Gorkamorka mob building and loadouts

I've had a couple more games of GorkaMorka and started building my own minis to represent my mob (as I borrowed them last time). Rules-as-written there are a few things to consider when choosing gear for my Boyz

• Everyone gets knives/knuckles free, meaning there's no reason any boy can't have multiple melee weapons
• The +1 Attacks bonus for having multiple melee weapons only applies to Boyz who don't have any two handed weapons
• The Big Shoota is hands down the best weapon, no reason not to take one on each vehicle apart from cost!

There's no advantage to having a pair of Choppas or a pair of Sluggas (apart from if one of them runs out of ammo) or a 'Uge Choppa and another melee weapon, so I've been reviewing my mob's loadouts.

The boyz grabbing some loot

My Nob's switched out his Slugga for a Shoota as they cost the same and the Shoota is better at range at the cost of being two-handed - so he got no benefit from using the Slugga with his 'Uge Choppa. Not that that would have stopped him being taken out by one of Jim's grots (above, left) - oh the shame!

Oddly, Slugga + Choppa is probably the best loadout for a Nob, despite the urge to beef them up. The game is definitely designed for boyz to go ranged OR melee, and I'm trying to make them all unique:

Melee/CQ 3-teef loadouts:

• Slugga + Choppa/Chain/Spear
• 6 Shoota + Choppa/Chain/Spear

I might play around with them but the other melee weapons (spears etc.) just don't feel like they have as much utility as a good ol' Choppa. Happy to take advice!

Ranged 3-teef loadouts:

• Kannon (worth trying out)
• Shoota + Choppa (for the strength bonus?)
• Shoota + Shield (cause I think it would look cool and might work?)

Stuff I'm toying with:

• 2x 6 Shootas (two rounds of firing before needing to reload) - 4 teef
• Shoota + 'Uge Choppa - 4 teef
• Frag stikkbombs (only? Nothing really adds much and they're already fairly expensive - but presumably fun) - 3 teef
• Just a Slugga - for the drivers - 2 teef

Going to try a few of these out. Thankfully I won a few bags of teef so I've put a Big Shoots on my second trukk too.

Suggestions for fun loadouts accepted in the comments!

Orktober GorkaMorka shenanigans

It seems I've been drawn into a GorkaMorka campaign at my FLGS; I'd forgotten how much silly fun that game is. It was pretty cool that about half the players at the table had their original rulebooks however, and spirits were high.

With 100 teef in the budget and only five spare boys available to borrow for my mob I went for a couple of trukks (which were thankfully plentiful) to spend up:

• Trukk (20)
• Trukk (20)
• Nob - six shoota + uge choppa (15)
• Spanner - slugga + choppa (9)
• Spanner - slugga + choppa (9)
• Boy - 2x slugga (9)
• Boy - 2x choppa (7)

With a few teef left over I splashed out on a spear gun for one of the trukks and called it done.

My borrowed mob, centre, ready to race...

We started with a race to help learn the vehicle rules, which I think was a good idea. Space on the starting grid was tight so it was perhaps inevitable that we weren't going to get very far... things soon degenerated into enjoyable chaos as trukks collided and span out, becoming obstacles.

Narrowly failing to slip through a gap

This is a game where vehicles can move and then boost forwards (risking rolling on a failure table for extra fun) so from the offset we were ramming each other with glee. Two turns in, the track was pretty much gridlocked - but that was a fine opportunity for a good ol' orky fight. Four turns in only one player had made it more than halfway round the track and some of us had to call it a night, but we'd all had fun.

Definitely a game that's better if you embrace your inner Ork, and despite not placing in the race my mob ended up with some xp and a bag of teef to spend. Looking forward to next time.

Happy Orktober, progress on my fledgeling Genestealer cult is on hold now as I've just bought a box of Boyz and a trukk!

Four arms good, two arms bad

With the release of a new edition of 40k I've been tempted away from my usual love of skirmish games* and see what all the fuss is about - so I've picked up the Genestealer Cult combat patrol.

First thoughts looking at the sprues were that with the number of extra arms and heads it seemed like a great opportunity to do some kitbashing (I've always preferred building minis to painting minis)!

GW Genestealer Cult + Anvil Industry bits

I'd wanted a rag-tag mix and match look but my second thought was how badly the GSC torsos and legs fit to these Anvil legs and torsos due to the angling of the joins - and in fact, the GW legs and torsos don't mix and match well with each other! Reading the assembly instructions it's clear that the torsos and legs are designed to be paired up exclusively which is disappointing.

