Moves Issue33.Pdf

* MOVES nr. 33, published June/July 1977 Opening Moves The Hardcorps (sic) and the Magazines Circulation: 9000 In Moves nr. 29 we ran an extensive set of questions dealing with readership and Edltor/Executive Art Director Redmond A. Simonsen subscribership of the various wargaming Managing Edltar Robert J. Ryer magazines and fanzines. First it should be Art Director Manfred F. Milkuhn pointed out that wargaming is, obviously, Contributing Editors not a hobby with a large population- Richard Berg, James F. Dunnigan, Frederick Georgian, although the central group of hobbyists are Phil Kosnett, Steve List, Mark Saha, Jerrold Thomas very active and visible. The pun-title of this column makes reference to this group. Strategy & Tactics, is of course, the largest MOVES Magazine is copyright @ 1977. Simulations Publications, Inc. Printed in U.S.A. All rights reserved. All editorial andgeneral mail should be addressed to Simulations Publications Inc., 44 East 23rd Street. N.Y.. N.Y. 10010. circulation magazine in the hobby-but even MOVES is published by-monthly. One year subscriptions (six issues) are available for 58.00 (U.S.). Back issues or S&T is fairly small compared to other singlecopiesofthecumnt issue areavailableat S2.50percopy. Pleaseremit by check ormoney order (U.S. funds only) magazines-even special interest magazines Printing and Binding by American Ress. Inc., Gordonsville. Va. of other hobbies such as boating or serious ARTICLE SUBMISSIONS: Readers are invited to submit articles for possible publication in MOVES Magazine. photography or personal computers. But Manuscriptsmust be typewritten. double-spaced, on 8% x 11 white bond, with generous margins. Please include your full name on each MS page, and your name and address on the cover page. If you wish your manuscript returned. S&T is not a pure wargaming magazine. include a stamped, self-addressed 9 x 12 envelope. In no instance, however, can SPI assume responsibility for True, it has a wargame in it, but it is more manuscripts and illustrations not specifically solicited. correctly characterized as a history magazine that serves wargamers. Excluding S&T, there are four main magazines that deal almost exclusively with grid-map wargaming: MOVES, the AH General, Fire & Movement, and Campaign. In this issue ... A fifth recently went to bunny-heaven (Jagd- Panther/Battlefield). Added to that are two War in Europe Steve List other related magazines: The Space Gamer (a magazine that deals exclusively with SF StarForce Scenario 10 Tony Watson wargaming as a hobby-within-a-hobby) and Wargamer's Digest (which is basically a Panzergruppe Guderian Bill Dunne, miniatures gaming magazine). The survey Mike Gunson, also asked about two representative fanzines: David Parish Signal and Europa-there is an ever- changing blizzard of others of varying Citadel John Prados degrees of quality and stability. As best as can be determined by the SPI In- Science Fiction Phil Kosnett telligence Group, MOVES has 9,000 paying October War Mark Herman readers and the AH General about the same or perhaps a little less. Fire & Movement has An NLB Campaign Tony Merridy recently grown to about 4,000, and Cam- paign has 2,500 to 3,000 paying readers. If Goeben as Dreadnought Edward Heinsman the pass-along readership factor can be -- assumed to be consistent from magazine to Opening Moves Redmond A. Simonsen magazine, then each has about two-and-a- half times as many readers as the preceding Designer's Notes SPI R&D Staff figures indicate. But it would be a gross error Your MOVES The Readers to simply sum the paying (or pass-along) readers to wind up with an estimate of the Forward Observer Richard Berg wargame magazine population. The MOVES survey showed that at that time (last Fall), Playback The Players over one-third of the subscribers to MOVES also subscribed to The General. At the time, Feedback/Playback Questions Vox Populi, Vox Dei a thousand of the F&Msubscribers were also MOVES subscribers (and most of F&M's growth took place after the survey-my estimate is that at least two-thirds of F&M Simulations Publications, Inc.. 44 East 23rd Street, New York, N.Y. 10010 subscribers subscribe to MOVES). More than half of the Campaign subscribers are also MOVES subscribers. The overlap bet- ween the magazines is significantly large. My estimate is that there is a group of about Cardboard Nazis, and the Inside Dopester/ 1,500 readers who subscribe to all four main Conspiracy Monger, et al. magazines. Logically enough, it can also be The editors and publishers would perhaps assumed that this group is the most vocal and benefit from being