Another Month of Gaming Releases (May '23)

It's time for the slow build-up towards the summer convention circuit, and big releases a few months from now.  

While I heartily admit that I'm no longer the demographic, and inflation has officially hit the hobby with a number of new releases, when I list stuff under the Imaginary Store list, regardless of my imaginary financial status, I can't reasonably be required to list piles of games and accessories from companies I've either never heard of, or don't remember from the years of doing this monthly post.  If I can't justify buying them with imaginary money, I can imagine the decisions of a real-life FLGS.

Issue #279 of Game Trade Magazine can be found at your FLGS, or online in pdf format here.

ViscountEric's Want List:
Nothing

ViscountEric's Money-Is-No-Object Want List:
Catalyst Game Labs

Battletech: Urbanmech Lance ........................................ $29.99

The absurdity of the Urbanmech Lance gives me glee.

The Imaginary Store List (The Pegleg Gnome):

25th Century Games

Splito ............................ $19.99

Alderac Entertainment Group

Smash Up: Excellent Movies, Dudes! Expansion ................ $24.99

Shake That City .................................................................... $39.99

Alley Cat Games

Dice Hospital: Emergency Roll (Standalone) ....................... $17.99

Amigo Games

Linko Hangtag ................................. $12.99

Take 5 Hangtag ................................ $12.99

The Army Painter

Speedpaint: Complete Set 2.0 ........................... $379.00

Speedpaint: Metallics Set 2.0 ............................. $ 42.99

Speedpaint: Most Wanted Set 2.0 ....................... $ 99.99

Speedpaint: Starter Set 2.0 .................................  $39.99

Catalyst Game Labs

Battletech: Alpha Strike Counter Pack ................ $24.99

Battletech: Proliferation Cycle Boxed Set ........... $39.99

Battletech: Snords Irregulars Assault Lance ........ $29.99

Battletech: Plushytech .......................................... $34.99-49.99

Battletech pillows???  And the prices are commensurate to 'mech class (Atlas is the most expensive).

Shadowrun RPG: Whisper Nets ........................... $49.99

Chaosium

Cults of Runequest: The Prosopeadia ................... $37.99

Fanroll

Metal d20 Spinner .............................. $14.99

Antique Copper or Torched Rainbow

Kobold Press

Tales from the Wastes HC (5e) ........................... $39.99

Wastes of Chaos HC (5e) .................................... $49.99

Limited Edition HC available for $79.99

Konami Digital Entertainment 

Yu-Gi-Oh! Battles of Legend - Monstrous Revenge Boosters

Yu-Gi-Oh! Captain Carrie Card Sleeves (50) ....... $4.99

Yu-Gi-Oh! Photo Finish 9-Pocket Duelist Portfolio .......... $9.99

Yu-Gi-Oh! Chariot Carrie Game Mat ................................ $16.99

Yu-Gi-Oh! Superfan Card Case ............................ $4.99

Legendary Games

The Dragon's Hoard #27 (5e) ............................... $12.99

The Dragon's Hoard #28 (5e) ............................... $12.99

Loki Battle Maps

Big Book of Battle Mats - Rooms, Vaults, & Chambers ................ $26.99

Looney Labs

Fluxx the Board Game ....................................... $25.00

A reprint/new edition of the game?  Perhaps I'm suffering the Mandella effect but this was out before and didn't perform too well (There is a glut of Fluxx options already.)

Mongoose Publishing

Traveller RPG: JTAS #9 ..................................... $24.99

Traveller RPG: JTAS #10 ................................... $24.99

Traveller RPG: The Order of Prometheus .......... $49.99

Monte Cook Games

Old Gods of Appalachia RPG ............................. $69.99

Old Gods of Appalachia RPG Player's Guide ..... $19.99

Monument Hobbies

It looks as if Alliance Game Distributors will be carrying the full line of paints and modelling accessories from Monument Games.  Their prices are comparable, and the quantity seems to be a hair more.  

Osprey Games

Doomed .............................. $35.00

Paizo Publishing

Pathfinder RPG: Rage of the Elements ................. $26.99 - $74.99

In Pocket, Harcover, and Special Editions

Pathfinder RPG: Absalom- City of Lost Omens Special Edition HC .......... $89.99

Pathfinder RPG: AP Sky King's Tomb 1 of 3 - Mantle of Gold ................... $26.99

Pathfinder RPG: Flip-Mat Classics - Urban Tavern ..................................... $16.99

Starfinder RPG: AP - Scoured Stars HC ........................ $54.99

Special Edition available for $74.99

Starfinder RPG: Flip-Mat - Grav Trains ........................ $16.99

Pokemon USA

POKÉMON TCG: AMPHAROS EX OR LUCARIO EX BATTLE DECK DISPLAY

Steve Jackson Games

Proteus ............................................. $24.95

Dragon and Skull D6 Dice Sets ....... $ 9.95

Available in Green Glitter and Silver

Munchkin: Crazy Cooks .................. $34.95

Triplanetary ..................................... $59.95

Wiz-War: 9th Edition ...................... $39.95

WizKids 

Critical Role: The Tombtakers Boxed Set ......... $39.99

D&D Onslaught: Scenario 1 - The Benefactor ... $24.99

D&D Replicas of the Realms - Mimic Chest - Life - Sized ...... Please Inquire with your FLGS.

D&D Icons of the Realms - Adult Brass Dragon ........... $99.99

D&D Nolzur's Marvelous Miniatures - Adult Brass Dragon .... $89.99

When it comes to full sized dragons... unless you know exactly how to paint this... go with the pre-painted model.  

Back of Beyond Campaign and the Fate of Baron Yevgeny Lytton

So I did a thing....  and I think it's safe enough to finally talk about it.

I had fate offer me an invite to play in an online wargame... with a twist.  

Tim from Saskatoon from Tim's Miniature Wargaming Blog invited me partake in a Back of Beyond Campaign that was an interesting mix of Diplomacy and Tim gleefully killing himself each weekend. 

While the full rules are here, here's the low-down.  Each player was a faction in Central Asia.  White Russians, Red Russians, Western Interventionists, and local warlords ruled the day, with the goal to obtain more territory, grow your armies and eventually dominate the region.  After spirited communications to each player, or the group as a whole, orders were given by Friday night, and Tim would resolve all battles and sieges over the weekend, using One Hour Wargames, and a write-up by Monday.  Outside of a weekend with an aging man and his ukulele, things ran smoothly.

