Here is a first update from Hurricon in Florida this weekend.
I have very little time at the moment, so I will just post a couple of pix for the time being.
More later
Hurricon report
Here is a first update from Hurricon in Florida this weekend.
I have very little time at the moment, so I will just post a couple of pix for the time being.
More later
This was the second session. Both sessions maxed out plus we had 'sit ins' and walk ups with lots of Q's.
Great stuff - I particularly like the breakers! Were all those twelve ships in play? How did it handle?
Nice pictures.
Looks like an epic battle. :g&t:
Awesome, Erin. Great setup. Looking forward to seeing and hearing more.
Great pictures Erin.
How long was one average game turn with the twelve ships?
Thanks for the photos. Yes, it will be interesting to hear how the geography influenced play as well as the large number of ships on the table?
I'm still 'Flat out like a lizard drinking!
Both of today's sessions were maxed.
So far, I have run the same scenario as everyone were new faces.
I have had several come to saying they couldn't get a spot to play.
(I told you Keith, best to have a few overflow spots available.).
I am glad to say everyone has been accommodated.
This was the second session today, one more to run.
I will post more soon.
The MVP of session 4, the 'Battle of Grand Port.
Five remaining ships.
Seems like two frigates and three ships of the line.
Who won the battle?
Thank you for posting the still under fire action reports Erin. Look forward to watching for further updates when you get caught up with that real life stuff that always gets in the way of gaming.
These photos gave me an interesting new perspective. The previous demo photos we'd seen had close ups of the ships. All we've seen are close-ups of the ships in other stuff as well. The bases looked huge. Check out that second photo. It has a person picking up a ship and lots of other things nearby to give size perspective. Everything seems so small. The base size doesn't seem a little excessive there.
I think the switch to dark bases has had a very beneficial effect on the appearance of the size of the bases and their "chunkiness"Originally Posted by Andy Blozinski
Were they all Ares models or did you have any proxies in there?
All the models were Ares. I was very careful to make sure everything other than the scenery was genuine Ares. (Other than the reefs used. Guess where they came from?)
I am putting a great Con experience to bed, it is now 3am in the morning, after a brew, and a lot of great discussion as to how every thing went. Hopefully I will be able to provide some details either by tomorrow or Monday. Trust me, there is a lot to share. At a quick calculation, I hosted about 60 players, and talked with many more walk ups. (I had printed over 50 flyers, and I have 3 left.)
I have to say this, I have had an awesome time, with all 5 sessions packed with great players, all of which had a good time and made my experience very enjoyable.
I am happy to report that over 100 players were exposed to the game, many very keen to get their hands on a copy.
Another common comment was that people were putting this in their must have and Christmas lists.
The end result was this was a very worthwhile effort, and I am very happy with the result.
Time for bed.... More soon.
Well done, Erin. Very impressive.
Nice use of the laser. One is now on my to-get list.
Sounds like a good time. Very impressive effort. Look forward to hearing more about the experience.
Erin,
Well done, I love the look of the game. I must ask, How did the ship logs and tokens/chips stand up to all the gamers playing and moving around? Your shore lines are so cool.
Be safe
Rory
Brilliant idea mounting the laser that way. Paint the yellow black and it almost looks like a ships cannon:
Where did you get it?
Like that laser a lot. Perhaps Keith could do one as an accessory?
You won't be able to get it...Like that laser a lot. Perhaps Keith could do one as an accessory?
The state department will classify it as munitions ...
Then they will ask for an end user certificate ...
When you tell its going to a foreign Navy, via the UK, all hell will break loose
Avi, That is very funny!
The lazer is a hardware store item.... It is a magnetic based skill saw guide, only a couple of dollars.
Go to the tile section and find an octagonal tile sample sheet, separate one piece and glue felt on the bottom.
Glue a shim washer on top and paint both blue.
The laser will stick to it nicely.
This gets rid of the "is so" and "is not" debates, without damage to the ships.
LOL,it wouldn't surprise me if someone decided to apply ITAR to wargames productsYou won't be able to get it...
The state department will classify it as munitions ...
Then they will ask for an end user certificate ...
When you tell its going to a foreign Navy, via the UK, all hell will break loose
Part of the briefing includes how to control your chips which worked well and reduced wear and loss. Note the card holders, I requested everyone to use them diligently.
Also the border around the playing area keeps everything organized.
Thank you for the helpful tip on tricking out the gaming table Erin.
David, most sessions had all 12 Ships. It was tough to avoid collisions as things got close. We were averaging 10 minute Planning/Move/fire sequences. Very do-able.
Avi, it sounds like your familiar with public school officials in the States. For an institution centered on education, it seems to lack common sense quite frequently.
The laser is exceptionally good for upcoming demo games for which the Ares mats are not available.
Noticing the beverages for the first time, do they present problems in terms of spilling? Does anyone prohibit them being on the table?
Erin, I like the card holder idea. Where did you get yours?
Laser pointer pens may be bought fairly cheaply e.g. from Amazon. We would have to be careful that we did not hit anyone in the eye with the beam.
Ed, the briefing for the rules was taking around 30 minutes. We averaged 10 minutes for a full turn. There were about 20 moves in the game.
Sven, in this scenario, unlike the original battle of Grand Port, the British were victorious, though the winner of the MVP prize was on the French side.Five remaining ships.
Seems like two frigates and three ships of the line.
