From: Mark Gusack Subject: Re: Fire Fight Dear Mr. Poulter: Below are recent email communications between Dave Kohr and I. He thought you might be interested. Mark Gusack Hi Mark, Thanks for filling me in a bit more about this game. You might want to forward your message (I put a copy below) to Web Grognard (admin@grognard.com) so Alan Poulter can append it to the folder on Fire Fight--that way others can benefit from it too. Dave ---- From: Mark Gusack To: davekohr@best.com Subject: Re: Fire Fight Dear Mr. Kohr: My name is Mark Gusack. I was looking for references to my old friend Jon Southard when I noticed your posted discussion from 2000. Jon designed the Fire Fight game to meet specifications of the United States Army around 1985. That is why it has such a narrow focus. I was in the service at the time and was also a technical consultant for that game. The Army's goal was to explore the impact and teach elements of the various doctrinal changes that were being envisioned for the U.S. Army during the big build up of the early - to - mid 1980's. As one of your respondents noted it clearly displays the difference between the large unit emphasis of the Soviets and the small unit emphasis of the NATO and U.S. forces. Historically, the Soviet's did best in focusing overwhelming force at the point of interest then exploiting their breakthrough using knowledge of the operational maneuver learned during the latter half of WWII. We on the other hand tend to concentrate on command and control at the small unit level coupled to overwhelming artillery and air power but don't attempt much in the way of operational maneuver. This was amply displayed in the most recent Iraq war. Jon is an excellent simulations designer with only one minor exception. As another of your respondents noted, he tends to create very accurate but overly complex combat rules that can make the game difficult to enjoy due to the time it takes to figure out and actually carry out the combat. Otherwise, its an excellent game as are all of his works. You might want to obtain a copy of Grant Moves South. If you have any other questions don't hesitate to email me. I have the honor to be, respectfully yours, Mark Gusack President MBG Industries, Inc.