Someone sent me a shortened version of this video recently. I found the longer version on YouTube. I think this is worth watching.
Armies for Kids Feedback
The HAWKs recently received an Email from John Spiess about his daughter and the Armies for Kids project. With his permission, I am sharing the letter:
Hi guys,
I know you are probably getting busy planning for Barrage, so I wanted to send you a quick note to say thanks for all you do for our Hobby. Please see the two photos below. The first one was taken at Historicon 2011 which I believe was the first year the “Armies for Kids” project took place. Notice the little nine year old girl on the far left.
Fast forward eight years to Historicon 2019, just held in downtown Lancaster. The same girl, now seventeen, just won the Best in Show Award for her Saturday “Siege of Paris” game.
If you haven’t figured it out just yet, her name is Erin Spiess, my daughter. I remember her first convention was spent entirely in the HAWKS room, and she has been completely hooked since then, thanks to all your efforts. So give yourselves a nice pat on the back.
I’ll also share some details on her game. First, I ran the same game on Friday. I had six slots, but let 15 people play (I don’t like turning people away, so I always bring extra figures). Erin ran the game on Saturday and let 19 play, nine of which were kids from our education program. When I tried to help she just said, “Get lost dad, I got this”.
Anyway, it turns out that one of the kids was also a special needs student. He showed up late and just expected to be turned away. Not only did she give him a warm welcome, but the way she handled the game mechanics to keep him and the other young kids involved, while making sure everyone was having a good time was pretty inspiring. Guess what, she learned a lot of that from the HAWK gamemasters. The young man actually went to the Awards desk afterwards and told them that he had the best time of his life.
So thanks again and good luck with Barrage. Hopefully, I’ll see you both at Fall-In.
Best regards,
John Spiess
President, HMGS, Inc.
Cowboy Code
Being a “cowboy” has become a disparaging term in our upside down society where common sense got on a boat years ago and sailed for terra incognita. Still as a kid, I remember that my heroes were cowboys. Men like John Wayne, Jimmy Steward, Randolph Scott, Roy Rogers, Gene Autry, and Hopalong Cassiday were the folks on the silver screen to whom I looked for inspiration. For those who think being a cowboy is a bad thing, this is what Gene Autry said about being a cowboy. I’m sure that these ideas will seem trite to many and offensive to others, but this is my blog. 🙂
I wish those domestic enemies of the Constitution in D.C. — on both sides of the aisle — would abide by these simple ideals.
Armies for Kids at Historicon 2019
At Historicon 2019, the Harford Area Weekly Kriegspielsers hosted another Armies for Kids game. This year’s GM was Chris Johnson.
I think this is the eighth or ninth year we have done this. We paint six sets of armies, one for each “side.” We package those along with rules (Milk and Cookies Rules from Big Battles for Little Hands), rulers, dice, paper terrain, and other goodies. The game is a participation game for kids under ten years old. When the game is over, each of the kids gets to take home a full set of painted figures and all the accessories.
The idea is that hopefully these kids go home and start playing games with their buddies. The kids at the convention come with their parents, so in many ways we are preaching to the converted; however, we hope that these kids go home and introduce their little buddies to wargaming.
We only had five kids this year, but we were prepared for six. Do these kids look happy to you? A couple of recent years we’ve had trouble getting enough kids for this project. Maybe we’ll need to put it away for a while.
Hawaii Vacation, Days 7-11
We began day seven by visiting the various volcanos, steam vents, and lava fields in Volcano National Park. We got a late-ish start but got out the door early enough to see all we wanted to see in the park. Kilauea is the least active it has been for 35+ years, so there were no active lava fields or flowing lava.
Near the visitor’s center there are a number of active steam vents where hot gasses from the most recent eruption are visible. We took a couple mile hike into the Kilauea caldera. Until recently this was an active lava lake until last year’s major eruptions. There are two major types of lava in Hawai’i: ‘a’ā and pāhoehoe. ‘A’ā is rough and chunky, while pāhoehoe is smooth and ropy. They may vary in color from shiny black to dull brown. Both types have the same chemical composition, but pāhoehoe is hotter when it erupts and is more fluid than ‘a’ā.
After this hike we drove the Chain of Craters road stopping at sites along the way to see different types of lava flows, craters, etc.
On the way back up the Chain of Craters road to the visitor’s center we stopped at an area with 23,000 petroglyphs engraved into the lava flow. Since they were engraved in the lava rather than painted on a cave or canyon wall, they were much more visible that normal.
It was a bit disappointing that there were no explanations of what scholars think some of the symbols might mean.
After this night of hiking and walking we had dinner in the cafeteria at Kilauea Military Camp, which is much like a military-style mess hall. The food was good, but no frills. We then went back to our cabin to watch Moana and have dessert.
