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Tanks Alot
United States
Fort Mill
South Carolina
www.facebook.com/HistoricalBoardGames
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It's one thing to be a wargamer, but its even tougher to be a flexible wargamer. I am lucky in the sense that I enjoy such a wide variety of games. If someone likes history, more than likely find a game that matches my opponent's taste. I like everything from card driven games, to tactical, to dice fest type. Not a heavy grog, but I can hang with the heavier stuff. So it seems all these old school wargamers give up after a while and go hide in a closet, deciding to play solo. Wargamers are hard to find.
1) The best resource is the geek. Find users in your area (under misc, find users) and look at their collections. You can usually find a game by looking at their want to play and ratings.
2) Meetup.com - costs a little money but is a great way to let people come to you to try these games. To play these games you have to have an interest in history.
3) Facebook- Create a group, try and get interesting conversations going
4) Face to face- There is a delicate dance when looking for someone to play games with. I never come right out and ask people if they play board games.. I used to and it scares people off. I always try and mention I was born in Virginia or that I love history, talk about the battlefields, and such. If you do mention a board game, chess or risk is always the best opener.
Suggestions for newbie wargamers...
Battleline- Very good for poker players. So easy to learn and teach
Wings of War- Probably the best of the simple mechanic with some great excitement. Dogfights always rock!
Tank on Tank- Light, simple, quick, and the rules are easy to follow!
Memoir 44 - great for ww2 fans and chess players. Try and play a simple scenario with infantry only. Too much boggles peoples minds
Dos de Mayo- For the risk player, very light and quick and quite a good game. The card play in this one really makes the game.
Frontline General- Operation Spearpoint- Make sure to set up 2 hands and let him choose which hand he wants. Since there are so many options to consider as far as picking your army, it's tough for a new player to decide what he wants. Take away that overwhelming 1st part and its a great game
Hold the Line- is a great light wargame if someone is interested in Revolutionary war. Probably one of the best ones out there to start with in my opinion.
Twilight Struggle- People who love history, but have never played historical games before really seem to like this one. Take your time, mix it up. Let them be the Russians.
Commands and Colors Ancients- Great for the chess player. Teenagers really seem to like this one. There is something primal about ancient warfare to them.
Julius Caesar- Just a great game that looks simple and gats harder as you realize how much there is to the game.
Fires of Midway- This game goes through a sequence of steps that really makes it interesting.. a lot of fun stuff here with Fires on the deck.
Battle for Moscow- Great for the mathematician. Very simple game, but very interesting "calculating odds" type game.
Some ideas for playing younger players or people who get overwhelmed...
1) remove more complex elements and concentrate on the small stuff.
2) Take the position of the attacker in defensive scenarios
3) Talk about his objectives and yours. Sometimes we get so involved in teaching the game, we forget where we are going.
4) Don't totally kick their but the first game. Very rarely have I ever heard anyone who won their first game of something say I hate this game.
5) Make your own scenario, with simple objectives and simnple units for a quick intro. I big scenario can have lots of distractions.
6) Have player Aides printed up for them! This is a biggie as they can see what their options are each turn.
7) Try not to use terms like zone of control or wargame terms blow people away!
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Tanks Alot!
Charles
http://www.facebook.com/pages/Historical-Board-Games/1202834...
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