New 15mm GZG Heads Up!

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Back in November Jon at GZG took up some of my ideas here on Dropship Horizon for 15mm separate Character Heads (click here). He consequently produced some brilliant 15mm heads for those of us who wanted to give our miniatures a bit more individual character. We had fun building upon the theme of these original heads and the fallout of this is that Jon's had several additional sprues sculpted, two of which are illustrated below:

GZG 15mm Separate Heads
Top: Shades/Visors & Goggles/Vision Enhancers
Bottom: Gasmasks and Breathers

A closeup of the Shades/Visors & Goggles/Vision Enhancers

My photos simply don't do these heads justice. They are magnificent. I take my hat off to Chromecat of the D.C.2150 blog, Joe Dragovich and their ilk for their fine conversion work (click here), and these heads present a real bonus to those of us who find we lack the patience (my particular malaise) or the skill to do this sort of thing for ourselves.

The possibilities are now endless for creating new miniatures using Jon's new separate heads - colourful military personnel, Mercs, Insertion teams, Cyber-Punks, Post-Apoc survivors/gangs, wasteland warriors, industrial world militia, RPG characters. A whole new realm of life can also be given to existing miniatures beyond paint conversions.

Next up from GZG - a 30mm tall human infantry Walker. First of several variants from Jon's workbench.

GZG 15mm Sci Fi Power Armoured Trooper

The Walker is 30mm tall and comes with moulded power/jump pack and separate arms. These arms have a ball joint that attaches to a socket at the shoulders which gives you plenty of scope for posing them individually. The detail includes integral smoke or anti-personnel grenade dischargers.


It's a really substantial miniature that has a very real world design about it. I'll pop up a few more photos over the coming weekend once I have the arms attached. If you have suggestions for additional variants/weapon types post your ideas below.

But that's not all from GZG. Jon has also scuplted some additonal support weapons for the New Israelis - a MILAN style missile launcher - I've seen it and am very impressed, together with a HAMR gunner that is still being worked on.

Finally....a new range of Sci Fi troopers are coming from GZG! You are going to love them! Stick with Dropship Horizon to find out more in my first entry of 2010!

Cheers
Mark
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Life Work The Universe...... Big Damn Cough

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Perhaps optimistically, I created a hobby project plan last week to maximise my time off over the Christmas and New Year holidays.

Naturally, it's all gone to pickled rat' as I've picked up an 狒狒的屁眼 狒狒的屁眼 of a "donkey cough" plus associated headcold and streaming eyes. So I've been laid low since Boxing Day.

It has provided me the opportunity to STOP. Which I don't do often enough. Not necessarily a bad thing. Annoyingly though, I'm finding it hard to concentrate. Consequently, holiday reading, blogging and figure painting have all gone by the wayside in favour of watching Firefly and rediscovering the Big Damn 'Verse again. Not watching it in any order - started with Disc 4 - and instantly recaptivated by Morena Baccarin (Inara).

I did manage to read a book given to me at Christmas by someone who knows me too well - The Zombie Survival Guide by Max Brooks. Started off by dipping but found it very easy to read and superbly entertaining. It is a bona fide survival guide and not just for a Zombie outbreak, it's lessons are true for any post apocalyptic survival situation. If you are into Zombie or post apocalyptic gaming I cannot recommend the book enough - it's informative and fun, in a macabre sort of way, but also simply dripping with background and scenario ideas. Thoroughly recommended.

Timely reading given the BBC's new reimagining of John Wyndham's classic Day of The Triffids. I just think of the Triffids as Zombie plantoids! And these new Triffids are MEAN daddies - look to QRF for some really nice 'stinging' plants SF10 Tripeditum Linguatum.

David, father-in-law, dropped off a book for me to read whilst still in my pit. I've started reading and am hooked - The Junior Officers Reading Club by Patrick Hennessey. Basically, Generation Y goes to Sandhurst and leads troops in Afghanistan. It's brutal, it's honest, very honest.

