Name: Philip J. Viverito

Genius: Designer: Classical Hack Miniatures Rules for Ancients

Bio: As a staff photographer I was responsible for providing both commercial and industrial photographic services to various corporate departments on a daily basis as well as caring for a photo archive that contained photographs and negatives from 1858 to 1996. The archive contained over 300,000 images in all manner of photographic mediums. For public service work, I have assisted Old Fort Niagara Association with technical advice on their photo archive. Also produced seven models of the "French Castle" at the Fort for their museum display "Bastions, Blockhouses and Barracks".

Still provide photographs for numerous international books, magazines, history institutes and museums. Received History B.A. from Niagara University. Publications of miniatures nature include: Classical Hack, Classical I, II and III, Knight Hack and Holy Hack. Soon to be released rules include Battery Wagoner; Rush to Glory and The Road to Naseby. Mac user. Contributor to various gaming magazines both paper and electronic and The Lead Eaters.

Current Occupation: Currently downsized staff photographer seeking opportunities in the deep south in the field of public relations or photography. Free lance photographer. Currently in work on a daily basis in the field of Materials Management.

What was the inspiration for Classical Hack?

The idea for Knight Hack and then Classical Hack came to me on returning from Historicon 1980 something or other. I decided that the existing rules out their did not satisfy my needs as an historical gamer and that I would correct that by coming up with something that would suit me better. More importantly I knew that if I was not happy with the rules in existence then there would be more gamers out there like me. With Ed and Rich, I would capture their attention.

What made it such a cutting edge game at the time?

While at the Battle of Cowpens Convention this past April I met Tom Thomas and Neal Smith. Each was attempting to defend their concepts on the best rules out there. Their conclusions differed because they had different experiences in the tournament circuit. One had great joy the other was uneasy about the rules they were discussing. Oddly they were both correct in their conclusions while those conclusions were at opposite ends. Tom was comfortable with his selection. Neal had played Classical Hack and was very pleased with his findings; deciding that these offered the comfort he sought in a game. In short like Spartacus says, "The best wine is from home, where ever that is." So the cutting edge rules are the ones that appeal to the player and that's ok because people who write rules don't do it to make money. Rules writers write rules first and foremost to express their views and interpretations as revealed on the wargame board. The money part is coincidental.

Rules are a platform for ideas and ideals. When properly done these will shine through and gaming peers will embrace the rules and most importantly play them. I think the sales track record speaks for itself as Knight Hack will be going into third edition, Classical Hack I, II and III are now sold out. Classical Hack: Ancient Warfare 600 B.C. to 600 A.D. will, if sales continue to climb, be in second edition sometime in early 1998.

Cutting edge is not sales. Cutting edge is finding a gap and filling the void or need. Cutting edge is hitting something in people that they can immediately grasp the basics and say "That makes sense." and then so it. Cutting edge is running a game and having everyone playing without anything more than clarifications by turn 3. If you are playing rules that cannot be grasped by turn turn three you are not playing what I would call a cutting edge set of rules.

Cutting edge means rules that permit units and armies to do the things that are reflective of that particular army. Military tactics changed just as much 2000 ago as they do today. Romans of Scipio's time fought differently than Romans of Caesar's day. We have a tendency to lump things together thinking a spear is a spear, old is the same old. True enough, but how is that spear used? What did Scipio do that Caesar did not. Cutting edge historical rules must show these differences. Gamers are smart people and they recognize these things when they see them.

In creating Classical Hack, how did your design philosophy evolve? Did something trigger the proverbial light bulb to light up over your head during design and testing?

In creating Classical Hack, its philosophy was paramount. Because Ancient and Medieval warfare was evolutionary so would be our rules system. First off the rules are not intended to be tournament rules. Classical Hack and Knight Hack. are intended for the serious researcher as they are the gamer seeking relief from the mundane strains of work. This meant that they had to entertain and stimulate without creating too much stress and still preserving the flavor of period gaming.

The design evolved from constant research. These are reflected in four areas required of a period specific wargame. I call these the four m's.

• First is movement. How fast and in what formation do specific units move?
• Second is missile fire. What weapons are used by specific people and this leads to their use and cause us to consider morale in response to their effective or not so effective use.
• Third is morale. What will cause a unit in a specific army to move or not move in relation to battlefield experiences and events. This responding to battlefield events based on nationality (for lack of a better word) and the effects of things like missile fire or being charged or charging.
• The fourth m is melee. Melee is in many ways the thing battles are about. Understanding these four things first in relation to themselves and then in relation to the requirements of specific people and periods is the essence of Classical Hack. they work because units and armies do what they are supposed to do. That's the light bulb and the the philosophy of the game.

