Siege of Augusta in Full Gear! Jan 21-23 2011
See our website here...
http://www.siegeofaugusta.com/cgi/index.php
Plan now to attend SOA XX in Augusta GA.
While many great things have been said about the Siege of Augusta, Phil Viverito, of Classical Hack fame and frequent attendee (who is often the person who drives the farthest to attend the Siege), has summed it up best as to what makes a convention great and why The Siege of Augusta falls into that category:
"There are many conventions all over the United States and Canada, we know we go to many of them and they are all nothing short of good. A good convention is a first and foremost a gathering place. Second it is a place to mingle with old friends and new. Then too it is an agora where you can make those important purchases and find out what is new and exciting. One thing for sure it is not size-quality always beats quantity. Other important things that make a good con include nice accommodations, easy access to and from the event and local places of interest and need. Most importantly it is where attendees simply do their thing: in this case GAME! So a good con offers a fine time, an equally fine place to gather and finally dissolving into good memories.
What Makes a GREAT Convention?
While we have found the 9 conventions we attend to always fulfill our expectations of a good and fine time, there is often the convention event that goes beyond being either of these two things. A GREAT convention is somehow different. It in some way leaves cleaner and sharper images of the convention experience. Perhaps there is no way to express it in words but the memories remain more intense. For us The Siege of Augusta is one of those GREAT conventions. Why? Perhaps it is the weather or the lovely town with its sights and sounds. It is certainly the people that attend. Heck that is a given; besides we would not even come if it was not for the people we see. Whatever the criteria may or may not be for some unexplainable reason, The Siege of Augusta fulfills our ideas and ideals of what a Great Convention is." Phil Viverito, December 1999. (emphasis added).
This is the weblog of the Old Dominion Military Society (ODMS). It is intended to be a listing of news items related to game announcements, meeting recaps, monthly overviews, convention AARs, campaign postings, etc. In short, the news items of record for our wargaming club.
Friday, September 17, 2010
Monday, August 30, 2010
Autumn Wargaming with ODMS
Upcoming Events -
Now that Guns of August is over, and before we get started in earnest on Williamsburg Muster, the ODMS guys can take a breather and enjoy some good old fashioned, down home, family values wargaming. You know - lots of dice and doom and despair.
The following schedule is a work in progress, but it lets you know what is going on...
Please, if you want to run a game, let us know so that you will be sure to have plenty of gamers (and the right gamers, who like your stuff) show up. We have room for some Napoleonics (hint hint) as well as more stuff on WWII and Moderns.
Chuck
Now that Guns of August is over, and before we get started in earnest on Williamsburg Muster, the ODMS guys can take a breather and enjoy some good old fashioned, down home, family values wargaming. You know - lots of dice and doom and despair.
The following schedule is a work in progress, but it lets you know what is going on...
- Sept 2 -
- Sept 9 - Hellenes (Chuck & Wayne),
Warrior (Dave, Cliff, Kai, others welcome) Macedonians v. Athenians (first round in the Phillip Fest) - Sept 16 - C&C:Ancients (Wayne & Chuck - others welcome!)
- Sept 23 - Blitzkrieg Commander - WWII (Wayne & Paul),
Day before Southern Front (Sept 24-26), in Raleigh - Sept 30 - Caucasus Campaign (Wayne & Paul)
- Oct 7
- Oct 14
- Oct 21 - BattleLore Epic Agincourt! (Chuck & ??)
- Oct 28
Day before Fall In (Oct 29-31), in Lancaster
Please, if you want to run a game, let us know so that you will be sure to have plenty of gamers (and the right gamers, who like your stuff) show up. We have room for some Napoleonics (hint hint) as well as more stuff on WWII and Moderns.
Chuck
Wednesday, August 18, 2010
Guns of August After Action Review
The convention was a great success, from the perspective of the staff. I can only hope the gamers felt the same way! (comment about your experience, please!)
On Thursday we got to the hotel (a day before the official start) to meet with the hotel staff and make sure everything was ship-shape. The tables we rent were late getting there, so some of the ODMS guys helped to set them up right, so that everyones games would go off with a minimum of disturbance over the weekend.
After all the setup (and getting the hundreds of sodas and snacks loaded into our Hospitality Room), there was a round of boardgaming in the gaming area (the tables have to be broken in, you know). The Vendors continued arriving all evening, from all over the eastern half of the US, and set up their fantastic wares.
