Munera Mayhem

Unsatisfied with my home brew attempt at gladiator rules, I decided to try out Munera Sine Missione from Alan Saunders (aka Kaptain Kobold) and Victor Jarmusz. As a test, I played a couple of matches this morning.

When I first read through the rules, there were elements that had me scratching my head. For example, it took more action points to move sideways than forwards. In my medieval LARP career, that really has not been my experience.* I was also concerned that it would be easier to move to the flank / rear than in real life. Nevertheless, I decided to give the rules a go as written.

I don't have gladiator figures so I grabbed some D&D minis. In my first bout, Jenna the halfling took on Durin the dwarf. Early in the bout, Jenna snuck in a couple of stabs, but Durin's heavy armor deflected the blows.

Then Durin got into an excellent position for an attack, and promptly fell flat on his rear (the attack roll was a double, which led to a special event; in this case the attacker got knocked down).

Durin managed to scramble to his feet. However, Jenna slipped to his side and thrust into a kink in his armor. Durin was now bleeding profusely.

Staggered by his wound, Durin could not match Jenna's agility. She got to his rear and plunged her dagger into his back. Durin fell down dead!

I did not bother with appeals to the crowd, although I am pretty sure Durin was a goner.

Anyway, I tried a second bout. This time Jenna faced Zorac, a lightly armored warrior with twin scimitars. Jenna drew first blood (a fairly deep wound) but Zorac replied with a slice that left Jenna in serious trouble. Zorac spared her no mercy; he followed up vigorously and ran her through

Overall, MSM worked quite well. It solved my main issue - lack of maneuvering. At first glance, some of the rules seemed a bit sketchy but they worked to create a balanced game with plenty of decision points. Maneuvering was important but was not out of proportion (note that I was using a square rather hexagonal grid, so that likely affected gameplay to some extent). At first, combat seemed like it would be fiddly but it actually was simple to implement. Kaptain Kobold has another winner here!**

* In LARP combat, I find I can move quite easily sideways while facing forward. In fact, doing just that sent me to the doctor once. Trying to cut off a flanking attack, I was running sideways while facing the enemy. I ran smack into a tree and injured my shoulder; I could not lift my arm above my head. Several weeks of physical therapy ensued.

** Lately Kaptain Kobold has posted about some changes to MSM  that he is testing. I'm curious to see how they play out!

Gladiator Experiment

This past week I experimented with some home brew rules for gladiator games (using a virtual board). I used the Song of Blades and Heroes activation system. Because I was only using 1 gladiator per side, I added a "fumble" in case the gladiator failed 2 activation rolls; otherwise there would be no incentive for rolling less than 3 dice.

Both gladiators are wounded

The system worked and gave an interesting game, but it did not work like I envisioned. Once the gladiators were in contact, there was no maneuvering. Often, the gladiator only had one activation, therefore attack was the order of the day. I want to see gladiators circling each other, retreating and advancing, as well as attacking. The SoBH system did not provide it.

I am now looking into the Munera Sine Missione system.

SMASH Ball

Continuing with my latest bout of GADD (Gamer's Attention Deficit Disorder), I had an idea for rules for a futuristic sport I'm calling SMASH Ball. And yes, SMASH should be capitalized.

The game is played on a 5 by 5 grid with 3-player teams. The miniature players (figures) try to carry a ball over the opponent's goal line. Players smash into one another trying to break through the line or get to the ball. Knock downs and injuries are frequent, much to the delight of the crowd.

A SMASH Ball court
A cross = injury. X = knocked down

Some notes on the rules

• The game starts with the receiving team on its back line and the defenders in the center. The ball is randomly give to one of the receiving players.
• I use the Song of Blade and Heroes activation system to determine how many actions each figure may take. As I described before, the SoBH activation system provides a lot of decision-making and suspense.
• With each successful activation die, a figure may move up to 2 spaces. Contact occurs if a figure moves into a space occupied by an opponent.
• Contact is resolved with opposed die rolls. The loser is pushed back or knocked down, depending on whether the winner doubled the loser's score.
• Getting knocked down might cause injury (roll for it), which inhibits the figures effectiveness.
• In standard SoBH fashion, figures are given a Q (quality) and C (contact) rating.
• Crossing the goal line is worth 1 point. Crossing in the center (red zone) is worth 3 points.
• Figures can also throw the ball back and forth.
• In my first test game, I played 12 turns for the half.

