My longstanding 'Space 1889' skirmishing took a new direction last thursday with a new engagement scale (division), a new figure scale (10mm) and a new set of rules (Hordes of the Things).
Unfortunately i forgot to take photos in the excitement...d'oh! But there was an erstwhile American war correspondent in the area who snapped off a few dagerrotypes for the folks back home! (Pictures here http://josephdragovich.blogspot.com/2010/08/hott-sands-of-mars.html (http://josephdragovich.blogspot.com/2010/08/hott-sands-of-mars.html) )
The story so far...
The British colonial settlement on Mars continues at a pace. Spreading from the town of Victoria, survey teams discovered vast reserves of the super-efficient 'red coal' in the Magellan Valley. Unfortunately this area is crawling with the native Martian 'beast man' tribes.
Mycroft Holmes sends Campion Bond and a small team of researches (including Dr Jekyll and Dr Moreau) to capture and study some of these beastly Martians in an attempt to find there weaknesses.
Several partially successful raids are made (e.g. http://www.durhamwargames.co.uk/battle_reports/2010/04/index.asp (http://www.durhamwargames.co.uk/battle_reports/2010/04/index.asp) ), which only serve to provoke the Martians who then conduct a series of brutal raids on outlying British settlements.
Although not fully constituted (the heavy artillery, land ship and fleet air brigades are still awaiting transport from Earth), the British 1st Martian division attacks the Magellan Valley to clear out the beastmen and destroy their spawning grounds. The native tribes unite for the first major engagement since the British arrived on Mars.
We used the Hordes of the Things rules with each side having 3 'armies', and they worked jolly well!
The rash British commander of 3rd Brigade (Brigadier Dragovich) advanced quickly in a glorious charge but found himself ahead of his troops, surrounded by huge, brutal Martian beastmen and minotaurs, and was quickly cut down laving the British right flank without a commander.
Things fared worse for the British on their right flank. Despite a valiant effoert Brigadier Carroll's troops were brutally assaulted and overrun. Second brigade broke and fled.
1st Brigade, holding a red weed forest in the centre of the valley, fared a little better, and with disciplined close ranged fire influcted terrible casualties among the beast tribes before them.
Battle raged for 4 hours, before the British left flank, hampered by a lack of command, finally broke. The survivors limped back out fo the valley, looking behind them in horror as the braying Martian beasts gorged on the flesh of the dead and dying British left on the field.
A cracking game, and i think we'll be playing HOTT a fair bit from now on!
Very cool looking game and the painted minis look great! Are all the minis from Pendrakens? We play HotT extensively in our group and not just for fantasy. There are several variants based on the HotT rules. I helped with for Colonials that Leon has posted on the forum for a free download, the title is Hordes of the Empire. Check it out.
I am sure your gaming group will have lots of fun playing with HotT. Looking forward to the next report from Mars 8)
:D That looks a cracking game, and an interesting use of figures. Nice Blog too.
Quote from: Blaker on 07 August 2010, 04:16:39 PM
Very cool looking game and the painted minis look great! Are all the minis from Pendrakens?
Yep! :D
Good stuff there Luddite 8)
You don't fancy listing your forces here do you Luddite [& some more pics would be nice 8)]
I'm thinking about VSF / steampunk etc for FWC & your stuff here is inspiring my thinking :D
Great stuff.
Quote from: nikharwood on 08 August 2010, 10:40:21 AM
You don't fancy listing your forces here do you Luddite [& some more pics would be nice 8)]
I'm thinking about VSF / steampunk etc for FWC & your stuff here is inspiring my thinking :D
Sorry nik, as i said, the pictures were all we had. I'm pretty busy at the moment, but i have a bunch of Pendraken stuff i keep meaning to photograph and post up. I'll try and make time.
As for the HOTT lists...ok. :D
British Colonial (Mars)Ruler: Queen Victoria
Government: London (Westminster); Constitutional monarchy
Martian governor: Campion Bond
Settlers: 360,000 (cap: Victoria)
Military: 1 Colonial Division
Following the Martian cephalim invasion of Britain (defeated by the release of bio-weapons on the Martian war machines) the British Empire formed a cavorite ether ship fleet and began the colonisation of Mars. While driven by a need to avenge the wounded pride of the Empire and signal Britain’s continued strength to the rest of the world, it was also the perfect opportunity to justify the expense of developing colonial resource and commercial interests on the Red Planet.
