for the past four years, that our collective genius in military history, tactics, gaming, and so on just needed a mechanism to make us accessible to all those military history buffs hanging onto History Channel documentaries. Build it, market it, publicaize it, and they'll come to us.
We have much to offer. The magazines and newsletters of our hobby are an extension of that information, enthusiasm, and fun. I grew MagWeb.com out of this wargaming trinity, and it's nice to know that folks outside our hobby are beginning to recognize our efforts. It may not be the New York Times, or Time's Man of the Year...yet...but these are small steps in the right direction to bring military history, historical miniatures, and our comradery to a wider audience.
Now, to the magazines...
Abanderado -- Vol. 4 No. 3/4; 24pgs.; 8.5x12"; PQ B, WR A, IR A; Rolfe Hedges, 32 Linnet Mews, Balham, London SW12 8JE, E-mail: Rolfscw@aol.com; 5 British pounds per year (UK), 6.50 pounds (Europe), 8.5 pounds (rest of world); quarterly. Abanderado Vol 4 #3/4 hits with a double issue. Great articles on The Garibaldi Battalion: October, 1936 to July, 1937, Guadalajara (The Defeat of Faulty Logistics), Spanish Military Museums, Flamethrower and Chemical Company of the CTV, Anti-Tank Rifles in Spain, Wargaming Naval Activities in the SCW, A Brief Guide to Regulares Uniforms, plus book and film reviews.
Age of Napoleon -- #32, #31; 48pgs.; 8.5x12"; PQ A, WR A, IR A; On Military Matters, 55 Taylor Terr., Hopewell, NJ 08525; $42 per year, bimonthly. Age of Napoleon No. 32 (1999) provides articles on Officers and Gentlemen: Commanding the
British Army in the Napoleonic Wars, Linien Infanterie Leib Regiment 1806-1813, Recruiting the 68th (British Regiment), 'Ces Pauvres Enfants': Napoleon's Marie-Louises Of 1814, The Brunswick Corps at Quatre Bras, book reviews, news, and a multitude of other information.
Age of Napoleon #31 (1999) Russian special issue with uniforms and skirmish tactics 1807, Col. Elting and others on Military Myths, Netherlands Korps Guides te Paard, Field Artillery Part III, British Battalion re-enactment, and more.
The Art of War Annual -- #30; 40pgs.; 8.5x11"; PQ A, WR B, IR A/D; Clash of Arms, The Byrne Bldg. #205, Lincoln & Morgan Sts., Phoenixville, PA 19460; $10 per 4 issues, ($2.50 cover price) quarterly Mason-Dixon line Where Was It Again?, Situational Awareness in Fighting Wings, From Valmy to Waterloo Napoleonic Miniatures Rules Official Addenda and Clarifications, Struggle for Europe
Play Aid Master Sequence of Play, Scoring with Joan of Arc, 1806: Rossbach Avenged, The La Bataille de Lutzen Forum, Napoleon's First War Against the Tsar Special Study Nr. 8, A Narrative History of 1807 Chapter Three: General Winter Takes Command, and more.
Clash of Empires -- #5/6; 48pgs.; 8.5x5.5"; PQ B, WR A, IR A; Keith Frye, 33 Ridge Rd., Bloomingdale, NJ 07403, $12 per year, quarterly ($14.50 Canada). Clash of Empires #5/6 (Spring/Summer 1999) offers articles on the Prussian Cavalry 1870-71
(Uniform Guide), Battle of Navarino 1827, Battle of Langensalza: 26 June 1866, The Army of the
Kingdom of Hanover: Uniforms and Organisation 1864-1866, Prussian Amphibious Assault on Alsen
Island 29 June 1864, Louis Christophe Léon Juchault de Lamorcière biography, The Dannevirke and
Dybbol Fortifications 1864, and book reviews.
The Courier -- #77; 64pgs.; 8.5x11"; PQ A, WR A, IR A; PO Box 1878, Brockton, MA 02403; $19 quarterly ($34 for 2 years, $45 for 3 years). Courier #77 offers articles on Medieval miniatures rules comparison, Fugitive's Drift (post-Isandlwana Zulus vs. Brits), Battle of Oriskany (6 Aug 1777), Polish Cavalry's Last Battle (27 Sep 1939), Korpetsch with Rapid Fire rules, Viking Run rules, index, and the usual cornucopia of product reviews, news, and other ideas.
