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AV:T is basically the only working, playable, 3D movement starship combat simulator which makes it quite the unique experience. For the guy looking for ship games: Wooden Ships and Iron Men will remind you a lot of Battletech; it's got record sheets for each ship, hex movement, and crossing off boxes as you take damage. It also includes scenarios ranging from ship-to-ship duels to Trafalgar, meaning you can choose the length of game you want. The only problem is that I'm not sure if it's readily available anywhere since it was an old Avalon Hill game.
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Aug 27, 2013 19:49
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Panzeh/ConorT/Dre2Dee2, let me know if you are free this weekend to finish our AA game
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Aug 27, 2013 22:04
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I am most definitely free, sir
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Aug 27, 2013 23:27
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Tekopo posted:I've done some solo campaigns with Iron and Oak and the game is alright, but it's very heavily designed around the dice mechanism that is present within the entirety of the game. The basics of it is that you roll challenge dice and response dice to do pretty much anything. So a gun might have a rating of a D6, D4 and D12 and the enemy armour might be a D12 and D6. You roll each bunch of dice separately and pick the highest dice in the response/challenge and compare them against each other. I don't mind rolling dice for everything, I did play Battletech after all  That sounds like a good time, though I may have to see it in action before deciding. I like things that feel simulation-y most of all, so maybe I should find examples of play somewhere and see. Lichtenstein posted:If you don't mind playing with starships just a little bit longer, Saganami Island Tactical Simulator is pretty close to peak Oh man... I've always been tempted by this. How  does it get? I need DETAILS.Their other game Squadron Strike struck me as extra for having ridiculous Excel spreadsheet tools to make ships with. Is Saganami beyond even that?Frankly I'm tempted to buy some more of Ad Astra's stuff because Ken Burnside is definitely way less of an arsehole than Steve Cole of Star Fleet Battles fame. I can't stand that loving guy and would much rather spend my money elsewhere for my space combat spergery. Paper Mac posted:How big is your table? Serpents of the Seas is all on one mapsheet, uses 1 hex (.5"x.5" counters) units, mostly gunboats, frigates, etc. Flying Colors (vol I) does the big ships-of-the-line 2-hex (1"x.5" counter) units, on two mapsheets. Serpents has an additional 1v1 duel system, FC has an expansion you could get if you want. FC's system is descended partially from War Galley IIRC, so that may work for you as well. As far as being a good place to start, if you've played Battletech and SFB you shouldn't have trouble with the rules, that's for sure. That's really helpful, thanks! I don't have a huge table, so SotS is probably better for me in that case. I'm curious about the dueling system too. Does that change any of the game systems in a significant way, or how does it work? blackmongoose posted:AV:T is basically the only working, playable, 3D movement starship combat simulator which makes it quite the unique experience. Yeah I need to track down a copy of that game. I keep wondering if it'll ever get resurrected in some form; I don't exactly relish buying some beaten-down old copy with unreadable ship record sheets. I love having the option of printing those off from PDFs in other games these days.
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Aug 28, 2013 04:59
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thorsilver posted:That's really helpful, thanks! I don't have a huge table, so SotS is probably better for me in that case. I'm curious about the dueling system too. Does that change any of the game systems in a significant way, or how does it work? It's pretty much a deck of cards with which you generate one-round buffs/debuffs/special conditions. Because most of the ships being modelled are mechanically pretty similar (move distances are determined by your relationship to the wind, with a bonus for smaller ships), the cards are necessary to add some tactical depth to the duels. There are different setups/objectives for the duels, sometimes they have 2 ships on a side, sometimes one ship is trying to escape, things like that. You can also use the card deck in the scenarios, but it'd make formation keeping more difficult. Basically it's there if you want another level of detail, I guess.
