In Her Majesty's Name at MillenniumCon XX

   The third game I participated in at the convention was the game I brought: In Her Majesty's Name. It's a Victorian Science Fiction skirmish/warband game. 

   I provided four factions: the Society of Thule, the Servants of Ra, Lord Curr's Incorrigibles, and the human Minions of Otto Maton. The mission in this game was simple: escape oncoming death. Having disturbed ancient secrets in the Sahara, a curse of flesh eating scarab swarms is chasing all of the factions. Their only hope is to make it to the river boats.

The village of Ruh Naway and the all important boats moored at the docks.

   In order to escape on a boat, a faction had to have control of it - there could be no members of a different faction aboard. Then, on the following Movement phase, it could leave - but not if anyone boarded that turn. Boats then moved up to 9" in a turn (just off the board was sufficient).

The setup.

Lord Curr veers his Incorrigibles away from the Society of Thule

The Society and the Servants mix it up on the right.

One of the Servants, Sairah the Assassin Queen, dashes far ahead of the rest.

Every cultist would lay down his life for Akhenaton.

Maton's Minions move in a disciplined group along the far left flank,

led by the quadcycle.

   The fellow who played the minions stuck strictly to the mission, and it paid off. He got every one of his forces onto the boat, gaining a game-winning 45 points (plus two kills).

In the village square, "Mad" Mick stands alone against the Jaegers and Todtruppen

of the Society of Thule.

   This is the first time I have managed to get the Todtruppen (zombie jaegers) on the field. They are fun, but slow. Mick was abandoned to his fate by the rest of the Incorrigibles.

The boats casting off. In the lead is Akhenaton.

   Note that one boat is missing: Sairah stole it by being first to the docks. This ensured that one team would not be able to escape. A clever strategy. As it turned out, the Society of Thule was doomed. Even more fun, the mummified priest used his power of the Path of Shadows (essentially a teleport spell) to board the boat after it launched.

   After the game ended, we had a bull session about how to improve the scenario. The best idea was to change the motivation of the Servants of Ra. The suggestion was to use them as a blocking force in the village, and reduce the number of boats to three - or maybe even just two. Most importantly, everyone said they had fun, which was the whole point.

   I want to give a special thanks to Jim Johnson for helping me out by bringing a few pieces of really nice terrain. A couple of those buildings are his, made by Crescent Root, and excellent pieces. 

Martian Airships sighted...

   Our intelligence reports indicate that the Martians have obtained two additional airships to menace the good people of Victoria's Landing.

   Made by RedVectors in the UK, these skiffs were custom adjusted a bit to work for 15mm. I am in the process of assembling and painting the first of the pair. The price was quite reasonable, I thought, and the shipment was dashed quick.

   Not quite done. It needs a gun on that forward platform, and a crew. I suppose this calls for a visit to Scale Creep for minis...

MillenniumCon XX Preparation, Part 3: Terrain...

   I have ordered and received several 28mm buildings and a bit more terrain - desert oasis, sand dune, and piers.

   These have several advantages: they are lightweight, they are easy to assemble, and they are already painted. So I just have to glue them together and toss them into the bucket. I bought a total of seven buildings to give the impression of a small riverside village.

   For the base, I am using my Cigar Box Battles desert cloth. I love these things. Again, lightweight and portable, but they drape well, and they don't pill up.

   I'm still working on the layout of the whole setup. And I hope to get a playtest or two in before the convention. Next I think I need to finalize which troops each force will be fielding. I'd like to give most of them a vehicle of some sorts, because if not, I fear the minion quadcycle will race ahead to secure the landing stage with its machinegun. I might be able to use buildings to give cover to approaching companies though.

Millennium Con XX Prep, Part 2: Quadcycle Stats

   I think I have decided upon the minions of Otto Maton to be the fourth faction in my convention game, just because I like these guys so much. I will probably take the gentlemen of the Sapphire Club as well, in case I need to squeeze in a fifth player.

