RPG Review: Pendragon 6th Edition - Chaosium

 

I think there is something wrong with me.  I love RPGs with social systems that reduce player agency and boxes players into certain values, almost like you are part of a civilization that has certain mores, customs, and ways things are supposed to be done.  Games like Legend of the Five Ring with its very rigid social system appeal to me.  Therefore, it is only natural that I would be drawn to this.  

Pendragon is about semi-mythical, romanticized Knights of the Arthurian tradition.  Like Samurai, Arthurian Knights had a code of servitude they were supposed to live by.  They had a social role in society of warriors and protectors.  They serve a lord and in exchange are taken care of by their lord.  The lord provides food, shelter, housing, and equipment in exchange for service and acts of bravery and violence.  Knights must follow their lord, and interestingly, protecting the weak is at best secondary and is often not even part of their job.  

If you have read a lot of Arthurian folklore and legend you know that knights are big personalities full of foibles and swings of passion.  They are not like Samurai in that regard, who are supposed to be supremely stoic.  Knights are figures of romantic (in the literary sense) character and that brings bouts of moodiness, melancholy, and madness.  Knights were full of feelings about their duty, chivalry, and courtly romance that they expressed in the literature.   

Before we get too far, know that this is a hefty tome!  It is a nice, full-color hardback with 251 pages of details.  There are a few ribbon book marks built into the spine.  I think those will be necessary to keep track of key parts of the book.  It is clear that the author Greg Stafford knows a thing or two about Arthurian lore, both literary and historical. They are clear that this is not a book about the actual time period of the Dark Ages, but how the Arthurian Legends that have been passed down to us in literature.  

So, let's take up our lance, sit astride our chargers, and prepare to go on a quest into these rules......

 Things I Liked

There is a lengthy discussion at the beginning about what a knight is, and what a knight isn't in terms of Pendragon.  It has some detailed discussion about female knights, and cites some literary and historical examples.  It also discusses why you may come across knights doing bad things or things they should not be doing.  This is followed by an idea of the themes of the game, and how it should be played.  This is necessary to help ground the GM and players into the game system and what it is trying to simulate.  This is not the world of Dungeons and Dragons, not even close. 

I think my favorite part of this game is the Opposed Traits system.  There are a list of "Knightly Traits" that are opposed to each other.  These Traits are split so they add up to 20.  For example, your two traits are 13 Merciful/Cruel 7.  The GM will call on you to take dice tests to determine how your Knight will respond to various situations, so they might call on you to make a Merciful check to spare a fellow knight in battle.  You roll a d20 and try to get below the dice check required, if passed you get to act Mercifully, if failed you make a dice test on the Opposed Trait to see if you act the opposite.  In this case a Cruel 7.  If you roll under 7 you act Cruelly towards the fallen knight.  If you roll above, you can dictate your action.  Therefore, you can give your Knight preferences for how they will act, but in the heat of the moment they may act in a way outside of their normal character.  This can lead to great melodrama and tragedy, actually codifies knightly conduct in the rules, and fits in nicely with the Arthurian theme.  However, some players may not like this as it removes some "player agency" from the game.  

An extra wrinkle to the Traits system, is that Knights often have certain "Passions" that they can call out to temporarily boost a Trait.  These Passions help further differentiate Knights from each other, and they fall into various categories based on the nature of the Passion.  Things like Homage to their Lord, Love of Family, Passion for their gods, and Hate for a Foe fall into these categories but diversify the longer you play.  Failure on Passion related checks can lead to bouts of madness and melancholy.    

One key component of Pendragon is that everyone dies!  However, there are detailed rules for playing not just a Character, but a family line of Knights.  Therefore, if your first character falls, but has an heir you can continue the adventure with their off-spring or close relative taking up the mantle.  There are rules for passing on Glory, Passions, and other details down the family line.  This type of play is encouraged, and finding a spouse and having heirs is a key part of the game play IF you want to follow the full Arthurian myth cycle from the very beginning to the end, as it covers 150 years or so of time!    

 

Things I Did Not Like

The dice mechanic for resolving basic tests and opposed tests is somewhat convoluted and non-intuitive to me.  For starters, it is a d20 system but it is a roll under system.  Never a fan of roll under, but I understand why here.  Crit failure is a 20.  Crit success is if you roll the exact number of your stat.  In addition, if it is an opposed roll you will need to roll lower than your stat, but above your opponent.  The good thing is that this can lead to a variety of success states, but ultimately is not intuitive to recall at all!  This is before we get into Passions and other variables that can be applied to rolls. This leads to some convoluted sets of modifiers that I think I will need a cheat sheet to keep track of what does what, what is a success, partial, failure, etc. for a while when playing this game. 

Combat uses the basic system mentioned above with skill checks.  The hardest part if cross-referencing the Crit Success, Success, Failure, Fumble chart.  There is also distances and weapon damage, knockdowns, etc.  A QRS will be needed until you get the hang of it.  It is also important to note that combat can be rather brutal with people dropping weapons, weapons breaking, and getting knockdown a lot.  Plus, a Knight can't take that many hits without being knocked out.  To make it worse, healing can take a long, long time in this game because there is no magical shortcuts.  Healing is done on a weekly basis.  Therefore, fighting is common but can get deadly relatively quickly.  Thankfully, most Knights are more valuable alive as ransom to their fellow knights or are fighting to the first blood.  

