- Little Wars
"Little Wars" was written by the famous author
H. G. Wells in 1913 and is a set of rules for playing withtoy soldier s. Its full title is "Little Wars: a game for boys from twelve years of age to one hundred and fifty and for that more intelligent sort of girl who likes boys' games and books"."Little Wars" is considered by some to be the first modern table top war game. It included fairly simple rules for
infantry ,cavalry , andartillery in the form of a toy 4.7 inchnaval gun that launched projectiles, usually smallwood endowel s to knock down enemy soldiers. In addition to it being a war game, the book hints at several philosophical aspects ofwar .The development of the game is explained and Wells' thoughts on war, as he was known to be a pacifist, is revealed in his writing. According to Wells, the idea of the game developed from a visit by his friend
Jerome K. Jerome . After dinner, Jerome began shooting downtoy soldier s with a toy cannon that Wells joined in to compete. The two decided that with an addition of written rules, a good Kriegsspiel type game could be developed. The game revolved around the use oflead hollow cast soldiers made byW. Britain and battlefields made from whatever materials were on hand, usually blocks or other toys. Simple rules of movement, firing, andclose combat were developed with a set amount of time for each player to move and fire. Wells also provides a chapter of "Extensions and Amplifications of Little War". In an appendix, Wells provides "Little Wars and Kriegspiel"; more complex rules to be played in a larger space involvingMilitary logistics ,military engineers ,cavalry charges, andrailway transport of troops.The book is written in a whimsical style and illustrated with amusing drawings and photographs of a game being played that Wells describes in the book. Wells also gives a description of the game from the view of one of the Generals in the battle bombastically relating his memoirs.
"Little Wars" was first published in 1913 by Frank Palmer. There have been numerous reprints and it is now available online at
Project Gutenberg , along with a previous game book by Wells called "Floor Games " (1911). The most recent edition of the book was published bySkirmisher Publishing LLC in 2004 and includes an introduction by game designerMichael J. Varhola and a foreword byGary Gygax .Modern Adaptation
In 2006, Skirmisher Publishing announced an upcoming product called 'H.G. Wells' Little Orc Wars'. The product was said to be due for release in "early 2007", but as of March 2008 only a 'quick-play' version has been released, with the full version said to be due for release "later this year". [http://floipoid.wordpress.com/2007/06/15/hg-wells-little-orc-wars-quick-play-released/]
External links
* [http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/3691 Full text of "Little Wars"] from Project Gutenberg.
* [http://publicliterature.org/books/little_wars/xaa.php "Little Wars"] by [http://publicliterature.org PublicLiterature.org] , complete text with embedded audio.
* [http://www.gutenberg.org/etext/3690 Full text of "Floor Games"] from Project Gutenberg.
* [http://www.costik.com/littlewars.html "Little Wars" & "Floor Games"] Introduction to the 1995 edition of Wells' gaming books.
* [http://www.archive.org/details/littlewarsgamefo00well "Little Wars"] onArchive.org .
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