Mmmm… Zombies :)

Posted on July 1, 2011 by Quirkworthy

If you’re interested in Dwarf King’s Hold then you’re in for a fun time over the next few weeks. Not only have we got Dwarf King’s Hold: Dead Rising coming back into print (get ’em while they’re hot!), but we’ve also got the second starter set coming in too, fresh off the presses. Orcs anyone?

Mantic are doing some cool deals, and I’m writing a new scenario (14) specially to go with the free miniature. (This scenario will eventually be available to everyone, so don’t panic if you already have DKH: DR – you don’t have to buy it twice). Early sneak peeks and the miniature to go with it (normally rather limited in availability) go to those who get this package deal.

But that’s not all. No, a packed box of shiny new toys, cool art and a spanking game isn’t enough. I’ve also done some rules for using Zombies in your games alongside the other minions of the Necromancer, and have put together what I’m calling a (Not Very) FAQ to deal with the few things I’ve been asked once each, and to cover the one genuine error that crept into Dwarf King’s Hold: Dead Rising. Then there’s the other new scenario (13) I did for Journal 4 which isn’t out yet, and a bunch more goodies I’m going to tell you about later. I have to stop now cos your drool is getting all over my site…

 

Posted in Dwarf King's Hold | Leave a comment

More Shinies

Posted on June 30, 2011 by Quirkworthy

The second expense my Irish escapade added to my shopping list was Smog 1888. Smart Max (who are the bounders responsible) started out making insanely detailed and finely made 50mm (ish) figures for the painter and collector. Smog – the 13th Hour is their game. Now I’ve been holding off from buying any of these delectable morsels as they are not cheap and I generally don’t buy things I can’t put on the table in a game. I don’t have the time to paint anyway, and certainly not just for display. I thought I’d escaped their temptations as I had fairly low expectations for the long-promised game. However, I was happily surprised when I played it with the Beasts of War guys (a video of our first go should be available soon to folk with back stage passes). It’s great! Far from the also-ran effort I was expecting, it’s a simple, but surprisingly involving diceless boardgame with loads of character and a simple set of rules that belies the tactical options. We played with one model a side, and that appeared to leave me with few options. However, the more I think about it, the more I can see. A normal game would have 2-4 models (I think they mention 1-6 a side, but different scenarios have varying sizes) and the way in which characters interact gives them all sorts of extra tricks and considerations. The rules are available as a free pdf, so you can check out those and the exquisite models online at their site. Let me know what you think.

Posted in Smog 1888 | 4 Comments

Shiny Toys

Posted on June 29, 2011 by Quirkworthy

When I said that I had stoically resisted temptation, I was only talking about what I’d spent on the day. As well as being on panels, running lots of demos of DKH, appearing on Beasts of War live  and so on, I also spent a lot of time at Q-Con talking to gamers, watching and playing demos and generally immersing myself in the warm and friendly gaming atmosphere. Now I played Infinity when it came out, but sort of broke the game a bit with my first army and at that point there wasn’t enough released for anyone to be able to stop what I’d concocted. Reliably killing 60%+ of my opponent’s force in my first turn was good for a win ratio, but not much fun for either side, so I dropped it. I wasn’t interested in playing something where I had to deliberately take a second or third best force because the best one was just broken. The one I’d chosen was full of models I liked (mainly why I’d chosen it) and I didn’t want to have to pick things I liked less just cos the rules let me down. I like picking armies (in games in general), and think that the process of balance and decision is all part of the enjoyment of a game. Can you get the carefully selected force to perform on the table as you imagined? Does it need tweaking or improving? How do you respond to different threats, and so on.

I think things may have changed. Infinity have done their 2nd edition, added their Human Sphere book (with linked teams and sectorial armies among other goodies) and released loads more models, which equals lots more options. Couple more choice with more experience among the many Infinity gamers I know and hopefully it’ll be an interesting challenge again, where my broken army list won’t just obliterate everyone. Actually, I doubt I’ll play the same army list, and will be starting from scratch as I sold my old Infinity stuff on Ebay. So… a clean slate.

Posted in Events, Infinity | 17 Comments

Back From My Travels

Posted on June 28, 2011 by Quirkworthy

Back from the Emerald Isle this afternoon after a fun time at Q-Con and with the Beasts of War guys afterwards (filming videos for DKH2, Urban War 2, etc).

