As discussed I am trying a bit of a phased process for Rogue Hammer with patrons getting the updates first and then after a bit of testing them out they get pushed into the Wargame Vault release.

Folks at the 10+ dollar level can find 1.02 which offers the following additions:

V 1.02

Version 1.04 fixes a few wordings in the vehicle chapter (no need to reprint) and adds a few items from patreon to the core rules:

The Multi-gun allows you to carry a combination weapon, Flex armor grants a new defensive option, campaign games can take advantage of cybernetic revival and a new scenario is included. 

https://www.wargamevault.com/product/398913/Shoot-People-in-Space 

This was actually an update I had mostly finished a while ago, but nows as good a time as any.

1.03 adds a new ability to villains: Decoy which lets you reveal that the villain is actually in a safe location and you just got/cornered/captured a decoy.

It also adds a merchant class.

Finally the skill resolution mechanics see a number of tweaks and touch-ups to make the various edge cases clearer and easier to use. 

You can pick up the game at https://www.drivethrurpg.com/product/341094/Ballad-of-the-Longbow for your fill of Robin Hood themed roleplaying.

As the "new process" gets established, it is time for an update to Renegade Scout. 

This is just a small update:

The tables in the unit building chapter should now all have grey lines to help easy of visual use.

Coherency has been updated: Units no longer have to move if they have broken coherency. If they do move and cannot (or do not) rejoin, the isolated element takes a Break test and then forms an independent unit for the rest of the game.

Some tiny rewordings here and there. 

After a hiatus, we're back with Klicks

If you are not familiar, Five Klicks is the post apocalyptic adaptation of the "Five X" system and somewhat inspired by the old Swedish RPG Mutant. It is a bit smaller of a game but if you want to get your low tech post apocalypse on, you can do so here

https://www.wargamevault.com/product/304968/Five-Klicks-From-the-Zone-Chapter-1 

The update folds the "Upgrade pack" into the main rules (slightly tougher enemies, character talents, gun upgrades and story points) as well as making a couple other tiny tweaks. 

This will be the first of a number of hopefully monthly updates.

Cheers folks. Reception to Rogue Hammer has been pretty exciting and a lot of you have noticed that it'd be very easy to play using old Epic 6mm figures :)

The first update will come in January. The plan is to add a few more events, probably a random table for scenario or campaign creation and then some ab-human units and a few other "odd jobs" (like a hive gang and a few others). 

I was originally going to hold off on space dwarves until I got to that army list in the chronology (following the same order as the original game did in White Dwarf) but that would take a while and there are brand new Squat minis being produced, so that'd be silly in hindsight. So you'll get at least one squad to get you painting.

A few of you have asked about more random tables and there'll be some of that but I wanted to scale it back a little bit and maybe be a bit more thoughtful about it. 

The 10+ dollar tier will get access to Rogue Hammer that way but the first update will also be propagated to Wargame Vault immediately. After that, as previously discussed, the plan is that WGV gets updated every 3 updates or so (to act as the "stable" version). 

Rogue Hammer is out now. You can get your gaming on over the holidays at https://www.wargamevault.com/product/418767/Rogue-Hammer-Gothic-scifi-miniatures-gaming

As previously discussed updates will happen through Patreon on a roughly monthly basis (so starting in January), with every 3 updates resulting in an update to the Wargame Vault version. Think of Patreon as the testing environment and WGV as the stable environment.

I do not anticipate having separate expansions. 

Patreon also helps pay for other things like updates to prior titles like Squad Hammer, Five Men in Normandy and Shoot People in Space. Always check the library page in the Wargame Vault to see if there are updated files available. 

The catalogue page is growing (roughly at one title per day). It will always be located as a second post from the start when you visit the blog so pop by and see if you missed anything. 

An issue for years is that it has been difficult to track down exactly what I have written on what topics. 

So I am going to create a proper catalogue page on the blog, which will be located at https://nordicweasel.posthaven.com/the-nwg-catalogue 

(It is set up to appear as the second post on the blog).

I am hoping to update one title every day covering the topic of the game, a link to where you can purchase it and a few notes on game sizes and features.

Starting with the most recent, Rogue Hammer is intended to be the last of the "retro scifi" cycle for me. 

Going back to Clash on the Fringe and Renegade Scout, the original 40K Rogue Trader has always loomed large and both games were trying to recapture that vibe to some extent. In hindsight I suppose Clash didn't feel all that retro. It was basically a modern skirmish games with some random scenario tables. Scout was a modernization of the mechanical side of things and like Clash was set in Unified Space.

Shoot People in Space dodged Rogue Trader to aim at some of the earlier games in the genre: Laserburn, Spacefarers, Space Marines and Combat 3000.

What I had never done was an actual set of rules for space orcs and 6 limbed critters and all the rest of the dorks. Rogue Hammer then fixes that. It is based on the Squad Hammer engine but uses renamed units. 

