Lately I have been getting into Command at Sea, a WWII naval combat wargame. It is very similar to Full Thrust and other science fiction space combat games, and brings me full circle in many ways.
The Circle is Complete
Some background. When I was in 5th grade, I saw the original movie Midway. It made a huge impression on me–it started me down the road on my love of history in general, and the Pacific Theater in particular. I loved both the naval and aviation aspects of the war, and have carried that forward to this day.
When I got back into wargaming and roleplaying, I discovered Full Thrust, and that felt a lot like WWII Pacific fighting–big ships, carriers, small attack ships, troop carriers… From there I got into WWI battleship games and then found other SciFi games as well (Starmada, Colonial Battlefleet).
But now I have come back to the PTO–and found Command at Sea.
Why Command at Sea?
Well, I watched the remake of Midway and that reminded me of my love for that era in history, and the different aspects of gaming it. I went looking for some wargames I could play for the Pacific Theater, and found Command at Sea.
CaS is a highly rated, tactical naval miniatures combat game. It is highly complex, but very historically accurate. It is more of a combat simulation, than the usual hex and counters board game. Also, not only does it cover all of WWII naval combat, it is part of a trilogy of games that covers WWI and modern combat as well!
The things I like about CaS are many of the same things I like about Full Thrust: the idea of the big ships duking it out, smaller ships fighting around the edges and vast distances between battles. The exact mechanics of the two games are a little different, though. Those differences are one of the things that I am curious about learning, too.
What Does That Mean For Far Jewel?
The biggest thing I want to take from Command at Sea and bring to the Far Jewel setting is ideas on combat and the overall campaign feel.
Another thing I am going to try with CaS is using plots, and not miniatures or counters. What that means is taking a big sheet of plotter paper, and using point on the paper to represent the ships, along with lines to show movement and firing. Think plots on glass that you used to see in movies. If that works, it allows me to a) not have to buy or mess with miniatures or counters and b) have a self-documented game. I’m not sure it will work, but I’m going to give it a try.
Anyway, I don’t plan to make this a permanent diversion from Far Jewel, and building the setting for roleplaying (famous last words…) I love the SciFi roleplaying too much to leave it! I just hope this gives me some great ideas and helps me make the Far Jewel setting better in the long run…
Marko ∞
(Originally published on farjewel.com, on 8/21/2020.)
