The War of the Rohirrim - No Spoiler Review

I went to see The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim. I was the only person in a 200 seat IMAX theatre…

Being a hard-core Tolkien nerd, I’ve known this movie was coming for a long-time, though I was undecided on whether to see it. Would it fill me with joy like The Fellowship of the Ring? Or fill me with bitterness like The Battle of the Five Armies? I read a few reviews, but they were so mixed as to be unhelpful. Eventually, I decided I was overthinking it, and I should just go and try to enjoy it. And even if I didn’t enjoy it, at least I would be able to talk about it!

I prefer to go to the cinema at off-peak times, so I knocked off early yesterday. It was only showing on the IMAX at the big multiplex, so I overpaid for my ticket and then overpaid for my popcorn. There was no one else in the theatre when I arrived… and so it stayed, a vast, empty room. Thankfully, I’m generally happy with my own company, and moved to sit right in the middle! I read a book while the adverts played, slightly worried they might decide not to show it for only one person (which did happen to me once!). Eventually, the movie began.

It was a strange ride, but I enjoyed it. The story itself is strong. It includes the whole tale of Helm Hammerhand as Tolkien wrote it – but obviously needed to add a lot to turn 3 printed pages into a film. Most of this addition comes in the form of Helm’s heroic daughter, Hera. She get’s her own story, intertwined with her father’s. Both are well told. The characters aren’t particularly deep, but this is fairytale not literature, and on that level, it succeeds.

Where it is less consistent is the animation. The movie opens with a beautiful shot of the map of Middle-Earth fading into actual mountains. A moment later, a giant eagle flies past… the eagle appears hastily drawn on top of the gorgeous background. For a moment my heart sunk. On the whole though, the animation is good, and sometimes it is utterly fantastic… but there are moments throughout that look either unfinished or rushed, which is a shame. A couple of moments did seem more ‘anime’ than ‘Middle-Earth’. The animation is going to lose a lot of people.

I have seen complaints that the movie is too long. I don’t agree, most of what is there is necessary. 

I have seen complaints that Hera is a ‘Mary Sue’ (a flawless heroic woman). These are baseless. She is heroic and competent, but she needs help as often as she gives it.

I was hoping to take my 8-year-old son to see the movie, but there are a few character deaths that are too rough for a sensitive soul.

The War of the Rohirrim is far from a perfect movie, but for my money (and I spent plenty to see it), it is a good one. More than a Tolkien fan should ever expect for the story of Helm Hammerhand! I probably won’t rush to see it again in theatre, but I’m glad that I went, and I will buy it on Blu-Ray when it is released. 

If you want to see it in theatre, I suggest going soon. Based on my own experience, it won’t be there long…

 

  

Walking Through Ithilien

There is a beautiful scene in The Lord of the Rings where Frodo, Sam, and Gollum come across an old statue of a Gondorian king that has been defiled by the orcs. The broken head lies nearby, and Frodo notes that nature has crowned it with a ring of flowers. 

Obviously the hobbits were walking through a region that had once been strongly held by Gondor... but at some point they must have crossed an invisible line into lands that were more traditionally held by Mordor, where the evil powers might have constructed their own statues. That was my idea here anyway.

The statue is from Gale Force 9's Egyptian line. It's a nice piece straight out of the box, but I decided that I'm unlikely ever to assemble a lot of desert terrain, so I decided I would repurpose it for a more temperate climate. So, I primed it black and painted various layers of grey over that. Then I gave it a coating of flock and added a few scenic tufts. Finally, I gave it a few flowers popping up. So here we have ancient evil, but still beauty and life persevere. How very Tolkien.

The statue does still show it's Egyptian influence with the headdress, but I think it looks generically evil enough to work for Mordor. It's a chunky piece and a good size to force tactical decisions on a battlefield without dominating a table. I actually have a second one, which I will probably give the same treatment at some point.  

Frostgrovey!

I've been a fan of the Dork Tower since it first appeared...30 years ago? Look what got a mention in the comic today (via the link).

http://www.dorktower.com/2024/11/25/19221/

Knock Knock

Knock knock

Who's there?

Moo.

Moo Who?

I hate it when cows cry...

The walk to school with my daughter produces another classic!

Goblin Treasure Bearer

I bought this miniature as soon as I saw it. Generally, I'm more patient, but this one I just couldn't resist. Which is funny, as it's such a simple figure. Just a goblin carrying a treasure chest... and yet, there is so much potential story to it. He looks rather mournful, so I gather it's not his treasure chest. Probably he's been bullied into carrying it by a party of adventurers. Possibly as an underpaid hireling, but more likely in exchange for his own life after an ambush gone wrong or something.

It's another Reaper Bones figure from Bobby Jackson. Bones USA to be precise, and it makes a difference. I have not been a big fan of either the original Bones or Bones Black material, but the new Bones USA ones are fantastic, with a level of detail at least the equal of metal.

