I just picked up some stuff for this game at my FLGS. Prior I had been lurking on their forums, reading reviews, and checking out the battle reports. I like the time period, I liked the alternate history setting, and the asymmetrical nature of the opposing sides appealed to me.
Here is what I picked up...
I look forward to putting this stuff together.
I just read through the mini-rulebook and the rules for the most part are pretty straight forward and simple. It looks like this would be a good game for getting newbies into Wargaming as they could command the towering Martian tripods and get satisfaction from destroying lots of humans, but still have a close game or ultimately lose. Plus, the Tripods are fairly straight forward to play. I look forward to battling my wife and daughter a bit.
The mini-rulebook is good enough for what you get in the starter box for the most part, but there are a couple basic things it did not cover. I was hoping someone more experienced in the game could help out.
Here are some things that the mini-rulebook in the starter kit doesn't really cover....
1. Tow cables- What do these do? It just says Assault/Special but doesn't tell me the special part. Since I have some Rough Riders in the box, I am curious.
2. Motorcycle Squad vs. Rough Riders- Are these different units? It looks like the machine gun armed motorcycle is an upgrade tot eh squad, but I am unsure.
3. Black Dust/Green Gas- Again the mini-rulebook doesn't say much about them other than Barrage #/Green Gas or Barrage #/Black Dust. That indicates there are some special rules for them.
4. Launchers- I picked up a Grenadier Drone armed with Launchers but in the mini-rulebook it mentions they are Inaccurate but it does not specify what that means.
So, if anyone wants to help me out that would be great. I think my next purchase will have to be the big rulebook so I can get a complete set of army lists/fluff, but I will probably want to build my Tripods and US troops and play a bit before that. Therefore, any help would be great.
I will share some sprue picks and other photos as it develops in this thread. In the meantime, if you have any questions, battle reports, pictures, or hobby stuff for this game feel free to add it to this thread too.
melkorthetonedeaf wrote: my local store is trying to pimp this game out a lot lately. let us know how it plays, because I haven't read many raving reviews.
You talking about Gamerz? I picked up the main game and a clamp tank from them!
Thanks for putting this thread up, EasyE! I am at a similar spot to you, having purchased the basic stuff and starting to read the rulebook. I unfortunately don't have the clarifications to those questions, but I'm guessing the official forum for Alien Dungeon and their AQMF might have some answers:
I picked up AQMF in March - the base game and a box of scout Martians.
However, popping through the KS and the website for Alien Dungeon, I'm a bit confused about what's available and what's still to be released.
Mainly, there appears to be a hardcover book available? Does it contain additional rules vs. the starter set or is the additional material just the backstory?
Also, is there a visual guide to the different steamer tanks?
As mentioned above, the mini rulebook does not cover towcables, etc. The hardcover book has the rules, as well as modified points costs on certain units.
I have not kept up, but I think that there is a whole lot of stuff from the kickstarter that is not yet released. They did seem to release things that were not in the kickstarter, such as the scorpion drones.
They are also working on other factions to add to the game. Things have been moving very slowly.
The Mini-rulebook has some gaps. It definitely does not cover some key things and has 0 fluff. There is a hardcover rulebook too, but I don't have that and am unsure I want to pick it up. The rules I needed I have found on the website and I have a good enough idea on the background thanks to the forum. Also, I did not follow the KS, I saw it online and at my FLGS and thought it looked fun.
Regarding the Steamer Tanks, there is a download about all of them here:
Now onto my progress. Some Martian Tripods are coming together.
Here is the sprue pic of the standard Assault Tripod with special weapons like Green Gas Grenades and the Black Smoke Launcher. As you can see, the sprue lay-out is very good.
Here are the three models of the Assault Tripods all assembled. These things were a dream to go together. They were practically snap fit models and needed minimal glue. The pieces went together smoothly and easily. The middles have a natural point for magnetizing, but I have left it witht he basic tab for now and it holds together fine. All three took about one hour to 45 minutes to assemble.
The one on the left is my modified Green Gas launcher. I didn't really like the way the Tripods small arms were throwing the grenades before. It looked kind of silly. Therefore, I made it into a launcher by chopping up one of the extra Black Smoke Launchers. The one int he middle is the standard Assault Tripod. Finally, the one on the right is the Black Smoke Launcher. I think this weapon looks awesome on the Tripods and is very imposing.
Great job on the green gas launcher conversion, Easy.
I played a big game of All Quiet a few weeks ago, and my starter set recently arrived. Apparently there's a local player who got really deep into the kickstarter, so he has plenty as well.
Cheers! Feel free to add pictures of your stuff in here!
Now, the Scout and Assault Tripod kits were great. They were plastic and really went together easily. The next model I assembled for my Martians was a Grendaier Drone for a bit of artillery support. This model is a mix of metal and resin. The basic design, especially for the legs; are similar to the plastic sets. However, they do not fit together nearly as well. In fact, I had to use a bit of the GS to get it to stick together snugly. After the ease of the last kits, it was a bit of a surprise and disappoint to me that this one was so much harder to build. It's even smaller!
The Scout Tripod has a special range-finder upgrade that helps the Grenadier Drone be more accurate with its artillery fire. It makes sense then to have them both in my starting Martian force. I think I have all the models I need to get started for the Martian side.
I do not think I am going to go with the traditional silver Tripod paint scheme.
Only two more Squads or Doughboys to finish and a unit of Machine Gunners for the Americans and I will have enough points to take on a Scout Tripod. Oh dear! This could take a bit. Maybe I shouldn't have gone so infantry/artillery heavy?
I am all out of basing materials so the Martian and American bases still look a bit plain. These took a bit longer than I expected to paint, as I have never really done 15mm before. I thought they would go much faster, but they didn't. Plus, I think the green came out way too dark. Oh well.
Excelsior!
Edit: I also audited my Terrain options, and found my early 20th Americana to be lacking. I will need to look to rectify this probelm. Any recommendations on what I may need/want?
Edit: I also audited my Terrain options, and found my early 20th Americana to be lacking. I will need to look to rectify this probelm. Any recommendations on what I may need/want?
Since the figures are 18mm, look around for HO scalet model railway buildings.
Alternatively, Paper Terrain is the official place for All Quiet terrain. I had some of their stuff for a while before an accident made me replace it, but the paper was sturdy detailed. And very cheap!
Edit: I also audited my Terrain options, and found my early 20th Americana to be lacking. I will need to look to rectify this probelm. Any recommendations on what I may need/want?
Since the figures are 18mm, look around for HO scalet model railway buildings.
Alternatively, Paper Terrain is the official place for All Quiet terrain. I had some of their stuff for a while before an accident made me replace it, but the paper was sturdy detailed. And very cheap!
That terrain looks amazing! The fleeing civilians are a great touch as well!
So I've started working on some of the humans in the starter set I picked up at NJCON a couple weeks ago.
I wanted something different from the regular greens-and-browns of the human forces, and since we're working in a scifi setting, I think that gives me some leeway.
So here's some of the 3rd Regiment, New Jersey Martian Invasion Response Unit, aka the "Jersey Blues," who first saw action when they helped the US Navy repel a Martian Cylinder that had landed off the shores of Wildwood.
I love the blue color scheme! It reminds me of Union troops from ACW games. Very striking on the table I bet!
I undercoated all of my American Infantry for All Quiet on the Martian Front. Not much to look at there so I didn''t bother with a picture. Now they all look green.
I've seen a few AQMF AAR's and Batreps show up on the board lately. That warms my heart. Anyway....
It took a while thanks to real-life and the fact that there were a lot of 15mm infantry to paint, but I have got them painted. The basing still needs to be done, but.....
and a closer look at them.
Now that those are done, I can move onto the Steam Tanks! They will be much easier to paint.
I went in $600 on the kickstarter, could not have been happier to sell it all back in May/June. Wasn't happy with the minis, the rulebook(s) were full of errors, and they still have yet to produce about 1/4 of the kickstarter products. I may eventually pick up a very small force to mess around with, but at this point I have to say Im not really interested anymore.
P.S. - infinite_array, I was planning on doing the same thing (NJ militia), and I think one of the guys I sold my stuff to was planning on doing a Piney militia lol
Yeah, I'd say just get the starter if you have other people to play with. More tripods are never a bad thing, and the humans you get are a good addition to any force. Plus the tokens aren't a bad thing to have, either.
They really need to do something like a updated rules PDF, since the rules for the game are floating all over the place - in the rulebook, on the Architects of War website, in their forum, etc.
Bummer Chaos. That is the major reason I avoid kickstarters and just wait until retail. I have heard similar stories way too many times. Once it hits retail things are generally in a better place.
As for basing, I want to do mud on the Americans And red weed for the Tripods. We will see if I ever get around to it.
infinite_array wrote: Yeah, I'd say just get the starter if you have other people to play with. More tripods are never a bad thing, and the humans you get are a good addition to any force. Plus the tokens aren't a bad thing to have, either.
They really need to do something like a updated rules PDF, since the rules for the game are floating all over the place - in the rulebook, on the Architects of War website, in their forum, etc.
That, and make some effort to complete the KS. It still boggles my mind that the point cost for MKII/III is incorrect in the army list in both rulebooks, but correct in the army detail in the hardcover.
I got a chance to put together my Steam Tanks from the starter set and my command tank. These kits went together really easily, just like the Plastic tripods. They practically snapped together without any glue.
We have three MarkII Steam Tanks. However, I used the wrong 4 LB gun. I guess these are more modern versions. I really love the design of the MarkII, it was ont of the things that made me want to play AQMF. Then, the ones with three cannons are the MarkIII tanks. I have 3 of those too. Obviously, the last one is the markIIc Command Tank.
Alien Dungeon has released some interesting new units for the Americans recently.
Villanistas on Motorcycles
Texas Rangers on Motorcycles
Apaches on Motorcycles
Armored Cars
It looks like they are gearing up for a Battle for Texas style supplement. I really liked the Native units for the British so I am interested to see where this goes.
Almost 7 months since i started this thread and I finally have a battle report to share!
AQMF- Battle of Camp Release The commanding officer at Fort Ridgely has suddenly been flooded by refugees from further up the Minnesota River Valley, an event eerily like the start of the last Dakota War. However, the Dakota had long since been moved to the reservations. From their jumbled tales, he suspects that the War of the Worlds has come to his sleepy command. Quickly, he organizes his local militiamen and sends them up river to find out what is going on. In the meantime, he sends word to his superiors at Fort Snelling to prepare to reinforce and help defend the river valley.
Martian Scout Pod 3 Martian Scout Pods
Minnesota Militia Scouting Party 3 Infantry Squads
Machine-Gun Squad
MkII Baldwin Tanks
MKIII Steamer Tanks
MKIIc Command Tank
Scenario: The Militia is moving up the Minnesota River Valley to investigate reports of Martian Red Weed sighted in the area, and to see if it heralds the approach on the Martian invader into the Minnesota territory.
They have camped over night near the burned out ruins of a farmhouse. The troops are uneasy. They turn in with a single Platoon on guard duty. With the arrival of daybreak, they realize with horror that a Pod of Martian Scout Tripods was active in the area. The closest one had taken up a resting position in a nearby woods. As dawn arrives, both sides suddenly realize the close proximity they are to danger.
With startled shouts, the platoon on guard begins to wake their comrades and man the defenses. The Martian blasts his war horns and summons his fellows into battle!
Special Rules: Reserves- 2 Martian Scouts begin the game in reserve. Infantry units and the first Martian scout can take action immediately.
The game ends after the opposing army is broken.
Set-up: The Militia set-up on their half of the board. The Command Tank is placed anywhere within 12 inches of the short edge, and 24 inches in from the edge. All human units must be deployed within 8 inches of the command tank to represent the human camp.
The Martian Tripod is set-up on the opposite side within 6 inches of the short board edge and 12 inches from either side. They are set-up in a light wooded area.
