Post by bruce on Feb 16, 2019 2:43:31 GMT
Hi Everyone: I have had a revelation as I keep getting older and never quite seem to get my wargaming just where I want it. Recently, I wanted to use Volley & Bayonet, an excellent rule set, to fight the battle of Eylau. The rules have great OOBs, but require a fairly large number of bases and I did not quite have enough Russians.
So I kept pushing on and completed a winter gaming mat, trees, buildings with snow etc. I knew I had to go at least 6x4 for board size as well as get more Russians. I have enjoyed VB, and Age of Eagles for brigade scale, quite a bit after years of trying various rules.
In the course of learning some 8 different rule sets over the years, I had naturally fiddled with some of them and kept in mind some of the things I liked even after I moved on to the next set of rules. I began expanding Neil Thomas’ simple Napoleonic rules, and gradually came up with a happy alternative to more formal rule sets almost without realizing it. Sometimes I used gridded mats and these were great for having a quick game especially.
At the same time, I also became obsessed with historical and non-historical scenarios and bought all kinds of books. Sometimes I played these and enjoyed them, but they also felt kind of rigid. In my latest quest to play Eylau, I suddenly realized that I had been almost ready to play a number of battles over the years and never quite got to them. I was always needing to add a couple of more elements. Or I might suddenly get swept up by yet another set of rules.
I think I really just want to have fun and have a battle that is sort of like Eylau, captures some of the feel for the fighting and the setting, without trying to recreate the original. I have been particularly struck by the way Keith from the Volley and Bayonet website (and he also posts here) uses the fictional scenario tool in VB but always gives his units and commanders real names and tells the story in his posts.
So I think what I really want is to use my own hybrid reasonably easy rules – which work with or without grids – and some sort of narrative story around a battle that captures the setting of a real battle I am interested in. It should have mostly the right scenics and fit on my revolving 4x4 table for ease of access and quicker play.
And then just play a bunch of games! At last! Before its too late!!
I will be taking pics and posting them in a week or two, along with a report on the Battle of Sort of Like Eylau. There will likely be a big cavalry charge, and bad weather – its part of the story! Bruce