My eBay Order Was Stolen... By My 3-Year Old

The eBay bug bit me last week, otherwise known as Legions of Steel minis showed up at a reasonable starting bid. Whoever sniped me at last second still got a good deal on the minis from the blue starter set, but my daughter, Maja, is much happier with my other winnings.

The seller (xens2004) had a wide range of items with most of the minis blisters starting at $0.99. I bid on a bunch of them, mostly to justify the shipping costs.

In the end I missed out on the LOS, as well as some cool Clan Wars Nagas, but I think my haul for thirteen bucks is decent.

1. 2 Neo Soviet Cyclops for VOR
2. Dark Elf Dark Rider Standard Bearer
3. High Elf Dragon Princes Champion
4. Bretonian Sorceress
5. 2 Orc Boarboyz, 1 command, and 1 regular.

Pretty eclectic, but I'm not looking to build an army, just some appropriate figures for my daughter to play games with.

Maja has already designated the figures for her own storytelling ways: The Bretonnian Sorceress is the "Good Witch." The high elf champion is, of course, "The Prince." The Dark Rider is his sidekick. The Cyclops and Orc are, of course, bad guys, one group fast and the other strong.

I believe we have a painting date with a little girl tomorrow.

The one thing that caught me unawares was current pricing and packaging for WFB. I went on Games Workshop's website just to see what comparable figs went for nowadays, and I wasn't shocked.

The Bretonnian Sorceress ($5.50)? She's now the sidekick of a mounted Prophetess. Probably some rules changes as well, but the two now come together for $17.00.  Both figs are still metal (horse is plastic).

The Orc Boarboyz go from $7 apiece back in the day to a nice five man unit for $29. Of course, the new ones are all plastic, but saving money on new GW product is always a surprise.

The mounted elves can vary. The metal mounted heroes fetch $12-15 apiece, while the unit of five the Dark Rider standard bearer would be attached to would be a little over $30 (for plastic).

The VOR figs are out of production her in the States, but Ral Partha Europe has them around $6.50 apiece,  plus shipping costs.

Ah to dream of a 3-pack of Grenadiers for $2.75...

New Scrunts from Olleys Armies

I love Olleys Armies for their Scrunt line, just proof that Games Workshop doesn't know "squat" about short sci fi races. They are pricey figures, with limited productions to boot, but they look great.

The new promotion is for 13 "Scrunt Rangers" for £35.00 

The figs are obviously a bit too sci-fi for Gnome Wars, but somebody has to do something with those officers (commissars?).  Perhaps the lasguns could be sculpted into oversized revolvers?  Looks like I need to pick some lucky numbers for the Powerball soon.

http://www.olleysarmies.co.uk/ for more info

28mm Hockey Kickstarter from Impact Miniatures

Back during Cold Wars, I discussed how the Canadian Gnomes were playtesting the fantasy hockey rules that Jim Stanton had written for the Brigade Games line of minis.  

For those who forget, here's what the figs look like...

Throw in a team of dwarves, and you can have a raucous good time...

The one thing missing from the line are the ultimate cannon fodder... no not halflings... humans!    Impact Miniatures, the company whose Gnome Elfball minis I just reviewed here, has started a Kickstarter Campaign to produce four different human poses.   

Nice sculpts with clean lines, although a few spiked shoulder pads could be added for a more... British look.

A $35 pledge gets you one squad of six,  $60 will nab you two, shipping included. Compared to the larger Brigade figs, which range between $36 and $43 a team, it's a decent price point.

Reaper's Bones Kickstarter

Reaper just wrapped up their Kickstarter campaign to expand their BONES lines of plastic minis, and to call it a success is like saying Jesus Christ might have influenced a handfull of people over the last 2,000 years.

$3,429,236

for essentially fantasy toy soldiers in plastic.  Really, that's all we collect, paint, and play with.  And I know Games Workshop makes that in a day before they wake up, but with $10 blisters with one figure and $30+ boxed sets for basic units, I can understand that better.

Over 17,700 people pledged, and over 16,000 of them pledged at "Vampire" ($100) or more.  And that $100 got you a pile of stuff that expanded to crazy levels with the stretch goals. I don't believe I've seen so many stretch goals met since the morbidly obese convention set up next to the Chinese buffet!

