If there's one thing that bugs an opponent more than anything, it's interruptions mid game to take photos, take notes and generally stall proceedings.
As someone who has played a lot of games and written a lot of battle reports, I can tell you that taking notes and photos not only makes the game less fun for you, but it makes it stressful too - especially when it's a difficult game and you should really be concentrating on winning, rather than documenting!
So, with these things in mind, here is my simple guide on how to write a great battle report for your readers and not ruin your game in the process.
Step 1: Blog Post Title
Quite simply say what the game is.
For example: Space Wolves VS Blood Angels 1750pts Battle Report
Easy peasy!
Abbreviations are okay for hardcore players, but not so much for casual players or people searching for battle reports in Google.
For example:
TWC VS MSU BA 1.75K Batrep
This isn't such a good title for your blog post.
PS, this title translates as:
Thunder Wolf Cavalry VS Many Small Units Blood Angels 1,750pts Battle Report.
Step 2: Taking photos
I try to take as few photos as possible.
Generally, I take a photo at the end of Turn 1 (PHOTO 1), a photo at the end of Turn 2 (PHOTO 2), a photo during a particularly pivotal moment or a huge close combat (PHOTO 3) and a photo at the end of the game (PHOTO 4).
These not only illustrate your blog post, but also help you to remember what happened in your game.
Step 3: IntroductionThis is the start of your blog post. Use PHOTO 3 to draw readers in and show how awesome your game was.
Remember that this photo will also become the thumbnail image for your blog post in the blogrolls of other people's blogs.
Their readers will be more likely to click on it and read your blog post if the photo looks awesome.
As for writing, you will need to explain all the basics:
Where you're playing.
Who you're playing.
What your army list is.
What your opponent's army list is.
The mission.
How you intend to beat your opponent (or cling on for dear life!).
Step 4: The GameStart with PHOTO 1 or PHOTO 2 and explain how your game went.
It doesn't have to be precise turn by turn affair, unless you really want it to be.
Although I struggle to remember this much detail.
I find that a general overview about what happened works best.
After all, you're telling a story, not a detailed record of every dice roll.
Step 5: ConclusionStart with PHOTO 4 and comment on how your game went.
What went well, what ended in disaster?
If you were to play the game again, what would you have done differently?
What changes (if any) would you make to your army list?
Conclude with a statement summarising the above and what you learned.
Here's a battle report I wrote earlier
Just to demonstrate what I've been talking about, here's a link to a battle report written in this format from a while back.
http://space-wolves-grey.blogspot.com/2011/07/adams-botch-spaces-wolves-vs-blood.html
I hope this little guide helps you in writing your own battle reports quickly and concisely for you and your readers - but most importantly, without ruining a good game for you or your opponent!