Today’s chat was with Dan Newton, the TO of the Bolt Action Event at Southern Hemisphere Open.
What is the system you will be running at SHO?
I will be running Bolt Action, a historically themed WWII skirmish game mainly focused around infantry and support elements.
Tell me a bit about yourself
Hmm let’s see, I’m a 28 year old gamer who probably should stop looking at new gaming systems and creating games. All sorts of games have been part of my life a very young age and it isn’t showing many signs of slowing down. Well at least one sign! Outside of gaming I work for a not for profit Insurance company, doing all sorts of tasks from answering the phone to data analysis, reports, monitoring and communication pieces. There is a desire to move towards more project related work and development, but it is a matter of time, education and opportunity to get there.
What is your gaming history?
I’ll try to keep this short! I started gaming when I was about 14 or 15. Even before this I was playing strategy board games with my dad and uncles (there was no easy mode!). Primarily we played through the Milton Bradley series of games which gave me a healthy respect for the fine balance between being too aggressive (over expansion), or too passive (boxed in). I didn’t really get serious about tabletop war gaming as a hobby until late 17. I had always enjoyed model building and gaming, so introducing the two together was really just the next step. I’ve now tried out quite a few of the more well known systems, but crazily kept most of my stuff and just added to my collection instead of just focusing on one system. I try to keep up with them all – not an easy task!
Tell me about this system, stretch your imagination and pretend I’ve never played this system, explain it to me, why do you play it, why do others play it? Who would enjoy it?
Bolt Action is inspired from historic events and has a very strong cinematic feel to the games. It is not a game of complexity; rather most rules have taken a simple approach so players can focus on playing the game. The scale is close to Warhammer 40,000, although obviously models reflect historical kit, weapons and aesthetics from WWII. In every turn, the players don’t know whose unit will activate next as the turn sequence is driven by Order dice. This is one of my favourite mechanics of the game and goes a long way to ensuring some semblance of balance. The game is also deliberately focused on infantry, so unless you’re playing the Tank War supplement, there is not normally a huge amount of armour (vehicles) on the board.
What is this systems history in WA?
Bolt Action is in its 2nd edition currently but it is not particularly new. There have been a few slow grow leagues kick off since the release. Currently we still have players who don’t necessarily know that there are other players in the same or close suburbs as them! Bolt Action has had quite a number of events of different styles pop up in the last 12 months as other players and I have sought to get a feel for the community. The result of the player’s feedback has fed into this years’ SHO event.
How is the game supported in WA?
Bolt Action is accepted in pretty much every club I think at the moment, but there are also heaps of players who aren’t committed to any one location for games. We seem to be a very flexible lot. Most independent stores that sell tabletop war games will likely sell Bolt Action, its relevant accessories and allow you to play games as well.
What is the history at SHO?
This is Bolt Actions second showing at SHO. We ran a small tournament last year with a core group that actually had spectators asking us for demo games! This year we are aiming for 20 people across 10 tables and a more fun event style rather than a strict, competitive tournament.
How are you associated with the game?
I am very much just a fan of the game that has a passion for the community. I started out saying I don’t want to be the “Bolt Action guy”, who everyone has to go through to run events. But I did want to be in a position to facilitate, or help facilitate, an event for the community if they wanted it. Things snowballed pretty quickly from there and I spent the next 12 months trying different formats, restrictions, mission types and scoring systems both at events and at home.
What is unique/exciting about this event at SHO?
This event returns to the favoured team result format. What that means is each player is allocated to a team (Axis or Allies) based on their faction and player numbers. Each win players achieve increases their teams score. In addition each round won by a player grants that team a bonus for the next round. These are being rewarded in the form of select re-rolls – a rare commodity in Bolt Action!
Why should people come and play this event at SHO?
Bolt Action is a fantastic and easy game to learn. Even if you’ve not played before, or you’ve only partially read the rules, the community and players are welcoming and helpful. I would encourage all who are getting started to come and play as this event is the perfect learning ground.
Anything else you want to add
If anyone is interested in learning about Bolt Action or would like to discuss something further, please don’t hesitate to contact me either through Objective Secured, directly or better yet at the SHO!
The formal Bolt Action event is running on Sunday 23rd September and there will be intro and demo games on Saturday and Monday! We hope to see you there! Tickets are available through Humanitix and the players pack is available via the SHO website
