HDTenEightyP/NetNews huggingface dataset:
From: mcclure@force.ssd.lmsc.lockheed.com
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: AWI & 1812 rules
Date: 20 Nov 92 15:01:25 GMT
Reply-To: mcclure@force.ssd.lmsc.lockheed.com
Organization: LMSC, Sunnyvale, California

I've got the bug to do up some units for both the American War of 
Independence and the War of 1812, but are there any good rules out
there for this period.  I know that rules exist, but I would like
feedback from someone who has actually played them.

As for something completely different, those of you who like to do
strange miniatures should look at Hobby Products (a German company)
because they have a very, very nice set of miniatures for Asterix.
Yes, that's right, Asterix - our favorite Gaul straight from the
comics page.  But seriously, these figures are absolutely gorgeous!
Currently, I know of three boxed sets - Asterix and the Gauls, the 
Pirates, and the Romans.  But I have recently seen individually
packaged Egyptians (from Asterix and Cleopatra) and British.  The
British are just great since the ones I have seen depict the ancient
British Rugby players and the British clan leader sipping a cup of
hot water (at the end of the movie it is tea).  Does anybody know
if these will be later released as a boxed set?  I only ask that 
because over here they run $2.50 for a single figure.  Hopefully
they will be cheaper by the dozen.
Kent M. McClure
Auto racing afficionado and member of San
Jose IPMS chapter.
My views are what they are, like them or not.
From: ICECW@ASUACAD.BITNET
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: Some games for sale
Date: 16 Nov 92 14:10:58 GMT
Article-I.D.: ASUACAD.92321.071058ICECW
Organization: Arizona State University

I have the following games for sale.  There is a one dollar minimum bid, but
if you offer me a good price, I'll let you have it right away!

Citytech, FASA partially-punched excellent condition
Gettysburg, Avalon Hill 1964 version very good condition
Sniper, SPI version original ziplock
Dragoon vs Hussar, Balboa boxed man-to-man horse and musket era
Dimension Demons, Metagaming boxed Microgame
Dungeonquest, GW never opened, still in shrink-wrap/$40 retail make excellent
              Christmas present!

Please email icecw@asuacad
or icecw@asuvm.inre.asu.edu

Thanks much!
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: Re: A&A - Can the **AXIS** ever win?
From: "Jonathan T. Moore" <jmci+@andrew.cmu.edu>
Date: Sun, 22 Nov 1992 01:23:48 -0500 
Organization: Freshman, MCS general, Carnegie Mellon, Pittsburgh, PA

Excerpts from netnews.rec.games.board: 20-Nov-92 Re: A&A - Can the
**AXIS** .. by Stephen Moore@csugrad.cs 
> I think the best strategy for germany is Tanks! Tanks! Tanks!  I always
> blitzkrieg Russia with everything I can and get Japan to attack from
the east.
>  
> This increases the money supply of the Axis and limits the Russian ability
> to recover and counterattack.  If Russia is captured, that is a big boost
> monetarily and also tkaes away one front of attack.  This approach is
> risky but I thuink the rewards out weigh the risk because Germany starts out
> so strong.

This simply doesn't work (unless, perhaps, if you're playing with the
Russian no-first turn attack rule--which I personally haven't played).
You see, although the tanks have more bang for the buck, you can't just
exclusively buy them, because if the Russian player only buys infantry
(as any good Russian should), eventually, you will be losing tanks in
attrition (actually, sooner than eventually--try the first time you make
an attempt on Karelia). It is necessary for Germany to buy infantry for
two reasons:

(1) Warm bodies to soak up hits in the Russian grind.
(2) Good for defending against the Allies, who, if they are using the
usual U.S.-and-Britain-gang-up-on-Germany bit, will soon be knocking on
your back door.

I've played this game for several years, and originally, buying tanks
was the German strategy. This was successful only until one of us
realized that it was pretty silly for Russia to buy anything other than
infantry. Combined with a Russian attack on Eastern Europe in Round 1,
we quickly saw that just the tanks wasn't going to cut it. We saw that
it was necessary to buy some infantry, too, to soak up hits while the
armor dished them out. Still later, we realized that the best strategy
was to ONLY buy infantry, set up a chain of stacks of infantry marching
towards Karelia (or Moscow), then launch an attack every turn,
retreating when all your current inf stack had been destroyed. If things
went well elsewhere, Russia had no chance of winning that particular war
of attrition. Then, of course, we saw the U.S. realize it was perfectly
fine to ignore Japan and pound Germany.....

