Scale vs. scenario

[Tomrcast]

Let me start of by saying i'm not talking about different models or even a ratio where one model would represent more than one ship. The scale im talking about is command scale. One pet peeve of mine is a game that puts you in the general's (or admiral in the case) place and then weighs you down with decisions not appropriate for the command level.

I see SOG as having a built in adjustment for this. If you are playing with just a couple of ships per side the advanced rules are perfect. At that level you are acting more as a ship's captain so decisions about assigning crew to tasks makes perfect sense. But if you decide to do fleet actions it would seem moving back to the standard rules wold be best. The simplification would make handlng a larger number of ships quicker and easier. It also would more accurately represent a higher command level worried more about strategy and less about crew sections.

Does anyone play it this way? Id be curious to hear your thoughts.

PS i love Ares games but i do wish they would use different titles for the levels. How about "begginers", "intermediate", and "advanced"? Basic and standard are just too similar. :)

[Bligh]

I invariably use the full rules for small actions Tom, but standard rules with a few frills for Squadrons. I assume that Captains and First Officers know their business, and ascribe crews to duty as the situation demands. As crew diminish, they prioritize which action is most applicable. Damage action like, loss of masts, steering damage etc. I do keep in, as they are outside the command scope of the C in C.
Rob.

[Hjl]

I use standard for larger games and advanced for one or two ships. I tried six vs six with advanced and it got too cumbersome.

[Tomrcast]

Awesome! That's what made sense to me as well.

[Comte de Brueys]

I only command a max. of two ships with advanced rules and this is hard work.

[Bligh]

For larger battles I find the reduced ship mats in the files section with the wipe down surface added saves a lot of time and effort with lots of chits.
Rob.

[Tomrcast]

I'll look for those! Thanks!

[Capn Duff]

For mulitplayer games I have used the Standard rules, for the shows we attended also standard rules. Solo I have used 5 ships on each side using advanced and was ok, but this I think is because
I used a rigid sequence of play aide which allowed me to keep things in order.
For the ship mats I have glued the mats to a card base so the log and cards tend to stay in place better