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Aug 28, 2013 05:20
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thorsilver posted:Oh man... I've always been tempted by this. How Sadly, the friend who bought it was a major fan of the books, but not really a grognard, so we didn't go too far the one time I managed to get it on table. Still, lately he's been itching to give it another go. A couple of points I hazily remember from that session: - The game basically has a sort of physics system, tracking ship's momentum in 3D. I'd say your enjoyment of the game is correlated to whether you have a boner after thinking about it. - I remember handling the damage was quite . There were shitloads of hitboxes superimposed on ship's blueprint, with various critical systems being hit in the deeper rows. It's sort of like damage in Battletech, but more detailed - like, instead of particular zones like robots arm or legs, it's more of a grid thing, that can be attacked from all sorts of weird angles. There was also some fun stuff related to different weapon types, like missles being fired before, but hitting after the ships moved.- I've actually played the second edition, dumbed down for the unwashed, yet still extremely spergy, masses. The only difference of note that I remember was cutting the seven (?) phases per turn to only three. Haven't having played the first edition, I'd still try to go with the second one, it's already big, complex and tedious enough. - Time-wise it came to me as a bit of "I'm stuck in a cabin far from civilization for the entire weekend" kind of game. It's a bit hard to give more precise estimates, since we were struggling with rules, with pretty much me being the only grog in the room. Author says it's about 120 minutes when you know your poo poo, so I'd guess about four hours could be a pretty realistic target? - If you like the Honor Harrington books, there's some fun stuff in rulebook, with author spergin' on the research he's done and Weber admitting he completely hosed up some numbers. - I don't think there was any of the ridiculous excel ship-building. Rather, the game provided you with all sorts of pre-sperged ships because CANON. Attack Vector, mentioned earlier was basically the base this game was made on, by slapping on a license. It might be a cheaper alternative if you don't care much for the particular universe SITS is set in, but I'm afraid it'll be equivalent to the hypercomplicated first edition. Squadron Strike seems to be based on 2ed SITS and allows to do all those silly "can Klingons destroy the death star?" scenarios, so it might be the best buy if there's enough to play with before you're forced to do the Excel wizardry.
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Aug 28, 2013 08:32
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I'm really fascinated by the asymmetry and themes of the COIN series, but the OP lists Andean Abyss as an intermediate game. I like to think I'm a pretty rules-savvy guy, but the most wargame-y thing I've played is Memoir '44  (and Combat Mission on the PC but obviously the programming handles everything complicated under the hood), should I hold off on COIN and dip my toes in something lighter first? If so, are there any lighter games goons recommend that strike the same kind of thematic chords? Same questions go for Combat Commander.
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Aug 28, 2013 16:35
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GMT difficulty levels relate to other wargames, not the board games for normal people. Having said that, I think you should handle AA if you're compelled by the theme. Just don't expect to whip out the game and start playing immediately - read the rules once or twice and perhaps play a few turns solo to get a grip on things and only then show it to your friends. Think of it as dealing with a Vlaada Chvatil game: lots to learn up-front and having to struggle with rulebook for a bit to do so. But basically, if Chvatil's games don't overwhelm you, you should be able to deal with this one either. Combat Commander should be a bit easier than AA, but what might color my opinion is that half of it is based on some of the most traditional wargaming conventions - hexes, lines of sights, poo poo like that.
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Aug 28, 2013 16:50
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Combat Commander was the first non-minis wargame I played and it's not that hard to pick up. If you're not used to the bullet-number rulebook they can be a little challenging, but CC has a thorough walkthrough of several turns of the game to help you get up to speed. Also a good chunk of the rulebook is just longer explanations of things printed on the cards so you don't have to read the whole thing to get started.
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Aug 28, 2013 16:59
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Lichtenstein posted:GMT difficulty levels relate to other wargames, not the board games for normal people. AFAIK they are submitted by the designer, so to the extent that GMT ratings for things are "calibrated", they're calibrated to that designer's judgement. They're not very useful descriptors.
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Aug 28, 2013 18:21
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Chad Jnsen is really good at writing rule books and simplifying complex ideas, which makes Combat Commander a great entry into tactical wargames. It's not only suitable as a first game, but possibly the only one you'll ever need. There is lighter stuff out there, but go with a game that is actually good rather than worrying about gateway crap. My only problem with CC for newer players is that it can be a pain to track down the earlier expansions, which the newer expansions are all dependant on. C&C:Ancients has the same issue.
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Aug 28, 2013 18:29
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Which older Ancients expansions are hard to get?
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Aug 28, 2013 18:41
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Paper Mac posted:Which older Ancients expansions are hard to get? I seem to recall that 2 and 3 are due for reprinting. Exp3 is the big problem because it has the stuff for Epic in it.
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Aug 28, 2013 18:47
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King Chicken posted:My only problem with CC for newer players is that it can be a pain to track down the earlier expansions, which the newer expansions are all dependant on. C&C:Ancients has the same issue. It's things like that that make me glad I've been getting all the expansions (barring the most recent one) even though I've yet to actually, y'know, play the game. Being a completionist is a bitch.