Cry Havoc -- #28, 27 24pgs.; 8.5x11"; PQ A, WR A, IR A; David W. Tschanz, 7862 W. Irlo Bronson Hwy. #188, Kissimmee, FL 34747. Quarterly, $25 per year hard copy, $10 in electronic PDF form. cryhavoc@iname.com 28: Benedict Arnold The Traitor Who Saved America Part 5 (and Battle of Saratoga), Eco-Disaster May Expose Soviet BioWar Dump Vozrozhdeniye Island, Pu Yi and Manzhouguo China and Japan, Warrior Women of the Mall Humor, Citizen Soldiers Book Review and Analysis, Bits and Pieces News from around the world, The General and the Reporter Gun Control, Little Known Facts About the American Revolution, and more.
27: Jackson's Valley Campaign Stonewall Jackson's resignation...and victories, Alternate History II Update and Additional Thoughts, Squeezing the Confederacy The Union Naval Blockade during the ACW, Battling the British Home Front WWII Humor, Myth II: Soulblighter Review of computer game, Bits and Pieces News from around the world, Japanese War Museums Today A Visit to Otsujima, SPI Alums Open Website Press Release, Line of Departure Teams with The Gamers Net Press Release, and more.
El Dorado; Vol. VIII #4; 54pgs.; 8.5x5.5"; PQ B, WR A, IR A; South and Central American Military Historians Society, 27 Hallgate, Cottingham, E. Yorkshire HU16 4DN, UK (US: Paul Walsh, 227 Sunnybrook Rd. Springfield, PA 19064); 6.75 pounds (UK), 7.50 pounds (Europe), $25 (US) per year, quarterly. El Dorado Vol. 8 No. 4 offers up excellent articles on The Sandanista Rebellion in Nicaragua
(1927-1932), Insurgent Armor in Latin America (1948-1998), The Army in Paraguay 1810-1840,
Peruvian Army and Navy (1925), Weapon Purchases and Production During the Pacific War
(1879-1883), and US Troops Stationed Along the Mexican Border (1913-1919) Part 3. Extensive
"Book List" a cornucopia of sources.
English Civil War Times -- #55; 40pgs.; 8.5x12"; PQ A, WR A, IR A; On Military Matters, 55 Taylor Terr., Hopewell, NJ 08525; $42 per year, bimonthly. Execution of Charles I, Artillery in Ireland 1641-53, Army of Fairfax 1642-5, Buff Coates, Storming of Leeds, Irish troops for Royalsists 1643-5 (Part 2), and more.
Europa -- #62; 64 pages, 8.5x11"; PQ A, WR A, IR A/D; GR/D, P.O. Box 591, Grinnell, IA 50112, 1-800-236-7442 or (515) 236-8899, or fax: (515) 236-6666; $35 per year, bimonthly. House organ for Europa series of boardgames includes a multitude of WWII history. #62 (1999) offers German Operational Plans for Spain: 1940-1944 Invasion of Spain, The Condor Legion German Intervention in Spain, Songs of the Spanish Civil War Songs of the era, In Europa it doesn't get worse then this...The Bruguet 19 Aircraft, Allied and Axis Military Aircraft 9/39 The warplanes at the start of WWII. Plus Europa game support with German Sturm, Replacement Summary and Charts for FWtBT Player Aids, Second Front Ohio Style Battle Report, Secont Front: ETO 1944 Scenario Battle Report, Battalions Sturm Battalions in FITE/SE, and more.
First Empire -- #49, #50, #51; 40pgs.; 8.5x12"; PQ A, WR A, IR A; On Military Matters, 55 Taylor Terr., Hopewell, NJ 08525; $42 per year, bimonthly. First Empire 51 (Mar-Apr 2000) examines the Battle of Gohrde 1813, the Siege of Danzig 1813, Montereau 18 Feb 1814, Hohenlinden 2000 Battlefield Tour, French Marshal Moncey bio, Bonaparte's 1799 Landing (Re-enactment), Bernadotte Scapegoat for Intelligence Failure?, Napoleonic Books from Greenhill, and more.
