GZG: FREEBIE OFFER FOR BFPO/APO TROOPS!
We wanted to make a small supporting gesture towards the personnel from both
sides of the Atlantic who are currently serving out in Iraq and Afghanistan,
particularly those who are keen gamers, so we came up with the following idea:
We have allocated SIX SETS of FULL THRUST INTRO FLEETS, each worth £25 (plus
FREE rules!) to GIVE AWAY COMPLETELY FREE to personnel
currently serving out there in the hot zones - three sets for
British troops at BFPO addresses and three for US ones via APO.
What we'd like is for people to contact me (via direct email to
jonATgzgDOTcom) and recommend a gaming friend/colleague/relative who
is presently serving out in Iraq or A-stan, giving me the person's
full Forces postal address; if you are actually serving out there yourself and
are reading this, then you can recommend yourself if you wish!
I will give it a couple of weeks to get enough responses in, then I'll choose
which six applicants get the free packages (either randomly or from what is
written in the emails, that's up to me).
Each person chosen will get a packet containing TWO 8-ship FULL
THRUST INTRO FLEETS plus a printed copy of the free FT LIGHT intro
rules - with the addition of just a few dice and a measuring tape,
that's enough to play a complete game on any flat surface - I thought
that FT is ideal for this project because you don't need any terrain
or stuff like that! ;-)
THE RULES...
All applications must be submitted by email direct to me, at
jonATgzgDOTcom.... please mark the subject line "GZG FORCES FREE OFFER".
Applications may be submitted by serving personnel
themselves, or by friends/family etc on behalf of same.
Names of successful applicants may be published on various web forums etc
unless specifically requested otherwise; if you would prefer us to withhold an
applicant's name please state this in your email, it will not affect the
chance of being chosen.
There will be THREE sets for BFPO addresses and THREE for APO addresses;
sorry, but we will ONLY ship the packets direct to the Forces addresses given
to us, we cannot ship them to home addresses. Recipients must be currently
serving in Iraq or Afghanistan.
The actual fleets in the packets will be chosen at random from our ranges.
Packets will be sent out by us free of charge, with shipping costs paid by us,
but in the unlikely case of any charges or duties being levied on the package
by postal or customs services then the recipient will be liable for these.
The offer will close when I think we have enough applicants to choose from,
but it will definitely be open until at least the first week of
August - so get in quickly!
The proprietor's (that's me!) decision as to the allocation of the free sets
will be final and no correspondence will be entered into.
So, there you go! Get emailing! :-)
Well done!
I would like to ask anyone recently deployed about this. I've sent with
other's care packages, card games of the wacko style. Everything from YuGiOh
to Chez Geek and MagBlast...
I've never heard any reaction, pro or con.
On the other hand, I have heard from one person who returned from Iraq,
that Risk, in spite of it's space-and-fiddly-bit-intensive nature, was
quite popular with folks with whom he worked.
Any guidelines on what would be appropriate currently?
Thanks!
The_Beast
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Gzg-l@vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu
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etings: Â Excellent idea, Jon, thanks for doing this. Â And for those serving:
Did you know you can get free access to Baen's electronic book catalog? See
their website for details. More electronic bits than you can shake a stick at!
F.P. Kiesche III "Ah Mr.Gibbon, another damned, fat, square book. Always,
scribble, scribble, scribble, eh?" (The Duke of Gloucester, on being presented
with Volume 2 of The Decline and Fall of the Roman Empire.) Blogging at
TexasBestGrok!
> --- On Thu, 7/24/08, Ground Zero Games <jon@gzg.com> wrote:
From: Ground Zero Games <jon@gzg.com>
Subject: [GZG] [OFFICIAL] GZG: FREEBIE OFFER FOR BFPO/APO TROOPS!
To: gzg-l@vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu
Date: Thursday, July 24, 2008, 4:51 AM
GZG: FREEBIE OFFER FOR BFPO/APO TROOPS!
