I never cease to be surprised with the ingenuity of wargamers who use my PORTABLE WARGAME rules. They manage to take my basic ideas and mechanisms, and then adapt them to suit their own requirements ... and in the process, produce really simple and elegant mechanisms that I would never have come up with.
Take Kaptain Kobold, for example. In a recent couple of English Civil War tabletop battles he tried out and refined a new turn sequence and unit activation system which is so good that I hope to copy and use it myself in the future. I won't explain it in detail but would direct regular blog readers and PORTABLE WARGAME users to his latest blog post for a full explanation.
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That was interesting reading. Thanks for mentioning it. In the comments there, Martin makes a point that in the original activation system, it gets easier to command your forces as you lose units. I assume he's referring to the playing card-driven turn sequence featured in other PWG titles (apologies I don't have the Pike&Shot rules yet). If so, I would point out that, in my opinion, there's a built-in escalation mechanism to the playing card-driven turn sequence.
ReplyDeleteAt the start of a battle, each force is finding its feet and the commander may not be sure of which units are where and who he can initially rely on. As the battle brews and units are lost, the commanders have a better understanding of the terrain, their men, and their opponent. This is all neatly represented by the increasing proportion of units that can be controlled as the battle progresses, courtesy of the playing card-driven turn sequence.
As the battle comes to a climax and decisive point, it is then that the exhaustion mechanism comes in to play. The soon-to-be-victorious commander can press his relative advantage. The balance is tipped and helps brings things to a conclusion.
I think it helps to think of these things narratively, rather than purely mechanically. That way, great gaming lies!
Donjondo,
DeleteYour description of the way the card-driven turn sequence works as the game progresses is one that I will want to quote whenever people query it’s effectiveness! Many thanks for sharing it with me.
All the best,
Bob
Haha not a problem. Many thanks for writing it! :)
ReplyDeleteDonjondo,
DeleteI liked the way you related the mechanism to the narrative of the game, something that I think really adds to the fun one can have.
All the best,
Bob
In a way, as a commander's forces dwindle, he finds out which are the stalwart troops that he can rely on for his valiant last push or stand.
DeleteDonjondo,
DeleteIt makes sense to me.
All the best,
Bob