I've wanted to do something just a bit different than most. I wanted a hex-based game, where a hex was 4" or 6" across. An entire formation of figures move between hexes. I was in on playtesting Epic Armageddon, and realized I didn't like detailed positioning for itty-bitty figures. I wanted to pick 'em up and put 'em down. Instead, I was thinking about:
* cover (can that thing over there see this strip of figures between those buildings?)
* how close they were (barrage templates were 6cm)
* order (there are issues about which figures are closest or farthest from enemy)
* move distance specified to the centimeter
* line of sight to targets (am I just outside the cover enough that I can shoot out of it?)
* distance to targets and from things that want to shoot me
The approach I wanted to take would let the hexes regulate basic movement speed (the formation would move together at slowest unit's speed, unless I allowed it to break up over 2 hexes). The hex would regulate firing distances. But those things would be at a very high level. I could concentrate on making my figures look good in the hex.
I started off trying to vary the Epic 40,000 rules, which had more abstraction than Epic Armageddon. I got stuck on some things, though. If I allowed area affect attacks to potentially hit every unit in a hex, it was hard to balance them so that a missile-launcher tank accompanying a unit could have some affect, without an artillery formation with multiple area affect weapons completely decimating an entire target formation at one shot.
The whole hex would have one kind of terrain in it. LOS and move distances and firing distances would be to the entire hex. Giant units would be the only thing that had firing arcs (I was going to face them towards a hex corner).
Lots of people have 4" hex terrain. I have Geo-Hex, and was going to mark hex centers with small gravel pieces. Lots of them could be replaced by a building, or a clump of trees, etc, at the center of the hex.
I don't know if I'll ever finish. I've gotten Future War Commander, and am going to give that a try.
It may be that nobody else thinks the amount of abstraction I like is any good, so I'm not expecting folks to jump on this. However, when I hear someone say they want to do big games, this is what I think of.
andy