Mice and Mystics - have a look inside!

Mice and Mystics by Plaid Hat Games. 60-90 minutes. 1-4 players. Ages 7+. Cheers!

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Posted in: board games

Review time! 'Saga of The Swamp Thing' Books One and Two.

There is always at least 'one thing' you've always been meaning to see/read/get. For me, 'Swamp Thing' by Alan Moore (Bisette, Totleben too) was at the very top of my very long list of 'one things I really must get'... and so here, at last, is a review from me about something that really should be on all self-respecting comic afficionado's shelves -
So, what did I think? So much has already been written - much of it more sophisticated than I can manage here. Consequently it'll be unecumbered by the weight of any specific expertise - and you might agree with none of it. But I hope, as a result, you'll go and read it yourself (if you haven't already done so).

First impressions? What struck me straight away, is that the narrative is more dynamic than I had expected. Even during 'introspective' moments there is a real sense of movement, both in the drawing and in the 'scripting'. In part this is  driven by the non-standard framing. It's responsive to, and part of, the narrative itself. I think also the simplicity of colouring and the uncluttered content of the frames keeps the reader focussed. The writing does makes full use of speech and expositional/narrative text boxes, mostly though, these are short -and intense. I've read back issues of 'Uncanny X-Men', for example, where the dialogue seems to be swamping the story. There's a lot to 'read' but there is a real sense of balance.
Yes, there are many moments of 'introspection' which is the second most important feature of these collections. SwampThing (a a character) cuts an existential figure. He (?) struggles with the nature of his existence and, though the pages of these two books at least, begins to grasp that indeed, he is the sum of what he says and does. Not what he was. Not what he may yet become.
I think that last sentence encapsulates much of the 'story' in these first two books. Swamp Thing has to discover who or what he is, it's a very human set of desires. Yet he is quite clearly not human. He doesn't do human things of necessarily feel in human ways and this is one of the things he has to learn. Interestingly, Swamp thing is not the only one learning about themselves - Abby, Matt, Dr. Woodrue, Arcane...villains and heroes alike appear to be on journeys themselves and, as a reader, that sense of charcter exploration is a further factor in what makes these books so engaging.
There is a lot that's odd here too  - mystical, spiritual moments (Yes, I know - and in the 1980s too!), etherial, non-sequential moments. There are elements of gothic horror, science-fiction, philosophy, hallucinations, zombies, super heroes, resurrections and in one episode wierd aliens land are eaten by alligators. You could argue that it's sometimes challenging, not always strightforward, unclear and, well just plain too odd.
But enough said. Your turn. I'm off to buy Book Three.

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Posted in: graphic novels

Malifaux: Lady Hammerstrike, the beginning!

So, last month, knowing that a new Malifaux was on it's way - and knowing that there's going to be a whole bunch of new plastics and a new rulebook - I took the 'Malifaux plunge'. That is to say, I already had the old 1.5 rulebook but no minis. However, I didn't want to miss the old Viktoria's set before it went out of print, so to speak.
To that end here is Lady Hammerstrike with the base colours painted. The arm is metal/silver with blue /brown wash. the hair is going to be a deep red. White/beige top and denim /black jeans. brass/copper/silver hammer.
We'll see how it goes.
 I really like the figures in the pack. It'll probably mean I'll 'have to' purchase the 2e rulebook, but what the hey.

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Posted in: current projects,Malifaux

Painted : Valeria Alvaro, Ordic Pistoleer - Iron Kingdoms miniature.

So, taking a break form the Flames of War 'journey', just to keep things fresh, I found a long-forgotten model that I had bought a couple of years ago. Initially, I just liked the figure and hadn't really decided what I was going to do with it - other than paint it in the same style as the Privateer Press photos.

This mini is from quite a cool little range that Privateer Press do to support their Iron Kingdoms RPG and such. The pose is quite interesting. You can't quite tell where the front is, as she looks askance over her shoulder.