In the end, here's what the $100 level got (shipping included in the US):

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1513061270/reaper-miniatures-bones-an-evolution-of-gaming-min?ref=live for a better pic.

That is a LOT of stuff.  In plastic that's a great value (In metal, it's a very nice car payment PLUS the insurance).  I completely understand why people went batshit crazy over this.

Why didn't I?
a) Money is still tight, and if I didn't  pledge to the OGRE Kickstarter, I couldn't scrounge up the funds for this fantastic deal
b) That is a lot to paint, and you know my track record with that.
c)  Outside of cons, I haven't done fantasy in *gasp* three plus years..
d) I don't like the vast majority of the figs.

Okay, after that last one, I'll give you time to get up off the floor and recover...

Alright, let's continue.  Most of these figs are so overdetailed that they make Games Workshop look like tin soldiers with enamel paint. In fact, I'm bidding on a few GW figs right now that are cleaner figs (and a buck or two apiece isn't bad nowadays).  I have no hard evidence, but this style seems to correspond with the initial price increases years ago (China buying up all the tin probably influenced that too.)

Now for the breakdown
The 30+ new Bones?   See above
Dungeon Attack: I do have to admit that I like this group.
Sophie: I was over the mascot 10 years ago
Class or Race sets: see original
Undead Horde: I got plenty of the skeletons in metal back in '99. Not a fan of the zombies.
Townsfolk: have these stowed away in metal, not interested in Townsfolk II
Fire and spectral sets: perfect for the new plastic.
Chronoscope/zombie hunters: These in plastic do intrigue me. I didn't want to drop $6 apiece on figs for a weird pulp/modern game.
Marines & NOVA: future LOS figs, if the price is right. The girl with the (sniper?) rifle is ridiculous.
We Be Goblins: love the adventure, gotta love the minis.

Just about everything below that falls under "What would I do with this?" or "I just don't like it).  Storm Giants are awesome, but in twenty years of fantasy gaming, I may use one...

There are going to be a lot of painted Bones figs on eBay well before Christmas, I guarantee it.

For the avid painter, collector, or 3.0+ player this was the deal of the century. For me, I would have tried to pledge if it were... I don't know, I think my initial reasons are good enough and unless Brigade or Perry decide to have a historical Kickstarter, I don't imagine that I'd participate in any miniature Kickstarter.

Although that mini case looked kickass.

The Apathy of New Releases (September 2012)

It's a another month, another pile of gaming materials in Game Trade Magazine #151...

My want list: Nothing getting added on. I'm so far behind on current want list, a financial windfall wouldi be necessary to get something. Speaking of which:

The Money is No Object Want List:
Goodman Games: Age of Cthulhu: The Timeless Sands of India.
Steve Jackson : OGRE is officially solicited at $100. Need to sell plasma now.

The Imaginary Store List

AEG: AEG makes board games? I guess so, with the pending release of Courtier, Mercante, and Dominare at $35.00 apiece.

Atlas: Back from the dead. First Over the Edge, now Once Upon a Time 3rd Edition $24.95 plus the create your own story cards for 9.95

Battlefront: A few items for Flames of War, but two buildings stand out, the European House Dunkirk for $25 and the Bastogne Church for $40. Both appear to be 15mm building kits, so the question asks, does one spend $25 and hours of assembly for one house, or two completely finished houses through Miniature Building Authority?

MBA finished buildings win hands down 

$64.95

Chronicle City: Apparently a new RPG in November is being released this November called Corporation. It seems to be a "realistic" version of the Cyberpunk/Shadowrun genre. The main rulebook will be $40, but the main problem is, if Alliance is to be believed, there are five supplements to the game being released in November as well. I don't want a situation where the essential books are on a staggered schedule, but space out the supplements people. If a store only orders one of each book, thats a $100+ layout of funds for an unknown game that could sit on the shelf. If I'm a store owner, I'm looking into retailer support, a preexisting buzz amongst players, something to justify going into that line.

Cracked Monocle: Steampunk does look to be the popular non-fantasy genre recently. Adding to an already tepid field of games is Tephra. It's description does nothing to help sell the book over the others already in print, and the cover art is just passable. I would pass on it.

