Deathwatch RPG - A weekend of fun..

Well, I had two games of Deathwatch this weekend just past. The first I was playing in, was run by a friend of mine Steve. Our brave party of space marines attempted to recover a strange and odd ancient war device/doomsday type weapon from under the clutches of the Tau.
It was the adventure from the GMs Screen booklet. Or at least part of it. Had some very interesting moments.

The second game was run by me, on the sunday. Was a good game. The players seemed to enjoy it. It was mostly a laying down on plot and info and a warm up mission to get the players thinking and working to gather.

They successfully infiltrated some ruins that the Tau were showing significant interest in and located an old biologis research facility. They avoided letting loose some specimens. And though they were ordered not to engage, or give away their presence, they did wind up capturing a Tau Etherial caste member and getting away with it.
The second part to the game, didn't quite go as smoothly as the one marine got a bit impulsive due to his hatred of Tau and their carefully planned assault on a comms relay position, was more brute force and bolter-shell affair.

The Tau Commander did manage to get a salvo of rockets away before the marines gunned him down. Unfortunately the rockets did near kill one of the marines. The permanent spending of a fate point, leaving him alive but with a severe injury.

Thank fully the tide of battle was in the marines favour and despite the injuries they were able to destroy their target before the Tau, mysteriously started bombarding their own position with long range plasma munitions.

Deathwatch is an interesting game. As starting characters, the simple fact you are playing Astarte's means the characters are quite formidable. And players can literally scythe their way through hordes of xenos at times. We are not using the errata'ed weapon rules. Something will have to look at for future times maybe if it looks too easy for them.

But if you want a RPG system where even basic characters are pretty tough, try Deathwatch.

Dungeon Accessories - Part 2

So I have made a bit mor progress on painting my Dungeon Accessories for this coming weekends game at Gauntlet.

Most are done in vallejo model colour flat earth, but a nutt brown ink wash.
The yellow ocher is looking on. I was trying for a lighter colour wood and went with a german pale cammo brown, but now quite sure how it will look.
So far all they have had, is an undercoat, and base colour and washes. Some of the washes are not done fully yet. I tried to dip them in the wash and be lazy, but all that happened was the pieces stuck to the board and pulled paint away when i removed them.

So now I am painting it on with a paint brush and doing about hard of each piece at time to avoid this.

So this is it so far!

Progress so far on the dungeon accessories.

 My attempts as making a weapon rack or three have so far gone now where.
First my " NWSL The Chipper II ", has got too thin a blade and I am getting deflection when cutting even thin strips such as 1.5mm thick styrene.

So had to revert to a craft night. I was struggling to come up with a sturdy design that would survive gaming handling and still look "authentic" as it were. So in amoungst all those clips is the first propper attempt. Using some 1/4x1/4 balsa strips.

You can just see on the right, the liberated and cleaned up fenris weapons items.

The first aseembly of what I hope will be a solid design.

Hmmm need more clips!

Liberated from their sprues - Fenris fantasy weapons.

So now I need to wait for the glue to dry and whilst that is happening. I will undercoat the fenris weapons. I planned to mount this to the weapon stand permenantly, but have decided not to now.
I think they will be better to use as scatter items and treasure rewards in the game but also in future games.

Having realised how much DF I have, and how small an amount of accessories I had and the lack of time. I decided to cheat,, well I ordered some bits form Morgar (off the DF forums) and some painted barrels. These arrived today. By pegasus and not too bad for the money.

I bought some of these to suppliment the ones I was painting.

Will post some more as they come along. Only 4 days including today. Eek!

Blooming Ekk! - Only three weeks go! Arrhhhhh..

Ok, the realisation has just dawned on me.. err.. its three weeks to go now.

Yes, Gauntlet 2012 - Our clubs show is only three weeks away.. scary!

In the past I have put on big games. And that has usually involved a rabbid painting rush and mad last minute secenery painting to get the game done even painting thing on the friday night before.

This year, due to one reason or another, I have not embarked upon such. Mainly due to other life concerns.. so this year, I am rolling out a Dungeon Bash. Good old fashioned, bash the monsters and grab the treasure. Partly because I like games like that. Partly because it means I can roll out my large collection of Dwarven Forge in a big layout for a couple of days.

So.. having made that decision. I need to design the dungeon.. (hmm or at least the plot and story for the players). It has to be simple as its a turn up and play game. So I am toying with going with basic D20 RPG. Six stats, a handful of skills, an AC and hit points as I want.