Turn 1 Initiative: Minnesotans
The Minnesotans win Initiative. The Infantry scrambles for cover in the farmhouse ruins and the orchard, while the watch platoon prepares to fire on the revealed scout. The Command Tank moves over to the side of the ruins.
The Scout moves to the edge of the woods and waits, blowing his martian horns and waiting for reinforcements.
Turn 2 Initiative: Martians
A second scout appears from deeper in the woods and answers his friend's call. The first scout waits, while the second one moves up.
No more Minnesotans come to their comrades aid. The third platoon moves up towards the stream banks to dig in.
Turn 3 Initiative: Martians
The first scout breaks the woodline. He aims his Heat Ray at the troopers in the 1st Platoon near the stream. He fires. He hits with a 10, and the infantry element gets incinerated, but they stay put. The second scout burst through the woodline and prepares to surge forward.
The Minnesotans hold in cover and wait for the Scouts to approach. They ready their weapons.
Turn 4 Initiative: Martians
The two martians move closer to the 1st platoon, intent on incinerating them piecemeal. They open fire, the first misses his target element, but the second incinerates one of them. The last unit holds. One of the scouts moves towards the 2nd platoon.
In return the Minnesotans jump into the action. No reinforcements come to the battle. The command tanks 4-pounder booms out across the field of battle, but the shot goes wide. The last of 1st Platoon takes careful aim and fires. Most of the shots bounce off harmlessly, but one shot takes off a point of damage. 2nd platoon misses. They stay in cover.
Turn 5 Initiative: Martians
The first scout crosses the stream to engage 2nd Platoon. The other one moves to finish off 1st Platoon.
The Valiant boys of 1st platoon are killed where they stand. The other scout tries to sweep 2nd Platoon, but misses. The first scout crosses back over the stream and takes cover in the brush.
The Minnesotans get ready to counter-attack the cautious scouts. They can almost hear their reinforcements rumbling up behind them. The 2nd Platoon opens fire with rifles and manages to damage the first scout again. The command tank again misses.
Turn 6 Initiative: Martians
The scouts move boldly across the stream now. Scout 2 opens fire on the command tank, but misses. The second scout misses a sweep on the 2nd Platoon. Scout 2 moves deeper into Minnesotan territory,while the first scout takes cover on the opposite side of the stream bed.
Both of the Tank platoons enter on the Minnesotan board edge. The Type II's are crushing the soy bean fields as they approach, while the threes move across the open ground. 2nd Platoon begins to fallback towards the Orchard while the command tank presses forward.
The Tanks open fire with a thunderous boom. Shells seem to ping harmlessly off the alien scout's carapace. 3rd Platoon and the machine-guns open up on the probing scout, but fail to damage it. The command tank's machine gun chatters away and blasts into the damaged Scout, damaging its Heat Ray.
Turn 6 Initiative: Minnesotans
The Tanks finally hit the Scout deep in their territory and damage its legs. This time, the Scout martian is getting hammered by rifles and machine-guns to reduce it to 5 Armor. The Command Tank uses his machine-guns again and damages Scout #1.
The last Martian enters the battlefield. Scout #2, damaged and immobile uses his Heat Ray to sweep the ruins of the farmhouse. He kills 2 Infantry elements and 1 Machine-gun unit. The Machine-Gun squad is broken by the attack. Scout #1 tries to fire on the Command Tank and fails to fire. Scout #2 manages to stumble into the ruined farmhouse and completely break the machine-gun teams.
The remains of 3rd Platoon assault Scout #2 in the farmhouse. The MkII and III's move up. The assault fails as the tripod stands above it all. The tanks fire on the Tripod in the Farmhouse ruins, the barrage kills the Minnesotan platoon and only scratches the Tripod. The command tank fires his machine-guns at Scout #1 and fails to damage anyone.
Turn 7 Initiative: Minnesotans
The MKIII tanks open fire on Scout in the farmhouse. Their shots find their mark and the alien explodes. Too bad the explosion catches the MkIII unit and causes two of them to explode as well. The Command tank riddles Scout #1 with machine-gun fire but fails to finish it.
The heavily damaged Scout #1 tripod retreats towards the wood line. Meanwhile, Scout #3 moves up. The Heat Ray of the Scout hits the Command Tank, but fails to damage it.
The MkIIs move up. The Command Tank retreats from the approaching Scout tank, but is still in front of his troops. As he withdrawls, he fires his 4-inch gun and hits the Scout directly in the eye causing it to be destroyed.
Conclusion With the destruction of his pod-mates, Scout #1 withdraws from the field, leaving it to the humans. It was critical that he reported the contact to his superiors.
The Minnesotans regroup around the Command tank. After picking over the remains of the destroyed Tripods, a few select pieces are sent by messenger back to Fort Ridgeley. High Commands' worst fears have been realized. The Martian menace has been confirmed in the Minnesota River Valley. With that, word went to Fort Snelling to begin gathering additional soldiers and forces for the coming campaign.
Humans win the initial engagement in the Minnesota River Valley.
Architects of War Facebook, website and forum have all been pulled down in the last couple days, so looking more and more like it's the end of the line for AQMF.
Triple9 wrote: Architects of War Facebook, website and forum have all been pulled down in the last couple days, so looking more and more like it's the end of the line for AQMF.
noticed that, but the facebook group is still there.
Hmm, I had tried checking the Alien Dungeon FB, which has been pulled, but hadn't checked the Architects of war one. Architects of War is indeed still there. I find that the proboards forum being down to be most telling that something is amiss.
Interesting in light of their recent KS doing very little. I was worried they were spread way too thin, as that has been their MO for a while now. Shame they didn't really take their time and build one IP because a well developed All-Quiet could've been a hell of a game. It did a lot right.
NewTruthNeomaxim wrote: Interesting in light of their recent KS doing very little. I was worried they were spread way too thin, as that has been their MO for a while now. Shame they didn't really take their time and build one IP because a well developed All-Quiet could've been a hell of a game. It did a lot right.
Yeah, they had Fanticide, which had some cute quirkiness to it, and then All Quiet, which could have been a great game if the rulebook wasn't a mess and the other rules released in such a haphazard manner. And then they go in for a fantasy wargame at a time when there's a glut of fantasy wargaming rules? Especially a kickstarter, where all the interest would probably have died off by the time it came out.
It's especially a shame because All Quiet had some great future potential. A second edition could have gotten all of the rules cleaned up and back into one book. And they had great ideas for a bunch of other factions - French and Germans for the humans (who would be antagonistic to the British), and Venusian and Morlocks for aliens.
I will be bummed. I know their forums were having some issues posting photos over the previous week, but this seems like an odd time to pull down the site.
That combined with their 40% off sale and running out of stock on just about everything is a big red flag.
Shame as I don't think I saved the rules PDFs and FAQs from the website anywhere. Plus, their plastic steamer and tripod kits were top notch!
Yeah. It would be a huge shame to see All Quiet go. I have been following it for a while. I was waiting for a 2nd edition of the rules and the German and the other alien faction before deciding on jumping in. It is an epic concept.
Just joined Dakka for the All Quiet on the Martian Front forum. Used to be on the Alien Dungeon All Quiet forum, but it seems to be dead. I'm hoping to find a community interested in keeping the game alive even if the company is gone. I was a KS backer for the game and have been having a great time painting and playing.
Stormonu wrote: Has the KS fully delivered? I think the last I heard, they still had the Land Juggernaut (can't remember its correct name) to send out.
I think I am one of the lucky ones. I have gotten nearly everything I signed up for on the KS. And I got a Land Ship when they went up for pre-order.
AQMF- Second Battle of Camp Release The presence of the Martian invaders in the Minnesota River Valley had been confirmed. The commander at Fort Ridgeley immediately sent additional troops up river to reinforce and garrison Camp Release. It was at Camp Release where the Minnesota Volunteers had managed to push back initial Martian scout Tripods.
As the Reinforcements moved up river, they were ambushed by a hunting Pod of aliens. The troops were caught between the Martians and the river as the huge alien machines reared up from the forest and advanced.
Martian Ambush Pod 2 Martian Scout Pods
1 Assault Pod
Minnesota Militia Scouting Party 3 Infantry Squads
Machine-Gun Squad
MkII Baldwin Tanks
MKIII Steamers
MKIIc Command Tank
Scenario: The Militia is moving up the Minnesota River Valley to reinforce Camp Release. The river is on the left of their column, and the forest is 10 inches in from the right long board edge. The Humans are in the approximate middle of the board. The Martians can be placed anywhere within the tree line.
The game ends after the opposing army is broken or 6 turns.
Set-up: The Militia set-up moving up the river in the middle of the board. Ann infantry screen is out front followed by the MKIIs, more infantry, the machine-gunners, and the MkIII. The commander is riding along to the river side of the column.
The Martians have the Assault Tripod moving to cut-off the column of troops. The two scout Tripods are sweeping in from the back edge.
Turn 1 Initiative: Minnesotans
The Minnesotans win Initiative. The Militia quick move to face the approaching alien menace! The 4 inch guns on the MkII's and the command tank open fire on the leading tripod, but fail to phase it. The MKIII's fare no better against the Scouts. The infantry continues to move forward, while the tanks try to stay out of Sweep range.
The Martians lumber out of the cover of the Forest, slowing them down. However, they want to close the gap so they can sweep with their Heat Rays. The first Scout scorches the first two squads of Third Platoon into dust, but the last squad still wants revenge! The Assault Tripod pops one of the MkIIs, but his comrades keep steady. The Tripods press the attack!
Turn 2 Initiative: Minnesotans.
The rear of the column pours fire into the second scout tripod, attempting to bust it open. This time a shot form the MKIII's hits something vital and the Scout bursts into flames! A cheers goes up fromt eh human forces, but nothing else seems to stick. The Tanks move around to try to reduce incoming fire and get into firing positions later.
Undeterred by the destruction of their fellow, the Martians again move forward. The Assault Tripod fails to sweep the MkIIs, and the Scout misses the Command tank. With their poor shooting, the Martians scuttle away to reduce the number of incoming shots.
Turn 3 Initiative: Martians
The Scout moves a bit closer, but the bigger Tripods is happy where he is. The Scout manages to sweep and destroy both of the remaining MKII's this time. The Assault Tripod failed to hit the Command tank. The Tripods then retreat further up river.
The Minnesotan infantry move up to try and get into assault range. The tanks also move to attack range, but despite a lot of shooting at the Scout, nothing seems to penetrate its armored hood.
Turn 4 Initiative: Minnesotans
The tanks form a solid firing line. Meanwhile, the Minnesotan infantry swarm out and two platoons attack the scout Tripod with grenades and elan. The tanks manage to damage the Assault Tripods steering mechanisms with a powerful barrage. The assault works a single armor point is removed from the Scout.
Martian retaliation is fearsome. The Scout walks away from the assault units, and the bigger tripod sweeps over the brave Minnesotans. The squads are killed, and the rest of the Militiamen flee in terror from the alien machines. The Scout also sweeps the MKIII's and destroys one. The Minnesotans are dwindling. The Scout advances trying to catch the last squad of Third Platoon and destroy them.
Turn 5 Initiative: Minnesotans
The Minnesotans fall back away from the approaching alien. Perhaps the Scout was too aggressive as the MKIIIs pound the advancing machine and terror away armor and damage its Heat Ray.
The Assault Tripod hit the command tank in the flank with its Heat Ray, but the Tank survives the smoldering inferno. The Scout manages to gain control of its Heat Ray long enough to vaporize the remains of Third platoon.
With that, the Minnesotan commander orders all trooper to retreat. The tank crews abandon their vehicles and take cover near the brush covered banks of the river. The Scout Martian covers his larger brother as the two Martian Machines break off and head back into the cover of the forest. The Assault Tripod stumbles and stops as it jerkily moves away from the battlefield.
Conclusion This was a close battle. One scout was destroyed, the other was down to half, and the Assault Tripod was walking funny. The infantry went squish in this one, and gave up the game. The MKIII's are very impressive tanks. Too bad I like the MKII model so much, because the MKIII is FAR superior. I think I want to get my hands on another Starter Set to bulk out my forces a bit, but I am unsure how easy that is going be be forward.
