Wednesday, 30 August 2023

Striders & Riders

Want to use power-walkers or Mech-like units in The Doomed?

How about some cavalry or bikers?

I've got you covered with Striders & Riders.

DISCLAIMER These rules are completely untested and likely broken.

STRIDERS
Great striding machines

Striders can be taken by any Faction and must be assigned to a Pilot, who can be any member of the Warband. When buying equipment, equip it to either the Pilot or the Strider.

Pilot and Strider act as if they were a single unit, receiving 3 actions as normal.

Use the Pilot’s QL and Skills for attacks. Attacks can only use weapons equipped to the Strider.

Use the Strider’s QL and Skills for all other actions.

When inside the Strider the maximum actions for Shooting and Fighting apply to each individual weapon, so a Strider with 3 ranged weapons could Shoot with each of them once per turn, using 3 Actions.

When the unit would be Killed the Pilot ejects safely. The Strider is disabled and now the Pilot can only use their own equipment.

STRIDER CLASSES

Mountain-Class (3+ Tough) [6pts]
Toughened Hull: Ignore any Shock rolls you wish.
Shield (+1 to Saves when Readied)

Raptor-Class (3+ Nimble) [5pts]
Shield (+1 to Saves when Readied)

Factory Class (3+) [4pts]
Tool-Claw (M1x3)

RIDERS
The cavalry of the doomed world

Riders can be taken by any Faction.

Every Rider must have a Mount. They are treated as one unit for all purposes, but each action is assigned to either the rider or mount, each with their own limit for specific actions. The combined unit of Rider and Mount still receive 3 Actions per turn as normal.

So a turn could look like this:

  • Action 1: The Rider uses Move and the combined unit moves.
  • Action 2: The Mount uses Move and the combined unit moves without needing to roll, as this is the Mount’s first move.
  • Action 3: The Mount uses Move, this time requiring a roll using their QL and Skills.

When they take Damage the player decides whether to Save as the Rider or Mount.

The first time the unit would be Wounded the Rider is instead Dismounted and the Mount is removed from the battle. The Rider suffers Shock but ignores any results that would have them die on this roll.

Use common sense when determining which terrain a rider can move through or over, but err on the side of generosity with a creative explanation.

MOUNTS

Steed (Tough 5+) [2pts]
Cannot carry equipment
Ram: Move into contact with an enemy and cause 1 Damage to them.

Beast (Fierce 4+) [5pts]
Cannot carry equipment
Ram: Move into contact with an enemy and cause 1 Damage to them.
Claws (M3x1)

Machine (Nimble 5+) [3pts]
Can be fitted with Ranged Weapons.
Ram: Move into contact with an enemy and cause 1 Damage to them.

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This post was originally sent as a reward to all Patreon supporters, and is released freely on this site the week after its original publication.

If you want to support my blog, podcasts, and video content then head over to my Patreon. 

Tuesday, 29 August 2023

MYTHIC BASTIONLAND - Art and Kickstarter Reveal


That's right, Alec Sorensen is back for Mythic Bastionland, creating all of the artwork in the book.

It's coming to Kickstarter on 7th November 2023, so go and follow it.

Wednesday, 23 August 2023

Remedies

This is an idea I've teased for a while, and will be making its full debut in the next release of the Mythic Bastionland playtest, which you can expect around the start of September.

This release will also come with... something cool.

Remedies make up the third part of the trinity when it comes to recovering from Virtue Loss, something that's bound to happen to your Knights. Previously recovering your Virtues required visiting a specific type of Landmark or performing a specific action. So recovering WIT required visiting a Sanctum or receiving guidance from a Seer. 

Remedies are a third method of recovery, representing consumable wares that can be broken into while travelling, offering a specific type of relief.

Sustenance restores your Vigour, representing nourishing food and drink.

Stimulants restore your Wit, representing herbal and alchemical substances.

Sacraments restore your Grace, representing components used in ritual or performance.

These require a whole Phase of the day to use and benefit all company present. It's as much about the experience as the actual material contents. Cracking open that local delicacy you've been saving for a shared meal, savouring it over time and conversation. That's what restores your Vigour, not just the act of eating some food. 

