Glasgow and buying my first WWII wargame
June 10th, 2005It’s been frenetic recently. Last weekend we went to Scotland for a wedding, and this week I was in Madrid on business.
The wedding was in Edinburgh, but we spent a day shopping in Glasgow. Naturally, I consulted the uk.games.board faq and checked out the local game shops, which are five minutes apart. There are two and both are pretty good, but aimed at different markets.
Static Games is in a crummy indoor market, but the selection is good, with lots of Euros, wargames, miniatures and RPGs.
Likewise, The Dragon & George has the shabbiest exterior imaginable. It was so scruffy, I was sure they had closed down as I approached. This is much more of a wargames specialist and there are only a few €uros and miniatures. The wargames selection is very good, although prices can be breathtaking. A few of the GMT wargames cost £50+.
I was not planning to buy anything, but in the end I went for Monty’s Gamble: Market Garden. I am going on a holiday to Carcassonne next month and ironically I do not want to just play light euros. We are going with my DBA -crazy friend and fortunately, miniatures are too heavy to carry. 
I think he will enjoy a wargame, although WWII is not his favourite theme.
I have considered trying a WWII wargame for some time. I have almost finished Martin Gilbert’s World War Two, which has enthused me. Operation Market Garden seems like a proper place to start – a classic British military disaster – brilliant! Monty also went to my old school, so I feel slightly obliged to learn a little about him. Chris Farrell also says a lot of good things about it and he was spot on about Wizard Kings.
Another positive factor is that the box is small enough to stuff in a backpack. On the other hand, it was far from cheap – £32. Multiman proclaims on the box that the game was “Proudly made in the USA” (or something like that), complete with the Stars and Stripes. It is a pity it means such exorbitant prices.
June 13th, 2005 at 16:30
Just make sure to get the updated rules to Monty’s Gamble off the MMP website. The rules in the box aren’t terrible, but the updated ones are much better. This is a classic example of a game that is of only moderate complexity, but the rules make it harder. It seems to me to be not quite as replayable as its sibling Breakout: Normandy, but everyone I’ve played MG:MG with has liked it.
In the US, MMP games are actually the most reasonably priced of the various wargame companies. I think Monty’s Gamble is only about a $38 game here, while even dinky GMT games now routinely hit the $50 price point and finally making me choke (which I actually consider a good thing; if that’s realistically what they have to charge, maybe it will force them to cut back on quantity and improve their average quality to keep moving units). I’ve been tempted by their Alesia, but the retail of $80 is far too high; $75 for Empire of the Sun also seems excessive.
June 13th, 2005 at 16:39
Thanks for the tip. I’ll read it through and maybe solo a few turns before playing. This is a big jump in complexity for me.
$38 is a much more maneageable £22 without taxes and international shipping. It is a pity there are no big UK wargame publishers. Price was one of the main reasons I chose MMP over GMT. The shop had lots of both and GMT games were much more expensive.
Thanks for all your good work on the blog. I do not think I would have considered WW2 wargames without it.