Military Muddling

Chestnut Lodge Wargames Group

The Procurement Bonanza – offside reports

The December 2024 session featured two interesting and thought provoking procurement games… (by Nick Drage) Future Procurement Game James brought an interesting science fiction procurement game for us to playtest. Jim Wallman has already written up an excellent description of the game: https://milmud.clwg.org/2024/12/future-procurement-game/ , as has James the designer: https://milmud.clwg.org/2024/12/december-hybrid-session-procurement-bonanza-on-side-and-off-side-reports-by-james-halstead/ . I liked the world-building and […]

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Thai-Sho on Deck – Game by Evan D’Alessandro

Offside Report by Nick Luft Thai-Sho’s Leaving Party In no particular order, and in no particular organised way the ad hoc committee met to decide on the organisation of the Q7 Joint Allied Commander’s leaving service. It was decided. Gift A suitable deactivated Exterminator Artefact encased in transparent perspex to be encased by a transparent […]

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Connections UK 2023

In 2023, Connections UK, the conference for wargaming professionals, was held at Sandhurst Military Academy on 5-7 September. Due to Covid-19 lockdowns and restrictions, this was the first time I was able to attend. Needless to say, I was as excited to see and explore the building as I was to listen and participate in […]

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Triplanes vs Terrordactyls (run by Evan D’Alessandro): An Offside Report

In 1930, the largest airship at the time, the Graf Zeppelin, could fly 24 passengers from Germany to Brazil in four and a half days. In the late 30s, the Hindenburg was flying 50-72 passengers between Frankfurt and New Jersey, in four days one way. They weren’t the first flying ‘objects’ originating in Germany. Pterodactylus […]

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Fog on the Somme (James Halstead): An Offside Report

This is Deborah Southwell’s offside report of ‘Fog on the Somme’ run by James Halstead at the CLWG Conference. Fog on the Somme – Offside (Deborah Southwell) Five phases were planned for the German Spring Offensive of 1918: Operation Michael (21 March – 6 April) Operation Georgette (9-29 April) Operation Blücher-Yorck (27 – 30 May) […]

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The Quiet Battlefield: offside review by Nick Luft

Jim presented The Quiet Battlefield, via an online CLWG session. He was inspired to make this game after playing The Quiet Year a game we played at the December CLWG Hybrid session. The Quiet Year is not a wargame, or a boardgame. It is perhaps more of a role-playing game, though the players do not […]

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The Quiet Year: offside review by Nick Luft

The Quiet Year (TQY) was recommended to me after a friend heard about it in a gaming pod cast. He was intrigued by the open ended structure and the non-gamer friendly nature of the game. Although it is a commercial “game” I thought it was sufficiently interesting to be worth examining with the assistance CLWG […]

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Offside Reviews of “Akiyoshi Monogatari” and “Brothers in Arms” by Mukul Patel

Akiyoshi Monogatari I enjoyed the meeting but a bit tricky with the WiFi in the hall. So our dear comrades from the continent were cut off. I was looking forward to having this hybrid type session to see how it works. My conclusion. it reinforces my perception of being a fuddy duddy who cannot work […]

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Report from V E Wellington Koo of the Chinese delegation

Washington Conference, 6th November 2021 – The Centenary Edition Offside report by Andy Grainger A major topic of the 1921 / 2021 Washington Conference was China. In 1911 the Imperial Chinese Government had been overthrown and replaced by a Parliamentary regime but the country is still very unstable. It is in everyone’s interest to restore […]

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Seize Warsaw Offside report by John Bassett

This is Nick Luft’s game of 4 Panzer Division’s attack on Warsaw on 7 September 1939. At VCOW Seize Warsaw occupied the same time slot as my GRAPPLE X, so I was glad to be able to take part in another run of the game that Nick put on for the Holborn group a few […]

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