Recently, I've been in a Napoleonic mood. Perhaps it is because there are at least four excellent magazines that released new issues all around Historicon--Empires, Eagles & Lions vol. 3 no. 2, Age of Napoleon #23, First Empire #36, and Napoleon #9. Then there were purchases at the convention, among which were five corps packs of 6mm Adler miniatures (although they look like 8mm to me) to support an idea from MWAN issue 88--running a proper Snappy Nappy game at Cold Wars 98 (I ran four sessions of Waterloo at Origins 95 in Philadelphia, but only on one table. I'll probably pick a different topic for CW98).

Figure manufacturer Old Glory came out with issue 1 of a new house organ, called La Gloire, designed to promote Old Glory figures much the way Games Workshop promotes its sci-fi and fantasy figures and rules in White Dwarf magazine. I'm rather enamoured of the 1813 campaign, and the article on Lutzen, complete with photos of painted, mounted, and terrained OG figures, plus an article on 1813 Prussian uniforms, added to my mood. More on the magazine below. Napoleon #9 has an excellent article on Swedish Jagers at Leipzig, for you other 1813 buffs. EE&L v. 3 n. 2 contains an excellent profile by Marc Raiff of the Mecklenburg-Streilitz Hussar Regiment (1813-15).

Kevin Zucker trotted out a new version of his board wargame, "Napoleon at Bay," which was snapped up by a friend of mine. In addition, Zucker's OSG has a small newsletter called Wargame Design, which featured NaB on the cover, with rules interpretations and discussions (often culled from the world wide web), both specific to OSG games and of a more general philosophical nature.

A friend of mine happened to mention needing info on Gorodetchma, an 1812 battle in Russia, so I pointed him to a back issue of MWAN--#83 or #85, although try #83 first--which had a map and OOB (Napoleon's Battles). MWAN #88, which also appeared around this time, had the 1809 Snappy Nappy game report--and I've gotten some e-mails from that, which helped improve my mood even more.

And this Tuesday happens to be a gaming night. You guessed it. A small Napoleonic game, (Empire), which comes after a pair of Napoleonic games in an 1809 campaign in which the Austrians gave the French a bloody nose...twice. And that brings the Austrian record up to 2 wins, 9 losses, and 1 stalemate.

Maybe it had to do with the Emperor's birthday. Maybe everyone thought of Napoleon all at the same time. Maybe I'll get sick of Napoleonics...but I doubt it. Not while magazines, single-topic and general topic, continue to churn the pages of history with "new" information and interpretation.

And you thought WWII was hogging the spotlight...

As always, if you need to reach me: 161 Lambertville-HQ Rd., Stockton, NJ 08559, ph: 609-397-4265, e-mail: lockwood@magweb.com, Web site: http://www.magweb.com

As before, each rating: PQ (Physical Quality of layout, print quality, and use of graphics), WR (Wit Rating or quality of writing and sustainable interest level), and IR (Inspiration Rating or creativity of ideas and reference value) comes with a grade (A, B, C, D, F). indicates the magazine is part of MagWeb, which offers the full text and graphics of magazines' articles. Check http://www.magweb.com for free samples from over 25 magazines.

Age of Empires -- #23; 44pgs.; 8.5x12"; PQ A, WR A, IR A; On Military Matters, 55 Taylor Terr., Hopewell, NJ 08525; $36 per year, bimonthly.

Colonial Conquest has been conquered by a new title: Age of Empires. The revitalized mag now covers 1815-1914, plus "colonial, however sketchily defined, action from 1790-1939." (says the editorial). It borrows some of the Battlefields styling, for OOBs, for example.

In this issue, the French campaign in dahomey, Loigny (1870), eyewitness to Chillianwallah (1849), the last stand of the Shangani Patrol, armoured trains, and lots of book reviews.

Age of Napoleon -- #23; 50pgs.; 8.5x12"; PQ A, WR A, IR A; On Military Matters, 55 Taylor Terr., Hopewell, NJ 08525; $36 per year, bimonthly.

A thicker glossy magazine of Napoleonic information from Partizan Press (UK, US contact is OMM) brings a section on the 95th Rifles, with Shapre photos included, the Battle of Mississenawa (1812) in the "Indiana Territories" of the US, books about tactics and grand tactics of the Revolutionary and Napoleonic wars, the Battle of Schwarze Lackenau (1809), an article on forming squares, followed by one on cavalry vs. infantry squares, plus letters, reviews, and other news items.

American Revolution Journal -- Vol 1 #1; 56pgs.; 5.5x8.5", PQ A, WR A, IR A; Jim Purky, 2521 Thayer St., Evanston, IL 60201; $25 per four issues ($30 outside US) Biannual.

