Tor Gaming R&D; Forum

Things are progressing at a steady, if not sprinting, pace.

I�ve managed to find the time and energy to put together a fourth video, this time the Orcnar Unmann. It can be found here (http://www.torgaming.co.uk/rd/category/videos/)�..

But, more importantly we are moving forward with our development and testing internally. We are about to start looking at the magic and command rules in more depth. In addition (and partly because we need some for the Magic and Command rules) we have four new profiles.

Britanan Royal Arcanum Guard:
The first magic using profile of the game, these also fill the role as the Britanans first command models. These boys are the Kings own Guards, so not to be messed with�� Unless your stupid that is�..

Britanan Highlanders:
Now then, all you blackpowder heads may be surprised to find that the forth squad profile for the Britanans will be a combat profile, but what Red Coat wearing, musket wielding army would be seen dead out and about with out their kilt wearing broadsword wielding brethren.

Orcnar Beorn:
The Orcnars first command profile, the Beorn will bring the usual Orcnar subtlety for the finer tactics but adds to it with some special rules to move you orcnars about the table just that little bit quicker.

Orcnar Grymman:
Ah, yes, the Grymman. This may be a hardish profile for the Orcnar fans to get their head around as it is a shooting profile, but once all you Orcnar players pick yourselves up off the floor you�ll come to see that there is more than just �shooting in the hope of scoring a casualty� to the Grymman. Use them in a co-ordinated effort with some Unmann or an Eotan and you will definitely get your points worth and turn the melee monsters you have into even more of a killing machine.

You can expect to see early versions of the above appearing in the Rules Studio (http://www.torgaming.co.uk/forum/index.php/board,47.0.html) near future. In the mean time, why not take a look at what is already in there and let us know your thoughts.

The very nice guys at Zuzzy Miniatures (http://www.zuzzy.com/) have sent over a set of their Giant Tree Stumps (http://www.zuzzy.com/rl-gt-000_giant_tree_stumps.html) for us to use for demo tables and in pics for the website.

When they say 'Giant', they mean it!! These things are lovely.

I'll send them off to the guy who is making our demo boards so he can paint and base them to match. Once we get them back, we will post pics.

But this is a product, and a company, that I would recommend!!

Sounds good!� Can't wait to see them. When do you reckon the boards will be delivered? It'll be good to set up a demo game and video it.

The boards are done but they are also doing a couple of small pieces of ruined statues to match so they will all be sent together. Hopefully not to long.� �8)

I love the zuzzy stuff we did a nice review of there mat system in the current issue (Which is Free) of the Magazine.

The resin pieces they doa re very nice as well.� Great range and i so wish someone in the UK would pick them up to distrubute.

Well, I've pulled my finger out of the hole it was in and sorted out a couple of more videos. The Britanan Grenadier is on our You Tube video channel right now, and the Vaettir Varrier video will be up soonish.

You can find our channel on here (http://www.youtube.com/user/torgaming) or on our own site here (http://www.torgaming.co.uk/rd/category/videos/)

Tabletop gaming news have posted looking for nominations in their annual awards:

http://www.tabletopgamingnews.com/2010/12/05/41668

Get over there and nominate you favourites. Lets see if any of the Tor Gaming range gets a mention! (surely alternative atleast!!!)

There you are, I've nominated two for you. All you need now is for others to agree with me on the choices and Bingo!

trajan.

ha ha. Well, there you go. We got nominated!!� ar777

Every little bit helps! Just hope it pulls in some votes off the big boys!

Well, it's the 5 items from each category that get the most votes that get through to the 'vote off' for that category. Not sure the products are well known enough yet to get enough votes for that. just nice to see the nomination.

4 votes!! 2 in fantasy for the Trooper 2 in alternative for the Varrier!

Now I'm well happy. nice to get a bit of recognition (not that I have really done much....)

�That is great to see two nominations.

�Just noticed that one of mine has been nominated too� ;D.

I just voted for your sea witch too. I really love that model!� ar777

Hmmmm, if there is one thing I hate, it's not being able to find something.� {O}

I've just spent the last 40 mins searching the laptop and usb stick for the notes on the skirmish version of Relics and can't find them anywhere.

Some may say I'm a little un-organised, I would probably agree.... �:laugh: I don't suppose anyone knows what I did with them?

Still, most of it is in my head, and the bits that aren't probably aren't worth remembering.......

So, looks like I'll be typing that out all again this weekend after I have sorted the stock out that has arrived.

So, as you may (or may not) be aware, the guys at Zuzzy Mats were kind enough to send us the a set of the Ruined Land Giant Tree Stumps, and they are GIANT!!! (http://www.zuzzy.com/ruined_land_giant_tree_stumps.html) and I have finally got round to start looking at painting them.

It was at that point that I realised I had no idea how to actually paint them.......

So, anyone got some links to good tutorials/step by steps that may be useful painting these beasts?

At Tor Gaming office I have, within the last few months, been having weekly 'get togethers' with a few guys for the local club (Sheffield and Rotherham wargames club (http://www.sr-wargamers.co.uk/), also known as 'The Gimps'.....). Last night (21st December 2010) was the last one of these 'get togethers' this side of the new year and it proved to be an interesting one.

