Nightgaunts

I have always liked Nightgaunts from my days of playing Call of Cthulhu, and I have a few figures for my Strange Aeons games.

 But today I saw a green for a Nightgaunt that I really want to add to my collection when it is released.

 A company called Avolak Castings posted some photos of their greens on LAF:

 This is just one of the images showing off these excellent sculpts.

 I have been looking at Avolak Castings since they first showed up on LAF, but I have been hesitant to buy anything from them because the prices are in Euros and there is not cost on postage.

 Usually the postage from Euro nations is very expensive.

 But, when the Nightgaunts come out I might just have to harden up and place an order to get some.

The figures are not up on the Avolak Castings web site yet, but they do have some other excellent figures for those that play Call of Cthulhu type games: Avolak Castings

Gaming updates

In my last post I mentioned some things that arrived in the mail; now I have some photos to go with it.

First up is a photo showing a sample of the banana trees I purchased for my Vietnam game:

 And yes, they are as shocking to the eye as what you see in the photo.  Fortunately they lose the nuclear appearance once a bit of paint goes on them.  I have painted one up as a test and will post photos once I have based a few up ready for my game.

 The trees are just a bit taller than the 28mm figures, but they will do nicely for placing around my Vietnamese village for my games.


Next, I have some 28mm Gangster figures for my "Mad Dogs with Guns" game.

 I have painted two of the tommy gunners. One represents one of my gang members, and the other is a generic opponent.

And I painted all of the police figures that came with the tommy gunners:

 I am not so sure what to do with the bases for these figures, so painted them a grey colour to represent concrete.


 Since I purchased these figures I picked up some extra ones on ebay from an Australian seller; some female civilians, some sleuths (including the 'not Tintin' and 'not snowy' the dog) and the pack of gun molls.

 This will add to my gang and allow me to put civilian figures in harms way, which is part of the rules, so I am pleased with getting these figures.


I also purchased a crypt rather cheaply that is made by GW.  As per every thing GW there are too many spikes and skulls on their models, but fortunately I was able to cut the spikes off the top of the crypt to match my tastes a bit better.

 This will be right at home in a grave yard for my Strange Aeons games, and I really should paint up the Heresy Miniatures ghouls I have floating around somewhere.

 There is still the photo of the well I am painting up for Strange Aeons, but I want to finish the whole thing before displaying this.

During the week I was also able to get a introduction game of Bolt Action in with my friend, and I took a couple of photos. 
 I will make another post in the next day or so about this game, as it deserves a post of its own.

a few goodies in the mail

This last week has seen a few hobby items turn up in my letter box.

 First is issue 3 of "Shocking Tales" for Strange Aeons. This arrive last week and has some interesting things in it.

 There are new rules for Psychic agents, but it is very hard to actually get to use them in a game, so some house rules may be in order there.

 The majority of the book is dedicated to three "Black Dossiers" (read scenarios linked together) which isn't that useful for my games, but within the Dossiers are stats for giant insects, man eating plants, Dunwich denizens and a Servitor.

 The Servitor allows me to dust of an old cthulhu miniature of a servitor that I had lying around.

 Also in the mail earlier this week was a crypt that only cost me about $3.50. This was one of the crypts from warhammer. As with most of GW items there are too many skulls on it, but it will do the job I want for my Strange Aeons games.

 When I was ordering the crypt I also found some banana trees, so I ordered those at the same time. I now have some banana trees for my Vietnam game.

 My Copplestone Castings Gangsters and Police arrived today, and just in the nick of time.

 I have been creating spreadsheets for my "Mad Dogs With Guns" game and started the campaign.  The first scenario I will be playing is the "Showdown" scenario, which pits a single opposition gang member against one of my own.

 So now I can play out the campaign turn with some actual miniatures.

 Painting wise I have started painting something I purchase over a year ago; Reaper Miniatures "Well of Doom" miniature.  This lovely, um, figure is a well with four tentacles coming out of it.

 I purchased this to use as a "scene of horror" for my Strange Aeons game.

 Photos of all will be posted soon.

Strange Aeons - Shocking Tales 3

Uncle Mike's Worldwide is now taking pre orders for the next Shocking Tales book.