The book is very comprehensive and has a great table of contents and a list of key tables.  I really liked the Key Tables contents page.  However, the book does place rules in some strange places and there is a mix of flavor text and rules in some parts.  I think this will make it challenging at times to play.  

The Core Rulebook references a lot of other rulebooks and they are not covered in this book.  I was a bit surprised by this, as I expected to get the rules for the game.  Apparently, this is more of the Player's Handbook, with different books for Gamemasters, Estates, and other details.  Supplements are fine for a game, but I feel the naming of this book is a bit misleading.  I would therefore not call this a complete game because a lot of key ideas are touched on, but not covered.  SAD!  

There was no introduction scenario to help GMs and Players get introduced into the setting and the game.  That disappointed me. I am left not exactly sure how to introduce my players into this world or how to even get a grasp on creating adventures for this game.  Double SAD! I guess for that I need to get the Starter Set too? 

Meh and Other Uncertainties

All players start as Squires.  In order to become full-fledged Knights there are a few mechanical things they need to do.  This includes hitting certain thresholds of Skills and Glory mechanically.  There are also some other Role-Play aspects such as age, having a Lord, etc.  Therefore, this game starts with young adult characters and follows their careers as they age, grow old, die, and then carries over to their heirs!  Each adventure is one year in the longer campaign, and the end of each session has a "Winter" phase where characters update for the next year.  This includes aging, skill development, etc.  It reminds me of an "End Phase" in wargaming.  Keeping track of the year, and how it corresponds to the Arthurian timeline is relatively important in this game.  

The game uses Glory as the main metric for determining success, well; there are a lot of ways to measure success.  You can level up certain traits to become various types of Knights like Chivalric, Religious, etc.  You can level up and down your Honor rankings.  There are a lot, but the main mechanic is Glory.  As you complete adventures and tasks you earn Glory.  It is also something you use to measure against other Knights you encounter as well.   

This game has dedicated rules for solo play.  I think this system really works well with that format.  I have to admit, the big appeal to me of RPG is the social group aspect.  Take that away and I might as well play something else.  However, the way this game is structured made me question my own thoughts on solo-play.  It is more about "discovering what happens".  However, it speaks to the somewhat abstracted nature of the game compared to some other RPGs out there.   

There are three chapters dedicated to arms, armor, and horses (?).  Horses are actually a pretty big deal in this game and not the disposable things you see in most Fantasy games.  I think one of my favorite tables is the Horse Personality table, as players as expected to role-play their mounts as well!  The game has several pages dedicated to creating Heraldry for your Player-Knight.  Of course, it is just a short primer on a topic that whole books have been written on.  However, even this small sliver is very interesting.   

Final Thoughts

This is a relatively crunchy game that leans more towards Simulation than it does Narrative.  However, the simulation is focused on a fictional world of the Mythical King Arthur cycle.  Therefore, it is not for the feint of heart.  I really enjoyed how the game "codified" and "systematized" the conduct of Knights and this is one of the few games I have seen that have managed to codify such a behavior based system into rules.  

In some ways, this is a bit of a throwback design to things that were popular in the 80s.  RPG Design has moved a lot in that time.  There are some things that are very detailed and focused on, but other very important aspects are just handwaved.  In addition, a lot of outcomes rely solely on dice rolls.  

That said, like Legend of the 5 Rings; this is not an RPG for the newbie role-player.  This requires a couple things to work.  You have to be willing to engage with it for what it is.  This is not a rules-lite Narrative heavy game.  This is a crunchy outcome generator for Arthurian legends.  If you come to this game with the wrong thought process, it will be very disappointing.  Come at it in the proper context and interest in Arthurian Legend and you will have an amazing time.       

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On The Painting Desk: Anglo-Saxon Shieldwall for Fury of the Northman

 

The first big painting project of 2025.  I am working on an Anglo-Saxon army for Fury of the Northman.  I picked up the miniatures for it in 2024 but did not get the time to work on it back then.  However, it is winter time and there is no better time to paint a big project than now.  I am using a combination of Victrix kits, the Late Anglo-Saxons, the Early Anglo-Saxons, and the Dark Age Archers kit for this army.  The army will look like this: 

• 1 Unit of Shieldwall Nobles as Thegns from the Late Anglo-Saxon kits
• 3 Units of Shieldwall Militia as Fyrd from the Early Anglo-Saxon kits
• 2 Units of skirmishers/irregulars from a mix of Early and Late Anglo-Saxon kits
• 3 Units of Archers from the Dark Age Archer kits

That is enough for an army plus some swappable extras to play against my Dark Age Irish and my Viking force.  That will allow a pretty decent campaign mix.  Still thinking about a Muslim army for this period too. 

I decided to get started on the Shieldwall infantry first.  That is the heart of most armies in the Viking Age isn't it?  Well...... no..... but it is for this one!  I have been spoiled by all those Heroquest models because I forgot what a pain it is to actually assemble your models!  That really slowed me down.  However, I soon had the 40 shieldwall models all assembled and put on washers.  Then, before painting I of course gave them an undercoat of Grey Seer.  

Before I got started, I decided I was NOT going to be using Speedpaints on these guys.  All of my other Historical models I use the base coat and a wash method.  So these fit in, I decided I wanted to do the same with this army.  Therefore, after spray undercoating it was time to start batch painting.  

Here is a quick look at my batch painting technique.  I have obviously batch painted a few armies in my time, so I think I have a decent technique down for it.  First thing I do, is paint all of their flesh and all of their shoes/boots.  I typically use three different colors for their footwear.  

