1 . Since its inception, I've been a subscriber to MAGWEB, the computer conglomeration of wargaming magazines run by Russ Lockwood. Russ now has 49 magazines on line... not all issues of all magazines are available, but there are enough to keep one browsing for hours through article after article, regardless of your era of interest and your type of miniatures gaming. I highly recommend a subscription... when you think about it, it's the el-cheapo way to subscribe to just about every wargaming magazine being published. MAGWEB gets five stars from me, well worth the $60 yearly subscription fee. Take a look at MAGWEB at: www.magweb.com 2. A month ago, while browsing through the pages of MAGWEB, I came across the HELIOGRAPH, which focuses on British colonial wargaming. In Issue #102 of August, 1997, the editor of HELIOGRAPH, Richard Brooks, reviewed a set of rules called SONS OF THE DESERT (SOTD). The rules are published by THE EMPEROR'S HEADQUARTERS, and Brooks got his copy for $15. Cheez! One would think that they'd at least have given him a freebee copy. Of interest to me is that Brooks, in his review, doesn't want to hurt anyone's feelings... either those of the author, or the people at EMPEROR'S HEADQUARTERS. SOTD is a skirmish game, and according to Brooks, one turn is one minute of battle time. He gives a list of the problems and inconsistencies he found in gaming the rules, and then follows up with some comments: "The rules could be good with some tweeking (sic)." "Our first game (Scenario 1) was over in four turns (four minutes game time), both sides ran away, in three turns the legion lost fourteen men out of twenty and had only fired once against the Arabs twice." "The second game... (lasted)... seven turns (seven minutes game time). "... they are quick and a lot of fun. Recommended." Yes, they're definitely 'quick'... but 'recommended' is not quite the word I'd use. The 'tweeking' to which he refers appears to be more than just a tweak or two, if you believe the listing of inconsistencies he uncovered. Back to PW Review June 1998 Table of Contents Back to PW Review List of Issues Back to MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1998 Wally Simon 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