First Empire #50 (Jan-Feb 2000) brings Napoleonic information with articles on Battle of Austerlitz (and battlefield tour photos), Last Cartridge (Battle of Fuente Ovejuna, 1810), General Desaix and the Campaign in Upper Egypt 1798-99, profile of Feld-Marshall Leutnant Print Franz von Rosenberg (Austrian general at Battle of Wagram), re-enactment at Phillipsburg, news, and more.
First Empire #49 (November-December 1999) present articles on the battles of Hohenlinden (1800), Salamanca (1812), Magnano (1799), legend on Plunket's Shot, profile of French Marshal Francois Etienne Christophe `Kellermann, and more.
Frontline -- Vol. 1 No. 3; 24pgs.; 8.5x12"; PQ B, WR A, IR A; Rolfe Hedges, 32 Linnet Mews, Balham, London SW12 8JE, E-mail: Rolfscw@aol.com; 5 British pounds per year (UK), 7 pounds (Europe), 9 pounds (rest of world); 3 times a year. Vol. I no. 3 brings you much WWII and Modern organizational information: Tiger in Tunisia 1943, German Demolition Vehicles, Italian Infantry 1943, 7th Panzer Division 1940, Chinese 200th Mech Div., Korean War, 1990s US Army, Israeli 1982 Armoured Brigade, Russian Tank Anti-Missile Defenses 1990s, and more.
The Gauntlet--#17; 100pgs; 5.5x8.5"; PQ B, WR B, IR A; M Hannam, 2F/R 65 Walker Road Aberdeen AB11 8DL Scotland or Craig Martelle, PSC 77, DTRO-M, APO AE 09721 gauntlet2@hotmail.com;
$20 (4 issues), $30 for overseas customers (U.S. military FPO excluded); quarterly. The Gauntlet #17 (Fall 1999) brings a wide variety of historical information and wargaming scenarios and rules. includes Russian Cavalry Standard colors 1907-1914, Nezhinskiy Horse Jaeger Regt (1812), Russian Jaegers in European Campaigns (1813-1814), Skirmish Wargaming, Escape from the Claws of Ra (Inspired by the Film: The Mummy), Scouting and Grand Tactical Manoeuvre for C17th Campaigns, Phalanx for the Memory, Seizure of the Junon (Age of Sail), reviews, letters, and much more.
Greenhill Military Book News 32 pgs.; 5.5"x8.5"; PQ B, WR C, IR A/C; Greenhill Books/Lionel Leventhal Ltd Park House, 1 Russell Gardens London NW11 9NN United Kingdom e-mail: LionelLeventhal@compuserve.com; $9 per year, published about 7 times a year Greenhill Military Book News offers news about what the company is publishing, plus some
excerpts and illustrations. Two issues: #96 (January 2000) and #95 (November 1999).
The Heliograph #116, #115, #114, #113; 40pgs.; 8.5x11"; PQ B, WR B, IR A; Richard Brooks, Rte 6 Box 771, Saluda, SC 29138, USA, E-mail: brooks1@emeraldis.com ; $12 per 6 issues ($15 Canada, 15 pounds for Europe) Lots of new information about colonial figures, rules, books, and other products. E-mail has changed.
Heliograph #116 (Dec 1999) brings a colonial figure review, the Folly of the 24th (Isandlwana), and San Juan Hill scenarios, as well as the usual new product information pertaining to all things 19th century colonial.
Heliograph #115 (Oct 1999) Campaigning in Darkest Africa: The Early Years, Colonial Egyptian Army Painting Guide, book and figure reviews, news, and more.
Heliograph #114 (August 1999) Roll to Your Rifle 1:1 Skirmish Rules for Victorian Era, Advice to a British Lead Soldier L'Envoi to Sand-table Sonatas, many reviews, news, and more.
