"Operation Warboard?" Topic

I see OMM is rereleasing "Operation Warboard" which is a set of WWII rules originally published in 1976. I can't find anything on TMP discussing the rules any more recent than 2007. Who plays/played these or knows anything about them? Thanks.

It's actually being (re)published by the History of Wargaming Project:
link

There's a detailed review of the original edition on the SWA's Lone Warrior blog.

Blog is at : lonewarriorswa.com

then look in book reviews

Yes, I should have said OMM was selling the rules.

@20thmaine: I appreciate the link but the reviewer really doesn't discuss the rules, ground scale, game mechanics, etc.

Many years ago (25-30!!!) these were the first set of rules I played. I picked up a copy off eBay fairly recently but other than reminiscing over the pictures haven't really re-read them.

We played loads with single based plastic figures and airfix tanks. I don't think we ever finished a game due to having far too much stuff on the table.

The rules use several templates, a come shaped MG one, a rectangular grid for artillery, and a circular blast one.

IIRC there were no command or morale rules.

They were aimed at 20mm and as such suffered from problems of ground scale 1:1000 vs figure scale. With infantry only just able to move the length of a tank.

The above isn't very positive – I suppose they are Old School. But we had lots of fun with them.

I seem to recall we expand the armour system up to 16 levels to give a bit more difference between different tanks.

Figure scale wise I think it was about 3:1. I remember platoons of around 8-10 figures. I think vehicles were 1:1

Move distances were fixed, but varied quite a bit between different types of vehicles.

It was single dice per shot. With roll to hit, check penetration, then roll for effect. Armoured cars with rapid firing guns tended to be a bit too good as they got lots of shots, so would get lucky with a dice roll.

Bought them from Smiths ages ago, played them them dozens of times, loved them.

My brother wants to start gaming with Charles Grant's old WWII rules, so these might be worth looking at just for the Old School nastalgia factor.

@David Manley : snap – in every respect !

Bought them in Smiths.

Used them with the gaming group of friends for about 3 years.

Always enjoyed the games.

They were aimed at 20mm – but at the time it was 20mm or 54mm (I don't think even Peter Laing had done WWII in 15mm)

I'm afraid I had graduated from Charles Grant onto WRG 1925-50 by the time these came out, but people speak highly (and nostalgically) about them.

Bought mine in a bargain bin bucket at WHSmiths in Brussels in about 1980 or 81 abouts.

Read it laods, never played it sadly.

If this is the rules I think they are, they are a strong influence on Rapid Fire. So if you have played Rapid Fire, you should find many things familiar, though some thing like machine-gun beaten zones/templates unfamiliar (though those being rooted in military doctrine, maybe more accurate).

The first set I ever played, so considerably nostalgic!

Very old school, not that that's necessarily a bad thing. We usually found that they produced fast and devastating tank battles followed by a drawn out game of 'hunt the bazooka guy' but I guess as kids we never knew when to quit!

The rules are similar to others of the time eg Featherstone, Grant (and the later Rapid Fire! as hurrahbro says). But the great thing about the book is that the rules take up only about 1/3 and the rest is filled with excellent advice for the budding wargamer. A couple of scenarios played through, advice on terrain, figures (rather out of date now of course) general hints and tips and chat. Shows what a ruleset can be when authored by a professional thriller-writer.

They did just about have command and morale rules but very primitive, iirc a unit ran away or surrendered if it lost 1/2 the figures or somesuch.

Ah, Pont de la Croix, Disaster at D-day, Ug and Grog discovering wargaming via the use of pebbles, mad quotes from Patton – great stuff.

I agree with Timbo W. The rules were very well laid out. All of the rules were in one section and then you referred to section two for explanations and examples.

Today's rules writers could study this system rather than cluttering up the rules with pages of examples, photographs and drawings. I am wading through a Napoleonic set at the moment and I know that the 83 pages could easily be edited down to ten pages if the excess verbiage, examples, photographs and drawings were moved into a separate chapter.

I recall one game – road into a village defended by hidden Russians, German column coming into town over a bridge (there's always a bridge !).

Lead tank got taken out by an anti-tank gun (perfectly placed for once !). Infantry left their trucks and swarmed over the bridge – straight into the small minefield. Then half a platoon of riflemen picked off the rest. Think in the end I used about 20% of my force in winning the game, and took about 3 casualties.

And THAT is why we fight !

Played these rules for a long time, and as others have said, the grandfather of Rapid Fire. Lots of fun back then but rules have moved on. Still have my copy maybe I'll get it out, mmm…….

Leafed through a copy. Says basic rifle platoon is 10-12 figures, or about 3:1, with a bttn at about 140 figures. Artillery, two guns to a troop. Armor, three tanks to a troop. Low-level battles.

Rules run pages 68-139. Index included.

Pages before 68 include making firing grids, setting up scenarios, building up a force, how wargames go, and so on.

The original is from 1976. OMM has it in stock. $28.00 USD

I have just reprinted Operation Warboard with a new foreword by the co-author. wargaming.co