Irregular Wars Wargaming

... at least, that's what we're aiming for and I think we're well on track. Spare a shekel for an ex-leper?

The wealthy burghers of Roquefort are among the most important supporters of the Ayatollah of Gorgonzola. Devoted to the mysterious prophet and his eastern philosophy, the rats of Roquefort provide the elite Revolutionary Guard and act as a rallying point for the more irregular elements of the Gorgonzola insurgency. This is the first HotT element I have worked on in more than 18 months and the first unit in the army of the Ayatollah of Gorgonzola - the leader of the religious and social rebellion against the Grand Duchy of Cheddar. The figures are 10mm Ratguard from Kallistra miniatures. Clearly derived from the Pendraken League of Ratsburgh range, I believe these exclusive conversions are produced under license by Kallistra. They come cast on strips which I was wary of at first, but I think I might like these slightly more than their Pendraken archetypes - there is just more variation in the individual rats and their colonel is heart-breakingly cute. As the unit was raised from ...

Last night I hauled myself down off the mountain and took Song of Shadows and Dust  for a couple more playtests to Wee Gamers (the wargaming club that meets in Whitehead on the Co. Antrim coast). In the picture above you can see my not-quite-but-almost-complete scenery laid out for the second game of the night. From the authors perspective, the night was a huge success with lots of unforeseen 'incidents' nutted out and a couple of rule changes, additions and refinements. From a gaming perspective it was a night of riotously good fun - certainly for me but I suspect for the others as well... There was lots of scaling buildings and leaping alleyways. The evening saw a faction leader attempt to leap a courtyard, slip and fall with an cringe-worthy snap, leaving his minions without his leadership and desperately handicapped. We had children throwing stones, people knocked backwards off roofs, a sheikh smacked by an oar and a hilarious incident involving an irate mule and a swa...

The Kybiosaktoi (packers of salted fish) are one of the factions being used to playtest Song of Shadows of Dust and might be considered typical of the many factions of ruffians leaving their mark on the streets of Antiocheia Mikros (sometimes quite literally). Legally the faction is composed of a trade association or guild who trade in the preserved fish brought up from the coast and exported into the Syrian interior. Unofficially the Kybiosaktoi maintain strong links with various groups of pirates who base themselves or the rocky shores of Kilikia, and, like many of those pirates, would like to see a different, more sympathetic king residing in the royal palace. Luckily for them, in the first century BC, there is no shortage of potential kings. Strato Monophthalmos (the one-eyed) is the faction's leader. He used to sail with a band of like-minded gentlemen out of Korykos in Kilikia until a Roman arrow took out an eye. Now he trades in salted fish and goods found at sea witho...

The very talented artist who is doing the illustrations for Song of Shadows and Dust has sent through the first set of images. By way of procrastinating this afternoon - I was supposed to be researching the best time to plant lupins - I mocked up a few pages of the rules to see how they looked with pictures. Here is just one sample page. It probably wont look like this when finished, but you can see that things are beginning to take form. Note that the text on this sample page was chosen because it doesn't vary much from standard SBH rules ... I need to keep some cards close to my chest after all.

ATTENTION CITIZENS OF ANTIOCHEIA MIKROS If you break the laws you will be caught. If you are in Antioch illegally you will be caught. If you defy the gods you will be caught. If you assault your neighbours you will be caught. If you covet thy neighbours ass (or arse for that matter) you will be caught. WE ARE WATCHING YOU Song of Shadows and Dust  example faction (300 points) Militia Officer 95 points Q2 C3 Special Rules Armed, Leader, Lucky Militiaman (x4) 39 points Q4 C3 Special Rules Armed, Bludgeon, Steadfast Militia Archer 45 points Q4 C3 Special Rules Agile, Bow, Steadfast