Mierce Miniatures Darklands Ongoing News and Rumors Thread! Darklands Rulebook ships on April 18!

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**zedmeister**

Really looking forward to when the Atalantes appear. Really hope they do Hoplites or variations of...

**Zond**

Yeah. Atlantes vs Byzantii vs Snake People... I could happily ignore the rest of the world and enjoy the Howard-esque goodness. And add the Albainn to be Cimmerians.

**Elemental**

zedmeister wrote:
Really looking forward to when the Atalantes appear. Really hope they do Hoplites or variations of...

Agreed, there's just so much potential for Greek-based designs, and Chariots of the Gods / Mysterious Cities of Gold style magic-tech. One other reference to a possible future faction that intrigues me is in the Vras descriptions on the website, where they mention the "Merovingians".

**zedmeister**

Elemental wrote:
zedmeister wrote:
Really looking forward to when the Atalantes appear. Really hope they do Hoplites or variations of...

Agreed, there's just so much potential for Greek-based designs, and Chariots of the Gods / Mysterious Cities of Gold style magic-tech. One other reference to a possible future faction that intrigues me is in the Vras descriptions on the website, where they mention the "Merovingians".

Indeed. Mierce also let slip that Khalkotauroi would feature in some form (google the term). And the Merovingian Franks will definitely feature as well. Not to mention Jutes, Saxons and Dál Riatans...

Alpharius wrote:
Broga is impressive indeed!

I just have to figure out what I'll be pledging for...and when it will ship!

This should help you (or shock you): Pledge Calculator

**Azreal13**

Makaleth wrote:
I like how this thread has turned into a small family

I'd really love it to become a massive, extended family though!

**razormage**

Heh, hop on the Kickstarter comments thread. We're a big happy family over there, too!
Love the new concept art from yesterday. Have to check finances again just to see how high I can go...

**cincydooley**

Personally, I'm ready to drop a gigantic nut on the Eirann once they release. It's part of the reason I'm holding off on the Anglycnn.

**grefven**

cincydooley wrote:
Personally, I'm ready to drop a gigantic nut on the Eirann once they release. It's part of the reason I'm holding off on the Anglycnn.

I'd be surprised to see them in any force during 2014.

**zedmeister**

Re-posting a rather large update:

Over £100,000... Let's Keep Going!

Guys and guyesses,

We're very proud to see that the funding for this project is well over £100,000 now, and that means we need to say "THANK YOU!" to each and every one of you. You're amazing!

But... we're not done yet. Let's get much further. Let's get all the infantry unlocked and get to the monstrous infantry!

Darklands, Uhtred and Nobles

Not only does this mean that ALL of the original noble stretch goals have been achieved, Generals to Commanders to Sorcerers to Monstrous Commanders, it also means that the "DARKLANDS, UHTRED & NOBLES" reward is now fulfilled. This reward is worth well over £1,200; yet you can grab it for just £700, around a 42% saving from recommended retail price, so it's a stunning deal!

We urge all of you to think about getting this set - it's a steal!

More Encounter and Skirmish Hosts

There will be more encounter and skirmish hosts, which you CAN add to "THE SWEET SPOT" reward once their contents are unlocked, unveiled over the next couple of days.

We're In Scale

A backer and good friend, Ryan Smith, has compiled a fantastic article on his website that shows off the scale of our miniatures against those from other manufacturers, ranging from humans to monstrous infantry to huge monsters taller than your house!

Here's a comparison of our humans:

...and our largest monstrous infantry, the Srónax:

There's much more, of course, so head on over to Ryan's blog to see the article in full: http://thebeerwaaagh.blogspot.co.uk/2013/10/getting-sense-of-scale.html

So if you're wondering quite why our larger miniatures are so expensive, now you know!

DON'T WAIT TO PLEDGE - PLEDGE NOW!

It's a bit of a Kickstarter Conundrum, a Catch-22 if you will, but I'd like to say to all of you that are waiting for others to get the total higher to unlock something - don't wait! If everybody did that, wait for others to pledge, we'd never get anywhere.

So please, if you're waiting for something, just pledge for it now - it's far more likely that we'll get to that stretch goal if you do, and you can always decrease your pledge before the end if we don't look like getting to it.

What's Left to Pledge For?

There's still tons guys! We have infantry lined up for all of our kindreds, plus the odd monster or monstrous commander, right up to £170,000. After that we've monstrous infantry, too, which would be amazing to get to!

