Welcome to the Dungeon! We got fun 'N' games!!

Hello, and welcome back to the Wargate!

We've been running Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay for the last few months and this last Sunday was week number 8. I'll speak more about the campaign we're in at a later time, but if you're interested you can take the Gate to the Warhammer Fantasy Roleplay page here on the site to get the general information. My term as GM will be up after a projected total 12 weeks, and I wanted to take this opportunity to talk about the logistics of running a game.

We've all heard the words at some point in time about how someone "doesn't have the time" to game, whether it be in the capacity of a player or that of the Gamemaster. While it's true that GM's spend a lot more time preparing for the game than the players, it's truly not much out of anyone's spare time to prepare a good game. Most of the time is spent reading books (which most people do...if you don't read books all the time I wouldn't bother you with nags about how you need to run a game), and if you have the time to re-read Gotrek and Felix's entire line of books then you most definitely have time to prepare and run a game and you can't even argue. It takes me approximately 3 or 4 hours a week to completely prepare an adventure, and that's old school style - making every map, defining every encounter and NPC in depth and all that good jazz. I'll even tell you my secret: I write the overall story before we begin the game, before characters are even made. The story then writes itself, and I just fill in game stat information.

So really all you have to do is read the book and write a story. You know, read and write - most of you out there pride yourself on your ability to do both, right?

"I don't have time" is not an argument I ever want to hear from any of you, ever again in our game club because it's a silly copout that doesn't mean anything. If you have the language skills, write your damn story down and lets get it on the board. So next time you consider running Shadowrun and I tell you to hop on it, don't tell me you don't have time. I will accept "I don't want to" or "Shadowrun sucks, dumbass" - both of which are valid answers. Just don't hit me with that "I don't have the time, I work all the time" because that's not true. You do have time, you just don't want to spend it on game preparation, whatever the real reason.

As an important side, Star Wars is voted off the island - no one will bring it up ever again.

Keeping that diatribe in mind, I'd like to show you what our Sunday night game session looks like at Hacienda Del Bone.

As you can see, we have what most folks would call a "moderate" turnout - that is, we have between 4 and 7 players weekly. Any more than that and the game would have to turn up the danger level! Note that you can't see my beer hidden quite well behind the GM screen.

With this game, I wanted to kinda get back to roots as far as adventure gaming goes. We did a modified version of Dark Heresy last year I called Space Marine, which was my version of the upcoming Deathwatch by Fantasy Flight Games. Why'd I do all that work for a 10 week game of Space Marine? Honestly, because my players didn't think that Warhammer 40,000 was a good choice for an RPG. Apparently, Space Marine characters were thought to be autonomous robots with no free will. That couldn't make a good game, could it?

I think I brought that notion down with our game. I think it was awesome, and I think my players will say it was good. Of course I abandoned the ruleset, I don't even think I could dredge it up - basically it was a reworking of the careers in Dark Heresy. Keep in mind I began development on this just after Dark Heresy had been released by Black Industries, back in early 2008 (I know it was released in late 2007).

After that we did the Old World of Darkness for a while, finishing an older campaign. Now, we want to keep the games fresh by rotating systems and GM's - and we have 2-3 of those right now and I'd like to grow a few more. RPG's are back in, and we need to turn out games like Disney turns out innuendo and false dreams. Sunday night is once again the social engagement of the week, and we want to make sure everyone has a good time every Sunday night.

How to accomplish this? Content! That is to say, lots of different stuff, you know? We'll have a New World of Darkness game (which I will now coin as Ghetto Dope) take up where we leave Into the Delve off. This will mean a new character, new system, new world and new GM (though one we've played with before) for a while (probably about 3 or 4 months). It's like when you're waiting on new episodes of Breaking Bad, even though you have to wait for that you can watch the new episodes of True Blood. Thus, we'll be the cable company that keeps giving (every Sunday).

So, anyway...this time I wanted something that reeked of Classic gaming. What's "classic" you ask?

The Dungeon.

Into the Delve takes place entirely inside the delve under Khazid Grimaz. "Classic" dungeon crawling including climbing, rations, underground madness - you need to think that this is also the Warhammer world, so infection or medical care are just as dangerous as anything else (including goblin arrows).

I wanted to do something different, however. I wanted to represent the game on the table in miniature, using Warhammer models. What could be more natural? However, looking around at products available I could not find anything I could really sink my teeth into. Most commercial miniature dungeon tiles are ridiculously expensive, or the modularity is compromised by a crap design. Dungeons & Dragons Dungeon Tiles really reek, though I did think about grabbing a few sets - they are hideously expensive for what they are. Hydrostone dungeon tiles? Not bad for terrain pieces that go on the wargames board, but really heavy when you consider the number of modular tiles we'd need, and that we have to tackle storage logistics here at the Wargate in an ongoing battle (that we happen to be winning). So, there was only one solution left for me.

Make something.

So I set to work. Behold, my own crappy dungeon tiles for setting up "Action Zones" (more on that in a moment). Note the disembodied hand is not included.