From there, I start painting from the lowest layer up.  Typically, that is the pants!  I decide on the various colors of pants I want, then I start to break them up into smaller groups, so that each unit will only have one or two guys with the same color pants.  

I then, do the same thing with the next layer.  In this case, it was going to be the leggings.  I typically use the same colors I just make sure a guy with that color pants doesn't get the same color leggings.  I then make one last mix up for their tunics.  I tend to do the same thing but with fewer colors and larger batches for all the colors as I move up the model, so belts, hafts, armor/helms, etc.  You may have also noticed that I keep all the shields off, I paint those on the sprue separately and add them just before basing.  

Of course, I got a bit impatient and spent some time away from the Fyrd, and focused on the Thegns and got them done the fastest of all the Shieldwall infantry..... woops......

All that chainmail was just begging for me to finish it off.  Afterall, they look so... unfinished... in all that gun metal and polished silver.  I couldn't let that stand!  I finished the base colors with a nice coat of Strong Tone wash. The guy in the purple cloak is supposed to be my Earl.  I like to give my officers purple..... it is a hang-over from my ancients painting.  Any excuse to use purple am I right!  Like the Fyrd, I will be painting the shields and adding them last.  

With a small hit of Dopamine to help me get to the end, I went back to working on batch painting the Fyrd with my tried and true method.  I mean, it is only 30 of them right!  The biggest "batch" to batch painting with these guys will be their tunics.  I mean, these look super comfy and I am hoping one day they come back in style!  It is basically a really long and flowing shirt belted around the hips?  I would wear that.  

Look, it's the Power Rangers: Dark Ages!  Go, go Power Rangers!  Here the Fyrd are about half finished.  From here, it is about painting up the belts, pouches and gear that they are all wearing.  This is mostly Skeleton Bone, Dessert Yellow, Leather Brown, and Fur Brown.  Again, each model typically uses two different gear colors to mix it up.  Since I use those colors on their tunics (or are they tabards?) you have to make sure you don't make the belt and gear the same color as the clothing.  Easy to do when batch painting.  

It is always amazing to me how "finished" a model becomes when you paint their weapons.  I could have a full unit painted, but not their weapons and it would look like I still had a ton left to do!  Since they are spears, I mixed it up with different colors on the hafts using the same colors as their belts.  Then, I painted up all the metal, including helmets, buckles, spear points with a variety of Plate Mail, Gun Metal, Bronze, and a few Metallic Speedpaints for variety.  Once again, hair color was one of my favorite parts using a some yellow, and orange, but mostly ash grey, dark stone, fur brown, and monster brown.  The base colors were all in place! 

The last step to finishing the basics on these guys was a nice Strong Tone wash using my Armypainter washes.  The Strong Tone is black based and it works well with Chain Mail and armored minis.  These guys are not wearing chain, but I used it on the Nobles.  I felt like if I switched to a Light or Soft Tone they would not blend in as well.  Those tones are sepia based.  So, with some trepidation I hit them with the Strong Tone......

Oh yeah, that darkened them up.  However the blend in pretty good with the leader squad.  The only left to do is to base them and get their shields painted.  Man, I hate painting shields, but especially Dark Age shields.  You can see how it went last time with my Vikings, but you will have to see how these turn out.  

Painting these 40 guys to this level took me about 4 days of work, spread over a couple weeks of time, a few colors here and there.  I rarely get to just sit down and paint for 3 days straight!  Most of my painting projects I pack up in between sessions, but these guys just sat on the desk and waited pateintly.  I do not think I would enjoy just sitting down and painting all day!  I tend to do a color or two, get up, do something else for a bit, and then come back to it.  

Next up, I will go over the shields and start in on the Skirmishers and Archers.  Probably another batch of 30-50 guys.  Until next time! 

Bonus Content! 

I managed to go down and play some of the new edition of Kill Team with the True Crit Gaming Guild.  I took the Hand of the Archon out to play since it had an actual Kill Team box and I hoped the rules were still current.  No idea still, but my opponent was nice enough to let me use what I had.  

I honestly only picked up on a few differences compared to the last edition.  Of course, the missions changed, some of the keyword rules changes a bit, assets changed, and the way Conceal/Engage worked changed a bit.  They also ditched the stupid shapes instead of numbers thing.  However, it seemed to play pretty much the same after that.  However, it is also possible that I never knew the old rules well enough to notice the differences!  

This was a classic battle of dwarves vs. elves, as my friend took the new League of Votann Scavengers for their list.  I couldn't tell you too much about them, except they seemed to be a close ranged team.  They had shotguns and a lot of pistols and CC dudes.  I had them pretty well shot up, and managed to out flank them.  We scored points by being in the enemy control zones and deployment zones.  They had some resourceful tricks, but ultimately the Dark Eldar were nastier this time.  

I saw the Hivestorm box at the store, but ultimately I doubt I will pick it up unless I come into some sort of windfall.  I really do not need two new Kill Teams when I all ready have more than I will probably use!  Plus, I am not sure the rules changes are enough where I feel like I need the update to the newest edition in order to keep engaging with it on a casual level.  

Until next time!  

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Battle Report: Heroquest- The Trial and The Rescue of Sir Ragnar

It is time to embark on a great quest, a quest for Heroes!  A Heroquest!  