THE MAP

I ran a group of White Russians, based in Bakunin... with the adjacent cities as my territories. Lodged between both Bolshevik players guaranteed constant battle... and despite not knowing who was playing a particular side, I believe the referee may harbor Bolshevik sympathies.   Ultimately, I was forced to dissolve my army, but not before sending my traitorous units to their deaths and finding my loyal Cossacks a position under an independent emir.  

Despite getting ground down into a fine powder I enjoyed the campaign and its rules.  Tim did an excellent job administrating all the communications and even throwing some 1's in combat for the Bolsheviks to keep the appearance of impartiality (I kid... I kid.)

Once I work on my map-fu skills, I can imagine myself setting up a Gnome Wars campaign, or even a planet/kingdom based Planet 28/Brutal Quest game.  

Here's hoping self-proclaimed Tsar-in-the-East Yvegeny Lytton can enjoy the quiet life in an oversized apartment in Tashkabad, enjoying warm creations from his ancestral samovar during the cold winters.

Artwork by Tim from Saskatoon

(Painting) Gnomish Space Marine Dreadnought

I've been wildly impressed with Dollar Tree's Final Faction line of action figures.  Even for a $1.25, the figures are definitely good enough to play with, and a number of pieces can be used for miniature games, and the accessory packs are good for toys and augmenting your tabletop armies.  

This was on the shelf as a P-131 Automated Drone.  That might be fine for final faction, but me, it's a Gnomish Space Marine Dreadnought.

Gnomish Space Marine Dreadnought (485 points walker)

Agility: 5  Shooting: 8

+2 Crew Sections

+2 Hard Point Turrets with Battle Cannons

+1 Hard Point Turret with Heavy Machine Gun

+15 Armor front and back

+Radio

(You could add 25 points for Battle Hardened Crew, maybe 27 points for camouflage)

Next in the Queue:  The same old same old.  Chaos Gnomish Space Marines, Zombies, Campers,  and Blue Martians... plus another dreadnought

Project 350: Despite getting some stuff off the lists this month, we've bumped back up to 459 (304 drafts/155 scheduled) versus 456 (298/158) last month.  Despite being behind only three Gamma World sessions, I also have found some pretty cool stuff to add to my blogging "to-do" list.  Once some of this stuff on the painting bench gets finished, I can proceed with Planet 28 and Pulp Alley projects (and whatever the sci-fi games for Historicon will need.

Twenty Questions About My Campaign - Barony of Gulluvia ***UPDATED Jun 534***

Years ago, I began using a tweak "Twenty Questions" system that was developed by others, to help describe my game, what it was about, and what has occurred during the campaign.  A few years year, and now I'm updating those.  

My Adventures in Gulluvia BECMI D&D Twenty Questions was originally posted in October of 2020.  The last episode was posted on April 6, 2021, so there should be some updates beyond simple hindsight.

What's the Deal?

The Barony of Gulluvia is a vast territory shut off from the rest of the Kingdom.  Lady D'hmis rules the barony with her Baronial Guard with an iron fist.  Life is hard but most get by if they follow the Primary Rule of Lady D'hmis:   All men must remain inside from dusk until dawn, unless escorted by an adult (over 16) woman.

The story begins in the village of Mere, the one community with a good mixture of halflings and humans.

Where can we go to buy standard equipment?
Rempart's Supplies handles the needs to the village in between the caravan arrivals.  Weapons and metal armor are double cost, while all non-human/non-halfling armor has a 20% chance of appearing at at least 3x the cost.

Where can we go to get the weird stuff I need for this ritual I found in the book?
Outside of old man Loprete, Gardenia the herbalist/alchemist,  and a few skilled grandmothers?  Better hope the right caravan comes through.

Who is the mightiest wizard in the land?
The Hedge Wizard of mystic arcane, Clifford Loprete has trained most of the frail children with a penchant for learning.  There's nothing to prove he's necessarily a bad teacher, just no positive track record with his pupils.    Of course, there are wives' tales of a powerful wizard controlling the weather around the Thunder Mountains.  Others whisper tales of an evil wizard living there in a massive tower of shiny black stone in the Misty Swamp.

Who is the biggest badass of them all?
Anything that creaks the night.....  Even with the men-travel-at-night-with-women law, the town shutters itself around dusk.  Most villagers consider the all-female Baronial Guard to be bad-asses, but they have not encountered the Wolf Changelings that have recently terrorized travelers at night. .

What's the biggest monster to be faced?
Ogres?  Dragons?  Swamp creatures?  The wolf changelings are definitely terrifying, but no more than reports of a BearOwl killing cows on farms outside of Mere.

Who is the richest person in the land?
Lady D'hmis

Where is safe?
Mere proper is always safe.  As soon as you hit the larger farms, animals and monsters are known to strike, day and night.

Is there a magic guild that I can join in order to get more spells?
Ha!  Be happy Lady D'hmis doesn't care about spellcasters.  Perhaps you should study divinity and gain the favor of High Priest Carathmus in the city of Gulluvia?

Where can I find an alchemist, sage or other expert NPC?
A bigger town, teacher of the mystic arcane, Clifford Loprete, and Gardenia the herbalist in the village could whip up a few poultices, potions, and balms.

Where can I hire mercenaries?
Every two-bit militia member claims to be a mercenary.  They require a larger share of treasure than their ability should command.

Is there any place on the map where swords are illegal, magic is outlawed or any other notable hassles from Johnny Law?
All men must remain inside from dusk until dawn, unless escorted by an adult (over 16) woman

Which way to the nearest tavern?
Elle's Leaping Strong Moon is the famed watering hole, Ye Olde Falling Noble Spoon is renowned for its weekly Waffle Day.

What monsters are terrorizing the countryside sufficiently that if I kill them I will become famous?
Goblins have filled up the nearby mines that the dwarves abandoned years ago.  Kobolds appear to have infested some ancient shrines, but have recently been relocation.  No one knows where they were relocated to.

Are there any wars brewing I could go fight?
The Baronial Guard is spread thin, but easily keeps the peace. The lizardmen in the swamp have begun raiding family settlements, leaving few survivors.

How about gladiatorial arenas complete with hard-won glory and fabulous cash prizes?
Maybe a tavern brawl, but you're looking largely at something largely illegal.

Are there any secret societies with sinister agendas I could join and/or fight?
None that any average villagers knows about.  Dwarves left the area generations ago, yet rumors of sightings in Gulluvia City and even out in Mere have further questioned their devious motives.

What is there to eat around here?
Ye Olde Falling Noble Spoon.  See Waffle Day!

Any legendary lost treasures I could be looking for?
None rumored around Mere, but the gemstone mines the dwarves abandoned generations ago could still hold a few more shiny objects.

