Not seen these posted yet. Looks like we've got some new stuff coming up for Frostgrave's 2nd edition launch. First off, some sort of Resin and/or MDF terrain offering from Kromlech.
Second is the first expansion for 2nd edition called the Red King. Synopsis:
Fires rage throughout the Frozen City as an inhuman army pours out of the cracks between realities. In the distant past, a cabal of city elders sought to save their lives by making a pact with a demon prince. and now the Red King has come to collect what he is owed, claiming Frostgrave as his own. Many have already fled before the Red King's demonic hordes, while others seek to weather the storm, turning their bases into make makeshift fortresses. The wizards of Frostgrave must choose - do they stand and fight, or do they abandon this great repository of mystical knowledge to the ravages of unearthly fire?
The Red King is the first supplement designed for Frostgrave: Second Edition. In this sprawling, epic campaign, wizards will be pushed to their limits, fighting not only against one another and the perils of the Frozen City, but also against an invading army. As the Red King's power grows, the laws of magic and nature will start to bend. Can the wizards put aside their differences long enough to oppose this common foe, or will greed and mistrust doom them all?
I hope Official doesn’t mean you have to use these. I just bought a 3D printer and have been going to town printing buildings and objectives for Frostgrave.
Gargoyles look terrible. There really is only so much you can do with laser cut MDF.
Theophony wrote: I hope Official doesn’t mean you have to use these. I just bought a 3D printer and have been going to town printing buildings and objectives for Frostgrave.
Osprey is not Greed Workshop. Also, how could Osprey enforce "Official" miniatures and terrain only? They don't have dedicated stores or host tournaments. So use what you like.
Yes, Frostgrave is famous as a game that lets you use any miniature you want, not the just the official one. I'm not sure why exactly this reputation is so strong. But it wouldn't be coherent to say "You can use any miniature you want, but don't even think of using unofficial terrain".
Exactly, the first edition rulebook even contained a bunch of pictures featuring miniatures from other companies (slightly converted Fireforge and Wargames Factory/Warlord Games figures from memory).
This is just a tie-in product that enables players to pick up some suitable terrain easily, while the Frostgrave branding will raise the visibility. And, by the looks of it, some of the terrain will be made with certain scenarios in mind (Silent Tower and the likes).
Anyway, looks pretty good, and wargame-friendly (pieces of various sizes, with higher and lower walls, elevations, all the things that help make skirmish games interesting). I like the style. Looks like the winter bits are all added too (the snow is three-dimensional, as are the icicles obviously), so should be good for warmer settings too.
Easy E wrote: It looks like it is "official" in that the terrain is based on actual Frostgrave scenarios.
While Lord Blackfang is correct in the business/legal sense, Easy E has the point much of the terrain is designed around specific scenarios from Frostgrave, such as The Silent Tower or the Living Museum. That makes playing said scenarios easier for newcomers to Frostgrave. I'm sure many of us improvised using whatever we had in our existing terrain collections.
Not surprising that the cheapest soldiers can now be hired for free after seeing that same system introduced in Ghost Archipelago, and it's a good one I think (haven't actually played it) - losing a few guys really sets you back, even more so as dragging treasure off the table also results in the loss of that figure for the rest of the game.
Limiting the specialists I'm not sure about; probably good for game balance, but as there is no soldier progression, it seems odd for a late-campaign warband to still be a few guys with good gear and a bunch of lowly thugs, rather than the better skilled and equipped bodyguard you would want for your wizard. Accumulation of gold will have to be slowed down too, unless there are other interesting things to spend your money on (and just buying piles of magic items doesn't feel right, after all the trouble you go through to find them).
Coenus Scaldingus wrote: Not surprising that the cheapest soldiers can now be hired for free after seeing that same system introduced in Ghost Archipelago, and it's a good one I think (haven't actually played it) - losing a few guys really sets you back, even more so as dragging treasure off the table also results in the loss of that figure for the rest of the game.
Limiting the specialists I'm not sure about; probably good for game balance, but as there is no soldier progression, it seems odd for a late-campaign warband to still be a few guys with good gear and a bunch of lowly thugs, rather than the better skilled and equipped bodyguard you would want for your wizard. Accumulation of gold will have to be slowed down too, unless there are other interesting things to spend your money on (and just buying piles of magic items doesn't feel right, after all the trouble you go through to find them).
Yeah, agreed. This seems to favour better game balance for one-off games or short campaigns, but in the long run I'm not sure what you are supposed to do with all the gold you acquire. With GA, I guess there was the "sailing home" tax so perhaps we will see something similar. Also, I'm not going to lie, I'm sad about the changes to Treasure Hunters. None of the other soldier types really stood out as being cool choices and now I guess the poor Treasure Hunter has joined them in my ambivalence
So the gist of the specialist box is its guys in heavier armor. Fair enough. Combined with all the other northstar kits out there that should allow for plenty of unique looking guys.
Really curious what kinds of parts will be included to designate these guy as specialists over the regular frostgrave soldiers.
I know better quality soldiers like knights, archers, and treasure hunters are all considered specialists now.
I'm wondering if we'll see more esoteric parts on the sprue to make things like an apothecary, mystic, bard, or demon hunter.
We've got a lot of the basic gear already covered well enough on the regular soldier sprue, so I hope this one has a lot of flashy gear (possibly to help bling out wizards while we're at it)!
