Tuesday 7 November 2023

VCOW 2024 - the session list so far...updated 02/01/2024

 Last updated 2 January 2024

Russell King

2 hours                                                                                                                                    any

NATIONAL SOCIALIST DRAGON’S DEN

A game called which will explore the network - in the popular semi game-show format - of business investment in Nazi Germany aimed at funding Aryan supremacy

 

John Curry

My Aunt’s War

1 hour                                                                                                                                      any

A short game about my aunt’s war on the home front. It is a black game. 

 

John Curry

A medieval Staff College problem 

1 hour                                                                                                                                      any

Demonstration how to turn the standard staff college problem into an exercise in medieval warfare. 

 

John Bassett & Bob Cordery

Amritsar to Kargil: Wargaming South Asian Conflicts 1919 to 1999

60-90 minutes                                                                                                                         any

From the Third Afghan War to the struggle for Indian independence, the last British campaigns on the NW Frontier, the Burma campaign in WW2, Partition, Burmese independence, Operation VIJAY, the 1962 China-India war, the 1965 and 1971 India-Pakistan wars, the Golden Triangle in the 1970s, the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan, the Tamil Tigers,  mercenaries in the Maldives, India-Pakistan nuclear rivalry, the rise of the Taliban and the 1999 Kargil War there are a wide variety of South Asian conflicts that Western wargamers all too often don't understand.

Bob and John will lead a discussion on this neglected period, looking at what makes this region so interesting, what they and others have done to game some of these conflicts and what remains to be done.

 

Jim Roche

Paddy's NAZI Ideological Fervour Quiz

1 hour                                                                                                                                      any

The war is temporarily passing through a phase of difficulties.  This is because the army has betrayed the Fuhrer, some 'officers' have even attempted to kill him, others are still actively working for the forces of international Zionism and Plutocratic Bolshevism.

In order to root them out, the Reichsfuhrer SS has now empowered the state security services to submit this specially designed questionnaire to every officer holding a responsible position in the battle line.

You must attempt to answer every question

 

Martin Rapier

POLAND 1939 WITH ONE HOUR WW2

2 hours                                                                                                                        up to 6

The latest version of the One Hour WW2 rules, covering grand tactical actions in the second world war, with battalion (or equivalent) sized elements on a small hex grid. This session will highlight the latest revisions to the rules, and is both an opportunity for players to try the system who missed out at COW last year, and for experienced players to try it again. The scenario will feature asymmetrical forces in a historical engagement during the Bzura counteroffensive, which will emphasise particular features of the rules.

 

David Burden

Cityfight 2024,

2 hrs                                                                                                                                        2-4

Cityfight 2024 is an updated version of the classic Cityfight game of small-scale urban combat. The game will be played double-blind with each side having its own map and relying on umpire reports to identify locations of the enemy forces. The game has been modified for playing on a square grid. The game will probably be played on a mix of Zoom, Jitsi and Google Slides and a technical rehearsal will be held before the VCOW weekend.

 

Nick Riggs

Qu-AI Sera Sera

2 hours                                                                                                                                    3-6

A matrix-ish game.  The players represent World Powers, each of whom has only just become aware of a nascent Artificial Intelligence. The AI is growing in intelligence and power at an exponential rate, and the players have very little time in which to determine how they will individually or collectively respond.

 

Pete Sizer

Black Gold, Blue Flames and Fibreoptic Cables: A North Sea Matrix game.

2 hours                                                                                                                                    6

A matrix game for six players to explore present day hybrid warfare and grey zone activities in the North Sea.

 

Ian Robinson

People's War in Voronoi

90 minutes                                                                                                                               4

People's War in Voronoi' is a new COIN game with simple rules and combat system. It is based in the mythical country of Voronoi and looks at a Red insurgency vs a Blue defending force. The Red insurgency can spread and overwhelm Blue, or likewise Blue can stop the insurgency and reverse it. The map is based on a Voronoi diagram, and it's an alternative to standard hex or square boards. Each area represents a space that can be crossed in a move. The rural areas (green/brown) are larger, and the urban areas are smaller with more regular shape. The size differences arise since distance = speed x time (time being constant), and you'll move more slowly in an urban area compared to a rural area.  The game will run using Google Drive - Meet and links to be send out later.

 

John Armatys

ON RANKS IN THE BRITISH ARMY

90 minutes                                                                                                                   any

A talk about ranks in the British Army, including some pretty obscure ones (my favourites are the Sub-Brigadier and the Marshal). The wargaming applications are limited, it might be of use to those contemplating career games or role playing games, but I hope that the session will provide an interesting diversion into some obscure bits of military history.

 

Toby Ewin

THE LAST WORD ON OFFICIAL PRE-1914 WARGAMES…FOR NOW…

1 hour                                                                                                                          any

Including the various German games (several of which have been detailed in printed sources), the origins of the German naval games (drawing on an as-yet-unpublished article by Prof Wintjes), plus a little about French and Italian and (the lack of) Austro-Hungarian games, as these have generally not been so well covered, at least in English.  Also a mention of US games and what we now know of Russian tactical games.


Michael D’Alessandro

Death in Paradise - The Battle of Nu'uanu 1795 - A Virtual Battlefield Tour of the Final Battle for Hawaiian Unification

1 hour                                                                                                                          any

We will begin with the unique civilization and culture of 18th century Hawaii and how its first contact with the West led to a desire to unify the Hawaiian Islands to help balance them against the West. Landing with Kamehameha I on Oahu at Waikiki Beach and Diamond Head Crater, we will march up country with his army, battling at the Punch Bowl and ultimately at the Pail Cliffs. The campaign features naval, land and aerial combat while external agents the British and the Russians engage in a form of a Pacific Great Game. Spears vs. cannons - what can go wrong? We will conclude by considering the effect a unified Hawaiian kingdom had on 19th Century history and how that effect continued to resonate in the 20th and 21st centuries.


Gary Sheffield, Graham Evans and John Bassett

HISTORY, HISTORICAL FICTION, BOGUS HISTORY AND WARGAMING

90 minutes                                                                                                                   any

A discussion on the links between history, historical fiction, historical drama and wargaming, and how bogus history can undermine them all.


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COW 2024 session list (as at 17 April)

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