Star Navy at GuadaComaCon

At GuadaComaCon two weeks ago, I ran a six-player game of 5150: Star Navy.  As my camera's battery was dying, I didn't get near as many photos as I would have liked.  My wife did take this pic of me setting up the game.

I ended up using pretty much every asteroid in my collection to help make the battle interesting.

I don't know why this photo appears sideways here, but you can see the half-dozen fleets taking part in this game.  Each side has the same number and type of ships.  Note the Firestorm Armada fleet that belongs to Maj. Diz Aster.  Go to his website for a whole lot more pics of this game.

The game became a free-for-all, with everybody attacking everybody else.  Here you can see five squadrons of fighters converging on a battleship.

The asteroids played a part in the game, with one player forgetting to watch where he was going and taking damage from drifting too close to the space rocks.

I had a good time refereeing this game and the players, some of whom had played SN before and some who hadn't, seemed to enjoy it as well.  Look for this game at Millennium Con in November.

Space Invaders

Once upon a time, video games were primitive.  But Space Invaders was a blast (pun intended) for the proto-nerd that I was when it came out.  I spent many a quarter and many an evening on this arcade game.  When I saw these erasers in the shape of the titular aliens at Half-Price Books, I couldn't resist buying a couple of  packages.  Here they are posing with a 30mm figure from Reaper's  Chronoscope line.

Now to figure out how to use them in a game: I could base them like I do my starships and use them (as Bugs?) in a space combat game like 5150: Star Navy; or I could stat them out for Song of Blades and Heroes; or I could use them as a surprise foe in a Dungeons & Dragons adventure; or I could mount them on 60mm bases to make a Hordes of the Things army ....  I think I need to go back and buy some more of these.

Axles & Alloys at GuadaComaCon

That's me on the right, playing Hot Wheels with all the other "grownups."

One of the games at GuadaComaCon was Axles & Alloys, a game of automotive combat based on the Full Thrust rules.  As you can see, there was a pretty good turnout.  Chip ran an arena combat scenario, with each player taking one vehicle.

I took the blue armored vehicle with the big gun on top.  I like the fact that the rules encourage you to name your car and your driver, so I christened the vehicle as the Over Bearing.  Another player took the Scooby Doo van.  I'm told that for some reason, that vehicle is always the first one that the other players shoot at in these games, no matter who plays it.

I didn't do so well this game.  I tried to ram a vehicle, and took enough damage that I had to roll for each component to see if it was destroyed.  Of course, I made all my rolls except for one--the driver.  That ended the game for (and the life of) driver Thrash Nordstrom, but it was a fun time.

Ebay brag blog post

Look what I got!  The Full Thrust Fleet Book: Volume 1 and the Full Thrust Fleet Book: Volume 2.  I snagged these on ebay for six bucks each plus shipping.  I already have them in electronic form for free, but I'm somewhat of a collector and I just like  hardcopies, so when I found these for sale with no bids, I took a chance.  Now I have all four FT books in the original print format (in addition to my rules compilation I had printed at a copy shop). 

The last of these rulebooks was published 13 years ago.  I'd like to see an updated version.  Any idea when they're gonna release a new edition of Full Thrust?

Capellan capital ships

When Don M, emperor of the Brazos Evil Empire (and all-around great guy), showed up for GuadaComaCon this year, he brought me gifts--namely, these two scratchbuilt spaceships, painted in the tiger stripe livery of the Capellan Raiders.

I'd seen Don's photos of these ships previously, and commented on how great they looked, especially compared to my own feeble offerings in the same vein.  So I was pleased and honored when Don took those minis out of the box and gave them to me.

"Miniature" might not be the most accurate term--these models are big, with one even dwarfing the Terran Super Galactic Dreadnought, probably the biggest ship in my collection.  The big ship is based on a plastic Zentredi spaceship model from Robotech, spruced up with some Battlefleet Gothic extras and what looks like wings from a 1/144 fighter jet.  The smaller one  includes more BFG parts on a plastic spaceship merged with parts from a Micromachines Star Wars Episode I pod racer.

I'm sure I'll find some way to work these models into my games of 5150: Star Navy--maybe as the core of a Free Company fleet.  Don suggested using the larger vessel as some sort of scenario objective.  Whatever I do, they will look good on the table.  My thanks again to Don for this wonderful, generous gift!

Wave 2 of OGRE minis released

Hey, treadheads!  Some more miniatures for OGRE/GEV have hit the virtual shelves of Steve Jackson Games' Warehouse 23.

Image from Steve Jackson Games.

This second wave of OGRE minis includes hardened command posts, radar, jammers, and laser towers and turrets--stuff that has been really hard to find since they stopped making it some time ago.  In addition, the long-out-of-production Panueropean missile crawler, along with a brand-new North American Combine version, are now for sale.

I might have to place an order ...

