Author Topic: Organized Play: Tips, Techniques, and Lessons Learned  (Read 4518 times)

Landlubber

  • Administrator
  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 2177
  • Number of Times Thanked: 64
    • View Profile
Organized Play: Tips, Techniques, and Lessons Learned
« on: July 17, 2014, 01:05:33 am »
Had a long discussion the other night with the owner of my FLGS about organized play.  He was observing a Dystopian Wars game I was losing to my EotBS opponent, and we got to talking about the merits of leagues, tournaments, scenarios, etc.

This is a topic that's been on my mind for quite awhile.  Most of the games we play as miniatures wargamers have fairly rich backstories--and yet, a lot of our time playing seems to be spent in one-on-one slayer matches, where everyone lines up on opposite sides of the board and drives forward while shooting, and whoever wins or loses doesn't mean anything in the grander scheme of things.  At least, that's how a lot of MY games go, whether it's X-Wing, Dystopian Wars, or even Dystopian Legions to some extent.

I want to see what I can do to change that.  I want to try my hand at drawing up some multi-game scenarios, something that plays out to a conclusion over a few games.  In the winter of 2011/2012, Ruckdog led myself and an Antarctican player through a three-game Dystopian Wars campaign that involved land, sea, and air combat.  It was very enjoyable, and I still have the pics I took on my phone. 

So I thought I'd start this thread as a place where we can discuss organized play--a place to share ideas and lessons learned, or to throw out scenarios and get feedback.  Over the next few weeks, I hope to get together a couple small campaigns for both X-Wing and Dystopian Wars, working with some of the other players at my FLGS.  As it comes together, I'll post some outlines so you all can see where I'm headed--and feedback is always appreciated.  But in the meantime, I'd love to see a discussion started here on the topic, because I know there are several gamers on this forum that have been playing a LOT longer than I have and surely have some experience with this.
"Sometimes, you gotta roll the hard six."--Commander Adama

markymark1970

  • Commander
  • ***
  • Posts: 529
  • Number of Times Thanked: 15
    • View Profile
Re: Organized Play: Tips, Techniques, and Lessons Learned
« Reply #1 on: July 17, 2014, 12:23:16 pm »
Thanks for bringing this up.  As a longtime player (well, more miniature collector) of a bunch of games, I have come to appreciate the role of a campaign of sorts as opposed to the normal slugfest.  Playing for something tangible (beer & wings, cash, bragging rights) takes on a whole different meaning when done over a period of time.  I like the aspect of being vested in the outcome; I like the idea of thinking more about the strategic consequences my decisions dictate, something I don

Ruckdog

  • Administrator
  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 3066
  • Number of Times Thanked: 189
  • Dive! Dive!
    • View Profile
    • Man Battlestations!
Re: Organized Play: Tips, Techniques, and Lessons Learned
« Reply #2 on: July 17, 2014, 08:30:33 pm »
Great topic! I've actually been tossing around a blog article about just this very subject for a while now (it's funny how great minds think alike  ;D).  I wouldn't say that I'm the most experienced hand out there when it comes to running campaigns, but I have read through a number of campaign systems over the years, and (as Landlubber mentioned), I've even run a couple. I've got a few ideas about how these things are best done, but I want to keep my powder dry for the blog post I have planned. I'll probably have it up tomorrow or Saturday.

Ruckdog

  • Administrator
  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 3066
  • Number of Times Thanked: 189
  • Dive! Dive!
    • View Profile
    • Man Battlestations!
Re: Organized Play: Tips, Techniques, and Lessons Learned
« Reply #3 on: July 20, 2014, 06:48:48 pm »
Took me a day longer than expected, but I got the post put up on the blog!

http://www.manbattlestations.com/blog/2014/07/20/line-ahead-naval-wargaming-and-campaigns/

Landlubber

  • Administrator
  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 2177
  • Number of Times Thanked: 64
    • View Profile
Re: Organized Play: Tips, Techniques, and Lessons Learned
« Reply #4 on: July 21, 2014, 12:47:04 am »
Ruckdog, excellent post as always.  Was Operation Watchtower the campaign you ran with me and Ken at E&E a couple years back?  That was a lot of fun!

