Tally Ho Chaps!

Posted on by Tim Porter

Attention to detail Meme

Tanks and aircraft are two things where I adore the minutia of detail. The subtleties between opposing machines, and even between different versions of the same machine, have captivated me since I was a small boy. I like games that include that detail, yet without the detail becoming a drag. I want to play the game without having to fight the game system or the laws of physics.

The first air combat game I played that had oodles of detail was Air Force by Avalon Hill. All of those lovely detailed and colorful data cards on a myriad of aircraft. I ogled those data cards for all of their tech-laden goodness. I loved the detail even though I sucked at the game.

Data card for the Fw 190D aircraft from the Air Force game published by Avalon Hill
Data card for the Fw 190D aircraft from the Air Force game published by Avalon Hill
Aircraft data card for the Fw 190D-9 aircraft from the Wing Leader: Supremacy 1943-1945 game
Aircraft data card for the Fw 190D-9 aircraft from the Wing Leader: Supremacy 1943-1945 game

The game that re-awoke that desire for detail in air combat was the Wing Leader series of ww2 air combat. This game, and many other  innovative air combat games was designed by Lee Brimmicombe-Wood and published by GMT Games.

In the Wing Leader series the detail was there without the cost in complexity. Complexity is often the first casualty of a highly detailed game. Time and complexity can mean you spend hours fighting a few minutes of elapsed time. The revelation for me was that the details between the different aircraft still counted, yet so did the tactical factors such as position, height, pilot experience, and aircrew training. The scale used was the difference. It was no longer individual aircraft zooming around the sky,  it was flights and squadrons of aircraft.

The Wing Leader series had enough aircraft detail to satisfy that itch and the aircrew themselves have enough variables to get me rooting for a individual Ace or favorite squadron. Along with a myriad of different aircraft types and marks there are were tactical choices that I had not seen in other games. The vertical aspect now mattered more than ever before without the mechanics of diving and climbing becoming a bind; The quality and doctrine of the aircrew mattered. Good tactics seemed to pay off at last. Boom and zoom attacks were so much easier to perform without worrying about throttle settings or wing loading. That was perfect for me.

I have to include a shout out to J.D. Webster for the Fighting Wings series etc. This is great for the aircraft tech-head. By the way, I suck at this type of air combat game. It was like playing Air Force all over again. I would always overshot the target due to a misjudged turn and then present a perfect target for the enemy.  The lesson seemed to be that I am better at commanding a few squadrons rather than individual aircraft. For individual aircraft combat I think I should stick to the simpler air combat games such as Down In Flames or Wings Of Glory.

Through Wing Leader, my dreams of ww2 aerial glory can come true at last. From squadrons of Spits and Hurricanes piloted by the plucky RAF, to hordes of Me-109s and Focke- Wulfs diving into formations of B-17s. The Wing Leader series has it all, except for the Avro Anson of course.

Tally Ho Chaps!

Tim
10th April 2018

Wing Leader series website by the game designer.

Wing Leader series page by the publisher GMT Games.

BoardGameGeek link to the Wing Leader Supremacy 1943-1945 game.

My Silly Board Game Memes page on Facebook.

Silly Board Game Memes

Posted on by Tim Porter

It is only natural that the board gaming hobby annoys me at times. In an attempt to vent, and to poke fun, at the hobby that I hold so dear I have created a number of Silly Board Game Memes. They are to entertain and to annoy people a little too. These are just a product of my over active brain mulling over the quirks and idiosyncrasies of the games that I love and the people who enjoy them.

Silly Board Game Memes

Board game genres and stereotypes

I have a bunch to add to the page… too many. Check back again soon.

Tim

27th March 2018

Board Gamer Toy Drive 2017 – Updated

Posted on by Tim Porter

The Thomas Fire has greatly affected people in our local area. People have lost their homes, and their livelihoods. Our local community is hurting. Let’s help with the rebuilding. With Christmas fast approaching things are especially hard on the kids.

Board Gamers Toy Drive
Toy Drive for those in Ventura County affected by the Thomas Fire

So, we are holding a Toy Drive. We are gamers who can help people through the power of learning and play. For more details see the Toy Drive page.