Cryptozoic: WORLD OF WARCRAFT TCG: FEAST OF WINTER VEIL TIN $20

Cubicle 7: GM screens for six of the games they produce. I know I was following one (The Laundry) so it would at least be something new from the line to keep interest going..
Also being released in November will be three new books for Heroquest. And following this rash of publication is the pricetag: $60 apiece for each one. A huge investment for questionable sales.
For the One Ring will be Heart of the Wild and The Darkening of Mirkwood, both $40 and both shipping in November.

Fantasy Flight: More Soviets for Dust Tactics and Deathwatch: The Outer Reaches ($39.99)

Green Ronin: DC Adventures: Universe Sourcebook. $39.95

Mantic: Funny story, this month is a solicitation for Dreadball, yet another company trying to fill vacuum of no Blood Bowl support. Amusingly, the kickstarter for this still in process. Am I the only one that finds that odd? hmmm. It looks as if it's the sci-fi version of it.

Osprey: 

 Force on Force: Classified. Playing Special Ops missions

Paizo: Unlike these random fly-by-night operations publishing the Library of Congress in one swell swoop, Paizo get a free pass. They consistantly get out a considerable amount of product, and I'm going under the assumption that it sells well. If it's guaranteed to sell through, it's better than printing your own money (and far more legal, too.)
GAMEMASTERY FLIP-MAT: ANCIENT DUNGEON $12.99
PATHFINDER ADVENTURE PATH:SHATTERED STAR PART 4 -BEYOND THE DOOMSDAY DOOR $19.99
PATHFINDER CAMPAIGN SETTING: MYSTERY MONSTERS REVISITED $19.99
PATHFINDER FACE CARDS: DUNGEON DWELLERS $10.99
PATHFINDER MODULE: FANGWOOD KEEP $13.99
PATHFINDER: NPC CODEX PAWN BOX SET $34.99
PATHFINDER PLAYER COMPANION: PEOPLE OF THE NORTH 10.99

Privateer Press
IRON KINGDOMS: FULL METAL FANTASY RPG $59.99

Steve Jackson: Munchkin Apocalypse $24.95, not in an OGRE sized box.

WotC: Releasing 3.5 handbooks in a premium editions at $49.95 apiece. Sure. Don't know what angle they're working here, as at least some money from the 1st Edition premiums went to the Gygax Memorial. These proceeds go right to the Hasbro shareholders.Joy.
Also, DUNGEONS & DRAGONS: CASTLE GRIMSTEAD DUNGEON TILES

Wizkids: Hobbit Heroclix... cool

Ruh Roh! Rombies Rate Rall Ruh Rooby Racks!

In the battle between historically accurate Napoleonic Austrian Hussars and some silly miniature, the silly miniature will always win. So even with a backlog of posts, I just have to present the Post Apoc Gang, from Hasslefree Minis.

Hasslefree makes some great "not" pop culture minis, and these look like some of the best. Each figure is about £ 3.75 (so, six bucks a pop?) and the collected set is £ 16.75 (five bucks each?)

If  your zombies are wearing rubber masks, a less-armed version is available.

www.hmminis.co.uk for more info. Browse about, it should make your day.

Warhammer Quest Becomes a Digital Dungeon

Rodeo Games had announced they have obtained the license for Warhammer Quest for the iPhone and iPad.

I remember WH Quest as one of GW's "boutique" games.  Overpriced compared to the core games, and under supported because of it.

Despite all the memory on my phone, I really  have no apps on it.  I do alternate between last year's NCAA Football and Ticket to Ride as my  time (and battery) waster.. Warhammer Quest would be a fantastic addition to that. The screen shots (which I now cannot find) look as detailed as a current video game.

Scheduled release is Spring 2013.
www.rodeogames.co.uk for (limited right now) information.

The Role-Playing Questionnaire, Revisted

Now that the "wargaming" questionaire is finished, I went back and found a role-playing questionaire that was circulating Facebook about three years ago. It's not ancient history, but since everyone is cracking open their time capsules years early, I figured I would revisit it.

New answers come first, with the 2009 answer in italics. If there's no change, you'll obviously see only one answer.

Origins of a Player: 

1. When and where did you first play a roleplaying game (could be a year or your age)?
EAMS Model Building Club (7th Grade).

