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Articles by Brian King

Posted on May 9, 2014 in Stuff We Like

Mosin Nagant Giveaway for May 2014

Mosin Nagant Giveaway for May 2014

Enter to win this prize package valued at $200! — Armchair General magazine is proud to offer a gift card enabling the recipient to exchange the card for a working piece of military history! The gift card can be used for a Mosin Nagant M91/30 bolt action rifle. This is a true piece of history with various models of the Mosin Nagant serving in militaries and recreational shooting since 1891! This particular model is listed as used surplus, so its actual combat service (if any) is unknown. To supplement this piece of history, Armchair General will also include protective eyewear and ear protection so you can hit the field well prepared. Ammo must be purchased separately. US Residents only. See full list of terms and conditions for details. Photo showing the rifle in action from Enemy at the Gates. Your experience may vary. a Rafflecopter...

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Posted on Jan 28, 2014 in Stuff We Like

Armchair General my World of Tanks Episode B

Armchair General my World of Tanks Episode B

[custom_field limit=”0″ between=”, ” /] In this second video we take out an M18 Hellcat for a drive and discuss some key decision points within the match. Click my name under the title to find all the videos I’ve made. Thanks for riding...

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Posted on Jan 16, 2014 in Stuff We Like

Armchair General my World of Tanks Episode A

Armchair General my World of Tanks Episode A

In this new series of videos, we ride along in World of Tanks to get some tips on gameplay and examine some skills that apply to similar games in the genre. This includes simple things like cover vs. concealment, working as a team, and how to have fun even in the agony of defeats. I – “Siberian_HEAT” – will be leading the charge in this new series. Check back weekly for new videos and feel free to comment on the videos or in this post if you want me to cover anything in particular within the game. Why World of Tanks? Most importantly it is free to play, so anyone can attempt to replicate the skills discussed here. Visit worldoftanks.com to download the game – but be advised it is a massive download! The second reason is that it is currently my go-to game when I have free time. It is fast paced and you can play a dozen matches in an evening. In video A I take out...

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Posted on Sep 25, 2008 in Stuff We Like

The Dog Days of History

You never know when history is going to come up and bite you.  Recently I changed my forum avatar to a cute and cuddly thing called a "mine dog" (a Russian dog which carried explosives underneath enemy tanks in World War II) to celebrate my friend Dana Lombardy’s game called Streets of Stalingrad.  This picture is on the left and it is one of the cardboard counters used in the game… Then, to my surprise another friend of mine was working on the same theme with some of his LEGO creations, making a LEGO "mine dog" which he proudly has displayed on Flickr.  You MUST check it out! And, in marginally related news dealing with "history" in a different sense, does anyone remember the game Dog Daze?  It is ancient history but I spent many an hour of my youth playing...

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Posted on Sep 17, 2008 in Stuff We Like

Smoking Gun in a Brushfire? Welcome to The War in South Ossetia

It has been more than a month since the brief but bitter war between Georgia and Russia over the disputed Caucasian territory of South Ossetia. Now, after all the fighting, all the diplomacy, and all the name recognition (and name calling), both sides are in a continuing struggle to prove definitively who fired the first shot.

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Posted on Jun 13, 2008 in Stuff We Like

Armchair General Toddler Program

An interest in military history is something I’m passing along to my son. Join us as we explore World War II, Vietnam, and places in between as a love of history sprouts at a young age. Share your experiences raising a history-friendly son or daughter.

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Posted on Mar 14, 2008 in Stuff We Like

Four Years of Armchair General

It’s hard to know where to begin with a piece dedicated to the history of the Armchair General website.  I’ve been personally involved with every aspect of creation, updating, maintenance, design, troubleshooting, marketing, advertising, and community building since the day I stepped into the Armchair General headquarters in the spring of 2003.  I’ve put considerable sweat and tears into the growth and evolution of the site, and I can say without hyperbole that I’ve enjoyed and thrived on the challenges every day I’ve been here.  Now it is time to share the load… At the four year mark I have the pleasure of handing off the editing and author management portion of my duties to our new full time Senior Online Editor, Gerald D. Swick.  As you can see, he now has a nice fresh new website to carry us into the next four years.  I would also like to thank Andrew Summersgill for his contributions over the past several years as the de facto Senior Editor, helping me in more ways...