I have only played half a game so far but the rules have promise. I do plan to miniaturize it. Fortunately, there can be a lot of leeway on the players - I can envision my mutant gladiators playing SMASH Ball.

Attention Span of a Gnat

Like a gnat, I've been flitting around with various projects.

The First New Minis Project
I mentioned last week that I ordered some miniatures, which I would reveal when I unboxed them. They're still not here, but I can't wait any longer. I made my first foray into Shapeways and ordered these:

They're V-2 rockets. I wasn't happy with my 2-D rocket tokens (when I zoom in the photos, the wood grain becomes visible). I wanted to order some retro sci fi rockets but I couldn't find any. Then I had the idea to look into historical rockets. The V-2 looks sufficiently old school.

Distracted by Another Project
Then during the week, I got the bug for a project from November that stalled. At the time, I was using THW's Machinas for post-apocalyptic vehicular mayhem. I was using my wife's Hot Wheels but wanted to go smaller. Well, this week I ordered some 6mm bikers and various cars from Microworld Games. Here is a photo of some of the cars (photo from their website)

I am experimenting with some new mechanics that streamline the game for solo play. I like what I have so far; just need some tweaks.

And Yet Another Project
Recently, the various forums and blogs I frequent (including Stronghold Rebuilt) have featured quite a few posts about gladiator games. This has piqued my interest and I want to do my own gladiator project. However, I plan to do it with a twist. It won't be historical but instead will be a post-apocalyptic death arena. For combatants, I ordered some of Microworld's Wastelanders, such as these mutants.

I'm not sure what to do about rules. I haven't found anything specifically for space gladiators so I am reviewing rules for Roman gladiators. The issue I foresee with gladiator rules is that in a 1 on 1 fight there is not much scope for maneuvering, which leads to a simple dice off. I would like to see some player decision points, perhaps a choice of attacks and/or defenses. However, I don't want to see too much complexity in case I want to run team battles. The search continues.

And This Makes 500!
I just noticed that this is my 500th post on this blog!

Some Space Dogfights

I spent some time yesterday morning fiddling around with dogfights on a grid. To keep things on the grid, I reduced movement to 3 and allowed a turn after 1 space. I also tweaked the maneuver chart to 1-3 = 60 degrees, 4-5 = 120 degrees, and 6 = 180 degrees. These changes worked much better on my small board.

Dogfight 1
A Federation rocket (blue) spots a sinister Imperial

Both ships turn toward one another and shoot (I use a 60 degree arc of fire). The Fed gets an excellent shot (a 12) and blows up the Imperial.

Well, due to a lucky shot, the first game was quick. Of course, these rules are really designed for multiple craft. Let's try another dogfight.

Dogfight 2
This time, I have a lone Federation rocket, with superior agility, taking on 3 Imperials.

Our Federation hero spots the Imperials.

The craft turn toward each other. The Fed tries a long shot, which rattles his target.

The Fed gets a good shot at another Imperial but misses. Two Imperials take shots but miss.

The Fed gets a tail shot and damages an Imperial.

A close pass, with an Imperial on his tail.

Oh, oh! They have a bead on him.

He survives and turns the tables on his foes.

And getting into position, the Fed damages another Imperial.

This one decides to turn for home! The Fed maneuvers into position again and another Imperial is hit!

It also turns for home. The remaining Imperial has no wish to tangle with the Fed pilot and also flees. The Fed pursues and manages to blast one of the Imperials.

Victory for the Federation!

