Song of Blades and Heroes

[mrbistro]

Originally Posted by A_Train

I can't wait to play it, right now I am checking out check DDM figs on ebay, trying to imagine which ones will work best with the character classes needed for the game. I can't wait to read over the 180 given creatures. And I'm definitely going to make some of my own.

eBay is pricey. I recommend gamehollow or miniaturemarket.com. Both have excellent prices on the commons (which is what you want to start with), and you'll save considerably over eBay's shipping costs.

Originally Posted by A_Train

The limit of 100 points (when playing with 300 total) being able to go towards personality characters. I was creating my first warband, and wanted both a human leader and an elf magic user. This was not possible. Do you guys break the rules on this one at all, or to you abide by it.

This is a very important rule and I recommend you don't break it, otherwise the game becomes very unbalanced. If you want more personalities, play with more points. Most players play with 500pt warbands.

[A_Train]

Thanks for the links to those sites Mr. Bistro. I've also been browsing. Auggies Games.
Another couple of questions for you guys, that I thought up while browsing. How many duplicates of a unit will you bring to battle. Maybe I am still thinking too much Heroscape when I look at this, but I sometimes plan a war band with 3 or 4 'Human Archers" for example. Is this something you guys do a lot of, or do you tend to stick with one of each unit?

If you do use duplicates, in general do you find it easier to represent them all with the same model, or would you use different models (all archers, but different poses). Which is easier to keep track of?

Thanks

[LilNewbie]

There is not much to track in the standard game. A token or two for different effects (transfixed models, tough, etc.) We tend to use the same model for multiple figures with the same stats/name. It helps in identifying the figures quickly but you don't have to do that. Just make sure your opponent knows what each figure is supposed to represent.

I would say you would probably need a maximum of 3 figures per unit type (maybe 4 for swarm armies like Kobolds/Goblins).

Auggies is a great source for DDM figures. I've used that store many times with great success.

Newb.

[mrbistro]

Yeah, don't overthink it A Train. SBH was made so you could throw a handful of whatever together and have a game. I got into DDM solely for SBH. The best buys when getting started are whatever models are cheapest. Need some dwarfs? Just buy 3-7 of the $0.25 guys and you'll be all set. Once you have a small collection built up you can start filling in the gaps here and there.

[A_Train]

You're right, I was over thinking it.
I went through the site and then looked at my cart, and it was almost $50. That totally goes against the purpose of the game.

On a second go through, I think I got everything I need for starters, and it cost $12. Much better.

[A_Train]

I played my first game tonight.
I used 2 human warriors, two elf archers, a human barbarian and a Elf Wizards against 4 Orc Warriors, 1 Orc Archer, One Savage Orc and One Orc Leader.

It was a close game and I lept into the lead. But in the end, I lost, after losing the barbarian to a gruesome kill that caused one of my Warriors to retreat.

We did forget to do a Morale check after each of our armies were halved, and had to look at the rules frequently, but it was a really fun game.


Thanks for the suggestion!

[LilNewbie]

Winter has arrived and the Orcs have solidified their pact with the Hobgoblins. Raiding the outlying farms of the Human settlements has made it possible to survive the harsh winter. The Humans have not sit idly by though. They have sent trackers into the wilderness to locate the Orcs and Hobgoblins winter camps. The location of one of their rendezvous points has been discovered and a small strike force has been sent out to dispatch the Orc and Hobgoblin leaders during one their planned meetings.

The Human's timing was perfect and caught the Orcs and Hobgoblins by surprise but their initial shock wore off quickly and Orcs counterattacked. The struggle disturbed a nearby hibernating Dire Bear who ventured out to scare off the interlopers.




We were trying out some rules for a wandering monster in this game represented by the Dire Bear. After both of our armies got to activate, we rolled to see who would get to control the monster. The winner could control the Dire Bear and it was considered friendly to that person's forces during that activation (it could leave engagements with friendly models and would not attack or be attacked by them). Ties for control would go to the person who did not control the Dire Bear last activation. It worked great and the Orcs had to spend a full turn dispatching the Dire Bear which gave the Humans a chance to get in better position. A Hobgoblin Archer made the killing blow after the Dire Bear and been pushed back by a melee attack and then knock down by another ranged attack from an Orc Archer.


The Orc leader was killed by the Sword of Glory after being knocked down by a lucky blow from the Human Sgt. This caused the Orcs/Hobgoblins to flee but the battle turned when the Hobgoblin Wizard started transfixing the Humans. After three turns and some unlucky rolling by the Humans, he had transfixed three Human figures which allowed the other Orc and Hobgoblins to have better chances of removing them from the conflict...permanently.



The Orcs won but the loss of the Orc Leader will slow down the raiding parties as the Orcs regroup and begin the process of selecting a new leader. The Hobgoblins will wait paitiently while the Orcs sort out their new leadership. There is no need to waste good Hobgoblins when there are so many Orcs willing to fight the humans for them.

Newb.

[Hex_Enduction_Hour]

Those are some sweet images, NewB. Looks like a grand time!

[Matthias Maccabeus]

Man...you guys are seriously making me want to buy this!

[LilNewbie]

Originally Posted by Hex_Enduction_Hour

Those are some sweet images, NewB. Looks like a grand time!

Thanks! We enjoy this game a lot. The tide of battle turned several times during the game and you can never really tell how it is going to go until the end (the activation rolls really keep it exciting).

We are planning a Giants (Hill, Fire, etc.) versus puny humanoids for next week's game. More pictures to follow.

Originally Posted by Matthias Maccabeus

Man...you guys are seriously making me want to buy this!

Then I still have work to do.

Newb.

[stumpy_man]

Just a quick question here. This game looks really cool however the only miniatures I have lying around besides my Heroscape ones are a box of Star Wars Minis (and I don't really want to buy the game to just play Heroscape with). Technically Song of Blades and Heroes is for fantasy miniatures but is it really that big of a deal? I'd probably have to make my own stats because I guess the figures with the game are all fantasy but would it work at least for a while until I get more fantasy minis?

[LilNewbie]

There is a game called Mutants and Death Ray Guns (MDRG) from the same author. It's a post-apocalyptic game but does have more detailed rules for using modern/post-modern firearms which would be easy to transfer to a sci-fi game. There are rumors he is working on a Sci-fi version but it might be a while on that one.

Link to Ganesha Games: http://ganeshagames.blogspot.com/

Newb.