The Minnesota Militia was unable to reinforce Camp Release, leaving it open for a potential Martian attack. Will the Martian invaders be able to over run the defenders of Camp Release? Will the Minnesotans keep the invaders from pressing down the Minnesota River Valley all the way to Fort Snelling? Stay tuned to find out!
i just had my first good look at these models last weekend...
they are much bigger than i expected, which is awesome...
the Martians are quite tall, and the tanks look imposing...
if you want another starter, while they are still around, The Warstore has some:
Well, Alien Dungeon looks like it is finished as a company and All Quiet is probably gone too, for now. However, with xmas $$$ in hand I rushed to my FLGS and picked up a few more things.
1 Starter Set
1 MkIV Monitor Tank
1 Slaver tripod
1 Blister of Drones
1 Blister of Scorpion Drones
I tried to focus on things that I could not proxy with regular WWI models such as Field Guns, Artillery, WWI Infantry, etc.
The Shock and Scorpion Drones
The Steam Tank supplement
The Fall of Cairo PDF
How Rough riders, Black Dust, and Green Gas work
Veteran Assault Tripod PDF
Ragers and Viral Drones
We regret to announce that effective January 27th, 2016, Robot Peanut Studios, LLC, and its associated brands, Architects of War and Alien Dungeon have permanently closed their doors.
Our sales plummeted precipitously in the 3rd and 4th quarter of 2015 and never recovered across our online retail operations as well as hobby shop and distributor sales. We could not maintain our business under these conditions and despite a continuing series of sales and marketing efforts, we have been forced to file for bankruptcy. The case has been filed in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania at case number 16-20247. Please contact an attorney if you have any questions.
We set out six years ago to start a company providing exciting and entertaining intellectual property primarily in the analog gaming market. RPS began with miniature games with the intention of expanding to board and digital games. While the All Quiet Kickstarter project brought in significant sales for us, the cost of development, manufacturing, and shipping exceeded the sales numbers and we were relying on sales beyond the Kickstarter in the broader market to carry the costs and expand the game. These sales never materialized in sufficient quantities. It is just that simple - we sold stuff through the Kickstarter that essentially ended up just above cost and then paid for the shipping. All Quiet just didn’t generate enough money for its scale. In addition, our original cost estimates based on quotes and time frame from various vendors Pre-Kickstarter were exceeded, making the business model untenable without retail sales that never materialized.
We are very sorry that it has come to this. Certainly not the outcome we dreamed of when we started the company. To our investors, the Kickstarter supporters and our loyal customers, we’d like to thank you for your support. It has been difficult not communicating during this legal process, but we have had to go through a process and that has been well outside any of our previous experiences.
This will be our last communication. Customer service inquiries will not be answered and there will be no additional communication on Kickstarter. We do not know what the final disposition of All Quiet and or other product brands will be at this time. We have to forfeit our participation in such matters to the court.
Barb and I must move on and find employment and start putting our lives back together. To our friends, investors, vendors, and loyal customers, thank you for helping us try to fulfill our dream and we wish you the best possible future.
Yours Sincerely, Barb and Ernie
Well, at least we know that if someone is interested, they could probably acquire everything from AQMF for pretty cheaply.
Although let's hope they redesign the tripods and other aliens. I was actually very interested in the game until I actually saw the look of them and other aliens.
Vertrucio wrote: Well, at least we know that if someone is interested, they could probably acquire everything from AQMF for pretty cheaply.
Although let's hope they redesign the tripods and other aliens. I was actually very interested in the game until I actually saw the look of them and other aliens.
I actually like the Tripod look myself since it fits in with the time period.
Don't want to be mean, but it's pretty clear the vast majority didn't think the same or it would have sold better.
The designs that are there are okay, but they have a toy-like quality to them as opposed to a miniature representing a retro-inspired alien machine of war. There's no hard delineation on what's too child's toy-like and what's not, but it was on the wrong side of the spectrum for most. The same goes for most of the upcoming alien designs.
A good example is the Star Wars universe, you look at the designs that make it into the movies, then you look at the designs made by budget artists for the Extended Universe/Legends, and you notice the difference pretty clearly.
Vertrucio wrote: Don't want to be mean, but it's pretty clear the vast majority didn't think the same or it would have sold better.
The designs that are there are okay, but they have a toy-like quality to them as opposed to a miniature representing a retro-inspired alien machine of war. There's no hard delineation on what's too child's toy-like and what's not, but it was on the wrong side of the spectrum for most. The same goes for most of the upcoming alien designs.
A good example is the Star Wars universe, you look at the designs that make it into the movies, then you look at the designs made by budget artists for the Extended Universe/Legends, and you notice the difference pretty clearly.
really? really? why the snippy attitude? not every one is going to like every game, there is a growing pile of people who actually like the Sedition war Minis even thought there are a handful of people who say the minis are horrible to assemble and such (really feel sorry for their modeling skills) as it goes like most kickstarters most of the people interested in the game sign up in the kickstarter, furthermore all AQotMF product is still holding a strong price point with the Martians selling for more then the tanks, in fact one of the most sought after pieces to the game is a Martian Harvester. and other Martians are highly sought after too, so you saying what you said is showing your ignorance on this matter a bit.
it may have been on the worng side of the spectrum for you, but not most of those into the game.
Vertrucio wrote: Don't want to be mean, but it's pretty clear the vast majority didn't think the same or it would have sold better.
The designs that are there are okay, but they have a toy-like quality to them as opposed to a miniature representing a retro-inspired alien machine of war. There's no hard delineation on what's too child's toy-like and what's not, but it was on the wrong side of the spectrum for most. The same goes for most of the upcoming alien designs.
A good example is the Star Wars universe, you look at the designs that make it into the movies, then you look at the designs made by budget artists for the Extended Universe/Legends, and you notice the difference pretty clearly.
Yeah, I am sure that is why they are out-of-business. Or it could be that starting any business is really, really hard to do!
Anyway, it was officially sent in an e-mail to Kickstarter backers from Ernie and Company that they are in bankruptcy proceedings. Basically, everyone who wanted in on the game backed the Kickstarter, and their were not a lot of retail sales after the launch. Yet another cautionary tale to Kickstarter projects.
Keep in mind, 95% of start-up business fail within the first 18 months to 5 years. To have one succeed is the exception and NOT the rule.
Easy E wrote: Basically, everyone who wanted in on the game backed the Kickstarter, and their were not a lot of retail sales after the launch. Yet another cautionary tale to Kickstarter projects.
Is that why they seemed to be releasing things so haphazardly towards the end? Trying to generate interest/buzz in the game? I was surprised in the summer/fall of last year to see Egyptian and Indian troops alongside bandits on motorcycles offered for sale when the main factions still weren't finished from the KS campaign.
Overall it felt like they didn't have a strong grasp on the direction they wanted to expand the game and went in too many different directions that made buying in to the game confusing.
Merijeek wrote: ...and in the mail today is a Form 390A, as I'm apparently considered a creditor in Ernie and Barb Baker's Chapter 7 Bankruptcy filing.
Interesting. What were you waiting on? Be curious if I'll get one as the only things I were waiting on were a Tesla Tank, Munitions Tender and Command Bunker. The first 2 were "freebies", but the command bunker I added in the pledge manager.
I sold my pledge in a large lot about a week before they declared bankruptcy and although I made a little bit of scratch over what I paid, I'm kicking myself a little bit as I could have made a ton parting it out.
Honestly, at this point I don't know and I don't care. I had a flat out basic pledge with only one add on, and that was...Overlord Tripod, I think.
Battle of Memphis, I think. Whichever one had a decent selection from both sides and was around $300. So, missing the Overlord and whatever stretches never made it.
The form also included both Ernie and Barb's Social Security Numbers. Which is...surprising.
Asterios wrote: whee I got not one letter but two letters about their bankruptcy.
Ditto... and I wasn't even owned anything.
Barb and Ernie putting their personal funds and names in shows what a gak-show their business was. The whole idea of incorporating is to take personal stakes out of a venture so your family doesn't take it on the chin if your business fails.
Worse is, as a result, having the social security numbers all over everything.
Starting a business of any sort is not easy. Plenty of people make mistakes, especially if they do not get good advice.
It sounds liek they started it as just a basic partnership/sole-proprietorship instead of an LLC or some sort of Corp. Big mistake, but surprisingly common.
Also, I went to my FLGS and they were sold out of Veteran Assault tripods. Therefore, I might have to build my own. Does anyone have decent pictures of the model compared to a normal tripod?
I don't think the Veterans are supposed to be taller. My understanding was that they were were field modifications done by the Martians, right? Up-armoring and all that.
Speaking of conversions... has anyone had success kit bashing a Harvester?
I missed out on that model and I doubt I'll have luck finding one in the wild. Its torso is dramatically different from the other tripods so I was curious if anyone had suggestions of how to make one.
Thanks for the photo. The torso looks tricky, especially the bladed mouth. On the upside I have so many fleeing civilians that I think I could do the harvesting tentacles justice.
Really wish I had grabbed one last year when they were readily available!
I have only assembled one unit of Rough Riders and I about pulled my remaining hair out by the end of the build. Those handle bars are a chore to get connected properly.
I've started painting my human forces, a California National Guard unit stationed in the Mojave.
The MKIII was my first attempt at the scheme and painted over a year ago. I went heavy with the weathering compared to the much cleaner MK II that I painted last month.
I am leaning towards using the cleaner scheme for the rest of the army, if only because it is faster to paint.
The infantry are not done yet but are close enough for an example of their color scheme. I already hate painting the infantry and only plan to finish the other 10-men in this unit for the time being. I have six more tanks to paint up and then I am going to tackle one of my Land Ironclads. I am excited about that model because it and the Goliath were what got me interested in the game.
Fields Guns and Rough Riders for All Quiet on the Martian Front.
Nothing Special and basing is still needed. I am now that much closer to fighting the Battle of Camp Release in the Minnesota River Valley. Prior to the battle I still need to paint a Machine Gun squad, two infantry squads, a Martian Assault Tripod pod, and 6 Mk II tanks. At this rate, I should have those done by this time next year.
Yeah, the company went Out of Business earlier this year and they are still in Bankruptcy court last i heard. That means no one else can pick up the molds/IP yet. I am honestly not expecting it to come back.
I have been working on the stuff I owned and expanding it when I could find it locally.
Easy E wrote: Yeah, the company went Out of Business earlier this year and they are still in Bankruptcy court last i heard. That means no one else can pick up the molds/IP yet. I am honestly not expecting it to come back.
I have been working on the stuff I owned and expanding it when I could find it locally.
I would venture to bet that there is a ton of inventory that someone like MM would be eager to snap up for pennies on the dollar at auction. I agree that I don't think the game will come back as it stands.
Gotcha... I spoke to the owner before the game released, he was working with one of the companies i used to be employed by. He sent me the started and book for free because I told him I was a gamer...... the starter pack had a ton of missing pieces on the sprues... so just from that experience, and no seeing it in any LGS i ever stopped at, I am not surprised they went down under.
Hello everyone,
I am posting an update to the state of All Quiet on the Martian Front. I work for a new company, Ironclad Games, that is looking to potentially purchase and produce All Quiet on the Martian Front.
We are working to acquire the IP and inventory for the game. I hope to have more information for everyone very soon, but for now we have plans to release more models at least.
I'd love to hear from the community about any feedback, concerns, suggestions, etc.
One of the things that I'd like to see is more interaction with you, the fans, so please post here or drop me a message directly.
Ironclad Games wrote: Hello everyone,
I am posting an update to the state of All Quiet on the Martian Front. I work for a new company, Ironclad Games, that is looking to potentially purchase and produce All Quiet on the Martian Front.
We are working to acquire the IP and inventory for the game. I hope to have more information for everyone very soon, but for now we have plans to release more models at least.
I'd love to hear from the community about any feedback, concerns, suggestions, etc.