I’d love to get some of the figs, but Miniaturemarket is always out of stock. I don’t want to have to pay to have them shipped from England if they could just supply enough through their distribution channels.
Theophony wrote: I’d love to get some of the figs, but Miniaturemarket is always out of stock. I don’t want to have to pay to have them shipped from England if they could just supply enough through their distribution channels.
MM isn't the best place to get them (they don't even carry the two newish wizard boxes). I've been ordering them off Amazon on the occasions that they have prime shipping - but they always come in crushed boxes because they package them in bubble envelopes, for some reason.
From what I understand, Brigade Games is the (main? official?) US distributor of North Star stuff. They don't just carry the plastics, but the metal minis as well, for the whole line. I ordered some Oathmark stuff last week and it shipped pretty quickly (should be arriving today). Unless something goes wrong, I don't have any complaints with the service and will probably make another order next month. North Star has some newer Oathmark stuff (like the light elf infantry and additional metal champions), so I'm hoping Brigade will get the newer stuff in by then.
I usually order through my FLGS to support them, and they seem to have problems getting or keeping Frostgrave in stock. Guess I better put in a special order soon..
More Frostgrave second edition info. This time a bit about scenarios in the new edition, a d a new kit for the better soldiers..
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It’s July and that means that Frostgrave: Second Edition comes out next month! Under normal circumstances, I would have a copy of the book by now, as advances would have been air-freighted to the Osprey office. However, at the moment, there is no one at home at the Osprey office, and no central location where such advances can be sent, so I have to wait for the ship to arrive and the books to get into the warehouse. I’ll keep you updated.
Another bit of news, I know a lot of people have asked about a Nickstarter. Unfortunately, there will not be a Nickstarter this time around. Believe me, North Star would love to do one, but with their reduced staff and the reduced reliability at every step in the supply chain, it just isn’t feasible at the moment. On the other hand, the plan is to have a new plastic box set available at the same time as book – Specialist Soldiers! This will look a bit like the original Soldiers box set, except it features soldiers in heavier armour. I’ve seen the previews, it’s gonna be good!
So, back to the book. When I first started work on Frostgrave 2, my plan was to create ten new scenarios to replace the ones in the original. However, as I was working on it, I started to see how good those original scenarios were for introducing the game to new players. Some of them have been played so many times, they have become classics. So instead, I decided I would update them slightly for the new edition, but otherwise leave all ten in there. However, that didn’t feel quite right either, as I didn’t feel like I was providing enough for players who have already supported the game. So, in the end, I wrote ten new scenarios as well.
Since those first ten scenarios are mainly there to introduce the game, I felt freer to make the new ten more complex and to really show off some of the weird, wonderful, and wild things you can do with the game. So, now your wizards and their warbands can test their mettle in: The Orb, The Summoning Bell, The Right Hand the Left Hand, The Ice Storm, The Treasure Phantasmal, The Mine Cart, The Lock Box, The Steam Vents, The Swirling Mist, and The Mine Field…
Hopefully these will provide hours of gaming fun for new players and veterans alike!
joe5mc at 03:39
I'm wondering if Ghost Archipelago is done. With Frostgrave 2e, Oathmark, and Rangers of the Shadow Deep, it doesn't really feel like it has as much of a place anymore (especially now that most of its improvements have been rolled into FG). Plus, they didn't even bother doing plastic kits for the last GA book.
highlord tamburlaine wrote: So the gist of the specialist box is its guys in heavier armor. Fair enough. Combined with all the other northstar kits out there that should allow for plenty of unique looking guys.
Really curious what kinds of parts will be included to designate these guy as specialists over the regular frostgrave soldiers.
I know better quality soldiers like knights, archers, and treasure hunters are all considered specialists now.
I'm wondering if we'll see more esoteric parts on the sprue to make things like an apothecary, mystic, bard, or demon hunter.
We've got a lot of the basic gear already covered well enough on the regular soldier sprue, so I hope this one has a lot of flashy gear (possibly to help bling out wizards while we're at it)!
I guess there will be some/mainly repetition in gear simply to have arms with the various weapons with some armour showing too. Which should still work fine for arm swaps (possibly covering the armour or adding some to the unarmoured ones), and gives some variation (so not every guy with a two-handed sword has that same two-handed sword). Although specified as "specialists", I'm not sure if they'll cover all specialists, or really just armoured ones. Probably no parts specifically for specialists from expansions, though with some kitbashing the equipment combinations should typically be manageable. Same with for example the apothecary; mixing wizard and soldier sprues should create something perfect for that.
After playing the game with all kinds of other figures for years (for basic troopers at least, I did get the gnolls and barbarians), I finally bought one of the two soldiers and wizards boxes recently. Guess I'll wait a little bit longer before assembling them to get even more bits to play around with!
Mostly wondering if this kit will have a mixture of male and female figures (possibly using the same bodies as the armour adds plenty of bulk anyway), or whether there will be two sets (like the basic soldiers and wizards got)...
Sqorgar wrote: I'm wondering if Ghost Archipelago is done. With Frostgrave 2e, Oathmark, and Rangers of the Shadow Deep, it doesn't really feel like it has as much of a place anymore (especially now that most of its improvements have been rolled into FG). Plus, they didn't even bother doing plastic kits for the last GA book.