You bring up some good points about pros and cons, and Mark, you make a good point about economics.  If you accomplish an objective in one game (or chapter), what does that do for you in the next game?  What's the incentive? 

Ruckdog, I also like your point about game masters.  This is a concept I've been thinking about a lot here recently.  My wife got me a subscription to a British wargaming magazine last year--the magazine deals mostly with historical wargaming, but many of the concepts are broadly applicable to all tabletop gaming.  One of these is what they call the "umpire"--what we would call the GM or the dungeon master, depending on what you're playing.  This umpire facilitates the game--answers rules questions, provides judgments, etc.  He also controls the battlefield, adding in random effects to keep things interesting. Been thinking about how to apply that concept to the games I play, and how it would work.

So, I've thought up an idea for a short, 3-game "campaign" for X-Wing, based on some single-game scenarios I've run in the past.  Basically, here's how it would go:

Game 1:  The Empire has set up a new comms satellite in a specific sector.  The Imperial player is a squad leader, and has been tasked to patrol a nearby nebula that sensors can't penetrate to ensure the Rebels aren't hiding there.  The Rebel player is also a squad leader, and has been tasked to patrol the same nebula based on rumors of Imperial activity.  A meeting engagement battle ensues.

Game 2:  The Rebels now know something is up in that sector, based on running into the Imperial patrol in the last game, so now they're paying attention to what goes on there.  A spy tells the Rebels an Imperial shuttle is moving through the system with valuable info on board (the satellite's location, shield strength, etc).  The Rebel player has to intercept the shuttle and hack it electronically to get the info; the Imperial player has to escort the shuttle to its jump point on the other side of the board.  If the Rebels won Game 1, they get to deploy closer to the shuttle; if the Imperials won Game 1, the shuttle deploys in the middle of the map (closer to its escape point).

Game 3:  The Rebels have gained the locational data for the new satellite (whether by hacking the shuttle's hard drive, or by deducing the shuttle's origin point based on where it was intercepted), and are going to try to destroy it.  The Imperials have to defend it.  If the Rebels won Game 2 (successfully hacked the shuttle), they get extra points to equip more ordnance weapons (torpedoes, missiles, etc).  If the Imperials won Game 2, they get more starfighters to defend the satellite.

That's the basic shell.  I have some ideas for earning XP based on actions in each game (killing higher-ranked pilots, for example), and using those XP to "purchase" named pilots and modifications/upgrades.  My plan, though, would be to keep each side in the blind--they would get a mission briefing before each game, but they wouldn't know what it was ultimately leading to.  Ruckdog, I think you did something similar in our campaign.

I'm interested in any feedback.  I've never run a campaign before, and X-Wing is a fairly simple game, so I thought it might be a good game on which to "cut my teeth" with designing a campaign.
« Last Edit: July 21, 2014, 01:03:34 am by Landlubber »
"Sometimes, you gotta roll the hard six."--Commander Adama

Ruckdog

  • Administrator
  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 3066
  • Number of Times Thanked: 189
  • Dive! Dive!
    • View Profile
    • Man Battlestations!
Re: Organized Play: Tips, Techniques, and Lessons Learned
« Reply #5 on: July 22, 2014, 08:39:59 pm »
Yeah, Operation Watchtower was the mini-campaign I ran for you and Ken. Seems like you have a pretty good start! Might I suggest you start a new thread in the Space Gaming section?

Anyway, as for feedback, I would say that what you need to work on most at this point is finding some more ways to link your missions together more closely. Right now, it seems like there is very little tying the first and second games; giving a deployment bonus is a good start, but you may want to go further by giving one side or the other some sort of upgrade or other bonus. For the third game, one of the things that struck me is that it didn't matter as much if the Rebels were able to hack the shuttle or not; they still figured out exactly where the satellite is. Instead, you might be able to work something out where if the Rebels didn't successfully hack the shuttle, they will have several sensor "blips" on the board during the 3rd game that could be the satellite, but they can't tell unless they get close enough or use a scan action or some such on the contact.

