Scenery for a skirmish game, Introduction

Together with a friend I was organising the next Ronfest game. Ronfest is a monthly game and/or event that I and some friends attend.

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Scenery for a skirmish game, Introduction

This scenery was planned on the Ronfest in early February, but I felt ill and skipped. The guys decided that they would play another game (...they didn't play at all...). That was a lucky thing for me, because the scenery wasn't finished (I was only 1 step further than the basecoat). I'll tell the whore story, as far as I can for the Ronfest game in early March.

As we play a pitched battle most of the time, or make up a mission on the Ronfest day itself,  we had the idea of actually preparing a mission for the next Ronfest. 

I should be a 28mm skirmish game (as we are playtesting our own set of action based rules, called 'scrimmage'), with a few miniatures which should be in play a long time. In the past we did a 'Call Of Duty'-like battle with respawning of the miniatures. So the idea was born for a kind of paintball-like mission. So, the mission 'Capture the flag' was born. We did throw in some extra's to (hopefully) make the game more ecxiting.

Extra rules:

There are four players, each with a flag and a team of four soldiers, which he can use to cause murder and mayhem, and/or to capture the flag of an opponent.

Random turn sequence:

For the random turn sequence a deck of cards will be used, without the aces but with the jokers. Every player will be assigned a symbol (clubs, diamonds, hearts and spades). This deck will determine which player gets the turn. Every turn a card will be picked from the deck and the symbol dictates which player has the turn.

If the card is a joker, a special rule will be used for a given number of turns (see 'The Joker')

Capturing flags

Flags will be captured when a model comes in base-to-base contact with it. The catch is that the player has to bring the flag back to his own homebase to earn some points. Flags can be (re)captured by knocking them down, injuring them or killing them. A flag can be given to friendly model if the models or the flag are in base-to-base contact. Taking a flag doesn't cost an action, but it will end any movement action (for instance; A model can move 6". After walking 3" inch, the model captures a flag. It cannot move the other 3" of its current movement phase). This resriction does'nt count for letting go of the flag. As the model needs one hand to carry the flag, the model can only use one-handed weapons while carrying the flag.

Respawn

Models that are ou of play (killed) kan respawn at the end of the owning players turn. A respawn can occur anywhere on the table as long as it meets the following criteria:

- Minimal 30" away from any flag.

- Minimal 10"" away from any homebase.

- Minimal 10" away from an enemy model

The Joker

There are two Jokers in the game. When a Joker is drawn, roll a D6, check the special rules below. The rolled rule is in effect immidiatly:

• 1: No more ammo! (all ranged weapons are out of ammo, this rule is in effect for 8 turns)
• 2: Fog of War! (all models have a maximum movement and line of sight of 5", this rule is in effect for 8 turns)
• 3: Flag reset! (all flags return to their homebase, no points will be awarded)
• 4: Incoming! (some lunatic has decided to shell the entire playing area with heavy artillery, all models are Knocked down)
• 5: World of Pain! (all models that get Injured or are Knocked down are automaticly Killed, this rule is in effect for 8 turns)
• 6: (un)Holy Handgrenade! (Ranged weapons are useless, instead every model with a ranged weapon has now Holy Handgrenades: 5 AM, SC, TH, MB) (The stats mean a range of 5", template, the effect of a 40K frag grenade with the damage of a krak grenade and a scatter which makes it possible for the model to blow itself to smithereens)

Teams

Every team consists of 4 models: 1 Squad leader, 1 SAW (Squad Automatic Weapon) and 2 Soldiers. All teams are equal in stats.

Points

Every enemy flag a player brings back is worth 5 points. Every friendly (own) flag a player brings back, without it ever reaching the homebase of an enemy, is worth 3 points. If a flag reaches an enemy homebase, the points are awarded and the flag immediatly respawns at the homebase of the owning player.

End of extra rules.

Well, my pal Jase has done his job, by creating 4 equal teams (see his blog http://quodmanica.blogspot.com/2011/01/capture-flag-teams-done.html) ;

Red team, Diamonds - Jase 

Black team, Clubs - Andy

Green team, Spades - Ron

Blue team, Hearts - Lenno

As the gamerules were set, I had some toughts about the scenery to be used.

First I needed some ideas for some nice scenery pieces. I started with a theme. I liked to go in the vinicity of pulp. It would fit the capture the falg principle and I could go over the top with the details on the scenery.

As I recently purchased a new printer, I could also make some nice looking signs.

For the size and placement of the scenery there should be some things to take in account. As the table is about 2.5-3 feet by about 4 feet, and the homebases would probably be positioned at the corners, there should be some scenery to prevent the fights only happening at the players nearest to eachother, which would make the game split in two seperate games of 2 players. Also there had to be a centrepiece for the game where most of the fighting can take place, preferrably a maze-like thing with 2 levels. A homebase for every player was also needed, and it should be easy to recognise to which player it belongs. The scenery should also be able to direct the fight to the centre of the table for some proper murder and mayhem. 

To sum it up, the requirements are;

- a homebase for each player with markings of the owning player

- a centrepiece for the looks and the centrepiece of the fighting

- scenery to influence the direction the models will take

- themed: 'over the top pulp'

- as the miniatures are on a desert-like base, it should be a desert-like scenery.

I made a drawing (on paper) how the scenery should be arranged. Specially for you I made a digital version.

Below the drawing of the minimum number of scenery pieces needed. As I don't know the exact size of the table I guessed the scenery pieces in general to the size of  1 foot and for the centrepieces somewhat bigger.

So I would minimal need the following scenery pieces:

4x Homebase, approx 1'x1'

4x Directional, approx 1'x 1-2"

2x Centrepiece, approx 1.5'x1'

Well, next post I'll go into the materials and the building.