Fistfuls of dice

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 ...

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...

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...

The first thing you need to know is that this is less of a battle report and more of a series of impressions and thoughts. This was my first game with Fantastic Scuffles and, as first games go, it had its share of mistakes and forgotten rules. You read the rules. You build a force. You put it on the table. You suddenly forget how to do an attack roll. It wasn’t actually that bad. The truth is that the rules, and the army building, is all theoretical until you put your minis on the table and start checking for LOS. That trait which seemed awesome when you read it in the rulebooks seems less unbeatable on the tabletop. The warband you created doesn’t mesh like the complex Swiss watch you thought it was. Hence this being a set of impressions and first thoughts. Please note that this post is based on a very early version of the game. It will most certainly change as it develops.

The next warband for Fantastic Scuffles are the models from the Skaeth's Wild Hunt set for Warhammer Underworlds. I got this from one of the Underworlds starter sets and while I played it a few times it wasn't really the sort of game I was interested in. The models are quite nice though with their Wood Elf/Centaur aesthetic. As opposed to Argash's collection of miscreants and hobgoblin scum, the Wild Hunt are elite troops. I also want to try to expand the number of traits that I am using in this warband. Building the warband One difference with this warband is that the miniatures imply actions that the models are taking. One is armed with a large bow, another has a huge horn and a third is leaping over some foliage. The war band's namesake, Skaeth, is a centaur armed with a large spear and is posed mid-leap. In comparision, my Abyssal Dwarves look like they are waiting in line for the coffee machine. Sometimes the miniatures help you write a story. Other times the ...