tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2839601747923375105.post8767169368533333301..comments2024-03-28T01:22:13.683-03:00Comments on Battle Game of the Month: A Tale of Two StoolsRoss Mac rmacfa@gmail.comhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/04053555991679802013noreply@blogger.comBlogger8125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2839601747923375105.post-40635873127826206512013-10-07T20:55:48.518-03:002013-10-07T20:55:48.518-03:00Nice battle report. I always enjoy reading your an...Nice battle report. I always enjoy reading your analysis and critiques, Ross. Corporal_Trimhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00376387688651637091noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2839601747923375105.post-51141257542489331152013-10-07T08:23:35.829-03:002013-10-07T08:23:35.829-03:00I really like the look of your small table set up....I really like the look of your small table set up. A very interesting concept. Well done!Stevehttps://www.blogger.com/profile/16788687173790306464noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2839601747923375105.post-49392522860169820442013-10-06T17:59:57.308-03:002013-10-06T17:59:57.308-03:00Well that is true, I was actually thinking purely ...Well that is true, I was actually thinking purely in terms of the last game I played with 70 stands vs the 10 used here since with more stands, what happens to 1 seems less important but yes more is better is a common instinct among wargamers and I am not immune.<br />Ross Mac rmacfa@gmail.comhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04053555991679802013noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2839601747923375105.post-87642479217266226732013-10-06T17:57:18.806-03:002013-10-06T17:57:18.806-03:00Jerry your last comment has me all but blushing! ...Jerry your last comment has me all but blushing! <br /><br />For the rest, re the Brigade feel, what I meant was that I had hoped that the rules would give a feel of the Brigade as an entity under the control of its commander but instead felt like a series of units who just happened to be next to each other.<br /><br />re the combat, If there had been more units, the combat results might have evened out more but I think the real issue might have actually been too high a potential effect at long range and too little effect for the new in between, "disorder" effect.Ross Mac rmacfa@gmail.comhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04053555991679802013noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2839601747923375105.post-74553044753528008182013-10-06T17:46:53.611-03:002013-10-06T17:46:53.611-03:00There were some valuable lessons re-learned.There were some valuable lessons re-learned.Ross Mac rmacfa@gmail.comhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/04053555991679802013noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2839601747923375105.post-6614760275096057952013-10-06T17:13:49.714-03:002013-10-06T17:13:49.714-03:00I read "at least double if not treble or quad...I read "at least double if not treble or quadruple the number of units on a larger table" and chuckled - the motto of every wargamer!Anonymousnoreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2839601747923375105.post-10670558636437572992013-10-06T11:55:13.195-03:002013-10-06T11:55:13.195-03:00Dear Ross,
The appearance of the table top was qu...Dear Ross,<br /><br />The appearance of the table top was quite nice and efectively lifted the visuals a number of notches above a typical small table game. Generally when I've played something similar it has been a small naval action like that of the Rio Plata or a squad level action be it F&IW or WWII. This pushes that level and argues that a brigade level game could be played on a smaller surface. Well done.<br /><br />Your post raised a question though. You have stated "The Brigades didn't function as brigades and the combat was too dice dependent and choppy, sometimes it worked, sometimes the results seemed unlikely with only the dice knowing why this unit evaporated while that one seemed invulnerable." While chance dice can be very widespread in their effect dependent simply upon luck, it is also true that real units could be very quirky in how they react in combat situations. If the issue is that the dice seem to be giving you very wide results, you could simply re-write the effects table.<br /><br />The second part of the quote - actually the first part - deals with your disatisfaction over the way your brigades acted. On the level you were playing (Was each base representative of a regiment?) the brigade would move, charge, retreat, fire, suffer casualties and face tests to its morale. You are not going to get things like the formation of skirmish lines, formation changes, firing and loading and fixing bayonets unless you actually build that in to the game. You could use markers to indicate whether your unit is in march column or line formation. The same thing is true for establishing a skirmish line. Of course, you would have to figure out how the skirmish line functioned within the parameters of your game.<br /><br />It would seem to me that if you kept the rules mega simple, then you would kose some of the "feel" of how a real ACW brigade would have functioned. Please keep posting this type of entry - you offer really superior metacognitive insight into how games are developed and played. Your self-reviews remind me of those of the late Wally Simon who said that with any rules set, you should push your analysis until the game system starts to break.<br /><br />Well done!<br /><br />Jerry Lannigan<br />A/K/A The Celtic CurmudgeonCelticCurmudgeonhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/17687177512999052331noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2839601747923375105.post-27173886675802138852013-10-06T05:56:09.210-03:002013-10-06T05:56:09.210-03:00Ross Mac,
Although you might have scored this bat...Ross Mac,<br /><br />Although you might have scored this battle 6/10, I liked the look of the whole thing and think that the card table concept is a great one. I suspect that you have almost cracked this ... and that you will have done so in the very near future.<br /><br />All the best,<br /><br />BobRobert (Bob) Corderyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13109130990434792266noreply@blogger.com