I painted his skin with the Orc Skin speed paint from Army Painter. While it sometimes feel like cheating, and while I did touch it up a bit, I don't think I could paint orc skin much better than this using any of my traditional methods. On a figure with good detail, it just looks fantastic. The rest of the figure I painted with washes and layers. The whole thing is the product of a delightfully lazy Saturday morning.

Alien Crew 2...

 

Two more player characters for the Aliens game mentioned in the previous post. This time we've got a security agent and a corporate type. It was a bit of a challenge assembling a business person from Stargrave/Frostgrave bits, but I think she came out okay. The body is from the Stargrave Crew II set, while the arms and head are from the Frostgrave Wizards II sprue. I cut off a wand to give her a kind of PA device. I then used a book turned sideways to be a little briefcase. I think its the paint job that will cause her to stand out though, as she'll be the only one wearing a bright colour, where everyone else will be in muted tones.

Alien Crew...

Next month, I'm playing in a one-shot Alien role-playing game, and I agreed to paint figures for all of the Player Characters. These are the first two, the security chief and the android mechanic. They are both constructed from various Stargrave plastic kids.

It's generally against my nature to paint miniatures with no flock on their base, but considering how much grass is seen in the Alien films (none?) it didn't seem appropriate. What did seem appropriate were a few bloods spatters...

I'm Detecting Movement...

 

Orc

 

Some days, you just feel like painting an orc, or at least I do. And I did, a few days ago. I was looking through my collection of orcs and realized I wasn't really happy with them. There was nothing wrong with the models, just my paint jobs. I had painted all my orcs very dark and very grubby. This might be perfectly appropriate for the Tolkien style of orcs I want, but it just doesn't look that great on the tabletop. So, I wanted to paint one using a bit more colour, and more importantly, a bit more contrast to the colours. 

To start, I went with a white undercoat, which I've never used for orcs before. This made a big difference on the brightness of the chainmail, which ended up contrasting very nicely with the black leather breastplate. I then used a dark yellow for the tunic - its not a nice or overly bright colour, but I think it found that happy medium of colour and grunge at the same time. I added a bit of purple, which gives it some more colour, but still keeps it dark overall. Finally, I gave it some real brightness on the shield, drawing a meaningless rune and giving it a little fire effect. I wanted it to sort/kinda/maybe give the impression of the Eye of Sauron without an actual eye.

Yup, very happy with how this guy came out. I might have to slowly replace my old orc force with this new, slightly more colourful variety.

Hythe Community Games Day!

I'm not technically a boardgame designer, but I will be at the Hythe Community Games Day on Saturday 9 November taking place inside St. Leonard's Church in Kent. I'll mainly be hanging out by the Frostgrave table run by some friends. I expect it to be a small, local affair, but it should be fun, and when else do you get to game above a crypt with an ossuary? So if you'd like to come by and say hi, or get a book signed, or maybe even throw some dice, it should be fun!

 

Cockatrice!

 

Earlier this year, I wrote a set of rules for using cockatrices in all of my games and released it to my Patreon supporters (where you can still get it). At the time though, I didn't own a cockatrice miniature. I just wasn't that fussed with any that I had seen. Then someone pointed out this one, which comes from Anno Domini 1666, a board wargame from Poland. I actually ended up buying the whole game after demoing it a Pyrkon, but I also picked up the little expansion box that had the cockatrice. This doom-chicken is the plastic version, but it painted up really nice. I can definitely see this guy landing in a game of The Silver Bayonet, Frostgrave, and Rangers of Shadow Deep. When you've got a cool model like that - you've got to use it!

(The other figure is also from the Anno Domini 1666 game, though it is metal).

Sam Wilson, Captain America

 

I didn't touch a paint brush all summer. I was just too busy travelling, playing with the kids, going to the beach, etc. But now that the weather has turned, the kids are back in school, and I'm home again, my fingers have gotten itchy. I jumped back into miniature painting with a Marvel: Crisis Protocol figure that's been in my painting queue for awhile: Sam Wilson, Captain America. I must admit, I really like painting super heroes. Bold Colours, heavy contrast, and details big enough for my aging eyes to see! This one was a little trickery than most with the all the stripes, but fun none-the-less!

A Bad Night for the Town Watch...

I painted my first two Anno Domini 1666 figures. These are the metal versions, and I'm delighted with the look and quality - though I will admit the weapons are very slender (the downside to realistically scaled). 

I didn't feel ready to tackle any of the characters, so I went for a couple of town guardsmen to get me started. 

Just for fun, I shot them in front of one of my Tabletop World houses and with a few Reaper giant rats. I like the combined look so much, I'm thinking about running some Rangers of Shadow Deep games with a more 17th century look to it! 

Caphid Attack!

 

It's muskets versus alien bugs on the Deathship!

I'm continuing to paint the aliens figures needed to play Deathship One, and I must admit, enjoying the photo opportunities. These aliens bugs are called the caphids. They are based on camel crickets, which were one of the great fears of my childhood. Whenever I had to go down to the basement, I knew they'd be lurking there. They are completely harmless, but they are about the size of these figures, and when you turned on the light, they would hop all over the place - including straight at you. And these guys were capable of hoping a metre or more at a go! 

