By Brown Warrior
Ben Hur first saw the light of day as a display game in about 1985. It was thought at the time that what was required for Claymore, South East Scotland Wargames Club open day, was a game that could be played by young members of the public, a ready point of reference and was not too dependent on one to one combat between two sides. Dave Hoyles of QT miniatures at the time was coerced into providing the master moulds for the chariots. These now are in the hands of Amazon Miniatures so you may wish to buy the odd half dozen. The rules as such have been tested on wargamers and thus even small children should have little difficulty in understanding them. The measure of success is that since then the only year we retired the game public demand, indeed outrage, meant it has been a constant focal point since then. The strong points are the utter ease of play, general ability to get on with it without lots of questions and if all else fails sheer luck may win through in the end. Also the useful hints from the “umpires” regrading whips can inflame the audience to give you that authentic“Massala rolls a I” feeling just like the movie.
Possibly the best moments for Charlton Heston as Juddah Ben Hurr, the Jewish noble who is unjustly enslaved by the acts of the evil Massala, Stephen Boyd. Various adventures ensue, the naval battle, meeting Jesus etc until at the climax of the film the famed chariot race in the Colosseum at Rome. In it’s time it the film was Gladiator and Titanic combined in breadth of story and number of Oscars won. It was partly to blame for lots of Sword and Sandal epic most of which are utter rubbish save for Jason and the Argonauts
| Trivia Fact 1 | William Wyler, the director, was the photographer for the original silent version |
| Trivia Fact 2 | The film is based on a book by a American Civil War general. I’ve seen it and it’s utter dirge |
For details on how to build the display drop a note to
scott@duncania.freeserve.co.uk