Lead Adventure Forum
Miniatures Adventure => Future Wars => Sci-Fi Small Skirmish Games => Topic started by: nicknorthstar on October 17, 2020, 01:48:30 PM
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Have you seen Osprey Games have announced the release of Stargrave for next year?
Have a look: https://ospreypublishing.com/blog/cover_reveal_stargrave/ (https://ospreypublishing.com/blog/cover_reveal_stargrave/)
We've started the plastic miniatures for it, gonna be good :)
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Wow! Nice.
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Definitely got my interest ;D ;D. Can't wait to see the minis.
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Im in! Haha
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A definite purchase for me. Looking forward to seeing the minis (not that I need any!)
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Is it going to be D20 based also?
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Noticed this was on the horizon a monthly so ago. We are having a “build a shuttle” contest and plan a game in a hangar bay to kick off.
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Nice! Interested to see what figures will come along with this?!
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Looking forward to seeing the plastics.
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I only have one question - is Mr Copplestone onboard? :P
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Stoooooked!!
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Are the plastics going to be boxes like the Frostgrave/Ghost Archipelago boxes? :o
.... this is going to be so hard on my wallet ...
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That cover illustration is simply amazing. Wow.
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The plastic box sets will be like the Frostgrave/ Oathmark sets. Mr Bobby Jackson is leading the design on this project.
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I so excited for this. I'm thinking it will have a Star Frontiers vibe (for anyone like myself old enough to remember that TSR 1980s sci-fi RPG).
The Frostgrave wizards set that was sculpted by Bobby Jackson is one of my favorites, I can't wait to see the minis.
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The plastic box sets will be like the Frostgrave/ Oathmark sets. Mr Bobby Jackson is leading the design on this project.
Excellent.
It is not clear (at least to me) if there are non humans involved (Frostgrave is almost entirely human for players, similar for Ghost Archipelago).
If there are, will there be "Gnolls in Spaaaace!", Still not sure if they are voiced by Ben Whishaw or Bradley Cooper...
Must resist wish listing....
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Date already circled in diary.
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If there are, will there be "Gnolls in Spaaaace!", Still not sure if they are voiced by Ben Whishaw or Bradley Cooper...
There is a cultist conversion kit on the northstar site that I believe works with the gnolls. Sadly it's out of stock, so I can't say for sure :( - https://www.northstarfigures.com/prod.php?prod=8780
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I'll let Osprey Games make announcements about the book contents, they'll be doing so over the next few weeks.
The Sci-Fi Conversion set North Star did (it should be back in stock soon, outside contractor issues) has nothing to do with Stargrave. It was a bit of fun we did a couple of years ago, to turn our Frostgrave Cultists into Space Cultists, and Kev Dallimore did some 'GNNNOLLLSS IN SPAAAACE' with them too. But saying that, Stargrave will be flexible enough for you to use your Frosty bits in space in the game too.
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Definitely interested, which is a bad thing as I'll buy yet another new game and models to not use ;D
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I am a big fan of Frostgrave, so I know I will like the rules. What I am most excited about are NorthStar's hard plastic miniature releases. Hearing that Bobby Jackson is the lead developer on the kits really excites me. His work on the two Wizards boxed set is superlative.
Seeing him do sci-fi in this context has me very excited indeed!
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I am really looking forward to seeing the plastics for this and hearing more about the game. I will defo be checking it out at Salute next year...fingers crossed it goes ahead.
Not seen the cultist conversion set before, it looks great.
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Generic-ish sci fi plastics is really exciting. Can't wait.
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Very much looking forward to this. I really enjoy Frostgrave, although I found Rogue Stars to be a little too slow and granular. Hopefully Stargrave will do what is implied in the name, and take the rules mechanics from Frostgrave and spin it into the sci-fi setting that I really enjoy.
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I'll let Osprey Games make announcements about the book contents, they'll be doing so over the next few weeks.
I look forward to hearing more.
Figure hints are always of interest though.
... Kev Dallimore did some 'GNNNOLLLSS IN SPAAAACE' with them too. But saying that, Stargrave will be flexible enough for you to use your Frosty bits in space in the game too.
Thanks, very nice work (as you would expect).
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It is not clear (at least to me) if there are non humans involved (Frostgrave is almost entirely human for players, similar for Ghost Archipelago).
D'oh, the guy with green skin is a bit of a giveaway.
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I found this bit of text in the Amazon description of Stargrave which pretty much outright tells potential players that there are aliens to hire :D:
In Stargrave, players take on the role of one of these independent operators. Perhaps they are a cybernetic veteran of the Last War, a psion fleeing slavers, or a mystic warrior attempting to preserve ancient wisdom. Maybe they are a bounty hunter collecting blood money, a robotics expert pushing the bounds of current technology, or a biomorph bred in the genetanks of some forgotten laboratory. Having chosen their own background, players must hire a crew for their ship, choosing a lieutenant with their own unique skill-set, and a handful of soldiers, mechanics, hackers, and other specialists. Some captains may even recruit strange alien lifeforms with abilities no humanoid could ever possess.
So if you are looking for some alien hired guns this might be your game :)
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Hi Axiom
Remember Rogue Stars was by a different author. Stargrave is by Joseph McCullough, if you like Frostgrave and Rangers of Shadow Deep, you'll be all over Stargrave. If you don't like them, this might not be the game for you, IMHO.
Nick
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Hi Axiom
Remember Rogue Stars was by a different author. Stargrave is by Joseph McCullough, if you like Frostgrave and Rangers of Shadow Deep, you'll be all over Stargrave. If you don't like them, this might not be the game for you, IMHO.
Nick
I do like Frostgrave but haven't given Rangers of the Shadow Deep a try. It sounds like it might well be up my street though! Thanks Nick
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I am curious to see how shooting will be handled, since that SHOULD see more attention than melee in a Sci-Fi set.
Will there be "unlimited" ranges, or will we get Frostgrave bow and arrow ranges with sci-fi weaponry?
