The author has been engaged with military history and wargaming for many years. His experience includes a decade in the Territorial Army using his simulation skills to provide advice and training at a tactical level. He has been involved in scenario design for cold war wargames but his current interests are in European medieval and seventeenth century history. An active gamer from an early age, he is a current member of the Pike and Shot Society. In support of his research efforts he has also been a member of the Society of Ancients and the Lance & Longbow Society. His current research into game design and historical topics continues with enthusiasm. He has been a national level competition gamer for his club but is now focused on game design, with an emphasis on creating enjoyment and playability. Like most wargamers he enjoys painting, trying new ideas for games, and occasionally winning a game or two.

In Europe, the first two decades of the eighteenth century were characterised by almost constant warfare. Western and Central Europe had been involved in the Nine Years' War that ended in 1697. The peace was shortlived and by 1701 Western Europe was once again plunged into a new conflict, the War of Spanish Succession. Elsewhere, Denmark, Russia, Saxony and eventually Prussia all sought to dismember the Swedish Empire and share it amongst themselves. This conflict, known as the Great Northern War, was to last over twenty years. Designed to refight the battles of the period, Captain General is an expansion book for the popular rule set In Deo Veritas. The rules focus on the command decisions needed to maintain the motivation of the army. The battle scenarios offer the player a series of different challenges from the wars of the early eighteenth century. Battles are played at the brigade level with all major elements on 75mm/3" wide bases. Using smaller scale figures (6-15mm) lets players give their units a realistic feel. The ground scale of 1" = 40yds means the typical 6ft x 4 ft table is large enough to accommodate most battles of the period. Most players will already have everything needed to play (d6, tape measure and a deck of cards). More scenarios and game support will become available in the future. To learn the rules will take 2 hours or so using some of the smaller battles. Once you have become familiar with the core elements then your games will flow more quickly and a larger battle such as Blenheim should last for 3-4 hours depending on the arrival of the reinforcements. Nothing is certain, but generals that hone their skills are more likely to be victorious. You will need a copy of In Deo Veritas: Fast Play Rules for Exciting Seventeenth Century Battles in Smaller Scales to use this book.