Minis & Modeling Monday - Red Dragon, 3D-Printing, & Laser-cut Buildings

Over on gravengames.co.uk, they share a "Pathfinder Battles: Gargantuan Red Dragon Review" here.

Also, on tested.com, they discuss "Warhammer at War: How Home 3D Printers Are Disrupting Miniature Gaming" here.

Finally, on the SolventAbuseUk YouTube channel, they have a look at some laser-cut buildings.  Enjoy!

Minis & Modeling Monday on MFWARS.com 

A look at prepping and painting Miniatures,
crafting buildings and paper Models,
and other non-terrain stuff for the tabletop.

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Nostalgia Thursday - Jim Ward, Gamer

Ever since Jim Ward went back into the hospital, I'd been thinking about some of the wonderful gaming products he has given our community.  He's hanging in there and hopes to be back home soon.  Of course his earliest game that I played, and one everyone will know since it has been revised and republished many times over the years, is Metamorphosis Alpha.  It's probably the second RPG I tried after (O)D&D, though that might have been Boot Hill.  1974 was a long time ago, it seems.  Either way, it and Gamma World that follow it were the go-to Sci-Fi RPG for me.  I've played in a few Traveller campaigns and messed around with games like Space Opera and others over the years.  However, earlier this year, I found myself playing Metamorphosis Alpha, this time with Jim Ward at the helm, twice.  The first was at the tail end of Gary Con and I had another chance to play in an MA game with him at the Nexus Game Fair.  Never got killed.  Not once.

Speaking of the Nexus Game Fair, I got a nice picture of Jim along with his colleagues Tim Kask and Frank Mentzer.  I was lucky to be able to grab a seat in a game scheduled with each of them.  Good fellas all and lots of great gaming has been had by me and many others because of their efforts.  Keep an eye on the Eldritch Enterprises materials because these guys aren't done yet.

A couple of years ago, I moved to Lake Geneva, WI, and since that time I have had quite a few chances to play with some long time gamers.  Tom Wham regularly holds court at Taco Bell on Tuesday and Culver's on Friday for lunchtime and into the afternoon, and that means gaming.  When his health and writing schedule has allowed for it, Jim Ward has joined in that fun as well.  I've also had great fun playing the board game he designed alongside Tom Wham called Dragon Lairds (2007).  It's a challenging card game that folks can grab at Lake Geneva Games and often at conventions like Gary Con, Nexus Game Fair, the Gaming Hoopla, and GameHole Con.  Wisconsin almost has too much gaming fun!

Nostalgia Thursday on MFWARS.com 

Focusing on the roots of current tabletop gaming
with an eye toward the last century and before.

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The Sunday Miscellanea - Elemental Evil Boardgame & Dungeons of Dread

You can check out some details on Board Game Geek or on the WotC website but the Temple of Elemental Evil board game releases at the end of this month.

Also, I am not sure when the sale ends but the AD&D 1st Edition: Dungeons of Dread hardback which has reprints of the S-Series of adventures plus additional material is on sale at Funagain Games here.

Finally, see what the Dungeon Delver has to say about those classic adventures, their origins, and that tome in particular on his YouTube channel.

The Sunday Miscellanea on MFWARS.com 

Essentially, a clearinghouse for topics on MFWARS.com

not covered elsewhere or wanting a particular focus.

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Nostalgia Thursday - Avalon Hill's General Magazine, Strange Dragons, & AD&D Character Sheet

Over on ahgeneral.org, catch up with the excellent Avalon Hill's General Magazine here.

Also, on io9.com, they recently took a look at "The 16 Strangest Dragons In Dungeons & Dragons" here.

Finally, the 2 Warps to Neptune blog uncovered an "Advanced Dungeons & Dragons Character Sheet, Circa 1982" here.

Nostalgia Thursday on MFWARS.com 

Focusing on the roots of current tabletop gaming
with an eye toward the last century and before.

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Systems Saturday - Dragon Lairds (2007)

Some days of my life are just way too much fun.  Such was yesterday afternoon when I got the chance to play a game of Dragon Lairds (2007) with the two designers, Tom Wham and Jim Ward.  It's a humorously illustrated fantasy card game that features Hand Management and Set Collection mechanics.  There is a playing mat / board that comes with the game to help guide folks through the turns, the card availability, and the victory point accumulation.  The illustrations on the cards are so well integrated with the spirit of the game and actions of the cards, that it is a huge pleasure to play.

The description of the game on Board Game Geek is as follows:

In this cousin of Saint Petersburg, each player represents a monarch dragon clan, and attempts to assert herself as the Dragon Monarch by game end, by securing the most Royals (victory points). In order to facilitate this process, players will use their Geld (money) to hire Dragon Lairds (aristocrats) and buy Resources (buildings) and Commoners (peasants). You can use precious Royals (your victory points) to acquire Dragon Havocs, which empower you to do anything from getting extra cash, to stealing things from your opponents. The Havocs tend to be one-shot little guys, however, and are always discarded to the bottom of the discard deck, as far out of reach as possible from those cards that pilfer the discard pile.

At the end of each round, you accumulate the Geld and Royals that your acquisitions generate for your clan. At the end of the game, you additionally receive any Finale Royals on cards as end-game victory points.

From the Margaret Weis web site: 

Deep in the heart of an island continent, many years ago, was a long forgotten land of ancient Saureans… Dragons of all sizes and shapes, who had, through the generations tamed the foolish races of men, dwarves, and elves that lived among them. Over the centuries, they refined their techniques and now were trying to gain control over all the surrounding dragon countries. There could be only one Dragon Monarch, but who would it be?

