by Armchair Dragoons PAO, 21 May 2025
We asked our GM’s to give you the “elevator pitch” for their events, in case you needed some more encouragement to get registered.
We didn’t get a response from everyone, in part because a bunch of the events are already sold out! But for the ones we got, here you go. If you want the full listing of all Wargame HQ events, check out this page with their official event-program descriptions
#Maneuver Warfare
Want to play the equivalent of ‘Magic: The Gathering’ for Marines? Then come check out #Maneuver Warfare, a deck construction game with enough wargame richness to make even the crustiest grognard happy but a speed of play that will have you gloating over your defeated adversary in under an hour. This the debut of the production version from the Dietz Foundation, which will be available this summer.
— Ian Brown
Duration: 120 minutes for 4 players
- Event #5091 held Wednesday at 3:00 PM
- Event #5072 held Thursday at 10:00 AM
- Event #5119 held Friday at 2:00 PM
- Event #5052 held Friday at 5:00 PM
- Event #4994 held Saturday at 11:00 AM
A More Perfect Union
The struggle to ratify the US Constitution, state by state, between the Federalists and the Anti-Federalists.
Duration: 120 minutes for 4 players
- Event #5011 held Thursday at 1:00 PM
- Event #5095 held Friday at 9:00 AM
- Event #5081 held Saturday at 9:00 AM
Armies & Alliances Arnhem ’44
A&A Arnhem ’44 is a hex-based recreation of Operation Market Garden in the Axis & Allies “universe”. By increasing the number of players (up to 3 Allies and 2 Germans). the game can be learned with a low unit count per player to pick up the system quicker and easier.
— Robert Fix
Duration: 240 minutes for 4 players
(Note: this one’s actually a 5-player game, so we can take one more person on a first-come/first-served basis)
- Event #5129 held Thursday at 2:00 PM
Bagration
The solo sequel to Fall Blau, but this time from the Soviet perspective.
Duration: 60 minutes for 2 players
- Event #5092 held Thursday at 11:00 AM
- Event #4995 held Friday at 11:00 AM
- Event #4979 held Friday at 4:00 PM
- Event #5044 held Friday at 4:00 PM
- Event #5053 held Saturday at 11:00 AM
- Event #5066 held Saturday at 3:00 PM
Combat Commander
War is unpredictable and no plan survives first contact with the enemy. Troops panic, guns jam, and Sgt. Hulka gets blown up. Combat Commander captures that chaos by having everything you can do–and everything that happens to you–be controlled by a deck of cards. Can you control chance better than your opponent? Find out by playing Combat Commander with the Armchair Dragoons!
— Scott Heenan
Duration: 180 minutes for 4 players
- Event #5120 held Wednesday at 5:00 PM
- Event #4980 held Thursday at 3:00 PM
Commands & Colors Ancients
Have you ever wanted to try traditional wargames but were worried about the amount of rules and decision-making required? Do you think you might enjoy clashes between ancient civilizations? Do you like the idea of using maps, wooden counters, dice AND cards in an easy to learn wargame? Come check out a Commands and Colors: Ancients game at Origins Game Fair 2025, Thursday through Sunday!
— Marc Gacy
Duration: 180 minutes for 4 players
- Event #5130 held Thursday at 3:00 PM
- Event #5131 held Thursday at 7:00 PM
- Event #5033 held Friday at 9:00 AM
- Event #5109 held Saturday at 3:00 PM
- Event #5055 held Sunday at 9:00 AM
Crisis 1914
Crisis 1914 is a “push your luck” game where you represent the chief diplomat of one of the five major European powers. Your goal is to strengthen the diplomatic position of your nation in the looming Summer 1914 European crisis without pushing your nation past the brink of war.
— Robert Fix<
Duration: 240 minutes for 4 players
- Event #5048 held Friday at 12:00 PM
Forlorn Hope (WW1 Trench Warfare)
This new system uses fast, playable, and yet engaging, push-your-luck mechanics similar to In Magnificent Style and Crowbar: The Rangers at Pointe Du Hoc. Players must drive their battalions across No Man’s Land as quickly as possible, measuring the damage done by enemy fire and obstacles against their need to accomplish the mission on schedule. Scenarios reflect the unique conditions, experiences, and goals of the brutally iconic battlefields of Neuve Chapelle, Ypres, the Argonne Forest, the Somme, and Verdun.