Thoughts
The changes worked well enough. Both sides were able to maneuver into position for some shots. I may be wreaking havoc with the granularity of movement and the ability to model different aircraft, but that's not so important when I play with rockets.

I'm generally pleased with the combat rules, though I may still tweak the results table a bit. Nevertheless, I just love not having to keep a roster! And the Hero roll paid off; the Fed pilot was able to avoid a Damage result.

Teaser - Although I swore off miniatures a few months ago, I couldn't resist and recently placed an order. I won't say what I bought yet; you'll have to wait for the unboxing. :)

Some Random Thoughts

Hexify
I am a fan of gridded games because you don't have to fiddle with a ruler. As I was playing Spandau and Lewis yesterday,  I wondered if I could adapt it to a grid. I tried an experiment this morning with a couple of my rockets. Using a hex grid, I had to change the maneuver chart (turning in S&L uses 45 degree increments; I had to modify it to 60 degree increments).

Here are a few shots of the action:

The two rockets approach

They zoom in for head-on shots. Both ships are damaged.

Trying to turn around

The red rocket gets the advantage and tried a deflection shot. It misses.

After some more maneuvering, the rockets find themselves separating. They decide to break off.

I ran into a few issues:

• I used a smaller board than usual. This board was 8 x 8 inches. Yesterday I used a 10 x 16 inch board.
• My grid uses 1" squares whereas I use a scaled down ruler (20 cm to an inch) for my S&L games. As a result, the craft moved further on the board.
• The modified maneuver table drastically affected maneuverability. Here's a comparison of the allowable turns based on a die roll:
• S&L - 1-2 = 45 degrees, 3-4 = 90 degrees, 5-6 = 135 degrees, 7+ = 180 degrees
• Modified - 1-3 = 60 degrees, 4-6 = 120 degrees, 7+ = 180 degrees

Thus, for rolls of 3-6, the craft turns less than standard S&L.

As a result of these issues, the craft were far less maneuverable and tended to fly away from each other and off the board. I'll have some work cut out for me if I want to hexify S&L.

Pirate Plunder

My wife and I have been a bit lazy with gaming lately, We've been reluctant to pull out games, especially those with hefty set-up. As a result, we've been tending toward card games lately. Alas, I miss dice sometimes.

Anyway, I've been toying with the idea of designing a simple game using cards and dice. Last night I had an idea for such a game with a pirate theme. It takes some ideas from One Deck Dungeon. On the table, there will be 3 cards representing locations (such as a town, a deserted island, a fat merchant ship, etc.) Each card has a challenge that requires rolling dice. Win the challenge and you can draw from a treasure deck. There are 5 special treasures; get 3 to win the game. When a location is defeated, it is discarded and can be replaced by another from a locations deck. Players keep taking turns until someone gets 3 of the special treasures.

I'm currently working on the rules.

Furball Over Lucrania

I recently picked up the free starter rulebook of Warlord Games's new WW2 air combat game, Blood Red Skies.

I don't plan of picking up the game itself (too much $$$$) but I was intrigued by the mechanisms. I especially liked the way the game simplified record-keeping. You don't track hit points; instead a plane is either advantaged, neutral, or disadvantaged. Getting shot reduces your advantage state, but if a plane gets shot when it is disadvantaged then it goes down in flames. One thing that this simplifying does is allow a player to handle more aircraft - an appealing thought.

This got me thinking if there was a way to simplify record-keeping for my air combat games using Kaptain Kobold's Spandau and Lewis. I started jotting down some ideas:

• Because I'm playing solo I decided to give the "bad guys" a standard roll of 3 for initiative. I only roll for the "good guys." This streamlines the initiative phase.
• I got rid of tracking hits to the aircraft. Instead, a plane that gets hit will either be damaged or shot down. I then got rid of the dice pool and instead used a simple 2D6 table. Later, I added another state, Rattled, that indicated a near miss that shakes the pilot's nerves and affects initiative and maneuvering in the following turn. Good guys also get saving rolls if hit while bad guys have to make morale rolls to stay in the fight.

