DISCLAIMER: The opinions and comments expressed in the following narrative account are those of the author and in no way are representative of the position of MWAN, its editor or advertisers.
One might think, given that this was my second consecutive Little Wars, that I would be something of a veteran with respect to the historical miniatures convention program. Overall, I have attended four or five Little Wars. The first going way back to when it was held in Rosemont and I could redeem my "victory" certificate at Lyle's Hobby Shop in Westmont.
I had grand plans for this particular convention. First, I would be able to meet, wargame with and discuss wargaming over dinner with a fellow gamer and friend from Arizona. Second, I had made arrangements so that I could have the entire three-day weekend (five, if you count the Thursday prior and Monday after) away from work. Third, in order to reduce my commute time (I live in the southwest burbs and it's a good 50 minutes to Lincolnshire), I made reservations at a Motel 6 in Buffalo Grove for Friday and Saturday night. Originally, I considered staying at the Marriott itself, but due to developments at my place of employment (with which I won't presume to bore the reader), it seemed prudent to stay at a more economical place. Anyhow.
Well, it's now two weeks after Little Wars 2001 weekend, and I have finally found the time to sit and type this brief recount of my experience.
Let me begin with redesignating my experience ... turns out I'm more of the militia class than veteran (some might suggest "idiot"), for I had not expected to have any trouble in meeting my wargarning correspondent from the West. Unfortunately, we had made no further plans than "to meet" at the convention. I thought Sunday, after getting home and finding a message on my phone machine from him(he had camped at Fort Hal), that I should have taken up a post near the registration tables and held a sign like the limo drivers do at the airport. But this would have been silly and ineffective, for our timing was just really off. It's comedic and ironic that we were unable to find each other amongst the gaming tables and vendor stands, when I did run into someone I knew from college (way back when) and then, after that, someone from work, who, unbeknownst to me, has a similar hobby interest - though it turns out that he has a preference for more modem periods.
I fired off a letter that very evening, to my Arizona wargarning correspondent, apologizing for the miscue and miscommunication. He replied in kind, also noting the comedy, irony and a little frustration, given that he mentions walking by a couple of games that I was observing and/or playing! We do hope to amend this tactical blunder, and are thinking of a strategy by which we can meet at a another convention.
Due to my increased (of late) propensity for procrastination, I did not arrive at the Convention on Friday until a little before six o'clock. Gaming was well under way by that time, and the vendor stands were also up and running. I paid the registration fee (ouch!) for the weekend, picked up the program and proceeded down the stairs.
Having had a pretty full day up to this point, I decided that I would just do a "recon" and then spend more time back at the hotel with the program, deciding what I wanted it to play and see on Saturday and Sunday. (Here's another argument for getting glasses: I completely missed the advertised Napoleonic Game using Piquet on Saturday night. I have the general Piquet and period specific rules for Napoleonics and Ancients, and have read through each twice. Still, I was looking forward to getting to see these rules in action.) Anyhow, as I was to find on each successive day, the games were - in the main - very well done and the vendor tables and displays really gave my "exercise in restraint" muscles a workout.
In particular, the 15mm ACW Champion's Hill wargame I found to be very well done. Figures and terrain especially were excellent. The Johnny Reb III Rules seemed engaging as well. I talked briefly with one of the game umpires about the command / order chits used by the units. More proverbial food for thought.
Two other games that caught my eye and attention were: The Cops and Robbers Game (The Night the Lights Went Out in Georgetown), and Gettysburg in 2 mm. That's not a typographical error. It was Gettysburg, on a six-by-six board (roughly), and the Union and Confederate forces were 2 mm lead miniatures. To be certain, the painting cannot begin to compare with that which can be accomplished with 25s, but the cumulative effect is nonetheless impressive.
Professor Steven Fratt ran this Gettysburg wargame over the course of the Convention: one day of the actual battle for each day of Little Wars. We talked at some length on Sunday morning prior to my initiation to Volley & Bayonet Napoleonics. (Note to myself: Never take 1809 Austrians again!) The good professor uses modified Fire & Fury, and was more than happy to elaborate on how he went about building his very large collection of minuscule miniatures. Again, more wargaming food for thought.
I closed out Friday night early, observing the miniatures / board game of Rome at War. Hannibal at Bay (by Avalanche Press). By most standards, this is a board game, as there is the stiff map board and counters from a punched-out cardboard sheet. However, the map board was not composed of the traditional hexagons, and the counters were not the traditional military symbols for infantry and cavalry. Rather, these counters were "facsimile colored photographs" of miniature formations. Moreover, to represent strength loss, each formation or unit had three counter representations. Interesting, simple, and effective. Expensive too, as I learned upon inquiring.
On Saturday morning, I slept through reveille, and then enjoyed a leisurely breakfast at the Panera Bread restaurant about five minutes from my hotel. I arrived back at the Convention site around 9:30 a.m., and from the choice of game sign-up sheets on the table, I elected Bullus Runnus.
