"I just flew in from the Chaos Lands and BOY! Are my arms tired." - Stormskull Hawk, upon reaching the Tower of Night.
The real question here is “Why not game”? Although gaming has become more main stream in modern times it is, by far, not a new hobby. Dating as far back as 3500 B.C. Ancient Egyptians were enjoying games of Senet, a game which would later become Chess. Proof of this was depicted in a painting from the tomb of Merknera who lived from approximately 3300 to 2700 B.C.
In ancient times these game would most likely have been played exclusively by royalty. In modern times games are more accessible to the everyday person. In simpler terms, everyone can afford to buy a game.
So what are the drawbacks that keep us from enjoying our hobby? The most common complaint seems to be time. We have so much hustle and bustle in our daily lives sometimes we just can’t find the time to relax and enjoy a good game. Ancient peoples would have had the same dilemma, of course.
Where do you find the time to game there are wars to be planned and fought? When you need to hunt for the days kill to feed your family or even your village? It seems logical that ancient people would have also had very little time for a relaxing game. Games would have been nothing more than a way to pass time when you were idle.
In our modern times we have more conveniences that make our lives easier. Sure we have jobs we need to do, families to care for, but we also have more idle time then people who existed before us had. We tend to use our idle time as a way to relax and drift in to our “me” time. Sure, we would love to pick up a game and play it, but this idle time is for us to relax because we are tired. We thrust our passions aside in the name of having just a few moments to ourselves.
Eventually this becomes our routine and gaming gets pushed to the side because we just don’t have the time. If this is our passion then why can we not find the time? If we want to game then why does the universe seem to forbid it? The answer is crystal clear. The reason we cannot find the time to game is because we spend more time making excuses for why we cannot game then we do making the time to game. We are all guilty of this at some point, but this is our passion.
This is an open letter to all gamers, no matter what your genre of gaming may be. We spend all day doing the same mundane tasks over and over. We have bosses to please, wives or husbands to please, children to please. We are tired. We want to rest. We want “me” time.
Gaming is our passion, we are gamers and nothing is more relaxing than a good game to end the day. Games bring people together. Families enjoy playing together as do friends. Even strangers can sit and play a good relaxing game together.
It is up to all of us to embrace our passion and make the time to enjoy our hobby. At the end of the long and mundane day noble gamer, how will YOU spend your time? Idle or enjoying your hobby?
Greetings you fantastic people! Today is a day long overdue. We here at the Gate have touched on this subject briefly in the past, but now feel it is time for full disclosure. Games Workshop. There I said it. It has been the 400 lb. gorilla in the room for a few years now.
Many of you already know that our gaming club used to eat, drink, breathe, and bathe in GW fandom. It's true. Most of our members are well versed in the ancient lore of the 40K and Fantasy settings. Also included were the Lord of the Rings, Necromunda, and Mordheim. We even did the role-play, Dark Heresy, Rogue Trader, Deathwatch, and Warhammer Fantasy Role Play. We read all the articles published, bought the magazines, followed the games through many editions, and bought almost every model we could get our hands on.
We loved us some GW. Man o' man, it was a glorious time. We never had to want for battle. We had many great campaigns and traversed the universes created by ol' GW. They had treated us well, gave us many different options from which to choose; along with solid story lines to follow and to partake. There was support to the gaming stores we frequented and the worldwide campaigns were epic. Somewhere along the way though, the company lost it's soul (or sold it).
For a long time we were blinded to the diminished importance of the rules that governed these games. We made sure to stay relevant and buy the new editions, which were increasing in price. Along with the main rule books we had to buy new army books. We didn't mind. We loved the feeling of new. Then the editions would change again before there was a complete set of books per edition. Still we played on using the older armies books until the new one could be bought. We still played and had some good times and all seemed well. Surely GW would finally put out a complete set.
Sometime before the release of the sixth edition of 40K the care that went into the game seemed to disappear entirely. I remember playing it against one of the members of the Wargate, him with his Chaos Space Marines and I with my Imperial Guard. I had scads of guardsmen with troop transports and tanks galore. He had three troops of space marines and three squads of heavy support called obliterators. The obliterators weren't new to the game but the rules for them had changed just a bit. Normally you could only carry one squad of up to three, but that rule was no more. So, it was my entire army against his three squads of three. Those nine obliterators destroyed everything I had while his troops of space marines hid in bunkers.
I know not everyone reading this will understand why that change in the rules matters, so I'll just say that the obliterators are extremely hard to remove from play. Not only that, they carry all the heavy weapons. I had what amounted to thirteen tanks and over one hundred soldiers demolished in almost every game I played against him while he would lose maybe one or two obliterators.
I tell that story to say that we here at the Wargate love balanced rules and balanced game design. It's kind of our thing. What in points was supposed to be equal clearly didn't show through in the game play. It became a challenge to all of us to defeat this perfectly legal by the rules army. We only accomplished the feat a few times out of all the times that particular army was on the table and that was by the technicality of the scenario. Never by annihilation.
Some may wonder if we are being unfair and using this one flaw in the rules to bash on GW. That isn't the case though. There were other game mechanic problems in 40K and Warhammer Fantasy Battles that we tried so hard to ignore. For the most part we did. We had faith in our old friend Games Workshop. You would think that being the giant that they are they could get their game rules in order. It was keeping up with the increasing prices that eventually made us stop and look carefully at what GW was doing.
The realization was terrible. The modus operandi of Games Workshop had changed. I understand they are a business and want to make money. I get that, I really do. We just happen to be big sticklers when it comes to rules and fairness. If your company is the industry giant then shouldn't your games be spot on in every way possible? The need for money outweighed the priority of making a top quality product. We noticed. They no longer cared if their game worked properly.
What it basically boiled down to was the fact that the designers of these games were told to push priority towards new expensive units. These new units ended up getting special rules to help move product from the warehouse and to hell with the fairness of the rules. A pay to win system was developed under the guise of a new rule set. Moneyhammer was born.
That fact alone was enough for some in our group to not want to play GW games anymore. We were loyal customers that followed them for years because of the games they produced not just the spiffy models. We had always looked for an excuse to buy something new from them and most of the time didn't even need an excuse. We loved their products. We loved them because of the games and the stories we created using them. If they no longer cared how could we?
It became a betrayal to their own fan base. A betrayal to us. We chose to wait a while and see if they would come to their senses. We waited and waited. It became clear that the only thing changing was the story line with Warhammer Fantasy Battles. They ended the world in the setting we played in for so long. Yet another stab into our already bleeding backs. Now we feel alienated from the games we used to love.