From the web store:

"The third issue of Shocking Tales contains 44 full-colour pages of insanity, including a terrifying trifecta of Black Dossier missions:

• Comb the jungle for clues as you do battle with the oversized flora and fauna of Test Island #3
• Attempt to escort Howard Philips Lovecraft to safety, as your agents are beset by the manifested horrors of his overactive imagination
• Return to Dunwich, and struggle to undermine the new horror rising in the wild hills
• Do battle using the unlocked power of your mind with Psychic Powers
• Read the thrilling conclusion of Uncle Mike's serial adventure "The Council of Thirteen"

All copies of Shocking Tales #3 include a deck of sturdy plastic Zener Cards for use with the Psychic Powers rules. 

Shocking Tales #3 will have one - and only one - print run. Reserve your copy today!"


Given that it will only have one print run before being sold as a PDF only I have placed my pre-order already.

 I am interested in seeing what the psychic powers are like, and over sized flora and fauna is always fun... hopefully this will include giant venus fly traps and the like.

Those wanting their own copy can pre order it using this link: Uncle Mike's Worldwide

Strange Aeons - new and old figures

For a change of pace I painted up a Reaper Miniature's figure to represent the character my friend will be playing in a Strange Aeons game.

When I showed him a few different figures along the lines of ones he would like to play he mentioned that 'this doesn't mean you can include mummies in the game'.

 What a silly thing to say.

I sent him an email with a copy of this photo in it... what I didn't mention was the really cool and neat Reaper Miniatures Mummies I have added to my wish list for a mini Strange Aeons campaign .

Strange Aeons game day

Yesterday one of my mates came around for a bit of a catch up.  We have known each other for a long time now, but due to life getting in the way, we usually only catch up once or twice a year.

 This year we decided to try and make catching up a bit more frequent, and to this end we decided to have a day of playing Strange Aeons.

My friend is more of a role player than a war gamer -mainly due to the need for a large number of figures and space to play games in.

 Seeing as we both enjoy Call of Cthulhu a lot, I decided to introduce him to Strange Aeons.

To save time I created the Agents and Lurkers needed for the game and then explained the game basics to him.

The first game was a simple one - the 'Fight' scenario.  I played the lurkers and my mate played the Agents.

 The first game was won by the agents - the lurkers took a bit of a pasting, only managing to hit one agent for the entire game, and even then the agent didn't suffer that much at all.

Set up for the first game

The lurkers advance towards the agents

The cult leader goes down in a blast from a double barrel shotgun

After lunch we decided to play a second game - this time with me as the agents, and my friend as the lurkers.

My mate chose the "Treasure Hunt" scenario to play and I wasted no time in my tactics - with two of my agents taking cover in some ruins, my third agent searched for the hidden item.

 My dice rolls for searching were pathetic to say the least, and in no time the lurkers were upon the agents, and a gun fight ensured.

Initially my agents carved up the cultists, and it looked like it would be an easy victory.

But the cultists managed to shoot my top agent. He was taken out of the game, but didn't suffer any major injury, so he can return for the next game.

It was at this stage that my other agent finally found the item he had been looking for - about time!

The agent taking cover in the ruins took revenge on the cultists for wounding his boss, and managed to take them both out.


Both games were a lot of fun, and my mate even expressed an interest in playing a campaign via email using maps and photos.

Strange Aeons - Morbid Adventures

The latest book for Strange Aeons has arrived, and my initial thoughts is that I am a little under whelmed.

 Perhaps I was expecting too much from this one.

 Don't get me wrong - it is a very useful book.  It contains lots of scenarios, including variations of each one, it has combined weapon charts that get used most during a game in one handy spot, and a master list of lurkers and their powers.

 I think the bit that under whelms me is that a) there isn't a lot that is new in the book, and b) one of the main reasons I purchased the book was for the section on solo game mode.

 The solo game mode section was a real kick in the guts for me.  Basically the section says "you can play this game solo".  There are three paragraphs on solo mode, and I summed it up on one short sentence.

 The book is useful, and I am glad I have my copy of the book, but if you are starting out with the game I wouldn't buy it just yet, unless it was part of a bundle deal that made it cheaper.

Strange Aeons - review

I was asked to do a review on Strange Aeons, so here goes:

Strange Aeons is a wargame that pits 1920's agents against eldritch horrors. Whilst not actually set in the Call of Cthulhu universe, it does draw heavily on that background, with some of the same monsters included, and some included with different names.