Where is the nearest dragon or other monster with Type H treasure?
The forests and lowlands are pretty well-patrolled, so if there is some sort of massive creature with lots of treasure, it would be in the mountains.

Owl Central Games - Millersville, Pennsylvania

With Maja's basketball showcase last weekend, we were all over the Lancaster area.  Sunday put us in Millersville, Pennsylvania, and although I haven't visited the university campus in 25 years, I was happy to find a gaming store for my solo drive home. 

Owl Center Games sits in a stand alone building along PA-999 (Manor Ave).  Parking is reserved for 30-minutes up front, with more parking for the gamers along the side, which made my visit so much more convenient.

So let's get down to my brass tacks I love so very much....

Cleanliness:  With Magic players spilling into every corner of the store on a Sunday afternoon, everything was well-organized and clean.  That might have to do to the three staff members (two manning the front counter, and one hiding in what is best described as the room where the gathering of Magic happens (singles backstock).  

CCGs:  Magic was the major force for the afternoon, but a Pokemon mom could walk in, not be freaked out and turn to their left to see an obvious Pokemon section. 

I love the signage used for each "department" in the store.

Magic was well stocked, with labelled spaces in the display case for popular cards that were out of stock.  Prices were marked on singles and most packs that I saw.  Another plus, the CCG supply area was well-stocked with a decent variety, and a large sign detailing the prices of everything.  A huge issue I've come across is every Ultra-Pro/Dragon Shield/Whatever else there is might be in stock, but nothing is actually priced.  It was so well done I actually purchased CCG supplies (!!!)  Yu-Gi-Oh! was also hiding somewhere in the display behind the counter as well. 

Board Games:  There was a section of the boardgame staples, such as Catan, Pandemic, and the like, with a number of other games in the Clearance section in the main game room.  

Miniatures:  A good selection of Games Workshop and Star Wars (X-Wing/Legion), with some Warlord/Bolt Action boxed sets.  GW paints with some Army Painter product right beside it.

RPGs: The one area that was lacking, perhaps for a reason.  D&D books on the shelves up front, but most other role-playing books were stowed away in the Clearance section, with want appeared to be a modest discount.  

Events:  From my quick tour, the store was divided into four rooms:  the main retail space, the back office/Magic singles room, a large room behind the retail space that fit a number of tables (and the largest daytime Magic tournament I've walked in on since prior to the pandemic), and smaller room behind that, which could fit two tables perfectly.  I assume that's either a wargaming room or could be used for RPGs if there was interest. 

Also of note would be the requisite drink cooler and display of Owl Central swag (hopefully they have shirts in "Gamer Medium")

Don't forget the mandatory disc golf selection, which seems to be a thing at a third of the shops I've visited.

For a quick, unplanned visit, Gaming with the Gnomies is giving Owl Cental Games 4 gnomes out of 5.

Sorry, the alphorn in the far back doesn't count

I was going to going to score the store lower, even if the lack of RPGs were cancelled out by the large, congenial Magic tourney players, but I overheard an interaction that not only increase my rating, but encouraged me to purchase a few things.  A late teenage/early 20-something man came up to the counter, and as gamers talk, asked about 40k factions he could start playing.   The staff member patiently listened to the customers ramblings, encouraged a few of his likes, then suggested armies and specific products he might be interested in.  It was courteous, professional, and although there was no guarantee of a sale while I was leaving, I felt confident that if someone I knew had questions about the games they regularly stock, I could recommend sending them to Owl Central for the right answers.

My purchases?  A couple of cheap Ultra-Pro deck boxes (For my sleeved Pulp Alley cards... I knew they were cheap because of the handy-dandy sign!), a metal d20 from the Easy Roller Dice Company (a sponsor of the Happy Jacks Podcast back in the olden days. Never saw their product in stores until this visit), and to kick my true nostalgia, a Maze of Ith from The Dark.  

There's hope for this world, at least in Amish Country.

Owl Central Games is located at 250 Manor Ave (PA-999) in Millersville, PA.  More information can be found at www.owlcentralgames.com or on their Facebook page.

(Star Wars d6) #87 - Want Ads in the Credit-Saver

The Crew of the Pretio in This Week's Episode 

Ne'vets Aharo - an exotic animal broker, both legal and otherwise, majority owner in the Pretio.

Duk'k - Sipsk'ud Bounty Hunter, recently rescued by the crew. Offering his services in order to get off this barely existing hunk of mud. His warning shots are dead center mass kill shots.

"Sid" - A peculiar woman who has shown to be a better pilot than the previous one. Possible Imperial ties, but a far better shot.

 
R2-H8(r) - Astromech with a confusing history, and harsh attitude towards most of the crew.

Evus - Twi'lek male, former slave, then former associate of Ne'vets, who has found his way back to the Pretio but caught back up in the nonsense of the Pretio

I Deny That Woman

After having a meeting with the Imperial Science Corps, 

Ne'vets Aharo and Duk'k: The Bounty Hunter 

discovered Rebel Terrorist (and temporary crew member)

Latorna Savvn, caught behind safety glass 

While attempting to rob a bank.

The duo has picked up their waiting pilot, Sid, 

And have travelled back to the starport

Post-haste, to leave this planet before 

Someone can incriminate them.

Ne'vets and Duk'k quickly escorted Sid back to the starport.  Destination: Anywhere but here.

Hearing them  come up the ramp, the Twi'lek, Evus met them at the top.

Ne'vets brushed past the Twi'lek, "Evus, everything good order with the ship?"

"I think so.  No new problems."

"Great, prep the ship for take-off. NOW"

As Evus, Sid, and R2-H8(r) paid off docking fees and prepped for departure, Ne'vets went into his cabin and sent a quick message to the Imperial Science Corps, declining the job offer.  

Once Sid anounced the ship was ready, Ne'vets ordered to punch it.  

Duk'k walked over to Latorna's cabin, which she had been sharing with Evus.   Latorna had added little to the Twi'lek's vibe of weapons catalogs, centerfold posters, and blaster maintenance gear.  She left a love letter half-stuck under a pillow and her stuffed bantha toy she slept with.

Evus peeked around the corner to see what Duk'k was looking for, "What happened to Latorna?  Did she go off half-cocked again?"

Duk'k,  "Yes"

Ne'vets: "I'm sorry Evus, but you have the worst taste in women."

Duk'k corrected him, "Second-worst.  Evus, you never dated Rosalyn, right?"