We wanted to make a small supporting gesture towards the personnel from both
sides of the Atlantic who are currently serving out in Iraq and Afghanistan,
particularly those who are keen gamers, so we came up with the following idea:
We have allocated SIX SETS of FULL THRUST INTRO FLEETS, each worth £25 (plus
FREE rules!) to GIVE AWAY COMPLETELY FREE to personnel
currently serving out there in the hot zones - three sets for
British troops at BFPO addresses and three for US ones via APO.
What we'd like is for people to contact me (via direct email to
jonATgzgDOTcom) and recommend a gaming friend/colleague/relative who
is presently serving out in Iraq or A-stan, giving me the person's
full Forces postal address; if you are actually serving out there yourself and
are reading this, then you can recommend yourself if you wish!
I will give it a couple of weeks to get enough responses in, then I'll choose
which six applicants get the free packages (either randomly or from what is
written in the emails, that's up to me).
Each person chosen will get a packet containing TWO 8-ship FULL
THRUST INTRO FLEETS plus a printed copy of the free FT LIGHT intro
rules - with the addition of just a few dice and a measuring tape,
that's enough to play a complete game on any flat surface - I thought
that FT is ideal for this project because you don't need any terrain
or stuff like that! ;-)
THE RULES...
All applications must be submitted by email direct to me, at
jonATgzgDOTcom.... please mark the subject line "GZG FORCES FREE OFFER".
Applications may be submitted by serving personnel
themselves, or by friends/family etc on behalf of same.
Names of successful applicants may be published on various web forums etc
unless specifically requested otherwise; if you would prefer us to withhold an
applicant's name please state this in your email, it will not affect the
chance of being chosen.
There will be THREE sets for BFPO addresses and THREE for APO addresses;
sorry, but we will ONLY ship the packets direct to the Forces addresses given
to us, we cannot ship them to home addresses. Recipients must be currently
serving in Iraq or Afghanistan.
The actual fleets in the packets will be chosen at random from our ranges.
Packets will be sent out by us free of charge, with shipping costs paid by us,
but in the unlikely case of any charges or duties being levied on the package
by postal or customs services then the recipient will be liable for these.
The offer will close when I think we have enough applicants to choose from,
but it will definitely be open until at least the first week of
August - so get in quickly!
The proprietor's (that's me!) decision as to the allocation of the free sets
will be final and no correspondence will be entered into.
So, there you go! Get emailing! :-)
Jon (GZG) www.gzg.com
PS: please feel free to re-post this to any other forums or mailing
lists whose members might be interested, the offer is open to all applicants
who meet the criteria above.
_______________________________________________
Gzg-l mailing list
Gzg-l@vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu
http://vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu:1337/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/gzg-lHmm
m.
That's two special offers for the middle part of North America without any
reference to the Northern part. I don't begrudge my USAian friends their due.
Celebrating Independence Day with a sale was a fine idea. So is this offer to
the troops.
But I was a little miffed when Canada Day (July 1st) wasn't worthy of notice.
Now I'm a bit more miffed that Canadian military gamers aren't
worthy of support - we're doing our bit in Afghanistan's hotter regions
alongside the British and Americans.
I'm beginning to feel like Jon just doesn't love us anymore.
I'm not specifically bemoaning that I can't get some loot for a fellow gamer
- my friends in the forces are between overseas tours, the next one
scheduled to rotate in as a liaison between the Provincial Reconstruction Team
and the main forces later this year in Afghanistan. But I am a bit annoyed
that the only people that seem to get any notice in North America are our
southern neighbours.
And the Queen of England, Scotland and Wales is still OUR head of state! WE
didn't dump all the tea in the harbour and send the English packing...
TomB True, North, Strong and Inconsequent
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Gzg-l@vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu
http://vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu:1337/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/gzg-lJon
's just mullifying the US-ers in preparation for the eventual
reclamation
by the British Empire - haven't you been keeping up on your FT
timeline??
