Napoleonic Wargame Club (NWC)

Mark Hornsby, please post your Campaign Speech for the election to the office of Club Public Relations Officer hereafter.

Salute Fellow Officers and Friends of the NWC

I have been a member of this club now for just over a year and what an enjoyable year it has been too. I have within the club met a lot of fantastic people and I class all as friends and have deep respect for all within the club no matter what their affiliation.

Firstly, I'd like to tell you all a bit about me. I am 39, and live in a town called Darlington in the North East of England. I live with my partner Kelly and her two children Megan and Maddison, who are like my own daughters and even call me dad at times. I left me job last year as a Transport Clerk for TNT UK Ltd to look after Kelly due to her illness, but hoping to get back to work sometime this year.

In December last year I volunteered to become Chef d'Etat-Major for the French III Corps and have enjoyed every minute of it. So when the position of Public Relations Officer came up I knew I had the ability to take on this role and make it a success.

As a cabinet member I will use that position in the clubs interest and help take the club forward. I see at this time a lot of officer positions vacant within the club especially in the Prussian, Austrian, Russian and Swedish armies, this I would like to rectify and start filling these. I also know there is talk of creating a either a new French Army or extra French Corps to accommodate the various regiments from Allied French countries, so I would look to fill these. I would also like to expand the Portugese and Spanish Armies too. What I want is for all club members to never have to wait for an opponent and that is what I'm passionate about. I don't want this club in three or four years time to become non-existent, I want it to grow become the talk of the wargaming community and have potential members cuing to get in. I also know that it isn't just about recruiting members, its about keeping them too and that I see as the hardest challenge but by working with the cabinet and club members we can make this happen. It's not about the cabinet anymore, its about every individual who is a member of this club.

I don't take on this position lightly, I take it on knowing there is hard work ahead and yes we won't see results straight away it may take two, three or even four months before we start to see results, but I would keep all members informed of what is happening and how the recruiting is going on a regular basis.

Well, I know what you are now thinking, how is he going to do this, well I'll tell you. Firstly let's show people we are out there, I'd like to create a club page on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram Google+ and Linkedin, these get our club across to millions of people worldwide. I'd also like to contact the likes of HPS and John Tiller and various other sellers of our games and ask them to display a link to our club website on there websites as well as being active on their forums if they have them. I would be active on all the wargaming forums posting as Scott suggested every 6 to 8 weeks just so they know we are about. I also want to look at the various miniature wargaming clubs and re-enactment societies throughout the world. I think I counted just over 60 miniature wargaming clubs in Britain alone with 12 Napoleonic re-enactment societies and the way I see it, if just one person from each of these clubs joins well we are a doing fantastic.

I also here you saying well that's a lot of work. Yes it is, but I am the man who can do it, because when I take on a job I take it to its height, I don't give in even when sometimes it doesn't go right because that will happen, no doubt about it.

As for the cabinet position, I want members to see me working on their behalf alongside the other fellow cabinet members already doing a fantastic job for the club. I will be approachable and if I can't find a solution to a problem I will consult with my fellow cabinet members to find one. I will listen to members ideas and concerns and act upon them. I will be no puppet for any individual or group but always make my own decision that is best for the club and I want transparency so all members know what is happening. I want to see an end to the fighting within the club, yes there will be disagreements but it is up to us as individuals to sort these out respectfully and in the correct manner. Most importantly I want the club to be a place members can go have a laugh, discuss Napoleonic history, take part in games with fellow officers and escape the rigours of everyday life and see us like one big family.

So YES I have a big job ahead of me that is certain but on e i hope you will vote for me to do. I will try to answer your questions or concerns if you have any about my ability to do the post or even about other topics you may have regarding the club.

Lastly, I would like to thank all who have given their support, truely it got a lump in my throat reading some of those emails, and to my opponent Todd Schmidgall, I wish you the very best of luck and I know that if you win the position will be in the most capable of hands and you will have my support in the position of PRO.

We in the Allied camp thank you Mark for getting us that MPG without your stick to it ness we still would be looking for players to play.

Glad to have been of service my friend any time. Hope all who are taking part in the MPG enjoy the game and good luck to both sides.

Thanks for running Mark, you're a good man and thanks for sharing personal details about yourself. That makes me like & respect you even more.

You also have put a lot of thought into this & it shows, a lot.

I fully support you in your bid for the PRO spot.

Mark,
nice to see a candidate stating what his intentions are for getting the job done. you have my support

good luck!
regards

_________________

"Great ambition is the passion of a great character. Those endowed with it may perform very good or very bad acts. All depends on the principles which direct them."

As a leader in the NWC the position of Public Relations Officer serves not only as an outward facing ambassador but also as a caretaker and leader within the club. Over the past few years there has been an influx of new voices that have taken up the mantle of leadership, tempered by the departure of experienced and long serving members that helped build the club from its humble beginnings.

What are the principles that would guide you in this position?

How would you go about bringing in new members as well as continuing to keep current officers engaged?

How would you balance the wide variety of interests, and cultural experiences within the club to ensure that the atmosphere is inclusive to a wide range of members, from causal gamers and students of history to avid roleplayers and ambitious leaders eager to make their mark?