Nev'ets interrupted Evus's answer,  "I don't know, but Rosalyn never tried robbing the bank, while in our company, TWICE!"

Evus  "Let's not talk about the forty-seven lives she took blowing up that Jawa Juice."

Duk'k  "I don't think they all count as the same.  I think Jawa souls count as a quarter of a human soul...  Sipskud's are pretty close to human souls, maybe a little bit more."

With that, Duk'k walked out with the love letter, went to a trash port, and discharged the letter into space.

Once Sid got the ship to the closest jump point, a quick conference was held, and it was decided the best course of action was to travel to Bestine, where their correspondence office was located.  The soon jumped to hyperspace with no delay.  

The trip from Botajef to Bestine was wildly indirect, with multiple drops out of hyperspace, to adjust, recalculate, and jump again.  Dropping out of hyperspace for one of those redirection near the planet Skako, they found themselves in a traffic jame, with fifty other ships hanging around and awaiting meneuvers from a trio of Imperial star destroyers.

Com chatter between the ships described full-out rebellion on world and the stormtroopers needed to be retro-fitted with advanced life support to tolerate the heavy methane atmosphere.   This had delayed the troop transports from leaving the Star Destroyers, thus blocking an essential side trade route.

R2-H8(r) took the initiative and recalculated a roundabout rout to avoid sitting in traffic and dealing with Imperials.

Duk'k was impressed by the droids actions, "Good, eventually, those Imperials would eventually want to search us if we're in a war zone."

Ne'vet's questioned that logic, "Check us for what?  I know this is one inspection I know we can pass."

The side trek only added one more day to the journey, and the Pretio made it to Bestine IV with no other issues.

The Imperial News Network (and Ne'vets mesages) picked up the following chatter:

(1) The third month of the Skako Rebellion is extremely slow but progressing correctly.  Grand Admiral Thrawn's fleet has arrived for technological support given the heavy methane atmosphere.  

Sid: "We dodged a blaster bolt there."

Duk'k: "Nonsense, Thrawn would definitely be into exotic animals."

(2) The planet Efete continues to be used as a Rebellion base, with only limited transportation from spaceliners from the Oberlates Corporation.   Full spaceliner destroyed by Imperials.  All other transportation has been cut off.

(3) Latorna's bounty was officially removed, along with the news from Botajef of a Sal Castus, a long-time security guard at the bank, will be given the Imperial bounty of 15,000 credits 

(4) Everything is typical broker work, licenses, fees, arranging middle-men for delivery.  

(5) Two of Ne'vets' usual contacts for "routine" exotic animals had left the business.   One was not responding and another announced their retirement just days before.  It was funny, that contact had a lucrative hustle, and had at lest 50 more years before considering retirement. 

The crew hung out on-planet for a few days.  With no obligations and no upcoming prospects, the galaxy was their quesadilla.   

Duk'k went to one of the local resorts and spend his time relaxing by a poolside bar. 

Evus restocked his supply of physical copies of Blaster and Powerpacks and old military catalogs, some of if was even Old Republic.  

Ne'vets stayed on board, paying bills, and answering messages in his quarters.  Sid was sitting on a bench awaiting any random orders Ne'vets had for him.

While everyone was off-ship, R2-H8(r) continued to send communiques across the Imperial networks, looking for his owner, Tarrie Prolek.

While everyone else was enjoying their leave, Ne'vets was back in his cabin, paying bills, when his communicator went off.  It was his long-term secretary at the answering service, Justine.

"Hello, Mr Aharo, Client #479A Omicron 6, It's Justine Thyme."

"Hey Justine, You know you don't have to do that every time."

"It's part of the contract, Mr Aharo.  You know you'll miss my sparkling personality when I finally transfer."

Justine continued, "Mr Aharo, did you put a want ad in the local Credit-Saver?   Some guy came in with a physical ad and a very very large gun.  I thought it was a disintegrator.  Maybe it was a spear...  I didn't really like him"

"You don't like many people."

"Be happy I like you, Mr Aharo."

Ne'vets opened up the file on "Sqarl Prugguk, Quarren Hunter, with a history of hunting and killing big game creature.  

Ne'vets was entirely impressed, but he did appreciate the one reference he required: Fruut Pri, Quarren exotic animal dealer and collector.  His personal assistant, "The Hostess"  was possibly even more terrifying.  Ne'vets reached out to Pry to see if the reference was legit.  

Another day or two, the references to Fruut Pry came back resounding favorable impression.   Squarrl had  personally assisted him by collecting the largest Whaladon anyone had captured.  His message was quite long, as he couldn't stop blubbering about his exploits.  

Ne'vets also was able to set up a tentative relationship with the Quarren, handling animal relocations he he could start restocking the oceans.

Ne'vets reached out to Squarl to schedule a formal interview the next day at 1300 hours.

Sqarl Prugguk, Quarren

GM Notes:  Duk'k wanting to relax.  Less Bounty Hunter, More Howard the Duck... with seven eyes.

Next: #88 - Interview with a Quarren

Mandatory AAU Basketball Spring 2023 Rant - Weekend #3

With my birthday last Thursday, and just Maja having a tournament this past weekend, I had come up with the bright idea of taking a relaxing Friday off, with the only thing on my schedule getting over to Maja's track meet at 4:30. 

I'm lucky I was under that delusion, as Maja's team was actually going to their first ever showcase, a huge all-girls event that was even bigger than the normal 30-court Spooky Nook facility.  

Did I mention her first game was 10:20am on FRIDAY and my wife had host of appointments and personal events scheduled for the weekend?  So I woke up an hour earlier than normal, grabbed both kids and headed down to Lancaster.  

With the usual co-ed tournaments, grades 4-11, all 30 of the regular courts at Spooky Nook, plus two additional courts they built, which are regulation but were reserved for the younger kids.  For Maja and Millie, their grades usually had 8-12 teams in pool play Saturday, then Sunday morning, with play-in and championship games after lunch. 

"Live at the Nook" was a showcase event for girls teams, grades 6-11.v Maja's 8th grade division had 80 team alone, divided into multiple pools, and just a guaranteed four games Friday-Sunday, with no championships.  The largest division was "Varsity/11th grade" with 187 teams!  And these were not just your usual Mid-Atlantic team.  A scan of the entries plotted teams as far north as Minnesota and Canada, as far west as Nebraska and Texas and as far south and east as Puerto Rico!

The 8th grade division was set up in 10 pools, and Maja's team was placed in H for their first go at things.  Less likely to pull the powerhouse teams from Minnesota, New York City or Boston, their first game was a national touring team a few miles down the road in Harrisburg.  The program is known for multiple teams in the regular tournaments, teams that are average at best.  

