12 October 2011

Solo Wargaming

I've tried looking into solo wargaming a few times, but I really haven't found much other than a few recommendations for existing systems to use. Today's fit of curiosity is fueled by two posts on TMP:

http://theminiaturespage.com/boards/msg.mv?id=245210

http://theminiaturespage.com/boards/msg.mv?id=244902

What I'm wondering is whether solo gamers just play both sides in most games, or if there is some further "automation" of one side or the other, either through random actions,or flowcharts setting conditions or reactions, etc.

I enjoy pitting tactics against  an opponent, whether that's a live person or the AI in the rare computer game (haven't played any in something nearing a decade, but I've been thinking about the PC version of FoG as an alternative to tabletop gaming.) So I'm not certain how I feel about fully playing both sides.

Any thoughts?

Information online somewhere?

4 comments:

  1. Probably the only solo wargaming I do would be testing out an army to see what it can do. For example, a mock up of a BA army that I'd test my Plague Marines against. Obviously, it's hard to get the interaction and unpredictability of a human opponent. However, to get the feel for a new army (or new tactics), it's about as good as you can get on a Wednesday night with no gaming buddies nearby!

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  2. I've never played a solo miniature wargame (although I tried board games), but I played once in a collaboration scenario for Necromunda where a few gangs were fighting an endless horde of plague zombies. Can't remember exactly how it worked, but the zombies were moving following a simple flowchart (zombies moving in a general direction, plus some random factor, charging automatically if they were in range to do so, etc...). Of course, zombies are not known for the quality of their tactics...

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  3. Programmed Scenarios,CS Grant, is a great book for this.I also have Featherstone's and S Asquiths books on solo play. Strangely,I've done very little of it.A couple of years ago I did 3 Song of Blades and Heroes one night,and did enjoy it.

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  4. I found the Grant book on Amazon a while ago. It's $100 used. Maybe I should see if it's available through the library instead.

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