Caphids are the least fearsome of the aliens found on the Deathship, but they are fast and tend to show up in greater numbers. Take them down quick if you can!

If you'd like your own caphid models you can order them from Bobby Jackson (including STLs) if you want them in the UK, you can order them through North Star.

Anglo-Egyptian Silver Bayonet Unit

Believe it or not, I don't have a purpose-painted The Silver Bayonet unit. Whenever I have played the game, I have just cobbled together a unit from figures I had previously painted. Well, that's set to change! Inspired by some of the minis produced for the new Egypt supplement, I've decided to create a new Anglo-Egyptian unit!

I placed an order for a few Front Rank figures, but while I am waiting for them, I decided to start on the Egyptian part, which I got from North Star. Here's the first two! These are my coachman (the only soldier who carries a blunderbuss) and my Doctor.  I gave the coachman a 'red coat' so he'd fit in with his English allies, but the Doctor I wanted to stand out more. He's a more reluctant member of the group.

Both of these figures were a dream to paint, as Mike Owen sculpts usually are. I like that his figures don't overdo the detail, but what detail they have is heavily moulded into the figure, making it easy to paint. 

These guys look ready to fight some monsters!

Slathek Attack!

 

It's another glorious day in the Colonial Marine Corp! I'm continuing to paint up aliens for Deathship One. This time its the tentacular Slathek! The first one of these creatures I painted, I spent ages doing layers, but didn't really like the results. Then I slapped a layer of contrast paint on these two, added some white dots and called them done. They actually look much better! 

When Bobby Jackson started working on this project, this was the alien he was unsure about. Sometimes creative challenges lead to fantastic results! 

Drekyl Attack!

 

Having a bit of fun with my latest paint jobs - a bunch of Drekyl! These guys were created for my new game Deathship One, but there are also rules to use them in Stargrave (free) on my Patreon.

I got the STLs for these straight from Bobby Jackson and got them painted by my friends at Illusionary Terrain. You can also buy physical prints from Bobby or from North Star. 

I'm also working on a new set of terrain, which is just a bunch of sci-fi walls from Blotz, which you can see here. Most of them still need painting (which honestly is a black undercoat with grey sprayed over top of it - done). Once I have them ready to go, I'll be running some of my colonial marines through the Deathship! 

Yes, this spaceship has woodgrain flooring - it's a classy ride! 

Deathship One - Now Available!

My new (mini) miniatures game Deathship One, is now available as a PDF or print-on-demand through DriveThruRPG.com. In this solo or co-operative game, you play a squad of soldiers that has been pulled out of time and dumped into an alien deathtrap. So, whether you are playing ancient Greeks or power-armoured space marines, you must fight your way through five rooms of aliens and traps to see if anyone survives!

While the game encourages the use of whatever miniatures you already have, it does feature 4 distinct alien races. And I’m excited to announce that famed miniature sculptor Bobby Jackson has made STL files for the aliens which you can purchased directly from his new shop. If you are in the US, you can also order physical prints. In the UK and the rest of the world, you can order from North Star. 

 As a bonus for my Patreon supporters, I have also created rules for taking a wizard into the Deathship. This game originally appeared in the Blaster gaming anthology, but this is a revised edition with new material. 

Gallimandus

 

Introducing, Gallimandus! I painted this figure to be my character for HeroQuest with the kids... but I'm so happy with the paint job that I might have to take him into the Frozen City on a treasure hunt or two...  

Yes, this is another Bobby Jackson figure from Reaper Miniatures. The guy just sculpts figures that are fun to paint! 

At first, I wasn't sure if I was going to get enough contrast between the purple and the blue, but I think the gold trim really helps to set the different areas apart. The only part of the figure that gave me real trouble was the main scroll. My first attempt just didn't feel right. It just looked too fresh, like it was written yesterday, where I wanted something older. Switching to a red/brown for the writing instead of black on the second attempt really helped with this.

I've always wanted scrolls to play a bigger part in Frostgrave, but I don't think I've ever pulled it off. My best attempt was probably in The Maze of Malcor, where you can find scrolls for spells you can't otherwise cast, but I still don't see them used very often. Oh well, something to think about for a future supplement!

Plague Doctor

 

On my computer, this figure is about 5 times 'life size' which probably doesn't do my paint job any favours! This is another fantastic Bobby Jackson sculpt for Reaper miniatures. I hear it was also the inspiration for one of the Rangers of Shadow Deep scenarios found in The Star of Alladore. 

This figure has been subbing in as my wizard figure in HeroQuest, while I get a new one painted up. (My wife didn't want to play the wizard anymore, she wanted someone more aggressive). 

I originally intended to paint him in black and grey as seemed more fitting... but when it came to it, I just couldn't do it. I like a bit more colour on my figs! So instead, I painted him up more like one of my rangers. I think it worked out pretty well!