When they stopped caring about the players around countless tables across the world playing their game, they cheated themselves and us. Never again will they have the opportunity they had. They have become a joke. There are those that will say, "It's just a game." For a lot of people though it is a time of coming together and enjoyment with close friends and family where stories are told through the constant struggles in a grim universe. It's a shame that they don't concern themselves with the community of gamers anymore.
The only concern for them now is the bottom line. How much money can they bilk out of those still loyal to the "stories" being told? How much can they charge for fewer and fewer models per box? How long can they honestly keep the hype up? How can they justify not play-testing the games they sell enough to work out the kinks? Where does the community of gamers fit into Games Workshops future? Only time will tell.
They took something away from us. Something greater than the games we played. A sense of community. That is what was lost. We were part of that community, but no more. No longer do we play in their universes. No longer do we buy their products (luckily, they got even more expensive). No longer do we paint their models. We no longer feel welcome to Games Workshops table. We no longer support the machinations of Games Workshop.
Yeah sure it was a tough break up for the Wargate, but it was a healthy one. Sometimes you just have to leave an abusive partner. Now we only invest ourselves in games that have complete rules and competent writers. We prefer game companies that want to foster community with those that play their games.
So, here we are. Looking to the future. Which is actually pretty bright. We look forward to the years to come with a sigh of relief and a much clearer focus than ever before. More news on that coming soon. Thanks for reading, if you enjoyed the post (or hated it) give it a Bone Up and leave a comment. We'd love to hear from you.
Our 2nd year of D&D Attack Wing is coming around in a few weeks, and I wanted to take this opportunity to address a few things regarding the phenomenal success of the Flightpath games not only with our club, but the entire gaming community. We've seen our schedule shift, through multiple votes and meetings, toward including more and more of these games since we got our feet wet early last year. Why? Let's discuss.
We used to be aghast at even using pre-painted miniatures, but a few years ago Pathfinder Miniatures began releasing a new standard of pre-paint. Impressed with the new standard and how some previously unavailable miniatures were now featured, we looked into Attack Wing when it was announced, and decided that even if the game turned out to suck, we'd still have the miniatures. Now, miniature gaming here at the Wargate has really been about RPG's for the last few years - still had a sour taste in our mouth from all the GW Kool-Aid. While warband / army miniatures is on the rise in popularity again, Flightpath has fundamentally changed our scheduling, and consequently our gaming experience.
I think we can point to the fact that in our case, we could chuck out all the cards and cardboard chits and still have the minis for whatever game we want to play. That's one reason, but I don't think it's the main reason we've decided to keep three Flightpath games on our schedule for this year (and going forward). Last week's meeting determined that Star Wars: Armada would win out over the more traditional (for us) Tomorrow's War in Season 3 this year. No, good sirs and ladies, it's not just the pretty miniatures. The main reason for this shift is far more basic.
Flightpath games are fun. That's it - four words describing why we support this game. Basic, to the point and (generally) self-contained, these games are very attractive for a sort of beer-n-pretzels game that's also competitive and not grossly unbalanced, despite some ill luck with the dice.
Real terrain makes the games even better!
Add to that the fact that now our players can control a Tyranny of Dragons as their force, and you've got a recipe for success.
D&D Attack Wing occupies a special place. It's a great "party" game, and like the other Flightpath games lends itself well to team play. This is what we needed, and these games provided a sense of community during our recent dark days. The entire club loves these games and are instantly engaged, and new players can be engaged just as quickly. This is the real power of Flightpath, and the secret to it's success.
New Attack Wing stuff is set to arrive this year, along with the new D&D story arc from Wizards of the Coast. The publication schedule really suits us, and now that D&D is the mainstay of the Wargate once more we're very comfortable with that. Boardgame Geek gives us a great place to get familiar with the line, including the Organized Play packages and upcoming releases. Don't worry about the line fizzling out for a while. Hopefully, with our support, the release schedule will have a great success with each push.
Today, we are going to talk about next season's structure, and especially the new game we've nested with Dungeons & Dragons. We're excited about Frostgrave, and with good reason. Now, this isn't a Rulebook Rumination for the book (though I will provide one next season after we put it through it's paces). Instead, this is a look at the game and how we're making it fit what we want, rather than (for example) NOT making it into something we want.
The last few years we've introduced a fair number of new games, looking for the je ne sais quois that would land a game or setting (or even just a model line) a permanent place on the Wargate's schedule. We found we enjoyed all of these games, but enthusiasm for many of them has waned off. Either they don't have a project lead to run a nested RPG, they weren't quite robust enough to carry a season by themselves, or maybe it suffered a worse fate - it suddenly strikes as silly to be married to another IP after the GW fiasco a couple of years ago.
To this end we've managed to put the focus on three main setting milieu, and the move to a three season year to accommodate longer campaigns. While Dungeons & Dragons has fine pedigree as an RPG, there really isn't a competitive system to allow us to fight the kinds of battles we want to. D&D Attack Wing provides a great system for fantastic battles between all sorts of strange creatures, it fills a niche all it's own.
So, if D&D Attack Wing is "quick-play / high-magic"...what else do we want? We want what we previously had, the "two-party" split we've been doing for years between small-scale skirmish games for warbands, and larger-scale battle game for armies. In both cases, dragons and beholders need to be included (at some point).
We decided to forgo larger battles between armies (for now) until we find a rule system we want to double down on, and in order to decide that we'll probably have to have some group test games with Kings of War and Hail Caesar! before we really decide to go with one or the other. Time will tell, and we're not too worried about this for the moment. What was clear at the time we made this year's seasonal plans is that there was a obvious heavyweight contender for the skirmish game slot, and it was a brand new Osprey publication.
The plastic miniature sets helped convince us.
"We are here for the (adventure) party."
So, specifically, why Frostgrave? With all the other games out there, what about this set us on the course we're on? Well, as mentioned earlier this is not a Rulebook Rumination, so I won't discuss rules or the physical books themselves until later in Season 2. All that jazz isn't so important right now, because the specific reason we decided on this game wasn't just the simple (yet wonderfully robust and elegant) ruleset. Rather, it was the very obvious tone of the background material and units presented. You see, although Frostgrave has a setting...it's not well described and exists mostly as flavor. So, since we have hundreds of models for this sort of game we had no need to buy anything new but the rules.
I don't understand the mentality we used to have. ONLY these models and ONLY these rules and ONLY this company and ONLY (blah blah blah). I can only say we were young, and naive. Chained to our own lack of imagination, we wound up with what basically amounts to hundreds of the same model and games that turned into PAY2WIN nightmares. Those days are long gone (as we have been frequently saying of late). With a fresh perspective and refined experience, we have set about making next season an exemplar of how our schedule will work and incorporate games.
Turn Dead for what?!