Unveiled

Here's the unveiled stretch goals that have not currently been met, of course:

£105,000 - Djiuzu, Dromedus Secundus - a camel-man for the Byzantii, 60mm base

£110,000 - Con I Modius, Legionary Contubernium - an eight-man unit of Byzantii Legionaries, 30mm bases

£115,000 - Praach, Braying Gabrox - a monster for the Fomoraic, 60mm base

£120,000 - Wolfborn, Gesíthas unit - a unit of hearthguard for the Angelcynn, 30mm bases

£125,000 - Broga, Wereofor Thegn - a huge boar-man for the Angelcynn, 60mm base

Yet to be Unveiled

There's plenty more yet to be unveiled too, between £125,000 and £170,000. This is what could be unveiled as stretch goals get knocked over:

Braying Gabrax, Gabrax unit - a unit of goat-men for the Fomoraic, 30mm bases; £30 for 5 warriors with command, £55 for 10 warriors with command, £30 for 5 warriors

(complete images yet to be unveiled)

Teulu unit - a unit of Teulu (pronounced "tail-ee"), hearthguard for the Brythoniaid, 30mm bases; £30 for 5 warriors with command, £55 for 10 warriors with command, £30 for 5 warriors

Gomagg, Giant - a huge, 160mm to the eye giant for the Albainn, 120mm base; £70 for all, rrp of £80 most likely

Gaimorlom unit - a unit of Gaimorlom, veteran spearmen, for the Albainn, 30mm bases; £30 for 5 warriors with command, £55 for 10 warriors with command, £30 for 5 warriors

(images yet to be unveiled)

Eikovra, Sávrar Banner Bearer - a host banner bearer for the Khthones, 30mm base; free to nobles pledgers, £10 to everyone else

Gorgórar unit - a unit of snake-women for the Khthones, 60mm bases; £75 for 5 warriors with command, £75 for 5 warriors

Seza, Blade-Abhorrent - a Blade-Abhorrent for the Ysians, 60mm base; free to nobles pledgers, £20 to those with Darklands & Uhtred, £25 for everyone else

(image yet to be unveiled)

Shadows of Carn Dinas, Knife-Drunes unit - a unit of knife-drunes, scouts, for the Ysians, 30mm bases; £30 for 5 warriors with champion, £55 for 10 warriors with champion, £30 for 5 warriors

(above is the champion of the unit; images of other warriors are yet to be unveiled)

Mälmord, Bergrisar - a mountain troll for the Norse, 60mm base; free to nobles pledgers, £20 to those with Darklands & Uhtred, £25 for everyone else

(image yet to be unveiled)

That list, however, is not in order of appearance in the stretch goals. There's four days left guys - let's get to the last of the infantry!

Monstrous Infantry

If we do get to the end of the infantry... well, here's something to get your teeth into:

He's a Mallax banner bearer for the Fomoraic... better get pledging people!

We're In Colour

Oh yes... and here's what you can expect in the rulebook...

**Azreal13**

grefven wrote:
cincydooley wrote:
Personally, I'm ready to drop a gigantic nut on the Eirann once they release. It's part of the reason I'm holding off on the Anglycnn.

I'd be surprised to see them in any force during 2014.

I think you're underestimating the depths of cincy's obsession.

**cincydooley**

azreal13 wrote:
grefven wrote:
cincydooley wrote:
Personally, I'm ready to drop a gigantic nut on the Eirann once they release. It's part of the reason I'm holding off on the Anglycnn.

I'd be surprised to see them in any force during 2014.

I think you're underestimating the depths of cincy's obsession.

Pretty much this. :-). I'm pretty confident I won't see them any time soon either. But a fella can hope. Between the Norse infantry coming already funded and the Tealu infantry from the Brythoniad, I can wait :-).

The Formaic keep reaching out to me, but their fluff reads a touch too evil for my tastes.

**grefven**

cincydooley wrote:
azreal13 wrote:
grefven wrote:
cincydooley wrote:
Personally, I'm ready to drop a gigantic nut on the Eirann once they release. It's part of the reason I'm holding off on the Anglycnn.

I'd be surprised to see them in any force during 2014.

I think you're underestimating the depths of cincy's obsession.

Pretty much this. :-). I'm pretty confident I won't see them any time soon either. But a fella can hope. Between the Norse infantry coming already funded and the Tealu infantry from the Brythoniad, I can wait :-).

The Formaic keep reaching out to me, but their fluff reads a touch too evil for my tastes.

I feel ya.

**Azreal13**

The Fomoraic will be my first faction. (note the deliberate use of first!)

Goatmen, giant Rhinos and a half Mammoth general? They'd need to be goose-stepping with weird little moustaches to turn me off!

I'm a little confuzzled with the reveals though, when do the Gabrax get unlocked, or have they already?

**zedmeister**

azreal13 wrote:
The Fomoraic will be my first faction. (note the deliberate use of first!)

Goatmen, giant Rhinos and a half Mammoth general? They'd need to be goose-stepping with weird little moustaches to turn me off!

I'm a little confuzzled with the reveals though, when do the Gabrax get unlocked, or have they already?