Yea not releasing plastic Dricheans should be considered a crime.
I order a FG/GA box to fill out free shipping minimums when I buy stuff and I'm now just a box of Soldiers II away from having everything. And I got 2 of Tribals by mistake.
The one on the left looks like Thulsa Doom's helmet at the beginning of the movie.
I'd imagine there'll be a fair amount of variety on the sprue. At least we'll have all the existing options as well. Hopefully a few fully helmets for knights and captains.
highlord tamburlaine wrote: The one on the left looks like Thulsa Doom's helmet at the beginning of the movie.
I'd imagine there'll be a fair amount of variety on the sprue. At least we'll have all the existing options as well. Hopefully a few fully helmets for knights and captains.
Fully enclosed helmets is an option I am really waiting for. Hopefully they will show a full sprue very soon.
While I do like the "specialists", they seem very different to the soldiers set, but I have a mix of soldiers 1 & 2 & barbarians in my warband, so they will fit in with my rag-tag look.
Rather like what I'm seeing there; quite the mixture of armour styles without clearly being from some specific historical period - and yet, realistic looking.
Not a fan of the leftmost head, but easy enough to snip the bits off, or use one of the alternative heads - the little sprues tend to have 10, plus of course kitbashing potential with any of the other sets. Glad to see all the weapon options too rather than just those of the heavily armoured specialists, which they've explained online by saying the kit simply builds captains too.
Sqorgar wrote: I want to know what the crossbow guy did to anger the other three...
He bought a brand of salsa made in NEW YORK CITY!!!, instead of Pace.
(Old Pace Salsa commercial. Mid 90's perhaps. In there the punchline was "String him up, boys." when the cowboys discovered the salsa was from NEW YORK CITY!!!)
As with some previous posters, I'm fine with the bodies, but not so much the heads. As it is I really don't need the Specialist box as I've the ones I was using all along. If other previews make me change my mind, I might get them.
Frostgrave/Northstar have made such a great range of compatible kits that I’m really excited for more, even though their scale is so different from the rest of my fantasy and SF minis.
Did they say they were plastic? Frostgrave has a bunch of non-modular metal figures associated with it, but if these are plastic, I will be in for two. Demons, cultists, and the upcoming Oathmark undead will make for a sweet warband.
Did they say they were plastic? Frostgrave has a bunch of non-modular metal figures associated with it, but if these are plastic, I will be in for two. Demons, cultists, and the upcoming Oathmark undead will make for a sweet warband.
Aye, these are confirmed as an upcoming plastic kit.
Frostgrave models are quickly becoming my favorite miniatures (the Wizards sprue might be my single favorite sprue - it's like LEGOs, but you make wizards!). They aren't the highest quality there is, but they are good enough, cheap enough, and customizable enough to overcome it. I mean, there's something to be said for decent models that aren't top heavy and don't overhang the bases with weird overly extravagant leaping poses with swirling ribbons and dozens of tiny stress points just begging to be snapped off sold at $15-$20 per model (or more). Making the figures modular was a stroke of genius, along with giving you plenty of extra parts so that you can actually exploit it. GW is like, you can take bits from this $100 model and combine it with bits from this set of $80 models, combine it with lots of greenstuff, and you can make this single model that looks slightly different than the one pose that comes in the box. Frostgrave is like, you like bat wings? We give you four. Why not put bat wings on you wizard?
Frostgrave minis are some of my young kids favorites because they like kitting out stuff.
But the first time they saw them they were like "Dad, can we assemble some of these dwarves?" Because of their dumpy proportions.
I like to imagine there is an alternate universe where they decided from the beginning to not put frostgrave minis on plastic surfboards and made the bodies all about 3-5mm taller.
After a little time working with better proportioned miniatures, the Frostgrave miniatures just no longer read as human to my eye.
Frostgrave models are quickly becoming my favorite miniatures (the Wizards sprue might be my single favorite sprue - it's like LEGOs, but you make wizards!). They aren't the highest quality there is, but they are good enough, cheap enough, and customizable enough to overcome it. I mean, there's something to be said for decent models that aren't top heavy and don't overhang the bases with weird overly extravagant leaping poses with swirling ribbons and dozens of tiny stress points just begging to be snapped off sold at $15-$20 per model (or more). Making the figures modular was a stroke of genius, along with giving you plenty of extra parts so that you can actually exploit it. GW is like, you can take bits from this $100 model and combine it with bits from this set of $80 models, combine it with lots of greenstuff, and you can make this single model that looks slightly different than the one pose that comes in the box. Frostgrave is like, you like bat wings? We give you four. Why not put bat wings on you wizard?
OMG this. I've been a GW fanboy for 31 years and the everyone leaping or standing on a tactical rock thing is getting silly. Another game that does this is malifaux after they changed from metal to plastic. I love Malifaux the game, but I just hate the dynamic posing.
I will be sticking with Frostgrave for my soldiers and probably Reaper miniatures for any monsters I want from now on.
