Didn't realize I was gone again, did ya? Well, I had that second partial knee replacement surgery 3 weeks ago. I have two straight legs again, but it will take a few months of physical therapy and some hard work to have them working at peak efficiency again. Sigh. . .
For a little distraction that doesn't require much heavy lifting, I am helping to playtest a game that covers - you guessed it - the French and Indian War. Bayonets & Tomahawks is a GMT P500 game, and I've been watching its development since it was first added to the list. Go here to check it out; discussions with the developer (yes, I got involved) and a good look at playtest components. GMT is also the home of some of the Commands and Colors series of games: Ancients, Napoleonic and soon, Samurai Battles.
A little bit about Bayonets & Tomahawks from the GMT site:
I think this game will make a great campaign vehicle for generating our F&IW battles. It's focus on the operational aspects of the conflict as opposed to the political (not ignored!) should lead to meaningful battles as well as lots of opportunities for raiding and low level skirmishes.
Unit scale meshes perfectly with my troop collection: Brigades at about 3 times the size of light units and war parties. My regulars are organized in 3 10-man units with light troops as single 10-man units. Best of all, the units are simple representations of manpower, whose unit strengths and weaknesses are utilized by the game's battle system rather than abstract strength points with pros and cons already factored in. This should make it simple to transfer the battles to the tabletop, to be fought with miniatures, with one's miniature rules of choice accounting for potential unit performance.
An incredible amount of research has gone into this game - obvious if you check out the InsideGMT articles on the GMT site. The map really shines; it's based on contemporary renderings as opposed to "period" place-names superimposed onto a "google-earth" map. I am a fan of this approach. It really transports you back to the 18th Century wilds of North America. At least, if you're open to said transport ; )
Here's a shot of the print and play components all ready for . . . play.
More later as I actually get in some games. See ya!
