Language in AOW

robertthebruce · Post by **robertthebruce** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 6:17 pm

Hello.

I have been player of DBM for 7 years, and have taught to play much people. The great problem that always I have found has been the difficulty of the language with DBM is written. I do not know which has been able to learn to play by its own means.

I am Spanish and here the ???Legalist??? Style that is used in the Anglo-Saxon countries is not typical in people. My question is: Will be AOW written up of the same form that DBM. If it is, we will need pages and pages clarifications to the rules.

Cheers

David.

PD: Sorry for me Poor English

hammy · Post by **hammy** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 6:20 pm

I can safely say that Art of War is NOT written in Barkereese, it is written in normal understandable english. It will also have a lot of handy diagrams. The downside of this is it will have more pages than DBM.

I also believe that the rules will be translated into many of the major european languages from the beginning.

Hope this helps

Hammy

babyshark · Post by **babyshark** » Tue Feb 13, 2007 7:24 pm

hammy wrote:I can safely say that Art of War is NOT written in Barkereese, it is written in normal understandable english.

Woohoo!

I recently looked at a September 2006 version of DBMM and found it to be a complete train-wreck, language-wise. I make no comment on whether the game will be fun to play, but it will be the devil to sort out what Phil actually means. Under PIP expenditure I saw a rule that applies to "a column mostly of pikes."

Marc

killerhobbit · Post by **killerhobbit** » Tue Mar 20, 2007 10:45 pm

hammy wrote:I can safely say that Art of War is NOT written in Barkereese, it is written in normal understandable english. It will also have a lot of handy diagrams. The downside of this is it will have more pages than DBM.

I also believe that the rules will be translated into many of the major european languages from the beginning.

Hope this helps

Hammy

If it will be translated into german I would be proud to check whether translation fits.

It sometimes happens that translation has a different meaning if it is translated by somones who isn`t wargamer.

jdm · Post by **jdm** » Wed Mar 21, 2007 6:36 am

Can you send a PM to me at jdm@slitherine.co.uk

Regards
JDM

mnm · Post by **mnm** » Wed Mar 21, 2007 10:31 pm

Unless you have other plans or think it's not worth the effort, I wouldn't mind doing the translation to Portuguese. I have translated WRG 7th and DBM in the past, unofficially.

SMK-at-work · Post by **SMK-at-work** » Wed Mar 21, 2007 11:20 pm

babyshark wrote:
hammy wrote:I can safely say that Art of War is NOT written in Barkereese, it is written in normal understandable english.
Under PIP expenditure I saw a rule that applies to "a column mostly of pikes."

Marc

Which part of that did you have problems with??

jdm · Post by **jdm** » Wed Mar 21, 2007 11:21 pm

As in the previous mail please send a PM to me JDM@slitherine.co.uk

Regards JDM

babyshark · Post by **babyshark** » Thu Mar 22, 2007 1:32 pm

stalins_organ wrote:
babyshark wrote:
hammy wrote:I can safely say that Art of War is NOT written in Barkereese, it is written in normal understandable english.
Under PIP expenditure I saw a rule that applies to "a column mostly of pikes."

Marc
Which part of that did you have problems with??

You're joking, right? Just in case you are not, the issue arises from the meaning of "mostly." Does it mean more pike than anything else (for instance: 5 Pk, 3 Ax, and 3 Bd) or 51% Pk or 66% Pk? Or sometihng else? "A column mostly of pike" is just sloppy writing, and unnecessarily so.

Marc

mnm · Post by **mnm** » Thu Mar 22, 2007 9:17 pm

babyshark wrote: Does it mean more pike than anything else (for instance: 5 Pk, 3 Ax, and 3 Bd)

Well, what else could "mostly" mean? (English is not my first language)

killerhobbit · Post by **killerhobbit** » Fri Mar 23, 2007 4:43 pm

mnm wrote:
babyshark wrote: Does it mean more pike than anything else (for instance: 5 Pk, 3 Ax, and 3 Bd)
Well, what else could "mostly" mean? (English is not my first language)

You are wright. 51 % would be "column with majority of pikes"

But it is not 100 % precise. A translation into another languages could possibly have both meanings.
I remember many battles when my opponent threatend to stop the battle
because he was convinced his translation was the correct one.
Try to argue with him when battle victory or defeat depends on one word.
You will agree to your opponent to go on.

Redpossum · Post by **Redpossum** » Thu Jul 19, 2007 7:20 pm

Yes, back in the good old days (bad old days?) of pre-computer wargames we used to call such people "rules lawyers"

foxgom · Post by **foxgom** » Sat Jul 28, 2007 3:32 pm

Hi

I am British but live in Germany and am helping with the German translation.
I can confirm that most of the phrasing is very simple and easy to translate.

My German friends translate the rules and I check their work.
Up to now it has been easy work for me. My friends understand the rules and can translate them with hardly any errors. We have only found one or two phrases that needed explanation from me.

The DBM rules are a disaster for phrasing. Even as an Englishman, I have to read some of them several times before they make any sense. Translating DBM is hard work !

neil fox

Redpossum · Post by **Redpossum** » Sat Jul 28, 2007 8:43 pm

foxgom wrote:
The DBM rules are a disaster for phrasing. Even as an Englishman, I have to read some of them several times before they make any sense.

neil fox

Imagine how we Americans feel