For my final article on the new Sovereign of Discord expansion, I will focus on one of the themes of the Bonus Events that are included for the base game. The expansion includes 40 new Events to be used with the original Fire in the Lake scenarios and the two additional base game scenarios that […]
Sovereign of Discord Bonus Events: Women’s Role in the Vietnam War Read Post »
Designer BlogsLast article, I covered the struggle in South Vietnam between the Ngo Dinh Diem regime and the Viet Cong (VC) insurgency. Both sides in the war received external assistance and advice from sponsors seeking to direct the conflict and exert control over their clients. Over the course of the Kennedy administration (1961-1963), US assistance in
Sovereign of Discord: External Support Read Post »
Designer BlogsIn my last InsideGMT article, I gave some background on the Ngo Dinh Diem regime and covered some of the threats to the regime besides the Viet Cong (VC) insurgency. In this article I shift focus to the war in the countryside between the ARVN and VC players. In the early 1960s, the Strategic Hamlet
Sovereign of Discord: The Strategic Hamlet Program Read Post »
Designer BlogsThe Sovereign of Discord expansion for Fire in the Lake allows players to explore an earlier period of the Vietnam War rarely covered in wargaming, the closing years of Ngo Dinh Diem regime (1961-1963). Although there are a few tactical games and scenarios on the battle of Ap Bac in 1963, I struggled to find
Sovereign of Discord: Sink or Swim with Ngo Dinh Diem Read Post »
Designer BlogsThe single most important goal of the new COIN bot designs is usability. There are many places where small changes have been made to enhance usability, but the primary change (and a large one!) is the division of the operation selection and space selection priorities into different charts. Trưng divides these using the same principles
Fire in the Lake Tru’ng Bot Example of Play: NVA March Read Post »
Designer Blogs, Examples of PlayI remember cracking the seal on my first COIN game – Colonial Twilight – and seeing that bot chart in the box. I was a relatively new wargamer, and Colonial Twilight was not only my first COIN game but also my first P500 (much to my wallet’s chagrin, it was not my last!). After playing
Design Diary: How and Why We Are Evolving the Fire in the Lake Bot System Read Post »
Designer Blogs, Solitaire SystemsThis month’s P500 announcement of a new Fire in the Lake bot system has prompted much excitement from Fire in the Lake fans, and several questions which I will answer in this article. This article is a Q&A format, but keep reading to the bottom to get a sneak peek at the new Trưng Solitaire
A Sneak Peek at Tru’ng: The New Fire in the Lake Bot System Read Post »
Designer Blogs, Solitaire SystemsToday’s Fire in the Lake Strategy Tips article is from Robert Crowter-Jones, the writer behind ElusiveMeeple, a wonderful and very useful site that provides both reviews and strategy tips for a wide variety of boardgames. Robert has reviewed Fire in the Lake in some depth and written strategy tips for the game on his blog (see the ElusiveMeeple site). For strategy
Fire in the Lake Strategy Tips from ElusiveMeeple Read Post »
Strategy Articles“A game design is never finished, only published.” Hello COIN Series fans! On the basis of recent tournament experience with Fire in the Lake and how some players are reacting to the US Faction mechanics, we have been noodling various modifications to the US Faction, particularly for tournament play of the Short scenario. Also, we
Fire in the Lake: Designer Variants Read Post »
Designer BlogsWelcome to the first Strategy Article we’ve published in InsideGMT! Unlike the majority of our articles, this one was not written by one of our designers or developers, but by one of our players. I want to thank Mark D. (the new owner of Grognard.com)  for creating such a well-conceived and well-written article that’s aimed at helping
Perfect Openings: First Turn VC Strategy in Fire in the Lake Read Post »
Strategy Articles