December 1999/January 2000

Penns Grove, NJ; November 11, 1999 – The overcast morning sky diffused the rays of the rising sun. The cold November air only deepened the chill in my spine. On a jumble of rocks by the riverside I had perched myself to witness the passage of the most decorated battleship in U.S. history, the USS New Jersey, as it was tugged up the channel of the Delaware River through its birth waters to a temporary berth at the former Philadelphia Naval Yard where it was constructed 57 years ago. Launched on December 7, 1942, the USS New Jersey earned 16 battle stars before it was de-commissioned in 1991. Now it is to become a floating memorial museum, its final destination still undetermined.

I arrived early in order to stake out a spot with an unobstructed view of the river. I settled on the edge of a stonefall; the river’s waters lapped at my feet. Still, it was difficult to see the approaching behemoth. At a great distance the gunmetal gray warrior was indistinct from the gray sky reflected in water. The first sign of its approach was the vision of television helicopters circling in the distance. Next the traffic on a bridge spanning the Delaware visibly came to a crawl as drivers paused to view the awesome structure approaching their position. The ship was still quite distant from my vantagepoint when I had to beat a hasty retreat before the tidal river swamped me on the low-lying rocks.

Behind me a large crowd had gathered. There was no high ground for me to retreat to that would offer the perfect view, so I had cut through several lines of spectators to find open ground. A couple food vendors had arrived. Some vendors worked the crowd, selling American flags and Pokemon balloons. I headed toward a pavilion where a sound system was set-up. Overhead four F-16s executed a fly-by and the shore was rocked by a four-gun salute, "just so Big J would know we are here."

Rear Admiral William Rex was speaking at the pavilion. He said the Navy has been the first line of our nation’s diplomacy from the beginning and sea power is the core of our nation’s defense, but that this capability is waning. Warships that have returned to the home front as museums have not been replaced at the battlefront. Although it was only two decades ago that the nation’s goal was a 600 ship fleet, he questioned the nation’s will to maintain even a 300 ship fleet today. After his concluding statement the Rear Admiral was supplanted on stage by a Sinatra impersonator.

Soon thereafter, a rolling nineteen-gun cannonade saluted the USS New Jersey as she passed our location. I thought I could beat the traffic out if I left at that moment, but I was wrong. A lot of people were thinking what I was thinking. A lot of young children with their parents rushed from this observation to the mall cinemas to view their current fantasy warriors on the silver screen; I went home to mine.

The USS New Jersey will be moved one final time – either across the river to Camden or to the Atlantic port of Bayonne in northern New Jersey. For updated information on the movement of this ship and to read the daily diary entries since it began its voyage home on September 12 in Bremerton, Washington, visit www.battleship-newjersey.org

By Bob Stribula

Following are some specific duties that I see for the PR Tsar. Every person that holds this position will recreate it. They will see different tasks that need doing. They will have expertise in different areas. Therefore, this list will change with each incumbent. Nevertheless, I took a stab at listing the tasks I think should be done. Note: I believe that the final two items really belong to the Newsletter Editor, but I don't mind doing it for now.

• Send monthly meeting notices to local newspapers.
  

• Monitor newspaper compliance with submitted announcements.
  

• Discover and update community announcement Internet sites with EPGS news.
  

• Explore places and ways to publicize EPGS activities.
  

• Investigate and organize activities to recruit and retain members.
  

• Create effective advertising flyers.
  

• Coordinate the distribution of flyers at gaming conventions.
  

• Exchange links with game club, game industry, and hobby web sites.
  

• Respond to inquiries from potential members and media representatives.
  

• Survey new members for feedback on PR methods.
  

• Control PR expenses subject to budget constraints.
  

• Publish e-mail meeting reminders to members on non-newsletter months.

• Research game industry news and collect short member articles for every other months' announcements.

To date, the President, Webmaster, and Publicity Tsar have each written an article describing their own idea of the duties and responsibilities of the club office they hold. It is our hope that these articles help to "de-mystify" the various leadership functions within the club, for we believe it is from an informed membership that future effective leadership shall emerge. This on-going effort to illuminate will continue in the next issue with a report from the Totalitarian Treasurer. My own contribution will appear in any future issue that lacks articles.

