Periods that won you over?

[Ivan Sorensen]

Anyone have periods that they were not initially interested in (or actively disinterested in), but something happened to win you over? A range of minis? A rulebook? A book you read?

(Fantasy and scifi count as periods here I suppose).

Asking since I usually have no interest in medievals beyond Arthurian stuff, but those Victrix plastics are mighty tempting.

[Logain]

That’s happened to me a few times. I had no interest in Napoleonics until I read Patrick O’Brien’s books. (Books)

No interest in ww2 until Five Core led me to Five Men. (Rule set)

No interest in Arthurian until Splintered Light came out with their lines. (Minis).

Honestly it is one of the attractions to the hobby for me – combining art/research/story telling/gaming.

[Orm Embar]

Currently Shogun Wars era Japan is trying to win me over, but I am resisting…..

[madman]

I was into gaming full time from ’73 until ’93. No interest in Eastern front WWII but keen on Western front. Got back into gaming in 2016 and now interested in Eastern front and not so western other than maybe Italy. Also was more interested in armour but now infantry with small amounts of armour in support only.

 

[General Slade]

I had no interest in the American Civil War until a friend suggested I should read Bruce Catton. I started with This Hallowed Ground and was instantly hooked on all things Blue vs Grey.

[Mr. Average]

I had little to no interest in Fantasy until I discovered the 6mm line from Microworld Games – and then 3mm scale leaked the deal!

[Shaun Travers]

The June & July 1979 Military Modelling magazine had some rules for Naval Medieval in the English Channel.  Bought some 1/300 Lamming cogs and still play occasionally.  Have 1/2 dozen rules suitable.  No other naval period have taken my interest.

Also never really interested in WW2 skrtmish with 5-10 figures a side but about 10 years ago NUTS! convinced me it was good.  It has also led to an interest in SF skirmish as well.

[Sane Max]

WW2 wargaming until i read the first ‘Blitzkrieg Commander’ previous rules I had seen or tried had always put me right off, and when my fellow club members started playing another system instead, I stopped. I have a fairly large collection of stuff that hasn’t had a run out in 10 years.

[Aethelflaeda was framed]

General Slade wrote:

I had no interest in the American Civil War until a friend suggested I should read Bruce Catton. I started with This Hallowed Ground and was instantly hooked on all things Blue vs Grey.

 

My exact experience as well.  Canton is great.  I still can’t quite bring myself to start painting forces yet to play often with others, as the some of players here are apologists (i live in the Deep South) and still exert a bit of partisanship that is off putting.

 

Cowboy gaming is a period I initially paid little attention to but FFOL Dracula’s America swayed me completely into the genre.  I am slos being drawn to FPW.

Mick Hayman
Margate and New Orleans

[Darkest Star Games]

Logain wrote:

That’s happened to me a few times. I had no interest in Napoleonics until I read Patrick O’Brien’s books. (Books)

SAME!  I have yet to find the rule set that’s for me, but I’m still trying.

As a corollary to the above, I had no interest in pirates until a bud showed me a great paint job on a mini he had found laying on the street miles away from any game store (for real!).  We decided that the dude deserved a raft, no- a boat, no- a SHIP!  And thus our huge-ass convention game of Fistfull of Seamen was born.   (and the ship combat in it is not historical at all so it won’t suffice for my Napoleonic sailing ship fights)

I had zero interest in cowboy or zombie gaming until Two Hour Wargames put out their rules.  Played them at a convention and had so much fun that I dove right in full force.  Their NUTS! rules are also what got me into writing rulesets and scenario books for them.

 

"I saw this in a cartoon once, but I'm pretty sure I can do it..."

[madman]

Darkest Star

My first wargame was Wooden Ships & Iron Men back in ’74 (Battleline) and every now and again I get to play it. Feels great and not too in the weeds (or is that me). It might scratch your itch.

