My Blog List

My Blog List

Tuesday 27 December 2016

Nickel & Dime Production's part 1

Like a bottle tossed into the sea is what a hobby can have you feeling like at times, as the currant takes you from one thing to the next, this is something that happens to most people I think, with some it's just a new army in the same system, with other's it's drifting from one game to another.

Why are you telling us all this Frank you ask as it's something we already know ? fair question & the reason is that I think my bottle just might have been washed up on the beach so to speak, don't get me wrong I'm not throwing in the hobby towel in or anything like that, no what I mean is I think I might have found my port of call.

When I started out it was just painting a few 40K models then one of my son's (Paddy) got me playing, then we joined the DGG where I spent many a happy year as a 40K player, then all that changed & my bottle started to drift out to sea as it was.

First came INQ28 & I really enjoyed the whole story telling end of it & the game it's self even if the rules are a bit wonky, it was about this time I first came up with the idea of Tricol & as happens as your interests change so to does things you look for on the web, a site I'd been following for a while Dave's great My Saturday Mumblings, this is where  I first came across Pulp Alley, this lead me to Paul's equally great Sho3box & an AAR on a Pulp Alley game that the two guys & a couple of others had just played out at Brocon, Sho3box then lead to Will wonderful Governor General of Sector Six as the two of them had just done a blog cross over.

I entered the world of pulp gaming with Pulp Alley & that's where I still am & think tbh where I'll be staying, but you see my hobby bottle as drifted in such away that gaming is a very small part of what I do, I not longer go into the DGG but go to a mate's house were we play card based games or board based games, that;s not to say I don't enjoy a game of PA I'm just showing you the way things have changed.

Sets like they use in the movie's I first talked about a long time back & have since made a couple, but what is a kitted out tabletop for a wargame if not a set ? a site I came across & where I brought the roads & sidewalks from run by Patrick R Wilson The Virtual Armchair General  do a great selection of set's from the glory days of pulp, not only that but it turn's out he wrote rules  for a pulp game called Astounding Tales which I now own & my bottle washed a shore.

So in the best pulp tradition this post is to be continued, so I hope you all had a wonderful Xmas and I'll see you on the flip side of the Newyear, as  always my thanks for dropping in & if you'd care to leave a comment it would be welcomed.

Wednesday 21 December 2016

Sunday 18 December 2016

2016 review

With 2016 all most at an end I thought it might be time for a little review of the year, there will be two more post after this one before the years end meaning that their will have been a total of 76 post which is only two short of my best year which was 78 in 2013 & had it not been for the dip in May & June which only had 6 posts between them I most likely would have best that number.


Any way on with the show as they said, Back in January I was trying out my new camera & looking into using back drops among other things, back drop would be something I would use later on in the year like in the photo below.
 Among other thing's happening in January was the building of mud-huts & a little trip to the warroom to take part in a Frostgrave tournament, on the downside was the last minute cancellation of an INQ28 event in Warcon that had me out of pocket through no fault of my own, numbers of posts 7.

February  GW was getting me excited for some reason which I can't remember, February closed with a wallop in the shape of the Blood for the Blood God PA AAR, this was to be our last multi-player game of PA something I must get around to fixing.
 Not the busies of month's with only 5 post, but what a delight the big bad boy above was to use in PA.

March we had the elections in Tricol, below the new Governor Von Bittner
I also painted some Ork's & took part in the sector six campaign, 8 posts.

April & I was trying to figure what guard had in 40K these day's
 the sector six campaign came to an end, as did my leader Schwarzaber in the final battle, 5 posts

May seen me build my mount Rushmore piece of terrain
colour coded was also done as away of trying to keep track on over 200 ig, 4 posts

June the real low point for posts, but I was looking at the joy of renegade guard

& doing up my Brocon list, a disappointing 2 posts

July  took me to Brocon for my first 40K tournament in a long time
It also my last game of 40K as the DA tried shooting the big thing, 8 posts

August work continued on the inside of the Severed Head

I went solo in PA for the first time, posts 8

September was to bring a change in the Laws to Tricol, that was to lead to a lot of trouble
& a couple of new leauges where done up for PA, posts 8

October I was adding the finishing touchs to the Severed Head
fittingly it ended with Spook Alley, posts 8

November had a jailbreak
& as well as the Manor Hall seen the comet of the Preacher, posts 7

December had strange things going on in the Manor
& as well as going on location we headed down to the river, posts 6 I hope.

It's been a strange year over all as it started well took a dip in the middle & finished strong, I've really gotten my hobby mojo back & look forward to what I hope might be my best year yet on if it wasn't for one's, so that's another year just down the well
as always my thanks for dropping in & if you'd care to leave a comment it would be welcomed.

Wednesday 14 December 2016

Down by the river

I've been working away behind the scene's on a couple of different thing's, but one has come to completion so lets have a look shall we ? first I'd like to point something out & that is you've got to spend a lot of time doing this.

To get a little time doing this.


Then you'll end up with this, worth it ? I think so, now I didn't want to spend for ever painting this stuff which would mean a lot of dry brushing, so I just went for a yellow primer from Halfords & the dark tone dip I think it's army painter that does it, but if you want to know for sure then just ask in the comments.

Rivers sides are something that show up a lot in movie's & books & yet I don't see a lot of it in games, sure you'll see a river on a gaming table but a lot of the time it will have little effect on the game it's self.