At the start of the game, each player is given a dragon clan and chooses to play either the king or queen of that clan. The object is for your clan to score the most points in Royals by the end of the game and thus become the ruling Dragon Monarch.

The game is widely available but if you happen to be in town, do yourself a favor and pick up a copy (or two!) at Lake Geneva Games 918 S Wells St, Lake Geneva, WI 53147.  You could even give them a call and they'd probably ship one out to you, if that is more convenient, at (262) 885-1515.  If you happen to be coming to Gary Con, check with Tom and Jim and I am sure they can find a copy for you on-site that they will be glad to autograph for you as well.

This is a game where you benefit from knowing your intended end game but aren't locked into it.  Given the size of the deck and the need to go with the flow based on the cards available.  It behooves any player to control the trophy, known as the Saurian Cup, for at least a portion of the game.  If it can be acquired and held in the last turn, if can be very beneficial.  Above all, keep a close eye on the cards being collected by the other players and be sure to find ways to counter them, if you can, or at least limit the damage they can do to you.  You might not be a target but being prepared and expecting you will be can go a long way to staying in the hunt for victory.

Systems Saturday on MFWARS.com 

A look under the hood of various Games, Rules and Systems.

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Nostalgia Thursday - TSR Retrospective

A local Lake Geneva publication, At the Lake, recently published an article looking back at TSR during the 40th anniversary of Dungeons & Dragons.

Nostalgia Thursday on MFWARS.com 

Focusing on the roots of current tabletop gaming
with an eye toward the last century and before.

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Minis & Modeling Monday - GW's Smaug

It might be fun to introduce Tolkien's Smaug to your tabletop gaming by way of the Games Workshop miniature here.

Minis & Modeling Monday on MFWARS.com 

A look at prepping and painting Miniatures,
crafting buildings and paper Models,
and other non-terrain stuff for the tabletop..

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Minis & Modeling Monday - Undead Strigoi, Marble Bases, & Copper Dragons

First up, over on quidamcorvus.blogspot.com, Quidam Corvus recently featured some Undead Strigoi.  See more here.

Also, James Wappel, on his blog Wappellious.blogspot.com, shows off some of his Marble Basing techniques here.

Finally, just last week, Doctor Faust, on his Painting Clinic YouTube channel, uploaded a two-part painting tutorial on "Painting Ral Partha Copper Dragon for D&D."  Enjoy!

Minis & Modeling Monday on MFWARS.com 

A look at prepping and painting Miniatures,
crafting buildings and paper Models,
and other non-terrain stuff for the tabletop..

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Wargaming Wednesday - Dungeons & Dragons: Attack Wing (2014)

Dungeons & Dragons: Attack Wing – Starter Set (2014) is featured on the Board Game Geek YouTube channel.  Enjoy.

Wargaming Wednesday on MFWARS.com 

A closer examination of board and miniatures Wargaming.

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The Sunday Miscellanea - Limited Edition Smaug Figure

Running a minis game or tabletop RPG with figures and need a Smaug figure to make an appearance?  Well, now that's easy to do and you can find out more here.

The Sunday Miscellanea on MFWARS.com 

Essentially, a clearinghouse for topics on MFWARS.com

not covered elsewhere or wanting a particular focus.

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Kingsburg, Love Letter, and Dragon Lairds

We got together on Friday at Culver's and had nine people in attendance.  That's as many as I have seen since joining in last summer and the others said it hasn't seen that many in years.  There was a time back in the 90s when they'd play Magic and have over a dozen every week.  In recent time, often just two or three would make it out for the twice-weekly gaming sessions at Taco Bell and Culver's on Tuesday and Friday, respectively.  But here we are, coming off a particularly hard winter, rolling into what might be a brutally hot summer, and the gaming around southern Wisconsin is some of the best in years.

Aside from these weekly board game bouts, the first weekend in May brings us the twice-a-year Gaming Hoopla.  Granted, this is going to be a mini-Hoopla, without at big raffles and pre-registration and the like, but the Hoopla folks work very hard.  Putting the full Hoopla together was a tough row to hoe.  It's great they figured out a way that we can still have the event without too much of the fuss and muss.  It'll be good fun and will whet our appetites for the full Gaming Hoopla coming in the Fall!

But, just this last Friday, a good crowd at Culver's meant several games and more than one happening at a time.  Given the crowd, four of us peeled off from the other five to play a bit of Kingsburg.  Several of the gang were just stopping in for lunchtime so they need to play something shorter than that, and so broke out Love Letter.  Once both were done, the remaining six of us tried our luck with Dragon Lairds.

This was one of the closest games of Kingsburg I have played

Wendy won by one point over Tom with Kurt and I tied one point behind him.

Some of the fellas were playing Love Letter at an adjacent table

We ended with a game of Dragon Lairds, a Tom Wham original

Jim was giving folks he business but gave Tom more of it than others

Dave won the day but I came in a close second, two points off the mark

Dark Sword Miniatures Elmore Dragons Special Edition Diorama

Over on the Dark Swords Miniatures YouTube channel, there is a new upload showing off the amazing Elmore dragon diorama.  This kit was made possible due to a very successful Kickstarter which you can view here.  Enjoy!

1977 Grenadier Special #1: Giant Dragon on eBay

A fellow OSGer has come across a particularly interesting find in a miniature.  Check out the eBay auction on a "1977 Grenadier Special #1: Giant Dragon" for just a couple more days here!