The Dougram Boardgames (Part 2)

Last time I gave a basic overview of both games.  This time I shall show the sequel/advanced game in a bit more detail of components and rules:

(If I haven't said it a bazillion times in this blog, you can usually click for larger images.)

 We see here the full Kalnock map laid out.  Unlike it's Stanrey brother this one only goes together one way.  But it is quite nice looking, especially for its age.  One thing is though that the hills could also be ravines given the way the art is drawn.  Probably officially hills but.. they could easily be depressions as well.

 Finding where the trees go is a matter of finding all the green + signs.  It can be a royal pain to find the last few.  If the game wasnt so old and rare I would probably just use a gold paint marker on the hexes for trees.

 The mech Battletech fans know of as the Scorpion doesn't perfectly fit in the small hexes but the others do as do the counter chits for non mech units.  1/600 scale Pico Armor miniatures would be fine to use as well.  http://www.picoarmor.com/ has a ton of super cheap 3mm/600 scale minis that would be useful for this game.  

 (I bought a small sample pack but I have no clue where the hell they are at right now.  Here is a picture of one with some 600 scale Uncharted Seas ships and an AT 43 walker. )

Yes that tiny little silver thing there that is about an 8th of an inch long is a 1/600 scale tank.

While the seemingly excellently laid out manual isn't properly translated you can see how neat it looks and how the little line of sight periscope works!  It even has a little cockpit sticker so it looks like what the mech's pilot would see!  You also can see more elements that Battletech took like jumping.

The original reference card and the translated one.  Yes you need the original because of photocopying making the second number unreadable!  And yes another thing Battletech took from this game:  HIT LOCATIONS.  You see Battletech's creators got their design rights from the same company who imported and translated this game.  So yes, these two games are basically Battletech 0.5.

Now I am just going to show photographs of the English translated manual so we can all read it.  

Yeah they somehow took a larger manual and shrunk it to 4 pages.  Somehow I think a few things were missing in spite of them REALLY wanting to protect it.  Odd.

Yet thanks to the Internet Archive I was able to rediscover a website that first let me know of these games with most of it still intact for download.  I am saving this fine fellow's work for posterity and my own use.

Yes the original translators left a lot out.  This puts some of it back.

Now the question I pose is this:  Should I actually do a full proper playtest of these games?  Would anyone be interested in seeing the game expanded and improved upon?

The Dougram Boardgames. (Part 1)

For those of us who grew up in the robot boom of the mid 80s we might barely remember ROBOTECH.  Except Robotech was two different things.  A cartoon show made up of three vaguely similar Japanese animated shows that all involved alien invasions, transforming piloted robots, and musicians is what most people who do remember Robotech remember.

Except it wasn't the first Robotech thing, and not where the name was invented.

(As always click images for more bigger ones.)

No, it was imported model kits from Revell that first came out and who came up with the name.  And since one of the shows Robotech was made up of was already IN the model kit line Revell was releasing well.. synchronicity!

The two part Robotech Defenders comic that has nothing at all to do with the cartoon.  But the mecha involved are all pretty much Dougram ones from the Revell line.  I am apparently one of the few people on the planet who enjoyed this comic.

The primary models in the Robotech line were originally from an early 80s anime called Fang of the Sun Dougram.  Though much like an import company whose import we will be talking about, other lines were used.  

And in some cases the Japanese toymakers even brought out limited releases of some of these products over here like the two big and chunky die cast toys in this image:

Top left and right are the Takara toys in question.  Top middle are Revoltech toys of the same designs (albeit made 20 odd years later) and below are "Capsule Toy" versions.  And a card for where said import company sublet the designs to that maybe they were not so allowed to have done..

(Want to go back and just go on a memory trip of Robotech/Battletech?  http://wargamedork.blogspot.com/2012/09/the-stuff-techmacrossrelated-stuff.html here is the start.)

But some of those models from various shows were repackaged then, and rereleased semi recently as our star Dougram model shows:

Some Macross rerelease kits along with the Dougram rerelease.  The Robotech kit is from Orguss.

The other Dougram rerelease kit I got and did assemble painted in my own style.  A Robotech Destroid toy that was rereleased in the 90s, and another Destroid from Robotech/Macross but a model kit I also painted my own way.  Also all three are designs used in Battletech.  Its.. complicated!

But this import company itself would in fact release a couple Japanese board games over here (although not all of the Dougram wargames, and not the Votoms board games most similar in design to our friends below: )

The Dougram Simulation Games!  The Battles of Stanrey and its sequel/advanced mode version Kalnock.  I had been searching for these things for YEARS once I found out about them.  I have since gotten both games and an extra Stanrey box which was more a mix of a variety of components from both of these sets giving me more models.

The back of the boxes.  Still in Japanese so I dunno why anyone would buy them outside of COOL TOY FACTOR.