Jon
-----------------------------------------------
Jon Moore             (jmci@andrew.cmu.edu) 
 "What have I got in my pocket?" --Bilbo     
 "Let the truth of love be lighted,          
  Let the love of truth shine clear." --RUSH 
-----------------------------------------------
From: re@dcs.ed.ac.uk (Roderick Easton)
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: Interesting BTech device
Date: 18 Nov 92 10:42:47 GMT
Organization: Department of Computer Science, University of Edinburgh

With compliments to Vernor Vinge I present the Bobble Generator for Battletech:

Though most major advances in Technology have come from the side of the Inner Sphere
in the last few years the scientist caste have not just been sitting back enjoying
themselves.  The latest addition to the Clan armoury is what the scientists call the 
Exclusion Field Projection Device but has come to be known as the bobble generator. 
There are two ways in which it can be employed.  The device creates a swarm of tiny
indestructible, impenetrable spheres in and around its target.  These have the effect
of severing connection leads, jamming moving parts and removing chunks of armour. 
However it is inherently inaccurate as the massive computer requires a reasonable
amount of time in which to calculate the required algorithms.  When used against
strafing fighters it acts more like a barrage of flack as they dive through a cloud
of indestructible particles at high speed.  Due to the dispersal of infantry the
generator has no effect upon platoons or battle armour

Game Use: The generator receives a +2 to hit modifier in addition to any other
penalties.  It cannot use a Targetting Computer.  If a ground vehicle is hit roll for
location as usual.  Then roll for criticals.  If no criticals are rolled apply the
score on the dice as armour damage.  Even if this penetrates to the internal
structure *do*not* roll again for criticals.  Against fighters the target movement
modifiers are not taken into account.  It is "firing" at the flight path not the
actual fighter.  If it hits roll damage as normal as if hit by two LRM15's.

tonnage     :10
criticals   : 5
ammuntion   : -
heat        : 5
range :short:1-4
      medium:6-8
        long:9-12

This is just an unplaytested personal view.  Take it or leave it.

TTFN
Rod
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
From: pmenard@cse.unl.edu (Patrick Menard)
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: Re: A&A - I think the AXIS may be able to :)
Date: 16 Nov 1992 08:12:57 GMT
Organization: University of Nebraska--Lincoln	
Distribution: world
NNTP-Posting-Host: cse.unl.edu

oberland@vax.sonoma.edu writes:

>I usually played allowing Russia to attack.
>I also managed to make a good strategy, but the Allied combined fleet and
>sending stuff to russia gets the game into a LONNNG protracted affair.
>Seems that the Allies here alwasy use the SAME strategy, and it is hard
>to work against.
>BUT...
>I did get this for the first turn last game(added a new "trick"
>Japan doing well, Hawaii taken(Island)-makes allied attack much worse, as the
>fightrer from e. us cannot get in the battle-no place to land.

Well, it does give the Japanese something to do I guess.

>Germany-fried UK fleet.
>Fried every other naval piece
>U.S transport still there
>Africa taken
>Syria taken(The change this time)

>How? I used my air-force to kill it ALL, and let the amphibious battles waltz
>in)

Usually Russia can eliminate Germany's Baltic fleet and maybe its sub in the
Atlantic.(using a fighter on the Baltic (sub & trans=sub can't shoot back) and
its sub & trans on the German Sub in the Atlantic (33% chance)

>BIG help- how to win as the AXIS-
>TAKE egypt AND Syria at all costs.
>There will be no place for the Allies to land planes to attack your fleet, and
>since the rest of their fleet is gone, you survive.(well, they can send the
>UK bomber to hit you in the Med, but it then MUST land in Gibraltar.
>Your BS and other transport(the one you sent to Syriaare in range to fry the
>bomber, as is your fighter in W. europe.

Interesting move.

>Joe
>Think I figured it out :) Tell me what you think. I am being a little vague, as
>I plan to use it soon on someone, and they are not going to get full details
>before-hand.  In a week or so, I'll post Germany's first-turn in it's exact
>details :)

I'd like to see them.

