- This topic has 10 replies, 4 voices, and was last updated 8 years, 3 months ago by
Russell Phillips.
-
AuthorPosts
-
22/01/2016 at 09:26 #37111
Russell PhillipsParticipantFor the last couple of years, I’ve taken part in Crisis Point, a large weekend-long annual wargame near Sheffield.
We’re currently looking for players (you can be based anywhere in the world) to take part in our matrix game. This is a play-by-email game that will last a couple of months and will go a long way to determining the events at Crisis Point 2016.
The games are set in Andreivia, a fictional ex-Soviet republic. All you need to take part in the matrix game is email. If you’re interested, reply here, join our Yahoo group, or post on our Facebook wall.
If you’re interested in playing in the game (19th & 20th March this year), reply or contact us as above. If you don’t have suitable models we’ll be able to provide some. If you have 20mm cold war models or figures, we’ll probably be able to use them. The setting was written to allow a great deal of flexibility in models 😉
22/01/2016 at 09:42 #37120
Alvin MolethrottlerParticipantAt the risk of seeming ignorant, what is a matrix game?
22/01/2016 at 09:52 #37122Russell PhillipsParticipantApparently they were invented by Chris Engle. They’re good for high-level games, and we use them to establish the background to the actions that are wargamed out at the weekend. They also lend themselves to play by email.
Taken from Richard’s initial explanation:
[Matrix games] involve players taking turns to state “arguments” that establish events.
I’d propose that our arguments be of the form:
Action – Result – Reason 1 – Reason 2 – Reason 3
The Umpire would then rate the argument as one of:
Very Strong (succeeds on a 2+)
Strong (succeeds on a 3+)
Average (succeeds on a 4+)
Weak (succeeds on a 5+)
Very weak (succeeds on a 6)
Unrealistic (fails automatically).Suppose we are playing a three player (plus umpire) Matrix Game of the 1066 campaign. The umpire has determined (by dice rolling) that the players will make their arguments in the order Normans then Saxons then Danes.
The first time round various arguments were made with the Norman player successfully arguing that William has the full support of the other Norman nobles. The Saxon and Danish players both failed in their arguments.
When the turn returns again to William, he argues as follows:
“The Normans build a fleet of ships in the bay of the Seine (Action). This means they will be able to transport an army to England (Result). They can do this because the coast of Normandy is wooded, the weather is fair in Spring and William has the support of the nobles (three Reasons).”
Note that of the three supporting Reasons only one has previously been established by an Argument. The other reasons may or may not be true. They don’t become true even if this Argument succeeds.
The umpire wavers between rating this Argument as Average or Weak but he rolls a d6 and gets five! The Normans now have a fleet of ships ready to carry their army (but note than neither good weather nor wooded coast are established as facts).
Fearing that he is getting left behind, Harold Godwinson argues:
“Bad weather destroys the Norman fleet (Action) setting their invasion plans back by months (Result). This happens because the English Channel can be stormy in Spring, the Bay of the Seine is relatively open and God supports the Anglo-Saxon side.”
This is asking for a lot and doesn’t have much in its favour. The Umpire declares that he can’t, in conscience, rate it higher than Very Weak (but notes that he’d have looked more favourably on an argument calling for a shorter delay or a partially damaged fleet). He rolls the die and it comes up… six! Harold has lucked out and the Norman fleet is indeed scattered by unseasonable storms.
It’s then Harald Hardrada’s turm and the game continues…
22/01/2016 at 10:09 #37123
PaulParticipantSounds like fun. How often would you need to contribute?
Those are brave men knocking at our door. Let's go kill them!
22/01/2016 at 10:25 #37124Russell PhillipsParticipantPaul,
Last year it varied a lot depending on people’s commitments in the real world. I think turns generally took one or two weeks, and you’d submit one argument per turn. Richard wrote up a summary of what had happened at the end of each turn.
So, you’d probably need to write an email every week or so, and read emails in between times.
22/01/2016 at 10:54 #37127PaulParticipantSounds easily manageable. Sign me up please sir. Will drop you a private message later with my email address.
Those are brave men knocking at our door. Let's go kill them!
22/01/2016 at 12:37 #37143Russell PhillipsParticipant22/01/2016 at 14:24 #37152PaulParticipant
A bit far from South Africa so will have to give it a miss.Those are brave men knocking at our door. Let's go kill them!
22/01/2016 at 14:51 #37156Russell PhillipsParticipant22/01/2016 at 20:20 #37185
SpuriousParticipantDoes look pretty interesting, and it is my favoured era. Plus I do like to flex the old strategic rather than tactical brain muscles on occasion. Sheffield is a bit far for me to cart my 20mm stuff though.
Does this require the use of the yahoo group?
22/01/2016 at 20:30 #37186Russell PhillipsParticipant -
AuthorPosts
- You must be logged in to reply to this topic.