Vol. I No. 1, crafted by the same folks who publish The Seven Years War Asso. Journal. brings us an AWI magazine. Articles include a look at Rhode Island Regiments (a fascinating and detailed answer to an inquiry about a battalion raised from slaves), a terrific recounting and analysis of the Battle of Brandywine, complete with order of battle and maps, a profile of the Hesse-Cassel Field Jaeger Corps, a set of miniature rules, more notes and inquiries, and all SEVEN verses of Yankee Doodle (the real version, not the derisive lyrics)!

The Canadian Wargamers Journal -- #46; 74 pages; 8.5x11"; PQ A, WR B, IR A; Box 1725, Station M, Calgary, Alberta T2P 2L7 Canada; $19 per year (overseas, $23 in US funds), quarterly.

Primarily boardgame related articles, scenarios, errata, and reviews, this house organ for a variety of companies also delves into miniatures with an adaptation of War of 1812 (boardgame) to Rocket's Red Glare (miniatures rules). The rest is board and card game related.

The Civil War Courier, -- Vol. 13, #3, #4, #5; 11"x16"; PQ B, WR C, IR C; 2503 Delaware Ave., Buffalo, NY 14216, $20 per year, 10 issues per year.

This newspaper is a large advertizing vehicle. There is some original source material (letters, mostly), a video review, and two dozen or so book reviews per issue. If you are looking to buy American Civil War merchandise, this is a great publication to pick up. If you are looking for ACW historical information, pass it by.

Clash of Empires -- #2; 24pgs.; 8.5x5.5"; PQ B, WR A, IR A; Keith Frye, 33 Ridge Rd., Bloomingdale, NJ 07403, $10 per year, quarterly ($12.50 Canada).

#2: A fascinating article on the French Foreign Legion in Spain during the First Carlist War, the Battles of Palestro and Oswiecim Station, a Crimean war skirmish, a review of Principles of War, a matrix of figure availability, and more.

The Courier -- #72; 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).

The new look of the Courier adds a bit of style--new desktop publishing capabilities bring a refined appearance and perform some behind-the-scenes wizardry. Articles include a complete set of French and Indian war rules, a discussion of French Tank tactics in 1940, a good article on perspectives of an officer, battle of Morgarten 1315, a ACW Johnny Reb scenario, a hypothetical Alex The Great scenario vs. the Scythians, a wargamers guide to US Navy 1795-1815, and the usual plethora of reviews, news, and other information.

Dragoman -- #4, #3; 12pgs.; 8.5x11"; PQ B, WR B, IR B; 1524 S. 10th St., Ocean Springs, MS 39564 $4 quarterly.

#4: Ottoman Military Music, a pair of CDs; A quote about unbelievers and partitioning the empire; Electric Ottoman: surf the web for Ottoman-related sites; So You Want to Buy an Ottoman Army? details products in 6mm. Part III of a three-parter; Pasha's Big Guns: more artillery in part II; The Russians are Coming! tells of a plot to place Russians in America during the American Revolution; and more

#3: Book Review: Constantinople, reviews a book about the city circa 1453; So You Want to Buy an Ottoman Army? details products in 20-25mm. Part II of a three-parter; Uniform guide to covering an elite Arnaut; De Bellis Renationis offers different thoughts on DBR Ottomans, and includes an army list; Ottoman Irregular Infantry profiles Arnauts, Sekhans, and Miri Askeris, and more.

Empires, Eagles & Lions -- Vol. 3 No. 2; 72 pages; PQ B, WR A, IR A; The Emperor's HQ, 5744 W. Irving Park Rd., Chicago, IL 60634; $33 per year (US), $35 (Canada), $38 (all other countries via surface mail), quarterly.

After over a year of being missing in action (Vol. 3 No. 1 was in Spring 1996), EE&L is back with a vengeance. Although the format is back to its older version--B&W MWAN sized version, and the graphics are smaller, the hard core military information is still packed into it. Excellent Napoleonic articles (part III) on skirmishers (Russian), part III of the evolution of the French Army Corp system, cavalry vs. square tactics, Hussar happy hour with uniform guides to the 11th French (ex-2nd Dutch) Hussars and the Mecklenburg Hussars; Napoleon's amourous liaisons (part II), the British regimental mess system in the Peninsula (part II), book and game reviews, and much, much, more.

First Empire -- #36, #35; 36pgs.; 8.5x12"; PQ A, WR A, IR A; On Military Matters, 55 Taylor Terr., Hopewell, NJ 08525; $36 per year, bimonthly.

#36 (Aug/Sep 97): Battles of Montmirail, Eylau, Lonato; profiles of marshal St. Cyr; Napoleonic Association re-enactment coverage; reviews; a cornucopia of letters to the editor packed with tidbits and opinions; and vast quantities of other information.

