Thanks for posting these. I didn't read the first yet, but I liked the second article. Even though it was about wargames primarily, the concepts are the same. His approach seems to mirror my own. While some people are able to start small and add mechanics piecemeal, I just can't -- I start with a game that includes everything I could think of that goes with the theme, then I start hacking. I think this is a good approach because it ensures you aren't trying to finagle in something that you feel is an important simulation element into an already-pretty-well-finished design. On the other hand, it can lead to the opposite problem of going to heroic lengths to preserve a not-that-good mechanic, even if doing so means adding other not-that-good mechanics.