Club officer positions will be up for grabs! Elections have tentatively been scheduled for the July 2000 club meeting. The last elections were held in January 1999. Additional details will be announced as they develop.

Y2K will mark the 10^th anniversary of EPGS. Now you know what all that hubbub has been about! Kudos to our Publicity Tzar for a job well done.

EPGS was formed on March 31, 1990, at the William Jean Library in Conshohocken, PA. A dozen members were present at that meeting. The initial officers, volunteers all, were Joel Ferich (President), Mike Nagel (Secretary), and Carmen Petruzzelli (Treasurer). Further interesting details on the club’s history can be accessed on the club website.

Although the club was founded in the month of March, "when" this anniversary will be observed is still undetermined. Or "how." Practical suggestions are being accepted (at this point having a "free" meeting appears to be impractical). Brainstorming is recommended.

All EPGS members are invited to a social gathering hosted by the Totalitarian Treasurer at Flanigan’s BoatHouse in Conshohocken on January 22, 2000. From 4:30 to 6:30 the wings and beer (or soda) will be free for all members who have paid, perfect attendance for the October, November, December, and January club meetings. Anyone who has missed a meeting can still partake by paying $5 into the EPGS Treasury for each missed month. After 6:30 everyone will have to purchase his own refreshments. Direct all questions to Bob Hranek at (610) 265-1768 or robert.j.hranek@lmco.com

Dave Bohnenberger won $45 from the October raffle. Keith Layton won $38 from the November raffle. The winning raffle ticket receives half of all ticket money; the other half goes into the club treasury. You can buy one ticket for $2, three tickets for $4, or five tickets for $6 (the best bang for your buck!). Please pay the Treasurer at the same time your dues are collected.

The Boardgame Players Association (BPA) is the sponsoring organization that runs the annual World Boardgaming Championships (WBC). The October issue of the EPGS Newsletter contained an article titled, "DONCON 1999 REVIEW" by Robert L. Sohn. In his write-up, Bob Sohn gave an excellent overview of the excitement and enjoyment of this convention. This author can second that opinion. I attended the WBC for the first time this year. It is indeed one of the best-run conventions I've ever attended. At the WBC, about 1000 people from around the world compete to be named champion of their favorite games. By vote, the BPA's members select the 100+ games (the "Century Group") in which competitions are scheduled. Not only are games from Avalon Hill played, there are also tournaments for games from GMT, Mayfair, Decision Games, Hans Im Gluck, Parker Brothers, and others.

By-the-way, "DonCon" is a very informal and unofficial name for the WBC convention. It is used with respect for the convention's organizer, Don Greenwood. Don, 48, is the BPA's President and the Convention Manager. He was a former VP of the Avalon Hill Game Company in charge of boardgame development. The original founder of ORIGINS, Don ran four of them. Disenchanted with the commercial aspects of the major conventions, he originated AVALONCON in 1991. When Hasbro acquired Avalon Hill last year, Don quickly assured gamers that the convention would continue. The WBC was the result.
The BPA announced the return of the World Boardgame Championships to Marriott's Hunt Valley Inn in Hunt Valley, MD for six days next August 1-6, 2000. Joining the usual cast will be the worldwide diplomats of DIPCON XXX and World Con X. This may be the biggest collection of Diplomacy players on the planet. Boardgaming's best extravaganza will be hosted in a newly refurbished facility with all of the guestrooms and the spacious Hunt Valley Ballroom totally redecorated.
Some of the requirements and procedures for BPA membership and for attending the WBC have changed. All membership dues for the coming year are due by December 31, 1999. A 10% surcharge applies to all payments made after that date. The Board has limited all play at WBC including
Open Gaming to members only. (The BPA must have noticed that this writer played numerous demo and open games this year without purchasing a badge!) Memberships may be purchased at the doors. BPA members elect the Board of Directors in August. (Ex-EPGSer Ken Gutermuth was recently elected to a three-year term.) Members also vote in December for the ten games that will be eligible for addition to the Century Group of 100 games. All members are entitled to participate in BPA PBeM tournaments for the duration of that tournament. The BPA offers various levels of membership:

Anyone interested in GMing an event is urged to submit a completed Event form now. They can be found on the website where the status of events is updated regularly. GMs may be any adult BPA member, although Trial Events may only be run by BPA members with a Sustaining membership or higher.