The Thursday night boardgaming was terriffic. I played a really neat game of Reef Encounter (polyps anyone?), and then proceeded to totally Borg out in repeated games of Commands & Colors: Ancients (for those who don't know, Richard Borg is the designer of C&C:A).
The Reef Encounter game was with Anita, Heidi and Jeremy, and was a lot of fun. Jeremy was king Shrimple, getting his prolific shrimp all over the ocean floor, and it turned out that his Parrot Fish ate the most coral.
The C&C:A games were mostly against Wayne, but I also played against John Snelling as well. the battle was the same for each game - the Battle of Leuctra. Every time I played the Theben army, and every time I got the Sacred Band killed off by the Spartans. The first game was the most humiliating, as Wayne's Spartans totally evicerated me in about four turns. I actually won a game or two, but still lost the Sacred Band each and every time. I guess they weren't that Sacred after all.
Friday came, and there were plenty and plenty of miniatures games, as well as a whole lot of board games. I had to leave the convention in the afternoon for a few short hours, but in the evening when I returned, I got to run my "Neil Thomas" rules Napoleonics game. It was an ahistorical scenario - set in 1813 Saxony, with a British force facing off a French force twice its size, trying to buy time for the Prussian command in the area to arrive and help against the French. The British were played by Paul Knight, the Prussians were played by Scott Kidd, and the French were played by two players new to the rules, whom I did not know, but whom were real gentlemen to play with. The game went well, with Paul playing the role of a British commander very well (form a defended and anchored line of Infantry and hold it against repeated French assaults). The Prussians finally arrived, and the French decided that they had enough. My apologies to my players for not providing some really good player aids (the game needed quick-reference sheets).
Saturday came, and during the day all I did was to help out with the convention (spending many hours in the morning working Registration and meeting many of the great gamers who came to play at our show). In the afternoon, I got to spend a few short hours enjoying the hotel swimming pool (highly recommended) with my Daughter and some friends, and spending time talking to new gaming friends as well. Very nice.
Saturday afternoon, our Boardgaming room was a complete hit! It was filled to overflowing with boardgamers playing old and new wargames, and the Euro-games library that we had in the Hospitality Suite was really put to good use, with a bunch of gamers checking things out (most popular - SmallWorld and Steam). Tons of gaming in the Hospitality suite as well - Ticket to Ride, Carcassonne, Settlers of Catan, and so on.
On the Wargaming front, everything from the old SPI classic 1918 to the much newer Washington's War were being played. There was also the double blind Axis and Allies game (each player only knew where his own pieces were, not even his allies). Neato.
Napoleon came and visited the convention on Saturday afternoon, and stayed until about 5:00 or so, when he gave an address to the gamers and bid his Adieu. Afterwards, the great Guns of August Raffle took place, and thirty great gaming prizes were raffled off.
Saturday evening brought a new round of gaming for all involved, and I got to run my game of The Sword and the Flame. It was a total fun-fest, with the Anglo-Indian army attempting to rescue a small command of Miners waiting for transport down a river, and suddenly attacked by hostile hill tribesmen. This time, the British and the Indian troops were able to rescue the miners. A few casualties, but it was a successful operation.
Late night Saturday there was more gaming. Card gaming, to be sure. Plagues and Pestilence, which I (miraculously) won. I almost never win those kinds of games, because there is almost always a "pile on chuck" phase, but this time I drank some excellent imported beer, and played it cool, while my fellow Medieval City Builders were busily destroying each other with mongols, vikings and bubonic bonbons.
Sunday came, with more gaming and final shopping in the great Guns of August Hobby Bazaar, and afterward the vendors started breaking up and heading home, and the final games were played, and we all sang hey nonny nonny and bid each faretheewell until the Williamsburg Muster.
It was a great time, and I hope you can make it to our next show!
On Thursday we got to the hotel (a day before the official start) to meet with the hotel staff and make sure everything was ship-shape. The tables we rent were late getting there, so some of the ODMS guys helped to set them up right, so that everyones games would go off with a minimum of disturbance over the weekend.
After all the setup (and getting the hundreds of sodas and snacks loaded into our Hospitality Room), there was a round of boardgaming in the gaming area (the tables have to be broken in, you know). The Vendors continued arriving all evening, from all over the eastern half of the US, and set up their fantastic wares.