The strongest imagery that sets it apart is that it's cold. So, we ditched that entirely and moved it to the Forgotten Realms. Since Dungeons & Dragons 5e material is focusing on the Sword Coast, if we travel a little farther north we'll find a frozen land similar to the one in Frostgrave. Not that your tabletop terrain needs to reflect that coldness, as there's not any "main" rules that govern, say...freezing to death.
With that in mind, there is almost unlimited room for expansion, even just to tackle the basics of a fantasy world - what with all the various elves and goblins and what-have-you's infesting what we might refer to as "places of adventure". We've bandied around how this could be done so that it suits our collection and preferences...but Osprey is on the ball with the expansions.
In a few years, if this game gets continual support from the publisher...it could be very meaty indeed. Already, there is one expansion book, Thaw of the Lich Lord, and it will feature prominently during this year's campaign. We'll review that one with the rulebook next season, and it really sets the bar high.
Exciting times!
Obviously, one of the main things missing is a preponderance of monsters you can have in your warband. There is a bestiary and monsters, sure...but (save for some spells) they are mostly NPC style hazards. Our players want to be the monsters. All kinds of monsters...to a point appropriate for a skirmish game. Hopefully, Osprey will keep up their releases for this. To that end, we hope you decide to check out the game,as there are PLENTY of reasons to do so.
"Those are NOT rats."
This June there will be a new expansion taking the game even further. Titled Into the Breeding Pits, it promises us adventure in a dungeon style environment. We've done this sort of thing with wargames before, but it may be interesting to see a competitive take on it. I'm especially interested in how the dungeons will be set-up, both in terms of actual terrain pieces we may require AND in terms of how each scenario may be set up.
In any case, it will provide us with more tools and examples to use. This year we won't be expanding the game with Wargate rules...but 2017 may see us looking into taking the game in unexpected directions. Don't expect dragons on the battlefield (save for, perhaps, special occasions) but there are dozens of fantasy style monsters we can port as both wizards and their henchmen.
Sandgrave, anyone? Adventure among the sandy ruins of a desert empire. Watery Grave, where ships are involved. I could go on with settings that could easily be attached, but let's not forget monsters, new magic and all the other sorts of material we are used to. In fact, we may start porting our favorite material from other skirmish games to satisfy our need for an all-encompassing ruleset that we are free to use our collection with.
Did I mention plastic gnolls releasing with Into the Breeding Pits? I love me some gnolls, so I'm interested to see how they fit into the current ruleset. Maybe they'll give us a gnoll wizard. Maybe I'll use a gnoll model and call it an Illusionist. Either way, the current Frostgrave models are fantastic multi-part plastics and as far as I can tell this will be the first ever such box filled with gnolls. Good ol' gnolls. I love me some gnolls.
Gnolls - because Hyena Men under your city is worse than Rat Men.
If you're into this sort of game, you won't be doing yourself a disservice to pick up a copy of Frostgrave. The price point is A NEW STANDARD for the industry. The main hardback will cost about $20 USD at full retail, and the expansions seem to weigh in between $13 and $18. The box sets are around $27 USD, and a two-pack of metal wizards (should you need them) will cost $10-14 USD depending on where you purchase them. Of course, that's retail - we paid $17 for the main rulebook and a paltry $8 for Lich Lord. That's serious value, and I think that will prove one of the best investments we've ever made during the inaugural season coming up.
So, the only thing left for a distinguished and accomplished Gatekeeper like yourself to do is pick a wizard school and build a warband from the hundreds of models we have in cases - or if you want something different just build a new model. We're going to be painting our warbands for a feature next season as well on Project Days, and with a model count of less than 10 initially this should be an easy exercise for the group and let us show off the newer camera.
Get with the Project Coordinator to setup your warband any time before Season 2 begins on May 1st. The campaign season is already planned, and the timeline of scenarios and special events is the most robust one that has been rolled out in a long while. Frostgrave will also be the first game on the schedule to include a "campaign day" - a new style event where the focus will be on a special set of linked scenarios for the entire wargames session (prior to RPG's in the evening).
In addition, there are some more surprises we are developing that are going to return our campaign seasons to serious order, including bringing back some old Wargate traditions. It's taken us a long time to work out this new plan, but compared to the old GW-centric model of our club, our new itinerary is superior in every way. We're very pleased with how it's working out, and excitement over the new game and the implications it delivers is reaching a fever pitch.
So sharpen your dirk and carefully prepare your spells, Gatekeepers. Frostgrave, the Frozen City, awaits. It's time to get ready...
Specifically, let's talk about settlement patterns in the Territory. Although our settlements are entirely fictional, it is entirely likely that they could have existed. All that would have been required is a little bit more industrial exercise by the intruding settlers, such as we have explored in our game.
Even the term "Boomer" (as we are so fond of in Oklahoma, for some reason) would not be "too" anachronistic. After 1870, non-native settlers began to pile into the Indian Territory. In fact, at this place and time more whites lived in the Territory than Indians. Studies have put the number of illegal 'intruders' at about 35,000...while the legal non-native settlers numbered over 100,000. Contrast that number with the 67,000 - 71,000 natives believed to be living in the Territory and you start to get the picture.
In 1879, members of the so-called "Boomer Movement" attempted to enter the Unassigned lands in defiance of government treaties with the natives. They believed it was public property and open to settlement. Officially, settlement of the Unassigned Lands didn't begin until 1889, but in other parts of the Territory it is entirely possible that some small settlements could have been completely overlooked until that time...especially in the World of Darkness.
The University of Oklahoma adopted "Boomers" as their team in 1895 (Sooners in 1908). The Boomer Movement first started in 1879, and was illegal. The first "land rush" was 1889.
The first organized football game in the Territory was in 1896. Statehood was 1907. Wrap your head around those dates, and lets put them in order.
1865 - End of American Civil War
1870 - Rebuilding of the Nation draws more people to the Territory.
1876 - Smokefall Ridge, Current Year (~35,000 'intruder' settlers in the Territory)
1879 - Beginnings of Boomer Movement into the Unassigned Lands (labeled Cherokee / Seminole on our map.
1889 - Land Rush
1896 - Sooners Football, baby!
1907 - Statehood
All this time later and we still have our priorities straight.
Our imaginary settlements of Smokefall and Primrose sit right on the border of two native sections. The Chickasaw on the east, and the Apache / Commanche territory on the west. One place is pretty rough, the other is rapidly beginning to approach "progress" as railroads and other infrastructure are built in the Territory. Remember also that the settlement of Oklahoma was unique in that "instant cities" sprung up out of the ground.
