tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5185876513552272723.post3513054723684899842..comments2024-03-28T03:10:23.679-07:00Comments on Polemarch: Long and Short Period RulesThe Polemarchhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/10958736917525649927noreply@blogger.comBlogger12125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5185876513552272723.post-13006472627510480322016-08-22T04:08:37.297-07:002016-08-22T04:08:37.297-07:00Yes, a good point. I have a suspicion that in many...Yes, a good point. I have a suspicion that in many cases, our idea of a authentic game in a period we know little about is 'like the first wargame I played in this period'. Mind you, that may well apply to our specialist periods as well.The Polemarchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10958736917525649927noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5185876513552272723.post-31981759819933717332016-08-20T03:49:59.641-07:002016-08-20T03:49:59.641-07:00It may also be the case that our favourite period ...It may also be the case that our favourite period needs 'stronger' rules, whilst a secondary period, which is also secondary in knowledge, passes more on being just a good game and happily we don't know enough to question that.<br />Normhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05031444717952755557noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5185876513552272723.post-6356783826723155192016-08-19T06:13:35.654-07:002016-08-19T06:13:35.654-07:00I remember buying ever more complex rues and think...I remember buying ever more complex rues and thinking I was getting closer to 'accuracy' or 'authenticity' or something like that. But then I started to wonder what these things were and why what i read did not really match up to what I played out.<br /><br />Over some years of pondering, reading, writing rules and so on, a blog was born...<br /><br />I don't have the answers, but there are some interesting questions along the way.The Polemarchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10958736917525649927noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5185876513552272723.post-19037180078699662442016-08-19T06:11:24.909-07:002016-08-19T06:11:24.909-07:00I like the Bruce Lee quote; I'm sure there is ...I like the Bruce Lee quote; I'm sure there is something deep and meaningful in it.<br /><br />Each battle should need its own rule set, except that continuity does help us out a bit. We can often manage with just scenario based extra bits, which is probably good for everyone's sanity.The Polemarchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10958736917525649927noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5185876513552272723.post-36322475699369471292016-08-19T03:16:25.987-07:002016-08-19T03:16:25.987-07:00This talk of scale and recognising things for thei...This talk of scale and recognising things for their detail or their function reminds me of a quote by (I think) Bruce Lee:<br />-When I started out, a punch was just a punch and a kick was just a kick. As I improved I learned a punch was not just a punch and a kick was not just a kick. When I reached mastery I realised a punch is just a punch and a kick is just a kick.<br /><br />Not terribly applicable here, but I like the sentiment.<br /><br />The point about each battle needing its own rules is a valid one. The work by Rachael Simmons bears this out: of course there are some similarities in the mechanisms, but each game has been thoughtfully considered and the rules tailored to express the designer's interpretation of precisely the conditions and environment of those battles in particular.<br /><br />That aside, there is something to be said for games that have more applicability beyond a single scenario/battle.A.Y.https://www.blogger.com/profile/14015237003266313603noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5185876513552272723.post-54793309789171790962016-08-17T04:00:43.509-07:002016-08-17T04:00:43.509-07:00Exactly.
