What got you started on this hobby?

[TOMLABEL]

First these by Marx plus some 1/12 soldiers sold individually at Rose's.

[TOMLABEL]

Then these (plus all the Squad Leader add ons' - GI Anvil Of Victory, Iron Cross, etc) Still have them all in my closet.

[TOMLABEL]

Then this.........

Nuff said.

TOMLABEL

[Dante Fierro]

Watching a game of France 1940 by Avalon Hill being played at a school after-hours, a long long time ago, in a galaxy far far away.

I was immediately hooked. Don't even know why since war is a horror few fully grasp (including probably myself). But the strategy and tactics of battle I found myself drawn to. I guess with these simulations, one gets the dramatic story of the fight without shedding a drop of blood. You might suffer some ego loss though.

[CaptBeefheart]

For me, Victory in the Pacific and Russian Campaign were first, in junior high (that is, post-Risk and Stratego). I went on to play several other AH, SPI and GDW titles (many owned by friends) and had an S&T subscription. I had a loudmouth guy in my fraternity who was always boasting about his knowledge of beer and how good he was at wargames. Of course, I calmly and quietly smoked him in a blind beer-identification contest, and then my team beat his at Midway playing both sides. His level of boasting diminished after that.

Thank God for computer games. I've never been in the military, but have moved maybe 18 times in the last 30 years, and lived in some pretty constricted spaces in Japan and Korea, so computer games have been the way to go. I finally cleared out my storage area in Arizona a couple of months ago and donated the remaining few of my boardgames to charity. Some lucky gamer will stumble on that store in Tempe, AZ (actually, probably most of them have jumbled or missing counters, so maybe not).

Cheers,
CC

[pontiouspilot]

AH....I think I either had them all or played them all. Give me a name of one of their games and I bet I have played it.

We had 3 x Panzer blitz and put them all together. I know we wore out 3 x Blitzkrieg games....and had a Blitzkrieg module system.

[tocaff]

When I was about 5 I was crawling around on the floor using marbles as men and bottle caps as their horses. First game I remember was Avalon Hill's Midway and here I am now all these years later.

[topeverest]

Never underestimate the value of a single malt scotch!

I played Victory In the Pacific, Submarine, Dungeons and Dragons, and Avalon hill Gettysburg in 1978 when I was ll

I have been in and out of war gamers rehab my whole life after that. I am pretty much hopeless.

[jamesjohns]

TOMLABEL, love the picture of Guns of Navarone, have to say that is the root cause for me also.

Moved on to stratego > Tactics II > Rise and Fall of The 3rd Reich

[TOMLABEL]

ORIGINAL: jamesjohns

TOMLABEL, love the picture of Guns of Navarone, have to say that is the root cause for me also.

Hi James!!! Glad I'm not alone!!!

TOMLABEL

[wegman58]

ORIGINAL: TOMLABEL

Then these (plus all the Squad Leader add ons' - GI Anvil Of Victory, Iron Cross, etc) Still have them all in my closet.

Those look familiar. But I started with Afrika Korps.

[bighinvegas]

What got my attention was Strategy & Tactics in a bookstore window in downtown Manhattan. I would read almost any military history. I picked it up out of curiosity, it had a game of ancient warfare. I only remember it having chariot forces and farmer units with scythes as the symbol. I was interested enough to pick up the next edition - Panzergruppe Guderian and I was hooked.
I guess that shows my age, it had to be 1973?

[John 3rd]

3rd Reich
Flattop
Submarine
Iron Bottom Sound/Royal Navy/a third title I forget

Did any of you subscribe to Avalon Hill's 'The General?'


AD&D always in the Background (from age 15-46)

Great Naval Battles Series (on the Computer)
UV
WitP
AE

[bigred]

ORIGINAL: TOMLABEL

Then this.........

Nuff said.

TOMLABEL

Our group is playing 1944 currently.

[chazz]

Avalon Hill. Panzerblitz, later on Squad Leader and Advanced SL. I played D&D in my early teens and remember that when not doing that I had a group of pals that loved "Car Wars". I also recall something called "Shogun" which was the Sengoku Jidai. Then I dabbled in tabletop gaming- Napoleonics and the Zulu War were my favorites.

[Andy Mac]

R.T Smiths games

Arnhem
Vulcan and Desert Rats for the Spectrum

[davidgillsol]

ORIGINAL: Roger Neilson 3

Airfix figures brought out, Brigadier Peter Young's book "Charge'. Began with miniatures but switched to boardgames with subscription to Strategy and Tactics after I graduated. Wrote a computer game for WW2 for the Spectrum...... just a month or two before Windows was released.....

Roger

My case as well. Lots of Airfix soldiers and tanks and airplanes and battleships- any then I found "Charge" in the local library, was fascinated by it, took it to school and got two others interested, and its been downhill since then. First Board game was SPI'S Barbarossa but figure gaming is my first love. I hate to think how many rule sets I have- bought two more over the weekend as just about to move to new house- partly so I can have a dedicated man cave big enough to have a big table permanently up. On computer I started with Sinclair Spectrum, programming it to be an ooponent for an old Avalon Hill American football game ( Paydirt I think), then onto loads of others. Currently WITE taking my time- biding my time before getting back into AE given the commitment. Looking forward to retirement to be able to play AE on line and shovel turns around!

[Jellicoe]

Started with Airfix soldiers and picked up my first wargames rules set circa 1980 'Operation Warboard' by Bernard and Gavin Lyall. Along the way have indulged in GDW Third World War series, all of VG Fleet series, War in the Pacific, Tokyo Express and various other map and counter joy. Also Napoleonic naval, a dash of ancients, crossfire and spearhead for 6mm. As for the PC, a range including Uncommon Valour and of course WITPAE

[HansBolter]

ORIGINAL: Commander Cody

For me, Victory in the Pacific and Russian Campaign were first, in junior high (that is, post-Risk and Stratego). I went on to play several other AH, SPI and GDW titles (many owned by friends) and had an S&T subscription. I had a loudmouth guy in my fraternity who was always boasting about his knowledge of beer and how good he was at wargames. Of course, I calmly and quietly smoked him in a blind beer-identification contest, and then my team beat his at Midway playing both sides. His level of boasting diminished after that.

Thank God for computer games. I've never been in the military, but have moved maybe 18 times in the last 30 years, and lived in some pretty constricted spaces in Japan and Korea, so computer games have been the way to go. I finally cleared out my storage area in Arizona a couple of months ago and donated the remaining few of my boardgames to charity. Some lucky gamer will stumble on that store in Tempe, AZ (actually, probably most of them have jumbled or missing counters, so maybe not).

Cheers,
CC

I wore out three full countermixes of Russian Campaign.

Literally the counters had so much wear they became impossible to read.

I still have the fourth copy I purchased.

[chazz]

ORIGINAL: sbetsa

Pacific Theater of Operations for Nintendo NES, loved that game

Oh, hell yeah. I used up a lot of hours on the KOEI strategy games - Tokugawa's Ambition, Bandit Kings of Ancient China and Genghis Kahn. I also remember the USN Subsim which name escapes me- you needed both controllers to play it. I loved it.

Genghis Kahn KOEI