This link is the official history. It does need some updating, but it has the early history.
https://www.theblitz.club/chain_of_comma...eblitz.php
Basically, we moved over from LeadEaters. We put together a website, recruited some of our friends and friends of friends (word of mouth) to come game with us.
When did this site open up?
Opened 1 March 1999.
Are Jim and Mark the original owners/inventors of the club?
This site was creation of three members (Phil Baker, aka Panzermeyer; Brian Wynott; and Jim Mays, aka Jim von Krieg).
We referred to ourselves as the triumvirate. We made our decisions by committee. Not always the best method to accomplish things, but it worked for a while. Over time, the triumvirate leadership model broke down over many issues and personal disagreements. I sort of became the leader of the entire club by default as Phil and Brian departed the scene. I never intended to be "the guy". I was always happy just to work the CS portion.
Phil was the website guru and the original creative force behind the Blitz. He also served as a Ladder Commander for several of the Ladders.
Brian was the administrative and financial honcho. He also served as the Op Art Ladder Commander.
I was the CS Ladder Commander and a tweaker of some of the website html.
Mark Higgins, aka Thor, came along later when the Triumvirate was breaking down. He was a player I was gaming with at the time and a big reason the club survived the early leadership breakdown.
Phil built the original Blitz site, but his creative bent led him to look for greener pastures and new territory to explore. He was always tinkering with new ideas and sites. This led to work on creating another club, aka the Grognards.
At the time, I was working for unity of effort. Get all the war-gamers pushing in the same direction so that we could have a reliable place to hang out and maybe have some pull with the game companies. As I couldn't control much outside my foxhole, I focused on building the CS portion of the club. I wanted to establish a club and community that would have longevity with many people contributing to it. I wanted to always have a place not commercially driven to hang out in.
Most clubs of the period would operate for a while, then close down. Part of this was the result of everyone wanting to do their own thing. Phil went off to build Grognards, but eventually couldn't do it on his own. This brought him back to the Blitz. He merged the Grogs into the Blitz and essentially dropped out of sight. We had other guys go off to start up clubs, but most eventually returned or disappeared.
Brian and I worked well for a while, but as time progressed he became more and more a difficult person for me to work with. From my perspective, he was always worried about Phil or I scheming against him. I don't know where this came from because I always thought of myself as a pretty upfront guy. I say what I mean and mean what I say. With Phil absent and Brian and I having issues, it was not a good situation. Brian's wife was having health issues and he was having problems with me and others.
I decided that I was going to quit as I was frustrated with the whole situation. When I went to Brian to resign, he said he couldn't hold the club together and that it was my baby. He just wanted to recoup the investment he made. Of course, I was in no position to buy him out.
This is where Mark made his impact for the community. I was venting about the whole situation to him. I told him it looked like the club was about to fold. He asked why and I explained what was going on. At this point, he stepped in, bought out Brian, then handed the unfettered reigns to me. Mark's selfless act ensured the continuity of the Blitz.
Did the Campaign Series start this site?
This site was never intended to be a one game site. We started with Steel Panthers, Campaign Series, Operational Art of War, Battleground Series, and Close Combat. We expected to evolve as time passed. Drop some ladders and add others as game came and went.
I was the original CS ladder commander and was accused many times of attempting to subvert the club into a one game site for the benefit of my ego. I always scratched my head on that one. I just focused on my foxhole and worked to improve it. It's what Soldiers do.
I always felt that accusation was inaccurate, as the CS Community has always been the granddaddy and the most vibrant of the communities. Until the Combat Mission Community came on board and grew, the CS was the largest and most active by far. It is still active and vibrant, but the other ladders are pretty active as well and that suits me just fine.
I'd also like others to chime in on this so I can get other perspectives, especially the old timers. I'd like to get Mark (Thor), Paul (Steel God), Tony (Thunder), Ed (Currahee) and Randy (Red Devil) to contribute their thoughts and observations from their foxholes of their time in the club. If you've served in a leadership position, please add some commentary to the club history.
Regards,
Jim