Test play and design often butt heads. This always comes out in test play. We successfully worked the bugs out by making the characteristics or values of each people in each period shine threw. While archers are not terribly deadly in the short term they become so if they can sustain long term shooting. The mechanics are not in the rules they are built into the armies by period. Test play seemed endless and in second editions test play and advice of other groups became instrumental in correcting things we weren't happy with or felt uneasy about. This made Classical Hack inclusive of the gaming community and not exclusive.

Through design and test play the philosophy demanded two more things in its criteria for personal expression. First is speed which was achieved as demonstrated at Cold Wars '97; sixteen people were playing relatively unassisted by turn three. We threw out the exact measuring concepts by utilizing training levels, morale classes, unit and morale markers and player intention. Orders were discarded because no one truly follows them anyway so you might as well let your units do what you want. Remember the days of standing orders?

Then there was fun. Because the game is period and people driven the basic rules does not over power the players; you can still have fun. One of the first things I do at demonstration games is to quickly run through a session of round robin dice rolling . As a group all are asked to give out a big YESSSS!!!! when a bad roll is made. This sets the mood for the importance of enjoying a game. Some people find this harder to understand than anything else.

What was the greatest success of the design?

The greatest success of Classical Hack is compound. First was my wife's comments made after reading the Cold Wars '97 preregistration book. She immediately pointed out the section on Ancients and Medieval tournaments. "Are they playing Classical Hack?," was her initial comment. The flattery that the tournament players have decided to express in their new interpretations as expressed in this little book are priceless to me. Lynne, my wife had played Classical Hack only a couple of times (although she did the design work) she picked this up immediately. When others duplicate your efforts there is no better way of knowing that they have accepted the basic concepts that you have painstakingly developed. It takes pretty big people to do this. It's nice having your work appreciated in this fashion. There is no greater compliment than the respect of your peers.

The second success of the design is the inclusive nature extended by our supporters both commercial and consumer. NASM has always been supportive in printing endless articles on Classical and Knight Hack thus helping get the design concepts out there. The conventions big or small have always been generous in permitting me to put on as many as six demonstrations per con thus providing me a platform. You must carry the concepts to the gamers and there is no better place to do this than at sponsored events. Then there are the commercial interests that place ads in the product. I can assure you vendors aren't looking for junk. They aren't looking for one time flyers either. Ral Partha, Brookhurst, Wargames, Grandiosity and On Military Matters have been supportive from the start. Sometimes with just critique, sometimes in more tangible ways too.

Finally there are the players and organization people. Classical Hack and Knight Hack see familiar faces at every con and has a growing following. Their can be no higher value than positive and creative comments made by people like Scott Holder, Mike McVeigh, Allan Fleming, Paul Forgette, Jack Hasselbrook, Terry Gore, Jamie Fish or Johnson Hood. To conclude it is the inclusiveness of the people involved in the process of putting on demonstration games and getting Classical Hack published that makes it a success from Augusta to Toronto.

Most notable flaw?

The most noticeable flaw is the non tournament aspect of the game. The most vocal group in Ancients and Medievals are the tournament players and here is where nut is hardest to crack. But we seek their respect as much as their participation. Classical Hack is for the local guys and not the hard core tourney guys. There is a place for both and I would like to think that it's getting the hidden Ancients and Medievals players out of the closet.

What were some other influences on your design/development for the series?

The influences that come to mind while developing the system came in the form of historical sources. Briefly I found only one work that was anything near a tactical manual and this was found in the Dead Sea Scriptures in the book called "The War of The Sons of Light and the Sons of Darkness" . Unless I am misinformed there are no others not even Vegitius in the Classical period. Check your old Spear Point Newsletters for the complete article on this subject. The Medieval period has only the Knights Templar's instructions for waging war. From Caesar and other writers of the Classical period the lesson we learn is that the ancients were as ignorant of military tactics as we are. We presume Caesar mentions only things that people were not aware of. I believe he leaves out information for two reasons, first it would make his commentaries boring and second no one really would have understood tactical details anyway. But Dodge, Connolly and others bring out the main stream concepts and they were of great value in figuring how to create the system.

How long did Classical Hack take from inspiration to final boxed product? Did you get faster as you continued with the series?

