Players Able to "Get Your Goat" in 8th Post-Apocalyptic Scenario

    F Troop & the Followers of the Dark Prophet behind them scour through the trees looking for goats

We got together last night for our eighth scenario in our post-apocalyptic campaign. I'm pretty pleased to have kept this series of games going for so long. I may run it only once every 3-4 months or so, but still, not bad longevity in the "Ooh, shiney!" world of miniature wargaming! I had encouraged nearly all of the players after the last mission to spend their accumulated points and upgrade the characters. A couple had been giving the majority of the new skills to the same few characters in the gang. So, I told them that *I* would choose which four characters from their survivor gang would take part in the mission. I wanted to even things out a bit, as the different survivor gangs have accumulated widely varying amounts of Renown Points. That meant a lot of the characters with fewer skills took part in this mission (and no leaders).

    Players move their figs on my hexagon mat as the action heats up in our post-apocalyptic campaign

The briefing told the players that one of their gang members had spotted tracks of a herd of goats passing through their territory. Food was short now, with many of the stored or canned foods they'd scavenged expired by now. Some members of the group were getting sick from eating spoiled food. So, fresh meat would be nice! I used my hexagonal shaped board that is roughly 4 feet across, with each gang starting on their own side. The six goats were placed within 6" of the center of the board in woods (light cover). With them groups of players creeping towards each other, I figured it wouldn't be long before they started taking pot shots at each other.

    The Bucknuts creep through the forest towards some goats, looking for some fresh meat

Remarkably, the players were somewhat disciplined and stayed "on mission." Mike W's Bass Reeves were the first to shoot at another player, though, wounding one of Joel's F Troop. Otherwise, when shots rang out across the board, it was goats that were falling to the ground. I took out the normal damage rolls when hunting goats, ruling that a hit was a kill. However, they had to drag the carcass off the table, or at least get it within 6" of their starting edge and remain in their possession. Some gangs struggled to "get their goat" more than others, but eventually, all had their supper heading towards their own table edge.

    Allen's Followers of the Dark Prophet also stalking through the woods looking for game

I decided to modify my arrival rules for the Machines in this game. Instead of counting characters put out of action, I went with the total number of shots fired across the entire board. The Machines have listening points throughout the countryside that monitor for sounds of gunfire or voices, and dispatch bots to investigate. So, by the beginning of turn 3, the first Scout Drone flew onto the table. I used my aerial drones rather than the monowheel ones this time. I rolled for a random table edge and the Bass Reeves were the lucky winner! What's more, it was perfect timing as the two characters carrying the goat back were grouped together nicely with another member of their gang. The machine gun on the drone could get all three with one blast template! Mike seemed unhappy with his luck, but he shouldn't have been. The others could have consoled him by reminding him that I was rolling for the attacks! True to form, I missed with all three at short range -- rolling a 2, 3, and 4!

    Bad timing for the Bass Reeves as a drone surprises them grouped together near their table edge

Tom's Green Dragons crept through the woods towards the gun battle between machine and men. They saw an opening and fired at the drone, inflicting one hit. The Bass Reeves also began to light up the lightly-armored drone, and sparks flew from its surface. They also wisely spread out. Soon, the drone was down, only to have another one fly on in the exact same spot! In fact, four of the six machines that would come onto the tabletop rolled "6's" to arrive on that same board edge. The other two came on behind the Bucknuts. Not very random "random" die rolls...!

    Tom's Green Dragons investigate the gun battle going on between the drones and Bass Reeves

The Bass Reeves and Green Dragons were able to shoot down the second drone, too, but not before Tosh was machine gunned and taken out of action. Mike W showed no gratitude for the assistance of the Green Dragons, and promptly opened fire on them. A gunfight broke out between the two, but no one was knocked out of action. One by one, the Bass Reeves darted off of their board edge, disappearing into the forest. 

    Despite the temptation of extra Renown Points, Joel's F Troop was not drawn into a gunbattle

Meanwhile, on the other side of the board, the Bucknuts had finally gotten their goat. However, the heavy clomping of a Sentry Bot behind them made them all dart into the woods for cover or concealment. Both the Sentry Bot, and the Military Bot that followed it on, opened fire on any Bucknuts they could see within 1" of the edges of the woods. When Mike S wisely retreated all of them into the central patches of the woods, and out of line of sight of the Machines, the bots opened up on Keith's Nightstalkers at long range. My rolls to hit had improved, but all the machines could inflict from this point on in the game were points of "Shock."

    'What's that?' Yeshua and his companions creep towards metallic structure overgrown with greenery

Allen's Followers of the Dark Prophet had spotted something, though. A metallic or glass reflection shone from the central patch of woods. Some of the other gangs had seen it, too, but fearing bots, kept their distance. Allen's gang crept forward to investigate. They soon realized the patch of vegetation was NOT the outline of a tree, but of a metallic structure overgrown with weeds and other greenery. Intrigued, Yeshua sneaked forward and was able to discover a door and pry it open. Inside, the electric hum of machines grew louder. "We could use some of this tech back at the base," Yeshua said to his companion that had joined him. Together, they began removing monitors and other pieces of machinery in case the smart guys back at camp could get it working to help them. They were joined by Earle of the Bucknuts, who after making sure a "truce" was agreed upon, joined them in dismembering parts from what appeared to be a radar or communications relay station.