We feared a single team in the tournament, under their "UA" designation would mean a challenging travel team, but after the usual slow start, they ground out a 9-point win, 44-35.  

The second game was against a team in Maryland that was known to upset a few quality programs last spring.  They jumped out early, the bench poured a few more points on, and they finished the day winning 50-28.

Done by lunch, and with no games until 4pm Saturday, we went home and chilled.  

Saturday, I picked Millie up from practice early (6th grade plays next week, so practice it is) grabbed Maja at the house, and got down to Franklin & Marshall, one of the auxiliary sites for the tournaments.  Spooky Nook not only used the "kid's" gyms for "real" play, but they added two courts in their banquet area for courts 33 & 34, plus used two courts at Franklin & Marshall and two more courts at Millersville University to fulfill demand.

After playing a tight game for the first five minutes against a team from Syracause, Maja's crew went on a 13-0 run and never looked back, winning 51-35. 

Sunday, we had a 3pm game, which meant a bite to eat, and a little meandering to get to Millersville's campus.  On the way, we did some in-car role-playing with characters they made for the Character Creation Challenge (Days 9 and 14), but using TWERPS for resolution.  It was far easier to roll a d10 in a Chessex dice container than to lose dice under the seats.  The game ended as we pulled into the gym parking lot, with some fun complications for the future.

Sunday's game was against the Mid-Atlantic Heat out of South Jersey.  They were 15-4 last year according to my power rankings, but with zero quality wins and two quality losses, and two losses against mediocre teams.

But they certainly played with fire.  Shooting 2 for 14 to start the game, the Heat went up 13-5.  At that point, the girls kicked it into high gear (the bench no less!), hit a 10-point run, and was leading 20-15 at halftime.   The second half continued more of the same, as they won 45-31.

We entered the weekend with zero expectations.  Expecting a higher level of quality from the teams, zero wins with a high level of playing was not out of the realm of possibility.  Referencing my handy-dandy power index, Maja's team was ranked #12 with three or more tournaments (Out of 100).  The Harrisburg team was #92, Syracuse #66, Maryland #28, and the Heat, even with their record, was #26.  The organization should have requested a higher bracket, and when they go to one next month in Atlantic City, I anticipate they won't be going 4-0.  

My wife has been griping about playing time with Maja.  She's definitely been part of the B team and sometimes sits longer than we're accustomed to.  Unfortunately, I don't support the griping because (a) her AAU coach is her Freshmen team coach, who started her almost every game this winter and (b) her stats are light years above her AAU stats from last spring... when both of us had the same issue.   

Team has played 47% of the games they played last year, and Maja has already exceeded her point totals from last year.   More points than last year, she's shooting 54% vs 15% last year, her turnovers are way down, and every stat save steals and blocks would be vastly improved if her level of play simply continues through the season.

Millie's got a tournament in Scranton next weekend (Maja may have a high-ranked scrimmage at the same site, more to come.)  Both revisit Spooky Nook May 6-7, get a weekend off, then we're gambling on another one of these showcases for both girls May 19-21 in Atlantic City. 

School Update:  Thursday night, the new Varsity coach was announced, causing only a minor clamor.  She's an assistant coach with the Wilkes-Barre high school, and if I've done my research, she's been made interim head coach of the girls varsity program three times as the head coaches have bailed.  In all three instances, she took over the reins and had winning seasons, only to be overlooked in the hiring process.  Hopefully she keeps that chip on her shoulder, but also keeps the junior high coach, the only one that remains with the program.  

Arby's Dice

In a world where Wendy's released their own role-playing game, is it a surprise that Arby's sells their own polyhedral dice.

If you are on the Arby's Swag site and can catch them coming into inventory, you can obtain up to two sets of  Arby's Dice for $12.00 each.

I actually have the item restock as an alert, but of course it came up as we were driving to a tournament.  

I Was Alive When This Map Was Published

What a drag it is getting old.  

Sure I was only one when this map appeared in Kamandi #32, but we are in a world where the kids who graduating high school were born after the Star Wars Prequel Trilogy!  (Not a Star Wars fan?  How about there are kids driving this year who were born after the last Harry Potter book...)

I've had this map saved for my Savage Rifts game that never transpired.  With the Gamma World crew never leaving more than 100 miles from their home base, I doubt I need to pull this out for  any post-apocalyptic hijinks.  

46 was rough, 47 wasn't too great either, 48 downright sucked.  Here's hoping 49 gets me smarter and wiser (and just a hair thinner, but no thinning hair).

If you do want to get me anything for this revolution around the sun, if you're an HMGS, your consideration to vote for me for HMGS Board of Directors would be appreciated.

VOTE FOR ERIC JACOBSON FOR HMGS BOARD OF DIRECTORS

So I did a thing....

After some discussions at Cold War last month, apparently I got nominated for, and I agreed, for my name to be placed on the ballot for the HMGS Board of Directors.  

If you're an HMGS member, you should have received an electronic ballot in your e-mail over the weekend.  If you're interested in having a board member who doesn't hastily liquidate the organization's surplas, rather find the proper ways to invest in meeting our mission as an organization for long-term benefits, I'm your guy.   

I also don't want to completely scrap the current convention set-up for financing multiple regional cons.  We also haven't had a non-COVID influenced Cold Wars since 2019, and that was the midst of Host/Wyndham construction.  A proper financial breakdown in front of me would decide on lowering costs/increasing promotion, or, as a last result, the diversification of the con to multiple sites to accommodate high membership areas.... all without losing money hand over fist.  

(Kickstarter) Holiday Action Double Feature by John McGuire

John McGuire has launched a Holiday Action Double Feature Kickstarter for two more for his 3,2,1.. Action! RPG,  

In Hard Times on the Back 9, the characters embark on a zany and wild journey into the realm of madcap miniature gold.  Printed as an 8.5 x 5.5 inch B&W zine.

In Kevin Saves Christmas, we accompany Kevin the Amphikura, everyone's beloved mutated fish-person, as he enlists the help of history's most renowned "heroes" to rescue the island of Point Nemo and Christmas from the dread Krampus.  Also printed as an 8.5 x 5.5 inch B&W zine.

PDFs are available for both games. 

(Star Wars d6) #86 - Back to Bad Practices

 The Crew of the Pretio in This Week's Episode 

Ne'vets Aharo - an exotic animal broker, both legal and otherwise, majority owner in the Pretio.