Shouldn't be long - I reckon they'll be the next ones revealed with a £130k unlock

**Azreal13**

But sans moustaches and goose-stepping yes?!

**Bolognesus**

Good thing about the Gabrax fur is I don't think a moustache would show, so you're safe.
Goosestepping goats would be kind of fun, though

**Alpharius**

zedmeister wrote:

Alpharius wrote:
Broga is impressive indeed!

I just have to figure out what I'll be pledging for...and when it will ship!

This should help you (or shock you): Pledge Calculator

Sweet Pledge Calculator - thanks!

**RiTides**

What keeps me from going in big on something like this, is just the cost per model on things like infantry... 30 pounds for 5 models works out to not much less than $10 per model

. Or 10 pounds / $16 per model for special models... and once we get to commanders (yes, mounted) at 30 pounds per model, it's almost $50 apiece!

I think the quality is worth it, but I need to see that the game will be good (like Infinity, where I'll be willing to pay that kind of price per normal model) before I can go in models other than ones I can use for other systems, as well.

The monstrous infantry is a great example... I love it, but the price is so high, and I'm not sure if I could use them in other systems... so I'm left waiting to see if this game catches on.

Of course, I really appreciate those willing to pay to help it's creation... I've done that a number of times myself on kickstarter

... but I just can't justify doing that here from a cost-benefit standpoint.

Although, their adding this reward level was very nice, for those just looking for miniatures currently!

I Just Want some Cool Miniatures Reward

The "I JUST WANT SOME COOL MINIATURES" reward nets you a single miniature worth £10 from the "COMMANDERS", "FEMALE COMMANDERS" or "SORCERERS" stretch goals (your choice) and enables you to ignore the Darklands: First Edition rulebook and simply fund the miniatures themselves. You can increase your pledge for any further miniatures or even the rulebook should you wish, but by choosing this reward you will not gain access to any of the "freebies" given by any stretch goal.

You will get some cool miniatures though!

**cincydooley**

I plan on forcing it on my group like I did infinty. And I'll be demoing it at the stores and at gencon. So I'm doing my part ;-)

**Azreal13**

RiTides wrote:
What keeps me from going in big on something like this, is just the cost per model on things like infantry... 30 pounds for 5 models works out to not much less than $10 per model . Or 10 pounds / $16 per model for special models... and once we get to commanders (yes, mounted) at 30 pounds per model, it's almost $50 apiece!

I think the quality is worth it, but I need to see that the game will be good (like Infinity, where I'll be willing to pay that kind of price per normal model) before I can go in models other than ones I can use for other systems, as well.

The monstrous infantry is a great example... I love it, but the price is so high, and I'm not sure if I could use them in other systems... so I'm left waiting to see if this game catches on.

Of course, I really appreciate those willing to pay to help it's creation... I've done that a number of times myself on kickstarter ... but I just can't justify doing that here from a cost-benefit standpoint.

Although, their adding this reward level was very nice, for those just looking for miniatures currently!

I Just Want some Cool Miniatures Reward

The "I JUST WANT SOME COOL MINIATURES" reward nets you a single miniature worth £10 from the "COMMANDERS", "FEMALE COMMANDERS" or "SORCERERS" stretch goals (your choice) and enables you to ignore the Darklands: First Edition rulebook and simply fund the miniatures themselves. You can increase your pledge for any further miniatures or even the rulebook should you wish, but by choosing this reward you will not gain access to any of the "freebies" given by any stretch goal.

You will get some cool miniatures though!

Also, much like Infinity, you've got to look at the number of models needed to get a playable force.

While it isn't breaking any records for low budget entry, it seems you can have a starter size army, with a variety of types of model, for a reasonable amount, especially considering the average quality of even the most lowly grunt is extremely good.

Go on, go for a Sweet Spot pledge! Everything you need for what, $225 in your toy money?

**Bolognesus**

I felt like that until recently; however, looking at army selection rules I don't think you need all that much infantry. One or two units of five each is all you need, and you'll have all-unique models, which at that level of quality isn't all that bad. Anyone who has any metal WHFB units has had it much, much worse than that IMO. after that, it's a handful of monstrous infantry, a commander or two and a big beastie and it seems you'd be playing mid-sized games already.

Have you watched the demo game? That, combined with the quickstart rules has me pretty much convinced the game will be a lot of fun to play. Maybe a bit more in the "push completely awesome models around a nice table" sense than, say, the tactical richness of infinity (which frankly, could force me to play with cardboard standies and it'd still be my favourite game at this point) but there's a place for that, and I must say even that straightforward demo, fixed camera, not really a great look at the minis either, really gave me a sense of an awesome fight being fought. That combined with the model quality will make for some pretty good times around a gaming table IMO.