I packed up my Core Set of Heroquest and took it to my families' for the Holidays.  However, it never got put on the table.  We were too busy and never got to play it.  It happens.  However, when I got home I figured it was about time for the game to hit the table.  I had downloaded the App, and decided to give it a whirl solo.  I think you lose a lot when you do it solo, as some of the "RPG-Lite" gets left behind.  However, I tried to inject a bit of it into my gameplay where I could.  

My Heroes!  

Speaking of that, I decided to use the Original Heroes for my warband.  I could have added the Druid but I chose not to.  Maybe next playthrough?  They call themselves The Fellowship of Destiny.    

They are ostensibly led by Allathura of the Green.  An Elf from the ancient kingdoms, her people have stood against evil countless times before.  Now, her people have sent her to defend the realms of the freefolk once more.  

From the ancient Dwarf halls comes Hamilcar Margos.  A fierce warrior and renowned tinkerer.  The cousin of the son-in-law of the Thane, he has been tasked with upholding the honor of his people.  His task is to cut down his foes and make sure that foul machines and traps do not harm his fellows.  

The wizard Aerlin of the Moonlight is said to possess a natural talent for elemental magic that could one day rival Mentor himself.  However, Aerlin is patient, and cautious in his ways.  Mentor has the utmost faith in the lad when it comes to defending the realm from magical threats and Dread magic.  

Lastly, the Fellowship is joined by No-nak from the North.  His people owe fealty to the King, and have defended the Northern Approaches for decades.  He is strong of back and swole of arm.  No-nak often solves his problems with violence!  

Together, Mentor has dubbed them the Fellowship of Destiny.  After years of training, Mentor has one final task for his students.  They must hunt down the foul Gargoyle Varag in Fellmarg's Tomb.  

The Trial

The first quest is a bit notorious for being difficult because it uses ALL the monsters and the heroes only have their starting gear.  It is so notorious, that Avalon Hill/Hasbro released a new beginning quest.  However, the App just starts with The Trial, so I did too!  In my review, I also talked a bit about using some House Rules for movement, but I just decided to play it straight.  

Right away, in the first room Allathura ran into a wandering monster!  It leapt from the shadows and attacked!  However, after an initial surprise she was quickly able to dispatch the foul minion of Varag! 

 

The App is kind of fun, because it keeps the surprise of what is behind various doors or pathways a surprise as you explore.  The enemies are not that smart though, and it is easy to trap them behind a doorway, or in a corner.  However, they do like to hit and run, so that is something you need to think about.  Plus, with starting equipment you do not have any diagonal attacks, and that can be tough as monsters will block doorways too.  It was a bit of a learning experience on the best ways to approach doors and exploring.  

Despite the lack of traps or secret doors in the first dungeon, I liked to keep Hamilcar in the lead.  He is resilient enough to handle most things, and then No-nak could maneuver tactically to deal with it.  I made the right choices and found Fellmarg's tomb pretty quickly.  However, the Mummies protecting the tomb and Fellmarg's undead spirit really were a tough nut for me to crack.  A powerful fire ball from Aerlin was needed to finish the job.  Afterwards, I needed to boost up Hamilcar and No-Nak with magic from the others.  

Thankfully, we found a Potion of Defense.  We opened a door and ran into an Abomination.  This thing was a tough nut to crack as well.  Hamilcar and No-Nak had it boxed in, but were failing to put it down.  Thankfully, No-nak had Rock Skin and the Potion of Defense so managed to avoid further serious injury despite the prolonged combat.

 Allathusa of the Green led the way to the center room.  There, the Fellowship of Destiny discovered Varag!  However, he was not alone!  A powerful Dread Warrior was in counsel with him!  Allathusa quickly hit the armored monster with a Sleep spell and then she and Hamilcar closed in.  No-nak took out one of Varag's orc Henchman, but only after a devastating flurry of attacks injured him.  

Varag sensed weakness and pressed in on No-nak.  Allathura and Hamilcar looked on in horror as the Gargoyle tore into No-nak with fury.  A fatal bite to the jugular from the Gargoyle finished off the barbarian hero.  HIs body fell, his sword slipping from his hand.  

Per the rules, when a hero falls with a fellow hero in the room the equipment goes to the other heroes.  However, I was unsure if that meant that Hamilcar could use the Barbarians broadsword or not.  I decided that he could not use it. 

A summoned Genie from Aerlin dealt a vital blow to Varag, but the beast yet lived.  Enraged by the death of his comrade, Hamilcar threw himself at the Gargoyle with a rage.  His short sword stabbing and probing into the cracks of the beast.  Varag bellowed a last time before cracking and crumbling into pieces.

With that, Allathura led Hamilcar and Aerlin back to the surface and safety.  There Mentor listened to the tale of the death of No-nak and shook his head with grief.  Perhaps he had been too hasty in sending the Fellowship of Destiny into Fellmarg's Tomb.  Thankfully, there was another warrior Mentor knew he could call on to help the Fellowship.       

Since I had heard how difficult this dungeon could be, I did not open every door, or try to find every treasure chest.  After getting jumped by wandering monsters twice in a row, I became a bit more careful about how I searched for treasure too.  Therefore, I don't think I found everything or recovered all the loot that I could have.  After killing Varag, I pretty much just hoofed it out.  Hamilcar was low on health, as was Allathura.  The Fellowship did not have enough left in the tank to keep exploring.  

The Rescue of Sir Ragnar? 

