Dreadball Start Date Postponed

With everything going on in the city, I think it makes sense to postpone the start of our Dreadball league by a week. Trilogy should be posting an update on their Facebook soon stating the same. If anyone was planning on coming out to play or register, please wait. I'll post more news as soon as I'm able to about upcoming plans for the league.

Water Plus Gravity = Submerged Stuff

Flooding in Calgary, almost no warning to pack up and get out...close to 100 thousand people evacuated from their homes. 

Our parkade is totally flooded. Really glad I thought to move my motorcycle out of there on Thursday night. My car is also out and safe. However I, and most of the other tenants had stuff in storage...in the parkade. Bikes, sports equipment, winter tires and who knows what else?! All now completely submerged under water.

Thanks to folks on Twitter to posting all the pics. I appreciate at least knowing what the damage looks like. Kitty and I are both safe, as are most of my neighbours to the best of my knowledge and I'm thankful for that. My family and friends are safe and largely unaffected too so I'm considering us extremely lucky. I know there are a lot of folks who've lost vehicles, belongings and even their homes. My thoughts go out to all those folks. We'll all get through the clean up and rebuild together!

Gorrillas, Gestapo and Zombies...Oh My!

I apparently have no fiscal fortitude, willpower, or whatever else you want to call it. As I've made mention of before I have a massive pile of figures awaiting construction and paint. Not to mention that they cover what seems to be dozens of genres, time periods and rule sets. But they keep on coming...because I keep on pledging.

This year alone I've supported over a half dozen more Kickstarter campaigns: Wild West Exodus, Empire of the Dead - Requiem, Hell Dorado - Inferno, Zombicide Season 2, Acthung!Cthulhu, Secret Weapons Tablescapes, Deadzone and Guardians Chronicles which ended today.

While technically yes, a few of those are not miniature games per se, I am in fact going to receive minis from the A!C pledge too. Another 25 figures in fact. Six new mythos investigators, six new monster figures, and 10 Nazi zombies. I doubt I'll get to actually play the role playing game but the books look fantastic and I'm sure I'll enjoy reading all that fluffy WW2 Mythos goodness. Since I'm talking about Nazi figures I might as well use that as a way to get into my topic for today: Nazi gestapo troopers for use with Kulten and Strange Aeons.

The doctor, gestapo officers and their commander are all Pulp Figures by the talented Bob Murch. The commander I'm using was part of a 'strange villains' pack. Of that batch I think he's the only one I've put together so far. Due to his rather small (probably close to true 25mm) size I put him on a larger resin base that I got from Uncle Mike. I have dubbed him "Kommandant Hemler". I doubt that's an accurate rank or title, and hemler simply means 'helmet' but they're my toys so I can call them whatever I want.

Paint colours used on the Nazis were P3 Greatcoat Grey, AP Barbarian Flesh, GW Mephiston Red and GW Boltgun metal. The doctor received a GW Skull White lab coat with some brown trousers and shoes. I custom mixed some hair colour for him.

I'll be using some of the zombies I painted last month as subjects for Dr. Kaufman's evil serum. Click the 'zombies' link at the bottom to have a look at those figures.

I also painted up a Blasphemous Construct model from Uncle Mike's Worldwide. I think this is a great model. It's huge, scary and has lots of great detail on it. My paint job certainly doesn't do it justice.

Next up we have a batch of gorillas, also from Pulp Figures. I bought these months ago and just decided to paint them on a whim. They're quite fun and I wanted to try my hand at some jungle-style basing. So there we go! Being black they were rather difficult to photograph. Hopefully they are visible. I used some gloss on their hands and faces to make them stand out and I think they look good.

And finally, I always seem to have some sort of marker or terrain piece near my painting table, just waiting for the right time to get finished off. This time there were actually two. One is a grave marker I've had awaiting paint for what seems like forever. I think it came with a pack of RAFM ghouls. The other is the crystals from a Necron Lord for 40k plopped down with a few other bits. Markers or scenery, they'll work for both.