One of the things that I'd like to see is more interaction with you, the fans, so please post here or drop me a message directly.
Thank you,
-Joe
Any chance KS backers will ever get the rest of what they are owed? Or has that ship sailed?
Ironclad Games wrote: Hello everyone,
I am posting an update to the state of All Quiet on the Martian Front. I work for a new company, Ironclad Games, that is looking to potentially purchase and produce All Quiet on the Martian Front.
We are working to acquire the IP and inventory for the game. I hope to have more information for everyone very soon, but for now we have plans to release more models at least.
I'd love to hear from the community about any feedback, concerns, suggestions, etc.
One of the things that I'd like to see is more interaction with you, the fans, so please post here or drop me a message directly.
Thank you,
-Joe
Any chance KS backers will ever get the rest of what they are owed? Or has that ship sailed?
Just to be clear, Ironclad Games is in the process of purchasing All Quiet on the Martian Front's inventory and IP. We are not in any way affiliated with Robot Peanut and as a new company, we cannot absorb any of their unfulfilled promises. Once we have everything intact, we can take stock of the game and product available, then re-asses how we can proceed selling and expanding the game.
Ironclad would want to start with a cohesive, better edited, and complete rule-book. In a short span of time there was already buckets of errata and rules spread all over the place, and frankly a game is dead in the water if that first product people will get their eyes on, isn't excellent.
I think there's some efforts on the independent All Quiet forum to gather together all those erratas and PDFs into a coherent ruleset.
But yeah, not having a coherent ruleset was a major turn-off for the game. Just to be able to play, you had to have the rulebook, the PDF updates, and then hunt down errata from the old official forums.
Two platoons of Minnesota Militia and a Machine Gun support platoon for the Red River Valley campaign. Next up for painting is 6 MKII tanks to bolster the Militia's numbers.
Camp Release is defending the river flats to the west. The Great Woods has served as a detered as the tall trees hinder the Tripods movement. Therefore, the river valley is the easiest approach for the Martians.
It maybe the easiest, but Martian Tripods have been contacted moving through the woods to try and bypass the resistance of the "Prey-that-stings". As such, small towns near the River Valley have need to be reinforced as well. Simple earthworks and berms have been the most expedient way to prepare for potential Tripod attack.
Near the small town of Acton, to the North of Red River Valley; Tripods have been sighted approaching the town! They are at the edge of the Great Woods and near Oli Ulfson's Soybean fields.
Thankfully, the Minnesota Volunteers had managed to throw up a quick ring of earthworks around the outskirts of town.
Just to be clear, Ironclad Games is in the process of purchasing All Quiet on the Martian Front's inventory and IP. We are not in any way affiliated with Robot Peanut and as a new company, we cannot absorb any of their unfulfilled promises. Once we have everything intact, we can take stock of the game and product available, then re-asses how we can proceed selling and expanding the game.
-Joe
Kind of what I figured. Hope you guys can do better than Robot Peanut did.
The MkIII us soooo much better at fighting Tripods than the MKII. The plastic kit allows me to make either type. However, I just love the look of the MKII more. I have always been a style over substance guy. That finishes up my Americans except for the MKIV Monitor tank which is still in the box.
I organize my tank companies with two platoons of MKIIs and one platoon of MKIIIs. I agree that the MkIII is a vastly more capable weapon, but it doesn't seem reasonable to have the whole army made up of them.
Ironclad Games wrote: Hello everyone,
I am posting an update to the state of All Quiet on the Martian Front. I work for a new company, Ironclad Games, that is looking to potentially purchase and produce All Quiet on the Martian Front.
We are working to acquire the IP and inventory for the game. I hope to have more information for everyone very soon, but for now we have plans to release more models at least.
I'd love to hear from the community about any feedback, concerns, suggestions, etc.
One of the things that I'd like to see is more interaction with you, the fans, so please post here or drop me a message directly.
Thank you,
-Joe
Any chance KS backers will ever get the rest of what they are owed? Or has that ship sailed?
Just to be clear, Ironclad Games is in the process of purchasing All Quiet on the Martian Front's inventory and IP. We are not in any way affiliated with Robot Peanut and as a new company, we cannot absorb any of their unfulfilled promises. Once we have everything intact, we can take stock of the game and product available, then re-asses how we can proceed selling and expanding the game.
-Joe
that is a lot of companies to go thru along with banks to acquire all the particular products and molds and such. I was talking with one of the parties involved and they only had partial models themselves for some of the martians and troops.
last count had me looking at 5 different parties to acquire the needed items.
Also your companies name is not new and already exists for a company that has a PC game called Sins of a dark age, so makes me think not a real serious company.
Ironclad Games wrote: Hello everyone,
I am posting an update to the state of All Quiet on the Martian Front. I work for a new company, Ironclad Games, that is looking to potentially purchase and produce All Quiet on the Martian Front.
We are working to acquire the IP and inventory for the game. I hope to have more information for everyone very soon, but for now we have plans to release more models at least.
I'd love to hear from the community about any feedback, concerns, suggestions, etc.
One of the things that I'd like to see is more interaction with you, the fans, so please post here or drop me a message directly.
Thank you,
-Joe
Good luck to y'all, I'd love to see this game in print again - and pick up some more figures!
I second that. I need more drones, veteran Tripods, etc,
The Minnesota Volunteers had set up a fortified camp in the Minnesota River Valley at Camp Release. The River Valley would be the easiest approach for Martian tripods as the Great Woods made rapid Martian movement challenging. The Tripods had harassed relief columns and scouting patrols around Camp Release, but that wasn't the only place the Tripods could attack. The Minnesota Volunteers went about fortifying nearby towns with crude earthworks and mustering defense forces in the region.
This proved timely as a Martian scouting force lurched out of the woods at the edge of Acton, north of the Minnesota River Valley. Only a thin screen of Volunteers and hastily constructed Earthworks stood between the martians and the town.
Martian Scout Force 3 Scout Tripods
1 Assault Tripod with Green Gas Launcher
Minnesota Volunteers 1 MkIIC Command Tank
3 MarkII Baldwin Tanks
1 battery of Field Guns
1 support squad of HMGs 3 Infantry squads
2 Rough Rider squads
Earthworks are Def +3, A +2
Set-up The Martians emerged near the edge of the treeline west of Oli Ulafson's soybean fields. They spread out in a towering, red line.
The Volunteers were deployed to defend in depth. Our front, a squad of doughboys entrenched in some earthworks, while their squad mates took position in the Soybean fields. They were backed up but a line of Earthworks with the field guns, HMGs, and MKIIC tank dug-in. Behind them was the mobile reserve of tanks. The rough riders were hiding in the forest north of the fields.
Mission The Martians have 6 turns to try and break through to Acton or route the Minnesota Volunteers from the field. The Volunteers are trying to break the Martian forces first.
Turn 1 Martian Initiative
Martians:
The Tripods burst forth from the treeline, with the scouts forming a tripod wall in front of the Green Gas launcher.
The lead humans are just out of range, so the Tripods have to decide to move forward and weather a storm of shells, or wait? They decide to press forward conscious of their mission. They must get to the town before darkness sets in. They move forward once more.
Humans:
The Humans elect to stay in position and ready their weapons. The decision to hold position means the Volunteers in the soybean fields are out of range still. However, the lead platoon fires from their entrenchments. The sound of a volley of rifle fire breask the pre-battle silence, and it is followed by a roar of gunfire as the rest of the Americans open fire.
A lucky shot from the rifleman damages the lead Scouts legs, causing it to move erratically. A cheer goes up from the Doughboys! The Field guns also manage to damage a second scout.
The humans are content to hold their positions for now.
Turn 2 Martians win
Martians:
The martian invaders move forward at full speed. The first scout burns down two squads of 2nd Platoon with its heat ray. The remains of the platoon scatter and run, removing them as a threat. His fellow scout sweeps and kills a single squad of 3rd Platoon in the soybean field. They prepare their grenades for close assault. The Green Gas launcher takes out a squad of entrenched troopers from first platoon, but the unit holds.
The Martians ignore the humans and continue to move forward.
Humans:
With the Tripods racing towards them the human commander begins to sweat. The Rough Rider squads burst from their hiding spots and race towards the nearest Scout. The 3rd Platoon turns around and charges into the Scout Tripod. 1st platoon stays entrenched where they are. The gunline hastily reloads and fires again!
The field guns fail to find a weak spot on the approaching lead Scout. The command squad and the tanks open fire and manage to ping the armor on the lead scout twice, but it isn't nearly enough to bring it down! The machine guns add their weight of fire, and take off three more armor chits, but the scout keeps coming! The dough boys of 3rd Platoon valiantly try to tie up the second scout with an assault, but fail to hit a weak point.
The Rough Riders close in on the Scouts. Meanwhile the Baldwin tanks move to try and physically block the shortest distance to Acton behind them.
Turn 3 Martians win initiative again.
Martians:
The lead Scouts race forward and are practically on-top of the Human defenders! The final scout tries to move, but ends up stumbling backwards. The Assault tripod also moves forward, but is wary of the Rough Riders.
The Assault Tripods Heat ray sweeps and takes out a Rough Rider element and squad from 3rd Platoon. 3rd Platoon decides to run for Acton in terror.
The lead scout sweeps the Baldwin tanks, but fails to damage any of them! The second tripod Heat Rays the HMGs in the earthworks and manages to kill one element, while the others rout in terror from the huge machine! The stumbling scout even manages to use its heat ray and kill a sqaud from 1st Platoon, but the units stays in its place.
The second scout races forward and routs the fleeing HMG squads. Next turn he will plunge into the town of Acton unless stopped! The first scout tries to go around the earthworks, and the Assault Tripod moves up to support the heavily damaged scout.
Humans:
Things look grim, and only a miracle will protect the citizens of Acton! The tanks and Field Guns shuffle about to get a shot at the second Scout. Meanwhile the Rough Riders and Command Tank try to handle the first Scout.
The Rough Riders fire desperately and wildly at the first Tripod. They take off more armor and damage the Tripods Heat Ray. The Command tanks machine gun finally finds a gap int eh first scouts depleted armor, and tears into the machine mercilessly! The Tripod explodes spectacularly!
The Field Guns and Baldwin MkII tanks fire desperately at the second scout about to enter Acton, however, all of their shots either miss or ping harmlessly off the Scout's armored carapace. It looks like Acton will burn!
Seeing that the cause is lost, the Command Tank retreats into the town to flee and gives the signal to withdraw. The MkII Baldwins try to follow suit, but are still at the edge of the town.
Conclusion With that we decide to call the game.
The Minnesota volunteers abandon their dug-outs and retreat to a pre-selected rally point. The undamaged Scout and Assault Tripod make short work of the town Acton, as the civilians flee for their lives. At Fort Ridgeley, they can see the horizon to the North glow red from the flames of the town. Meanwhile, command now needs to worry about marauding Tripods bypassing the Minnesota River Valley completely and mkaing a bead for Fort Snelling and the capital at St. Paul.
So, how did things go? Well as the Volunteers player, I completely botched using the Rough Riders in this one. Ideally they needed to tie up some of those fast moving scouts, but by the time I had them moving, it was too late. The Tripods had penetrated to deeply and too quickly. Also, the HMGs routing when they did put a huge hole in my battleline that the Scout easily walked through. I feel like the first Scout took a horrendous pounding, soaking up 9 hits before exploding! However, that was off-set by the third Tripod having its legs crippled early so things balanced out in the end. My MKII Baldwins also held up to some punishment! If I would have used my Rough Riders better, this game could have been much different.
I was not that impressed by the Green Gas Launcher on the Assault Tripod. The Area of Effect is not good enough and the Black Dust Launcher seems like a much better buy, and looks cooler too! Other than that, the speed of the Scouts did the trick this game. If my opponent only had Assaults, I would have had another turn or two to hold the Red Menace off and maybe make a difference. Oh well.
The Americans aren't the only ones getting some reinforcements.
Three new Assault Tripods from my second starter set.
