Gaming Community & Stores in and around Luxembourg!

In the last month I have been researching the local Luxembourg Gaming Community and what it has to offer. I have found a few stores of interest with active gaming days and genres. The predominate gaming genre here in the area is Games Workshops, Warhammer.  There is very little other gaming in the area that I have been able to find out. However my wife and I did do visit several gaming stores in Luxembourg, Trier, Metz, and Saarbrucken. Each has its own pros and cons as well as my own opinion on them.

First up is the gaming stores in and around Luxembourg City.

Spielbar Luxembourg

30 rue Felix de Blochausen 

Luxembourg, Luxembourg L-1243

This gaming store is the only one that I could find in Luxembourg City and it is very new. It was opened in the fall of 2017 and offers the predominate game of the area Warhammer.  The owners are quite nice and their facebook is updated regularly. It is a small space for gaming and has a good selection of retail merchandise. If I need to pick up some painting supplies in a pinch this is the place for me.

Games Tower

33, rue de la Gare Mersch 

Mersch, Luxembourg L-7535

Games Tower is located about 20 mins north of Luxembourg City in a little town called Mersch. This gaming store is also predominately Warhammer. It does have a large selection of card sleeves/card protection systems and a very small selection of X-Wing merchandise. The coolest part about this gaming store is that is has a huge playing space. There are several rows of tables and you could theoretically have about 10-12 tabletop games going at one time. Next up on the list of gaming stores are those in Trier, Germany. Spielbar Trier Walramsneustr. 2b 54290 Trier, Germany This gaming store in Trier is well rounded in terms of mercandise and gaming space. I was not overwhelmed by the Warhammer game here. It has several other games such Infinity, X-Wing, and Star Wars Armada, etc. It also has a large selection of board games, however they were all in German. In the basement there was a medium size area for gaming that could host about 6-7 games at once. The store had a huge selection of terrain for many game genres. Games Workshop Moselstr. 6, Treviris Passage, shop 1a  54290 Trier, Germany What can I say about this store, it is the bread and butter games store for Warhammer. The guys here are awesome and if you are into Warhammer this is the place to be in Trier. Interesting enough it is right around the corner from Spielbar Trier. Moving on to our visit to Metz France and Saarbrucken, Germany. La Caverne Du Gobelin 11 Rue des Clercs 57000 Metz, France When researching the local gaming community I noticed that this store has 2 open locations. One in Metz and a second one in Nancy. They previously had a location in Luxembourg, but is has sense permanently closed its doors. This store does carry X-Wing and Armada, but none of the games are in English. They have a good selection of painting and modeling supplies. This store is very unique as it has a very large selection of Board Games.  They also feature a large gaming area in the back of the store. Dragonlord Games Mainzer Str. 39 66111 Saarbrucken, Germany This store by far is the best of all of them that I visited in the area. It had some English language games vs French or German. The carry X-Wing, Armada, Infinity, Warhammer, Magic, etc. They did carry the Spartan Games lines of Firestorm Armada and Dystopian Wars. After talking with them I found out they intend on stocking them again plus Dropzone & DropFleet Commander games from TTCombat in the near future. I did end up buying the new Star Wars X-Wing Starter set for my wife and I to play while all of my furniture and models are being shipped from the United States to Luxembourg. I have mixed feelings about all of them and none suit my needs even though Dragonlord Games has more of what I play. However, to get what I am looking for I will more than likely have to stick to ordering online and trying to build a gaming community around the games that I like to play. Happy Wargaming!

ASSAULT:19XX - A team based game of epic 1930s proportion!!

While at the Phoenix Comicon last year my daughter and I saw this pretty cool game and decided to give it a shot. That was almost a year ago and it has never been played.  It is now time to fix that situation.  Now I am glad we did because I was very impressed by what this game brings to the table.

Even though I bought this game at the Comicon I am happy to report this was another successful Kickstarter. According to the Kickstarter material: "Assault: 19XX is based on characters appearing in the Adventures of the 19XX webcomic and graphic novel series. If you haven’t read the books, don’t worry; this game stands on its own! If you have read the books or would like to, then this game adds a lot to the experience. You play as characters directly from the book using some familiar weapons and a lot of new ones as well! The Chapter Deck allows you to play through the first graphic novel, “Rise of the Black Faun.” You can relive the story through the game or experience it for the first time."

Assault:19XX is a semi-cooperative tabletop game for 2-6 players designed and illustrated by Paul Roman Martinez! Two factions fight through the 1930s to control the fate of humanity. One group, the organization known as the 19XX, has gathered together talented and brave individuals from all over the globe to fight against evil elements wherever they arise. The other group, The Order of the Black Faun, can trace its roots to many ancient groups whose hands were often found guiding society for their own nefarious goals. Here, in the 1930s, they seek to start the next World War. Take on the role of one of these characters and, with the help of your team, win the battle for the 1900s! Includes 16 Character Cards, 58 Item cards, 47 Luck cards and 21 Chapter cards from The Rise of the Black Faun.

Also includes the Book Two expansion based on Montezuma: 1934! Comes with 8 additional
playable characters, 17 new Item & luck cards and 27 additional Chapter Cards.

Our test play was overall enjoyable. The rules are easy to learn and game play was fluid which kept up the excitement. My daughter in the end defeated me, but barely.  So how is the game played?

Two factions battle to find a victor using one of two conditions:

1. Finish a round with the entire opposing team knocked out.
2. Be the first to score thirteen hits on the enemy faction.

Character cards are laid face up on the table with all stats showing. A marker is used to show the player’s current health out of a maximum possible five. Each player has a Luck, Defense, and Attack value. Every Character Card has a brief background description for those who have not read the graphic novels.

Over 100 Item and Luck cards with unique illustrations created just for this game are drawn each turn and equipped to increase your character’s attributes. The Item deck contains weapons and other helpful cards such as the Thompson Gun, Experimental Gas Launcher, and bandages. The luck deck contains esoteric items such as curses, lucky helmets, spells, and more. Using these cards you and your faction attack opposing players each round and attempt to get to thirteen on the scorecard. Each damage you inflict on an opposing player gets them closer to being knocked out and moves your team up one point on the scorecard.

The game also comes with 21 Chapter Cards. These cards are drawn each time you score a point and allow you to play through the plot of various Adventures of the 19XX books. These cards come right from the book series using the original page art.

Unfortunately I do not have a BATREP as I forgot to charge my camera and take a lot of notes. That means there will be a rematch.

If you are interested the website for the game is located here: http://adventuresofthe19xx.storenvy.com/collections/22382-all-products/products/2084918-assault-19xx-the-game.

The Shattered Void

While cruising around on the internet looking at the latest Kickstarters I found this nifty game idea by White Dragon Miniatures called The Shattered Void (Kickstarter). It is a different take on the fighter to fighter combat games such as the popular X-Wing. Shattered Void is a tabletop wargame for two or more players set in the cold vastness of space with engagements between several warring races.

Battles typically consist of between 5 to 15 vessels per side and last for roughly one and a half to two hours. This is a little bit more than what I like personally, I like these types of engagements to last no more than 30-45 minutes. This is to ensure that you could play two or three games in one gaming night. It would be terrible to be knocked out of the game in the first 20 minutes due to a lucky dice roll.

There are 3 core races that have been introduced in the Kickstarter. The Earth Exploration Fleets, Vitruvian Sovereignty, and the Astivar Collective. However there is a lot of room to expand and grow the universe. Remember space is vast!

The models that have been produced from the company are very good and have a lot of production value. The scale is on par with other games allowing you to mix and match your own ships into the game if you wanted.

After reading through the entire game I can say the gameplay is a little unique and interesting. I think it will require some additional playtesting with my friends before I can commit to recommending this to my gaming club. However it has the potential. Since I am not one to fawn after the other mainstream large company games *cough* Hasbro and Wizards of the Coast *cough* this game is intriguing to play instead. I am always a fan of the little guy.

I can safely say that I am seriously considering being a late backer of this project. So have look.

The Rise and Fall and Resurrection

As many of you know who read my blog post I am very keen on Space Genre Gaming with almost all of my post focused on this subject.  Upon my return to scene I was trying to catch-up on the news of the my gaming interests.  While going through the latest news, forum posts, and looking at what gaming conventions this year an interesting thought came across my mind.

2017 saw the rise and fall of two great gaming lines and now 2018 will hopefully see their resurrection. The first victim being Firestorm Armada by Spartan Games and the second being Dropfleet Commander by Hawk Wargames.

Each of their demises was sudden and tragic because new gamers are being drawn into each system. I myself have a large investment in Firestorm Armada and I backed the Dropfleet Commander Kickstarter at the highest pledge I could at the time. Each universe has a great back story and even more potential.

However all is not lost, first we heard that Spartan Games struck a deal with Warcradle for several of their games including Firestorm Armada and recently TTCombat entered into an agreement with Hawk Wargames for the Dropfleet/Dropzone Commander games.

While we have not seen anything new from Warcradle regarding Firestorm Armada miniatures. However their online presences has been changing constantly.  Warcradle has updated the Spartan Games websites and moved over the existing form or started a new one on their website, https://community.warcradle.com/forum/28-firestorm-armada/. I have not determine this for sure as of late. I may have missed a forum posting while quickly browsing all of the content.

I just saw, albeit late, that TTCombat is already working to bring the new ships of Dropfleet Commander to market.  For example they are now offering the Remnant Centurion Cruiser as limited time offer, 4 February 2018, on their website and then it will only be available at shows that TTCombat Attends. This is an amazing way for TTCombat to show their support for the game and its gamer following.

Remnant Centurion Cruiser

I have begun to turn my frown of disappointment upside down with all of these exciting changes going on with two of my favorite games.  I just now have to get Dropfleet Commander miniatures battle ready.

Wat leeft! / Was ist los! / Ce qui se passe! What is Up!

I know it has been awhile since I last posted, but the nightmares of life descended upon me. Due to many family issues that I will not go into detail about I have now relocated back to Europe to my new home of Luxembourg!

Due to these circumstances I had to suspend my hobbies and concentrate on my family and future. This is not the end, but only the beginning of a new chapter in my life. I once again get to explore the vast reaches of Europe to discover its rich bounty of life in the gaming culture it has to offer.

I have already begun to discover the richness of my local gaming community and I will provide you a first hand look into my experiences. My modeling will still be suspend for sometime until I am able to receive my furniture and household items, which includes my gaming models, in the next few months.

Stay tuned for new and exciting adventures!

Babylon 5: Earth Alliance Poseidon Super Carrier

While the Omega prototypes were still in field testing, Earth Force Commanders sought to add to their fleet a class of ship capable of commanding an entire battlegroup from outside core Earth Alliance space. The Omegas would provide the backbone of the new Post-War fleet, as well as providing a long range patrol vessel, but could not function as a large scale flagship. Seeking to remedy this shortcoming, the Senate approved construction of the Poseidon class super-carrier, which would not only contain all on-board facilities for Generals and Admirals to command large scale fleet deployments, but also be a home for four times the number of fighter squadrons carried by the Omega. To avoid drawing supplies for the Omegas, design engineers were able to incorporate components from uncompleted Nova class hulls, which could not be converted to the Omega design. For a warship of its size, the Poseidon mounts relatively few turrets, incorporating a pair of X-Ray Laser weapons on either side of its broad forward hull, as well as four phalanx defense turrets near the habitat and engine section. Fortunately, with its vast number of fighter squadrons and support ships guarding it, a Poseidon is rarely threatened by an assault, and only enters combat as a last resort. Only five of these vessels have been commissioned into Earth Force service.

This particular Poseidon Super Carrier has been retrofitted after the Drakh attack on Earth to be the central command and control of all alliance forces outside of Earth Dome.  It has the capability of ferrying more Thunderbolt fighters into battle than any other ship of its kind.  It is a hornets nest ready to attack.

The Model Photo – How to photograph models for display

While cruising around on the internet I ran across this great article on how to photograph models for displays on the Warhammer 40,000 website.  It gives some great tips and advice on the proper techniques to get the money shot of all your hard work.  This tip sheet is spot on and I recommend reading this article in full, The Model Photo - How to photograph models for display

Battlestar Galactica - The Colonial Fleet Deploys

It has been sometime in the making of this new fleet.  The twelve colonies of Kobol have seen so many set backs over the years in their war with the Cylons.  The shipyards have been under continuous attack, on the move, and slim resources.  However, the colonies have prevailed and been able to deploy a fleet that rival the attacking Cylons.  Advances in technology and ship design will give the Basestars a run for their money. Equipped with the latest in computer technology, including powerful firewalls and virtual intelligence computers they will be able to resist Cylon computer hacking efforts. This fleet will be the first of a new generation of ships designed to be able to fight the Cylons while still taking advantage of the latest, most advanced technology.

The Colonies new fleet includes one Mercury Battlestar, one Fenris Battlestar, three heavy cruisers, and 4 Dauntless Frigates. Contained within this fleet is the core; the Viper Squadrons accompanied by their Raptors.

Pictured above are B-3 Designs Viper and Raptors.  These are painted in standard Colonial colors with some wear and tear.

Above are three heavy cruisers from Ravenstar.

The Dauntless Cutter or Frigate (Above) a product of the Leonis Shipyards, these small, maneuverable, fast, well armored and well armed vessels where the mainstay of the Colonial Police Force and Navy. Armed with six standard and two heavy gun turrets, twenty anti-ship missiles in dorsal silos and adequate anti-fighter protection, it packs a considerable punch for it's size. employed throughout the 12 Colonies to patrol shipping lanes and control pirates and smugglers, they have long, successful history in this role because of their ability to remain in service for long periods without resupply due to their small crew and ample cargo storage space. Widely distributed throughout the Colonies, after the Cylon attack on the Colonies many of these vessels where able to regroup and carry out hit and run raids on the Cylon forces that remained.

The last Battlestar to enter service, the Fenris (pictured above) was commissioned only weeks before the Cylon attack. Equipped with the latest in computer technology, including powerful firewalls and virtual intelligence computers she was able to resist Cylon computer hacking efforts. She would have been the first of a new generation of ships designed to be able to fight the Cylons while still taking advantage of the latest, most advanced technology. Perhaps the fact that the Cylon attack came when it did, just after the first ship entered service, was no coincidence. There were at least four ships of that class that had been built prior to the Fall. "Officially" only one was finished at the time the Cylons attacked, with others in various stages of construction

The Mercury class battlestar was an advanced Colonial capital warship/carrier that served as the mainstay of the Colonial Fleet. They served as front ships of the line as well as as command ships. Having been first introduced roughly twenty years following the end of the Cylon War, and while still considered top-of-the-line vessels, the fleet was just beginning the process of phasing the oldest examples out of service, in favor of the newer Block II's and the Nova Class, at the time of the Fall of the Twelve Colonies.

Centauri Republic - Royal Homefleet Patrol

At the height of the great Centauri Republic the lion of the galaxy reached out to thousands of worlds, hundreds of systems, and many light years in every direction. To that end the emperors built grand fleets to enhance the conquests of the empire.

To ensure the safety of all Centauri the emperor decided that each system would be patrolled by a grand fleet.  My patrol fleets consists of 1 Octurion Battleship, 3 Primus Battlecruisers, and 4 Vorchan Warbirds/Frigates.

I have long had these ships sitting on the shelf and decided to finish them over the course of the last several weeks.  I will admit it took a lot of work, but I got them all done.  In total I built and painted 3 Octurion Battleships, 6 Primus Battlecruisers, 3 Dargan Strike Cruisers, 12 Vorchan Warships, 1 Bavarian Carrier, and 12 Sentri Flights of Fighters.

Battle Report - Directorate vs. Hawker Industries

Soon after the Hawker fleets were brought back into front line service they were thrown into the fray. The vicious battles between the Terran's and Directorate have forced smaller squadrons to go out on their own to secure vital areas and re-activate repair stations. In this entry we ran across this very scenario between the Directorate and Hawker Industries vessels.

Turns 1 and 2 were not very interesting, both sides closing on each other trying to maneuverer around the cluster of asteroids.

Turn 3 brought the Hawker Resolute Cruiser squadron within torpedo range.  This barrage scored a critical hit on the Directorates Reactor Core completely blowing it apart.

Turns 4 and 5 saw the ships trading fire with torpedo's, turrets, and gun racks.

 Turn 6 turned the tide of battle and the Directorates las cruiser was completely destroyed by concentrated fire from the Resolutes turrets.