Duk'k - Sipsk'ud Bounty Hunter, recently rescued by the crew. Offering his services in order to get off this barely existing hunk of mud. His warning shots are dead center mass kill shots.

"Sid" - A peculiar woman who has shown to be a better pilot than the previous one. Possible Imperial ties, but a far better shot.

 
Latorna Savvn - Rebellion pilot and saboteur, trying to lay low from the Empire after a series and destructive attacks.

Evus - Twi'lek male, former slave, then former associate of Ne'vets, who has found his way back to the Pretio but caught back up in the nonsense of the Pretio

More Travel By Galactic Map

Tatoonie, New Cov, Naboo

Just a short list of places the crew of the Pretio

Have travelled in search of leads to

an elusive, but profitable opportunity

Working with the Empire.

But now, the crew has reached 

Their final destination - the planet Botajef, 

With one of the planet's most hated

Criminals on board....

"We're going back to Botajef."

With those words, Ne'vets Aharo froze, his mind racing as Duk'k asked an appropriate follow-up question, "What's wrong with Botajef?"

"Really not much, we helped out an Imperial customs house against criminals, we ran into Tarrie's long-lost cousin, Latorna, and then she proceeded to blow up a bank and a Jawa Juice.  Only easy thing we did on the planet was buy the Pretio...."  Ne'vets scanned his crew, and once realizing that Evus was sulking in his room,  "Heck, Sid, Duk'k, even the droids weren't with us back then."

"For starters, I didn't know where we were headed when we started searching out this job opportunity.  I just thought if we were, or were harboring fugitives from the Empire, working for the Empire was well under their radar."

Duk'k concurred, "Hiding in plain sight. Smart."

"Right.  Latorna, we can drop you off if you want, but we're probably going to be security for the science planet, so I'm assuming the don't rubber stamp these jobs."

"That's fine, we don't need to do that," Latorna countered, running her finger on the astrogation charts.  "If we stop on Karivia, I get pick up new documents, maybe a good wig, and I'll be Marie Prolek, at your service. Just give me a day."

Once they landed on Karivia, Latorna was the only one to disembark.  She didn't bring a com as well. 

She didn't come back after a day.  On the morning of the second day, the crew did Rock/Datapad/Blaster to determine if they were leaving her on planet.  Blaster won.

Ne'vets scoured the newsfeeds, waiting for the first report of some explosion, or robbery, or a robbery of an explosives plant.  Fortunately the news on planet was relatively calm, but on the Imperial News Networks, Latorna's life was getting complicated.  Not for the worse or for the better, just.. complicated.

It was reported that Investigators for the Imperial Shipyard explosion announced that the cause of the explosions was now being  ruled accidental.  A corporate contractor failed to properly install energy reservoirs, which, when they were breached, caused catastrophic damage.  

Ne'vets ask Duk'k to check on Latorna's bounty, and lo' and behold, half her offenses were scrubbed from the bounty description, and the total bounty dropped from 75K to 15K.

By dinner time on day two, Latorna finally returned to the ship, extremely annoyed, but holding a long blonde wig. "We're good... just.... go, please."

Ne'vets sent Sid to the cockpit, and slyly lowered the volume on the news feed. 

Arriving on Botajef, Ne'vets, Duk'k, Sid, and "Marie" disembarked to find the Ministry of Science office. 

The satellite office of the Science Corps was built atop the ruins of the destroyed Jawa Juice.  .Five stories, with stark construction.  "IMPERIAL MINISTRY OF SCIENCE - BOTAJEF SATELLITE OFFICE" across the top, it stuck out like a sore thumb on a busy commercial street.

Ne'vets adjusted his clothing, "Anyone want to come in with me?"  Having and alleged imperial soldier and a rebel terrorist in attendance, he was really directing the question to Duk'k.  

"I'll make a go of it.  Latorna, stay with Sid." and they went inside.  

Sid was sitting compactly on a bench.  Latorna looked around.  Botajef Inter-galactic Bank was still across the street.  The ATMs had been replaced and upgraded.  She had at least twenty minutes to check up whatever security upgrades were made...

Botajef Inter-galactic Bank

Meanwhile, Ne'vets and Duk'k arranged an impromptu face-to-face of Captain Galleh Atar.  It took a long time to narrow the conversation down to the research facility on Myrkr. Like previous conversations, the situation was high on pay and low on details.  Vague details about long-standing tree research, even vaguer details on staff turnover.  More security was maintained by a private merchant and his teams.  

"There's not even a mission statement on this one, it's a bit surprising," Captain Atar said.  She did offer to forward the necessary data to the mission director and security company.  

"I'll try to reach out to them now and see if we can pull more detailed specs for me.  In the meantime, there's a personal beverage dispenser by the front window.  You're welcome to use it."

Ne'vets took the Captain up on her offer, and stared out on the busy street below as his personal beverage brewed.  He saw Sid still sitting on the bench.  Latorna was nowhere to be seen.

Latorna had already made it across the street, past the ATMS, and had entered the bank.  She scanned the main lobby: one security guard, a Byzantine array of stanchions and ropes for the three whole customers to navigate before speaking with the three working tellers.  Right beside the tellers was a wide open vault. 

Latorna slid over to the end of the tellers and nonchalantly scanned to contents of the vault.

Captain Atar had difficulty contacting the facility, but simply offered the jobs to Ne'vets and his crew, largely sight unseen.  The only requirements were each crew member applying in person.   Ne'vets hemmed and hawed, but Atar stood firm, "Less than two years again, the area where this building now stands was a Jawa Juice.  Rebel saboteurs blew everything up to distract a bank robbery across the street.  We're trying to prevent these things from happening again on all planets across the Empire."

"Can I bring them around tomorrow?"

"That would be great, we can get a code cylinder with everything you need for tomorrow."

With that, Ne'vets and Duk'k departed and found Sid outside, still sitting on her bench.

Back inside the bank, Latorna hopped over a short gate and found herself inside the vault.

She began stacking trays of established credit sticks into multiple camtonos.  As she hopped back over gate and headed towards the door, the security suddenly woke up from his apparent.  

"Hey, you didn't go through the line!  Where did you come from?  Why are you carrying those?"

Latorna fired a hastily held blaster into air....

Across the street, Sid was catching the duo up.

"Mister Duk'k.  Latorna... now known as Marie, walked over to the bank.  I stayed here."

Ne'vets peered across the street.  No one was entering or leaving the bank, but he could see a woman with long blonde hair run directly into the inside door, attempting to leaving.    A terrible crash could be heard from within the building, followed by the implosion of the large glass skylights dotting the bank.

"Oh my" was all Sid could muster.