Shadow
From: DukeJ@cup.portal.com (Chris - Janus)
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: Re: Games that belong on every gamer's shelf...
Date: Tue, 17 Nov 92 19:50:24 PST
Organization: The Portal System (TM)
  <92321.141734ICECW@ASUACAD.BITNET>

  Here's my Top Ten of games, in No Particular Order:                 
                                                                      
1. Wiz-War (designing new cards is half the fun)                      
2. Kingmaker                                                          
3. Illuminati!                                                        
4. Civilization (preferably playing Egypt)                            
5. Empires in Arms (I would like to play a game where noone drops out)
6. Diplomacy (although #5 combines good elements from this game)      
7. Blackbeard (what can I say, I love this game)                      
8. Scrabble (gotta have a "regular" game for family)                  
9. Trivial Pursuit                                                    
10. Up Front

  I figure since this is rec/games/board I shouldn't include RPG's, otherwise
6 and 9 would be Call of Cthulhu and AD&D.

DukeJ@cup.portal.com
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
From: foelsche@css.itd.umich.edu (Karl Foelsche)
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: Re: EiA: Problems
Date: 19 Nov 1992 00:25:54 GMT
Organization: University of Michigan ITD Consulting and Support Services
NNTP-Posting-Host: stimpy.css.itd.umich.edu
Summary: Anyone played a 6 player game?

Right now I am playing a six player game as France, and we have Spain as an ump.
I admit that this is a less than optimal game, (I watched the spanish fleet
get sunk for no apparent reason, and was forced to join in a gang bang with
GB shortly thereafter...) but I was wondering if anyone had tried the alternate
method of bidding for surplus MP's just like any other country...How do people
like that method?  (The one where you get the country for the entire game
and have to meet the VP requirements for BOTH major powers...)

-Karl Foelsche

Newsgroups: rec.games.board
From: prj@pyuxf.uucp (25574-jayne)
Subject: Terrible Swift Sword Wanted
Organization: Bellcore, Livingston, NJ
Date: Tue, 17 Nov 92 18:15:27 GMT
Keywords: TSS Berg

I'm looking to buy a copy of Terrible Swift Sword, first edition.
To be as clear as possible, I want the edition put out by SPI,
not the second edition by TSR.

Mostly I want a copy of the map, and will pay $20 for one in good
shape (no missing pieces or significant tears).  A set of unpunched
counters would be a plus, not sure what I'd pay, maybe $10 or so,
but w/o a map I'm not interested.  I'm not really interested in any
of the other game components either, but if the only way I can get
a map is to buy a whole game, okay.

Trades are a possibility.  I had an SPI subscription from Borodino
until the lights went out, and bought lots of their games.

	Paul Jayne
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
From: rbr@well.sf.ca.us (Bob Rossney)
Subject: Re: Games that belong on every gamer's shelf...
Organization: Whole Earth 'Lectronic Link
Date: Wed, 18 Nov 1992 06:49:52 GMT

In <1992Nov17.164914.9602@frog.CRDS.COM> bill@frog.CRDS.COM (auspex1) writes:

>Here's my list

>1.  1830
>2.  Eurorails (or Empire Builder)
>3.  Stage 2
>4.  Sleuth
>5.  Scotland Yard
>6.  Terrible Swift Sword
>7.  Titan
>8.  Scabble
>9.  Boggle
>10.  Aquire

>-- 

>bill masek		charles river data systems, inc
>(617) 275-4565 (h)	(508) 626-1122 (w)
>mit-eddie!frog!bill	eddie.mit.edu!frog!bill

I'm sorry, but Scabble just sounds gross.

But what's that Stage 2?

Bob Rossney
rbr@well.sf.ca.us
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
From: stxtnt@rs733.GSFC.NASA.Gov (Nigel Tzeng)
Subject: Re: BTECH: On artillery
Organization: Goddard Space Flight Center, Greenbelt, Md, USA
	<1992Nov8.025929.5629@midway.uchicago.edu>
	<STXTNT.92Nov9182309@rs733.GSFC.NASA.Gov>
	<1e7llrINNm8b@escargot.xx.rmit.OZ.AU>
Date: Tue, 17 Nov 1992 21:57:01 GMT

In article <1e7llrINNm8b@escargot.xx.rmit.OZ.AU> s903609@minyos.xx.rmit.oz.au (ACE) writes:

>(Nigel Tzeng) writes:

>>[another (*SIGH*) example of a combined arms force deleted]

>>extremely potent because it frees one of your mech units up...and with
>>the limitations on mech production this is a very important ability.

>>--
>>Nigel Tzeng
>>.sig under construction

>So this all means that you think 'mechs are the ultimate weapon ? Perhaps you
>should look at why you are playing battletech and not some wargame like
>Combined Arms ( it exists and is VERY good ). Forces this size are also not
>good for a nice short game. I would also suggest that you balance these forces
>by using the C-Bill cost of them which would be more realistic. It is just
>about the only realism which someone can hold onto in Btech, and it SHOULD BE!

