"I'm a joker, I'm a smoker, I'm a midnight toker"

A while back I stumbled across this great thread in the Workbench section of the Lead Adventure Forum.

A group was rounding up orders for, or gauging interest in, a Victorian version of a certain nemesis of a caped nocturnal vigilante.

Well I was in for it immediately. The sculptor, who goes by Vermis but is, I believe, named Warren, was even doing alternate heads -- one based on Conrad Veidt, the star of the German Expressionist silent film "The Man Who Laughs," from the Victor Hugo novel (and a big inspiration for Bob Finger's original design of The Joker), and the other with the skinned and reattached face we've seen in recent comics.

There had apparently been an earlier drive to craft the Gentleman Vigilante himself. I opted not to purchase one of these, but they do look good.

So I had to get two of Mr. Grins, and they arrived at my secret base in the heart of a dormant volcano yesterday. And they are every bit as wonderful as anticipated.

Here's a pic of my two minis in the metal. These are really clean casts. There was one tiny piece of flash attached to one of the top hats, but I took care of that with a judiciously applied fingernail. The only mold line of any significance runs along the underside of the figure's right arm, but a file should get rid of that with minimal effort.

I don't exactly have a plan to slot him into the world of "Brass & Blood" yet, but it'll come to me, no doubt. I mean, every setting can use a psychopath disfigured by a Glasgow smile, right?

And the vigilante haunting Victorian smokestacks and alleyways to stop him is already in my collection.

I need more scream in my steam

I love steampunk, as you all know by now, but Gothic horror also runs through my veins. Some of the additions to "In Her Majesty's Name" in the "Heroes, Villains and Fiends" supplement fed into that hunger, but it really did little more than whet my appetite. So now I've decided to push the envelope and write some rules for creatures I'm eager to see on the tabletop for IHMN.

So, as I push my steampunk to screampunk, I'm eager for your feedback on these house rules, either here or over on the IHMN board over at  Lead Adventure Forum.

Let us on this Friday the 13th begin by adding ... GHOSTS!

Ghosts in ‘In Her Majesty’s Name’

Some arcane practitioners have learned to summon spirits to aid them on the battlefield. The  ethereal nature of these ghosts presents quite a problem for their opponents: How do you stop something you can’t touch until it lays hands on you to kill you?

To control a spirit on the battlefield, the arcanist must possess some kind of personal token of the spirit, often a remnant of its physical body. These anchors are often the bones of the deceased, but may take other forms in the case of spirits not originating as humans. One example is the banshee, or bane sidhe, a fey spirit whose wail spells death.

While physical combat with a manifest spirit will temporarily slow or disrupt a spirit or ghost, the only way to permanently dispel it is to destroy its anchor, whatever the arcanist is using to compel the spirit to fight.

Type    Pluck FV   SV   Spd   Armor  Cost   T&P     Basic Equipment

Ghost

4+

+2

+0

+0

8

35+MP

Ethereal*, Terrifying, up 30 pts. of Mystical Powers

Claws (fighting knife)

Ghosts may exchange their weaponry for monstrous fangs (sword, +1 points) or a scythe (halberd, +3 points) .

* Unique skill (15 pts). Ghosts move up to 6”, ignoring all intervening terrain. (Ghosts may run.) Ethereal figures cannot be targeted by physical shooting attacks. They can, however, be targeted by arcane powers that operate during the shooting phase, like spitfire.

Ghosts fight normally in base-to-base contact. If a ghost is hit and fails its pluck roll, however, it is only Knocked Down. Only destroying the ghost’s anchor will see it removed from the table.

A ghost’s anchor must be destroyed in close combat, because there are often extra steps involved besides just physical damage (salting the bones, sanctifying/desecrating the site or similar). Unless otherwise specified, anchors have an armor value of 9 and a pluck of 5+. Once the anchor is destroyed, the ghost is immediately removed from play.

As long as a company has one member possessing Mystical Powers, even if from a reliquary, it may utilize ghosts. A ghost and its anchor are deployed together simultaneously. Anchors do not move once deployed. No arcane practitioner or company may utilize more than three ghosts in any one encounter. Removal of all arcane practitioners from play has no effect on ghosts.

Figure suggestions:

Horrorclix Skeletal Maiden

Reaper Ghost by Julie Guthrie

Reaper Spectre by Dennis Mize

Enigma Miniatures The Old Death

"Heroes, Villains and Fiends" arrives

I now have my grubby little mitts on the second volume published for the game "In Her Majesty's Name," the aptly titled "Heroes, Villains and Fiends."

The noise Jon Richardson makes for his "tennis gremlins" in the clip below is the same noise I keep making as I hold the volume in my hands.



Just substitute "book" for "ball" and you've pretty much got it.