There's something about Afghanistan when I read books like this, that remind me of classic Traveller: Mercenary. You know, Police Action: Survival 4+. But more than that, however I don't wish to demean the men out there and those who have come back via Wootton Bassett. My thoughts are with them and their families.

Cheers
Mark
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Life, Work, the Universe..... Xmas Day

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Another beautiful day in the Frost Giant's lair

Breakfast, Bucks Fizz, exchange presents.
Clear and salt front paths,
grit pathways in back garden

Heather did a sterling turn as domestic goddess:

Smoked salmon & creme fraiche on blineys
roast partridge, stuffing, rost potatoes,
sausages wrapped in streaky bacon,
carrot and parsnip mash,
Tangerine & Brandy jelly.

Partridges ready for the oven

Dad turned up about 12.30; drinks, blineys, chat.

Lunch around 3pm, collapsed on sofa by 4.30!

National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation

It's not Xmas without the 'Griswold Family Christmas'

Heather and dad gave me a complete surprise gift:
The GZG Grav Battle Force (#V15-BF4)

GRAV Battle Force: contains:
5 x Infantry packs (New Israeli option),
2 x Heavy Gunsleds, 4 x Assault Sleds (APCs),
2 x Light Gunsleds, 2 x Scout Sleds,
plus packs of accessories and weapon options.

I'm really grateful and delighted with this present - for several reasons. Not least, the thought put into it supported by the behind-the-scenes-"intelligence gathering" by that Mr Tuffley, the 007 of 15mm Sci Fi!

Paintwise - I'm stumped - I'm tempted to follow either the GW inspired Mars pattern XXI or Urban Rubble schemes. But I'm most definitely open to suggestions for a complimentary camo paint scheme from you guys.

Hope you are having a good Christmas.






Cheers
Mark
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All The Best For Christmas!

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Following a frustrating day trying to paint the 15mm Yetis, I have two cats with more Adeptus Battle Grey on their noses than on the figures! Luckily the cats are grey anyway so no-one will notice!

OK guys! Have a great Christmas and a New Year that rocks!



In memory of Christmasses past........




Sláinte Mhaith!
Mark, Heather
Mathew & Sue

Ex-Yetis, X-Files

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I followed my own advice about Green Eyed Miniatures (see blog update 15th December) and ordered a couple of packs of these 15mm Yeti fellas before they were gone for good.

They arrived this morning. Adam had kindly thrown in some menacing Turkeys and militant slug things. Cheers Adam!

Am glad I bought the Yetis, they are very nice miniatures and will have fun painting them up to game an attack on Ice Station Zorba.

I promise I haven't had anything to drink, yet, but the Yetis brandishing the two-handed axe and the pistol (extreme left and right in the photo above), have an uncanny resemblence to Sean Connery in Zardoz! Yes, no, but, seriously!

In fact, inspecting the miniatures close-up, their proportions are such that you could paint them to be indigenous humans wearing bear/yeti fur suits similar to the Inuit. OK, the arms are a 'bit' long if you look hard enough - but I've seen worse on pure human miniatures!

There's no reason why these figures have to be indigenous opponents either - they could be used as local allies in extreme artic/mountain or even forest environments.

Forest environments? The staple setting of the early X-Files. I'm visualising a linked series of games set in Eli's part of the United States with local law enforcement, Federal Agents and eventually Special Forces being involved in localised actions against the newly discovered Bigfoot (Sasquatch) and his pals.

Cheers
Mark
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Critical Mass Games - 15mm Marrok Battlesuit

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Critical Mass Games 15mm Sci Fi
Protolene Ayame light battlesuit (L), Marrok battlesuit (R)

Due March 2010!

Mark
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Roll Out The Barrel: Late WW2 15mm Toms from FOW

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Bought a pack of FOW BR812: British Guards Rifle Platoon (NW Europe) via Maelstrom Games which arrived along with a selection of Vallejo paints and basing textures ahead of the Christmas Hols.

