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Rebuilding Oathmark

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It goes without saying that Oathmark , by Joseph McCullough, is my favourite rank-and-flank wargame. It is also the one game that has disappointed me the most in terms of gameplay. So the news that there is a second edition of the game coming has pushed me to start planning to rebuild my Oathmark armies. Some thoughts about Oathmark So before I get into the gist of this blog post I thought I would do a short explanation of why I love Oathmark but don’t play it currently. At its core, Oathmark is a rank-and-flank game that has enough movement and manoeuvre in it to provide strategic choices, characters to add capabilities and options without overwhelming the game and magic. It is a fun system that can create some very fun and interesting narratives. It has more structure than the Age of Fantasy Regiments rules but less additional chrome and ‘fussy bits’ than Warhammer Fantasy. Also, and I don’t know that this gets said enough, the books for the game are wonderful. Great art througho...
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Warmachine Mk IV rule changes

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In my last article I touched upon some of the changes to the Warmachine business model and miniature production . A wargame is more than just getting your models to the table though. The rules are, obviously, a critical part of the game experience. So lets look at some of the changes that have been made to the Warmachine rules and talk about how they will impact the game. But first… One issue that has followed Warmachine through its various iterations is that it is a complicated game. The core rules of Warmachine are no more complex than Warhammer 40K or Age of Sigmar. Perhaps even less so given the number of different phases that those games have. Movement and combat are quite simple but managing Warjacks and Warbeasts is slightly more complicated. Nothing quite as bad as Infinity though. Where Warmachine does require a bit more processing power on the part of the gamer is in the interaction between things such as abilities, spells and feats. This was especially an issue in MK II ...
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Re-examining Warmachine

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I had been a Warmachine player since the game was released and played a significant number of games during the MK I and MK II eras of the game. I was more of a casual player but I had an extensive Cryx army as well as a Magnus mercenary force and a smattering of Cygnar miniatures. While I loved my Cryx army, and played it quite a bit, I was never really very good with it. To be honest, I think I won more games with my Magnus force than I ever did with the Cryx despite playing the Cryx much, much more.  While I truly loved my Cryx models I was woefully bad with them. That never really stopped me from getting them to the table though. How can you not want to play steampunk undead powering their army with the souls of the people they kill? I tried to continue to play the game when Mk III was released but the local gaming scene I was in was highly focused on competitive gaming. I am not a tournament player. I don’t have the mindset for it and I really don’t have the core competitive n...
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Three things about Zeo Genesis

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There are usually always new games coming out. It is what makes being a gamer fun and having ADHD a total nightmare (Look! Shiny! New!). The latest new-shiny is a mech based 28mm wargame from new company Best Hobby called Zeo Genesis . The game will be funded via gamefound starting at the end of April. Zeo Genesis is a sci-fi skirmish game that focuses on small teams based around a single mech miniature and from 0 to 3 Support models. The mechs come in three sizes with the largest being bigger than a Primaris Dreadnought from 40K. It has been developed to be played on a 3’ x 3’ or 4’ x 4’ table and the focus of the game is having big mechs shooting and punching each other with Support troops at the edges of the battle. Bell of Lost Souls has an article discussing the game with some good photos of the models. The playtest rules and army lists are available to download from the Zeo Genesis so you can have a look at the game as well as two factions. Here are a few things that have ...
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Fantastic Scuffles: Relic Hunters v. Undead

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And so begins the second chronicle of my adventures in playing Fantastic Scuffles . Last time on this blog we looked at the two new parties that would be partaking in this game. Now it is time put models and dice onto the table and see who triumphs. Note : this game is being played with a set of the Fantastic Scuffles rules that are still in development. Things will certainly change between the date of this post and the release of the rules. Also, I will forget things. Anything odd you read here is probably me not remembering a rule. Changes : if you read the previous blog post you will note that the Relic Hunter party has changed slightly. After some ‘mathhammer’ it was decided that Modesh the Fair’s Holy Hammer Minion/spell effect would start the game on board and count as part of the party’s points. Not being a Sage meant that it could potentially take two or three turns for Modesh to summon the Holy Hammer. This was a lot of time to take to summon a 9 point Minion. Summon was ...
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The next Fantastic Scuffles parties

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So with the first Fantastic Scuffles game done and dusted , lets move on to creating two new parties and bring them to the table. Warriors of Ages These models started out as a warband for Warhammer Underworlds from the Gnarlwood starter set. Called the Sons of Velmorn, this is a small band of five skeletons with a fairly large warrior model (The Prince), three smaller skeletons and an undead king (The King) with crown. This will be a simple party. Protect the spellcaster and smack things that need smacking. The entire party is equipped with Medium Armour so they will be difficult to wound. The King The King will be a Sage and will have to use one of his abilities to overcome the -2 spell casting roll that his Medium armour brings with it. Happily this is just what the Holy Orders trait is for but it might not be appropriately named given the circumstances. I also give him Erudite to make it easier to cast spells. This only leaves two slots open for spells which I use for Empowe...
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Updating the parties

So with a game in hand, I took some time to look over the two parties I had initially created for Fantastic Scuffles with an eye to improve them based on game experience. One of the features of a game such as this that I enjoy is that you can rework your force without having to buy new miniatures. Not that buying new minis isn’t fun but I don’t believe that you should be required to do so in order to change your gaming options. The Wild Hunt Skaeth, the centaur leader of the party, didn’t change any of his abilities but I did remove the Mountable equipment item. Given the size of the table that the game is played on (2’ x 2’) and the Movement values of the characters I created I don’t see the need for anyone to ride on Skaeth’s back. Althaen the archer remains the same except that I changed the Long Bow she was equipped with to a regular Bow. The Long Bow has a very long range but you can’t Concentrate using it to improve your aim. The Abyssal Dwarves had 9+ and 10+ Shooting Defe...
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