The main settlement is Victoria, a large and thriving town and centre of commercial and administrative Imperial colonial efforts.
The British territory has spread rapidly in all directions discovering and developing privately owned farming, and mining operations. In particular the Martian red coal, a highly efficient fuel, has led to extensive developments of the viability of the colony. The red weed forests also harbour ‘lift wood’ trees; large plants that have the same anti-gravitic qualities of cavorite but without the need to manufacture the expensive metal. This has strengthened Britain’s domination of the ether ship market.
British interests landed in the heart of the Martian beast man tribal areas, just north of the equator. Since the earliest settlement, British forces have regularly engaged the beast man tribes in bitter conflict. Expert ambushers, the beast men had the upper hand and continue to plague poorly protected transports or outlying settlements. However, following some dreadful defeats, the British have finally begun to drive the beast men north, overrunning many spawning grounds. Lately, the cephalim have begun to directly support their beast man subjects and rumours of ‘tin men turning farmers or soldiers to flaming ash’ have filtered back from the front lines.
The British have good relations with the Americans on Mars, and indeed their joint developments and international construction agreements in the field of cavorite ether ships has lent a cordiality to their relations not felt since the pre-1770’s. Mars is a rich ground to plunder and there is plenty to go around!
The recent arrival of the German Empire on Mars has however caused consternation and political anger back on Earth. Although open conflict has yet to develop, there have certainly been some ‘flare ups’ along the ether-lanes; at least twice, German and British ether-ships have exchanged hostilities over control of the most direct ether-routes.
British colonies are well ordered, with a strong military presence and few local militia organisations. The Colonial Divisions, well supported by Naval Brigades and the ether fleet, are highly effective at colonial defence. They also have practiced offensive field drill, although they have struggled against the irregular tribal actions and small unit ambushing engagements of the Martian beast men.
British Infantry Brigade1x Rider General (Brigadier) 2AP
6x Shooters (Line infantry) 12AP
2x Light artillery (Gatling guns) 6AP
2x Riders (Light cavalry) 4AP
Replace 2x Riders (Light cavalry) with 1x Behemoth (land ship)
Riders can dismount as Shooters.
British Artillery Battery1x Rider General (Brigadier) 2AP
3x Shooters (Line infantry) 6AP
3x Heavy artillery (Heavy guns) 12AP
2x Riders (Light cavalry) 4AP
Riders can dismount as Shooters.
British Cavalry Brigade1x Rider General (Brigadier) 2AP
7x Riders (Light cavalry) 14AP
4x Knights (Heavy cavalry) 8AP
Replace 3x Riders (Light cavalry) with 2x Light artillery (Horse guns) @ 6AP
Riders can dismount as Shooters.
British Fleet Air Brigade1x Flyer General (Brigadier) 2AP
4x Airboats (Air cruisers) 12AP
5x Flyers (Air gunboats) 10AP
British Land-ship Brigade1x Rider General (Brigadier) 2AP
3x Shooters (Line infantry) 6AP
2x Riders (Light cavalry) 4AP
3x Behemoth (land ship) 12AP
Replace 2x Riders (Light cavalry) with 2x Flyers (Air gunboats)
Riders can dismount as Shooters.
British Engineer Brigade1x Rider General (Brigadier) 2AP
5x Shooters (Line infantry) 10AP
4X Sneakers (Engineers) 12AP
British Colonial Division (Mars)A full Colonial Division on Mars consists of the following brigades.
3x Infantry Brigades
2x Cavalry Brigades
1x Artillery Battery
1x Fleet Air Brigade
1x Land Ship Brigade
1x Engineer Brigade
Martian Beast MenRuler: None (petty warlords)
Government: Tribal
Population: Unknown (est; 10,000,000) (cap: none)
Military: Unknown number of war tribes, each est. 5000 strong
The beast men of Mars are roughly man-sized, humanoid but oddly goat-like, with goatish yellowed faces, patchy light brown fur and curling horns on their heads. Many are considerably larger than men, growing to three yards in height and exhibiting a proportionate bulk that is fearsome to behold. These larger specimens tend to lack higher cognitive functions however, and therefore rarely rise to positions of tribal power. The beast men are sexless, procreating by depositing maggot-like eggs into ‘spawning pits’ of rotting flesh and red weed. They are all able to do this and each individual will lay up to 30 eggs in its lifetime. The beast men mature to adulthood in two years and will live for up to seven years, although due to their lifestyle few survive beyond four or five.
