BACK TO THE EMPORIUM

 

June 22 2001

Now, stop looking at me like that, I've been in school!  There have been several updates of late.  The missing Conquistador box has been found, and reposted to the Q Division.   I also have a new gamebox in for Air Baron, for Abalone, for The Stars my Decimation, and War and Peace.

February 13-14, 2001

Not a huge update, but some nice things done this week.  I'm playing a game of Fire When Ready (metagaming micro) with Jeff Ewing.  I made some changes in the box that assist PBeM play (mostly addng inidividual targetting markers for the ships in play).   Aron Clark sent me a revised tile library for the recent Spanish Fury SIEGE box (See Feb 01) adding counters for season, and bigger national labels.  These changes are updated and uploaded.  On other fronts, Sean Emerson sent me a few new nifty WGP Modules: Panzergruppe Guderian, Battle for Moscow, and Tigers in the Mist for WGP (see the WGP page, under NEW). 

News and updates on other sites: Yankee Air Pirates (YAP) has new CB modules for World War II PTO and ETO (SPI/TSR), Victory in the Pacific (AH), Pharsalus (GDW), Operation Dragon Rouge (Sim. Workshop, great game), Holy Roman Empire (3W), Hell's Highway (VG), Embrace an Angry Wind (the Gamers), April's Harvest (the Gamers), (soon to be posted) In their Quiet Fields II (the Gamers)  (note: I'm always easy when it comes to a CWB game from the Gamers... email me!), Barbarian, Kingdom and Empire, and A Mighty Fortress .

Over at Die Hauptkampflie (Nick Bell's Aide De Camp page), there are new(ish) modules for: Liberty (new game design using ADC), and some commercial sets for Caesar (GMT), Xenophon (DG), and Clash of Arms 1807 (COA).  Recent postings were James Burnett's mammoth, free WW2 operational game, Storm over Europe (ADC2 only), Anzio (AH), and more FinnishBlitz/PanzerBlitz updates (AH).  There is also an ongoing Blitzkrieg tournament using ADC2 only.

 

February 01, 2001

Relax, it's not as bad as it looks.  I've been updating here and there, adding new gameboxes for Battle Platform Antilles (Freebies), etc.  I've just not had a tremendous amount of time to update all the links prevelant throughout this (massive) site, including this one.  New Stuff!: Alejandro Cobo sends in an INSECTICA! gamebox (Freebies).  He also sent a new version of ANCIENTS (based upon Mike Nagel's excellent artwork, back in December (also Freebies)).  George Manouskious also did a version of Ancients based upon the same artwork, with english markers and all the scenarios, some time in January.  I also did a gamebox for Operation Veritable (by Paul Rohrbaugh, Microgame Design Group, formerly Co-op) which is also on the Freebies page.  John Staunton sent in his gamebox for Conquistador (SPI, AH) which is on the Q Division page.  Finally, I've torn through some gameboxes lately; Gondor and Sauron (two separate boxes) in the War of the Ring series (SPI), available on the SPI Popup page in the Q Division, and Spanish Fury: Siege!, a great free wargame by "the Perfect Captain" (also in Freebies). 

September 26, 2000

Not much to update of late.  I've started classes at George Mason University (two per week and all day Saturday, OY!)  So my output has slowed.  However, Jeffrey Schutt sends in his wonderful DRAGON PASS gamebox (Avalon Hill version).  This is one of the best boardgame conversions I've ever seen, and I've seen a lot of them!  Check it out in the Q Division, bottom of the page.  Phil Fry notified the Cyberboard list that he has constructed a gamebox for his game FIRE AS SHE BEARS!   which is located at his FASB! EGroup.  Go to the FILES section to download it.  You can also use it for Sailing Battle board games like WSIM and Close Action.  Josh Lawrence sent me SNIT'S REVENGE (in the TSR section) and an update of his great CREATURE THAT ATE SHEBOYGAN gamebox.  How do you like the snazzy new pull down menus I've added to all the main pages?  Let me know.

September 11, 2000

Some great projects came in over the weekend, which is good, because my work on gameboxes for Bull Run and Fire in Mississippi has slowed due to me trying to get my townhouse ready for closing!  First of all, Rob Struble takes a break from working on his WAR OF THE RING opus by giving us a great DARK NEBULA gamebox (GDW).  DN is a tile-map game, not unlike Dwarfstar's GRAV ARMOR in execution.  Jeff Fisher had some time on his hands, because he sends updates for WRECK OF THE BSM PANDORA, VOYAGE OF THE BSM PANDORA,and RESCUE FROM THE HIVE.  The Ancient Generals THOTH text file is updated.  Oh, and Skip emails me that it wasn't such a thrashing (see below), and would "hardly even be Phyrric due to the low casualties".  I sit corrected!

