In your Editorial of the May 1970 issue, you stated that anything taking place on a table-top only remotely resembles that which takes place on the battlefield. Having now experienced the latter, I can whole-heartedly agree with you on that point. As a Reconnaissance Sergeant I can now relate to modern period situations the tense "cat and mouse" type of feeling that is inherent to every battle situation. I believe the focal point in differences between the game and reality lies on the individual soldier and his reactions to a situation. Sometimes seeing a close friend hit, denied air support, encountering extremely thick mud, or a multitude of occurrences can actually be the determining factor in the accomplishment of a mission or the eventual success of that mission. Morale of a unit can deteriorate at the "drop of a hat" - on the other hand, the sighting of a Cobra Gunship in the air can boost morale to the point of fanaticism. In the rules I have, for any period morale was something that was so sketchy that it just didn't seem right. For instance, by having "set standards" for a unit to break and then as soon as those standards are met EVERY MAN IN THE UNIT now takes on a rout. I realise that when formulating rules for a game or period, an essential element is that of simplicity - and since few wargamers take on a 1:1 ratio you are dealing with more than the individual. History can supply numerous examples as to certain regiments being decimated but still accomplishing its mission and others of breaking at first engagement. It is for this reason, this indefinable element of morale and psychology that an a table-top we are not re-enacting war but participating in an exercise of ballistics and tactics, solely. And because it is a game, the other effects such as terrain, personalities, and uniforms are added to gain an aesthetic appeal. Because there "exercises" are such, an attempt to portray, on a table-top the reality of war is simply impossible. Wargaming is a hobby - a form of pleasure where one can drift back for a while, into a period of time and truely enact the part he has chosen. It is a mental exercise in which you can outwit or second-guess your opponent. It is something t~at your own handiwork has created, a diversion into which has gone a great deal of research and long hours with this as a result. True - wargaming is a form of escapism - but today who doesn't have a "safety valve"? Taken in the manner of all serious wargamers, its no more a "threat to Peace" , "a corruption of the mind" than reading a good novel. For wargaming is no more than an extension of an historical novel, with all the scenes, the characters and atmosphere in a 3-dimensional presentation. Back to Table of Contents -- Wargamer's Newsletter # 104 To Wargamer's Newsletter List of Issues To MagWeb Master Magazine List © Copyright 1970 by Donald Featherstone. This article appears in MagWeb.com (Magazine Web) on the Internet World Wide Web. Other articles from military history and related magazines are available at http://www.magweb.com