Frostgrave models are quickly becoming my favorite miniatures (the Wizards sprue might be my single favorite sprue - it's like LEGOs, but you make wizards!). They aren't the highest quality there is, but they are good enough, cheap enough, and customizable enough to overcome it. I mean, there's something to be said for decent models that aren't top heavy and don't overhang the bases with weird overly extravagant leaping poses with swirling ribbons and dozens of tiny stress points just begging to be snapped off sold at $15-$20 per model (or more). Making the figures modular was a stroke of genius, along with giving you plenty of extra parts so that you can actually exploit it. GW is like, you can take bits from this $100 model and combine it with bits from this set of $80 models, combine it with lots of greenstuff, and you can make this single model that looks slightly different than the one pose that comes in the box. Frostgrave is like, you like bat wings? We give you four. Why not put bat wings on you wizard?
My feelings as well. Get yourself some oathmark bits as well and they combine up nicely. The dwarf heads and masked light elves are excellent for this. As you say, there’s something to be said for simpler models. I can knock out and paint Northstar plastic models and have fun doing it in the fraction of the time it takes me to sort GW models.
My feelings as well. Get yourself some oathmark bits as well and they combine up nicely. The dwarf heads and masked light elves are excellent for this.
I got some Goblins, Wolf Riders, and the human box - but haven’t put them together yet because I haven’t finished the rule book and don’t know yet how to kit them out (I’ll probably reserve a sprue for Frostgrave too). But I want the Elf light infantry because they look perfect for Rangers of the Shadow Deep.
I'm surprised there isn't a "all the new stuff" bundle that consists of the knights box, the book and the thaumaturge 2 model. But hey, it's not like I can't order these things separately.
Ah, they went for a sprue lay-out like that of the wizards - was not expecting that.
Larger sprue than the other soldier types, but still with 5 bodies on a sprue, and two of those sprues in a box (instead of 4 smaller ones). But as the wizard kit, obvioulsy more bits per sprue, with more than 20 different heads from the looks of it. Pricetag is the same as a box of wizards (which makes 8 figures). Overall... probably quite good? Some nice looking weapons on there.
Probably works especially well in the new edition, where you won't end up with a full gang of Marksmen, Knights and Templars anymore. (And some of the rarer "specialists" won't necessarily be from the armoured set anyway - Apothecaries, Barbarians, Rangers, and the likes.)
FGVII-1 - Frostgrave Warband
Looking to play Frostgrave?
This is the perfect starter Warband for the new Frostgrave player, or for those players who want to field a 100% plastic Warband.
The Frostgrave Warband contains one plastic frame of Wizards, one plastic frame of Soldiers and one plastic frame of Knights. You can make 4 Wizards, 5 Soldiers and 5 Knights from these frames.
All figures are 28mm sized and supplied unpainted and unassembled. You will need glue to assemble the figures.
Options.
The default Frostgrave Warband has the Male Wizards, Soldiers and Knights (We only have male Knights BTW). If you would prefer your Wizards to be women, and/ or your Soldiers to be women, just let us know by writing in the notes or emailing us and we'll swop them round for you. You can also exchange your Soldier frame for a frame of Frostgrave Cultists or Barbarians if you wish, just let us know.
The Frostgrave Warband will be sent out on the 20th of August 2020. It will not be avaiable after that date.
That warband bundle would be a great way to get started with the new edition if you're just coming into the game. I recommend it to anyone in that situation checking this thread out and considering jumping in.
It's how I'd start a new warband if I weren't typing this while seated upon a throne made from backlogged Frostgrave and Oathmark box sets!
The model for the female elementalist isn't bad( the one featured on the front cover of the 1st ed rule book ), but wouldn't mind a more dynamic alternative. Any ideas?
SamusDrake wrote: The model for the female elementalist isn't bad( the one featured on the front cover of the 1st ed rule book ), but wouldn't mind a more dynamic alternative. Any ideas?
hfminis.co.uk has a few good female wizards in frost gear. Worth a look
Strange choice to not include any closed or visored helmets on the Knights sprue, I can't say I'm a fan of the heads selection. Looks like they mostly included heads that would look better on an infantry man. Not that there are a shortage of Knight miniatures out in the wild.
Looking forward to 2nd edition and to finding out what's new.
What an awesome range of minis so far. I really am excited to see this game grow as well as it did and hope that the Ranger game punches as hard and as fast...
Wonderful game, and great to see minis come down a little in scale to old school sizes.
Liking the look of their armour; somewhat evil and pointy but not stupidly so. Chainmail that looks like alternating rows of "c"s instead of a bunch of holes is a bonus too. Pretty cool kit overall.
Are these for the forthcoming Frostgrave: The Red King expansion? If so, those might be helmet visors, not old school demon faces. And yes, this box and the book are likely must-buys.
A new supplement for Frostgrave with expanded rules for vampires and giants, a new soldier type in the huge giant-blooded and guidelines and scenarios for playing Frostgrave with high-level wizards.
In the days of ancient Felstad, vampires kept to the shadows, their small numbers no match for the power of the city's wizards. But when the cataclysm struck the wizards were destroyed, while the deathless vampires went into a frozen hibernation. Now, as the city thaws, so to do its undead inhabitants. The masters of the night are rising again: reoccupying their hidden strongholds, reforming their old cabals and finding new victims to serve as their thralls. The destruction of the old city has brought one other boon to the vampires--giant's blood. While giants used to live out of reach to the far north, in the intervening millennium, they have descended on the city in large numbers. Their blood is like an elixir to the vampires, filling them with strength and magical power. A new war is forming between these two ancient races, and once again, the wizards of Frostgrave are caught in the middle.