The sides showing what minis were included.  One of my sets had helpful writing by someone to tell you what robot was what.

And the included goodies!  One set was super cherry (Stanrey) with not even the STICKERS applied to the little line of sight checking periscopes.  The Kalnock set was not only base painted in factional arrays, but labeled!  The little beads are my own inclusion just to keep track of what model has activated.  See the metal models have ultra tiny numbers on them but.. it is really too small to tell in gameplay so unless I want to paint numbers on each mech or get a bunch of counters made up, this is the cheap way to do things.

The original manual and quick reference cards along with the VERY light and hastily made translation.

The back of the instructions.  The Japanese one showing most of the main characters, and the translation having the card translated.  Mostly.

Stanrey has 6 mapsheets you are intended to put together a certain way but there is a little bit of flexibility to made different battlefields with them.  The + symbols are where you put the happy little trees.

The Stanrey manual is so rad looking and cute as heck!  I mean seeing some of the show characters PLAYING THE ACTUAL GAME is fun and cheery, plus for Dougram/Battletech fans it is a treat to see some nice art of the mechs from that time.

Sadly the translation is vastly truncated and lacks all of the charm of the original manual.  And they seem to be very protective of their translation.

Join me next time where I show a bit more from this game and Kalnock plus perhaps begin a new project I have had in mind for a couple YEARS now.  Much like my kitchen faucet I do eventually get things done.  Sometimes.

A Little VOTOMS Gift!

See back in the dark ages of VHS tapes one of my boxed sets of the early 80s mecha anime ARMORED TROOPER VOTOMS had a promotional mini game printed on postcards to promote the upcoming tabletop RPG that was being made (and no it wasn't HEAVY GEAR although I could understand the confusion..).

I haven't ever heard mention of it and having found it and wanting to scan it for a friend, I present it as scanned by my old enough for the color ink cartridges to be only carried in value packs at actual stores printer: (Click image for full size.)

I hope this is of fun and service to folks!

[Review Corner] Bandai Action Base

Have you ever built a cool model kit or bought a rad toy but due to physics and the like you couldn't make it display as cool as it could be?

Well, if you have some compatible models and toys, the Bandai Action Base is the item for you!  Running roughly 10 bucks these bases come in a couple different colors and styles, and are designed for 1/144th scale and 1/100th scale Bandai Gundam model kits.  I went with their normal base in white.  Because that is all the store I bought it from had.

 It comes in this big old plastic bag.  The front has a bunch of stuff in Japanese I can't read but is mostly clear as to what it can do.

 Flip it over and you see what is in the bag, and some images showing how you connect them to your model robots.  (The taint.  Its all about the taint.)

 Opening the bag you get three sprues, the main octagonal base, and a couple screws/bolts.

 The one page of assembly instructions.  I was working slowly and watching Peter Capaldi being awesome in his famous role before he became the current Doctor of Gallifrey so it took me a little over an hour.  The instructions are generally clear except for one part I looked at incorrectly in the second step for the support beam.  Overall though it was a really easy build and being clear the gate marks are nowhere near as noticeable as they would be on any other of this type of base outside of white.  Except being clear one doesn't really have to care about sprucing it up with a wash or inking or anything.  I guess you COULD though.  Or even use a metallic flake spray on the underside of the main base to look darn fancy.  I am not sure I would recommend painting the poles though as they do have mechanical bits.

 And here we go!  All assembled and pretty!  I have the default taint connector in place with the extra bits there in case I want to try any other kit or model with it.  The main poles can be moved around the holes on the base and the optional square extender piece.  With a couple sets you could use these extenders to display really large and heavy models safely, even possibly connecting them up to form battle scenes and whatnot!  (Something the Gundam faction logo bases or the GP Base look unable to do.  But they have their appeal as well..)  

The bends are lightly ratcheted with indents to get a more reliable and sturdy stand and the core pole and the support strut both have locking elements to keep them put once you decide how to put it.

 Here is a future blog review in it's 2/3rds or so of the way finished glory on the base.  Gundam X Divider, a 1/144 scale model kit of a more recent Bandai High Grade vintage.  It stands loud and proud being all Gundamy and such.

 A close up of the locking elements.  The support strut has a slide and turn groove system while the main pole has a bunch of divots in the inside of it and a lever that will lock into place.  Nice!  You can also see a bit of a nameplate hiding out behind the support strut.

Raise the base high!  Make it low to the ground! Angle it for all sorts of poses!

And we finish up with me showing one of the other connector parts shoved into a mid 90s 1/144 Gundam X kit.  It fits in alright but I had to test out all three of them to find the one that fit best and it does have some bending which is kind of a disquieting thing.