The British Guards Rifle Platoon are EXCELLENT! FOW's photos don't do the miniatures justice. Full of character, helmets cocked to one side in that jaunty tipping a thumb at Jerry fashion, the Brens and riflemen simply ARE 1944 British Toms!

The Way Ahead (1944) has been on TV twice in the last week just as I got in the door from work. Each time I collapsed in the sofa, watched and enjoyed it - prompting me to order these minis.

Overall, these are THE best WW2 LW Brits on the market if you want character. OK, I'm disappointed that the PIAT gunner is sauntering - I mean WTF?, but I have lot's of spares to replace him with. The officers included in the pack are fine but not up to the quality of the privates in their posing, so I'll be replacing them with figures from Peter Pig's pack no.493 Brit LW Platoon Commanders and promoting those from BR812 to Company commanders. .

I would happily take these Toms out of a pure WW2 role to use in Gear Krieg or a Quatermass style pulp sci fi setting. But for Dr Who, or facing Nazi Zombies, then BR790 British 7th Armoured Motor Platoon still retain the edge, given you could easily imagine them as a 1940's/50's version of U.N.I.T.

Cheers
Mark

p.s. I know one of the presents Heather will get me for Xmas - it's either FOW's Villers-Bocage or Montys-Meatgrinder (from the local Hobbycraft store) - so the Toms will come in handy.
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Life, Work, The Universe...... Let the Holidays Begin!!!!!!

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Got waylaid by the Dropship Bunny on Sunday - hence no updates - I'm only human! Mr Tuffley has subsequently suggested I look at his 25mm Sci Fi Gun Bunny range.... Jon, she's armed and dangerous as it is without giving her any further ideas!

Click on picture for larger view

Was due to work right up to Christmas Eve this year but the severe weather experienced across the region means I will be working from home. We are expecting a further 10-15cm of snow across transport routes and temperatures of -15 over night. Truth is, I can probably get more done in one day from home than two days in an office that is suffering from corporate seasonal lethargy.

Back home to Kinkydeenshire on the 14:07 departing Aberdeen and this is the scene from the house. One intense but important corporate task to complete tomorrow and then it's time to pull up the draw bridge.

Plan to go to the movies during the holiday season. Avatar Smavatar....yeah, yeah, yawn - looking forward to seeing new post apocalypse flick The Book of Eli starring Denzil Washington on it's release in January




Also, want to see the new Sherlock Holmes (2009). Is it me or does this magazine ad for Sherlock Holmes look like Dr Who? Come on, Robert Downey Jr could easily be the errant Timelord and that blue background design evokes a Tardis.

I see they've remade The Crazies (1973). Mmm.....This reimagining stars Radha Mitchell (Pitch Black, 2000), Denzil Washington's co-star in Man on Fire (2004), itself an excellent movie.

Rahda also starred in the weird Silent Hill (2006) alongside Laurie Holden, who has got to be the second best uniformed cop of all time - next to Beyonce of course.

Cheers
Mark
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The Dropship Bunny Announces......

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The 5 FINALISTS in the Dropship Xmas Cracker are:

bandit86: Mr Gray - Zoot
Mik: Mr Scarlett: - AKA Banda Krone, AKA Shard

Steve: Mr White - AKA Tarkis Broode

Panzerfaust 150: Mr Blue - AKA Zekai Hemmigar
redroom_Mike: Mr Red - Gray Procurement Clutch 1215, #47

An honourable mention to Mongo for 'Eyessaac'

And the winner is:

Mik for Mr Scarlett: - AKA Banda Krone, AKA Shard

Well Done Mik!

We will send you, courtesy of Craig and Dale at Critical Mass Games, one each of their new Merc,1 Merc2, Merc 3 packs, whihc will be available for general sale on Monday 21st December.


PLUS We Can Be Heroes 2 (pdf), generously donated by Gordon Roach of Task Force Productions.


