Very little new stuff actually! I derive most of my boardgaming pleasure from the top ten I set out in an earlier article for PA.. along with Storm Over Arnhem. which has a marvellous system based upon simplicity and crucially a coherent design philosophy. Still, here goes.
La Guerre de l'Empereur. I couldn't resist this one., since I have been waiting for a playable simulation of the entire Napoleonic Wars ever since I started gaming (the best effort hitherto was War and Peace, which had some excellent scenarios but whose campaign game took rather too long to play). On the whole, I found this new game very bold, but one which did not quite work. The general strategic and political overview was presented exceptionally well bearing in mind the shifting alliances and coalitions of the period, but I must say I found the battle board system rather unsatisfactory. It relies upon each commander having a range of options depending on his ability, but is effectively reduced to a guessing game within the opposing sides choosing one each, which determines losses. I would have preferred a system which took into account not only the commander's ability but also the tactical doctrine of each army.
Peter Pig miniatures rules. CHV's review of Square-Bashing has encouraged me to comment on this company's very original 'rules for modern African warfare, AK47 Republic. The set is not only very simple, which is unusual in a modern set (I recall a comment in Command to the effect that new technology actually made design easier provided one concentrates on the (effect rather than the process), but has a nice system of army selection. Although based on a points system, some of these points must be allocated to political manoeuvre, which produces some very interesting effects (they may benefit or occasionally penalise one's own side. or adversely affect one's enemy). The result is that no two games are ever the same, and an atmosphere of political intrigue is conveyed particularly well.
Warhammer Ancient Battles. Predictably, this set has polarised opinion in the hobby. There are some who see it as being part of a dastardly Games Workshop/Wargames Foundry attempt to undermine and take over the hobby; personally, I can just about live with the idea of a chain of UK based shops devoted to historical wargaming selling high quality figures and well developed rules, but then I daresay that makes me a dupe of the great GW conspiracy. The rules themselves have a simple core, play very easily and create a wonderful period flavour they are in many ways a throwback to the early days of wargaming, with the crucial difference that they are developed and playtested with great rigour before publication. Very much a set for gamers not for rules lawyers or, more seriously, for players who like to see a focus on command and control rather than getting stuck in.
More Neil Thomas
Back to Perfidious Albion #100 Table of Contents
Back to Perfidious Albion List of Issues
Back to MagWeb Master Magazine List
© Copyright 2000 by Charles and Teresa Vasey.
This article appears in MagWeb (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web.
Other military history articles and gaming articles are available at http://www.magweb.com