A Rare Space Hulk Scenario

I was back in the pub last Sunday night playing a rare Space Hulk scenario. For as much as I love the game, it does have one major flaw - a lot of the missions are dependent on having a really large table! We play on a very long, but somewhat narrow, table in the pub, so I look for missions that will fit.

I found one in an old issue of White Dwarf (okay, I found a PDF online of the missions in an Old White Dwarf and not I can't figure out which one). This one is called 'Ambush'. The marine player has to get 4 of their 10 guys across the table and out the exit. It's tough though, because their are basically only two paths to take. However, unlike most 10 marines scenarios, the genestealer player only gets 1 blip per turn, meaning I had to be a lot more cautious how I used them than is normally the case.

The marines played a good game, leaving a couple of guys back to prevent ambush from behind, while slowly advancing the rest. A couple of marines were lost along the way, but they took a bunch of bugs down with them. It really could have gone either way. Towards the end, they had four guys near the exit, with only one blip in the way. They'd used the flamer to cut off any alien reinforcements. In the end though, it wasn't to be. The blip revealed three aliens, which proved just too much in those close confines. Three of the four marines were pulled down, giving the aliens the victory. Once again, the scenario demonstrated how such a simple game can be so tactical and tense!

The Joseph A. McCullough Newsletter

While I do post most of the 'big events' in my professional career here - if you would like to receive my infrequent newsletter, you can do so by signing up as a free member to my Patreon. 

patreon.com/GamesfromtheGrave973

Artwork by Barrett Stanley

The Semova Sisters

 

Another throwback in the miniatures collection, and a couple of my favourites. These are the Semova sisters, who were sculpted to accompany Second Chances, the first Frostgrave novel, written by Matthew Ward.

I admit, I wasn't sure about letting someone write a novel set in Frostgrave, but I really, really enjoy this book! It is unfortunately out of print now, but hopefully used copies can be found.

Rangers of Shadow Deep: A Gathering of Heroes

Rangers of Shadow Deep: A Gathering of Heroes has landed in the UK and is now available in print and PDF from the Modiphius website. North Star Military Figures should have copies in the next few days and is offering a free miniature with every order.  Or you can hopefully get it through your local gaming store, especially if they stock other Modiphius products! This book has been a long time in the making. I hope everyone enjoys it!

Ghost Archipelago - Crew Review 3

Here are the final members of my Ghost Archipelago crew. The one on the left is a Rangers of Shadow Deep figure. The third from the let is a Reaper metal miniature. The other two are from the official Ghost Archipelago range. The snakeman mercenary was created for the bad guys, but was just such a cool mini, that I had to induct him into the crew. He is a mercenary after all!

Now that I've got these guys out and dusted off, I might just have to run them through a solo scenario or two!

 

Ghost Archipelago - Crew Review 2

Having showed off the Heritor and warden yesterday, here is the first half of the rest of the crew!

For those wondering about the figures, from left to right they are from Lucid Eye, Frostgrave, Wargames Illustrated Giants in Miniature, and finally an official Ghost Archipelago figure. 

Looking back at these figures, I wish I had been using white undercoats at the time, as it would probably brighten up these figures a bit, but otherwise, I'm still pretty pleased with them. They are such a diverse lot, but all seem appropriate for a ship sailing the Lost Isles! 

Ghost Archipelago Heritor & Warden

 

I've been dusting off my Ghost Archipelago crew, and thought I would take some new photos to show them off. Here is my Heritor and warden. 

I spent loads of time searching for the perfect figure to match my vision of my Heritor. In the end, I used Hero Forge to make one. It was expensive, and I haven't used the service since, but I've got to say, I got just what I wanted! 

The warden is a classic old school Games Workshop chaos model. It's a figure I've always loved, and demonstrates, once again, how incredible some of the old figures were, even with the casting limitatons of the time. 

I'm Not Going to Paint HeroQuest

I told myself I wasn't going to paint the HeroQuest figures. My family is already using some Reaper figures I painted up for our heroes, and there were just too many monsters and furniture to be worth the time...

I was looking at that mummy figure, and I thought, I'll bet I can basically paint him with a wash. So I sprayed him white, gave him a heavy wash of Army Painter Mid-Brown, and then picked out the fleshier areas with Army Painter Pallid Bone contrast paint. Then I painted the base grey. That's it, four paints and it came out looking pretty good. 

So then I thought I might try a skeleton. He's mostly contrast paints and washes too. It probably took me about 1/4 of the time it usually takes me to paint a figure. Well, it doesn't make much sense to just paint two figures in the game... so I guess I'm committed to painting them all now!

Oh, Hypocrisy…

A few weeks ago, I posted an article over on my Patreon (free to read) about why I gave my Dungeons & Dragons 5e books away. Long story short, I didn’t want to support the company, Wizards of the Coast, when there were so many great alternatives available. About a week later, I ordered HeroQuest, a miniature heavy board game produced by Avalon Hill. The problem is, both Wizards of the Coast and Avalon Hill are both ultimately owned by Hasbro.