Urm...I play Centurion now.  The genre is as "gritty" as BattleTech
and the rules aren't quite as broken reality wise (that is if you can
stomach odds of 8 million to 250,000).

However, in Battletech with the rules as they are (ie favoring mechs)
then ton for ton mechs are more potent than vehicles.  The only time
this becomes important is when you have to haul stuff in for planetary
assaults.  IF mass is the important factor in moving things then you
want to carry to most combat effective force you can for the tonnage
since you are limited by your transportation capability.

If mass is unimportant and dollar cost is important then carrying 2
vehicles for the cost of 1 mech is more effective...and well...we did
the cost optimization scheme once and mechs quite frankly lost pretty
bad to cheap ICE vehicles and Aerospace fighters.

>			  ACE

Nigel
--
Nigel Tzeng
.sig under construction
Lines: 13
Date: Wed, 18 Nov 92 11:22:12 MST
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
From: $stephan@sasb (Stephan Fassmann, Software)
Subject: Re: tactical solution II
Organization: BYU

For a Romulan force:
I would want a King Condor, ThunderHawk group (the PF's and are very useful 
in holding off some meaningless sortie expecially if you use D and E modules 
on the StarHawks, and the scout channels), SpC (the main Scout), SPJ (
assault cruiser), SPD ( the minesweeper) and fill the rest with WEs and KEs.
This allows me 8 special sensors within the rules lots of anti-fighter/drone 
support and lots of R- & S-torps. Though I would still add a repair criuser 
to repair the ships after cleaning off a hemisphere. Unless the klingons get 
some lucky shots in he is toast with this force.

You could also look in CL10? I think they have a 2000 bpv force for all 
races all you have to do is replace a CW with a minesweeper and enjoy.
From: bruceb@mpd.tandem.com (Bruce Burden)
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: Re: EiA: Problems
Date: 18 Nov 92 19:06:50 GMT
Organization: Tandem Computers (MPD) Austin, TX

In article <1992Nov18.150156.2112@ugle.unit.no> sigurdt@idt.unit.no (Sigurd Thunem) writes:
>
>Finally I reckommend to balance the game from the outset. The
>problems with Spain, Prussia, Austria, Turkey etc all originates
>in the dominant position of France and England. The game centers
>around France, and that gets boring in the long run. Use the
>Australian version!
>

	I think that people overlook the fact that France is weak in 
    the start of the game, that is to say Austria and Prussia can
    force a French surrender with out too many problems.

	However, what happens from that point is really up to the
    players. Austria and Prussia really need to build their forces and
    wait for the next round with France.

	The problems I have with the game are:

	GB: Large navy, tiny army. Unless you have a coalition against
    you, what is a sea battle? Training the Portugese helps, but the
    chances of training the Hanoverians is near zero.

	France: Just where to all of these 4 morale people come from
    anyway? As I recall history, the troops Welly defeated in the Iberian
    campaign weren't as well trained as the first few divisions.

	Prussia: Lose your army, and you are sunk. Prussia doesn't have
    the economy to replace an army devastated by surrender, and if the
    French rotation starts, it only gets worse.

	Austria: A large army, good leaders, and a healthy economy. I
    think that the Austrians have to avoid the temptation to over-expand,
    as this will draw unwanted attention to themselves, especially if
    France has been recently defeated.

	Turkey: Where do these damn feudal troops come from? I really
    dislike this rule, as it (and the low victory condition) allow the
    Turks to play "spoiler". A truely horrible country with the wrong
    (ie, obstinate) player.

	Russia: I really hate the fact that the French forage better 
    than the Russians in the winter. Nor do I like the fact that the
    Russian player receives a "homeland" benefit.

	Points in general: Treachery? What is treachery? I don't like
    the binding treaty and enforced minimum peace conditions, as you
    can't take advantage of the French "rotation". What better way to
    stop it than to have the French wonder if the Prussians will really
    honor the last 6 months of peace while they are pounding the
    Austrians? Will the Spanish and Turks really agree to their division
    of N. Africa?

	Forage: Can't agree with this one, especially when some of the
    really big French corps forage just like a small Russian one (or
    better, if they don't move).