Classical Hack I took two years of weekly meetings and test play. Classical Hack II took an additional two years and Classical Hack III another two years. The new Classical Hack: Ancient Warfare 600 B.C. to 600 A.D. took two years of compiling and test play. A lot of the work crossed paths and had to be shelved and brought out later and then assembled. Altogether it took some seven years. Things didn't get faster and many things overlapped being held as notes until work could be completed and then polished. They are in many ways simultaneous in creation with Classical Hack being the finished product.

When in design mode, what's your favorite snack food?

When I am designing I don't eat. I do consume plenty of coffee and tobacco. At test playing we devour tons of donuts, coffee and beer. I stay away from spirits as they cause me to fall asleep. I do most of my work after midnight and sleep for about two hours and then go off to the ugly real world and work.

Do you play computer games?

I play only two computer games; Spectre Challenger ( a no brainer) and occasionally Air Combat which is less free thinking.

What type of system do you have?

To execute games and other writing I use a MAC computer system with 32K RAM and 3.1 gig drive. Lynne does the set up and overall design. Nothing would get done without her.

What piece of hardware, real or imaginary, would you add to it?

I would add a good scanner to my system. That is essential.

In general do you think boardgames make the leap to computer screens effectively? Why or why not?

I am not knowledgeable enough about board games to answer this question. In fact I refuse to look at any games except spectre Challenger when I am creating. In any case, it is Spartacus' comment on wine again.

How would you like to see Classical Hack presented on a computer screen, if at all?

I have only viewed briefly computer games used to recreate battles like Gettysburg. From what I saw I liked the little figures on a geohex-like field. I like live games. After all with a humanoid combatant you have an exchange. I would miss that exchange with a computer which might cheat even more than the humanoid.

If you were going to be represented on a computer screen by an icon, what would it be?

As for being represented on screen I think Mr. Connolly's art is the perfect icon. I admire his written work as well as his art work immensely. Any painting by Mr. Connolly would make the perfect icon. You did an excellent job with the review as did Bill Armintrout and Bob French and Ral Partha. Mr. Connolly is definitive on canvas or screen.

Computer games are becoming an extension of Hollywood--games based on movies or movie characters. Do you believe the Hollywoodized games to be better, worse, or about equal to ones created from original material? Why?

I have no real comments to make on Hollywood games but perhaps I would enjoy a game based on "The Warlord". The Warlord had some great fight scenes.

What was the last movie (theater) you watched? Last videotape rental?

The last movie I saw was "The Odyssey" if you count TV movies and I enjoyed it. The last theatre movie I saw was "Michael" . That was excellent. The value of the Spirit cannot not be played up enough. The last video tape I rented could not have been too good cuz I can't remember what it was. Usually when I see a movie I like I go out and buy it. I have several hundred in my collection.

Is there a movie you'd like to do a game of?

I would like to do a game off the movie "Camelot" blending a little fantasy role playing with historical wargame stuff. Creating dragons that can be slain and Wizards that fight only other Wizards. It would be heavily based on "The Once and Future King" and I would call it it Viva La Arthur. Or something like that because the tales of Arthur are about his life and not his death. Somehow I think we have twisted the concept of the life of Arthur.

Given unlimited resources but present day technology, what would you design and why would it be cool?

Well I have several things in the works right now. I would design a game that would be pretty simple yet with enough imagination to spark desire to play it. You see, Classical Hack and Knight Hack are really a blend of right brain/left brain. People that try discover the brilliant math concepts or percentages will be disappointed because of this blend. Hopefully the element of chance and reaction based on period and people response, remove the left side ability gamers tend to use. A lot of people try to do this and frankly a set of rules that permits people to win because they are rules lawyers or because they wrote the rules and know all the ins and outs of them isn't very good. Napoleon once asked "...I know he is a good general but is he lucky?" Rules and games should let even the least likely player or troop type be able to win. Even the best troops have a bad day. I win about fifty percent of the games of Classical Hack that I play. I am a good to poor gamer. So that's what makes it good-even I stand a chance of winning. I think this is why Classical Hack is cool. Cool doesn't always mean technology.

They say everyone needs a hobby. How do you decompress outside of game designing/playing?

While I do things outside of gaming I must admit I am consumed by gaming and live for it. It is what I do. Photography is something interesting but nothing replaces lead figures, miniature terrain, good rules and the personal exchange derived from gaming. I decompress by maintaining a constant e-mail with gamers I have met and made friends with through Classical Hack. So if you really don't want to hear from me don't talk to or e-mail me. I'm like the plague once I get your number.

Where was the last place you visited on vacation? What's your next vacation spot?

