Andrew Olson

Why do generals roll dice? How do you design a wargame?

MSFS 6588 Wargame Design and Practice leads students through the history, application, and craft of designing wargames and equips them to create their own prototypes.

gufaculty360.georgetown.edu/s/faculty-cl...

Pleasure to work the Dan Mahanty's team at the CPCOE on the effort

#CHMR #Precision #lethality #INDOPACIFIC #Futureofwar #LSCO

I loved the tag line on one of the players business cards: “Break the RIGHT stuff.” It’s a great way to understand that reducing civilian harm is both a moral and strategic imperative.
#CHMR

In Feb, the CNA gaming team led a tabletop exercise with Indo-Pacific Command operators and DOD experts in Makalapa, HI. The exercise explored how to increase precision and enhance decision making through improved understanding of the operational & civilian environment.

This short-duration, strategic game was designed to be broadly accessible and rapidly adaptable and it captures just a small slice of the depth, rigor, and analytical grounding behind our wargaming efforts.

Wargames are a dynamic way to understand complex challenges, build empathy, and explore possible outcomes.
We’re excited to collaborate with Harris’s team to showcase how wargames can tackle real-world issues, and we’re grateful for the opportunity to share this innovative approach.

YouTube video by Johnny Harris Is the US planning for War by... playing games?

Independent journalist Johnny Harris wanted to understand how wargames work and their value as a military operations tool. He joined our wargamers to play a game simulating an invasion of Taiwan by mainland China.
@andrewsonofole.bsky.social

www.youtube.com/watch?v=VqFM...

"Break the RIGHT things"
Excellent tag line from players at a recent wargame. Civilian Harm Mitigation (#CHMR) allows Commanders to make informed decisions & enables precision effects as well as fulfilling our moral obligations

If interested in more, see: madsciblog.tradoc.army.mil/506-achievin...

Perhaps it is worth saying that the difference between $5M and $500B is $500B.

Israeli troops fire on displaced Palestinians hoping to return to homes, killing 2 Meanwhile, close to the Israeli border in southern Lebanon, Israeli troops opened fire on protesters who were urging them to pull back from the area.

Meanwhile, close to the Israeli border in southern Lebanon, Israeli troops opened fire on protesters, killing 22 and injuring 120, according to Lebanese officials.

Second worst thing about bureaucracy is the number of vowels and circle looking letters. Dyslexic bane.

Andrew Olson on LinkedIn: 501. Civilian Harm Mitigation and Response (CHMR) Considerations in… Proud of the work CNA is doing helping the DoD live up to its commitment to Civilian Harm Mitigation and Response (CHMR). Wargaming is a useful tool to help…

Given current discussion of dismantling some of the recent CHMR articheture the DoD has been building, reposting an article I wrote for Army Trad Doc on importance of Civilian Harm Response and Mitigation for winning future conflicts:

madsciblog.tradoc.army.mil/501-civilian...

A Year of Empty Threats and a “Smokescreen” Policy: How the State Department Let Israel Get Away With Horrors in Gaza Israel has repeatedly crossed the Biden administration’s human rights red lines. But the U.S. continued to send weapons. Exclusive records and interviews reveal what happened inside the State Departme...

www.propublica.org/article/bide...

Meta just flipped the switch that prevents misinformation from spreading in the United States The company built effective systems to reduce the reach of fake news. Last week, it shut them down

www.platformer.news/meta-ends-mi...

Oh no! I had hope it could bring Daybreaks education to more audiences.

A wargame's form should match its purpose, and one of the joys of the field is the diversity of approaches.

I appreciated showing my students this fall flexibility of Matrix-style games developed by parts of IC. They're a fun way to promote critical conversations and explore interesting narratives

EMPOWERING THE NEXT GENERATION: MENTORING EMERGING WARGAMERS In 2015, Deputy Secretary of Defense Robert Work sought to revitalize wargaming within the Pentagon. While demand for wargames and related expertise surged, a critical gap emerged: a lack of skilled w...

From earlier this year: Betsy Joselyn of IDA and I reflect on training new professional wargamers and how we might adapt a "see one, do one, teach one approach" for the field.

warroom.armywarcollege.edu/articles/men...

EMPOWERING THE NEXT GENERATION: MENTORING EMERGING WARGAMERS In 2015, Deputy Secretary of Defense Robert Work sought to revitalize wargaming within the Pentagon. While demand for wargames and related expertise surged, a critical gap emerged: a lack of skilled w...

Grateful for the chance to write last year and colleagues to collaborated with.

Betsy Joselyn of IDA and I reflect on organizations training wargamers. and how to adapt a "see one, do one, teach one" approach for the field

warroom.armywarcollege.edu/articles/men...

As a first time Prof, its always stressful worrying if I've equipped my students sufficiently. So its always great to see their work come to life as evidence of their learning.

Pictures from playtest of their game Trade Winds & Treachery, a historical game about trade in the golden age of piracy

Enjoyed creating that, memes are a great way to burn off steam

Teaching Wargaming at Georgetown's been a blast and I've been so grateful to all the folks in the community who have donated their time, like CNA's Jeremy Sepinsky.

The student got to explore future force design and investment with a modified version of "Athena's Warroom."

The recent paper by Rosen & Kerr for MCU Press is a good addition to the growing literature about the preferences and effects of educational #wargaming in professional military education. We need more research and scholarship on the topic. 😁

🔗 www.usmcu.edu/Outreach/Mar...

Wargaming Opening: We’ve got positions posted at my level as well as senior folks if anyone you know might be interested

us242.dayforcehcm.com/CandidatePor...

Interview with Volko Ruhnke Designer of Coast Watchers: Allied Field Intelligence in the South Pacific, 1942-1943 from GMT Games I think that every single wargamer knows the name Volko Ruhnke. He has designed several great series including the COIN Series, that has now stretched to a full 15 volumes (not all designed by…

If any of that leaves you curious about the Coast Watchers game, here is a lot more in a recent interview with @playersaidblog.bsky.social ... theplayersaid.com/2024/11/04/i...

GU Wargaming Society

The Georgetown University Wargaming Society is officially on BlueSky! Follow us for #wargaming content! Please list any recommended board gaming, wargaming, and professional defense accounts.
www.guwargaming.org

Appreciated!

Love to be added. Navy wargaming and I teach wargame design at Georgetown University