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If the plastic sets are on a par with the current Frostgrave sets then then they will be worth getting even if the rules are no good (I can't see that being the case though). :D
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@Easy E:
I would be interested in that as well. I would also like to know whether we will get more itemization this time. Somehow it does not feel that weird to me when shooting is quite simplistic when there is only bow and crossbow to choose from. With the plethora of ranged weaponry in a SciFi setting this would - alt least for me - feel slightly underwhelming.
Most other "non-fantasy" skirmish games I play (mostly This is not a Test and Reality´s Edge have heavy itemization but are obviously very different in regards to they rcore mechanism. But even if it were mostly a fluff-heavy res-skin of Frostgrave I would be happy about all the other players having great fun with it! I think it is a good and great step for the Frostgrave ruleset in general.
PS: Also looking forward to the plastic SciFi minis. So far the minis from Northstar have never disappointed me!
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The plastic box sets will be like the Frostgrave/ Oathmark sets. Mr Bobby Jackson is leading the design on this project.
Fantastic, he's produced some great work in the digital medium, looking forward to this.
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From a design perspective I trust Joe to strike a nice balance between the satisfying "vagueness" of Frostgrave to the exacting detail of a game like Necromunda.
Design considerations that immediately jump to my mind are:
-- tying specific weapons to specific soldier types
-- does everyone get the option to carry a sidearms that grants them a short-ranged attack?
-- how detailed will the aliens be? will they be specific soldier types left to the player to flesh out? For example, this figure is a Psion--he possesses natural psychic abilities. It's then up to the player to decide what model fits that description. Same with "big-guy" type models--your Wookies and such.
I like Frostgrave's lack of specificity when it comes to species or classic fantasy races. I hope that continues in Stargrave. It cuts down on min-maxing and over-stuffed lists. Think back to Shadow Elves and Dwarves in Mordheim. They were broken and burgled the fun of a number of players in our campaign.
It's a hard line to walk for sure. I trust Joe and his team to get it right! Or close enough to right to be fun.
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This sounds interesting
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I am looking forward to this. It will give my necromunda and inq28 stuff more games to play in.
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Sorry if I missed it in the conversation, but does anyone know if this rules set will have the solo potential of Rangers of Shadowdeep, or will it be a head-to-head game?
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While the idea of a game of this type excites me, I am going to be avoiding it unless there is some changes to the combat system from Frostgrave. The D20 'highest roller wins combat' system isn't really interesting.
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I would wager it is a Head-to-Head game, with solo rules coming in a later expansion. Just like they did with Frostgrave.
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For me this could be the must important / useful set of Sci Fi rules since Original Traveller. I wait with baited breath.
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A new art piece has been posted:
(https://www.dakkadakka.com/s/i/at/at2/2020/10/23/80b88b9a64ebd9a9c7f5a43d5acf0572_42373.jpg)
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A new art piece has been posted:
(https://www.dakkadakka.com/s/i/at/at2/2020/10/23/80b88b9a64ebd9a9c7f5a43d5acf0572_42373.jpg)
And there is supporting text as well:
https://ospreypublishing.com/blog/stargrave_artwork_reveal/ (https://ospreypublishing.com/blog/stargrave_artwork_reveal/)
And at the bottom it has (a currently inactive) link to the next article "Next: Stargrave - Miniatures sneak peek (coming soon)".
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With reference to the artwork.
Though the gun bears some resemblance to a bullpup Lasgun (TM), it looks like a Traveller style Gauss Gun (magnetically accelerated and spin stabilised kinetic energy weapons) or a gyrojet.
My reasoning is as follows:
Magazine placement - the bullpup location adjacent to the telescopic stock means not much room for the recoil of the receiver. Gauss weapons' receivers do not recoil (Newton's Third Law still applies to the weapon) and gyrojets "recoil" forward (you cock them by moving the receiver forward, pulling the trigger releases the receiver which pushes the round back on to the firing pin. The round moves forward pushing the receiver back into firing position, and popping the next round into position. I cannot remember why the exhaust of the firing round does not cook off the next round or the whole mag).
The shape of the magazine is odd, but that might be down to receiver design.
Laser weapons are not dependent on magazine to "receiver" placement, and there is a lot of fun forward of the pistol grip so is there a balance advantage with a bullpup arrangement?
Same with non round based plasma/fusion weapons.
Maybe I should go and do some painting....
^__^
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I really can't wait to see these minis!
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I really can't wait to see these minis!
Me too!
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With reference to the artwork.
Though the gun bears some resemblance to a bullpup Lasgun (TM), it looks like a Traveller style Gauss Gun (magnetically accelerated and spin stabilised kinetic energy weapons) or a gyrojet.
My reasoning is as follows:
Magazine placement - the bullpup location adjacent to the telescopic stock means not much room for the recoil of the receiver. Gauss weapons' receivers do not recoil (Newton's Third Law still applies to the weapon) and gyrojets "recoil" forward (you cock them by moving the receiver forward, pulling the trigger releases the receiver which pushes the round back on to the firing pin. The round moves forward pushing the receiver back into firing position, and popping the next round into position. I cannot remember why the exhaust of the firing round does not cook off the next round or the whole mag).
The shape of the magazine is odd, but that might be down to receiver design.
Laser weapons are not dependent on magazine to "receiver" placement, and there is a lot of fun forward of the pistol grip so is there a balance advantage with a bullpup arrangement?
Same with non round based plans/fusion weapons.
Maybe I should go and do some painting....
^__^
When it comes to guns for Stargrave, I'm going to use the same approach that George Lucas took in 1977, just take some WWII guns, add some cosmetic attachments and don't worry too much about the science behind how they shoot "laser beams," later nerds like us came up with the idea of gas powered "blaster" technology (https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Blaster/Legends (https://starwars.fandom.com/wiki/Blaster/Legends)).
I've got StG44 and MG42 bits from my plastic Bolt Action sprues that will make a great starting point for Stargrave guns.