The beast men are brutal, warlike, and cannibalistic even within their own tribes. Social power and status is derived from physical power. Disputes, command and prestige are entirely resolved by conflict, lethal violence, and the capacity to manipulate or control others through threat and fear. This capacity to manipulate is critical, and prevents the beast man tribes from engaging in an endless war of self-genocide. Above this rests the beast men’s veneration of the cephalim as gods. The robots and tripods of the cephalim are divine proof to the beast men of the undoubted dominance of the cephalim as brutal and callous war masters.
The beast men live in fractious tribes tied to a spawning ground and have little technology beyond stone tools. The spawning grounds are always in areas rich with native fauna or red weed as they need these resources to feed their progeny. A tribe will maintain as many spawning grounds as possible and will fight to the death to defend them. The capture of an enemy tribe’s spawning ground will provoke an orgy of cannibalistic bloodletting as the maggots and neonates are consumed with glee.
The tribes worship the cephalim as living gods and many are under the direct control of a cephalim ziggurat city. The beast men consider it the highest honour to fight and die for their god-masters. They willing work ot fight to the death for their overlords.
The beast man tribes have fiercely resisted Earth colonisation of Mars, particularly the British colonial invasion. They have had a good deal of initial success defending their hunting grounds and spawning pits. In particular, their ability to ambush the British has proved devastating. The tribes have been steadily driven north however, as the British expand their control over the red coal fields. The recent arrival of the German colonies has also reversed the fortunes of the beast man tribes, and the German military has embarked on a systematic and merciless cull of the beast men.
In open war the beast men are unsubtle, simply using a mad rush into savage hand to hand combat. Where possible they use ambushers, or release captive spiders on their foe.
Martian Beast Man Tribe1x Blade General (Tribal chieftain) 2AP
2x Blades (Chieftain’s guards) 2AP
10x Warband (Tribal warriors) 20AP
Replace 2x Warband (Tribal warriors) with 1x Behemoth (Minotaurs)
Replace 2x Warband (Tribal warriors) with 2x Beasts (spiders)
Replace 1x Warband (Tribal warriors) with 2x Lurkers (Tribal warriors in ambush)
I've also got lists for the other colonial powers on Mars (USA and Germany), and for the other Martian natives (Cephalim 'tripods' and 'Red Men')
Nice use of the Beestmen there, I did wonder how you'd be using them as I was casting them! 8)
OH MAN - Luddite you should NOT have posted that last reply to Nik about the Megellan Valley backstory - CRRRRRAP!!!
Back in the early 1990s, I was playing Sky Galleons of Mars and then in 1997 I was introduced to Pendraken miniature and thought of how cool it would be to use 10mm colonials to do land battles with SGOM. Now Luddite, you have gone and posted this thread and have brought all of those dreams and planning back to the forefront of my thought processes!!! ARGGGH, :o I was just in the middle of finishing up World War One army lists ! I was always bogged down with trying to find Martian minis, but never thought of using Beastmen - what a great idea ;D
That is SOOOOO inspiring, are you creating your own fluff or are you using some from the Space 1889 Campanion book or some of the Ether books? I have some packs of Colonials stuff in a corner of the barn somewhere with SGOM written on the box as a project to get to since 1997! Now I got to go to the barn and find them, dust them off and start painting.
I noticed you mentioned USA and Germany, do you also have the background fluff for the other Colonial powers on Mars, like the Belgians, Japanese, Russians, Italians? If not you could always pull from the Campanion if not. Your army list for each would be very much welcomed and your suggestions for miniatures for the Cephalim or are you just using the tripods from the Sci-Fi range?
Okay, please, please, post the rest of your background stories for your forces. HotT is the "perfect" rules for this game, however, in a pinch, I am sure, FWC could be used 8)
cya
Quote from: Blaker on 08 August 2010, 03:30:39 PM
are you creating your own fluff or are you using some from the Space 1889 Campanion book or some of the Ether books?
Its a bit of my own stuff but mainly an amalgam of other sources such as;
HG Wells - War of the Worlds (obviously)
Island of Dr Moreau
Dr Jekyll and Mr Hyde
Alice's Adventures in Wonderland
League of Extraordinary Gentlemen (the main inspiration for this actually)
The Barsoom series
etc.
And of course as you say, Space 1889 provides some good ideas and background.
