(Kickstarter) Aces and Eights Reloaded by Kenzer & Company

Ten years after it first came out, Kenzer & Company are releasing a 2nd Edition of their Western game Aces & Eights, by launching Aces & Eights: Reloaded on Kickstarter.

Aces & Eights had an innovative dice and card shot clock system for gunfire, and that's certainly staying.    It's the classless system that allows players focus on everything that happens in between gunfights that's a winner.

There's numerous pledge levels with lots of different aids and such available, but it boils down to following print options (S&H not included)

• The Showdown Miniatures Rules ($25)
• Aces and Eights Reloaded Softcover ($50)
• Aces and Eights Reloaded Embossed Leather Hardcover ($70)
•  Aces and Eights Limited Edition Leatherbound Hardcover, autographed and numbered ($100)

Kenzerco Holiday Blowout!

The Kenzer & Co website (http://www.kenzerco.com/) is all aflutter with their holiday blowout sale. Almost all print items are 50% off now through New Year's Eve!!!

There are a couple exceptions in their online store, like their most recent releases, and of course, pdfs. The $60 Aces and Eights book isn't covered either, but that's worth the retail price.

While the bonanza of savings is making me step back and think about it, I really can't take advantage of it. The Aces and Eights supplements and adventures are downright cheap and I could take advantage of picking up Dead Gawd's Hand and Isle of Death for Hackmaster, but in these tight times, can I justify spending money on stuff I might use in 2011?

For those of you wondering, I'm finally ordering Masks of Nyarlathotep and the Reaper Mouselings this week. Christmas was good and this will probably be my last purchase for awhile. Hell, it's been awhile since I last purchased anything!

My "Campaign" To - Do List

Another top ten list, true muchachos! This time, the games I really want to run, but not time or player base currently to do so. If something catches you eye, drop me a line, or even use that "comment" function on the blog.

10 (tie) Mouse Guard and Aces & Eights (working on both)

9 - Recon – West Africa - I ran a game or two using this setting way back in my NCC days, and I'd love an early 80's mercenary game.

8 - Talislanta – A full campaign, using any edition. Just once.

7- TWERPS – Napalm Death! Flying Gary, The Kerminator, The Holy Rolled-Up Newspaper of God (Wednesday Edition), and the Gnomish Space Marines!

6 -Rifts – Yeah, laugh all you want about the system, play imbalance, etc. Rifts is fucking cool. The best way to run it would be a two tier game with munchkin characters (Glitter Boys) on one storyline and the “normals” (Rogue Scholars, normal people with low/no –mdc weapons.) risking their lives just as much, but working "behind the scenes." The uber-munchkin occ/rccs would be reserved for NPCs and story development. Yeah, that right, I said real story development in Rifts. Expecting my C&D letter from Palladium any moment now.

5- Mordheim – Full campaign mode, quarterly “big” games, restricted economy for specials,

4- Call of Cthulhu – The Knox Mine Disaster - If I can turn Sullivan’s March into a Mythos mission, I can claim cultists (or GOOs) caused the most famous NEPA mining disaster… or might the pcs be the ones who need to initiate it? hmmmm.....

3 - Call of Cthulhu – Escape from Innsmouth/The Raid … It may come up one day, but the current game is only in 1923. We just moved it to New York last session, so a certain “look” may
be observed on the docks.

2 - D&D Variant – “Home” Polynesian campaign that mixes Basic D&D, Hackmaster, and BRP systems.

1 – Hackmaster 4e - “Trogs Revenge” The Burning Trogs meet up one more time to finally vanquish the Slavers of Roark who slaughtered their brethren and nearly wiped out the adventuring company. Short version – The PCs wade through the slavers series like religious warriors would decimate an infidel orphanage. I would expect no mercy, and by the time the slavers caught wind of this, as GM, I would offer none. If the group was still game, I might interest the Judge’s Guild Fortress of Badabaskor, with a few more tweaks.

Retirement?

I've been working to get the group together for this Sunday for a little Gnome Wars, a little Cthulhu, and some Aces & Eights character creation. Throw in a couple pizzas and some wings and we're going to have a groovy time. I got email confirmation from two of my primary guys, and gave a call to the third for confirmation. The second of the emails made my heart fall straight to the ground.

In addition to confirming, Nate talked about the future aspirations of Dr. Nathaniel Millheim, noted parapsychologist. Dr. Millheim has been the nucleus of the group and the main reason any of these guys are investigating things man was not meant to know. A while back, I asked the group what their characters wanted to do. Steve and Brian sent their's back pretty quick and both ideas could be worked into the game.

Nate, however, stated that Dr. Millheim shoud, "continue his research, write a book or two, and retire. I can start up a new character."

You can see my initial dilemma. To top that off, I was planning one last stand-alone scenario this weekend, then a significant change to the campaign's direction. I won't mention specifics, but there's a full bookshelf of Chaosium books at my disposal and I'm not afraid to use the big campaign books. Despite Nichol's insanity (in-game, he's a goner in real life), the group had developed a decent background of experience and wealth of contacts to start delving into more than a rogue Dimensional Shambler or "Haunted House." Their foray into a Cult of Cthugha and the KKK confirmed it for me. My choices would weave a few unrelated sessions between the "beastly" conspiracies of the world and something "fishy" up in Massachusetts. It would take years, but everyone knowing my twisted lust for continuity, I would love to see one of Smitty's quotes possibly ring true.

*sigh* Now I'll need a sit-down session with the group first. Here's hoping an agreement can be reached.

Planning for 2010...

During the lulls of the day, I've been trying to figure out what we'll be doing gaming-wise. The fall is a tough gaming season: between the Thanksgiving and Christmas seasons it's rare to find enough people to game (outside of Drunken Diplomacy at SATLOF *fingers crossed*).

Here's a temporary plan for 2010:

Winter 2010: Finish up the Wishing Well War campaign for Gnome Wars and start up the League of Gnomes play-by-email Diplomacy Game.

Spring 2010: Some Gnome Wars scenarios created from the League of Gnomes. Call of Cthulhu: PA Coal Country, perhaps some Hackmaster.

Summer 2010: The "big" game: Scorpion Gulch should roll out in time for more gamers. It's a four-part western mini-campaign uses Aces & Eights. Should be a hoot!

Fall 2010: More coal country Cthulhu. If the chips fall right with the League of Gnomes, I could start the Ostburg campaign in Gnome Wars.