Just because a set of wargame rules are old and complicated does not mean they have no value. 'The 1879 Zulu War' by Richard Tory is over 40 years old but Is still a fascinating and useful reference book with plenty of data and ideas in it that can be worked into your own rules. If nothing else it is a very interesting read and shows just how far rules design has come in four decades.
Hi Lee, nice to see you at Salute last week. I brought these rules a long time ago and I did read through the rules. I thought that they were a good starting point for my own rules, which I have made notes but never played. Thanks for the insight.
ReplyDeleteHi Lee, I recently picked up an old copy of George Gush's rules for 1420-1700 (WRG 2nd ed 1979). I was struck by the similarities to these Zulu war rules. The casualty chart has an identical structure (number of figures firing, plus/minus factors, number of actual men becoming casualties). Ranges and distances are all given in real-world paces, which convert to tabletop measurements depending on the figure scale.
ReplyDeleteLike you, my conclusion was that I would not choose to play these as they stand, but that they might be updated to suit current players' expectations.
Thanks for the timely and thought-provoking piece.