Avengers Assemble!

If you have not seen the genius that is Joss Whedon's "The Avengers", stop what you are doing. Stop. Just stop. Car. Get into your car. Drive to the theater and go see this movie. Twice. Back to back. Go. Now. Stop reading this and go. Go. Now. You will thank me later.

Excelsior!

-Wicked

Beta, Beta, Beta!!!

Hey Folks!

So much gaming goodness has been afoot over the past few months! Recently, I have had the opportunity to play in a few Beta tests of some upcoming games. The result is I have not had enough time to properly test them all, but I did play enough of each to get a very good snapshot of how the games will be, and I must say, I am excited for all of them. So, what I have I been testing?

Guild Wars 2

The races of Guild Wars 2 

Not since the days of yore (i.e. Star Wars The Old Republic) has there been such a frenzy of anticipation for a MMO release. The folks over at ArenaNet are close to releasing their highly anticipated MMO, which continues the storyline established in Guild Wars. I was impressed with so many new and innovative features of this game. It was very fun to play, and I can easily see myself trying it out once the game is live. Some of the features I liked the most were the Dynamic Event questing system, the Skills system, and how your attacks and powers are based upon which type of weapon combination you are using. But the biggest impression was simply how gorgeous the game is. The amount of detail in the game is amazing. As my buddy Roman said, it is like playing in a highly stylized and intricate painting.


Diablo III

The Witch Doctor causing some Confusion in Diablo 3

Wow. This one has a special place in my heart, as I am a huge fan of "dungeon crawl" anything, and Diablo was my first true video game on my "new" computer back in the early 1990s. This time around, Blizzard updated the graphics, added more story and new classes, including the ranged Demonhunter and the way too cool for words Witch Doctor! Like StarCraft 2, Diablo 3 does feel familiar, yet that is why I think I like it so much. New Tristram is in need of heroes! Again, really looking forward to this release, which is just next week!!! May 15, 2012!










World of Warcraft: Mists of Pandaria

Pandaren Monk 

Yep, the Pandaren will be making their official entrance into WoW with the next expansion. I love the changes made to WoW graphically. The starting zone for the Pandaren looks like something out of Disney's Mulan. Beautiful! Like ancient China on the back of a giant Sea Turtle. The new Monk class was fun. Despite the cluster**** that was 1,000 Pandaren trying to click on the Edict of the Unclickable, the starting zone was fun, and I got a good impression of the new Monk melee class. I did copy over a level 85 Mistweaver Monk, the melee healing spec, but I had no idea what I was doing so I stopped playing. This looks to be a "love it or hate it expansion for WoW", but I'm a fan boy and loved what I did get to play.

Much more in depth and detailed reviews will follow once these games are released. This is just my initial impression of these great games coming our way. So keep a weathered eye on the horizon for some truly fun online games.

-Wicked

Year of the Gear: Heavy Gear Blitz!

Tonight my buddy Jason and I kicked off a long awaited and prepared for event, our innagural game of Heavy Gear Blitz! Since Bayou Wars, we decided we were going to shift...ahem...gears...and play something new in 2012. After some deliberation, we decided on Dream Pod 9's mech battle game, Heavy Gear Blitz! Now, I had purchased the rulebook and a unit box back in 2009, but like many games I acquire, it made it to the back burner in lieu of the more popular games we were playing at the time, like Warmachine or Warhammer Fantasy.

Then, something strange happened.

This past Bayou Wars, there was a gentleman demoing Heavy Gear in the dealer room. He showed Jason how to play. And before long, out of nowhere, Jason had become a full fledged member of the Pod Squad demo crew for DP9. In trying to convince me to play, he later would show me the model that single handedly got me into the game full tilt: The Hussar.

I was hooked.

I didn't know who the faction was or what they did, I was playing them. Turns out, the Hussar is a specific model only available to a new faction DP9 was releasing in December, the New Coalition, or NuCoal for short. The NuCoal combined the best in Terra Novan gear technology with the remnants of the Port Arthur Korps tech to make for one new, super bad ass Heavy Gear faction.

Sadly, this was October when we began planning this, so we would have to wait till DP9 released the new faction so I could have something to play with. In the mean time, I spent many a night reading the DP9 forums, reading old HG books and watching how-to videos on YouTube.

Then, sometime after Thanksgiving, my new NuCoal faction book and General Purpose squad arrived and I was in business. I assembled the models when I got the chance and resigned to paint them up as quickly as possible. You see, I tend to acquire armies faster than I can paint them, but I was determined to play with a fully painted force in Heavy Gear, so what to do?

Enter Army Painter.

Following Jason' s lead, I too decided to use the Army Painter method to quickly but nicely paint the models for the tabletop. I had purchased some Army Painter products for use on my Incursion! game, but after seeing how well...and fast...his models turned out, I had to try them on my NuCoal models. More on the painting process later (it went unbelievably well), but I soon had my GP Squad painted up and ready for some action.

We decided to meet on 12/30/2011 at Big Easy Comics to begin our year long gaming experience Jason has dubbed "The Year of the Gear". Meaning we will take this next year to learn, paint, and master all there is learn about Heavy Gear Blitz! We have committed to fully painted forces, incremental list building, and making terrain specifically for the HGB scale.

So the fight for Terra Nova has begun! Jason will be commanding the forces of the Northern Polar Region while I will fastidiously marshal the power of the NuCoal forces to protect our City-State from the Polar aggression.

For NuCoal!

The only question that remains is: which faction will YOU play?

