“Victory At Sea” Is Back, and That is a Good Thing

After a long delay (made a bit longer by the 2020 global pandemic), Warlord Games is preparing to release the WWII fleet combat game Victory at Sea (VAS). I think this is going to be an important development for naval gamers and the larger wargaming community, as it is going to be filling a niche that has been left vacant for years (ever since the Axis & Allies naval miniatures game went out of print). Before we get to that, however, it might be useful to take a quick look at the history of the game.

History of VAS

Properly understood, Warlord’s iteration of VAS is not a brand-new product, but rather a new edition of a game originally launched by Mongoose Publishing back in 2006, an out-growth of the “A Call To Arms” rules system that was originally developed for the Babylon 5 license and later adapted for a number of different settings, including Star Trek. As is common with many rule sets that take place in historical settings, the game was originally miniatures-agnostic, though the authors “assumed that miniatures of 1/6000-1/2000 scale will be used for most of the battles featured in this game.” To a degree, it seems that VAS was both helped and over-shadowed by the launch of Wizards of the Coast’s (WotC’s) Axis & Allies Naval Miniatures game, War At Sea (WAS) a year later, in 2007. While it seems reasonably clear that WotC’s offering was more popular (based on sales, availability, community size, etc), at the same time I suspect that WAS also drastically increased the number of naval-curious gamers who suddenly found themselves with a collection of WWII ship models. Like me, some of those collectors may have gotten a bit bored with the simplistic WAS rules, and started looking for something more detailed. VAS was perfectly suited for that niche, which is how I came to own a copy.

VAS continued on under Mongoose over the next several years, including a stand-alone WWI version 2008. Then, in early 2012, Mongoose announced it was working on a second edition of the game, slated for a summer/fall 2012 release. Not only that, VAS 2.0 was to be accompanied by its own range of miniatures. The timing was probably not coincidental; the final set of WAS had been released the year before, in 2011. In December of that year Richard Baker, who was the principal designer of WAS and who had been it’s principal advocate at WotC, was let go from the company in a staff shake-up over the poor performance of Dungeons and Dragons 4th Edition (Baker’s main job was as a DnD author/developer). While WotC never made an official announcement about the future of the game, it was clear to most interested observers that WAS was not going to be seeing any further expansions. Quite possibly, Mongoose saw the end of WAS as a market opportunity and was looking to step in with VAS 2.0.

Long Development

Mongoose’s initial announcement, suggested that the scale of the new miniatures line was going to be 1/2400, which matched the scale used by other popular makers such as GHQ and Panzerschiffe. However, by early fall of 2012 the scale had been revised to 1/1800, which matched the scale of the WAS pre-painted miniatures. The development of the rules ended up taking longer than expected, and they were no where near ready in 2012. Instead, Mongoose pressed forward with launching their line of miniatures. The release strategy was very different from the randomized boosters that WotC used. Mongoose was going to be selling themed box sets that focused on specific engagements as well as the traditional sale of individual ships. The Battle of the River Plate was the first such themed box set, releasing in early 2013.

In a blog post from early 2013, the designers for VAS 2.0 laid out an interesting history of the changes and edits the rules had undergone. However, as 2013 dragged into 2014, there was very little additional news or announcements for the game. In 2015 word filtered out that the game had been purchased by Warlord Games; it was even shown off at the Warlord Games Days held that year. There was not much in the way of major public announcements for Warlord’s acquisition of the property, and after 2015 there was radio silence on the company’s plans for the game. That all changed in March 2020, when Warlord made a major announcement that VAS was, in fact, coming out later in the year and that there would be a fairly extensive 1/1800 scale miniature support for it.

The Importance of VAS

Which brings us up to the current day! VAS was originally going to ship a month or two ago, but has been delayed until this month (as of the last update) due to COVID. Once it ships, Warlord’s distribution network and market penetration points to the game becoming what I’ve come to refer to as a “Class A” game – a game that has a decent chance of being on a shelf in a majority of game stores (Note – this is not a comment on the quality or merits of the game, rather just on its availability in stores). This is significant because it will mark the return of WWII fleet combat to a mass-market audience, and will at least partially fill the gap left by WAS.

I see this as a great thing, as it will grow the audience for naval gaming. It will help entice a number of gamers who, like me, have a large collection of 1/1800 WAS minis that have been largely idle for the last few years. It might attract the attention of gamers who have an interest in WWII, but normally play games like Flames of War or Bolt Action, enticing them to explore the naval side of the conflict through gaming. It might also serve as an introduction to naval warfare for a new wave of gamers who have joined the hobby since WAS went out of print and have never seen a game like VAS before. In a socially driven hobby like naval wargaming, I think one can never underestimate the importance of increasing the larger community’s awareness of a particular setting!

