WIP Shelf: 5/29/2017

I want to start to keep track of my painting work in progress shelf. As of now it is pretty full with different projects. Time to cut down!

Khorgorath (AOS): The first piece for my Khorne army from the AOS starter box. I am hoping to finish him soon as most of the time consuming work is finished. I think he may be one of my best models yet!

Bloodstoker (AOS): The second piece for the first senior in the starter set. I hope to start him in earnest in the next couple of weeks.

Two Water Towers: These two pieces are mostly put together. I need to green stuff some gaps and then prime them. They are from Warsen.al.

Prosecutors x2 (AOS): These two will be next after the Khorgorath. So far I only have the gold base coat on them.

Lord Chompy Bits (Malifuax): Sitting sadly with his blue base coat...

Mean Jelly Bean (Dark Age): I really need to work on him sometime soon. I will most likely be playing Brood if the game is played at PAX Unplugged. His skin is done with weapon and attachments left.

Bad Juju (Malifuax): No big rush.

Silurid x3 (Malifuax): To go with Bad Juju, but with Zoraida not even put together there is no real rush.

Four more gremlins (Malifuax): I managed to knock one out last week. Most of the painting on these models are done. Just need to do highlights on them. This was part of my finish another crew challange.

As you can see I have allot to do! What are your current works?

Cheers

Happy Memorial Day

Happy Memorial Day! Remember that days home like this are the perfect time to share our hobby and our love with our family!

Initial Thoughts: The Lost Lands: Stoneheart Valley

I am four sessions into my first Lost Lands campaign using the Swords and Wizardry Complete rules.Despite a few learning pains, I am enjoying it! The rules are lightweight which allows flexibility during play, though there are a few instances I needed more defined rules. We originally started with three players but now rocking a full party of five.

The campaign is set in Frog God Games’ Lost Lands setting. I pitched this setting as a midway point between the decline of magic such as Tolkien and the high fantasy of Forgotten Realms. The setting intrigued me and with the prospect of a new game group I bought The Lost Lands: Stoneheart Valley based on suggestions as a great induction to both the ruleset and setting. In later posts, I’ll post my thoughts on actual play experiences. But for now I wanted to share my thoughts based on initial read through of the whole book. Note this is based on the PDF.

The book breaks down into four main sections. The three are previously published adventures updated to conform to FFG’s new setting. They are The Wizard’s Amulet, The Crucible of Freya, and The Tomb of Abysthor. The Wizard’s Amulet is very linear but intentionally. It is designed as an introduction for both players as well as GMs. There is a monster encounter that even experienced GMs will find useful. The Crucible of Freya presents a followup adventure but is not as linear and can be played with more flexibility.This adventure also includes a small town that can be used as a starting hub for adventures. It includes NPCs, a few locations, and a number of hooks intended to entice the party to stay a bit and explore the countryside. This alone should offer at least a handful of gaming nights.

The Tomb of Abysthor is a dungeon location near the city of Bard’s Gate. There is plenty here for multiple nights of exploration. Be warned, this is where the challenge level gets particularly nasty and I suggest warning new players that blindly exploring the dungeon level by level is ill advised. There are a number of new items and spells found in the dungeon with associated new rules located in the final section.

The quantity of artwork in the book seems a bit light, though much that does exist is phenomenal. There are a number of instances where the artwork presents an opportunity help create the scene. A number of times, I snipped the picture out and used it for this purpose. The other big standout are the maps which are easy to read and more importantly include both keyed and unkeyed. This is great if you're using the maps on a virtual table or for actual handouts. The only negative with the maps is the lack of a real regional map, a downfall if you're using this book to introduce your players to the Lost Lands.

Overall, the book is a compelling read. Full of usable material even if the learn to crawl before you walk approach the book takes is a turnoff. Both the town of Fairhill and the Tomb of Abysthor offers plenty of adventure hooks to keep parties entertained for weeks. And it is wrapped up in an affordable package. My only complaint is that I wish there was a small gazetteer of the Lost Lands included. As the book aims more at new players, I think not including an overview of the world and some of its nuances is a missed opportunity. However, I still recommend GMs grabbing a copy of this book for their collections.

Stay tuned throughout the year as I plan on posting thoughts on each section as I play through them with my play group.

Cheers.