   And I think they need a vehicle. I happen to have one already painted and good to go - the nefarious All Terrain Quadruple Wheeled Lightly Armoured Autocycle (Machine Gun), more commonly called the "Quadcycle" or even simply "Quaddie." 

You've seen this before, no?

So, I need to stat it up for In Her Majesty's Name. Probably best to treat it as a walker, I think, as far as the rules for hit allocation are concerned. This is what I am thinking:

Pluck: 5+ (2 pts)

FV: +1 (1 pt)

SV: +3 (4 pts)

Speed: 9" (2 pts) - based on Bestiary from HVF

Armour: 10 (4 pts)

Weapon: Machine gun (26 pts)
Equipment: Steam Dynamo (10 pts)
Equipment: Lined Coat (Steersman, AV 8) (1 pt)
Equipment: Pistol (Steersman) (3 pts)
Equipment: Breath Preserver (Steersman) (2 pts)

Note: Can not enter Difficult Terrain

What says the collected wisdom?

IHMN at MIllenniumCon XX in Round Rock, TX

   I will be running a game at this year's MillenniumCon XX, held in Round Rock, Texas, the second weekend of November. I'm running a game of In Her Majesty's Name, my current favorite skirmish VSF rules. Here's the basic story:

  After weeks of exploration in the desert, the Tomb of the Lost Pharaoh was found. Unfortunately, the myths about the Regalia of Osiris being hidden there were just that: myths. Even worse, your rivals followed you and one of those fools triggered the Lost Pharaoh's Curse. Now, a storm of flesh-eating scarabs pursues you across the arid wastes. Your only hope is to be the first to reach the safety of the coastal town of Al Maja, where you can board a ship and escape the doom which follows close behind you!

  I plan to have four Adventuring Companies in this game:

• Lord Curr's Company, 
• the Society of Thule,
• the Servants of Ra (naturally), 
• and either the Sapphire Club or Otto Maton.

   I also have the figures for a werewolf company, or a Scotland Yard company, but they don't seem right for an adventure in the North African desert. My other mad scientist company, belonging to Professor Vardu, isn't ready yet either, and I don't think they'd fit in very well anyway.

   The scenario is pretty simple: 9.1.7: Death at Your Heels, with the following modifications:

• Table size: 4' x 6', with coastline along the long edge.
• Two boats, not one, each having a jetty 18" from the table edge
• Must convince captain to sail*

*Convince the Captain to sail: any figure with a Leadership characteristic can attempt to get the Captain to cast off, but only if there are no enemy figures on the boat. To make an attempt, roll a die in the figure's Movement phase. Add the Leadership characteristic and the total number of figures on the boat. Modify the roll by +1 if the scarabs are past the center of the table; add +2 if they are within 12" of the boat. A total of 8+ indicates the ship leaves, stranding anyone not aboard. The ship will automatically leave when the scarabs would reach it.

   For terrain, I don't have much, all of a sudden. Dammit, Harvey! I have a Cigar Box Battle Mat desert mat, and a few desert palms. That's about it for 28mm compatible desert terrain. I just ordered a number of Plastcraft Colored Desert houses to build a small village along the coast. I think I am going to embellish this with the addition of a few fishing nets hanging to dry, easy enough to make a simple frame and net. I do have some of the sand colored cobblestone roads and some older dirt roads to put out, as well.

   So, any ideas for improvements? Especially terrain. I was hoping to put some sort of ruined wall up on the desert side.

Christmas Gift of Terrain

   One thing I did obtain that is noteworthy for VSF is some new terrain. GF9 finally re-released their popular Badlands series of terrain, and I got two boxes for Christmas: the Plateau and the Tors. These will fit nicely in as Martian desert terrain, I think, and the best part is they are ready out of the box. I also ordered the Badlands Bluff a few days ago from Amazon to help fill in space.