After the disappointing results of the Trial, Mentor searched the land and found another who could replace No-nak.  In the North Tribes, he discovered another champion, Neowulf..... just Neowulf.  He was a man of action, and skilled with a blade.  Mentor gifted him No-nak's Broadsword so he could carry on the fallen champions legacy.  

After several weeks of training with Allathura, Hamilcar, and Aerlin a messenger came to Mentor.  Sir Ragnar, an old friend of Mentor's and an advisor to Prince Magnus; had been kidnapped by an Ork warlord; Ulag.  There was a reward for finding and freeing Sir Ragmar.  Mentor's magic led him to the man's where-abouts, and the Fellowship of Destiny was ready to descend into the dungeons to free Sir. Ragnar and claim the reward! 

Soon after entering Ulag's prison, the Fellowship was confronted by Goblin sentries.  Aerlin was caught out in the open by a pair, and used Move Through Rock to escape back to the safety of his sword wielding friends.  

I made the right choices in which way to go, and soon found myself looking through a secret door that was guarded by an Abomination!  It struck hard and fast, causing some serious damage and refusing to be killed.  However, it didn't have much room to maneuver and eventually the Fellowship's numbers proved decisive.  

Oh boy!  Our first secret door!  I kept Hamilcar looking for Traps pretty regularly, and Allathursa found the secret door.  I also had better luck with Treasure this round, finding a few coins and gems here and there.  It did not take us long to find Sir Ragnar.  

What I did not expect was that to trigger every Orc and Gobbo in the place to come running for us!  The Fellowship quickly set-up a defensive perimeter at a doorway.  It was sort of like the battle of Balin's Tomb as Goblins and Orcs pressed forward only to be cut down by the Fellowship waiting on the other side.  The Rock Skin spell paid off again, making Beowulf tough to injure in the initial waves of attackers.  Neowulf tended to soak the attack, while Allathura dealt the killing blow.  A few times Aerlin had to step in and clear out an Ork or two with a spell.  

I think this encountered showed some of the limitations of the Apps AI.  The greenskins pretty much just kept trying to walk into my meatgrinder.  Then, they got ground up!  I think if I was playing Zargon, I would have made a checker board up the double wide hallway, where I could maybe let my numbers play to an advantage.  I mean, the Fellowship had to get Sir Ragnar up those stairs!  If you let them get closer to the center room, you can also attack from both sides.  

Anyway, I mistimed the end a bit.  I let Sir Ragnar get off the board before I opened a chest or two.  Hopefully not getting some of the loot on this board won't be too much of a hinderance.  The reward from Prince Magnus will help my guys become a bit more survivable or murderous next adventure!  

Despite the meatgrinder at the end, this adventure was not as dangerous or deadly.  Neowulf needed a healing spell, but he was also taking the brunt of the attack waves.  I still had one in reserve, even though a lot of my Fellowship was down 2 to 3 Body points from starting.  

Sir Ragnar embraced his old friend Mentor when the Fellowship led him back into the world of the light.  Mentor escorted him back to Prince Magnus' court, and returned with the reward for the Fellowship.  

Final Thoughts

Well, it was great fun getting the game I have painstakingly been painting out on the table.  That is always good for the motivation.  The App has some pluses and minus' to using for solo-play.  The exploration is maintained, it is easy to track, and it automates enemy attacks.  However, the AI component is not amazing.  However, I will give it credit that the enemies do use hit-and-run attacks and are not afraid to maneuver, I just don't think its post deployment moves are always great and it can be baited. 

We will have to see how my own Solo-campaign progresses.  I don't think this will stop me from trying to find a few folks to play a campaign with.  You just lose some of the charm of a game like this via solo-play.  Half the fun is how the players react, what they say, their attempts at role-play, and listening to them strategize how to open a door.  

Until next time! 

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Blood and Spectacles Patreon! 

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Match Report: Blood Bowl - Dark Elves vs Humans

 

We have a few traditions in my house, and one of those traditions is to play a game of Blood Bowl around the time of the Super Bowl.  Today's exhibition match is a continuation of that proud tradition.  I am glad my Skumgrod was available for this one.  Despite having the video game version, for the Super Bowl I always insist on using the miniatures.  I broke out the Winter themed board, and we randomly determined that for the game we were going to use the Black Guards Dark Elf team vs. the Nottingham Nobles Human team.

Let's get to the Blood Bowl!  I did not document every single thing that happened in the game, but tried to keep it close enough for a narrative to form.  Let's turn it over to our hosts, Lord Summervale and his co-host Mad Johan.

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Lord Summervale:  Welcome all to Bludwieser Blood Bowl Championship weekend events!  In addition to the "Big Game" Bludweiser also sponsors many exhibition matches to get your mouth watering for more Blood Bowl!  There are skills competitions, exhibition games, and star player meet-and-greets from all levels of the game, intent on celebrating the Greatest Game in the Olde World!  It is an epic celebration of Nuffle and all things Blood Bowl! 

You can tune into the big game Bludweiser Blood Bowl on Cabalvision later this weekend.  However, today on Cabalvision IV we are bringing you the best action from these celebratory exhibition games.  Each Conference, Division and League at all levels of the game have sent some of their ....errrr..... best to represent themselves here.  Altdorf is flooded with players and fans alike! 

Right now, we will be featuring the Deep North- Southern Division exhibition action!  Today we will be featuring the Black Guards led by their team captain Mori-Thai the Velvet Crush versus their division rivals the Nottingham Nobles led by their throwing captain Rick Priestley!  