September 05, 2000

Nice update (much delayed, alas). First of all, the talented Mr. Jose Garcia weighs in with three new gameboxes in Cyberboard, for Columbia Block Games NAPOLEON, QUEBEC 1759, and WAR OF 1812 (I added ADC2 links for EUROFRONT, 1812, and ROMMEL IN THE DESERT to round out the Columbia Games theme-- all on a special Columbia Games popup off of Q Division).  Joshua Lawrence weighs in with a Cyberboard gamebox for THE CREATURE THAT ATE SHEBOYGAN (at Last!), on its on page, off of the SPI popup on Q Division.  My own THOTH module for Lloyd Krassner's excellent (and FREE) card game ANCIENT GENERALS is available on the Thoth Page.  Since Skip Franklin gave me an excellent thrashing in EYLAU (Avalanche) in person recently when he was out my way on travel, he mellowed enough to allow me to post the link to his "Cyberboard Projects in Work" page.  I've added a page called THE TEMPLE OF MARS dedicated to the many stand-alone web based iterations of PBeM/Virtual Play.

August 16, 2000

Not much this week, but to paraphrase Spencer Tracy, "What's there is cherce"... From Italy, Roberto Chiavani sends us a new FREE game called the Battle of Bezzecca (rules and Cyberboard gamebox included... a lovely effort).  This was a pivotal campaign in the 1866 Italian War of Independence.   Jeffrey Schutt also provides a dazzling new Cyberboard gamebox for the space combat game STARMADA.  The publisher of the game provides a free demo of the game in PDF which this gamebox is based upon (yes, I provided the link).  Find them both on the Freebies page!

On the Cyberboard-ML mailing list, Mr. Skip Franklin recently posted a link to a page concerning Cyberboard gameboxes in work (including a few of my own).   I won't post it here at his request, but if you subscribe to the CYBERBOARD ML mailing list at Egroups.Com (and peruse the message archive), you may find it interesting reading...

August 08 2000

Another good week for updates.  Not one, but TWO FREEDOM IN THE GALAXY(SPI/Avalon Hill) make their semi-debut this week.  One is by Rob McDougall, and is hosted on his page (see the link and screenshots on the Q DIVISION).   The other is by Thom Denholm, and as he is concerned about ironing out a few nits, is still in playtest.  I will post a SCREENSHOT however (the Emporium will host this file eventually).  Contact Thom to get in on the playtest.  Rob McDougall also trundled out my old TITAN Gamebox and gave it a nice new shiny mapboard (a scan of the original), which is available on the Titan page (go to the Q Division, then -> the Titan Page).  Something I don't get to say that often... there are TWO new gameboxes available for One Small Step games.  The first debuted a week or so ago, for the old Competitive Edge game BATTLECHROME: FIRE AND STEEL.   The other is my own design, for OSS' brand NEW issue game of WW2 tactical combat, FOXHOLE. Look for both on the OSS Page.

In the Wargame Processor Department, the prolific and detail oriented Mike Phebus has updated his monster EAST FRONT module (Columbia Games).

Since it suits my ORIGINAL purposes (two years ago!) to foster a community of gamebox creators and email players (not just to be a cheerleader for Cyberboard and WGP), I'm going to put a little blurb on the latest ADC stuff and what's new on Chris Fawcett's site  in the What's New column every other week or so, staggered.  Here's the latest modules available for AIDE DE CAMP 2: (Free Downloads) The Longest Day (AH), Prestags (SPI), WW2 (SPI), Alpha Omega (Yaquinto), Rencounter (Ed Allen).  New commercial gameset for Great Battles of Alexander (GMT-- Contact them directly).  Purchase ADC2 here, and visit Nick Bell's Die HauptKampfLinie Site 

Nice update this week!  First of all,a newcomer to PBeM design, Jose Marie Garcia, contacted me via email to distribute some gameboxes he had constructed.   Imagine my excitement when one of them was WAR GALLEY by GMT!   It turns out, after I worked through translation difficulties (my Spanish is appalling), that he had only constructed the DREPANUM scenario.  I contacted Gene B. at GMT, and he gave me a green light to post it (and to construct a complete gamebox!), as long as GMT gets a copy.  A big shout out to Gene Billingsley of GMT.. one of nature's nice guys.  The other two gameboxes Jose had created were "Battle of Little Big Horn" (which I think was CUSTER'S LUCK from the old WARGAMER magazine but I'm not sure), and "Battle of Roarke's Drift (3W Boxed Game).  All of these are in the Q Division.  A great start for Jose!   Email him with a challenge, as he states he would like to play these games.   Also, Sean Emerson has updated and expanded his monster gamefile for THE LONGEST DAY by Avalon Hill (in the Wargame Processor section).