Landlubber

  • Administrator
  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 2177
  • Number of Times Thanked: 64
    • View Profile
Re: Organized Play: Tips, Techniques, and Lessons Learned
« Reply #6 on: July 23, 2014, 12:12:20 am »
I like the scanning idea, may have to incorporate that.

I do have some other ideas for links between the games--what I wrote was just a basic shell.  I'll start a thread for this specific mini-campaign after it's over, so I can also share lessons learned.  And pictures, of course.  :)
"Sometimes, you gotta roll the hard six."--Commander Adama

Fracas

  • Lieutenant Commander
  • ***
  • Posts: 335
  • Number of Times Thanked: 33
    • View Profile
    • Warmancer
Firestorm: Aquan, Directorate, Retholza, Hawker (FsA)/ Terran (FsPf), RSN (FsA)/ Dindrenzi (FsPf)
DW: EotBS, FSA, PLC.
Warmaster: Kislev, Khemri, Dwarves,
BFG: Pacification Fleet (IN), Tau Expeditionary (SG), Battlefleet (Chaos), Kher-Ys Corsairs, Crusade Fleet (IN),
LotR: Khand, Gondor, Mordor

Last Rites

  • Lieutenant Commander
  • ***
  • Posts: 383
  • Number of Times Thanked: 0
    • View Profile
Re: Organized Play: Tips, Techniques, and Lessons Learned
« Reply #8 on: July 24, 2014, 11:28:48 am »
Great forum going here and great blog post as well. Oddly enough a few of us began a narrative based game last weekend. Tonight i'm free of responsibility, so hope to have a draft completed and up soon.
"Without destruction there can be no creation"

Ruckdog

  • Administrator
  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 3066
  • Number of Times Thanked: 189
  • Dive! Dive!
    • View Profile
    • Man Battlestations!
Re: Organized Play: Tips, Techniques, and Lessons Learned
« Reply #9 on: August 04, 2014, 10:42:13 pm »
Great forum going here and great blog post as well. Oddly enough a few of us began a narrative based game last weekend. Tonight i'm free of responsibility, so hope to have a draft completed and up soon.

How is it going? Don't leave us hanging! ;).

Landlubber

  • Administrator
  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 2177
  • Number of Times Thanked: 64
    • View Profile
Re: Organized Play: Tips, Techniques, and Lessons Learned
« Reply #10 on: August 06, 2014, 01:21:25 am »
Yeah, let us know how it went!  I'm hoping to put pen to paper (or fingers to keys) this weekend to start fleshing out my X-Wing idea.
"Sometimes, you gotta roll the hard six."--Commander Adama

Landlubber

  • Administrator
  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 2177
  • Number of Times Thanked: 64
    • View Profile
Re: Organized Play: Tips, Techniques, and Lessons Learned
« Reply #11 on: September 06, 2014, 12:40:44 am »
http://warmancer.blogspot.com/2013/02/gaming-campaigns.html?m=1

Fracas, just now got around to reading your blog post.  Some good thoughts in there, and it helped solidify a few ideas in my mind.  Thanks for sharing.

Real life has been getting in the way of my campaign planning, but the desire is still there.  I hope to have something to share soon!
"Sometimes, you gotta roll the hard six."--Commander Adama

Ruckdog

  • Administrator
  • Admiral
  • *****
  • Posts: 3066
  • Number of Times Thanked: 189
  • Dive! Dive!
    • View Profile
    • Man Battlestations!
Re: Organized Play: Tips, Techniques, and Lessons Learned
« Reply #12 on: September 29, 2014, 10:04:26 pm »
Just put up another blog post:

http://www.manbattlestations.com/blog/2014/09/30/the-battlefleet-gothic-campaign-system/

This one focuses on the BFG campaign system, which I've always been somewhat infatuated with. Plus, it serves as a prologue of sorts for my Firestorm Armada campaign planning ;).