My first experience with Gundam Assemble

 It was demo'd recently at the WTC here in Malines, so spending to much money on a ticket and parking, I just had to check it out.

 

So, back from way to sweltering heat (sorry, forgot to make pictures, with the WTC 40k doubles and XWing in full swing, it was insanely busy there).

Got myself a demo in (Epyon, Vidar and Char's Zaku, I love my bad boy suits), and the game plays really smooth.  Now, the biggest difference between UW and GA is the deck, you only have a deck of 9, and can draw tops 6 per game, meaning 1in 3 chance you won't get your uber card.  There are generic handy cards, but also "better then those" but specific Gundam only cards.  In general, you will have your 3 specific cards in a deck, and then 6 generics, but it comes down to if you get the right one at the right time, or are stuck with one resulting in less cards drawn.  For example, Barbatos Rex's card is super when he is taken out, but if he is largely ignored until after the start of round 2, it's a dead card.
Now,m the way you win the game is based on two factors: on the one hand, you can knock Gundams out and score their VP's (they do come back, so they can in turn go after your heavily wounded victor), but also by killing / saving Garrison markers.  These are scattered around the board depending the deployment scenario maps, and are a bit like "surge objective bonusses" to your VP tally.
I doubt you can win alone by garrisons, as the map I so far saw has tops 10 of each (yours and the enemies) , while a Gundam rakes in between 6 to 10 VP every time he is knocked out.  

Warscroll wise, every suit has a special attack that triggers on crits (9 or 10 on a d10), which often gives an extra point of damage per crit in your roll (average you roll about 5 dice with all trinkets active), and you hit standard on 4+, though terrain gives an added +1 if you are higher up then your opponent.  Ofc, 1s always fail.  One shotting mobile suits is not as easy as one might think as such, so expect even when focussed upon by the enemy with all his suits to activate with yours at least.  This due to the "tracker"...

... which advances whenever you do "something", depending the action.  A "heavy action" suit probably activates twice, tops thrice, during a round (appear on round 3, shoot for +4 advance, activate again and go in the end phase).  A medium suit like the RX78 starts at tracker 2, and if you just keep slashing and moving with it's beam saber you'll get 4 activations out of him, making it for example ideal to go garrison hunting for a round.

Game length wise, this is a bit of a dual one.  IF you know above average of the rules, you will be looking in the basic 3vs3, 2 phase game at around an hour to an hour and a half to get through the game.  BUT, the set up requires a longer process then Underworlds, as the terrain and all the tokens need to be placed on specified locations on the map, and every map "area" can come with some special rules (not the base scenario mind you, but from scenario 2 you get water areas etc, and later on it will also move into space).

Is it like Underworlds?  Well, yes and no, the core feels the same with hexes and cards and a board, BUT the amount of deckbuilding is far, FAR less.  You basically have to decide which 6 cards you take along the specific unit card (yeah, and it is "Championship" mode on that part mind you, no idea if the generic cards will come loose later down the road) BUT those generics are not that overpowered you really "need" them all, and often are very likewise to each other.  It's the unit specific cards that can decide the battle, as well as the pilot you can put inside your Gundam and his skills / bonusses.  

As a rule of thumb on what I saw, pilots gell better with their actual suits, so Heero Yuy in Wing Gundam is way better then putting him in for example Gundam Aerial from another series in the franchise, as his skills go along with the abilities of his suit.  They actually though that thing out...

.. so yeah, is it fun: Yes.  is it cheap: Yes, but with the intense release schedule and if (like me being an anime and Gundam freak) you want to buy them all, the first 4 months will hurt you.  After that, release is about one Deluxe box (battles from the series with about 10+ models) per half year, and a warband expansion box (3 figures) about each 1.5 months.  Luckily, even with imports and all, they managed to keep it at a decent price level, an expansion box is the price of an UW warband, a Deluxe box (apart from the on purpose cheaper first one to get the game going) costs the price of a GW Cogfort or big monster.
That basically makes you look at an initial investment of everything from release until Easter 2027 of a 2k Warhammer AoS or 40k army, just spread out more and all that you already have is perfectly playable as you just add to your collection instead of needing that army in one go to start playing.

Is it as such the same as Underworlds?  No.  The same as a mainstream GW army?  Also no.  It occupies a spot in between I would say, both in difficulty as in price cost.  Am I sold?  Not answering that objectively, I am full with anime tattoos on my body incl Gundam one, so I can't answer that fairly.  Would i recommend it to people looking for a casual game: yes, especially if you go the scenario and "in fluff route" that can give great fun moments.  Is it competitive?  To early to tell as only 6 suits have their stats known so far, but it does seem that any combination between 3 very heavy hitters or 3 light generic soldier style suits might get the job done, thanks to the Tracker system, and it shows they developped it for 3 years as the weapons and actions seem to keep it pretty balanced (sorry GW, playtesting IS your greatest weak spot).

And that's my two cents on it. 

Kimetsu no Yaiba full manga series

 Okay, this is sort of a unicum for me, as it was the first series I read "digitally", bit easier at work.