All I have left from my haul to complete now is:
3 Scorpion Drones- Still in box
3 Drones- Partially assembled
1 MKIV Tank- In Box
1 Slaver Tripod- Basecoat
I guess I better get to my FLGS and see if they have anything left still.
They had a starter set too, but I decided that I had enough of those for the moment. If it is still there after I get these and my drones painted, maybe I will pick it up.
I have very exciting news to share with everyone. Yesterday we received confirmation that the sale of all Robot Peanut inventory and IP's (which includes All Quiet on the Martian Front) has become offical.
Later this month we will be traveling to Pennsylvania to pack up and move all inventory, bits, parts and production tools to St. Louis Missouri.
We are planning a meet and greet with all fans of the game at some time during Gencon. We will provide more details as it gets closer.
I won't believe until stuff starts hitting the shelf again. Call me a cynic, but I am all too familiar with the rates of business success.
Battle for Beaver Creek Ford With the Fall of Acton, High Command at Fort Snelling became concerned about a possible martian advance across the Great Woods. They began to marshal additional forces in and around St. Paul and to dig entrenchments around the Capital. it was now understood that the Martians could attack anywhere along the River Valley or deeper. Rough Rider patrols and observation balloons were deployed to locate and report back the location of any roving enemy units. It was a dangerous mission, and many of these scouts never returned.
Beaver creek winds through a series of high-banked bluffs before entering the Minnesota Rover Valley and eventually feeding the river itself. There is only one easy ford to cross the Beaver Creek to proceed up river. Members of the Minnesota Volunteers have entrenched in the area to support reinforcement and evacuation efforts up and down the River Valley. Since the Ford is a vital location, troops are dug-in to defend in an emergency, but mostly to keep the flow of traffic across the river moving.
A company of MkII Baldwins from Fort Ridgeley were scheduled to move up and cross the ford around 1PM. This company was to proceed up and relieve the force stationed at Camp Release. it was standard practice to rotate units from front-line to reserve line duty at regular intervals. This helped keep men and machines fresh and in fighting trim.
At approximately 12:15, Doughboys from the 3rd platoon assigned to the Beaver Creek Ford reported strange, loud noises coming from upstream. The sergeant peeled off a few scouts to investigate. Before the scouts could return and report, the distinctive armored hood of a Martian Tripod was observed by the Field Artillery crews on Father Hennepin Hill. The Tripod was approaching from upstream. Runners were dispatched to the Company Commander, Lt. Nix.
Before Lt. Nix even received the news, Martian Tripods burst through cover and shrubbery from further North up the Beaver Creek and descended on the surprised Minnesota Volunteers. If the Ford falls, Camp Release will be isolated and cut-off from their supply lines. That would be disastrous for the defense efforts int eh region and Leave Fort Ridgeley open to Martian attack.
I have very exciting news to share with everyone. Yesterday we received confirmation that the sale of all Robot Peanut inventory and IP's (which includes All Quiet on the Martian Front) has become offical.
Later this month we will be traveling to Pennsylvania to pack up and move all inventory, bits, parts and production tools to St. Louis Missouri.
We are planning a meet and greet with all fans of the game at some time during Gencon. We will provide more details as it gets closer.
Please post comments or questions in this thread.
Steve & Joe
Ironclad Games
best of luck
Interesting. Based on their location, I wonder if they have a relationship with MM. It would certainly remove a distribution hurdle. I sold off my lot in a fit of annoyance shortly before the game went under. I've had a bit of regret and would love to pick up a starter again.
Pity they will find that there are very few if any molds left of product since the bulk of the plastic molds were on lease from the manufacturer which as soon as the Robot Peanut officially was bankrupt the molds were recycled for other use, some of the files are also missing and one of the other Metal Spin casted parts maker only had a few molds of theirs and mostly from RP's other lines and no complete models from the AQotMF line, so me thinks the company would have been better off starting from scratch and creating their own company since it would be cheaper to do that.
Speaking of the bankruptcy has anyone else been receiving a bunch of mail concerning that? or is that just me. i think i might be because i bought from the web store.
Desubot wrote: Speaking of the bankruptcy has anyone else been receiving a bunch of mail concerning that? or is that just me. i think i might be because i bought from the web store.
I have, just got the finalization notice about it not too long ago.
Battle of Beaver Creek Ford At Birch Coulee in 1862, Dakota forces ambushed a group of soldiers that had camped there for the night. The battle lasted all day in the waist-high grass. It was not a decisive battle and the Dakota ended up withdrawing under cover. Beaver Creek Ford was just a few miles north of this historical battlefield.
In 1914, the Minnesota Volunteers were dug-in along the Beaver Creek Ford as a fallback position from further up the Minnesota River Valley. Camp release still held strong against the Martian invaders, even if it hadn’t been truly tested yet. The Volunteers were at the ford mostly to help direct traffic and support fleeing refuges heading east, and ensure military units heading west received priority.
The Beaver Creek Ford became the frontlines as a Pod of Martian Invaders came barreling down the Beaver Creek from the Great Woods to the north. It was an unexpected approach and the Volunteers were caught flat-footed and unprepared. Lt. Nix and his men would probably have been butchered, but the friction of war is a funny thing.
Captain Jones, a relation to the hero of Fort Ridgelely during the Dakota War; was leading a company of Steam Tanks west to rotate and replace a unit at Camp Release. His Company happened to be approaching the Beaver Creek Ford when the Martians attacked.
Can the brave defenders of Humanity repel the Martian invaders? Will the Martians be able to cut-off and isolate the Volunteers at Camp Release? The battle of Beaver Creek Ford is shaping up to be a decisive battle, unlike Birch Coulee.
The Forces Martian Invaders 2 Scout Tripods
3 Assault Tripods
1 Assault Tripod with Black Dust Launcher
The Minnesota Volunteers Lt. Nix’s Company
- 5 Platoons of Dough Boys
- 2 Machine Gun Support Squads
- 1 Field Gun Battery
Cpt. Jones Tank Company
- 1 MKIIc Command Tank
- 6 Baldwin MKII Tanks
- 3 MKIII Tanks
Mission This battle has straightforward objectives. Break the enemy force. The Martians have to lose 4 Units, and the Humans need to lose 8 units.
However, the Martians will automatically have the first initiative since they are ambushing the Volunteers.
Set-up The North side of the battle field is a series of wooded bluffs and hills that form the edge of the Minnesota River Valley. Beyond is the Great Woods. Cutting North to South across the center of the board is Beaver Creek, and the Ford is on the South side of the creek in the flat expanse of the River Valley. The creek is lined with underbrush and rocks.
Lt. Nix’s Company is dug in and in position along the Beaver Creek Ford. The shrubs lining the banks provide some basic cover to the infantry models there. The Field Gun Battery is deployed on a nearby hill overlooking the Ford on a wooded bluff. Capt. Jones’ tanks are moving along the River Valley heading west.
The Martians are in a tight cluster on the north side of the board moving down the Beaver Creek towards Lt. Nix’s troops.
Turn 1 Initiative: Martians get first turn per this scenario
Martians
With the Prey-that-Stings sighted, the Martians move towards the enemy and try to spread out a bit.
The first scout tries to sweep the Filed Guns, but the woods protect the gunners for the moment. The treetops burst into flames. The shrubbery around Beaver Creek bursts into flames as Heat Rays burn into the banks. 4 squads of Dough Boys are incinerated in the initial attack! 5th Platoon breaks and tries to run for it. However, they are scattered as Martian war-machines press forward into the River Valley.
Volunteers
The last squad from 4th platoon bravely charges into the oncoming Scout Tripod to slow it down. Meanwhile, their comrades prepare sell their lives dearly in their dug-outs along the ford. Capt. Jones’ tanks deploy to engage.
The assault fails, and fire from their comrades ends up catching the remnant of 4th platoon as well. However, Jones and his tanks do their job. A barrage of coordinated fire takes out the approaching Scout and severely damages the legs and heat ray of the closest Assault Tripod.
Turn 2 Initiative: The Martians are left reeling but the sudden arrival of Jones and his tanks. The Volunteers press the counter-attack!
Humans
Despite the trees flaming around them, the Field Gun battery manages to put a hit on the damaged Assault Tripod.
Jones’ Tank Company presses forward and opens fire on the Invaders. Their aggressive attack pays dividends. Jones’ command tank makes for the Ford and fires at the Scout, taking out a point of armor.
The Baldwin’s fire for effect, and the damaged tripod explodes in a blinding green flash, quickly followed by a second one. Once the human’s vision clears, the damaged Assault Tripod and the Black Dust Launcher have been incinerated in the explosion. A ragged cheer goes up!
The Tanks decided to continue to press their attack forward, but were careful about their own spacing, trying to stay in echelon to reduce potential sweeps from Martian Heat Rays.
Martians
The Martians were momentarily stunned by the loss of the Tripods so quickly! However, their cold Martian minds quickly assessed the situation and moved to counter the Humans.
The scout moved behind a tall, odd rock formation and then blasted a squad from 3rd Platoon. The rest of the survivors went running. The Assault Tripods moved into the streambed for limited cover, and opened fire on the Lead MKII tanks. One began to melt and steam like crazy. His fellows thought better of their aggressive attack and began to back up. However, a second Heat Ray blasts scatters the units as the survivors abandon their tanks and flee into the woods.
One of the Assault Pods moved and scattered what was left of 4th Platoon.
Score:
Americans have lost 4 squads.
Martians have lost 3 Tripods
Turn 3 Initiative: The Humans press onward!
Humans
The MkIII’s and Command Tank take-on the first Tripod, while the remaining MkIIs and Field guns attack the second. Despite unloading everything the humans had, neither Tripod waivered in the face of mankind’s firepower!
Martians
The Scout moved out of hiding and tried to sweep the closest Machine-gun units. However, their position at the edge of the stream protected them from the searching beam. The Assaults tried to eliminate the Baldwin’s with combined fire, but the sturdy armor of the tanks held up tot eh assault.
The aliens moved back into the light cover of the stream bed.
Turn 4 Initiative: Martians win
Martians
The Lead Tripod moves along the stream bed and instead of firing on the MKII Command tank, fires a sweep at Lt. Nix and his men near the ford. Two squads are killed, but Lt. Nix keeps the rest of the platoon steady.
The Scout scuttles from the wooded bluffs and moves towards the Field Guns. A blast from his Heat Ray fails to find its mark. The last Tripod fires on the MkIIIs but fails to damage them.
The Martians begin to fall back a bit and re-deploy towards the north.
Humans
The Humans are allowed to concentrate their firepower on one of the Assault Tripods. After a withering hail of fire, form the Tanks, Field Guns, and a Machine-gun squad, the Tripods crumples into Beaver Creek, its hull smoking and ruined.
Conclusion With the destruction of another Assault Tripod, The Martians quickly make a fighting withdrawal back up Beaver Creek, their Heat Rays lashing out at anyone foolish enough to follow them. The Minnesota Volunteers are left in control of the Beaver Creek Ford, and critical logistics lines are maintained.
After the battle, word reached Fort Ridgeley and both Lt. Nix and Capt. Jones were awarded a citation for bravery in the face of the enemy. Lt. Nix was recalled to Fort Ridgeley, and Capt. Jones continued to his post at Camp Release. There he was lionized by the men, and tales of the Battle of Beaver Creek quickly spread through the camp.
With the attempts to bypass Camp Release thwarted, the Martians were left with only one alternative! They had to smash through the hastily constructed human defenses there in order to proceed up the Minnesota River Valley. They began to martial their war machines for the task.
Wow, the 4” Guns did the trick today! I was really lucky to blow-up an Assault Tripod, and then take out the Black Smoke Launcher before it even got to fire! The martians were even trying to spread out to avoid such a chain reaction. That was very lucky and not something I can rely on to happen in the future! After that, the Martians just didn’t have the firepower to really recover.
The Tank Company was just throwing massive amounts of dice out every turn, and inevitably some of that is going to stick. Once it starts to stick, then things go downhill for the Tripods fast. In this game, I was allowed to focus my firepower too much, and I am sure my buddy won’t let that happen again.