If elected, what would be the first action that you would take and why?

_________________
Marechal Jeff Bardon
Duc de Castiglione et Prince de Wagram
Commandant de la Garde Imperiale

1.One thing am not clear on how would you get people to play games that are unequal like most games are 2to 1 Allied numbers over French high moral and great leadership. You can't force people to play and I would not play a 300 + turn game twice.
2. How would you manage playing and doing PR work?
3. How would you get inactive members back you can't pull them back.
4. How would you deal with the new Allied Army and extra Corps in the French sounds like the INWC . I was in the IV Naples Corps that didn't last long.
5. How would you deal with cross over players French playing Allied , Allied playing with French as French.

Cliff you were in the IV Italian Corps there and it existed the whole time you were a member of the Club.

Dear Mark, if you become the PR officer of the club here is the forum and link of NWC for Histwar Napoleon sir, thank you for the possible support.

The way I see it Sir we need each other, it's a thank you to you.

Two officers of the NWC have come forward with questions and I will try to answer these best I can. Firstly I will start with Jeff Bardon as he asked first.

Jeff you asked "What are the principles that would guide me in this position"?

Firstly let me say no-one can ever emulate their predecessors and if I take up the position of PRO then I will only be building upon the work already done by various people before me, and all have done a fantastic job but what you have to understand is, positions like this are like fine castles, they started off as humble wooden affairs due to materials and knowledge available but then over time as each owner has more materials and knowledge open to them they expand and renew but there is always a footprint from the very first building. So I will use what they have done in the past and with the new ideas of my own and hopefully be successful.

So what are the principles that guide me.

Dedication, I see the job through and don't getting disheartened when things don't always go right.
Respect, No matter what people are like, I give respect, even if I don't always get it back.
Willingness to listen, I'm always willing to listen to others as they may have ideas, advice or can give guidance. knowledge is gained by listening to others and so is respect.
Honesty, I believe honesty is a big principle of mine, I hate lies because with lies you get deceit and you always get found out, and lies and deceit hurt people.
Focused, I am always focused in what I do and always put 110% into everything.
Dedicated, like I'm always focused, I'm always dedicated not just in what I do but also to my friends and family, in fact my partner says she has never seen anyone as dedicated as me to what I do.

Even though I have these principles, it doesn't mean I'm infalable, I'm not a robot, I make mistakes like every human but if I stay true to my principles then I don't go far wrong. I believe these principles will help guide me in this role and make me a good Public Relations Officer.
You next ask how I would bring in new members to the club, well I have alrady stated what I want to do in my opening speech but I will explain again. Firstly let's show people we are out there, I'd like to create a club page on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram Google+ and Linkedin, these get our club across to millions of people worldwide. I'd also like to contact the likes of HPS and John Tiller and various other sellers of our games and ask them to display a link to our club website on there websites as well as being active on their forums if they have them. I would be active on all the wargaming forums posting as Scott Ludwig suggested every 6 to 8 weeks just so they know we are about. I also want to look at the various miniature wargaming clubs and re-enactment societies throughout the world. I think I counted just over 60 miniature wargaming clubs in Britain alone with 12 Napoleonic re-enactment societies and the way I see it, if just one person from each of these clubs joins well we are a doing fantastic. I also want to look at the inactive lists of members and contact them, let them know what changes have happened, how the club is moving forward and seeing if these people are willing to come back to us and if not why.
Now keeping members interested in the club, now that's a hard one as it's not just down to one person alone, it's down to cabinet and all of the members working as a team. Firstly the bickering and infighting needs to stop, that first and foremost and I think harsh penalties should be given to anyone who continues with this after being warned. Secondly, a yearly tournament where all members can take part and a reward at the end, obviously more could be done with this but it is a thought and I'm sure the cabinet and members could all put ideas forward to take this to fruition. Lastly, we need to make the club fun for all involved as it is at the end of the day a club. If I do get elected to the Public Relations Officer position I will be asking the cabinet what else we can do to keep members interested and work with them to do so.
Next you ask, how would you balance the wide variety of interests, and cultural experiences within the club to ensure that the atmosphere is inclusive to a wide range of members, from causal gamers and students of history to avid roleplayers and ambitious leaders eager to make their mark?

Well as you know there has been a lot of work by members of the club who have been working on the translation of various pages into other languages. I don't know how difficult this would be but maybe a way is to have the forums etc. which can automatically translate into any language, we have something in the UK where the government departments have the ability to change the language from English to Welsh on their websites. This could be costly but it's also a good way of recruiting as well. There is the new newsletter that Scott Ludwig is starting up, I'd like to see this given a lot more investment of time from other members to help get this off the ground as I'm sure Scott has some great things to read in store for us all, if I can help Scott let me know. I'd like to see a dedicated forum for those interested in the Napoleonic history for discussion and and also to display information, even add to the reading room. The same idea of a dedicated forum for roleplayers. As for ambitious leaders eager to make there mark well I can't speak for the Allied Coalition Armies because I don't know what Andy Moss and Jim Hall have got in store for there command but as you know in the French Army we don't just promote on ability to win games, but I have said recently in an email to John Corbin and Al Kling, that at the moment any command above the rank of General de Brigade can only be awarded to an officer if they take on a command position within the Grande Armee along with the appropriate administrative duties. So why not scrap that for Brigade Commanders and Divisional Commanders are given the task only as a port of call for any problems an officer may be experiencing within their Division and they communicate with an email to their command on a monthly basis and in turn also communicate with the Corps Commandant and Corps Chef d'Etat-Major (Chief of Staff). This way administrative duties are kept to a minimum and we fill those senior command positions. Also each Corps to have a Chef d'Etat-Major (Chief of Staff)for their respective Corps. These both would be a way of those eager officers wanting to rise through the ranks to gain higher command, maybe it's something the Allied Coalition Armies could emulate.

