"Fun - It can be different" Topic

My friend and I are in the midst of a battalion sized game. We spent 3 1/2 hrs playing really hard without a shot fired and had a fantastiv evening. Fun is a strange thing. The cause was really a demonstration at Brigade level of what they do. Most of my units were spent, out of ammo and tired needing to do essential maintainace and rest. Threfore I had to do a exchange in place with the next unit not leaving a "space" to the enemy to take advantage. Boy did I get it wrong I was nearly and hour without any significant forces available to stop an attack. However I got lucky, my opponent did better but was just too carefull (or sensible) to exploit mt error's. This is the sort of game that teaches you about how hard it is to be a Brigade commander, sorting out the logistic side even when incredibly simpllified. That make an insightfull game that is fun and shows how difficuly it is to be a Brigade commander, when you work out how you need to schedule coloums 1+km long and not get them in disasterous traffic jams.
Whats you take on this sort of Fun?

Simple rules, pretty table and figures, and roll some dice. sombody wins and it doesnt matter who.

You need One Hour Wargames by Neil Thomas

I would definitely like to give a game like that a go.

I enjoy the roll dice, blow stuff up games, but that seems to be pretty much all there is any more….

You're doing it wrong! :)
I think that sort of game would be fun/interesting once or twice. But then it would turn in to a job. I have a job, I want a game. As for illustrating how difficult a brigade commander's job would be, even if simplified for a game, talk to any manager, you'll find everyone's job is more complicated than you think it is.

It sounds like an interesting game examining the sort of thing
that intrigues me about military history. Gaining a swift conclusion is not always the definition of fun.

Seems miserable to me. If I played that at a convention, I would have walked away.

Thanks UshCha,

I am assuming that you are gaming Coldwar/WW3 from previous posts.
From what you say I can see this as a game of perhaps day vs night.
You could use the night to re-supply and sort out your plans and logistics and you use the day to fight the battle.
Nice post and food for thought.

Whats your take on this sort of Fun?

UshCha,
Sounds too realistic for most people. It's obvious you are not normal, that's a good thing. Welcome to the club.

Wolfhag

Complexity vs. reality vs. playability … A universal conundrum …

I should point out that this was just an element of a long game where we do actually shoot at each other!

These bigger games add much more interest as the boundary conditions are much more interesting.

In the same game I could have slaughtered most of the enemy reconnaissance rapidly but in doing so would have betrayed many of my positions forcing me to move to less optimum positions to avoid the inevitable artillery barrage.

Short games lack this insight in the the complexities of higher command which sets the long term strategy.

"Complexity vs. reality vs. playability …"

The more we can get closer to reality, the more the actual lethality increases (and by then, it's no longer a game most want to play. At least we can hope so…)