	Don't get me wrong, as it is a good 7 player game, but there are
    some really strange things allowed (rather than prevented) by the
    rules. Perhaps there needs to be a popular revolt? :-)



								Bruce



-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
  Bruce Burden            bruceb@mpd.tandem.com         Tandem Computers Inc.
From: elric@imryrr.Eng.Sun.COM (Rick Heli)
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: Any experienced Junta players?
Date: 23 Nov 1992 20:44:20 GMT
Organization: Sun Microsystems Inc., Mountain View, CA
NNTP-Posting-Host: imryrr
Keywords: junta

Playing a game recently and ran into a problem interpreting the rules.  The
coup ended with 2 power centers controlled by the Pro-President forces, 2 power
centers controlled by Pro-Junta forces and the remaining power center occupied
by both Presidential and Junta forces.  How should control of this contested
area be resolved?  The only applicable rules section we found was under "40.
Coup Victory":

	The Junta controls an area if it is occupied 
	by at least one unit, and the occupying units
	belong to players who declared themselves 
	"Pro-Junta."  If even one unit belongs to a "Pro-
	President" player, the area is controlled by the
	President.

I interpret this to mean that in the situation described above the 
Presidential forces control the area, that is, that the rules mean
that the Junta controls the areas they occupy only if they have managed
to drive out all the Presidential units.  If even one Presidential unit
remains though, the President retains control.  

What do other players think?
--
						Rick Heli
						Internet:  rheli@sun.COM
Organization: Penn State University
Date: Tue, 17 Nov 1992 18:11:37 EST
From: Sime <TJS107@psuvm.psu.edu>
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: Driving Tigers?

Is that the name of the Car Wars fiction magazine, and is it still being
published?

If so, can someone give me the address of the guy who is putting it out?
Sorry if this is the wrong place, but this is where I put my CW posts and
no one has yelled at me yet...

Thanx for any help!

-Sime

"Let's toast the hero                       L   e   t   s
 With blood in his eyes,
 The scars on his mind                         G   o
 Took so many lives...
 Die Hard The Hunter"                       P   E   N   S
    -Def Leppard
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
From: wschip76@ursa.calvin.edu (Tom Schipper)
Subject: Re: A&A - Can the **AXIS** ever win?
Organization: Calvin College
Date: Mon, 23 Nov 1992 00:35:24 GMT

"Jonathan T. Moore" <jmci+@andrew.cmu.edu> writes:
>I've played this game for several years, and originally, buying tanks
>was the German strategy. This was successful only until one of us
>realized that it was pretty silly for Russia to buy anything other than
>infantry. Combined with a Russian attack on Eastern Europe in Round 1,
>we quickly saw that just the tanks wasn't going to cut it. We saw that
>it was necessary to buy some infantry, too, to soak up hits while the
>armor dished them out. Still later, we realized that the best strategy
>was to ONLY buy infantry, set up a chain of stacks of infantry marching
>towards Karelia (or Moscow), then launch an attack every turn,
>retreating when all your current inf stack had been destroyed. If things
>went well elsewhere, Russia had no chance of winning that particular war
>of attrition. Then, of course, we saw the U.S. realize it was perfectly
>fine to ignore Japan and pound Germany.....

Next Japan will realize that with no pressure it can take Russia from the
back.  Not to mention all the production Asia can put out...
From: dddawson@lpl.arizona.edu (Doug Dawson)
Newsgroups: rec.games.board
Subject: Re: BTECH-BAD night of rolling
Date: 18 Nov 92 16:38:45 GMT
Organization: Lunar & Planetary Laboratory, Tucson AZ.

Oh boy, bad dice stories...

It's unfortunately been too long to remember the exact mechs involved,
but I was in a heavy mech, fighting a medium and a light mech.

My mech proceeded to have the worst string of luck I'd ever seen,
winning initiative maybe 1/4 of the time and missing over 50% of 6+
rolls, etc.

The really frustrating thing, though, was the light mech.  It was
running all over the place with what would normally be a pitiful
load of weapons, something on the order of a flamer and a LRM-10
(due to some of the only damage I had managed to inflict on it.

At the end of the game, we added it up and realized that this mech
had hit _.every_ time it had fired that LRM-10, even on the 10+ rolls,
and that in fact it was only the very last hit, on the last shot of 
the LRM that killed me.  The medium mech had had its legs blown off and
was lying on the other side of a hill, so it wasn't in the battle
anymore.  If that light mech had _ever_ missed with that LRM, I would
have lived...
Newsgroups: rec.games.board