Is The Sword and the Flame still for sale?

[Old Contemptable]

I’ve never played FFOL and initially assumed it was set in the Old West, though I might be mistaken. From what I understand, it seems to involve role-playing. In contrast, my experience with TSATF occasionally includes characters that appear in multiple games, but they function entirely within the rules system. They’re equipped like any other figure, with perhaps a small bonus (+1) for something unique, but that’s as far as I go toward role-playing.

In essence, TSATF is not a role-playing game. While it can include elements of role-playing, it’s primarily focused on battles and accomplishing missions. The traits of Natives and Imperial units are predefined, making the game about broader forces rather than individual characters. That said, the system is flexible enough to incorporate such aspects if desired. On the other hand, FFOL sounds more like a role-playing campaign game where characters persist and develop over time. Personally, I’m glad TSATF doesn’t take that approach—I’m not interested in role-playing.

While I do maintain a narrative thread across games, I don’t track characters or their progression. Occasionally, a character might appear in multiple games, but there’s no progression from a +1 to a +3 based on experience. For me, some characters are there for just one game and never return.

To me, TSATF is a historical game that recreates typical military conflicts between Natives and Imperials. My focus is historically driven, not character-driven. Everything revolves around historical events, with most characters in my games being actual leaders from those conflicts. The narrative is shaped by history, not by the characters themselves.

However I have dabbled in the old Hollywood B movies genre. Gunga Din, Beau Geste, Khartoum etc. But history is always primary. The two game systems may not fall in the same category for comparison.

This is as close to role-playing as I get. The characters work within the rules system. There is one players playing them all. They use the standard charts, no player assumes their roles. I gave some of them a bonus on the charts for fun. But they function just like any other figure. They can't do anything heroic. The scenario is based on the big fight in the movie "March or Die." In the movie the Legion must protect an archeological dig. I expanded the scenario quit a bit. They may or may not show up in another game. If they do they are exactly the same as before.

https://www.flickr.com/photos/59568506@N02/albums/72177720305093550/

[fred]

FFoL isn’t an RPG, it’s a skirmish game, that covers most genres through supplements. And has a big battle variant.

It’s probably somewhat confusing as it has evolved over the years, it did start as a Wild West set, then added Galactic Heroes as a Sci Fi set of rules. But over the years the core mechanisms have been refined to be a standalone set, with supplements to add the period specific bits.

The core of the rules are :
1) Card based activation, with certain cards giving bonuses. This activation both mixes up the order of players, whilst giving players choice around which of their figures they will activate with a given card. It also scales happily across multiple players
2) fixed target numbers for Easy, Medium and Hard successes - which makes it pretty easy to rule on a task. Shooting adds in a few modifiers but is based on this.
3) Quality of figure based on dice type, with d10 being typical, d8 being poor and d12 great.
4) Traits to give special rules / period flavour etc.

It is this solid core that has made it so adaptable to different eras and settings.

There is a big battle variant, which takes the core mechanisms but applies them to a group of figures rather than a single one.

[italwars]

Good Morning,

Is it still possible to buy the rule set The Sword and the Flame?  I know they have a website but it looks a little out of date.  I sent an email to the address listed on the site but have gotten no response.  Has anyone ever ordered from them?  Thanks.

Ned

I think that you should try to purchase the last edition which included a new and essential individual fire method and some important amendments if compared with the previous ones...and probably on ebay ecc.. you will only find old editions not that last one

Despite that,  at the moment, there still is an available source for it..which is the Australian very reliable Castaway Arts..also producer, in my opinion,  of the best ever made colonial minis from different periods. He sells the rules plus quite a few TSATF variations (section rules, books, magazines)

https://www.castawayarts.com.au/index.php?cmd=store

i do not know where are you based but i guess UK or US ...so  you should be, between Commonwealth or AUSFTA treaties,  probably,  better placed than me (that i live in the EU common market) , as concern import taxes , affordable  postage fees and waiting times

[nedpatrick]

Thanks for the link.  They do have some good minis!

[FifteensAway]

So, for US, the Castaway Arts Ol' Gimlet Eye price is about $12.00 US and add probably $4+ for shipping.  A bit pricey for a supplement but I'll dwell upon it.  Going to check out that website a bit more - and, alas, wrong scale for me after checking. 