PS, all purchases using OBS affiliate links drops a few cents in my account to help with purchasing items that I plan on running and writing about. If you wish to avoid this but plan on purchasing the above products, simply visit drivethrurpgDOTcom and type the game in the search menu. Cheers!

Kickstarter Interests: 4/9/2017

This is a follow up to some Kickstarters that I am currently watching. If only I could buy them all! Alas, time and money is always the issue.


Clash of Steel: A Tactical Card Game of Medieval Duels

You stand across the bloodied mud of the battlefield. Your mortal enemy is just out of range, seething with lethal intent. Only one of you will walk away; only one will be victorious. Choose your weapons, test your mettle, and cross steel with your foe in a duel to the death.

Clash of Steel is a tactical two-player card game of medieval duels. Every element of play is designed to explore the nuanced and complex decision-making of crossing blades, from choosing your stance to selecting your target.

A two player card game that can be played in 15 min. There appears to be a lot of strategy and reading your opponent involved. The size of the game is designed to be able to be thrown into your bag and go. Only $12 plus $4-6 shipping. I just had to back this.

The Goon for Savage Worlds

The Goon™ Roleplaying Game is based on the multiple Eisner Award-winning comic, The Goon™, by Eric Powell.

Feast them peepers on a samplin' of what we got lined up for ya in this 192-page extravaganza:
A guide to the Town's mean streets and deadly secrets
New Edges and Hindrances so your character can toughen up and be like Goon
Setting Rules to help you bring the comedy and tragedy of Goon and Franky's pulp-noir world to life
An adventure generator full of ideas to help build your own Goon™ stories
An unholy pack of shock-inducing Grievous Yarns (Savage Tales)
All the most infamous tough guys, lugs, dames, and evil, icky things from the comic's entire run—with Savage Worlds game statistics
And an original Plot Point Campaign...one that sees the return of a few of Goon and Franky's oldest and hillbilly-est enemies!

It's printed in a whopping 192 pages of graphic novel format and available in Limited Edition hardcover, so lemme tell ya, bub—this is one game you won't wanna miss!

This game ain't about heroes, per se. More like antiheroes. Join the Goon's crime syndicate—or play as Goon, Franky, and the rest of their crew—and fight off the rival gangs what's encroachin' on your turf, while you collect on Goon's debts and whatnot. You might also succeed at fighting off the tide of bleak suffering that's set to consume yer soul. Then again you might not!

But while you're contemplatin' the psychology and so forth, make sure to watch out for Zombie Priest and his legions of groanin', brain-chomping zombies; they're a constant hassle. If that ain't bad enough, there's crazed-yet-brilliant Dr. Hieronymus Alloy and his robots goin' on a rampage every other week. You also want to keep a lookout for swarms of chug-heads...what they call "changelings." Yeah. They're nasty little buggers.

Believe me, pal, we ain't even got to the worst of it yet. You sure you wanna join up with Goon's crew?

One of the big things right now is that backing either this or their Fear Agents campaign grants you pdfs of the Deadlands Player's Guide and Marshal's Handbook, East Texas University, Rippers Resurrected Player's Guide and Game Master's Handbook, and The Last Parsec Core rulebook. That is an insane bonus with tremendous value. If you have been at all interested in Savage Worlds settings, jump on this! I'm backing, just debating on if I am getting the softcover, or splurging for the hardcover...

The Iron Crows of Kazhuk Izril and other dwarf miniatures

In 1973, a study carried out by researchers from the University of Borghetto San Nicolò elaborated the "Scale of happiness" (or De Carli's Scale, by its creator's name), an order of magnitude which measures the happiness of a person on the basis of certain factors. Without going into details, the various studies correlated the proportion between the income of an individual and the extent of his collection of Dwarfs: in 94% of cases, it has been demonstrated that those who spend at least 42% of their income in Dwarf miniatures are on average happier than others.This discovery shocked the scientific community at that time, generating fierce debates and disputes, but everything was soon hushed up by the lobbies of fashion which saw in Elves a model of beauty more functional to their business. In defiance of the system and the standards imposed from above, we of the Durgin Paint Forge have worked hard for more than two years to realize a collection of Dwarfs that can allow you take a leap forward in your personal De Carli's Scale. This project is an act of love: we know how important it is for you to have awesome miniatures with which to widen your collection of dwarfs, and precisely for this reason we have endeavored to give you only our best. A spontaneous, visceral, loud and often inappropriate love: typically Italian, indeed. You will soon find that only a temporary restraining order may prevent us from loving you. In the meantime, sit down comfortably and enjoy excellence.