Reading the instructions it also became clear that although "each mini" has two intended builds (very much like the monopose Warcry minis that are my only other recent GW experience) and that many have a shared component in both, often a left arm, which I guess is going to be a factor in any potential kitbashes using the spare arms.

All that said, I'm excited for the possibilities. Playing around some more:

Those same Anvil and GW bodies, now unmixed

Trying GSC heads on Stargrave and Frostgrave bodies

Of all these I really like the Frostgrave soldier body with the GSC head, ridiculous as it looks here, it's just a shame that they're so small in comparison to the GW bodies. If I could build up the torso/shoulder area it could work, as the head is actually about the right height, so I'm definitely filing that away for future consideration!  Not sure about the fit of the others with the aesthetic however, but food for thought all the same.

Any suggestions for potential kitbashes, and your good or bad experiences, welcome in the comments!

* OK I'll admit the main reason I went for GSC was because I could use them in Necromunda and Kill Team too!

Test minis for Warcry

 A while back I got into Warcry, a light and fast skirmish game which is perfect for time-strapped modern life!

The previous Blood Bowl minis were a pre-test for these to try out Army Painter Speedpaints - although hopefully some Blood Bowl is on the cards sometime.

Huanchi skink and a Jade Obelisk cultist

I wanted some nice contrasting colours and as I wasn't feeling restricted to a colour scheme (as I have been with Infinity) it was fun to experiment.  I knew I wanted jade green for the cultists and went from there, and I really didn't want to go green for the slinks so I picked orange as a nice counter to the cultists' purple.

These are Army Painter Speedpaints from the starter set, I've seen people complaining about them "reactivating" (i.e. not drying) but I find that makes blending and mixing colours easier...

I'm liking it so far, and having fun finally, just need to get the rest done!

What's on your hobby table?

Blogging back for March, and thoughts on April and beyond

Sorry for not being more active, real life takes its toll once again.

I haven't really had any time to read around the blogosphere or to get anything written, but here's a whistle stop tour of the (active) blogs that sent me hits in March, as a thankyou!

of Dice and Dragons, of course, has been keeping the RPG Blog Carnival rolling - please go show your support if you can, there are still some slots available to sign up to host in 2023 I believe!

Seed of Worlds has several very readable recent posts, and many better and more frequent blog link lists than I do (or can)

Hobgoblinry showcases some Oathmark Orcs and some Mordheim Skaven and terrain

Sea Of Stars has not only been hosting the March carnival but is also embarking on an A-Z blogging challenge for April (good luck!)

DIY & Dragons has a 2022 in review (not just gaming) in a smorgasbord of interesting things

and Shuttered Room has been cataloguing creatures, all the way to Z! (more talent and tenacity than I)

I'm planning on getting back on this horse every month, as part of my bid to be a more sociable blogger, and trying to participate in the Carnival and just see what great stuff is going on.

Dungeon23 has burned me out but I'll hopefully be back on that as well ... I have a whole shelf of stuff I could review ... comments welcome on anything you'd particularly like to see more of!

Can I grab some cheap Warcry warbands from Stormbringer magazine?

I found out what minis come with the first 10 issues of the Warhammer Stormbringer magazine and have been wondering what warbands I could put together for Warcry on the cheap ever since... here's my thoughts.

I haven't posted about it but I recently got into Warcry and it's great for a quick skirmish game, I'll try to post some more stuff if people like it!

Stormcasts

Cool fanart by Zliva on deviantart

Seemingly the following not-Space-Marines-honest units will come with the magazine:

Knight Arcanum (spellcaster) - 205 points

5x Vindictors (spearmen) - 135 or 170 points each

Praetor hero (halberdy bodyguard) - 160 or 215 points

Lord Imperatant + Gryph Hound - 240+115 = 355 points

Xandire's Truthseekers - now these are interesting! I can't use the bird but the others have a sword (Vanquisher?) a bow (Vigilor?) and a hammer (Annihilator or a Lord maybe?) so it will be fun to play with the options!

Kruleboyz

Who doesn't like orcs (or Orruks?)?

Killaboss + Stab Grot - 180+45 = 225 or 190+45 = 235 points

10x Gutrippas (orcs) - 75 or 140/145 points each

10x Hobgrot Slittas - 70 points each

Swampcalla Shaman + Pot Grot - 165+45 = 210 points 

So, let's see what we can make from this lot...

Speed(ish) painting Infinity minis with Contrast paints

...for people - like me - who don't like painting minis!