These 3d pieces represent the dungeon walls of the Delve. You can see the big and small doors, and you'll just have to forgive me for not making floors. Expediency and amount of work were factors.

Maybe I should explain what you're looking at there. Those small 1 inch tiles are made in lengths of 2", 4" and 6", with 2" and 4" door sections as well. This design lets me set up an infinite number of what I call "Action Zones" by rearranging the pieces. I can draw the map out beforehand (of course) and add pieces as the players become aware of them. I know, I know...not quite as cool as the Touch-Screen Automated Dungeon Table, but hey - I spend a lot of resources on static miniatures. CPU's tend to ruin the authentic Wargame or RPG experience, I have found.

I came up with this idea after wrestling with designs for river templates for the wargames table. I knew I had to get something, and was even considering spending a lot of money on vintage games like GW's Warhammer Quest and HeroQuest, or TSR's old Dungeon or Dragon Quest, just to get my hands on the boards!

They are made out of foamcore and cardstock. The foamcore provides the piece with some - well - bulk. It makes them easier to pick up and move, and also provides a 3d barrier. I made about 60 pieces with an assistant helping to illustrate the stonework and doors. It took approximately 4 hours to do all this, and we have been gaming with them for the entire run of Into the Delve. I think the audience reaction is fantastic, and I will probably create new sets for new campaigns.

This is a look at what the rest of that "Action Zone" looks like. Action Zones are areas in the Dungeon where something might go down. In smaller dungeons, Action Zones might be adjoining areas...but in others - such as the Delve - it might represent only a small portion of the dungeon, with endless corridors and empty and dank rooms connecting them. The Delve consists of a number of these Action Zones connected by such inconsequential areas, as the dungeon is actually miles and miles of dwarf tunnels and structures. What defines an Action Zone? How big are they? Well, they can be any size - limited only by the number of dungeon pieces I possess.

In closing, let me just say, if you think you want to run a game then DO IT MAN!! We have 2 GM's now, and I'm trying to grow 2 more (you know who you are, Shawn and Joe)! If you don't want to, then don't. It's not a big deal, but if it gives you a chance to lay on the table something you think is cool, why not expend the small amount of time it takes? You already read the books, or you only need to read the newest version. I don't think that anyone in our club would run a lousy game at all, and I'm sure everyone would enjoy it.

It's probably less time than you spend online gaming in a week. Gods forbid you slack off on dungeon grinding for a few hours.

Motivate yourself to create your vision of danger. Write it down.

You've got plenty of ideas, and 3 or 4 hours a week to write it down. Don't be afraid of the rules, you have an awesome group of friends who are absolutely fiends for any game (except Star Wars, 2 time consecutive loser of the Wargate's What Game Next? competition). You have an awesome facility where you can smoke and drink like it was the Holiday Inn.

Why not use all that?

Standard in Casual: Zendikar to Eldrazi!

Well, we're almost to M11. No, I don't mean the 11th Millennium - I mean the year's big Core Set release for Magic: The Gathering. It's called Magic 2011, and it's going to change the Standard format in a big way - especially after Magic 2010 is rotated out with Shards of Alara when the Fall set hits this year (it's called Scars of Mirrodin, so I heard).

Actually, I don't really care to talk about any of that. I do want to take a moment and share my feelings about the latest block, which consists of the sets Zendikar, Worldwake and Rise of the Eldrazi. Each new block alters the way we play the game, and keeps everything fresh in and changing. Each new set is like a new season or game - one we have to learn if we want to excel in the competitions.

I play almost exclusively Standard format. That is to say, the last two blocks and the Core set. Currently that consists of M10, Shards of Alara, and Zendikar blocks. Recently I traded my Shards cards off, mostly because I really wanted to get back to dual color decks being the norm (at least for myself). You still see the triple colored Shards decks in the Casual room, but they are fazing out. Soon I'll trade my M10 - I'll be sad to see some spells go (like my currently Standard legal Shivan Dragons!) but I have no desire to play in Extended - things can get real silly, real quick.

I have drafted Zendikar and Worldwake both on the real and on MTGO. Of all the new things that have been released, a few of the new additions to the Standard format really caught my eye. Rather than run all through them, I'll hit on what I think are the highlights that get me a high win rate.

First of all, I'll start with the three Standard decks that got me the highest win rates, so far, least to greatest. These are all born of the current Standard format, mainly from M10 and Zendikar block exclusively.

3. Zendikons

The zendikons are giant hedron shaped structures that have existed upon Zendikar for thousands of years and no one really knows why. There are five different flavors of zendikon, one for each land. Why are these so powerful? Take a look...it's almost a hidden ability most people don't think of - these enchantments basically make creatures with Haste (can tap and attack on the turn they come into play). How? Because a permanent has summoning sickness ONLY if it comes into play during your turn, but if you cast this enchantment on a land you already have had in play, that land is not subject to summoning sickness. Add the fact that some zendikons are 3/3 or 4/2 and you have a hefty hit of Haste for just a few cards. My dual colored Standard in Casual deck bears 8 Zendikons, and has a 80% win rate.