2. Which game was it?
Technically it was Car Warriors, with Charles Schindler moderating the story.

3. Did you know what the hell you were doing?
I like the dice resolution and the fact that you were given many more options than the Choose Your Own Adventure books of my younger youth.

4. What was the first published adventure you played through? B9 Castle Caldwell, technically out of the B1-9 compilation, run by my cousin Ben. I will add that I got through both levels running three average fighters.

5. Did roleplaying capture your imagination immediately? Yes, the mechanics on the other hand...

6. Do you still game with some of the people from your first game? The first multi-player game was a Paranoia game played at George Harley's summer party after 8th grade. Game was run by Charles and I think Scott Birkner was a player. Considering I played Cthulhu with Scott this summer, I say yes!

2009: The same, except it was Cthulhu with Scott a week earlier.

7. Did anything in particular inspire you or led you to playing RPGs? Tolkien and an over-active imagaination.

8. Have you ever been a game master (dungeon master, keeper, storyteller, etc.)? Which games? I primarily GM, 50+ systems as humble estimate.

9. Do you currently referee, if so, which games? Call of Cthulhu and Risus, ready for a Hackmaster or Basic D&D game at moments notice.

10. What is your favorite thing about GMing? Watching the plot and campaign development


11. What is your least favorite thing about GMing? Coordinating the crazy players without railroading them.

12. Do you prefer to be GM or a player?
GM

13. What are your favorite gaming systems you've played? AD&D, Hackmaster, Talislanta, Call of Cthulhu, with odd fond spots for Rifts, Recon, Gamma World, and GURPS.

14. What are some games you would like to play, but haven't?
Savage Worlds (Red Sands)

2009: Spirit of the Century, Dogs of the Vineyard, Castle Falkenstein (never played any of them, btw)

15. Rules light, rules heavy, or it depends? Nowadays rules light. I'm done with the multiple splatbook, scientific calculator required mechanics.

16. Dice or Diceless? Dice!

17. To homebrew or not to homebrew?
I never run a game or campaign stock. My "Home" campaign/rules are, fittingly, homebrew.

18. What are some of your favorite settings?
Most settings I used are homebrewed, so Gazetteer D&D is the best I can do.


19. What are your favorite genres?
Humor, Horror, Fantasy. Never got into Western beyond a test drive.

2009: Fantasy, Humor, Modern, slowly working on Western.

20. Do you prefer pre-published adventures/modules or original/tailored campaigns?
Published. Less work, but I can still tailor it to the game's needs.

21. Are you a member of any roleplaying organizations? Which Ones?
Let's see, the now-defunct LVGA, pre-3E RPGA, ERPGA, and the Society of Neffs!

22. Do you think RPG organizations are important to the hobby? Yes.

23. Do you plan on joining any RPG organizations?
Only if they have strippers and beer. Like an American Legion with dice!

24. Have you ever attended a gaming convention, if so which ones? Lehicon III-VI, Bogglecon, UBCon, Origins, Historicon, Cold Wars, Fall In!, Dexcon, Whatcon?, Lehigh Valley Game Day, CoveCon, PoCon, Garden State Games Faire, EPiC,

25. Do you think conventions are important for the hobby? Yes, Even with this internet thing, it's where you meet up with old friends and make new ones.

26. Are you planning to attend any conventions in the future? Fall-in! Lancaster, November 2012
Mepacon, Clarks Summit, PA, November 2012

27. What conventions would you like to attend next year?
Cold Wars, Lancaster, March 2013
Mepacon, Clarks Summit, April 2013
Historicon, Fredericksburg, July 2010

Play Styles
28. Serious or loose? With my normal bunch of players has to be fast and loose.

29. Soundtracks and sound FX? working on it, but not so much.

30. Adversarial referee or wish fulfiller? The GM is always right, unless he has no players.

31. Should GMs have PCs? Fill-in PCs, but no Mary Sues.

32. Is technology welcome at your table? I did run an adventure off of my iPhone. I don't recommend it.

Dice, pencils, paper. put the ipods, cell phones, and pdfs away!
33. Are Terrain & Minis an advantage or a hindrance? Not always needed, but awesome.

Related Hobbies: 34. Do you like to LARP, if so, which systems? Last time I LARPed was an Illuminati University game I ran at Garden State Games Faire back in '97.