Let's get this out of the way: I've never been a quick, or good, painter despite doing it for the last maybe 30 years. Getting back into wargaming post-Covid has gotten me back into painting, and I've been watching and reading a few tutorials in dreadful anticipation.

The most inspiring advice was along the lines of "staying in the lines is less important than getting contrast on the mini"; that struck a chord because I'm always disappointed with how flat my colours are.

I really appreciate the impression of volume that shaded and highlighted miniatures have, but never had the patience or the skill (or the time) for all that blending and shading. Having watched loads of interesting YouTube videos on "sketch style" or underpainting and glazing, this is my low-effort take:

Some attempt to show the steps in the process...

Step 1: Prime black with brush-on black primer - because I hate getting in all the crevices with spray primer. You can use black spray primer but the only really important bit of this step is getting black paint on the in-between and underneath bits of the mini. 

I reckon this is around 10 mins a mini, it doesn't need to be perfect because:

Step 2: Zenithal prime with grey and white spray primer, for super-fast underpainting that doesn't need an airbrush. You could use one. I have experimented and for the best results I think I am settling on:

On the painting table: Infinity Nomads

I've been pretty busy with work and life recently, but I have picked up the new Infinity starter and managed to get a couple of games in.

Having new minis means I really should get back into painting, here's progress so far including my first real attempt at edge highlights. Comments welcome.

Billie the bot, an Alguacil, and a WIP Sombra

In other news I'm playing in a weekly 5e game which is a great break from DMing. Got plenty of ideas in my head for upcoming games but haven't had enough time to get them down on the blog.

Happy gaming until next time, stay safe.

Infinity Operation Crimson Stone: 15 point beginner list building

With face to face gaming likely to be coming back soon, and the new Code One starter box for Infinity incoming, I'm pretty excited about the idea of getting back into any game - but Infinity was always my favourite skirmish wargame and I am hoping this is an easier entry point.

From playing Haqqislam before, and feeling somewhat that their Red Veil / starter units weren't a great starting point, let's see what's in the box!

Cyber-ninjas and werewolves you say? Image (cc) chesterocampo

Nomad implied list, from the units in the box:

Starting Infinity with Haqqislam, or What I Should Have Done

Infinity is an awesome game. I love how dynamic it is and the minis are brilliant. I hate how overwhelming it is for new players, which stems from:

• Having many, many, special rules and equipment choices despite the elegance of the core rules.
• There are no bad unit choices, so it's hard to narrow things down.
• Starter boxes contain a good mix of units but these are not necessarily beginner friendly - Haqq box I am looking at you!

When I started I bought as much Haqq as I could, mainly through bulk sales on FaceBook, and a few new pieces that I wanted because they were cool or because people on the internet recommended them.  Looking at my 7-800 points of unpainted Haqq and still having things I want, I can't help thinking that - especially as a casual player - I should have taken a different approach...

Building Robots (for World Domination)

Image (cc) Cameron Daigle

I happened to chance upon the brilliant Twitter bot @doskvolscores and it prompted me to start thinking about bots and automation.

I had been playing with some of the old automation stuff the blog was set up with long ago; it seems the feed aggregators are mostly gone, as RSS has gone out of fashion, but the feeds are still going strong. They're what power a lot of the links in the sidebar as well as the blogroll, so I started seeing what I could do with them.

Gaming With The Kids at Ambush Wargames Show

Yesterday I took my two eldest to Ambush which is run annually by my FLGS at our local showground.  I wasn't sure what to expect, and how long they'd want to stay...

• After a look round the stalls we enjoyed an introductory game of Blood Bowl run by the local gaming club Wolds Wargamers.  Both of them had so much fun they wanted to buy a copy straight away! It was a close and very swingy game, ending in victory for my daughter from the jaws of defeat.
• Both wanted to have a go at painting so we grabbed a free mini each and spent an hour or so in the painting area while the painting competition was being judged.  Suffice to say we didn't produce anything that could compete!
• We all got talking about all sorts of games - we didn't even get to play any of the boardgames which I thought they would make a beeline for - and my son even wanted to have a quick game of Infinity when we got home, so all in all a positive experience.

Is this a shameless plug? Maybe … but it was a great event, all very friendly, and the work put in deserves recognition. It's running today as well, and then hopefully back bigger and better next year.

Painting Progress - Infinity Demo

I'm painting up some Infinity minis so my FLGS can run demo games.  I'm even making resources too, because I love this game so darn much.  It's a hard slog, so I'm posting progress here to try and motivate myself as I'm a super slow painter.

