Breaking News: New Dystopian Wars and Legions Models!!!!

A post has just appeared on the Spartan Games Forum with a link to a hidden page on the Spartan Store.
The May 1st Releases for Dystopian Wars and Legions!
Click pics to view larger

EDIT: The forum thread and info on the website have disappeared!

What do you think of all the new goodies?

Hendybadger awaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

Dystopian Legions Wave 4 is up. APCS! Plus Dyst Wars and Firestorm

Prussian Empire Sturmwagon APC

Spartan Games have sent out their latest Newsletter this weekend. You can find it >HERE<

First up for the new releases are the stunning Dystopian Leigons wave 4 APCs. (above and below)

One for each force, but each with their own feel. 

Even though my favourite DL forces are the Britannians and the Prussians, I have to say the the American APC appeals to me the most

Kingdom of Britannia General Conveyor APC

Federated States of America Patriot APC

Empire of the Blazing Sun Kote APC

Here you can see a size comparison next to the Prussian Infantry. These are 35mm models on 30mm bases.

Dystopian Wars also has a bunch of new goodies.10 new land armoured vehicles for use with Wars or the new Armoured Clash rules.

If tanks aren't your thing, how about aliens!

The Invaders now have their very own starter box!

To finish of the newsletter, Firestorm Armada gets some love. Some Space Installations and an RSN Starter fleet.

All of this is looking awesome and shows that Spartan Games are still going from strength to strength!

Cant wait to get my paws on those APCs!

For more links and info about these new releases, see the latest Spartan Games Newsletter (link)

Hendybadger awaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

Tabletop Gamers on Facebook. A Community for You.

Social networking is a huge thing these days. Millions of people use it for millions of different things.
One of which is to organise, check out and discuss tabletop games.
There are a lot of great Facebook gaming groups out there so I thought I would share my favourites with you.
You never know, some of you may even join and enjoy them!

Miniature Addicts Anonymous

Miniature Addicts Anonymous (link) is a group for any and all miniature games.
The members include several industry professionals from game owners to sculptors and artists. Plus tons of excitable gamers.
A fun and friendly group where you can ask anything you like (gaming or not) and post any work you have done or interesting things you have found.

Citizens of Pulp City

Citizens of Pulp City (link) is the main fan group for Pulp City from Pulp Monsters.
A great place to chat about Supremes, show off your work, ask any questions and even get some teasers and answers from the PC team themselves.
One of the friendliest groups I have ever found online and packed full of inspiration.
With the brand new Supreme Edition here and the new release schedule right around the corner, you don't want to miss out on the future of Pulp City!

The Stygian Depths

The Stygian Depths (link) is the place to go for fans of the awesome Deep Wars and ShadowSea by Antimatter Games.
Great people and some absolutely stunning work! You would be amazed what a different setting like underwater can bring out in the model world.
Even if Antimatter Games isn't your cuppa, head over and check it out. You wont be disappointed.

Dystopian Armadas

Dystopian Armadas (link) covers all of the ranges from Spartan Games.
Firestorm Armada, Uncharted Seas, Dystopian Was and the new Dystopian Legions.
The Victorian steampunk Dystopian setting seems to be the main draw to this group and with new stuff coming out for Wars and Legions all the time it is great to see what people are doing with it and throw your own in there as well.

Hope to see some of you in these groups soon.

Which are your favourite gaming groups on Facebook?

Hendybadger awaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

Blogging Update and 2013 Gaming Plan

A couple of little changes to this blog at the moment.

First off, there has been a HUGE amount of Spam comments (10-15 a day) so I'm afraid I have had to turn on picture validation for comments.
I know this may put some people off commenting but I hope you can understand why I have had to do it.

Secondly, due to personal circumstances, the posting will be slowing down a gear or two.
There will still be regular posts but just not 1 or 2 EVERY day. Apologies but sometimes that thing they call 'life' just jumps out and gets you.
If you have any ideas for posts you would like to see, feel free to comment below (if you can prove you're not just software :) )

On to the second part of today's post.

In one of my favourite Facebook gaming groups, Miniature Addicts Anonymous, there have recently been several discussions about what people want to do with their hobby.
New Years resolutions, sticking with what you enjoy, spending limitations and plans for the next year.
This has inspired me to do a plan for 2013 and try to stick to it.

Below is my 'personal' gaming plan, not the blogs. These choices will be featured heavily on here but several things on the blog could change over the next few months.
I want to stick to this as closely as I can. Its time to focus on what I REALLY enjoy and what I can afford.
I may not get as many games in as I want as it doesn't include any of the 'big' games but I enjoy the collecting, building and chatting just as much.