Since "none" of the original Boomers (or Intruders) camps or settlements became permanent, it's easy to say they came and went with no impact. Yet in many areas, the original structures built before statehood still stand. Usually it's in tiny towns in rural Oklahoma...the places time never caught up to, and consequently, never reshaped them. Anyone that lives here knows exactly what I'm talking about, and anyone who grew up here may experience negative time distortion effects if this is meditated on for too long.
So, it COULD have happened. With a nudge here, a nudge there, anything is possible. Just don't discount the encroaching civilization that governs these lands. The end goal of this long, long game is this: make Smokefall last. It may be a tiny town in 2016...maybe even a ghost town. Or maybe it will just be a few creepy foundations in the middle of the woods. Maybe...a city on the interstate? Who knows?
The club's shift in focus over the last year or so has had me pondering a phenomena I've observed. It's been a steady occurrence since we first started considering Flames of War as a new game to invest in, but as the focus shifted away from Games Workshop it became more prevalent. You see, as we have gotten past the GW bubble, we have actually gravitated more toward historical games than ever before.
There will always be fantasy and sci-fi staples at the Wargate, but we've added a third category - Historical games. We might have been interested in history before, but since we've switched from GW publications to Wargames Illustrated for our hobby reading we've seen a much wider world of miniature gaming. Since the blunders GW is making in it's final days as 300lb industry gorilla are steadily stacking up, more and more hobbyists are seeking egress from the clutches of their IP.
For many, similar games to the ones they left behind hold the draw. Warmachinehas called out to our local community as GW is slowly (but surely) rejected. For us though, the draw has been to Flames of War and other 'real world history' games such as Hail Caesar!, Dead Man's Hand, and Ronin. We even had to stop and take a serious look at all the options we had, researching miniature lines and rules for the American Civil War, Revolution, French & Indian War, Napoleon's campaigns, biblical history and a few others.
I'm fairly certain this is due to a 'detachment' from isolated intellectual properties that have to be explained to the casual onlooker. Similar though it is, D&D needs little explanation, as does Star Wars. People know what they are looking at when they see these things on the table, and seeing WWII equipment and soldiers brings an equal if not stronger familiarity. We have found this to be invaluable to our aging demographic, but mostly because they have moved past being only interested in robots and dragons. We have grown up, and are now interested in what inspired those things that inspired us when we were younger. We have 'grown' into this new love of history that matches up with our fervor for gaming. It's quite liberating, speaking as a hobbyist.
Currently, we've decided to focus on World War II's Eastern Front, or The Great Patriotic War as it's known in some parts. Specifically, Bolt Action and Flames of War. In addition, the Wild West has us building a collection for World of Darkness and Dead Man's Hand. However, we're slipping in a provision that will allow us to build armies of miniatures that will be used in many different ways for several different games.
Dungeons & Dragons at the Wargate will be receiving firearms. Greyhawk, Forgotten Realms, Ravenloft, Spelljammer and Mighty Fortress will be receiving the tech upgrades, with the availability of gunpowder weapons in each campaign setting in rising proportion in that order (i.e. Greyhawk has the least availability, Mighty Fortress has all the guns of the Age of Empire). This will encourage the building of some line infantry and other 'Renaissance' level technology without damaging the established campaign too much. We can then use these troops for other games that would utilize the same sort of troopers.
Going further back, it's even easier to diversify this way. Ranks of Wargames Factory Greek Hoplites represent Milenian troops from Mystara, while Warlord Games Romans represent Alphatians. You can see where we're going with this - once you add in the myriad campaign settings of D&D and the star systems of Star Wars you can use pretty much any miniature in ONE of our seasons each year. No more benching for years!
It's going to be a great year for modeling projects at the ol' 'gate. We'll have some pics and articles on miniatures, paired with how we intend to use those models in different game systems and settings. Saturday is now home to 'Project Afternoons', so lend a hand to building and painting models and terrain and help us crank out some awesome new units for all our games!
Last weekend marked the sixth year we have celebrated our new favorite holiday, and the celebration was grand indeed! Friends old and new pitched in to make it one of the biggest Krampusfests we've ever had, and I want to take a moment to thank everyone who came out to make it so. The girls especially worked really hard at all the grub and presentation and lent a gravitas to the situation that could not be denied.
"It's dangerous to go alone. Take this..."
We marked the festivities with a grand feast, as per usual. This year were the proverbial Indian Tacos (sic) and a plethora of other goodies. There was even vegetarian fare, as has been the custom the last few years. We asked folks to stop by our photo booth, and nearly 200 pictures were taken last Sunday. We'll show a few here, mostly because I'm lazy.
The 'Whovian' Delegation, after swapping super-deformed Time Lords.
This year has been a marker for Krampusfest, not the least of which being the release of a new movie. I haven't gotten to see it yet, but I hear good things. The pop-culture mainstream is catching on to Krampus, and we couldn't be happier.
We're considering putting together a podcast for the community, and right now we're exploring how to best expand our horizons. We've got some definite goals for the near future, and we'll talk about that at a later date, but the short of it is that the format of the club is going to change to something far more dynamic than the hermitage it has been the last year. It's time to branch out!
"In this general direction. Here. Over yonder."
The fun and festivities carried on into the night. There was such good fun and cheer in the air that no one even noticed we weren't playing any games. That's right - nary a single die was rolled this Krampusfest, for everyone could not stop eating (even for one round of combat). That's how you know we're doing it right.
To everyone who came out, to everyone who helped organize, and especially to those who helped prepare the feast, let me give a collective "Thank You!" on behalf of the entire club. Every year you've outdone yourselves and this year is no different. I really felt the energy and enthusiasm welling up in everyone despite there not being any games this Krampustag. I know my own drive to game and complete projects has been ramped up to a new degree, and new projects are in the works!
Though the roster and games may change, Krampusfest is our yearly reaffirmation of our community and club-spirit. It's absolutely essential for the club to celebrate this holiday, and now I think it's more than just a quirky ritual. It's become part of the Wargate tradition. Who knows what Krampusfest 2016 will hold?
Star Wars is one of the biggest properties around right now. I mean, it's always been a big deal (for at least my entire life) but it's not always at the forefront of pop culture. That has to coincide with special days / events - such as the release of a new movie. The 4th may be with us, but it's not the gigantic festival we've seen lately every single year.
We've seen how the franchise has gained traction in the gaming world over the past few year and a half or so with X-Wing blowing up, but things are starting to get a little crazy since this particular thing showed up on the internet a while back:
I thought I'd take a moment and talk about Star Wars at the Wargate, and our plans for the future. The franchise has some life back in it now, but we've been planning a resurgence of our own for a few years now. We had great campaigns earlier this year, and that just happened to coincide with the release of the new movie.
