Saturday, June 30, 2007

My first game system...

Simplified Miniatures Game System

By Jeff Preston

June 30, 2007

WHAT YOU NEED:

Six-sided dice, a ruler or tape measure.

Miniatures of any kind (even action figures!).

ORDER OF PLAY:

Pre-Game

Setup

Initiative

Movement

Attack

Shooting

Hand to Hand

PRE-GAME:

Pick your miniatures out!

Composition of Forces:

You can have the following in your forces:

1 Boss

2 Veterans

Any number of Chumps (as long as both sides are even)

All you need to do is figure out who is who. Write it down or just remember it. Be sure you tell your opponent as well! It really doesn’t matter who you pick as a Boss, or as Veterans (or Chumps for that matter). Usually the Boss will be the Biggest and Baddest guy you’ve got, and Veterans are simply cooler than Chumps.

SETUP:

Roll a die for each side (Good Guys/ Bad Guys)

Low Roll gets to set out his First Guy on the board.

High Roll THEN sets out his First Guy on the board.

Alternate turns setting out guys until all your guys are set out.

Once your guys are set out, you can’t move them.

Place your Minis out in the board in THIS ORDER: Chumps, Veterans, Bosses.

INITIATIVE:

Roll a die for each side (Good Guys/ Bad Guys).

High roll gets to act first. Move all the winning side’s minis. Resolve attacks (and defense), then change sides. Alternate sides until the last guy is standing!

MOVEMENT:

All miniatures can move six inches unless mounted (on a horse or something) in which case they can move twelve. The miniature can move any distance you want up to the maximum in any direction.

ATTACK: (SHOOTING)

Miniatures with ranged weapons (bows, thrown weapons, etc.) can shoot at 18 inches:

For the sake of simplicity we’re making the maximum range for everything 18 inches.

To hit with a ranged weapon from 1 to 9 inches, roll 4+ on a die.

To hit with a ranged weapon from 10 to 18 inches, roll 5+ on a die.

*NOTE:

Good guys never shoot in to HtH combat; you might hit your own guys!

Bad guys don’t care and CAN shoot in to HtH…For ANY hits, roll a die…1,2,3 you hit your OWN guy, 4,5,6 you hit your opponent!

*NOTE:

Cover! Guys being shot at, who are hiding behind cover are harder to hit! When shooting at guys in cover (at least half covered by something that is considered “cover”) you need a better roll to hit.

IN COVER!

Under half range you need a 5+.

Over half range you need a 6 to hit!

ATTACK: (HAND TO HAND)

All miniatures are assumed to have the ability to fight hand to hand.

In order to fight hand to hand (HtH), the minis must be in base to base contact.

Successful hits cause one wound.

Roll 4+ to hit for the attacker.

Roll 4+ to hit for the defender.

*NOTE:

Guys in HtH all go simultaneously. Even if guys are knocked out, they still get a chance to defend themselves. For every HtH combat, both the Attacker and Defender get to roll to see if they hit.

This does not apply in shooting! Guys shot in the shooting phase are simply knocked out at that time.

RESOLUTION:

All miniatures have a number of Wounds they can take before keeling over:

Chumps: 1 wound.

Veterans: 2 wounds.

Bosses: 3 wounds.

Once a guy is out of available wounds, he’s no longer capable of fighting and is removed from play. Go ahead and take him off the board.

EXAMPLE:

This is how it works in play:

TURN ONE

Side A and Side B roll a die, Side A rolls higher so Side A goes first.

Side A moves all his guys.

Side A has some guys shoot at Side B. (Side A picks who is being shot at, rolls dice and sees if they actually hit or not)

Side A scored 3 hits (also 3 wounds) and Side B removes the dead guys (or marks wounds on veterans or bosses with a die).

Since nobody is in Hand to Hand yet, Side A is done.

Side B moves all his guys.

Side B does his shooting.

Assess damage.

Nobody is in HtH yet, so Side B is done.