I then ran a test game with 2 heroes against a swarm of "bad guys." Here is a short report, set in my Aetheria imagi-nations.

Dirk Daring (the red, white, and blue plane) and his wingman Pip run into two flights of Imperial Raptors (red planes)

Dirk and Pip turn on the the flight to the right. Pip and a Raptor exchange shots, with both pilots getting rattled (indicated by the black puffs).

Dirk zeroes in on an wandering Raptor and blows it from the sky.

Dirk and Pip get "stuck in." The sound of bullets rattles quite a few pilots.

Dirk destroys another enemy.

Then he goes head-on versus one of the Raptors. Dirk is a cooler hand, however, and his shots shred the enemy plane. Dirk is unscathed.

After this, the unnerved Imperial fighters break for home. (I ran out of time for the game).

Some Thoughts

• I felt that these rules did exactly what I wanted - sped up solo play by reducing the need for tracking. This allowed me to get more planes on the board. I managed to get in 6 turns in about half an hour!
• The change to initiative worked fine, even though it favors the good guys. Despite this, Pip often found himself moving first (losing initiative). Because Dirk was an ace, he often had initiative (though he did lose once). It was nice not having to roll and track initiative for a bunch of enemy planes.
• I'm not sure if I need to tweak the combat results table. I did not get as many damaged results as I expected but got far more shot down. It could be because Dirk was an ace.
• I have morale rolls if a bad guy is damaged but otherwise the enemy side operates without concern that its comrades are falling from the sky. I'm thinking of adding a group morale roll as well.

Nostradamus Did Not Foretell This

The planet Nostradamus that is.

Following up on their attacks on Omicron, the Aquians seized the planet known to the Federation as Nostradamus. Finding it heavily fortified, the Federation decides upon a series of raids to soften up the Aquian defenses.

First up is a raid on the outer orbital defenses. In the lead is the torpedo rocket Betelgeuse Betty.

Betty experiences little resistance on the way in. She collides with some debris that damages the tail turret, but she is able to make repairs.

The torpedo run is successful. Anti-rocket fire misses and Betty scores 3 out of 6 torpedo hits.

She turns for home, but gets bounced by a bunch of Aquian scout ships. Fighter escorts drive off a few, then Betty's gunners go to work. They manage to destroy 3 and drive off the rest.

In the next zone, 2 heavy fighter attack. They miss and break off.

They are followed by a lone scout. It breaks off when it sees the Federation escort.

As Betty approaches home, she is surprised by an Aquian drone equipped with anti-rocket artillery. Its salvo damages the shields and destroys the nose turret.

Nevertheless, Betty clears the enemy defenses and makes it back home to the Federation carrier Polaris. MISSION ACCOMPLISHED.

Game Notes

• I managed to salvage my files for my Star Raiders game, which I mentioned last week. I decided to run a quick scenario.
• I am going to do a 5 game campaign with Betelgeuse Betty. Normally, I roll D6+2 for the target zone. For this campaign, I am going to start with D6 and work up to D6+2. The idea is to start with some short missions and get longer as the campaign goes on. For this game, I rolled a 3.
• Since last time, I added a repair roll and escorts. Both paid off. I lost a turret on turn 2, but was able to get it back into operation. Escorts were able to drive off a number of attacking rockets.

He Is Risen Indeed!

After the Sabbath, at dawn on the first day of the week, Mary Magdalene and the other Mary went to look at the tomb. 

There was a violent earthquake, for an angel of the Lord came down from heaven and, going to the tomb, rolled back the stone and sat on it. His appearance was like lightning, and his clothes were white as snow. The guards were so afraid of him that they shook and became like dead men. 

The angel said to the women, “Do not be afraid, for I know that you are looking for Jesus, who was crucified. He is not here; he has risen, just as he said. 

Matthew 28: 1-6 (NIV)

Happy Easter!