Heliograph #113 (June 1999) Musee Archeologie A Visit to the Nimes museum, On Tour in ZuluLand A recap of an Ian Knight Tour, Painting Tips British Colonial Period, Cannon Fodder Miniatures A Listing of the miniatures, reviews, news, and more.
The Herald #32, #33; 48pgs.; 8.5x5.5"; PQ B, WR B, IR A; 2251 Wayne Madison Rd., Trenton, OH 45067, E-mail: mdemana@freenet.columbus.oh.us; $10 per 6 issues (US) From HMGS Great Lakes, an impressive magazine about chapter doings.
#32 (Nov-Dec 1999): DBA campaign from the Visigoth's viewpoint, review of JodieCon Market Garden campaign, WWI air game, continuing series on 9th Century Britain campaign game, reviews, and more.
#33 (Jan-Feb 2000): HMGS info, 2nd Schleswig-Holstein War sources, 1940 Norway scenario, continuing series on 9th Century Britain campaign game, reviews, and more.
HMGS Dispatch -- 1999-2000; 40pgs.; 5.5x8.5"; PQ C, WR B, IR B; HMGS Mid-South, 101 Taylor Rd., Estill Springs, TN 37330; $10 per year (US) monthly. From HMGS Mid-South, contains a wide varity of information, reviews, and scenarios.
Lone Warrior -- #127, #128, #129 (North American edition); 40pgs.; 8.5x11"; PQ A, WR B, IR A; Solo Wargamers Assn., 1707 Ridge Rd., Levenworth, KS 66048; $20 per year (US), $25 (Canada), quarterly. Lone Warrior 129 (Jan-Mar 2000) from the Solo Wargamers Assn merges history with wargaming
by covering topics as: Battle of Salamis (480BC), Billy the Kid vs. Pat Garrett (US Wild West), ECW, Solo Napoleonic Campaign, Ideas for Miniature Battlefields, Computer games Corner, wargame references on the web, reviews, and more.
Lone Warrior 128 (Oct-Dec 1999) offers small Napoleonic campaign, Attack on Porto Nuovo (Venetians vs. Turks 1610), Intelligence codes, book, magazine, and miniatures product reviews, and more.
Lone Warrior 127 (Jul-Sep 1999) brings you a cornucopia of solo rules and historical information, including Korean Air War, Jacobite Rebellion, King's Shilling (recruiting methods), wargaming ancients and medievals, WWII, figure reviews, and more.
The Matrix Gamer. matrixgamer@juno.com e-mail magazine, roughly monthly. PQ N/A, WR A, IR B;
Matrix Gamer #9 (Dec 99) and #10 (Jan 00) provide rules ideas for Matrix games. #10 has Dar as
Salaam (1880 British Invasion of Ottoman province), and #9 offers Design Pitfalls and How to Build a Spaceship for 25mm Figures.
Matrix Gamer #8 (November 1999) and #7 (September 1999) offer up articles on Cause and Effect (Why Do Things Really Happen?), Pretty Figures, Killer Terrain, and Matrix Games, WWI Trench Assault Example of a Matrix Combat Argument, Dar As Salaam: Invasion of the Land of Peace, A Confederate Spy in Washington DC (New Matrix Game Product), MGs at GenCon 1999, New Approaches to Publishing Games (It Can Be Done Cheap), reviews of MGs The Spanish Ulcer, The Three Musketeers, and Murder on Mainstreet, and more.
Napoleon -- #13; 84 pages; 8.5"x11"; PQ A, WR A, IR A; napoleon LLC, 2625 Alcatraz Ave., Berkeley, CA 94705, DLombardy@aol.com, toll-free 877-280-5252 for subscription and back issue orders; $33 per year (US), $35 (Canada), $38 (all other countries via surface mail), bimonthly. An increase in pages, an increase in color, and an increase in quality mark the beginning of the expansion of Napoleono magazine. Like First Empire and Age of Napoleon, a must-have mag for the Napoleon enthusiast.
#13: Borodino 1812, Napoleonic Scneientific inquiry in Egypt, profile of Gunther Rothernberg, EXCELLENT Waterloo controversy article...maps on page 54 and 55 are a must have for all. Book reviews, game review of Friedland 1807, and news round out the issue.