As always, I am joined in the booth by my .... err..... trusty companion and great Blood Bowl mind, Mad Johan.

Mad Johan: Thanks for getting me out of the stocks in time for the match, Summervale.  I really need to lay-off the Bugman's Brew before the show starts.  As we all know, the Notthingham Nobles are a founding member of the Deep North- Southern Division.  Some say, that the entire league is bankrolled by the Nobles just so they have some other teams to play Blood Bowl with.  I mean, Sigmar knows they aren't good enough to make it in a real division!  

Lord Summervale: You know our contract expressly forbids us from talking about that Johan.  So, let me gracefully pivot!  What can we expect to see today?  

Mad Johan: Probably a lot of mediocre Blood Bowl!  The Nobles only have two Blitzers on their team, a far cry from the rest of the skilled divisions where the orthodoxy of Nuffle seems to be 4 Blitzers.  That means, they are relying on their Lineman to do a lot of the work.  I guess that's what happens when you are using out-of-the-box team building in your league.  

Lord Summervale: Mori-Thai seems to think that her Black Guards are a competitive match-up for the Nobles.  What do you think?  

Mad Johan: I think Dark Elf teams led by a couple of Witch Elves gets more people in the stands than going up against a team of Orks.  To be honest, neither team is that good, and both seem to be hoping to level up their audience by being here.  We have seen them play, they do tend to be a rather violent team, and less finesse than one might expect from a Dark Elf team.  

Lord Summervale: Well, it looks like both teams are lining up and getting ready to play.  The ref sends the commemorative coin into the air..... and it looks like the Nobles have elected to kick-off the ball to the Dark Elves.  

Mad Johan: An interesting choice, as Dark Elves have a reputation for scoring early and often, not that the Black Guards can manage it.

Lord Summervale: The Nobles have their back-up Thrower, Andy Chambers in the dug-out.  He seems to be signaling plays into Rick.  Meanwhile, the Black Guard have a back-up runner, Urlieth Val-Drakken riding the bench.  

 Mad Johan:  Let's play BLOOD BOWL! 

The Nobles in their Purple and White vs. the Black Guard in their Blues and Lizard scales

Lord Summervale: Raz-al-slam is back to receive the kick and...... Boom!  The game is underway!  A terrible kick-off that goes out-of-bounds.  The Refs toss it in to Raz-al-slam and the game gets going.  

Mad Johan: Perhaps an omen for what we are about to see out there today? 

Lord Summervale: The Runner moves up and the Black Guards quickly form a cage around the ball carrier.  However, they shift from the right hash to the left with a display of elvish speed.  

Mad Johan: Those dirty Elves are trixie!  

Lord Summervale: There is a scrum near the line of scrimmage with a lot of pushing and shoving up close.  

Mad Johan: Bang!  The Black Guards are the first to lose a player there.  

Lord Summervale: Looks like ... Jaq the Knife is unconscious.  The Nobles blitzers are moving in and... 

Mad Johan: Boom!  Kurounous the Dreaded a Black Guard blitzer lays out the Noble's blitzer Mat Ward cold!  

Lord Summervale: Mori-Thai is leading the onslaught and manages to punch an opening though the Nobles' lines.  Raz-Al-Slam makes his move and bursts past the Nobles with a fancy spin move and a burst of speed!  The Nobles' Gav Thorpe, a catcher' tries to catch-up to him but it is too little too late!  

Mad Johan: Touchdown for the Black Guard!  Plus, they did not leave much time left in the half for the Nobles to score back.  

Lord Summervale: Indeed Johan.  Plus, it looks like Mat Ward is going to stay off the pitch as the Nobles set-up for their chance with the ball.  Back-up Thrower Andy Chambers is out there with Rick Priestley.  

Mad Johan: Hoepfully for the Nobles, Ward will be back for the second half. 

Lord Summervale: The kick is up and it goes straight to Nobles' Catcher Alessio Cavatorre, who quickly hauls it in.   

Mad Johan: Pretty sure that wasn't the plan!  

Lord Summervale: The Nobles don't have much time left on the clock so they get to work!  Gav Thorpe tries to get into the Black Guard backfield, but is brought down by the Dark Elf Blitzer Darveck the Flayer.  However, Andy Chambers delivers a key block to Korounous the Dreaded, it gives Alessio Cavatorre enough space and he dances around the defenders and cuts back through the line.  He is sprinting deep into the Dark Elf backfield!  

Mad Johan: There is no one around to stop him! 

Lord Summervale: Just the clock, as the half comes to a close before he could score.  The crowd is very upset!  I guess there are plenty of Nobles fans in the audience.         

Mad Johan: A tough break, but the Nobles start the second half with the ball. Both sides have shown they can get to the end zone. 

Lord Summervale: With that, it is time for a break from our sponsors!  Gullotine Razors, a close shave everytime you use one.  Let's go back to the Cabalvision IV Studios for a quick update from around the league! 

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Lord Summervale: Welcome back to the second half of this Bludweiser Blood Bowl Weekend exhibition match between the Dark Elf Black Guards and the Human Nottingham Nobles.  The Nobles are trailing by 1 at the half, but will receive the ball this half.  

Mad Johan: If they want to get back into this game, it is now or never! 

Lord Summervale: The Nobles ended the first half just shy of the goal line due to time.  Can they get there again?  

Mad Johan: I am sure the Black Guard watched the crystal ball replay on that and learned a lot from it.  Don't expect it to be that easy this time for the Nobles.  

