Wargaming Wildfires
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Wildfires probably aren’t at the top of your mind on the eve of Christmas Eve, but nevertheless there are some awfully interesting resources available online for training and coordination of wildfire response:
The National Wildfire Coordinating Group brings together multiple US agencies to work on wildfire issues, including the Forest Service, the National Park Service, the Bureau of Land Management, the Department of Defense, and others. Available on the NWCG website is a link to the Tactical Decision Games (TDGs), with links for resources.
- “The Library” has hot links to a dozen archived short scenarios in PDF, related to wildfires (an example: “Direct vs. Indirect Attack/Johnson Fire: Players should decide on direct or indirect attack strategy”).
- “The Library” links to a guide for scenario design, a 2-page crib sheet called “TDG Development Guide with tips about audience, objectives, resources, facilitator briefings, “Murphy’s Law” suggestions, facilitator notes, and after action reports.
- NWCG offers a 40-page PDF manual, “Design and Delivery of Tactical Decision Games, PMS 468-1” (2018).
- Also posted: “High Tech vs. Low Tech Training” … a 2011 paper by Larry Sutton about simulation training theory and a comparison of high and low tech models. The 10-page PDF discusses general issues in simulation design, in a fire-fighting context.
Never say that LGM doesn’t offer some wonderful ideas for around-the-dinner-table fun on Christmas!