    Followers of the Dark Prophet and Bucknuts agree to a truce to investigate the building

After the Bass Reeves had fled the board, the Green Dragons moved in to do the same thing with the two downed Scout Drones. They unscrewed, hammered, and pried free some weaponry from the smoking bodies of the drones and began to head back to their own lines. However, just as Feng was finishing up, he heard a heavy metallic tramp and looked up to see the terrifying sight of a Military Bot just yards away. It opened fire, but once again my rolls were crap and inflicted only a point of Shock. Feng hightailed it into the trees and outpaced any pursuit of the slower moving Machine. 

    Nasty surprise! Military Bot clomps onto the table while Feng was scavenging parts from the drones

Luckily for the Bucknuts, when I had chosen which of their gang would be take part in this mission, I happened to pick ones who had the "Ranger" skill. This meant they weren't slowed down by moving through the trees. It would be a near thing, but by calculating how fast his guys could move, I told Mike S that if his guys got the jump on the bots on the next turn, there was little the Machines could do to catch or stop them. We dealt out the cards, and all of his survivors moved before the three Machines remaining on the tabletop! The GM's bad luck -- and the player's fortune -- continued. 

    Early in the game, (from left) Mike S, Tom, Mike W, Allen, and Keith survey the tabletop

All six gangs would be dining on fresh goat meat that evening around their campfires. Only the Bass Reeves had a player knocked out of action (Tosh). I'll have Mike roll for what happened to him, campaign-wise, next Sunday. I joked with the players that this was most disciplined and "on mission" that I'd seen them behave yet! Much as I tried to tempt the players with bonus points for knocking out members of the gangs they owed payback to, the inter-gang gunfire was limited. Still, the players said they had fun. The Wiley Games rules played quickly and we finished up earlier than we have in previous games. Hope you enjoyed the pictures and AAR. Stay tuned for more, we have lots more miniatures gaming coming up!

    Tom has taken control of the Green Dragons -- good to have our old friend gaming with us again!

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 100
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 15 

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 10
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 14

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 51
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 26

So What Happened to the Lost Treasure of Amazonas Galacticus?

    Alistair's quest for the lost treasure of Amazonas Galacticus has led to the icy planet of Dichelles

Captain's Log

Ship's Log, Interstellar Yacht Inconceivable, Capt. Alistair Valentine recording. I know now what happened to the ship carrying the treasure of that asshole, Chuff Betsos, founder of Amazonas Galacticus, and my old employer. And I am tempted to just walk away. Let the pirates right here on Dichelles keep their ill-gotten gains! Because if any of this treasure is recovered, Mr. Billions is going to employ every legal means to regain it. Shit! On the other hand, these pirates tried to kill us. And who's to say they'll forget their grudge now that we know their dirty little secret? Not bloody likely, right? Plus, they killed all the innocent people on both the treasure ship and Seon's vessel. Murderers like that don't deserve to be left undisturbed to enjoy treasure. At least that's how I am going to pitch it to the crew. We'll see if they go along..."

    Capt. Alistair Valentine of the Interstellar Yacht, Inconceivable

 

Decision in the Briefing Room

"Now that you're all gathered here, Gunny, tell everyone what you and Cephvarx Hul found out from our captive, and what Doc was able to investigate and deduce from it." The Inconceivable crew sat around their briefing room aboard the ship. The wounded survivors of the Galactic Defense force that had ambushed them were bound and locked up in the cargo compartment. The dead from that force were also in the compartment, and had been left out for their viewing pleasure as they'd been interrogated.

Gunny McBride began, "The trooper that Cephvarx captured was not the commander of the detachment -- but he was an NCO. So, I figured it was likely he knew something. I pulled a few tricks from my time in the Galactic Marines -- and Cephvarx added a little intimidation -- to loosen his tongue and tell his tale." Everyone's attention was riveted on the grizzled retiree of the galaxy's most storied fighting force.

Doc Mecrosus chimed in, his voice clipped and clear through environmental suit's speakers. "I've accessed the files of the planet Dichelles' news organizations, as well as some publicly accessible information on companies and organizations on this planet. I also did a thorough investigation of the five suspected pirates and their families. It confirms everything Gunny is going to tell you -- 100%. This is conclusively what happened to the lost treasure of Amazonas Galacticus."  

    Second in command, former Galactic Marine Gunny McBride

Gunny nodded. "The pirate ship was a five-man crew. All five were residents of Dichelles, who ranged abroad in the intergalactic space outside of Dichelles systems, and a couple neighboring ones. They preyed upon ships, stole what was worth stealing, then jettisoned the captives into space. They got lucky with the Amazonas treasure ship. Once they realized what they'd found, Seon's ship had blundered within tracking range, and had likely detected them, too. First, they knocked out her communications without so much as hailing her or trying to use trickery. Next, they blasted her to space dust, with Seon's escape pod likely being the only one not spotted and destroyed.