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I just bought a copy of the classic Necromunda boxed game so am defo looking forward to seeing what Stargrave might be able to add to the mix.
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I've got StG44 and MG42 bits from my plastic Bolt Action sprues that will make a great starting point for Stargrave guns.
I ordered Anvil MG42s especially for my light support weapons
(https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wVyH8F8Sv0Y/X2jp2ZM8wnI/AAAAAAAAHEo/TzQRoRKf5qke4grgysV7rC4Qzxn_neA6QCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/anvil-guns-1-1.png)
Especially the armoured minions...
I have hoped that Anvil would do Lewis and Sterling guns.
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Doh, caved-in and pre-ordered lol
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As I find myself veering away from the Frostgrave-style-rulesets, I will be watching this exclusively for the miniatures. So far Northstar has always delivered fantastic stuff! Hard plastic SciFi miniatures have been "quasi-monopolized" for way too long! And hopefully we will get some metal minis as well, but the way Northstar so far supports their games make me think we will. Quite the powerhouse Northstar has become!
I am really hoping for lots of human Military SciFi in the sets as the artworks allows for the possibility that these minis might be suitable for a little The Expanse project. It always baffled me that so far no company has tried to turn this rich and popular setting into a miniatures game (wargame, RPG, Boardgames, Kickstarter frenzy, whatever)!
The best miniatures suited for The Expanse so far could be found from Hasslefree and it would be cool to have more options to show into the mix. Maybe even some other, more talented, lads and ladies on this forum might also be inspired to paint some Martian Marines! 8)
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The Expanse is indeed an excellent setting. There is an Expanse RPG but I have not played it.
https://expanse.fandom.com/wiki/The_Expanse_Roleplaying_Game
https://www.kickstarter.com/projects/1780208966/the-expanse-roleplaying-game?lang=de
I have tried painting Mantic GCPS troops as Martian Marines but was not satisfied with my attempts.
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Somewhere here I read that a number of official The Expanse 3D model files were released for non commercial use, not sure if that included anything but ships.
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Thank you for pointing me towards the RPG. I had indeed forgot that one. There seems to be another board game as well, but so far not a "real" miniatures game, sadly. Maybe I can find some good models to use in this announced figure range 8)
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The best miniatures suited for The Expanse so far could be found from Hasslefree 8)
The sedition wars minis would fit perfectly too :)
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My main issue with figures for The Expanse would be trying to paint the tattoos o_o
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that all sounds very interesting . You can never have to many Scifi figures
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My main issue with figures for The Expanse would be trying to paint the tattoos o_o
There are no tattoos on Martian Marines! lol
But yeah, when painting OPA you would have to freehand a lot but at the same time it would make the miniatures instantly recognizable.
Man, now I want to order some stuff at Hasslefree and start such a project...
...focus, gotta focus! Too much to paint already!
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Don’t Hasslefree do some tattoo decals? If not, surely someone does...
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Don’t Hasslefree do some tattoo decals? If not, surely someone does...
They used to, they still have some of them, but sadly the last time that I checked, the better ones are out of stock and have been for some time.
Glen
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Just getting into the old Necromunda with the new miniatures. I dont want another rules, but the game designers name is very tempting...
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Good news, looking forward to the game! And the figures too! ;D
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Hope this gets the traction that Frostgrave has, I have so many 'generic sci-fi' minis lying around that I need a kick up the arse to get painting.
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Just saw the new Nullmen miniatures for Frostgrave. Those could well be used as Protomolecule Hybrids when playing in the The Expanse setting.
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Can’t wait to see some preview pics... (hint, hint) lol
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Does anyone know whether there will be a German translation as there is for Frostgrave 2nd Edition?
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Miniaturicum did the Frostgrave translation, drop them a line.
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Will do! Many thanks :)
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I ordered Anvil MG42s especially for my light support weapons
(https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-wVyH8F8Sv0Y/X2jp2ZM8wnI/AAAAAAAAHEo/TzQRoRKf5qke4grgysV7rC4Qzxn_neA6QCLcBGAsYHQ/s500/anvil-guns-1-1.png)
Especially the armoured minions...
I have hoped that Anvil would do Lewis and Sterling guns.
Ultravanillasmurf, if you want a very "chunky" Lewis gun try this one from Caliver books, it will fit the Anvil big boys very well
http://www.miniaturefigurines.co.uk/images/catalogue/FFE%2001.jpg
It's from the "setting the east ablaze" range
http://www.miniaturefigurines.co.uk/Catalogue.aspx?ScaleID=15&CategoryID=51&SubCategoryID=253
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Hope this gets the traction that Frostgrave has, I have so many 'generic sci-fi' minis lying around that I need a kick up the arse to get painting.
Me too. Mr Jingles is ready for play!
(https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-34r7XPxDgB0/WRni4oLF_tI/AAAAAAAABZk/VLu4AqvkTEIN9Fn691G4NazFh3iYwP-8ACLcB/s1600/DSC00420.jpg)
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Now thats one disturbing picture.....miniature
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Is that a self portrait ?
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I didn't really fall for Frostgrave, but I'm stoked...simply because of the miniatures. I've been hugely happy to see other companies jump on the proper plastics bandwagon. Sci-fi is still pretty scant though, so this is a plus!
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I didn't really fall for Frostgrave, but I'm stoked...simply because of the miniatures. I've been hugely happy to see other companies jump on the proper plastics bandwagon. Sci-fi is still pretty scant though, so this is a plus!
Likewise. Looking forward to miniatures, but will reserve judgement on the rules. Used to play a lot of Frostgrave, but found it too swingy (in terms of results) and have now settled on nightwatch instead.
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Since The Expanse season 5 started today I am hoping that the plastic kits will allow us to assemble many varieties of Sci Fi troopers, from ragged OPA Belters to the glorious Martian Marine Corps 8)
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I'm just here for the new minis as well
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@northstarnick - I'm sure it's far too early for previews yet but can we have an idea on the 'vibe' of the range - should we be expecting more of the style of the Rogue Stars range? Or more science/fantasy Rogue Trader? Or more hard/militaristic?