I've got 12 minis to do as I'm doing 2 Demo Packs to get 6 minis a side and writing up some basic rules - wish me luck!

Khurasan down! Suggest a 15mm force for me??

Image (cc) revoincubus

Just heard that Khurasan minis has closed down until the autumn ... so much for the Vespulids for our homebrew wargaming rules then!

So, my options now are:

• Back to my pre-waspid idea of GZG NAC troopers and wheeled tanks - low tech, possibly Chinese / Asian Confederation (People's, obviously) army... purely 'cos I love the trikes, but we have no rules for them yet.

• Original plan of GZG (again) grav-sleds, possibly accompanied by UNSC - high tech, likely to be tied into my Martian rebels for [Starmada] - the ACEF.  Not very near future though?

What's been a'happening in the Polyhedral Tower...

It's been a while - insanely busy at work, I'm afraid - but although I've been too busy to post, I've not been too busy to game!  See photographic evidence below:

Our group's been working on our own near-future / SF skirmish rules, although some of the factions are expanding way beyond "skirmish" size!  Pretty cool-ly, the rules still hold for larger forces too... hopefully we'll post a beta soonish ... if anyone's interested in playing.

Getting into 15mm gaming...

Image (cc) Kaptain Kobold via FlickrIt's been a while... sorry!

I have been busy - after trying out a few free SF wargames rules, our group is working on our own 15mm near-future skirmish rules, so we can use modern and sci-fi minis.  Which means I finally get to make some terrain!

Current projects:

• 15mm modular city table
• 15mm Hordes of the Things fantasy scenery & armies

Updates will be posted as they come, Peter Pig pirate minis and samurai have already been purchased, along with Dixon Minis ninjas for my Ninjago-obsessed son...

Hopefully we'll all be getting some 15mm SF minis from Ground Zero Games when the shop's back online too.  Keep 'em peeled!

[Guest] On games design and complexity

Malifaux: Image (cc) waferthinninja

I'm not going to lie to you, because, at root, this is a blog about Skrapyard, the skirmish miniatures game that Precinct Omega Publishing has in development.  But just to prove that I'm not randomly spamming adverts, I'm not going to provide a link for the lazy.  If you actually find this blog interesting, then why not do a Google search from Precinct Omega Skrapyard?  You're sure to find a link eventually. (or see my posts on the game - Tom)

But before we get to Skrapyard, I'm going to have a bit of a moan.

Friday Freebie: Skrapyard

Hungering for a VSF skirmish game?  Skrapyard may be for you.

I discovered this game while merrily wandering the Twitterverse - I got a message from Precinct Omega saying I'd won one of their minis, and decided to check the game out... and as I'm no good at painting I thought I'd put the mini up for grabs too.  Check back on Monday for details.

How does the game play?  It's nice to see a slimmed down system these days - especially after so many years of 40k - and Skrapyard's core idea of only needing a single d12 really struck a chord with me.  It's a nice, streamlined roll-under-stat system - but the beta rules are coming down at the end of the month, to be replaced with a fluffless "light" version... so if you want to check it out I'd head over to the Skrapyard download page sooner rather than later!

It sounds like there are plans to introduce some more Steampunky war machines too... I'm definitely keeping an eye on this one!

15mm Infinity: The concept

It's an idea I've had in my head for ages now, having played Infinity and liked it - but not having the cash to buy the (frankly beautiful) minis or the time to convert and paint them in a manner that would do them justice:

15mm scale Infinity!

OK... why?  Because I've been looking for a decent skirmish game for ages, and I like the way Infinity plays - and I could get much more mileage from, for example, Ground Zero's 15mm StarGrunt SF range as far as troop minis go.  Plus there's little need to convert for the right standard/support/heavy weapon types as they've a pretty comprehensive range, whereas the Infinity minis - at least when I first got the beta rules - were pretty limited.

Friday Freebie: Full Thrust!

Image (cc) robartesm via FlickrIt seems my internet is back on, temporarily at least, which allows me the pleasure of introducing the free game that's probably inspired me the most:  GroundZeroGames' Full Thrust.

Full Thrust got me completely and utterly into space fleet wargaming, and it can't just be coincidence that GZG also make and sell some very nice starship minis to play the game with.  The newer designs are particularly nice - check out the ScanFed, for example - and far as I can tell from my research, GZG ships set the benchmark in 1:3000 scale space minis.

So... what's the game like?