Tony Bath
Encyclopedia
Tony Bath was a British wargamer
who favored the ancient period. His Hyboria campaign, based on the Conan the Barbarian
stories of Robert E. Howard
, is sometimes cited as the first fantasy wargame. It is even said to have included role playing elements. The Hyboria campaign did not contain magic or fantastic creatures, however. A detailed account of the campaign has been reprinted in Tony Bath's Ancient Wargaming (2009) It can now be revealed that Phil Barker
was the decisive winner of the 10 year campaign. Phil still refers to this as his finest victory. .
After serving in World War II
, Bath began collecting military figures. In 1955 he joined the British Model Soldier Society. About this time he began wargaming, introducing Don Featherstone
to the hobby. Bath contributed articles to Jack Scruby
's seminal newsletter, the War Game Digest, and in 1960 he began editing the British edition of the newsletter with Featherstone. He also contributed articles to the Wargamer's Newsletter which Featherstone started in 1962.
When Bath began playing wargames set in the ancient period, the only miniatures available were German flats which were difficult to procure. As the period became more popular with hobbyists, Bath's rules were the ones most often used in ancient wargames. In 1966 Featherstone published Bath's rules for ancient, medieval, and 18th century warfare in three separate pamphlets, part of a set of rulebooks covering eight historical epochs.
Bath founded the Society of Ancients
in 1965. In 1973 his Setting up a Wargames Campaign was published by the Wargames Research Group
. He worked as an administrative manager for Miniature Figurines, Ltd., helping them expand their selection of ancient and medieval miniatures.
The earliest version that survives is the version in Donald Featherstone
's WarGames. Phil Barker
claimed this version to be his "second favorite" ancients ruleset but considered the ruleset to have lost some of its appeal as later versions became more complex .
They were written to be played with flats and when solid figures became dominant he was slow to adapt them as he had written them first of all for his personal use. Some see this as a key reason that other rulesets became dominant.. This is, however, disputed by others on the grounds that the Bath rules continued to be played extensively for a time after flats had been made obsolete by solids.
He wrote a version of his rules designed for solid figures which was published as "Peltast and Pila" in 1976. In those rules Tony Bath did adapt to the trends of rules of the time while still keeping his basic style.. In the trade off between historical accuracy and playability Phil Barker considered Tony Bath to have firmly chosen the side of playability. The basing was compatible with the frontages of WRG of that time though differed slightly in respect of base depth. The rules for terrain were especially detailed as were the rules for street fighting.
The rules mixed dicing for groups to inflict hits along with individual saving throws to decide how many hits became kills.
Tony Bath wrote an extension to his rules to cover Naval Warfare which was published as a supplement to the Society of Ancients Rules in 1968 and also appears in Donald Featherstone's Naval Wargames.
His key works on wargaming have been collated in the book Tony Bath's Ancient Wargaming This is a collaboration between the Society of Ancients Society of Ancients and the History of Wargaming Project www.wargaming.co.
Wargaming
A wargame is a strategy game that deals with military operations of various types, real or fictional. Wargaming is the hobby dedicated to the play of such games, which can also be called conflict simulations, or consims for short. When used professionally to study warfare, it is generally known as...
who favored the ancient period. His Hyboria campaign, based on the Conan the Barbarian
Conan the Barbarian
Conan the Barbarian is a fictional sword and sorcery hero that originated in pulp fiction magazines and has since been adapted to books, comics, several films , television programs, video games, roleplaying games and other media...
stories of Robert E. Howard
Robert E. Howard
Robert Ervin Howard was an American author who wrote pulp fiction in a diverse range of genres. Best known for his character Conan the Barbarian, he is regarded as the father of the sword and sorcery subgenre....
, is sometimes cited as the first fantasy wargame. It is even said to have included role playing elements. The Hyboria campaign did not contain magic or fantastic creatures, however. A detailed account of the campaign has been reprinted in Tony Bath's Ancient Wargaming (2009) It can now be revealed that Phil Barker
Phil Barker
Phil Barker is one of the major figures in the development of the modern hobby of tabletop wargaming, particularly that of ancient warfare, and is a co-founder of the Wargames Research Group.In the 1960s he was a methods engineer at British Leyland...
was the decisive winner of the 10 year campaign. Phil still refers to this as his finest victory. .