I didn’t realize this at the time I ordered HeroQuest, but I don't think it would have changed my decision anyway. I have been looking for a long time for a dungeon-crawler style board game to play with my family, especially my kids. We had played Mice & Mystics, which they really enjoyed, but I wanted something that was a bit more classic dungeon-crawling and something that was infinitely expandable. I searched, and searched, and all roads kept pointing back to HeroQuest. There is just nothing else, that I could find, quite like it.

Does this make me a hypocrite? I don’t know. In the case of D&D there are alternatives that I think are just as good (if not better). In the case of HeroQuest, I couldn’t find any.

The world is a big confusing place, and every question that gets asked is a little bit different. It’s hard not to trip over your own feet sometimes, and I doubt any human is 100% consistent.

So, I still believe that it is better to support the small companies, and independent creators, and companies with a better track record towards their employees and fans, but I also believe we shouldn’t be too hard on ourselves. Those big companies often produce cool stuff. Sometimes it’s the best; sometimes its just loud and shiny and marketed everywhere. And I don't think anyone should feel too guilty about how they spend their hobby money.

Perhaps I'm overthinking this. Apparently, its a habit of mine.

My kids absolutely love HeroQuest. We’ve played a couple of games and they ask for it basically every night (when there usually isn’t time).

Scavenger II

Amazingly, my only miniatures acquisition at Salute this year was the new Stargrave: Scavengers II box. (Those were the only miniatures, there was other stuff...) I was pretty excited to get this, as I've had so much fun kit-bashing and painting the Stargrave plastics, and they didn't disappoint. I quickly assembled a little squad of wastelanders, and here's the first one I painted up!

This figure mostly comes from the Scavengers II box, except the gun arm, which comes from Mercenaries II. The mask is designed to have a gasmask attachment, but I liked the look without it for this figure and left it off. I think it makes the figure strangely menacing. 

Sorry, I didn't have better lighting on the photo. I mainly rely on natural light, and it's in a bit of short supply around here at the moment. Spring teased us for a week, and then went on holiday.  

Salute 2024

 

Despite my slightly uncomfortable look in the photo, I had a fantastic time at Salute, 2024. The Osprey Games crew treated me fantastically, as they always do, and we shared many laughs as well as interesting discussions about games and life.

My hot new product for the show was The Silver Bayonet: Egypt. Apparently a shipment arrived just in time to be available at the show a week or so early. They proved rather popular, and I spent a lot of my day signing books and chatting with fans.

Also new on the stand was the Stargrave: Scavengers II box set. I brought one of these home myself. 

The show seemed extremely well-attended this year - certainly the best in years, if not ever, and the atmosphere was wonderful. I'm already looking forward to next year!

Torchbearer

 

Another 'give it my all' weekend figure. This is another Reaper Bones USA figure sculpted by Bobby Jackson. I wanted to paint it, specifically, because of my recent interest in the OSR style of role-playing. I won't go deep into that topic here, but essentially OSR looks back to the earliest days of role-playing, of Dungeons & Dragons specifically, when 'dungeon crawling' was the central focus of the game. Back in those days, carrying a torch was crucial for dungeon explorers, so crucial, in fact, that adventuring groups often hired someone specifically to carry torches. 

Painting this figure was another way to explore this idea, mentally, while giving my fingers something to do. As always with BJ sculpts cast in either metal or Bones USA, the figure was a delight to paint, with both lots of character, and hard cuts separating detail. 

Playtesting with Mike Hutchinson

There aren't a lot of people that 'do what I do' for a living. Thankfully, one of them lives not too far away. Last week, I met up with Mike Hutchinson (of Gaslands fame) to chat about work and the industry and to eat some good food. That's Mike's full English, while I went for the seaside specialty, the scallop and bacon baguette. 

We also got a chance to have a quick playtest of Flagstone: A #Chess28 Game that Mike has been working on. I'll let him talk tell you more about in the video below, but I think he's onto a winner! 

Rats!

I use a lot of giant rats in my scenarios. In fact, one of the most common comments from new Rangers of Shadow Deep players is just how dangerous giant rats can be. Maybe they wouldn't be so surprised if their giant rats looked like this pair! These are 'Barrow Rats' sculpted by Julie Guthrie for Reaper Miniatures. 

I somehow forgot to include giant rats in The Silver Bayonet rulebook, but they made it into the game in The Carpathians! 

It didn't take too long to paint these guys up, about 2 hours each. I wanted real contrast between their pale flesh, darker hair, and the disease spots that speckle their bodies. It all combines to give them an exceptionally unhealthy look. I can see these guys getting into lots of games.

Look what just arrived. It's my author copies of Frostgrave: Mortal Enemies. I'll be honest, I don't normally read my books when I receive them. I'm too scared of finding a mistake or typo! But I love looking and the beautiful artwork by Ru-Mor and appreciate the skill and effort that went into the design and production of it. And the best part - putting it on the shelf, another volume in the growing Frostgrave library! I'll read it in a year or two, when the dust has settled.

