Hot Blood & Cold Steel: game design
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Megagame: Iron Dice – Turn 7
29 Sept to 4th October 1914. BEF Report to the War Office Some more confusion, Germans frontline is from the Marsh area (Dixmuiden) to the South, direction Arras (which the Germans appear to have abandoned?) which means that the British advanced somehow without orders to do so. It seems that a change in warfare is…
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Megagame: Iron Dice – Turn 6
The last full week in September 1914. BEF Report to the War Office 30th September 2014 While taking the new positions, the BEF was attacked by the Germans, Arras was lost but the German casualties were high. British right flank doesn’t have contact with the French. On the political point, the Belgiums requested to the…
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Megagame: Iron Dice – Turn 5
Third week of September 1914. BEF Report to War Office 23rd September 1914 Situation Due to the fact that both the Belgians collapsed to the left of us and to the right of us the French 6th Army were thrown back as well, the BEF was in a difficult position. With bravery and in coordination with…
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Megagame: Iron Dice – Turn 4
8-14th September 1914. I didn’t get a picture of the main control map this turn, so you’ll need to use your imagination. BEF Report to the War Office 14th September 1914 Situation We have attacked the German First Army on our Right flank. They were numerically superior (Five Corps to our three) but we managed…
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Megagame: Iron Dice – Turn 3
The first week in September 1914. BEF Report to the War Office 7th September 1914 Situation We have moved up into a line between the coastal marshes at DIXMUDE to LILLE. Two corps of the German First Army are on our Right flank and we intend to attack them in the flank. We believe that they…
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Megagame: Iron Dice – Turn 2
From the second turn onwards each turn covers the period of a week. Turn 2 is 24-31 August 1914. BEF Report to the War Office – 31 August 1914 Situation The Belgian Army is falling back westwards towards TOURNAI, LILLE and GHENT. The Belgian right flank has been badly hammered by German First Army and…
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Megagame: Iron Dice – Turn 1
The first turn of this megagame covered the first three weeks of August 1914. During this turn the British decided on their plan (K) and mobilised the BEF to France. British Strategic Discussions There were three plans considered. Plan F was a landing at Ostend to directly support the Belgians; Plan K landing in France…
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Megagame: Iron Dice
“If the iron dice must roll, may God help us” – Theobald von Bethmann-Hollweg, German Chancellor, 1st August 1914. Later today I will be the British Team Control for the Megagame Makers Iron Dice game of the opening moves of WW1. Here’s the blurb from the Megagame Maker‘s website. Megagame Makers are marking the centenary…
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Book Review – Zero Six Bravo by Damien Lewis
Zero Six Bravo: 60 Special Forces. 100,000 Enemy. The Explosive True Story by Damien Lewis My rating: 4 of 5 stars I make a point of reading first hand accounts of special forces operations. I started with world war two tales of the SAS and have worked up to the present time. Since the Bravo…
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The 200 Foot General
This is the third post on my Operational Research driven wargame rules (and it’s probably about time that I came up with a catchy name for them, ideas in the comments section most welcome). One of the most unrealistic things I find in most commercial wargames that I have read or played is that it…
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2D Morale Chart
Further to the previous post Faith in Morale I’ve tried to synthesize the varioius readings on military psychology into a set of morale rules that might give a realistic ebb and flow to an engagement. I’ve not had a chance to test these yet, but here’s what the chart looks like. Reading through the various…
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Faith in Morale
Does having faith give soldiers an edge in dealing with combat?
Got any book recommendations?