Full Circle Magazine FR

Recently, I’ve become interested in single player board games. Particularly WWII themed games. Some games are ludicrously expensive (£100+), while some are more moderately priced (£40+). Another difficulty is that some of the best games are quite hard to get. Enter Vassal. Vassal is a Java-based piece of software which, when teamed with a module, can let you play board games on your machine. Even better is that Vassal has features to allow exchanging log files (think of that as being like the old play-by-email systems) and even online play. Installing Vassal doesn’t even need installing. You download the archive file from the sites download page (http://www.vassalengine.org/download.php), and save the TAR.GZ file to your PC. Unarchive the TAR.GZ file (either using your desktop’s archive manager, or in the terminal), and you’ll have a folder called VASSAL-3.2.16, the latest version as I write this. In there, you’ll see a file called VASSAL.sh. Double click that and Vassal will load.

Modules Let’s grab a module (aka: game) from the Vassal site. The Vassal modules page (http://www.vassalengine.org/wiki/Category:Modules) has a ton of games that you’ll be able to load into Vassal. They’re not all war games, either. I already own the game Ambush! so I’m going to grab that. I don’t have D-day At Omaha Beach, but do own D-day At Peleliu (which isn’t on the list of modules), so I’ll try out Omaha Beach too. Simply click the game title and download it to your PC. First Run On first loading Vassal, it won’t look very exciting. On the left of the screen is the ‘Module Library’ with only the Vassal Tour listed in it. On the right is the ‘Server Status’. If you don’t see this then you need to click and drag from the right edge into the center of the window to reveal it.

In the Vassal window menu, go to File > Open Module and choose one of the modules you downloaded. I’ll use Ambush! in this example. After a few moments, you’ll either see the module listed in the ‘Modules Library’ or a welcome wizard will appear. Most wizards will ask if you want to do offline play, search for a game online, or load a saved (ie: log) file. Choose which you’d rather have, step through the wizard options, and click Finish. You’ll now have a new Vassal window with the game board loaded up. And, just like in the real world, it’s empty. It’s up to you to set things up. Layout The layout of Vassal can change slightly depending on the module loaded, and what the game requires, but we’ll look at some of the most used items. Along the top of the screen (below the menu) are some icons. They are for things like Pieces: show/hide the game pieces (which show in a tabbed section above the map) Dice: any dice needed for the game (click the die and a result will appear in the log window above the board) Notes: a popup window will let you create/view game notes Charts: a popup window will display any game charts that are required … and then there are icons for screenshots, zooming, etc. D-day At Omaha Beach uses only cards and even has a ‘Card Table’ option to let you randomly choose a card for the various phases it has.

Using Using Vassal is all very much like the real world. Grab, drag, and drop. Again, like the real world, it’s up to you to be the rule book. Vassal will let you do anything you want. It’s up to you to stay within the rules of the game. The modules are very versatile and change the available options depending on the game. In Ambush! you can right-click a soldier and choose to make them ‘prone’ or change their stance. In Omaha Beach you can right-click to have a unit ‘step down’ or mark it as having taken a turn. File > Save Game will create a VSAV file which is a Vassal file that you can use to reload a game, or email to a friend to play their turn, save, and send their file. Conclusion I know that some of you will be thinking that downloading modules may verge on piracy, but note that many of the modules have the blessing of the creators and any creators who ask to have their game removed are respected. Vassal is an excellent engine and the perfect way to see if you like a game before paying hard cash for it. It’s also a great way to try out those older games that you just can’t get these days (unless you’re a rich collector). There’s so much more to Vassal. I haven’t even touched on the online aspect of it. If you have a remote interest in board games, then I can heartily recommend it. Vassal: http://www.vassalengine.org/ Modules: http://www.vassalengine.org/wiki/Category:Modules