I'm happy to say that, after an enforced absence last year, I returned to the ranks of HomerCon attendees. In 2000 no news crew showed up, but there was a whole lot of gaming going on.

John Kisner playtesting The Forgotten War

Those of you who'd like a "fullmotion" look at our annual retreat should call The Gamers and ask about the videotape of last year's gathering. Here we present some of Chip Pharr's well-documented photographs from this year, and I fill in some of the details. The attendees, in sign-in order (see front cover for group photo), are:

John Reed, Atlanta, GA : Zack Waltz, Jupiter, FL : Ken Thurston, Aurora, CO : Casey Krakowski, Littleton, CO : Chip Pharr, Huntsville, AL : Max C. Workman, Greenwood, IN : Keith Fortner, Charlotte, NC : Bob Cloyd, Prescott, AZ : Dave Mignerey, Arvada, CO : Bob Munns, Westminster, CO : Bill Quoss, Palatine, IL : Maurice Buttazoni, Milwaukee, WI : Marty Schaubel, Milwaukee, WI : Ken Spuda, Lodi, WI : Jim Mehl, Arlington, VA : Dave Powell, Lake in the Hills, IL : Jim Lauffenburger, Colorado Springs, CO : Jim Thomas, Greensboro, NC : Jim McCarthy, Ft. Dodge, IA : Ned Nichols, New Ipswich, NH : Roland LeBlanc, Manchester, NH : Stephen Campell, Salem, NH : John Leggat, Thousand Oaks, CA : Jay Hiserote, Portland, OR : Joe Linder, Hampshire, IL : Jeff Behan, Independence, IA : Mike Balint, St Paul, MN : Drew Henshaw, Grand Rapids, MI : McKinley Hamby, Atlanta, GA

Right: Talavera, Jim Thomas (left) and Elias Nordling

Joseph Vanden Borre, Zaventer, Belgium : Jim Ferguson, Urbana, IL : Linden Moore, Novato, CA : Rick DeGirolami, Ocala, FL : Don Ayres, Toledo, OH : Dan Calaway, Indianapolis, IN : Bob Weebe, Los Angeles, CA : Gerry Palmer, St. Louis, MO : Philippe Briaux, Paris, France : Gordon Dainty, Leicester, England : Bob Thorne, Livonia, MI : Bub Newton, South Elgin, IL : Houndog Cross, San Diego, CA : Clair Conzelman, Louisville, KY : Dave Demko, Atlanta, GA : John Kisner, Windsor Hts, IA : Dave Murray, Minneapolis, MN : Tim Gritten, South Bend, IN : Gary Christensen, Carpentersville, IL : Jim Stravers, Lansing, IL : Carl Evans, Urbana, IL : Mike Daniel, Cleveland, CH : Bill Sisler, Cleveland, CH : Alan Conrad, Champaign, IL : Carl Martz, Huntington Beach, CA : Elias Nordling, Stockholm, Sweden : Corey Hymes, Stillwater, MN : Perry Andrus, Costa Mesa, CA : Pete Arnold, Schaumburg, IL : Thomas Buettner, Bergisch-Gladbach, Germany : Tom DeFranco, Norridge, IL : Joe Spratley, Bolingbrook, IL : John O'Reilly, Herrin, IL : Bruce Gletty, Champaign, IL : Bob Antonacci, Peoria, IL : Simon Prior, Aurora, IL : Mike Duffy, Chicago, IL : John Best, Tuscola, IL : Matt Best, Tuscola, IL : Tom Hire, Homer, IL : Sue Smith, Homer, IL : Jacob Smith, Homer, IL

Top: This Hallowed Ground, (left to right) Zack Waltz, Ned Nichols, Dave Powell, and John Reed
Bottom: This Terrible Sound, the Union team (left to right): Gerry Palmer, Bob Cloyd, Jay Hiserote, Rick DeGirolami

As usual, a variety of games were in play during the con. Published games I saw people engaged with included DAK, Burma, GD'41, This Terrible Sound, This Hallowed Ground, Tunisia, Blitzkrieg General, Down in Flames, For the People (the GMT edition), Drive on Paris, Omaha, Axis & Allies, Sicily, The Great War at Sea, and Circus Minimus. Of these, DAK, Burma, Drive on Paris, Sicily, and Circus Minimus received multiple playings; I think it's a good bet that around half the players at the con participated in at least one session of CM. Yes, it really is that much fun.

Both of the RSS games drew teams of players. In fact, the two games were running side-by-side in the warehouse. This Terrible Sound started with a bang, as both sides implemented aggressive orders. At one point the Confederates had to try a "laying on of hands" for good luck on a critical dice roll-and it worked.

Meanwhile, the crew of This Hallowed Ground completed the second day and will be starting at 4:00AM of day 3 at their next meeting.

Top: Manassas for CWB, Carl Martz (left) and Jim Lauffenburger
Bottom: Beyond the Rhine, (left to right) Dave Mignerey, Perry Andrus, Linden Moore, Roland LeBlanc

Operations has covered the progress of this game, and we plan to bring you more.

If you're interested in upcoming titles from The Gamers, HomerCon is a very good place to be. Along with getting a look at the map for A Frozen Hell, we saw several playtests underway. From the CWB there were the new Manassas game (with working titles Clash of Volunteers and Bury These Poor Men for First and Second Manassas, respectively) and Strike Them a Blow (North Anna). Operation Michael, from the SCS, has a map very evocative of WW1.

Elias Nordling brought Talavera from the NBS, mounted the playtest counters, and worked through several scenarios with Jim Thomas. Candidates for the OCS were well represented. Along with Guderian's Blitzkrieg II (see my article on page 8 of this issue), Rod Miller and Maurice Buttazoni had The Forgotten War, and Roland LeBlanc brought Beyond the Rhine. Rod and Maurice's Korea game, a three-mapper covering the entire war, looks like a well-polished submission. Beyond the Rhine is a large game (four maps) covering the western front in WW2 from autumn 1944 to the following spring. Perry Andrus reported that all of the playtesters had a good deal fun with it; it certainly held their attention throughout the con.

Top: Operation Michael, (left to right) Bob Thorne, Dave Murray, Gordon Dainty, Houndog Cross
Bottom: Sicily, (left to right) Ken Thurston and Casey Krakowski versus Stephen Campbell and John Leggatt

One interesting break in the action was Jay Hiserote's software demonstration. His Coyote Games is developing an on-line version of Perryville, the first in a possible series of online CWB games. This Windows program provides multiple views of the map, including straight overhead and perspective with the proper renderings of elevations. Clicking on units provides access to detailed statistics (morale, current strength, wrecked status, ammo, etc.). Even better, the program can calculate the line of sight from any unit on the map. For use as either a game-assistance program or for human-versus-computer play, this looks like it will be an impressive game. To learn more about it, send e-mail to jayh@coyoteg.com.

Perry Andrus took on the task of providing "nearly-live" web reports during the retreat. With Sandi's help, he published numerous digital photos and provided captions on The Gamers web site. These are still available as of October 2000; you might want to check for them at www.tgamers.com*