Two Awesome WSS Articles #84

Being on the other side of the Atlantic, I received the recent issue of Wargames Soldiers & Strategy (issue #84) a little latter than most, but I was pleased to dig into this one. The articles on the Normans are interesting, but it was two articles that caught my attention.

The Four Pillars of Wargaming by Warwick Kinrade covers not only what makes a good wargame but also how to have a healthy outlook when taking part in this social hobby. As we add to the membership of our band of brothers (and sisters) it is good to not only put on the best games possible but to teach that we are always growing our collections of models and terrain. And to me terrain is something I will never have enough of. The general consensus is we have to have it all but to be balanced we just have to understand that our collections will grow (in a healthy manner) and the look on the table will also improve over time.

Not surprising the pillars are miniatures, terrain, the game and opponents. I will not go into great detail, as I hope you will read this and maybe Guy could post this article on the website. Just a thought.

Richard Clarke’s piece in the Up Front section deals with The Politics of Wargaming. With the 2016 US Presidential election in full ugly swing politics is often a dirty word, one not talked about at family gatherings. For me wargaming is the dirtier word, as it is a hobby I find hard to explain to coworkers and family. But Richard jumped in with both feet and touched on the Confederate battle flag, Nazi re-enactors and bad plumbing at HMGS convention. What an article.

Within the hobby, I have commanded southern troops in a few games as well a few Nazi units and I even have a PLO/Lebanese militia force. But I do not dress the part and while I am knowledgeable about their politics I am not an apologist for them. The combat history of Normandy and Lebanon interests me as does the history of the 21st Army Group and the IDF.

Re-enactors can bring a historic interpretation to a convention but some periods are to politically and racially charged. We need to be able to explain history to the general public and just like history to the lower school grades is watered down we need to feed to the public what they are ready for. For most Waffen SS is the same as the German Heer and they are not. For one, I do not want to be lumped together with the Nazi re-enactors at a con. Well done Richard.

Now about that HMGS shoddy plumbing...