— Hermann Luttmann
Duration: 120 minutes for 4 players
- Event #4998 held Thursday at 3:00 PM
- Event #5077 held Thursday at 9:00 PM
- Event #5018 held Friday at 3:00 PM
- Event #5027 held Saturday at 9:00 AM
- Event #4989 held Saturday at 12:00 PM
- Event #5147 held Saturday at 6:00 PM
Grab the Pigs & Run! (7YW)
Have you ever wanted to try historical miniatures but were hesitant because you think they are to complex? Have no fear, our “Grab the Pigs and Run!” scenario is perfect for beginners that want to try out historical miniatures. Your goal will be to round up as many cows, pigs and sheep, that can run away in random directions, while protecting your foragers from the enemy who have the same orders as you.
— Greg Johnson
Duration: 180 minutes for 4 players
- Event #5067 held Friday at 10:00 AM
- Event #5116 held Friday at 4:00 PM
Holland ’44
Players will receive an introduction to the Mark Simonitch ZOC-Bond series in a learning environment. The players will be taught the game and guided through the opening stages of Operation Market-Garden. A team format will be utilized for both sides.
— Todd Surgoine
Duration: 240 minutes for 4 players
- Event #5000 held Wednesday at 4:00 PM
- Event #5049 held Thursday at 9:00 AM
- Event #5034 held Friday at 2:00 PM
- Event #5078 held Saturday at 9:00 AM
This is part of our comprehensive coverage of The 2025 Origins Game Fair from GAMA; you can find the links to all published articles at the end of each one
Hunt for Blackbeard
Pits two players against one another as hunter and hunted in a fast-moving game of detection, deception, and confrontation
Duration: 60 minutes for 4 players
- Event #4985 held Friday at 10:00 AM
- Event #5134 held Friday at 11:00 AM
- Event #4990 held Saturday at 5:00 PM
Kriegsspiel
Here’s an article on last year’s Kriegsspiel event
The iconic, original double-blind Kriegsspiel is back, with players only able to see and affect their small slice of the battlefield as the war rages around them. Players are in blinded desks with only their maps and the messages sent to them from the umpires, and make their best battlefield decisions based on very limited information and situational awareness. A few years ago, we had so many people drop in to this event that we were kicking staff members out of the game to make room for all the players that wanted to join.
Duration: 240 minutes for 12 players
- Event #5028 held Thursday at 6:00 PM
- Event #5111 held Friday at 10:00 AM
- Event #5016 held Saturday at 3:00 PM
Line of Fire – Burnt Moon
Line of Fire: Burnt Moon is a lightning-fast, two-player card game that fuses lean deck-building with dynamic lane-battling across the volcanic surface of Jupiter’s moon, Io. Command fleets of remotely operated robots in a high-stakes clash between corporate defenders and rogue hackers, where every decision and position counts. With its sharp tactics and endless replayability, it’s a thrilling experience for fans of strategic sci-fi skirmishes.
— David Thompson
Duration: 120 minutes for 4 players
- Event #5038 held Wednesday at 5:00 PM
- Event #5142 held Friday at 9:00 AM
Littoral Commander – Space Force
Invaders descend onto the Moon, Earth, Mars, and Cerus as defenders fling high altitude projectiles to thwart the invasion. Will the invaders move at will towards their final objective once they are on the ground, or will the defenders high altitude projectiles combined with their land forces redirect the invaders off their target in Littoral Commander: Space Force.
— Dr Wictz
Duration: 180 minutes for 4 players
- Event #5051 held Wednesday at 6:00 PM
- Event #5031 held Thursday at 9:00 AM
- Event #5023 held Friday at 6:00 PM
- Event #5061 held Sunday at 9:00 AM
Lyran Space- A Federation Space Game
In 1981 Task Force Games released Federation Space, a strategic level board game based on the original Star Trek TV series. Unfortunately, the game was released unbalanced and was soon overshadowed by the release of another strategic level board game, the much more complex and time consuming Federation and Empire.
Federation Space never received any updates or expansions, but what if it had? What if the game received updated/new rules, new races, new weapons, a new map, and more? Find out by joining us at Origins this year and experience an all new version of this classic game with Lyran Space: A Federation Space Game!— Mike Colello
Duration: 240 minutes for 4 players
- Event #5074 held Thursday at 10:00 AM
- Event #5041 held Thursday at 4:00 PM
- Event #4981 held Friday at 9:00 AM
- Event #5043 held Friday at 6:00 PM
- Event #4996 held Saturday at 9:00 AM
- Event #5148 held Saturday at 2:00 PM
Major’s Gambit
Fast-paced and deceptively simple, Major’s Gambit drives decision-making under pressure. None of the rules are complicated, but better planning and adaptation will win the day… collapsing your opponent’s OODA Loop at a point where you can make use of the opportunities thus created!