Not to say that I think it can't be deeply tactical - haven't delved in that far and alternate unit activations generally helps keep you on your toes quite a bit.
In the AUA department, I'm actually kind of sorry for the money I spent on malifaux stuff guessing M2E would be good - this seems easier to get into and would scratch a much more prominent itch for me

...You're right it has to catch on, though. However, for 'small' games to catch on in a group, it does take one player starting them

Now get on it, haha

To be fair @what azrael13 just said though, Sweet spot would not be the be-all-end-all amount IMO. You'd need one of the infantry units, ruleswise, above 1000G (and you want to go a bit above that, I'd think) so sweet spot, an infantry unit (or monstrous if you went infantry starter, but that would get *more* expensive!) and a big beastie (which RiTides is already getting, so not an issue) and perhaps another hero would be all you'd need to do this thoroughly, I'd say

**Azreal13**

Granted, I should have said "everything you need to start" for the sweet spot.

**Bolognesus**

Fair 'nuff

It's just so bloody close to being able to play a mid-sized game calling these buggers "starters", when compared to starters in some other games, is almost misleading.

(An infinity starter? Yeah, full-sized - 300pts - games, you'll be paying two or three times that again to have some variety, which is really needed. Malifaux? There seem to be starters which are almost complete, for a 'full-sized' forces but there's plenty of them which aren't half-way there, price-wise...)

**JWBS**

I just took advantage of the final day of KS1 to buy another monstrous infantry troop, those dragon men, plus a couple of things for my Tarvax, so with these and KS2 I'll have three kindreds, though I won't be buying any monsters for the trolls and dragon people. Still there's a load of stuff I want but I've had to show some restraint. No Mallox, no Mjagnir, or blood maw, or giant eagle guy...I could go on.

RiTides wrote:
What keeps me from going in big on something like this, is just the cost per model on things like infantry... 30 pounds for 5 models works out to not much less than $10 per model . Or 10 pounds / $16 per model for special models... and once we get to commanders (yes, mounted) at 30 pounds per model, it's almost $50 apiece!

I think the quality is worth it, but I need to see that the game will be good (like Infinity, where I'll be willing to pay that kind of price per normal model) before I can go in models other than ones I can use for other systems, as well.

The monstrous infantry is a great example... I love it, but the price is so high, and I'm not sure if I could use them in other systems... so I'm left waiting to see if this game catches on.

Of course, I really appreciate those willing to pay to help it's creation... I've done that a number of times myself on kickstarter ... but I just can't justify doing that here from a cost-benefit standpoint.

Yes the infantry price is too steep for me also. I don't play but I like to have a nice looking army, luckily the GW beasman battalion wasn't too expensive when that was released (I'm assuming, else I probably wouldn't have bought it). I dunno if anything similar can be done with the other kindreds, they're all fairly distinctive from what I remember, whereas Tarvax fit the archetype very well. I'm sure I'll buy some of the Mierce beastmen when they're availble, but not in multiples of 10.

Is the price of monstrous infantry really so high? I remember comparing Tarvax with minotaurs (at KS1 prices) and they seemed like an insane value option, for far superior models, not sure how the current prices compare though.

Actually yes they're quite expensive - 4 Mierce minotaurs, 1 standard, and a doombull is £108rrp, whereas at GW it's £87 for a doombull + 6 minotaurs. I'm not so keen on the GW ones though, the rest of their beastmen are great, as is the Ghorgon / Cygor, but the bulls don't really hit the spot for me.

**cincydooley**

OrlandotheTechnicoloured wrote:
New gameplay video is nearly finished encoding and will be playable on the homepage

(but if you can't wait and have the right flash player you can download an FLV version here

http://www.mierce-miniatures.com/ks2/darklands_kickstarter_2_video.flv)

Did the gameplay video ever make I up?

**razormage**

Yep, it's available on the front page of the Kickstarter.

**cincydooley**

Is it the main video? Or am I just not seeing it in the body?

**Makaleth**

JWBS wrote:

Actually yes they're quite expensive - 4 Mierce minotaurs, 1 standard, and a doombull is £108rrp, whereas at GW it's £87 for a doombull + 6 minotaurs. I'm not so keen on the GW ones though, the rest of their beastmen are great, as is the Ghorgon / Cygor, but the bulls don't really hit the spot for me.

These ones are bigger as well than the GW ones from what I have seen. All depends on what you are using them for as well.

**RiTides**

Thanks for the responses, guys

. It's a testament to how fantastically Mierce has done that I went from completely not interested during the first campaign, to following it closely now.

I do think they might want to consider a cheaper form of the rules at some point- since we've been making a lot of Infinity comparisons (which is quite a compliment, I think

)... lots of people seem to start playing just by using the rules PDF, and then get the hardback rulebook once they have decided they like the game.

Of course, with those of you already playtesting this maybe the exact same thing is going on here

**Azreal13**

Yep, QuickStart rules are free to download!