:-D
Mk
> On Thu, Jul 24, 2008 at 11:35 AM, Tom B <kaladorn@gmail.com> wrote:
> Hmmm.
> Hmmm.
Oops, sorry Tom, I seem to keep doing this.... ;-)
I'm more than happy to accept recommendations for Canadian personnel (and
indeed any other nation's troops who are out there in the sand
at the moment). What's the Canadian equivalent of BFPO/APO addresses?
Jon (GZG)
> --
TomB wrote on 07/24/2008 10:35:09 AM:
> Hmmm.
I'm shamed that I failed to think of this, and of the many other troops
supporting the effort. Not all have English as a native language, even though
you'd think so from how well their unofficial reps write on this list.
Jon may have a business excuse for being so focused. I certainly do not.
> And the Queen of England, Scotland and Wales is still OUR head of
WE
> didn't dump all the tea in the harbour and send the English packing...
Some people can REALLY hold a grudge...
> TomB
Yes, Yes, Yes, and NEVER!
The_Beast
I thought it was the fact that we Americans are less discerning and just hear
the words "Free Minis" and miss the "please attach immortal
soul" part. ;-)
I thought it was the fact that we Americans are less discerning and just hear
the words "Free Minis" and miss the "please attach immortal
soul" part. ;-)
Jason
No it's the separation of church and sales clause that throuws us off....)
Don M wrote on 07/24/2008 12:14:24 PM:
> I thought it was the fact that we Americans are less discerning and
Proving once again, there in no sanity clause...
The_Beast
Heh, I am actually going to order one as soon as I figure out what my APO
address is.
As for the best game oriented MWR package I have seen, GAMA has a nice
one: http://www.gama.org/games-to-troops2
I have actually seen these and troops grab them as fast as the arrive in
my experience.
> I've never heard any reaction, pro or con.
It really depends on the MOS and location. From 12 years of doing downrange
work the most popular games are Spades, Texas Holdem (more so in the last 5
years), Axis and Allies, Risk, Monopoly, and Life. If you
get into the military geek realm (e.g. intel and signal) you get a lot
of RPG guys. I have also seen beer + pretzels games played though
infrequently (think Awful Green things From Outer Space and Nuclear War);
occasionally I stumble across CCG guys.
I can honestly say though I have NEVER once seen miniature or strategic games
played though... namely I think do to the fragility of miniatures
and lack of time to invest... not to say it doesn't happen though; just
that I haven't seen it.
> No it's the separation of church and sales clause that
I can honestly say though I have NEVER once seen miniature or strategic games
played though... namely I think do to the fragility of miniatures
and lack of time to invest... not to say it doesn't happen though; just
that I haven't seen it.
I never did miniatures overseas myself, mostly due to time constraints.
Stateside was a different story entirely but, then again being married I was
in a house off post or in government quarters, so had the space.
I did find some miniature gaming mostly among the officer class for tactical
stuff, and RPGs and Warhammer with the junior NCOs and enlisted. There were
exceptions of course (I was one)but that's what I encountered for the most
part.
Way back when - like twenty years ago now, I used to have a small
15mm Prussian Army and a 1/300 scale Tank brigade that I carried to
various locations around Germany.
Napoleonics and 1/300 modern were the only games that used miniatures
in our area - everything else was boardgames (like Red Star White
Star) or RPGs, mainly DnD.
Kev
---- Original Message ----
From: eol1@yahoo.com
To: gzg-l@vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu
Subject: Re: [GZG] [OFFICIAL] GZG: FREEBIE OFFER FOR BFPO/APO TROOPS!