less provincial and ter- active group of wargamers in the whole ritorial-the Hardcorps readers could population. They buy a great number of perhaps have a wider sense of perspective games, write a lot of letters andarticles, go to and scale. We could all relax and enjoy it a conventions, and generally make their little more. presence felt to a degree far beyond what WORK IN PROGRESS their mere numbers would indicate. Another Howareya, Howareya. couple of thousand subscribe to (or regularly Please don't order any of these titles until buy) two or more of the four magazines- Comes late July 1'11 find myself in Staten their availability is announced via S&T. Island (which though technically part of New - they should also be considered as part of the Vera Cmz group. So now we have about 3,500 in the York City is a place few Manhattanites have Hardcorps. There are undoubtedly many ac- ever flown over, much less visited). The occa- The finishing touches are being put on what tive gamers that don't subscribe to any of the sion of course is Origins 77, the annual hob- has been a surprisingly satisfactory develop- four magazines-but that very fact makes by bash. I hope that as many of you as can ment period for next S&Ts issue game. The make it doattend. I'd like to at least say hello combat system has been refined, and it now >- them another distinct group. to as many of you as possible. I wish some- includes elements of morale, leadership, sup- My underscoring of this overlap is by way of one would invent teleportation so that even ply, organization and terrain in figuring out pointing out that there is some danger of the the most far-flung readers could easily get to the final ratio. This has turned out to be magazines becoming ghetto-ized or too pro- NY (then we could hold a sort of outdoor somewhat complex (not too complex), but, vincial in their outlook. The AH General is MOVES magazine). So walk right up to me as it is the only piece of complexity in the sel f-ghetto-izing: it deals exclusively with AH and introduce yourself (giving the secret whole game above a 4.0 level, it has been games and rarely speaks to the hobby in MOVES handshake, of course). And for deemed acceptable. The reasons for such a general (no pun). In large part, all the goodness sake, bring some women with you. level of complexity in figuring out what magazines are talking to the same relatively should be a simple combat ratio were man- small group of gamers. Editors are suscepti- dated by the unusual nature of the campaign. ble to the mail they get and the face-to-face Thus players will find that although they confrontations they have with this group. have the necessary strength they will also They also sometimes imagine that they need good leadership morale, otherwise a 4-1 "have" this group of readers, and no other attack can become a 1-2 disaster. Most sur- magazine has them. Regardless of the irra- prising has been the play balance. Historians tionality of this, I see the signs in myself and will be aware of the seeming ease with which in other "insiders" in the various publishing Scott accomplished the capture of Mexico houses in the Wargame Village. City. In the game it is not so easy; not only In reality, we all "have" the same small does the US player have the original prob- group. This should be kept in mind when one lems of disease, an extended supply line, writes as if the other magazines and CHANGE OF ADDRESS? guerrillas, and the loss of his volunteer publishers don't exist-or when one reviews troops - he is also faced with the fact that When changing your address we need at games, makes announcements or pro- the Mexican Player will not be as dumb as nouncements, or generally acts like they in- least two months notice to insure that you Santa Anna. So the games have been quite will receive your copy of MOVES. The Post vented sliced bread. It also should act as a tense and well-balanced, yet more than ac- useful temporizer of petty spite campaigns Office has a tendency to lose copies of ceptably within the framework of history. and indignant arm-flapping. No one's kid- MOVES that are sent to an old address. Good fun. -Berg Third class mail is not forwarded. Also in- ding anybody-we're all in the same small Campaignfor North Africa boat; all the readers know what's going on in clude in your change of address either one of all the little councils of gamedom. No one your mailing labels or the numbers on your Extended research goes on for this intensive can lock anyone out 'cause they're all inside mailing label above your name and address. game.

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