— James Sterrett
Duration: 240 minutes for 8 players
- Event #5087 held Thursday at 12:00 PM
- Event #5136 held Friday at 6:00 PM
- Event #5121 held Saturday at 9:00 AM
Patria Libre
Very innovative design looking at not only the control of the ground but managing the popular support (or hatred) your cause creates.
Duration: 180 minutes for 4 players
- Event #5127 held Thursday at 1:00 PM
- Event #5103 held Friday at 9:00 AM
- Event #5063 held Saturday at 9:00 AM
PicoArmor Panzerblitz
Play the Avalon Hill classic PanzerBlitz game with 3D terrain and 3mm miniatures. The scenario is a German vs Russian meeting engagement where the action is fast and furious. The rules are easy to learn, and fun to play for beginners and experienced wargamers.
—Gregory Johnson
Duration: 180 minutes for 6 players
- Event #5093 held Wednesday at 5:00 PM
- Event #5010 held Thursday at 9:00 AM
- Event #4986 held Thursday at 6:00 PM
- Event #5088 held Saturday at 11:00 AM
- Event #4992 held Saturday at 5:00 PM
Plum Island Horror
Those of you joining this demo will have the esteemed opportunity to experience the new expansion for the game: “More of a Bad Thing”. Who wouldn’t want to try out the demonically crafted and nearly impossible Alarming Mode … some new short scenarios like “Oh, What a Beautiful Morning” and “The Governor’s Decree” … or running a faction of clowns, or construction workers, or even … yes … cultists! Sounds too good to be true, right? Well it’s true!
— Hermann Luttmann
Duration: 180 minutes for 6 players
- Event #5138 held Friday at 5:00 PM
- Event #4997 held Saturday at 8:00 AM
Rebels Against Rebellion
Rebels Against Rebellion is a fast-paced, card-driven wargame from award-winning designers David Thompson and Trevor Benjamin. Set in Civil War-era Tennessee, it challenges players to build and manage decks representing units and locations, strategically spreading control across Scott County. With its unique blend of deck-building and territorial strategy, it’s a must-try for fans of innovative historical games.
— David Thompson
Duration: 120 minutes for 4 players
- Event #5104 held Thursday at 6:00 PM
- Event #5110 held Saturday at 3:00 PM
Stalingrad Roads
Führer approval, Manstein influence, and Oberkommando des Heeres crises, oh my! Stalingrad Roads has a lot of interesting chrome, but it doesn’t take forever and a year to play. Supply logistics, abstracted political tantrums, five scenarios, and plenty of variability provide lots of replay value.
Duration: 180 minutes for 4 players
- Event #5047 held Thursday at 1:00 PM
- Event #5140 held Thursday at 6:00 PM
- Event #5032 held Saturday at 1:00 PM
- Event #5118 held Saturday at 5:00 PM
True Command
WW2 division command unlike any game you’ve played before. Fog of War and Friction reign supreme, yet with careful planning, and some luck thrown in, you can outmaneuver your opponent to victory.
This game was one of the hits of our ACDC back in January!
Duration: 120 minutes for 4 players
- Event #4983 held Thursday at 9:00 AM
- Event #5014 held Thursday at 3:00 PM
- Event #5029 held Friday at 12:00 PM
- Event #5112 held Friday at 12:00 PM
- Event #5102 held Saturday at 3:00 PM
We Are Coming Nineveh
We Are Coming, Nineveh is easy to learn, but presents the brutal dilemmas of modern urban warfare in the context of the Iraqi forces retaking western Mosul from ISIS in 2017. As ISIS, you will try to make the battle long, costly, and destructive. As the Iraqi forces, you’ll be trying to keep all of those metrics small – but minimizing one metric probably means increasing another.
— James Sterrett
Duration: 180 minutes for 4 players
- Event #5141 held Wednesday at 4:00 PM
- Event #5079 held Thursday at 9:00 AM
- Event #5008 held Sunday at 9:00 AM
Zurmat II
The original COIN at the smallest scale game with new graphics and streamlined rules.
Duration: 120 minutes for 4 players
- Event #5084 held Thursday at 9:00 AM
- Event #5080 held Friday at 2:00 PM
- Event #5002 held Friday at 2:00 PM
- Event #5107 held Saturday at 1:00 PM
Origins 2025 Coverage
Wargame HQ Events ~ War College Previews ~ Wargame HQ Previews ~ Exhibitor Spotlight ~ All The Wargaming Events ~ The Final Countdown ~ Setup & First Games ~ The Charles S Roberts Awards ~ The View From Above ~ AAR for A&A Arnhem ~ The Kind Spirit ~ The AAR ~ Exhibit Hall
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