Larry Bond
Encyclopedia
Larry Bond is an American writer and wargame designer. He is the designer of the Harpoon
and Command at Sea gaming systems and several supplements for the games. His numerous novels include Dangerous Ground, Day of Wrath, The Enemy Within, Cauldron, Vortex
and Red Phoenix. He also co-authored Red Storm Rising
with Tom Clancy
.
, St. Paul, Minnesota in 1973 with a degree in Quantitative Methods, Larry worked first as a computer programmer for two years before being selected for Officer Candidate School in Newport, Rhode Island. He was sworn into the Navy in 1975 and graduated from OCS the following year.
Bond was in the Navy for six years, serving four on a destroyer and two on shore duty in the Washington DC area. He served in the reserves for two years with the Naval Reserve Intelligence Program. After leaving the Navy he worked as a naval analyst for defense consulting firms in the Washington, DC area.
on Red Storm Rising
, a runaway New York Times bestseller that was one of the best-selling books of the 1980s. It depicted a hypothetical conflict between NATO and the Warsaw Pact
, drawing heavily on current analysis of what such a conflict would be like. It has been used as a text at the Naval War College
and similar institutions.
Since then, Bond's books have depicted military and political crises, emphasizing accuracy and fast-paced action. Red Phoenix, Vortex
, and Cauldron
were all New York Times bestsellers. Red Phoenix was set in South Korea and depicted an invasion of the south instigated by the North Korean government. Vortex told the story of a reactionary Afrikaner government trying to roll back the clock in South Africa. Cauldron showed a financial crisis in Europe that grew out of control, leading to a military confrontation between France
, Germany
and countries of the Eastern Europe (Poland
, Czech Republic
, Hungary
) supported by the United States
.
, several ROTC installations, and on several surface ships as a training aid.
Now in its fourth edition, Harpoon won the H.G. Wells Award
, a trade association honor, in both 1981 and 1987 as the best miniatures game of the year. It is the only game to win the award twice. The computer version of the game first appeared in 1989, and won the 1990 Wargame of the Year award from Computer Gaming World, an industry journal.
Harpoon (computer game)
Harpoon is a series of realistic air and naval computer wargames based upon Larry Bond's miniatures game of the same name. Players can choose between either the Blue or Red side in simulated naval combat situation, which includes local conflicts as well as simulated Cold War confrontations between...
and Command at Sea gaming systems and several supplements for the games. His numerous novels include Dangerous Ground, Day of Wrath, The Enemy Within, Cauldron, Vortex
Vortex (novel)
Vortex is a 1991 war novel by Larry Bond and Patrick Larkin.-Plot summary:In a tense, hypothetical 1990s apartheid South Africa, a reformist president and his cabinet are killed after their train is destroyed by a special ANC guerrilla team...
and Red Phoenix. He also co-authored Red Storm Rising
Red Storm Rising
Red Storm Rising is a 1986 techno-thriller novel by Tom Clancy and Larry Bond about a Third World War in Europe between NATO and Warsaw Pact forces, set around the mid-1980s...
with Tom Clancy
Tom Clancy
Thomas Leo "Tom" Clancy, Jr. is an American author, best known for his technically detailed espionage, military science, and techno thriller storylines set during and in the aftermath of the Cold War, along with video games on which he did not work, but which bear his name for licensing and...
.
Biography
Graduating from St. Thomas CollegeUniversity of St. Thomas (Minnesota)
The University of St. Thomas is a private, Catholic, liberal arts, and archdiocesan university located in St. Paul and Minneapolis, Minnesota, United States...
, St. Paul, Minnesota in 1973 with a degree in Quantitative Methods, Larry worked first as a computer programmer for two years before being selected for Officer Candidate School in Newport, Rhode Island. He was sworn into the Navy in 1975 and graduated from OCS the following year.
Bond was in the Navy for six years, serving four on a destroyer and two on shore duty in the Washington DC area. He served in the reserves for two years with the Naval Reserve Intelligence Program. After leaving the Navy he worked as a naval analyst for defense consulting firms in the Washington, DC area.