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I'd show you pictures, but Osprey who are my partners in this always get stressed when I act unilaterally. lol
I don't know the Sci-Fi fans definitions. I think it's a bit Star Wars-y, but the hardware is more near future military than ray guns.
The Troopers are not Stormtroopers though.
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I'd show you pictures, but Osprey who are my partners in this always get stressed when I act unilaterally. lol
We won't tell if you don't ;)
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Is that a self portrait ?
No. I only share the great white belly with the wife. I'd show you pictures, but Osprey who are my partners in this always get stressed when I act unilaterally. lol
What is life without a little bit of drama?
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I'd show you pictures, but Osprey who are my partners in this always get stressed when I act unilaterally. lol
I don't know the Sci-Fi fans definitions. I think it's a bit Star Wars-y, but the hardware is more near future military than ray guns.
The Troopers are not Stormtroopers though.
Understood, that’s great - thank you. I’ll take a safe bet that painting up some coolest one future wars troopers I have knocking about will be useful!
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For sure.
Yes, it's not a radical reinterpretation of the Sci-Fi text, nor a sub-40K, I think you'll find Stargrave plastics will fit into your Sci-Fi projects like Frostgrave plastics fit into your Fantasy ones.
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Sounds good to me...I'm hoping the new year will see some reveals for us.
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For sure.
Yes, it's not a radical reinterpretation of the Sci-Fi text, nor a sub-40K, I think you'll find Stargrave plastics will fit into your Sci-Fi projects like Frostgrave plastics fit into your Fantasy ones.
You’re killing me - all these bits of information just make me want to see the miniatures that much more!
I do wonder about the kit-bashing possibilities, with Frostgrave there were so many historical multi-part plastic figures out there that could be used for bits. I really want to see what the Stargrave figures will be like and what multi-part ranges will work with them. I’m guessing they’ll be much smaller than 40k just like Frostgrave figures are much smaller than Warhammer Fantasy (at this point GW has basically adopted 32mm as their scale). I’m assuming multi-part plastic WWII figures will be a good source of bits for Stargrave.
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You’re killing me - all these bits of information just make me want to see the miniatures that much more!
I do wonder about the kit-bashing possibilities, with Frostgrave there were so many historical multi-part plastic figures out there that could be used for bits. I really want to see what the Stargrave figures will be like and what multi-part ranges will work with them. I’m guessing they’ll be much smaller than 40k just like Frostgrave figures are much smaller than Warhammer Fantasy (at this point GW has basically adopted 32mm as their scale). I’m assuming multi-part plastic WWII figures will be a good source of bits for Stargrave.
That bit I highlighted in bold face was exactly what I was hoping for and wondering about! It would make for great kitbashing opportunities and might make near sci fi scenarios or other ideas possible! :) Would be cool at least!
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I think it's a bit Star Wars-y, but the hardware is more near future military than ray guns.
So no Mauser C-96 Broomhandles, Sterling SMGs, MG-42 LMGs and Lewis Guns?
^__^
I'd show you pictures, but Osprey who are my partners in this always get stressed when I act unilaterally. lol
That is all right, I have a lot of Frostgrave and Oathmark to build (I might even paint some) so I can wait.
...
I have waited.
...
Do I have to wait some more?
^__^
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So no Mauser C-96 Broomhandles, Sterling SMGs, MG-42 LMGs and Lewis Guns?
^__^
That is all right, I have a lot of Frostgrave and Oathmark to build (I might even paint some) so I can wait.
...
I have waited.
...
Do I have to wait some more?
^__^
lol
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I hope we start getting a few rules previews over on Joe's blog soon. Not too much, I'm just hoping for enough of an idea of what warbands and soldiers are structured like to get a head start on preparing! Also, what sort of baddies are in the bestiary and what their gear is like, so I could go ahead and start preparing the hazards. Sadly, even in April, it's looking like solo play will be more common, so if I could already have a nice horde of baddies to pit a crew against, then all the better for getting stuck in quick!
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Joe's blog has a new post about Stargrave - very interesting that there will be a unique game mechanic that didn't appear in Frostgrave / Ghost Archipelago:
http://therenaissancetroll.blogspot.com/2021/01/stargrave-preparing-pirates.html (http://therenaissancetroll.blogspot.com/2021/01/stargrave-preparing-pirates.html)
I don't know if the pic in the post is official artwork (seems likely) but if it is, and the pirates in the pic are any indication of what the Northstar figures will look like, then I'm very excited as I really love the near-future look:
(https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gSf1iQNJLys/X_g21BjiExI/AAAAAAAAEJk/KxSCX9Ri9hg7JuJBxJ3T2VjVddfuEEBOQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1262/SGV_art_006.jpg)
I can't wait for Nick to show some figure previews...(hint-not-so-subtle-hint)...
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I notice he says Northstar are working on a couple of plastic box sets.
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The setting sounds interesting for sci-if adventurers. It does remind me of Core Space, as does the threat mechanic.
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Joe's blog has a new post about Stargrave - very interesting that there will be a unique game mechanic that didn't appear in Frostgrave / Ghost Archipelago:
http://therenaissancetroll.blogspot.com/2021/01/stargrave-preparing-pirates.html (http://therenaissancetroll.blogspot.com/2021/01/stargrave-preparing-pirates.html)
I don't know if the pic in the post is official artwork (seems likely) but if it is, and the pirates in the pic are any indication of what the Northstar figures will look like, then I'm very excited as I really love the near-future look:
(https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-gSf1iQNJLys/X_g21BjiExI/AAAAAAAAEJk/KxSCX9Ri9hg7JuJBxJ3T2VjVddfuEEBOQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1262/SGV_art_006.jpg)
I can't wait for Nick to show some figure previews...(hint-not-so-subtle-hint)...
“No capes darling...Remember Thunderhead? Strato Girl?”
