Playing with History

Byline: John McCaslin, THE WASHINGTON TIMES

Playing with history

As far as the 3,600-member Historical Miniatures Gaming Society is concerned, this year's Iraqi Republican Guard counterattack against U.S. troops during a fierce days-long sandstorm is one of the great battles of history.

In fact, a hypothetical battle during a sandstorm, between the U.S. Army's 3rd Infantry Division and the Republican Guard, was just played out, albeit on a tabletop. It's called "historical miniatures gaming," a relatively unknown slice of Americana that promotes the study of military history by simulating warfare through the use of hand-painted miniatures and three-dimensional model landscapes.

"Imagine a table covered with hills, trees and villages - a model landscape much like those seen on a model railroad layout," says Del Stover, a longtime war gamer and member of the Alexandria-based society's board of directors. "But then cover it with hundreds of hand-painted toy soldiers. And then watch as hobbyists maneuver their troops …

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Publication information: Article title: Playing with History. Contributors: Not available. Newspaper title: The Washington Times (Washington, DC). Publication date: July 28, 2003. Page number: A06. © 2009 The Washington Times LLC. COPYRIGHT 2003 Gale Group.

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