The Strategic Review #5
TSR published The Strategic Review #5 in December 1975. It was sixteen pages long and had a price of 75 cents.
The TSR news column has been renamed "In the Cauldron." New editor Tim Kask notes that the Blackmoor supplement is with the printer, an Empire of the Petal Throne board game is in the works, and a WWI game called Fight In The Skies is close to completion. Other games in development include a new version of Gygax's Little Big Horn, a Lankhmar war game, some Robin Hood rules, the Classic Warfare miniatures rules, and a new D&D supplement called Gods, Demi-Gods & Deities. Meanwhile, TSR is in the process of opening the Dungeon Hobby Shop in Lake Geneva.
Kask also includes brief bios of all TSR staff. Gary Gygax, 37, is married with five kids and used to work in insurance. Brian Blume, 26, is divorced and used to work as a tool and die maker. Rob Kuntz, 20, is Lake Geneva born and bred and considers Gygax to be his best friend. Terry Kuntz, 22, is Rob's older brother and notes that he has a diploma in Mechanical Drafting and Design. Tim Kask, 26, is a Navy veteran and a war game junkie.
"Sturmgehutz and Sorcery" by Gygax describes a scenario where one team is prepared for a WWII miniatures game while the other is set for a tabletop fantasy encounter. The German SS Patrol, equipped with WWII-era weaponry, is tasked to locate and eliminate guerrilla resistance. Meanwhile, the Servants of the Gatherer, a fantasy force with magic users, trolls, ogres, and other mythical creatures, are tasked with defending against an unknown threat. When the two teams encounter each other, chaos ensues. The Germans face magic spells, mythical creatures, and the unexpected challenges of such a confrontation, while the fantasy side grapples with modern weaponry's firepower. The Servants of the Gatherer eventually win. The article concludes with specialized rules for those wishing to engage in such mixed-genre games.
"Mapping the Dungeons" notes that TSR is offering the D&D booklets at a holiday discount. It also mentions there will be a Dungeon Masters seminar at Gen Con IX and includes the usual list of Dungeon Masters looking for players.
"Mighty Magic Miscellany" describes two new D&D magic items, the Robe of Scintillating Color and Prayer Beads. Both items are still part of the game.
The "Wargaming World" news column notes a growing interest in ancient war games, with SPI launching The Punic Wars, Avalon Hill announcing Caesar's Legions, and Excalibre Games introducing Ancient Conquest, a game set in the Biblical-era Middle East. In convention news, Winter War III promises a D&D tournament and computer gaming, while Fritz Leiber is confirmed to attend Gen-Con IX. In zine news, Conflict is no more, and Cymry has not published an issue for many months.
The "Battle of the Nile Refought" by Dave Arneson is a detailed account of a wargame re-enactment of the historic Battle of the Nile. The simulation was played at GenCon V in 1972 using the Don't Give Up The Ship rules. Instead of Admiral Nelson's aggressive approach, the wargame saw a more cautious British stance, leading to a prolonged naval engagement. On the French side, rather than being caught flat-footed and anchored in a vulnerable position, they exhibited enhanced maneuverability and strategic placements. In stark contrast to history, the French won this re-enactment.
"The Armory" by Mike Reese includes a large table of Tracitics statistics for modern tanks. "Gallery of Gunfighters" is back, this time introducing Ben Thompson, a gunfighter said to be as "certain in action as a Swiss watch."
"What is the National Wargame Convention?" is a review of Origins I in Baltimore. Avalon Hill positioned Origins as the sole "national" convention and potentially the largest, a claim that the author disputes: GenCon has always been a nationally attended event, and while Origins I had around 1,500 attendees, GenCon VIII saw 1,800 attendees. The author lauds Origins' success but notes GenCon's commitment to remaining the nation's premier event.
"Creature Features" returns with three new monsters. The Rakshasa are evil spirits that disguise themselves using illusions and prefer to eat humans. The Slithering Tracker, a nearly invisible creature, paralyzes its victims in their sleep to drain their plasma. Trappers, camouflaging with their surroundings, ambush their prey by enveloping and crushing them.
And that's a wrap! The Strategic Review is hitting its stride, morphing from a newsletter into a genuine magazine. My favorite article was the list of staff bios. Next issue, we have alignments, fiction from Rob Kuntz, and a new character class: the bard!