There are times when bits of this mostly fascinating hobby of ours bores me witless. The obsession with rules is one of my personal bugbears. Rule books become ever thicker and denser and often more expensive and equally often moving further and further from the historical prototype. I suspect that this is inevitable as each rule writer/ game designer has his own hobby horse to ride.
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| Could I really use these 40mm TYW with Renatio et Gloriam- somehow I doubt it . |
This does not mean that new rules are all dross, but you do have to be more careful these days than formerly when trying to pick the chocolate bar out of the cess pit.
Now one of the possible gems out there may well be the new Renatio et Gloriam set. Now I don't own these yet but on the back of a few games of the ancient version -Mortam et Gloriam they do interest me. At least as much as any set of rules ever can. Being card driven they allow a bit of thought about how to play the hand you have been dealt and was it not Clauswitz or one of those 19th century thinking dudes who opined that war was more like a game of cards than of chess? So something a little more intriguing than the usual picture book with a few rules in I hope.
The trouble is when I get a copy I'll have to puzzle them out and not having a massive amount of time for such it may take me a while.
Moving swiftly on our groups next game will be a new period for us. I finally have enough Indian Mutiny stuff table ready. Not a huge amount but enough for a club game. So there is another problem- which rules?
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| The 'regular' part of the current Mutineers collection. I can add almost the same again in assorted 'irregulars' . |
I have several possibilities.
1/. John Company- a phonebook thick American set of some age. I have tried to read these but gave up. Anyway my collection is not even remotely similar in basing.
2/. Black Powder- either version. Yes I could use these if I could actually read them. 2nd Edition is printed in brown on cream paper so is difficult to read in anything less than perfect light. There is some good stuff hidden in there but can I deal with the eyestrain?
3/. The Men Who Would be Kings. Easy enough but small units and some odd organisational quirks (no General Officers). Feels very dice heavy. Set unit sizes - which I have never been a fan of and rather a lot of 'abstracting out'. Tied to a silly points system which should not be hard to get round . Need a bit of setting up with unit stats and suchlike. Artillery rules are not much use.
4/. Charge ! with period amendments . I know and like Charge- I use it for the 'Shinyloo' games and it has hidden depths not apparent in simple reading. Unlike more modern rules you can actually read the book. Playing does not bore the arse off you but I'm not sure I can make them fit the period. Hmmm.
5/. The Sword and the Flame. Pretty simple but possibly a bit long winded with card driven movement. Not sure they really fit the Mutiny but are rather for later 19th century.
So a bit of a quandary which I have to solve before next Saturday.