After serving in World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, Bath began collecting military figures. In 1955 he joined the British Model Soldier Society. About this time he began wargaming, introducing Don Featherstone
Donald Featherstone (wargamer)
Donald F. Featherstone is a British author of more than forty books on wargaming and military history. He wrote classic texts on wargaming in the 1960s and 1970s....
to the hobby. Bath contributed articles to Jack Scruby
Jack Scruby
John Edwin "Jack" Scruby was a manufacturer of military miniatures whose efforts led to a rebirth of the miniature wargaming hobby in the late 1950s.-Scruby and Wargaming:...
's seminal newsletter, the War Game Digest, and in 1960 he began editing the British edition of the newsletter with Featherstone. He also contributed articles to the Wargamer's Newsletter which Featherstone started in 1962.
When Bath began playing wargames set in the ancient period, the only miniatures available were German flats which were difficult to procure. As the period became more popular with hobbyists, Bath's rules were the ones most often used in ancient wargames. In 1966 Featherstone published Bath's rules for ancient, medieval, and 18th century warfare in three separate pamphlets, part of a set of rulebooks covering eight historical epochs.
Bath founded the Society of Ancients
Society of Ancients
The Society of Ancients is an international, non-profit organization based in the UK that aims to promote interest in Ancient & Medieval history and wargaming, covering the periods from 3000BC to 1500AD.-The Society:...
in 1965. In 1973 his Setting up a Wargames Campaign was published by the Wargames Research Group
Wargames Research Group
The Wargames Research Group ' is a British publisher of rules and reference material for miniature wargaming. Founded in 1969 they were the premier publisher of tabletop rules during the seventies and eighties, publishing rules for periods ranging from ancient times to modern armoured warfare, and...
. He worked as an administrative manager for Miniature Figurines, Ltd., helping them expand their selection of ancient and medieval miniatures.
The Tony Bath Rules
They have been described by Kevin Large as "not intended for aggressive competitive play, but for a fast moving enjoyable game".The earliest version that survives is the version in Donald Featherstone
Donald Featherstone (wargamer)
Donald F. Featherstone is a British author of more than forty books on wargaming and military history. He wrote classic texts on wargaming in the 1960s and 1970s....
's WarGames. Phil Barker
Phil Barker
Phil Barker is one of the major figures in the development of the modern hobby of tabletop wargaming, particularly that of ancient warfare, and is a co-founder of the Wargames Research Group.In the 1960s he was a methods engineer at British Leyland...
claimed this version to be his "second favorite" ancients ruleset but considered the ruleset to have lost some of its appeal as later versions became more complex .
They were written to be played with flats and when solid figures became dominant he was slow to adapt them as he had written them first of all for his personal use. Some see this as a key reason that other rulesets became dominant.. This is, however, disputed by others on the grounds that the Bath rules continued to be played extensively for a time after flats had been made obsolete by solids.
He wrote a version of his rules designed for solid figures which was published as "Peltast and Pila" in 1976. In those rules Tony Bath did adapt to the trends of rules of the time while still keeping his basic style.. In the trade off between historical accuracy and playability Phil Barker considered Tony Bath to have firmly chosen the side of playability. The basing was compatible with the frontages of WRG of that time though differed slightly in respect of base depth. The rules for terrain were especially detailed as were the rules for street fighting.
The rules mixed dicing for groups to inflict hits along with individual saving throws to decide how many hits became kills.
Tony Bath wrote an extension to his rules to cover Naval Warfare which was published as a supplement to the Society of Ancients Rules in 1968 and also appears in Donald Featherstone's Naval Wargames.
His key works on wargaming have been collated in the book Tony Bath's Ancient Wargaming This is a collaboration between the Society of Ancients Society of Ancients and the History of Wargaming Project www.wargaming.co.