Releasing Skirmish Kids

 “The creation of something new is not accomplished by the intellect but by the play instinct acting from inner necessity. The creative mind plays with the objects it loves.”

– Carl Jung

At long last I finally released my latest game project this week. Skirmish Kids is a wargame with a low figure count, small play surface (compared to most miniature wargames), and basic core rules to which one can add a host of options to give the game more tactical depth. It includes a host of notes for using it for historical scenarios as well as a few more fantastic genres. You can find it in full-color PDF at both my Itch.io and Wargame Vault online storefronts and in print in black-and-white at Lulu and, a first for me, places like Amazon. Skirmish Kids is the culmination of a long interest in this kind of wargaming and years of tinkering to present rules and options at a level kids and newcomers to the hobby can understand and embrace.

Father-Son Naval Warfare

Among my (admittedly) many gaming diversions from the covid-19 pandemic I’m dabbling in naval warfare again: American Civil War ironclads and World War II South Pacific. Granted I’d previously explored the Battle of the River Plate using both Fletcher Pratt’s rules and Bob Cordery’s Gridded Naval Wargames along with flats from Topside Minis (which I’ve featured here before). I’d also tried Mike Crane’s The Virginia vs. the Monitor – or, Look Out Minnesota! with some home-crafted models (and the Minnesota fold-up piece provided in the rules). Both periods appeal to me, as did Cordery’s rules for their intuitive mechanics that easily accommodate some minor adjustments. I treated myself to some naval miniatures which, now they’re painted, are ready for some wargame tabletop action with my son.

Developing Skirmish Kids

Aside from the occasional roleplaying game material – inevitably requiring a great deal of time and effort to develop and publish – the rest of my publishing endeavors these past few years have focused on miniature wargames suitable for introducing newcomers to gaming and draw kids into the adventure gaming hobby. Having recently completed a rare freelancing assignment for a roleplaying game adventure collection, I’m reviewing several project ideas vying for my attention, each of which engages my enthusiasm to varying degrees. I’ve decided to advance one of my projects to the next step. Once again I’ve indulged my interest in games for youngsters and spent some time developing Skirmish Kids. It started out as a quick game to include with some miniatures for my son, then something a bit more involved with an intent to publish. After some playtesting on our own and a good deal of writing and self-editing, I have a draft ready for anyone interested to read, playtest, and offer comments.

[Edit 5-25-21: Thanks to reader Russell Phillips, interested playtesters can now download the Skirmish Kids file in both Mobi and Epub formats as well as PDF.]

Skirmish Wargame for Kids

“The creation of something new is not accomplished by the intellect but by the play instinct.”

– Carl Jung

I’m off on another game-design diversion. Frequent readers know I’m a proponent of games suitable for kids and gaming newcomers. Goodness knows I’ve developed a few of them myself, most notably Valley of the Ape and Panzer Kids. This time I had some new motivation from my son, who has collected a few wargaming minis of his own. In my own gaming I often settle for playing with the toys I have, though I collect and try painting more to expand my options. In this vein I often have to compromise in the battles I fight, choosing smaller engagements. I’d explored a few skirmish games in the past; instead of a base or crowd of figures representing units like companies and regiments, each individual figure represents one soldier. These seemed like the perfect format for playing games with the wargaming toys my son already has...and will receive as part of his Yuletide holiday hoard of presents.