More about Matrix Games

Chris Engle of Hamster Press has been the driving force behind the development of Matrix Games, and over the years he has published – and continues to publish – books and booklets about them.

This morning I went through my collection of wargames publications and found that I own the following copies of Chris's work:

• CAMPAIGN IN A DAY (1992): This explained how a Matrix Game worked, and included two examples; Peninsula Campaign and Ancient Sumeria.
• CAMPAIGN BOOK (1992): This was the companion volume to CAMPAIGN IN A DAY and contained all the information needed to set up and run ten Matrix Game campaigns. Each section contained a description of the historical situation, orders-of-battle, and each player’s briefings and goals.
• 1066
• Bannockburn
• 1494
• Blenheim
• Bonnie Prince Charlie
• Peninsula Campaign (as featured in CAMPAIGN IN A DAY)
• Russian Campaign 1812
• March To The Sea
• Zulu
• Save Gordon!
• MINIATURE BATTLES: STUPID SIMPLE RULES (1992): This was the third book in the series and featured rules that could be used to fight any battles that were ‘generated’ by a Matrix Game campaign.
• THE MATRIX GAME! (1995): This book included a revised (and in some ways simplified) version of the original Matrix Game rules.
• SCOTLAND THE BRAVE (1995): This book was a complete scenario (including player briefings) for a Matrix game set during the Scottish Wars of Independence (1295 AD – 1314 AD).
• MATRIX GAME RULES (2000): A revised – and very easy to follow – version of the original Matrix Game rules.
• SHERLOCK HOLMES CASE BOOK (2005): This book contains and explanation about how Matrix games work and the scenarios and player briefings for six murder-mystery Matrix Games:
• Sherlock Holmes Mystery
• The Case of the dead Duke
• The Case of the Missing Bride
• The Case of Bad Blood
• The Fenian Murders
• The Fox Hunt
• A Shot in the Dark
• The Fenian Plot
• DESERT RATS: A MILITARY CAMPAIGN GAME (2005): This book contains and explanation about how Matrix games work and the scenarios and orders-of-battle for six Matrix Game campaigns:
• Desert Rats
• Rommel’s Advance
• Jihad
• Rommel in Defeat
• Dar as Salaam: The 1880 British Invasion of the Land of Peace
• A Small War for Empire: The Invasion
• Allah U Akbar! : The Dervish Counter-Attack 1881
• The Hunt for Ali Baba 1885

I am sure that I also have a copy of Chris’s POLITICS BY OTHER MEANS (PBOM) rules, which are a very simple set of wargames rules for fighting battles with toy soldiers. I think that a synopsis of the rules is available on his website here.