"Next, they must have discussed what to do with all their loot. Chuff Betsos and his employees would come looking for it. They decided to give up pirating, sell their ship, and lay low. Act like nothing had happened. Once a year, each of the five would go off-world and live the life of a billionaire. Part of their spendings off-world were to hire diggers and remodelers to renovate each of their houses back on Dichelles with underground expansions. Up top they looked like ordinary citizens, but in their secret basements, they lived in luxury. They used their money to bribe their way into control of the local politics, military, communications, and every aspect of Dichelles life. These five pirates and their families are the kingpins of Dichelles."

    An immunity disease forces Doc Mecrosus to always wear an environmental suit

Doc brought up several images and silent video clips on the video screen which illustrated what the ex-marine was saying. "I have to say, I admire their discipline. Ruthless bastards, yes, but utterly non-descript on the surface. All of their spendings were near-untraceable. They allow themselves only one month a year to go off in secret and enjoy their billionaire status, where nobody knows them. Let loose."

Captain Valentine tapped the briefing table. "So the question is, what do we do about it? I see two options. One, we say we're done -- mystery solved! We don't tell anyone about it (Option 1A) because we don't want Betsos to get his money back. 'One B' is to let select news organizations off-world know, and let Amazonas Galacticus and the pirates fight it out. Option One will likely be the safest route. Blast off immediately, and we don't risk a showdown with five families whose money likely controls this planet. I can't ask you, my crew and friends, I hope, to risk your lives for my silly quest -- especially when the mystery is solved."

Zorina chuckled. "Um, sir, we've been risking our lives ever since we signed on with you! If that was a big deterrent, I don't think we'd still be here..."

    Green-skinned Zorina is of the Valkeeri race, and adds youthful enthusiasm to the team

The captain saluted her, smiled. He continued, "Option 2. The riskier one. We pick the pirate's home who controls the Dichelles media and -- as Gunny would say -- go in with guns blazing. Our goal would be to capture him, recover his portion of the treasure, and use his access codes to break the news. Then, assuming we're happy with the amount of treasure we've snagged, we dust off of this planet and let the people fight it out amongst themselves. Sure, that bastard Chuff's people will hear about it, but his money will counteract the pirates' money, and Dichelles will have to make its own call what to do with their new celebrity criminals."

Almost as one, the others sat back in their chairs. Alistair could see the look of contemplation on their faces, well, everyone except Doc's, which was hidden behind the mask of his environmental suit. Alistair added, "Take some time to think about it, if you need. But by now, at least one of the pirates knows his ambush didn't work. And he knows where the Inconceivable is docked."

Seon cleared his throat, and spoke up. "I've been with your guys the shortest amount of time, so I know my word here means the least. But those bastards killed my friends and crewmates, and almost got me. They stole 20 years from my life! I vote Option 2." Across from him, Zorina raised her fist, then slowly uncurled two fingers. Doc held up a gloved hand, two fingers upraised.

    Cephvarx Hul is a fearsome alien from the Varx race, fiercely loyal to Alistair

Cephvarx voice rumbled, "Varxian honor demands Option 2...for me." 

Gunny chucked, leaned forward, holding up his two fists. He slowly uncurled his two middle fingers and said, "Looks like this is our message to the pirates!" Nervous laughter broke out around the table as they all realized they had committed themselves to the most dangerous path. However, for Captain Valentine's crew, that wasn't necessarily something new...!

In Between Turns

I know it has been three months since I visited my Five Parsecs from Home campaign. However, I wanted to ponder the final mission of the Alistair and the Inconceivable's quest. Now, it is time, though. Time to pull up my log and roll up Campaign Turn 6. Will this be the final turn? I have certainly enjoyed my first ever solo campaign.

I decided in light of the storyline to have this fight be an indoor one. It will be located in the spacious secret area underneath one of the pirate's deceptively normal looking homes. I think I will use my silver space station floor mats and my Sci-Fi scatter or buildings for the "terrain" in the rooms. I've seen others run indoor games, so it only makes sense for this one to be similar. For the "bad guys," I rolled up Hired Muscle. Since the fewer people who know the true extent of the pirates' wealth, the better in their eyes, I think I will use my 3-D printed "Terminators" as the hired (or purchased) guns. 

    Asleep in an escape pod for 20 years, Seon Vogalia is the crew's most recent addition

Once again, I rolled up that two members of my crew would be delayed until I roll well enough to bring them on. Once again, I decided that the security bot would stay back guarding the ship, since he could control the ship systems best and be able to fight off any preemptive attack by the pirates or their goons. So, I rolled randomly and it will be Seon and Zorina who will be delayed. I will rationalize that they are "upstairs" establishing control of the upper public quarters of the house while the rest of the crew takes out its security forces below. 

I will likely get a chance to play this one out within the next week. So, keep an eye out for that AAR!

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 100
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 15 

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 10
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 9

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 51
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 26

 

Told You They'd be Fast! A Critical Hit Pieces Ready for the Table

    Colorful 3-D printed crystals from A Critical Hit are checked out by a couple of my Sci-Fi figures

As I mentioned in my last post, I picked up $50 worth of $1, $2, and $3 pieces of 3-D printed scatter terrain at Cincycon this past weekend from A Critical Hit. I wanted to get some of them ready for the tabletop because I knew they'd take next to zero time. A few hours on one day and 21 pieces from my "unpainted" pile moved to my drawers organizing my finished scatter. Of course, none of them required actual painting, being printed in a filament of the appropriate color. Most required at least some drybrushing highlights and washing, though.

