Are we playing PCs on the battlefield? then we’re not gaming out a war but rather individual battles at best. Playing the movers and shakers,(i.e. RISK but with RP elements)? Then we’re playing at the tactics and the motivations of the generals. This is not necessarily the first thing that comes to mind when a war game is suggested.

Here’s what I do: You have a group of people who all participate in some aspect of keeping the unit running. You probably have a set of NPC infantry, a set of NPC engineers, A set of NPC medics techs, and a set of NPC commanders. Most of the time this just takes too long to be fun, but I tend to make a simplified system for skills(Skills Based on total performance of the job, ranging 1-10, add 2d6), difficulties(ranging from 3-22), and Hit Points(Damage is 3d6-deflection) and run it on a miniatures grid.

Here’s the big difference, though. The PC’s do not participate directly in the battle. Instead, they assume the role of commanders, generals, et cetera and control the troops strategically. This way, after you resolve the system issues, the rest is roleplay between players and advisors, ambassadors, and enemies.