Rules Tinkering & Redesign

 “History is the interpretation of the significance that the past has for us.”

— Johan Huizinga

Papercraft Romans awaiting a playtest
battle with Germanic tribesmen.

This past week I started getting an idea for a new set of kid-friendly historical miniatures gaming rules. Having covered World War II tank combat in Panzer Kids and small unit action where individual soldiers each play a role in Skirmish Kids, I began wondering if I evolved the latter rules to accommodate full units in ancient, medieval, and pre-20th century battles on a larger scale. I started jotting down notes, typing out a few ideas, considering how elements of Skirmish Kids would have to change to accommodate battles with lines of infantry, cavalry charges, and artillery (and all that across the ages). I started drafting stats for various units I wanted to field in playtest games. And then I stopped myself. Does the world really need another set of wargaming rules? Do I really need that, even despite my personal design preferences for kid-friendly games? Haven’t I enough game projects requiring attention? Don’t we have enough rules already? Perhaps it’s the restless, unfulfilled creative drive within me, or my urge to share my interest in using games to help people learn about history, or that maybe this one might catch the attention of a publisher other than myself who can better produce and promote the game. And so I soldier onward, despite the leering shadows of doubt whispering “Why bother?”, ignoring my depleted reservoir of time and energy and enthusiasm, oblivious to the adventure gaming world’s inevitable indifference at yet another wargaming rule set.

Why do some gamers, myself included, have an urge to tinker with rules, rewrite them significantly, or pursue our own designs despite numerous, often far-more-successful games out there? It’s almost a comical stereotype among various kinds of adventure gamers. Wargamers constantly adjust rules to better reflect their sense of the historical period, “authenticity,” and their particular gameplay styles. Roleplaying gamers often “house-rule” their favorite games for the same reasons. Some even go on to completely rewrite these games into their own creations. The entire “Old School Renaissance” (the OSR, or whatever you want to call it) earlier this century churned out a deluge of roleplaying games based on the d20 version of Dungeons & Dragons released into the wild under the Open Game License (the OGL, which has since undergone various controversial revisions itself). I’ve discussed gamers’ seemingly inevitable tendency to tinker before. It seems like an aspect of our nerdy subculture present since the very beginning of the hobby. Some of us are more immune than others; and just when I think I’ve kicked the habit, it comes rushing back with a vengeance.

It’s not like I’m bored with creating material across the spectrum of the adventure gaming hobby. I have numerous projects awaiting my attention percolating in my mind — and in various stages of development on paper — but I just don’t seem to restrain myself: a double-blind wargame about Confederate forces advancing across the Rapidan River in the American Civil War; another Pulp Egypt scenario for an upcoming convention (and revising the last one for publication); revisions to my Battle of Great Bridge game with an eye toward a print-and-play version; a board game about women supporting the Warsaw Uprising of 1944; and my often-neglected efforts to promote my own publishing endeavors. (Not to mention writing pieces for Hobby Games Recce.) But adding to the project pile draws on my finite and dwindling supply of time, energy, and enthusiasm, all the more drained without regular infusions of outside approval operating, as I do, in a weird, independent limbo (though I am always humbly grateful for any encouragement that comes my way). Despite my lamented jobless status, I keep busy with my own projects and maintaining the household so others in my family don’t have to worry so much about the mundane logistics of everyday life. I no longer have the boundless personal resources of my younger days.

Lord of the Rings wargaming with 54mm minis
and the Dragon Rampant rules.

I have plenty of miniature wargames rules, many of which I enjoy, some of which I can even distill into a format more easily shared with my target demographic of kids and gaming newcomers. Just glancing at my shelves and thinking about my past gaming I recall a host of miniatures games I’ve enjoyed fielding on my wargaming table: Daniel Mersey’s contributions to Osprey Publishing wargames like Lion Rampant, Dragon Rampant, and The Men Who Would Be Kings; Neil Thomas’ One-Hour Wargames; and numerous titles from Bob Cordery in his Portable Wargame series and perhaps my favorite, Gridded Naval Wargames. I’ve explored the skirmish action of the French and Indian War using various rule sets over the years (before settling on my own Skirmish Kids as my preference). In my earlier days I even tried The Sword and the Flame for my colonial conflicts. And I often must restrain myself when I find new rules, inevitably at the regional used book store, which tempt me with glimpses at different ways of simulating period combat. Some of these games stray into more specialized wargaming environments (skirmish gaming, naval wargames), but many cater to the wargamer’s primary realm: recreating the grand battles of history with lines of infantry, crowds of cavalry, and artillery batteries for the later engagements. Although I enjoy some of them for my own miniature wargaming, they’re not always ideal for my intended audience: kids and newcomers to the hobby seeking an enjoyable game experience with a low learning curve...ideally just enough to tempt them into pursing wargaming as a hobby, where they can grow and move on to more involved games.