First up, seven crystals printed in various colors of filament, some using the "color shift" technique of three different colors bound together into a spiral (or so I understood store owner Blair say). The four largest don't have a base, so actually required no work at all. The three smallest have bases, which I painted Charcoal Gray and then flocked with a coal ballast from I picked up at a model railroad supply store. I really like the bright burst of colors they provide and need to find a way to get them onto the tabletop! Most of the crystals change color as you rotate them, which is really cool to see.

    3 round bases of Sci-Fi crates also needed only flocking to be table ready - perfect objective markers!

Staying with the Sci-Fi setting, here are three objective markers with stacks of futuristic crates. One of them is in color shift material while the other two are done in a metallic silver color. For the the silver ones, I did a black vehicle wash on them to dirty them up a little and give some shadows. I should probably have done a second application of it, looking at this picture, as you can't really see the darker shadows and recesses. The blue fabric over the crates on the left I did nothing to -- I really liked the satiny sheen the material had. The cloth drape on the one in the middle came printed in a bright red. I washed it with Middle East Flesh and probably went overboard with that making it look more orange, now. Still, you can see some variations in color in the folds, now, which didn't exist before. I also gave it a black wash. Then, I applied the same coal flocking material and "Deadlands" tufts.

    Two 3-D printed tables and 4 chairs from A Critical Hit -- great generic scatter terrain for miniatures

I had a feeling that the wooden tables and chairs would respond well to some drybrush and wash, and I think they did. They are printed in one color of brown, but I highlighted them Khaki and gave them both a brown and black wash. I think they look a lot more three dimensional now than straight off the shelf. I can see using these for my modern, zombie, or post-apocalyptic games. They'll fit right into the vibe of my trailers, too! I think their size is perfect for 28mm figures, though Blair was wondering if they were too large and more of 32mm in size. I think that once you add in a figure's base, the height comes out right.

    These capitals (or tops) of Greek or Roman columns were the easiest of all to prep for the table

I didn't necessarily have a use for three capitals (or tops) of Greek or Roman columns, but hey -- ruins are ruins! I could end up using them as scatter for a historical or even fantasy miniatures game. A Critical Hit also carries the round "drum" sections of the columns, but I didn't like how they looked. Too perfect and not ruined, like these. All I had to do to get these ready was a couple layers of black wash and then, once that was dry, a brush-on clear mat. The filament material comes out with a slight sheen and I wanted to remove that. I use Vallejo's brush-on Matte and it does a good job of taking out any shine.

    Four fire hydrants that can be placed randomly along my streets in modern & post-apoc games

I probably should have done more work on these four fire hydrants, now that I look at them in retrospect. They come printed in a bright red color, which I tried to dull down with a heavy Salmon dry brush. Now that I look at the pictures closer, I probably should have given them some rust effects, too. We've all seen rusty fire hydrants on the streets. The black wash didn't really do a good enough job of dirtying them up. In fact, the filament material must be somewhat absorbent, because I ended up needing a second application (and probably should have done a third) on some of the items. One coat is plenty on my miniatures (and sometimes too much!). I will remember that as I prepare more of their scatter pieces for the tabletop.

    A close up of the fire hydrants - was I in too much of a hurry to get them ready? Need more details?

What else is on my tabletop? Yes, the same 8 mounted Welsh Dark Age warriors are still there, moving along gradually. Eight is a bigger batch than I usually paint (especially mounted), but that was how many were in the Gripping Beast "reinforcements" box they came from. My shipping container buildings are primed, as are a new piece of scatter I decided to get ready for the tabletop. My friend Jason from SC had suggested that I do clothes lines for my trailer park, and I just happened to have three sets from Miniature Building Authority. Those are built and primed, so expect them soon, too!

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 100
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 15 

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 10
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 9

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 51
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 26

Cincycon 2025 Purchases

    Do you have one of these? You would if you had attended Cincycon 2025 like I did this past weekend

It's Monday after Cincycon 2025, so that means it is time for a quick overview of my acquisitions from the convention. My spending was certainly not over the top at this convention, partially because there were only so many vendors that carried things I needed. I would also like to take credit for being more disciplined in spending, but I know that is likely a matter of opinion! I spent about $100 at the show, but did not attempt to offset that with flea market sales or similar. I did recently receive birthday money, so I guess I could say I was just buying presents for myself!

    3-D printed "dead trees" from A Critical Hit to enlarge my growing (??) dead forest

I dropped the biggest amount of money at the booth for A Critical Hit. Blair carries 3-D printed scatter terrain and has greatly expanded her line since I first saw her last year at Cincycon. She makes lots of useful scatter for modern, fantasy, Sci-Fi -- you name it! What first caught my eye were the "dead trees" in various sizes. I grabbed five of them (only $3 each, and they are fairly large!). These will "paint up" very quickly. I intend to just do a base coat, dry brush, and black wash on them. After flocking their bases, they'll be added to the dead tree collection I've picked up from Jarl's Workshop and Mantic Games. Expect to see them done quickly, as I want to keep my Acquired vs. Painted at a reasonable ratio...!

