Russ put on an introductory game of DBMM on Thursday. Introductory being the operative word as he was as un au fait with the rules as we were.
We set up a simple battle - no scenery - between Macedonians and Classical Indians. All seemed well until we started getting some blows in. At this point the evening took a decidedly bookish turn as we flicked through the rules trying to find out how combat resolution worked based on the different (and more complex) types of troops.
Some outcomes were easy - as when the pikes got a 6 to the loin-cloth Indian swordsmen's 1 ("They're dead. Don't bother with the rules. They're dead!"). But every other combat saw much headscratching, debate ("They just bounce, don't they?") and general confusion.
The same was for classification - the Macedonian cavalry were worth a fortune in points, and yet appeared to have no bonuses at all against the decidely cheaper Indian chariots. Only Alexander fighting alongside them swung the battle their way - when logically they should have churned the Indian chariots into matchwood.
So I've played DBA and had a bash at DBMM and for me DBA is a better game. I've yet to try DBM and maybe I should but basically, DBA gives you a good, quick, fun battle. Not the most complex rules but none the worse for that. I think the guys who wrote the rules then thought "We need to make this more complex - it just looks too simple" - and as a result took ages adding layer upon layer of complexity and (in my opinion) added a more accurate level of detail to the huge detriment of gameplay.
Now I'm not dure if this is down to the rules themselves or just the terrible layout of the rules. Knock FOG if you like, but the addition of pretty pictures and diagrams makes it a much more accessible set of rules. DBMM on the other hand has been created almost as if the secrets of gameplay must be hidden in text alone - allowing only the most dedicated and (to be frank) people with more time on their hands than me to unlock the rules. I passed the combat resolution table 6 times in flicking through the book - surely rules can be presented in a better manner than that!
I'm sure there are loads of people out there who love DBMM. I clearly need to spend some time with someone who knows how to play them to make it worthwhile. But I've got to question if its worht the effort!