My other option is to use Bladestorm by ICE. But that is a bit more complicated and more a skirmish battle system, which is fine if you have the time to invest. But I do like the system. Hmm choices, choices.. The gaming system and plot aside. I also need to get some stuff to fill the dungeon with. I have a fair few figures from the D&D prepainted plastics miniatures range, so they should give me enough things to populate most of it and give each player a representative figure.

Its then a case of filling in rooms with furniture etc. I have bought a couple of packs of scenery pieces, barrels etc here and there from various makers such as Ainsty castings and some off ebay, in the past, but they will need painting. So it looks like it could once more be a mad rush to get things painted again! Oh joy.. at some point I will remind my self why I do this every year and swear I won't next year and so on an so forth..

So here are a few shots from various places on the web of some larger layouts. Hoping to do something long these lines, but of course not an exact copy..

From - http://www.wethegamerz.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/gallery_layout_dungeon.jpg

From - http://www.the-back-row.com/media/blogs/TBR/dwarvenforge.jpeg

From - http://www.dwarvenforge.info/bibliothequeimages/IMG_3944.jpg

Hmm.. looking at those photos, I really better get some planning done soon. :)

There are some more photos of lovely layouts here too:

http://www.dwarvenforge.info/bibliothequeimages/selection/selection.htm

New intro video from Dwarven Forges Creator!

Well any of my regular readers will know I am a bit fan of Dwarven Forge 3D Dungeon Terrain system.
I started collecting my own sets many moons ago. Part of the appeal has been the knowledge that the Creator, Stefan Pokorny was a D&D fan and had a real enthusiasm for the product and idea behind it.

So here is a new Introduction Video, done by DF featuring Stefan and a few sneaky peaks around 4.00 run time of some new wall pieces and a barn set.

The acting could be improved may be.. :)

But its nice to hear from Stefan directly.
Will always be thankful he created Dwarven Forge, as its played a good part of many of roleplaying games and really helped bring the scenes to life and make it special for my players.

Enjoy!

Dungeon Bashing with Warrior Heroes - badly!

Hi Folks,
Well our illustrious games master, Colin, was a no show last week at the club, due to work.
So having hauled out a box or two of Dwarven Forge, in preperation for the second level, of the on going warrior heroes. Stephen, decided to run a quick impromptu game.


So we splashed out about 12CE a warband and I threw out a dungeon layout with my DF pieces.


The following was made from;
2x Room and Passage sets.
1x Room set.
and the arrow loops and a five tonne block from traps two, but  these could easily be done without.




The layout. Used most of three sets of Dwarven Forge to make it. Two room and passage sets and one room set.

I kept the rooms small ish and made a simple layout. Stephen wanted at least three starting corridors for the party.


The basic premise was, we parties were raiding a dungeon to get the bid bad evil wizards treasure. I think! :)


Anyhow, we each had a warband and we each began, at a point of our choosing.
I apologise now, but not much of a write up, on the game. But it was fun, and though we might have broken the rules in one or two spots, we all had a laugh.


Keep an eye out for the Goblin Tea party (Goblins, in khazakstan type outfits from "The Baggage Train"). Its great shot.

Goblin Tea Party Moment - The heroes burst in just as they are decidign which course to have!

In leaps a hero to save the day. A few wild swings later, the goblins look like they have the upper hand.

The goblins get stuck in.

All in all, a quick and mad game. Each corridor section had potential traps and though the flounced the rules a little, it was a fun game, if brief and sadly un-concluded. But we started late.


This week, we hope to play the intended game, so the Dwarven forge will likley be making another appearance.

RPG - Adventure Building Process Options. Part1

Hi Folks and Followers.
Firstly apologies, the Triples shows update and photos will be coming along shortly. But things have been pressing for my time. Thus they will be on their way. I promise! I took a lot of photos of the games and day, so there is a fair bit of work in sorting them out.

Right, onto my quick topic for today.
This one is for the RPG-ers in the audience. But also some of the hints and tips are also quite handy to keep in mind when designing narrative type game scenarios.

I came across the following video series. I am not going to link the entire 10 videos. So just look for the rest on you tube.

Now, I think for a seminar, this presentation could have gone a bit smoother, the handing for the mic forward and back is a bit distracting, and the fact its very hard to hear the suggestions from the audience is annoying too.

BUT and its a big but! There are some very handy tips in this series of shorts.
I won't list all the findings here now as time is short. But I will do a follow up to this post with some of my own views and opinions on game designs and adventure building. So for now, just wanted to introduce folks to these videos, made GenCon 2010.

I think you will find them interesting, if a bit long winded, so apologies for that. But stick with it. Some handy info there.

Finding Players - A gamers nightmare at times..

