Building two Martian Sky Galleons part 2

During a very fruitful summer holiday I managed to complete my sky galleons. Some pictures and info for all of you who found this project inspiring and/or just fun to follow.

First some more progress on the weaponry. Using a punch and some thin plasticard I produced axels and rivets for the light gun mounts. The light guns' pedestals are made from magnetic sheet. Rare earth magnets glued to the deck will hold them in place and enable them to turn and to be easily removed.

More rivets are glued to the bows/rams for that little extra Victorian flavour. 

And of course no Victorian ship, be it sky- or surface-, be it Terran or Martian, would be complete without bridge with a telegraph for speed and of course another one for altitude. Plasticard and dito tubing provided the material for these items.

Of course everything had to be dry-fitted to deck and bridge to check whether it would fit. Bridge machinery and the cover for the hold. 

The light guns can be either fitted on the main deck or on the bridge.

The unfortunate hole in the main deck (see Part 1 for the cause of that!) can double as a placeholder for either the main gun or the hold cover. This way, I can transform my galleon from a trader into a warship. 

I felt the ships needed some ornate hull decorations, but I couldn't gather the courage to sculpt all of this. Then I discovered the virtues of a hobby which attractions had hitherto completely escaped my comprehension: scrapbooking. It appears scrapbookers decorate their books with wooden or metal ornaments which can be had for next to nothing on the Interweb. I quickly acquired a small collection of the stuff!

This resulted in two finished and unpainted models....

....which of course had to be painted! Below the Last Shadow on her completed standard.

The standard's base is outfitted with three plastic clamps (EM4 card standards) that hold the cards used to plot movement during the game. All standards have this. 

And before I divulge my last ingenious secret some luscious detail in full colour pictures! 

The bow

The bridge, rear view. 

The bridge, frontal view.

Bridge, standard mount and wing mounts. 

Tail detail

Some gratuitous pictures for effect! 

I felt a Martian Sky Galleon needed some decadent haremesque ladies lounging on the main deck. I might find some actual gaming use for them as a (admittedly slightly mysogenistic) victory objective...

The switchable hold cover and main gun trick works even better with paint on it.

And the sister ship: The Sword of Issos. 

Same principle, slighty different design in wings, tail and bow. The lack of upper wings enabled huge banners made of heated and warped plasticard. 

Again a -ahem- rear detail of the bridge. Note the little gems decorating the edges. Yes, note the gems. THE GEMS I SAY!!! 

Oh what the heck. Gems are from the Dicebag Lady. 

Tail detail. 

These banners below btw are made from thin plasticard, heated above a candle flame (so as to be not too hot. Be careful not to melt them and experiment first with a leftover piece!) and warped into a shape hopefully resembling banners fluttering in a breeze.

Of course transporting such elaborate models would be a challenge. Which I wasn't keen on, so I made it easy to break them apart for transport. Tail, wings, bow and masts come off to enable easy packaging and transport. 

So here they are: Last Shadow and Sword of Issos ready for PolderCon 2017! I think they worked out very well. For Barsoom, I thought that the ships would have to look Victorian high-tech (it's SciFi after all!) but suitably barbaric at the same time to fit into the Barsoom canon. So the gaudy banners, colours and gems really add that Barsoom flavour that I associate with the works of ERB, fit for near-naked technologically advanced barbarians wearing swords and golden bracelets. 

NB: All minis are 28mm Bronze Age Miniatures from David's excellent SciFi range!

Painting Zombicide Black Plague

I have been merrily painting away at the Zombicide Black Plague minis and what wonderful minis they are! I thought I should share some pics with you.

And on top of that, it is a marvellous game, even better than its predecessor!

Three En Garde scenarios for Barsoom

Squashing the Ladybug

The British Empire stretches her greedy fingers to the Martian kingdoms and their riches. Only recently arrived on Mars, they establish a bridgehe d and decide on a reconnaissance-in-force on Helium territory. The British gunboat HMS Ladybug will sneak into Helium and gather intelligence.

She enters helium at low altitude, maneuvering through –and shielded from curious eyes by- the hills guided by a trio of Green Tharks on Thoats.

The table is a narrow valley, flanked by rocky hills. HMS Ladybug glides along just below the hills’ crest. She is heavily armed for her size with a heavy 2lb gun, two medium Hotchkiss quick-firing guns and two Nordenfeld machineguns. A captain and three crewmen (helmsman, stoker and bosun) serve as crew, a lieutenant and 6 soldiers man the guns and serve as Marines. The three Tharks ride in front of the ship, having refused to board such a hellish contraption. Tharks Do No Fly!