Date: Thu, 24 Jul 2008 21:23:10 +0300
> Heh, I am actually going to order one as soon as I figure out what my
_______________________________________________
Gzg-l mailing list
Gzg-l@vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu
http://vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu:1337/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/gzg-lWhe
n I was deployed, each short time leave we got, which was far and few between,
a good number of us use to play the Babylon 5 miniature games using
fleet action rules. A few of us also played FT in A-stan when I was
there as well. My wife would send us new miniatures, small things, nothing big
because of weight shipping. It takes thoughts off the mind of duty when on
down time, which is much needed. To much time to think about what you did and
what your about to do again.
Now I have a question for Jon D. There are some men who do not stay at a
particular location, always moving about, never actually stationed at a single
duty post for more then a couple weeks. I was such. How would we go about
submitting there info?
V.
In a message dated 7/24/2008 3:10:53 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
> dmaddox1@hot.rr.com writes:
I can honestly say though I have NEVER once seen miniature or strategic
games played though... namely I think do to the fragility of miniatures and
lack of time to invest... not to say it doesn't happen though; just that I
haven't seen it.
I never did miniatures overseas myself, mostly due to time constraints.
Stateside was a different story entirely but, then again being married I was
in a house off post or in government quarters, so had the space.
I did find some miniature gaming mostly among the officer class for tactical
stuff, and RPGs and Warhammer with the junior NCOs and enlisted. There were
exceptions of course (I was one)but that's what I encountered for the most
part.
Don
**************Get fantasy football with free live scoring. Sign up for
FanHouse Fantasy Football today.
(http://www.fanhouse.com/fantasyaffair?ncid=aolspr00050000000020)
> When I was deployed, each short time leave we got, which was far and
Well, I'm not Jon D*, but I'm assuming this was meant for me anyway....
;-)
I don't know the best answer to this, because I don't know all the details of
the forces postal systems; how do guys like that receive all their other mail?
Surely they must have some kind of holding
address that their letters/packets from home get sent to?
Jon (T!) - GZG
* Jon D, on this list, usually refers to Jon Davis, who organises the
GZG-ECC....
> V.
just
> that I haven't seen it.
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Gzg-l@vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu
http://vermouth.csua.berkeley.edu:1337/cgi-bin/mailman/listinfo/gzg-lJon
,
Thanks. I'm not a sour apple (well, intentionally). I think the gesture of
supporting our troops is a worthy one in any event. By "our troops", I mean
anyone in uniform serving in the sand or elsewhere doing the work of trying to
keep us in the West safe and trying to make the world a better place when they
can for others.
I'm not sure what they *call* our addresses, but I'm working on software for
Canada Post at the moment and have friends stationed steps from NDHQ -
I'm
sure I can find out the correct term/mechanism. Will post if I get the
info.
Beer's on me next time you make it to Lancaster, Sr.Tuffley. For that matter,
any of you guys wearing a uniform and doing the job, look me up for a beer at
ECC.
TomB True, North, Strong and Mollified:0)
PS - Thanks to all of our NATO and non-NATO partners - the world is a
dangerous place and it is nice to know you have some allies who've got your
back.
> On Thu, 24 Jul 2008, Ground Zero Games wrote:
> GZG: FREEBIE OFFER FOR BFPO/APO TROOPS!
Awesome!
> The proprietor's (that's me!) decision as to the allocation of the
Um, Jon? Paint, brushes, stands, etc?
Can the rest of us get in on this? I'd paypal you $10 in a heartbeat toward
the cost of the extras.
> My bad, I dont know why I said "D" instead of "T"
OK then, for cases like that if folks give me the relevant unit HQ address
I'll send stuff there if they are chosen.
Jon (GZG)
> In a message dated 7/24/2008 7:06:09 P.M. Eastern Daylight Time,
;-)
> I don't know the best answer to this, because I don't know all the
> On Thu, 24 Jul 2008, Ground Zero Games wrote:
Hey Mike,
Thanks for the offer! While it's hugely appreciated, I don't have too much
time to deal with all this as I also have to keep the business running (!), so
I don't want it to snowball TOO much; however, I've already had a couple of
requests like this and if a few folks want to chip in a bit I can always use
that to add a few extra items into some or all of the packages. The great
thing about getting a couple of the FT intro fleets is that you don't really
need to paint them, and all the stands are included anyway, so it's almost a
ready-to-play game; I've managed to get my major dice supplier to
chip in some free D6, so I can put a handful in each box too.