If you are not familiar with Squad Hammer you can check it out here https://www.wargamevault.com/product/295773/Squad-Hammer-Core--Peoples-Edition (there are multiple versions but this is the most up to date. The download includes the original "Dinosaur" booklet as well). It is intended for unit based gameplay (combat is between units, not individual figures) and moves really fast, while still having some tactical finesse to it. 

It is also a game you can basically explain in 5 minutes. 

Rogue Hammer specifically makes some changes (including a non-random activation system, more detailed vehicle rules and psionics) and offers both solo play, simple progression rules and army lists roughly covering the sort of troops that were included in the original Rogue Trader rulebook, as well as a couple of additions (rebels and cultists). 

It is the intent that the game will be expanded over time and will cover all units that had rules published for them in the original game. Some units may be amalgamated into a single unit since Rogue Hammer is a bit less detailed. 

To answer the inevitable questions: I am not currently committing to anything that was not in the Rogue Trader era of things. It is very likely that I will eventually want to cover 2e and 3e units, but no promises. Fair?

Currently the rules are in pre-release. This means you can obtain them directly from me for 10 dollars through Paypal ( nordicweaselgames@icloud.com ) and I will send you a link. Once the rules are available on Wargame Vault (likely in the new year) you will get a code for that, discounting what you paid. 

Later, the rules will be available to Patrons as well, but I need to figure that all out. 

The pre-release has a slice of everything to expect. Over time things like scenario objectives, random events and psionic powers can of course be expanded. I also have some ideas for some random tables to add flavor but the focus of the pre-release is to make sure the gameplay is solid. 

It's a busy time right now so I wanted to give a bit of an overview of what all is going on.

In part, I have been overhauling a lot of things in the past couple of months: New ways of doing things, trying to be more efficient, make my workflows a bit more regular instead of swinging between writing for 20 minutes one day and 15 hours the next. If you have been with me for a while, you know things can be a bit chaotic and I'm trying to level that out a little bit more. 

A lot of this has also been to improve my own health and well-being in the process. 

Additionally being a little more open with how things are doing is probably a good thing overall.

With that out of the way lets look at some specifics:

Modiphius projects:

There are two projects for the overlords, one specifically Parsecs and one of something new and exciting. Both will be full rulebooks, with the Parsecs one being compatible with From Home. 

Additionally, I have seen the "proofed" version of the Leagues expansion and there are 2 additional Parsecs expansions done. So stay tuned for all of that. I know its been a wait but I assure you we are closer to the finish line :)

Nordic Weasel projects:

(Don't put too much stock in that title, I need to call them something)

There are a number of titles that have been circulating on Discord or among the "chosen few" for the past months. 

As you know, I am always trying new things and I wanted to do something with more player involvement. This means a "thinner" starting rulebook and then being able to get player feedback on board during the process. 

I will do separate blog posts about each of these, including details of how things are going and how you can get involved. If you are impatient you can hit me up on email at nordicweaselgames@icloud.com. Generally its 10 dollars to get in but some are also available through Patreon. 

We have cooking:

*Play test version of Musket to Rifle ("Big skirmish" rules intended to cover the 19th century and beginning of the 20th).

*Play test version of Five Parsecs Tactics. (Military actions in the 5P setting and rules)

*Play test version of Personal Space (working title for a 5 parsecs RPG)

*Prerelease of Rogue Hammer. (Squad Hammer based rules for using Rogue Trader type units). 

For lack of a better term, I am going to dub these four projects "Living games". More on that below. 

Additionally the phenomenal Jason Smith (of Chromehammer Ascension fame) is working with my guidance to update Clash on the Fringe to a much nicer 2nd edition. He is doing all the legwork there and from the previews I've seen it will be quite phenomenal. 

The cycle for "Living games":

As I write this, the details are still being worked out so some of this will no doubt change with experience. If it is successful I expect this will be the model for future titles. 

First there may be a prerelease available to specific people or generally available upon request or for a payment (of a bit less than the expected final price). This is the earliest look at a point where the game is either ready to play but fairly rough or only 90% there. It allows critical feedback at the fundamental stages. 

Once I feel like things are in place, the rules will be available on Patreon. This version will be updated based on a cycle I set for the rules (between 30 and 60 days per update) with updates covering improvements, new elements being added, bad parts being redone, error fixes and so on. Essentially, Patreon will always be the bleeding edge of things.

Finally Wargame Vault comes into the picture. The intention is that every 3 or 4 updates on Patreon the WGV version will get updated to match. In computer terms, think of WGV as the "stable" branch where things go when they have been kicked around a bit and should all be in good shape.

Of course over time a title will reach a point where it reasonably has everything it needs and ought to have, so it is time to take it off the list and let something else take its place. Thus the cycle of (gaming) life can continue.