Angels One Six Designer Interview with Phil Yates
Heed the siren. Grab the stick. Miniature wargame godfather Phil Yates gears up for reimagined dogfighting with Angels One Six.
As a guy who loves looking at models and fantasizing about vivid battles more than I like painting or learning combat rules, I was fascinated by the claim that Angels One Six — a forthcoming WW2 dogfight miniature game from Phil Yates and Ian Bourgos — could get just about anybody up in the air.
Miniature wargame mastermind Phil Yates has reimagined the WW2 dogfight and wants to drop you in to the cockpit for the Battle of Britain
As I learned in my talk with Yates — father of Flames of War and many others — beautiful pre-painted planes right out of the box were just one of many obstacles he removed between a player and a bracing dogfight that was both realistic and accessible.
He walks us through the Angels One Six system, his multi-decade quest to improve everything from how a turn was taken to the stands on which your Spitfires and Messerschmitts sit.
If early event demos in his home of New Zealand are any indication, it appears as if Yates and Bourgos have succeeded in their quest to balance technicality and story.
This fall a Kickstarter will let you and your friends cut your teeth on some famous craft from the Battle of Britain, with an eye to expanding both to late-war planes and the Pacific. No painting required. Stay abreast of the project here.
Further recommended listening for hardcore miniatures people: Check out Yates’ talks with the excellent Lead Pursuit podcast hosts if you want a deeper dive (or a steeper climb) into the making of Angels One Six.