In this fourth InsideGMT article about Prime Minister, we’ll take a look at the game’s thematic side: the people, bills, and events that bring Victorian Britain back to life.
Victorian Britain Comes to Life in Prime Minister
by
Search Results for: people power
Factions in Red Dust Rebellion: Church of the Reclaimer
by
We look to Earth and see the climate catastrophe unfolding. The droughts and storms, fires and floods that plague that world are the result of one thing and one thing only.
The base human drive to take more than we need.
We could have solved this problem centuries ago, but it was too hard. Too hard not to eat our fill and ask for more. Too hard not to burn oil for easy power. Too hard not to package every single confection in its own brightly colored wrapping paper. Too hard not to be self-indulgent, lazy, and weak.
And now the gaze of avarice turns to Mars. A new world to exploit. A new opportunity for more misery, and suffering. A new world to be consumed.
We must fundamentally change our ways as a species. We can no longer afford to live in an adversarial relationship with the world that gave birth to us. We must find a new balance, an equilibrium where we are part of a planet’s ecosystem, not the ravagers of it.
If we are to reclaim our future as a species, we must adapt to the worlds we live on. Not bend them to our will. They are planets, not products. And we are people, not consumers.
If Mars is to become a new home for humanity, then humanity must adapt to Mars. Or we are doomed as a species to repeat the same mistakes, over and over again, until both worlds finally destroy us.
The Ma’Adim, Reclaimer prophet
Congress of Vienna (with Wargame Flavor Rules) After Action Report Turns 6-8: “Austria at War”
by
Introduction by Congress of Vienna (CoV)’s Assistant Designer & Editor, Fred Schachter: The below is an After-Action-Report (AAR) of a CoV Campaign VASSAL game whose core players were located in the USA and Europe. It is a compilation of emails I provided the team between gaming sessions. I served as the game’s chronicler as well as an observer and kind of “living rulebook” should a question arise. A CoV Campaign Game comprises ten turns and a one turn session was conducted each Saturday.
The first five turn’s of this AAR, encompassing the period of Austria’s neutrality, before it joined the fray against that “Corsican Ogre”, Napoleon I, emperor of the French, are covered by this piece’s initial segment: Congress of Vienna (with Wargame Flavor Rules) After Action Reports Turns 1-5 “Austria’s Neutrality”. Inside GMT blog readers are encouraged to reference this for background as to how our AAR’s players came to the juncture this article encompasses.
During each one turn session the players were not rushed and could take as much time as desired to negotiate with one another and deliberate a play. No one minded each turn taking 1-2 hours to complete for everyone was having a joyously fun time (which, of course, is why we game)! It should be noted that experienced Congress of Vienna players, who agree to limit “table talk” or simply progress at a brisk pace, can get through a Campaign Game in 5-6 hours with the shorter scenarios being much quicker to complete.
To best appreciate this AAR, a general background regarding CoV will assuredly help. This can be gained by referencing GMT’s site for the game which is replete with a variety of material. See: GMT Games – Congress of Vienna
With that, enjoy this Congress of Vienna Campaign Game After-Action-Report for its turns 6-8, the period before Austria abandons neutrality and enters the war! At the conclusion of this history the four players share their musings about this particular contest and the Congress of Vienna game overall. The CoV VASSAL map saw a few improvements during this game’s conduct as Frank, myself, and the players noticed need for a clarifying “tweak” here and there as well as for a few rule improvements…
Factions in Red Dust Rebellion: Martian Provisional Government
by
Today marks the 20th anniversary of the human presence on Mars. 200 years ago, a small group of intrepid explorers from multiple of Earth’s nations set foot on our world. And starting from that first brave step, we have built all that you see around us today. A living, breathing, vibrant community, a rich diverse world of peoples from all the nations of Earth and many of us who have always called Mars home.
