Hi. I am 50 years old and have always looked with envy at Hex and Counter Wargamers. I have never played and type of Hex and Counter game but have decided its now or never. I was hoping people could suggest a path of say 3 games from complete beginner to more complex so i can learn as i play. Accompanying Youtube tutorial video would really help
My dream is to get to a point where i could play a game like World in Flames but i know that is a long long way off.
I am interested in WW2 and any suggestions would be much appreciated
Here is a list, in increasing complexity, of WWII wargames, with Vassal implementations, as well as Print’n’Play, all by yours truly - shameless self-plug
You can find a summary of these games, as pertains to scale, era, theatre, and complexity here
For all of these, the following applies
Vassal modules:
A fair bit of automation. The modules allows for combat declarations, automatic odds calculations, and combat resolutions.
Reminders, automatic victory points, reinforcements, and so on.
Tutorials. Embedded log files allows you to step through a commented game play (many of the linked YouTube videos above are recordings of these)
Print’n’Play
Available in many formats, including A-paper and Letter-paper series.
Complete with board, pieces, rules, charts, etc.
A few comments on the games:
I would probably start with either The Drive on Metz or Battle for Moscow. Both are really simple.
Anzio Beachhead and First Blood are a bit more complicated (but only slightly) and introduces more Wargaming concepts and different levels of abstraction.
D-Day (Smithsonian) and Battle of the Bulge (Smithsonian) are relatively simple games designed for the beginner. However, sets of optional rules increases the complexity and introduces more concepts.
Afrika Korps is really not a difficult game, in terms of mechanics, but is hard to play. The reason is that the game is very focused on logistics and so the players have to think a bit more strategical than in many of the above games.
Both D-Day and Panzerarmee Afrika turns up the dial on complexity and strategical thinking, but are by no means as complex as say World in Flames.
Strike Force One was explicitly designed as an introductory game. It is very simple, although optional rules and expansions adds a little bit more complexity.
Napoleon at Waterloo is a classic introductory game. Although simple, it is a game high replayability.
Battle of Agincourt at first seems simple, but players have to think a bit more tactical.
Gettysburg (Smithsonian) is fairly simple, but optional rules can make it a tad more complex. The replayability is very high with this game.
I hope the above gave you some ideas and inspiration.
Perhaps you also want to check out the countless threads on BoardGameGeek Wargames Forum on introductory wargames for the beginner.
Thank you so much for the reply and the thought you put into it. I actually came across Battle for Moscow just the other day. I am going to follow this advice carefully and will keep you posted on progress. Thanks again
