Archive For The “Analysis” Category
Brant Guillory, 17 February 2020
Everyone that’s grown up in the fantasy RPG world knows how D&D’s “Vancian” magic works, and over almost 40 years of gaming, my experience is that virtually everyone hates it. There’ve been a variety of replacements introduced over the years, from spell points to the DD4e at-will/encounter/daily powers to skill-based magic. Stripping back from execution to concept, however, there are always a few considerations that need to be framed before moving forward with whatever way in which “magic” would appear in the game world. These underlying concepts are the building blocks which define virtually any magic system. (more…)
Brant Guillory, 14 May 2019
originally published at GrogNews.com
Note that this is a companion piece to the original column on recon & intel in tabletop wargaming.
In the tactical world, we have several different tools we use to ensure that we get the right data at the right time.
One of the key methods involves the use of map graphics. We use transparent overlays on standard-size military maps (1:50k) and use graphics to indicate enemy actions: locations of units, routes for movement, places we expect them to attack or defend, etc. (more…)
by Gary Mengle, 8 October 2018
Around 1998 I declared wargaming as a hobby finished, washed my hands of it and sold off most of my games.
Yeah. That was dumb.
I mean, it seemed logical at the time. The wargame-as-simulation designs that the hobby was then still in the grip of could clearly be better accomplished on computers. Non-CCG tabletop gaming was getting crowded out of retail spaces and conventions. Gamers’ time was increasingly being devoured by computer games. And wargaming, by then a niche for the better part of two decades, was the first to vanish from the major convention scene.
Digital wargaming
by Jim Owczarski, 2 October 2018
Given what is about to happen here, I really ought to establish my bona fides. I am a huge fan of Richard Borg’s Commands and Colors series. I own the entirety of the Ancients series and have taught it as an introductory wargame at Origins. I think its clean design and relative simplicity make it one of the the best gateways to this hobby of which I am so fond.
Despite this, when GMT Games announced that it had partnered with Hexwar to bring C&C:A to the PC, I was skeptical. For me, C&C in all its flavors is the perfect game for face-to-face play. The learning curve is reasonable, the time commitment is modest, and it still brings a decent amount of historical flavor. As much as I love more complicated games, my ratio of C&C played to any other system these days is very high. As a result, I felt no particular need for a digital version.
And then there is the fact that Field of Glory 2 exists. (more…)