    I love A Critical Hit's Sci-Fi scatter -- especially the pieces that use the 'color shift' filament

Some of my readers may remember the Sci-Fi scatter I painted up from A Critical Hit last year. I was struck by the "color shift" effect the material she uses to print some of her pieces. I asked her about it and she said it is three separate colors spiraled together into a filament, which causes the surface to change colors when viewing from different angles. Even though I knew I had plenty of Sci-Fi scatter, I couldn't resist buying a handful more pieces. One is another weird vegetation-encrusted alien nodule. Three are Sci-Fi containers for objective markers, and the last has three cylinders that look like rockets laying on their sides. These may not get painted up immediately, or at least until I start my Sci-Fi gaming back up.

    These tables & chairs will likely be the first thing from my purchases that is readied for the tabletop

What may be the first to be done are the two wooden tables and four chairs. Already printed in brown, I will likely do a dry brush of tan on them and a dark brown wash. Hopefully, they'll look just perfect after that and I won't have much else to do on them. They'll work perfect for any modern, post-apoc, or zombie game.

    These capitals, or tops of Greek or Roman columns, will take almost no time to be ready as well!

Another purchase that should take even less time is the "capitals" or tops of Greek or Roman columns. They're already in printed in gray, and I will likely do only a dry brush and black wash on them, too. I'll toss the three of those that I bought in with my ruins scatter that I can use in various games. 

    I like how they print much of their scatter in colored filament so that you can use them 'as is'

For modern games, I picked up four fire hyrants and four trash cans. These will also take very little time to prep for the tabletop, mainly just a dry brush and wash again. I like how Blair prints much of her scatter so that it can almost be used straight off the shelf. Some people may use it that way, but knowing how quickly a dry brush and wash can be done and how much better it will make it look, I have no problem putting in this amount of time. The 3-D material used has a slight sheen, though, so at the minimum I would suggest people doing a clear coat spray on the pieces to take that luster off.

    Even though I have no current need for them, I couldn't resist these colorful crystals

The final purchase from A Critical Hit was a series of variously sized crystals. I bought two larger ones, two medium ones, and three smaller ones. The larger and medium sized ones do not have a "base" and will take zero preparation. They don't have ground depicted on them and will be used "as is." The smaller ones have a surface depicted. I plan on giving them a black rocky surface using a coal ballast material I picked up from the train store. I want to get them completed soon, too, as I know how little time they'll take...!

    I think I can handle putting together these MDF double-barreled turrets from Dad's Armies

I also visited the booth for Dad's Armies, who carries MDF structures and buildings for various periods, especially Sci-Fi. The genesis of many of his products was from the Impudent Mortals line of MDF products, which he purchased and now produces. Last year, I bought four packs from him at Advance the Colors. However, I struggled to put them together. I am not good at jigsaw puzzles (nor do I enjoy them). After attempting to put the simplest of the four together a month ago or so, I gave up. So, I brought the two more complex ones with me, knowing he would be at Cincycon. I placed them on his table, and confessed to him that I suck at jigsaw puzzles. I offered to give them back to him so he could sell them to someone else. Unexpectedly, John asked me, "Do you want me to put them together for you?" I said yes, and asked him how much. He said no charge, but it might take awhile. I told him to take his time -- no hurry. Much to my surprise, he had the largest of the buildings ready by Saturday at Cincycon! Now, THAT is service!!!

 

    In gratitude for John at Dad's Armies generosity, I purchased this laser pointer from him

Since he wasn't charging me anything, I felt that I had to buy something from his stand. I picked up a laser pointer for doing lines of sight on gaming tables, and an MDF kit that looked so simple even *I* could do it. It was a pack of 12 MDF double-barreled turrets ostensibly produced for Gaslands. To me, they looked more like something for a space station or Sci-Fi game. If I ever get back to doing Space Station Zero, they will come in handy. They can also be used in various other Sci-Fi games as perimeter defenses or whatever. I think I should be able to handle putting these together...!

    This book covers the Big Red One's engagements in Vietnam -- which is exactly what my new project

My last purchase was a great find at The Nafziger Collection. George is from Ohio and a loyal vendor at regional conventions. He sells books and other source material and has been coming to our conventions since I can remember. He had a book that covered the engagements of "The Big Red One" (1st Infantry Division) in Vietnam. I was actually planning on having my platoon that I paint up for my Vietnam project be from the Big Red One, so this was a serendipitous find! So, this was a great birthday present to myself!

 

    Individual, 3-D printed cinder blocks from Bad Goblin Games -- I requested these & they delivered!

My final acquisition was not a purchase at all (I think...I hope!). Two members of Bad Goblin Games, who make the amazing 3-D printed trailers you've seen here on my blog, were going to be in Cincinnati for several weeks for work. Since their visit coincided with Cincycon, they told me they were planning on attending when I saw them at Siege of Augusta in January. I told them that if they wanted to run a game, I would be happy to bring down a game mat and terrain for them. They messaged me a month later to say they had signed up to run a couple games. They had their miniatures and plenty of scatter, but would I bring some of my trailers? Absolutely! I brought all five of my trailers and two other buildings for them to use. In gratitude, they brought me a pack of individual cinder blocks (I'd asked if they made them, and in response, they printed some out). They also brought me three of their 3-D printed, 28mm miniatures for my post-apocalyptic, zombie, or Sci-Fi games. They didn't ask for money when they handed them to me, so I hope they were meant to be a thank you for bringing my terrain (and promoting their products on my blog and on Facebook). If I was meant to buy them, that would be a giant-sized, "OOOPS!" 