We have to admit to being really chuffed with the quality and imagination of the ideas sent in. Having just watched Panic Attack/Monevideo on YouTube and thought that just as this shows what can be achieved without the backup of a major studio, these bounty hunter ideas put the imagination of the output of the GW behemoth into perspective. OK, you can see the various influences at play here but the end results ar sheer bloody brilliant - across the board. We had to call in both sets of Mrs for an unbiased, fresh take on them. So.....

The creativity and thought put into these entries proves that who really needs a firm, written in stone galactic backstory? Have your Rim, your Empire, your Rebels, Feds, Browncoats, Vargr, hell, have Vargr Browncoats! If you want to buy a backstory go GW but the best backstory is free.

Thanks to everyone who took part.

Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays!

Mark, Heather
Mathew and Sue
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Dropship Xmas Cracker: First Winner!

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The WINNER chosen at random of
the Dropship Horizon Christmas Cracker is.....

GJD

Well done!

You have won:

1 each of Critical Mass Games new Merc,1 Merc2, Merc 3
TFP: We Can Be Heroes 2

Cheers
Mark
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Let it Snow, Let it Snow, Let.....

Quick Heads Up
Home late due to snow.

Sat morning - nice hills but drifts on road and rail
needed to be cleared last night
(Click for bigger picture)


As the quality of the entries in the
Dropship Xmas Cracker are outstanding
we don't want to rush our decision.

Results will be announced
Saturday evening at latest.

Cheers
Mark

Don't Forget!

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Don't forget your chance to WIN one each of Critical Mass Games new Mercs which will be released on Monday 21st December!

PLUS!

Gordon Roach of TFP Games has offered a pdf copy of
We Can be Heroes 2 for each of the winners!

The entries so far are superb! Some of you guys are frikkin mad! We've enjoyed reading all of them.

Remember, you've got until Friday evening to submit one or more entries. Don't be shy!

To enter, click below:
(Dropship Xmas Cracker)

Good Luck!
Mark
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Rumours: Green Eyed Miniatures

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Correspondence between Adam "WhiffWaff" and one of my closest gaming pals suggests that Green Eyed Miniatures will be pulling their 15mm Sci Fi range within the next few weeks once current stocks run out.

Might be worth picking up those 15mm Yetis or proto Ewoks sooner rather than later.

I've emailed Adam for confirmation and will let you know in due course.

UPDATE 16/12/09

From Adam:

"GEM will be taking a new direction in 2010 so the 15mm bits will no longer be sold by us once the current stock goes

All our unreleased 15mm greens have been sold off to various private collectors and a couple of companies."

Cheers
Mark
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Peter Pig 15mm Sci Fi Update

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Peter Pig's 15mm Sci Fi range has been bought by Moonfleet Miniatures and will be available for sale again shortly.



I'm glad to see the BOMAG Dropship will live to fly another day!

Keep an eye on the Moonfleet Miniatures website for when they appear.

WWW.MOONFLEETMINIATURES.COM

Cheers
Mark
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The Age of Might and Steel: A Tabletop Review

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The Age of Might and Steel:
15mm Fantasy Combat Rules

by Steve Hazuka

from: 15mm.co.uk

Price: £6






THE BOOK:
48 pages, A5, good quality paper, some b/w photos included.

2 pages of Troop Types
13 pages of Main Rules
3 pages of Fantasy Armies for AoMaS
14 pages of Army Lists (built around 15mm.co.uk products)
2 pages of Monsters & Special Profiles
5 pages The Elden Groy campaign with 4 scenarios
2 pages of cut out counters
1 Roster Sheet

A high quality printed product overall.

SCOPE:
Fast Play, Grand Tactical Fantasy

ARMY SIZE:
Minimum 3 Units per side plus 'special stands' - monsters, Magic users, heroes etc.
A unit consists of 5-12 stands of figures.
3-5 Units create an Army, two or more Armies create a 'Nation'.

SCALES:
None. The recommended base sizes are 40mm wide by 20mm deep for infantry and 30mm deep for cavalry.

BATTLEFIELD:
6ftx4ft recommended for most games.