But with a little tweaking the possibilities for this nifty little device are endless.  At the 12 dollars I paid it is a bit too much but at the 7-9 they tend to run online it becomes almost a no brainer to pick a couple up to display current models.  Or even as a tool to help paint them.  Or to use in hobby gaming to denote height in a 3D space.  

My score:  Good.

If you build models you probably want one.  If you build Gundam kits you REALLY want it!

Mechwarrior Online: Recent Developments

See these days in Mechwarrior Online we are now due to get our Tuesday patches full of new content, tweaks, and bug fixes every other week, if not once a month depending on when they get things done and tested.  I have been remiss in showing some of the most recent updates, and today was full of things to make MWO look like an actual game to pay money for as opposed to something coded by Ocean Software for the Sinclair Spectrum back in the 80s.

The highlight of recent patches have been more Hero Mechs.  These things provide you with another chassis variant to pilot, bonuses to your C Bill earnings, and come in super nifty custom paint schemes you cannot change.  Last time we got a Commando, this time it is a great Looking Awesome.  Not worth the money.  

But what about this Camo Spec sale?  What is this?  Well, paint and camo patterns have been modified with refunds for existing purchases.

Now you can unlock one of the nice patterns for merely a single mech or for every mech of that type if not all mechs.  (I could find out for sure but buying camo patterns is a stupid use of money.)

But now once one has spent C Bills or MC on a color they made use it for FREE on any mech they own.  Sadly the default freebie colors have become a lot brighter than previously, so my lovely "Eternal Decay" Chaos Marine color scheme my long unplayed 40K army uses can be on my space robots cheaper but it doesn't look right any more.  It is a bit easier to preview your cosmetic stuff now though.

I modified my Atlas D-DC with orange instead of blue.  With the half price color sale I might as well use my C Bills and get em for 600K instead of 1200.  Even the 2 I don't really use or need.  Which makes my Atlas look pretty.  I even upped its loadout while I was at it.

Sadly, the social stuff still isn't too great.  You cannot give "Leader" over to other players, nor can you even see who is Lead if they aren't in your Friends List.  I don't think we can move our mechs around in the open bay slots yet either.  Disappointing.

And a pair of new limited time cockpit goodies have arrived for Chinese New Year.  This snake and some hanging lanterns.

A new BIG improvement is the pre match preparation screen.  Talk with your teammies and the other side, see who is out there, mission map and data, game type info, and now we even know the faction and mech chassis each of our team members is in!  (Faction is now listed in game.)  Great!

A recent patch now added in a voiced and animated startup sequence of your mech.  It really gets you pumped for the match.  Apparently the voice actress is the same one who did the computer voice in Mechwarrior 2!  Classy!  

Even in the in match scoreboard got an overhaul.  Lookin good!

Death now shows you what happened to your mech and a little bit of statistical info.  I have my TALK key mapped to Q since its handy with WASD controls and it sometimes leads me to hitting said key...  You can then sit there and see your mech's corpse get circled around by the camera, or move on to see an ally still in action.  Unless they die then its back to spinning.

In game friendly and enemy colors have changed a bit and the ECM indicators are a bit more visual.  Otherwise its mostly just been bug fixes and performance tweaks.  The game is a lot more playable now than it was for a couple of the middle months I have been playing it for.  Also there is an Override command that is kind of weird and annoying as you have to hit the key, then if you shut down within 5 seconds you won't.  It is kind of odd and not worth worrying about.

 And our nice new post game report!  Again it looks sharp and gives us the chance to talk some post game smack.  Sadly not too many people are using it yet.  

 And now your personal stats have their own page with a nice breakdown of everything.  Many of us playing tonight were hoping for more info such as what we destroyed exactly, more damage info such as who hit us and who we hit (including friends.  I "accidentally" shot a Hunchback in the back with a 70 point Alpha Strike because he said LEEEROY JEEENKINS and that is stupid.  Would be nice to know when your friends hit you and when you hit them!  People sometimes get in each others' way when they want to shoot those nasty enemies!) and the like.

Overall the game continues to get better and better while not screwing over those of us like me who aren't willing to give the developers money hand over fist.

You better look out when we come to town:

Original animated version of this masterpiece was done by someone on the Something Awful forums whose name I forget.  As a retro gamer it is MAGNIFICENT.  Also as a long time Robotech/Macross fan it has extra fun value for me. I HAD TO USE IT.  But I do not want to be a hosting leech so I saved a copy of my own.  Which removed the animation.  Oh well.

The game just keeps getting better folks.  I have played more of this game in play time in the last few months than I have playing tabletop Battletech since I got into the game.  In 1988.

Is it the magic of computers, or just due to Battletech gamers, especially ones here in Connecticut (the most antisocial Aspergers of the 50 Current United States of America) being their usual selves?

Little of both I think.  A little bit of both...