History Is Our Story

 “That the future may learn from the past.”

– Colonial Williamsburg mission

Bamse samples: artwork by Julie Campbell and writing by Colin Maxwell.

I enjoy learning about various periods in history, from the broad picture to the smaller, more personal stories and everything in between. My engagement spans the vast landscape of media, from non-fiction books and documentaries to the more embellished films, historical novels, and, of course, games. And even comic books. So when I discovered Colin Maxwell of Maximized Comics Kickstarting another history based comic book, The Adventures of Bamse, I didn’t hesitate to back it. I’d previously backed and enjoyed his earlier true-war stories, Raid on the Forth and Flight of the Eagle, two relatively obscure episodes from World War II (well, “relatively obscure” to those of us who don’t live in Scotland...). Both draw on events related to his own local history, so I couldn’t resist supporting publication of the story of “the dog that became the mascot of the Free Norwegian Forces during the Second World War.” (At the moment the project still needs funding in the final days of the campaign – which offers the chance to also get the previous two comics, all well worth the price even considering shipping from the UK to the US.) These comics remind me how history consists of many stories great and small, far-reaching in scope yet also personal. Humans have loved storytelling throughout time...and history is our own epic tale, a larger-than-life story we can also draw upon for our games, whether historical wargames, board games, or even roleplaying games.

WEG Memoirs: The SWAJ Dinner

Memories of my West End Games days some 25 years ago are gradually fading into mushy nostalgia...so I’d better tell the tale of the Star Wars Adventure Journal dinner I hosted at GenCon 1996 before it dissolves further into my foggy sense of the past. It came at what seems like the high point of my time at West End, when the Star Wars Roleplaying Game enjoyed great popularity, especially with special editions of the original trilogy and <gasp> even talk of new movies on the horizon. But I’m getting ahead of myself. Like many events in our lives, it’s a confluence of numerous factors leading to a single, memorable point....

Tempering “This Is the Way”

 “Persistence without insight will lead to the same outcome.”

– The Armorer from The Mandalorian

I’ve been reading some miniature wargaming rules, some from the 1970s and others having been around a while that still see a good deal of play today. I’m guilty of acquiring games of various forms – roleplaying games, wargames (both board and miniature), even board games – not necessarily to play but to read for their own sake, seeing how each uses rules and components to craft a particular play experience based on a setting. Some authors of older rules assume an attitude that their particular method of playing a game is the way (at least the way for them), sometimes looking down on or dismissing other rules concepts that don’t work with their vision. “This is the way,” one might say, to coin a phrase made popular by the Star Wars Mandalorian series. Naturally where one rigidly declares their rules are the best way of playing a particular game others will rebel against it, offering an alternative emphasizing different game aspects. Much of early gaming – roleplaying as well as wargaming – evolved through this reactionary give and take, with games emerging in response to and in competition with other rules, based on what individual designers felt worked best to provide a satisfying game experience. Certainly games have changed over the years, especially with the accessibility to both publishing and distribution computers and the internet have enabled in the 21st century. To me it’s interesting to see inflexibility in a play activity, though no doubt I’ve been guilty at some point of being too rigid in my game interpretations. I remind myself that everyone finds satisfaction in games differently, that, as always, your mileage may vary. And in many cases, as demonstrated in The Mandalorian’s third season, several divergent, adversarial groups can come together, relax their rigidity, and work toward something new.

Journey to the Mage-Blight Hills

 “We are not monsters; we simply are. We are creatures with unrealized potential.”

– From “A Testament of Completion”

The paths down which imagination leads us sometimes don’t make sense, might bring us to strange places, but offer us opportunities to grow. I’m stumbling down one such path with my latest fantasy roleplaying game project, The Mage-Blight Hills, a setting sourcebook without any game stats, enabling gamemasters to port it to whatever system they prefer. It grew from a simple idea, a lark, really, for an adventure I might run for my son should I ever introduce him to pen-and-paper roleplaying (as opposed to the diversions he finds in the seemingly infinite electronic worlds of Roblox). As I thrashed about trying to develop and write another setting – the perpetually postponed Infinite Cathedral – I let my imagination run a bit wild on this other scenario...until it took on a life of its own and demanded I follow the path it set before me. Although it’s still quite a ways from any sense of completion, it’s providing both a chance to find some solace in an escapist fantasy world and an opportunity to try out some concepts in setting design.

Miniature Wargames’ Versatility

Many facets of the adventure gaming hobby have a do-it-yourself aspect (DIY). Roleplaying gamers spend time creating their own settings and scenarios. Miniature wargamers work hard crafting terrain and props besides painting and basing figures. Both forms offer flexibility in altering rules (“house-ruling”) to better suit people’s different styles of play or level of detail/complexity. (Less so board and card games, including board wargames, all of which, by their very nature, include everything one needs in the box, ready to go.) Which means roleplaying games and miniature wargames can combine their DIY suitability with gamers’ needs and preferences to customize the play experience for a particular audience, venue, or event. Over the years I’ve tried to introduce gaming to new audiences, most recently at the local museum. Although roleplaying games aren’t ideally connected with local history, historical miniature wargames possess the capacity for customization to a particular time and place...with some DIY legwork and a bit of research.

New Inspirational Music

 “Music expresses that which cannot be said and on which it is impossible to be silent.”

– Victor Hugo

As I continue designing and writing a new medieval fantasy roleplaying game setting I constantly remind myself how much music motivates and inspires me. Simply having relevant music playing in the background makes me more inclined to sit down and focus on developing game material. Fantasy fandom – from roleplaying gamers and wargamers to those who immerse themselves in literature and online media – sometimes argues about the nature of medieval elements. Can we have ethnically diverse elves, dwarves, and halfings? Must we adhere to the miserable health and social conditions that plagued medieval Europe or can we just play around in a relatively carefree renfaire environment? How much fantasy do we mix with our historical inspirations? So it’s no surprise my own tastes in medieval-themed music runs the spectrum from purely fantastical to authentically historical. Two sources of new music help fuel my enthusiasm for the current project: the soundtrack to the first season of The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power and a collection of releases from the British medieval instrumenttroupe Trouvere.

WEG Memoirs: The Mos Eisley Diorama

 “You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy.”

– Obi-Wan Kenobi

Now and then I post the photo of me running the Star Wars Roleplaying Game at a large, boxed-in diorama of Mos Eisley starport at a convention. During my time at West End I built the diorama from scratch and set it in a custom-made box for transport. I subsequently hauled it around to various conventions, even after the company went bankrupt. It’s sat in the basement or storage for many years now, but occasionally I pull it out, dust it off, and take some photos of it with the 25mm Star Wars miniatures I still have. I’ve featured the diorama and figures here before; head over to “Schweig’s Gaming Roadshow Gallery” and scroll down (though I’ve posted a few photos again here). It’s a relic from my West End days that still stirs feelings of nostalgia for a time when running demos on a visually appealing table helped promote one of my favorite games.