Carnevale

[Sir_Theo]

I was browsing through the ttcombat website at their mdf buildings and I notice they now carry this game (I seem to remember someone had picked it up from Vesper-On))

Does anyone have any experience of the game? What's it like? I remember hearing it required fairly dense terrain.  What's the typical table size for a game and what sort of numbers per party are we talking about?

The models are quite nice and the terrain ttcombat are doing for it look great.  I'm a big fan of the Assassin creed computer games so it's appealing to me!

[Elbows]

I have seen some videos on their buildings and they were working on some really damn cool Carnevale-settings.  I haven't seen anything about the game - the idea is intriguing but I'd imagine the terrain requirements are probably pretty off-putting to a lot of people.  Not many people can set up a quick and easy table of Venice or whatever.

[Sir_Theo]

I notice they do a nice terrain set that looks good and isn't too expensive all things considered.  I might see if I can cobble some thing together from my existing terrain and give it a go.   

I think I'll pick up the rulebook and have a look. I've put some of the models in my basket... Just to paint toy understand...

So many games so little time. 

[Morgan]

I've got a lot of Carnevale miniatures and the rulebook but have never actually had a game. The rules are quite complex and I think that, if I ever get around to playing a game, I'll probably take inspiration from them but use something a bit more slimmed down. On the scale and size of table needed for a skirmish, one needn't go overboard on creating Venice-in-miniature. My main reason for picking up the models is that I've been to Venice for the Carnevale many times and there are plenty of areas of the city that are "a park" or "a square" allowing one to edge into the terrain rather than having to go all-in. As to the models: they're lovely but, man, they are delicate and of the 30 or so that I own, all but one was a multipart model. I am incredibly pleased with the results and they go together pretty well but I had to do a lot of work with drill-and-pin, including drilling into tiny wrists and hands to secure them together.

[robh]

Sadly the rules are more complex than they need to be and have some balance issues depending on who you play with. They are basically a "Goalsystem" dice mechanism with a lot of special/individual abilites and skills to boost the characters.

Buildings are only really necessary as facades as there are no rules for entering or gaming within buildings (just running over the roof and leaping off balconies).
The key requirement in scenery is the canals and bridges if you intend to play with the Rashaar (Cthulhu) faction as without water on the table they suffer compared to the other gangs.
Gangs are only 5 or 6 figures.

Great little game that unfortunately suffered from boutique priced figures and a major time/effort investment in scenery building (or scratchbuilding in the days before PlastCraft)  just to get started.  The TTCombat stuff certainly makes it a better option now than it was on launch.

[Sir_Theo]

Thanks a lot everyone.  Useful replies!

TTcombat have the hardback rulebook for a tenner and the starter sets for twenty quid so I think I'm going to pick the rules up and possibly a couple of the starters.  I'll probably never play it but they look fun to paint!

[mweaver]

Can't speak to the game, but I received a few of the miniatures for Christmas.  Nice sculpts, but most had hand-to-wrist joins, which for slim metal figures is really annoying for me (I play with my miniatures).
-Michael

[Sir_Theo]

Some frustrating nights ahead for me then! Better find my pin vice

I do much prefer a nice solid single piece sculpt.

[Morgan]

Single piece is undoubtedly less work but it must be said that the dynamism of some of the Carnevale models is amazing, giving a real sense of movement. My favourite is The Duke. I imagine that it would be difficult/impossible to get that pose in a single piece.

I haven't seen any of the models that might have come out since the move over to TTCombat. I must remedy that!

[Sir_Theo]

Single piece is undoubtedly less work but it must be said that the dynamism of some of the Carnevale models is amazing, giving a real sense of movement. My favourite is The Duke. I imagine that it would be difficult/impossible to get that pose in a single piece.

I haven't seen any of the models that might have come out since the move over to TTCombat. I must remedy that!

I'm not sure if any new figures have come out (and their stock level seems limited)  but check out the scenery range they have put together.  For th e prices they are very nice!

[Dolmot]

I played it for some time in 2013 or so. The scenery requirements aren't necessarily outright crazy. I think canals were basically mandatory for some scenarios (and they kinda belong to the setting), but if you manage to find something for elevated levels and some generic pieces for street clutter, it's already playable. TerraClips punchboard stuff worked well if you can accept 2D textures. A proper, fully 3D city board can obviously take up to lifetime to build.

The rules had many good ideas, but also some aspects which didn't feel that well thought out. The damage and toughness system made many attacks completely pointless and others deadly. Point values didn't reflect that huge difference well enough. The consequences should be obvious if you go even a tiny bit to the list optimisation path. (And I really mean "a tiny bit", not even close to full tournament gamer mode.) However, the game should always be played in a scenario-centric way, where fulfilling goals is the key, not piling everything in the centre and grinding HP until the last man is standing.

Its mini-campaign system felt quite neat. There's some story and development between games, but no huge issues with runaway leaders or auto-losing like in Mordheim and other GW classics with endless campaigns.

Well, eventually everyone who wanted a tournament-playable game ended up playing Malifaux instead, but if you like the theme of Carnevale and manage to find a few gentleman players to try a small campaign, it may be worth your time. At least it's a good excuse to build some nifty terrain pieces...



There was a 2nd edition too. I never bought it so I have no idea, how much it managed to improve the game.

[Sir_Theo]

Just an update.  I bought the rulebook (which is the 2ns D edition Kickstarter one)  and had a flick through.  It looks rather intricate,  the movement and combat actions remind me of something like 4th edition D&D and other minis heavy RPGs. But its intriguing and I'd like to give it a go. 

The following day I put a decent sized minis order in for a couple of the starter sets (Guild and the evil Plague doctors)  and a few extras.  I've thought of my scenery options and I'm fairly well set,  but I'll be getting some bridges from TT once the figures are painted. 

Thanks for your help and advice everyone.

[Morgan]

It's been good to see this thread - it reminded me that I've got a bunch of primed miniatures waiting for a splash of colour! I also discovered that I'd been following the wrong Facebook group and had missed the recent updates from TTCombat. Good to see they are gathering pace.

[SotF]

I believe that there is a new version coming soon since the game transferred from the creators hands to another company and it's being set up for, essentially, a massive relaunch soon