In the interest of adding some quick content in between proper blog articles, I have decided to add some short blogs which are relatively word free, today being the first, so please enjoy Maelstrom of War objectives in real life.
Those things, much like the magic terrain rules in 8th ed warhammer were one of the things that we looked at and went... nah, don't think so thanks.
Instead, we use Maelstrom objectives to build a randomised scenario that will remain in play. Seems to make more sense.
(if anyone's curious, our fix for magic trees is "only on a 1 and even then a second 1 just means spooky" otherwise lumberjacks and fishermen are the bravest people in the old world with 5/6ths of all natural features being magic and hostile...)
The impossible objective point is a good one, which is why there should be an official FAQ or house rule that allows you to discard and replace impossible cards.
But the constant random objective capping has a basis in real life. One example they like to tell you about in boot camp is of a squad of United States reconnaissance Marines during the Iraq War. They would receive orders to attack one spot, then once they arrived and engaged, they would be told to go somewhere else. The squad was kept constantly moving and constantly fighting for several days. Not once did they disobey orders, even though they may have wondered why they were constantly changing objectives and even if their work was futile.
However, once they were debriefed, they learned that because of their actions, the coalition forces were able to raise vital bridges and other infrastructures in hostile enemy territory, because of that one squad keeping so many areas busy and on alert.
So while randomly hopping objectives in Maelstrom may SEEM absurd, it really isn't. Remember, games are just snapshots of a wider battle and ongoing campaign, not the end all be all.
I have an example from my time in the Australian army. We were asked to dig a pit in one location, in one way. We dug it down to stage 2, (a U shape, 5 1/2 feet deep, 6 foot wide x 6 feet long) and the Sergeant Major came along and told us to move it. We spent 3 more days digging it into a new area, only for the Major to come along and go off because we'd moved, so he got us to fill that pit in and dig the first one back out.
Those things, much like the magic terrain rules in 8th ed warhammer were one of the things that we looked at and went... nah, don't think so thanks.
ReplyDeleteInstead, we use Maelstrom objectives to build a randomised scenario that will remain in play. Seems to make more sense.
(if anyone's curious, our fix for magic trees is "only on a 1 and even then a second 1 just means spooky" otherwise lumberjacks and fishermen are the bravest people in the old world with 5/6ths of all natural features being magic and hostile...)
Makes sense to me, there's nothing worse than killer trees...
DeleteThe impossible objective point is a good one, which is why there should be an official FAQ or house rule that allows you to discard and replace impossible cards.
ReplyDeleteBut the constant random objective capping has a basis in real life. One example they like to tell you about in boot camp is of a squad of United States reconnaissance Marines during the Iraq War. They would receive orders to attack one spot, then once they arrived and engaged, they would be told to go somewhere else. The squad was kept constantly moving and constantly fighting for several days. Not once did they disobey orders, even though they may have wondered why they were constantly changing objectives and even if their work was futile.
However, once they were debriefed, they learned that because of their actions, the coalition forces were able to raise vital bridges and other infrastructures in hostile enemy territory, because of that one squad keeping so many areas busy and on alert.
So while randomly hopping objectives in Maelstrom may SEEM absurd, it really isn't. Remember, games are just snapshots of a wider battle and ongoing campaign, not the end all be all.
I have an example from my time in the Australian army. We were asked to dig a pit in one location, in one way. We dug it down to stage 2, (a U shape, 5 1/2 feet deep, 6 foot wide x 6 feet long) and the Sergeant Major came along and told us to move it. We spent 3 more days digging it into a new area, only for the Major to come along and go off because we'd moved, so he got us to fill that pit in and dig the first one back out.
Delete