They also add some nice meat to the trade system, functioning as a broad representation of trade goods that the players want for themselves but which carry their own value, especially when taken further from their point of origin. A settlement that has no Sanctum or Seer nearby would highly value any Stimulants that can be brought in.

I'm tinkering with some guidance to prevent Knights stockpiling too many remedies. At the moment it's just a vague mention that hoarding stuff is Unknightly, while generosity is held as a noble trait. I thought about placing a hard limit on the number of Remedies a Company can carry, but it feels at odds with the way I tend to write games. 

As always, testing will tell.

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This post was originally sent as a reward to all Patreon supporters, and is released freely on this site the week after its original publication.

If you want to support my blog, podcasts, and video content then head over to my Patreon. 

Wednesday, 16 August 2023

GenCon Wrapup

 I landed back in the UK this morning after my first trip to GenCon, so I'm afraid today's post is going to be a jet-lagged stream of consciousness structured the only way I know how.

Surface Level GenCon
  • The Doomed sold out on the first morning, so Osprey ordered more for the Friday. The restock sold out in minutes too. As such, I only got to sign a single book, the lone signed copy in existence. I joked that if my plane crashed on the way home it would become a priceless artifact (it didn't, and I'm safely on ground).
  • I played in games of Traveller and Pendragon, both of which were fun but neither really gave me the special stuff I wanted from those two particular systems. I guess squeezing Traveller's very particular spacebox and Pendragon's long form campaign into a limited time-slot is a big ask, but I'm glad to got to tick these two classics off my list in some form. 
  • I attended a Marc Miller seminar. His clear love for both Traveller and RPGs in general really shines through, and his thoughts of the game as both his legacy and something that exists within the wider community was moving, even for a cold-hearted cynic like me. Or perhaps I was just tired. 
The Real GenCon
  • It's a cliché, but the after-hours games, dinners, and drinks that spill out into Indianapolis really were the real GenCon and I'm immensely grateful for the hospitality of those who organised stuff and shepherded me in the right direction. You know who you are.
  • Even in the daytime, prowling the trade hall felt like a string of random encounters, noticing people I knew working on stalls or being ambushed from the aisles, without exception these were all a joy. 
  • Even though I knew that GenCon took over Indianapolis for the week, I was surprised that it appeared to be happening in my hotel lobby even when I arrived late at night. It was even happening in the departures lounge of the airport as I waited for my flight home. Not sure I have the energy for such total immersion, but if you do then this is the place to be. 
Would I recommend it?
  • I got very lucky with my journey being mostly undisrupted, I know others weren't so fortunate as we had some turbulent weather. Even so, it's a pretty brutal trek from the UK. 
  • On top of the travel, this is not a cheap trip. Hotels charge big prices and if you're sticking to the general convention area it's easy to spend a lot on normal day-to-day stuff without realising it. 
  • If the above are things you can work around I absolutely recommend visiting GenCon at least once. 
I booked this trip as a possible once-in-a-lifetime thing, hoping to meet up with some people, maybe talk a bit of business on the side, but nothing too serious. Instead I found it inspiring as a creator, fruitful as a business trip, and a chance to turn names-on-the-screen into new friendships. 

Next year? 

Ask me when the jet lag wears off. 

Wednesday, 9 August 2023

The Coven

I'm away at GenCon this week, and expect to be shell-shocked next week, so expect things to be a little different during this disruption.

If you see me at GenCon, do grab me and say hi.

Now as such, this week is just a little Mythic Bastionland preview of a yet-unseen Myth entry.


THE COVEN 

In verdy whisper, on thundry roar
In starry flare, thrice-membered lore

OMENS

1. The Cloud Hag descends from above, bombarding the company with gusts of wind. She’ll leave when she feels strong.

2. Under a canopy of knotted trees, a cauldron bubbles. Objects dipped in glow with darkness. For the rest of the day the object is invisible to any that wish to harm you. If living matter touches the brew then one of the Coven bursts from within and admonishes for the intrusion.