Bring along NEW Toys, Games, and School Supplies to a Meetup, or get them to Tim or April-Lyn of the VCSB Meetup; or Blake, Chris, or Julia of the Simi Valley Games Meetup.

Help in anyway you can; donate money via places like the red Cross. People need all sorts of basic items. Every little bit helps.

Update – 21st December

Yesterday, I took a dozen bags full of new, and much needed, items to the Boys and Girls Club Thrift store in Ventura. The pop-up store was winding down and had passed their role onto the B&G Club store on N. Ventura Blvd.
Items donated to the Toy Drive
A dozen bags of items were collected, and donated. Many thanks.
 Many thanks to all the help and the donations for the BoardGamers Toy Drive, including: Christieann, Kimberly, Sudro, Kathy G, April-Lyn, and Brian (from Game Ogre in Westlake Village).

Many thanks for all the donations.

 
The items included: games, toys, school supplies (binders, books, pencils, highlighters), and hygiene products (tampons, wipes, razors, toothpaste, toothbrushes, shaving cream, deodorant). All of these types of items, and more, are still required.

 

Tim

14th December 2017 (Updated 21st December 2017)

Clank! And 101st Anniversary

Posted on by Tim Porter

A Game That Does It Right

 

Clank! box cover
Clank! box cover

Clank! A Deck Building Adventure has been getting a lot of plays since I acquired it last December (2016). For a game that uses many common mechanics it just works well. It is also a game that works for me even though the theme is not a big draw.

  • It is a deck-building game, nothing revolutionary there. The cards are easy to understand. There are no complex icons to remember.
  • The theme is understandable. Go into the dungeon and steal things from the dragon, and get out alive!. No pressure.
  • There is drama. The drawing of damage cubes from the bag creates plenty of tension.
  • The players have choices. The players can play it safe and steady, or fast and loose.
  • It plays fast enough.
  • Suitable for beginners, and experienced players alike.
  • It’s expandable. More cards, different boards make for a varied and re-playable game.

It is always a pleasure to find a solid game that does it right. The gameplay is sound, despite being on the light-medium difficulty level. The cards are easy to comprehend. Despite not being the type of game that I would go for, I am glad I bought it. It is the game that Thunderstone should have been.

 

Tuesday Nights

Last week we had over our limit with 36 attendees. We had so many signups we had people on standby in the hope that we could find space for them. We accommodated everyone a little big of juggling, and having good table loading. We managed to fit everyone by ensuring the our tables were well loaded with people. A 6 player game around one table helped a lot.

This week we had only 27. Only one of the newbies came back. Just when I thought the attendance numbers were growing again they drop down to new norm of the high 20’s.

 

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

The Somme 101st Anniversary – The Big Push After Action Report

July the 1st was the 101st Anniversary of the start of the Battle of the Somme. After visiting the Somme battlefields last year I finally got to play the only wargame that cover the battle. Here is my After Action Report, with lots of pictures from my Somme trip.

Tim

2nd July 2017

Gamer fatigue and the growth of the hobby

Posted on by Tim Porter

Some interesting points on the growth of the hobby. As a lifelong board gamer I want the hobby to grow steadily without a bust cycle. We will have to see how the growth curve progresses.
Tim

Formal Ferret Games

In a recent episode of Breaking Into Board Games, we discussed our predictions about 2017. One of my predictions was that we would start seeing a cap on attendance at larger conventions. I wanted to continue on that subject with a wider lens, looking at a possible scenario we may be facing in the coming years.

The board game industry is growing at an explosive rate (revenue from hobby board games grew 56% from 2014 to 2015; I’d expect similar numbers when the numbers come in for 2016), and I’ve heard a few pundits indicate that there’s no end in sight. As an independent board game designer/publisher, I certainly hope that’s the case.

But I always try to plan for contingencies, and part of that is planning for the possibility that this explosive growth slows, stops, or even reverses.

To be honest, I would expect the hobby to continue…

View original post 836 more words