"Something non-wargamers do that really annoys you..." Topic

Calvary instead of cavalry.

Quite aggravating, but even worse when wargamers, who should know better, say it.

Also, the whole "playing with toy soldiers" thing…doesn't bother me when non-wargamers say it, they don't know any better, but it bugs me when wargamers say it, reducing all the historical researching, buying, prepping, painting, organizing, basing, terrain building, rules learning, etc., down to just "playing with toy soldiers". That was what I did when I was a kid and lined up my bag of green Army Men on the living room carpet and went "pew, pew" at them. Have been waay beyond that for decades now.

Personally, I'm quite happy to admit I 'play with toy soldiers'. It's in the spirit of self-deprecation that underpins much English humour and makes clear that I'm neither obsessive nor deadly serious about wargaming, thus pre-empting such criticism.

I certainly 'play' when I wargame: I do it for entertainment, relaxation and pleasure, not as a profession. My metal figures are small, lacking any great detail and not painted to particularly high standards; they are the equivalent of boardgame meeples that enable me to easily identify arm of service and nationality when playing. My terrain is gridded for simplicity of determining movement and ranges, it is not a diorama and symbolic, rather like a map instead of realistic.

Do I learn anything from wargaming? Yes, how hard it is to write simple, playable rules that create realistic outcomes. The history I have learned from the books I read previous to writing rules or a scenario.

When I worked for Unilever for 20 years, one of the things they had us do was name our hobbies. So, I posted playing Golf, Fishing, and Historical Miniature Wargaming. When upper management saw this. I received many emails showing interest in this and asking for more information. I always thought miniature wargaming was a thinking man's hobby. The annoying nongamers are the ones that pickup you figures to look at them without asking!

So, I posted playing Golf, Fishing, and Historical Miniature Wargaming. When upper management saw this. I received many emails showing interest in this and asking for more information.

I suspect that you would have received less interest if you would have termed HMW "playing with toy soldiers", and maybe have gotten a few strange looks in the break room at work as well.

And that's my point. I'm not one of those grim, humorless fanatics that insists "IT'S A SIMULATION!!". It is warGAMING after all. The intent of my games is to have fun and they are always attended by much joking and laughter. Winning is routinely a secondary consideration. I just don't like to reduce my hobby to the level of an 8 year old child's play. And I would suspect that if given a full explanation of everything involved, a person with no previous knowledge of wargaming would be impressed. I know that has been my experience.

So to each his own…just don't sell yourself short.

Blackhorse MP +1

I cringe every time I hear "playing with toy soldiers" It belittles all the work that I put into it. I suspect some model RR folks hate "playing with toy trains." Historical gaming is just another tool I use to study history, along with my books. It is loads of fun but there is a lot of work to it.

How about TV Commercial producers equating mass market UNO or Monopoly as typical game night fare while promoting something else. Level of ignorance out there is astonishing despite the inspiring advances of current gaming.