Going back to it recently then, I had painted a Cygnar warjack and Coleman Strykera while ago (see posts), so it seemed sensible to see if I could get her into this army by making her into a journeyman warcaster or gun mage officer of some sort. To that end I painted her with a blue jacket and a similar colour scheme to the warjack.

Here are the pics!



Just lacking a sword?

 And then these ...

And then these ... Note the blonde hair. The shadows are darker than I'd have liked though. But black or cream 'shirt'? Hmmm ....

And finally ...

Done! (Cream shirt.)

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Posted in: Warmachine

Flames Of War, painting infantry update - now with the rural bases!

This post is so that you can have a look-see at the way the Flames Of War Rural Bases Set looks. In no way do I claim to be a professional. I haven't got it all looking great by any means, but I did find that these bases enable you to get more varied looks to your infantry bases with minimal extra effort. The only thing is that you still have to patch up the figures' bases. This takes some doing with the minis from the Open Fire! set because the plastic infantry have thicker bases than metal ones. This means that a certain amount of trimming/fiddling is required to get the figures to fit neatly into the slots on the Rural bases.

But there are lots of good details so that when looking at the tabletop you don't get that sense of repetitious uniformity that often comes with painting lots of units at once.

Step one  -  making the mud look like mud. You can see the wheel ruts on the US Parachute Rifle team base. On the German infantry base there are rocks and logs....

It's better than bad, it's good... LOG (TM).

And then then you add a bit of grassy stuff and you get this ...

Hopefully, you can still see the ruts and logs. These bases are fun to use and you can even adapt the slots for the minis with tabs to fit in to the larger empty slots - again helping to provide loads of options for variety. A decent buy.

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Posted in: Flames Of War

Flames Of War - Rural bases arrived!

Just a quick post to signpost the fact that there will be a few Flames Of War updates in the future containing these -

Click for larger image..

These are the Battlefront Games Rural Bases. In effect they are bases with ready-made details. Trees (damaged), logs (fallen), fences, (wonky), ruts, mud footprints, rocks, wagon wheels etc. All you need do is glue minis on and away you go. You still have a bit of 'patching up' to do as you have to add mud effects to the minis' bases and cover up all of the joins. Well, we'll see ... the detail is good and it might lead to quicker bases than having to build walls and such like for yourself (see previous post - PaK 40). More later.

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Posted in: Flames Of War

Flames of War - Open Fire! Painting update.

Just so you believe me - here's some stuff I done.

So, what you have here is a team of US Parachute Rifle, with prone machine gunner and some mud/grass stuck on the base for scenic effect. Basically, it's a bit slow going, however I am making progress. Next up will be a US rifle/MG team and a German rifle/MG team. Look out!


Down in the dirt!



Stug G and commander.

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Posted in: current projects,Flames Of War

Review: Jimmy Corrigan - The Smartest Kid on Earth, by Chris Ware.

Not strictly a comic strip, or maybe it is. Not strictly a graphic novel, or perhaps it is. Not clearly sure how I would characterise this 'book' at all.

 My brother suggested this to me and although I had read excerpts before I'd never been sufficiently interested enough to actually get it. So he bought it for me to save time... with the added note, 'Enjoy! It may take some time to get through!'

This is the story of three generations of Corrigans told in two main time narratives - that of Jimmy, an office 'dogsbody' ('our hero') and that of his grandfather (Jimmy), growing up in the late eighteen hundreds. But both are sad stories. Both Jimmys are bullied, brow-beaten and have truly tragic (or pathetic) lives. There is a real and constant sense of loneliness and isolation. Just when you think human warmth is going to shine through, it melts away in the snow that falls. And there is a constant longing, on the reader's part, for life to be fairer, more just and not quite so unremittingly bleak. Grandfather Jimmy has a painful relationship with his lone-parent father. Contemporary Jimmy attempts an unsuccessful reconcilliation with a father long absent from his own life -  the chain-like apron strings that exist between him and his mother pervade the novel. Is it a novel?