TURN TWO

Side A moves some guys in to HtH range (base to base).

Side A handles Shooting.

Assess damage.

Side A handles HtH attacks.

Side B handles HtH defense.

Assess damage.

*NOTE: Good guys never shoot in to HtH combat; you might hit your own guys!

Bad guys don’t care and CAN shoot in to HtH…For ANY hits, roll a die…1,2,3 you hit your OWN guy, 4,5,6 you hit your opponent!

Side A is done.

Side B moves guys in to HtH.

(The rest is self explanatory)

Keep alternating sides until one side whoops the other.

SYSTEM NOTES:

This game system is far from complete.

Things will come up that aren’t covered or that may not be easily interpreted.

When in doubt, create your own rule. When you disagree on the rules, have a Roll off, the winner’s rule sticks!

The Golden Rule!

A game is designed to be FUN…for both sides. Be a good sport and have a good time!

Have Fun!

Friday, June 15, 2007

Illustration Issues...

My Illustrations are FLAT.

Looking over what I've got in my various online galleries...I'm seeing a trend: flat pics. Almost every one is from the same flat angle. A friend of mine, Leanne is a great artist when it comes to working from different angles. Well...she's great...period, but one of the things that sets a lot of her work off is the use of different "camera angles". Bird's eye view, worm's eye view...etc.

I've also found that some of my best work is done when I have photo references. I've used models a few times and the work has turned out way better than average. maybe it's that little edge or that slight adjustment back to reality (from comix-land) that makes them good or better.

Of course, the models I knew/ know are in Washington...and I'm in Wisconsin now.
Dude...tracking down people who would be interested in modelling is hard. First off, you have to be friends with them. I'm not a professional photographer, and I feel a little weird walking up to a well-built guy or girl and asking them to let me take pictures of them. Here, hold this squirt gun and sword...no I'm not a weirdo. Now stand this way...lemme move this light. Nope that didn't work...lemme try again. Lather rinse repeat. Kind of hard to ask of a complete stranger. Well...especially hard to ask of someone without them seeing you as some sort of psycho stalker guy who is just taking pictures for personal gratification.

Unfortunately most magazines don't have guys and girls doing action shots. Like kung fu girl with a shotgun or something. Not like I have a shotgun prop anyhow.

Add to that I can't really pay anything. Pretty much a copy of any art with them as a subject. Not very appealing for maybe an hour's worth of standing, posing...repeatedly until I get the shot right.

Wednesday, June 13, 2007

Still waiting...

Got word back that every applicant so far has scored "poor" on the IQ and Personality tests except me, who scored "fair/fair". They are going to talk with the COO, and see if they want to go ahead and pursue interviewing me again or not.

Monday, June 11, 2007

The waiting...

I'm sitting here, waiting by the phone awaiting the yay or nay phone call for this job.
I'm anxious, but I don't want to push it by calling them.
Prayers would be helpful at this point.

Wednesday, June 6, 2007

Letter to the 40k League

* The new 40k League is starting up this week, and they wanted to know if we were playing or not. I wanted to let them know I wasn't in an honest, complete, and respectfully direct way. It also serves as an explanation about my feelings about the Warhammer 40,000 game.

Hey fellas,

Katie and I talked, and we're out on the coming league.
As much as I enjoy the company of everyone, I'm not really much of a Warhammer 40,000 player.

I love 40k, as far as the setting, stories, minis etc go, but the game itself not so much.
I think this is largely due to my own expectations of the game, which are honestly unrealistic.

As a 40k (the setting) player, I like to play out what I've read in the novels, but honestly, the Warhammer 40,000 Miniatures game barely has any resemblance of what is written in the novels. Warhammer 40,000 is a game (meaning the competitive type, with a winner and loser) , and tactics in that game are what helps you win: accurate measurement, falling back a half-inch to deny a charge attempt, using a certain number (even/ odd) of models so the mathematical advantage of fire is greater, meat shields, the appropriate use of specialized gear to negate other special gear. Meh.

