2013 dates for UK face-to-face games

We are planning to book all of next year’s games well ahead this time around.

We normally stick to Sundays, as road travel is better. Most Sundays in 2013 are still available at our usual venue, but the following are already taken:

• 10th February

• 5th & 12th May

• 2nd June

• 14th July

• 15th and 22nd September

• 10th November

The purpose of this post is to flush out any other dates which would be best avoided ....eg for major wargame shows such as Salute and Reading.

Martin (J)

Martin wrote:We are planning to book all of next year’s games well ahead this time around.

We normally stick to Sundays, as road travel is better. Most Sundays in 2013 are still available at our usual venue, but the following are already taken:

• 10th February

• 5th & 12th May

• 2nd June

• 14th July

• 15th and 22nd September

• 10th November

The purpose of this post is to flush out any other dates which would be best avoided ....eg for major wargame shows such as Salute and Reading.

Martin (J)

Salute 2013 will be April 20th (Saturday)

Colours 2013 @ Newbury will be 14th and 15th September - Saturday and Sunday (which appears booked)

Warfare 2013 @ Reading will most likely be 16th and 17th November - Saturday and Sunday (date not yet published as 2012 event not yet happened)

Suggest once those major shows are catered for we go with some dates Sept, Oct , Nov.

I am not sure what will change between now and then other than less availability so why dont we go with dates on the basis that we will aim to commit to them and arrange our domestic affairs accordingly.

Steve

Thanks for comments, gentlemen. Taking account of all this, suggest I provisionally book the following Sundays (including one for late June, in case a large contingent are back from university):

• Sunday 17th February

• Sunday 24th March

• Sunday 28th April English Civil War campaign c1643/4. Players will be army commanders for King or Parliament in various parts of the country, each with specific regional responsibilities. Each 'turn' will represent perhaps a week. Run by Martin

• Sunday 26th May

• Sunday 23rd June

• Sunday 8th September

• Sunday 20th October

• Sunday 17th November

Anyone have strong objections to any of these?

Martin (J)

Looks good to me.

Nice if we can also avoid the Megagamers dates (since I will be attending some this year), they are:

• Rehearsal For Armageddon - The Balkan Wars 1912-13: Saturday 2 March 2013
• [ENDGAME - The culmination in North Africa 1943: Saturday 1 June 2013]
• [Master of Europe 1813 - 200th Anniversary game of Napoleon's campaign in Germany: (with Megagames Netherlands) Nijmegen, Netherlands, date TBA June 2013]
• Master of Europe 1813 - Napoleon's campaign in Germany: Saturday 21 September 2013
• [End of the Beginning: The Battle of El Alamein: Leeds - date TBA, October 2013]
• ALEA IACTA EST ITERUM - Crisis in Rome 60 BC: TBA- November 2013

I am highly likely to attend the three NOT shown in square brackets.

The missing dates will be announced in due course on the website www.megagame.org.uk

On a side-note, is there a contact e-mail or website for the Megagamers these days?

Mr. Digby wrote:On a side-note, is there a contact e-mail or website for the Megagamers these days?

On the web site linked to above, but to save your google foo...

megagames@btinternet.com

I have been to one Mega Game and it was fun. Mr Wallman is an excellent games designer and I have played several of his games at COW (Conference of Wargamers) and if you ever have the chance certainly sign up for the weekend or a game...

http://www.wargamedevelopments.org/cow.htm

For Martin et al ref next year dates...

The dates above are so far in future that I can not check but as good as any and I guess once chosen I can try and keep free as best I can...

Thanks to all who've commented.

As far as I can see no-one has a problem with any of the suggested dates. Time perhaps being of the essence, I will book them all now with Paulette.

If necessary we can always try and re-book the odd date later on if there does turn out to be a problem.

Martin (J)

I have put dates in my diary and will start to chase people for who is running what and when in January.

Can any people wanting to run a game post here the date they want and what they will be running, brief summary.

I will take one of the dates and I plan to run a Star Wars inspired game, just working through ideas and will update in January.

Sunday 28th April. English Civil War campaign c1643/4. Players will be army commanders for King or Parliament in various parts of the country, each with specific regional responsibilities. Each 'turn' will represent perhaps a week.

If a battle is generated, the campaign will stop for 20 minutes of so while a battle is fought. All players will be involved in this as subordinates to whoever commands the particular armies involved.

Once a result is established, the campaign will continue.

We ran a version of this several years ago. See more details here
http://79.170.44.85/kriegsspiel.inuk.co/index.php?option=com_content&task=view&id=182&Itemid=54

I may set next April's game in a different part of the country and with a different starting date.

More details later.

Martin (J)

I will be running a WWI naval game based in the North Sea between elements of the Royal Navy's Grand Fleet and the Kaiser's Hochseeflotte. I will be using the computer wargame software "Distant Guns: Jutland" by Storm Eagle Studios (Norm Koger) to resolve the combat. This game has extremely accurate ballistics and visibility problems (including ship smoke, gunnery smoke, fog, rain and sunlight in its calculations) as well as extremely accurate ship damage models - nothing like the basic 'floatation boxes' so many wargames rules use. The main weakness of the game is the AI but with players on both sides it can produce fantastic encounters.