[Aethelflaeda was framed]

Darkest Star Games wrote:

Logain wrote:

That’s happened to me a few times. I had no interest in Napoleonics until I read Patrick O’Brien’s books. (Books)

SAME! I have yet to find the rule set that’s for me, but I’m still trying. As a corollary to the above, I had no interest in pirates until a bud showed me a great paint job on a mini he had found laying on the street miles away from any game store (for real!). We decided that the dude deserved a raft, no- a boat, no- a SHIP! And thus our huge-ass convention game of Fistfull of Seamen was born. (and the ship combat in it is not historical at all so it won’t suffice for my Napoleonic sailing ship fights) I had zero interest in cowboy or zombie gaming until Two Hour Wargames put out their rules. Played them at a convention and had so much fun that I dove right in full force. Their NUTS! rules are also what got me into writing rulesets and scenario books for them.

 

And I always thought that rum and sodomy was the first choice of pirates!

Mick Hayman
Margate and New Orleans

[Ivan Sorensen]

A ruleset that got me interested in a period, though I didn’t end up playing it much was Chassepot&Needlegun.

[Logain]

Darkest Star – have you tried Sharp Practice? I feel it captures the small actions and narrative described in Patrick O’Brien’s novels and is a lot of fun.

General Slade – haven’t read This Hallowed Ground but it’s now next on my reading list – thanks!

[Sane Max]

ACW Wargamers -Catton IS superb, but were none of you secretly hooked by that excellent PBS series???? None of you? c’mon you are allowed to admit it…..

O’Brian – very odd that ‘Jane Austen for men’ got you all into small unit land warfare and not Naval. I am a total Stephen Maturin, in that I know the words Jack is saying about ‘Backing the main gibbler’ and ‘Splicing the Marthamble’ mean something but I dont really know what, but didn’t it get any of you into Naval Warfare instead?

[Darkest Star Games]

Sane Max wrote:

but didn’t it get any of you into Naval Warfare instead?

Nothing said about small units, but the PO’B books lent me an interest in both land and naval warfare of that war, and why I (probably incorrectly) used the word “Napoleonics”. And I have yet to find the rules that agree with me for all things Nappy, boats and boots and hooves included, though I have enjoyed the larger sweep of the ESR rules despite my horrible handling of them…

"I saw this in a cartoon once, but I'm pretty sure I can do it..."

[6mmwargaming]

FPW was a period I’d never considered until there was a Wargames Illustrated special on this period. 5 years later and I’m still building forces for it.

Another is WW1 which I never really wanted to game but a ruleset called “Last War” by the same people who wrote Forbidden Psalms, got me into 28mm skirmish. Also the new plastics from Wargames Alantic helped make it a cheap project.

My 6mm Wargaming site https://6mm.wargaming.info

[Ivan Sorensen]

I should also add that reading a lot of John Buchan and Sir Walter Scott lately has made me ponder some sort of Jacobin related skirmishing.

[Guy Farrish]

Jacobin?

or Jacobite?

[Ivan Sorensen]

Oops! Jacobites! But I suppose French revolutionary street fighting would also be fun!

[Mr. Average]

It’s all fun and games until they guillotine you on the 9th of Thermidor.

[Patrice]

Many years ago I never thought I could ever be interested in the 16th or 17th century… Then I got involved in some re-enactments; and later I found informations about the War or Religion in Brittany then I wanted to game it.

Also the first time I saw an article in a magazine about Copplestone’s Back of Beyond I thought it was weird and not for me. A few years later I bought plenty, and I still haven’t finished. 😉

Ivan Sorensen wrote:

I suppose French revolutionary (…)

Never thought I would do that either, but we’ve also been doing a few games about the FRW Chouans in Brittany.

http://www.argad-bzh.fr/argad/en.html
https://www.anargader.net/

[OB]

League of Augsburg for me.  Once in I never stopped.  I recently ordered 3 Army Packs from Irregular Miniatures.  I already have 4 Armies for the period.

OB
http://withob.blogspot.co.uk/

[Author]

Posts