Keeps Turning Up Like a Bad Penny

By S. Craig Taylor, Jr.
June 18, 2003

One dark and gloomy night you hit the sack without a care in the world and the next morning you wake up to discover that your so-called partners have placed your head on a virtual coin at our Lost Battalion web site. Well, not really my head, but an unattractive copy of it. The picture reminds me of those Roman emperor’s heads that appeared on newly devalued coins for a few weeks before the emperor’s head appeared on the end of a pike when the praetorian guards demanded their Saturnalia bonus. Where did they get that “1865” date? I’m not nearly that old - the rest of the crew here just makes me feel that way.

The coin thingie’s appearance seems to be a not so subtle way of telling me that I should get cracking and start this column so that when you click on the coin image, this is where you are taken by a miracle of modern computer technology. We were discussing the idea of this column a week or so ago, after Deb Billings suggested it. I seem to vaguely remember that she also floated the idea that she would write a column for war game widows but notice that she has not been wearing black, lately. Oh well, I should go return to the beginning to provide some background.

Jeff Billings, John Caskey (John has since left for warmer climes) and moi, along with various other family members who didn’t bolt and run fast enough when they saw us coming, have devised numerous business plans and then thrashed out and ultimately discarded them for one reason or another over the past year. We knew that we wanted an online gaming company but so far had only a name—Lost Battalion. All the research, statistics and plans ultimately came to fruition at a meeting one day earlier this year….

Three Nuts in Search of a Bolt

You’re kidding, right? A card game? Jeff, Jeff, Jeff, what are you thinking? After all the different business models we’ve researched and discussed for starting up a game company, you think that we should launch our company with a card game as our initial release? Why don’t you lie down and rest quietly over there?”

“Craig, Craig, Craig, don’t have one of your geezer snits. I’ve been playing collectible and combat card games for many years, I have a vast fund of research on World War II available and I have some good ideas on how to do the game and have already done some work on the details. Besides, it will not be published until you agree that it is ready for prime time. What do you think, John?”

“Listen for a minute, Craig. Jeff’s been bouncing this idea off me and it looks pretty good. Lots of people enjoy a good combat card game and there is a market for a version on World War II. Card games are one of the few options that we have not yet considered. It’s new and it’s different. It would be expandable, don’t you see? This could be just the sort of flashy and continuing product we have been looking for to launch our gaming company. Later we could add other types of war game products.”

You know, when I left to go to Avalon Hill after ten years of designing, publishing and marketing board war games at Battleline and Yaquinto Games, it was a relief to leave the pressure cooker of running a game company. At that time, I swore that the last thing in the world I needed was another mad scheme to launch yet another war game company. Yet, twenty years later, here I am, with you two young whippersnappers, contemplating just that. OK, Jeff, work up a play test copy and I’ll give it whirl.”

“Good idea, Craig; you have unconsciously named the game.”

“What? Pressure Cooker, Mad Scheme, Whippersnappers?”

“No, BATTLELINES™ !”

“Huh?”

“Say, Jeff, this is actually pretty neat. This play test is going well. I’m having fun even though John simplemindedly thinks he’s clobbering me. Even though he’s eliminating many low victory point value Russian cards, I’ll probably hang on to the objective and finish the hand with more victory points. It also doesn’t hurt that you’re providing free munchies while we play. However, here are a few things that I think need to be changed before we publish….”

Well, that’s the way I remember it, anyway. Don’t believe John or Jeff, the evil coin guys, if they tell you anything different. Future installments of this column will cover games in the works for future publication.

This is the first Publisher’s Corner; to continue reading the further adventures of the merry Lost Battalion Games band…Click Here