We started the next day by walking along the trail past the sulphur vents around the visitor center. These are similar to the steam vents on the opposite side of the road, but the escaping gasses have more minerals, particularly sulphur, and they stain the rocks bright colors.
Then we drove the eastern side of the island, stopping to see various overlooks, beaches, and sites along the way.
As we stopped at these beaches — all beaches in Hawaii are public — in most cases we were surprised how few people were on them.
Then we kept driving.
These falls were impressive but were only a fifth as tall as Angel Falls in South America.
The next morning we bade farewell to our cabin and took a short detour to see the interior of the Volcano House lodge in the national park.
Our plan was to drive up the coast (mostly) from Volcano National Park to Kailua-Kona where we were would stay the last two nights in Hawaii.
Along the way we stopped at a place known as the “refuge.” The punishment for nearly all crimes in ancient Hawaii seems to have been death. A marked person could flee, and if he made it to this place and spent some time with the priest here, he could be absolved of his crimes and return home.
We arrived in Kailua-Kona (mostly known just as Kona) in time to check into the Royal Kona Resort and get the lay of the land before our scheduled luau. We had time to put on our swimsuits and play in the hotel’s private lagoon and then in the pool before showering up for the luau.
This was some of the best kalua pork we had on the trip.
At the luau we had excellent food and all-you-can-drink mai tais. Candy drank mai tai’s like a fish. Depending on who you ask the number was between four and six!
The luau lasted until after sunset.
As with all luaus, the highlight was the fire guy.
The next morning, we slept in and then went to the pool for a couple of hours.
This evening we planned to take a tour to Mauna Kea to see the stars. We have seen the brilliant star fields at Bryce Canyon, and Mauna Kea is supposed to be better. We met the van at 1430 and got part way up the mountain for an early dinner when the National Weather Service close the road to the observatories due to rain and flash flooding. We were very disappointed, but we made it back down to our hotel in time to watch the fireworks in the harbor, since it was the 4th of July.
The next day was really a travel day. Our flight left Kona at 2000, but we got a somewhat late checkout and planned to enjoy the day. We started at the pool again and then went to visit the Vanillerie. This is a small farm where the local businessman is trying to make a go of farming vanilla. After the tour, I have a much greater respect for vanilla. It is a HARD and LONG process. This is why you have probably never actually had vanilla, but imitation vanilla which is much more easily harvested from the bark of some type of pine tree.
At the end of the tour we got a small sample of ice cream made with his real vanilla, and there was a definite taste difference.
The flights home were uneventful but painfully long at the end of a ten-day vacation. I don’t know when we’ll all be able to take this much time together for a vacation.
Hawaii Vacation, Days 4, 5, and 6
On day 4 of our vacation we began with a short drive to the Makapu’u Lighthouse trailhead. The trail was about 1.5 miles mostly uphill to the point of land overlooking the lighthouse. The lighthouse was built to prevent ships running aground while traversing the water between Oahu and Molokai.
Sam was decidedly unimpressed with this “dumpy little lighthouse” and didn’t think it was worth the uphill climb to get there. The views from up on the point were very nice.
We then drove to the north shore to visit the Polynesian Cultural Center.
Since the last time we visited the PCC, they have added a lot of shopping and food outside the center. We bought some fancy hotdogs from a truck outside the gates (apparently food trucks are a big tradition in Hawaii). Then we had to try some malasadas, which are like filled doughnuts. We bought one of each flavor to share: guava strawberry, chocolate, and coconut cream.
The Polynesian Cultural Center has six distinct areas for the various Polynesian islands. Each area has traditionally constructed buildings, traditional crafts, and entertainment. After our truck-lunch we entered the PCC just in time for the show on the water that runs through the center of the park.
After a day of walking around the PCC, we attended the Luau dinner show. The food was good, but we were disappointed the the kalua pig didn’t have much taste. As that was what we were most looking forward to, we though the luau was “okay.”
The highlight of the day was the Ha, Breath of Life live show featuring a huge cast of dancers and (the highlight for us) fire jugglers. The storyline was impossible to follow, as a Polynesian family transits from one island to another. The storyline wasn’t that important however, as it was really about the various acts.
You aren’t allowed to take pictures during the show, so these are ones I found online.
We were in the second row, so we had a great view of the entire show.
The next day we got up early to head to Hunauma Bay for some snorkeling. We were worried that the crowds would be heavy on a Saturday morning, but we really didn’t feel crowded. We rented snorkeling gear and had a really good time seeing the sea life up close and personal.
Hunauma Bay is a wildlife preserve, and it is full of sea life. We even got to see a seal that was sunning himself on the beach.