Asterios wrote: Pity they will find that there are very few if any molds left of product since the bulk of the plastic molds were on lease from the manufacturer which as soon as the Robot Peanut officially was bankrupt the molds were recycled for other use, some of the files are also missing and one of the other Metal Spin casted parts maker only had a few molds of theirs and mostly from RP's other lines and no complete models from the AQotMF line, so me thinks the company would have been better off starting from scratch and creating their own company since it would be cheaper to do that.
Surely they'd have done their due diligence and know exactly what inventory is left, and whether it'd be enough to justify the purchase before going through with it.
Asterios wrote: Pity they will find that there are very few if any molds left of product since the bulk of the plastic molds were on lease from the manufacturer which as soon as the Robot Peanut officially was bankrupt the molds were recycled for other use, some of the files are also missing and one of the other Metal Spin casted parts maker only had a few molds of theirs and mostly from RP's other lines and no complete models from the AQotMF line, so me thinks the company would have been better off starting from scratch and creating their own company since it would be cheaper to do that.
Not that I doubt this, but how is it you know the provenance of the metal molds? There were only four that I can remember (tank, assault tripod, scout tripod, tripod legs) and it seems strange with the molds in the US (at least that's what AD said) that the owner would recycle them rather than sell them off.
if the physical moulds were owned by a second party, but the IP/reproduction rights for what the mould created was owned by a separate entity (the defunct company) the moulds would only be of use as scrap unless the mould owner was willing and able to buy up the ip rights
(it's one of the reasons you have to be careful if you're having custom sculpts made for you to make sure the reproduction rights come with it)
this may not have been possible (or worth the time and effort they thought it would take) in which case scrapping them would make the most financial sense
Asterios wrote: Pity they will find that there are very few if any molds left of product since the bulk of the plastic molds were on lease from the manufacturer which as soon as the Robot Peanut officially was bankrupt the molds were recycled for other use, some of the files are also missing and one of the other Metal Spin casted parts maker only had a few molds of theirs and mostly from RP's other lines and no complete models from the AQotMF line, so me thinks the company would have been better off starting from scratch and creating their own company since it would be cheaper to do that.
Not that I doubt this, but how is it you know the provenance of the metal molds? There were only four that I can remember (tank, assault tripod, scout tripod, tripod legs) and it seems strange with the molds in the US (at least that's what AD said) that the owner would recycle them rather than sell them off.
well one manufacturer did the infantry and some martian legs included the ever elusive harvester legs, his stuff is done thru spin casting he might have some of the molds left that he used not sure, the plastic molds were done with another company and last checked they had already recycled half of them due to mold costs and the designs they could not use anyway and that was months ago. the resin molds are "missing" some may have been with the product the previously mentioned company bought but others just "Vanished" during the closure and such, I contacted anyone and everyone I could get a hold of this project looking for items specifically certain items, what I found was a running joke and a disaster and that is when I said feth it and sold off all my AQotMF stuff, at this point it is cheaper to create own designs and own game mechanics then to pay for a defunct IP lacking in a bulk of its products, even tried finding the files but those have "vanished" too most likely on a laptop somewhere.
Thanks for the info. Sounds like a rather fitting end considering how AD ran the company. Wonder if we never saw the digital rule book because Ernie lost the files.
Triple9 wrote: Thanks for the info. Sounds like a rather fitting end considering how AD ran the company. Wonder if we never saw the digital rule book because Ernie lost the files.
too be honest the files are the hardest things to track cause he could have had them on his Laptop or whatnot and sold it off, kept it, gave it away, deleted them or whatever, as to the files the companies had, they are gone and removed when the molds were recycled, evidently the plastic molds were "leased" to AD (common practice for molders to do so a company can't lay claim to the mold and go somewhere else with it) and once AD defaulted on the lease or such, the company could thereby recycle said molds (mold cradles are expensive as hell). so out of all the possible molds that might exist the company that bought the IP might have infantry molds and Leg molds for certain tripods and whatever stock AD had left which those of you who were still owed product should have laid a claim on those if possible.
I think they did at one stage move the molds to another company due to having trouble with the first though, not sure if it was the plastic ones or not.
Well it’s February and we are still waiting on the plastics.
This past week, the molds were moved to a new vendor since the old one wasn’t getting the job done. We hope to get some good news next week. We are, of course, very sorry about the continued delay. It’s of critical importance to us too.
Actually, the digital rule book files are safe. The publisher for my Martian War novel did a set of them for Ernie (which he never distributed) so I assume he still has a copy. I'll have to check.
methebest wrote: I think they did at one stage move the molds to another company due to having trouble with the first though, not sure if it was the plastic ones or not.
Well it’s February and we are still waiting on the plastics.
This past week, the molds were moved to a new vendor since the old one wasn’t getting the job done. We hope to get some good news next week. We are, of course, very sorry about the continued delay. It’s of critical importance to us too.
think that may have been a stall action then an actual move.
Wishful thinking here, but assuming the plastic molds are indeed all gone and buried, I'd love to see a partnership with PSC to resurrect the Tanks and Martians with their quality. Just thinking how a single sprue could contain all those conversion bit for the different specialty tanks.
Things are sounding pretty good despite the naysayers' doom and gloom
except Scott I never claimed the molds were all destroyed, right now as it stands there were 2 metal molders 2 plastic molders and the resin molds done in house, both metal molders (one of whom i know did SpinCast molding of which money is still owed them) still has the molds along with AD's other molds for their other lines, the other metal molder I could not get any responses from in regards to those molds(certain tanks and parts and such, the plastic molds half of them were recycled (don't know about other half) (at one of the companies, the other company I could not find, and the resin molds like I said are missing. go read what I said.
the problem is the Resin molds are the key to the whole thing since they were the molds for the hard to get Martian models and such, without them you will still be stuck with the models that are still available thru various sources, wish them luck on finding them but think that is not going to go well.
except Scott I never claimed the molds were all destroyed
But you did say some of them were recycled. Ironclad Games is saying none of the molds were recycled.
Also, Ironclad claims there were 3 casting companies, and you say there were 4.
The mystery builds!
I've sold most of my Martians and specialized US tanks, but I have kept the majority of my steam tanks and US infantry. I am hoping Ironclad successfully brings this line back so I can play AQMF, but if not I can use the steam tanks and my two Land Iron Clads in games of 15mm steampunk Ogre.
except Scott I never claimed the molds were all destroyed
But you did say some of them were recycled. Ironclad Games is saying none of the molds were recycled.
Also, Ironclad claims there were 3 casting companies, and you say there were 4.
The mystery builds!
I've sold most of my Martians and specialized US tanks, but I have kept the majority of my steam tanks and US infantry. I am hoping Ironclad successfully brings this line back so I can play AQMF, but if not I can use the steam tanks and my two Land Iron Clads in games of 15mm steampunk Ogre.
technically 5 if you count the in house resin stuff here is the breakdown of how the molds were done, 1 metal factory did infantry and legs, the other metal factory did tanks and parts, 1 plastic factory did stands, markers and assorted items, 1 plastic factory did the Tripods and steam tank sprues, the specialty pods and such were done in house in Resin, rumour has it another company was also involved in the plastics but not sure.
the resin moulds are fairly irrelevant as they don't last long, and need remaking from master casts (or the original sculpts), and it's the latter that it's going to be crucial for them to have
OrlandotheTechnicoloured wrote: the resin moulds are fairly irrelevant as they don't last long, and need remaking from master casts (or the original sculpts), and it's the latter that it's going to be crucial for them to have
problem is all those the masters and resins are missing I heard he used them to pay some people he owed but can't get confirmation on that, nor what happened to them at all. let me explain one of the items I went hunting for was the Harvester mold, I found the legs and arms but could not find the body, its like the body never existed.
I believe this was from the inventory they did in Alien Dungeon's Pennsylvania Store. They said they were moving everything from there to their facility in St. Louis (I think it was St. Louis, somewhere out that way.)
ScottWashburn wrote: I believe this was from the inventory they did in Alien Dungeon's Pennsylvania Store. They said they were moving everything from there to their facility in St. Louis (I think it was St. Louis, somewhere out that way.)
sadly don't see the Harvester mold, also think some of those molds were for making samples and such, you can tell the one mold has a brick pattern on the outside that is from using LEGO for a mold case.
If you read the text that goes with the photos it indicates that what they show is a just a sample and that there are more they didn't post pictures of. And that they have confirmed that other molds are being held by casting companies.
ScottWashburn wrote: If you read the text that goes with the photos it indicates that what they show is a just a sample and that there are more they didn't post pictures of. And that they have confirmed that other molds are being held by casting companies.
yeah but think if they had they had the Harvester mold they would have showed that off due to its desirability. and the harvester mold was a resin mold and they would have had it with the others.
Having talked with the new owners (both on forums, via e-mail and in a phone conversation) I have come to believe that they are looking at this as a business proposition rather than some labor of love. The main owner wouldn't know a Harvester from a hole in the ground and would not give it any special significance. Right now they are figuring out what they have and what they have to do to get back in production so they can start bringing in money. A very sound business move IMHO
ScottWashburn wrote: Having talked with the new owners (both on forums, via e-mail and in a phone conversation) I have come to believe that they are looking at this as a business proposition rather than some labor of love. The main owner wouldn't know a Harvester from a hole in the ground and would not give it any special significance. Right now they are figuring out what they have and what they have to do to get back in production so they can start bringing in money. A very sound business move IMHO
actually a wise move would have been to start from scratch, to use any of the molds the other companies have they will want to be paid for past debts, especially since they cannot get money from the previous owners, until then they will sit on the molds as is their right to do so.
I don't believe that is the case, but I don't really know. The new owners say they hope to have things back in production by the fall, but can't make any guarantees. I guess we'll have to wait and see.
ScottWashburn wrote: I don't believe that is the case, but I don't really know. The new owners say they hope to have things back in production by the fall, but can't make any guarantees. I guess we'll have to wait and see.
well that was the terms set by one of the casters, evidently AD left owing them quite a bit.
ScottWashburn wrote: I don't believe that is the case, but I don't really know. The new owners say they hope to have things back in production by the fall, but can't make any guarantees. I guess we'll have to wait and see.
well that was the terms set by one of the casters, evidently AD left owing them quite a bit.
Except the bankruptcy would clear that up, and they can't go after Ironclad for AD debts.
ScottWashburn wrote: I don't believe that is the case, but I don't really know. The new owners say they hope to have things back in production by the fall, but can't make any guarantees. I guess we'll have to wait and see.
well that was the terms set by one of the casters, evidently AD left owing them quite a bit.
Except the bankruptcy would clear that up, and they can't go after Ironclad for AD debts.
they don't. but they also don't have to relinquish the molds either, if the new company wants them they have to pay for them.
ScottWashburn wrote: I don't believe that is the case, but I don't really know. The new owners say they hope to have things back in production by the fall, but can't make any guarantees. I guess we'll have to wait and see.
well that was the terms set by one of the casters, evidently AD left owing them quite a bit.
Except the bankruptcy would clear that up, and they can't go after Ironclad for AD debts.
they don't. but they also don't have to relinquish the molds either, if the new company wants them they have to pay for them.
I don't know about that. I'm not a legal expert, but if the molds were the property of Robot Peanut Studios, then they would be considered part of the company assets to be disbursed. Now it's possible the molds might have been given to the casting company as part of the settlement, but if not then the new owner of AQ might own them free and clear. I'll be interested to see what the case is.
ScottWashburn wrote: I don't believe that is the case, but I don't really know. The new owners say they hope to have things back in production by the fall, but can't make any guarantees. I guess we'll have to wait and see.
well that was the terms set by one of the casters, evidently AD left owing them quite a bit.
Except the bankruptcy would clear that up, and they can't go after Ironclad for AD debts.
they don't. but they also don't have to relinquish the molds either, if the new company wants them they have to pay for them.