Mortal Enemies officially releases in just over a week, on March 28. Osprey Games will have it at Salute, and I'll be on hand to sign it if you want. I think I'm scheduled to be on the stand from 11 - 12.

Otherwise, get it from your local gaming store if you can. 

Or you can pick it up, along with a few new miniatures that have produced for it, from North Star. 

Or you can grab it from Amazon.

Shadowgrave - Cthulhu in Frostgrave, Stargrave, Rangers of Shadow Deep, and Ghost Archipelago!

Want to play Frostgrave, Stargrave, Rangers of Shadow Deep, or Ghost Archipelago with the Cthulhu Mythos? The complete Shadowgrave manuscript is now available to my Patreon backers, including 2 scenarios for each of those settings!

At some point in the future, Shadowgrave will hopefully appear as a full book in the style of Grave Mutations, but I honestly can't say when that will be. This supplement includes all of the material originally found in Blaster, along with a new treasure list, and updated to include Stargrave.

patreon.com/GamesfromtheGrave973

Halfling Rogue or Rogue Halfling?

Lately, on Friday afternoon, when I close my laptop on the work week, I pick out a single figure and think - this is the figure I'm going to paint this weekend. Over the next 2.5 days, I focus my painting intently on that figure, only switching to another while I wait for a wash to dry. This is how I used to always paint miniatures, and for me, I think it is the best way. I find no joy in batch painting. If I'm honest, I never did. I want to fully enjoy every figure I paint. I want to give my brain the chance to work on stories about them, think about rules for including them in games, figure out what magic items or special equipment they might be carrying. That is fun to me.

I've actually painted this figure before. Well, I've painted a metal version of it - this is a plastic Bones USA version. I bought it for a specific project, but it became surplus to requirements, so instead, this halfling will join my generic fantasy figures. 

Looking at the photo, I can see I didn't get his eyes quite right, but you know, I can't even really see them on the miniature, even with my reading glasses on, so I'm not going to worry about it. The rest of the model came out great. 

I'm not sure if I'll get to paint any minis this weekend. It's looking pretty busy - but part of that is seeing The Return of the King at the Royal Albert Hall - so that's alright! 

Huntress

The older I get, the less interest I have in batch painting miniatures. I'd rather just settle in with a single figure and paint that one to the best of my ability. This weekend, I focused on this Reaper Bones USA figure sculpted by Bobby Jackson. I probably spent about 3 hours on her, spread over the weekend. As the figure is wearing a lot of leather, the main challenge was getting that looking good. For me, that means a lot of layers and lot of washes. Then I needed to ensure enough contrast to keep the whole thing from getting muddled.

I've said it before, and I still believe it - you can't have too many rangers!

I also took a photo of her patrolling the deep wilderness!

RoboRally!

With a player missing from the usual Sunday night Deadlands campaign, the rest of us turned our attention to RoboRally! Sorry for the poor photo, the pub just isn't the best for photos.

This fantastic board game has an interesting history. It was designed by Richard Garfield, who took it to Wizards of the Coast in the hopes of getting it published. WotC agreed to publish it, but as it had a lot of expensive components, they asked Richard if he had anything smaller that they could publish first, something like a card game...  That card game was Magic: The Gathering. Several hundreds of millions of dollars later, they published RoboRally.

I love this game because the premise is simple, and the basic mechanics are completely logical. You just have to set out movement cards each turn to give your robot instructions - move forward, turn left, move forward, turn right, etc., and be the first to touch all of the flags. It should be easy, but because you get a random draw of cards, and because the robots can bump each other off course, and because elements of the board can move and turn you around, the results are often utter chaos.  

I laughed a lot last night.

Public Lending Right

In the United Kingdom, authors are paid a small amount whenever their books are checked out of the library, so long as you register your books in advance. The actual rate per loan is set every year. This year it was £0.1369, but that amount is shared between all authors and illustrators that are listed on the cover. For major authors, this probably represents a nice little income stream. For someone at my level, it’s pocket change. I just got my statement for the past year and thought I would share the highlights!

The Story of Santa Claus: £1.37

Peter Dennis with the Cover Art!

My biggest earner every year!

Dragonslayers: £0.41

Probably still my proudest, published work.

Zombies: A Hunter’s Guide: £0.41

Zombies might not be the hot stuff they once were, but they are clearly still of interest.

Steampunk Soldiers: £0.27

I told my co-author he should register. He’s missing out!

Frostgrave: Into the Breeding Pits: £0.41

Frostgrave: The Maze of Malcor: £0.41

Wait… what? That’s never happened before. What library is loaning out Frostgrave books? (Answer – the BEST LIBRARY EVER!). Seriously though, I gave up registering my gaming books because it seemed pointless. Looks like I might be short-changing myself!

Possibly my favourite of the Frostgrave covers by the Burmaks!

Genestealer Cultists Investigate an Unholy Shrine

A few of my genestealer cultists investigate an unholy shrine. This might be just the variety of evil they are looking for!