It would be too easy to say that it's quite depressing fare. That's not it at all. There is not much in the way of text but the constant thought-provoking nature of the story does mean it takes time to digest and 'mull over'. (My brother was spot on!) It is powerful and affective. That's it! The sadness Ware creates is so human, so recogniseable. Relationships are seen to be complex, unsatisfactory and often fragile. The tragedies are human ones, even everyday ones. But as we read, we feel and that is what makes this book (?) stand out from the rest. It's oddly all too real.




Add caption

 
A lot has been said about the muted colouring and simple drawings. Mignola only uses half a dozen colours in 'Hellboy' and Spiegleman's 'Maus' is in black and white. It's clever, it's carefully drawn and, in my opinion, if that's your crticism, you've missed the point. In art (?), form and content have a relationship. And that is clearly seen here. The story panels don't quite tell the story sequentially, the mind wanders, Jimmy's (both of them) mind wanders, there is a kind of 'stream of consciousness here'.  It works.

This is genuinely an extraordinary text. I finished reading it a couple of days ago but I still haven't settled on what I think about it fully yet, the ideas are still lingering. Top job Mr Ware. There's so much I have read that I have forgotten. It won't happen with this comic book.

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Posted in: graphic novels

Flames Of War - German Grenadier PaK 40, painted and based.

Today's post will focus on progress I've made on the Open Fire starter set - and in particular the German PaK40 anti-tank gun.

Step one = paint the German gun crew just like the figures in the previous post, with a selection of GW (metal) P3 (wood and leather) and Vallejo (uniforms).



Troops on a stick.



Step two = paint the gun, just like the StugG.



Two step.



Step three = dry fit on base. Then add a little GW mud effect textured paint over base.

trois

Step four = build up a small dry-wall out of bits of slate. I used superglue then repainted the rocks to cover the glue marks.



four - glued wall





Step five = cover base and any gaps/holes with thin layer of Stirland Mud from GW.



With dry brushed wall.



Step 6 = Add clumps of grass. Not that happy with the GW grass clumps, the colour is a bit useless but from a distance and at eye-level, it's OK.



grass



Step seven = add rest of static grass and sand/mud effect under wheels and loading area of gun.



more grass



Step eight = Add gun and ...

see gun here

Finally add crew over left gun trail and photo in natural light!

left

right

All in all, a decent day's work.

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Posted in: Flames Of War

'Boneshaker' a steampunk novel by Cherie Priest. Read, reviewed.

Having read the Mortal Engines series, I was was just about ready to give another steampunk novel a crack. Summarised as a steampunk novel in 19th Century Seattle, with zombies (Huzzah!), I was intrigued by the premise of Cherie Priest's 'Boneshaker'.

There's a lot of story, but I'll try not to spoiler too much. Essentially Seattle has been subject to a disaster apparently caused by the heroine's (Briar) husband, Leviticus Blue. The upshot is that a gas is released causing people to become 'rotters' (read zombies) and the city becomes a no-go area and walled off. Years later, Briar's son wants the truth about his father and breaks into the city where drug runners and other very random characters have made a (sort of) life for themselves. Of course Briar goes after him and the truth of Leviticus Blue's death, or otherwis, is revealed.

But that's not even a small proption of all the shenannigans! In fact, for me, that is the key slight weakness. It's not a long novel, and it's not that the descriptions are too slight compared to the action. It's just that the events and places come so thick and fast that perhaps any real sense of place and character is diluted somewhat. There is atmosphere, but we are at such a pace that it isn't given time to 'brew' sufficiently. To that extent the writing style was similar to a movie script. Particular dramatic moments seemed to be over-written in amongst a dramatic series of events in a longer quest story. There were very strong and simply drawn characters with clearly defined (and predictably developed) relationships. I think the movie script idea holds - indeed I have read that the rights have been bought and I think it would make a great film.

I liked Briar though, fiesty, at times awkward and unsure. Strong-willed and independent. The other characters were not so 'rounded' and left me a little cold in my opinion. There was a pantomime villain at the end and some interesting allies. But what do I know? For me it was a 2 and a half out of 5, but with potential.