The Heliumites lie in ambush in the hills left and/or right from the Ladybug’s path. They have three light skiffs. Each one may carry three troopers and a bomb. They start in the sky and from the table edge and are assumed to be able to clear the hills with one action, leaving two for movement in their first turn. The Heliumites number 18, including a Jeddak, a Jed and 4 veteran troopers. All are armed with rifles, pistols and swords.

How it played for us: 

The helmsman of HMS Ladybug taken out, she was momentarily out of control ans the skiffs sprung their trap, all from one side. The Hotchkiss guns proved deadly, taking out all the skiffs despite the fact the Ladybug herself became grounded during the battle. Boarding Red warriors were dispatched by the Marines and the Tharks did some slaughtering of their own in the hills. So after a tense hour, Ladybug's crew watched the Reds withdrawing. 

Saving the Princess, Martian style

A Barsoomian Red Princess’ yacht has been shot down by wild Green Tharks, her companions slaughtered and she herself captured. The Tharks have secured her in a hidden temple and are demanding huge ransom. Secretly, she has activated her locator enabling her compatriots to find her.

A small party of 12, armed with rifles, swords and pistols and including a Jeddak and a Jed have located the temple and will attempt to free her.

The temple is situated in the middle of the table. Two Thark guards patrol on the outside. Four Tharks including a Jeddak skulk inside. After the Tharks are deployed, the Reds start hidden in ambush in the terrain all around the temple and may be positioned at will. 

The Thark guard start outside each others line of sight and move randomly on a scatter die+D6” each turn. They will spot any Red within line-of-sight in their forward 180 degree arc. The Reds have Initiative in every turn until they are discovered and may choose to move before or after a Thark guard moves.  As soon as shots are fired or a Thark guard spots a Red warrior, the alarm is sounded and the Tharks inside are alerted.

Misson objective:

Reds: save the princess and escort her from the table alive.

Tharks: prevent this by any means necessary.

How it played for us: 

On both attempts the Jeddak managed to enter the temple and reach the princess. The first time is companion fell and alerted the Tharks. The Thark leader stormed into the cell and killed both the Red Jeddak and the princess. The second time was even more tragic. The princess escaped through the roof, only to fall to her death outside when failing both here climb rolls......

The spy that came in from the dawn

A Zodangan spy has obtained some valuable information from Helium and has arranged a rendez-vous with a Zodangan warship to transfer this info to her masters.

Heliumite security has caught the warship entering Heliumite territory and follows her in the hope of catching the spy. Having spotted the ship near an abandoned watch tower they decide to lie in ambush and wait for the spy to emerge.

Zodanga: The ship is hovering at low altitude and awaits the spy. It is a lightly armed ship with a crew of 12. 

Half the crew is below decks. The rest mans the deck and bridge. The ship will need a manned bridge and a full turn to come into action and plot moves.

The spy arrives riding a Thoat and suddenly emerges from the dark of dawn, two Moves away from the tower. She moves toward the tower, dismounts and climbs toward the ship to hand over her secrets. That is, if nobody intervenes.

Zodangan troops: 1 Jed, 2 veterans and 9 ordinary troopers, armed with swords, rifles and pistols. The spy is a Jeddak and armed with sword, rifle and pistol. The ship, the Last Shadow is armed with four medium pulse cannons. These are loaded from the start of the game.

Helium: the Heliumite troops have three light skiffs. Each one may carry three troopers and a bomb. They start in the sky and from the table edge and are assumed to be able to clear the hills with one action, leaving two for movement in their first turn. The Heliumites have a medium cannon hidden in the hills, ready to fire. There are 18 Heliumites: 1 Jed, 5 veterans and 12 ordinary troopers, armed with rifle, sword and pistol.

Mission

Zodanga:             Obtain the secrets and escape: 1 point

                              Evacuate or save the spy: 1 point

Helium:                Prevent the exchange: 1 point

                              Eliminate the spy: 1 point

How it played for us: 

The spy was shot down from ambush and the skiffs attacked the Zodangan ship. However, its guns proved deadly for them and all were shot down. The Red ground troops failed to reach the spy before Last Shadow activated and moved for perfect shooting positions, negating their cover. The Reds withdrew...

The Barsoom Project: Sky ship rules! Boarding rules added!

Just to share and to inspire. All feedback is welcome!

Sky Ships of Barsoom

These rules are written with Witchfinder General or En Garde! in mind, but are actually quite generic. They assume ships are ponderous moving pieces of terrain, from which the figures take their actions. For nautical ships, simply ignore all rules regarding altitude, descending and ascending.