 

Now of course, I've seen everything Demon Slayer that has been so far released, but never the less reading the series would unlock the special manga reading badge over on MAL.

 

Consisiting of 23 volumes, the series counts 207 chapters, drawn is a basic, not super awesome but neither to bad either style of panels.   Now this has some serious downsides.  The anime is praised for it's high level animation, especially the fight scenes are often awesome displays of animation techniques and effects, and that is something you miss out on in the "paper" version.

 

Now, the series did follow the manga pretty well, which is something that often happens with these longer animes (Boku No Hero for example comes to mind) as they have enough seasons and episodes to adapt the whole manga.  Now, this also has a serious drawback, as I already know now how the whole anime will end, who lives and who dies.  Which is why I won't be putting a story review down here though, to prevent any spoilers for those only watching the anime.

 

But just like the anime, this really is worth reading, and a manga that truly became a classic for good reasons. 

 

And this also crushes my read 10 manga goal for the year in a fell swoop of the katana... I must admit e-reading manga helps a lot on that part, something I never would have thought.  What might be next in modern day discoveries for this old otaku, audiobooks??? 

Foundation season 3

 So, time for the third season, with season 4 still being in production, of this not to bad, but certainly in my view not the "all time best show" some make of it.

 

But granted, Lee Pace remains awesome in his role.

 

And of course, we start with a timejump, as the series progresses 152 years, the Empire is crumbling, Foundation now has 800 member worlds and the mind controlling Mule has arrived on the scene.  Within the genetic dynasty, the roles are changed as well, with day being totally not intrested in the Empire compared to his galaxy subdueing crazed predecessor of the first two seasons.  

Harry and Gael in the meantime are preparing the secret Second Foundation for the imminent Third Crisis, which centers around the Mule, something Demerzel also tries to prevent.  And the role of Demerzel takes to the front in this season, because putting a robot in charge is always a good idea, especially as we learn she was the one that caused the Star Bridge incident way back in the very first episode of the whole series.

 

In the meantime, the Mule goes about his plans, destroying the whole Empire fleet in the process.  As he gets a better grip, even bringing down Foundation's leadership, Empire, in the form of Dusk, comes into action.  Faced with being overthrown, he unleashes a secret doomsday weapon, destroying whole planets of the factions rising against Empire, killing billions in the process.

 

As Day discovers the remains of another robot, he brings it to Demerzel, while the Mule and Gael come to their final confrontation.  The Mule is killed, but soon it is learned that he was just a front, and that the actual Mule was amongst them all along in one of their agents.  On Empire, Dusk kills all the future clones, and as Demerzel tries to save the last remaining baby, she is immolated together with the infant.  Dusk murders Day to become the sole ruler, but the other robot skull sends out a signal suddenly, and this is picked up on our actual moon at the other side of the galaxy, where robots still hide, and they set out the plans in motion for their return...

 

So yes, quite a few plottwists in this third season, but I couldn't "gel" with the presumed Mule, the actor, Pilou Asbaek, just lacked for me the needed charisma of a rogueish space pirate tyrant, and remained to much "Euron Greyjoy" from Game of Thrones.

 

But still, it remains great science fiction with spectacular visuals and a good story (if you are not attached to the books, guess in that way this is Rings of Power for sci-fi, only better) and certainly worth watching! 

Witch Hat Atelier

An anime I saw passing by in the to watch tips for it's second season, I went back to view season one as such as the premises intrested me.

 

Based around arts and magic, this seemed like some good fantasy fun of the not isekai genre, but just pure magical joy. 

 

Oh, and before we start, my god that animation was awesome! 

 

The story centers around Coco, a young girl that assists in her mother's dressmaker shop but wants to become a witch.  When one day she observes a wizard customer, she tries her hand in magic but this results in her home and mother being encapsulated in ice.  The wizard, Qifrey, saves her from the same fate and takes her on as an apprentice to teach her how to free her mother.  In his atelier, she meets his other apprentices and together they start their training.

 

But a masked man, the one responsible for what happened to her mother, still has an intrest in Coco, and tries to get to her at various points in her training.  But slowly she gets better through the trials her master has laid out for her, and work together to start a series of strange occurences and the underlying mystery...

 

... which will be hopefully resolved when the second course hits, because it ends on a last stand cliffhanger here.   But it is a pretty nifty and really good series, and one I will be definitly be returning to with great pleasure to see how it plays out further!

 

 

Lord Ipsqueeck's Adventures: De Tovertuin

 What to do on a sunny saturday in the big school holidays?

 

Try out a new amusement park of course!!

 

So me, mommy and daddy went to De Tovertuin, a recently opened amusement park tailored for 3 to 9 year olds, based on the Woezel and Pip franchise of cartoon figures.

 

Now, this is one of those cosy little parks, and if you look around you can find some nice discounts on the entrance tickets.  And at about 45 minutes drive from our front door, this would be a nice little afternoon outing!

 

Now, the park has only a few rides, and some nice educational parts as well.  But what jumps in the eye immediatly is how lovely thematised everything is, with lovely pastel colourings, and making use of Animatronics.  This also goes for their dark ride, Overal Vriendjes, that uses animatronics instead of viewscreens that you see all to often these days.