I've mixed in a few ideas of my own of course...
QuoteI noticed you mentioned USA and Germany, do you also have the background fluff for the other Colonial powers on Mars, like the Belgians, Japanese, Russians, Italians?
No, in my version only the British, Americans and Germans have so far settled on Mars.
The French, Belgians and Japanese have colonised Venus alongside the British of course. But that's a whole other story.... :D
QuoteYour army list for each would be very much welcomed and your suggestions for miniatures for the Cephalim or are you just using the tripods from the Sci-Fi range?
Okay, please, please, post the rest of your background stories for your forces. HotT is the "perfect" rules for this game, however, in a pinch, I am sure, FWC could be used 8)
cya
For the Cephalim i'll be using the Pendraken tripods of course, and for the cephalim themselves i was thinking of using something from the Pendraken Dungeon Monsters range. Probably DN12 Watcher or perhaps DN37 Floating Squid (i'll need a photo of this one to make the decision though).
Of course if Leon could get a lovely HG Wells style Martian or two sculpted up that would be perfect :D Hehe...
Rest of the Background stories?
OK... :)
US Colonial (Mars)Ruler: President Benjamin Harrison
Government: Washington (White House); Republic
Martian governor: Edward Drinker Cope
Settlers: 495,000 (cap: Olympia)
Military: 1 Colonial Division; numerous militia organisations
The US was one of the earliest Earth nations to begin the colonisation of Mars. Although disputed by the British the US claim ‘they were there first’.
The nature of the early US settlement was much different however, being led by private citizens and prospecting commercial concerns greedy for resources to exploit. The first settlements were lawless, scattered places with ranches and plantations springing up amid the company mining towns. In particular, tobacco seemed to grow well in the Martian soil, becoming known as ‘red tobacco’ and giving a euphoric effect to the smoker.
The US government quickly became involved, seeing the Martian Frontier as the perfect place to relocate troublesome American Indian tribes, freed slaves, outlaws and political secessionists, and to circumvent the Missouri Compromise that did not apply to Martian territory.
Army forts soon dotted the landscape and the government settlement at New Philadelphia became the centre of these ‘resettlement’ efforts. Southern landowners flocked to the new territory and set up extensive plantations, making good use of the increasing reserves of labour being sent their. Slavery was reintroduced at the crack of the whip even among the freed slaves.
As this formal ‘land grab’ began in earnest, the US settlers encountered the native nomadic tribes of red men. Early settlers had seen these mysterious nomads from afar but there are few reports of any contact prior to the establishment of the Indian reservations. Indian friendly contact with the red men was seen as a threat and the US army intervened to drive off the native Martians. Hostilities have continued ever since.
With the War Between the States back on Earth, the Martian colonies broke down in to bitter local skirmishing. Union sympathisers raided Confederate plantations to free slaves, and small scale battles rippled throughout the territory.
After the War, many confederate leaders and politicians escaped to Mars and refused to accept defeat, or to allow the Emancipation Proclamation to apply in the Martian territories. Avery Mulholland organised the Martian Secessionist movement centred on the slave-owners plantations around the Hellas Impact Basin. Negroes who refused to accept their continued slavery were treated brutally. The Mulholland Rebellion was eventually put down and an uneasy order restored to the colonies.
Since hostilities ceased, the US Colonial Government has turned its attention to expanding its territories up the slopes of Olympus Mons in light of rumours of large gold deposits being found there. Increasing contact with the red men has led to minor skirmishing and small battles with the nomadic native tribes.
Following the establishment of the Union Government, US relations with the British Empire have improved greatly. Many commercial and trade agreements have been forged by a shared interest in off-world colonial development. The British cavorite ether ship yards are particularly productive and have supplied many of the US ether vessels. On Mars, relations are particularly cordial.
US colonies remain lawless wild places, with a strong independence from government control being expressed by most settlers. The US military is focussed in forts and outposts around its territory, with these positions often being separate from the settlements they are guarding. Most settlers are part of or support the local civil militia and the military incorporate these irregulars into their field operations, primarily to ensure that some measure of control is exerted over what potentially could form an armed resistance to US government authority. This also supplements the military divisions, given the recruitment problems following the War Between the States.
