For the first time in Mantic's 10-year history, we've had to cancel our Open Day. This was a massive disappointment because we love hanging out with all the Mantic fans at HQ, spending the time chatting and playing some games.

However, all is not lost because we are going to host a VIRTUAL MANTIC OPEN DAY on May 9th. Who's excited?
That's right! Now we can hang out with fans around the globe and - even better - it'll be free to attend. We'll be trying to recreate the feel of an Open Day as much as possible and currently the plans involve:

live streams of games
the infamous Ronnie Q&A
Needy Cat Games' seminar on Games Design 101
live sculpting session
special website offers

Plus we'll be unveiling plenty of new models.

 kodos wrote:
Mini Command Protocol for Deadzone is aimed for 24th August
https://www.manticgames.com/news/new-deadzone-releases-mini-command-protocols/

We’re kicking things (or should that be launching the ball) with DreadBall. We realise it’s been a while since we’ve had any new DB releases, so in 2021 we’re going all out with a brand-new supplement and miniatures. This will all be bundled together as the Galactic Tour: Magnetar Circuit.

Inside this collection of DreadBall awesome sauce, you’ll find a new supplement, cards, tokens, three new support assistants and an MVP/ref. We’ll dive into each of these in more detail below.


The Magnetar Circuit supplement will include:

Rules for three new support assistants
Four new themed pitches on different planets: Cavlax VI (swamp pitch), New Atlantea (underwater pitch), Ovostar-2 (sky pitch) and Memphis Max (casino)
New card deck with special cards for each pitch
Tokens for each pitch
Historic matches on each of the four pitches
Errata for existing teams


The errata for the existing teams is one of the most exciting elements. Since launch the DreadBall RC and Mantic have been keeping a close eye on the performance of teams. Any that we felt were a little bit below the curve have been given a small tweak to help them perform better on the pitch. The lists in the supplement will be considered as the tournament legal teams once released.

Crazy Bobby has been forced to isolate this year - nothing do with COVID, it's just for everyone's safety - so we're doing something a little different for our Black Friday sale. Use the code BLACKFRIDAY50 to get 50% off ALL digital products. This is a great chance to bolster your digital collection.

DREADBALL – MAGNETAR CIRCUIT
2021 is a BIG year for DreadBall because we’ve got a brand-new supplement – the Magnetar Circuit. This has actually been something we’ve been discussing for a long-time here at Mantic and we’re delighted to finally see the release on the horizon.

Inside you’ll find four new arenas (which we’ll go into in a moment), new Support Specialists, new historic matches and an errata for all the previously published teams… including Renton’s Rejects. First up, let’s reveal a little more about those arenas!

CAVLAX VI (SWAMP PITCH) – this takes place on a dangerous planet where vines can grow across the pitch. What’s more, the bad reputation of the arena means it’s harder to attract the crowds, so it’s going to be tough to rack up the cheers!

NEW ATLANTEA (UNDERWATER PITCH) – ever wondered what it would be like to play DreadBall underwater? Well, New Atlantea is the answer! On this pitch you’ll have to deal with changing currents that can affect the game in different ways each Rush.

OVOSTAR-2 (SKY PITCH) – as if DreadBall wasn’t already dangerous enough, what if you were playing dozens of kilometres in the sky? Oh… and there’s nothing to stop players falling to their death off the edge. Thankfully BrenMed Industries is on-hand to give Players a free cryorevision… and sometimes Players even come back alive (mostly).

MEMPHIS MAX (CASINO PITCH) – teams always need a lot of cash to stay competitive, so the option to earn some extra funds through gambling is always a welcome opportunity. However, you’ll need to watch out for Thoth, a new ref that likes to keep a close eye on illegal plays.

For each of these new arenas, we’ve put together a historic match featuring some classic teams. Therefore, if you want to see how you would have fared in some of the greatest matches ever – make sure you pick up this supplement.

TEAMS ERRATA
One of the most exciting elements of Magnetar Circuit is that ALL the published teams are re-printed in the book. The rules committee and Mantic have also been going through the teams to see which ones needed a bit of love and attention *cough* Veer-myn *cough*

Even if your favourite team hasn’t been changed, having all the stats in a slightly smaller book is going to make it a lot easier to carry around, particularly when attending tournaments – assuming they can ever happen again.

We really want a supplement like Magnetar Circuit to become a regular release – like Clash of Kings for Kings of War or Command Protocols for Deadzone – but for that we really need the support of DreadBall fans! So, please make sure you pre-order from your FLGS or direct from Mantic. In fact, we’re making the pre-orders live today on the Mantic site, so you can order right NOW. Like, literally this second. We’ll be back closer to release with gameplay videos of the arenas and the Support Specialists, so you can see how it shakes up the game!


MAGNETAR MARVELS
As well as the new supplement, you can also pre-order the new miniatures.