When I get some inspiration and insight into designing new rules I must ask myself: does my particular interpretation have any value? We have all these other rules that come close to the mark for satisfying my gaming style and interests; do I need to create yet another one to get lost in the crowd? Can’t I just streamline those others to a suitable level for my intended audience?

I’ve deliberately done this twice already with Panzer Kids and Skirmish Kids, two miniature wargaming rule sets on subjects other designers and publishers already covered...but with my own touch. Panzer Kids focuses on World War II tank engagements, Skirmish Kids on small unit action where individual soldiers each play a role. Many other games cover both these subjects in greater detail, often with far more complicated rules; one of the reasons I wanted to scale back some of the complexity when I designed my own games while allowing optional rules to add tactical depth for advancing players at their own pace. Those other games often have far greater reach in the hobby market thanks to corporate publishers who can produce high-quality books and promote them everywhere.*

When I published Panzer Kids back in 2016 I heard Gale Force Nine was developing a World of Tanks game, an basic-level miniatures game based on a popular video game. It used many concepts employed in lighter miniatures games like Wings of Glory, the Star Wars: X-wing Miniatures Game, Sails of Glory, and Star Trek: Attack Wing (all of which I’ve played and enjoyed). I consoled myself knowing any game about tanks I might publish could never compete with or even become anywhere near as popular as a game supported by a huge corporate infrastructure driven by capitalistic profit. But I did it anyway. Ran it at regional conventions for kids and grognards. Heard from friends who had a blast running it with their children. Saw a kid host and run it at a major east coast wargaming convention. Read how a wargamer ran a session for people in a memory care unit to engage them with a colorful, hands-on activity.

Most rules I find cater to the established miniature wargaming crowd, people familiar with game conventions and lingo who can more easily fill in the assumed gaps in a rule set from their own experience. My main audience when designing wargame rules remains kids and newcomers, people I want to tempt into playing a game based in history. Maybe they’ll learn something new. Maybe they’ll become hobby gamers, even for a short time. It’s a chance worth taking for an under-served demographic.

I also realize I’m writing for a far smaller demographic: myself. Although I like the challenge of learning and playing new, even more complicated rules, sometimes I just want to fight out a historical battle without wanting to spend all weekend marching through elaborate turn sequences for a more “authentic” experience. I want to explore historical outcomes with the spectacle of miniatures and terrain. Abstracted simulations are fine for me as long as they include some consideration for historical elements. And if I need a little more tactical depth to complicate the tabletop action or add more historical elements? Then the optional rules format of Panzer Kids and Skirmish Kids provide that flexibility, to run a game so basic fourth graders could enjoy a meaningful and educational play experience, but also one at which more advanced players might excel.

So I’m going downstairs to set up a quick battle to test out my notes for what I’m tentatively calling Kids in Command! Probably the third and last in my series of kid- and newcomer-friendly miniature wargames. (I’m already too happy with Cordery’s Gridded Naval Wargames to dabble designing new rules for that topic.) No timeline to publication. It’ll be ready when I’m happy with it, when I feel I have a solid core system and plenty of basic yet workable options. When I’ve added some of the non-rules about playing around in historical wargaming, from resources for figures and terrain to a reminder about winning and losing gracefully. I’m adding Kids in Command! to my menu of projects to work on as time, energy, and inspiration allows.

* Don’t get me wrong. I’d love for a publisher to pick up some of my titles for revised editions with higher production value, ubiquitous marketing, and better visibility. I just don’t have high hopes it’ll ever happen even if I did have the enthusiasm, energy, and contacts to pursue it.

“Satisfaction lies in the effort, not in the attainment, full effort is full victory.”

— Mahatma Gandhi