 The Agents are known as "Threshold" with the horrors known as "Lurkers". The background for the rules has a strong US flavor to the game but it can be set anywhere. For my games I have used the UK as my background.


The playing area for the game is small, 2 feet x 3 feet is suggested, and scenery is only limited to your imagination.


 Each player takes control of 1 - 10 figures each and 25/28mm is the scale of choice for the game, but I have seen 15mm and even 10mm games on LAF. I prefer 25/28mm due to the sheer number of figures on the market: Pulp Miniatures, RAFM, Artizan Designs, EM4 and Uncle Mike's Worldwide to name but a few.

 Dice for the game are d6, with the occassional need for a d3; but that is just a d6 halved.


 All measurements in the game are done in inches, but if you are one of those that can't or wont use inches, then converting is easy.


Each agent/horror has a set of stats that reflect movement, the ability to attack and how sane they are. There are six stats in all.


 Skills are included in the rules - agents/humans (cultists) get to choose which skills they have, with most monsters having skills listed already, and in some cases monsters can be given extra skills.


Once the Threshold Player has created his team (up to a maximum of 15 points... this number can go higher, but only through winning games) a scenario is chosen and the Lurker player puts together his force.
 Each game for the Threshold player uses the same agents, where as the Lurker can change his forces each game. This is because the Agents are the main focus of the game.


 With the scenario chosen figures picked and scenery placed the game can now begin. 


 The initiative for the game is determined by the scenrio, and players take it in turn to choose a figure and give it up to two orders. Command figures can activate two other figures from the same side  at the same time if within command range.  This sequence continues until all figures have been moved.


 Combat: 
              melee - both sides roll a number of dice indicated by the stats of the combatants. Dice cancel out each other, and the one with the most hits not cancelled out wins.
             Shooting - attacker rolls dice vs target's dex stat.


 Most cultists will be taken out with one hit (which is why there are a lot more of them in the game) whereas agents and monsters take a few more hits before they are removed from play.


 At first read the system for building your team of figures and combat can seem a little confusing, but going through it a few time and reading posts of LAF soon clarify any confusion.


 For example - when building your team (either Threshold or Lurker) you have Build Points and Base Points - both are abbreviated to 'BP'.  This seems to throw most players at least once.


 There is a Quick Reference sheet at the back of the rules, but it doesn't contain every thing you might like to know, so making one helps a lot. But there again, many rules suffer from this.


 This game is a lot of fun and doesn't break the bank when you start buying figures.


 The game doesn't have solo rules, but I created my own solo system that has even drawn  positive comments from the game's designer.


Strange Aeons quickly became one of my favorite games and I have had a lot of fun coming up with the background story for my campaign as well as making some scenery.


 Apart from the initial confusion with the rules (and a lot of people seem to suffer this one) the only other bad point I have is that where is no system for creating your own monsters and giving them a BP rating. I have created my own lurker monsters, but have no idea of the BP I should give them.


 Strange Aeons is quickly gathering a bit of a cult following in the wargaming world especially amongst Call of Cthulhu fans.

Strange Aeons

This is the first post where I will show case the various projects I have on the go.


 The first one is for the 1920's Horror game "Strange Aeons" produced by "Uncle Mike's Worldwide" in Canada. The game has a strong Cthulhu feel too it and is designed to be played in a small area with only a handful of miniatures.

The game pits the good guys, called Threshold Agents, against the bad guys, called Lurkers.

The game can be played as one off missions, or better still, as part of a campaign against the forces of evil using a detailed system in the rule book.

The rule book with the two supplements. The figures on the left are the Threshold Agents, and those on the right are the Lurkers. There are a lot more lurkers in the game than Agents, but the game has a sense of balance.

To the top are my solo play cards for a system I created, as well as some elder sign objective markers for scenarios.

A closer look at my Threshold Agents

My fledgling Lurker Collection. 

 I have some scratch build scenery I made for the game as well as commercially produced items.

For a closer look at my cultists I produced a small video that I posted on youtube:

For those interested in the game, you can visit Uncle Mike's Worldwide or the dedicated forum section that can be found at the Lead Adventure Forum.