Tuesday, October 21, 2014

Battlefield and Communication Tower Update

Here is the latest view of the game table and all the terrain I have so far. It is finally coming together!


The Interplanetary Heavy Industries Comm Station has been recently abandoned as the invading orks approached. I wanted it to look nice and dirty since it is in an inhospitable mining area and now a warzone. But it should still look functional as it is only recently abandoned, not ruined. 



An ork 'ard boy investigates the 'umie building, looking for loot.


The IHI logo is meant to look like I-beams. I would like to be able to stencil something below the logo in smaller letters, such as "Comm Station 047", but I am not that good at free hand.

For rules, it should be considered a small building, which means it can hold 10 models and has three hull points. No guidance is given on the appropriate armor value, but I would guess 12 or so seems reasonable. It is a pretty stout building but not a fortification; maybe on par with a light tank. There is one access point (the front door) and two fire points (the front door and the roof hatch). According to the rules, up to two models can fire from each fire point. Adding buildings to our game should add a fun new tactical dimension.


Here is an example of how the six Tactical Objective markers could be set up for a Maelstrom of War mission. The yellow circles are numbered 1 - 6 and the objectives that are important to your army change throughout the battle. You can also get objectives such as kill an enemy unit with shooting, issue a challenge, make an opponent fail a morale test, etc. I tried to place the Tactical Objectives in places that make sense rather than just randomly around the board. They are next to some ammo crates, oil drums, special equipment container, tank traps, Comm Station, and the wide hill top.

According to the rules, we take turns placing them before we roll for table halves and deployment zone types so you can't stack the deck toward your own deployment zone. I think it should make for a fun game! And of course, since it is a campaign, we can add special rules for the next game for whoever holds the objectives at the end of this game. For example, holding the gas cans could allow a unit to make a Scout or Flanking move in the next game. Holding the Comm Tower could do something like: you pick deployment zone and/or whether to deploy first or second without rolling for it. Or force an enemy unit to start in reserves as you catch them off guard in the next battle due to your monitoring equipment. Throw out some ideas!

By request, more pictures of the painted communication tower:






5 comments:

  1. Wow! I am just floored. This battlefield is amazing! Worthy of it's own audience. The handful of hobbyshops and online videos I have viewed feature only comparable terrain. And that's by professionals! What you have kicked out in only a few weeks rivals anything I have ever seen. Well done!

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  2. I want more complete pics of the painted comm tower, though!

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  3. Thanks, Bill. Painting the building was harder than I thought it would be. I don't have any practice with buildings and wasn't sure what techniques or even colors to use. I think it turned out ok. Hopefully I will get better with more practice, just like painting miniatures.

    And I posted some more pictures.

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    1. These newer pics look great. The color is much richer. Great job making the tower look weathered and worn. I don't see any need for improvement.

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    2. Thanks. I can't wait to see some 'Nids swarming it, with a cluster of boyz or beakies trying to hold it!

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