Turn sequence:

Ships move before all figures in the Ship Phase, giving these the chance to react to their movement. Ships roll for Initiative, the highest result moving first. Ships execute their Movement options alternatively, starting with the player with Initiative and his first option, then the second player with his first option, then the Initiative player with his second option et cetera until all are executed. After all ship movement is done, the standard WFG phases start.

Movement

Ships may execute three movement actions from the following options: Ahead, Reverse, Turn right, Turn left, Stop, Descend or Ascend. The players must plot these in advance for a turn, by choosing Movement Cards from the deck and revealing these in turn. The card deck contains:

- 3 x Ahead (move Speed number in inches forward)

- 1 x Reverse (move Speed number in inches backward)

- 2 x Turn right (up to 45 degrees)

- 2 x Turn left (up to 45 degrees)

- 3 x Stop

- 3 x Descend (lose 1 level of altitude)

- 1 x Ascend (gain 1 level of altitude)

- 1 x Extra Ascend (for small ships)

Ships are free to choose these options in any order with the following restrictions:

·         A ship may only Ascend once per turn, unless specifically stated otherwise in the ship’s stats

·         A ship must precede any turn with a Ahead of Reverse move, unless specifically stated otherwise in the ship’s stats

·         A ship may only Reverse once per turn, unless specifically stated otherwise in the ship’s stats

·         A ship must make a stop between Ahead and Reverse moves and vice versa.

Ships may descend to ground level and thereby Land. However, if a ship involuntarily hits ground level, it is a Crash (landing). Crashed ships roll a d10 on the Damage table for every preceding consecutive Descend move.

Ships that move into unintended contact with another ship Collide. Colliding ships roll a d10 on the Damage table for every preceding Ahead move leading up to the Collision. Ships Colliding with each other head-on add up their Ahead/Reverse moves.

Ships that move their bow or stern into intended contact with another ship Ram. Ramming ships roll a d10 -2 on the Damage table for every preceding Ahead move leading up to the Ram. Ships Ramming each other head-on add up their Ahead/Reverse moves. The Rammed ship rolls a D10+2 on the Damage table.

Ships which are Out of control due to steering damage, incapacitated helmsmen or other reasons will execute two random Movement options per turn and then Descend one level.

Ships may get in each other’s way without colliding, due to altitude differences. In that case move both bases aside until the bases will fit into contact on the table.

Combat:

In terms of combat, ships are terrain over which figures may move within the restrictions of that terrain.

Ship-borne weapons fire in the Activation Phase of the figures that operate them.

Figures may freely cross over to another ship when and where:

- the ships make contact

- the ships are no more than 3 inches apart lengthwise and/or heightwise

In all other cases figures may attempt to jump on the other ship. Roll an extra D6 for movement. If the distance rolled is insufficient, the figure will either miss his target and fall to the ground level or (when jumping down on a ship directly below) take a hit when landing.

Ship's armament

Ships carry armament of three types: Light, Medium and Heavy. All fixed Guns have a 45 degree up and down elevation.

Range modifiers for En Garde!:

·         Under 18”                     +0

·         Between 18 and 36”      -1

·         Between 36 and 54”      -2

·         Over 54”                       -3

·         Heavy weapons can harm all ships and may fire as normal on ships. A Heavy weapon hit on a ship may result in 1 or more rolls on the Damage table, depending on the weapon. Firing heavy weapons on crew comes with a -2 To Hit modifier and any hit results in a Kill. Heavy guns always need to reload for one turn. Examples are 2-pounder cannon, Martian shock cannon and all heavier stuff.
Range 72”

·         Medium Weapons get a -2 modifier on the Damage Table against ships. They may fire on crew as normal with a +3 benefit to the Wound roll. 

Roll all to hit rolls for automatic weapons (use multicoloured dice to avoid confusion) at once. Two or more results of 1 mean the weapon must be reloaded/unjammed for one turn.
Examples are Bombs, Quick firing cannon and Martian Pulse guns.
Range 60”

·         Light weapons cannot harm ships and may fire as normal on crew. E.g. hand weapons and normal machine guns. Roll all to hit rolls for automatic weapons (use multicoloured dice to avoid confusion) at once. Two or more results of one mean the weapon must be reloaded/unjammed for one turn.
Examples are Gardner or Nordenfelt Machineguns, grenades and all hand weapons.
Range 48”

Bombs and grenades:

Grenades may be thrown as per the rules. Bombs (+2 Wound benefit) are too heavy to throw and may only be dropped straight down. A succesful To Hit roll is still required (+2 on all stationary targets).