Obviously these are ideas that the cabinet and members could discuss, maybe even take on board but it's ideas I'd like to see put into the club, it's a way of moving forward. From little acorns, great oaks grow.

Lastly you asked If elected, what would be the first action that you would take and why? Well that is easy contact the inactive members and let's get some of them back into the club and start the social networking sites for the club so we get a massive pressence on the internet.

I hope this gives you the answers you require Jeff.

Now My next questions were from Clifton Seeney.

1.One thing am not clear on how would you get people to play games that are unequal like most games are 2to 1 Allied numbers over French high moral and great leadership. You can't force people to play and I would not play a 300 + turn game twice.
Well Cliff I'm unsure how to anwser this one and all I can say that with over 500+ scenarios throughout all the games from Matrix, HPS, John Tiller, Histwar etc, and I hope more games to come depicting the battles in the Spanish Peninsular there will I'm sure be enough games for all and as in real battles and conflicts there is always a striving by the individual commanders to get the upper hand and If I remember rightly my Napoleonic History, Wellington constantly had a disadvantage in the Peninsular and was mostly outnumbered too so for all it's a challenge and I'm also sure that opponents would agree to certain restrictions to ensure a scenario is more evenly matched.
2. How would you manage playing and doing PR work?
Well at the moment I'm only playing 3 games and that is about the most I am really interested in and they are quite evenly spread out with turn rates as well. So I see that I will have plenty of time to dedicate to the Public Relations Post. Plus once the major work is done which should take about 4 to 5 months it's a matter of acting like a caretaker and just updating things regularly and having templates which can then be sent out to inactive members or update forums etc. As for the cabinet work I don't forsee any problems, if I didn't have the time to do these things believe me I wouldn't have put myself forward.
3. How would you get inactive members back you can't pull them back.
No we can't, your right there, but we can contact them, tell them about the changes the club is going through and find out why they are inactive and see what we can do for them, it's about listening and finding out what we can do to get them back participating in the club and gaming.
4. How would you deal with the new Allied Army and extra Corps in the French sounds like the INWC . I was in the IV Naples Corps that didn't last long.
In fact I don't see a problem in fact a new French Corps could be very good for the club and open doors for more members to join. The same with the Allied Army but this is something that needs to be discussed with Andy Moss and Jim Hall and how things should be approached. As the Allied Army is still being reorganised I can't really make a comment on this. What I can say though is the changes to both the Allied and French Armies will be good I'm sure.
5. How would you deal with cross over players French playing Allied , Allied playing with French as French.
Again unsure about how to deal with this question but I don't see a problem with this in fact I would say it should be encouraged as it gives a different insight and perspective to the battles and as well allied players fighting multi-player battles with a French officer on his side would be good fun.

Hope this anwsers your questions Cliff.

Can I just also point out that any ideas and suggestions put forward are what I would like to see but some may be unfeasable and can't be done for one reason or another.

Thank you gentlemen for taking the time to make this nomination week valued and allow me as a nominee to give an account of myself and the job I would like to do.

"Firstly the bickering and infighting needs to stop, that first and foremost and I think harsh penalties should be given to anyone who continues with this after being warned"

I completely agree with you and since you have posted this statement as part of your campaign speech I request the following clarification:

1. Why do you suppose there has been so much infighting of late? Have you noticed any patterns?

2. If so how would you propose to respond to his bickering and infighting if you were elected to this position and thus become a member of the cabinet? You mentioned a warning and then a harsh penalty. How might that actually work out?

3. The club seems to be polarizing around certain factions, how do we end this? No one is ever entirely right or wrong so how do we find common ground and compromise?
These are not abstract as a potential club officer you very well could land square in the middle of these issues and I would like to hear your personal views.

I appreciate you taking the time to answer these questions and whether or not you win you have contributed to making this a better club.

I am going to copy this post over to Todd's speech as well.

_________________
Field Marshal Sir Edward Blackburn, 1st Duke of Aberdeen K.G.
85th (Buck's Light Volunteers) Regiment of Foot
16th British Brigade
7th Division
III (Peninsular) Corps
2nd Battalion, Coldstream Regiment of Foot Guards

Thanks for the detailed response, Mark. I look forward to your reply to Ed's questions as well.

_________________
Marechal Jeff Bardon
Duc de Castiglione et Prince de Wagram
Commandant de la Garde Imperiale