Post by Slick on Feb 6, 2009 13:54:15 GMT -9
Being the huge fan that I am of post nuclear apocalyptic settings It was only natural that I get this game. I have always had a strong love hate relationship with the Fallout series of PC games and just in general have had a interest in nuclear physic's spawned by a small fascination with the Chernobyl incident. Also it might have something to do with my unfinished bachelors degree in stellar astronomy. Ya got to have a PHD in that area to make any money hence why I never finished school. In the next few paragraphs will be my first impressions on the product and where I think it will take me.
Appearance:
The PDF was very easy to locate and download of there website. It has many illustrations and is broken up into chapters with a table of contents at the front for easy navigation. I was able to get it printed off at my local office supply store for about $2.40 for monochrome black and white (some of the grafx resolution and clarity was lost) and in gray scale (looked just as good as the PDF) for about $14.20. There is a total of about 40 pages. The game mechanics take up about 18 pages. Followed by the abilities and equipment rules that take up 9. Lastly a small campaigns section for the rest of the book. The font is easy on the eyes and the pages are usually broken into 2 coulombs.
Setup:
The rules can be used with either 15mm or 28/30mm figures and requires a relatively small playing space. character creation is awesome. It relies totally on random rolls to generate your party's. At first I was very sceptically of this but after creating my first set of adventurers I had a blast. There are several races to chose from and some can be mixed and matched. There is a section in the back of the book that deals with other methods of selecting parties but I found that the random selections worked the best. As the rules are universal there are no model requirements just some to play with and a table to play on with very minimal amounts of scenery. The models are set up with just 2 stats and then random skills and equipment. The skills are varied nicely and I only had a few of them doubled when I generated my party. The equipment is very simplified down to about 8 categories ranging from HTH weapons to death ray guns (go figure on that last one).
Game Play:
Here is where the game deviates drastically from most games out there. There is the Activation sequence where you elect a model to make an action (moving, shooting, healing ect.....). There is a roll on several die and upon succeeding you make your actions and move on to the next model. If you fail more then 2 rolls on a model your turn is over. At first this seemed a little to random but after playing my first game I have to say this is a great system. There is a LOT more strategy involved then is first apparent. Combat is smooth and quick. I played a game with 5 models and it lasted exactly 54 min. That, I think is very good considering that this was my fist game and rules need to be looked up. (although i was playing on a very small playing field and units where engaged in ranged combat from the start). There are several scenarios that are included with the rule book as well as a campaign system to give the games some longevity worth of a good gaming night!
Conclusion:
If post apocalyptic settings are for you this is by far the best game for skirmishes. The game mechanics are very simple yet provide for varied game play. The races and race creation are top notch and loads of fun to just mess around with! There is a neat set of campaign rules to give your game night more of a purpose. This is a must get if you like the setting!
Nate
Appearance:
The PDF was very easy to locate and download of there website. It has many illustrations and is broken up into chapters with a table of contents at the front for easy navigation. I was able to get it printed off at my local office supply store for about $2.40 for monochrome black and white (some of the grafx resolution and clarity was lost) and in gray scale (looked just as good as the PDF) for about $14.20. There is a total of about 40 pages. The game mechanics take up about 18 pages. Followed by the abilities and equipment rules that take up 9. Lastly a small campaigns section for the rest of the book. The font is easy on the eyes and the pages are usually broken into 2 coulombs.
Setup:
The rules can be used with either 15mm or 28/30mm figures and requires a relatively small playing space. character creation is awesome. It relies totally on random rolls to generate your party's. At first I was very sceptically of this but after creating my first set of adventurers I had a blast. There are several races to chose from and some can be mixed and matched. There is a section in the back of the book that deals with other methods of selecting parties but I found that the random selections worked the best. As the rules are universal there are no model requirements just some to play with and a table to play on with very minimal amounts of scenery. The models are set up with just 2 stats and then random skills and equipment. The skills are varied nicely and I only had a few of them doubled when I generated my party. The equipment is very simplified down to about 8 categories ranging from HTH weapons to death ray guns (go figure on that last one).
Game Play:
Here is where the game deviates drastically from most games out there. There is the Activation sequence where you elect a model to make an action (moving, shooting, healing ect.....). There is a roll on several die and upon succeeding you make your actions and move on to the next model. If you fail more then 2 rolls on a model your turn is over. At first this seemed a little to random but after playing my first game I have to say this is a great system. There is a LOT more strategy involved then is first apparent. Combat is smooth and quick. I played a game with 5 models and it lasted exactly 54 min. That, I think is very good considering that this was my fist game and rules need to be looked up. (although i was playing on a very small playing field and units where engaged in ranged combat from the start). There are several scenarios that are included with the rule book as well as a campaign system to give the games some longevity worth of a good gaming night!
Conclusion:
If post apocalyptic settings are for you this is by far the best game for skirmishes. The game mechanics are very simple yet provide for varied game play. The races and race creation are top notch and loads of fun to just mess around with! There is a neat set of campaign rules to give your game night more of a purpose. This is a must get if you like the setting!
Nate