Today is a day when we must reflect one where we have come from. The debt we owe our forebears and the struggles and sacrifices they made to carve out a life in the barren rock of Mars. The botanists who learned to grow plants that feed us, the engineers who built the tunnels we live in, the scientists who built our water reclamation system, the miners who dug up the materials we need, and the machinists who built the places we now call home.
Today we must reflect on where we came from. But we must also look forward to the next 200 years of this greatest of human endeavors. We will terraform Mars. We will build a new world, a new home for humanity. It will be our greatest accomplishment. And for all that our forebears have done to bring us to this point, we must do more.
For our future, for our children’s future, and for the future of humanity. Let us all work together in this noblest of goals.
Teresa Yeo, Prime Minister of the Martian Assembly, Bi-centennial day address
Ancient Civilizations of the Middle East: Meet the Urartians
by
Below is the eighteenth in a series of articles from Mark McLaughlin showcasing the civilizations in Ancient Civilizations of the Middle East. You can find the first seventeen articles in the series here.
A New Wargamer’s Insights and Impressions from Time of Crisis
by
Below is an article featuring Time of Crisis insights and first impressions from first time player and InsideGMT contributor David Wiley of Swords and Chit and Cardboard Clash. You can also find this article on David’s blog. Enjoy! -Rachel
Congress of Vienna: Update and Look Back at an Exciting Year
by
Introduction by Congress of Vienna (CoV)’s Assistant Designer & Editor, Fred Schachter: December 2020 marks the one year anniversary of Congress of Vienna becoming a GMT P-500 listed game and we once again thank all who’ve placed much appreciated orders for CoV. What a year it has been; not only for us all due to the Pandemic, but for our beloved gaming hobby and the development of CoV.
This monthly update is a retrospective by designer Frank Esparrago, a reminiscence going back to the game’s earliest features. Its particular focus is on the developmental progress of Congress of Vienna since it made its debut as a prospective GMT game during July 2019’s CSW Expo in Tempe, AZ… ah for those wonderful seemingly halcyon days when we could physically gather for a good old traditional gaming convention! Hopefully, those days shall soon return.
In conjunction with this article’s InsideGMT publication, the latest files of sample cards and counters are shared. These replace those posted with CoV’s P-500 listing. For those, and a host of related Congress of Vienna material, which should provide useful and hopefully entertaining background for this article, kindly reference: GMT Games – Congress of Vienna
With that, take it away Frank!
A New Wargamer’s Insights and Impressions from Combat Commander: Europe
by
Below is an article featuring Combat Commander: Europe insights and first impressions from first time player and InsideGMT contributor David Wiley of Swords and Chit and Cardboard Clash. You can also find this article on David’s blog. Enjoy! -Rachel
China’s Red River Dance — Playing Next War: Vietnam (Part 1)
by
Ian M. Sullivan is the Special Advisor for Analysis and ISR at the Deputy Chief of Staff for Intelligence, US Army Training and Doctrine Command.
Disclaimer: All views expressed in this post are the author’s and do not necessarily reflect those of the Department of Defense, Department of the Army, or Army Training and Doctrine Command
Tanto Monta Design Diary #4: The Muslim Player
by
On August 21, 1415, the Portuguese seize the North African city of Ceuta in a surprise attack. Many now consider this conquest as the opening salvo in the European era of colonialism. For the Muslim world, the loss of this crucial port city clearly represents a turning point: prior to this time, it had always been the Muslim kingdoms from Africa who had invaded European lands. Over the next fifty years the Marinid Sultanate dissolves and no new Arab power can assert itself in the Maghreb. Wars arise between the splintered clans and tribes. Although nominally the Sultanates of Fez and Tremencen share control of these lands, in practice the power of these sultanates does not extend all the way to the Atlantic coast. Portugal is thus able to gain control of several cities along these shores. Will the Portuguese continue to dominate these port cities? If so they will suffocate the Arab caravan trade crossing Africa and ensure the safety of their new Portuguese settlements further down the coast of west Africa.