inconsequential ruminations

A couple of weeks ago I listened to a random podcast I spotted at Consimworld News about Rommel at Gazala. It sounded interesting, a simple, quick, introductory DTP game, about Rommel’s great North African victory, that you receive in an email and print yourself. At the end of the podcast, the designer, Jim Werbaneth, offered to give away two issues of his fanzine, Line of Departure, to the first ten people to put in an order. As it is only $10, I did so and received the game in an email a couple of hours later.

The attachment was 6MB and full of PDFs:

• Rulebook – very clear. Only a couple of minor questions after my first playing.
• Battle Manual – designer notes, assemby advice and a history of the battle.
• Map – three sheets, although you only need two to play. It is formatted to print cheaply on a regular desktop printer, so lacks colour, but it is perfectly usable and clear.
• Counters
• Player aids

A week later, I got the Line of Departure fanzines. Jim Werbaneth writes very well, so they were a pleasure to read. I especially enjoyed his in-depth review of Cactus Throne. It looks too long for me to find opponents, but it is an interesting topic for me as my mother is Mexican and I have visited Mexico a lot. Unfortunately most of the articles are about wargames I know I will never play. I’m undecided about subscribing, but I probably should, if only to show my appreciation of Rommel at Gazala.

Assembling the game was simple as I had all the ingredients to hand:

• colour printer
• thin cardboard for mounting the counters
• A4 labels to print the counters
• craft knife
• steel ruler
• rubber cutting mat

The whole process took me half an hour. I printed the counters onto a A4 label sheet and stuck it to the cardboard. I then cut the chits out – I could easily have done it with scissors instead of a knife. The final product looks amateur, but is totally playable.

Yesterday I persuaded my brother-in-law to try it. He likes confrontational games, so I thought it would be worth making an experiment. Sadly it did not come off. He found it “ponderous” and we abandoned it early. I can see his point of view. He is not particularly interested in history and the game itself is slower than the normal eurogames he enjoys. At least we had a nice chat. I will try Battleline or the Settlers of Catan Card Game on him next time.

I cannot make any judgements after only four turns of such a quick game, but so far it looks interesting, if played with the right opponents. Supply seems to be the single biggest factor. If the Germans manage to cut the minefield or keep the southern pass open, thereby ensuring supply paths, they will probably win.

I will play deeper, heavier games if I have time, but right now this is the level I am aiming for.