Most of us have fond memories of Star Wars of ancient times. Playing with action figures with our lil' buddies, watching the movies when they were first released, buying the glass cup set from Lucasfilms' promotional partners, etc. Dropping Boba Fett to his death from the dizzying heights of the swingset slide. I know I was overly fond of watching things fall and hit the ground when I was a child. That's not creepy - I never dropped any of my brothers off a ledge or anything. Action figures were not a protected species, however.
So about four or five years ago, there was a motion to bring Star Wars to the Wargate in the form of a supported season, but at the time the franchise and setting were regarded as passe. People were more in favor of FASA's Star Trek or Dr. Who and showed absolutely no interest in the Force. I didn't really understand all of that, but the focus group had spoken: not only was Star Wars right out, but in a sense we found that the whole thing was an object of derision and ridicule.
For us, I think the biggest reason we hadn't supported the franchise was the failure of Sony's Star Wars Galaxies than the prequel trilogy, which are widely maligned and at first glance you might have assumed that's why Star Wars got a bad rap. Yes, in 2003 we at the Wargate were total Star Wars nerds. Somewhere, it turned sour for us - probably born of that experience with Sony. Lucasarts, if you're listening then take note there. Your licensee was a total failure and cost you big - at least with this small club of gamers.
"Actually, I'm kinda 'meh' about this hyperdrive right now."
Fast forward a decade or so. We got a good deal on a pile of D20 Star Wars books - almost the entire run of the Revised D20 version. Then a peculiar thing happened. X-Wing had just released, and it looked interesting...so we checked it out. Then folks started looking at the D20 books...then we realized there were Star Wars miniatures in the treasure hoard. After that, it was easy - Star Wars was on a resurgence...and we jumped on it willingly.
We even started buying lots of the old Wizards of the Coast prepainted miniatures...something we hadn't done before the Pathfinder Battles line came out and showed us that prepaints didn't have to suck. X-Wing was a dealbreaker - everyone fell in love instantly, even most of the ardent Star Wars detractors. Then I finally started watching The Clone Wars animated series and began to understand what we had been missing this whole time.
I was still on the fence about The Force Awakens at this point in time. The first trailer (above) didn't really titillate me for some reason - maybe it was just the *bleh* of the prequels that kept my fervor from rising for the movie, even as the club's enthusiasm for the setting and, most importantly, the games continued to rise. Then, the second trailer came out. I had been hearing about it for a week, as it had broken the intenet. I avoided it, however...as is my wont with things so...mainstream I guess you might say. Everyone was on that wagon, and you know how that goes. Then, one night very late at night while I was by myself and about to crash out I was browsing YouTube and said "What the Hell?". I clicked the button.
I don't really know how to describe the feelings that washed over me as I watched that, alone in the dark and half asleep, for the first time. I felt an unfamiliar feeling as my face contorted into a grimace, and tears welled up in my eyes. For those of you that know me and know full well I don't even have emotions, let alone cry about things will know that this is highly peculiar, but it's true. I cried tears. It was weird.
It moved me. I was mad about it though, and started combing the internet for the week's worth of information I had missed. I was literally mad that it had touched me in a place I didn't even know existed and I wanted answers.
Turns out, I wasn't the only one. The first thing I found on the internet was this gem. Someone had made that. It was exactly how I felt. I have never, ever felt closer to Matthew Mcconaughey. Not even when I watched Magic Mike.
Turns out, I wasn't the only person this had happened to. It was like that trailer was perfectly designed by mind-control experts to tug on the heartstrings of nerds like me, i.e. brought up on or greatly influenced by Star Wars. And it worked like a charm.
So, we started getting models. We drafted Star Wars stories and began our RPG campaign. We played X-Wing...and loved it. The setting has things that appeal to everyone, even if they don't admit it at first (looking at you, Star Trek guys). What's more, people readily identify with Star Wars. I think the only other setting that's close to the familiarity folks have with Star Wars are the World War II games...and generally speaking are far more familiar with the space opera than the real world history. Star Wars was not only on the upswing for project enthusiasm here at the Wargate, it's picking up a lot of momentum in the mainstream.
A padawan might call this mainstream momentum "hype"...but true Jedi understand that this resurgence in the Force could very well herald the dawn of a new age. The amount of money that's behind this is only thrown at it because of the amount of excitement among it's target demographic is phenomenal. Perhaps even unprecedented. They aren't trying to brainwash you into watching the film, they pretty much already know you will (most likely whether you have any desire to or not). No, all those mainstream TV / product tie-ins are there because the demand is there.
We'll leave all the film speculation to other corners of the internet, as what I want to focus on here is what that means for us as gamers. The Force Awakens was titled conspicuously from the very beginning, in my mind. It long signaled that Disney wanted to revive the franchise long-term. I knew there would be at least six more films, judging simply by the release schedule. 3 films in the new trilogy (part 7-9) and then three stand-alones.
The idea that the franchise would be officially supported by the "hype-machine" helped us make the decision to keep Star Wars on the Wargate schedule long-term. 2020 is pretty much the foreseeable future, and we all want our investments to pan-out. However, apparently there is a lot more in store even than that, and that points our meters to an upcoming golden age of Star Wars gaming, headed up by Fantasy Flight.
Star Wars will be occupying Season 3 of next year's schedule. Next year will be slightly different in format, as there will be 3 four-month seasons instead of 4 three-month seasons. In fact, Star Wars will probably be our Season 3 setting for the foreseeable future, as it titillates us to no end that at the end of each season we'll be treated to a full-on Star Wars movie. December will be full of even more fun here at the Wargate - Krampus at the beginning of the month, and Star Wars movie release at the end!
Don't worry though. We're not going to build any new Death Stars. We'll leave that to Disney, and explore the Star Wars universe outside the immediate vicinity of certain types of artificial moons (i.e. with planet destroying super-lasers).
It might come as a shock to you that in Oklahoma, in the center of the United States, it's almost impossible to find a Western game. We went a long way to find a game that fit the genre and our needs, and it traveled across the ocean to get to us. It seems as if the entire countryside full of gamers has absolutely no interest in this genre. Well, except us here at the Wargate.
It really should be natural for us to get into this genre, but although enthusiasm is built up pretty high there's very little actual historical knowledge about this period with most gamers, especially those here. Let me clarify we had everything we need as far as roleplaying games go - what we started looking for was a way to bring the action to our miniature battles!
Since we started the World of DarknessWild West game a few years ago, we've been looking at how to bring it to the table. There's a lot of different game systems out there, but it was difficult to find a new-ish game to help bring the enthusiasm level up. As I said before, our game stuff had to travel a long way to get to Oklahoma.
It took a little searching around, but Wargames Illustrated has some coverage of all eras. In that esteemed magazine, we saw a little about a game called Dead Man's Hand. We searched for it high and low, but were only able to get a copy in from the United Kingdom. This, for a wild west game. We live in OKLAHOMA.