This was an Ancients Game, wherein the forces of Rome "were" the Union, and the Carthaginians were cast as Confederates, in this ancient spin on the Battle in 1861. (Sidebar: The featured theme of Little Wars 2001 was "The Wars of America") I have some experience with Ancients (ARAMT1 and DBA), and, as this looked like a manageable contest - just 3 hours in the program - I signed my name.
Terry Cabak and his younger brother were very gracious and knowledgeable hosts of this 20 nim Ancients wargame. In fact, Terry and I played the Romans against his "barbarian" brother and just one other Ancients enthusiast. The figures, to my surprise, were of plastic manufacture, not lead. Further, the game was played on a field drawn up of, or out of, over-sized hexes. The terrain was hexagon-based as well. The rules? Hex Command: Ancients, of course. After a tentative start, the Romans were able to capitalize on the over-extended Carthaginian "Rebels", fighting them to a draw in the center of the field, then routing their right flank. My legion performed well, thanks to the Roman God of Good Die Rolls. Instead of rewarding me with the corona graminea, Terry presented me with a small decoration in honor of my victory. The "medal" sits on my computer speaker. On the other side of my desk, my name badge for Little Wars 2001, resides next to the ID tag saved from last year's event.
More rewarding was the conversation held with Terry post-game. It's completely redundant of me to type "food for thought" yet again, but his discourse on the availability of plastic wargame figures, of mapping software for wargamers, and on several other topics did give me something to think about as I adjusted my leather cuirass and shield, saluted him in fine Roman style, and marched off to see what other tables or vendor displays piqued my interest. George Knapp's 25mm Lexington & Concord wargame was one of several that made me stop and take a good, long look.
I had timed my wandering well, as the converged Minute Men were just finishing up their punishment of the British Regulars. George announced to several on-lookers that he would be running Bunker HiR in about 15 minutes, and that if we were interested, we did not have to sign up, but could simply jump right in and play.
The attraction to Mr. Knapp's game(s) was their simplicity and originality. The miniatures were historical and traditional (painted lead 25mm figures). But the gaming table, that was quite a departure. To be sure, there were model trees and houses spread over the table. In the Bunker Hill "battle", there were breastworks and stone walls. However, the base of each table was "made" out of some kind of woven fabric. On this material (burlap? / cheese-cloth?) was drawn more terrain features and the names of towns or significant geographical areas. In addition, this map was marked off in squares or rectangles of varying sizes. This way, the need for rulers and any chance of disagreement over measured distance was eliminated.
In this recreation of the historical engagement, I took on the role and responsibility of overall British Commander. During the course of the game, I pretty much followed the historical course of the British attacks. George has a simple but effective rule wherein if the British are fired upon and take a hit, then they are pushed back a square. At certain points too, the British player may elect to roll saving throws for his depleted regiments. However, for each roll made, the American player earns a victory point.
Fortunately, my die rolling "skill" followed me from the fields of Bullus Runnus. My subordinate did not fare so well, and was very much bloodied taking the main redoubt. My Colonial opponents rolled pretty well too, but at the end of a quick game (set up, rule explanation and game to conclusion: all of 90 minutes), the King's Troops bested the rebel upstarts by a couple of points.
Afterward, George and the gaming group (aged from 9 to 50) discussed what was good, bad, and what could be improved in the game. George stated that the rules and scenarios were going to be published in a future issue of MWAN. (Due to my tardiness in getting this review typed and submitted, I imagine that the last sentence is already superfluous.)
I was really impressed with the simplicity of this system. At the same time, however, these two contests - Lexington & Concord and Bunker Hill - were not just die rolling games.
On my post-convention run late Sunday afternoon, I got to thinking that this system and mechanics could very well be applied to Colonial gaming. For example, French Foreign Legion infantry could be tasked with taking some fort or stronghold. Or, one could go back in time to Rome and The Barbarians, and develop some kind of German Forest .,gauntlet" that cohorts of a legion have to march into and through. Then again, one might develop some sort of US Cavalry versus Indians variant. Boers Commandos facing British on the South African veldt spring to mind as well.
There was a brief interruption in the British march on Bunker Hill when power in the Courts went out for approximately 20 minutes. The weather was strange for this first weekend in April. (But then, this is Chicago.) Friday night was pretty chilly. Saturday was very nice - almost hot. In the late afternoon and evening, there were very strong winds. This strange development was the deciding factor in my missing Saturday nights events. So, I did a quick workout in the gym next to the hotel, then holed up in my hotel room, eating dinner purchased from the Whole Foods grocery store and reading through the most recent issues of Wargames Illustrated and The Courier. Had a little trouble getting back in to my room though. Turns out that the receptionist only keyed my key card for the one night and not for both. (A minor point to be sure, but it's aggravating not being able to get into a room that one has paid good money for.)
