Always pleased to hear of such a discussion.
I'm obviously a fan and have just about everything ever made for the system, the notable exceptions being the Samurai set (never a period that caught my fancy) and the Red Alert which I will seek on deep discount at some point.
Surely Memoir is the most popular and one of the most successful entry-level wargames in existence. Say whatever you will of it, and I might well agree, but it has absolutely brought hundreds of people at least into the suburbs of the hobby. "D-Day Landings" is an absolute, absurd classic of the form.
Battle Cry would have done much better had Hasbro not been the right goofs that they are and refused any attempt at expansion or supplement. It's still insanely popular despite its profound limitations.
Ancients remains one of GMT's best sellers and is on, I'm pretty sure, its 12,000th edition. In many ways, I find it to be the purest melding of the game as it is and the period it seeks to represent. It's a "play anytime" game and regular SNF favorite.
And, yeah, considering my son and I played just about every Napoleonic battle there is over the course of a year, I'm a fan. Can you knock the system, yes you can and I sometimes do. I will never truly be a fan of hexes with my toys, but it is the best entry-level Napoleonic game in existence, introduces you to the principle players in the epic, and does at least offer a passing acquaintance with some -- note some -- of the challenges of command in the era. I should also really never be played save in the epic or LGB mode.
I own all the AmRev, Jacobite, Medieval stuff and find them very fine, but won't really jump in until one of them goes epic.
Oh, and one should mention Battle Lore. The second edition is rubbish and is not C&C. The first one actually gives a very nice game of Agincourt, provided you keep the dwarves and monsters to the side...
And if Mystery Wizard comes out before the LGB expansion...I will be cross...
« Last Edit: August 27, 2021, 01:43:20 PM by Cyrano »
Sergeant-at-Arms - Fraternite des Boutons Carres
Negotiator of the fragile peace between Ruritania and Strakenz
Weeple Herder to the Emperor