GAME LENGTH:
1 hour plus, realtime

PLAYING AIDS REQUIRED:
Normal 6 sided dice (1 per player recommended)
A tape measure
Counters/markers (two pages of printed counters is provided in the book for you to copy and cut-out)

GAME TURN SEQUENCE:
1) Assign Leaders/Special Units
2) Issue Orders andMagic Spells
3) Morale
- Cast Magic Spells
- Activate Units
4) Units Move
5) Ranged Combat
- Defensive
- Offensive
6) Hand to Hand Combat

COMBAT:
The base score required to hit a target with ranged weapons is 3+ on 1d6 and Hand-to-Hand is 2+. There are modifiers but combat is quick and bloody!

THOUGHTS:

If you are looking for a gritty, detailed set of Fantasy rules - step away now! Let's not beat around the bush. AoMaS is Fantasy Lite! Master Chef describes the rules as "a Vanilla Latte with an extra shot of Vanilla". Having said that AoMaS does what it says on the tin!

How do the claims stack up?

• Play a full game inside an hour with 100-200 15mm Miniatures on the table.
• All the action played out using 1 six sided dice (1D6).
• Armies built from Units made up of Stands of several miniatures.
• Add Generals, Monsters, Magic Users, Heroes and more to your Units.
• BIG Fantasy Armies easily controlled !
• The look of a complex battle without the headaches.
• Create original scenarios or use the included Points System and Army Lists.
• Combine Armies into ‘Nations’ for even bigger games!
• For busy gamers who enjoy a rewardingly simple game that encourages tactics.

Absolutely no argument there from me! I like AoMaS! I like it a LOT! I dragged out my 15mm Dark Age and Medieval odds and sods and had them set about each other with gusto. This is old school fast, furious and very, very bloody gaming!

There is something about AoMaS that has resonated with me at a very deep level - I can visualise the battles in miniature, so much so that I really want to do this project and bring the Valley of the Fire Dragon to life on the tabletop.

The structure of the rules allow you to scale up or down very easily. There are some neat touches like the ability to band heroes and magic users together to form their own discrete unit on the tabletop.

If you want a painless set of fun rules that will allow you to dip your toe in Fantasy gaming waters without being tied to a specific canon, or just want to beat the winter blues with hard and fast butchery on the tabletop, The Age of Might and Steel may well be for you.

Cheers
Mark
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The Dropship Xmas Cracker!

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I have not ONE, but TWO complete sets of Critical Mass Games new Mercs to give away courtesy of Craig and Dale.

The lucky winners will be announced by the Dropship Bunny at 9pm GMT on Friday 18th December and be in the post to you next day.

The prize winners will recieve one each of the packs of unpainted figures below:



These new 'Mercs' will also be available for sale on the 21st December from the Critical Mass Games webstore.

So, what do you have to do to win this bounty?

L-R Mr Gray, Mr Red, Mr White, Mr Blue, Mr Scarlet

Pick one or more of the characters from the photo above, and leave a message below detailing their 'real' name/callsign, species and a couple of sentences of background telling us why they have come to the Mudd Eisley Cantina.

Please leave a different message for each character.

One winner will be chosen at random from the entries submitted by 7pm GMT on Friday 18th December.

Five of the most interesting characters chosen by Heather, Master Chef and myself will take part in a 1-2-1 skirmish game played out on Saturday night. The second winner will be selected from these five finalists.

Takedown at the Mudd Eisley Cantina will be blogged on Sunday 20th together with photos of the action for everyone to enjoy.

Best of Luck!

Cheers
Mark
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Update from TopGun Marketing

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Topgun Marketing LLC 15mm Sci Fi
Type 15 Super-Heavy Grav Tank

"Hi Mark,

I just wanted to let you and followers of Dropship Horizon know that we are still working on our range of Grav Tanks, but the production process is taking a bit longer than anticipated, since I don't have total control over the process.

I needed to redo a few small parts to ensure quality, added to that, the company I am working with to produce the master and production molds is very busy as well.