35. Do you collect/paint Miniatures? hell's yes!

36. Do you like Wargames/tactical miniature games, if so, which ones?
Gnome Wars, adding in mice, teddy bears, and others. Colonial Second Samoan War.

Any and all, focusing on Gnomes Wars, 54mm Revolutionary War, and any turn of the 20th Century game (Spanish American War, Boxer Rebellion)
37. Do you play Collectible Card Games, if so, which ones?
Last big flurry of Magic back in '05. Still own decks for magic, Battletech, and INWO.

38. What about Board Games? an absolute requirement. Settlers of Catan, Diplomacy, Arkham Horror, Talisman.

39. Do you play Video Games, what kinds? The Ticket to Ride app for my iPhone is the closest I get.

not since I got rid of my N64 in '04. Sport games with franchise mode, tony Hawk.
40. Any closing comments you would like to add? Fnord!
"The Kermitnator attacks the zombies with the Holy-Rolled-up-Newspaper-of-God (Wednesday Edition)"

Impact Miniatures Gnomes!

I had mentioned earlier that a company called Impact Miniatures had released a game called Elfball, complete with numerous fantasy teams compatible with another popular fantasty football game. They're gnomes so I feel compelled to relay the info and give my opinion on them.

First off, if you want to field garden gnomes in Blood Bowl, your wildest wishes have come true.

For the rest of you looking for alternative gnomes, you'll be sorely disappointed.

First off, the individual gnomes are tiny! (11mm at the eye for most). That would be roughly the same size as the clockwork gnomelings. Gnome Wars Swiss are 25mm at the eye

Gnome Head Coach

Unless you're fielding a team of gnomeling rugby hooligans, I can'ts imagine the Gnome War appeal.

With such small stature, the gnomes rely on contraptions to play Blood B...er.. Elfball. The Contraptions are wargaming worthy. If we can have live gnomelings in little tanks, this is far more awesome.

The models are 40-45mm and the drivers are interchangeable. Throw some weapons on them, and we have some trouble on the battlefield.

The Bad News: As if the size wasn't a deterrent, the price is. Individual figs (11-12mm) are $4.00! The Contraptions are $19+! Teams are $65+ The only positive is that Impact charges $4.50 flat for US orders , and that goes to free if the order exceeds $150.00

The other thing of note is that the sculptors of many of the figs on the website are paid in a commission only style. They were not paid up front for the models, so I assume they get the equivilant of a royalty check every month for their sales. Let's hope a good chuck of the obscene prices goes to the sculptor.

So, despite being gnomes, ViscountEric can not endorse the Gnome Elfball team from Impact. Somebody prove me wrong.

www.impactminiatures.com

My Twenty Answers

I found this on one of the secondary blogs that I follow. Being as there are few wargaming questionnaires on Facebook, I shall answer it here.

1. Favorite Wargaming period and why?
Ah, you think I would say Gnomes? Technically, that's not a period, it's an experience. If I was court ordered to avoid all Gnomes, Frogs, Mice, and Teddy Bear minis, I immediately go into Colonials full steam. Zulu Wars, Boxer Rebellion, I'd even like to try my hand at some Anglo-Sudan action.

2. Next period, money no object?If you exclude the Second Samoan Civil War, which would technically still be considered Colonial, I would go into Pre-Dreadnought Naval, 1/2400 or smaller. The fact that I could field most Western fleets in the Pacific for the price of one Dystopian Wars army isn't a bad thing either.

3. Favorite 5 films?
The Natural, PCU, Bill and Ted's Excellent Adventure, My Big Fat Greek Wedding, Spider-Man, Field of Dreams, Gladiator

4. Favorite 5 TV series?I'll go of all-time, since I can list five current ones: Herman's Head, How I Met your Mother, The Big Bang Theory, In Living Color, and Wipeout have been the only shows that I would rush home/set the DVR for. (Sorry Cosby, not even you).

5. Favourite book and author?TR: The Last Romantic, by H W Brands, but my favorite author is Anton Chekhov.

6. Greatest General?Despite all his flaws, still gotta go with Patton.

7. Favourite Wargames rules?
Mordheim. Gasp, I know, GW rules, but in that setting and campaign rules, it allows for workable game inbalance. Can't handle the Rat Ogre? Get your troops out of the way and live to fight another day.

