Looking at the Simpler Side of Things

Lately, I've been finding myself looking at rules where quick playability outweighs realism. Rules that I might have poo-pooed a few years ago greatly appeal to me. I think the main reason being that I have almost zero time to even exhale lately, let alone devote to hobby activities. There is a part of my brain that is constantly screaming, "I want to have a game!!!" but it is squelched by the powerful "must do's." There is a scene in Cinderella (the Disney cartoon) where the evil step-mother tells Cinderella that go to the ball but only if she does about 10 new chores, in addition to her regular chores. That is how I feel most of the time. What I am hoping for this new year is to be able to set up a game quickly and play it in a relatively short amount of time. Here are some rules that I am looking at:

Air Strike: Modern Air Combat for the Whole Family by T. Jensen
Boy, talk about your simple rules! Someone recommended them on the aerial wargames group on FaceBook. These are at the same level as the Battle of Britain rules that Just Jack has modified for his tiny air battles, only Air Strike is card based. I read them over and I really liked what I saw. The aircraft are very generic. A fighter is a fighter, and a missile is a missile. No variation in performance. When you think about it,  unless your match up is a jet from the 70s versus a jet from today, there isn't going to be huge differences; and to paraphrase Chuck Yeager, its the pilot not the plane that will determine the outcome of the dogfight. For a good review, see the Red in the Morning blog. You can get them on Wargames Vault for $4.50

Archduke Piccolo's Ultra Simple Naval Rules by Archduke Piccolo
As I mentioned in my previous post, my interest in WWII naval gaming has resurfaced. In particular, I've wanted to replay the various battles found in Hector Bywater's Great Pacific War. I've been looking at various rules including, Bob Cordery's Gridded Naval War-games, David Manley's Find, Fix and Strike, and recently Battleship Captain by Gary Graber. The Achduke's rules are fairly simple, and based on his after action reports, they are pretty fast games. I tend to give a big thumbs up to any game, simple or complex, if I can understand them after only one reading. These rules fit that criterion. They are only for battleships, however, and hex based. I do have a hex mat that I bought several years ago that has a seascape on one side. He provides the stats for a great number of battleships, but explains in detail how he derived them if there is a ship you want that is not on his list.