The game can be played as both sides controllable by the player so I plan to have the umpire team controlling one side and giving themselves a historic objective to achieve (a plan in advance they will adhere to as far as practical) while the players will work co-operatively as the main body and cruiser screening elements of a large formation of the opposing side.

The game will suit 4 or 5 players with as many umpires as we can spare - as in all games an umpire per player is always a good thing, +1 in this case as 1 umpire will need to stay operating the game software.

I need to run a test game and can do this online with Martin James. My limited scanning and printing ability means I may be reliant on others for producing hard copy maps. If someone has an iPad this would be very very useful to take screenshots of the battle in progress to show to the players so they can see the view from the bridge of their squadron's flagship, etc.

I can fit this event into any of the free slots, but would prefer one of the spring fixtures over one of the autumn ones.

Mr. Digby wrote:
I need to run a test game and can do this online with Martin James. My limited scanning and printing ability means I may be reliant on others for producing hard copy maps. If someone has an iPad this would be very very useful to take screenshots of the battle in progress to show to the players so they can see the view from the bridge of their squadron's flagship, etc.

I can fit this event into any of the free slots, but would prefer one of the spring fixtures over one of the autumn ones.

Sounds good and a test play before hand to smooth out Human vs Ref team play will be very important as you need to keep it as slick as possible to keep everyone engaged.

You choose whichever date you wish except the one Martin has chosen.

I think 1st come first served for allocating dates.

I'll pop myself down for a re-run of the Zombies game on the 24th March. Should be at least a few of the young un's back for easter at that point.

I can be pretty though flexible if anyone else is keen to have that date.

Phil wrote:I'll pop myself down for a re-run of the Zombies game on the 24th March. Should be at least a few of the young un's back for easter at that point.

I can be pretty though flexible if anyone else is keen to have that date.

Hi any chance of a paragraph explaining it so I can post on the stickie thread?

Cheers

Martin wrote:Sunday 28th April. English Civil War campaign c1643/4
More details later.

Martin (J)

I'm interested! Not being a Royalist myself, I had better side with the parliamentarians, even though they were rather puritanical.


Cheers,

Richard

Provided I can attend at least two of the games earlier in the year to get my head around the play-style used by the group, I'd like to pencil in a Gettysburg rematch in October or November if either of those dates are still free.

Got to give our esteemed SoWers a chance to match wits head to head!

Those dates are free and you would be very welcome to run a game. It would be a face to face game in the UK?

Ha yes, I'm not quite dastardly enough to schedule a game that would require you all to fly over to Sydney.

My wife and I are moving across to the UK in mid-March - which will mean we won't have a decent computer/internet setup for some time, but otoh will be local enough to make some of the games. Unsure whether I can make the Zombie one as yet or whether my first will be the English Civil War.

Khryses wrote:Ha yes, I'm not quite dastardly enough to schedule a game that would require you all to fly over to Sydney.

My wife and I are moving across to the UK in mid-March - which will mean we won't have a decent computer/internet setup for some time, but otoh will be local enough to make some of the games. Unsure whether I can make the Zombie one as yet or whether my first will be the English Civil War.

Well you'll be very welcome in either case Justin.

Where are you planning to live?

Martin (J)

Not completely clear on that yet either - it depends where we wind up for work, then we'll try to find a rental nearby.

I don't suppose any of you know someone in need of a Communications Professional?

Also, while I know how I've run face-to-face events in the past could I get a run-down on how you do it so I can bridge any gaps before we go?

Khryses wrote:Also, while I know how I've run face-to-face events in the past could I get a run-down on how you do it so I can bridge any gaps before we go?

Yes we can certainly do that. Probably the best thing is for you to assist umpiring one of the forthcoming games, so you can see how we do it.

Glad to hear that you have run games yourself. We are always looking for new recruits, and also new ideas to improve the way we do things. Some of us have been engaging in one of our peridic bouts of introspection recently, so your forthcoming arrival is propitious

Martin (J)

Since I was doing some research for another Gettysburg simulation, I happen to have maps, orders of battle and the like lying around just now.

As I'm unlikely to bring the hard copies over with me, I'll see if I can't get everything scanned or typed up before then.

Don't at all mind assisting in running games to get my head around the admin, though I'm definitely looking forward to sitting in the players' seat as well (my local semi-'group' is a little light on people willing to run games other than myself).

What is the zombie game you mentioned in March? You said it had been run before?

Khryses wrote:What is the zombie game you mentioned in March? You said it had been run before?

Yes, my eldest son Phil and one of his friends ran it several months ago, and it was great fun. Much more light-hearted than our usual offering, as you might expect. I'll get him to post something.

Martin (J)

Khryses wrote:Not completely clear on that yet either - it depends where we wind up for work, then we'll try to find a rental nearby.

If you end up in Warwick / Coventry / Stratford upon Avon area there is a good games club and you would be very welcome as we do an occasional Kreig amongst all the other gaming...