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Aug 28, 2013 19:10
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Tekopo posted:Panzeh/ConorT/Dre2Dee2, let me know if you are free this weekend to finish our AA game I have to move this weekend. Next week I'm free.
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Aug 28, 2013 19:35
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 So the Russians got invaded, had to make peace, but they did knock out a few valuable tank steps and took a long time to get rocked. They'll lose their whole army and have to build it back up but they get the cards for it when Total War happens, which will likely be in 1942.  Also I decided to give the Swedes something to do so I shipped them to Egypt where they can quickly land in Greece if it's invaded.
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Aug 28, 2013 20:12
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Jedit posted:I seem to recall that 2 and 3 are due for reprinting. Exp3 is the big problem because it has the stuff for Epic in it. I got 1, 2, and 3, and then built little boxes to house all the components in 2 boxes from some guys plans on BGG  I dont want to do that again so I havent bought any of the later ones  Here's the 1943 progress of the Solomons Campaign, after the Japanese had run out of steam and were being rolled up by the Allies in their island-hopping campaign:  That's pretty much exactly what happened to me the first time I played Coral Sea w/ my wife. The Japanese got bogged down attempting to supply a futile defense of Guadalcanal and couldn't do much to Papua New Guinea. Convinced that the Japanese position was very difficult, I decided to try again in a learning game against my friend. I got some early supply and reinforcement cards and stepped up my operational tempo as much as possible. I drew one of the 4 Sudden Death cards that can end the game before a player deck is exhausted- Yamamoto Ambushed, which the Japanese player can play, giving the Allies 4 bonus VP, added to VP for occupying victory locations and for particular events. It can only be triggered with the Allies in control of exactly two of Lae, Buna, Bougainville, and Guadalcanal. Here's the situation now:  Japanese SNLF are firmly in control of Lae and Port Moresby, having conducted naval assaults subsequently from the North and South coasts of PNG (avoiding noob-trap Kokoda Trail Redux). The (now-depleted) Australian brigade garrisoning the supplies at Port Moresby has been forcibly evicted by a pair of SNLF battalions. Having captured half the supplies present, the sizeable fleet from Rabaul floats serenely offshore, daring the Australian fleet (1 counter) to respond. I have dropped troops off on Bougainville, but need to provide more supply for them to take the island. Once I do so, I can play the Yamamoto Ambushed card, which will win the game. Rabaul is completely open and it is still possible that aggressive Allied play could turn this around, as they could respond by sending their sizeable American fleet at Noumea after Rabaul, which would immediately require me to recall my fleet from PNG and open Port Moresby to amphibious assault. The Allies have a surfeit of supply, and I have just enough to win before my advance utterly collapses.  This game is super good.
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Aug 28, 2013 20:42
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King Chicken posted:Chad Jnsen is really good at writing rule books and simplifying complex ideas, which makes Combat Commander a great entry into tactical wargames. It's not only suitable as a first game, but possibly the only one you'll ever need. There is lighter stuff out there, but go with a game that is actually good rather than worrying about gateway crap. When discussing Combat Commander people generally get hung up on the card aspect and the triggers, but honestly the variable game length and the multiple win conditions are what makes it my favorite game. Of course a lot of that is tied to the cards as well. It's definitely the only squad level game I care to play since the others always seem to have boring "take this building in five turns" sort of scenarios. Up Front is great for man-to-man scale but no matter what squad level stuff I try I always go back to CC. Paratroopers, Mediterranean, and the core game are all on the reprint P500 right now so they'll definitely be available again eventually.
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Aug 28, 2013 21:27
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Even though it is quite random at times and feels like a CYAO World War II game, I have to say that I'm really enjoying Totaler Krieg: most of the random elements are just setup for the struggle and the game itself is incredibly varied in terms of how you can approach the war. Somehow it seems to work though and the combat system is pretty solid (very reminiscent of No Retreat!, at least to me). I'd be interested in doing a huge Axis Empires game one day.
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Aug 28, 2013 21:40
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Tekopo posted:Even though it is quite random at times and feels like a CYAO World War II game, I have to say that I'm really enjoying Totaler Krieg: most of the random elements are just setup for the struggle and the game itself is incredibly varied in terms of how you can approach the war. Somehow it seems to work though and the combat system is pretty solid (very reminiscent of No Retreat!, at least to me). I'd be interested in doing a huge Axis Empires game one day. How do you like the card deck? It seems like it would be impossible to know what you're doing the first time through.
