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Wargames To Go

Wargames To Go

By: Mark Johnson
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 Mark Johnson's irregular podcast about small wargames.(c) 2013 by Mark Johnson
Episodes
  • Wargames To Go 28 - Operation Torch

    Wargames To Go 28 - Operation Torch
    Feb 6 2026
    Join the Wargames To Go (and Boardgames To Go) discord server https://discord.gg/vxEG9bMPdx I'm taking the win. For a while now I've been wishing I could do these episodes more often, study more topics, play more wargames, read more books, see more movies… This time, it worked. I didn't play that many games, but I played a few while digging into a new topic: the American entry into WW2's ETO through Operation Torch. The combined American-British amphibious invasion of the western half of North Africa was something I knew a little about, but—as always happens with me—I learn a lot more through this experience. I learn some more details about what happened, and a lot more context. That's the part of history that I find most fascinating. In this case, the wider context had a lot to do with Vichy France and its colonies. The formation of this new, odd government, who was responsible, how it operated, and America's complicated, troublesome relationship to it. One book really brought that home, but it showed up in everything, including podcasts, movies, and the games themselves (at least somewhat). Films • Patton • The Big Red One • Casablanca Books • When France Fell (Neiberg) • Patton: A Biography (Axelrod) • An Army at Dawn (Atkinson) • No Ordinary Time (Goodwin) Travel No, I didn't make it to Morocco, Algeria, or Tunisia to see this places in-person. That would be amazing. I'd love to see the Atlas Mountains and sunset from there that Churchill insisted that FDR see during their famous conference. The closest I've come is getting to see the US Army Desert Training Center that Patton himself picked out from his knowledge of the American Southwest, and trained troops that would later be part of Operation Torch. To be honest, it's now a pretty run-down place. Clearly the modern army trains elsewhere. Yet it's still an interesting part of history, and what wargamer doesn't enjoy seeing some tired, old tanks? -Mark Charlemagne will be my next topic. I'm not sure how many games there are about him and this period, but it ties in to my trip to Aachen, I'd like to learn more, and want to take a break from WW2. Here's a geeklist with my preliminary ideas about it.
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    1 hr and 4 mins
  • Wargames To Go 27.2 - SDHistCon and Invasion of Norway (Conclusion)

    Wargames To Go 27.2 - SDHistCon and Invasion of Norway (Conclusion)
    Dec 15 2025
    Join the Wargames To Go (and Boardgames To Go) discord server https://discord.gg/vxEG9bMPdx Here's what I wrote last time... Quote: Ok, let's see how my attempt to tackle smaller topics more often actually goes. Can I get out one show/topic per quarter? That's my personal goal for the rest of 2025. Then I'll re-evaluate. FAIL Oh well, it was a noble goal. The reasons I didn't succeed in my goal are boring, so let's skip those. There's always next year, which isn't so far away! In this episode I do manage to bring my Norway topic to a conclusion, by playing not too many more games, but by seeing more films and going to this wonderful country. Like almost all traveling, it was a lovely experience. And like almost all my wargame explorations, I learned quite a lot. That's a win, in my book. Before I get to those games, movies, and travel, however, I use this opportunity to talk about my experience at SDHistCon last month. I'd been to this unique convention once before, and again it was a great experience. One of these days I hope to make it to the Circle DC event on the opposite coast, which sounds equally fantastic. For Norway, I was fortunate to visit in May, just in time for their national holiday. We arrived in Oslo and spent several days there. That included a side trip to Oscarsborg Fortress (Festning), which was instrumental in slowing down the German invasion and takeover of the capital & country. It's probably no exaggeration to say that the bold action of its commanding officer gave just enough time for the government and royal family to flee Oslo, ultimately forming a government-in-exile rather than one forced to surrender. Not to mention the evacuation of the nation's remaining gold reserves overseas, away from German hands (as happened in other countries). Guns of Oscarsborg Festning that fired across the narrow Oslofjord And here was the fire control room for the fixed torpedo tubes that stopped & sunk the invading Blucher cruiser The fortress museum has a great animated map of the entire event. Even in 2025 you can't always find the same things online. Oslo was an occupied capital for the entire war, and it contains a fantastic resistance museum. It made me think of the different ways countries were occupied, which ones had governments in exile, and other peculiarities. I also learned more about the various coastal raids that the British conducted in occupied Norway throughout the war. Films • Max Manus • The 12th Man • Suicide Mission • The Arctic Convoy • War Sailor • April 9th • Gold Run Outside and inside photos of the Hegra Festning (Fortres) that held out in northern Norway -Mark For my next topic I'm going to be looking at America's entry into WW2 in Europe, at least in the Mediterranean Theater of Operations. Here's the geeklist for it.
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    1 hr and 5 mins
  • Wargames To Go 27.1 - Invasion of Norway in WW2

    Wargames To Go 27.1 - Invasion of Norway in WW2
    May 11 2025
    Join the Wargames To Go (and Boardgames To Go) discord server https://discord.gg/vxEG9bMPdx



    Ok, let's see how my attempt to tackle smaller topics more often actually goes. Can I get out one show/topic per quarter? That's my personal goal for the rest of 2025. Then I'll re-evaluate.

    Which brings me to Norway. Literally. In a week's time I'll be vacationing there, and that was a great reason to focus my next wargame podcast on this location. Instead of ALL of Norway's history (like I did for Scotland back in 2023, covering games & movies from the Roman era to the Jacobite Rebellion), I'm focusing just on WW2. In fact, I'm mostly focusing on the events of about a couple months in 1940, when Norway was invaded by Germany. I knew that had happened, but few of the details. Now I understand that Norway defended herself on the battlefield (hampered by late mobilization), the Western allies were fighting there, too, but ultimately the Germans were victorious. Norway was under Nazi occupation for the rest of the entire war.

    Be sure to check out the Geeklist of games for this topic.



    But there's more to it than that. The invasion itself was a complex operation of combined arms and logistical planning. The German navy was practically expended in this operation, and the Luftwaffe demonstrated again the new military technology of air superiority. Nevertheless, the strategic prize of the port of Narvik was retaken by the Norwegians and their Allies, Hitler's first significant setback in WW2. However, events back on the continent (the Invasion of France, the Evacuation at Dunkirk) drained the allies away from Norway, allowing the Germans to retake Narvik.

    There have been games about this strategic battlefield since some early days in the hobby, though not the earliest. At least since Frank Chadwick and GDW's treatment in The Europa Series, the Norwegian setting published in 1974. Over the years other titles have appeared, but this has always remained a lesser-gamed topic, with fewer titles. Fortunately, there are several smaller wargames, as I try to concentrate on for this podcast. There almost always are.

    Now I've played a few of them, watched some movies, read some articles, and soon will be visiting the actual location. This isn't a military history trip--it's a vacation for my wife & I. That means I won't see everything, but I'll see enough. I always appreciate being in the actual locations where things happened. It just adds to the experience.

    -Mark


    Films
    • The King's Choice
    • Kampen om Narvik
    • Nr. 24
    • Atlantic Crossing


    Other
    • The YouTube channel Historigraph has an outstanding series of animated maps with voiceover narration about the Invasion of Norway
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    1 hr and 7 mins
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