While I haven't finished it yet, what I have read has been delightful. In addition to increasing the arsenal available to the companies, the book also introduces rules and stats for vehicles and beasts. There's also a campaign system with examples using companies from the original book. And for my overall impression, I don't think I can say it any better than I did earlier today in a post on the Lead Adventure Forum:

"Can't wait to dive into it more thoroughly, but I have to say that, even with the vast increase in availability of weapons, vehicles, mounts and equipment, Craig and Charles have shown the strength of sticking to KISS (Keep It Simple, Stupid) design principles. They've taken Occam's Razor to rules and mechanics and presented a system that is flexible but not overly complicated, inclusive but not cluttered, and rich with choices without dampening the creativity of the player. Kudos, gentlemen! Another successful foray that makes me even more eager for the third volume."

Speaking of vehicles, Bob Olley has done a bit of redesigning on the steampunk vehicle stretch goals for his Victorian Scrunts kickstarter. I look forward to the flood of company concepts that are going to appear once these gorgeous figures are released. But take a look at this tank/tankette!

OK, back to the boards, everyone, and I'll see you across the table soon.

Addressing concerns, voiced and unvoiced

Someone raised a valid point over on the Lead Adventure Forum, where I'd posted a link to my last blog entry, "Courting Disaster." He or she contrasted that post with the issues I revealed in my earlier blog entry, "Confession to make," regarding my struggles with hoarding. The writer seemed confused by my apparent disregard for my recovery and the good advice and support I've received from fellow gamers here on my blog and at sites I frequent like LAF.

If one person is brave enough to raise the issue with me, then it's a good indicator that others are thinking it, too, so I wanted to share here what I wrote in response to that post on LAF:

Yes, I see I am not the only one snowed under by the quality of current and upcoming releases, which I need because of reasons.

@bezzo: You appear to have misconstrued the tone of the current post, which is with tongue firmly in cheek, and the nature of my mental malfunction described in the earlier post. My hoarding is not gaming-centric. I of course suffer from "Ooh, shiny" syndrome, wanting the latest and prettiest toys, but the reach of hoarding is so much greater. It involves keeping and being unable to discard items OF NO INTRINSIC VALUE. Used disposable items like old paper plates or clogged razors become part of the detritus covering the surfaces of a hoarder's home, and our bad programming means trying to get rid of them fills us with a paralyzing anxiety. Things that others can clearly see are garbage become necessary to our feelings of safety and security. The issues for which I posited in my new post, for humorous effect, that my wife would want to discipline me (heh heh) are FINANCIAL in nature, not related to new items entering our home. But thank you for your concern. I am indeed grateful for the interest, advice, efforts and outreach of my many good friends here at Lead Adventure Forum (and other Internet watering holes.) As I try to cope with and correct my behavior, it is that support that gives me strength. I won't be abandoning my hobby, though, because it is from there that I derive a portion of the enjoyment that makes up a satisfactory quality of life.

I hope that addresses any concerns one might have, especially if anyone feels slighted and thinks I've disregarded their advice. Far from it, but dealing with problems like this is a marathon, not a sprint, and the overlap between my acquisition of gaming goodies and my hoarding is minor at best.

Again, thank you all for your continued love and support. You people are the best damn friends a man could ask for, and I am grateful for each and every one of you. All my best to you.

Empire of the Dead: Requiem kickstarter

West Wind's kickstarter for the miniatures expansion of Empire of the Dead, called Requiem, is certainly going great guns. Once it launched on Valentine's Day, its £5,000 goal was fully funded in two hours. I plumped for one of the early bird specials at the £75 level, making sure I get my grubby mitts on all the LE kickstarter-exclusive minis they're producing, plus 28 points worth of the new models.

 As of this writing, the campaign has taken in nearly £34,000. As the funding level increases, miniatures within the factions are being unlocked, and stretch goal miniatures are being added. The difference is that everyone pledging Requiem-level (the aforementioned £75) and above gets the stretch-goal minis (which are limited-edition kickstarter-only) for free. Unlocked minis can be chosen with the points you receive for your pledge level. (Most human-sized minis are 1 point, some larger ones, like Mr. Hyde, the Baron's Monster or the squamous Professor Gecko are 2 point minis.)

So what of the stretch goals and unlockables have been revealed so far? First the exclusives:



First up was Tatu, who Andy says is a half-vampire servant of the Broken Dawn cult. I guess that makes her a Dhampyr. At right is Jade Dragon, an Imperial assassin wielding a massive twin-barreled pistol. Again, these are free with your pledge at Requiem-level and above.

I neglected to mention that every supporter at the £5 level and above receives the LE mini of Nedezhda Durova, vampire hunter. I took this image of her from the project page on Kickstarter.

Werewolf Hunter Aisha will be the next stretch goal mini to unlock, once the campaign hits £40,000.

It also appears that two minis for the Order of the Dragon set (vampires, of course) have been unlocked. The Mad Man and the first of the Vampire brides.