My experience in gaming is in RPGs for the most part. What is considered tactics in Warhammer 40,000 is considered meta-gaming in RP. So my expectations are all jacked up for playing the minis game. I tend to enjoy moving little dudes around, using cover, shooting at stuff, and killing bad guys...and really, that's as far in to Warhammer 40,000 (the minis game) tactics as I want to go. I'll never be competitive with guys who know how to use the rules better. I'll certainly never be among the GT players.

The problem is entirely mine.
If anyone wants an occasional goof-off game of 40k, and just have fun moving dudes around, I could go for that.
But a league? It's too competitive and I'm only an occasional player at best.

Sorry guys.
JP

Work...

Huge interview on Friday.
Good job, heading up the IT department for Pizza Hut in southern Wisconsin.
Good schedule, good location, good pay. Easily fund a move to WA.
I REALLY want this one.

Drama on the familial front...

My nephew is being shipped off shortly to live with his grandmother (my mother) in Idaho. Hopefully there he'll have a chance to relax, have a home and unwind. He's seriously wound up now with my sister/ his mother.

Ryan has special needs and Jen simply can't handle him.

A buddy of mine: Eric, is going to haul him and some of Mom's stuff to Idaho from Vancouver WA at the end of the month.


To be honest, the idea of moving back to WA/ OR is scary. I honestly don't know if I want to remove the 2000 mile barrier to the drama. Here we have friends and all that as well. WA is home, but it's also home to a lot of drama. It's a hard decision. My wife is scared to death of moving again, and I can't blame her.

Friday, June 1, 2007

I highly reccomend anyone with an interest in what's actually going on in the military in Iraq to stop by and read Calm Before the Sand, the Blog of Milo Freeman, SPC USA. It's a heartfelt blog maintained by a soldier in Iraq and his spouse here in the states.

Milo speaks from the heart about his trials and tribulations in the desert. He's opposed regularly by right-wing hawks who actually would prefer his (and ours...those of us who left the military as non-war supporters) death so our lives would have had meaning instead of opposing the Great Patriotic War against the "Bad Guys" in the desert.

I hope he's able to keep speaking and doing what he's doing. He's a light in the darkness for many who would otherwise have no voice.

Updatey thing...

I've been remiss lately. Getting vehicles squared away, job hunting, etc.
Both vehix are operational again. This by the loosest definition of the word of course...but they do run.

I just started following the blog of SPC Milo Freeman. Good stuff.

My "last army buddy" was slated to go on terminal leave as of the middle of April, but a stop-loss came down days before his departure. Now he's roped in for a trip to NTC and a 3rd tour in Iraq. He's pissed. I'm pissed. He's a Staff Sergeant and has going on 11 years now. He's getting out before his green-card says "INDEF" for an ETS date. Once he's out I'm squaring him away with an LZ and a job to get him started on the civilian-side of life. I'm SO glad I got out.

Speaking of getting out, a week from today is my 8th Anniversary of my ETS. Can't believe it's been so long. 4 years as an Infantryman (aka: 11B20P or "Lawn-Mower-Man") was enough for me. Bosnia, Macedonia and Kosovo were enough of a "war" for me...and that was NOTHING in comparison to Iraq. I'm glad I'm done.

I hate the war in Iraq. I wasn't keen on the idea of Invasion in the first place, but since my friends were there, and it was to find WMDs and oust Saddam...I swallowed it and supported the boys. Now it's an occupation when we should have gotten the fuck out. I've lost 3 friends now including my old mentor, PLT SGT and BC 1SG Garza. Fucker died by falling out of a humvee when the driver swerved...getting mowed down by a truck. Poor bastard. You can't win an occupation, and the US Military is not a police force. Bush/Cheney are fucktards and our government is full of weak politicians who are out for themselves. It feels like the US is Rome circa 410 AD (look it up).