Great Escape Games has done a great job - Dead Man's Hand seems to fill all the criteria we were looking for in a skirmish game. We had a few Wild West miniatures lingering around from various purchases previously, but most were Reaper...and a few of them I've been unable to identify. Not even really sure where some of these came from, but there were at least four different manufacturers in our Wild West case before we started this project.
After looking through several manufacturer's catalogues, we settled on what we were going to use to populate our Weird West. In addition to the Dead Man's Hand range (which is nice and has great sculpts, it's rather limited) we will be using Black Scorpion Miniatures' Tombstone range. There's a wealth of cool miniatures in there, and they are FANTASTIC sculpts. The resin Black Scorpion casts in is also one of the finest materials on the market and I suggest you check some of their work out. With Great Escape, Black Scorpion and Reaper's model ranges leading our charge into the West, we'll have more than enough stuff to keep us busy for this season and the next.
"Badges? We don't need no stinking badges!!"
Yet as any wargamer knows, you can't just have the miniatures without building terrain for the milieu. Lucky for us, 4Ground's American Legends range has the makings of our dusty Territory township. Those are great terrain pieces, and since we intend to build the town square of our main settlement we can expect to see several of these constructions building in Smokefall Ridge very soon. Not only that, but the Blackwater Gulch range has EVEN MORE great kits we're going to grab up to help populate the Settlements.
"Get a rope."
It's not hard to imagine the entire place. Dusty roads, a dirty well and a few facade buildings. Livestock will be kept, and fences. It's almost a model railroad project but for the fact that this is all centered around gaming. There's all sorts of variety.
Whatever the case in Smokefall Ridge that would necessitate the construction of a gallows, one thing remains certain: you're probably going to need one, eventually. And for me that's good enough reason to build one - notwithstanding how cheap it is! Going forward into this project with our group is going to be a blast.
We don't need a HUGE amount of new items, and can afford to focus on the whole thing as a collective. As we build up our model collection and terrain set, the Settlements will become a more solidified place in our hearts and minds. Welcome to Smokefall Ridge partner - in miniature.
At one point, I actually read comics. Sometime in the late '80's, before I had gotten into gaming proper, I had a run of X-Factor and Solo Avengers. I didn't collect very many, but the ones I had were some of my favorite pieces of literature when I was about nine years old. Within these hallowed tomes, there were mysterious beckonings from another world posing as mundane advertisements for something I didn't really understand. Those old Advanced Dungeons & Dragons advertisements are what initially drew my attention to this wonderful hobby of ours, and one of the first ones I remember are the old ads for the Forgotten Realms.
Ah, nostalgia.
Despite all those ads and the very real interest they held for me, I wouldn't actually see anything from Forgotten Realms until I got my hands on Menzoberranzan about 1993. From there, it spiraled out of control for a bit. Even though I had cut my teeth on Greyhawk and Dragonlance, the world of Faerun started to gain momentum within my gaming circle - especially after the very popular Dark Elf Trilogy caught on. So, the trend goes.
The revised Forgotten Realms boxed set (with Elminster on the cover) was my first proper setting for the whole line. It's set after the Time of Troubles, and the "Grey Box" is set before said event. Little did we know this would set the trend for moving the setting forward with each edition...but it's continued into 5th Edition - and Faerun is a much weirder place.
The Time of Troubles was used to explain all the differences between 1st Edition and 2nd Edition Advanced Dungeons & Dragons. During 3rd Edition, Faerun pretty much had leveled out after this cataclysm and developed into a great campaign setting, one that finally seemed to get its proverbial droppings in the can, but did so by literally reshaping a large portion of the setting. Then...there was 4th Edition.
I'm not going into the Spellplague and all that, as we'll get to it with that part of the story as we progress through the editions...but let's just say it was a retroactive continuity change that significantly alters the nature of the entire setting. If you want a more detailed (and slightly speculative) view of the history of the Realms and how the settings changed within the fictional world, I recommend this thread from Candlekeep. It's a great assessment of the lore, and also showcases how awesome Ao really is.
For the Wargate, the Forgotten Realms is going to be all these things, and possibly more if what Aldrick had to say is even remotely true. Long ago I came to terms with the fact that these settings and games change over time - they have to, for as shared fictional universes they MUST change and grow as all "living" things must. Each setting is it's own theater, and because of how we handle editions here each will have it's own ruleset as well. In the end, this makes for a diverse and rather robust gaming experience.
For myself, I've enjoyed kicking the tires of the 5th Edition and the setting. It's familiar, yet strange at the same time. All the little changes are hard to keep track of. It will be very interesting to see how it all plays out, but one thing's for certain - folks have wanted to go back to the original maps and setting for a long, long time. The original box is often hailed as setting the standard for decades within the industry. Among certain OSR circles, it's the foundation and ultimate expression of what this sort of item should be / contain.
I was not happy that the Forgotten Realms supplanted Greyhawk as the "default" setting, but I suppose I'm a holdout. I'm not really a Drizzt fan, nor am I a fan of Elminster - despite going through a phase or two in High School. I'm more of a Mordenkainen sort of guy. Yet, I do have a lingering and honest fondness for the Realms themselves...and more people know about it them than any kingdoms on the Oerth.
Not to mention - the Realms are rife with wargaming possibilities. From Battlesystem itself and the published modules that incorporate it, to the multitude of other rulesets from innumerable manufacturers. There's plenty of good reason for us to use Hail Caesar!, Frostgrave, Kings of War, Saga, Lion Rampant, and that's not even mentioning D&D Attack Wing or Dungeon Command or Chainmail. This is the part that excites me, and once we upgrade our camera equipment (sorry there hasn't been very many miniatures lately) there will be plenty of photos of shenanigans and other projects.
That's all for now. Thanks for reading, and remember - not every drow miniature that dual wields is Drizzt. In fact - none of them are. None. Zero. Capish?
Last March, we enacted an Embargo on Games Workshop. This was our Spring of Discontent. The club has a strong Anti-GW bent, 16 months later. Today's long-winded and pompous rant speaks (for the first time) about the Wargate's stance on GW, why we have decided on this course of action, and where it has taken us.
In the beginning (for me), GW games were the holy grail of sci-fi / fantasy miniature gaming. It was a graduation to GW from non-miniature table games such as Dungeons & Dragons. I made this transition together with many of you that are with us today as Gatekeepers, and I'll treasure the memories of our adventures through the Imperium and the Old World forever.
It was truly a golden age...but 21+ years later, GW has become a three-headed monster that believes it is king of all gamers. Now, one of those games / settings has literally been destroyed by the company itself. This is completely unforgivable.