The Battle of Hoth

I saw this game at last year's MillenniumCon, but I didn't get an opportunity to play in it at the time.  So when Coach said he and his son were bringing the game here, I was excited, especially since they're retiring it to run other scenarios.  The setup is pretty huge: three 6x3 boards, plus additional scenery, as well as the various vehicles, including walkers and spaceships.

There were only four players--me, Der Kommandant, and the Coach and his son.  The board included some great details, like the Rebel command center--complete with working viewscreen (actually an old phone playing a clip of a Star Wars videogame taken from Youtube).

Just like in The Empire Strikes Back, the Rebels in this game were outgunned on the snowfields of Hoth.  Most of the figures, including the AT-ATs and gun turrets, came from the Star Wars minis game.

The Alliance spacecraft included AMC kits (the Millennium Falcon and Luke's X-wing) and an old Kenner action figure storage case (the transport).

True to life (or the movie, at any rate), the Imperial forces made short work of Alliance defenses.  My crappy activation rolls on behalf of the Rebels didn't help.  These figures drew several onlookers into the room, attendees at a charity function taking place across the hall.

The walkers needed to get close to knock out the shield generator.  The poor Rebels in the trenches weren't able to slow them down.

Meanwhile, Han and Chewie were having trouble getting the Falcon flightworthy.  Note the lighting in the hangar.  They had the entire setup wired for lights.

Maybe the snowspeeders, led by Luke and Wedge, could hold back the Imperials for a while.

No such luck.  An AT-AT took out the generator, collapsing the tunnel leading to the transport (and incidentally leaving Threepio and Artoo and the medical droid buried under tons of ice).  Fortunately, Leia and the general  made it out ahead of the blockage.

The Force was not with Luke (in the speeder at left), who took an Imperial blaster, and crashed off-board and out of the game.  Wedge died when his speeder was destroyed by another walker.

Imperial troops have entered the base! Imperia*******

Darth Vader and his elite snowtroopers headed toward the Falcon, which still hadn't been fixed.  Chewie was shot as he finished the last repair, allowing Han to escape.

Overall, it was a big victory for the Empire.  The Rebels lost five heroes, while the Imperials achieved most of their objectives.  However, in my script, Luke wanders back to the base after the battle, digs out the droids, and gets the medbot to revive Chewbacca.  So there.  :)

My thanks to Coach Kropp and his son for running this game, and Der Kommandant for playing in it.  See y'all at MillCon!

My day at GuadaComaCon

As I mentioned over the weekend, turnout for the convention was better than ever.  I got to play in a couple of games and ran a session of the game I co-wrote, 5150: Star Navy.  And there was plenty going on all day.  I hope to come back with some more detailed posts regarding the games I participated in or ran, but for now here's my overview of GuadaComaCon:

The morning started out with a couple of roleplaying games.  Game designer Dennis Sustare ran a game of Swords & Wizardry, a retroclone of the original D&D rules.

Meanwhile, author/illustrator Jeff Dee refereed Béthorm: The Plane of Tékumel, an RPG based on the setting from the famous Empire of the Petal Throne.

At the same time, Chip was conducting a game of Axles & Alloys, a vehicle combat game using mechanics from Full Thrust.  I played in the first round, getting my driver killed at the end of the game.

In addition, Kerstan and Tom, a couple of New Braunfels locals, put on a 2000-point game of Warhammer 40,0000--Tyranids versus Space Marines.  Several other NB gamers stopped by to watch and chat.

For the afternoon session, my game of 5150: Star Navy drew a half-dozen players.  I think one person had played it before; but the rest of the group easily picked up the rules.

Blake had brought enough armies (repurposed Warhammer figures) and terrain to host an entire Hordes of the Things tournament for 12 players, but unfortunately he ended up just having three or four gamers actually play some HotT.

In addition that afternoon, Joe put on a Flames of War scenario.  The battle was Germans against Soviets in Budapest, 1945.

Also during this time slot Jeff's wife, Talzhemir, ran Cavemaster, the role-playing game that cavemen played.

After that, only one evening game took place: the Battle of Hoth using FUBAR rules.  Coach K and his son drove an hour-and-a-half, bringing their large, illuminated setup that drew onlookers from a charity event in the convention center's ballroom.  I'm glad I got to play this scenario, as they're retiring it in favor of Helm's Deep for the next convention.

I was a little disappointed that we didn't have more evening games; I guess everyone was tired after two sessions of rolling dice and moving miniatures.  Still, my thanks to everyone who ran a game, as well as those who came out to play.  See you next August!

A successful convention

It was a long day, but a fun day.  GuadaComaCon 2013 is over, and we had record attendance with more than 30 people coming to play.  There were quite a few locals, the San Antonio crowd, some Austin folks, a father and son from Shiner, and even one person who came all the way from McKinney in North Texas.  Because there were several other events going on at our venue, the New Braunfels Convention Center, we also had a few curious onlookers.  And at the end of it all, my drive back home took less than ten minutes!  My thanks to all who attended.