In many ways this all becomes a matter ...Exactly. <br /><br />In many ways this all becomes a matter of taste. How much detail "you" want. I find too much detail exasperating but I know many enjoy it - as I did when I was younger and thought that the statistics quoted in books were real.Ben Catohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00132734496369774300noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5185876513552272723.post-65147232734901945952016-08-15T02:57:16.909-07:002016-08-15T02:57:16.909-07:00Yes, I have a nasty feeling that it appeared in DB...Yes, I have a nasty feeling that it appeared in DBM. I think it depends on what level we look at a battle with. that attitude might work for a DBA scale game, where the granularity suggests that men with pointy sticks are precisely that. If we zoom in, even only a little, we find that they are not just that, but there are additional foibles.<br /><br />And by zoom in I think I mean either in terms of time scale or in terms of unity activity. I'm not exactly sure, though.The Polemarchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10958736917525649927noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5185876513552272723.post-73521973106981644972016-08-15T02:54:29.133-07:002016-08-15T02:54:29.133-07:00I am fairly sure that practicality and widespread ...I am fairly sure that practicality and widespread use is a major factor in getting games played. I also suspect that, really, we should have a rule set for each battle, as every one is different and might require different rules. <br /><br />On the other hand, there are only so many hours in the day. a rule set of NW Europe 1944-5 is the finest grain that most people really want to go to. If you have to factor in fuel supply for the Germans in the Ardennes, then some ad-hoc rule will do. Do we really need a rule set for the battle of the Bulge?<br />The Polemarchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10958736917525649927noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5185876513552272723.post-788657060779600732016-08-15T02:51:33.237-07:002016-08-15T02:51:33.237-07:00I think there was a time when complexity was equat...I think there was a time when complexity was equated to accuracy, but wargaming has grown up a bit since then.<br /><br />Overall, rule choice is a very personal thing, I think, and depends on what the individual thinks is important, the level at which their imagination works and so on. There is both change and continuity in warfare, as in the rest of history.The Polemarchhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/10958736917525649927noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5185876513552272723.post-12020199768366125782016-08-14T13:15:32.131-07:002016-08-14T13:15:32.131-07:00Didn't DBM or DBA basically state that there i...Didn't DBM or DBA basically state that there is no difference between an Ancient Egyptian man with a pointy stick and a medieval man with a pointy stick? I'm sure it was in the design notes. It's a technocentric perspective on games design that is familiar to me from WW2 games where the calibre of the gun is more important than the man behind hit. Having these broad rules makes it easier to find a game, as Ben Cato points out. I can rock up to club night with my Vikings and be sure that someone will have an army I can face off against, even if it is not a historical match-up. The emphasis is definitely on the game rather than the simulation. It still lacks something though. The figures become pretty counters, rather than representing something more, and the period engagement is not really there.Ruaridhhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13003128932063213463noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5185876513552272723.post-41827399924914413072016-08-13T19:43:43.041-07:002016-08-13T19:43:43.041-07:00This is a great read.
I would suggest that rules ...This is a great read.<br /><br />I would suggest that rules only focused on a particular war may themselves generalize a lot. For example the armies in 1914 were very different to those in 1918 in tactics, movement, weapons, logistics, and command. Even the allied armies that landed in Normandy in WW2 operated differently a few months later with new tactical innovations.<br /><br />I am sure this is true of many wars and periods such as Roman armies adapting to war elephants.<br /><br />Some of the best things about rule sets that operate over vast periods or even just single war such as WW2, is the ability to find an opponent for game who knows the rules and has some figures ready. <br /><br />In terms of getting played, practicality maybe more important in a rule set than reality.Ben Catohttps://www.blogger.com/profile/00132734496369774300noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-5185876513552272723.post-69146365795012376042016-08-13T12:01:57.726-07:002016-08-13T12:01:57.726-07:00Neil Thomas in his 1 Hour Rules book covers 9 peri...Neil Thomas in his 1 Hour Rules book covers 9 periods from ancient to modern, with each getting its own set of (3 page) rules and with what amounts each time to only very small game adjustments on the previous game set.<br /><br />The question of whether he has stripped too much away so that the generic principles are too obvious will be answered differently depending on either ones own 'need' for complexity and flavour, or whether the period or rule sub-set is in ones secondary area of interest, so that some things either matter less or there is a lack of awareness as to what should and should not matter. <br /><br />I have two games in front of me (WWII Tactical) and they could not be further apart.One is for rivet counters and the other might best be described as 'themed'. I like them both. Convention might suggest that the more complex game is the 'better' game, though in fact, the themed , fun game is likely to hit the table more often!<br /><br />Normhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/05031444717952755557noreply@blogger.com