Lord Summervale: Let's go down to the field and get into the action.  The Nobles set-up with their Catchers out-wide, and their throwers set to receive.  The Black Guards use their Blitzers and Witch Elves to cover the wings, and their Runner Urlieth Val-Drakken as a roving safety in the back-field.  

Mad Johan: The Nobles will need to eat up as much of the clock as possible and then score to force an overtime.  

Lord Summervale: The kick is up, and the touchback goes to Rick Priestly, the Thrower in the back field for the Nobles.  Right away, the Nobles start to move, with Gav Thorpe stepping through the Dark Elf line and going deep into the backfield.  His counter-part is less successful as the lead block from a returned Mat Ward only pushes the Black Guard defender and fails to open a lane.  

Mad Johan: He is deep, but exposed.  Ker-runch! 

Lord Summervale:  Oof!  In a blow to the Nobles plans, Korounous the Dreaded lives up to his name and flattens Gav Thorpe with Val-Drakken's aid.  Thorpe is not going to be getting up from that hit until tomorrow!  

Mad Johan: Cavatoree is not doing much better, as Mori-Thai works around the edge and flattens him with a hit.  He's still in the game though!  

Lord Summervale:  Gav Thorpe's sacrifice though opened up space on the far side wing, and the Nobles took advantage of it.  The formed a cage and pushed in along the edge.  The Black Guard struggled to respond, as many of their players are tied up at the line.  

Mad Johan: Cavatorre managed to get up and sneak across the field and into the end zone.  He looks open, and he is waving to get Priestley's attention. 

Lord Summervale: I think the Nobles star thrower sees him now!  He goes back to throw, and Val-Drakken jumps to intercept.  Priestley manages to bomb it past the Black Guard defender and it is up, up, up..... this is a long throw! 

Mad Johan: TOUCHDOWN!!!!

Lord Summervale: Oh my, what a pass!  What a catch!   That puts the Nobles back in the game! 

Mad Johan: They managed a quick touchdown, but I think they may have left too much time on the clock! 

Lord Summervale: The two teams reset for a kick-off.  The Nobles try a corer blitz on the Near side, but it doesn't make much progress or open a lane.  Urlieth Van-Drakken picks up the ball easily.  The two sides clash at the line, and The Widow Ariethial uses her Frenzy ability to open a gap on the far side of the field.  

Mad Johan: The speed of a Dark Elf was needed to get through that gap!  

Lord Summervale: Indeed!  The Black Guards are hitting hard and stunning several of the Nobles' players.  That is hampering their ability to respond to the Dark Elf break through! 

Mad Johan: Mori-Thai proves why they call her the Velvet Crush after absolutely dismantling the Noble's Blitzer Jervis Johnson!  

Lord Summervale: With only a few minutes left on the clock, the Black Guard Runner Urlieth Can-Drakken walks untouched into the End Zone.  Touchdown Black Guards! 

Mad Johan: It would take a miracle for the Nobles to win now. 

Lord Summervale: Indeed!  The two teams get back for the kick-off.  It is a high kick, but goes out of the back of the end zone.  This touch back means that Rick Priestley is given the ball and the game begins again!

Mad Johan: A missed block at the line costs the Nobles dearly.  You can't make a basic mistake like that.  This is crunch time! 

Lord Summervale: Priestley dumps the ball to Cavatorre, but there is no path forward and he is held at the line.  The clock winds down, and this game ends in a rather dull finish.  

Lord Summervale: Johan, who do you think were the Bloodwieser MVPs of the game?  

 Mad Johan: Well, going back to the game notes it looks like for the Nobles it is a no-brainer. Rick is the star-thrower for a reason.  He was the one who kept them in the game.  No Rick, and the Nobles are in rough shape this game.  

On the winning side of the ball, Kurounous the Dreaded was all-over the field and making his presence known, especially in the first half.  Mora-Thai was similar.  However, Urlieth Van-Drakken scored the go ahead point, so you have to consider that long running play.  I am going with Van-Drakken for the MVP this time. 

Lord Summervale: Well, that looks like the ball game for us here.  I will turn you back to the Cabalvision IV tower for an update of all the exciting events going on this Blood Bowl Cup weekend!  Remember, if you need to cut it close, Guillotine Razors are a cut above!  

Mad Johan: I have seen worse exhibition games.....

Lord Summervale: This is Lord Summervale and Johan signing off!  

  

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Wargame Design: A Picture is Worth a Thousand Words

 

Recently, I have run across wargame rulebooks without pictures in them.  I mean, no pictures of models on table.  No artwork of the setting. Sometimes, not even diagrams of play.  This has taken me aback.  Frankly, I am also a bit jealous!  One of the hardest things in post-production is creating, sourcing, and inserting images into a rules document.  I am no lay-out expert, not much of a photographer, and even worse illustrator so the idea of excluding all of these things is really appealing to me!  

I can also understand the choice from a publishers prospective.  Images are much harder to reproduce, has an added detail of doing all the right things legally to use them, and/or having staff to make reproducible charts and diagrams.  All of that costs money and time.  Often times, printing stuff that isn't text is also problematic and an additional hurdle for a publisher. 

Despite all these reasons, I think making a decision to remove artwork and miniatures images is ultimately a mistake.  I think we have all heard the old saying, that a picture is worth a thousand words.  

Cover for Osprey's Wars of the Republic by Giuseppe Rava

What Can Pictures Do For You? 