The Naval Sitrep -- #17 (Oct 1999); 32 pages; 8.5x11"; PQ A, WR A, IR A; Clash of Arms, Byrne Building #205, Lincoln and Morgan Streets, Phoenixville, PA 19460; $15 per year, quarterly. The Naval SITREP #17 (October 1999) offers a variety of WWII and modern naval articles,
including: The Development of Radar in Italy in WWII (1933-1944), Cruisers of the Imperial Japanese Navy, Revisited (Part 1, WWII), Cape Spartivento á la Française (Italy vs. France Naval Battle Scenario, 27 November 1940), Radar Modeling in SSI's Harpoon 4 Computer Game (Equations and Formulas), Book Review: Rolling Thunder, Modern Naval News 1999, USS Hornet Loss Analyzed
Report, WW II Bomb Loads: Japanese Bomb Allocation, a Special Naval Y2K humor Section
(Admiral Dewey Named CNO!, Marines Sent to Legation Quarter in Peking, er, Beijing, and USS
Iowa Commissioned), plus a variety of rules updates for Harpoon, and the usual array of CAS and
Harpoon ship specifications.
The Nugget -- #143; 32 pages; 5.5x8.5"; PQ B, WR B, IR A; Wargames Developments, 84 Eglinton Hill, Shooters Hill, London SE18 3DY warden@dircon.co.uk; 9x a year, 15 British pounds
#143: Alien abductions, troubled fantasy village, logistics ideas and cources, WWII battle of britain ideas,
#141: POW solo game, Right-wing militia raid, Boffins (?!) rules, and more.
Operations -- #35; 32 pages; 8.5"x11"; PQ A, WR A, IR A/C; The Gamers, 500 W 4th St., Homer, IL 61849; $16 per year (US), $24 (overseas), quarterly. House organ for The Gamers brings history and boardgaming together.
#35 (Winter 1999): La Guerre de l'Empereur Player's Notes, Alternate TCS Command Rules Command Status and Activation, This Hallowed Ground Continuing Campaign Game Part 2, Ardennes Game Variant, Battle for Bir el Gobi Part Two, Aspern-Essling Across the Danube: The NBS Returns, and HomerCon 1999 Convention Report.
#34 (Fall 1999): This Hallowed Ground Continuing Campaign Game, The Battle of Glendale American Civil War, The Battle of Glendale 3 Brigade Stands Firm puzzle, The Battle of Bir el Gobi Part 1, Jungle Fever Origins '99 Convention Report, CSR Winners for 1998 Awards, Homer Con Europe '99 Convention Report, and more.
The Penny Whistle -- #42 through #46; 4 pages; 8.5"x11"; PQ B, WR B, IR B; The Penny Whistle, 1205 Allendale Dr., Greenwood, MO 64034; $12 per year, bimonthly. Penny Whistle #45 and #46 (Nov/Dec 1999 and Jan/Feb 2000) offer short articles on Electrobowl Championship, Wild West, and Age of Sail Naval. #42,43,44 brings the wargaming club up to date with trireme warfare rules, reviews, and an 18th century naval campaign.
Perfidious Albion #100 (Jan 2000), 48 pgs.; 5.5x8.5"; PQ B, WR A, IR B; 75 Richmond Park Rd., East Sheen, London, SW14 8JY UK; 2.10 pounds (UK), 2.9 pounds (airmail to US); published "irregular in frequency" Perfidious Albion #100 (January 2000) cracks the 100 mark with more reviews and analysis of
historical war games and books of all types and periods. Reviews include Nuts, Normandie 1944, Fire In Mississippi, Death Ride Mars-La-Tour 1870, Cuba Libre, Paths of Glory, Iena, Combat!, and more. Plus, suggested war games for children, Origins '99 report, British Bomber Command history and design issues, and 15 book reviews. Congratulations Editor and Publisher Charles Vesey!
Piquet Dispatch Quarterly -- Vol. 1 Issue 4; 108pgs; 5.5x8.5"; PQ B, WR B, IR A; 165 Charles St., Vestal, NY 13850. imac100@aol.com; $25 for four issues.