You enter Hunauma Bay from up top and then walk down tot he beach. From this view you can see how the bay was once the caldera of a volcano, but part of it has eroded away.
After snorkeling we went back to the Hale Koa to rest and then got two hours of surfing lessons on Waikiki.
We didn’t get any pictures of any of us up on the board. We were at least a quarter mile out (quite a swim!!), and they wanted $50 per person to provide a photographer.
After a tiring day, we went back to the hotel and cleaned up for dinner. We went to a local place, called The Goofy Cafe, for Mahi Mahi. The food was great. After dinner we walked to a local ice cream parlor and had ridiculously large ice cream desserts.
The next day we got up early to check out of the Hale Koa and head to Honolulu airport for a flight to the big island.
After getting our rental car a the Hilo airport we drove to a farmer’s market outside town where we hand a nice lunch and picked up a bunch of fresh, local produce. This was to make salad with our dinner in our cabin. We then drove to Volcano National Park, took in the victor’s center, and checked into our cabin at the Kilauea Military Camp, inside the national park.
This is a military camp, so it has a theater, PX, several places to eat, a recreation center, and a six-lane bowling alley. We made quesadillas with two different flavors of spam (jalapeño and garlic) and then went to bowl.
After two games of bowling, Sam and Tom played pool in the recreation center. We capped off the evening with some fresh watermelon and mango from the farmer’s market and a couple of mai tais.
Hawaii Vacation, Days 1, 2, and 3
On Tuesday we began our family vacation to Hawaii. This may be the last time we can go on a long vacation like this for some time due to Tom’s military schedule, Sam’s school, and Buck’s work so we wanted to do it up right. Candy planned a full schedule of interesting events.
The trip began in an interesting way, with a flood at BWI airport that brought down the baggage conveyor belt system. This led to an hour delay to our departure. We had a tight layover in Oakland, CA, but we made our flight to Hawaii. We arrived in Honolulu airport around 8:30 PM in the midst of a torrential rainstorm that flooded roads all over the area. There were three lighting strikes on people that day, two at the airport. When we got our baggage, a lot of our stuff was wet. The rental car facility was flooded, so they couldn’t use their computers for fear of electrical shock, they wrote down our information on a piece of paper and handed us the keys. We arrived about 10:00 PM at the Hale Koa hotel, which is an Armed Forces Recreation Center on Waikiki beach, a prime location.
Our first morning in Hawaii we grabbed a quick breakfast at Happy’s Cafe in the Hale Koa. Then we headed to Pearl Harbor. Last time we were here 13 years ago, we saw the Arizona, which is closed right now, but we wanted to see the Missouri, which began life in WWII and was decommissioned after Desert Storm. We took the “heart of the Missouri” tour, which included a detailed, docent-led tour below decks.
After our tour, we ran into one of the normal guided tours and hear a very interesting talk about the signing of the Japanese surrender document. For those not aware, the Missouri is where the famous picture of the Japanese surrender was taken in Tokyo bay.
We were flirting with rain all day. We had planned to spend the afternoon on the beach at Waikiki, but with the rain, instead we chose to do some shopping for Hawaiian shirts at the Pearl Harbor Navy Exchange and wander around some of the shops in Waikiki. We also enjoyed pina coladas at the Barefoot beachside bar (in the rain). That evening, we took in a really good magic show in the Hale Koa Warriors Lounge. Earlier that afternoon, Tom and I were in the lobby waiting for the girls, when the magician came up to us, saying “hey, I have this new trick I’d like to try out on you.” He proceeded to perform an amazing card transformation slight-of-hand trick in Tom’s hand. This clinched it for us. We wanted to see the show.
The next day, our second full day, Candy had arranged for a guide to take us to a number of lesser-known things round Oahu. Shane picked us up in the lobby of the hotel and drove us around the island.
We began the tour with a three-mile hike to a secluded waterfall.
It was a nice hike. We got rained on during the hike back, but we dried out quickly and moved on to lunch.
We had pre-arranged with Shane for lunches. He drove us to a park across Kaneohe Bay from the Marine Corps base. We were a couple hundred yards from a small island known as “Chinaman’s Hat.” We ate a really nice lunch on a picnic table and then headed to our next stop.
Next we drove around the coast — after a stop at a Kona coffee and macadamia nut tourist trap (where we bought macadamia nuts!!) — to this interesting rock formation.
Ancient Hawaiian legends talk about two Hawaiian heroes / gods who defeated a giant lizard that was eating people. This is supposedly the lizard’s head that was chopped off by one of the heroes.