The Magnetar Marvels set features all three Support Specialists and Thoth the MVP/ref. They’re made in beautiful resin, so those details are going to be CRISP. You can pre-order here. It’s worth it, just for Flurple.


LAST HURRAH MVPS
Finally, have you read The Last Hurrah by Robert E. Waters? It’s the new DreadBall novel from Winged Hussar Publishing. Here’s the blurb:

Ex Corporation Striker Leeland Roth teeters on the horns of a dilemma: return to the sport that once defined his life, or continue to drown his sorrows in booze, babes, and back alleys. The choice is not as simple as it may seem, for Roth cannot shake the crippling guilt that plagues him day after day. But a new opportunity has arisen, and the lure of the spotlight, the drama, the fans, and the money, may bring him out of the shadows.

Roth must now cobble together a team of nobodies and coach them to glory in a thirty-two-team tournament that promises big rewards for the winner. Along the way, he will face a battalion of dangers: death, injury, Digby corruption, corporate greed, familial hatreds, bribery, rebellion, and even the limitations of his own abilities as a coach. Can this former DreadBall star rise to the occasion, or will this be his last hurrah?

As a little treat for those that have read it, the DreadBall RC has created stat cards for two of the novels’ stars, which you can use in your games!

So, as you can see, plenty to get excited about for DreadBall in 2021. Have you order the supplement yet? What about now? Now? NOOOOW?

WARPATH UNIVERSE
So far during our Christmas Blogs, we’ve covered plenty of details about games set in our Pannithor universe and a number of you are probably asking “BUT WHAT’S HAPPENING WITH SCI-FI?” Ok, wow – you’re actually shouting it, imaginary blog reader. Well, short story is… there’s plenty happening with sci-fi in 2021. Great, we’ll finish there. Thanks for reading today’s blog.

Oh, you want more than that? Ok, we’ll go into a little more detail. The truth is a lot of sci-fi goodness will be coming your way later in the year, so it’s a little too early to talk about too much now. BUT we do have some fun stuff coming up soon. Let’s take a look!


DEADZONE
As you may know, it seems like forever that the Deadzone two-player set has been out of stock. Throughout lockdown we had numerous issues keeping the miniatures in supply. Then we got the minis… and ran out of the rulebook. We are putting this down to ‘the 2020 phenomenon’!

However, this did give us an opportunity to take a look at the two-player set and decide what was best to keep it in stock. We decided that we would mostly keep the contents the same, but there will be a small change to the rulebook. To be honest, a large portion of the rulebook is now out of date because of Escalation, which includes the latest faction stats and scenarios.

With that in mind, we decided the rulebook is a little surplus to requirements because a lot of the stuff you’ll be referencing during games is included in Escalation. So the revised two-player set will now include

a digital version of the rulebook
a free physical copy of Escalation
a free digital copy of Escalation too!
We think this is a great way to get into the game, and make sure you have the most up to date army lists!

We’re expecting it to be back in stock VERY soon!


ARTIFICERS
During the Open Day, we also teased a new sub faction: Forge Father Artificers. We haven’t got a lot more to announce about the release date, but take a look at their new leader… the Master Artificer!


We are super excited about the Artificers and can’t wait to get them out to you.

NEW MINI COMMAND PROTOCOLS
In 2020 we released a mini Command Protocols, which was a PDF that included stats for the Spectra, Matsudan and some amended stats for existing units. In early(ish) 2021 we’re planning another mini Command Protocols that will introduce some of the new Kings of War Ratkin models into Deadzone.

We’re also planning a slight boost to the Mazon Labs with some CYBORGS! Honestly, Mazon Labs is a totally legitimate corporation that just wants to help people… nothing sinister going on there. The revised stats for the Mazon Labs and Veer-myn will be available as a free download in Q2.


FIREFIGHT
A while back Ronnie mentioned that we’ve been taking a look at the rules for Firefight to tighten them up a bit and make sure it’s easier to make the transition from Deadzone into Firefight, which is a slightly larger-scale sci-fi wargame.

It’s still being worked on, and we will need lots of folks to help with play testing… sssssssoooooooo you might want to start painting up those awesome sci-fi vehicles. Just sayin’


DREADBALL SPIN-OFF
Finally, it’s normally Ronnie that leaks all our new releases, but this time Rob’s loose lips have sunk the spaceship. He mentioned something codenamed: ‘Arena Wars’ – a DreadBall spin-off that’s focused on arena-based, gladiatorial combat.


We’ll have PLENTY more on this later in the year but, until then, you can start drooling over this new miniature… the Tigrax. Hang on, isn’t that a giant base from DreadBall? This is getting curiouser and curiouser.

scarletsquig wrote:

In terms of 40k comparisons, 3rd edition is probably the closest to it in overall style, but with d8's instead of d6 for greater stat ranges, command dice system, alternate activations and a greater variety of meaningful choices to make with a unit.