8. Favorite Sport and team(s)?
Still Baseball...New York Yankees

9. If you had a only use once time machine, when and where would you go?
1900 New York City. Just enough culture shock. For a ten dollar gold coin, I would even eat some potted chicken, which was neither in a pot, nor chicken. I'm keeping the gold coin when I go back to the future.

10. Last meal on Death Row?Kjottbollar, Lingonberries, Gruss-Gruss, Limpa, Green Bean Casserole, Jello, and one cup of Glogg.

11. Fantasy relationship and why?
The wife has her "list" but I never did... must be happy or something.

12. If your life were a movie, who would play you?Robert Downey Jr as Kirk Lazarus as Lincoln Osiris playing me.

13. Favorite Comic Superhero?Captain Marvel (aka Shazam!)

14. Favourite Military quote?
‘The object of war is not to die for your country but to make the other guy die for his.’ (George C Patton)

15. Historical destination to visit?I've never been big into visiting historical destinations, but if I need to do research for my game, I'll say Samoa. It would be very, very tough...

16. Biggest Wargaming regret?
Not getting into Rogue Trader (and only Rogue Trader). Not completely cleaning out Imagination Workshop when they closed. Selling off all my Legions of Steel.

17. Favorite Fantasy job?Running a gaming/comic shop that could turn a profit without selling meth.

18. Favorite Song Top 5?One (Metallica), Sing Sing Sing (Benny Goodman Carnegie Hall 1938), Sabotage (Beastie Boys), Cult of Personality (Living Colour), Carmen Burina.

19. Favorite Wargaming Moment?Running Legions of Steel at Origins '95. Running a kickass scenario when one of the players says, "This is an awesome scenario, did you design it/?" I explained that we took it directly out of The Tech Factory. "Oh," said the player, "I publish The Tech Factory."

Small World.

20. The miserable Git question, what upsets you?People who think that no one can hate anything/anyone except those who hate other things. I'm one of the most prejudicial people I know, yet you would barely notice in most environments. Start ranting about any group... ANY group, and your standing with me drops dramatically, you just won't know about it. And that is why I don't do a political blog.

...and if we're playing a game, let's just play the damn game. Bad enough I get to hear hack analysis on the latest geek phenomena, I don't care about what you think about civil rights, the economy, international relations, or the fact that Wendy's won't serve tomatoes unless requested until I after I've destroyed your artillery position. And even then, I don't care.

The Mike Lung Gallery #14

I have over a dozen posts in draft status, some halfway done, others just a title (I only need 10 more ideas for the 12 Posts of Christmas.)  That doesn't mean I can't share a few pics from Mike Lung!   

From the prolific volume he has claimed to be working on since Historicon, Mike has either become a cocaine addict, or the wife and kids are leaving him alone.

Mushroom Men

Gnomes vs Sporks!

Poison Dart Frogs

And I'm not at liberty to discuss the other 2,619 other projects he's working on...

Time to go paint another lone mouseling...

Summer Camp for Gamers

Amongst all the posts on TMP concerning the firestorm of Historicon '13 and links to GenCon pics that won't load was a simple post by Walt O'Hara from Third Point of Singularity. here

For those that don't like clicking links, Walt ran a week long "Fantasy Battle Gaming Camp" for interested youth. 54mm gladiators, 6mm sci-fi, Dystopian Wars, board games, and zombies.

I believe I have found my new calling in life

Back in the day, we joked about going from con to con in a Winnebago. Stopping at community centers during off weeks to run gaming clamps for kids might be the missing piece of the puzzle, short of hitting the Powerball, of course.

I can imagine running morning paint and take, followed by Mordheim on Monday, Gnome Wars, a collection of board games, and perhaps a reason to get into Wings of War or Check Your 6.

Walt should be commended for recruiting the next generation the right way, and I need to figure out how to do that next year.

(Cthulhu). Horror on the Orient Express Kickstarter

The Mayans continue to be right. When Chaosium decides to go through Kickstarter, I start stockpiling canned goods. When they decide to reprint the long out-of-print Horror on the Orient Express, I plan on the Great Old Ones commuting to Earth in a clown car by December. Guaranteed.