    These are the 3 figs that Bad Goblin brought with them to Cincycon for me (pics from their website)

Oh wait, there was another "acquisition" or two! Attendees to Cincycon receive a free 28mm Cincycon miniature. It is always a pig-faced humanoid of some sort. Jenny always gives me hers because she doesn't want them. Appropriately enough, this year's figure is a Sci-Fi one. So, two of them were added to my collection of anthropomorphic "oinkers" I've collected over the years of my attendance.

So, yes, expect to see some of these items being prepped and ready for the tabletop here soon. Otherwise, what is on my desk at the moment? I have a batch of eight mounted Dark Age Welsh cavalry under way. I also have just finished priming two scratch-built shipping container buildings. I got the idea from a Miniature Building Authority purchase, and converted two Reaper plastic shipping containers. I'll start painting them as soon as tomorrow. Otherwise, it may be a few more days before I publish another post. These things on my desk will likely take a bit of time! In the meantime, check out the hit my Acquired vs. Painted has taken below...!

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 100
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 15 

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 10
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 9

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 51
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 5

Vikings Descend in Fury on Anglo-Saxon Town at Cincycon

    Ragnar Lothbrok (near the church door) tries to fight his way into the church in search of loot

The fabled Ragnar Lothbrok of the Norse Sagas, accompanied by his friends and companions, brought chaos and mayhem upon an Anglo-Saxon town at Cincycon 2025. My convention game that I will run for at least the first part of the year is a cooperative historical miniatures game where all six players are Vikings trying to loot a town. The role of the Anglo-Saxon townsfolk and defenders is played by the game's A.I. and cards. Ganesha Games' Sellswords & Spellslingers is the rule set I am using, and did a great job throwing the unexpected at the players and making each running of the scenario unfold differently.

    A look at my town tabletop at Cincycon before the figures are placed and the Viking raid commences

I had a full table of six players for both my Friday evening and Saturday morning game. I had a great group of players both times who joked and laughed throughout despite their reversals of fortune. In addition to the players supposedly cooperating, they were also competing to amass the most loot. This could be gained mostly from slaughtering the townsfolk (1 silver piece each), levy Fyrd (1d6 silver), and hearthguard or household troops (2d6 silver). The windfall, though, would be if they made it to the central church, which stood in the center of the hexagonal board. Each player deployed their three Viking raiders along their respective hexagon edge. In Friday's game, they made it to the church courtyard, but did not gain entry. On Saturday, Ragnar Lothbrok and his son Bjorn Ironside both actually made it into the chapel and slaughtered monks, gaining 4d6 silver for each.

    My Saturday players were a rowdy bunch and had a blast teasing each other and enjoying themselves

The way SS&SS works, the player rolls one, two, or three 20-sided dice to activate one of their raiders. For each roll of 8+, they get an action (move, fight, shoot arrows, loot bodies, etc.). For each failure, a card is drawn from the deck. These cards can bring more defenders onto the board, trigger an Anglo-Saxon springing unseen from ambush, and activate defenders on the table to move towards and attack the Viking raiders. Most of the cards are bad for the players, but a few are beneficial or neutral. I had worked out ahead of time what each card would translate to in this historical version of the fantasy miniatures game. For example, a "Wandering Monster" was a mounted hearthguard who appeared on a random board edge and immediately charged the closest raider. "Trap" meant a town dog darted out and attacked a raider. Some of the cards activate the Anglo-Saxon (foe) closest to the player rolling the failure, while others activate ALL Anglo-Saxons on the table.

    Ragnar's brother, the sometimes treacherous Rollo, and his Viking raider companions

In addition, some cards dictate the deck to be reshuffled after playing that card, which keeps things mixed up and interesting. There were three levels of foes, as mentioned earlier. Townsfolk were the weakest, levy Fyrd were the next toughest, and the hearthguard were the most powerful. Hearthguard also have armor that might block a raider's hit on them. In a one-on-one fight, the raiders ("PCs" or player characters) are much more powerful. However, the defenders can form "hordes" which give them an outnumbering modifier, which can greatly reduce or negate the raider advantage. Plus, there is still good old-fashioned bad die rolling! For example, on Friday night, Ragnar's brother Rollo almost met an untimely, early end. He was quickly down two of his three wounds, but ultimately survived. Each player had a Viking hero (either Ragnar, his wife Lagertha, brother Rollo, son Björn, friend Loki the shipbuilder, or Ulf the Wise). Each player also had a swordsman or axeman, and their third raider was an archer. The archers had no armor, so were most vulnerable to counter-attacks, while the leaders and other raiders had armor and/or shields which could negate enemy hits with a good enough roll.

    Sounds of steel clashing on steel reach the Anglo-Saxon defenders in the church courtyard

Interestingly, in each game, there was one Viking band that was swarmed by defenders almost immediately. On Friday, it was the maniacal Floki, who had trouble keeping his footing on the muddy streets. Anglo-Saxon defenders sprang from nearby houses and the woods on the edge of town to attack his trio again and again. On Saturday, it was Rollo, who almost never made it off of the wharf where the longship was tied up. Mounted hearthguard came in waves after Rollo and his men, nearly killing all three. Still, in both games, most of the Vikings penetrated the outer buildings and advanced steadily through the muddy streets. On Friday, Ragnar made it to the courtyard in front of the church, but couldn't break through the solid shieldwall of the Anglo-Saxon captain and his hearthguard defenders.