Overall then, not as successful as my first steampunk outing. Modern steampunk may still be finding it's feet, so might Priestly. thnakfully still a few more to read though ... watch this space.

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Posted in: books,Steampunk

Mortal Engines : A steampunk novel series.

Well, this was all a bit of an accident.


I stumbled on the book title while researching steampunk novels. You see, since finishing Martin's 'A Game of Thrones' and Robin Hobbs' first Farseer series, I'd been in a bit of a book lull. Casting around the interweb, I'd thought I'd read some of this new/oldfangled thing called steampunk. I was curious. I liked the Philip Pullman 'His Dark Materials' series - a bit steampunky. I like the Dystopian Legions figures (and got some). I like Warmachine. So ... what else was out there?

And when I say stumble upon I literally stumbled upon the first in the series of Phillip Reeve's 'Mortal Engines', just lying about. I think one of my boys must have read it at some point. Having seen it mentioned, I flicked it open and started to read...

Immediately sucked in.

While there may be a very valid claim that these are 'kids books' - and I can't really dispute that description - just like Pullman and Tolkien’s 'The Hobbit', there is a charm and allure about these novels which is beyond merely children's fiction. The characters are vivid and engaging, the locations threatening and sinister, and the events are dramatic, tense and frequently sombre.

I'll try not to spoil too much.



P.S. Respect to the chapter titles...



Tom Natsworthy works on London. On London because it's a moving city. Cities move in this time - thousands (how many?) of years in the future after war has ended civilisation as we know it now. But how do these cities survive? By 'eating' other cities, after all that's what Municipal Darwinism means. Swallowing other cities to take what is needed to keep your city going. But then there are the anti-tractionists who live in static settlements at war with the moving predatory mechanical conurbations. There are the icy wastes where Anchorage roams and the hidden city under the sea where the Lost Boys creep out.



But this is merely (almost apocalyptically?) a back drop. The lives of the characters - at first Tom, then troubled Hester then Valentine, Shrike the dead mechanical soldier and so on - all come into focus over the course of the four novels. And in time moves on... the story evolves. The history rolls forward, the narrative expands. More characters, stranger locations. But all held together with a desperate desire to hold on to life – and love.

But I could give too much away.

This series is highly recommended – at least by me. It’s not just children’s fiction. Reeve’s skill, compared to other novels I’ve read in the steampunk genre, is that he doesn’t try too hard. There aren’t endless explanations about the backward steampunk technology. Or overwritten dramatic moments which have a movie script in mind. The novels have a very human and frequently, tragic thread. Everything isn’t always alright. Pain hurts. Tension is unpleasant. People are scarred.

But then there’s the power of human experience and the strength of the connections you make with one other.

I was sold.

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Posted in: books,Steampunk

Flames of War - painted US Parachute Rifle HQ and Grenadierkompanie team.

In this post you can have a gander at the first troops I've painted up from the Flames Of war - 'Open Fire' starter set.
The first ones up are the US Parachute HQ and a Grenadierkompanie team with a Panzerfaust. I've used a combination of GW, P3 paints and Vallejo paints. Basically I've followed the painting-by-numbers guides in the 'Open Fire' set and mixed and matched where I've needed to. There are also a variety of guides and tips on Battlefront Games' website.
The uniforms, helmets and equipment have Vallejo paints, wood and leather was P3 browns and, of course, there was a brown GW wash thrown in there somewhere. Metals were GW too. Faces GW with the fleshwash.
Overall - pleased with the results. Love the poses and look forward to getting the rest off them on the table and painted during the summer. Fun but fiddly. Not for the faint-hearted and require patience if not lots of skill.


First a bit like this.




The a bit like this



Then the finished bunch.

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Posted in: Flames Of War

Dystopian legions ; Steampunk crazy Britannia.