This supplement for Frostgrave: Fantasy Wargames in the Frozen City presents greatly expanded information about the vampires and the giants that occupy the frozen ruins, including rules for vampiric magic and a breakdown of the different tribes of giants. Also included are rules for a new type of soldier, the giant-blooded. These huge men and women have the blood of giants running through their veins, granting them great strength unseen in normal men. Finally, the book contains a section on playing Frostgrave with high-level wizards and includes two mini-campaigns to challenge these experienced spellcasters.
Keep asking for these things. You asked for the Were-Goldfish and Got IT! Why not a Plastic Vampire Giant who only takes blood from Werewolves and has been turned into one himself?
I think the minis would look better with the ruddy brown skin and blue gray armor of the box art. They would also look better in a bigger scale, but that ship has sailed.
Those two horn-eyes guys’ poses are begging me to place them behind an 80’s keyboard synthesizer. They can DJ New Order’s Halloween dancetronica party.
That Red King is my favorite metal miniature in their whole line. That guy’s got a great presence, a clean sculpt and fantastic design. I really wish he were available in resin.
Kernigguts have been out for a while. They're nice, they don't mix and match very well with the other plastic kits in the range though as a warning - the proportions are a bit different - but they're great for making specialists that stand out a bit more from your other soldiers.
To qoute Northstar: ''Frostgrave Demons.
If you bought the Frostgrave plastic Demons, this might be of interest to you.
It was impossible to add wings to the plastic frame, and as only one type of Hrut is winged we decided to drop them in favour of more arm and weapon options.
But come the new year, we're planning to give you some 'wing options'. We're going to make them in metal and resin so they'll be available to buy. We're also going to make the digital design available for you 3D printer types to download for free, and print your own off.
We'll get on with this mid-Jan.''
I'm cool with that. Probably printing them at home is easiest.
Reminds me of how I would often have my dad make wings out of cardstock for various dragon- like action figures as it drove me nuts none of them had wings.
The Dragonriders of the Styx immediately spring to mind being one such project. I guess we got started kitbashing pretty early on!
I love that they are giving the 3d file away for this. I wonder if they did more free 3d accessories if that would sell additional kits.
I mean, alternatively one could argue that 3d printer folk would just design figures to print and use the accessories with, but I love that they're trying this.
I think if people have the skill to design figures they can design accessories like this too, I wouldn't worry about that. It's a really nice gesture imo
Oh for sure. The more plastic frostgrave parts available, the better, imo. Particularly when the warband sets have 20 figures in and you only need 10 for a warband - give us conversion parts!
Billicus wrote: Oh for sure. The more plastic frostgrave parts available, the better, imo. Particularly when the warband sets have 20 figures in and you only need 10 for a warband - give us conversion parts!
While I guess this discussion is focused on getting more demon bits for converting the new demon kit, for those who don't know, Northstar has three metal conversion sets: Robin Hood/Forest outlaws, Cultist Sci-fi, and the PIRATE parts for Ghost Archipelago. [Now that the taboo is lifted, shout it! PIRATES! Arrr!]
Currently I'm resisting the temptation to get the Ghost Archipelago crewmen to convert them into Deep One hybrids. However, I really need to play a basic campaign of Five Leagues from the Borderlands, before I start throwing in more supplements for flavor. But snakemen and Deep Ones would be so cool ...
bbb wrote: I love that they are giving the 3d file away for this. I wonder if they did more free 3d accessories if that would sell additional kits.
This one definitely sold a demon box to me. I wasn't planning on picking one up (my still-in-box Frostgrave collection is getting...obscene) but now I'll probably toss one into my cart during the planned late-holiday sale thing this weekend.
Ancestral Hamster wrote: Currently I'm resisting the temptation to get the Ghost Archipelago crewmen to convert them into Deep One hybrids.
Guh. I... uh... YOU KEEP YOUR INCREDIBLY GOOD, TEMPTING IDEAS TO YOURSELF, SIR!
Joe McCullough's announced today that he's leaving Osprey as a salaried employee, but will continue to work on Frostgrave, Oathmark, Stargrave still going ahead, etc.
Good luck to him. He's definitely had quite an impact on gaming these last 10 years with the success of Frostgrave amongst other things. Looking forward to what he does next and I hope we get to see more work on Rangers as well...
Billicus wrote: Joe McCullough's announced today that he's leaving Osprey as a salaried employee, but will continue to work on Frostgrave, Oathmark, Stargrave still going ahead, etc.
Interesting stuff, particularly as he cites wanting more creative freedom and control - excited to see what else might come in future
Interesting.
Rangers of Shadow Deep was already self-published (and the rulebook later picked up by Mophidius) instead of Osprey. Maybe he wants to push this (or similar projects) forward, be it alone or with his buddies from Blaster Magazine?
Hanskrampf wrote: Maybe he wants to push this (or similar projects) forward, be it alone or with his buddies from Blaster Magazine?
Hope so. For me, Joe has a way of weaving a ton of atmosphere into his works with very little backstory or lore. Can't tell what it is that he does, but it's thick in Frostgave and Rangers.
Hanskrampf wrote: Maybe he wants to push this (or similar projects) forward, be it alone or with his buddies from Blaster Magazine?
