Combat Commander Game I: Fat Lipski

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I put this out a couple of weeks ago with the intention of teaching myself the basic of the game. It's turning out well. I'm watching some videos on the games, and taking a turn here and there as I do other chores.

I do have DAK II out as well, which isn't technically a new game, but it's so rich it takes the mental effort of new game. One of my vows was to never have two new games set up at the same time. Having DAK II concurrently with Combat Commander is pushing that envelope a little bit.

The game is interesting, for sure. But I'm running into the same sort of thing which bother me about Vietnam Heroes: confusion on how all the little numbers add up.

In any case, I'm just moving through the turns, playing the various cards and seeing what happens. The usual first play through for any wargame, if not regular game.

So far, I've gotten past a single Time advance, of which there are 5 in this scenario. I've used Move, Fire, Advance and Rout orders, and played several events. Melee wiped out a bunch of Russians. The Germans are huddled up in a Suppressed/Broken situation on one of their objectives. I think I've had enough for now.

Upshot from this play is that I think I like it, but I don't, at this moment, have any desire to play it solo. Perhaps in the future.

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What to play next?

Deciding what to play next is always a tough call when faced with a closet full of games, all of which were purchased with intent to play. Here's one I'm dealing with the decision.

  • Something New: this means both something new to me and a game which has been published recently, within the last two or three years.
  • Something Classic: I've acquired a number of games properly considered "classic" which haven't yet been played. The current example would be PanzerGruppe Guderian.
  • Something Again: mastery requires constant practice, which means playing games many, many times to allow nuance to appear.
  • Something Vietnam: as I'm on a Vietnam binge. I don't have all the Vietnam games ever published, but I can say that I have a lot of them, and probably more than most people.
  • Something Obscure: as it's fun to poke around in the dustier corners of game design.
  • Something Different: break away from the same old publishers and try a game from one of the new kids on the block. Or, conversely, dip into legacy with a classic tried and true.
  • Something Light: once in a while it's nice to actually finish a game all the way through in one sitting, in an hour or two.
  • Something Heavy: if possible, it's nice to set up something big and complicated which can be left out for days or weeks or even months, for a leisurely stroll through a very large or long game.

There are surely many more ways to choose, but the above method keeps me busy enough, helps me get both breadth and depth into my play, and provides me with a sense of progress.

The odd man out

When there is an odd man out:

  • Have a solo game ready to play.
  • Keep score or advise on a game in progress.
  • Referee a game in progress.