3. The Garden Witch stoops about in the shrubbery, gently removing snails from leaves before eating them. She offers some of her snails, which allow the eater to speak with plants for a few minutes.

4. Amid a field of lush growth, a perfect circle of dead plants. Plants entering the circle wither and die. The Garden witch has planted a saltstone causing this.

5. The wind drops suddenly, then the screech of the Achantrix announces there will be no night today. The next Night phase is treated as daytime.

6. The Coven fight to the death, nothing able to quell their hated for each other. The victor mourns, then enters exile.

CAST
Always in conflict (see below). In mortal hands their trinkets turn to sand after use.

The Cloud Hag, Nimbrel the powerful
VIG 17, WIT 13, GRA 12, 12GD
Wind orb (d10 blast), fog cloak (A1 and fly)
Wants to feel above everybody else.

The Garden Witch, Tanselie the petty
VIG 10, WIT 13, GRA 15, 8GD
Four bony arms (d6 each), petal locket (endless water when watering plants)
Wants to nurture the small, cut back the big.

The Achantrix, Scathara the perfect 
VIG 15, WIT 13, GRA 18, 10GD
Bright sickle (2d8), star ring (disobeying a command by the wearer causes d8 GRA loss)
Wants to expel all darkness from the world.

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This post was originally sent as a reward to all Patreon supporters, and is released freely on this site the week after its original publication.

If you want to support my blog, podcasts, and video content then head over to my Patreon. 

Wednesday, 2 August 2023

15mm SciFi Blocks - Small Blocks

I dipped into 15mm scale for some Bolt Action recently, and I'm really charmed by how individually based figures look in this scale. It's also a great scale for having tanks look impactful on the board without being obscenely large. 

So I'm striving to put together a set of modular 15mm terrain that I can use for Sci-Fi themed games. I'd like to try out 5 Parsecs from Home, Stargrave, maybe 5150 Star Army but naturally this is also a good fit for The Doomed (though not sure I fancy kitbashing at 15mm scale).

I already have some woods, rough ground, hills, ruined brick buildings, wreckage heaps, and hedges from my Bolt Action modelling, so here I wanted to make something that I could cram into a small box and use to create a wide range of sci-fi battlefields.

It was Jenga time. 


I picked up a regular sized tower and a small tower. For now I've just been working with the small blocks. At 15mm scale they're like a chest-high wall, or waist-high block if laid flat. I figured if I painted them up in a variety of colours they could be used for interior features or battlefield scatter, with the larger blocks providing the significant structural features. I've also got a stack of thin wooden coasters that I'll paint up as modular floor tiles. 


First step was to rip into them with a pair of sprue cutters and stab some bullet holes. 


Then sand them down a bit so that I don't give myself splinters. A 15mm guy for scale. 


I had a pile of wooden offcuts from various other projects, so I guess these work as greeblies and some larger pieces. 


My hope is that I can fit all of the small and large blocks into one of these thin boxes, with the tiles going in the second box. 


Painting these is actually quite daunting, as there's none of the usual detail that lets me get away with just priming, drybrushing, and washing until it looks good enough for the table. Prime them grey. 


Then I tried stippling, smearing, sponging, whatever desperate methods I could pull out of the box. 


Back in for some more coats. Just trying to make them look weathered and give a sense of scale, some more successful than others.


And finally tidy up some of the mess and give final coats to the bits that need it. 


Let's see how they look on the battlemat with some WW2 minis (my 15mm SciFi stuff is still in transit). 


It's hard to shake the toybox feel, but I think it works for purpose so far.


I think the tiles and larger blocks will help bring it all together. 


Then testing it on the black side of the mat as a makeshift interior. 


As you can see, these walls are just low enough to not quite block line of sight. 


But I think there's potential here. 


All in all I'm calling it a mixed success, and I'm exciting to get more of the set built. 

This week I'm at GenCon! Do say hello if you see me, but expect something of a minimalist post while I'm away. 

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This post was originally sent as a reward to all Patreon supporters, and is released freely on this site the week after its original publication.

If you want to support my blog, podcasts, and video content then head over to my Patreon.