On the final day of the Convention, I was up way before reveille even sounded. (I had had some trouble getting my wake up call arranged the night before. This was evident not only in the four "crank" calls to my room minutes after I placed the request, but also in the fact that the wake up call sounded a full hour before the requested time!) Oh well. I got cleaned up, packed all my gear, checked out and drove off to do battle once more.
In a previous paragraph, I suggested that my experience with Volley & Bayonet Napoleonics was "less than fun". Frank Chadwick and Tom Harris were, like the Cabak Brothers on Saturday morning, very knowledgeable game officials. I was amazed at their recall of the 1809 Campaign. For this Volley & Bayonet novice however, it seemed that the gaming group was more of a club than comprised of conventioneers just wanting to have an enjoyable game.
In looking through past issues of MWAN for ideas of how to go about writing this account, I was rather impressed by the effort of Howard Whitehouse in Issue 108. 1 guess it's simply because I can really appreciate the comments on the bottom of page 90 and top of page 91. 1 am very tempted to add a few lines about rules lawyers or gamers who are 50 going on 11. And yet, I cannot grade my overall experience at Little Wars 2001 because of a couple of misspent hours on Sunday morning. Lesson learned. The hard way.
I can grade my overall experience at Little Wars 2001 by taking all three days into account. They were very full days, that is for certain. If Little Wars 2002 is the same size, I will either have to have myself cloned (and there have been some very strong arguments against that action by a couple of people at work, and at least one exgirlfriend), or go with at least three friends so that more games can be played, more ideas "born", more conversations held, and, so that there is four times as much money available for purchases ... planned or not.
A review of the program yielded the following numbers:
The agenda for Friday, April 6, listed 49 events. (Let me qualify this and the numbers for the successive days: the total number is not of distinct events, as some games were run two, three, or even four times in a day. I counted each of these "reruns" as a separate event, however.) There was considerable variety: Philippine Insurrection to 30 Years War to NASCAR Racing to a Pirate-skirmish game, just to describe some of the tables. WWII enthusiasts put on nine games Friday, and would double that number for Saturday's offerings. There were many different scales, and approaches to the hobby represented. For example, in addition to the ACW 2 mm wargame mentioned previously, there was a 54 mm Ancients battle. Fifteens and 25s were in the majority, although there was a very inviting display of Austerlitz in 6 mm.
For Saturday, the program listed 82 events. There was a separate page added to the program, which announced last-minute changes and additions, but the impact on the overall quality and flow of games was minimal. Also held on Saturday was a 25 mm DBM Tournament. Unfortunately, like my error with the Piquet Game that evening, I completely missed this series of wargames.
In my estimation, there seemed to be a large number of skirmish-level games at the Convention. I'm not saying that I object to this trend - if that's what it is - I'm simply making an observation. Personally, I do like / prefer the larger games. Then again, if asked to make a choice between Lexington & Concord and 1809 Austrians, I would not need more than a minute to opt for the Minute Men and the raiding English. There were also a number of larger-level skirmish games. There was one Ancients geuxie using modified Tactica rules - where what appeared to be hundreds of 25 mm Barbarians were pitted against a few units of Roman auxiliaries; these brave souls defending a very long stretch of Hadrian's Wall.
Naval wargaming too, from the Napoleonic era all the way through the Modem period, was well represented.
On the final day of Little Wars 2001, there were just 20 events.
In between walking around the vendor tables, playing a few wargames and walking around other wargame tables, I used an entire roll of film. Reviewing these prints as I finish this piece, I am disappointed to discover that I did not get any of George Knapp's games. I'll "spin" this fact as a testament to my involvement in the proceedings as opposed to further evidence of my stupidity.
In general, terrain and figures were all very well done. There were specific cases where both were really outstanding. There was a 1/72nd scale WWII scenario that featured beautifully crafted terrain ... lots of raised ground, a river and bridge, and a magnificent model of a church. One of the WWII amphibious games was also very well done, but I thought it just a little bit odd that the beach line, shallow water and deeper ocean were all running perfectly parallel. Duke Seifried put on his usual excellent display game. This wargame was based loosely on the film The Patriot. It's a good thing the grand Duke travels with his own lighting, as it did come in very handy during the brief power outage on Saturday afternoon.
The "best of show" however, had to be the Sunday game of "Breakfast in La Rochelle". Chad Cartwright officiated this skirmish game, in which forces of the Cardinal were pitted against stalwart Musketeers amongst a very handsome but functional terrain. While this particular wargame was outside the theme of the Convention, it was, in my estimation, the best event of all those run.
And yet, oddly enough, I am not really inspired to go and start building a collection of 25 - 30 mm figures for this particular period. Nor am I that interested in learning more about this historical era.
What did "light a fire" under me, has already been discussed. Due to several seen and unforseen circumstances, I am of the opinion that I probably won't get a chance to "fan that particular fire" until sometime after Little Wars 2002. And then again, there's no telling what "new matches" I will want to play with 15 minutes after I step onto the Convention floor next year.
Little Wars Photos (extremely slow: 443K)
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© Copyright 2001 Hal Thinglum
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