Hope so. For me, Joe has a way of weaving a ton of atmosphere into his works with very little backstory or lore. Can't tell what it is that he does, but it's thick in Frostgave and Rangers.
I agree. Love the blue boxes scattered through the Frostgrave books, these are doing more for my imagination than 2 full pages of AoS/40k lore. Maybe because it's just the idea of a setting, like a writing prompt, instead of following a larger narrative.
Yeah, you're encouraged to make Frostgrave your own, and that's one of the most compelling things about it. It's not like a GW game where they literally remove models and profiles and retcon things as if to say "If you liked this character or faction, you were wrong and now they're gone"
Hanskrampf wrote: I agree. Love the blue boxes scattered through the Frostgrave books, these are doing more for my imagination than 2 full pages of AoS/40k lore. Maybe because it's just the idea of a setting, like a writing prompt, instead of following a larger narrative.
It's the power of suggestion. A little detail to spark the reader's imagination can be more effective than a full explanation. If something is explained like, "[X] is this, and here's what it means", the reader files that away, and stops thinking about it. The matter is settled. If things are left unclear, the reader's mind will linger on the subject for a bit, and speculate. The reader is engaged with the subject matter. Also, each individual will have their own take on the subject matter which will reflect their interests. For example, if filming a horror movie such as The Thing, it is more effective to never reveal the monster, as each viewer's imagination will fill it in with whatever is most frightening to them. If you show the monster, then it comes down to the quality of special effects, and if you've hit on someone's personal fear (such as spiders). Since Joe Mc uses the suggestion method, it builds more atmosphere than GW's direct statements.
Billicus wrote: Oh for sure. The more plastic frostgrave parts available, the better, imo. Particularly when the warband sets have 20 figures in and you only need 10 for a warband - give us conversion parts!
While I guess this discussion is focused on getting more demon bits for converting the new demon kit, for those who don't know, Northstar has three metal conversion sets: Robin Hood/Forest outlaws, Cultist Sci-fi, and the PIRATE parts for Ghost Archipelago. [Now that the taboo is lifted, shout it! [color=orange]PIRATES![/color.
I doubt it would be a deal breaker for people here but the cultist sci fi sets I have ordered recently have come as resin parts not metal.
I like the sets and have been using them with 40kIG bits to make Blood Pact/ Renegade Guard.
alphaecho wrote: I doubt it would be a deal breaker for people here but the cultist sci fi sets I have ordered recently have come as resin parts not metal.
I like the sets and have been using them with 40kIG bits to make Blood Pact/ Renegade Guard.
Did not know that: mine have not arrived yet. And its not a deal-breaker for me. At least resin and superglue bond well. With Stargrave on the way, I want to experiment with some of the Ghost Archipelago kits. If possible, using the cultist guns on the snakemen, although it looks like the snakemen arms are scaled, and the cultist arms are clothed.
Edit: It's my bad. Since I bought the Forest Outlaws set which is metal, I assumed the other kits were metal. Having actually read the product description now, they are listed as resin, which is the better option.
I can imagine it coming round to his dreaded turn, him rolling a D20 only to watch it steamroll its way across the board, flattening scenery and crushing models.
I can imagine it coming round to his dreaded turn, him rolling a D20 only to watch it steamroll its way across the board, flattening scenery and crushing models.
And if I'm hosting, he's NOT rolling it near my figures! He can roll it on the kitchen floor.
About the Joe tribute figure. I thought he was younger than that, or perhaps the sculpt or paint job isn't flattering. (Though I'm sure sculptor and painter did the best they could.)
Also has TNT guy, Gaslands guy, Relic Blade guy and Ash (uh, Gamma Wolves guy I guess)
Thanks, lord blackfang. The forehead creases painted on the tribute figure make it look old. Since Joe is wearing a cap, one cannot see his forehead for comparison.
I can imagine it coming round to his dreaded turn, him rolling a D20 only to watch it steamroll its way across the board, flattening scenery and crushing models.
And if I'm hosting, he's NOT rolling it near my figures! He can roll it on the kitchen floor.
About the Joe tribute figure. I thought he was younger than that, or perhaps the sculpt or paint job isn't flattering. (Though I'm sure sculptor and painter did the best they could.)
Joe is 44 (from a blog post a couple of weeks ago).
Well, as I scrolled to the picture my first thought was "wait, they made Joe?", so the likeness must be pretty decent, as I'm not too familiar with the guy and am terrible remembering faces anyway.
I love the multi-part plastic kits from Northstar, all of them. Brilliant sprues to add to the kitbashing parts library. Great news to hear we may get the female knights sprues as well.
This thread brought the Pirates conversion parts set to my attention, thanks for that!
In the days of ancient Felstad, vampires kept to the shadows, their small numbers no match for the power of the city's wizards. But when the cataclysm struck, the wizards were destroyed, while the deathless vampires went into a frozen hibernation. Now, as the city thaws, so to do its undead inhabitants. The masters of the night are rising again: reoccupying their hidden strongholds, reforming their old cabals, and finding new victims to serve as their thralls. The destruction of the old city has brought one other boon to the vampires - giant's blood. While giants used to live out of reach to the far north, in the intervening millennium, they have descended on the city in large numbers. Their blood is like an elixir to the vampires, filling them with strength and magical power. A new war is forming between these two ancient races, and once again, the wizards of Frostgrave are caught in the middle.