At the moment I'm juggling a lot of things on the painting table. One day I got carried away and jumped, in a bit of a rush, into painting one of the Dystopian Legions Britannia infantry troops. Then it all ground to a halt for a while and Flames Of War took over , then I did a little more. Then I paused again... Not a great deal to do though, so here is a progress update on it.

For the record most paints are GW :

Macragge Blue - Blue wash then Ultramarine blue for the trousers.
Mechrite Red - Blood red, brown wash then Blood Red for the tunic.
The helmet  = Bleached Bone and brown wash with Bleached Bone/white highlights.
Pouches/webbing white, sepia wash, then white again.

Early on.

Then a bit later on.

As always, the model looks a complete 2-and-8 at this point, but then nearer the end of the process it sorts itself out somehow. I dunno, I suppose it's some form of magic.

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Posted in: current projects,Dystopian Legions,Steampunk

Flames of War - some more tanks. Sherman V StuG G

AS you will see from the images below, there has been some minor progress on the painting front. These tanks are quite easy to knock out, so they are a satisfactory 'stop-gap' to keep me topped up until my next holiday break allows me to indulge a bit more. Having said that - a few Vallejo paints arrived the other day so I might sneak in a few bits of infantry painting when no one is looking... those fantastic little plastics are so inviting.

Sherman V from the side.

From above.

German StuG G stuF F



Group photo everyone, no shoving at the back.

 All painted using Battlefront paint schemes and Vallejo paints. The hard part is stippling carefully to achieve a careful a camouflage effect when carefully putting on camouflage. It's a bit of a pain. Just the lil' fella in the command SuG G and the decals on a coupla StuG Gs to do.

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Posted in: Flames Of War,tanks

Websites what I browse...

What I thought I'd do for this post is to reveal the secrets of my favourites list from my web-explorer. It's not a complete replication of all of the bitz and pieces that reside therein, but you might get a kick out of having a surf from here to one of these sites - who knows what you may find -

Starting with the 'BIg BOys' gaming companies -

http://dark-age.com/
http://www.games-workshop.com/

http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/

http://www.grindhousegames.com/pages/incursion-home

http://company.wizards.com/

http://www.infinitythegame.com/

http://www.malifaux.com/index.php

http://www.smartmaxstore.com/

http://www.flamesofwar.com/

http://privateerpress.com/

http://www.mercsminis.com/

http://www.westwindproductions.co.uk/

http://www.spartangames.co.uk/

Next the websites/blogs that bring news and views together....  

http://www.tabletopgamingnews.com/

http://www.miniwargaming.com/

http://www.belloflostsouls.net/

http://www.beastsofwar.com/

http://www.coolminiornot.com/


AND LASTLY - painting and gaming and hobby blogs from wherever I have ended up on the tinternet...


http://fromthewarp.blogspot.co.uk/   

http://thefrontlinegamer.blogspot.co.uk/

http://www.front-toward-enemy.us/   

http://space-wolves-grey.blogspot.co.uk/

http://www.talesfromthewarzone.com/  

http://toomuchmetal.blogspot.co.uk/

http://ratdorg.blogspot.co.uk/

http://handcannononline.com/

http://www.awesomepaintjob.com/

http://robhawkinshobby.blogspot.co.uk/

http://pressganger.blogspot.co.uk/

http://itslikewatchingpaintdry.blogspot.co.uk/

http://taleofpainters.blogspot.co.uk/

http://docsavagetales.blogspot.co.uk/

Happy browsing.

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Posted in: 40k,board games,CCG/TCG,Dark Age Games,Dystopian Legions,Flames Of War,Magic:The Gathering,Malifaux,stuff,Tannhauser,Warhammer Fantasy,Warhammer Invasion,Warmachine

Open Fire! A Flames Of War starting point.

Here we go then - a few pictures of the infantry sprues from Battlefront's Flames of War starter set - Open Fire! There are already videos posted on my YouTube channel (http://youtu.be/vn8ec0d5O34) showing off the Sherman (and Stug tanks on other videos). Now, although these are from the previous starter set - Achtung! - they are just about the same, though in green plastic for the Sherman/Firefly models.