What I was trying for was a set up that can be a big part in the game, Johnny the Slug turned & fired at his pursuer before dashing down the flight of steps to the river towpath, Stan on reaching the steps decided not to follow him down but instead stayed on the upper level until he came up a long side him if above him.

Now how is the river playing a part in this Frank you ask ? Answer no part at all tbh but because of the way the river is at a lower level we can play out the scene in a cinematic way :-)

Timing his jump to perfection he leaped down on to the lowlife  below bring him to the ground & sending the gun flying from his hand, with lightning reflex's Stan was back on his feet in a flash dragging the criminal to his before sending a quick short jab into his mid-section "that'll take some of the wind out of your sail's" he said "come on your nicked".

Or even if you just want a romantic couple taking a moonlight walk along the banks, the riverside setting is a useful thing & adding a bridge or two adds a whole new dimension, something I will be doing but that will be another post.

Well that's it for this post as always my thanks for dropping in & if you'd care to leave a comment it would be welcomed.

Thursday 8 December 2016

On location.

We find Jack & Lucinda as always in a sticky situation.
I don't like to be negative but I think we're in a bit of trouble here Jack" Lucinda said
Na we'll be find replied Jack, cut called out the director.
These are the latest model's I've painted up, above are two monster's from FFG's Starwars Imperial Assault & a film crew from Pulp Figures sculptured by Bob Mulch.
Clapperboard Billy Boyle
Script Girl Miss Spingler
Cameraman Max Parker
Director Merrik Von Stroneim

I guess these are what you might call my first pulp figure's but I would think they will not be my last, their metal model's & have a nice bit of detail on them & are a set I'm sure I shall get a lot of fun out of, there's also a old style movie camera on a tripod that come's with them that I forgot to take a picture of lol.

That's it for this post as always my thanks for dropping in & if you'd care to leave a comment it would be welcomed.

Sunday 4 December 2016

Tricol, Strange happenings at the Manor, Pulp Alley AAR

Arriving at the old abandoned Manor it didn't take long for them to force the old front doors open, stepping inside Igor asked what are we looking for here Tech-priest ? I'm not sure replied Darrow but some powerful force has lead us here for what I'm sure is a good reason.
In the gloomy half light of the boarded up old house they set about their task, but even beyond the reek of damp & decay Darrow could sense that something was not quite right here, search around & see what you can find he order.
Out of the shadows a faceless man appeared in one of the doorways & opened fire on Number 2
   Knocking the servitor from his feet, at the same time an odd sound could be heard as a clank clank across the floorboards.
Darrow knocked over a candle-holder that was sitting on a shelf in the hall & a load click reverberated through out the old house, at the same time while searching around in another room Number 1 witnessed what appeared to at first nothing more then a pile of old rags materialise out of tin air.
 Somewhere deep inside what was left of his once human brain was held in horror by what had just transpired.
 Darrow couldn't help feeling that for what was an abandoned house it was getting very crowed as a fierce looking beastman came into his view.
Fighting was now breaking out all over the house it seemed, this was not at all what the Tech-priest had expected when he entered the old hall, time to use my phase vest to get to one of the other rooms he though.
But not before he upended a masked cultist, with a quick blow from his power axe.
 Number 1 moved back into the hallway but the entity just came after him, what it was or what it wanted he no idea but he knew he didn't like it.
 Phasing back into reality Darrow noticed a warp of some kind on the floor, picking it up & opening it he found it held all kind of keys.
 In a different room Number 3 found a little strongbox sitting on the floor & tried opening it
 It must have been magnetically locked & an electric discharge knocked him from his feet.
One of the faceless man attempted to rush Darrow but the Tech-priest was able to keep him at bay with his long axe.
  Not so Number 1 who found himself rid of the strange thing in robes but now engaged with this faceless form.
The robed thing seemed to have found a new toy in the shape of one of the cultist's
 In the hallway what could only be described as an insane mod burst it way in through the window,
& rushed into the room where Number 3 was.
Darrow noticing something over at the fireplace went to investigate
but couldn't figure out what he need to do & he'd no time to think as another mod poured in one of the window's in the room.
 Whatever he'd come here to find he wasn't the only one looking for it that's for sure
& before he knew where he was the mob was upon him, giving time he might have fought them off.
However a couple of explosions sent flames licking up the walls it was time to be gong, snatching an open notebook from the mantle-place Darrow forced his way through the mob & out the front door followed by his crew.


Inside one of the faceless ones removed something from the fire place before making his escape out one of the window, as the fire engulfed the old Manor rising high into the sky.

Designer's note, well that was a very different game of PA & one that I think is a hard nut to crack as you don't know which of the PP's is the major one & it take 3 turn's at the least to complete it, but that said it's a fun & challenging adventure.

I'm fond of saying what could possible go wrong ? well for this game I guess everything, when I rolled on the random event's table I rolled a 5 which meant that from the start of turn 4 one insane mob entered the manor each turn as well as what ever servants turned up that turn.

The second PP I solved turned out to be the ghost, this meant the ghost was in play from turn 2 & when I did find the major PP Darrow failed the challenge on what is his best skill, I mean 3 4+'s in not much to ask for on 4 D10 now is it ? lol

Darrow's league is a new one I've done up & I'll do a post on it soon, playing inside the manor I think worked well & came across in the way that I think Dave planed when he came up with the scenario.

Well that's for this post & as always my thanks for dropping in & if you'd care to leave a comment it would be welcomed.