The Commander Series Forum

Ciao
What is the best way to play solo games?

Don't invite any friends round to play!

Pete, that was just nasty. I wish I had said it. Come to think of it...

Solo games can be played many ways. I like to set up some rules for a side to try to follow to help direct and focus pay a bit. Such as, Side A will has been given attack orders and will always attempt to advance and attack whenever possible.

You could do it randomly at the start of the game. Set up say six different directives to follow and then roll for the directive that side will follow during the game. Examples:

1. Maximize enemy casualties.
2. Take the cross roads.
3. Exit unit off far side of table.
4. Hold the line at all costs.
5. Recon village then pull back.
6. Crush your enemies under your wheels, drive them before you, and hear the lamentations of their women. (Ooops sorry about that. A bit to much Conan this morning. )

Leonardo - T-square's answers all good (not sure about the last one actually).

Pete's answer is open to interpretation - best answer don't invite anyone (friend or enemy) round

I think BKC/CWC system lends itself very well to solo play because of the uncertainty inherent in the command system.
Nik Harwood of course plays a lot of his games solo and a look at his pbworks wiki - http://nikharwood.pbworks.com/
should provide plenty of inspiration.

For some mechanics of confusing yourself about your opponents intentions you could have a look at one system I have used:http://corrigenda.pbworks.com/Chandaran-1
This is for a defence played solo.

For you to defend against an attack you could determine a range of attacking strengths/composition of forces you may face - put cards representing the minimum into a 'pool' and then mix a number of blank and real force cards and draw a number at randon to make up your enemy force pack. You can then set up your defence and draw a number of attacker cards per turn to see what turns up - you could predeterming entry points for each draw.
There are ways of allowing variable objectives to the attacker so you don't even know exactly how hard and how far the attack is planned for.

There is a Solo Wargames Association- it started out as a Brit organisation, went internatinal and is now US based - check TMP or google it for an address. They used to have hundreds of great ideas for stopping all encompassing knowledge being a problem.

You could (if you can persuade anybody) semi solo a game as well. If you picked a defence force for example and gave a range of forces for an email correspondent to randomly select (you'd have to trust it wasn't someone who was always going to select the biggest meanest option), they could, with a map, programme the basic direction of thrust of the attacking elements with their entry points and times written in order so that (with self discipline) you only played each paragraph for the current move and then moved on to the next.
Of course you'd have to determine what happened once combat began - but you could ask them to set a posture/SOP - eg aggressive, medium, cautious to determine how many times the attacker attempted to issue orders etc.
You could always reciprocate for them and write up batreps to let them see how it went.
Guy

I think qwydion may have come up with a great forum section for Solo Players. Somewhere they can post up scenarios and others can suggest orders, posture and initial deployment.

I never play solo games my mother told me I would go blind playing with myself.

the other thing to do is put a screen down the middle of the table so when you set up each side you dont no how they have set up there units

Good idea for a new section, I just added it

I suggested this on Pendraken and its still to materialise so cheers Pete - I dont feel such a saddo/billynomates anymore

I play solo quite a bit (when I get the time) - it's good to win all the time, but losing every game as well is a real bummer

ChrisJ, I think lots of people do it a bit and wear glasses
Having started a family rather later than a sane person would contemplate (daughter 10, son 3, me....well considerably older) I find commiting myself to regular club nights impossible, meeting up with contemporaries (now generally grandparents)very difficult, and the sudden peaceful moments so unpredictable, that soloing is almost the only practical option a lot of the time.

I was a member of the SWA back in the late 70s/early 80s and even when I had more time than I have now and played lots of face to face games I still enjoyed (insert onanistic euphemism of choice here...).

As Pete, at Englishmen's suggestion, has put this section up I hope it gets used. If anyone does want to use any of the ideas, time allowing, I'd be glad to help.

Nice one Pete, all us billy no mates can now swap ideas.

Welcome, my name is Billy, I play solo

On a more serious note, I did put together some rule ideas to play the game solo when I first developed BKC, but unfortunately I lost them. They were along the lines of playing one side and the other side could make a number of command rolls and carry out actions based on some kind of logic. I wish I could have found the ideas

My name's Nik...and I'm addicted to playing with myself. Or something.

I think you want www.tankers-anonymous.com or something like that

Leonardo - of course I should have mentioned Donald Featherstone's classic 'Solo Wargaming' - and tried to sell you a copy:
http://www.warrfarr.co.uk/donald-featherstones-...

Guy

There is also this one:

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Partizan-Press-Guide-So...

"tankers-anonymous.com" eh? Hmm...*sounds* familiar

Guy - thanks for the promo of my wiki: about 99.9% of my gaming is done solo [apart from when SteveJ comes to play - usually when he's sneaking a figure order under the wife-radar ] or we're at a show of some description & trying to stop KD touching our dice...

Don't forget Charles Grant's "Programmed Wargames Scenarios" which is useful...I've got a mint copy which is, if I'm honest, almost entirely completely indecipherable to me - probably because I'm an eeyjit [and have a Master of Education degree to prove it]

The problem I have playing solo is the arguments I get into. I never can seem to win them. The other guy is just so convincing.

I believe that this website might be of service to all of us solo players:

http://www.psych.org/

Whatever tricks or devices you employ you will still know what SIDE A/SIDE B is up to, so, just accept the fact and play both sides accordingly. There will be enough command failures to confound "your" plans to keep it interesting.

Thanks for the new section Pete.

I'll post up a scenario once I get my games table back (Just need to individually photograph another 800 28mm figures for a website first!!).

i like solo games i can have sides where i have 5x Tetrarch up against 10x tiger2's and the Tetrarch win every time

LOL At least you won't get criticised for it

Why do you need so many Tetrarch's?