Damage:

All damage to ships is determined by a d10 roll on the Damage table. Damage is rolled if called for at the end of the Ship Phase and during the turn. Apply results immediately. For En Garde, determine hits as normal: roll 2D6 – 6 +/- modifiers. Ignore all movement modifiers. A positive result is a hit.

·         Stunned           : roll one DED and apply results immediately

·         Light Hit           : roll 1D10 on the Damage table and apply results immediately

·         Grievous Hit     : roll 2D10 on the Damage table and apply results immediately

·         Critical Hit        : roll 3D10 on the Damage table and apply results immediately

Damage Table

1 No Effect
2 Descend one level. If already on the ground: roll again. Ignore a second result of 1.
3 Lose the ability to Reverse. Discard the Reverse option. May be Repaired. Roll DED.
4 Lose the ability to ascend. Discard the Ascend option. If already on the ground, the ship is stranded. May be Repaired. Roll DED.
5 Turning ability impaired. Discard a random Turn option. May be Repaired. Roll DED.
6 Control damage. From now on the ship has one less Movement option per turn. May be Repaired. Roll DED.
7 Speed loss. Discard one Ahead option. May be Repaired. Roll DED.
8 Lose one weapon on the side the damage was caused from. Ship owner’s choice. May not be Repaired. Roll DED.
9 A Fire breaks out on board. Succesfull Repairs will extinghuish it. A Fire causes one roll on this table per turn. 
10 Only valid when rolled twice in the same turn: the ship’s hull integrity is destroyed and it is wrecked crashing to the ground. May not be Repaired.

Make a Damage Effect Die (DED) with 2 Stops, 2 Arrows and 2 Turns. Roll in addition to Damage Effects 3 to 8. Result dictates immediate (additional) move of the ship on top of the plotted Move of that turn. Roll DED.

Optional rule: 

When manoeuvering, ships may opt to ignore Movement restrictions. This however comes with risks for the ships construction. A ship may only ignore ONE restriction per turn, execute the Move, immediately roll a D10 for Damage and add its effect to the Move.

Boarding

Crews may board other ships and may Grapple with them within throwing range. This will connect both grappled ships. Appoint crewmembers as (un)grapplers. Roll 1D6 per crewmember. A 6 is a successful (un)grapple. (Un)grapplers may not do anything else in that turn. Grappled ships of equal size may only execute 1 Movement option, which the other ship must follow (but may counter with its own Movement Option). Countered moves (i.e. 1 Ascend vs 1 Descend) cancel each other. In all other cases the smaller ship simply follows the larger ship.

In addition to side-by-side boarding boarders may also grapple ships no more than 3 height levels below it by dropping down the distance with no risk of damage by using abseil or vertical grappling lines. 

Repairs:

Some Damage results may be Repaired. Select a number of crewmembers for the Repair crew and move them to a central location. Roll 1D6 for each crewmember selected. As soon as three results of 6 have been rolled the damage is repaired. Repair crews may do nothing else during the turn that they are repairing. Crew members may leave or join the Repair crew during the repairs. Rolled 6s are saved.

Ship classes:

Ships may be divided into three classes:

·         Capital ships: Speed 4. May descend 2 levels in one turn before landing without having to roll for damage, due to their heavy construction. May carry D6 bombs and all the crew that will fit.

·         Medium ships: Speed 6. May carry D3 bombs and all the crew that will fit.

·         Small craft: Speed 8, Ascend 2 levels/turn, 2 Turns/Forward. Light weapons may damage them (-4 on the DT). All Heavy weapon hits are +1 on the DT. May carry 1 bomb and all the crew that will fit.

EDIT: 


An excellent question from Roger: 

Hi there, i have just been reading your Sky ships of Barsoom rules on your blog. Could you tell me where I can find the ship stats?

The ships do not have stats as such. The standard Movement rate per Move is usually 6". But it may be varied. So fast ships may move 8"per Move and if I ever become crazy enough to build me a dreadnought it might move only 4". 

 

The Movement cards provide movement and manoeuverability and when all three slots are destroyed, the ship cannot manoeuver anymore. It will still take damage so Damage Effect Dice will be rolled which will result in loss of altitude and eventually a crash. When a ship hits the ground involuntarily it will be required to roll for more damage and this will destroy all means to move. The ship will in effect become a wreck until repaired.

 

Since these ship rules are meant to use ships as moving terrain for a skirmish game, the “indestructability” of the hulls is intentional. It means the crew can still function (and be played with). 

 

Only two 10s on the Damage Effect table in the same turn will destroy the ship completely and result in it being an irreparable wreck. But it will not destroy the ship and its crew.

 

So there are no ship stats.