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Aug 28, 2013 22:15
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  End point of my VQ game. It was a lot closer than it looked and basically everyone went into turn 5 with a chance to win but uh, HRE just ran away with it. I was the protestants, and if my hand hadn't been short two cards I probably could have gotten the autowin on keys. I do think my getting out way ahead early was my downfall, as I spent rounds 4 and 5 with a target on my back second only to France. I walked into turn 5 with a 40% chance to win off a calvinist zeal straight up, but a deal with Spain had me going for Paris is Worth a Mass instead, but I think it was still worthwhile. The lesson to be learned is not to allow the HRE successive turns of peace, especially not when they have extra keys because HRE is a VP generating monster on a France level, except unlike France no one is right in your grill taking all your keys. Panzeh fucked around with this message at 03:05 on Aug 29, 2013 |
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Aug 29, 2013 03:01
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cenotaph posted:How do you like the card deck? It seems like it would be impossible to know what you're doing the first time through.
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Aug 29, 2013 13:48
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Tekopo posted:I actually kind of like the card deck because of the flexibility that it allows you, but for the first few turns I was constantly asking what would be a good idea to play since there's so many irreversible decisions to make. It is difficult to understand but you just have to learn it. To be fair the Soviets are the side with the most Big Decisions with respect to the cards, particularly with Stalin Line/Military Purges/Tukhachevsky Reforms, though Collective Security/Political Purges is also a decision, but it's quite a bit easier because Collective Security is such a dicey choice(Franco-Russian entente is a lot better when the Allies play it because putting Allied Minors in the entente is way more important than putting the Soviet Minors in it). By the way, if anyone's interested, we're trying to get together a Labor Day game of TK2 on VASSAL, and if we get enough people we'll run Dai Senso too. Panzeh fucked around with this message at 17:57 on Aug 29, 2013 |
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Aug 29, 2013 14:08
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Thanks for the opinions, it sounds like Combat Commander is the winner.
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Aug 29, 2013 16:17
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The card decks seemed like the coolest thing about TK when I was looking at it because of the way the model the consequence of choice. A big rulebook with no index and wondering how I was going to rope two other people into a multi-session game put me off buying it. But it looks so awesome.  Scyther posted:Thanks for the opinions, it sounds like Combat Commander is the winner. Europe is currently out of print but the BGG marketplace has some for very reasonable prices. Let us know if you pick it up. I'd be happy to answer questions, etc.
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Aug 29, 2013 17:41
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cenotaph posted:Europe is currently out of print but the BGG marketplace has some for very reasonable prices. Let us know if you pick it up. I'd be happy to answer questions, etc. It's getting reprinted in December, as per their monthly update that came out today.
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Aug 30, 2013 07:16
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VoodooXT posted:It's getting reprinted in December, as per their monthly update that came out today. EDIT: Just read Cuba Libre, there's not much there different except for different resource system and the fact that it's the commies this time that get permanent upgrades! Tekopo fucked around with this message at 07:42 on Aug 30, 2013 |
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Aug 30, 2013 07:30
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Tekopo posted:Anyone up for Cuba Libre? Rulebook and Vassal modules are available now! I would if I didn't have to drive to Los Angeles tomorrow.
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Aug 30, 2013 07:32
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Tekopo posted:Anyone up for Cuba Libre? Rulebook and Vassal modules are available now! What time and day are you planning on scheduling this for because I wouldn't mind getting a game of this in before my actual copy arrives.
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Aug 30, 2013 07:44
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VoodooXT posted:It's getting reprinted in December, as per their monthly update that came out today. And Paratroopers in November! Finally the gap in my map collection will be closed.
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Aug 30, 2013 07:59
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So I just ordered Eisenbach Gap Deluxe, hoping it ships from LnL soon, I ordered off of their website directly since Coolstuff Inc still had it listed as a preorder even though they started shipping them out to people over a week ago. Anyone have any experience with the game system? And holy crap is it going to get expensive getting all of their magazines with the expansion units like the SADFs.
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Aug 30, 2013 08:01
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Ithle01 posted:What time and day are you planning on scheduling this for because I wouldn't mind getting a game of this in before my actual copy arrives.
