Historical Wargaming Update
The other major update to my hobby has been the introduction of historical wargaming and it slowly becoming a major part of my hobbying.
The first historical wargame I began dabbling in was Flames of War. I am sure most everyone knows this game, but if you are not, it is designed by Battlefront Miniatures. They both designed and published the rules but also produce 15mm miniatures to go with the game. For a short time people in my area were interested in playing the game so I began collected a US Infantry Company. I was roughly half-way done when people started to lose interest. Just this last month the newest edition has been launched, which is great because people have started to grow interested in the game again.
On a related note, Battlefront also published a game called Team Yankee. This game is the same as Flames of War, but set in a hypothetical World War III conflict which starts in 1986. I also decided to buy into this game, but have yet to roll any dice in anger. Here is a M1 Abrams that I have painted.
Another game that I have began dabbling in is SAGA, which I highly recommend as a game for everyone to try. The game is designed by Studio Tomahawk with rules and miniatures produced by Gripping Beast. Currently there are 27 factions, slightly too many to list them all out, but they run the gambit of Dark Age Europe such as the Normans, Bretons and Vikings.
The mechanics of the game revolves around what is known as the Battle Board. Each faction has a unique one which contains abilities only they can use. At the beginning of each player's turn they rol a number of Saga Dice and place them on abilities that live on the Battle Boards. This effectively buys the ability to be used at a later point in the game. You spend the dice that you put on the board to trigger the abilities, which often boost your offensive and defensive abilities. Sometimes they give extra movement, mess with your opponents, or interrupt your opponent's turn. This mechanic builds a really great combo and combo-breaker system that is fun to play. Plus you really only need roughly 30 miniatures to play.
Even if you are not into historical games I highly suggest trying it. The historical element is purely window dressing.
Finally, the last historical wargame is the one that I am truly playing and enjoying the most.
The game is known as L'art de la Guerre, which is French for "The Art of War." The game, designed by Herve Caille (http://www.artdelaguerre.fr/en/index.php), is another game in a long line of successors to DBA. You play with 15mm or 25mm miniatures across 4500 years of human history, from the bronze age through the late medieval. The community is great, and the game is relatively easy to learn.
At the moment I have collected and fully painted up a 15mm Carthaginian army. I have been getting my ass kicked so far, but I have seen notable increases in my skill level as I have played more and more games. They are a challenging army to use because there are so many moving parts and they don't rely on any single unit to win the table for them.
I have also started to collect my second army, El Cid's Spanish. They are more focused on knights and crappy infantry, but having such hard hitting units really changes the way you play the game. I am excited to get this army finished by a tournament this summer.
The first historical wargame I began dabbling in was Flames of War. I am sure most everyone knows this game, but if you are not, it is designed by Battlefront Miniatures. They both designed and published the rules but also produce 15mm miniatures to go with the game. For a short time people in my area were interested in playing the game so I began collected a US Infantry Company. I was roughly half-way done when people started to lose interest. Just this last month the newest edition has been launched, which is great because people have started to grow interested in the game again.
On a related note, Battlefront also published a game called Team Yankee. This game is the same as Flames of War, but set in a hypothetical World War III conflict which starts in 1986. I also decided to buy into this game, but have yet to roll any dice in anger. Here is a M1 Abrams that I have painted.Another game that I have began dabbling in is SAGA, which I highly recommend as a game for everyone to try. The game is designed by Studio Tomahawk with rules and miniatures produced by Gripping Beast. Currently there are 27 factions, slightly too many to list them all out, but they run the gambit of Dark Age Europe such as the Normans, Bretons and Vikings.
The mechanics of the game revolves around what is known as the Battle Board. Each faction has a unique one which contains abilities only they can use. At the beginning of each player's turn they rol a number of Saga Dice and place them on abilities that live on the Battle Boards. This effectively buys the ability to be used at a later point in the game. You spend the dice that you put on the board to trigger the abilities, which often boost your offensive and defensive abilities. Sometimes they give extra movement, mess with your opponents, or interrupt your opponent's turn. This mechanic builds a really great combo and combo-breaker system that is fun to play. Plus you really only need roughly 30 miniatures to play.
Even if you are not into historical games I highly suggest trying it. The historical element is purely window dressing.
Finally, the last historical wargame is the one that I am truly playing and enjoying the most.
The game is known as L'art de la Guerre, which is French for "The Art of War." The game, designed by Herve Caille (http://www.artdelaguerre.fr/en/index.php), is another game in a long line of successors to DBA. You play with 15mm or 25mm miniatures across 4500 years of human history, from the bronze age through the late medieval. The community is great, and the game is relatively easy to learn.
Comments
Post a Comment