One thing that I've been wanting to explore is creating condensed 28mm games/scenarios - the type of thing that could be played in 30 minutes and one might play a series of such games over the course of a night. Sometimes less is more, but when you're also looking for depth... well sometimes the shallows don't cut it.
Gaming is very much a case of personal taste - I used to play D&D as a kid and enjoyed it immensely; but could I bring myself to play the same now? No, I don't think I could do it. Similarly, wargaming can go lots of different directions, but where I'm finding my sweet-spot is the tactical depth offered by Rogue Planet coupled with the background/overlay that Games Workshop has developed as part of its Warhammer 40,000 franchise. Especially after reading about a dozen Black Library novels... well there's a wealth of 'set piece' games that can be explored.
The word 'narrative' is bandied around a fair bit these days, but I wonder if people are using the wrong word. Could it be that what everyone's looking for is an immersive game? A narrative is one way that immersion can be achieved, but I think a sophisticated, rapidly evolving tactical experience could be just as compelling - just ask those millions of FPS players out there.
I could likely use one of the more established systems e.g., Kill Team or even 2nd Edition W40k, but my first attempt was using a system I know well being
Rogue Planet.
Why? No measurement. No Tokens. Action-Reaction style play... it's not perfect, but it may be perfect for what I have in mind.
Well recently I put my money where my mouth is and ran a micro skirmish game - the board size was around the size of a sheet of A3 paper. There were only a few models - a Commissar, a 4-man squad of Imperial Guard and a single Space Marine verses a 5-Aspect Warrior Strike Team - all up 8 independent Units and 11 miniatures on the board.
It played fast and was surprising immersive. I was particularly careful when placing the terrain, making sure that the lines of fire and spacing etc was 'just right' and it paid off. It was also more than your standard 'kill the enemy game': it was objective-focused and I really think that helped. If you're interested in reading the turn-by-turn AAR, complete with photos and some descriptions of how the rules are applied etc,
knock yourself out on my blog here.So what's next? I'm thinking of experimenting with some other systems/rulesets just for the hell of it. I like the idea of injecting a bit more of a Inquisitorial theme/feel into my gaming, but I'm unsure how that would/should manifest... time to break open the pdfs! Any suggestions or encouragement would be most appreciated.
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April 28, 2024, 01:16:51 PM