Pledges including the finished product start at $60 (pdf included). Increased pledges are a bit too specific (lunch at GenCon '13, dinner at GenCon '13, visiting Chaosium's offices), with two exceptions:

$250 An NPC named after you

$500 Rogue's Gallery — A pre-generated character named after you, along with a portrait. These characters will be included in a book of passports of passengers on the Orient Express. You will include a mini biography and character stats (must be reasonable). This also includes all the benefits of the FIRST CLASS passenger.

Oh, to hit the Powerball and snag up all the slots, so the Coal Crackers can be played across the globe.

Or perhaps a certain passenger has a hidden past. Crippled by gambling debts, a private eye faked his own death with a terrible explosion. By the time the police could even begin to sift through the wreckage, "Monongahela" Carson was already on a steamer to Europe.

http://www.kickstarter.com/projects/448333182/horror-on-the-orient-express-a-chaosium-publicatio?ref=search

Platypus from Impact Miniatures... and more!

If I there is one thing that I've accumulated since starting this blog, it's been labels, tags, etc. Not knowing the direction this blog was heading, I tagged A LOT.  Some things never had relevance again, some are things that could best be described as an inside joke with myself. I'll be purging a number of the very minor ones by labor day, but today I'll be covering the first odd one of the list Anthromorphic Animal Minis.

Through TMP, Impact Miniatures announced the release of their Platypus Warriors.

Normally, that would be enough to warrant a post. I definitely love a healthy dose of wacky animal minis.  But, at closer inspection, these weren't just cute minis.  They were for a team for the game of Elfball.

Elfball looks like a variant of Bloodbowl, I'll be doing more research to either confirm or retract that statement, so that's as far as I'll go with that today.  I did notice that they made tons of teams for this game, and that the figs are pretty cool.

Elephant Star Player?

.

The Hell With an Ogre or a Troll....

The Platypus figs vary between $6.50 and $7.25 (a bit steep) and are 24mm at the eye (the Swiss Gnomes are 25mm at the eye)

The other item that caught my eye was another Lion-man for consideration for Wizard of Oz minis.

A little too violent, with the skull belt and such, but I'm concerned how often Lion-Men nipple rings are mentioned in the original books.

I will spend some time later to describe the Gnome line for Elfball.  Fun stuff.

For the Platypus directly here.

For Impact Miniatures here

Free Hackmaster Basic PDF!

The mouselings are getting done, don't you fret, but this is big.

Kenzer & Company has announced that the pdf copy of their Hackmaster Basic is now available FOR FREE on their website.

While it doesn't go into the wild detail that the new PHB (only up to 5th level, no gnome titans, etc.), it is a great opportunity to check out the system before investing your hard earned money on the $60 hardcover.

http://www.kenzerco.com/free_files/hackmaster_basic_free_.pdf

Mouselings: Two More Heroes Completed!

I'm not breaking records, but two more of the Mouseling Heroes are done.  "David" the Gnome used for size comparison.

Mouseling with Sword and Acorn Shield.

Mouseling Archer

Next:  Four more mouselings (fingers crossed)

Mouselings and a Wacky Goblin

The children are passed out at a manageable hour, the track events for the Olympics are done for the night...

My God! I have time to PAINT!

Sorting through three different locations for paints, supplies, etc was not the most efficient way to get things started, but I have paint onto lead and that's all that matters.

This week I should be finishing up a couple minis from the Reaper Mouselings line. Base coats are done, now it's just shading, highlights, and details.

The first I could punch out quickly were the heavily armored mouse dude, whom I call Sir Steelnut and Furry the Barbarian.

David the Gnome added for size comparison

I need to touch up the knights shield.  Apparently I didn't clear out enough of the spray sealer and it made it a wee bit gritty.  

What is best if life?  To crush  your enemies, see them driven from  you... and cheese. 

The final entry is a random goblin sitting in my box o' random figs. It looks like a small Warhammer fig (the base is GW 20mm at least), but I have no clue where/when I got this. It's got to be 10+ years old.

If anyone wants, I'll make a new post and try to put in some stats, a la Mouse Guard. Since the Mouse Guard games I'll be running will involve a three year old, sorry of this and future characters don't agree with continuity. It's a game about mice.