Strength and Honor,

-Wicked

Game Review: Pathfinder Starter Box

Just last week, I finished running the Lost Crown of Neverwinter D&D Encounters campaign. It was very well done, we had a lot of fun, and it was a rewarding fourteen weeks of gaming. I am a big fan of 4th Edition D&D. I love the streamlined combat, the party synergy, and the class role system. I was actually kind of jealous of my players. They were having so much fun with their characters, leveling and trying new power combinations, that I had to roll a character of my own. Thus was born Vraxis Shadowkin, Tiefling Warlock Hexblade! Just in case there is a game I can jump in, I'll be prepared.

Many of us are older D&D players, and we remember fondly the days of creating a character of our design and reflecting a lot of character flaws and perks through character design. This is something the Pathfinder system does well. In an off weekend, I got together with Jason and Henry and we decided to give the Pathfinder Starter Box a go. The Pathfinder system is, essentially, D&D 3.5 under the OGL rebranded and carried on by Paizo Publishing. Once we got started, it only took a few turns for us to realize how familiar the rules were.

The box set itself is very well done. It really does assume you have never played a role playing game before. The rules are written in a very clear, concise way. This allows new players to grasp certain aspects of the game as well get handle on combat mechanics. Visually the art reminds me of a cross between high fantasy and anime. The box includes four pre-generated characters, a players handbook, a GM book, a well done double sided dry erase map, a few pages of cut out character with several 3D stands, a few blank character sheets and a set of dice. The character sheets are laid out in a very clear manner, with lots of definitions and how-to tips throughout. The beginner scenario takes place near the town of Sandpoint. The party is tasked with discovering who or what is responsible for terrorizing the local populace. It is a quick adventure into a dungeon cave not far from town. The adventure takes the party through ten rooms in the dungeon, exploring most of combat mechanics as well providing many opportunities for non-combat tests, like disarming traps, stealing treasure, and diplomatic role-play with some of the dungeon occupants. In the end, the party must face and defeat Black Fang, a young black dragon who has taken up residence in the caves interior.

From the start, I really felt the difference between the two game systems. While fundamental mechanics are still the same, there are subtle differences between the two systems. Saves and critical hits stand out here, as well as some roleplaying options. I think Pathfinder really rewards players who LOVE options and customization with their characters. The interaction of skills, feats and abilities is more intricate in Pathfinder, and that can be a good thing. I did find combat to bog down a bit, but that is something I remember 3.5 suffering from before. All in all, we had a good time playing. Jason liked the game so much I believe he will be running a Pathfinder game soon. I guess Vraxis will have to wait!

Now what should I roll for his Pathfinder game?

-Wicked

Steve Jobs, 1955-2011

The world is a lesser place today with the passing of Steve Jobs. Humanity lost a true visionary, a brilliant inventor, and an amazing human being. I consider it an honor to work for the company that he helped create, through which whose products helped define the world as we know it. His spirit is the foundation of Apple, and through the people whose lives he touched, his legacy will endure.

The following video is narrated by Steve himself. It is at the core of what sets Apple apart from any other company. A company that only Steve could have shaped.

Rest is peace, Steve. You will be missed.

-Wicked

Gaming Man Cave: The Dojo

Finally!

While it is still a work in progress, I'm pretty much done setting up my game room. A few more coats of sealant on the table and a few odds and ends, but this is basically it. So now I have a place to play, anytime. The table, dubbed "The Field...of Evermore!" is the one rescued from School of Comics and built for Gamers Conclave. Both stores are now only memories, but I am hoping a little TLC of the table and the dice gods may favor me! Special thanks to Lassider for bringing it here and then helping me shoe horn it into the house. Now, which should be the first game played on it? :)

Strength and Honor,

-Wicked

Dungeons and Dragons Encounters

So with all the craziness that is going on, it is nice to have a hobby that lets one take a break from all the insanity of the day. For some it is golf. Others it may be playing pool. For me and my crew, it is swinging a long sword playing Dungeons and Dragons.

But who has time to play D&D anymore? Many have family obligations, work, school, second jobs, etc...how does one fit in time to play a long roleplaying campaign?

Enter D&D Encounters.

Wizards of the Coast, in a stroke of brilliance, has devised a way for those who wish to get their RPG on without the hefty time commitment. In Dungeon and Dragons Encounters, players can meet on a specific night each week, Wednesdays, and play a campaign session of D&D in less than two hours. They take this a step further buy making it so that one need not even know how to play! Encounters is great for beginners and veterans alike. WotC provides everything the DM needs to run the campaign for the season, which lasts about 13-15 weeks. Players may make their own level 1 character or play one of the pre made characters provided in the Encounters kit. In addition to the characters earning loot, gear and XP, the players themselves earn Renown Points by achieving certain milestones over the course of the season. These points earn them exclusive Fortune Cards that they may use to further enhance their character's options during game play.

Each season of Encounters focuses on telling a story in a grand setting with the players as the Heroes and centerpiece of the tale. This season's Encounters takes place in the classic D&D campaign setting of The Forgotten Realms. In Faerun lies the ruined city of Neverwinter. Decimated after a volcanic eruption, Neverwinter is the home to all manner of monsters, nefarious factions, and intrigue. Yet there is hope. Some are trying to reclaim Neverwinter and restore it to its former glory as the Jewel of the North and seek the lost Crown of Neverwinter. But who, if any will succeed in such a task? It is up to your party to find out!

So check out your FLGS on Wednesdays nights and participate in D&D Encounters. Discover (again) why gathering around the table with your friends and fighting some baddies is a great way to get away from the craziness of the day...even if it is only for two hours. You can find a D&D Encounters location here.

Strength and Honor,

-Wicked