The Thursday night boardgaming was terriffic. I played a really neat game of Reef Encounter (polyps anyone?), and then proceeded to totally Borg out in repeated games of Commands & Colors: Ancients (for those who don't know, Richard Borg is the designer of C&C:A).
The Reef Encounter game was with Anita, Heidi and Jeremy, and was a lot of fun. Jeremy was king Shrimple, getting his prolific shrimp all over the ocean floor, and it turned out that his Parrot Fish ate the most coral.
The C&C:A games were mostly against Wayne, but I also played against John Snelling as well. the battle was the same for each game - the Battle of Leuctra. Every time I played the Theben army, and every time I got the Sacred Band killed off by the Spartans. The first game was the most humiliating, as Wayne's Spartans totally evicerated me in about four turns. I actually won a game or two, but still lost the Sacred Band each and every time. I guess they weren't that Sacred after all.
Friday came, and there were plenty and plenty of miniatures games, as well as a whole lot of board games. I had to leave the convention in the afternoon for a few short hours, but in the evening when I returned, I got to run my "Neil Thomas" rules Napoleonics game. It was an ahistorical scenario - set in 1813 Saxony, with a British force facing off a French force twice its size, trying to buy time for the Prussian command in the area to arrive and help against the French. The British were played by Paul Knight, the Prussians were played by Scott Kidd, and the French were played by two players new to the rules, whom I did not know, but whom were real gentlemen to play with. The game went well, with Paul playing the role of a British commander very well (form a defended and anchored line of Infantry and hold it against repeated French assaults). The Prussians finally arrived, and the French decided that they had enough. My apologies to my players for not providing some really good player aids (the game needed quick-reference sheets).
Saturday came, and during the day all I did was to help out with the convention (spending many hours in the morning working Registration and meeting many of the great gamers who came to play at our show). In the afternoon, I got to spend a few short hours enjoying the hotel swimming pool (highly recommended) with my Daughter and some friends, and spending time talking to new gaming friends as well. Very nice.
Saturday afternoon, our Boardgaming room was a complete hit! It was filled to overflowing with boardgamers playing old and new wargames, and the Euro-games library that we had in the Hospitality Suite was really put to good use, with a bunch of gamers checking things out (most popular - SmallWorld and Steam). Tons of gaming in the Hospitality suite as well - Ticket to Ride, Carcassonne, Settlers of Catan, and so on.
On the Wargaming front, everything from the old SPI classic 1918 to the much newer Washington's War were being played. There was also the double blind Axis and Allies game (each player only knew where his own pieces were, not even his allies). Neato.
Napoleon came and visited the convention on Saturday afternoon, and stayed until about 5:00 or so, when he gave an address to the gamers and bid his Adieu. Afterwards, the great Guns of August Raffle took place, and thirty great gaming prizes were raffled off.
Saturday evening brought a new round of gaming for all involved, and I got to run my game of The Sword and the Flame. It was a total fun-fest, with the Anglo-Indian army attempting to rescue a small command of Miners waiting for transport down a river, and suddenly attacked by hostile hill tribesmen. This time, the British and the Indian troops were able to rescue the miners. A few casualties, but it was a successful operation.
Late night Saturday there was more gaming. Card gaming, to be sure. Plagues and Pestilence, which I (miraculously) won. I almost never win those kinds of games, because there is almost always a "pile on chuck" phase, but this time I drank some excellent imported beer, and played it cool, while my fellow Medieval City Builders were busily destroying each other with mongols, vikings and bubonic bonbons.
Sunday came, with more gaming and final shopping in the great Guns of August Hobby Bazaar, and afterward the vendors started breaking up and heading home, and the final games were played, and we all sang hey nonny nonny and bid each faretheewell until the Williamsburg Muster.
It was a great time, and I hope you can make it to our next show!
Tuesday, July 27, 2010
Napoleon to appear at Guns of August
It is true! Mark Schneider, in the role of the Emperor Napoleon, will be appearing at Guns of August!
See the press release at The Miniatures Page.
For more information on the convention see the Guns of August website!
For more information on the convention see the Guns of August website!
Tuesday, June 29, 2010
Upcoming Events
Hello Folks - we have a couple of Momentous upcoming events.
First, there is Historicon - July 8-11 in Valley Forge, PA
Second there is CarlCon (this year's theme - "Carl isn't going to be there") - at the hanger July 8-11 (for those not able to make it to Valley Forge)
Third, there is Guns of August - ODMS's first Summertime convention! Go, play games, no snow. August 13-15, Williamsburg VA.