GW Sales Rep / Game Designer
The beginning of the end came early for us, but now even the fanbois that hated on us two years ago are starting to get the idea that GW is taking a huge piss on you.
I am happy to say that our club was one of the first ones I know of to move AWAY from GW. it was painful, expensive and it drove some people to quit gaming, period. We caught a lot of flak, but eventually everyone saw the light.
Seemingly happy to vindicate all we've done, GW publishes Age of Sigmar. This isn't our game and I'm so glad we have no part of this. Yet we're not the only ones in the community. GW should see where we are now. You have seen the insanity and resentment toward GW on the internet. It's not just a couple of guys now, but this doesn't matter to the manufacturer of "the worlds' greatest miniatures". No - they still have a lot of folks over the barrel.
Pictured: Top Hedge Fund Shareholder of GW
GW Apologists are out there. Of course you're going to want to defend your investment - we all used to love hearing stories about Space Marines and Witch Hunters. The apologists' think that GW has some sort of master plan, and that it will all turn around. This is all claimed while they watch the communities deteriorate or simply switch to a new game based on the level of investiture they have with GW products and the IP association - and that's why GW knows that they have you. The apologists will buy everything until they wisen up.
We hear that the game is "so cool" but how many of these are shills, I'm not sure. The one demo we watched of the new game featured guys having to invent rules because the ones in the box were stupid and didn't make sense. Thanks for the broken piece of manure, GW. Glad you've not gotten any of my money in a long time.
GW got rid of all the guys we grew up with. Andy Chambers, Alessio Cavatore, Fat Bloke. None of those guys really want to comment on GW's practices these days, but read the subtext of Tuomas Pirinen's view on the subject. Tuomas was with us for a long time in the '90's and '00's, and left GW many years ago along with all the other good developers.
The general vibe seems to be that the hedge funds that run GW are insistent upon strategies that other toy companies use instead of the traditional "game company" model that has to actually provide a good product. GW worked hard and made something of themselves, then they sold out. Plain and simple. And now the faceless financial institutions that are the primary shareholders have turned it into a toy company. There are no more games.
Instead, they've replaced it with watered down and "simplified" versions of the game to appeal to milennials...and to an extent I understand this. For us loyalists, however...it was very obvious that we'd been put on a treadmill of buying re-written textbooks that are only useful for about 1 season. The expense to an individual is incredible, nevermind a collective like ours - and the necessity of owning the material to playing the game showed us that GW considered us to be literal cash cattle. We were in a pen of our own devising - infatuation with GW's IP, which they have latched onto as the only thing that binds their customers to them. So began a campaign by GW to tighten that grip.
The last straw came last year, when we realized that there is no justice and that they only want our money. I had a similar experience with the U.S. Justice system. Call me Mr. Disillusionment, and mail me some hate mail.
So, our final stance on GW is this:
We had thousands of dollars of GW models, both painted and unpainted. There WILL be GW models featured on the website here, but mostly these are models that have been painted already or were bought and thrown into the Hoard. These will be models that we have deemed usable in other milieu, and since we already own them there was an easy leap to make. This mostly applies to old fantasy models, since the 40k models are so heavily IP'd they are completely worthless as anything but what they are.
No matter what models our members choose to paint, we do not support GW. Our chapters can decide to promote whatever they like, and will probably continue to support GW - at least in the form of playing games, because we are making it possible for them to get what they need from the Hoard without giving GW a nickel more. We will support our clubs in whatever they wish.
As for GW...we will not be mentioning them or naming their products - whether or not we choose to feature the models on the site. For us, Attack Wing, X-Wing, Warmachine and Flames of War has taken the hallowed place in our gamer hearts that was once exclusively occupied by GW - and we're very happy.
It's like talking about an ex-girlfriend. It was good for a while...but we were unhappy. We had to break up with GW.
Yet, like Pirinen says - we have never had more choice. And that's the crux of the matter. When GW was good, they were the only kid on the block. It's been a long time, honey. We are never, ever getting back together.
For the record, we are talking about the Known World...the Hollow World will get it's own discussion.
The Dungeons & Dragons game has a great many settings. More than a few of them are what we'd call "generic" style fantasy, meaning there's not really anything setting them apart from any of the other worlds. These are what I consider to be "basic" settings, or "normal".
Sure, each of these settings has a particular flavor all its own. For instance, Greyhawk is Greyhawk, with the oldest gaming tropes fully integrated in the customs of the land. The Forgotten Realms are The Forgotten Realms, replete with every real-world cultural facsimile totally assimilated into the world. Then, we also have Mystara, the often overlooked "basic" campaign setting.
So...what's so nifty about what amounts to "just another" generic fantasy setting? Mystara is linked to the entire series of Dungeons & Dragons modules, to make it as convenient as possible for new players. The ruleset used (Rules Cyclopedia) has some nifty things that make it different from other settings, but how to quantify this difference?
In order to keep the three "basic" campaign settings separate experiences that don't simply mesh together, it's important to consider what might have been the motivation behind each of the three worlds. I'm no insider, but after reading most of the material I feel I can speak to this point. The main differences between Forgotten Realms, Greyhawk and Mystara is the overall tones or themes presented in each.
Forgotten Realms is High Fantasy, Greyhawk is Dark Fantasy and Mystara is Heroic Fantasy. Heroes in this setting, following the built-in game rules and modules, will rise up to be leaders of the realms and eventually, perhaps, ascend to join the ranks of the Immortals. That's the sort of story arc you don't get in most games, but it's pretty much part and parcel of Mystara. Therein lies the second difference: Mystara's scope is grander than the other settings in that as you progress through levels, your influence on the world is reflected in the Rules Cyclopedia's systems.
The Known World is also one of the more developed worlds, as far as published products. The Gazetteer series of supplements each focus on an area of the world and expand it greatly. These are some of the best products TSR managed to create, and that's why they cost an arm and a leg on eBay. In addition to expanding the game world, the rules themselves get expanded in each as well. It's a nice touch as this provides more depth to each specific area and to the game in general.
The realms, regions and kingdoms of Mystara are unique enough as well. Almost all cultural stereotypes of the the real world are represented in the Known World. Vikings, Mongols, Native Americans, Anglo-Saxon Knights, Romans...the list goes on.
Magic is at a high level, as there are flying airships in the world. Dragons appear on wandering monster lists pretty regularly in the modules. People trade subdued dragons and Rods of Cancellation back and forth at rather low levels (I'm looking at you, Horror on the Hill), but this isn't a bad thing as far as gaming opportunities go.