#35 (Jun/Jul 97): a fascinating account of the last invasion of British soil--the French land at Fishguard 1797 (color British uniform guide included); a profile of French Marshal Victor, a study of command and control in companies and squadrons, an examination of firefights, modern visits to Salamanca and Rivoli battlefields, an account of the execution of the Oxfordshire Militia Men for Mutiny (June 20, 1795), news, letters to the editor filled with Napoleonic information, and more.

The Journal -- #26; 80pgs.; 8.5x12"; PQ B, WR B, IR A; Society of 20th Century Wargamers, 25 Buttermere, White Court, Black Notley, Essex, England CM7 8UY; $30 per 6 issues, quarterly.

Just a superb collection of 20th century history and gaming from a UK group. Street fighting in Germany 1945, Ia Drang Valley Campaign (Vietnam), Polish Motorized Cavalry 1939, and loads and loads of new product news, reviews, and scenarios.

La Gloire -- Issue #1 (Spring 1997); 60 pgs.; 8.5x11"; PQ B, WR A, IR A; Black Falcon Publications, 41 Greengate Rd., Toronto, ON M3B 1E7; $25 per year, quarterly.

Old Glory's house organ features Old Glory miniatures--which span a considerable time period. This is glossy colorful magazine, with 95% of the color photos being painted Old Glory miniatures, and indeed, it is hard to tell what is an advertisement and what is a photo for an article. So, why did I give it a "B" for PQ (Print Quality)? I didn't specifically want to do it, it was borderline. But it had dark photos. Most single figure close-ups are adequately lit, but most unit photos are uniformly dark. I looked and I peered and I squinted a bit, but the photos needed a few extra watts to bring out the detail and paint schemes. No doubt the production quality control department will correct this shortcoming in the next issue.

If you've seen White Dwarf, Games Workshop's house organ, then you know that everything in WD is there to encourage purchases of GW minis. La Gloire is geared to support sales of Old Glory miniatures. Some folks have complained that it's just a catalog, and to a certain extent it is true. The editorial plainly states: "submissions are welcome, but...please confine your material to subjects covered by Old Glory miniatures." Underneath the title on the cover reads: "An all-color miniatures wargaming supplement & Old Glory's painted figurine catalog." And that is a definition of a house organ.

But if a "catalog" is all you see, I think you're missing the generous dose of history tucked in between the ads--roughly 45 pages of "editorial content" vs. adverts. Inside are articles on Caesar's Battle of the Sambre, Dark Ages Sons of Vladimir, F&I wars The Plains of Abraham, Battle of Lutzen, Prussian infantry uniforms, terrain tips, Battle of Iuka (ACW), profile of Apaches, Tigers vs. JSIIs in Narva Poland (1945), and a fantasy article about ice trolls.

Opposite the start of each article is an ad listing Old Glory figures with some photos. A color map accompanies each article. And there you have it. OG is moving into GW mode. The premier issue of La Gloire is an excellent first effort with name authors.

Lone Warrior -- #119 (North American edition), #117; 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.

#119 A set of victory procedures for WRG Wargames Rules 1685-1845; Elizabethean Ireland: late 16th Century Ireland with an eye towards battle...and includes a fictional scenario too; Forest Fighting: the ambush scene in Last of the Mohicans and suggestions for recreating it on the tabletop; Random Selection of DBA Orders of Battle via cards; a new way to generate terrain with card; lots of book, figure, and game reviews, and much,, much, more.

The Naval Sitrep -- #11 (April 1997); 16 pages; 8.5x11"; PQ B, WR B, IR B; Clash of Arms, Byrne Building #205, Lincoln and Morgan Streets, Phoenixville, PA 19460; $15 per year, quarterly.

This newsletter focuses on 20th century naval and air information and supports the Harpoon and Command at Sea rules sets. Issue #11 contains a profile of a "phantom destroyer" circa 1943 (the Navy dismissed repeated reports of a old WWI destroyer operating behind Japanese lines), Modern TO&E for the British RDF, Chennault's Flying Tigers tangle with the Japanese airforce over Burma in WWII in a CaS scenario, Harpoon and CaS data sheets for Russia DDG Sovremennyy Su-30MK (India jet fighter), USS Alaska (US CB), and P-40C (US WWII fighter), how to throw a naval night battle on the tabletop, news, a book review, and more.

Napoleon -- #8 and #9; 64 pages; 8.5"x11"; PQ A, WR A, IR A; The Emperor's HQ, 5744 W. Irving Park Rd., Chicago, IL 60634; $33 per year (US), $35 (Canada), $38 (all other countries via surface mail), bimonthly.

#8: an interview with David Chandler, a profile of Swedish Horse Artillery (1813), another in the series of Bonaparte in Italy 1797, a review of Age of Sail, book reviews, coins, letters, and much, much more.

#9: the Army of Italy 1796-97, profile and uniform guide of Swedish Jagers at Leipzig, interview with Dorothy Carrington, review of boardgame Jena, book reviews, news items, and more.