I have been involved with Mantic in lots of ways for the last five years. I was involved in the development Kings of War: Vanguard and a number of other bits for Star Saga. However, the main thing I have been involved with is Deadzone – and I have been the rules committee chairperson for the last three years. During this time I think it’s fair to say the game has been rejuvenated by the release of Command Protocols: Outbreak, which was then quickly followed up by Escalation. Some of you may already have heard rumours that there is a lot of new stuff coming for Deadzone soon as well… although that’s for another time.

I am also one of the people behind the Weight of Fire YouTube channel and podcast, so you will see content coming out on there about Firefight too!


Why a second edition?

I think it’s fair to say that while the first edition of Firefight was a really good game, it didn’t quite have the impact of a new launch. Although the Kickstarter managed to fund a lot of good hard plastic troops and, most importantly, vehicles – the game itself never really gained a large player base.

Therefore, Mantic felt that a new edition of the game, which built on the growth and success of Deadzone would be a better approach than the first edition format of a new dice and style mechanic, which may have worked well for the larger scale Warpath game. To this end they asked me as an experienced Deadzone player and RC chair to lead the development of the new Firefight.


What are the main differences?

I think it’s important to be clear though that Firefight is not Deadzone and, likewise, it is not Firefight: First Edition. It is, to some extent, a hybrid of the two with a lot of aspects of other Mantic games and other non-Mantic games I play thrown in for good measure. So if you see something and think ‘that’s not how it plays in Deadzone or Firefight’ then it’s quite probable that it’s been done intentionally but, of course, please feedback in the playtest group in case something hasn’t been considered!


My original approach to this game was to make it fun, fast and streamlined. So you’re able to play in a reasonably short time, without taking up a huge space – but with the ability to scale up to larger games, if people want. A lot of the simplicity of play comes from some aspects of Deadzone but there are a number of new features in here too.

This is why you may have noticed there are fundamental differences between Firefight: First Edition and Second Edition. The most obvious being the use of D8s and the change of command dice to Power Dice from Vanguard. In a similar way the leader being the sole point for movement and shooting is a big deviation from First Edition. That, along with movement being standard and keywords describing changes to how a unit works, are all ways of simplifying the time at the table. In a similar vein keeping similar terminology between multiple Mantic systems was decided upon to keep people feeling that they’re in familiar territory. The use of Nerve was also in this style to be somewhat like how it works in KoW, where when a unit is severely damaged it may disappear completely so there are less units of 1-2 models hanging around the table- which visually, sometimes look a bit sad.

Overall though I feel these changes make for a fun and interactive game, which should keep both players engaged throughout the round and have to make multiple decisions about which units they activate, along with how to use their rare Command Points – which I’ll cover in a future blog.


Has the game been available to playtest before?

The alpha group has been running for over a year and includes members who were sworn to secrecy or Rob would send his murder goblins to their house. The members of this group were principally people I knew would be able to contribute fair and balanced feedback during early development. It was intentionally a small group and has been essential to getting the game to where it is now.


Where are my minis and where is the cool new stuff?

You will notice when all the beta lists are released that some profiles or game styles have been removed or changed. There is a good reason for this, which is to make the game more streamlined or to replicate more closely how units work in Deadzone. Finally, it might be because the models are no longer available or are hard to get hold of.

Of course, I’m sure that Mantic will have some surprises up its sleeve for new models… but these have to remain top secret for now. But let me say the [REDACTED REDACTED] is great and I love the [REDACTED REDACTED] and the upcoming [REDACTED REDACTED] are just superb!


What’s the purpose of the beta?

The beta is principally to refine the rules as they are to make the game as enjoyable as possible. I envisage this will mostly be around wording or keywords and rules, as well as refining the cost and profiles of units in the game. All feedback is welcome and even if it’s not the direction we feel the game should take it doesn’t devalue your contribution at all.

For example, there’s a been a lot of talk in the playtest group about climbing buildings or shooting from on top of buildings. Because we had been playing a lot of alpha games in Universal Battle it was hard to recreate this sense of space, so it didn’t really come up. However, I really appreciate the suggestions that have been made by people so far and it’s ensured I take another look at the building rules for Second Edition.

To this end I keep a running doc of all the changes I have made based on feedback received and this will be released at regular intervals to control the number of versions we have floating around. The next version of the rules and profiles along with a new faction release (Asterians) will be on the first weekend of May.

This beta is likely to run for quite a long time and so there will be plenty of opportunities to get games in as the world situation continues to evolve. We are planning a playtest day at Mantic HQ in the summer for those who can make it (dates to follow in due course).

What else can you do? Well, just carry on doing what you’re doing really; engaging and encouraging the development of the game by talking about the rules, playing games and showing off the minis you are working on, not just in this playtest group but in any other Facebook and club groups you are in. This will encourage others to dig out their minis or even start a new army!

Thanks all and get back gaming!

Andy