I took this snap because these things were hanging around my desk. I think I've shown all, or at least most, of them before. The little shrine remains one of my all-time favourite terrain scratch builds. It was simple, easy, and looks terrific without being a huge pain to store! I've got one more genestealer hybrid to paint to complete the dozen I set out to complete for Space Hulk.

Why I Joined Patreon & What it Means for this Blog

Artwork by Barrett Stanley

Writing and games are my passion. I love getting to my desk each morning and sinking into fantasy worlds of my own creation. I love the word-craft of writing stories and filling bestiaries with strange monsters. I delight in the mathematics and probability of rulemaking, of working with dice, of manipulating the flow of stories through randomization. I am driven to create games that give people a reason to gather around a table: to laugh, to play, to create their own stories. This is my work. I feel a calling to do it. One of my main goals at this point in life is to ensure that I can keep doing it. Unfortunately, having ‘work’ to do is not always the same as having a job that earns money.

I’ve considered setting up a Patreon for a couple of years, but every time I seriously thought about it, I decided, ‘I don’t really need it’. My games, published by Osprey Games and Modiphius, have sold well, and my publishers and my fans generally seem eager for more. I’ve even done some self-publishing to help fill in the cracks when other work was scarce. All and all, I’ve been incredibly fortunate to earn a decent living while working so intently on projects I love.

But while I’ve been able to support my family for a few years now, it has never been a steady road. Some months I earn next to nothing, others I land a big score. I live in hope that it averages out. I have no employment safety net, I don’t earn a pension, and I don’t get paid time off. That’s just the price of being my own boss, and I’ve accepted that. However, my industry is rapidly changing. New technologies and changing societal norms are mutating the traditional relationship between creators and publishers. Contracts that made sense when they were signed have become out-dated, obsolete, or sometimes non-sensical. While I work to maintain good relations with my publishers, and honestly hope to continue working with them for decades to come, no one can truly say what the industry will look like in three, five, or ten years. Will there be any publishers? Or at least more than one? And if there are, will they still employ independent creators? How can independent creators hope to retain a stake in their own creations while still getting them out to the people who would enjoy them?

Now, more than ever, it is necessary for creators to interact directly with the fans of their work. So, while the money and the idea of a bit of ‘steady income’ that comes with Patreon is certainly appealing to me in the present, I have really joined in the hopes of better securing a future for my work. To have a place I can always go to write, to create, and to share with people whose passion for fantasy adventure games burns as brightly as my own. A place where my work can be supported even if all other avenues dry up. Additionally, I want a place where I can enjoy the full freedom to write and publish whatever, whenever, I want, without reliance on anyone else. The business world loves to capture and dominate niches, as it has proven a good way to generate income, but people and artists don’t work like that. We thrive when we are free to explore, to take chances and risks, and to push the boundaries of our life and work. I am hopeful that Patreon will give me a safe space for my own explorations into areas and artwork for which publishers have no use. I need to keep exploring and trying new things, artistically and economically, both to survive financially and to ensure I don’t stagnate. I’ve got to keep pushing myself as well as my work.

I haven’t joined Patreon to massively change what I do. My greatest joy still comes from creating fantasy adventure games that are turned into glorious game books! I am just hopeful that Patreon is another tool that will allow me to continue to do that, while also growing as an artist and creator. If you’d like to support me in those endeavours, you can do so here.

What Does it Mean for this Blog?

I set up The Renaissance Troll to be my personal hobby blog, to show off the miniatures I have painted, talk about the games I have played, and to share quick thoughts about anything else that struck my fancy. Over the years, my work has crept into that, but that has always been its secondary function. I still intend to carry on with this blog, showing off minis and talking about games. Occasionally, I will mention Patreon, and maybe even share a piece or two from it, but it won't alter the basic structure of this blog.

The Hobbit Puzzle

I made an interesting find in the local used bookstore over the weekend. It's a 1,000 piece puzzle based on The Hobbit with artwork by Peter Pracownik made in the UK for Express Gifts Ltd. The image is copyright 1999, which I suspect is near the printing date as well.

Now, I'll be honest, its far from my favourite piece of Middle-earth artwork. The whole work is a little cartoonish for my tastes. Bilbo is only recognizable as a hobbit by his bare feet, and looks much more human or even elvish. That said, these days it is rare to see a completely original take on any of Tolkien's works, so I do find it refreshing. I really like the letters in the 'Hobbit', which are extremely organic and even sprouting mushrooms. I also like the arrangement of the piece, with its frames within frames, and how many different pieces of the story it manages to work in. 

We'll see how I feel about it once I've got it assembled. I'm not expert puzzler however, and it's a lot of pieces, so it could be awhile. Also, since it came from a used store, I just hope all the pieces are there!

Ogre: Test Run

My ebay copy of Ogre: Sixth Edition arrived, and I gave it quick test run. I replaced the cardboard Ogre Mk III with my metal mini and the command post with a little piece of terrain from Brigade Models. I played the most basic scenario and even used the suggested set-up. 