    'Horde Fighter' Rollo takes on a pair of Anglo-Saxon Fyrd in the streets during Friday's game

On Saturday, the players did better. Lagertha's archer stung the shieldwall in the courtyard, prompting them to charge after the shieldmaiden and her raiders. This opened the way for Björn's band to break through the defenses and enter the church. Ragnar followed his son soon after. Monks shrieked as they fell wounded or were knocked senseless to be taken captive. Perhaps hearing the chaos in their beloved church, the Anglo-Saxon defenders began to swarm the perimeter of the table. The sound of their shouting convinced the Vikings they'd gathered enough loot and it was time to escape back to the ship before more of them fell. Both games lasted about three hours before I called them.

    Ragnar's companions, Hakon and Sigurd hurry to keep up with their quick-footed lord

The players seemed to have a lot of fun. They laughed at each other's misfortunes and howled in protest as a fellow player's failed activation rolls sent a horde of Anglo-Saxons randomly at them instead! This being only the second and third times that I had run these rules, I was pretty busy handling the arrivals of new defenders, deaths of Anglo-Saxons, and doling out silver pieces. However, the players do all the die rolling and control the action. Still, Friday night the players kept me hopping and it seemed chaotic to me, at times. However, on Saturday, I was able to relax and anticipate the rhythm of the game. I spiced up the narration of what was happening, taunting the players, "You can't miss that roll, right? You can do this all day...!" Of course, they realized that was likely jinxing them and chuckled at my ribbing.

    Lagertha's swordsman, the wounded Fafnir, is beset by two determined Saxon Fyrd

The die rolls and randomness of the frequently reshuffled deck created its own flow. For example, Blake's Rollo suffering charging mounted hearthguard after hearthguard. Dan's board edge was the unlucky recipient of an odds-defying number of Anglo-Saxon reinforcements. Derek's die failed rolls were to blame for the other players' misfortunes. It was hectic, unpredictable, but enjoyable -- at least that's what my players told me. Several of them planned on going out and downloading the rules from Wargame Vault. I got lots of compliments on how my table looked, especially my scratch-built Anglo-Saxon church. To this day, it is probably still my favorite scratch-build I have ever done.

    The decorated inside of my scratch-built church, defiled by the presence of pagan Björn Ironside

I plan on running the game again at DayCon (April 11-12) and at Drums at the Rapids (May 17-18). And then I will run the heck out of it all weekend at Origins Game Fair (June 18-22). So, if you want to give the game a try, show up at one of these conventions! I was gratified by the number of players who told me they signed up for the raid game because they love my games and always have a good time playing in them. I had a fun time, too, this weekend at Cincycon. I will do another blog post soon about my purchases I made there. Look for that in another day or so!

    Another look at Ragnar Lothbrok and his family and friends (28mm from Brigade Games)

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 95
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 15 

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 5
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 9

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 9
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 5

Trailer Park Grows: Two More 3-D Prints from Bad Goblin Games

    Bad Goblin Games' 'Fortified Trailer #2' - 3-D printed building with lots of character & details

I picked up two more 3-D printed trailers from Bad Goblin Games at Siege of Augusta awhile back. One is their Fortified Trailer #2 and the other is Ruined Trailer #2. The really cool thing was that Brian and Liz Peak will both be attending Cincycon this weekend. They wanted to run a game of their Trailer Park Warlords of the Apocalypse. I offered to bring down a game mat and terrain for them, if they wanted to do it. They agreed, so if you go to Cincycon, you'll have a chance of playing a game with these newly-finished trailers!

  Heavily damaged front of 'Ruined Trailer #2' with some of my post-apocalyptic survivors

I decided to do both of them simultaneously, because I had slight deadline pressure. Plus, having already finished two of them that I bought at Historicon 2024, I knew how quickly they painted up. There is no construction to do on these -- just prime and paint. That is, unless you count epoxying the upper half of the trailer to the lower base...! First, though, I based both on MDF. For the ruined trailer, I glued the roof on, too,  because it is 2/3's destroyed/missing. The roof wouldn't get in the way of moving figures around inside of it. For the fortified one, I kept the roof removable -- it has nice tabs that keep it in place during games. 

    Other side of the fortified trailer with my add-ons (yard flamingo & bird bath) and some 28mm figs

I did my usual Krylon Fusion Acrylic Black Matte spray coat first, followed by brush-on mix of 50/50 water and acrylic black paint. The black base does mean you have to do two coats of lighter shades (like I was going to do), but it is no real problem. I chose a pale gray-green for the ruined trailer and a salmon pink for the fortified one. Each got a base coat then a dry brush of a lighter shade (very light gray for the green, pink for the salmon). The bottom half of the ruined trailer I did in a medium gray, figuring a two-tone look might be nice.