Pulp City


Why? - I LOVE Pulp City. More than any other game I have ever played. With the Open Beta of the next edition coming out in a few weeks and loads of minis lined up the game is just going to get better and better in 2013

What do I want to do? - I have at least 1 of each PC mini so far so my purchases will mainly be the new releases which are due to be 2 blisters a month.
There are some models in my collection being painted by The Hairy Painter at the moment and some I want to paint in Marvel inspired schemes. My long term plan for them is to paint one of each mini in the range in an original scheme myself so I will more than likely be grabbing some doubles when I can as well.

Deep Wars

Why? - Thanks to the recent Kickstarter I have 1 of every funded mini coming in the near future. I couldn't resist this game as I fell for the minis, rules and the totally unique setting. Underwater skirmish campaigns with illumination and different depth rules.

What do I want to do? - As with my first choice, I want to have one of each model in the range. So after my Kickstarter delivery I will be grabbing any new releases.
The rules let you activate groups of the same model and they are campaign based so model will change weapons and equipment over time. Once I know what I like to use more I will get a couple of doubles and some conversion packs as well as the new toys.

Dystopian Legions

Why? - This game hasn't been around long but when I first spotted it I realised it was the perfect combination of Steampunk, Sci-Fi and Historical for me. I wasn't to keen on each genre on its own but DL has the bits I like without the bits I don't!

What do I want to do? - I began picking up each release for each nation as I couldn't decide which force I liked the most. This led to collecting all of them. I want to continue that with one of each new release including the new nations and mercs. This is the most expensive choice so I may not get them ALL as soon as they come up but I will over time.

Dystopian Wars

Why? - I started with a single box set and found I really enjoyed the combined forces style of the game and a different scale was very nice. The models impressed me for the same reason as Legions above and I went for the French with their flying Battleships. This led onto collecting an entire force for Air and Sea.

What do I want to do? - Continue with the French and ONLY the French. I want a couple of the large ships as doubles for force building choices but apart from that it will be picking up new French Air and Sea models. Not keen on the land side of the French which is fine as the Sea Skimmers can be used as a Land force as well.

There is the temptation of ONE (ish) more game. I like the look of several but just cant decide. The choices and reasons in no particular order are-

Super System 3 - I have LOADS of non-Pulp City Supers minis and the SS3 rules already. Make Your Own Supers could be a lot of fun.
Batman - Stunning models and calls to the 'Supers' fan in me. The price seems a little high though as I know if I start collecting I will want ALL of it.
Carnivale - BIG Assassins Creed fan and this game looks very similar to the Xbox game. Stunning models and the rules look fun.
Relic Knights - The models are amazing! I just couldnt afford to get in on the Kickstarter
Relics - Not looked into the game rules too much but the models are nice. Especially the Britanans.
Freebooters Fate - Love Pirates (see the Hendybadger pic) and this game has stunning models and a nice card system. One faction even calls to the Assassins Creed fan in me.
Cutlass - Again, Pirates! I have the rules and an Undead crew which are both great. Just never got around to playing it.
Dreadball - Heard great things about the game and the minis are nice. Will have to try it out soon as I like Tabletop sports games.
Bloodbowl - Always enjoyed BB but stopped playing years ago due to lack of opponents. Would be nice to start again.
Necromunda - Until I found Pulp City, Necromunda was my favourite game of all time. Unfortunately the campaign system calls for lots of games and there are currently no players around that I know of which is a shame as I love the models and still have a ton of bits to convert them with.
Anima Tactics - Dont know much about the game but the models are amazing and a good friend is a big fan.
Hell Dorado -  As with Anima, I dont know much about the rules but I know I like several of the models

So that's the plan! (ish) Wish me luck!

Do you have a gaming plan for next year? What is your reasoning behind it? Would love to hear it.

Which would you go for as an extra game from the ones I listed? And why?

Hendybadger awaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

Dystopian Wars New Rules - Armoured Clash!!!

 Spartan Games have just announced a new set of game rules for you use to entire regiments of Dystopian Wars land units called Armoured Clash. The best part is, it will be a FREE download!

Also, several new models will be coming along with it.

You can find the info HERE and I have also reposted it below.

 Looks like I am going to be getting the French land forces after all. Hope I will be able to use my entire Skimmer force as well.

Armoured Clash

Available to download for FREE on February 11th 2013, Armoured Clash sets the scene for strategic command and control as players have power over ground assets at a Regimental level, forming them to create Armoured Brigade level forces and beyond.
These Regiments are split into various types, such as Tank, Heavy Armoured, Artillery, Support and Divisional Asset, and can be quickly and easily assembled by players using existing armoured models. Additionally, Spartan Games is excited to announce that over 20 new land models have been developed across the great nations of the world, introducing new types and classes of vehicle, adding even more diversity and choice to the world of Dystopian Wars.