Ne'vets grabbed Duk'k and Sid by the arms and started walking down the street.  A block further and Ne'vets taking his com and making an open channel to call the Ministry of Science.

"Captain Atar's messages please...... 'Hello Captain Atar, Ne'vets Aharo.  I've talked it over with my crew and we're going to decline that opportunity. Thanks again for the consideration!"

Next: #87 - Want Ads in the Credit-Saver

Mandatory AAU Basketball Spring 2023 Rant - Weekend #2

With a week off, then another one gone for Easter, it was finally tournament weekend for both Maja and Millie.

The teams have had a good run at the Zero Gravity Coaches Versus Cancer events at Spooky Nook.  Allegedly all the girls teams from 6th grade to Varsity (12u to 17u) got the top pools to play in.  I'm still unsure about the last part of the statement, but I'm certain the girls brough their A-game.

Millie:  The sixth grade girls' biggest weakness was the lack of a true big.  They managed to beat teams with multiple girls over 5'10", but week after week of that is going to cause some mental and physical wear and tear.   

Enter Giavanna.  

Gia is a 6'1" center who actually played against them in the last tournament.  The parents were so impressed with our program (and disillusioned with the other one), that they jumped ship and Gia got to play with the girls.   She's not a #1 draft pick yet, rather a consistent player, with a good skill set and a basketball IQ that keeps her out of trouble.  She came off the bench each game and relieved the undersized starters, and allowed a breather for all the girls.  

Despite being outsized in every game (save Gia), the team had wins of 44-8, 44-19, and 42-19.  The championship game was a rematch, and they hit the 20-point mercy rule in the first half and cruised, 35-11.

Millie took a lot more shots than this time last year, tussled with all the big girls, and initiated a bunch of drawn plays.  She also put a girl in an ankle lock during a jump ball scrum on the floor, and nearly made her submit.  

Maja:  Maja's team had a few drop-outs, plus a few younger additions.  With the disentrigration of the 7th grade team, 8th grade inherited their dominant 6'2" center, Odessa, plus Ashlyn, one of the girls from the ill-fated 7B team from last year.  Grabbing another girl, Mariah, from the dreaded Hazleton team, and Maja is relegated back to coming off the bench.  And given her play on Saturday, it was completely understandable.   

With her Freshmen coach as her AAU coach, Chuck does not like to run up scores, so after dominating each team, he subbed in all the girls on the bench, and ultimately then other came within six or eight, forcing the starters to come in again.  I could be worried, but being the stat-dad on the team, I referenced last years four games for the first tournament of 2022.  While her steals, rebounds, and blocks are down, her assists are through the roof, she went from shooting 8% to 67%.  

Although there was a chance for zero mercy against one team of troublemakers if they made it through the play-in games, the girls kept dominance, controlled the tempo, and went 4-0 on the weekend.

I'm currently awaiting the lunar/solar eclipse or end of the world, because both girls NEVER win championships together on the same weekend.

What RPGs Do Classified Document Leakers Play?

One of the most recent news stories has being the leak of certain classified documents pertaining to the Ukraine War and a host of other items that were uploaded to a Discord server and circulated around the world.  Yesterday, a Massachusetts Air National Guardsman was arrested in connection to the leak.

Outside of the young men having essentially the modernized version of a job in the Air Force that I had in the 90s in the Army, and some cool possibilities of how he got the documents in the first place (read the AP article linked above), the uploaded items that interest me aren't the classified intel, rather it was a pile of Minecraft stuff attached to the folder, and one lone picture of an RPG character sheet. 

An article by Vice details the character and uses an author with credits involving the post-modern World of Darkness, Kult, and Exalted to attempt to figure out what game he was trying to play. The author  jumped to the same conclusions as most gamers:  Spot Hidden and Library simply scream Call of Cthulhu.  Except that the character attributes are all mid-single digits, which even in pre-7th edition CoC would make one of the feeblest characters in the history of the game.  Plus only 100 points were distributed (unsure how that was calculated), making the skills levels basic at best.   This guy might die taking the telegram from Jackson Elias, much less taking part in Masks of Nylarathotep, cool sword cane and everything. 

Dr Izmer Trotzky 

The last tell-tale flaw was the attribute "Faith."  I'm getting rusty from my gaming guru days, but I'm unsure how many RPGs have a Faith stat.  Heck, In Nomine and Kult don't have a faith stat, and after after rattling my brain for a day, the closest system that matches most of the stats is the much maligned and somewhat confusing Fantasy Wargaming, and even then, it's nowhere near a bingo.

The Gaming with the Gnomies' "Crack Investigative Team... and Monday Night Online Gamma World Campaign Group"  reached out to others in the hobby for help and could only ascertain by the Cyrillic handwriting in the upper-left, that Russian was not the person's primary language. 

I'm still racking my brain trying to figure this sheet out, especially the Throw = STR + DEX.  I've seen that calculation before as well, and it's origin escapes.  

Dr Izmer Trotzky, Professor Scientist, remains an elusive figure.

Twenty Questions About My Campaign - Going Forward and Looking Back

While doing the boring-for-everyone-but-me mid-year blog maintenance, I came upon a fun questionnaire I've done in the past:  Twenty Questions.

The original I did was actually My Twenty Answers, more of a "Get to know the blog author." series, but further delving into internet, I did discover "Twenty Questions About My Campaign."  I've adapted it for my Call of Cthulhu, and Fantasy campaigns, and I swear I did a Star Wars version, but all of those were quite some time ago.  In fact, that was as well before I finished my 249-episode Actual Plays over multiple campaigns in the world.  

While my original idea was to write up a Twenty Questions for my current Gamma World campaign, I'll probably post that in September, closer to when my Star Wars d6 posts end and that campaign starts. 

In the meantime, I'm adding some revised versions of my Twenty Questions for each of my existing campaign, not only for posterity, but because every single one is still open-ended.  Look for them in the upcoming weeks!

Twenty Questions - Gulluvia

Twenty Questions - Call of Cthulhu

Twenty Questions - World of Georic

Until then, here's a picture and link for American Barbarian.  Nothing in the Gamma World campaign is base off of these comic, but I guarantee you the second storyline will have some influences.

(GNOME WARS) Captain Banali and the Plot to Assassinate Famed Golfer, Robert McHope

With most of the Easter gifts, festivities, and game conducted last week, I would have been remiss if I didn't take advantage of some extra time to run a game.  

Famed golfer and entertainer, Robert McHope, has visited troops on every side of conflicts,  travelled the globe, and sometimes interfered with skirmishes too close to his hotel room.  Most armies will tolerate his antics, but they draw the line when he kidnaps their medics.