These may be some of the best looking dwarfs that I have seen, and the prices are really reasonable. Sadly I don't think that I can back this project right now as I just can't justify spending the money after backing some other projects. If I had a need for dwarfs I would as the models are simply awesome.

There are a few others that I am looking at but there are still plenty of days left on those. Anything here spark your interest?

Kickstarter Interests: 4/8/2017

There are so many wonder projects currently floating around on the Kickstarter I thought I would share a few that have caught my interest. Enjoy!

BLACKSMITH MINIATURES : World of Jean-Baptiste MONGE  

Magnificent series of high-quality 54 mm miniatures in resin to collect and paint, based on the illustrations of Jean-Baptiste MONGE.

I don't really know of any game use for this range of models but that is not the point. They are gorgeous. I have been meaning to start a display piece project. I think I found it. While I can't really splurge to get more than one, $23 for a high quality and unique model is a good price. I'm backing this one. Only three days left.

The Umerican Survival Guide

Umerica is a super science & sorcery post apocalyptic setting for the Dungeon Crawl Classics role playing game from Goodman Games set in a weird, twisted version of North and Central America. It originated in the Crawling Under a Broken Moon fanzine but the Umerican Survival Guide is a fully revised and fleshed out version of the setting.

It will be released with not just one, but a choice of two different covers: Delve and Chase!

This is a setting guide to the material found in the much talked about Broken Moon fanzine. The setting itself seems so unique and interesting. There are various bits in there that ask, what would following generations see us as based on what we leave behind. The lower rewards are $10 for the PDFs and $25 for PDF with a voucher for Drivethru's POD system. Kind of on the fence, I really want to play in the world but never played DCC before. We shall see.

Castles & Crusades Players Handbook #7

You’ll find with C&C that the game is easy to play, but more importantly is its versatility. You can take your house rules and drop them right on top of the C&C mechanic (the Siege Engine) and keep on playing. You are in control. Take the advantage/disadvantage system from 5E and use it with C&C. There’s nothing stopping you.

What’s even better, because the whole game is driven by attribute checks that have only loose guidelines, the game master chooses what attribute check the player rolls. If they want the wizard to swim better, make the character roll an intelligence check to swim the river. It’s your game. Take it.

Though I can't swing it right now, $15 plus shipping for a new rulebook seems good. Only four days to go.

Paladin Card Protectors - Premium Sleeves for Gamers

A holy knight, a defender of the realm and its people, an example of nobility, strenth and resilience - the Paladin. A name that sets a new industry standard for all who love their games and believe the best possible protection from damage and wear.

Paladin Card Protection was established by and experienced team of designers and publishers, but - first and foremost - passionate fans of tabletop games. We believe that our desire to preserve the games we play for years is shared by true gamers around the world.

Perhaps it is because I was a Magic player back in the day, but I want to sleeve everything. These sleeves can fit any standard card game and there are options for many different board game sizes. The first level is 6 packs of 55 sleeves and the saving only get better as you go up. Backing. Only four days to go.

So that is it for now, but there are a few more that I am looking at that I may post later. Have you backed anything lately?

Hobby Update: 13 Feb 2017

I have been quite busy the last two weeks, and decided to share a hobby update.

On the miniature front, I finished four Stormcast Enternals with a fifth waiting for some paint on its wings. Currently on a holding pattern until I get to the hobby shop afterwords  expect some pictures. In the mean time I have started an additional five which have been base coated.

I participated in another monthly event of Star Trek Attack Wing. I didn't manage to buy the scout cube but I did pick up another Dominion ship to start building out that fleet. That places the number of events at two! However, they were not the only games I played!

My weekend two weeks ago was filled with awesomeness. First, my sister and her husband visited for a Saturday play date with the kids. Me and the brother-in-law took advantage of this. Last year he expressed interest in miniature gaming so for Christmas I bought him a starter box of Malifuax Gremlins. As you can see, not bad painting for his first time. We played a henchman battle to teach him the game. I played a wonky Neverborn crew using Candy. No real combos but it was just great playing the game again.

