Wednesday, February 8, 2012

Robert Roger's Rangers

This book has been on my amazon wish list for quite a while, but renewed interest on my part in historical gaming, linked to my interest in local (to where I now am) history, has meant that this one moved up the list, and was bought last week.

I'm not finished, so this is not a complete review, but more a gateway to a link-fest on the subject. Though I must mention here, he sticks to the bare facts when retelling the skirmishes and battle she fought in, so if you're looking for romance, it ain't here.

The French and Indian War (the Seven Years War in the American Theatre), as us Brits and Anglos call it,  (Guerre de la Conquête en français) seems to me to be perfect for skirmish gaming. The fact that both side of this conflict are represented in the local gaming community (or at least their cultural ancestors) mean that it should not be too hard to find opponents, once I am more at liberty to look.  To that end, I note here some links on the subject.

First off, we cannot go any further without mentioning Galloing Major miniatures. These guys base their line on Roger's Rangers, and have expanded from there. 28mm, being my favourite scale for skirmish (and other) gaming, I'll be sure to make this my first stop when I get round to buying these guys.

For the background of the era, of course start with Wikipedia, but there are a few more specific sites. like here, and a blog more widely aimed at the F&I war here. This blog has all you would ever need to know to get you started in miniature gaming for the period. There is a similar french language blog, but I seem to have lost track of it.

Next up, buy some minis and pick a rule set. I hear good things about Sharp Practice, but have yet to give it a go. Also, there's Song of Drums and Shakos, which although based on Napoleonics, is modular enough in its troop building to be flexible enough to cover a wide range of eras. This one I do have, although have yet to play. For the large scale battle, I hear that Black Powder by Warlord games is highly though of.

Buy your copy from Amazon here