An Interview with the Author: Ian

So, as part of the run up to our games launch, we thought it might be worth having a quick chat with the authors of the two rulebooks we're releasing. First up we have Ian, author of 'Seasons of War: Days of the Conqueror'

Hi, could you tell us who you are and tell us a little about yourself?

Hi, I’m Ian Hannam - main writer of Seasons of War: Days of the Conqueror. In my other life, I’m a Teacher. I’m married happily (although it wouldn’t be worth my while to say otherwise!) to a wife, who has most graciously put up with my piles of lead and paints over the short time we’ve been married – a real winner ehy?   

What is your gaming background? What got you into gaming?

Myself and fellow Wyvern, Ben, met at the tender age of 5 (or was it 4?) and quickly bonded over our mutual love of Mighty Morphin’ Power Rangers! 

It was a couple of years later that Ben introduced me to the world of Warhammer – at first I was sceptical but in time I grew to love the hobby and amassed my first army – Orcs! Ever since, I have loved everything green and am currently working on a 15mm orc army – but that’s a story for another time. In the years since those early steps, Ben, myself and Craig (who we recruited at secondary school) have branched out from Warhammer and played all manner of games – far too many to mention!

You've taken the step towards publishing your own rules, where did the idea for Seasons of War: Days of the Conqueror come from?

I’ve always had a keen interest in history. During my college years, we were given the choice to research and write an essay about a historical issue or figure that jumped out at us. After filtering through a number of ideas, I settled on William the Conqueror. I was fascinated and impressed by the man’s achievements, in spite of his illegitimacy and the opposition he faced from his own people. With this theme in mind, Days of the Conqueror was a natural evolution of a set of generic unit based rules I’d been working on called 'Seasons of War'.  

In your opinion, what's the best feature of the game?

I find that in some turn based wargames, the player whose turn it is does all of the attacking, rolling, moving etc. whilst the other player sits and watches it happen! 

In Seasons of War, I quite enjoy how both players have something to do in each players’ turns. Whether rolling armour dice or taking part in the Fight Phase, the player whose turn it isn’t, still participates. I’m also a big fan of using polydice to represent different degrees of attacking, armour, discipline and morale.   

How do you hope the gaming community will respond to it?

As my first published ruleset, I hope of course, that wargamers will respond positively to Seasons of War. As well as just playing and enjoying the game, I would love for the community to shape future expansions for the rules; army lists, scenario ideas and everything in between.  

Outside of red wyvern games, what is your favourite War game?

Tough call – it completely depends on what sort of mood I’m in, what has influenced and excited me, even down to films I’ve seen that I think would enjoy playing out on the tabletop. Having said that, there are several rulesets that I think have really endured in my mind. The Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle Game by Games Workshop gets my vote for the best fantasy skirmish game. I’m a huge fan of the how heroes work and heck, it’s Lord of the Rings – what’s not to love?  

If you could work with another author, who would it be?

Again, a tough question – there are so many great guys (and girls) out there. I would have to say however, Alessio Cavatore is a man I have plenty of respect for as a writer. He seems to effortlessly make slick and innovative mechanics that really appeal to me. As a gamer I’m not big on overly convoluted rules and endless special rules – that’s not to say I prefer ‘light’ rulesets, just those that flow well!

What are your thoughts on the current state of the war games industry at the moment?

As someone starting out as a rules designer, I personally believe that time has never been better for rookies to have a go! More choice can never be a bad thing for gamers and hopefully means that the bigger writers have to up their game to keep interest. With the age of the internet and sites like Kickstarter giving budding miniatures makers a chance to produce their own models, there are more and more exciting projects emerging that the community can have genuine input on.  

What is next on the books for you and Red Wyvern Games?

Having only just put the finishing touches on Seasons of War, my brain is definitely still in recovery mode! Having said that, I have plenty of project ideas vying for my attention at the moment – a 20mm WWII skirmish game, a 15mm Low-Steampunk unit game, some derivatives for SOW and even the odd mini game here and there. If you have any thoughts or ideas that you’d like to see become a reality, I have some free space in my creative lobe for some more games.  

Seasons of War: Days of the Conqueror is being launched at Valhalla this Sunday (16th) and ebook copies will be available from War Games Vault. See the website for more details. 
[You can see the interview with Ben here]