What is the appeal of Frostgrave

[Elbows]

Not a huge deal, but yes my small gaming group gave up on it after an evening worth of play.  Just didn't scratch an itch.  All we invested was a couple of rulebooks so it wasn't a big loss.  The minis are great (the plastic kits at least) and we didn't go bananas trying to build tables etc.

Just didn't work for us.  I did see a potentially awesome game with a bunch of house rules and work...and we haven't played/experienced any of the expansions.

[Mindenbrush]

I am very much an historical gamer - ACW M&T, SYW, Naps - but I have caught the Frostgrave 'bug' and participated in all the Nick/Gnickstarters, purchased the extra plastic figures etc and aquired a lot of Pegasus Gothic building kits.
I have just started working on my Wizards, cleaned them up, cut the bases down to bare minimum, glued them to washers and then added paving stones from Procreate. I even replaced some of the weapons and staffs with steel ones just to make sure they will stand up to general gaming - it is amazing how many people cram a bunch of figures in their hand without realising they can damage the figures.
I will enjoy painting them, keeping as close to the books and Kevin Dallimore's style as possible.
I will enjoy the putting together the plastic figures and converting them.
I will enjoy building the scenery etc for the game as I feel presentation is a big factor in enjoying a game.
And I will enjoy running the game both locally in the gaming group and at conventions.
As for the rules, they all take a while to learn and I don't expect to get it right first time - I initially could not see how good the M&T ruleset was but a bit of perseverance has paid off.
Cheers,
Graham W

[markdienekes]

Not a huge deal, but yes my small gaming group gave up on it after an evening worth of play.  Just didn't scratch an itch.  All we invested was a couple of rulebooks so it wasn't a big loss.  The minis are great (the plastic kits at least) and we didn't go bananas trying to build tables etc.

Just didn't work for us.  I did see a potentially awesome game with a bunch of house rules and work...and we haven't played/experienced any of the expansions.

I've had the opposite reaction - it's been the only tabletop game I've played in years. I used to play a lot of Necromunda, Mordheim and some Judge Dredd skirmish games, but none have been as much fun as Frostgrave, and I've never even been a fan of wizard stuff before (poncy wizardry!) The setting is great, the rpg elements fun with decent progression. I really like the normal lads don't level up (if I feel they deserve a level up, I'll maintain the name of the figure and just upgrade him to a better quality soldier). I also like they can represent anything from your collection, and we've got some very interesting warbands running around.

We've been playing by the rules (the only house rule we have is not being able to buy the magic items - they're too rare.)

[Too Bo Coo]

I just picked up the game myself.  Some guys at my local shop play and I already have a ton of Otherworld minis to use as a warband...or several.  I'll use this group for one sort



And choose from these for necromancers

[Azzabat]

@Elbows, that's a shame. I'd be interested to know what it was about the game your players didn't like?

I know when we first played we had a lot of issues with the treasure placement. In the official,rules placing them directly in front of your deployment zone meant each side just ran in, grabbed the treasure and then ran off the the table, often without a shot being fired, or sometimes a spell being cast.

Once we house ruled a different treasure setup, 1 treasure in the middle of the board and the others within 9" of this, it became a much more interesting game.

Also Frostgrave is intended more for a campaign then a one off. Did you guys do a couple of games, or just the 1?

[Paddy649]

Nice miniatures Too Bo Coo.  Love the Necromancer warband.

[Too Bo Coo]

Nice miniatures Too Bo Coo.  Love the Necromancer warband.

Thanks Mate!  I wanted to give the rules a go and I already had all of these minis for Otherworld Skirmish so...

[markdienekes]

Not a huge deal, but yes my small gaming group gave up on it after an evening worth of play.  Just didn't scratch an itch.  All we invested was a couple of rulebooks so it wasn't a big loss.  The minis are great (the plastic kits at least) and we didn't go bananas trying to build tables etc.

Just didn't work for us.  I did see a potentially awesome game with a bunch of house rules and work...and we haven't played/experienced any of the expansions.

What was the itch that was missing for you?

[LeadAsbestos]

I'm not feeling it at all. Nothing abt the rules made me want to jump in and get playing.

7th Voyage had the correct effect, as I have a dozen casts formed up for several different settings. Can't wait to get a bunch of games in. Real inspirational!

[Digitarii]

I understand that. I encountered that same lack of feeling with any number of games over the years. FrostGrave, for me at least, stimulated a creative spark that had been lacking for some time. While I was waiting for my Kickstarter to arrive, I started collecting bits and pieces for minis and terrain. Some of those bits led to me discovering games like Lion Rampant, Dragon Rampant and Otherworld, which led to other creative sparks that I could still use with FrostGrave.

[Too Bo Coo]

I'm willing to give it a go.  At the least I'll have more minis for my other games

[YPU]

I'll admit this is true for me as well. I am one of the play-testers mentioned in the book but have yet lacked the impetus to actually buy the book and pick up play again.  

What I will say though is that I have zero hard feelings against Frostgrave. A lot of people are enjoying it and I have seen people who were stuck on a single game for ages (mostly GW) break out of their mould and start looking at other miniatures for the first time. It has sparked all sorts of creativity and paint explosions. It has even led to an influx of new members here on LAF, my favoured forum. 

[Elbows]

That is essentially the crux of it.  A product either hits the button in my "must buy, build, paint, play!" zone or it doesn't.  As I occasionally end up downloading/buying rulebooks, I picked up Frostgrave.  Sounded interesting.  Picked up the hardback book, appreciated the nice pictures and layout.

Invited buddies over for an evening of games, we busted our some dungeon terrain - all had minis (mine were painted!) to use so it was not much out of pocket.  Two of the other four had the book on PDF as well.  After the game we all just felt a bit of "meh".  Not a strong dislike but just didn't spark much further interest.  I hate to say it, but the key detractor for me was that it wasn't fun.  I don't say that meaning it was difficult, or unwieldy or poorly written etc.  It just didn't elicit any shouts, laughs, or major moments.

I would not be opposed to trying it again if a friend hosted a game day and Frostgrave was featured but it simply didn't motivate me to continue down the path, nor did it encourage me to make it a project.

[Ingmar]

Too me the appeal is in the absolute freedom Frostgrave brings. I grew up against a background of Baldur's Gate, Warhammer Fantasy and Mordheim. All things I loved about those games I see back on the tabletop. I actually wasn't 100% sold until I saw the beautiful batreps from Ash and actually ordered the book. I like how organized it all is, but in essence is no more then a set of guidelines. For me personally, I feel any competative player can ruin any game, especially when it's not restrictive in nature. So far Frostgrave has brought me out of a very deep hobby hiatus back into modelling (with a lot of pleasure I might add).

[WitchfinderGeneral]

I don't like the miniatures, just because they are plastic and I don't like that look. That's OK, I understand that I don't need the"official" Minis to play the game.
But I absolutely hate any kind of magic or other things I can't see on the table but could have a major influence on the game (like artillery or air strikes). Can this game be enjoyed without magic or is magic such a crucial element that I should better skip the game completely?