2. Timothy ++

The old Timmy decks (built in blue and usually around Prodigal Sorcerer and Zuran Spellcaster back in the '90's) have seen somewhat a resurgence. In Standard right now, there are five Tims I can think of off the bat - Prodigal Pyromancer from M10 (a red version of the original Tim, we like to call him Eric), Vithian Stinger from Alara block and Cunning Sparkmage from Zendikar (basically the same card though the Stinger can also Unearth), the level up version of Tim called Brimstone Mage (which fully leveled deals Lightning Bolt damage) and to a lesser extent there are others as well, such as Blood Cultist and Deathbringer Thoctar. Why is this old engine still running, other than these awesome new cards? The answer is Gorgon Flail from M10 - creature gets +1/+1 and Deathtouch (whenever this creature deals damage to a creature, destroy that creature). Yeah - zap with a Tim to Deathtouch an Eldrazi monster. Generates tons of concessions. Win Rate in Casual is 80%.

1. Allies

Of all the new abilities in Zendikar, this one, I believe, is the most SICK. Take a look at this guy: Kazandu Blademaster. Now consider that you ONLY have allies and land in your deck. Every turn you summon another ally, then another, then another. There are a few spells that add allies, such as Join the Ranks (puts two 1/1 Ally tokens into play, triggering 2 ally waves for 4 mana). A second turn Kazandu Blademaster or Oran Rief Survivalist is murder - and add in a few others for extra effects. Some allies put counters on themselves, others put counters and themselves or others. Blue has card drawing powers, red can give all your allies First Strike and other attack bonuses, black has life loss allies and white has the single most stupid ally of all time - it's not our friend the Blademaster, it's the two mana Ondu Cleric. Gain life equal to the number of allies you control. Now consider it's turn six, you have three allies in play (one is the cleric), you play an Oran-Rief Survivalist (gaining 4 life and all other ally abilities) then you play a Join the Ranks (gaining 5 and then 6 life) and set off three sets of your allies powers for six mana, total. If you had a Hagra Diabolist, the same play would net your enemy life loss equal to (4+5+6=15 life). If you had Kazuul Warlord, you would put 3 +1/+1 counters on each creature you control (one each time an ally comes into play). These are in my opinion, the BEST option for playing in the new block, and even in the new standard. Win rate in Casual is 100%. No Lie - I have tested a red/green ally deck and a black/white as well, both have the same win rate.

So in conclusion, I'd like to let everyone know that the game is on! Magic is STILL one of the most competitive and widely spread games around. It's a strategy game that is quick and getting ever more brutal with each set. The game changes every three months, with new spells coming into Standard, and every three months spells rotate out. This creates an ever changing environment that truly demands skill to navigate successfully.

I'll admit, I don't buy boosters anymore. It's too cheap to find exactly what I want online on Ebay, usually for one dollar for four cards. Rares are more expensive - but not by much. Magic Online lets you experiment with whatever kind of deck build you want for pennies on the dollar, and you can play on demand. To all those gamers out there who once loved Magic, I issue the call to battle! Re-ignite your planeswalker spark and grasp a Lightning Bolt or Oblivion Ring once more!

Terrain Log: Where we're going, we need...roads?

That's right. We need 'em, with all the tanks and buildings getting constructed around here. What better way to set up the table for a cityfight than by building the city itself? Buildings are one thing, but roads can really change the tactics used in a battle by adding all sorts of permutations to the general drill.

We've been doing what one of my good friends refers to as "Forbidden Planet" for quite some time - that is to say, most of our terrain resembles what you'd find in the middle of Motofrakkin' NOWHERE. Time for that all to change, with the arrival of our club's 40k roads!

Yeah, we're behind the curve. We get so caught up blowing the hell out of the landscape on our Forbidden Planets that we forget to make terrain. I've been trying to fix that for a while, and lately it's not been a one man effort! I'd like to take a moment to thank Jerry on behalf of our club for the generous contribution of 40k buildings he made, which you'll be seeing on the blog soon. His new website just went up, so take a moment and follow the link and see if you find anything titillating.

Anyways, here's a photo of the setup. I made sixteen sections of road, each one 12" x 6" long. They aren't very pretty, but then again - vinyl road?

They don't exactly line up straight - perfectly - but I forgive them. They are totally modular, and very sturdy. I cut them out of 1/8th inch masonite, and textured them with Rustoleum Aged Iron. I cut a road-stripe stencil and sprayed with Krylon Primer White. Take a look at the complete set arrayed around a building, and with more terrain on the board I think they will do their job just fine for quite some time.

They can be used on any of our boards we are currently working on, and work fine with the "Green World" we are used to playing on. Most of the new missions in 40k are jammed into the expansion books, Cities of Death, Battle Missions, Planetstrike and the upcoming Spearhead, and we want to plan for every eventual situation - all those missions come as standard on the Mission Generator we use! Now that we will soon be fighting bitter wars deep in the cities of the 41st millennium, the galaxy is a lot more dangerous as there are fewer places to hide!