One final note: the setting gives us the most freedom to conduct warfare out of all the other settings. Sure, there are wars on other spheres - but the conquest part of the game is already assumed in the rules, and Mystara goes out of the way to provide plenty of land ripe for your armies to fight over. We have a huge miniature collection, and you can be sure we want to use it.
Our long awaited Bones II miniatures from the Reaper Mini KickStarter have finally arrived!
We are happy to support Reaper and all the cool stuff they have been doing on KickStarter, and the club has been behind every single one. Today we have a video of wild hoodlums being A-class nerds as they dig through the Wargate's new package. It's fun to be excited!
Now to get them rendered into the collection! There's tons more stuff to work on, and we're going to work to bring every single project we finish to you here on the site. With all the Reaper madness going on, it's going to be a busy year for modelling!
Well, much like the last few years, the Wargate's Feast of Krampus occurred once again this year! The 4th Annual Krampusfest went over so awesome...we totally forgot to take pictures!! Who's responsible for this?? They shall be flogged!!
Wait a minute...oh yeah...it was me.
I charged the camcorder, and even put it in a place that I "wouldn't forget it". I guess I'll be getting flogged this year for sure. Woe is me!
Yet, there was plenty of merriment that accounts for that lapse in judgement! We got to see some of our parental units, who stopped by for various bits of awesome. We sent food home with everyone we could, because try as we might - there's just no eating that much food.
We had Hungarian Chili, Spinach and Rice Pie, Bake Cauliflower for entrees. For dessert, Wendi made German Chocolate cupcakes and apple struesels - of which I appropriated as many as I could to stuff down my gullet later in the evening! (Hint: all of it is gone.)
Big thanks to the girls for the awesome spread! I'm pretty sure they even told me once that I hadn't taken pictures of anything yet, eager to preserve their handiwork on film. I deserve the flogging that Krampus will give me for not giving the day the proper due!
Next year we'll be back on the proper hype, pomp and glam we normally have for the Feast of Krampus! I can't believe I forgot pictures ALL DAY LONG...but if you think that;s bad...we forgot to game as well! All in all, this was a Krampusfest to remember, and I'm so very happy everyone turned out to make it as cool as it was.
Thank you for becoming part of our Yuletide tradition!
King Arthur returns from all sorts of misadventure across Mystara, as both a DM and a player. He wanted to share this with everyone, after some of those hijinks nearly introduced him to the TPK. As his discovery of gaming in general is really just beginning, it will be interesting to see what he has to say from time to time - to give us old, crotchety folk a fresh perspective that is unburdened with expectation or nostalgia.
In my budding experience, I have encountered an alignment change. This particular change of heart was forced upon me, for allowing entangled and sleeping enemies to be effortlessly dispatched by a fellow member of my adventuring party. How wrong of me……
Now then! Being chaotic is awesome! All these nitty witty do-gooders and their lawful ways are just such a tedious bunch to fit in with. Experiencing the change in my alignment, I did take it upon myself to fully enjoy a change to more diabolic demeanor. The party, who has yet to accept my character anyhow, is now composed of only my targets!
At least, they would have been had they not led me to suffer heavy damage and initially instill a raving insanity within me. This in turn gave me the perfect excuse to stab a fellow through his heart and take his potion. Then to make my lil’ devilish plot all the better, the potion made me fly! I took my leave of these doomed adventurers and flew all the way back home!
You should never trust an evil thief, you silly adventuring companions! I do give you my thanks though, for the short lived, but highly enjoyable, Dungeons and Dragons session.
By now, you've noticed the site has changed appearance quite significantly. This is the result of a number of extraneous factors, which I will now share with you here. I have meant to make this post for a few days, but as many of you know, I've never been accused of having ADHD - I got carried away finding and fixing bugs, adding new features and perfecting the layout. Not to mention reorganizing our publishing schedule and changing the entire color scheme...and a thousand other things so mundane and banal I do not wish to recall them (or my compulsions to manipulate them).
Some of you may have noticed we started having problems with the blog late last week. The server that hosted the images we used for the old layout apparently went offline, the event which prompted all this to begin with. If you were one of the lucky few to encounter a blank white page with invisible elements, congratulations, you found the Negative Zone...and I'm sorry about that. Getting the blog up and running (and looking good doing it) became my top imperative.
I managed to find a similar template and put it in place...but IntenseDebate was having problems with it. Try as I might, I could not find the issue, and several hours into that debacle decided to run a test using my Disqus account. The ease with which everything was taken care of during that test made me change my mind on the spot - the Wargate now uses Disqus for handling comments. I highly recommend you head over and make an account, it's the easiest discussion system I've ever seen. It does insist on taking you to the post page to make comments, but we'll try to bring back the drop down menu so you don't have to scroll down after clicking to comment on some of the longer articles.
With IntenseDebate acting up, and since we didn't host the images for the template ourselves anyway (or build the template for the blog) I decided it was time for a complete change. Overhaul was overdue. However, to completely code a blog template that contained all the features we wanted and included an artistic backdrop would take more time than I'd like to spend on it, with everything going on with gaming lately! So, for now, we've went with customizing (corrupting) one of the templates provided by Blogger, so I can get back to the real business at hand - generating campaign material and coordinating the many related projects we've got going on.
So, now that all this is in place, what else is changing?
Well, the new template provided a number of neat opportunities. First, the bar at the top will house all the links to what used to be called States of Play. Since these are more visible now, we're doing away with the huge introductory text section that used to contain those links, freeing up a LOT of space. This is cool. We're going to add a number of pages there that will house galleries to pictorial articles like various models and terrain.
Also, the display area for pictures and such is much greater, as is the text size. That's important to old people like myself. It will probably only get bigger from now on, as the years turn to Alzheimer's.
Labels have now been split up into two different sections. Battle Index will serve to keep track of all our current games and features, while Battle Archives will contain material from old games we currently do not support on the schedule. In many cases, a lot of this old stuff will be reclassified as we comb through the Archives and reformat relevant entries, such as the aforementioned model articles.
Another big thing was optimization in the new template for mobile devices. The old template was from years back, and didn't include a lot of that code. Now, even this basic one had all of that information already built in, which should make accessing the articles much easier on our friends who carry those blasted cyberdecks...er, I mean cell phones.
The site will continue to mutate for the next few weeks, regrowing any features that were lost. In a few cases, new features will arise - the plan is in place, now we just have to comb through it all and put it on the right shelf. However, this is basically the design we'll be looking at for the foreseeable future as it provides a lot more wiggle room than the old one did. We're able to add website functionality that the old format prohibited, and that's a good thing.
Give us some feedback! What do you think of the new layout? Color scheme burn your eyes? Does your cyb -...uh, cell phone interact with the blog any better at all, or is mobile optimization a cruel hoax? Leave your comments below!
