"Not Much Talk on Rommel" Topic

So is this a sign?, or is it too much of a wargame to be a miniatures game?

too much of a wargame to be a miniatures game?

???

Sam doesn't come around TMP any more.
So, he's not pushing or promoting it here.

The OP probably comes from boardgaming.
I remember a review of a then essential Napoleonic uniform guide in Strategy and Tactics magazine that protested "But this has nothing to do with wargaming!".
Well, no, if you really tighten your definition to exclude what you don't do.

I have read it compared more to a board wargame than a miniatures game. I was very interested in it after purchasing Blucher. I'm a little put off from what I have read that the infantry, tanks and artillery modeled are just for show as to functionally representing a certain type of tank battalion as opposed to another. I hope I'm not being a troll and I am very interested in the game. Just commenting mostly that so soon after release and over a month since the last comment.

> Well, no, if you really tighten your definition to exclude what you don't do.

Certainly minis players have never done such a thing!

In Rommel stands are companies. So necessarily it will be more abstract than your traditional Penetration versus Armor thickness game scaled at 1:1.

It uses squares for movement with each square = 1 km.

I've always been mystified by the board game versus miniatures game thing. In my mind's eye a miniatures game is just a big boardgame with pretty counters.

@Extra Crispy

My original wargaming group at Penn State played historical Miniatures, D&D, Diplomacy and boardgames. Silly us. We never knew we weren't supposed to get along.

So is this a sign?, or is it too much of a wargame to be a miniatures game?

Sales of the rules have been vigorous.

Lots of talk here:

link

> In my mind's eye a miniatures game is just a big boardgame with pretty counters.

You heretic you! In a good way.

I was very interested in it after purchasing Blucher. I'm a little put off from what I have read that the infantry, tanks and artillery modeled are just for show as to functionally representing a certain type of tank battalion as opposed to another.

I don't mean to be difficult, but aren't all of our miniature models just to show us what type of tank it represents? In Chain of Command for example, I use a few ounces of a metal and resin model of a Pz IVH to represent a real 25 tonne Pz IVH. That model will never represent a Sherman, or a T34.

Same thing goes with Blucher. My little 6mm figures in blue uniforms and black bearskins are my Old Guard, and nothing else. I certainly don't have any trouble with those 70 or so castings representing an entire brigade of many thousands of men.

Forgive me, as I know you're not trolling, but I honestly fail to see what you're getting at? Or is it that you like to see a bit more "tactical" positioning of your armour, rather than just dropping it in a square?

I just played another game of Rommel last weekend, and it was great fun! I know it is entirely subjective, but it definitely felt like a higher level of command than the more typical company level WW2 games.

Mind you, I must admit that I've played – and also really enjoyed – many of Peter Pig's rulesets, many of which are also based on squares. So I am quite used to such miniature games over the years and their advantages (and disadvantages) and have been puzzled over those that do indeed feel such tables are "board games".

Another thing may be that a lot of people are still putting together their forces. People coming from Blitzkrieg Commander or MegaBlitz are good to go, everyone else may need to do some re-basing or buy into 2/3/6/10mm.

+1 Tony S

I resisted WW2 for a long time because I prefer battles to skirmishes.

Taking the crossroads just doens't get my blood flowing. I want to be Patton, not Sgt. Rock! (Or Wellington, or Caesar, or….)

+2 Tony S

People coming from Blitzkrieg Commander or MegaBlitz are good to go, everyone else may need to do some re-basing or buy into 2/3/6/10mm.

Well, there you go then.
I don't rebase, nor do I "need" to get into a tinier scale.

In my mind's eye a miniatures game is just a big boardgame with pretty counters.

I see the two as the classic two-lobed Venn Diagram. Lots of overlap (in theory) but each has elements that keeps them from being set/subset.

Played my first game of Rommel last night, having put together forces from scratch for Operation Brevity.
It was a good game with lots to think about and little 'down time' even in our opponents turn. We had little reference to the rulebook, but there was plenty for me still to learn (don't leave gaps in your line when there is an objective vulnerable at the end of the game!). It had the feel of an operational game, with units gradually suffering attrition and consideration of where the effort was required. I will be playing it again.

I tried Blucher a few times. The only times I enjoyed it were when I played with figures rather than cards. Which is a shame, since I don't have the figures for it myself, but do have all the cards for the 100 Days campaign.

You don't need to rebase anything, or use small scales.
I've played Rommel with my 20mm WW2 stuff using 6 inch squares. Works fine, and looks good.
It's a very good game, with lots of interesting decisions, but as others have said, it is operational, so don't look for armour penetration figures. If you want to get past fresh enemy, you need to plan a series of attacks to wear them down (and plan is the important thing; you need to decide how many ops dice to allocate to tactical phases, and get your troops deployed ready to attack, and have a reserve line for spent attacker to retreat behind).

Another thing may be that a lot of people are still putting together their forces. People coming from Blitzkrieg Commander or MegaBlitz are good to go, everyone else may need to do some re-basing or buy into 2/3/6/10mm.

Yes, this. US finished, need to do the Germans now.

fantastic.. looking forward to getting it

There are pictures in the rulebook of people using figures that look like they were based for Flames of War. Of course, that could never happen…

I haven't yet played the game but I have had the cheek to collaborate in writing a scenario for it: link