US Infantry Brigade
1x Rider General (Brigadier) 2AP
6x Shooters (Line infantry) 12AP
2x Light artillery (Gatling guns) 6AP
1x Behemoth (Land ship) 4AP
Replace 1x Light artillery with 1x Flyer (light air ship) and 1x Horde (Civil militia)
US Artillery Battery
1x Rider General (Brigadier) 2AP
5x Shooters (Line infantry) 8AP
1x Heavy artillery (Heavy guns) 4AP
2x Light artillery (Light guns) 6AP
2x Horde (Civil militia) 2AP
US Cavalry Brigade
1x Rider General (Brigadier) 2AP
8x Riders (Light cavalry) 16AP
2x Light artillery (Horse guns) 6AP
Riders can dismount as Shooters.
US Air Brigade
1x Flyer General (Brigadier) 2AP
2x Airboats (Air cruisers) 6AP
8x Flyers (Air gunboats) 16AP
US Land Ship Brigade
1x Rider General (Brigadier) 2AP
3x Shooters (Line infantry) 6AP
1x Light artillery (Gatling guns) 3AP
3x Behemoth (land ship) 12AP
1x Horde (Civil militia) 1AP
US Militia ‘Homesteaders’
1x Rider General (Militia leader) 2AP
11x Riders (Mounted militia) 22AP
Replace 2x Riders with 1x Light artillery (Gatling guns) and 1x Hordes (Militia levies)
Replace 2x Riders with 4x Hordes (Civil militia)
Replace 2x Riders with 4x Lurkers (Ambushers)
Riders can dismount as Shooters.
US ‘Bushwhackers’ (outlaws, reservation Indians, freed slaves)
1x Rider General (Militia leader) 2AP
4x Riders (Outlaws and Indians) 8AP
2x Shooters (Outlaws) 4AP
5x Warband (Indians and freed slaves) 10AP
Replace 2x Riders with 4x Hordes (Dregs)
Replace 1x Warband with 2x Lurkers (Indian knife fighters)
Riders can dismount as Shooters.
US Colonial Division (Mars)
A full Colonial Division on Mars consists of the following brigades.
3x Infantry Brigades
1x Artillery Battery
2x Cavalry Brigades
1x Air Brigade
1x Land ship Brigade
A division can also call upon a single ‘Homesteader’ Militia brigade.
Alternately, the Militia can be raised in an emergency although rarely more than three brigades of Homesteaders in strength.
The ‘Bushwhackers’ represent the forces of the regular uprisings found across the US territories.
German Colonial (Mars)Ruler: Emperor Wilhelm II and Chancellor Otto Von Bismark
Government: Berlin (Reichstag); constitutional monarchy
Martian governor: Count George Leo of Caprivi
Settlers: 95,000 (cap: Erstestadt)
Military: 2 Colonial Divisions
The German Empire has only recently begun to colonise Mars and its territories are small in comparison to the British and US settlements.
Their colonisation has been led by military settlement and state-funded mining operations. These have been initially successful, tapping into a rich seam of red coal. As the operations expand, so do the civil settlements and farming concerns; and the Germans have found the vast fields of alluvial soil in their region produces four crops of exceptional quality wheat every year.
The German territory has been carved out of a solid beast man heartland, and the Germans have engaged in a systematic cull of the Martian tribes. Those few beast man tribes that do not fight to the death or relocate north towards the ziggurat cities are enslaved to work in the mining operations. They make poor workers however, seemingly incapable of following even basic work orders.
The red coal has become a vital part of German industrial development back on Earth and German ambitions of Empire are burning brightly. The various States have increasingly unified behind the industrial progress programme following the successful Franco-Prussian war and the capture of the territories of Alsace and Lorraine. The fledgling cavorite Luftwaffe and air fleets has allowed Germany to project its influence more easily since they are no longer constrained by British Naval power. German colonial ambitions in Africa are increasingly threatening the other European interests.
Not wishing to press into costly wars on Earth, the German State is instead focussing its efforts on grabbing resource-rich land on Mars that is not currently under the possession of another European power. German military-scientific survey teams are scouring the land around their territory for viable resource locations.
Germany coming late to the Martian colony has caused significant upset to the established British and US interests there. German ether ships have exchanged hostilities with the British fleet and aggressive German expansionism on the Red Planet has both Britain and the US Congress concerned for their settlements and industries there. The recent accession of Emperor Wilhelm II (following the death of his father Frederick III) has significantly changed Germany’s foreign policy from Chancellor Otto Von Bismark’s careful, patient pressure to one of overt expansionism. Wilhelm II famously stated, ‘Germany will have its place among the stars’.
