Ptah, Guardian of the Ways (for BSA PBEM)

[Doc Twilight]

My own little contribution to the "Living Walls of Votok" game. Got this guy in a huge lot of old GW stuff at an auction last year. Have no idea who the manufacturer was (a bit big to be a Grenadier, perhaps a Partha). Enjoyed painting him up. Went Non-Metal Metal with this one.



-Doc

[Rhoderic]

Another cloak-and-dagger character! This game is going to have a lot of sneaky business in it

Cool figure and concept. All those blue clothes make him look like he has a purpose.

Just searched the Ral Partha Europe store for "assassin" and "thief" but I didn't find that one, so it might not be Ral Partha. Certainly looks like a Ral Partha or Grenadier, though. Could he maybe be an early Reaper?

[Earther]

Yep - early Reaper - Assassin of Jalahandra I think…

[dodge]

Nice mini like the blue on his cloak and clothes

dodge

[Galman]

Nice use of non metalics for the blad and broche.  Love the figure, good find and good paint job.

[Heldrak]

That is a lovely rich blue color...

So post this guy up in the Rattrap Forums "Pre-game Mood Setting" thread already...!

[Doc Twilight]

Thanks for identifying him for me, guys. I wasn't sure what line he was. I thought he might be Reaper, but seemed to be a bit earlier than that. However, he's a great figure all the same, and I'm glad you liked him.

I got the deep blue effect using an inking technique I learned from the guys at Gripping Beast. It's something they do for horses, but I've found it works really well for deep colors. You essentially paint the main base color, and then cover it in a heavy ink made from water soluble oil - generally a darker shade of the base color, but a lot of experimentation works wonders, and can even create some good blends. Anyway, you literally cover the figure with it, and then you wipe off as much as you can with a clean cloth, and allow it to dry before you finish it.

It's sort of similar to the magic dip method but without the smell and sometimes toxic nature of the floor polish.

Glad you like the NMM stuff, too:) I started doing it when painting up some Pre-Heresy Marines last year. I really like the effect it can have, though it takes some practice and I'm by no means an expert, just average.

Looking forward to the game, anyway. Seems like we're all shifty, shady types. Perhaps I should have brought the twin Pygmies, instead;) Maybe next game.

-Doc

[Galman]

Have fun with the game.  Make sure to take pics on the progress and let us know how it turns out.

[Rhoderic]

Have fun with the game.  Make sure to take pics on the progress and let us know how it turns out.

The thing with the Rattrap PBEM games, at least the ones that have been done so far, is that they're never actually played in miniature. We submit photos of miniatures for our characters, but we don't send them to the GM or anything. So, the whole game is "only" visualized in overhead grid maps with somewhat abstract tokens representing the figures.

Like anything, it has upsides and downsides. I think it works quite well, but I've also been thinking of running a different type of PBEM game that's played entirely with miniatures I actually have in situ. That way I could provide the players and audience with actual photos of actual gameplay. The downside would be that the players get less control (or possibly no control at all) over what characters they get to play. Which might ultimately make it seem like the GM has all the fun while the players feel like they're only there to enable the GM's fantasy of a perfect game. I hope that won't be the case.

[Operator5]

Rhoderic: I have thought the same thing as you. However, that does not have to be the case. I have not done it simply because of time constraints. It's easy for me to move a token about throughout the day. But to photograph each game move would require a lot of time.

To get around the players have no control part, I would put up pictures of each of the miniatures and have players pick which one they want to use and then create the character around it.

Or, you can get really ambitious and have everyone send you a 360° view of the figure and then virtually add it to each scene. 

[Rhoderic]

Having a gallery of figures for the players to choose from is something I've thought of too. It's the ideal solution but of course it requires one to actually have a good selection of figures to start with. It's something I'm slowly working towards.

I'm not sure you'd have to photograph every move as it happens. I imagine this kind of game would work best if you still keep a grid map as before, for keeping track of the definite positions of everything in the game. You can then take as many or as few photos of the action as you like, but these would all ultimately be "slaved" to the grid map (does that make any sense at all?). This way, sometimes you could just backtrack and take photos of things that happened a bit earlier.

[Heldrak]

I, for one would not mind painting up a figure and sending it to Rhoderic (or another reliable GM) if that meant that I had more latitude in choosing what type of character I played, or what type of figure represented him/her.

I really enjoyed the "Ghosts of Mars" FW game that was reported using the "Comic Life" software here on LAF, and I certainly wouldn't mind paying the postage there & back on a figure if it meant that we had more options in creating an interesting graphic representation of the game.

Just a thought...

[Operator5]

I'd gladly try it out on a one time basis to see if it works. But the liability for the receiver is there. If I get the figures and then send them back to you (especially with players around the world) and the post loses it, who's to blame?

It's a slippery slope.

[Heldrak]

For myself, I would understand it to be an "at-one's-own-risk" situation, but I can certainly understand if GM's wouldn't want the responsibility of handling other people's figures.

My suggestion in that case would be for the potential GM to make a variety of representational figures available, but to still allow players to create their own characters based on the available figures (rather than assigning pre-created characters). Building your own character is half the fun, after all...

[flooglestreet]

I like the 'GM has all the figures and posts photos' approach. The players still control the action on the gridded board, but the GM can amplify the activity by showing the figures in 'action'. Some of the shots would not make a lot of sense, given the fact that poses can't be changed. Also I am considering having PMs for movement and dialog which the GM posts in comic life.