Our last vacation was to Greenville, SC. Here we were taken in by Tim and Jen Walker while we attended the Battle of Cowpens Con. It was a great time. The Walkers are wonderful people. You see, we spend almost all of our 5 weeks of vacation doing cons big and small. Gamers are the best people you could meet anywhere.

If not bound by time or space, where would you go...and why?

Being free of time and space constraints Lynne and I would travel to France to see the Bayeux Tapestry one of our true loves.

Excluding your own creations, what three games (of any type) would you take with you to the proverbial desert island? What three books?

Three games I would take on a desert island? First I would take Little Wars, then Charge and finally I would purchase an old Marx set of figures like the AWI or ACW complete play sets. For three books, The Once and Future King, Greece and Rome at War, and Dodge On Caesar.

We see the emergence of online gaming as putting the social aspect (and the smarts of a real-live opponent) into gaming on a world-wide scale. Good or bad? Why?

Well I am not that familiar with gaming on a world wide scale via electronics. I suppose it is that drunken Spartacus again. Nothing has excited me that I have seen but then I am sheltered. Whether such gaming is good or bad...perhaps no more so than the people who engage in such frolic.

Do you have a favorite poster or cartoon hanging by your desk? What is it and what makes it your favorite?

I have a Mickey Mouse calendar by the desk. Because it is innocent and you can manually operate it to change the months. It is my favorite because Lynne got it for me.

What epitath would you want encoded on your digital tombstone?

What epitaph? I polled my son and my wife Lynne. Son suggested "I told you I was sick!!!". Lynne suggested, "He came, he saw, he laughed." I think if copies of the rules I have done survive me, then that's enough said about me.

What question did we leave out that you would like to answer?

Here are some of my initial thoughts on the interview. The inspiration for Classical Hack came from the frustrations of the tournament circuit that I traveled in the mid to late 80's. This frustration came out of my playing historical armies that faced off against out of period tournament armies that were probably historically researched but being out of period what did that matter?

Before I go on, let's look at tournament play. Tournament play fills an important desire in the Ancients and Medieval gaming world. It also fills an important desire that all gamer's share-the sport of the game itself. There is nothing wrong with tournament play. There is nothing wrong with gamers that play armies out of period, after all it is just a game. In fact Ancients and Medievals are probably the only gamers that run tournaments. I don't think pick up ECW, AWI, Napoleonics or ACW games or scenarios qualify as tournament gaming. There is something about the two periods on a tournament level that engenders the need to play a favorite period army against another; even when they are out of period. Imagine asking a Napoleonic gamer to pit his army against Viet Nam era RNV. Perhaps then the key word is imagine.

Frankly I was not and in general am not a very good wargamer. It was from the frustration of the square me trying to fit into their round hole. Now I think of myself as an octagonal wargamer. Where did I fall short? Well it is something of a dice game when you game regardless of the amount of research you put into gaming in Ancients and Medievals and I can't roll dice very well. Also I could never quite get a handle on the fashions of the day. I'd take big sized units and I'd get clobbered by little units at every con. Then I would take small units and they'd be using large units and I was once more dead meat. Whose fault was this? No one's, it is just the way things went for me so I decided after facing a player with a xeroxed set of 7th edition and the largest units I had ever seen, that it was time to take control of my gaming desires and needs.

To conclude, tournament play at home was fine but on the road it was not very pleasant. I created a list of the things that tournament gaming lacked and what made it work. It was in these areas that I decided to concentrate my efforts with Rich Kohlbacher (who with Bob Sillars introduced 7th Edition about 1985 or so to NASAM) and Ed Backer. Cy Taylor had given me the rights to his Ancient League Rules a year or two before saying, "Phil, I know that if I give these to you you will do something with them." My frustration coupled all these things together and with Ed and Rich published "Knight Hack". Over the next few years we released Classical Hack I, Classical Hack II, Classical Hack III, Fantasy Hack, Holy Hack and finally Classical Hack Ancient Warfare 600 B.C. to 600 A.D.

One of my favorite places to visit is in Hamilton, Canada at the MIGS Club. This group has been very active in supporting and playing all the Hack Series books. Also the gamers in the Augusta, Georgia area have always opened their con to me and I hold them high regard for their friendship and consideration to me and my wife.

Any last omniscient thoughts for MagWeb members?

Well all I can say is that Magweb provides me with easy access to many of the important journals and magazines in the hobby. It has saved me a ton of money and is an import cutting edge place to visit and use. It is a great place for enhancing and enlarging the hobby in general. Not being a member is unthinkable if you are on line.

Related

Chapter One-Der: Classical Hack Introduction
Rules Review: Classical Hack (ancients)