 

If you're a backer, go to the update about the vampire bride and suggest a name for her. My google-fu is sometimes wonky, but it seems in Stoker's book the brides are unnamed (and are called "sisters" but not brides), and they have acquired names in some film adaptations and written reimaginings. Although I chucked a few suggestions of my own in there for Andy, I really like Marcin Zdybicki's suggestion to call her Ingrid in honor of the late, great Ingrid Pitt, who played Carmilla in "The Vampire Lovers."

That wraps up everything I've seen so far about the single figures. I haven't been combing the comments like I usually would, but I see Andy's been answering questions there. Here's the big graphic with many of the figures that are part of this project, but there are higher-quality versions on the project's main page.

Later I'll come back and discuss the new faction they revealed today, Scotland Yard's Supernatural Branch, as well as they vehicles they're working on.

On a personal note, I want to greatly thank everyone for their words of care and comfort last night when we had to take my wife to the emergency room after she fainted and fell. She's feeling better, just bruised and a bit embarrassed. And pissed off about the scrape on her forehead where she hit the floor! But she's doing much better today, and we're both relieved this wasn't another incident where her hemoglobin had dropped precipitously low, like it did a few years ago. They admitted her that time, and it took an enormous amount of transfused blood and intravenous iron to get her back to normal. (Or as normal as anyone in our family ever gets.)

Additionally, I want to thank those who took the time to write about my post immediately preceding this one, whether you commented here, privately, or on the Lead Adventure Forum.  I've always known our community is a caring one, but by your words and actions you continue to show that you are some of the best people ANYWHERE. I am humbled to be friends with so many of you, whether we have ever met face-to-face or not.You are some damn fine folks, and I am proud to know you.

"Super J" lands at my house

I stopped by the P.O. box Friday, and I was greeted by a tiny, wonderful visitor. Brain Cottrell produced these "Super J" minis in honor of his son, Jason. You can read my earlier post about it here, and Brian, whom many of us know as WeirdWWII, tells the story here on the Lead Adventure Forum. The proceeds from sales of the mini are going directly to the Friedreich's Ataxia Research Alliance.

Brian said the first batch sold out in a matter of hours, but he is expecting another shipment shortly.

Like many, I was glad to help out and delighted to receive such a mini. Every time it graces my table I'll think of Jason, and of other children who could use some help as they soldier on against the heavy burdens life has placed on them. The warmth it engenders in me will, I'm sure, push me to make other donations later. Thank you, Brian, both for letting us share in helping out your son, and for helping me be a better person by sharing of what I have, now and in the future.

One thing I wasn't prepared for, though, is the size of this figure. I know Brian said he was 18mm high, but I certainly didn't look on a ruler. He'll scale right in with my 25-28mm minis, but seeing him IRL is a shock. The excellent paint job by Simon of Stone Cold Lead must have been done with a scanning electron microscope. Super J is so (to use a good Southern word) tee-ninsy!

(That's a long i in the second part of the word, by the way, for those of you unfamiliar with Southern dialect. Watch "Here Comes Honey Boo Boo." They play up, exaggerate and exploit that family plenty, but those ARE authentic (mid)south Georgia accents. Even I need the subtitles sometimes.)

Here's my copy of the mini:

"Super J" mini from Brian Cottrell, sold as a fundraiser for the Friedreich's
 Ataxia Research Alliance. (Sorry it's a little blurry. Still learning
 to use this camera phone. And yes, my desk is always that dirty.) 

And here is he up against a U.S. penny.

That penny is sitting on his base with him and is tilted
 back slightly to rest against the keyboard base.

I doff my invisible cap to all those involved, and I hope Brian and his family raise a great deal of money for the charity through their efforts. I am eager to get Super J and his ever-present pal Snakey fighting the menaces in my own particular Neighborhood of Make-Believe.

Coming up soon: More Empire of the Dead ideas. I actually wrote a few paragraphs of background for a new warband I plan to field using the Lycaon rules. My wife has decided to go for Vampires (as if there was any doubt. My wife is an evil mastermind.)

Weird WWII: "SUPER J" Charity Miniature

Brian, whom I know from the Lead Adventure Forum, has crafted a mini honoring his son Jason. In real life, Jason faces plenty of challenges and a bleak prognosis from Friedreich's Ataxia, and the proceeds from sales of this mini are going to research into the genetic disease.

I'll let Brian tell his own story, but suffice it to say in my dealings with him, he's proven to be one of the jewels of the wargaming community -- a true talent and a hell of a stand-up guy. That his efforts here are about providing hope not only for Jason but also for others who suffer from this currently incurable disease show you how big his heart is.

Brian is behind the excellent WWII-era Cap and Bucky minis you've seen floating around, and he's just done a Princess Diana of Themyscira that I'm eager to get into my mountain of unpainted lead.

The "Super J" unpainted mini is $10 with free shipping, and the proceeds go directly to the Friedreich's Ataxia Research Alliance.

Brian, my best to you and your family! Here's a link to Brian's post from his own blog:

Weird WWII: "SUPER J" Charity Miniature: This gaming mini was made in the image of our son Jason and his sidekick, Snakie.  Jason was born with a rare genetic disease called ...