In the grand tradition of wargamers who haven't done very much recent wargaming, I went and placed an order with a favourite online wargames shop on the weekend.
The games I'd had my eye on for a while, but as they were both in stock and the prufrockian coffers had been slightly swelled due to a bit of overtime, it seemed as if the wargaming stars had aligned.
Dien Bien Phu is by Legion Wargames, a newish company I've heard good things about but not yet played a game from. A tense siege - modern but not too modern - easily soloable, and an epic situation fixed in the mind by boyhood reading of those collectible magazine sets from the '80s on famous last stands or some such thing. I missed out on the first edition so it was happy chance that NWS had a second edition left in stock just when I was there browsing.
Battle Hymn Volume 1: Gettysburg and Pea Ridge is by the legendary Eric Lee Smith, building upon his Across Five Aprils system from many years ago, published by Compass Games, and enjoyed by our own Norm Smith whose review of this system I remember reading but cannot find.
For some unknown reason Gettysburg is a particularly important battle for me. It causes a weird emptiness in the stomach. I've played it out with Summer Storm, Thunder at the Crossroads, and Battle for Gettysburg: the First Day. They all have an honoured place on my shelf (especially the last - as it was a desk top published game with actual paper maps I put it in a Very Safe Place and have not been able to find it since!), but I'm still looking for that game you can set up and play solo (or with a friend) over a couple of evenings with components attractive enough, end point visible enough and game system engaging enough to see it through to the end.
Whether the games live up to my anticipation remains to be seen. Going by previous experience the answer is likely to be 'no' - I'll likely open them up, have a look, put them on the shelf with satisfaction and then never get round to playing them - but we'll do our best to change the pattern!
Anyway, it's a pleasure to deal with NWS again, and I'm looking forward to trying out the new games when they arrive.
Good buys Aaron, if you like the Gettysburg, it is a proposed series and volume 2 will be Shiloh and Bentonville (I think) and I did hear that it would also include a solo module to work with the system.
ReplyDeleteTop tip for finding your ‘lost’ maps ...... buy a a new copy of the game and you will find the old maps the next day :-)
Thanks Norm. I hear your tip for finding missing wargames works equally well for reading glasses!
DeleteNWS is my favorite online shop too. I have been dealing with Dean for many years. He always offers terrific bargains and when the game is in stock, it ships quickly. There are many Gettysburg games but TatC is my favorite Gettysburg monster.
ReplyDeleteYes, I really like TatC as well. Playing it solo is quite a lengthy endeavour though - I'm thinking this one will be a little more manageable!
DeleteHave you tried Martin Wallace's "Treefrog" Gettysburg? Very playable, and very different to conventional board wargames. Nice wooden pieces, with a clear board.
ReplyDeleteNo, I haven't tried, unfortunately. It sounds like it would be worth giving a go. I was quite tempted to get The Guns of Gettysburg on account of how magnificent it looks, but never quite got around to it.
DeleteNever knew about NWS: thanks! I share your syndrome. I purchase games of much interest and promise that rarely satisfy expectations. Although it is hard to find and incredibly expensive as a collector's item, I found GDW's "Citadel" an excellent treatment of Dien Bien Phu (I think the rules are available for download on Board Game Geek, if nothing else).
ReplyDeleteThanks Ed, I didn't know about GDW Citadel. If I have heard of it I probably wouldn've assumed it was a Kursk game and passed it by.
DeleteYes, can't go wrong with NWS! Hope you get to use them at some point :)