And, FFOL is very definitely NOT a RPG, not at all.  It just allows characterful play if desired.  Can leave it out.  But I think it adds a lot to a game.  It allows things like a player says I want to shoot a fire arrow into the hotel.  Game master can say that is a medium task so roll X on dX - but first roll X on dX to see if you brought along the right stuff to start a fire.  Which may sound like RPG but it isn't.  A lot easier than trying to locate "fire" + "arrow" + "shooting" + "materials" at paragraph d11.7 on page 42 of supplement 29.3 and cross reference with subparagraph G on page 14 of the primary rules - or some such nonsense.  Just allows simple and practical solutions to common gaming challenges that, for me, just adds to the fun.  And, yes, they were originally conceived for the Old West.  And, yes, there are lots of variants.  But just owning FFOL Reloaded will let you run anything.  The core rules change almost not at all between variants - biggest difference is between Bigger Battles and other options but even that difference is relatively minor.  Once you know one variant you pretty much know all the variants.  The big benefit of owning variants is really the lists for building forces.

In a game I played I had an Indian who acted in an "overwatch" capacity (unintended, rules don't really have that option - though maybe some variants do) and got so lucky with my dice rolls that the D10 figure was scheduled to be a D12 figure in the next game (unfortunately that was the last game played heading into lock down and the 'keeper' of the rules at that time is now in not such good health).  In a recent game I ran, I asked each player to pick one of the figures they were running and choose it as their alter-ego within the game.  Some did, some didn't but for those it did, I think it added a fun and more personal element to the game.

And, like TSATF, FFOL works best when the number of figures (or units if Bigger Battles) is kept on the smaller side, neither set designed for battle sized actions.

I'll take FFOL eighteen days a week over TMWWBK, by the way, and TSATF  two and a half days a week.  Those rules, MWWBK, contain good ideas, I just don't think it executes very well what it attempts to do.  I give them a B- for effort and a D- for playability (American style grading where A+ is the best, F- is the worst, and no E for some reason).   But, like TSATF - and FFOL! - they have their die-hard adherents, heck, sometimes in the same person.

[The Gray Ghost]

I'm looking to replace my TSATF
 What is considered small to medium scale in number of figures?

[FifteensAway]

Gray Ghost, if you mean FFOL, for the single figure variants, a player can run 4 - 8 figures, fewer figures if more players. The real hard limit is how many cards in a deck - either 52 (or 60 if using a fractal deck); if more players, then recommend fewer figures per player.  For the Bigger Battles variant, a similar number of units per player.  Bigger Battles does seem to play a lot 'bloodier'. 

For each card played either one figure, or one unit for BB, is activated.  Play follows a sequence from Kings down to 2 with Aces 'wild', each face or number in suit sequence, spades highest.  This is the key to the rules, really, and keeps the action flowing faster than you might think - and keeps players engaged in the action.  Some other rules have players walking away from the game knowing they won't need to do anything for a while.  Doesn't happen so much with FFOL.

Most people can play 90%+ of game with nothing more than the QRS that comes with the rules - and that is from first experience with the rules.  I've seen some rather garrulous and grizzled gaming veterans state that these are the most fun rules they've ever played.  Not for the rivet counters and the micro-measuring crowd, but if your goal is to have fun games, give them a try.

[giorgio]

If you like skirmish with few miniatures i suggest a try with Pulp Alley. Of course it depends if you like Hollywood movies atmosphere...

[Smokeyrone]

I've used it for Star Wars, Dark Ages, horror (the military assault on Innsmouth, colonial mummies n zombies n such) and Aztecs vs Conquistadores.

Oh, and great Pacific Island WWII gaming. 

It's not good for linear, mass battles (like Isandhlwana) where force a is on one side, lined up against force B.   It's PERFECT for search and destroy, ambush type scenarios (units traversing hostile territory, against hordes of unseen bad guys. )

Can be fairly large games.  5+ twenty man units of Europeans vs 10+  twenty man units of "natives" on a large table can keep a dozen people having fun all night!


If you wanna do WWI for instance, it's not good for the Western Front, but it's GREAT for the Great War in Africa!!!

Yes for Quadacanal, no for Kursk. 

Get it?

[HerbertTarkel]

The FFOL rules base covers so much - I recently picked up their Battle
suit Alpha for Gundam - talk about range with a base rule set!