The following blog post is the result of some ideas I had whilst I was unwell a week or so ago. Rather like my recent blog posts about psychogeography, I haven't come to any firm conclusions ... but I think that my thoughts are worth sharing online.
I own Hexon II hex terrain ... a LOAD of Hexon II hex terrain! I like using it in my wargames and my Portable Wargame rules were designed to use them.
There is – however – a problem. Ever since I broke my leg and ended up finding out that I have axonal polyneuropathy – and its related mobility problems – I've only had access to a small part of my collection of hexes. Most of them are in our storage unit, and I only have enough to fill my Portable Wargame warboard. I am missing most of the roads, rivers, hills, and mountains ... and I am not sure when I will be able to rectify this.
That said, I haven't stopped thinking about putting it to good use, especially in conjunction with my Belle Époque project. Regular blog readers will already know that I have been somewhat in the doldrums regarding the the maps I want to use for this project ... other than my decision to try to use the Wargame Map Tool program to create them.
My initial thoughts about the hex maps was to create maps that used one map hex = one Hexon II hex ... but that meant that the maps I created either had to have lots of detail on them – and would take me a long time to create – or would be 'empty' until I 'populated' them with terrain.
I then began thinking about creating a very simple strategic campaign hex map and only worrying about the specific terrain in each hex once opposing forces entered it. This then led to me thinking about whether I could break up each map hex into a number of terrain hexes.
Initially, I looked at the smallest number of hexes I can fit inside a map hex. This was seven:
I then expanded the 'ring' of hexes around the central one, and ended up with nineteen hexes inside the larger hex.
I then expanded it even further until I could get thirty-seven hexes inside the larger hex. This compares with the forty-eight hexes I can fit on my Portable Wargame warboard. In other words, this large hex/small hexes combination is 23% smaller. (I estimate that it will be approximately 70cm/27.5-inches tall and 60cm/24-inches wide ... which will just about fit on my 90cm/36-inches x 60cm/24-inches wargame table)
Hexon II hexes come in two sizes ... a six-hex piece and a single-hex piece. To create my large hex from thirty-seven smaller hexes I could use four of the former and thirteen of the latter.
This rather appeals to me, and I hope to be able to look into this in more detail when time permits.
I subsequently looked at a battle (The evacuation of Abou Nasir) that I fought on my Portable Wargame warboard as part of my MORE TROUBLE IN ZUBIA mini-campaign. The terrain for the battle looked like this:
I then converted it to fit on my thirty-seven small hex/one large hex map. The result looked like this:
On the strategic map, the hex containing the village of Abou Nasir would look like this:
Very interesting ideas. As your gaming board that supports the hexes is rectangular I'm curious why you don't make your campaign map square, while retaining the hexagons for the tactical game?
ReplyDeleteFor myself, I prefer area movement/point to point campaign maps, but if the mapping program makes this all easier, then I understand the choice more.
Overall good food for thought.
WEK 3,
DeleteIt is something that I have considered ... and I may well do as you suggest. My blog post was very much an example of me 'thinking out loud' online.
Likewise, I have not ruled out using some form of point-to-point campaign map.
All the best,
Bob
Bob, I have spent many hours disappearing down rabbit holes on quests similar to yours, when trying to convert hex boardgames as campaign generators.
ReplyDeleteNormally each hex is given a real life distance it represents and some operational games such as Megablitz or your own Hexblitz have a ground scale which allows you to work out what size each game hex would be on the table; it's a lot easier converting from hexes to hexes, although inevitably, with a rectangular table you end up with half hexes.
Neil
Neil Patterson (Neil),
DeleteYou are right about it being a rabbit hole! I have any number of boardgame hex maps that I'd love to use as campaign maps, but I've never quite managed that transition ... yet!
I would love to be able to use something along the lines of Franck Chadwick's 'bathtub' concept, but it runs contrary to the second point you raise about hexes having a ground-scale equivalent.
As to half-hexes ... well, Hexon II supplies them and I have a box of both types (i.e. point-to-point and side-to-side), so that isn't a problem.
All the best,
Bob
This idea of hexes inside hexes is something I used way back in the day for campaign maps. In turn it was based on mapping tools from early role playing game rules. I still have a booklet of blank hex sheets each page of which fits inside a single larger hex. Heck it even includes terrain generation tables. I really must dig it out of the 'I can't throw it away It may come in useful one day' pile of shame!
ReplyDeleteIt's a really good system and of course as a result I don't use it! Instead I use a campaign map made up of rectangles each of which is one game table. These are laid out in a brick wall pattern which maintains the same relationship as hexes would have one to another. I can easily copy the terrain from a campaign map rectangle to the tabletop when a battle occurs. Simple and easy to manage.
Elenderil,
DeleteI was interested to read about your experience using hexes-within-hexes ... and the terrain generation table sounds very interesting!
I have thought about creating maps that have maps grid areas that are equal to a tabletop ... but not about using a brick pattern grid. Its certainly something that I need to consider. Thanks very much for suggesting it.
All the best,
Bob
Bob -
ReplyDeleteI think you might be on to something promising, here. The 'blank' bits left when translating the campaign hex to your game board can be filled with the appropriate terrain from the adjacent ... campaign hexes, shall we call them.
My own approach has been to create a map and to superpose a hex grid over all, but I don't think what you have in mind will work that way - or at least, not exactly.
Intrigued enough to have a quick look at the idea, I did find one fishhook I hadn't anticipated. The question is how the next campaign hex over will look superposed on your array of hexons. I came up with two possible solutions. One is to leave 'gutters' - like the spaces between panels in a graphic novel -between the campaign hexes. They are just half a hex wide and I think would work. Some of the 'gutters' might represent large waterways, mountains, or other impossible terrain, but I don't reckon it matters much.
The other 'solution' was to have the campaign hexes overlap by a row of 3 hexes. I like this idea in principle, but am inclined to think the result is just a messy overall map. Much might depend upon whether you are creating your world map 'top down' or 'bottom up'... or whether you a fixed 19-hex 'supergrid', or a 19hex array is applied in an ad hoc way as events develop.
Incidentally, the 19-hex area is the size of my 'Mini Chubby Marine' submarine patrol area. When the location of the sub needs to be known, it can be diced for.
Cheers,
Ion
Archduke Piccolo (Ion),
DeleteI've not tried superimposing a hex grid over a map to create a campaign map ... but its something I ought to try. I might need to play around with the end result, but it will be a worthwhile exercise if the end result meets my requirements.
I think that I got around the half-hex problem when I drew my A WINTER-ISH WAR campaign map (https://wargamingmiscellany.blogspot.com/2016/01/a-winter-ish-war-background.html), and the end result worked for me.
I am thinking of two approaches regarding the big hex/19 small hexes; either to create a large map made up of big hexes that I will 'populate' with 19 small hexes as and when I need to OR placing the large hex over an area where a battle with take place and populating it.
All the best,
Bob
Interesting musings Bob , I am interested to see where this goes.
ReplyDeleteTradgardmastare,
DeleteI'm not sure where this is going to go ... if anywhere. However, if it does progress, I'll certainly blog about it.
All the best,
Bob