Topgun Marketing LLC 15mm Sci Fi

Type 13 Heavy Tanks (left - two variants)
Type 11 Medium Tanks (right - two variants)

I should have some samples shipped to me by the end of next week, and hope to have them for sale as soon as possible.

Obviously, my target of having available for sale by Thanksgiving is a bit shot!

I will pass on more info about a revised production and availability schedule, as soon as I can confirm dates with the 3rd party casters.

Also, may I take this opportunity to wish you and your family, and everyone else a Merry Christmas, Happy Holidays, and best wishes for the New Year."

Sincerely,

Rob
Topgun Marketing LLC
e-mail: topgunace111@yahoo.com


Personally I'm glad Rob's mold-breaking Grav Tanks have been delayed. I want to see these tanks, billed as “The Future Shape of Things to Come” © establishing a line in the sand for 2010 and heralding a new decade for 15mm Sci Fi!

Cheers
Mark
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Basing Continues.... Warbases.co.uk

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We've recieved a new stack of 2mm round bases from ebay seller MMurray6670 a GREAT bloke to do business with. Check out Martin's website Warbases.co.uk for details of his square, round, hex and polygon bases, movement trays et al......


We usually use 40mm bases for teams of 3-4 figures. Here are some of the Chef's GZG 15mm 'classic' New Israelis with a Critical Mass Games' Merc3 Recon Drone - which will be available on the 21st December! The Drone will get another coat of ink and have the details picked out in colour in time for the ground cover - Vallejo Black Lava paste - to arrive from Maelstrom Games.

Cheers
Mark
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Life Work The Universe...... Breath of the Fire Dragon

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"Kobolds!" - Not quite what I expected the Master Chef to say when he gave me a pack of painted miniatures. "Kobolds from Splintered Light. 'Foresty creature' look about them so I thought you'd like them for your Fire Dragon armies".

"Oh! I've included some excess Satyr's too!" Satyrs? I mean, let's be honest, they're the Austin Powers of the fantasy world. I'm not sure I can field these on a tabletop without quoting one-liners from the movie! Thanks Chef!

Whilst I'm firmly into 15mm now, my personal golden age of fantasy miniatures lies back with 25mm in the 1970's. This entry on greyhawkgrognard.blogspot.com gives an impression of the type of figure I still hold a deep fondness for over and above the 28mm grotesque of Games Workshop.

My favourites were Minifigs' Valley of the Four Winds, and Garrison's Sword & Sorcery ranges spiced up with Vikings, Sassanids, Ghazanids and Medievals plus the odd plastic 'giant' Eagle.

The spark for all this came from Airfix Guide no.9. At that time I used to hike up to The Harrow Model Shop in Station Road every saturday to spend my pocket money, it would still be a couple of years before GW would open in Dalling Road. I walked 3 plus miles each way to spend my £1 a week on 25mm figs at 9p each. "Luxury! Tell the young people of today....." LOL!

My introduction to 'fantasy' as such was the classic, Beowulf. I still remember listening to the story being played to us at primary school and can feel the deep intonation of the words and visualise the images conjured up in my mind from back then. This resonated with the world my mother painted for me with her stories of Finn McCool, Brian Boru and Finnbheara. It's this gritty world of Dark Age monsters and magic, Fearie Kings, Anglo-Saxon poems and Norse sagas I have always found more intriguing than what could be called 'High Fantasy'.

The Wulf Kings and the Crow Lords, simple warbands of heroes and men, forest creatures, sprites and the deamons of the land will battle for dominance over the Valley of the Fire Dragon. Whilst the Fire Dragon himself, HOT37: The Swallower of Hope from 15mm.co.uk will come from his mountain ramparts on occasion to assert himself as overlord.

It's just something the soul of a boy from the "loch of the red eye" is telling me I have to do.


Cheers
Mark
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Rebel Minis - 20% Off Sale!

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From Mike at Rebel Minis:....

After many requests and some subtle hints, here we are. From now till December 31st, all of our products (In Stock) are on Sale for 20% off our retail price.