This supplement for Frostgrave: Fantasy Wargames in the Frozen City presents greatly expanded information about the vampires and the giants that occupy the frozen ruins, including rules for vampiric magic and a breakdown of the different tribes of giants. Also included are rules for a new type of soldier, the giant-blooded. These huge men and women have the blood of giants running through their veins, granting them great strength unseen in normal men. Finally, the book contains a section on playing Frostgrave with high-level wizards and includes two mini-campaigns to challenge these experienced spellcasters.
From Joe's blog: "The last thing I did before I shut it down for the summer was to submit the manuscript for the book after that – Fireheart. This supplement is devoted to building weird constructs and playing with really strange and deadly terrain on the table.''.
lord_blackfang wrote: There's been some scuttlebutt on FB that we're getting plastic half-giants (and not, as many might expect, vampires)
I would prefer vampires as half giants can be easly made from other ranges like for example Conquest: The Last Argument of Kings.
Same here. Vampires are a bit specialized; I prefer to use them as a big bad rather than mooks. Still, I'd prefer them to the half-giants. Besides, what is a half-giant, and who was the mother? Hopefully the mother was the giant, or carrying the child to term is going to be a BIG problem, never mind birthing it!
From FB: ''Frostgrave: Blood Legacy.
We will start taking pre-orders for the new supplement next weekend.
There will be a Blood Legacy figure release, but it'll come out after the book release, we're still working on the Vampires and Giant Bloods. Pictures soon.''
Fortunately, the human in the picture will be able to continue adventuring. A few inches lower and that arrow could have gone through the knee, ending their future career.
From FB about Blood Legacy expansion:
''
Is there a figure release? There is!
It's not quite ready for the book release, but it's coming soon and includes:
2 Giant Bloods
4 Vampires
2 Leech Wolves
1 Vampire Hunter
and more!''
Same for me. I was really hoping for some vampires etc. box. Looks like they will be metal only. Unless there is some susrpise then it is a wasted release for me. BTW I wonder if the next plastic box (whatever it will be) will get rid of those stupid integral bases, like they did with Stargrave minis?
i have a feeling they're there to cater for the d&d/RPG crowd who just want to plonk down a mini without having to do much to it, but since they're multipart plastic rather than single piece they're still having to build them so it kind of makes the built in base irrelevant
Mrs. GG and I ordered a copy of Blood Legacy. My first impression from leafing through… I really like it. There is a nice trade off to keep becoming a Vampire too tempting and the bits for higher level Wizards is nice for long term characters.
Grumpy Gnome wrote: Mrs. GG and I ordered a copy of Blood Legacy. My first impression from leafing through… I really like it. There is a nice trade off to keep becoming a Vampire too tempting and the bits for higher level Wizards is nice for long term characters.
Grumpy Gnome wrote: Mrs. GG and I ordered a copy of Blood Legacy. My first impression from leafing through… I really like it. There is a nice trade off to keep becoming a Vampire too tempting and the bits for higher level Wizards is nice for long term characters.
What enemies are there in the bestiary section?
You can see the bestiary list on the Drive Thru RPG site. Click on the Full Preview link right under the cover image.
Grumpy Gnome wrote: Mrs. GG and I ordered a copy of Blood Legacy. My first impression from leafing through… I really like it. There is a nice trade off to keep becoming a Vampire too tempting and the bits for higher level Wizards is nice for long term characters.
What enemies are there in the bestiary section?
You can see the bestiary list on the Drive Thru RPG site. Click on the Full Preview link right under the cover image.
From what I understand, the next plastic kit for Frostgrave should be female barbarians. Has there been any sort of time frame for those mentioned yet?
The next book is what, July? I suppose we'll probably see them then, unless Northstar has said anything otherwise.
SamusDrake wrote: Did they ever feature orks or goblins in any of the frostgrave books?
As I understand it FG is race-agnostic. You want Elves, give your party archery and movement skills. You want dwarves load them down with armor. If you want Hill Dwarf rangers then give them archery and movement skills. If you want Elven Silver Paladins, load them down with armor.
You get the idea. It's a bit like Champions design philosophy, an energy blast, is an energy blast, is an energy blast whether it's from Thor Hammer or Superman's heavy vision or Iron Man's armor. The rules count not the fluff.
SamusDrake wrote: Did they ever feature orks or goblins in any of the frostgrave books?
As I understand it FG is race-agnostic. You want Elves, give your party archery and movement skills. You want dwarves load them down with armor. If you want Hill Dwarf rangers then give them archery and movement skills. If you want Elven Silver Paladins, load them down with armor.
You get the idea. It's a bit like Champions design philosophy, an energy blast, is an energy blast, is an energy blast whether it's from Thor Hammer or Superman's heavy vision or Iron Man's armor. The rules count not the fluff.
Perilous Dark, if you don't have it, contains solo and co-op rules, random dungeon generation rules, and solid scenario-crafting advice both for Frostgrave and skirmish wargames in general. It pairs very well with Into the Breeding Pits.
And where are the barbarian ladies they said will be next?
Oh! They said there would be barbarian ladies? I may well have mixed up lady knights for lady barbs, but honestly the barbs would be even more appreciated if they are the same quality as the recent kits (wizards, knight, etc).