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I think I like the idea of the local empire/law-enforcement showing up rather than pirates. I guess I thought maybe the players' gangs where the pirates/smugglers? Maybe I don't fully understand the fluff yet.
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I think I understood it as the Pirates have become de-facto the 'law' (i.e the big boys) and the players are lower level smuggler/raiders, working around the margins. Assuming in the spirit of Frostgrave they Pirates could very easily be switched for law type models
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Yeah interesting about the pirate thing... Seems like a weirdly specific concept. I would have thought making it just 'the powers that be' would have been easier but that makes for a generic setting.
Lets be honest most space opera backgrounds have multiple of these powers - depending upon the location. So I assume it could be he Empire/Terran Federation/40k planet based Enforcers in that setting, as well as local criminal warlord etc. At heart it is easy for us to change that from Pirates to whatever works for the background we want.
It seems a lot of us modified Frostgrave's setting anyway to allow elves/dwarves etc. models so I don't see this as a major issue.
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I have to admit that I also did not think of "pirates" when thinking about the function they do have to the game but apart from the right of any artist / author to design his universe / product as he likes, I also think that exchanging pirates for "the Empire", "The Imperium", "The Alliance", "The Arbites", "The Judges" you name it will be easy to do and nothing to keep oneself from enjoying the ruleset.
I am instead waiting for more info about the hardware side (miniatures) and crunchy software (rules, items etc) of the product though before I decide whether this is something for me :)
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They seem to be Pirates only in the sense that they're not settled down i.e. fleet based, and they're lawless looters. They're supposed to be ex-military and so I think rather than our traditional concept of space pirates or pirates, they're probably closer to mercenaries or warlords ala 20's China or Somalia/Afghanistan/failed state, just mobile.
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They seem to be Pirates only in the sense that they're not settled down i.e. fleet based, and they're lawless looters. They're supposed to be ex-military and so I think rather than our traditional concept of space pirates or pirates, they're probably closer to mercenaries or warlords ala 20's China or Somalia/Afghanistan/failed state, just mobile.
They board your space freighter and tell you “I’m the captain now.”
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It will be interesting if there is a 'noise' mechanism to increase the likelihood of intervention.
i.e. Use Lazers/bolters and heavy weapons use makes it more likely they will appear sooner. Keep it a knife fight/low engergy tools etc and it make take longer for the powers to respond. This would models monitoring of the location for interesting activity/having people report it so they get a reward.
It would be easy to have an excuse why they don't just 'transport' the combatants out (if that exists) - say that the transporter tech get messed up/fail with movement and weapons fire. Meaning the power that be have to send enforcement to sort out issues.
I can see some interesting scenario's from this.
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As others have mentioned 'the pirates' or the 'pirate fleets' are just the most powerful groups in galaxy that has lost any kind of central authority. They basically roam around making sure no one else is messing with their turf. That said, they are very loosely defined, and it would be extremely easy to replace them with a Galactic Empire or whatever.
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That is good to know. I am considering a massive Necron army as the background models representing the controlling entity. It might be fun to still play them as if they were porgrammed to act like pirates rather than cyborgs without personality.
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Seems very reminiscent of H. Beam Piper's Space Vikings. Looking forward to it.
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First pic of figures from one of three (!) plastic sets on Joe's blog:
(https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TMFz0aiTSfw/YAbP_ABjSYI/AAAAAAAAELg/bb9JkCqTbpc1T2RqbR58epDtvtQjaVAywCLcBGAsYHQ/w640-h462/140727168_891230501648582_114188432341938443_n.jpg)
These are the "crew" figures which probably explains why the look less like future military and more like a sci-fi version of the Ghost Archipelago crewmen.
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Oh, yes! :-* 8)
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Awesome :-*
The guy in blue/grey with the rifle has a definite Rogue Trader Imperial Army look to him! 8)
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Hmmm... not very interesting, in my opinion.
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I'm absolutely stoked on these
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I quite likey, quite clean and understated and not too many fiddly bits.
Agreed that they have a definite RT look to them :-*
Glen
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I like that they are not too busy. Plenty of opportunities to kitbash these and not a skull emblem in sight. I'll be quite happy to combine these with some Bolt Action WW2 sets for sci fi forces.
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Only question I would have is, will those be in boxes of 10 or in boxes of 20? ???
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He also noted the feet. Appears they do not have the built in base a lot of the frostgrave/northstar stuff has, judging from the picture.
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Only question I would have is, will those be in boxes of 10 or in boxes of 20? ???
This was the caption for the pic...
We’ve got three boxes lined up for starters – Crew, Mercs, and Troopers. Each box will give you enough bits for 20 figures, with plenty of options for kitting out your crew.
We’ll have more details on each of the boxes closer to release, so watch this space!
Figure sculpts are by Bobby Jackson, with the incredible paintjobs by Kev Dallimore.
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They look great, although I suspect a big part of that is the lovely paint job ;)
My concern is that they'll end up being a bit too generic, to the point that they're not characterful enough to please anyone. I think I'd even be happier to see dedicated sprues like 'dockworkers', 'station security' and 'thugs' even if it meant smaller sprues.
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The figures look very nice. I am looking forward to them!
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These are absolutely magnificent!
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That middle chap looks like an old Rogue Trader Imperial Guard trooper. Colour me interested.
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Anyway I caved a couple of weeks ago and put this on pre-order, so I am in for the long-haul.
More than for Frostgrave even, as I have always preferred sci-fi over fantasy :D
Set phasers to Stun, shoot to KILL men!
Glen
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Those look to be a winner! They are pretty generic, but that means you can detail them in different directions from you bits box.
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They'll do for many different games and scenarios. I'm glad they are plain and generic. There certainly aren't enough of that type around 8)
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I can easily see buying two of each.
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Set phasers to Stun, shoot to KILL men!
That should read "I come in peace..shoot to kill...shot to kill...shoot to kill...I come in peace...shoot to kill men"
I am interested in these. Very worthwhile first showing.
