PunchedCON 2025

In May, we bravely crossed the Channel to attend PunchedCON in Coventry: several glorious days spent pushing pawns, sipping tea (beer), and asserting without batting an eyelid that ‘the demo lasts barely 30 minutes’ (spoiler: yes for Austerlitz and no for Brandywine).

On the agenda:
Brandywine, 1777 – A Time For Heroes, heroically presented and adjusted on the battlefield (everything is historical, even the unexpected).
Austerlitz – Coup de Tonnerre!, fine-tuned with my friend Andy Loakes, game developer and proud local — living proof that Napoleon never really left England (at least in the special rules).

What can we remember?

• British players are sharp, curious, and extremely polite.
• You can talk about cavalry tactics and biscuits in the same sentence.
• Coventry knows how to welcome wargamers (even without rain, which is saying something).

Will we go back?
Of course. As sure as tea is strong and the order of milk or tea divides households.
Thank you PunchedCON — see you next year, dear friends!