   Back in October I attended the BROADSIDES! Gaming convention held aboard the Battleship TEXAS near my home. One of the vendors there carried Cigar Box Battle Mats, which I already had purchased one of at Historicon a while back. I really like these mats. I decided I wanted to upgrade my Martian terrain this year, so I bought one of the Red Planet 6'x4' cloths. I like it a lot, though I haven't used it in a game yet.

Rising like a Phoenix...

   This is the Quadcycle that was destroyed a few weeks ago by my puppy. 

   Actually, it's the Quadcycle that Elderac very kindly sold to me to replace the one eaten by my puppy. I changed the paint a bit to match my existing minion forces and put it on a base.

   But from tragedy comes renewal - I finally got that piece finished and it's ready to grace the table as soon as I stat it up for either GASLIGHT or IHMN.

Uncle Thulhu Finished!

   This handsome gentlebeing is known far and wide as Uncle Thulhu. His opera cape and top hat show he's a being of quality. Don't let the tentacles fool you.

A new Sergeant and some Vardu Minions

   I've been painting, a bit. I've also got a new camera, so I am working the kinks out of it still. But here are a few snaps of what I've been up to lately.

   First is another Empress British NCO. I love Empress's minis, and this guy has been sitting about waiting for his final touches for months. He's now ready to join the rest of the 30th Foot on Mars, defending the Empire for Her Majesty (God Bless Her).

   Also a Bull Snapper, a light warbeast from Hordes' Minions faction. He joins his larger cousin the Blackhide Wrassler as an experimental subject for Doctor Vardu. I made a puddle at his feet, just like the bigger one. Venus is a dreadfully swampy place, after all.

   Finally, there is a pair of Razor Boars, more Minions warbeasts. I have another pair of these that I will paint soon, giving me - er, Doctor Vardu, that is - four of the aggressive piggies.

VSF Project Review

   I've decided after many years that I have simply too many ideas and not enough time. So I am evaluating all of my projects, and determining which ones I shall carry on with in an attempt to complete them and which shall be abandoned in the interest of achieving the previous goal.

   For status, I shall use 'planning' (want to buy minis), 'active' (not playable but I am currently working on it), 'inactive' (unplayable but on to-do list), 'dead' (can't play, not doing anything, don't plan on it), 'playable' (enough to play, still adding to it), and rarest of all, 'finished' (can play, no plans to add to it). Thus far, I have decided:

25/28mm

1. VSF Eureka Pond Wars: dead
2. VSF Lizardmen: inactive
3. VSF/Colonial British: playable
4. VSF German: marginally playable
5. VSF Automaton: finished (lacks one thing from Parroom Station to replace the dog-eaten one)
6. VSF Martian: marginally playable- awaiting Parroom Station's eventual release (I hope)
7. VSF Vardu: inactive
8. VSF French: inactive
9. VSF Russian: dead
10. VSF Japanese: dead
11. VSF Turkish: dead
12. VSF Parrotmen: inactive (possibly dead)
13. VSF Characters (HM Victoria I, others): playable
14. Skyrunners VSF Racing: dead
15. EOTD/IHMN Werewolves: finished
16. EOTD/IHMN Gentlemen: finished
17. EOTD/IHMN Police Constables: playable
18. IHMN Lord Curr's Company: playable
19. IHMN Servants of Ra: playable
20. IHMN Society of Thule: playable
21. IHMN Cowboys and Lawmen: finished
22. Terrain VSF: inactive

15mm

1. VSF/Colonial British: playable
2. VSF/Colonial French: playable
3. VSF Martians: playable
4. VSF Venusian Lizardmen: playable
5. VSF Automatons: finished
6. VSF/Colonial Germans: playable
7. VSF Monstrosities (Dr. Vardu): inactive
8. VSF Japanese: dead
9. VSF Texicans: inactive (maybe dead)
10. VSF Papal States: dead
11. VSF Terrain: inactive

Fleet Scale (smaller than 6mm)