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That should read "I come in peace..shoot to kill...shot to kill...shoot to kill...I come in peace...shoot to kill men"
I am interested in these. Very worthwhile first showing.
Ahh, I was just waiting to see if anyone would take the bait lol lol lol
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I’m certainly looking forward to the release of these miniatures (and will probably check out the book, too). I use my own space opera setting, so figures that can fit a range of backgrounds will be great!
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This was the caption for the pic...
Oh blasted, I'm blind. lol
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Ahh, I was just waiting to see if anyone would take the bait lol lol lol
Shows my age. lol
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Shows my age. lol
And mine unfortunately ;) :D lol
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I will certainly pick up the rules and likely all the figs. I mainly do fantasy, but through the years have picked up an eclectic variety of SciFi figs (in particular lots of 40K Imperial Guard). A good skirmish rule set should have me putting some on the table. And the plastic kits sound quite promising - I think the Frostgrave and GA boxes have been first rate.
I want to be able to make a SecUnit. Murderbot for the win!
-Michael
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Just having a nosey.
:D
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This looks very interesting.
I hope there will be nice alien figures that won't just be 'the men in monster suits' that the plastic crew have to be for the purposes of interchangeability.
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Having watched a few videos (including a flip-through of the book in which I used the pause button judiciously), I now believe my hopes for Stargrave have come true. It's heavily modified for sci-fi, but still the underlying Frostgrave system with which I have become familiar. That means the fantasy bestiary sections of all my blue and green Frostgrave books are just waiting to become alien critters with a reskinning.
Also, I'll be using Perilous Dark to help me create the cherry-picked mix-match of all my favorite sci-fi settings into my own Stargrave galaxy. I look forward to scrabbling through the rubble of the war between the great Gothic Grimdark Empire and the Cybertech Corporatocracy in the hard-luck frontier of the Outer Rim, where ancient ruin planets are just as common as the war torn frontier worlds where Old Earth Atompunk Americana was in fashion right before the bombardments began...
I'm also scheming how to adapt Mantic's Plagued in as a custom set of baddies to replace the Space Pirates in certain regions. I'm looking forward to finally getting use out of my dragon's hoard from the Deadzone, Warpath, and Star Saga kickstarters!
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Could you link that flip-through please? I havent find anything like that.
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Could you link that flip-through please? I havent find anything like that.
It's pretty much the first half-hour of this monstrosity:
https://youtu.be/gdZdz312bwM (https://youtu.be/gdZdz312bwM)
I'm NOT endorsing the quality of the commentary. The most useful thing is the physical book flip-through as the guy rambles on, sometimes just reading scenario names out loud.
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Thanks!
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Big thanks on this end too. The release date has not changed with the pandemic has it? Updates here seem to have dried up.
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Another good video here, where the guy goes through the similarities and differences between Stargrave and Frostgrave2
https://youtu.be/Om0UDma_I_s
Really looking forward to these rules!
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looking forward to see if there will be another way to acquire the game apart from ordering a hardcover from the other side of the world.
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Somewhere here I read that a number of official The Expanse 3D model files were released for non commercial use, not sure if that included anything but ships.
Not official, no.
https://www.myminifactory.com/campaigns/starship-v-sleipnir-crew-miniatures-and-deck-designer-107
Includes some figures and even the odd vehicle.
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looking forward to see if there will be another way to acquire the game apart from ordering a hardcover from the other side of the world.
Getting the pdf and printing it is probably your best bet. I have printed rules on my own printer before, but you should be able to find a local or online print shop to do it for you if that's not possible.
My printer is getting old and creaky, so I recently got a 150 page pdf printed off in duplex and spiral bound for about £12. It was black and white, rather than colour (which kept the cost down), but is perfectly usable :)
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I have not heard of an official offer for a PDF. Where will it be available?
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Osprey are just showing the hardback just now. However, Frostgrave and Ghost Archipelago are both available in epub and pdf, so I'd be very surprised if there isn't a digital option for Stargrave at some point. Amazon UK is already offering a Kindle version for pre-order.
Amazon is also offering a pre-order of Quarantine 37 (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Stargrave-Quarantine-Joseph-McCullough/dp/147284369X/ref=sr_1_3), as Stargrave's first supplement, due for release September 16 2021
When it was commissioned, Imperial Research Station 37 was home to nearly 10,000 scientists and researchers working on a vast array of biological and chemical projects. Then, six months before the outbreak of the war, Station 37 went dark. No escape pods were launched and all attempts at communication went unanswered. Only a solitary, repeating broadcast filled the silence: "This station is under quarantine - do not approach". When the war came, the station was forgotten, left to drift lifelessly in its empty system. Now, in the aftermath of the Last War, Station 37 has been rediscovered and its broadcast heard once more.
Quarantine 37 is a supplement for Stargrave in which players lead their crews into an abandoned space station, hunting for lost technology, unique research, and forgotten experiments. Compete with your opponents for these valuable resources across two competitive mini-campaigns, or venture into the vast maze of corridors and laboratories alone in the first Stargrave solo campaign. Also included are six new soldier types, new backgrounds and powers, terrifying additions to the bestiary, and a new advanced technology table packed with loot to help you in your adventures in the ravaged galaxy.
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News:
https://www.beastsofwar.com/osprey-publishing/peek-north-stars-new-stargrave-plastic-kits/
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Excellent - looking forward to these. Must admit I would have preferred human women in the mix over and above monkey-men but it's a good start. Looking forward to mixing these with ghost archipelago crewmen too.
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I also look forward to the all female variants to come.
Also, needs 100% more lizard people in there!
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There's only 1 monkey head in the mix of 15. It's just that Kev couldn't resist painting him up.
You should know, we don't do mix male/ female boxes. I personally don't think sticking a woman's head on a males body = a female figure. Men & women are a different shape. I much prefer to make a female frame, where all the heads and arms match up with the bodies properly.