But wait! Don't leave before the bonus round. While painting my gestapo I threw this monster on the painting line as well. This is "Kriegshunde" from the SuperFigs line that was produced for SuperSystem. He's really over the top, but I actually like the figure a lot although I wasn't able to quite get the paint on the forearms to look how I wanted. After three attempts I simply had to say "good enough."

My Sister is Nuts, But in a Good Way

My sister is riding in a cross-Canada team in support of the Sears National Kids Cancer Ride this fall and is looking for some support. If you know anyone who might be interested in helping her out please have a look at her page.

http://www.snkcr.com/lauraquelch

Season 2 Release of Dreadball - Initial Thoughts

I'm almost finished construction of my recently-received season two shipment. The models are of the same quality as the first release and overall I think they're very nice. The material is sturdy and even fine details like pointed fingers outstretched arms don't worry me. I'm confident that a model dropped on the floor won't shatter on impact.

I received all four of the new teams: Corporation Females, Judwan, Robots and the Z'zor. I paid for an extra team of the Judwan and Females, so I have several extra figures that I can use for new teams or maybe to paint as free agents. I don't need to decide any time soon.

As with the season 1 teams, each one comes with a different sculpt for each player role, but no variation between models for that role. I haven't cleaned all of the mold lines from the models yet, only doing the spots that I need to for construction, or that looked like they'd be difficult to reach afterwards.

Over the course of two or two and a half hours I was able to construct all the teams except the Z'zor. The Z'zor models have quite a number of pieces so they'll take a little bit longer.  Sadly one of the guard models for this team had a badly miscast upper body component. I thought about complaining to Mantic, but once the figure was put together I decided that it was fairly minor. With a little careful painting is should be largely unnoticeable.

The robot team is the outlier, coming with ten figures instead of eight. This is because the basic team roster starts with six jacks, all of which can transform into other roles. You also get two striker models and two guard models. The legs on the robots are rather thin and a few of my figures were a little bit bent up from shipping. I've fixed that by dunking them in some hot water then setting them in cold water. No problem!

Sebastien and I played our first game on Sunday using the robots vs. the Judwan. I really enjoyed the Judwan team. They're a finesse team for sure, requiring a very different mindset to play. They're very fast and can throw the ball farther than any other team. The downside of this is that you'll never be able to slam an opposing player, and thus can never force your opponent to change his lineup short of catching them committing a foul. The scoring ability of the Judwan is very high if not properly properly defended against!

We're both on the fence about the utility of the robot team. In the right hands I can see some solid potential, but the quick change rule almost seems like a hindrance as opposed to a benefit. Sebastien had some trouble making the transformations count, and often choosing what role a player should have seemed harder than what they should actually do. That said, I'm certainly not ready to write them off after only one game and want to play a few games using them myself.

Trilogy Dreadball League: Season 2 Charter

League Overview:

Monthly round meetings will be held on the last Thursday of each month, from 6:30 to 9:00 pm at Trilogy Games. Regular league play will consist of six rounds. The dates for each round are:

Round 1: June 27th

Round 2: July 25th

Round 3: August 29th

Round 4: September 26th

Round 5: October 24th (in place of Halloween)

Round 6: November 28th

The championship tournament will be played on Sunday, December 8th. Registration will begin at 12:00 pm, the first round will begin at 1:00 pm. The tournament will be single-elimination, round-robin play consisting of a minimum of three rounds.

Registration:

Entry to play in the league will be $30, which includes entry into the championship tournament. Prizing for the league will be provided by Trilogy Games. The number of prizes, levels of prizing and specific items will be determined by Trilogy Games after registration for the league has closed.

Coaches can register at the store any time on or before June 27th.

League Organization:

Players are encouraged to come to the round meetings each month. We will have a meeting at the beginning of each round which will take 15-30 minutes. Attendance at the meetings is not mandatory as long as the League Sponsor is notified of any MVP bids coaches wish to make in advance. 

All league game results must be reported before the next round meeting begins.

Round Meetings:

Round meetings will consist of the following:

Game/Team Value Reports – Game reports from the previous round match-ups must be reported to the league sponsor. Before match-ups can be set the current value of each team must also be double-checked and reported to the league sponsor. Coaches that fail to submit game reports or updated team values before or during the round meeting will lose one League Point each and will not be eligible to bid in the MVP auction.

