"In your skirmish games do you use real maps/or photos" Topic

We play moderens so we can use photos and or maps. Since about the napolionic wars (when the UK was first mapped the UK accurately) maps have been available. Before then the standard is somewhat less definative.

Now we can't get, even on a few sq Km of ground the full 3D effcet but we can get the hedges/roads, water courses and built up areas quite close.

So do you use maps to get a realistic level of terrain in you skirmish games, and what limits you if you do so?

Great question. I used to use maps and photos all of the time, but I seem to have stopped. I don't know why, but most likely because we game at least once a week and play about 12+ different game systems, so it got difficult to prepare. On the other hand I have been making up much better scenario stories and planned scenarios so the games are very interesting. I also use AI to write up newspaper stories or post game reports. I'll have to start up with maps and visuals again.

I've got a load of WW2 maps and Cold War era NATO maps in various formats (well the NATO maps came from the obvious source…), so as far as possible I use those. I don't do skirmish but I do do grand tactical and operational. Otherwise it is down to good old google maps and trying to downsize all the town features and ignoring the extra bridges and motorways…

Terrain is what differentiates land warfare from naval warfare.

I've used a series of US Army maps produced in the wake of WWII for games. The Army got much of their information the easy way, borrowing it from existing maps (British Admiralty charts in many cases) from before the war, which is getting us back closer to a period when roads followed the same route they had followed for years. There is a certain amount of "Guess what wasn't here back then" when converting the map to the tabletop. The oldest battle I've used my maps with is Rifsker, in Iceland, about a thousand years ago.

Grelber

Now that I have a Plotter it makes it easier to try this

No

The closest I've come was to cut out a piece of Rand McNally road map and roll it up in my GI Joe's map case when I was a boy.

My father was not amused.

link

No.

Occasionally. Oddly enough, I recently used a map of the neighborhood for a game, only to have my opponent complain about the super unrealistic density of the terrain. Then I pointed out the windows and explained it, he was dumbfounded!

If doing a historic refight then I use as many as possible to get the most realistic terrain layout. A hypothetical what if game…never use maps.

The Nigerian Lead Minister- So many times riding around the neighborhood I think what would be best defense position or how to get around some terrain.
I don't do small small battles, but expend lots of time with a battle map and comparison to the terrain now.

Like smithsco, for historic yes, otherwise now. Since I rarely play a historic scenario map usage is minimal.

However do you use maps to gain an understanding of the terrain density of your chosen geographic location. mlMany scenarios I see have far too space a terrain that the real force would see in most cases

Maps are another tool in the scenario writer's tool kit.

If you want real detail you need to go to the PC model railway people. They will get you systems that produce 3D terrain from satellite data and integrate it with a map. Otherwise depending on where you are playing Google Street will give you a lot of nasty surprises about how little visibility you get.