 

Another ride I really loved was Tante Peerboom's Musical Journey, a boatride that takes us around the big central tree, with a lot to see while going around.

 

Another fun ride was the Pannekoekenmolen, though for an experience Scirocco traveller like myself, this was a bit on the calm side.  Still, it was some good fun to do.

 

The park also has quite a lot of playgrounds, though the big indoor one I skipped, as it was a bit to warm inside to go climbing and running all the time.

 

And there is a labyrinth as well, just as an educational part teaching about insects, and with a piece of "naked feet walking" to feel everything under your soles.

 

It was a fun day out, but I fear I am just a tat to "big" and experienced in slightly wilder rides already for this particular park.  Though a special mention must go to the young employee who noticed I have autism, and that we can have a special entry line.  It was not that busy though, so I waited nicely in line with the other people like the big bloke that I am!

 

And so we explored this new little amusement park, and let's see which parks will be visited as well in the coming weeks!

 

Until then! 

 

 

The Haul Report 441

 Time for another update on the stuff that has been added to the collection!

 

And we start this week with every gamer's poison: dice!

 

My Belgian TOW Federation dice order arrived, and with some fries this time on the six, to join the ones I have from last year that sported a pint of beer. 

 

My brother in law has finally started printing on my machine, and some terrain pieces have rolled off already, hope he keeps it up... 

 

Talking printed scenery, some additional pieces came through Vinted as well, in order to build up some serious sets for the 2027 event days. 

 

I also grabbed some battlemat carry bags from Green Stuff World, as a massive online group order by the Belgian TOW Federation gave them a huge discounted price and barely any shipping involved. 

 

But with all that TOW talk, I had to pick up the new "1.5" rulebook as well, to try and prepare at least a little bit for september, like reading over the rules or so. 

 

So that's a nice pile of allround utilities, now it's slowly becoming time to prepare for the arrival of Gundam Assemble, so shopping will close down (a little)...

Frostgrave campaign episode 2: The Genie in the Bottle

 After our session last month, we rolled for what we would play this time round so that we had a month to prepare, and it seems Alladin has been to Felstad as well in the past.

 

And for this scenario, I picked up the official genie and lamp figure from Northstar, and painted him up for today. 

 

 

In addition, the level 1 table of the Random Encouters came into play, most figures I had covered though some where sourced from the other players as well.  Once I complete the FULL table, I'll give a look at that.  But we sat down on the friday evening club night, set up the table, and managed to get two games done over the course of the evening, and here is it's tale...

 

Game 1: Zarbag the Illusionist versus Archibald the Sigilist

 

 

In this first game of the evening, Archibald had managed to reanimate his shroom-man apprentice Patje, though the little fungi does seem to carry some memories of the past, resulting in eratic behaviour during the game... and being taken out once more near a well.  Guess a trauma is really the little guy's fate.

 

While Zarbag, who is becoming a mogul powerhouse and the wealthiest wizard this quarter of Frostgrave, goes about securing treasure, he rises fogbanks to prevent Archibald and his dwarfen adventurers to see the goblins going about on their business.   And a profitable business it was indeed, because apart from the necessary gold and scrolls, they also found a grimoire and a magical crossbow that makes hitting targets easier.

  

On the other hand, the biggest thing the dwarfs dig up is a very bad tempered genie.  Luckily for them, ages of being locked away had an impact on it's fighting prowess, and eventually the dwarfs make off relatively unscathed, and with some nice loot.

 

Except for Patje, he has his leg smashed and now suffers from a movement penalty.  It seems he really had been sprouted under a bad moon...

 

Game 2: Zarbag the Illusionist versus The Witch of Balantine

 

 

And the the wealthy goblin crossed the path of the Witch and her band of Red Marsh mercenaries... quikcly raising a couple of fog banks to block all line of sight, the goblins unsuccesfully for the most time tried tossing magical grenades at the thugs and the halfling apprentice.

 

 

Behind this bank, the genie had been discovered, but the Witch had a dastardly plan: together with her henchmen, she pushed the genie through the fog bank, so he would now only see the goblins in return.  

 

 

 

The goblins however replied by doing this as well, (but now we know how pushes actually work, so we'll take that along for next session), and the random moving genie returned to the Witch's side.  While her henchmen tried to decimate the goblins and hold the lumbering giant off, the Witch and her Apprentice leaped to safety and secured the treasure, including a Grimoire of Elemental Ball to be learned after next game.

  

But the greedy goblins once more secured three treasure tokens, and stacked on the gold.  Zarbag the Illusionist, now going by the name of "Donald Zarbag of the Trump Mountains" is building himself quit some wealthy emporium build on the production of magical grenades...

  

And so ends the session for the second round.  We rolled on the scenario we will be playing next time, in which The Witch and Archibald will be facing off first, and that became The Silent Tower.  This means, as the next session is planned on the 25th of september, we have about 1.5 month to prepare the needed tower scenery (which will be a job for Thibaud).

 

Until the next adventure in Felstad!