In despatching a regiment of the Second Martian Division to Mars, Emperor Wilhelm’s speech is recorded as such;
‘Should you encounter the enemy, he will be defeated! No quarter will be given! Prisoners will not be taken! Whoever falls into your hands is forfeited. Just as a thousand years ago the Huns under their King Attila made a name for themselves, one that even today makes them seem mighty in history and legend, may the name German be affirmed by you in such a way on Mars that no Martian will ever again dare to look cross-eyed at a German.’
German colonies are well ordered and well structured, with the settlers having a strong sense of solidarity and national pride, especially following the centralisation and unity movements following the Franco-Prussian War. Its military garrisons are an integral and often central part of the civil settlements, maintaining order and security, particularly in regard to the resource industries. The German colonial military conducts regular aggressive patrolling around its territory, and on Mars it is dedicated to the eradication of the native beast men, who are classed as ‘Schädlinge ohne Gebrauch’ (‘vermin without use’; referred to as ‘unbrauchbar’ or ‘useless’).
German Infantry Battlegroup
1x Rider General (Brigadegeneral) 2AP
6x Shooters (Line infantry) 12AP
2x Light artillery (Light guns) 6AP
2x Blades (Stormtroopers) 4AP
Replace 2x Blades (Stormtroopers) with 1x Behemoth (land ship)
Replace 2x Light artillery (Light guns) with 2x Sneakers (Engineers)
German Artillery Battery
1x Rider General (Brigadegeneral) 2AP
5x Shooters (Line infantry) 10AP
3x Heavy artillery (Heavy guns) 12AP
German Cavalry Battlegroup
1x Rider General (Brigadegeneral) 2AP
5x Riders (Light cavalry) 10AP
6x Knights (Heavy cavalry) 12AP
Replace 3x Riders (Light cavalry) with 2x Light artillery (Horse guns) @ 6AP
Riders can dismount as Shooters.
German Air Formation
1x Flyer General (Brigadegeneral) 2AP
4x Airboats (Air cruisers) 12AP
5x Flyers (Air gunboats) 10AP
German Land Ship Battlegroup
1x Rider General (Brigadegeneral) 2AP
3x Shooters (Line infantry) 6AP
2x Flyers (Air gunboats) 4AP
3x Behemoth (land ship) 12AP
German Colonial Division (Mars)
A full Colonial Division on Mars consists of the following brigades.
3x Infantry Battlegroups
1x Artillery Battery
1x Cavalry Battlegroup
1x Air Formation
2x Land ship Battlegroups
Martian Cephalim
Ruler: None (petty warlords)
Government: Various ziggurats; technocracy
Population: Unknown (est; 30,000) (cap: none)
Military: Unknown
Scattered remnants of the long-dead ‘canal culture’, the cephalim are large, wet, tentacle-covered ‘blobs’ that have engineered their own longevity. The cephalim live for hundreds of years, keeping themselves alive through a variety of arcane sciences, pharmaceuticals and a form of technological vampirism. Super-intelligent they maintain advanced technology like tripods, flyers, robot warriors, and green plasma power systems. However, their capacity to construct ether ships has been lost, and the last faction to hold knowledge of basic ether rockets was destroyed in a desperate but failed attempt to dominate Earth.
Culturally degenerate, the cephalim are split into factions, each based around a surviving ziggurat city. They wage constant war with each other over the dwindling resources of Mars, especially the knowledge of how to build and maintain their technology. The cephalim are locked into a bitter feud that has raged for generations. They rarely attack each other openly, preferring to use the beast men and red men to fight wars of proxy, or to infiltrate and plunder the vaults of their enemies.
The cephalim maintain control over local tribes of beast men by fostering the myths that they are deities. The beast men certainly worship the cephalim as gods and act as expendable labour, a task they despise, or war fodder, a task they relish.
In the recent past a desperate, failing faction of cephalim gathered an invasion force and sent it to earth. They had long known of the alien life on the blue planet and assumed they would be able to conquer this sub-species as easily as they dominate the beast men. Expending their last resources, they constructed ether rockets and launched their invasion fleet, fleeing their own deaths at the hands of their enemies on Mars. Landing in Britain, their technology overwhelmed the British and they were only finally defeated by the bacteria of Earth. Shortly after, the primitive Earth men arrived on Mars in large numbers, seemingly in response to this attack.