    Detachable roof on the fortified trailer -- the tires, cinder blocks & everything come already affixed

Next, I painted the various fortifications and damage on both trailers. The tires, wooden door, stop signs -- all of it -- is straight out-of-the-package. The only modifications I did to either was to the interiors with posters and flooring. I did the windows and doors in a contrasting trim color, dry-brushed in a lighter shade. For the damaged sections, I painted them dark gray with a medium gray dry brush. The tires were also done in charcoal gray, with medium gray drybrush. I had to pull out one of my finer tip brushes for my attempts at lettering the "STOP" on the hexagonal signs. Bad Goblin trailers typically come with two stairs leading up to the doors. One is made of cinder blocks and the other is wooden stairs. If you are using the wooden ones, I suggest gluing them to the base AFTER the outside of the trailer is done. That way, you don't have to poke your brush through the slats to paint the trailer's surface. 

    A look at some of the 'trailer park kitsch' posters I printed out and glued to the walls

For the doors, I decided to leave them open on two trailers. They are modeled to be able to swing open and close, but I find that once you've painted both the doors and the frame, the layers build up kind of freezing them in place. If you want yours to open and close, I suggest you shave off some material from the door or frame before priming. For the interiors, I chose pale colorw for the walls (yellow for the ruined one and sky blue for the fortified trailer). This time, I used a wide, flat brush rather than my usual rounded brush. It worked a lot better, and there was fewer splash over spots on the window or door frames. Two coats was enough to cover over the black primer, even with the lighter colors I used.

    Other wall's posters -- Jenny suggested the "Velvet Elvis" poster, and a look at the smoke damage

Next, I did a black vehicle wash over the exterior and then interior. I stupidly went back to my rounded brush for the interior of the ruined trailer and it came out very streaky. For the sky blue interior, I used the wide, flat brush and I was much happier with the look. The flooring is scrap booking paper sold at the local craft store trimmed and glued into place. I also dry brushed smoke stains around the damaged sections on both the interior and exterior. I was very happy with how this turned out, adding a touch of realism, I feel. 

    A little bit of whimsy with the flamingo and a scratch made water fountain with water & leaves in it

The next step was to glue my trademark posters on the inside walls (and a few choice places on the exterior). I found images I thought were appropriate with Google searches. I tried to go with what might be a stereotypical decoration in a low-income or working class trailer park. Jenny suggested the Velvet Elvis painting, and the NASCAR poster (sorry, Jason -- don't tell Lily!). I thought the Springsteen "Born in the U.S.A." and the Lynard Skynard...wait, "Skyyyyynard!" were nice touches. Hopefully, no one is offended by my playful lampooning of trailer park chic! I resized the images and printed them off at the local office supply store on their color laser printer. After cutting them out, I paint the back with white glue and stick them to the walls. They are easy to do and work perfect!

    The mostly blow away back of Ruined Trailer #2 - I'm happy with how the smoke damage came out

The final step was to decorate (or trash up?) the yards a bit. For the pink one, I built a bird bath with round miniature bases and a tiny plastic bowl. I cut a circle of blister pack plastic for the water surface and glued a couple leaves to it. I added in tiny sky blue ripples of a reflected sky and then finished it off with a clear gloss. I then did the Homer Simpson, "D'oh!", because I would need to carefully cover it up with masking tape when I clear coated the model to prevent it from "frosting." Other things I added to the yards for atmosphere were a toilet, kitchen sink, and curved pipes. For the pink one, I really, really wanted to put flamingos in the yard. I couldn't find any tiny plastic ones at the local train store or craft stores. So, I resorted to buying a pack off Amazon. To save our brick and mortar stores, I try to buy as little as possible off Amazon. The flamingos are probably too big, but I used them anyway. I drilled out the underneath and added wire legs with a paper clip. I also drilled holes for the legs in the MDF for stability. If you think they look too goofy, let me know. I can always remove the flamingo later if I decide the out-of-scale size bothers me too much!

    Close up of the posters in the ruined trailer -- a rocker & NASCAR fan lived here (or still does?)

The last step was flocking, clear coating, and then the two trailers were done! They went quickly (soooo much faster than building and modifying an MDF one). If you're interested in creating a 28mm trailer park or adding one to your skirmish games, I highly recommend Bad Goblin Games and their selection. Thankfully, Liz and Brian are NOT bringing their store with them to Cincycon (they're in town for work), so I am saved at least till Historicon 2025 from the temptation of buying more trailers!

    Side of trailer with my scratch made debris and plumbing pipe from Miniature Building Authority

What else am I working on? I have a batch of eight Dark Age mounted troops begun on my painting desk right now. The plan for the next terrain that I will paint is to convert my two Reaper shipping containers into buildings, much like the Miniature Building Authority one I painted recently. And of course, I'm headed to Cincycon this weekend. Hope to see you there!

    Close look at the included cinder block stairs & more debris flocking I made & an MBA kitchen sink

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Miniatures acquired in 2025: 95
  
• Miniatures painted in 2025: 15 

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Terrain acquired in 2025: 5
  
• Terrain painted in 2025: 9

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025

• Scatter acquired in 2025: 9
  
• Scatter painted in 2025: 5

 

    Another look at the front of the ruined trailer with some of my survivors scoping out the territory

    Side view of the fortified trailer, plus a discarded toilet sitting in the yard to 'trash it up'