Practical Tabletop Battles for those with limited time and space One-hour Wargames (Paperback) - Common

by NeilThomas

One-Hour Wargames( Practical Tabletop Battles for Those with Limited Time and Space) <> Paperback <> NeilThomas <> Pen&SwordBooks

Genres: Games, Nonfiction, History

Paperback

First published September 3, 2014

Reviews

[Mark · Rating 4 out of 5]

The author did a very good job of presenting workable rules that can be used to introduce new and young players to miniature wargames.

The rules are very basic and except for the period covering WW II (1939-1945) he does not use any particular miniature scale. Thus allowing you to use any figures you have.

For WW II he suggests 1/72 (HO scale) as there are many lpastic minis in that scale from Airfix and others. Plus 1/72 scale translates to HO scale for model railroading and thus you can make use of the terrain and buildings from that hobby at a very low cost.

The best thing about this book and how the rules are presented is that they open of the mind of any budding game designer or more likely all the rules tinkerers out there.

Each chapter is broken down by a specific period and then the design notes for the units and special rules for the units if any. He then goes into the rules for that period.

Each period uses only 4 units and the turn structure is the same for each period.

I plan to look for any other of his books, hopefully he wrote one on naval wargaming. If not there is a book that may need to be written.

Cheers

I plan to run through various scenarios

[Marko · Rating 5 out of 5]

Let my start by saying, that I highly recommend this book for wargamers. I hadn’t read any Neil Thomas before this book, but I will definitely read more in the future.

The nine very simple sets of wargame rules in the book are really the same rules with a bit of genre variation. Think about it: from ancient Greek to WW2. I like the thinking behind this. I will definitely try these out.

The rules leave a lot details to the mercy of the gamers goodwill. For example the rules don’t state if free measuring of distances is allowed. There is no mention of aligning the units in close combat or anything about clipping. There is no clear definition when unit’s flank or rear can be charged. And so on. But that is only to be expected with this kind of simple set of rules.

And then there are the 30 simple but brilliant scenarios. They definitely are an equal part of the rules. Love them!

[Mik Isaac · Rating 5 out of 5]

Keep It Simple, Stupid!

KISS hasn't always been my motto, I've cross referenced factors and rolled D12's In my time, but to actually enjoy my warming these rules have it all. You CAN finish a game, you do get reasonably historic results, and it makes a game fun. 😊. Buy them, try them, you won't regret the decision.

[J.G. Cully · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent book, very insightful and interesting. Lots of gaming suggestions, regardless of scale, and scenario ideas. Well worth the purchase.

[Eric · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is the latest book from Neil Thomas covering wargaming. He provides simple rules for several periods from Ancients to WW2. These rules are much less complicated than any he has published before and at first sight you could be forgiven for thinking they were all the same. But each set has subtle differences the main one being the troop types available. In each period you are only allowed four different troop types. This means that a lot of the factors normally present in a wargame are abstracted but it does keep it very simple and allows games to be swiftly concluded as the title suggests. This makes the rules ideal for campaigns (and there is a chapter on this subject) that can be played out in a day. The campaign system suggested is also very simple consisting of a series of linked scenarios, of which there are thirty detailed in the book. In each one you throw a dice for the forces available to you, so you are forced to make do with what you have got much as in real life! The rules are so simple that it is the scenarios that add most of the flavour to the whole system.
There are no specific army lists; this means that some knowledge of the period is needed in order to identify exactly which troops are represented by the four catagories. Paradoxically this makes the book less suitable for the complete novice however it is still very accessible.
The only illustrations are the scenario maps which are nicely set out, and there is a useful bibliography which has comments rather than just a list of titles.
The book as a whole has the feel of the old school of wargaming. It details one man's way of doing things and pretends to be nothing more. If you are a fan of the wargaming pioneers like Don Featherstone or Peter Young then you will enjoy this book.

[Brian · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book does what it sets out to do. Namely making tabletop wargaming practical for everyday life without having to give up an entire afternoon to get in one game (maybe). Thomas also addresses Solo-wargaming as well in a very short chapter. The rules are clear and simple but keep in mind the time periods realistically well. If you want have rules and consequences and circumstances for each move and command this is not the book for you.

[Kyle Maxwell · Rating 4 out of 5]

Somehow I barely remember reading the back third of the book the first time. I have corrected that on this reread that is my (re-) introduction to historical wargaming, after not having engaged with it for over 30 years. The author writes clearly and the material spans from the dawn of history to WWIl.

[John Melvin · Rating 3 out of 5]

Open Ended

Simple rules, yes, but easily modified if needed. With limited space at hand I intend to relaunch my war game hobby using this book as a guide.