Thu, 3 July 2014
Welcome to Episode XXII of Guns, Dice, Butter; a series of conversations (238+ minutes in this case, given, our 238th Fourth of July) with members of the wargaming tribe. O:05 Joe Balkoski: intro to gaming, SPI stories, Minuteman, War in the Ice, City Fight & Wacht Am Rhein, Operation Typhoon 0:33 Joe: Cover art to Patton’s Third Army, Redmon Simonsen, SPI Peak, Transition to Avalon Hill Classic, end day at SPI, 0:54 Joe: AH days, Victory Games, The Korean War 1:09 Joe: Great Campaigns of the American Civil War, Computer Gaming, post gaming, 29th Division, returning to the tribe
1:40 Nick Karp, Discussion of Desert Fox, games in the pipeline for Shenandoah Studio
2: 00 Mark Herman, Enrico Viglino, Marty Sample: “Perspective” overview, the game the Bermuda Triangle (and a discussion about the ability to control weather in the true spirit of what Richard Berg calls “playing a game from the god perspective”), Sim City, Integrated Poly/Mil Leadership, WiF/DoD, Kevin Zucker’s Napoleonic series of games, Berg’s Carthage & Rise of Roman Republic, Karp’s Vietnam 2: 20 Mark, Enrico, Marty: Enrico’s Scale & Scope rant, D&D, La Grand Guerre, Mark’s great story about John Glenn (yes, THAT John Glenn), Churchill’s bunker and mind, Unconditional Surrender, Supreme Commander, Days of Dis 2:42 Mark’s Churchill design goes to the Peloponnesian War, Lace Wars/Red Sash, games that give you orders: Musket & Pike, Hastings 1066, Men of Iron, Flowers or the Forest, playing Angicourt at SPI 3:03: Items that distract from “perspective”, tactical WWII games, disturbing swimsuit attire, Mark’s Rommel story (yes, THAT Rommel), Patton, reprint of Pacific War, new WBC location discussion
3:25 Salvatore Vasta: Discussion of his new design Unconditional Surrender
4:00 Guns, Dice, Butter wrap: gaming plate, shout outs
4:07 Remembering some of our dear gaming mates that have passed
4:13 Applenista
Guns, Dice, Butter, now with approximately 50,000 downloads, is available on iTunes, Boardgame Geek, Consimworld, elsewhere and the GDB website: http://gunsdicebutter.libsyn.com/
Items mentioned on the podcast: La Grande Guerre session report: http://www.boardgamegeek.com/article/16190004 The Korean War session report:
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/1191569 Liberty Roads session report: http://www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/1187618 Empires in Arms session report: http://www.boardgamegeek.com/thread/1170211 1st MN Historical Wargaming Society: http://www.boardgamegeek.com/guild/875 Wargamers paying it forward: http://www.boardgamegeek.com/geeklist/174505 Lace Wars
Comments[3]
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Hey David, just listened to this podcast last week and enjoyed it immensely! I loved your interview with Joe Balkoski! I've seen his name over the years, but wasn't aware of all the big name games he designed. After listening to him talk I now really want to get his games. In fact after listening to your podcast I did some reading about Joe on BGG and that's where I discovered that he wrote a very well received book called "Beyond the Beachhead" about the 29th Division in the Normandy invasion. I immediately went to Amazon and ordered a copy! I can't wait to read it. Being an older guy (pushing 59 years as of this writing) I grew up and lived those wonderful days of AH, SPI, GDW and others. I was broken hearted when SPI failed and felt that pain again and again as the others collapsed along the way, ending with the fall of Avalon Hill. I, like many others, fell away from wargaming for years what with raising a family, work and thinking the hobby was dead. Thank the good Lord the internet came along and I discovered that some other wonderful companies like GMT, MMP, Legion and others picked up the fallen banners and are carrying on in the place of the Old Gods. As you get older you get more nostalgic and sentimental, at least I have. Thank you so very, very much for talking to these great designers who created our hobby. I really love hearing their stories from back in the day at Avalon Hill, SPI and so on. It gives me a chance to glimpse behind the curtain from so many years ago and get just a small feel of what it was like to work there, play there and just hang out there. Are you going to do more? If I may suggest a couple that I'd love to hear you talk to. John Butterfield who designed some wonderful games including many solitaire games for those of us who don't readily have opponents much of the time. I kind of think of him as Mr. Battle of Britain as he's designed so many games on that battle and he's also Mr. Solitaire too as he's done so many of those kind of games. He created games at SPI such as Four Battles of Army Group South, Dawn of the Dead, Battle over Britian for TSR/SPI, Ambush! for Victory Games, and more recently D-Day at Omaha Beach, and RAF for Decision Games and Enemy Action Ardennes for Compass Games. Many people comment on what a humble, nice guy he is. A real class act. As a final bonus for you since you've said many, many times that you hate rules writing or reading, John's rules are considered to be some of the clearest in the hobby. Many even think his are the best written, period! I'd love to hear his stores about SPI and how he helped co-found Victory Games. At least I believe I heard that he did so. I'd also like to hear you interview Kevin Zucker, Mr. Napoleon. Kevin designed games for OSG and SPI and is known for all his work on Napoleon games. In fact he current owns and operates OSG and is still designing Napoleon games. I'd love to hear his time at SPI also. Keep up the great work and we'll keep listening! Oh, before I forget, if I had one request I could ask you it would be this. I'd love for you to ask the designers you interview what designers do they think are making some great games and what are some of those games. I can't think of a better way for us, the listening audience, to find some great games than to hear from the guys who make them tell us what they think is good. I mean if I hear Mr. Balkoski say that he thinks, for instance, that John Butterfield's games are just great and even names a few particulars then I'm thinking, 'Wow, he's a great designer and he thinks this game is great then I want that game!!' Just a thought. Thanks!
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Brilliant podcast you have reinvigorated my love of the war gaming hobby. I have been steadily buying games I have heard referenced on this podcast from Breakout Normandy to High Frontier. One day I hope to travel from Australia to the WBC and hopefully get to shake you hand. Keep up this invaluable service to the sublime art that is Wargaming