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Posted on May 25, 2006 in Electronic Games, Front Page Features

TOAW 3: Ralph Trickey – Interview

As part of Armchair General’s continuing coverage of the upcoming release of The Operational Art of War 3 (Matrix Games) we sit down with the programmer behind the new version of this old favorite. He speaks candidly about the new release and where it may be headed in the future…

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Posted on May 18, 2006 in Electronic Games, Front Page Features

TOAW 3 – Pre-Release Thoughts

Matrix Games recently acquired the rights to work on a plethora of old Talonsoft titles (The Operational Art of War series, Campaign Series, Battleground Series, etc.) which has led some to wonder if Matrix was looking backwards rather than toward the future of wargaming.

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Posted on Mar 22, 2006 in Electronic Games, Front Page Features

Legion Arena: Iain McNeil – Interview

Recently, Armchair General caught up with the Slitherine game Legion Arena for a quick review. After playing it for a while, many questions cropped up which we felt needed answering. So, we sent off a communiqué to Iain McNeil —development director at Slitherine—for some answers. The dispatch rider returned with the following scribbled notes;

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Posted on Jan 27, 2006 in Books and Movies, Front Page Features

Robert’s Ridge – Book Review

This story should be made into a movie. Not because it is exciting, or gripping, or powerful, or realistic. It is certainly all of those things, and a real page-turner in book form. Instead, this story needs to find a mass media outlet so that the man on the street knows what allied armed forces are going through in the wastelands of the War on Terror.

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Posted on Nov 8, 2005 in Electronic Games

Call of Duty 2 – Game Review (PC)

This game is beautifully crafted to place the player into larger battles throughout the World War II European Theatre, all the while making the journey very personal and often downright tense. Don’t be surprised if you find yourself with mouth agape as you look around at the beauty of the virtual world, forgetting you have a job to do!

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Posted on Jul 8, 2005 in Front Page Features, Stuff We Like

Battlefield 2: God Help Us If This Is What Real Combat Is Like

Battlefield 2 works best, and is arguably the most fun, when you are playing in squads as part of a larger team. The overall commander of your team issues orders to the various squad leaders, and your squad leader will then issue orders to you. When this is a working relationship, the game illustrates some of the finest teamwork in a modern combat simulation you will see on a computer screen. Other times, this relationship is the stuff of nightmares!

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Posted on May 20, 2005 in Stuff We Like

Continuing Coverage of the 2005 E3 Expo!

We’re pleased to announce that StrategyZone Online and Armchair General will be attending the E3 Expo 2005 convention in Los Angeles, California. Brian King and Don Maddox will be there to represent the crew along with several other key members of the staff.

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Posted on May 9, 2005 in Front Page Features, Stuff We Like

A Visit to Pearl Harbor

Getting There: Obviously you are going to have to make a significant effort to reach this distant battlefield, but if you find yourself in Hawaii for other reasons (as I did), this is the ONE area every military historian must visit.  Just make sure when you make your driving plans to the memorials you go to the USS Arizona memorial, and not just drive out to “Pearl Harbor.”  You may just end up at the military base, and get some light razzing from the Marines on guard duty who constantly have to turn away tourists like us who went to the wrong place! Try to arrive as early as possible to the USS Arizona memorial so you can get on one of the first launches out to the actual site.  Not only do you get to wait in the cool of the day as you watch bus after bus of tourists arrive after you, but you also have the best chance of running into a few of the old veterans...

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Posted on Mar 31, 2005 in Stuff We Like

Wargaming Survey Part I: Understanding Your Local Grognard

Do you remember your first wargame? Do you remember why you got into wargaming? Can you explain why you still play these games? We explore these themes in this article, using a personality test and survey to help illuminate traits of the “typical” wargamer. Armchair General is asking for your participation in an effort to better understand “where Grognards come from.” Please read on!

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Posted on Dec 9, 2004 in Boardgames

Borodino – Boardgame Review

Borodino, Battle of Moskova, 1812, allows the players to recreate this major clash between Napoleon and the Russians in front of Moscow in 1812. The scenario takes place over the course of one day (September 7), and is broken down into twelve 75-minute turns.

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Posted on Oct 8, 2004 in Books and Movies

Come and See – Movie Review

This Russian-made film explores the world of partisans and civilians caught behind German lines during World War II. It is dark, grimy, and depressing, but contains a message about the human spirit that makes this movie a must-see.

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Posted on May 10, 2004 in Stuff We Like

Old School #1: Caesar at Alesia

Armchair General introduces a new series of short articles describing some of the "Old School" wargames we used to play way back in time. We will revisit them, see how well they have aged, and play them once more to share the experience.

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Posted on Oct 31, 2003 in Stuff We Like

After-Action Report: Crusader ’41

Some of the most interesting reading can come from after-game summaries by players of all types of wargames. This particular match was between two Armchair General staff members as they recreate the Crusader battle between the Commonwealth and the Axis.

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