Let GuadaComaCon commence!

It's 10 a.m., and GuadaComaCon 2013 is  kicking off right here at the New Braunfels Convention Center.  From old-school roleplaying to massive miniatures games, we have it all.  No charge!

Here's the schedule (all times subject to change):

• Prime Directive (GURPS Star Trek; 6 players): 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
• Axles & Alloys (vehicle combat based on Full Thrust rules; 6 players; minis provided): 10 a.m.-2 p.m. 
• Bethorm: the Plane of Tekumel (fantasy roleplaying with pregenerated characters; 6 players) GMed by artist and game designer Jeff Dee: 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
• Warhammer 40,000 mega battle (unlimited players; bring a 1500-point list army and a 2000-point list army; painted models suggested): 10 a.m. meet; play from 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
• 5150: Star Navy (Two Hour Wargames spaceship combat; 6 players; all miniatures supplied or bring your own): 2 p.m.-6 p.m.
• Cavemaster (paleolithic RPG with Talzhemir Mrr; 6 players): 2 p.m.-6 p.m. 
• Flames of  War (WWII miniatures; 4 or 5 players): 2 p.m.-6 p.m. 
• HOTT-Hammer tournament (Hordes of the Things fantasy rules; unlimited players; loaner armies available):  3 p.m.-7 p.m.
• Battle of Hoth (using FUBAR rules; 4 players): 6 p.m.-10 p.m.
• Song of Blades and Heroes (generic fantasy skirmish; 6 players): 6 p.m.-10 p.m.
• Swords & Wizardry (old-school fantasy) with game designer Dennis Sustarre: 6 p.m.-10 p.m.
• Close Action (sailing combat game): 6 p.m.-10 p.m.
• Open gaming: all day

See you at the game table!

Pre-convention tradition

I just finished up some last-minute painting for my 5150: Star Navy game at GuadaComaCon tomorrow.  Procrastinator that I am, I always seem to end up working on my miniatures the night before the event.

I painted some additional asteroids as well as some Carnivoran fighters.  You can never have too many asteroids or fighters in your space game, I always say.

Anyone else run a minis game at convention using models with the paint still wet?

GuadaComaCon schedule and signup

OK, here's the latest on GuadaComaCon: Saturday, August 17, from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. at the New Braunfels Convention Center.  Free admission. (Donations happily accepted.)

AUG. 14 Update: More minis, RPG details (see also comments)

AUG. 13 Update: More RPGs added

SCHEDULED GAMES (times subject to change)

• Prime Directive (GURPS Star Trek; 6 players): 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
• Axles & Alloys (vehicle combat based on Full Thrust rules; 6 players; minis provided): 10 a.m.-2 p.m. 
• Bethorm: the Plane of Tekumel (fantasy roleplaying with pregenerated characters; 6 players) GMed by artist and game designer Jeff Dee: 10 a.m.-2 p.m.
• Warhammer 40,000 mega battle (unlimited players; bring a 1500-point list army and a 2000-point list army; painted models suggested): 10 a.m. meet; play from 11 a.m.-5 p.m.
• 5150: Star Navy (Two Hour Wargames spaceship combat; 6 players; all miniatures supplied or bring your own): 2 p.m.-6 p.m.
• Cavemaster (paleolithic RPG with Talzhemir Mrr; 6 players): 2 p.m.-6 p.m. 
• Flames of  War (WWII miniatures; 4 or 5 players): 2 p.m.-6 p.m. 
• HOTT-Hammer tournament (Hordes of the Things fantasy rules; unlimited players; loaner armies available):  3 p.m.-7 p.m.
• Battle of Hoth (using FUBAR rules; 4 players): 6 p.m.-10 p.m.
• Song of Blades and Heroes (generic fantasy skirmish; 6 players): 6 p.m.-10 p.m.
• Swords & Wizardry (old-school fantasy) with game designer Dennis Sustarre: 6 p.m.-10 p.m.
• Close Action (sailing combat game): 6 p.m.-10 p.m.
• Other games to be announced 
• Open gaming: all day

If you're interested in playing in a game, secure your spot in the comments!

More GuadaComaCon details

Interest in GuadaComaCon is  picking up.  To give you a little more details, we have the facility for 12 hours (10 a.m. to  10 p.m.) on Saturday, August 17.  

As you can see from the floor plan for the event, there will be nine 6x5 tables (and we can push a couple together if necessary).  Some folks have tentatively discussed running a massive game of Warhammer 40K Apocalypse, and we will have plenty of room for it.

In addition, I will be running a game of 5150: Star Navy, someone is running a Car Wars-type game based on Full Thrust; there will be a Hordes of the Things tournament; one person is conducting a scenario based on either Helm's Deep or the Battle of Hoth; and someone is putting on a historical game, too.  I hope we have some folks running RPGs as well.  And with the extra room, we will probably have a table or two for open gaming.

If anyone is interested in running a game at GuadaComaCon, let me know soon!