Q-Con turned out quite busy with something over 1,500 people attending ever the weekend and a mix of wargames, board games, RPGs, LARP, cosplay and console/arcade gaming to amaze and amuse. What a mix! Personally I’m very happy with this sort of mix of gaming as it lets me have a peep into all manner of corners of the wider gaming world that I wouldn’t see if I had to go to a convention for each aspect on its own. Over the Saturday I gave a talk and sat on a couple of the panels of (alleged) notables speaking about game design, and the future of gaming among other things. That was an interesting experiment which was new to Q-Con, but which I expect to see back next year.

Accidentally bought myself a copy of Power Grid (I’ll explain why later) only to discover that it was a few mm too wide to fit in my case to carry home. Oh bother. Many other temptations were stoically resisted from the various traders at the event, and I got to feel virtuous (relatively) as well as entertained. All in all, a good convention and one I’ll be happy to go back to if I can next year.

Posted in Dwarf King's Hold, Events | Leave a comment

Q-Con

Posted on June 20, 2011 by Quirkworthy

The nice chaps at Q-Con in Belfast have invited me over as a guest, which is rather jolly. Do pop in if you get a chance, as it promises to be a fun time all round. I’ll be runing a demo or two of Dwarf King’s Hold, chatting about the upcoming Dwarf King’s Hold 2: Green Menace as well as future plans for the series, plus giving a talk on board game design and being part of the panels on several other discussions later. Should be pretty busy. Have a look at their site for details of the talks and more, here.

Posted in Dwarf King's Hold, Events, Game Design Theory | Leave a comment

DKH Videos

Posted on June 17, 2011 by Quirkworthy

When I was at the UK Game Expo a little while back some nice chaps did a video of me babbling about Dwarf King’s Hold. In fact, I got so excited that I went on for rather a long time and they had to split it in two 🙂

Part 1

Part 2

Posted in Dwarf King's Hold | Leave a comment

Scenario Design

Posted on June 17, 2011 by Quirkworthy

Just added a page on the topic of scenario balance.

Posted in Game Design Theory | Leave a comment

Nearly there

Posted on June 17, 2011 by Quirkworthy

If you have a look at Mantic’s blog you’ll see the cover art for DKH 2, and it looks pretty good to me. The whole project is almost ready for the printers, which is always both a nice stage and a slightly nerve wracking one. There’s always a slight worry that what you get back will have some dread problem with it, and though it rarely happens it can go horribly wrong. It’s usually not someone’s fault – more often I’ve seen problems caused by tiny differences is versions of software or fonts between the layout artist and the printers.

The best moment is when you finally get the fresh copy back from the printer and it all looks great 🙂

Posted in Dwarf King's Hold | Leave a comment

Stay on target…

Posted on June 14, 2011 by Quirkworthy

I don’t think I’m alone in being a gamer that is easily distracted by new and shiny toys. However, it’s worse when I’m distracted from finishing one design by the next one I have planned. With DKH this started when I was pondering what Ronnie and Mantic might release next. Goblins seemed to be on the cards, judging by what he said on the BOW site and the fact that he’s half way there already. Now he’s obviously going to be distracted by the Warpath gubbins, but it started me thinking. Soon I was half way through the rules and scenarios for them and I have the text for the back of Green Menace to finish first.

The nice thing here is that even if Mantic never do plastic goblins I can still play with the rules and, if they aren’t going to happen, I can stick them on the web anyway 🙂

Of course, there’s plenty more to explore before then. I’ve been looking at all the other models that each of the existing ranges have, and wondering how I can squeeze them down the tunnels too. Cavalry and war machines are a bit cumbersome, but pretty  much everything else seems like fair game.

Keep your eyes peeled. You never know what’s around the corner.

Posted in Dwarf King's Hold | Leave a comment

Now I think about it…

Posted on June 11, 2011 by Quirkworthy

I had finished scenario 13 and it was all ready to roll, then I had one of those ‘good ideas’. Luckily it’s not a good idea that completely destroys all my previous work and I’ll be able to see if it really does improve things the way I think it will tomorrow. However, it is an object lesson in listening to the niggles at the back of your brain. I knew there was something else I should have been doing with it and the press of deadlines had got me ignoring it. Never a good plan. Still, now it’s all full steam ahead. Need to rework the map slightly and tweak the text to match so it can get sent in and made all luvverley by the layout pixies.

Gotta love them layout pixies 🙂

 

Posted in Dwarf King's Hold | Leave a comment