UNUSUAL AZW WARGAMING RULES

Posts : 2 Join date : 2013-03-27

TAKING THE BULL BY THE HORNS
Low level battles against the imperialist aggressors in Zululand, 1879. Rules by Jim Wallman

I loved "impreialist agressors"
What's unusual about these rules is that each player actually controls only ONE figure on the table. This commander or sub-commander may execute ONE action e.g. "Encourage the men." or "Lead a charge." or "Give an order to wheel left." How "the men" respond is by variable "Determination" ranging from "Overenthusiastic" to "Run for their lives". This approach is almost an RPG / wargame hybrid. What it does is add back some fog-of-war and remove the usual table-top wargame problem that the player can see way more than the commander figure on the table. I'm impressed!

From the rulebook:

"These rules are to provide a framework for wargames that simulate the wide range of small battles that were fought when the British Army launched an unprovoked invasion of Zululand in January 1879. The famous battles are well known, but the emphasis of this set of rules is on the smaller actions typically between 500-2000 Zulu and a company of 120 or so of British."

"The game is intended for use with toy solders at the 1/300 scale, although it could just as easily be played at other scales or even with counters on a map."

"The fundamental assumptions are that the firepower of a formed line of British infantry is very devastating, and that the determination and tactical handing of the fighters on both sides is critical to the outcome of each battle."

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Posts : 1086 Join date : 2012-05-12 Location : NYC

Not your ordinary cup of tea. I quit colonial wargaming because...well...way too much Sword and the Flame.

Posts : 2308 Join date : 2010-07-02 Age : 40

My son has a PSP. One of the games he plays, some war game. Puts him as one of the Soldiers being able to move in all directions, duck, jump change weapons, ect. It's there any Zulu War games like that out there.

Posts : 1086 Join date : 2012-05-12 Location : NYC

impi wrote:: My son has a PSP.

I don't know the answer to that but I've never heard of one. That kind of game -- electronic -- is far different from the paper based miniatures rules that was highlighted above however.

Posts : 2308 Join date : 2010-07-02 Age : 40

You don't say!

Posts : 1086 Join date : 2012-05-12 Location : NYC

The "point of view" wargames I'm aware of are all 20th Century (or after) but there MUST be exceptions out there in the online universe. The game companies encourage fans to adapt their massively multiplayer online game engines to new purposes all the time. It's mostly just a matter of a topic reaching critical mass...but the AZW is kind of obscure in most places games are built.