This is where you will find a brief description of all the figure games that we play, together with a brief summary of why we like and play the particular systems. Please note, these are our views of our favourite systems, we have had many hours of fun with all the game systems listed below and are incredibly grateful to the authors and game designers responsible for so much enjoyment.
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Warhammer Ancient Battles Based on the popular Warhammer Fantasy system, WHBs provides a fast based
system that is simple to play but gives a good game that feels right and
can be concluded in a couple of hours. |
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From Valmy to Waterloo, by William Keyser Our favourite system for Napoleonics that blends playability with detail
and emphasises historical formations and tactics by focusing on the command
and control capabilities of the different armies. Each nations troops
are rated by type and year, with their capabilities changing to reflect
their historical counterparts. Units are battalions, squadrons and batteries,
but they are grouped and maneuver in brigades, divisions and corps and
work on a figure scale of 1:60. The system works well for battles up to
a multi-corps level and can be played with or without command control
rules depending on time, though we'd heartily recommend their inclusion.
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| Republique A good fast play system available for free on the net. The focus is on
grand tactical warfare, with units being brigades and divisions, the system
operating at an operational level allowing for whole battles to be fought
in a reasonably short space of time with a reasonable number of figures.
What it lacks in low level detail, Republique makes up for in playability,
the sacrifices not detracting from the overall feel of the game. |
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Johnny Reb III This is THE regimental level rules for the American Civil War. An innovative
system of order chits gives a fast and tense game of simultaneous movement
and combat. Players will typically command a Brigade or two, although
multi Corps sized actions are possible (though not on Club night).
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Fire and Fury |
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Fear God & Dreadnought (FG&DN to its friends) A detailed simulation of WWI naval combat, with an expansion, Dawn of
the Rising Sun, covering the Russo-Japanese war. Whilst not designed to
cover large fleet actions without plenty of time, the detailed coverage
of the era gives a good simulation of the last real clashes between the
great battleships, with players getting the feel for being the Captain
on the bridge. Recommended for those who like playable simulations that
give a good feel for small scale actions.
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Naval Warfare - World War I A well thought out system using data cards for all the major WWI ship
classes to model gunnery that distills range, calibre, penetration, speed
and armour into an opposed die roll allowing for large fleet actions to
be played out in a reasonable amount of time without losing any flavour.
An ideal complement to FG&DN covering, as it does, the larger actions
in the time it takes the former to cover smaller encounters. |
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Command at Sea WWII naval warfare by the Admiralty Trilogy that covers ship actions
in a great amount of detail. The rules include comprehensive ship, aircraft
and systems information that is invaluable to any student of the era,
as well as giving players a good feel for the platforms that they are
Captaining. The system has supplements covering the war in the Mediterranean
(Supermarina I and II) as well as coatal and small boat actions. Both
the basic game and the supplements contain a wealth of historical information
and a large number of scenarios, as well as a scenario generator. Essentially
from the same stable as Fear God & Dreadnought, players of one system
will have a working knowledge of the other. Recomended for anyone who
wants a playable, though complex, system that works well as both a simulation
and game.
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Battleship Zenith
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Battlefront |
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Command Decision 3 |
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Harpoon 4 A very detailed simulation of Modern Naval warfare from the Admiralty
Trilogy, covering all aspects of surface, sub-surface and airborne warfare
with a wealth of information covering many of the worlds navies and airforces,
as well as a lot of detail on weapon systems and sensors which is a must
for any student of the era. Supplements include scenarios for the 1980s
Cold War turned hot (High Tide), the Falklands War (South Atlantic War)
and the Far East (Sea of Dragons) as well as being supported by its own
magazine, The Harpoon Naval Review, which is published every couple of
years and includes scenarios, rules updates and platform details. Designed
primarily as a tabletop system, Harpoon 4 works well as an email game
where the double blind nature of modern warfare can come to the fore with
players using all their sensors and assets to locate, identify and then
kill their opponents.
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A Fist Full of TOWs A fast play set of rules for modern land warfare with a vehicle scale
of 1 model representing 3-5 vehicles. The system is designed to be able
to complete brigade and divisional level actions within a couple of hours,
without losing detail or 'flavour'. The game uses 6 sided dice only and
emphasises mobile warfare with mechanics that don't require pages of vehicle
and weapon stats. An active yahoo group supports continued development
and unofficial playtest rules and stats are freely available to support
the rules development. A rare combination of being both great fun to play
whilst retaining realism. |
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Warhammer What can we say? Warhammer is the game of mass fantasy battles that has
steadfastly retained its' position at number 1. The rules are D6 based
and all models have a stat profile that allows almost infinite variability
between units and allows for the 'flavour' the system has. All armies
work differently and have a distinct character, from the mad cap Greenskins,
who'd just as soon fight themselves as the enemy, to the proud Knights
of Bretonnia who disdain their peasant retainers. Games are fast, furious
and bloody and a standard battle can comfortably fit into a 2 hour slot.
As a club we have all the main armies, and if Dave could get his finger
out, would have that elusive Dwarf army to complete the set. All in all,
good fun, and none too serious. |
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Mordheim Companion game to Warhammer, but designed around small bands skirmishing
amongst the ruins of a destroyed city in search of Warpstone. Each player
builds a gang based on one of the Warhammer cultures, and leads it through
many adventures and clashes to gain experience and abilities as well as
treasure. The basic set includes some great buildings and the campaign
system turns a good skirmish system into a great game that, again, can
be played in a 2 hour slot. Another firm favourite. |
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Lord of the Rings The third of the Games Workshop fantasy ranges, not counting Warmaster,
Lord of the Rings is set firmly in the world of Tolkien as seen through
Peter Jackson's eyes in his superb trilogy. As with their other games,
the range includes a good set of rules that are largely skirmish based,
but work well for bigger battles, but focus on the actions of hero's,
who can spend points of Will, Might and Fate to alter their luck and influence
the course of the battle; in addition, there is a beautiful range of figures
that are faithful to the films, and cover all the monsters and armies
therein. But for true Tolkien fans, the system goes one step further and
covers off-screen Middle Earth with supplements and figures covering Balin's
expedition to recover the Dwarf Mines of Moria, the Scouring of the Shire
and expanding on the cultures of the East. Once again, a hit. |
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Babylon 5: A Call to Arms A well thought out system that recreates the battles from the TV series
less by complicated rules than by variations round a core principle, so
that all combat works the same with each weapon having different influences
on the dice, and different impacts on the target ship. This gives a fast
flowing and elegant system that gives the feel of the series in games
that can be easily accomodated within an evening. Included are stats on
all the fleets and races from the TV show, together with a simple, but
effective campaign generator to add more spice to your games, complemented
by a large range of models that paint up well to provide an impressive
spectacle. For those not sure about laying out the cash for the models,
the game includes a large number of counters so you can get up and running
straight out of the box. On top of this, there is an active community,
including the games designer, constantly discussing ideas and playtesting
improvements available through Mongoose's web site. We've had loads of
fun on this on.
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Warhammer 40k |
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Battlefleet Gothic |
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