First of all, I want to take this opportunity to thank the guys have have made the effort to meet at the office and throw some dice around trying out the latest additions/iterations of the relics system. So, thank you Tom Lovewell, Alex Elstone and Paul Clarke for your efforts and commitment over the last few (4? 5?) months. I do truly appreciate it.

With the help of these three marvellous men I have almost managed to get the rules development side of the Relics rules back on schedule. Having now seemingly cracked the morale rules to a point that they manage to achieve quite a bit of what I wanted them to do in a view of removing the players 'Omnipotent' ability to direct their as they want on the table, I'm feeling much more confident that Relics as a games system will prove to be solid and is certainly ready (minus the magic rules (see below), which still need meat putting on the new bones before it can be sent out the new play-testing program. More news on the new play-testing program shortly by the way.)

So, what was so great about the get together last night? Well, first off all it was only me and Tom. The other two were unable to make it due to family commitments etc (I think that is called 'Real Life'?) We started out looking at the magic rules, or more precisely the lack of magic rules for Relic. Originally, there were rules for the use of magic in the game, but I decided they were complete crap and throw them out the the metaphoric window.

So, with just the two of us, a cup of tea in hand and some ideas that Tom had come up with we started chatting about how to tackle magic. Ideas were battered about, some were discarded, some led to others and in the end we ended up with a solid framework for the management of magic. This in itself is an achievement and I would have been very happy to call the evening to an end and go home, but that was just the first half the night!

By the time we were on our second cup of tea, we were moving on from Relics related development onto 'Project Fire' (as I have just decided to call it... catchy, hey?)

'What's this? You working on non-Relics related games' You are probably not asking, but I will assume you are. The answer to that is 'Yes'. As Tor Gaming is a business and therefore needs to generate cash-flow to help us not only survive but to grow and develop more miniatures and games, I do need to look at other revenue streams outside of the Relics universe.

So, what is this 'Project Fire'? Well, yesterday morning, an idea popped into my head. This is nothing new, I tend to have ideas pop into my head on a regular bases, many of which come to nothing but with this one it ignited a flame in my imagination (pun intended) that I just couldn't put out. So, during the day, in-between other 'stuff', I managed to get the idea out of my head and onto an electronic document. Surprisingly it stretched to 4 pages!!! Wow, a whole 4 pages.

So, after looking at Relics magic, Tom and I turned our attention to 'Project Fire' and gave it a run through using the rules I have managed to write during the day. Initially, it looked to be a game that would need 3 or more players. Whilst this wouldn't have stopped the development of the game, I was a little disappointed as I wanted it to be playable with just 2 players also. But at the very least, we had proved the concept to be a viable game idea.

Now, as I just stated, I wanted the game to be playable with just 2 players, and I found myself looking at ways to make the two player side of it work even on the first night. This is where Tom displayed one of his many moments of genius and suggested a change to the rules for 2 player games that would remove the issues and made the game instantly more enjoyable for just 2 players.

I'm not going to give you many details about the game itself (it is still in it's concept stage after all) but I am so confident that the game will make it through the development cycle that I will say:

* The game will make use of custom dice
* The game will make use of laser etched counters
* the idea behind the game is for it to be a tactical 'filler' game where people can pick it up and play it in 30mins, maybe even faster (you know the times, you at your club, waiting with a few others for your opponents for the night to turn up. So you pull out a 'filler' game to pass those 15 to 20 mins more enjoyable. But it will also be playable by more than 2 players with added tactical and resource manage decisions which will expand the game beyond the 'filler' type game)
* It will most likely �be a 'LDG', or Living dice game. So I view it as a possible line that Tor Gaming build on beyond it's initial release with new expansions that add new dice and rules to the core game.
* It will not be a 'CDG' and you will not be buying blind. I don't like blind purchase games.... Nuff said.......

So, keep an eye out for more news on 'Project Fire', I predict it will be a scorcher of a game! ;-)

Happy gaming and a Merry Christmas!

Gavin.

Well, other than trying not to blush from the nice words Gavin has just said about myself, Alex and Paul, and with the help of some smiley's I might be able to put some of this into context....

GrrrGorc

8URN ?

8TT8

� P0P} 00ps

{O}


We also discussed other elements of Relics as well as "Project Fire" last night - but with regard to this second project, its a good solid concept thought up by Gavin, and we just tweaked the game play into something more streamlined (Gavin's first itteration of written rules are often "meandering".....)

Well Done chaps! Just shows what you can do when you haven't got a huge distraction like me sidetracking you all the time :laugh:

Thanks for the accolades, Gavin, though they really weren't necessary. I have enjoyed every moment and am quite happy to carry on if/when required. Glad to have been of service.

Sorry about last night. It was something I couldn't avoid.

At some point over the Christmas period we received some terrain boards we have orders from CT-Scenary along with a couple of terrain pieces from Thormaillion. Check out the blog post below for pics of the boards.

I will post pics of the whole lot put together at some point in the next few days.

http://www.torgaming.co.uk/rd/terrain-boards/

Latest blog post of my ramblings are up on the main site.

http://www.torgaming.co.uk/rd/

OMG, a third project!

A dice game called project punch, I'm intrigued

lol, well, it's a dice only game about beating seven bells of crap out of your mates.� Multiplayer at the moment, can play with as many people as you want and make the game last as long as you want by adjusting the damage value.

Working on a 2 player mode at the moment.

Now that sounds like fun ;D