Drum beats on the Battleline pt.4

The first round of comments from the ODGW staff has been received and answered, and it was not as negative as I expected.  In a post to me, "lively discussion" was the operative term for their first game using the modified rules.  This first staff playtest of the revised American Battlelines generated a predictable wave of questions.  Some were omissions; others were clarifications and explanations.  Overall the game plays cleaner, but this means making changes, which are rarely welcome.  Battlelines had some kludgey rules to it that detracted from its forthright play.  Taking those out meant making the game simpler, and more concentrated on the tactics rather than dealing with special one-off rules.  I have reduced the number of lookup items, to make finding the correct modifiers (of which there are still too many) easier. I have yet to post a Command chapter, so that area is still unresolved.  Otherwise, the comments did seem to be somewhat supportive, rather than wholly dismissive.  Playtests on this set of rules have not been forthcoming, so I will have to wait longer for neutral results.  I am an inpatient man by nature, so that is a hard thing for me to do.

In terms of controversy, wait until they find out I want to change the cover.  Currently a game for the AWI, Mexican-American War, and ACW has a 50-star U.S. flag on the cover.  Bit jarring, that.