John Hill passed away today of heart failure in New Mexico. Most known for his game designs such as Squad Leader and Kasserine Pass, John was also a die hard civil war historian, reenactor and game designer. He designed the wonderful civil war game Johnny Reb.
I first met John at a game convention where I played in a Johnny Reb game he hosted. We became good friends. We worked on many joint projects. I have many fond memories of those. In large measure I can attribute my interest in the Civil War to his influence. He was an amazing military historian. He had a knack of getting to the crux of an issue. He was brutally honest, but fair.
He was also an excellent model builder. He taught me many scenery and modeling techniques and tips. This photo of an N Scale diorama is one of the joint projects we worked on. Alas I don't have many other good photos.
In his life he worked as a professional defense analyst, ran a hobby shop, owned a game publishing company, and had a beautiful narrow gauge model railroad But he really loved war gaming, especially the civil war.
He is survived by his wife Lu, and daughter Stephanie. I will really miss him.
This is sad to hear. Squad Leader was one of my favorites. It's where I learned to put your best weapons with your best soldiers.
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