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Aug 30, 2013 09:03
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Tekopo posted:Anyone up for Cuba Libre/A Distant Plain? Rulebook and Vassal modules are available now! Yeah, I'm down for this weekend 
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Aug 30, 2013 14:49
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Can anyone tell me more about GMTs Sekigahara? I see it finally got reprinted and I remember wanting a copy ages ago but forgetting why.
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Aug 30, 2013 23:31
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dishwasherlove posted:Can anyone tell me more about GMTs Sekigahara? I see it finally got reprinted and I remember wanting a copy ages ago but forgetting why. Diceless block game set in Japan. That would be enough for me. I'm not a huge fan of block games, but the fact there are no dice is enough to sway me.
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Aug 31, 2013 04:34
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So yeah, I should be free from now to play anything. Also let me know people interested in Cuba Libre when you are free tomorrow. Catch me on the #boardgoons channel.
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Aug 31, 2013 19:08
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So I want to own a Hex rear end war game, but I don't have many people to play with. Outside of playing online options nothing beats just seating down and hashing it out, ya know? So I'm wondering what should I buy that is not too intense for the average player, but would still qualify as being full of tactics and hexes. I like Memoir 44' but it boils down to the luck of the draw, I've played several games where I just wasn't getting any cards for a flank, and it was demolished while my cards lay idle. I haven't played a ton of games but lets say it is a 2/5 game problem where I am just stuck with a bum hand that will let me order 1 unit a turn, while my opponent crushes my under ORDER 4 UNIT cards and strafe runs. I am personally interested in Combat Commander (Europe probably, why not) but wonder if anyone else has anything to throw in. I am razzed up by the system of attack cards possibly causing random events that make things a bit hectic, I'm not entirely against random components in game but, it shouldn't run wild. Any suggestions for games to look into? Modular boards would be a plus if that sort of thing exists outside of memoir, but not mandatory in anyway. P.S: Second choice would be Advanced Squad Leader but that seems a bit above and beyond CC, but what do I know (almost nothing.) PROTOSTORM!!! fucked around with this message at 05:41 on Sep 1, 2013 |
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Sep 1, 2013 05:39
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Combat Commander owns. Fast, light and the random scenario generator is amazing. Anyone wanna learn OCS via Burma with me on Vassal? 
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Sep 1, 2013 06:51
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PROTOSTORM!!! posted:So I want to own a Hex rear end war game, but I don't have many people to play with. Outside of playing online options nothing beats just seating down and hashing it out, ya know? If you want the WW2 theme, I'd also check out Conflict of Heroes. Card play has effects at the margin but since its not fundamentally a CDG, you never really get stuck with a bum hand. Outside of WW2 there are many many light- and medium-weight wargames with some degree of card play or random events- the Command and Colors series is pretty popular, although you can get screwed with a bad hand in those games. Something like Strike of the Eagle might appeal as well- hidden information operational-level block game driven by card play, combat results are mostly determined by troop compositions present in the battle, cards played, some randomness from a random card draw. No hexes, tho. black metal hugbox posted:Anyone wanna learn OCS via Burma with me on Vassal? If you're willing to put up with a Vassal noob, I'll play the learning scenarios if you want. It's been ages since I looked at the OCS rules, tho.
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Sep 1, 2013 07:38
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PROTOSTORM!!! posted:So I want to own a Hex rear end war game, but I don't have many people to play with. Outside of playing online options nothing beats just seating down and hashing it out, ya know? Combat Commander is amazing, but no modular maps. Advanced Squad Leader is amazing and has modular maps, but is, well, complicated (and a large buy-in*). Advanced Squad Leader Starter Kit 1 is ASL in an 11-page rulebook, and is amazing (and the cheapest of these options); but is somewhat out of print. I'd probably start with Combat Commander. If you end up liking that system but are left wanting even crazier depth and more tactics, look into Advanced Squad Leader. *A note, ASL may have a large buy in with its $60 rulebook and its $100 core game, but the payout is there. With that core game and rulebook; playing a scenario a week would get you half a year of play, and there are years worth of online scenarios to boot. Honestly I'd say the strongest suit ASL has going for it is the sheer amount of content in the game system. Speaking of Advanced Squad Leader, Rising Sun (a new ASL module that covers all the Pacific Theater) is supposedly coming out "soon."
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Sep 1, 2013 07:55
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