I don't know about that. I'm not a legal expert, but if the molds were the property of Robot Peanut Studios, then they would be considered part of the company assets to be disbursed. Now it's possible the molds might have been given to the casting company as part of the settlement, but if not then the new owner of AQ might own them free and clear. I'll be interested to see what the case is.
or most likely which is the case in one situation the molds were leased by AD and while they are the only ones who could make things from the molds, they did not own the molds outright. for allegedly having so much, this new company seems to be hemming and hawing for some reason.
That's not the impression I get. They seem to be moving forward like gangbusters. And, if the molds are owned by others (I doubt the metal ones are, AD used the kickstart money to make those), as you say, they can't do anything with them. Ironclad Games might be able to make a very favorable deal with them to be able to use them.
ScottWashburn wrote: That's not the impression I get. They seem to be moving forward like gangbusters. And, if the molds are owned by others (I doubt the metal ones are, AD used the kickstart money to make those), as you say, they can't do anything with them. Ironclad Games might be able to make a very favorable deal with them to be able to use them.
actually it is one of the metal molders, AD paid to have the molds created but the actual molds are leased, its common practice with mold manufacturers to do.
Speculation is pointless and not productive. We will see what happens when it does happen, so we can keep the speculation out of this thread. Rumors go into a different section of Dakka. Feel free to start a thread there.
Let's get back to pictures of models, battle reports, and other fun stuff that isn't rumor mongering. Thanks all!
Easy E wrote: Speculation is pointless and not productive. We will see what happens when it does happen, so we can keep the speculation out of this thread. Rumors go into a different section of Dakka. Feel free to start a thread there.
Let's get back to pictures of models, battle reports, and other fun stuff that isn't rumor mongering. Thanks all!
speculation is all we are left with when no one posts battle reports and/or pictures of models.
There has been a lot of speculation, rumors and incorrect information regarding Robot Peanut (All quiet, Alien Dungeon, etc) on this forum. Let me clear a lot of that up. My name is Steven Lucinski and I am the owner of Miniature Market. Several weeks ago we placed a bid and won all assets owned by Robot Peanut (but not their debts - I am sorry to all kickstarter backers who didn't get their stuff). That included all IP's, molds, physical goods and anything else related to their business.
We purchased Robot Peanut specifically for the All Quiet on the Martian Front IP. We have spent the last three days packing up all of the assets and are in the middle of transporting them back to St Louis Missouri. There was over 20 pallets of stuff and part of that was production models, molds and finished sellable goods. Our plan is to get this product back to St Louis, sort it all out and then decide how to proceed from there.
We will be attending Gencon this year and will be setting up a meet and greet for all fans of the game. We will have free stuff to hand out to anyone who attends. We will also have a presence on the show floor at the Game Plus Products booth.
Our first priority is to get all existing products back to market so people can continue to enjoy the game. Based on what we've already seen we hope that won't take long. We have already begun building a new website.
I am including a picture of the Harvester resin mold which we found today. We have several resin molds and have also spoken to three company who own additional metal and plastic molds. They have all agreed to continue working with us so we don't anticipate any production delays once we get everything sorted out.
Please post additional questions and I will reply as soon as possible.
Steve @ Ironclad Games (new owners of the All Quiet IP)
well thats good MM is a decent company so this should go ok, but until it does will do a wait and see and glad you were able to make arrangements with the other companies to do the product, pity won't be at GenCon though.
Great to hear this stuff will be going back into production. I regret not picking up a bunch of the Martian walkers, and will have to dive in when it's back up for sale.
Exciting news that I was hoping would finally come to reality... Although in my heart I feared it never would!
This is fantastic. The game had an incredibly cool and unique IP and it will be wonderful to have such a professional and driven company helm it, especially considering the resources at your disposal and the connections you posses, I have little doubts in this flourishing and making a great impact fitting of the games concept.
We have been in touch with the person who made the PDF rulebook and plan to launch that with the new website.
We hope to have finished product at Gencon. The starter contents were part of what we picked up this week and our goal is to have some put together by the show. We will have rulebooks for sure along with some promos.
After the Martian attacks out of the Great Wood were thwarted at Beaver Creek Ford, the Martians pulled back and regrouped. The strong human presence at Camp Release could not simply be bypassed as the invaders had hoped. Instead, they would need to go through Camp Release.
Early in the morning, a Rough Rider patrol raced back to Camp Release. They anxiously informed Captain Nix that the Red menace was on the move. They had counted several large and a few smaller tripods advancing up the Minnesota River Valley and towards their position. This looked like the moment that the Minnesota Volunteers had waited for with dread. The Martians were coming.
Captain Nix hastily typed up a report and gave it to the Rough Riders. He sent them back to Fort Ridgeley to report on the coming battle and to send reinforcements westward. The riders were tired, but they rushed to their newly fueled machines and raced off.
The sound of Martian war horns was heard in the distance as the Rough Riders drove off. The Volunteers gripped their rifles just a bit tighter, and exchanged nervous looks with each other. Then, the commander of a MkIII shouted and pointed to the distant horizon. The early morning sun flashed reddish off the carapace of an approaching Tripod. Soon, it was joined by more as the Martian advance approached down the valley.
Captain Nix quickly counted up the number of Tripods and offered up a prayer. With a confidence that he didn’t feel, he walked over to his command tank. He climbed up the side and took his position, field glasses in hand.
The battle of Camp Release was about to begin!
Forces
The Red Menace 6 Assault Tripods- 2 Black Dust, 1 Green Gas
3 Scout Tripods- 1 with Targeting Box
1 Grenadier
The Minnesota Volunteers 1 Command Tower
2 Squads of MKII tanks
1 Squad of MKIII Tanks
1 Command Tank
2 Machine Gun Squads
1 Field Gun Battery
3 Squads of Doughboys
1 squad of Rough Riders
Entrenchments
Set-up The Humans were set-up behind the earthworks of Camp Release. The main wall was manned by a squad of MKIII tanks, supported by a squad of machine Gunners in each corner. They were supported to the flanks by a squad of MKII’s on each side and backed up by a squad of infantry.
The command tower was protected by a squad of infantry, and the field guns and last squad manned the rear most dug-outs. The squad of Rough Riders was ready to sally out the north wall.
The Martians lined up to the West. Their southern flank was anchored by the grenadier and a scout. The Assaults, Specialists, and remaining Scouts were scattered across the Western most board edge in a line, ready to advance.
The birds of the Minnesota River Valley were uncharacteristically quiet. A few hawks, joined by crows and ravens lazily circled high overhead. They were preparing for a feast.
The Battle for Camp Release Martian Tripods massed and moved down the Minnesota River Valley. It was inevitable that they ran into the Minnesota Volunteers fortified position at Camp Release. Here the Martians brought the main point of their attack. The Humans were dug in, but would they have the firepower to repel the Martian invaders?
The Mission The Martians are trying to break the Human defenders by turn 6.
The entrenchments are Def +4, Armor +2
Turn 1 Initiative: Martians
The Martians rush forward eager to close the gap and get inside the Human base. They approach with their Heat Rays flashing out. However, the earthworks hold and repulse the long range shots.
A scout on the flank light up a machine gun squad with its targetter. The Grenadier fired on the unit, but the shock canisters hit the earthworks.
However, the Martians continue their advance.
Humans
The Human units shuffle around and return fire. The Rough Riders hug the earthworks as they approach the Northern Scout.
The tanks open fire with an ear-splitting roar, but no Tripods go down! One Assault tripod lost 2 armor and the Scout has his Heat Ray damaged.
The Human Infantry moves to potentially counter-charge any units that breach the earthworks.
Turn 2 Initiative: Humans
The Rough Riders race out to confront the northern most scout. They fire their machine gun as they approach but fail to find a weak point. The tanks open fire and plink more armor off the leading scout, and the Assault tripod in the vanguard.
The southern machine gun squad opens fire at the vanguard Assault machine, and hits something critical with its spray of bullets. The machine goes up in a huge green flash!
Martians
Despite the loss of one of their own, the Tripods pressed onward into the storm of fire. They had no other choice and needed to get past the human earthworks.
An injured Black Dust carrying Martian draws Human blood when he drops a barrage of Black Dust on the Tripod killing Machine-gun squad. The brave humans don’t stand a chance and are all killed by the hideous Martian weapon.
The Northern most Scout turns and Heat Rays the Rough Riders trying to scout behind the Martian lines. He vaporizes a squad, and the rest decide to run route. However, they will have to try to get through the Martian lines!
The Grenadier again fails to find the mark despite the help of a scout with a Targetter.
Things look bad for the humans. The Scout raced back and breaks the Rough Riders. Plus, the vanguard Scout and another Assault have breached the walls of Camp Release!
Turn 3 Initiative: Martians
The Martians continue to press their attack! Things just went from bad to worse for the Human defenders! The Martians move to hem in the Prey-that-Stings by blocking off the exits to the Camp.
Now, the Martian Heat Rays begin to take their toll on the Volunteers. 2 squads of Infantry from separate Platoons are vaporized. The first platoon decides to route. Another Heat Ray destroys a pair of MKII’s at close range causing the thirds crew to bail-out.
The Martians tighten the noose. 1st Platoon scatters as the Black Dust equipped Tripods tours over them.
Humans
Seeing the trap closing, the Infantry charge the heavily damaged Tripod blocking their escape route. The tanks fall back and try to find a way to bust the noose. The Field Commander uses Industrial Might, and a new Unit of MKII’s enter the field and move towards the Camp.
Desperate cannon fire, machine gun fire, and howitzer blasts ring out across Camp Release. The MkIII’s, Command Tank of Capt. Nix, and the Northern Machine Gun squad combine fire and bring the Green Gas equipped Tripod down in a heap. That’s two down!
The infantry assault on the Scout fails to further damage it and is forced to fall back!
Turn 4 Initiative: Martians
The Martian reprisals are terrible to behold! Heat Rays lash out at the trapped Human tanks, and burn s one them into slag. Only a single MKIII remains operational in the Camp. Black Dust Launchers make short work of the Field Guns and Machine-gun teams.
Those humans who survived the onslaught try to stumble back to the command tower. Capt. Nix, his tank slagged is one of them.
With their second move, the aliens seem content to seal of all the Camp exits. The end is nigh for the Minnesota Volunteers.
Humans
The remaining infantry storm the heavily damaged scout once again! Meanwhile, reinforcements in the form of a Machine Gun team arrive on the scene.
The few remaining survivors in the command tower cheer as Machine gun fire from the tower takes down one of the Scout Tripods in the camp! However, it is only a matter of time unless the noose can be broken.
The reinforcing machine gun team opens fire on the damaged tripod, and damages it further, but also kills some of their own men. However, it is a desperate act to potentially save more!
The MkII’s manage to ping the armor on the Black Dust Tripod, but it is still blocking the escape route.
The last desperate infantry assault fails to destroy the damaged scout! It has 2 armor left and can’t move any further.
Turn 5 Initiative: Martians
A Black Dust equipped Tripods moves to support the damaged Scout.
The Grenadier manages to drop shock canisters onto the command tower and destroy it. The Black Dust Launcher tripod drops smoke onto the last infantry Platoon and kills them all.
Humans
The last remaining Machine Gun unit and MKII’s manage to finally take down the vanguard scout by depleting him to 0 armor!
Conclusion With some sense of honor and dignity left, the Minnesota Volunteers call it a game. Everyone who was in Camp Release was killed or scurrying into hiding at this point. The reinforcing Machine Gun squad and MkII’s decide to withdraw before the 5 remaining Tripods begin to focus on them!
With the Fall of Camp Release, the path was clear for a continued Martian advance through the Minnesota River Valley.
Final Thoughts The Tripods had an advantage in points going into this battle. However, I feel pretty confident in saying that they kicked the Minnesota Volunteers backsides! My opponent didn’t just breach the walls, but also used my own walls to box me into a death trap. This was a very clever tactic for a Martian. Let this be a lesson to future Human commanders! Trenches and walls are good, but forts are bad!