In probably the biggest boost in pages, Piquet Dispatch Quarterly jumped from 16 to 108 pages (actually 100 pages as 8 are blank for "notes")! And it went to a higher quality print, so I bumped up the PQ rating. This house organ for Piquet is a must have for Piquet players--scenarios, house rules, comments and feedback, new products, errata, and more. Scernario included: Franco-Austrian War June 24 1859, and Stamford Bridge Sept 25 1066. Some of the house rules are quite clever.
PW Review -- 20pgs; 8.5x11"; PQ B, WR B, IR A; wsimon@erols.com; $20 for 10 issues.
The torture testing of rules and rules mechanics tackles home-grown and commercial rules. Plenty of ideas good and bad, and a goodly dose of ascerbic wit at times. Typical Issues:
June 1999: A British Colonial Wargame A First Cut, Battle of Truk Island An Air-Sea Game of WW II, Wot a Great Game! An Adventure into Ancients DBM Land, Awash In Games: A Busy Weekend:
Greek Naval Warfare, Modern Gulf War, Napoleonic Skirmishing, World War II, and The English Civil War.
July 1999: Franco-Prussian War and deterministic fire phases, relative combat power, medieval combat values, Napoleon's Battles evaluation, WWII tactical, and more evaluation.
August 1999: WWII reaction game using a custom card mechanism, how to ruin a Napoleonics scenario with a temporary-to-permanent system, ECW, and a rules rating system.
Saga #71 (March-May 1999), #72 (June-July 1999), #73 (January-February 2000) 48pgs; 5.5x8.5"; PQ B, WR A, IR A; SAGA, 890 Janes Rd., Rochester, NY 14612; $25 per year ($30 Canada, $35 elsewhere), bimonthly. Saga #73 (January-February 2000) mixes history with tabletop simulation with articles on The Second Punic War (Part 1), Byzantine Shields and Cloak Colours, Later Roman Military Operations In Europe, On Being Pugnacious with Command Control, Descriptions of Dark Age and Medieval Armies (Part 10), The Value of the Internet, The Khazars: 586-1083AD, and support for the rules sets Ancient Warfare and Medieval Warfare with Neo-Babylonian and Late Hebrews Army Lists, refights of Pavia and Liegnitz, and more.
Saga #72 (November-December 1999) offers articles on The Norwegian Invasion of England
(September 1066), Supply Trains and Skythian Archery (Bow making), Orders and Disorders
Communications, The Alans (Creating an Army List), study of Logistics, Descriptions of Dark Age and Medieval Armies (Part 9), Campaigning with Ancients, and much more.
Saga #71 (Sept-Oct 1999) offers up articles on Warfare and Simon de Montfort (Rebellion 1265), Battle of Liegnitz April 9, 1241, Llywelyn ap Gruffydd 1247-1283, Seleucid Army Part 8 (Antiochus III and the War with Rome), Descriptions of Dark Age and Medieval Armies (part 8), tabletop battle reports, design philosophy, and more.
Seven Years War Asso. Journal 64 pgs.; 8.5x5.5"; PQ B, WR A, IR: A; Jim Mitchell, 147 North Jackson Street, Crown Point, Indiana 46307, E-mail: jackson@mail.icongrp.com; $30 per year. Vol. XI. No 1: Nice color cover! Profile of Comte de Saxe, Battleo f Lobositz, French and Indian War scenario Battle of the Snowshoes, Artillery Carraige Colors, French OB Hastenback, and more.
Vol X No. 4: covers Glasenapp's Freikorps, A Contemporary Report of the Battle of Mollwitz by
Rupert Scipio von Lentulus, examination of Colours for 18th Century Soldiers, An analysis of An
Absurd Legend regarding the French Guards at Fontenoy, Battle of Minden, Guns and Brigades at
Hastenbeck, Campaign of 1757 in Westphalia, book and figure reviews, and the changing of the
editorial guard from Jim Purky to Jim Mitchell.