Later that night we also played a game of dominion. I have the Alchemy expansion but I think it is time for an additional one as I feel like the game is getting a bit stale.

That was not the only fun that weekend! Joey came up Sunday to spend the night. Hearing that I played a game of Malifuax, he asked that we do the same. We decided on a massive 50SS game which allowed him to use some new models he picked up for his Outcasts. It was a pretty tight game, I was trying to maneuver for objectives and he was going straight towards the face. I love how this game focuses on attaining victory points rather than simply trying to table your opponent.

Latter that night we played dominion again with my wife, yup time for a new expansion. In the morning we played STAW and then headed downstairs for another round of Malifuax. This time we played a smaller game which allowed me to bring out my own Gremlin crew for the first time. They are definitely fun to play, but the strategy rolled against me and I don't have the additional models to adjust the game plan for. It was still a fun match, and really renewed my zeal to play the jump back into the game.

In regards to RPG side of things, I still have not managed to play any games. But I am posturing for it. I worked out the playing schedule with the Ultima Forsan group and I think I picked out what campaign I will be playing for the Sunday crew. Expect more latter.

Hope you enjoyed this. What plans for the hobby do you have the next couple weeks?

On My Radar: Five RPGs campaigns I want to run.

Hello all!

I snagged my first player for my next online group, though I may be kind of cheating as also plays in my first group. I figured he would be interested in joining another game that promises more consistency. I am going to ask a few other friends and then open invites up to readers of the site if I still need more. Till then, I need to decide what we are going to play!

I have narrowed down the list of potential campaigns to five. They are:

Zeitgeist: The Gears of Revolution (EN Publishing) -

Steam and soot darken the skies above the city of Flint, and the choking products of its industrial forges sweep from the majestic harbor to the few rain-forests that dot its knife-toothed mountains. The Unseen Court, the Great Hunt, and the many spirits of the land no longer receive tribute, but they cannot enter these new domains of steam and steel to demand their tithe. The impoverished workers who huddle in factory slums fear monsters of a different breed, shadowy children of this bleak urban labyrinth.

Times are turning. The Skyseers - Risurs folk prophets since their homeland's birth - witness omens in the starry wheels of heaven, and they warn that a new era is nigh. But what they cannot foresee, hidden beyound the smog of the night sky, is the face of this coming era, the spirit of the age. The Zeitgeist.

This is a massive steam & spell campaign that will take players from level 1 to 20. Everything I read suggests this is one hell of a setting which challenges both the GM and players. This one requires commitment but the pay off seems to be an endings that players will discuss for years. My concern is that it may be to much for me to pull off at my experience level. It is also only available in Pathfinder or 4E D&D, neither of which I have any experience in. But it sounds so cool!

The Lost Lands: Stoneheart Valley (Frog God Games) -

Finally, welcome to the World of Necromancer Games! From Bill Webb and Clark Peterson's home campaign comes the old-school setting of The Lost Lands: Stoneheart Valley. For over a decade, fans of Necromancer Games and Frog God Games have been asking to see the world behind the adventures. And at long last, here is where it all began, in the Stoneheart Valley near the town of Fairhill. This mini-campaign was originally presented to the fans of Necromancer Games in three separate modules: "The Wizard's Amulet", "The Crucible of Freya", and "The Tomb of Abysthor". Frog God Games has taken the full series from the 3E version plus supplemental material previously available only online, and converted it all to the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game system and the Swords & Wizardry Complete ruleset.

This satisfies my desire to try something old school. I researched the Lost Lands for some time and am desperate to jump in. From what I gather, this collection of three adventures offers a way to introduce players to the world that Frog God Games has created. The only downside,  is that it can be brutal on players that want to go full ham, regardless of using the S&W or Pathfinder rules. My preference would be S&W and as long as I warn my players not to get attached to their characters it should work.

The Road to Revolution: The Campaign (0one Games) -

One of the most critically acclaimed campaign out there now completely converted to Pathfinder!

The Road to Revolution is a complete 320 pages campaign designed for use with the Pathfinder Roleplaying Game.

Set in the Great City, this epic campaign takes characters from their humble beginnings, all the way to powerful adventurers upon whose actions the City will come to depend. The Campaign Arc contains six adventures in all, each written by the original authors of the Great City Campaign Setting. Arc adventures can be played individually or linked with others in the series to create a complete campaign.