In a related front, I'm volunteering in a wargame design effort to create a tactical wargame set in the Spanish Civil War, one of my favorite historical eras.  I've created a gamebox in Cyberboard to test the system (called, provisionally LIBERTAD O MUERTE!).  Look for a screenshot on the Freebies page and a link to the playtesters page on EGROUPS.COM (you can download the gamebox there).   We need playtesters!!!

July 25 2000

Not much to update, a new version of WGP "Victory in the Pacific" module is available.  Lots of cool projects in work!  I bumped into Todd "VMAP" Zircher's site the other day and surfed over to his fascinating "Team OG" site.  This could be the future of PBeM... it's three dimensional, turn based, and looks very cool.  Check out Team OG.

 July 12 2000

After being out for a few weeks enduring a grueling house move, I'm back with some updates... LOTS of updates.  New Wargame Processor Modules: Squad Leader Scenario 4 (AH), Starship Troopers (AH), and an update for Global War (AH) and War and Peace (AH).  A new sub section of Q DIVISION: SPI Games/Ares Magazine Gamettes.  I'll be posting gamefiles for those games I can support legally there.  New Cyberboard boxes, in the same area: Wreck of BSM Pandora (SPI) and Time Tripper (SPI).  New section, the DTP ACES, available off the main page.  New Cyberboard gameboxs for The Jewish War (Khyber Pass Games, a DTP company) and MAMANACHOS!, Perry Moore's DTP game on the Spanish Civil War. 

June 25, 2000

I add translator support for our International friends (sorry, I could only find Spanish, French, German, Italian and Portuguese).  Please, no cracks about American English vs. English English!  :-)   New Wargame Processor Modules: The Longest Day (First Scenario Only) and Arnhem (part of the West Wall Quad). 

June 21, 2000

The Centurion Gamebox has been updated by its author (Q Division).  I add a new page and cyberboard gamebox supporting Waving Hands , a free game of dueling wizards (Freebies Page). 

  June 18, 2000

As reported above, Stephan Beal has decided to cease supporting the GUB (Generic Universal Boardgame), and has replaced it with the QUB project.  I asked him to write up a "press release-slash-overview" of the project, and he was happy to comply.  Check out why the QUB is breaking new ground in the Essay section.

June 12, 2000

The GUB is no more.  In its place is the QUB, a Unix/Linux only utility that is written in C++.  We now offer support for "Zaks" THOTH PBeM with cards engine.  I add a gamebox for Oneworld (Metagaming), and a GENERIC AGE OF SAIL gamebox (Designers, Q Division). 

May 30, 2000:

Well, the previous What's New Page got corrupt for some reasons, which is a shame.  I liked having a history of this site.

In any event, lots of things are new on the site this month:

Extensive Wargame Proccessor Support is inaugurated, see the top (PBeM Main) page for the link.  This is a major new category for the Emporium and has its own page, set up "Web Grognards Fashion".  WGP files tend to be for more classic AH/SPI titles, and really constitute more of a Historical/Strategy focus for the Emporium. 

New Gameboxes for OneWorld (Metagaming), Poitiers/Formingy (link to another site on Q division), Second version of 3W Ancients (using Mike Nagel's graphics) downloadable on the Q Division (also link to Aide De Camp version of same), Formula De Gamebox (on Q Division), Freebie Game CREATURES THAT ATE NEW YORK on Q Division (though will migrate to Freebies after a while).  Happy discovery: Chris Fawcett's Kingmaker gamebox (Q Division link to his page).  Also, Debut of Circus Maximus Play By Email Support Page (as opposed to download file), link on Q Divison.

Thanks to Ezio Flavio for helping with both a better scan of the Creatures that Ate New York and the rules.

New Essay in the Essays section: How to play a multiplayer game via Cyberboard.  I've posted the outline for the new CYBERBOARD OPEN DOCUMENTATION PROJECT.

Outside of Emporium, but pertaining to Emporium files: OSS Games, long thought moribund, has decided to publish their back issues (INCLUDING THE GAMES) online!  Check in with the OSS site... we will be posting the links as they develop.  

May 17, 2000

Magic Realm Gamebox (Q Division), Circus Maximus gamebox (Q Division).
New Gameboxes in COOP section: Battle for China and The Shining Path.

 

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