The game really is smooth and quick. I wish it used a die other than the d6, but that's my only real complaint. Math that at first seems daunting really isn't. It is apparent that the side not playing the Ogre has a lot more to think about, which actually makes it a good game to introduce new players, as the Ogre side is much easier. 

My Ogre finally ground to a halt a mere four hexes from the command post. The enemy still had 2 GEVs, 1 heavy tank, and a howitzer left. It's that howitzer that really caused the most problems. 

I still want to replace the counters with miniatures. That actually make the game slightly harder, as the minis won't have stats on them. That said, the game has so few units, I don't think it will take long to memorize them all, and a quick cheat sheet is all that should be necessary before then.

Games from the Grave - My Patreon, Launching Today!

Today I am launching my Patreon, Games from the Grave!  I'll explain my reasoning in a future post, but for now, I'm celebrating by sharing some free-to-everyone posts, including:

• Drekyl in Stargrave - A reworking of an article I originally wrote for Wargames Illustrated, now featuring aliens I created for another game called Deathship One.
• The Renaissance Troll: The Life and Journey of a Tabletop Game Designer (Part 1) - The forward, introduction, and first chapter of my gaming autobiography.
• Gundogs of Death Canyon: Design Goals - The blurb and design goals for a small, solo miniatures game I am planning on developing within Patreon.

There are also a couple of pieces already in the paid membership section:

• Lair of the Dark Goat - A solo scenario for The Silver Bayonet.
• The Renaissance Troll (Part 2) - The next part of my gaming autobiography, which tells the story of the first great gaming store to influence my life and an examination of my first role-playing love: Middle-Earth Role-Playing (MERP)!

Going forward, I plan to share at least three works every month, which could include:

 ·       Draft work of new games, with discussions about my design decisions. 

 ·       Essays on game design, the industry, and the hobby. 

 ·       New material for my games, such as a scenarios, monsters, and treasure. 

 ·       Chapters from my gaming autobiography. 

 ·       Reviews of games and associated media. 

 ·       Other types of writing such as fiction and travel writing. 

Most of this will be new writing, though some will be older works that are now out of print and hard to find. Some of it will be used in future publishing projects, but a lot will remain exclusive to Patreon. Whatever its origins or ultimate fate, I hope each work will be a little bit of gamer fun to brighten your day!

Ogre: Mark V

I had so much fun with the first two, I decided to go ahead and repaint the last of my metal Ogre cybertanks - a dreaded Mark V. As you can see, the figure is quite a beast, and when cast in lead, has a serious heft to it! I nicknamed him 'Thunderbolt', because I had a couple of the hand holding a thunderbolt decals that I thought would look cool on him. 

Disaster struck after I finished painting and went to varnish the figure. I do this by using blue tack to stick figures to cardboard and then take them outside to spray. Unfortunately, while tacking the tank down, I pushed on its one week point, right on the centre of the back where the two halves meet. And, unsurprisingly, it broke in half. Now luckily, it was a clean break, so all I need to do was glue it back together, and I had a new bottle of superglue gel to use... At least, I thought it was gel until I gave it a squeeze and sprayed superglue all over the place. This could have been a lot worse as most of it went on the tank itself and the newspaper underneath and not on my hand! So, check those labels carefully!

Eventually, I got him back together and sprayed. He's now ready to lead my cybertank forces! 

Ogre: Retreads!

 

At the start of the year, I wrote a list of all the games I would like to play in 2024. A surprise entry on that list, even to me, was Ogre, the Steve Jackson classic of asymmetric warfare where a giant cybertank takes on a conventional army. Unfortunately, the only copy of the game I owned was an old pocket edition... which is a tough sell to most modern gamers. So, I decided to buy the big, Sixth Edition box set, but this proved difficult. It's sold out in the UK. Well, lucky for me, I just won an ebay auction for a decently priced used set, and I'm awaiting delivery. 

Although the game is technically a board game, using counters, I know I will eventually convert it to using all miniatures. Now, I did already have a few metal ogre miniatures from long ago, which I dug out of storage. In fact, they are dated 1993 on the bottom. I probably picked them up a bit later, maybe 1997, but that's still over 25 years ago. They were covered in dust and the paint jobs were horrible. I considered stripping them to paint again, but stripping miniatures is a really unpleasant and generally unrewarding experience - so I decided I would just paint over them.

I pulled out a Mark III and a Mark III-b and gave them each about 90 minutes of work. While they are unlikely to win any awards, they are vastly improved! I also have a Mark V, but he's in better shape. I might get to him later.  

Once I get the game, I'll make plans for replacing the counters with other miniatures. Apart from the ogres, I'm not committed to the official range, so will see what glorious 6mm tanks are available!

Here's the original paint job on the Mark III. Certainly needed some brightening, if nothing else. If you look closely, right in the middle of the back, you can see it was just slightly miscast - but I'm calling that battle damage!