Whether we achieve this or not is a different question lol
So I make this statement, without pointing out that the Trooper box set contains male and female heads. TBH, the debate here was can you tell if someone is a man or a woman under body armour? We dropped on the side of 'no you can't'.
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Have to say these may finally get me back to the modelling desk after a v. long hiatus. Any ideas of when we may get a peek at the sprue(s)?
Thanks in advance
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So I make this statement, without pointing out that the Trooper box set contains male and female heads. TBH, the debate here was can you tell if someone is a man or a woman under body armour? We dropped on the side of 'no you can't'.
I reached the same conclusion when I was modifying the Warlord Games special forces troopers. Took the heads from the female survivor sprue and glued them on. Works fine.
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There's only 1 monkey head in the mix of 15. It's just that Kev couldn't resist painting him up.
You should know, we don't do mix male/ female boxes. I personally don't think sticking a woman's head on a males body = a female figure. Men & women are a different shape. I much prefer to make a female frame, where all the heads and arms match up with the bodies properly.
Whether we achieve this or not is a different question lol
So I make this statement, without pointing out that the Trooper box set contains male and female heads. TBH, the debate here was can you tell if someone is a man or a woman under body armour? We dropped on the side of 'no you can't'.
Yeah understood - wasn't meant as major criticism, excited for the kits. Agreed on the body armour, bulky clothing too. I've use statuesque heads in the past similarly.
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Cool looking stuff, look forward to seeing the sprues.
End of April then...
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So I make this statement, without pointing out that the Trooper box set contains male and female heads. TBH, the debate here was can you tell if someone is a man or a woman under body armour? We dropped on the side of 'no you can't'.
On that note, we obviously haven't seen Combat Armor models as of yet (I assume we might see some metal ones before a plastic kit is released as with Frostgrave knights). I know that base size isn't part of the ruleset, but are you able to state whether there are plans to have official models in Combat Armor on larger base sizes or will they also be on 25mm?
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Once we have assembled our crews, how many and what balance of additional figures will we need to represent the various NPC factions that can arrive on the table if the game drags on?
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I 2nd Bullshotts question. Why kind of numbers will we be looking at here? :D
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The author has some info in his blog renaissance troll on 08/01/2021
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The author has some info in his blog renaissance troll on 08/01/2021
Thanks.
To quote the blog:
Essentially, the longer a scenario goes on, the greater chance all of that gunfire is going to attract attention. At first, this might be low-level law-enforcement, or gangs, or the like, but eventually, its going to be the pirates. And once the pirates are committed, they won’t stop coming…
So, players are going to want to have some miniatures available for this unwanted attention. Here’s the different types you’ll need.
Ruffians (low level grunts in light armour carrying pistols)
Pirate Troopers (Standard baddies in heavy armour with carbines)
Pirate Shock Troopers (Elite baddies in combat armour with carbines)
Bounty Hunters (Bad News in combat armour with carbines)
You’ll want a good handful of ruffians and pirate troopers, a couple of shock troopers, and maybe a bounty hunter or two. Generally, they only show up in small numbers, but potentially they can keep coming forever…
So I guess half a dozen each of goons with pistols and armoured pirates with carbines, plus a couple each of shock troopers and bounty hunters in combat armour with carbines.
I'd be interested in seeing what the author intends combat armour to be like.
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Thanks.
To quote the blog:
So I guess half a dozen each of goons with pistols and armoured pirates with carbines, plus a couple each of shock troopers and bounty hunters in combat armour with carbines.
I'd be interested in seeing what the author intends combat armour to be like.
I thought at first that combat armour wouldn’t be power armour, but given that the level below has “heavy armour” now I am not so sure. I’ll probably do this in 15m.
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I think it’s pretty vague like Frostgrave but I took Combat Armour to be power armour as I’m sure I read somewhere it gives other stat bonus (move or strength or something)
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The soldier stats are available - that should give a clue.
Light armour - 10 move 6
Heavy Armour - 11 move 5
Combat Armour -13 move 6
It might be my Traveller/Laserburn heritage but I imagine the following:
Light Armour: flexible or improvised body armour, light (skater style) helmets
(https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-atjw01PdAdY/X4YeDyTUC7I/AAAAAAAAHIU/xv5UFwqcvwI-d4EtNoEMpXsOPgh_ir4zgCLcBGAsYHQ/s529/militia-1-1.png)
(https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-TzzaFuw53Wk/XePjE7hcacI/AAAAAAAAF9c/dUjCQROq76UXg45u0-9ZxLFxeUp_nXtkgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/pip-8.png)
(https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-sIk4aowP698/XDRQqqQxUkI/AAAAAAAAEnA/bkAS9V1QnOcDXZ14fWqGzcz4oVqtsGkjACLcBGAs/s1600/sophie2.png)
Heavy armour: armoured dusters, open face helmets, vests with inserts, clamshell cuirass
(https://3.bp.blogspot.com/-3JXmsizIo0I/WW4za8Dr37I/AAAAAAAAChs/6nl-dS4FVzA2bFPnmWqrYRgE3JB7QsEwwCLcBGAs/s1600/mayzombieslayer1.png)
Combat Armour: Fully enclosed high tech armour
(https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-3J8Or_ub08A/XiSeneER48I/AAAAAAAAGIA/8C2oHcuDY8cRx6ufyw98TdNE02ZzLLnoQCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/securitytroop5.png)
(https://4.bp.blogspot.com/-L9-SUcais9g/VcWmRwTXwEI/AAAAAAAAA54/W2xAFtqRNww/s1600/argonaut4.png)
(https://1.bp.blogspot.com/-v2Q3-6RNMas/WTzneNnEFaI/AAAAAAAACXw/-kfOha_Cz44drUErpANV07mgfNGGPd0sQCLcB/s1600/orbitalfusileer2-2.png)
(https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-eFONx-qe7rc/WTznfMat_II/AAAAAAAACYI/HQPkaZMmDzkCfnNCDZPFzv65QOAANxJHgCLcB/s1600/orbitalfusileer7-1.png)
Power Armour is likely to be heavier
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Are the soldier stats available - that should give a clue.