I added the flyer due to the lack of excitement in their back cover description. While they should work on their pitch, this campaign does seems interesting. So much so that I already purchased it last month. It is based in 0one's Great City which has its own massive setting book. Both the city and the adventure arc is full of grit. I wouldn't go so far as to call it dark fantasy. It is just that to survive the Great City, one needs to tread carefully and refrain from insulting potential enemies. The Path to Revolution contains six adventures which focuses heavily on political intrigue and investigations. Add some unique encounters and this campaign could be the perfect step in learning to GM.

Necessary Evil Explore's Edition (Pinnacle Entertainment) -

This is no simple reprint! Pinnacle Entertainment's classic Savage Worlds setting with super-villains saving the earth has returned better than ever. It's reformatted to the wildly popular Savage Worlds: Explorers Edition-size paperback with updated rules. The plot has been expanded to include a new ending, giving you 110% of the story of the first edition. The new edition also has new art, with two dozen pieces added. The Fate Of The World Lies With The Scum Of The Earth! When the super heroes of the world are blown to kingdom come by an unstoppable army of invading aliens, who will save the day? Evil... The only forces left to take on the alien menace are the crafty and self-serving super-villains! Necessary Evil is a supers game done Savage Worlds style. Inside the twisted Plot Point setting are complete rules on making four-color super-powered characters, over seventy super powers, a whole pile of adventures weaving in and out of a resistance story, new Edges and Hindrances, a bestiary of out-of-this-world critters, and more! Necessary Evil requires the Savage Worlds Roleplaying Game to play.

While deciding games for this list, I had to include a Savage Worlds campaign. The problem in picking one is that most settings lack a full length campaign and the few that do tend to be all highly regarded. While these are not bad traits, it does hurt in trying to choose something that meets the criteria of a pick up and play group. I finally picked Necessary Evil due to the reviews and the angle it employs. The Players are super villains who fight alien overlords... ummm, yes please. While this plot point campaign uses the explorer edition of the SW rules, I don't foresee a problem running quick updates to the latest deluxe rules.  

Red Eye of Azathoth (Kobolb Press) - 

Kings die, nations crumble, and madness trails in the fiery wake of a comet called The Red Eye of Azathoth. Do you have what it takes to battle across history against the Mythos horrors that surface under its lurid glow?

• 887 AD, Holy Island, English Northumbria – As blood rain falls and the dead rise, Viking invaders and English monks must join forces or perish in a Lovecraftian nightmare.

• 1287 AD, Iwaizumi, Japan – Snowbound Samurai must unearth what lies behind the village where babies cannot cry and an abomination hangs lanterns that shriek with a thousand voices.

• 1487 AD, Valencia, Spain – Heretics must escape torture, prison, and the clutches of angels to expose the Spanish Inquisition’s true purpose.

• 1587 AD, Roanoke Colony, The New World – Colonists face flayed horrors that hammer on stretched-skin drums to reveal whose knife dug CROATOAN into the Lost Colony’s tree.

• 1887 AD, Desperation, Arizona Territory – In the series’ explosive magic-and-gunpowder climax, condemned gunfighters unravel the last skeins of the millennium-spanning mystery and stand alone against the full Mythos horror of The Red Eye of Azathoth!

Ia! Ia! Take your players to the mad reaches of our past with 108 pages of epic horror, complete with player handouts, new adversaries, and pregenerated Investigators for each time period.

So yeah, this is a bit different. REoA is a Call of Cthulhu campaign which I so want to run, despite three glaring issues. First I need to go get a rule book of 7ed CoC. By that statement you are correct in guessing that I never ran a Cthulhu game before, which I image would make jumping into this campaign a bit rough. And the premise itself sounds like it would test my GMing chops. But it would be a hell of a feat.

So, there are the games I'm considering. I'm going to have the one committed player to check this out so he can offer his input. Have you tried any of these campaigns? Any really sound interesting? Let me know so I can make up my mind!

PS, all purchases using OBS affiliate links drops a few cents in my account to help with purchasing items that I plan on running and writing about. If you wish to avoid this but plan on purchasing the above products, simply visit drivethrurpgDOTcom and type the game in the search menu. Cheers!