We stopped at a roadside farmer’s market and picked up some fresh pineapple, mango, and mixed fruit. Our guide wanted us to try two local fruits. The first is Lychee, which looks like a strawberry, but has a very tough skin that must be peeled before eating. They were very sweet and very good. The second was called a mountain apple, that had a peach-like pit and tasted more like a sweet pear. Both were really, really good.
Our next stop was 90 minutes of snorkeling around “Three Tables” beach were we swam with schools of fish and got very close to three sea turtles frolicking along the rocks. We were probably one good kick away from being able to touch them!
Then we drove to Waimea Bay to do some “safe cliff jumping.”
This was a lot of fun. Sammy surprised us by doing a forward flip! I didn’t even know she could do that.
Our last stop was at a small stretch of beach where we saw this Hawaiian Green sea turtle. It was 37 years old and weighed 225 pounds. The park ranger had placed a rope on the beach to keep everyone at least a meter away from it.
On the way back to Honolulu we drove through pineapple plantations. The air had a pineapple aroma. We had heard that pineapples weren’t grown on Hawaii any more. It turns out that a LOT if pineapple is grown here, but it is not exported; it is all used in Hawaii. The pineapple you find in Publix or Giant comes from Costa Rica. I’m not sure my palate is sensitive enough to tell the difference, but the pineapple here SEEMS softer and slightly less tart that what we get in the grocery store.
We had a really good day. After an overpriced dinner we spent a half hour at the Hale Koa pool before collapsing in the room.
Feudal Patrol (and a secret set of rules) play test
I have alluded a couple of times to a secret set of rules I am working on for a major figure manufacturer for a new line of figures. We are targeting Cold Wars 2020 in March. Because of the compressed development schedule, I am having to re-use bits and pieces of ideas from previous development efforts. It normally takes me there to six years to develop and write a set of rules. For these kinds of early play tests, a very small crew is best. Later, when the design is more mature, I will open up play tests to the whole club. So a couple of folks came over, and we put a lot of surrogate troops on the table to test out activation (didn’t work well) and combat (worked fine). We used an odd assortment of mismatched figures for this first play test to obfuscate the subject of the rules and figures. I will be making a LOT of adjustments to the rules before the next play test in August.
We also worked on a couple of details for Feudal Patrol (TM). Feudal Patrol is the version of Combat Patrol (TM) for early black powder and mediaeval periods. The big stuff is all working fine, and the design of the Action Decks are pretty much complete. In this play test, we were working on magic, confirming that the cavalry rules from the Napoleonic supplement to Combat Patrol were okay (they were), and testing a few new things. Once you include things like long pointy sticks, you have to consider fighting in two ranks, which we tested and seemed to work okay.
Chris wanted to try out a change in how melee is resolved. In Combat Patrol: WWII, when a figure loses melee, he drops back, and the unit takes a morale check. For a melee heavy game, like Feudal Patrol, Chris thought that the defeated figure should also be stunned. That seemed to work fine.
Combat Patrol(TM) Games at Historicon 2019
I just went through the PEL and identified the various games that will be using Combat Patrol(TM) and Feudal Patrol(TM) at Historicon in July. Don’t miss your chance to play in one of these exciting and fun games.
Combat Patrol 1939 in York, PA
The Little Wars TV people asked me to come to their clubhouse and run a Combat Patrol(TM): WWII game for them. Greg and I drove up there yesterday after work to set up and run a 1939 Polish scenario that I have run in conventions previously.
The scenario involved a German attack toward a Polish armored train that was sitting astride their route of advance. The turret on the train was out of ammunition, but there was a Bofors gun on top that the Poles used effectively throughout the game.
The Germans had two 38(t) tanks, a Pz. I, three halftracks, a full platoon of infantry, and a command car. The Poles had a platoon of infantry, the Bofors on the train, two Wz-34 armored cars, three tankettes (one with a 20mm cannon). The Bofors had a limited field of fire down the center of the table, but fortunately for the Poles, the Germans pretty much pushed up the center of the table.
Despite losing a halftrack early, the Germans advanced steadily across the table, but mostly where they weighted their attack on their right. The Poles began to lose a lot of infantry across the table They had occupied the building in the center of the table, and for a while, that was the Germans’ only target. While the Germans only had a little more infantry than the Poles, the Germans made good use of the machine-guns on the halftracks.
While the Poles had lost much of their infantry and the Bofors, they had lost no vehicles. The armored cars and the machinegun-armed tankettes were advancing on the Polish left, threatening to overwhelm the Germans on that flank. The tankette with the 20mm cannon was causing the remaining German halftrack (with half a squad of infantry) to seek cover.
At this point, we called the game a Polish victory. It appeared that all the members of the club really enjoyed the rules and the game, which was gratifying.
The Little Wars TV club is a great bunch of guys. Greg and I had a very good time with them. They also have a great facility for gaming.
