Victoria's Boys in Red: Lest We Forget...

Victoria's Boys in Red: Lest We Forget...

Because we should never, ever, forget that the freedoms we enjoy as Americans, British, French, etc., were all bought at the price of the sacrifice of our veterans.

THANK YOU

MAY GOD BLESS YOU ALL

Just a Quick One, then...

Random, but cool: A Bentley near the house.

Burning Hitlerite tanks (FOW)

Burning Soviet tanks (FOW)

My 8th Army Brit objective marker (FOW)

Unfinished Empire Marksman (Talabheim)

Unfinished Talabheim Musician

Unfinished Talabheim Banner

Another shot of FOW objective

GW Powder monkey, part of my Empire Great Cannon crew

And from behind. Mutant two tails...

To quote Monty Python...

"I'm not dead."

Really. It just seems that way. I had a few productive weeks in August in the name of gaming and not a darn thing since then. Real life, grad school, start of term for the school in which I teach, yadda yadda yadda.

One fun non-gaming thing I did, which may have to become a new tradition in the house, was show my kids Ferris Bueller's Day Off on the night before school began. Just to put things in perspective. Danke schoen, darling, danke schoen...

I promise I will try to snap a few pictures of what I got up to at the end of summer and post them this weekend.

Really. I'll try.

Really really.

Why are you still reading this? Go home.

The Empire Paints Back

   Okay, it is only a moderately clever title. But I have been painting again, last week mostly. The work has been aimed at the Warhammer Fantasy Battle Empire army I started about two years ago for my sons. The army is a mix of Talabheim and Talabecland troops, with some random extras thrown in. I finished up the Kislevite horse archers and flagellants last year, and the start of two units of state troops (swords and halberds).

   I finished up another five swordsmen, and ordered the remainder. These are Talabecland troops, in yellow and red. I finished the Warrior Priest of Sigmar a couple of months back, as well, which lets me field the flagellants. I also finally finished the two crewmen I had for the Great Cannon, so that is ready for the field. I am painting up a powder monkey to act as the third crewman for now. I am almost finished with the Talabheim halberdiers, as well. Five more are about 90% done. I need to re-do the banner for that unit, since it is a Reikland banner, but that is a pretty easy fix. The rest of the unit of 20 are on order as well.

   On the table right now are the powder monkey, a champion (for the soon to start Talabecland Spears), and a unit of Talabheim handgunners. Plus odds and ends of other projects.

   One problem I have is that the halberds and swordsmen I have are of an older plastic pattern, and the spearmen and the last fillers are of the newer sculpts. Not a huge deal for the swordsmen, but the 2006 sprues for state troops are a lot different from the spearmen and halberdiers, especially in how they hold their weapons and all the feathers! Feathers snip off easily enough, but re-positioning the arms and hands for the halberdiers is not. May have to hit eBay for more of the older ones.

Hyderabad Campaign (D&D 3.5)

   A few weeks ago, I asked here about how to roleplay via Skype. I managed to get my end of the deal set up, but my buddy Jim is temporarily internet-less at his home in Canyon, Texas, thanks to technical difficulties. So we have been unable to Skype game. We settled for the next best, and have been speaker-phone gaming.

   This is definitely not the way we are going to want to proceed on a permanent basis. Hard to hear, and my sons' discussions and suggestions easily drown out what Jim is trying to say on the other end. We do send him text pictures of the map layout as we go, however, so he has a general idea of the tactical picture.

   The setting is one I created specifically for this campaign. Hyderabad (pr. Hi-deer-uh-bath) is located atop a relatively remote mountain. It would have remained an isolated village of inbred shepherds were it not for the Chamber of Portals found in a cavern below the village. Relics of the Ancients, the twenty-six magical gateways carry anyone passing through them to somewhere else, always underground. Most portals are known to have a variety of randomly selected end points, but the command word for each activates the return portal to the Chamber. The influx of wealth and adventurers has given the city its growth, and it is often called the City of Adventurers, the City of Wanderers, or the City of Portals.

   Chartered Adventuring Companies obtain charters from the city government allowing them access to the Chamber. A strict inventory is taken both before departure and on arrival. Taxes are garnished (5%) of anything that returns with a party that was not with them when they departed. The city above caters to the whims and needs of adventurers as well. There are a multitude of pawnbrokers, coin changers, jewelers, enchanters, weaponsmiths, inns, taverns, chandlers, merchants, thieves, and temples in the city's winding streets.

   Our party, the Chartered Company of Romarr's Rangers consists of the classic four member dungeon-delving team: fighter, sorcerer, rogue and cleric.

• Joseph Ore'rock: Mul fighter. All power and endurance. He wields a greatsword as if it were a tennis racket. [Greyson]
• Gerrok: Human cleric of Romarr, an obscure deity of protection. Domains are fire and war. Rumor has it that a great temple to Romarr is in one of the portal caverns. Gerrok seeks it to increase the faith. Captain of Romarr's Rangers. [Dane]
• Hawar Osovok: Halfling rogue, brother of Idamar. Small and very quick, his nimble fingers find little challenge in common locks. [Jim]
• Idamar Osovok: Halfling sorcerer, brother of Hawar. Physically weak, he avoids melee if possible, preferring to shower foes with unerring bolts of pure magical force. [Jim]

   So far, we have played on two nights, and are enjoying it. Can't wait to get the Skype up and running to help with visibility, discussion and sociability.