More complete information is available at the BPA website. Interim webmaster Steve Okonski-of computerized Rail Baron and variants fame-has reworked the site at:

At the October meeting on the 16th of that month, six EPGS members participated in a playtest of guest game designer Albert Parker's new naval sail-era rules, Fleets Under Sail (duh!). The scenario simulated the Battle of the 13th Prairial, Year II, known to the British from its outcome and date in the Gregorian calendar as the "Glorious First of June," 1794. Players and their roles were as follows:

The following list is some of the games played at the October and November meetings. More than 20 different games were played at each session! Please don’t hesitate to write a description, no matter how brief, about any game you play. The newsletter editor and the webmaster will always use this info for Good, not Evil.

EPGS December Meeting (12/18/99) – TBD

EPGS January Meeting (01/15/00) – TBD

1. Small Wars at Sea

Time: Sunday morning

Scale: 1/3000 ship

Rules: Small Wars at Sea – Dreadnought

GM: M. Panzer, J. Grimes

2. Midnight Massacre

Time: Friday, 12 Midnight to 6 AM

Scale: 15mm ACW

Rules: Fire & Fury

GM: S. Landis, M. Panzer, K. Kramer,

J. Grimes, J. Kimmel, G. Markert

3. Napoleonics

Time: Saturday evening

Scale: 15mm Napoleonics

Rules: Modified Shako

GM: J. Kimmel, S. Landis

4. WW2 Skirmish

Time: TBD

Scale: 15mm WW2

Rules: TBD

GM: J. Grimes

1. Midnight Massacre

Time: Friday, 12 Midnight to 6 AM

Scale: 15mm ACW

GM: S. Landis, M. Panzer, K. Kramer,

J. Grimes, J. Kimmel, G. Markert

2. Napoleonics

Time: TBD

Scale: 15mm Napoleonics

Rules: Modified Shako

GM: J. Kimmel, S. Landis

Hasbro, Inc., which acquired Avalon Hill last year and Wizards of the Coast this year, announced a sweeping Consolidation Program on Dec. 7, effective immediately and continuing through the year 2000. 19% of the workforce will be eliminated, mostly in manufacturing, and some unprofitable product lines and product lines with "reduced expectations" will be discontinued. The company will continue to introduce trading card games and interactive games (just last week I saw the new Diplomacy PC game in retail stores).

The following suppliers of gaming merchandise have agreed to post our newsletter or an advertisement for EPGS. To show our support we will list the names of these outlets.

2274 Mt. Carmel Ave.

Glenside, PA 19028

(215) 887-4416

M-Thu. 3:30 PM to 7:30 PM

(10 PM by request)

Fri. 3:30 PM to 10 PM

(Midnight be request)

Sat. 12 Noon to 10 PM

(Midnight by request)

Sun. 12 Noon to 6 PM

Main Street/P.O. Box 4577

Newark, DE 19711

(302) 366-0963

Princeton Arms Shopping Center

2025 Old Trenton Road

Cranbury, NJ 08012

(609) 426-9339

Mon. 12 Noon to 6 PM

Tue.–Fri. 12 Noon to 9 PM

Sat. 11 AM to 6 PM

Sun. 11 AM to 6 PM

Greenwood & Leedom

Jenkintown, PA 19111

12 Heritage Square

Delran, NJ 08075

(856) 461-7090

M.-Fri. 12 Noon to 8 PM

Sat. 11 AM to 8 PM

Sun. 12 Noon to 6 PM

Buys, sells, and trades used games

580 Shoemaker Road

King of Prussia, PA

(610) 265-8562

M.-Thu. 11 AM to 6 PM

Fri. & Sat. 11 AM to 8 PM

Sun. 12 Noon to 5 PM

3 Devi Drive

Columbus, NJ 08022

6007 Torresdale Avenue

Philadelphia, PA 19111