Fourth, there is Southern Front - TSS's headliner convention, the oldest miniatures wargaming convention in America, going back to the Baroque Era. Held September 24-26, in Raleigh NC.
Fifth there is Fall In - HMGS's fall convention, moved this year from Gettysburg to Lancaster. Held October 28-31
As you can see - there are plenty of dates in between for games. Send me your list(s) of games and I'll get them posted. Also, we are looking for victims, er, hosts for games during CarlCon!! Likewise we are looking for more games for Guns of August!!
Chuck (friendly local GM)
First, there is Historicon - July 8-11 in Valley Forge, PA
Second there is CarlCon (this year's theme - "Carl isn't going to be there") - at the hanger July 8-11 (for those not able to make it to Valley Forge)
Third, there is Guns of August - ODMS's first Summertime convention! Go, play games, no snow. August 13-15, Williamsburg VA.
Fourth, there is Southern Front - TSS's headliner convention, the oldest miniatures wargaming convention in America, going back to the Baroque Era. Held September 24-26, in Raleigh NC.
Fifth there is Fall In - HMGS's fall convention, moved this year from Gettysburg to Lancaster. Held October 28-31
As you can see - there are plenty of dates in between for games. Send me your list(s) of games and I'll get them posted. Also, we are looking for victims, er, hosts for games during CarlCon!! Likewise we are looking for more games for Guns of August!!
Chuck (friendly local GM)
Friday, June 11, 2010
Battle of McDowell - June 17 at the Hangar
June 17 - Battle of McDowell (May 8, 1862)
4 player playtest of my ACW battle for Guns Of August using the Niel Thomas ACW rules (with some modifications). The play area is 4ft square with a lot of elevation changes (see this map):
My elevations and rivers will be all done, but I'd like to get some help from the club to use the available ODMS stock of buildings, bridges, trees, crops, etc to make for some nice eye candy.
In particular, I need to get the town of McDowell to look pretty good for the second scenario, where Jackson attacks the Federals in the town.
4 player playtest of my ACW battle for Guns Of August using the Niel Thomas ACW rules (with some modifications). The play area is 4ft square with a lot of elevation changes (see this map):
In particular, I need to get the town of McDowell to look pretty good for the second scenario, where Jackson attacks the Federals in the town.
Upcoming Games for ODMS at the Hangar!
Hey Lads - some wargaming is about to commence!!
Okay, here at the upcoming dates -
June 12 - Battle of Oder (15mm Napoleonics, Shako2, Steven Maccabe) - 6pm
June 17 - Battle of McDowell (15mm ACW, Neil Thomas Rules, Cliff Creech) - 6pm
June 19 - Crossing the Hoffhandel (15mm Napoleonics, Shako2, Chuck Turnitsa) - 10am
July 8 - Entering Beulah Land (28mm ACW, Black Powder, Chuck Turnitsa) - 6pm
Upcoming Conventions -
July 8-11 - Carl Con - Our "Consolation" convention - held at the Hangar (for those that can't make it to Valley Forge this year).
July 8-11 - Historicon - in Valley Forge, PA.
August 13-15 - Guns of August - Williamsburg, VA.
September 24-26 - Southern Front, Raleigh, NC.
October 29-31 - Fall In, Lancaster, PA.
We need more events (both at the Hangar, and for Guns of August) - send em in!!
-blog management
Okay, here at the upcoming dates -
June 12 - Battle of Oder (15mm Napoleonics, Shako2, Steven Maccabe) - 6pm
June 17 - Battle of McDowell (15mm ACW, Neil Thomas Rules, Cliff Creech) - 6pm
June 19 - Crossing the Hoffhandel (15mm Napoleonics, Shako2, Chuck Turnitsa) - 10am
July 8 - Entering Beulah Land (28mm ACW, Black Powder, Chuck Turnitsa) - 6pm
Upcoming Conventions -
July 8-11 - Carl Con - Our "Consolation" convention - held at the Hangar (for those that can't make it to Valley Forge this year).
July 8-11 - Historicon - in Valley Forge, PA.
August 13-15 - Guns of August - Williamsburg, VA.
September 24-26 - Southern Front, Raleigh, NC.
October 29-31 - Fall In, Lancaster, PA.
We need more events (both at the Hangar, and for Guns of August) - send em in!!
-blog management
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