1. Dystopian Wars (DW) Federated States: playable
2. DW Prussian: playable
3. DW Indian Raj: planning
4. Sky Galleons of Mars (SGOM) British: inactive
5. SGOM Martians: inactive
6. Aeronef Italians: dead
7. Terrain: inactive

6mm

1. VSF French: inactive
2. VSF German: inactive
3. VSF British: inactive
4. VSF Venusian Lizardmen: planning
5. VSF Martians: inactive
6. Terrain: inactive

   That's a grand total of 46 projects, including terrain in each scale. Of them, only four are 'finished.' And only about half of the rest are playable. I've definitely decided that eight are dead projects, as far as I am concerned. That means I have about 34 projects still on the boil, either playable or not.

   I'm mad. Bonkers. Crazy. Off the rocker.

Additional Protection from Aggressive Saurians

   British subjects and Texican citizens on Venus may breathe a little easier, sleep a little more soundly tonight, as additional pylons for the Anti-Saurian Galvanic Barrier have been completed and are ready for emplacement. These additional pylons will significantly increase the area of protection from pesky carnivorous dinosaurs, lizardmen, Germans, etc.

Four repeating posts. (Two more already finished elsewhere)

Two powered posts.

The Joy of Six

Six Millimeter, that is!

Whilst journeying through Great Britain the last two weeks, I had the opportunity to attend the Joy of Six gaming show in Sheffield. It was a nice little show, with several interesting demo games, and a good set of vendors, including Baccus, Brigade, and Heroics and Ros.

The most interesting games I saw were a Star Wars game using X-Wing rules for ground combat (an assault on Hoth with truly awesome AT-ATs), and SAGA being played with bases of 6mm figures in place of the single 28mm standard. As far as I could see, there were no other rules changes, though I didn't play in it. It did make it seem more like warbands than the dozen or so figures involved in a standard game of SAGA.

I purchased some figures of Victorian interest from Baccus while there, principally a set of Imperial French for Franco-Prussian Wars. Or, as the case may have it, for my own use as a Legion Extraterrestriale, the extra-solarian forces of La Belle France. I also picked up some Mahdists for use as Martians and some more British for use as, well, British.

I will, of course, get those painted straight away... I figure you will get to see photos sometime around 2021 at the current rate of production. I really need to get some brush time in.

Construction Begins

   I picked up two laser-cut MDF buildings from the Gaslamp Alley line at Historicon last summer. One terraced house and one terraced shop. I punched out the terraced house and primed it a couple of weeks ago. Dry-fitting it left me reasonably impressed with the quality of the stuff.

   And then I stalled out.

   But I purchased some lovely brick-red craft paint in two tones yesterday at Hobby Lobby, and a stiff stencil brush. The plan is to paint the lighter tone on each brick, leaving the black lines between bricks as grimy mortar. Then, using the stencil brush, I will stipple in some pattern of the darker tone over each brick. I used the same technique (on a grander scale) when I made sets in high school and college for the theater. It worked pretty well then.

  I also bought some scrapbooking paper to put on the insides as wallpaper and flooring. Might save myself a few minutes of time that way, what? White wooden trim, of course. The door? I was thinking a nice green on the house. Perhaps blue for the shop when I get to it.

   I will take a few photos as I go along, and post them soon-ish.

Gorillas in the Gunsmoke

This here is Cactus Joe, a Gorilla Gunslinger. He's a crazy wild west mutant ape, armed with a pair of Colonel Colt's finest revolvers. He also wears a serape and chews a cigar. I like him.

But is he maybe too off the wall? Is that even possible in VSF? 

First thought is he could be used for one of Vardu's mutated minions. I definitely need to add to that group. I can't even really field a decent IHMN Company for him yet. Joe's actually more in period than good ol' Ape-X, who is currently dedicated as the evil scientist's bodyguard. This fellow might be more suitable.

Oh, and if you like Cactus Joe, you can get him here.