The Open Fire! set is fantastic. The infantry (German troops and US Airborne) are superbly detailed and in fantastic poses. There are helpful bases with slots to put the troops in. There are guides to modelling, painting, basing the units correctly and expanding your units. There are counters and flat scenery.You get a great deal for your money and can get going really easily with the quick start rules and two small 'armies' ( a small-sized, full version of the rules is included too). I couldn't be more happy - or could I?

My one and only gripe is that I can't get hold of the paints that they suggest on their own website. They used to do Infantry sets of Vallejo paints - but these seem to be unavailable at the moment. So you need to buy individual ones - and that's the advice from Battlefront themselves - not all those are appear to be around all  either of the time. Ho hum... I'll be patient, hopefully they will have something up their sleeves!
Some more pictures -

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Posted in: Flames Of War

Slaine: Books of Invasions Vols 1-3. A quick review of a blast from the past.

2000AD was a staple of my teenage years. I know I'm not alone when I say that. For me it went right alongside the wargaming, the novels and the hobbying. I also know I'm not alone when I say that. After a while my comic reading and collecting grew to a wider experience. DC's The Question, The Dark Knight Returns...and further ...  Stray Toasters (remember that anyone?), 'Nam ,Elektra,and so on - until we get to the trade paperbacks you can read about elsewhere on this blog.

But somewhere along the way 2000AD got left behind. I still have hundreds of the beggars in a box in a cupboard. And that's a real shame because one of my favourite characters is Slaine the King / warrior / berserker and his suffering (insufferable) companion Ukko the dwarf. I loved the work of McMahon, Fabry, Bisley et al. I relished the blood thirsty extravagance of it all. The humour, the darkness, the cultural richness.

That's why I'm at this point. I'm trying to catch up with Slaine and his progress over 'the missing years'. Here are a few thoughts then, about Slaine :Books of Invasions by Pat Mills and Clint Langley. 

The Formorian sea daemons have invaded the Land of the Young and Slaine (as so often, against the advice of his council) and Niamh, his wife, fight back against the evil of Moloch and later, Lord Odacon. Things don't go well, lives are destroyed and desperate measures taken. Even the Earth Goddess Danu's protection appears to require peculiar sacrifices to be made. Leaping through the mud and blood, as always, but without Ukko, Slaine slices left and dices right,  proclaiming 'Kiss my axe!' as he wades in a sea of slaughter.

Not much had changed then. 

This was, throughout, a hugely enjoyable read. I can't quite say if my feelings about these stories were coloured by a sense of nostalgia, all I can say is that it felt good to be back. in the land of Tir Nan Og. The stories - given their episodic format - were neatly told, narratively well paced and balanced between destruction and the journey Slaine has to take. This was how I remembered him.

 It's not an easy journey of course. Along the way he forms alliances with the Scota (an Atlantean tribe), he has to survive challenges form Danu and defeat daemons of might and power, axe and spear in hand. And there is sorrow.

In the last volume the story is completed with a full scale battle, a city under seige and, as an epilogue,  there is the addition of  a return to Ukko, where Slaine finds his son and embarks on a Sherlock Holmes-like investigation into strange goings on among the even stranger denizens of The Carnival.

The final (or most important) and most stunning feature of these volumes is the artwork. It is spectacular in so many ways. Langley uses a mixture of fully painted artwork and digitally manipulated images to create something truly  ... visceral. It has power, sensuality, horror and, in places, beauty. The fire burns. The blood splatters and gushes. The darkness engulfs. This is the point. It's a perfect match for this world of Pat Mills' imagination, which itself 'borrows' from ancient Celtic myths and legends - deliberately so.

Sit down. kick back. Grab a beer. Give yourself time to read these - your eyes will want linger over the details, the colours, the landscapes, the characters (don't read it in dim light, you'll miss bits!) - you won't be stop yourself from exploring the 'widescreen' style pages, inch by astonishing, luxurious, inch.

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Posted in: graphic novels