Early writing career
Bond's writing career started by collaborating with Tom ClancyTom Clancy
Thomas Leo "Tom" Clancy, Jr. is an American author, best known for his technically detailed espionage, military science, and techno thriller storylines set during and in the aftermath of the Cold War, along with video games on which he did not work, but which bear his name for licensing and...
on Red Storm Rising
Red Storm Rising
Red Storm Rising is a 1986 techno-thriller novel by Tom Clancy and Larry Bond about a Third World War in Europe between NATO and Warsaw Pact forces, set around the mid-1980s...
, a runaway New York Times bestseller that was one of the best-selling books of the 1980s. It depicted a hypothetical conflict between NATO and the Warsaw Pact
Warsaw Pact
The Warsaw Treaty Organization of Friendship, Cooperation, and Mutual Assistance , or more commonly referred to as the Warsaw Pact, was a mutual defense treaty subscribed to by eight communist states in Eastern Europe...
, drawing heavily on current analysis of what such a conflict would be like. It has been used as a text at the Naval War College
Naval War College
The Naval War College is an education and research institution of the United States Navy that specializes in developing ideas for naval warfare and passing them along to officers of the Navy. The college is located on the grounds of Naval Station Newport in Newport, Rhode Island...
and similar institutions.
Since then, Bond's books have depicted military and political crises, emphasizing accuracy and fast-paced action. Red Phoenix, Vortex
Vortex (novel)
Vortex is a 1991 war novel by Larry Bond and Patrick Larkin.-Plot summary:In a tense, hypothetical 1990s apartheid South Africa, a reformist president and his cabinet are killed after their train is destroyed by a special ANC guerrilla team...
, and Cauldron
Cauldron (novel)
Cauldron is a novel by Larry Bond that centers on a European financial crisis that leads to a military confrontation between the United States and France. The instrument of French imperialism in this novel is a transnational organization known as the European Confederation . EurCon is dominated by...
were all New York Times bestsellers. Red Phoenix was set in South Korea and depicted an invasion of the south instigated by the North Korean government. Vortex told the story of a reactionary Afrikaner government trying to roll back the clock in South Africa. Cauldron showed a financial crisis in Europe that grew out of control, leading to a military confrontation between France
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
, Germany
Germany
Germany , officially the Federal Republic of Germany , is a federal parliamentary republic in Europe. The country consists of 16 states while the capital and largest city is Berlin. Germany covers an area of 357,021 km2 and has a largely temperate seasonal climate...
and countries of the Eastern Europe (Poland
Poland
Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north...
, Czech Republic
Czech Republic
The Czech Republic is a landlocked country in Central Europe. The country is bordered by Poland to the northeast, Slovakia to the east, Austria to the south, and Germany to the west and northwest....
, Hungary
Hungary
Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The...
) supported by the United States
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
.
Harpoon gaming system
Bond's Harpoon gaming system was first published in 1980. Designed as a general-purpose air, surface, and submarine naval simulation, it combines playability with a wealth of information on modern naval weapons systems. Designed for the entry-level player, it has found acceptance in both the commercial market and the professional naval community. It is used at the Naval AcademyNaval Academy
-Institutions:* The United States Naval Academy* The Indian Naval Academy of India* The Nikola Vaptsarov Naval Academy of Bulgaria* The Imperial Japanese Naval Academy* The École Navale of France* The Britannia Royal Naval College of the United Kingdom...
, several ROTC installations, and on several surface ships as a training aid.
Now in its fourth edition, Harpoon won the H.G. Wells Award
Origins Award
The Origins Awards are American awards for outstanding work in the game industry. They are presented by the Academy of Adventure Gaming Arts and Design at the Origins Game Fair on an annual basis for the previous year, so the 1979 awards were given at the 1980 Origins.The Origins Award is commonly...
, a trade association honor, in both 1981 and 1987 as the best miniatures game of the year. It is the only game to win the award twice. The computer version of the game first appeared in 1989, and won the 1990 Wargame of the Year award from Computer Gaming World, an industry journal.