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Exploring the world of block games.
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Ok, I'm a traditional hex and counter type guy, or should I say I use to be. For years I stuck to the good old bread and butter of Avalon Hill, some counters, a hex map and a ton of dice. I was happy doing so. Then I discovered card driven wargames and that was cool. If you like strategic level gamings those are fantastic when it comes to historical simulations at the strategic level. Recently however I have been getting more and more interested in block gaming. I didn't like the idea of block games at first. I don't mean I hated them, but I wasn't exactly in a rush to try them. At my gaming group on Tuesday nights some of the guys had been playing Hammer of the Scots and Crusader Rex and I'd been invited to play. I simply never felt the interest. Then one day a friend of mine invited me to play Sam Grant. Now with me, I'll play any Civil War game once, so I figured what the hell. I can at least see what this block gaming thing is all about. I liked it. I was surprised at how much the game followed the strategy of the actual war. Rivers were very important in terms of supply in the Civil War in the western theater and it the game mirrored very well that aspect. Meanwhile it wasn't all fiddly as supply rules often can be. Thus I have now begun my decent into the world of block games. Since I'm a newbie when it comes to block games I thought a good thing to do was throw out a geeklist about them. I'm curious to see what folks like and dislike about them? What are the best block games and what are the turkeys?
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Posted Tue Nov 27, 2007 7:58 pm
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My introduction to block games. I likely will pick this one up via trade or purchase in the near future. I'm not much of a western theater guy when it comes to the Civil War but this one is really well done I think in terms of strategic level.
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The Eastern half of the equation and the theater I know extremely well. I've played this once and was impressed. It's another one I will likely pick up in either trade or purchase soon.
I find the map very interesting as in both of Lee's invasions north the mountain passes were extremely important and here the game recognizes this. I look at Bobby Lee and Sam Grant and in my mind I think the guy who designed this really understood the Civil War. Not just the battles but he understood the over all picture in terms of logistics and why things happened the way they did at a strategic level.
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Just as I was starting to write this list I swung a trade for this game. I've been itching for a strategic level WW II game for a while. I use to play Axis and Allies years ago but it was to structured. The games were to much the same time in and time out. I hear raves about this one so I'm glad I'll be able to see if it lives up to it's reputation.
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I may have to pick this one up too. I am still looking for a good strategic level Pacific Theater game. Mark Herman's Empire of the Sun is a bit on the complex side for what I want in this area and Fire in the Sky didn't hit it off with me. If Europe Engulfed meets my expectations I plan to pick this one up.
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I could have put this one first as it's my first block game actually. I traded for it with a friend. I haven't played it yet but it's Gettysburg so I very likely will enjoy it. I'll play any civil war game once and if it's Gettysburg I'll play it twice!
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The game that's such a hit with my game group and I have yet to play. Not sure why I find it unappealing as I like the theme.
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This is the other block game that's so popular with my group. I just can't find myself getting that up to give it a go. I think it looks to tactical and I prefer the strategic level. Ok, yeah there's Gettysburg above but that's a special case. 
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I may not be able to get out of playing this one as several of my group's members have picked this up. However I think this one might be a better fit for me theme wise and in terms of being a more strategic level. I might even play this tonight.
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A block game on the GMT P500 list. I love the theme and I think the fog of war aspect of block gaming is a perfect fit for this one. I'm still sitting on the fence to order it but likely will take the plunge.
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Another block game on the P500 list that's got my interest.
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I will pick this one up at some point. I find the Zulu War with Britain rather interesting and the film Zulu is one of my favorites. There hasn't been a great game covering Rourke's Drift that I've ever played so I'm hoping this one turns out to be pretty good. This could also be a good weeknight wargame i.e. a game you and your buddy can toss down on a weeknight when you can't stay up until 2 am gaming.
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I keep seeing this one in my FLGS and it's so tempting. I expect I'll need to try it out before I ever buy it. It looks interesting though and there are very few good games covering the Alamo.
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Not out yet but extremely interesting.
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Ok, people love this game. Problem is I don't care for Russian Front WW II much.
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The western theater in WW II is more my cup of tea.
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I might try this sometime. My ancestors had a rather strong part in the American Revolution. I have one ancestor who rode in the boat with George Washington across the Delaware and my great, great, great, great, great Grandfather was Robert Morris who signed the Declaration of Independence.
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An upcoming game about....well it's about the War of the Roses. Designed by Jerry Taylor who designed Hammer of the Scots and Crusader Rex.
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One I will most definitely pass on. Jackson's Valley campaign is the most overrated campaign in history. Jackson was a professional soldier faced against Union forces commanded by two politically appointed generals who got command only because they had political connections. It didn't take much to out maneuver these chumps. The Confederate Lost Cause mythology has however turned this outing into Hannibal's crossing of the Alps.
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Since it was mentioned above. An interesting campaign where Little Mac pure and simple lost his nerve.
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I've always liked Battle of the Bulge games, so this is on my to get list.
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A pre-order at GMT - this one is reported to have a bit more depth to it than Athens & Sparta which makes sense as it is GMT not Columbia Games...
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While the focus of this list is clearly historical simulations, I'm interested what people think about this fantasy block game.
Wizard Kings and Hammer of the Scots are the two games I am considering as my gateway to block-dom . . .
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Posted Tue Nov 27, 2007 7:12 pm
Must pre-order block game from GMT / Columbia; must pre-order block game...
but combine this one with the one below and add a bit of Eurofront and you will get the big picture (...guilty of a shameless lie 'bout the Russian Front). :-)