Simulacrum 64 pgs.; 8.5x11"; PQ B, WR A, IR: A/C; Steambubble Graphics, 54 Pilot St., Victoria, BC V8V 2A4 Canada, 250-361-4242 johnkula@home.com; $21 per year, quarterly
Simulacrum is a collectibles magazine -- for wargames and books. Published out of Canada by John
Kula, the publication examines auction prices, design work and collectible values, and includes complete component manifests for wargames and books covering all eras of military history.
The first issue includes Bidding protocols for Internet auctions, in depth looks at Rommel in the Desert, Tatchanka (Russian Civil War in the Ukraine 1919-1921), A Mighty Fortress (1532-1555), a listing of all Ballentine's Illustrated History of World War II books, Strategy & Tactics: The Seminal Years (Historical Overview of Publishing Efforts), and more.
Slingshot--#207; 62 pgs.; 8.5x12"; PQ A, WR A, IR: A; Society of Ancients, Richard Jeffrey-Cook, Mabar, Blackheath Lane, Wonersh, Guildford, GU5 0PN UK; $25/year, bimonthly. membership@soa.org.uk
A lot of DBM in various incarnations this issue, plus book and figure reviews, campaign ideas, good article on Thrace, Hittite resources, and more.
Time Portal Passages #2,#3,#4; 48 pgs.; 8.5x11"; PQ B, WR B, IR: B; Rudy Scott Nelson
Time Portal Hobbies/War Eagle Miniatures 1602 15th Ave SW, Childersburg, Alabama, 35044
rsn@mindspring.com; $5 per issue, quarterly.
Time Portal Passages #2,#3,#4 offers considerable information about the American Revolution,
including British Auxiliary forces (Native Americans and German units), Native American warfare
1600-1900, an extensive list of Confederate Unit nicknames (Company level) for regiments from Alabama, WWII and skirmish rules, and more.
The Volunteer (November-December 1999) and October 1999 PQ A, WR B, IR: B; http://members.bellatlantic.net/~sjcw/newsletter.html
The South Jersey Confederation of Wargamers offer a number of articles covering
the South NJ wargame scene, with the usual array of battle reports, plus Battle for Stalingrad
November '42: German 6th Army Encircled, Saratoga 1778: British Army Defeated, Battleship New
Jersey Coming Home, Product Review: MagWeb.com, Book Reviews (The Road to Stalingrad:
Stalin's War with Germany, and Sharpe's Tiger: The Siege of Seringapatam 1799), Game Review
(Typhoon! The Drive on Moscow 1941), and more.
White Dwarf -- #any -- 96pgs.; 8.5x11"; PQ A, WR C, IR B/F; Games Workshop, $50 per year, monthly
This colorful house organ seems to have steadied at 96 pages--far down from its ambitious "Fat Dwarf" era of a year or so ago. I still like the dark sci-fi and fantasy settings, but too many advertorials masquerading as articles in this "catalog" make it somewhat superfluous. Occasional terrain making piece, some painting tips (oft repeated issue after issue), and multipe color photos for painting comparison are redeeming, but otherwise, it's a catalog you pay for.
White Knight -- #14 (1999) --24 pgs.; 8.5x11"; PQ B, WR B, IR B; Bill Brierton Pegasus-Unicorn Productions 12420 Old Colony Dr. Upper Marlboro, MD 20772-5000 kheled@juno.com; $8 year, quarterly. #14 (1999) offers news about the sci-fi and fantasy gaming industry, some fiction, RPG characters, word search puzzles, and more.
The Zouave -- #50 and #51; 40 and 44 pgs.; 8.5x11"; PQ A, WR A, IR A; Marek/Janci Design, 725 Ranch Rd., Wheaton, IL 60187. mjdesign@eagle.ais.net; $24 per year ($28 Canada, $32 Overseas) Ivor continues his graphic excellence. Very Colorful!
#51: Battles and scenarios for McLemore's Cove and Wright Farm, plus chart modifications to Johnny Reb III, product reviews, history of three brothers in the civil war, andmore.
#50: profile of Hermann Haupt (RR genius), Devils Den and Gettysburg scenarios, A Nation on Trial troop generation, product reviews, and more.
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© Copyright 2000 Hal Thinglum
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