New models will include the Kingdom of Britannia Steward Class Guardian Tank, Prussian Empire A2-L ‘Ritter‘ Class Boarding Tank, Russian Coalition Orlov Class Heavy Tank and much, much more.
Behind The Rules
Here at Spartan Games we very much enjoy playing big tank battles, using tables full of deadly armour with which to annihilate each other’s armies! When we set out to write Armoured Clash we started with a very clear concept: to create a set of rules that incorporated all the fun and flavour of Dystopian Wars, but that would allow for a BIG armoured game to be played to its bloody conclusion in 1or 2 hours.

Armoured Clash offers players the chance to play out these epic battles, commanding full Brigades of Armour, and rather than activating in Squadrons, players get to activate Regiments at a time, rolling up entire flanks and making great sweeping charges across the battlefield.
Get Ready For Battle!

As February 11th approaches we will roll our Orders of Battle that will allow you to prepare your land force models for the coming ground conflict, and our writers will whet your appetites with plenty of short story fiction to get you ready for the action.
For now take a look at the following document to give you an idea of what a sample Kingdom of Britannia Armoured Brigade could look like under your control:
SAMPLE of a Kingdom of Britannia Armoured Brigade [PDF, 3MB]

Hendybadger awaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!

Dystopian Wars - RoF Alma Frigates + Next Wave of Releases

OK, I know this isn't Legions but these came out at the same time.
Why cover these in the middle of the Legions reviews? Because Im a French player and they are flying ships!

Republique of France - Alma Skimming Frigates

 The sophisticated Alma Class Frigate is designed to provide fast moving fire support and scouting capability to the Republique of France’s aerial navy. The Frigate is swift and agile enough to even take the fight to true aircraft. When operating alone, squadrons of Almas also make superb commerce raiders, as well as mounting lightning strikes on enemy ports through their ability to bypass conventional military defences.

Packaging

The Almas come in a very simple blister pack. Clear front shows the minis with a name label. The back has a little info about Spartan Games themselves.

  In the blister you get 4 Almas, 4 small flight stands and a rules card.

Did I cover up the rules? Whoops! Sorry. What about some hints>

The blister does come as a full squadron. Each has 1 gun that can fire in any direction, they are a band and a half fast and skimmers. You could fit 40 in a 1400pt game without % or minimum limits.

They do NOT have Small Target and Pack Hunter like several people thought.

The thing that surprised me with these Frigates was the fact they were metal. Especially seeing the pic at the top says they are resin.

All the other Naval small ships are resin. As are the medium and large skimmers.

Not sure why Spartan decided to choose metal for this model but I will try and find out.

Each frigate is a single piece. The mold lines run along the fin on one side of the ship but just above on the other side. This was a little difficult to remove without taking off any rivets. I think I saved most of them though.

There was a small tab on the nose and a small vent on the rear. Simple to remove an on flat areas so a file sorted that out without loss of detail.

Is seems easier to see detail on the resin ships than it is on the metal ones. I think it will be easier to tell if the Almas are the same standard once undercoated.

For the flight bases I glued the rob into the base and when dry, cut it down so the skimming  frigates were lower than the flyers.

Time for a size comparison.

Here is an Alma next to the large MkI Magents Pocket Battleship and a medium Marsielles Cruiser.

The size fits with the other 2 very well. I am a little unsure on the overall look but then that again could be the fact its metal and the resin details are easier to see.

We will take a look again when there is some paint on them.

But hey, they are French Skimmers that can be used at sea or over land! (which is great as I don't really like the look of the RoF land units)

My Skimmer fleet now has 2 Magentas, 6 Marseilles and 8 Almas. Time for a skimming Carrier Spartan?

Price

You can pick up a squadron of 4 Almas on Pre-Order from The Troll Trader for £12.15

I know this is more expensive than other small ships but instead of a water lined half-ship you get a whole ship (top and bottom half) and a flight stand each.

With that in mind I think that just over £12 is very reasonable

Overall

I like the Almas. They fit the Rebulique of France theme really well and the models are very nice.

I do prefer the medium and large skimmers though but how can you say no to an entire skimming fleet?

I'm sure I will like them even more when painted as the metal looks less impressive to me.

8 out of 10 Badger Points

I think it would be a 9 if they were resin as shown on the official picture.

What do you think of them?

Tomorrow we go back to Dystopian Legions with a look at some Tankettes

 This weekend, Spartan posted the next wave of Dystopian Wars releases. Due out Jan 30th.

Check out the pics below.

Hendybadger awaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaay!