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So Modulorka was released yesterday. It's free. Heard about it from 6+Stevo.



I've downloaded the rules and STLs as suggested. My thoughts:

The structure of the game is very obviously based on WarCry. It has all the random setup stuff you'd expect from that system, but with more complex combat and additional rules for vehicles. It also has a few bits from the old Kill Team which makes it feel more like GorkaMorka. It's obviously meant to be used with Mr Modulork's printable STL range, so the rules reflect this.

The STLs all work well enough, with pre-supported and clean options, but the included Orc figure prints very large (heading towards 50mm scale) meaning a re-scale for 28mm would likely compromise the included supports (hence the unsupported options and included Lychee files). I printed mine with an AnyCubic Photon Zero at scale, with no antialiasing, 0.05 layer, 8sec, AnyCubic Grey, and had a minor fail with one of the supports (the heads of the nails in the club), so I guess 0.02 layer is best. I mounted the figure on a 40mm round base rather than print the included base. It won't fit my 28mm collection at this scale, but boy is it nice.

Mr Modulork on Reddit:

MODULORKA is a passion project of mine - an Orcs V Orcs skirmish game which has a heavy focus on customization and creativity

It's about building unique orcs and gangs which have personality and individuality, and having that come out on the table and be part of the play experiences. That matches the minis I make, which are basically 'Orc Lego', a system of compatible bits you can build to make what you like.

It is designed to be a relaxed, accessible & easy to learn game. Whilst the game was designed with my minis in mind, it is functionally mini agnostic and folks can use whatever Orcs they have.

If that sounds good, please swing on by to MODULORKA.COM and download the Essentials Pack, which has everything you need to print and play - Rules, Accessories and an Orc mini in STL format.

So the kickstarter for this went live a few days ago and is already funded. Some of the unlocks are pretty cool.

Having had a closer look at the rulebook from the website, there's an important thing I wanted to share here. On the print page of the rulebook, the author gives "Special Thanks" to a number of people I assume worked on the project. I gotta say, that's worth the tip on its own. While I've noticed some small-time game designers making a big deal out of mentioning names this way lately (*a lot of stuff from the Inq28 scene for example), it's still all too common for designers to effectively steal each other's work and sell it as their own. This has personally happened to me twice now, people taking my free work and selling it, and at least one of the culprits is making big money out of my efforts that way without so much as a credit. It's heartbreaking, and I applaud any designer who's willing to acknowledge how games like these are very rarely designed in a vacuum. Modulorka is one of the good ones, done right it would seem.

So, happy to support.

Yes, the Inq28 guy makes a big enough deal of it he accused me of stealing his work when I made my own Gorkamorka

Isn't it a case that game mechanics can't be protected?

Theoretically I could lift Warlord's Bolt Action rules wholesale, call it Nut Motion, and sell it.

Steal the rules for Germans, call them Hoobleflumps and match them up against the British/ Flumphoobles and laugh all the way to the bank.

Obviously not because who the hell would buy a game called Nut Motion detailing epic battles between Hoobleflumps and Flumphoobles?

Nut Motion has a ring to it tho, it should be something, anything.

 lord_blackfang wrote:
Nut Motion has a ring to it tho, it should be something, anything.

Don't encourage me.

It's like feeding monkeys.

Yeah, I'll always tell game designers to consider what TV writers tell each other, which is to never assume plagiarism, always get some objective opinions. Good ideas often come about widely, many people have them around the same time.

And sometimes it is just plagiarism, like Star Trek Discovery or somebody taking your free PDF, giving it a new cover and selling it, but other people will be able to see that just as clearly as you.

In truth a lot of the ideas we have are not so brilliant as we think, and often swipe from sources we don't even remember. But it's polite when people shout out everyone who helped them.

The models look neat, but I still don't do many stl Kickstarters. Patreons give people so much for so much less than most KS campaigns ask for, you start the anchor costs based on what Titan Forge offers. And then somebody wants $50 in one lump sum, and it's like "Ehhh." Probably if I had been huge into Gorkamorka like I was Blood Bowl and Warhammer Quest.

All good points, and it's nice to see Modulorka doing it the right way considering. It's an easy thing to mess up.

 frankelee wrote:
Yeah, I'll always tell game designers to consider what TV writers tell each other, which is to never assume plagiarism, always get some objective opinions.

Work theft isn't necessarily plagiarism though. In my case, for example, I used to be a game designer for video games, but since then I've worked on wargame projects which purport to be "free community projects," or something of that ilk, and which have immediately turned commercial just as soon as all the hard work is done. No credit. No share of the earnings. I agreed to work for free, to create a free product... Not to earn someone else a living (which is actually what happened in my case).

 alphaecho wrote:
Isn't it a case that game mechanics can't be protected?

In Australia they're absolutely protected, yeah, but it's not as simple as, "he made a game like mine." If you made the game, and somebody literally took your data (say, a disgruntled co-worker with a floppy disk) you'd have a case even if they changed all the names on screen. Not an irregular occurrence in video games, at least.

 lord_blackfang wrote:
Yes, the Inq28 guy makes a big enough deal of it he accused me of stealing his work when I made my own Gorkamorka

Ouch. Yeah, franklee's caution is spot on for this one. That sucks. I'll even edit my post considering (Inq28's bigger than just one guy, isn't it?).