Who won the battle?
Unfortunately, the two opposing SOL's experienced the worst collision of the weekend. It spelled the end of the French class 3.
I promise I will go back and do a proper AAR as time permits.
Last edited by Cpt Kangaroo; 09-29-2013 at 19:15.
Erin,
Who or what is on the shore and was it for show or gaming?
Be safe
Rory
Eric, I include in the game briefing a quick 'house keeping' portion, part of which addresses this common problem.
My rules are: Only covered containers, only in the border area, nothing but miniatures, scenery and game tools in the battle area.
I caution to be very careful, and the mats I made were laminated as protection.
Plus, if you look closely, there are two white table cloths and a blue sheet below the battle area, which makes it very absorbent should anything happen.
Ed, these were actually from some WWII vehicles that came with little display cases. These are the tops, and as soon as I saw them, I knew they were going to be useful.
I am sure there are many similar things around which would do the job just as well.
These really promoted the players to keep their cards together. After so many folks 'pawing' the gear over the entire weekend, there was only one card that was relocated into another deck.
I really recommend doing this.
Rory,
The scenario called for the possibility of shore battery action, so besides aesthetics, if the conditions were right, it would have kicked in shore battery action.
These were 6mm but they represented the factor well.
That's good news. Sounds like a 10 to 12 ship game can be had in about 5 hours.
3/4 hour to set up and take down.
1/2 hour for instructions (or BS &for the experienced)
3 3/4 hours for approximately 20 moves.
Sounds like it could even be done on a weekday evening.
One last shot before I shut it down for the evening.
This was the most spectacular maneuver of all the games. The player upped to full sail, put the helm 'Hard over' and did a 'Dammed the torpedoes' move. (Or something like shooting the rapids.)
He squeaked through the gap between the reefs at full speed an made it through will millimeters to spare.
Unfortunately, an apposing ship, not being quite as adept, grounded on a reef with just enough obscuring the gap to cause a collision between vessels, so the movement stopped there.
Erin, very helpful info on running the game. I think laminating will be the proper route with the mats.
Eric, it finally popped up.
OK, so ya got (12) ships. What mix of frigates and SOLs was it? One ship per player?
There were 2 SOL's and 4 Frigates on each side.
Mostly it was 1 ship per player, but on a couple of occasions a player took on 2.
Those using two ships were able to easily keep up with the movement sequence.
While there were no SOL's in the original battle, we had to adapt as there were so many wanting to play.
Erin,
We are all hitting on you for information of your event. Looking at the photo's and post you have made. It is clean to me that your set-up and planning made for a good time for all who played at your demo games. You have set the bar very high. All I can say is well done and hope Ares see the work that you have done for them.
Be safe
Rory
The God of War sees, and is pleased
Nicely done Erin! The gamer's area around the playing ares is super nice to have if you have the room for it. Yours is much larger than what I typically try and give the players. Did you have any issues with the players maneuvering and lining up the ships when stretch out that far into the middle of the table?
When I first saw the photo with the laser in it, I thought you were using it to check attitude to the wind, but I see now that you are checking to show that the one ship is out of the arc for the full broadside. Nice!
The deck holder is also a nice little thing to organize the game some more. I might have to incorporate that into my Deluxe ship mats. Oh, and maybe a nice accessory to hold the laser pointer as well!
Also, any comments of the two rigged ships?
It was a bit of a stretch past the midpoint, but the players cooperated and moved each others, or moved around. The boundary area did not create discomfort.
I did try it with wind direction and that worked well too, but the wind indicator was just as good unless there were several ships together, then the laser had the advantage.
Count me in on those! Going vertical with the spare cards deck saved room.
Keith, there were many Oohs and Aahs with those and when I shared the material used, Brilliant was the most common word used. I agree, and seeing the affect in person, I really like.
I agree with the "oohs & aahs. I prefer a tasteful application of rigging opposed to so much rigging that it distracts from the looks of the ship.
Hi Erin, thanks very much for the posts. The terrain and the sheer size of the playing surface help make the game look great. I can't wait until the ships finally arrive. The one downer of doing the kickstarter, is that i have known about this game for a long time now and have had lots of time to get excited about it and really want it now!
On one of your posts it looks like a frigate is towing something, is it ships boats? I know ships did this in real battles, but i'm interested what the reason is for them here as only one ship seems to be doing so.
Cheers
Chris
Cool, I wonder if it made any of the hardcore AoS players think the game and it's components more on par with personally built ships.
Keith, there were many Oohs and Aahs with those. I agree, and seeing the affect in person, I really like.
That Zoe sure is a smart gal!and when I shared the material used, Brilliant was the most common word used
Now is the time to get your playing kit together. Get your playing surface sorted out, make yourself a nifty laser pointer, get some card holders, make some ships boats markers, what are you going to carry/ store them in, make some islands, make some reefs, study the rules ... and on! That should keep you busy for a day or two. Plus, make sure you post and share your progress.
Chris, I will be sharing the scenario as soon as I get it typed up in the official AAR.
But to answer your question, the original battle involved three of the British running aground, while two of the French purposely grounded theirs.
So knowing this was going to happen, the rule was, if grounded at full sail, you are stopped for the game. If at battle or backing sail, you would test for un-grounding every other turn or every turn respectively. The ships boats were symbolic of the kedging activity in progress. Plus when freed, could move the ship using the red card 2nd sail movement.
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