Armchair General is a bi-monthly publication and web community that offers games and in-depth articles about military history. Founded in January 2004, Armchair General is sold in 25 countries and is available on the shelves of most major bookstores.
Military history isn't just for your grandfather anymore. A new magazine is putting a fresh, exciting spin on historical warfare.
Sometimes military history can be as dull as a box of hair, leaving military enthusiasts eager for more interesting ways to satisfy their curiosity. Armchair General, in both published and online format, lets readers not only learn about military history, but actually feel the rumble of a mine exploding in the sand or the stress of Custer's impending doom. Military.com was fortunate enough to pick the brain of Armchair General's Editorial Director, Colonel John Antal, U.S. Army (Ret.), to find out what they have in store for their second year of publication.
What inspired the creation of the magazine?
The Armchair General isn't your grandfather's dry military history journal. Armchair General Magazine is the brainchild of Mr. Eric Weider. Eric is an avid military historian and wanted to put readers in the middle of military battles -- some old, some not so old. We started the magazine in January 2004. Armchair General is a bi-monthly magazine, with 100,000 copies an issue, and is sold in 25 countries. We are on the shelves of most major bookstores, airport magazine outlets and even Wal Mart. Our aim is to bring history to life by making it more interactive. We are telling the real story in a new and exciting ways by putting the reader in the boots of the battlefield leaders.
Is the magazine's readership mostly military enthusiasts, and how much of them are veterans or active military?
Armchair General readers run the spectrum from military buffs to military professionals, from reenactors to hard-core historians, from war gamers to more casual readers. We have a strong readership among people who want to learn more about military history and not just read it, but EXPERIENCE it. In many of our department articles ("You Command," "What Next General," and" Interactive Combat Story") the reader visualizes the battle from the leader's perspective and can select options that might have changed history. In our interactive combat story, Fire and Steel, you play the role of a tank commander on D-Day, then fight your way through the Normandy bocage and eventually go all the way to the end of WWII in Europe. In other articles, we take you back in time to Ancient Rome or the American Civil War. How can you experience the battle of Gettysburg in 1863 and make a decision that would have changed history? Check out our first issue, in which you will see the battlefield from the eyes of Robert E. Lee, and then decide!
How much connection and outreach do you have with our armed forces, both as contributors and readers?
Plenty! I had the honor to serve 30 years in the U.S. Army so I have lived the life and have contact with many military personnel, active and retired. Most of our authors are in the military or have served in the military. We have U.S. military authors who send us articles from Afghanistan and Iraq. Many of our authors are also very well published and have Ph.D.s in history and military history. Others are just good writers who come are from all over the world.
I am always on the hunt for good writers. If you want to write for the Armchair General, please check out our author's guide on our web page at: www.armchairgeneral.com.
We also try to do our part to help our men and women in uniform and contribute a portion of our profits to the Intrepid Museum's Fallen Heroes Fund.
How broad is your game coverage? Are you focused primarily on military and strategy games?
Great question! We have a very dynamic coverage of military games and strategy games, including the latest X-Box, PlayStation, and PC war games. We focus our game reviews and "how to win" tips on military and strategy games. The feedback from our readers is that our game coverage appeals not only to the avid gamer but also to the history buff who has never really played many war or strategy games.
Your magazine concentrates on gaming features and articles on historic military events -- what do you think the appeal is with these two topics?
We believe that our articles are much more than the usual, passive read. It's all about our interactive presentation -- bringing history alive by allowing the reader to interact with the storyline. If the story is worth telling, it's worth investigating to determine not only what happened, but what could have happened. In our interactive articles, you have to decide. You "win" or "lose" based on your read of the situation. Armchair General is the intelligent reader's option for military history, strategy and tactics.
What's ahead for the magazine? Do you have any new features in the works?
Stay tuned! Our 6th Issue is on shelves now. We have had a very successful first year. So far we have covered topics that range from General George Patton, to Napoleon, Lt. Col. "Hal" Moore at Ia Drang during the Vietnam War, to George Custer's last stand. We've also presented some intriguing predictions of future warfare. We've had articles give you a glimpse of what it was like to be a medic on Omaha Beach and other articles provide the latest discussion by senior military leaders on the war in Iraq. Our "Walk Where They Fought" feature offers a battlefield tour guide with exceptional maps that assists the reader to see the best places to analyze both the terrain of a battle and where the point of decision occurred. Future issues will take you to places where no other military history magazine has ever gone before. If you can't find an issue of the Armchair General on a magazine shelf near you, you can order directly from the web site at: www.armchairgeneral.com.
Colonel John Antal, U.S. Army (Ret.) is the Editorial Director of the Armchair General magazine and a writer, historian and military advisor for Gearbox Software. He served 30 years in the U.S. Army and has commanded combat units from platoon to regiment. He is a graduate of West Point, an armor officer and an Airborne-Ranger. He has also published over 50 magazine articles and six books, including: "Armor Attacks"; "Infantry Combat"; "Combat Team"; and "Proud Legions."