Yes:
http://therenaissancetroll.blogspot.com/2021/03/stargrave-assemble-your-crew.html
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I think it’s pretty vague like Frostgrave but I took Combat Armour to be power armour as I’m sure I read somewhere it gives other stat bonus (move or strength or something)
I watched a pre-release review on YouTube last night, which included a skim through the book. One of the illustrations was of someone in what can only be described as a suit of powered armour. I therefore think it's a fair assumption that, whereas heavy armour would provide protection equivalent to modern top of the range military armour, combat armour is proper powered suits.
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I also think, that combat armor should be some kind of power armor, because:
- Heavy armor has a M5, combat armor M6. That should be possible, if it has some kind of servo-drive.
- It has F+4 (highest value of all) without any close combat weapon, while the second highest is F+3, with close combat weapon. The explanation for this can be, if the combat armor is the close combat weapon himself.
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Here an excellent in-depth review of Stargrave on YouTube, by Drive Thru Games:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14OCPeqk1Jc (https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=14OCPeqk1Jc)
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Have to find some time and watch it... Thanks for shareing!
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I also think, that combat armor should be some kind of power armor, because:
- Heavy armor has a M5, combat armor M6. That should be possible, if it has some kind of servo-drive.
- It has F+4 (highest value of all) without any close combat weapon, while the second highest is F+3, with close combat weapon. The explanation for this can be, if the combat armor is the close combat weapon himself.
Knew I wasn't imagining things! I agree, sounds like power armour (maybe more hard sci fi type than full on space marine) to me
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Noticed this today.
https://www.northstarfigures.com/prod.php?prod=15386 (https://www.northstarfigures.com/prod.php?prod=15386)
At the top of the page it says:
"IF YOU WANT TO JOIN IN THE STARGRAVE NICKSTARTER PREORDER CAMPAIGN, DON'T ORDER THE BOOK HERE. HANG ON UNTIL APRIL."
Can't wait.
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Amazon has it at £6 off on pre-order just now, so I'll be interested to see what sort of deal Northstar comes up with. It's usually pretty good, but always nice to have options...
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I believe the Nickstarter will probably cover release of the plastic figures too, so there may be discount on the bundle.
However, as I'm initially buying Stargrave on a rules-only basis, I've ordered mine as a pre-order at a discounted price from my FLGS as 'click and collect' (in these strange times I'd rather support my local store to help them stay in business, than throw more money at Amazon).
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^ I agree.
I don’t play 40k, but painted up a small selection of Tau models I plan to make use of in StarGrave.
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However, as I'm initially buying Stargrave on a rules-only basis, I've ordered mine as a pre-order at a discounted price from my FLGS as 'click and collect' (in these strange times I'd rather support my local store to help them stay in business, than throw more money at Amazon).
I know that feeling. Be nice to have a FLGS to actually game at after the pandemic finally ends instead of a whole bunch of slightly cheaper stuff and yet another empty storefront where the store used to be.
Sure not easy lately. US distribution on miniatures games has been getting worse for years and 2020 really accelerated the process. I can't even find non-D&D, non-GW figs in the FLGS any more, and these days I can't even special order them any more, that's how bad the distributors have gotten about carrying "smaller" games - and somehow Frostgrave and company count as "smaller" despite their fan base.
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^ I agree.
I don’t play 40k, but painted up a small selection of Tau models I plan to make use of in StarGrave.
Those are very nice Tau btw.
I've got quite a selection of 40k stuff and am tempted to get a few boxes of Stargrave units to act as the myriad of private military/local security units on the frontiers of the Imperium and use the game as a basis for that. There is a myriad of plastic sets out there that'd be good fill ins for the more obscure 40K alien races these days.
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Wargames Soldiers and Strategy has a brief summary with, more excitingly, a (apparently official) link to the chapter on creating your crew (link in the 3rd para):
https://www.karwansaraypublishers.com/wssblog/first-look-at-stargrave/?fbclid=IwAR1YxL_zzj4JpJhFuazBXb0yOXyl-UiM1mxekTSpHmGPIwpD977lyBww4yA (https://www.karwansaraypublishers.com/wssblog/first-look-at-stargrave/?fbclid=IwAR1YxL_zzj4JpJhFuazBXb0yOXyl-UiM1mxekTSpHmGPIwpD977lyBww4yA)
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I also think, that combat armor should be some kind of power armor, because:
- Heavy armor has a M5, combat armor M6. That should be possible, if it has some kind of servo-drive.
- It has F+4 (highest value of all) without any close combat weapon, while the second highest is F+3, with close combat weapon. The explanation for this can be, if the combat armor is the close combat weapon himself.
FWIW, you can read the page with all the armor types on it in several of the preview vids.
Light armor is just that, light, incomplete coverage, could be as little as a flak vest or helmet or scifi ballistic weave fabric that looks just clothing.
Heavy armor is closer to modern military armor or RT's carapace, and can attach a powered stabilizer rig for "rapid-fire" weapons (think Aliens smartgun, or a continuous beam weapon) so they don't impose a movement penalty. Takes two equipment slots on a captain or mate.
Combat armor has a built in respirator (ie it's atmospherically sealed in game terms) and hand weapon, no movement penalty, and a whopping +4 to armor (putting it one shy of the game's max). It's power armor, no two ways about it. Also takes two equipment slots.
Before you go crazy on figs in combat armor (you could have as many as six in theory) note that you have to pay 50 creds up front before each mission for each suit, and if you can't one of two things happens: a captain/mate can opt to take different armor (it's free to swap around basic equipment like that) and come to the fight, or if it's a specialist you can't use them at all and get a free "recruit" (the game's equivalent of a FG thug) as a consolation prize for that battle only (so you'll still have the maximum number of figs, allowing for injuries). So budget accordingly beforehand.
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I got my rule book, Tuesday, this week. I’m excited.