More Federated States and Aethergraph Update

   The enclosed photostats provide evidence of the great deal of work which has been going on behind the scenes, as it were. The LP delayed my issuance of these photos, although they have appeared elsewhere on the telephonic differencing web. 

   I'm beginning to think that I should, perhaps, roll this blog into my other, more general blog. I see that many of the subscribers are the same. It would reduce the amount of work, and probably therefore increase the frequency of posts. Posting has become a bit of a slog for me on VBIR lately.

   In other news, I am still working on the next issue of Aethergraph, after a lengthy hiatus for professional reasons. Upon returning, I saw that in fact, I had more to do than I had previously believed. This is causing additional delays, of course. Should any of you dear readers have ideas, articles, photos, or whatever that might be of assistance, I would appreciate it if you would contact me at aethergraph@gmail.com. I still need four or five pages, I think.

28mm Project Review: Her Majesty's Forces

   Just to keep track of what's going on, I worked up a bit of thought on just what I wanted to accomplish for 28mm VSF forces. Thought I would share that with you all, starting with the British.

   The basic idea is to create factions large enough to fight platoon-level games. That is, I want to have at least four units of troops, plus some leaders, support weapons, and vehicles for each faction. Using GASLIGHT as my template rules, that means some 40-50 figures, plus the support weapons (and crews) and vehicles (and crews).

   At any rate, here are the units and odds and ends which I have, mostly completed.

• Gurkhas (x10)
• Sikhs (x20)
• Martian Sepoys (x20)
• Martian Sepoy Gashant Cavalry (x10)
• British Line (x20)
• British Line, Venusian Uniform (x20)
• British Ensign bearer
• British Officer (x4)
• British civilians (x4)
• British Aerocav (x10)
• British Airship (Aphid-ish) and crew
• 9-pdr Gun and RA crew
• Hale Rocket team, RA crew
• Gatling Gun and RA crew
• SWORD Unit (x15)
• SWORD Artillery (x3, plus crew)
• SWORD Scout Walkers (x2)
• Metropolitan Police (x10)
• Landship

   Note that these units do not include Lord Curr's Incorrigibles, an Adventuring Company with strong British ties, nor the Gentleman's Club for EotD.

HMLS Dreadnought by Captain Darling

Captain Darling has slipped through my network of reporters previously, but this time, we have him! His report on the new landship HMLS Dreadnought, can be found here.

More information about landships and the arms race between Britain and the Russians can be had here and here. I shudder to think the Russians may be able to use this information in their own quest for imperial domination...

[Editor's Note: I like the photo effect used here. Nice looking bit of kit, and I am now following this blog, which had in fact escaped my attention previously.]

Possible for 28mm?

Prussian Empire Teutonic Knights

Spartan Games

   Although designed for the Dystopian Legions game, which inexplicably uses a noticeably larger 32mm-sized figure, I think these battle armor suits might just work for 28mm games. Has anyone tried this? I would love to see pictures of them next to a 28mm figure for size.

Round 2 Entry - 17th Lancers Aerocav

   Since this round is also over, I can share these. I posted the original one many moons ago, but I only got around to painting up the remaining nine back in February. I think they came out well, and look forward to using them in a game.

   This is the 17th Lancers' F-Troop, mounted on the new Guernsey Patent Steam Ornithopter. Nicknamed the "bug boys" for obvious reasons. Note how the 'eyes' glow green? That's the handwavium reaction providing heat for the steam power. Vents out the tail, in controlled bursts for charges. Also, they are armed with the explosive limpet lance. Just the thing for blowing big holes in the delicate liftwood panels of Martian kites.

Federated States Aerial forces

   Painted about two months ago, but had to wait for their turn in the Lead Painters' League competition to end. Which it did last night. So... here are some of the Federated States of America forces I have.

  I also have some naval forces, but I may need them for later in the contest, so I won't show them yet. They include a dreadnought and a double-deck carrier, though. Which is pretty cool.