Especially when the medic is Swiss nobility.  

Swiss nobility wields little power, save a penchant to lead troops into battle.  For Princess Charlotte Lea of House Gahariet, the closest thing to military service allowed was becoming a bier nurse in the Medical Corps.  There, she met McHope, became smitten with the older gnome, and ran off with him.   

This has not been agreeable to either the Swiss Army or the House of Gahariet, and a way to return her to her rightful duties has been designed. 

To avoid a full-blown incident, the Swiss have requested help from Captain Banali and his 25th Sikh Regiment.  They had an oddly well-documented history of off-the-books actions... largely after they were successful.  

Captain Banali decided an early morning operation at one of his estates, La Crotte de Nez, would be the most successful.  McHope employed a unit of ex-British Marines as mercenaries (good on land and on his yachts), as well as always kept Yuri, a large Russian gnome, as his side at all times.

(l to r) Robert McHope, Princess Charlotte Lea, and Yuri, all enjoying the sunrise as La Crotte de Nez.

Captain Banali and the 25th Sikhs

Objective:  Capture Princess Charlotte Lea or rout/kill all British mercs.  Killing Robert McHope would be acceptable collateral damage... or not. 

Deployment:  Far side of the bridge, marching in two columns along each side of the road.  One Sikh has infiltrated the estate, and just set off an explosion, blowing off the manor building's main doors.

Special Rule:  Volley Fire - if six or more Sikhs are line up side-by-side, they may volley fire, giving a +1 bonus to firing. 

Special Rule:  Hand to Hand.  Sikhs gain an additional +1 in hand to hand combat.

Special Rule:   Morale - Unlike traditional Sikh units, Captain Banali's men do not fight to the last man.  Normal morale/recovery rules apply in this scenario.

Captain Banali and the 25th Sikhs

The "Garrison" of Crotte de Nez

Objective: Protect Robert McHope and the Princess at all costs.

Objective: Robert and the Princess need to ultimately leave the estate, either over the bridge, or the opposite way across the river.  Crossing the river takes two turns on each turn, a figure will roll 1d6 (1-5 continue as normal.  6 figure succumbs to icy waters.)  Robert will not leave without the princess, if she is alive.

Deployment:  When the doors explode, four mercs inside survived and will be on the first floor.  Four mercs are at an guard encampment near the bridge. McHope and the princess are on the back balcony

Special Rule:  McHope will make ranged attacks with his golf balls and clubs.  Range is 24" and all cover is ignored.

Special Rule: Berserk Love - If McHope is removed from the table, Princess Charlotte Lea goes into a berserk range, attacking anyone in her way to get off the board.  All her hand-to-hand rolls are adding +2.

Special Rule: Yuri the Bodyguard - Currently ordered to protect the Princess, McHope's full-time body guard will protect him only when it does not interfere with his current mission... or if the princess is off the table.

McHope and his mercenaries...

Turn one:  An explosion rocks the front doors of La Crotte de Nez.   

The Sikhs charge over the bridge at full speed to find... nothing, then *BLAM BLAM BLAM BLAM*

British mercs pop out of the woods and are incredibly accurate, pinning most of the Sikhs at the near side of the bridge, wounding one. 

The mercs awoken by the blast pour out of the building and find cover. None notice the lone Sikh hiding around the corner, who sneaks into the manor and climbs the stairs.

Turn Two: The Sikhs from the rear move up to allow the pinned to regroup.  British mercs take no wounded, but two appear to be ill-prepared and out of ammo.  

Turn Three:  The Sikh in the manor is unsure what to do, but alerts Yuri, who comes inside, levels his blunderbuss, and realizes he never loaded the weapon as part of his pre-dawn prep work.   It takes two shots, but the Sikh drops the Russian.

The Sikhs and mercs near the bridge continue to fire wildly at each other.  The pinned Sikhs from the first round are still unable to recover and crawl to any sort of cover.  British without ammo drop back to cover to reload.

Turn Four:  The Sikh in the manor comes out onto the balcony and attack McHope.  The golfer parries the bayonet charge with a 3 Wood, wallops him upside the head, and dumps the body over the balcony.

The British gunfire has pinned a considerable number of Sikhs, whom all seem to be unable to recover, but a few hearty one press forward.  A few shots actually pin some of the mercs hiding in the trees, closer to the manor.  

Orange tokens are pinned Sikhs.  Dice is wounds. 

Turn Five/Six:  Some of the long-time pinned Sikhs decide enough is enough and run off the battelfield.  One lone British merc remaining in the guard position engages in hand to hand with the Sikhs.  The fighting was brutal, with him falling over the stone wall onto his back.  His Sikh combatant stood over top him, to finish him with a bayonet, the merc pushed the rifle out of the way and stabbed the Sikh in a key spot in the thigh with a knife, sending him to the ground.  For the merc, there was little time to recover, as Captain Banali walked over and placed two shots in the middle of his forehead.  

Turn Seven/Eight:  McHope finally got involved in  the defense of his estate, first firing golf balls from ground level, then, after running out of "ammo"  running back upstairs and hitting balls out of the second story windows.  

A few more Sikhs fled, and one was actually killed.  The remaining Sikhs tried to flank the hiding/reloading British, with some success. 

Turn Nine/Ten:  In the face of heavy causalities and not enough manpower to enter the manor, Captain Banali ordered his remaining men to fall back.    McHope and the Princess emerged from the manor to properly flee over the bridge, with the three surviving mercs.  Unfortunately the mercs were not very cautious of the Sikh casulaties littering the path.  After they passed a pile of bodies, two popped up and took swipes at McHope and his love, wounding the princess in the process.  Both Sikhs were ruthlessly put down and the group continued their escape to a safer destination.. with proper medical care. 

I used a mixture of Gnome Wars and Fistful of Lead for the rules.   What I thought was going to be slaughter of the Sikhs turned into an equal slaughter.  The British were able to pin the Sikhs, and those early pinned Sikhs were worthless for most of the game, but the second wave kept recovering and taking advantage of shots that actually wounded the Brits.  Wounds and running out of ammo forced them to fall back to safer positions.  

This scenario was part of the Orcs in the Webbe series, meant more for Flintloque and Slaughterloo Napoleonic action.  I also saw this scenario under M C Monkey-Dew's Miniatures Games: General Banal and the Plot to Assassinate d'Elrond.

Whether they're damsels, medics, or mighty warriors, we definitely need more female gnomes in the line.