Practical Wargamer -- Vol. 11 #3, #2; 56 pgs.; 8.5x12"; PQ A, WR A, IR A; Wise Owl Worldwide Services, 4314 W. 238th St., Torrance, CA 90505; $26 US (14.40 pounds UK, 17.90 pounds Europe) per year, bimonthly.

#2: The usual colorful array of scenarios, news, and reviews includes AWI Battle of Camden, a uniform guide to the Royal Aitalian Army (1866), skirmish rules for Vietnam, a Marlburian rules set, introduction to fantasy gaming, and how to make hexagon terrain pieces.

#3: A description of Custoza (1866), the later Anglo-Saxon army (871-1066) Guilford Courthouse (1781), WWII scenario, and much, much more of the reviews and news expected from PW.

PW Review -- Sept 96, Dec 96; 24pgs.; 8.5x11"; PQ B, WR A, IR B; Walter Simon, 12905 Layhill Rd., Silver Spring, MD 20906; $18 per year, monthly ($15 to renew).

I bumped up the PQ rating--I mean, a cover, internal illustrations, etc. And hey, any wargame magazine that includes a scanned image of Kermit the Frog (Dec) as a picture of the editor has to get an automatic upgrade (grin).

Dec: Quick play post-WWI to modern day rules, WWII desert warfare rules, and a piece on the rules set Piquet by Brent Oman, one of its developers.

Sept: A solo Vietnam scenario, reviews of Spearhead (WWII) and Tactica (Ancients) rules, an interesting look at the "swing" of comparative die rolls using 10-siders (with new charts), a review/scenario of Bosnia using Battlegroup (modern) rules.

Saga -- #59; 44pgs; 5.5x8.5"; PQ B, WR B, IR A; SAGA, 890 Janes Rd., Rochester, NY 14612; $25 per year ($30 Canada, $35 elsewhere), bimonthly.

#59 (June-July 1997) contains an excellent (and long) article on Teutonic knights covering their history from 1190-1809AD. There's also a look at Sarmatian armies, letters from Phil Barker regarding the WRG vs DBM rules, travel info for Italy, and more.

Seven Years War Assn Journal -- Vol 9 #4; 72pgs.; 5.5x8.5", PQ A, WR A, IR A; Jim Purky, 2521 Thayer St., Evanston, IL 60201; $25 per year ($30 outside US) Quarterly.

Summer 1997: A pair of French and Indian War articles cover the journal of Chevalier De Levis and Braddock's defeat at the Monongehela, then comes an indepth look at the Battle of Maxen (Nov 20, 1759), plus the usual goodly amount of news, reviews, and views about related products. This is quite well done with extensive maps and orders of battle for the main articles.

Wargame Design -- Vol 2 No. 1 (Summer 1997); 12 pgs.; 8.5x11"; PQ A, WR C, IR B; Operational Studies Group, PO Box 50207, Baltimore, MD 21211; $9 per year, quarterly.

A collection of Web e-mails and postings make up a "Design Symposium" dealing with various problems (and solutions) to historical-based tactics; a look at the stages in game design; and an astronomical news item on celestial proportional ratios (?!).

White Dwarf -- #208, 209, 210, 211, 2xx, 2xx -- 144pgs.; 8.5x11"; PQ A, WR A, IR A/F; Games Workshop

'Ere we go, 'ere we go. And you thought the "2xx" was a typo... House organ for GW sci-fi and fantasy products. If you got 'em, you'll love the mag (rating: A). If you don't want 'em, you'll hate the mag (rating: F). WD is colorful, hectic, and full of GW ads. You will note the title says: Games Workshop's monthly gaming supplement and Citadel Miniatures catalogue." Sound familiar (see La Gloire above). Pretty close, anyway. Orcs in space, humans vs. orks and other monsters, elves in space, dwarves vs. other monsters, and all sorts of colorful bric-a-brac. On occasion, you will get terraining and modelling tips (as in #209), some generic campaign ideas, and other things appropriate to military history gaming. But hey, if you, like me, enjoy a solid bash about the table with lasers and plasma weapons...

Zouave -- Vol 11 No. 2 (Summer 1997); 28pgs.; 8.5x11"; PQ A, WR B, IR A; The Command Post, 20578 Alliance-Sebring Rd., Alliance, OH 44601; $16 per year, quarterly.

The Zouave, the magazine of The American Civil War Society. Vol. XI No. 2 (Summer 1997) contains articles/scenarios on the Battle of Plains Store (May 21, 1863), Flags of the Texas Brigade, Battle of Chester Station (Johnny Reb scenario based on the 1864 battle by Pertersburg), A profile of Philadelphia Brigade (the only Federal unit named for its home city), A look at the religion, communications, and health of the soldiers, reviews, and more.