Hi Folks,
Well I am fairly lucky. I have a large and well attended gaming club near by which I regularly attend.
So playing wargames is not a big problem. However though the club does have the occasional roleplaying game (usually run by me), finding fellow roleplayers to participate in a game is never easy.

Infact, its very difficult at times, especially if you live away from any of the major towns. Well certainly in the UK.

So whilst I am searching for some players for a Pathfinder game I am planning to run at a friends in Crewe, I came across the two following site;
http://nearbygamers.com/

and

http://www.ukroleplayers.com/clubs/

Which at least offer a quick visual reference and search feature for local players.

Its funny how many times I have heard of gamers, suddenly discovering that just down the road were fellow gamers, who have been there for years, but never knew.

So I thought I would share these for my UK based readers, incase they were of interest. The nearbygamers.com also covers further afield too for my US cousins or those even further afield.

So hoep they prove useful.

DM-ing - The challenges and Problems

If you are a roleplayer you will likley know what I am waffling about today. If you are not, then you might not.

I have been table top roleplaying for well, since I was 11. On and off, but there has hardly been a year that has passed where I have not played in one game or another.

I guess I probably fall into that catagory of less than twenty percent of gamers. Those that enjoy both playing a character or being the dungeon master or DM.

I was watching the following video (its a three part series);

The experiences that the chaps are having over in the USA, is well, global I think for most players. But I have to say, I don't agree with some of the statements about being a GM.

Infact I am the master of being un-preppared when I am GM or DMing.. which ever term you wish to use.

I will have to write a guide to "winging it"!

I have generated entire campaigns, purely starting with a place. A group of players some random weather and story elements, and then letting the players lead the way. Seriously.. often the best ideas come from your players. Just listen and build upon their ideas. As they discuss their views, their plans, their actions. You can easily borrow/build upon or change something to fit.

Work loosely and don't over plan. The players will always do something different to that which you expect. So roll with it!

There is no need to worry or to stress if you are not sure what to throw at the players or where the adventure will go now, because your story just broke, as the NPC was killed by the players and not rescued.

The art of being a DM is to entertain your players. Make it interesting, fun and challenging. I work on the story in my head, and the ideas. Simple plot ideas, to start with and then use the thoughts and view of the characters and the players controlling those characters to expand upon them till whalla.. the game rolls on with the players often not realising.

Yes do plan, to make hand outs etc, they are all fun and help. But don't stress over them or worry about having to meet some mystical standard and certainly never worry over the rules. It is why we have rule books and if it comes to it.. its your world, your rules go!

I think I will do some more articles on the art of being a DM as I see it.

The green eyed Monster Strikes Again..

OK, I dare you!.. I meant it.. watch this video and then tell me you are not even at all slightly jealous..

I have been browsing the Dwarven Forge Forum for a while and picking up ideas etc. And you often see posts by some very fortunate (and often wealthy) individuals who have some simple stunning setups and gaming rooms.

But I have to take my hat off to Sorn, a chap on the DF forum.. his basement is larger than my house. And the setup he has to play upon, ohhh dear me. I might consider actually doing some one some harm, if it would get me one.. (only kidding, I appal violence in real life).

Seriously, though have a good watch and see. The main table setup is actually mostly Miniature Building Authority stuff. I have a few bits of theirs. They are nice, but pricey, but that goes for Dwarven Forge too.

But I have to say, I would love a gaming basement like his. Having several rooms to put layouts in and store my figures, rather than cramming in what I can where I can and having to generally restrict my purchases to things I can use for a multitude of periods and genre.

Watch and enjoy.. and dream!

Some people just make you sick. Dwarven Forge Wonder!

Ever since I bought my first sets of Dwarven Forge, I have always wondered at the imagination, creativity of the ranges creator and that of fellow collectors.

It is easy to build simple single level rooms, passages, caves etc. But the real wonder of Dwarven Forge, is the fact, that you can build upwards. With care of course.

And adding that extra dimension of height can really add to a layout.

As someone who made an investment in sets at a time when I was in work and had a good level of disposable income. I have always had to game else where, rather than at home. Due to the geography of my gaming groups. That has always meant, packing my boxes of DF in the car and coming up with some novel storage solutions, which came in the form of some large 35ltr plastic storage boxes, which using the stack ability of DF pieces, meant I could put in one or two layers of 5mm plywood and thus fit two or three sets into one storage box at a time. And it also made it easer to find the pieces you need as the boxes are see through.

Thus, when I am always envious when I see a layout like this;

From: http://www.dwarvenforge.info/bibliothequeimages/selection/selection.htm

Firstly oh to have a dedicated gaming room, large enough for a good sized gaming table area, and then to have permanent figure storage, where figures can be easily got at and safely returned too after a game.