We both need to do a better job using Command Tokens, and perhaps the Minnesota Volunteers would have benefited by using Blips in this game. Oh well, maybe next time! So far, the campaign has been pretty even going.
After the Minnesota Volunteers crushing defeat at the Battle of Camp Release, a general withdrawal to Fort Ridgely was ordered. However, the orderly withdrawal down the Minnesota River Valley soon turned into a disordered route as Martian Scouts and Harvesters raced up the valley in search of prey. Reports of Martian sightings as far East as New Ulm sowed panic into the human defenders.
The action at Yellow Medicine (Also known as the Sioux Upper Agency) was typical of the chaos during the Militia’s general retreat.
Set-up
Martians:
3 Scouts
1 Harvester (played by a slaver)
Minnesota Militia:
5 Infantry squads
2 Rough Riders
2 Machine gun squads
1 squad of MKIIs
1 battery of field guns
Minnesota Units are placed randomly using a scatter die and 2d10 for distance from the center of the board. They are all facing Eastward towards the board edge and escape downriver. The Martians are placed in a line on the Westward side of the valley about 6 inches in from the board edge.
Special Rules
Human units are disordered. The Human player must first pass a Rally check to be able to control any units. Otherwise, they will head towards the Eastward board edge at full speed.
Human units score points for each unit that makes it off the board. Martians score points for destroying Human units, and double points for any unit consumed by a Harvester. The side with the most points at the end of the game wins.
Martians begin with the Initiative automatically.
Turn 1 Initiative: Martians
Martians:
The Martians move forward at full speed and catch up to a lagging Rough Rider squad. Their Heat Rays make short work of the unit. All the retreating humans are alerted to the pursuing aliens.
The Scouts tower over the units in the rear, their shadows falling over their prey.
Humans:
3 Infantry Units and both Machine Gun units pull themselves together enough to stop running.
The last Infantry Unit desperately assaults the closest Scout to try and hold them off so others can escape. Others try to take cover and prepare to sell their lives dearly.
A Ragged cheer goes up as the brave infantry squad manages to destroy a Scout using grenades! There is hope yet! Other shooting or attacks are ineffective.
Turn 2 Initiative: Humans
Humans:
Most of the units in the retreat manage to get a grip to mount a fighting withdrawal. 1 Infantry Unit still remains routing. The brave 5 Platoon storms over the wreckage of the downed Scout and try to assault the next Scout.
A barrage from the Field Guns fails to damage the harvester. This time, the attack of 5th Platoon only manages to damage the armor of the Scout. They fall back to the wreckage of their last victim for cover.
Martians:
The Scouts continue to advance, while the harvester moves to deal with the 5th Platoon.
A scout burns two Rough Riders to cinder, but he last one stays in ready to fight! The other one kills a squad of doughboys with a Heat Ray, but fails to scatter the rest. The Harvester burns out two squads from 5th Platoon and the rest scatter in terror. Another unit destroyed!
Turn 3 Initiative: Martians
Bad times for the Humans as the Scouts are rushing the Machine Gun nests that the Humans had managed to dig in and set-up a crossfire with! The Northern scout manages to vaporize and rout the Machine-gunners on his side of the battlefield. However, his brother Scout and Harvester fail to break the opposite bank.
Humans:
The Mark II tanks fire on the undamaged scout, and a lucky hit causes it to explode in a pillar of green fire!
The field guns drop a barrage on the remaining scout and damage its legs. The last machine gun squad fires on the Harvester, but the bullets just ping harmlessly off its armor. The last rough rider squad attacks the Scout, but fails to do anything of note.
The MkII’s and an infantry squad withdraw off the board successfully.
Turn 4 Initiative: Humans
Most of the Minnesota Volunteers manage to flee covered by a single infantry and machine gun unit. Screening fire on the last Scout damages its armor further.
Martians:
The last scout tries to move, but the roll-off is a tie so it stays wobbling in place. Firing fails to hit the machine gunners in the woods.
Turn 5 Initiative: Martians
The Scout again tries to move and lurches forward into Heat Ray range. The Harvester does the same. They both sweep their Heat Rays over the area the Machine Gunners have taken cover. One unit is killed, but the other fire and withdraw off the board in good order.
The last scout is further damaged by the covering fire, and its Heat Ray is damaged.
Conclusion The Martians lost two Scout Tripods of 300 points, and the last scout was seriously damaged! However, the victory conditions were not set around losses to the Martians, but losses for the humans.
The Martians managed to destroy:
1 Infantry Squad
1 Machine Gun Squad
1 Rough Rider squad
For 115 points
They also damaged 1 Rough Rider squad, Machine gun squad, and Infantry squad, but they were not destroyed so do not count.
The humans evacuated:
1 squadron of MKII tanks
1 Battery of Field guns
3 Infantry squads
For 410 points
Looks like a victory for the Minnesota Militia!
After the Martian rebuff at Yellow Medicine, the Minnesota Militia was given enough breathing room to regroup. Martian raids down the valley were halted and straggling units were able to regroup at Fort Ridgeley. Despite the set-back, the Martian threat to the Minnesota River Valley was far from defeated. On the contrary, it was still on the offensive.
The Martian forces in the Minnesota River Valley continue to expand! After the Minnesota amilitias crushing defeat at Camp Release, the horrible Martian infantry known as Lobotons have started appearing in their rank. It is unclear if Lobotons were dead when they were created but now they are zombie like infantry equipped with Martian technology.
Lobotons are controlled by a Martian Slaver Tripod. These wicked Martian machines often have an escort of Drones too. Only time will tell what nefarious weapons the Martians will unleash next!
This is coming to my blog in a few weeks, but I wanted to share the game here first.
"Gary, Carl, Bob and I decided to end the month with a big All Quiet bash, with the usual Martians-attacking-humans-in-trenches game.
The Martians were a collection of Assaults, Scouts, Grenadiers, Slavers and Drones. The U.S. Army featured a wide range of steam tanks, infantry and artillery. Debuting for this game were Gary's defense towers, which acted as an immobile tank platoon.
Winning the initiative, the Martians used their command counters to shove as many Assault tripods up the table as possible. Their heat rays managed to destroy a tower and a single tank.
The humans responded with a roaring salvo. Two tripods went down, and the resulting explosions killed four more!
The destroyed Martian units helped the humans win the initiative. Another two tripods fell to the incoming fire.
Fearing the game would end too quickly, the Martians were allowed a reserves roll. So on came too more Assault tripods and a Scout to spot for the Grenadiers.
The remaining tripods advanced, with one out-of-control machine careening towards the human trenches. Heat rays lanced out and melted several more tanks, along with a second tower.
With the main tank battlegroup out in front of the trenches, the humans opened fire again for a devastating results - to both sides! Three more tripods fell, but the resulting explosions wiped most of the tanks and the remaining defensive tower.
After most of the human's firepower wiped out, the Martians continued their advance, melting most of the surviving tanks.
With so many units destroyed, the Martians won the initiative for the turn. Their long strides took them up to the trenches, but the fortifications allowed most of the infantry to survive.
Defensive fire from the remaining artillery units was unable to do much damage.
A lucky roll let the Martians go first again, and then tripods cleared the trenches, wiping out the unarmored artillery and remaining human command units.
Determined to not go down without a fight, the humans managed to take out two more damaged tripods before sounding the retreat. The Martians managed a victory, but at a steep cost. Out of the 23 tripods that took part in the assault, only 6 remained.
All Quiet continues to prove fun, especially when a Tripod goes nuclear and wipes out nearby units, both friend and foe. Gary's still working on putting together materials for future games, so expect to see some pretty impressive scenarios at some point.
Yeah, I also sold my starter set when I thought the game wasn't coming back. Thinking about picking up the Brits to act as Canadians if the new producer comes out with an army set.
Gary's worked a ton on this, so we've got enough terrain to set up a 6x4 city table, which I'm looking forward to.
I sadly sold my ks stuff to cleanse some bad memories with it all.
Im back in, just picked up Civilians and the cable climbing Forelorn Hope team.
I'm trying to get a starter thru a LGS but im not sure if this is distrubed in stores?
My aspirations are to run a starter demo protecting running civilians at a tournament in California later this year.
Shrapnelsmile wrote: I sadly sold my ks stuff to cleanse some bad memories with it all.
Im back in, just picked up Civilians and the cable climbing Forelorn Hope team.
I'm trying to get a starter thru a LGS but im not sure if this is distrubed in stores?
My aspirations are to run a starter demo protecting running civilians at a tournament in California later this year.
Thanks bud. Yes i can order via mini market I'm a loyal fan of theirs.
Just asked this on their forum -- is starter set still considered balanced for demos?
Automatically Appended Next Post: Thanks bud. Yes i can order via mini market I'm a loyal fan of theirs.
Just asked this on the AQMF website forum -- is starter set still considered balanced for demos?
I will pipe in my opinion. I think this is a scenario game, and the scenario in the starter set is lacking. Pointswise I think it is relatively close, but it depends on if you make the tanks MkII or MkIII and if you give the Tripods special gear.
I have an actual review of the game at my blog in my sig if you want my full thoughts on the game.
great I'll check it out now (wasn't showing up on my phone)
Automatically Appended Next Post:
Easy E wrote: I will pipe in my opinion. I think this is a scenario game, and the scenario in the starter set is lacking. Pointswise I think it is relatively close, but it depends on if you make the tanks MkII or MkIII and if you give the Tripods special gear.
I have an actual review of the game at my blog in my sig if you want my full thoughts on the game.
Great blog, I really enjoyed it.
I vastly prefer narrative games over ultra competitive systems like warmachine now. That's why I love age of sigmar so much.
I'll be picking up more Martian Front soon. Working on getting the guys at Iron clad connected to my LGS's game department manager.
I found MKIII pretty much serve the bill although I put together a couple MKIIIs (infantry support variant) and a unit of upgunned MKIII's (dropped the machine gun and added a 4-inch). One of the big flaws in the game was the point balancing of the steam tanks is not very good. Why would you ever take MKII's over MKIII's or ever take a MKIIb at all?
All Quiet on the Martian Front: Battle Report- Counter-attack at the Yellow Medicine River
After the defeat at Camp Release, the Martians attempted to chase down the fleeing humans. However, they encountered unexpectedly stiff resistance. The delay allowed the Minnesota volunteers to regroup at Fort Ridgeley. High Command at Fort Snelling rushed reinforcements to the area to bolster the defenses.
After the success of the rearguard, the Minnesota Volunteers sent an armored column back up the river to blunt the continued Martian advance and to probe the enemy for potential weakness. A screening force of Rough Riders went ahead of the main force looking for trouble. Behind this screen came steaming the armored column.
Little did the humans know, but a Martian advanced guard had been put in place to act as a trip wire for the rest of the cell. These machines were dug into the woodlands, fields, and bluffs of the region. There they waited for the expected human counter-attack.
Reserves-
1 MkII Command Tank-
3 MK II Tanks- 240
3 MK II Tanks- 240
3 MKIII Tanks- 280
1 Field Gun Battery- 80
Mission The Martians are in hiding using Blip markers scattered around the board. 1 Blip marker per unit, so it is clear Tripods are about, but unclear where they are. Blips are revealed when you come within 6 inches of them, they move, or they shoot.
The Minnesota Volunteers will have initiative to start the battle. The bulk of the Minnesota forces are in reserve. They will begin to arrive in Turn 2 on a d6 roll of 5+ with each subsequent turn reducing it 1 until they auto arrive at 1+.
The treeline is soft cover for all units for Def +1.
The Martians are trying to destroy the human attackers while the Humans are trying to drive the Martians away and press on up river.
Set-up The board is fields to the south, with the dense Great Woods on the North side. The River is assumed to be just off board to the south. A few scattered bluffs block off the fields and woods.
On the Easy side, two squads of Rough Rider scouts are deployed 6 inches in from a short board edge. The Minnesota Volunteers will arrive on this edge. Martian blips are along the tree line and behind a few bluffs.
Or it could be that starting any business is really, really hard to do!