A good rulebook design uses pictures and images to do a variety of things, these can range along the spectrum of schematic to thematic.   

1. Demonstrate how mechanics actually work! 

Pictures can help illustrate a complicated idea.  It might take several paragraphs to write, but can quickly be intimated with a quick illustration of the point.  This could be a diagram, artwork, or even pictures of models in action.   

2. Act as a quick explanation for game play

Very similar to the first one, except this is setting the "idea of the game".  It gives an idea of unit sizes, space to play, amount of terrain, etc. in a quick easy to look at snapshot.  It essentially sets the tone for the players without having to tell them.  I.e. forces deploy on opposite board edges.  Units are about 10 models per squad.  50% of the board is terrain.  

A picture like this tells you a lot about the game, without reading a single word about the game.....

3. Clarify edge cases

Pictures are a great way to clarify edge cases.  You don't want to spend a great deal of time and space in the rulebook on these, but a quick image can often convey how to play a particular mechanic quickly and easily.  

You can see a good example in the With Hot Lead and Cold Steel rules here: 

4. Provide examples of how the game is supposed to be played

Similar to point 2, it gives a quick visual short hand to the way a game is suppose to be played.  This can be especially helpful for setting up a game or scenario, it sets the tone of what the game should look like before you begin.  The players can follow all the written rules for set-up, but a quick image will allow them to feel confident they did it right.  

The set-up for the above scenario can be complicated to describe in writing, but a quick image gives an immediate impression of the right way to go about it. 

5. Set the theme and tone of a game

Artwork and Photos are also a great way to reinforce the hooks, themes, and tone of a game.  Your text may emphasize certain points, but the images really drive the ideas home.  

For example, in Under the Martian Yoke it is easy to give the idea that the Martians are a big threat, by having a picture of a Martian Tripod hovering over a survivor.  It gets a key concept and explanation of the game across and reinforces the rules of the game visually. 

6. Unlock game potential 

Warhammer 40K would not be as popular as it is today without the accompanying great imagery from 1st edition onward.  The artwork conveys more of a feel and presence than the words alone could provide.  It allows a player to immerse themselves into the world of the game and capture a part of their imagination.  

   

I mean, this cover is iconic of what you will find inside! 

7. Wargaming is a Visual Medium

Most of us got into wargaming because it looked cool!  We saw an awesome picture of a game, some artwork that inspired us, or the pictures of some minis on the table that made our imagination race!  Very few of us read some rules and thought that wargaming would be fun!  

Wargaming is a spectacle, and to capture that spectacle you need images and artwork! 

The Dark Side of Pictures

Of course, there are downsides to using pictures and images within your rulebook.  

1. They are hard! 

Most of us are not professional photographers or artists!  There is a skill to taking photos and making art.  Sadly, it is not one that is easily mastered either!  People spend lifetimes learning these skills.  

2. They are expensive! 

.... and since these are skills people can take a lifetime to build, that means they cost money to access their skillsets for your benefit!    

3. They are time consuming! 

And trying to do it yourself can take a long, long time.  Modern tools make it much easier with better cell phone cameras, digital editing tools at the palm of your hand, and online resources for public domain images.  However, all of those require a bit of time to learn how to use, much less master.  If you are lucky enough to commission some professionals, these things do not appear overnight.  They take time to create on their own.    

In addition, you need things to photograph!  That means getting paint on miniatures.  Making appropriate terrain.  Setting it all up in a useful scene that is photogenic.  It is not as easy as you would hope!  

It is also important to note, that many of the most popular platforms for distributing content are not A.I. generated content friendly.  It is important to know the rules and regulations for these tools based on your distribution model.  

Brigade Models painted and photographed by Tony Francis from Brigade

Integrating Pictures and Words 

The main thing you need to know when deciding how and when to use images is understanding, who is this for?  

• If your target is to create accessible rules for new players in a genre or period, than the bar for images is higher.  
• If it is a new twist for old grognards, their need for images is more functional than spectacle.  
• If you are intending players to enter new worlds they have not explored before, than the needs for scene setting and thematic pictures increases.
• If you have a very crunchy ruleset, then the need for schematic images like diagrams and demonstrations increases.
• If you want to reinforce your POV of the game, some artwork and photos can help demonstrate the choices you made in game.      

Ultimately, there are a number of reasons to add pictures and artwork.  As the designer, it is up to you to decide where, and what is needed.  Like Wargame Design itself, you need to decide what your vision is and then apply the right tool for the job.   

The Games: Blood and Spectacles

Final Thoughts

Ultimately, artwork, photos, and diagrams are just a tool to do a job.  Use the tools to make your vision come to life.  I would argue that reading a set of rules with few or no images is an exercise in tedium.  Wargame rules are not just about playing a game, they are intended to entertain in and of themselves!  Without images, the chances of a potential player finishing the rules and then translating them to table drop.  Excluding visuals cues, reducing rules ambiguity via images, and sharing the potential of a game in visual form is vital to reduce the barriers of entry a player will cross to play your game.  

In short, put in the extra work for effective images in your rules please. 

Become a Patron and get access to all the cool stuff, a peak behind the curtain of Blood and Spectacles, and early-access to playtest games!  

Blood and Spectacles Patreon! 

You can follow Blood and Spectacles Facebook page or Instagram for more fun! 

Check out the latest publications and contact me at our Blood and Spectacles website

Or purchase all out games at the Blood and Spectacles Publishing Wargames Vault Page!