Alas, till I win a lottery or find a rather wealthy wife, its a good old 6'x2' with may be a board across the top for me.. and usually at a mates house.

But it still nice to have something to aspire too. You can see more of this chaps stunning layouts and work here; http://www.dwarvenforge.info/bibliothequeimages/selection/selection.htm 

And incase you have not had your appetite whetted enough, have alook at these..

I always find new ideas and techniques etc in other peoples designs and I particularly like the way this chap has used, a mix of non Dwarven Forge items with his sets to expand the layouts and usability. I know a few people will rightly point out, that its pricey. Hell yes it is! VERY! And that a pen and paper is all the "old timers" had, before this fancy painted miniatures etc came long, but frankly, I don't care!

I love Dwarven Forge. I love the fact it lasts. Its durable and it helps bring to life my fantasy worlds in which I play my role playing games in and sometimes my wargames.

Dwarven Forge - A major addiction.

A few (ahem, many now) years back having just completed my Masters Degree, I was at a point where I had a reasonable income and few out goings in relative terms. Having got into the frugal student habbits and was regularly gaming AD&D 3rd Edition with a group.

The then GM, Gez, introduced me to Dwarven Forge. A prepainted resin/ceramic 3D dungeon tile system.

Gez had an account with the then UK importer and so I was able to pick up some sets are a reasonable price and these have provided trusty service since.

Now, firstly I should issue a warning here - Dwarven Forge is Addictive! I meant it. Once you start, it is very unlikley you will stop!

Secondly it is not cheap. No, don't even try to justify it, by comparring to other makers, being pre-painted etc. By comparrison one set will often cost more than several sets of glossy card tile sets from other makers.

Its just a fact. Its not cheap. And you will need more than one set. Infact, almost certainly more then 2 or 3, or 4, or 5.

So why is it so addictive.. well, firstly partly because you do need more sets to expand things. Partly due to the fact, that its so dynamic. It does not replace imagination, but it helps. Its simple. Its well made and lasts for ages. And the colouring is very well done, it allows you to replicate, dungeons, catacombs, medievil buidings, churches, temples etc.

If you can imagine it, then you can generally replicate with. The room and passage sets, deal with the man/dwarf made terrain, where as the cave sets deal with more natural subterrainian lairs.
Having not been regularly gaming D&D or any thing fantasy or scifi for a while, my sets have gone a little under used in recent years, but they are still there and waiting. And I know they will get some more use in the future.

If you have never seen Dwarven Forge in use, or lacking inspiration, have a look here;

http://dungeons3d.blogspot.co.uk/

Some very nice layouts and great inspiration material.

Dice - Ever thought about them.. I mean seriously?

Over the years I have bought lots of dice. I have bags of them. I got some free in games. Some free in give aways. Some I have found on the floor, under the table after role playing sessions.

We all have them, and we all tend to have loads we never really need. Well certainly the role players do. Me included.

Well I watched these two videos.. worth a look.

And

I have to admit i recall looking at a set of sharp edged die and seeing the blemish and just walking away. But I probably shouldn't. As I have to say, I do indeed have some favourite dice. And it is because the do seem to roll well. Conversely i have a friend who has dire luck with dice.

Now I didn't think that these small amounts of edge rounding, difference in size etc could matter that much frankly! But when see quite how much material is taken off the dice in the smoothing process to remove and polish them. You realise how it can easily start to each near 0.5mm! No wonder a lot of my D20's are not the same size. They all started out that way, but depending on how long they get polished for, the sizes alter. And the chances of rolling numbers.

I think this chap sold his business on, since these vids were made. But I am rather tempted to get a set of Game Science dice and see how they perform, compared to my RPG set.


Something for Free! - Basic Fantasy Role Playing

You see a lot of "free" things on the internet here and there. And generally you write them off as cheap promotionals or purely free hooks to get you too take out your wallet to buy something else.

But I am actually a little shocked and a very pleased to be able to say, I have found something quite good. Infact I think it is very good. A free D20 Roleplaying system. It says it is mobified version of 3.5.. now not sure if they mean D&D 3.5ed, or the generic D20 system. Probably the latter.

I decided having found a link on TMP, in a thread about dungeon crawls and "light" rpg games, to flick through and see. And I must say I was impressed.

Having read a lot of free publications on the net. This one is very well done and worth alook if you like D&D and roleplaying games.

http://www.basicfantasy.org/main.html

So, if you enjoy fantasy table top roleplaying. Why not take a quick look.