That's annoying, if only because I was hoping to pick some up for a summer class.
Spoiler:
I've convinced my school to let me do a 4 week summer program, with the first two weeks being setting and character creation, and the last two weeks being table top RPG -well, along with the writing assignments each week will have.
However, finding good variety in multi-pose female miniatures has always been limited to Northstar, and sadly the female soldiers kit isn't great sculpting quality when compared to the more modern stuff for the knights and wizards. I've been hoping since January that Northstar would release some kind of multi part ladies kit in time for the class, but alas, seems it's not to be.
Are we doing figures for it? Yes, but they are moving at their own speed and we can't guarantee they'll arrive at the same time. So we will do a Fireheart figure release in the near future. If you're not desperate for the new book, you could wait and combine them, or grab the book now and indulge in the figure release when it's out.
We are planning a set of new Constructs, new wizards and the plastic Female Barbarians. Pics to follow soon.
The new plastic box set will also come with a Frostgrave: Fireheart miniature release that'll include some brilliant new Constructs, new Wizards and Soldier Classes from the book.
Oooh, very excited for those. And hopefully in addition to the new constructs introduced in the book we also get some alternative "normal" construct models. I have been using the Nolzur's Iron Golem mini for my large construct but I still haven't found anything I like for a medium construct model.
I like the look of these. Could use them in my KoW Northern Alliance army, but I really should paint what I've got so far and field the army before I make further purchases.
FG and SG stuff is fairly middle of the road plastics, nothing super original or stylized and y'know what that's fine. Sometime you just gotta play the classics.
To those hating on horned helmets: the bronze age sardinians/sherden, AKA the better, cooler, and more effective version of vikings before it was cool would like to have a word with you
Carlovonsexron wrote: To those hating on horned helmets: the bronze age sardinians/sherden, AKA the better, cooler, and more effective version of vikings before it was cool would like to have a word with you
Yes but sadly it’s very difficult to find quality fantasy miniatures based on Bronze Age cultures. Fantasy is very much stuck in a medieval rut.
Carlovonsexron wrote: To those hating on horned helmets: the bronze age sardinians/sherden, AKA the better, cooler, and more effective version of vikings before it was cool would like to have a word with you
Yes but sadly it’s very difficult to find quality fantasy miniatures based on Bronze Age cultures. Fantasy is very much stuck in a medieval rut.
It is, but I and some noble others are working hard at getting wargames Atlantic to change that. I may have even helped convince them to make a Trojan Chariot
Automatically Appended Next Post: But on topic- I LOVE these barbarian women. Can't wait to get my hands on them.
...
Yes, I am aware of how this sounds, and have no regrets.
Carlovonsexron wrote: To those hating on horned helmets: the bronze age sardinians/sherden, AKA the better, cooler, and more effective version of vikings before it was cool would like to have a word with you
Yes but sadly it’s very difficult to find quality fantasy miniatures based on Bronze Age cultures. Fantasy is very much stuck in a medieval rut.
Try the Ziggurat line by Lucid Eye Publications. 28mm white metal miniatures. The Greek inspired minis are more Classical inspired than Bronze Age, but they do have Sea People figures. I bought their Pale Pharoah figure for a Frostgrave warband. The Pharoah is their only Egyptian inspired figure. There are two priestesses whose source I can't place, although based on the name of one of them, "The Breath of Inana" I'd guess Sumerian.
For general Bronze Age mercenaries or pirates, you can get close enough with Victrix Numidians and armored Iberians, especially if you use the pointy “almost Assyrian” helmets. For troops of specific powers, WGA has Egyptians and Achaeans/Trojans in development. From those two kits, you can make a lot of the Sea Peoples with some creative helmet conversions.
I'm hoping that WGA will.make a dedicated Sherden kit- because I'm sure they will.give some Peleset and or Lukka heads,.and those.combijed with whatever ever Trojan or Achean kits they make should do well to cover the Aegean bronze age, and eat the lunch North Star could have served themselves had they made "drichaean" plastics.
In other fun news, I sent an email to North Star to both profress my admiration of said barbarians, and ask a few questions about things.
Nick is open to looking at the idea of plastic cultist knights/templars as they'll be looking at their cultist stuff next year.
So if you guys are interested in plastic cultist knights consider dropping them a line at some point down the road. Popular demand might be the thing that makes the difference!
lord_blackfang wrote: Another fine kit absolutely obliterated by North Star's in house painter.
I think its a very good paintjob.
Why, because layered paint technique is the one GW teaches (other than contrast) and is the most common technique used in the hobby industry today. It looks fine from further away and the exaggerated highlights show off the structure of the model.
Yes you can get better paint jobs, but this is closer to a realistic tabletop quality plus extra effort, rather than competition entry.
Candle Jacks are truly inspired. Frostgrave metals are generally a bit smaller than I prefer, but I'm tempted nonetheless. Very much looking forward to seeing what the large version looks like, as the concept art for it is fantastic.
Blade Dogs could pass for Hounds of Tindalos, if you prefer your angle-hopping dogs looking more fractured / geometric rather than biomorphic. (There's plenty of precedent for both in the minis world.) These look like they crept out from an early Duchamp painting. "Hounds of Tindalos Descending a Staircase."