Please use Coupon Code: Rebel09

But wait there’s more. Shipping Worldwide is only $5.(ok, this is our everyday shipping, but I still like to remind people.)

And that’s not all. Every order gets a Free 15mm Miniature(Of my choice, but hey, it’s Free..)

The shipping of some orders may be delayed because of the Holidays. We will try our best.

For more information, check out Rebelminis.com.

As always, thank you for your support and Happy Holidays

Mike at Rebel Minis!
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Life Work The Universe...... For You Christmas ist Verboten!!

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The Xmas Silly Season is well underway! Workplace Christmas parties ahoy on every point of the compass - usually these days hosted at some organised "Bring a Drunk To A Party" event taking over hotel function rooms in a city near you - a sea of little black cocktail dresses, cloperty high heels, fake tan and glitter! All on a dancefloor the size of a pocket handkerchief.

Just as well, following announcements of additional job losses, plus the unexpected death of a colleague last week, we were instructed on Friday that under no circumstances were we to hold Christmas parties or celebrations in our offices, -6 on your Morale roll!

This scurvy pirate spent Friday night in the city partying with shipmates from various parts of the organisation till the early early hours. The flotsam of events of the past 6 weeks being washed away on a tsunami of Stella, Bloody Mary and Margerita!

Spent the night, or rather what was left of it in a 'posh' new hotel attached to a new shopping and entertainment complex in the city centre. This complete break from routine doing as much good for my NLP as the partying.

Saturday morning was surreal. The entrance to the hotel is on the first level of the complex and it was like stepping out into a scene from Mass Effect! Yo Sushi's neon signage cementing the Sci Fi feel. Breakfast was a latte at Costa, where I ran into Jacqui.

The train home rattled across a countryside settled in a deep frost, golden rays of sunshine glinting off a steel grey sea. When we turned inland the frost became heavier and at the entrance to my valley the breath of the Fire Dragon hung low and menacing like a living entity at the base of the hills.

Images of fantastical Dark Age armies, the Wolf Kings and Crow Lords ploughed through my head as we moved over an ancient rural landscape where lairds, kinship and tradition are still important. OK, OK, it's a sign - I MUST indulge in 'Dark Age' fantasy gaming next year. The Valley of the Fire Dragon WILL come to life on the tabletop using Age of Might and Steel! Which I haven't been able to get out of my head all week.....


Mark
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The Lardy Xmas Special......Breaching atmosphere.

ETA for the Too Fat Lardies 2009 Xmas Special is just hours away and this year it includes a Sci Fi supplement for their innovative and fun IABSM (I Ain't Been Shot Mum) company sized WW2 rules called Get Your Flipping Tentacle Out Of My Face, or GYFTOOMF .

If you are not already a Lardy convert then take a look at the excellent review of IABSM by Leif Eriksson click here, and catch some inspirational IASBM games in action at Kev's webpage www.Fat-Wally.com.

DO YOU WANT TO KNOW MORE?

Course, you do. To play GYFTOOMF you are going to need a copy of IABSM. The rules themselves are light on both tech and the type of Sci Fi weapons a hard nosed Sci Fi gamer like myself and the Master Chef would demand, but they are deliberately designed to be a vehicle into which you can easily incorporate your own Sci Fi ideas into IABSM.

If you are into IABSM already or it's a regular down the club, GYFTOOMF provides a good crossover to introduce Sci Fi gaming with familiar systems.

Tthe best part of this supplement has to be the Example Force Lists and Scenario. Here you will find coherent army organisations for Zombiesmith Aphids, Khurasan Garn, Karkarines, plus Spriggan Miniatures' Spugs. Rob has managed to breathe life into these alien forces and create not just believeable forces but races you want to become your primary Sci Fi armies on the tabletop.

Finally, the scenario called Squash The Spugs pits Aphids vs Spugs on planet K’Ash Meer 6. Am looking forward to playing this one!

Once published on 11th December, the 2009 Xmas Special is available from:

WWW.TOOFATLARDIES.CO.UK

Cheers
Mark
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