Match-ups – Team match-ups for each round will be assigned by the league sponsor. The goal is to get teams to play as many other teams as possible during regular league play.

Underdog Bonuses – The difference in the team values will be calculated and underdog bonuses will be available to coaches for spending in the MVP auction. If the league game is played immediately, any underdog bonus remaining after the MVP auction can be used to hire Free Agents. Otherwise it is lost for the round.

MVP Auction – MVP's will be auctioned. Coaches who can’t attend in person can send their bid amounts to the league sponsor in advance who will act as a proxy for them at the round meeting. The MVP's available for the league will be chosen by the league sponsor before the first Round’s meeting, after all teams have been registered. The MVP pool will not change for the duration of the league. MVPs will not be available for use during the championship tournament.

Match-ups:

Assigned Match-ups – Each round you will receive an assigned match-up to play before the next round. You and your opponent will need to figure out a time and place to play on your own. I hope most coaches will play their league match immediately after the round meeting.

Assigned match-up games are played for League Points. Teams will be awarded league points as detailed in the league rules, with one additional rule: Coaches that fail to report the results of a league game before or at the next round meeting will each lose one League Point.

Optional Games – After your assigned match-up game has been played and reported, any number of additional games can be played between league rounds. Each game per round must be played against a different coach. These games are played for fun, experience, credits, and/or team rating but DO NOT award League Points to your team. MVP's that were successfully hired during the round meeting may be used in the optional games if your opponent agrees. Free agents may be hired after using the underdog bonus rules.

Figures:

1. Painted miniatures are NOT required, but are recommended.
2. Miniatures must be on hex bases and the front-facing edge must be visibly marked.
3. Miniatures must have a number in the range of 1-14 on the model or the base that matches the correct stat line on the roster.

Use of official Dreadball miniatures is not required, but is recommended. If other figures are used they are considered proxies and must adhere to the additional rules:

a) Your opponent must be informed of all proxy figures before the beginning of the match.

b) The models should be easily distinguishable as being one of the three player types by having a distinguishing paint job, pose, or by marking the base with an S, J, or G.

Cheerleaders/Coach Figures:

Cheerleaders, coach figures and their accompanying rules will not be used in the league.

Teams/Rosters:

Any season 1 or season 2 teams are allowed. You are responsible for having the rule book that contains the rules for your team available during your games. Note that human teams must use one of the two rules sets from season 1 OR season 2; they cannot be mixed together in the same roster.

Roster sheets must be kept up to date on an official roster page, be easily legible and accurate. Your opponent may request to see your roster sheet at any time. Any disputes about team value or player skills/stats should be brought to the attention of the league sponsor.

Playing games:

Games can be played immediately following the round meeting, or at a convenient time and place agreed upon by both coaches. For round matches no time restrictions will be in place. For tournament games a 60-minute time limit will be used. A chess-clock timing system might be used during tournament games, and will be determined before the first round of championship play begins.

Rules Disputes:

Rules disputes that come up in-game should be dealt with by referencing the official rule books and FAQ. If the league sponsor is available they can be asked to provide a ruling. Otherwise if the dispute is unable to be settled quickly, each person rolls a single d6 in a roll-off. The coach rolling the higher number decides the ruling. If a roll-off is used that ruling stands for the rest of the game. It should later be brought to the league sponsor for clarification.

Sportsmanship:

Be a good sport. Be nice to your opponent, compliment good plays, laugh off misfortunes, and be patient. It’s a game and should be FUN win or lose, so don’t take it too seriously. Try to play smart and efficiently: don’t waste your opponent’s time. A game of Dreadball should never take more than 90 minutes to play. 

Don’t cheat. If you are caught cheating or displaying unsportsmanlike conduct, you will no longer be allowed to participate in the league or championship tournament, and your entry fee will be forfeited. This also applies to falsifying game result reports to the league sponsor, or colluding with other coaches for any reason.

http://trilogygamingclub.com