The 1/1800 scale of the models seems like a good choice to me, as it capitalizes on the large number of WAS minis that both reside in collections or are still in circulation. In addition, in the years since WAS went out of print, fans of that game have filled the void with 3D printed ships in the same 1/1800 scale. This means that Warlord can take advantage of that same secondary market, as players who buy into VAS will have the option of going to Shapeways or their own printers to find ships Warlord hasn’t yet produced or might never produce. And finally, 1/1800 has the advantage of being physically larger than minis in the smaller traditional WWII fleet gaming scales such as 1/2400, 1/3000, and 1/6000. Larger size makes for a more impressive presence on the tabletop, more robust miniatures that stand up better to handling, and an easier painting experience for hobbyists.

As such, I see VAS as both a potential vanguard for the naval gaming hobby and as a gateway to other naval games (much as I originally became interested in VAS after playing WAS). Warlord’s other WWII naval offering, Cruel Seas, has played this role as well to a certain extent, though if I’m being honest I think the nature of that game (small craft engagements) limits its appeal when compared to the sheer spectacle of battleships trading broadsides!

Concerns About VAS

All of the above not withstanding, this does not mean that the return of VAS has been universally hailed in all quarters of the naval gaming community. Concerns about VAS that I have seen gamers express online seem to focus on a few major points; the models, rules availability, and detail. Concerns about the model are in regards to both their design and their scale. The ships for VAS include molded-on bases that include wave and wake detail. Because the models are cast in resin, the bases are fairly thick in comparison to the height of the ship, and some folks aren’t in favor of that aesthetic choice. As the ships and their base are cast as one resin piece, there is no easy way to separate them. In addition, while above I outlined why 1/1800 scale makes a lot of sense in some respects, there is a considerable downside in that many dedicated naval gamers already have significant collections of miniatures in other scales, meaning they will be less enticed by the new model line. Furthermore, there is a practical reason why traditionally WWII naval minis are made in smaller scales; the longer ranges and higher speeds of WWII ships mean that (depending on the rules) it can be difficult to run a WWII naval game with larger miniatures on a reasonably sized table.

Rules availability is also a concern, because as of right now it appears that the rulebook for the game is going to be available only via the 2-player starter set. This is especially problematic for those gamers with large mini collections already. Hopefully Warlord will make a stand-alone rulebook (electronic and/or hard copy) available at some point in the future, but no announcements have been made as of this writing. This is something of a double-whammy for those gamers who already have a large collection of ship minis; there are definitely those who will not be interested in buying a relatively expensive box set that features minis in a scale they don’t use and/or in a style they don’t like just to get at the rulebook it contains.

And finally, there are the ever-present concerns about rule detail, which some might also describe as complexity. The fact of the matter is, the VAS rules have apparently never been popular with segments of the established naval gaming community, a point which the game’s brief Wikipedia page goes out of its way to highlight. As a mass market miniatures game, VAS is just as concerned with play balance and the “fun” of the overall experience as it is with historical accuracy. For gamers that normally only run historical scenarios with accurate orders of battle, even the inclusion of something like a points system for models is anathema. I’m sure that Warlord is also hoping to run tournaments for VAS at major conventions in the future, alongside its other games (the horror!). Don’t get me wrong, I don’t mean to be too down on very historically focused gamers; this is a hobby after all, and they are free to enjoy it on their own terms. However, they do tend to be a very vocal minority online, and can be excessively negative of games they find unpalatable (I saw similar vitriol leveled at Cruel Seas when it came out). To those in that vocal minority, I ask that you reflect on the positives that a game like VAS brings to the table, and if nothing else, with a bit more positivity you might very well win converts to your favored game from the “new blood” I expect VAS to bring in.

Excitement is Building!

In the end, VAS is coming one way or the other, and soon. I remain optimistic that it will be a net positive influence on the gaming community as a whole, and the naval gaming community in particular. I’m also looking forward to playing the game, as it looks like a lot of fun. In the interest of full disclosure, I have a hefty pre-order in for the starter box and a USN fleet box, so you can expect a lot more coverage here on the blog (and probably on the MBS Podcast and/or Youtube channel) in the future! Until next time…

UPDATE: Made a minor correction to the mention of the WWI version of VAS. The original article suggested it was a supplement, when in fact it was a stand-alone product.