Talk:Counter (board wargames)

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What's the convention for the numbers of a counter in a hex game? Strength / Range / Movement? Seems like a useful thing to reference. --Jeffrey Henning 18:05, 9 March 2006 (UTC)

[edit] Convention, or military, or just plain varying

I'm sure much of this notation in board games is loosely based on military markings. For instance, counters are used on maps like the WWII military maps, for instance these two (of omaha beach, and normandy in general). Numbers next to the counters indicate force strength or organizational numbers, but I don't have the background to get it right. Maybe this should be edited into the article.

[edit] both previous questions

Just a quick response to both previous questions.

1) Most games list at least some kind of strength rating and movement rating on the counters. But this can varry widely from game to game. Many will have two combat ratings (attack and defense), some even more (adding tank/anti-tank for instance). Other factors are range (usually artillery, depending on scale also other combat units), quality, morale (can be separate quality and morale ratings or a single value to represent either or both), range, stacking etc. All of that largely concerns land or combined warfare, naval or air wargames tend to have yet other ratings. In short, this is too complex and varied to name a standard.

2) One could divide wargame counter graphics into two classes (some combine both). a) Those that use symbols (NATO, derivatives of NATO, other tactical symbols etc.) to denote unit type. b) Those that use representations of soldiers (one or more combattant of that type of army) or pieces of weaponry (a tank, an airplane, a ship...).

3) I assume the Numbers next to the counters relate to those two maps. If that's the case it's false. For the first map the numbers identify the different Corps, Armies, Army-Groups and Divisions. In the second they identify companies of a regiment (A-116, A company 116 RCT) and battalions of a regiment (1 - 115, 1 battalion 115 RCT). Of course wargame counters often use the same or a similar system to identify the units represented.

--Caranorn 20:53, 6 September 2006 (UTC)