If anyone wants to make a contribution to the project, they can do so
via Paypal to me at <jon@gzg.com> - or if you're not concerned about
making your contribution gamer-specific, of course there are a lot of
support-the-troops charity websites around who'd be very happy to
take your donations.
Best,
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,
The ignorance level regarding the involvement of our allies in Afghanistan and
Iraq is astounding here in the U.S. Recently at work some of my coworkers were
making a few Canadian jokes (which I admit to having joined in on) but it was
getting a bit out of hand so I simply said "yeah, but they're doing their part
in Afghanistan". They all gave me a confused look and then said "But it's
Canada, how much help could they be." I pointed out that the best sniper team
in the world is from Canada (IIRC they won an international sniper competition
two years in a
row) and they have been in Afghanistan kicking some serious ass.
I got that look I often get and one of them said "Figures Kinsey would know
something like that" and then they dropped it.
I'm sure if you ran a poll here in the U.S. many people would completely
unaware what other allies were in Afghanistan fighting alongside our troops.
At any rate, I'd like to say thanks to any troops taking part in
overseas conflicts for the service they do.
-Mark Kinsey
> Tom B wrote:
> any reference to the Northern part. I don't begrudge my USAian friends
> their due. Celebrating Independence Day with a sale was a fine idea.
> worthy of support - we're doing our bit in Afghanistan's hotter
> gamer - my friends in the forces are between overseas tours, the next
> Mark Kinsey wrote:
But we figure that we're one of the usual suspects.
Zoe
You'll want to be careful with those Canadian jokes...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cLhzPL7BDfw
T.
> On 25-Jul-08, at 6:31 AM, Mark Kinsey wrote:
> Tom,
[snip]
Noted.
That's also pretty damn funny. It's funny how people will say things to
each other in the modern office that they'd never say to each other elsewhere,
reminds me of this exchange from "Office Space"
*Peter Gibbons <http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0515296/>*: Let me ask you
something. When you come in on Monday, and you're not feelin' real well,
does anyone ever say to you, 'Sounds like someone has a case of the Mondays'?
*Lawrence <http://www.imdb.com/name/nm0046033/>*: No. No, man. Shit, no,
man. I believe you'd get your ass kicked sayin' something like that, man.
I lived in Buffalo, NY for 5 years and the people there were a bit like
Canadians in attitude. Fairly polite by New York State standards, but don't
push them too far...
-Mark
> Tony Christney wrote:
> some of my coworkers were making a few Canadian jokes (which I admit
> to having joined in on) but it was getting a bit out of hand so I
Mark said:
> The ignorance level regarding the involvement of our allies in
<snip>
> I'm sure if you ran a poll here in the U.S. many people would
Hi Mark,
I don't want to start any flamewars or peeing contests, but I would suggest
that the "ignorance level regarding the involvement of our allies" stretches
right back to WWI. To be fair to the US, it usually contributes the most
material and man-power to any conflict and so less attention tends to be
paid in the American media (or such as is reflected back to us on the outside)
to the contributions made by any allies.
For example, would the words "Victoria Cross" or "Corporal Apiata" mean much
to anyone outside of New Zealand and, perhaps, the UK?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Apiata
Or the work our Provincial Reconstruction Team is doing in Bamyan Province?
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bamyan_Province
Small potatoes on the scale of things but, an occasional "thanks for your
efforts" would be nice.
And BTW, thank you Jon for making the effort to bring a little gaming goodness
to the men and women stuck so far from home, but doing their difficult job
anyway.
Regards