Editorial

A lot of work has been going on into a long-term project of mine, a tactical (1:25) Dark Age/medieval set of miniature rules. These are now in thier first playtest version and will be introduced at Historicon in July 1997.

Why another rules set? First and foremost, though I have enjoyed WRG 7th over the years, certain aspects of the system leave a lot to be desired. DBM holds absolutely no interest for me, with the exception of the immense amount of research that went into the army lists, an invaluable contribution in intself. Armati is fun to play, but it simply does not have the tactical detail and mechanisms which make them a set I feel comfortable with. Other rules sets such as Knight Hack, Ring of Iron, Shieldbearer, Ancient Empires, Blood Eagle, Warhammer, et. al. simply do not fill the criteria which I feel must be present in a rules set replicating warfare in the 5th-16th centuries.

Several issues back, Jim McDaniel wrote that there are a significant group of gamers yearning for the tactical level rules set for this period. I agree. A tactical rules set can give us the control and feel of a period battle, they do not have to be as stylized and therefore can be more innovative than the present grand-tactical set.

God, Wealth, and Honor

In working on God, Wealth, and Honor, I decided that all information should be on the table, i.e. everything should be above board. Order chits and figure removal by stands eliminates ambiguities in casualty record keeping and in order "writing." There is an emphasis on an orderly, sensible system whereby a gamer who uses sound tactics will win. The player dictates the course of the game, not the rules.

Rules driven games immediately favor the player who knows the loopholes and intricasies, i.e. the hated rules lawyer. GWH, while not an overly simplified system, is written clearly and cleanly, letting logic dominate. The idea is to allow a gamer who is used to Napoleonics or ACW jump into our period and be able to win the game. Sound radical enough? It gets better.

Look at generalship. Generalship in the Early Midieval period was of paramount importance to the success or failure of an army. The best quality troops in Europe, including the 14-15th century French knights, the Teutonic Order, the Byzantines at Manzikert, all were defeated by their qualitative "inferiors" when incompetently led or when their opponents were better led. To that end, generalship is of utmost importance in GWH.

The morale factor in 5th-15th century warfare depended to a large extent on how one perceived his own qualitative/quantitative inferiority/superiority. Knights would be little concerned about a routing militia unit on the flanks, but would be hard pressed to manage a charge uphill against massed pike. At the same time, a lightly armored foot unit in the open would be terrified of a charge by heavy cavalry. All these intricasies are included in a simple, but realistic morale system.

Combat

Close combat produced a swirling, chaotic situation where at any time, a unit might break and run, depending on its current success, morale, tactical situation, weaponry armor and proximity of leaders. A melee may be over immediately or it may last hours. The general with the tactical ability to throw in fresh troops or even expose his own person to the maelstrom of combat may find victory...or death.

As you can see, I have been having a lot of fun with these rules. At the present, I am working on developing roughly 120 army lists to go with the rules. Here, again, I could use some help, especially on the Eastern armies, Orientals and Byzantines. The lists are going to be quite thorough with armor, weapons, morale, number of stands per troop type (minimums and maximums) and figures per stand. Using WRG basing, your armies will be ready to play.

Lately, I've also been collecting as many videos as I can find pertaining to our period of interest. Bruce recorded The 300 Spartans, one I've always wanted to see, but never had the chance. Of course, Alexander Nevsky, Braveheart, The Warlord, El Cid, The Adventures of Robin Hood, Ben Hur, Spartacus, The Fall of the Roman Empire, The Vikings (my all-time favorite), Helen of Troy, The Bruce, By the Sword Divided, Cromwell, Ran, Henry V (both the Olivier and Brannagh versions) as well as the two recent Robin Hood movies-- all are great fun and inspirational to watch. I know that there are several films out there which I would love to get my hands on. Any other suggestions?

Recently I received a group of figures to review for THE COURIER from Gripping Beast, in England. These 25mm Dark Ages Vikings, Saxons, Normans, Welsh, Irish and Scots are arguably the best figures I have ever seen. I will be bringing them down to HISTORICON next July to use in my demo games. Enough cannot be said about them. My review will be in the upcoming issue of THE COURIER.

Until next time....

Read Comments From The Press Gang by Asso. Editor Jamie Fish.

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