Next:  More Mice

(Mordheim) Warlord Releases Irish Brigade Singles

Recently I was commenting on Warlord Games decision to release its Pike and Shotte Scots for individual sale.  The idea of Scots rampaging through through the streets of Mordheim fascinated me, albeit the size discrepancy between 25mm Warlord and 30+mm GW.  That worry has disappeared as Warlord has announced another army with single figure sales:  The Irish Brigade.

Now, the idea of pikes deftly manuevering the streets of Mordheim is ridiculous. Still, the image of a warband throwing rocks and swinging their empty muskets at Skaven is something somebody must try..

Warhammer Undead Wolf

My daughter Maja is painting a birdhouse, so that finally gives me a chance to dust off the paints and start something.  Today is a pack of Warhammer Undead Wolves.

Correction: Undead Wolf, singular (bold).  Each wolf is on a separate sprue, containing two body parts, as well as the tail, and head.  The pack also comes with two separate metal heads, one a regular wolf head, the other, I'm assuming is the far more vicious undead wolf head.  Somewhere between assembly/priming many moons ago, and pulling it out of the to do box, the flimsy tail fell off one of the wolves.  I practiced the paint scheme on that one, until such time that I can dig around the box for the tail.

The Wolves after assembly, but before the one on the right  lost its tail

But here is the first of the Gnome Wizard's wolves, and not a happy one, I might add.

Pic might be presented a bit nicer, but the green felt is covering up Houdini the Wonder Cat.  She refused to move away, and didn't  mind that I put a blanket on her to keep her out of the shot.

Now if I can only find that tail...

Planning for Samoa

I recently talked to Jim about Gnome Wars events for Fall-in! (event registration opened up July 28th). I have no wild and crazy event ideas, so it looks as if they will be traditional gnome events in the afternoon/evening slots. Don't worry, I'll be certain to throw in some curveballs during whatever game I'm commandeering.

The best parts of a normal schedule are that (a) I'll get to play a non-gnome game, and in a similar vein (b) I can do some serious product research in the dealers hall for my Second Samoan Civil War game for Cold Wars 2014.

Regardless of what battle(s) I choose to run, I'll be building the armies from the ground up. My primary concern is what figures to use for Samoans. The choices are limited, they are the dominant troop choice, and their size will determine what lines I can use to fill out the Western forces.

The Samoans
The Melanesian Warriors from www.pulpfigures.com looks the most promising




The spears are so clunky that they make 40k bolters look like holdout pistols, but it's the Island Provisional Warriors that almost fit the bill perfectly:


When I originally saw pictures of the pro-royalist, they were dressed like this. The dude with the wife beater does throw things off, but I'll work with what I can get.

Not knowing the size of the line (we all have seen big 28mm and little 28mm) is holding me back currently. They're going to represent 80% of the troops and Samoa had not begun exporting professional wrestlers quite yet. Picking up some Old Glory 25mm European types and making them look like pygmies is unacceptable.

The Germans
At least with the research I've done, the Germans do not get involved in the hot war. However, they are hot and heavy in the politics for the island AND they trained a number of the rebels.

For the sake of gameplay, I will have one unit of Germans acting as "active" advisors. The Pulp Figures Seebatallion figs should do the trick.


There are also pics of the professionally trained rebels, dressed dark uniforms. Need to do some more research to see what figs work best for a small unit or two of those.

The Americans
Possibly the toughest of the bunch. All research states that only Marines landed to assist with putting down the rebellion. However the few fuzzy pictures that I've seen show either Americans stripped down to combat the tropical heat, or dressed very similar to US infantry with what looks to be Montana hats.

I would love to have a unit or two of Americans that look like this:



I might be able to get away with it, too. The figure above is one of Pulp's "bulk up" packs. Normally you get five different figs for $15.50. With the bulk ups, you get eight of the same sculpt for $15.50. My biggest stumbling blocks, besides historical accuracy, are the regular packs, which definitely focus post-great war. Two rifles, two shotguns and at least one tommygun per pack.

One quick order to Old Glory would solve most of my issues, but I am concerned about a massive difference in scale.

The British
If I decide to go forward and fight the Siege of Apia, I may need one unit in Wolseley Helmets, and one unit of sailors.