Top Ten Strangest Wars

Here’s an interesting article on the Top Ten Bizarre Wars, such as this one:

In 1883, the citizens of Lijar, a small village in southern Spain were infuriated when they heard reports that, while visiting Paris, the Spanish king, Alfonso XII had been insulted and even attacked in the streets by Parisian mobs. In response, the mayor of Lijar, Don Miguel Garcia Saez, and all 300 citizens of Lijar declared war on France on October 14, 1883. Not a single shot was fired, and not a single casualty sustained on either side during the confrontation, but despite the anticlimactic war, Mayor Saez was declared “The Terror Of The Sierras,” for his exploit.
A full ninety-three years later, in 1976, King Juan-Carlos of Spain made a trip to Paris, during which he was treated with great respect by the citizens of the French capital. In 1981, the town council of Lijar ruled that “in view of the excellent attitude of the French,” they would end hostilities and agree to a ceasefire with France.

War duration: (1883-1981) Ninety-eight years.
Casualties: None.

Others on the list, such as the Great Paraguayan War are not so happy. Its all good fodder for gaming.

North and South Kings of War ACW Supplement

North and South is a fan supplement for Kings of War, Mantic Games’ free fantasy rules. The rules cover both regular American Civil War games and the ACW with Zombies.

Star Mogul Salvage Crew Science Fiction Rules

Mega Minis has released the previously commercial Star Mogul Salvage Crew as a set of free wargames rules.

From their announcement:

You are the owner or star mogul of a newly formed salvage crew. Fifty years ago a pathogen annihilated most of the colonies of the outer rim. Those whom are brave enough to stake their salvage claims to this lost or abandoned property could make a fortune. All you have to do is grab the salvage and stave off other salvage crews with force if necessary.

This game includes 56 pages of basic rules and 29 pages of other material including the following.

25mm and 15mm ranges in inches for firing and movement.
2D paper miniatures of a basic starter Salvage Crew (Team Yellow and Team Blue).
2D drop zone and debris salvage templates.
3D wooden crates for use as scenery
Six sided die results
Starter Salvage Crew Rosters and examples of how they are created.
Background material on the universe, weapons, and equipment.
We will begin introducing more free rules, examples of game mechanics, encounters, and general mayhem starting in May of 2011.

Rorke’s Drift Rules

Steve Winter and Jeff Perren offer a set of free wargames rules for simple, man-to-man skirmish in the Zulu War.

Lord Merlin’s Rules of Engagement

Lord Merlin’s Rules of Engagement is a set of free wargames rules for medieval style wargames. What makes these unique is that they are designed for large scale (70mm) figures. Despite the “Lord Merlin” monicker, there doesn’t seem to be a fantasy component here.