Since the Earth men began their colonisation of Mars, war amongst the cephalim has reduced. Increasingly they are forming uneasy alliances between the ziggurat cities to resist the Earth colonies. The core cephalim lands around the northern pole have yet to come under direct attack. Many colonists are unaware of the cephalim, except as a rumour. Most Earth people assume that the last of the cephalim Martians were killed during the invasion of Britain.
Martian cephalim societies are well ordered but degenerate. Conflict of resources is endemic, both between the ziggurats and within each ziggurat society. Control of technology is the primary power lever and measure of status. The cephalim themselves are few in number, and so they utilise hordes of servile robots with rudimentary artificial intelligences. Many ziggurats also employ vast ranks of enthralled beast men to undertake menial work and fight wars.
Cephalim war phalanxes are dedicated technological terror machines employing war robots and fearsome tripods.
Martian Cephalim War Phalanx
1x Magician General (Cephalim) 4AP
3x Behemoth (Tripods) 12AP
4x Shooters (Robots with heat rays) 8AP
Replace 1x Behemoth (Tripod) with 2x Flyers (Air machines) 4AP
Martian Red Men
Around the great mount of Olympus Mons are the lands of the Martian red men. Remarkably ‘human’ in appearance, their skin is however a deep mahogany red hue. They dress in loose swathes of clothing and many wear functional turbans or head gear to protect them from the elements. The red men prefer simple coloured clothing with black, white, beige and brown predominating. Their tribal affiliations will often be expressed through the wearing of a simple brightly coloured sash or headband.
The red men are survivors of the collapse of the ‘canal culture’ like the cephalim, although the relation between the two species is lost to time.
The red men are nomadic, maintaining similar technology to the cephalim, although not being tied to the ruins of the ziggurats, they have much less of it. Some red man tribes maintain plasma powered walking vehicles, but most ride desert beasts akin to Earth camels. The early US settlers traded horses to the red men and these are now found in large numbers among their nomadic herds.
Initially friendly, the red men formed good relations with the early US colonies. However as time passed and those colonies expanded, matters have soured. The bitter skirmishes during the US War of the States also dragged the red men in and this has made them wary and often hostile to the Earth men.
The Confederate Secession following the exodus of veterans after the War of the States on Earth also saw embittered Southern slave owners attempt to enslave the local red men to work on their Martian plantations; an episode that finally turned the red men against the Earth settlers.
Many tribes have headed north bringing them into contact with the cephalim in the ziggurat cities. Many red man tribes now ally themselves with the cephalim, even tolerating the brutal beast men.
Martian red man tribes are organised for hunting and use similar principles for warfare, preferring to ‘hit and run’ or to shoot from cover where they can. Their tribes are gerontocratic oligarchies with the oldest members forming the tribal elder rulers. The red men place little value on possessions beyond what is needed for survival. The resources they value most are water, which is in very short supply, and ancient technology which is even rarer. They also value honour and most will lose their own lives before compromising their honour. Given their relations with the US settlers, the red man tribes now suspect that all Earth men are without honour and treat them with contempt.
Martian Red Man Tribe
1x Hero General (Red Man Tribal Chief) 4AP
10x Shooters (Red Men with heat guns) 14AP
Replace 1x Shooters (Red Men with heat rays) with 2x Lurkers (Red Men ambushers)
Replace 2x Shooters (Red Men with heat rays) with 2x Riders (mounted Red Men)
Replace 2x Shooters (Red Men with heat rays) with 1x Behemoth (Desert walker)
Replace 2x Shooters (Red Men with heat rays) with 2x Flyers (air skiffs)
Replace 3x Shooters (Red Men with heat rays) with 2x Light artillery (Heat cannons)
Martian Cephalim War host
A full Martian cephalim war host consists of the following brigades.
2x Cephalim war phalanxes
2x Red man tribes
4x Beast man tribes
Martian Beast Man Tribal Army
A full Martian beast man tribal army consists of the following brigades.
8x Beast man tribes
Martian Red Man Tribal Army
A full Martian red man tribal army consists of the following brigades.
8x Red man tribes
Quote from: Luddite on 08 August 2010, 05:27:54 PM
For the Cephalim i'll be using the Pendraken tripods of course, and for the cephalim themselves i was thinking of using something from the Pendraken Dungeon Monsters range. Probably DN12 Watcher or perhaps DN37 Floating Squid (i'll need a photo of this one to make the decision though).
Of course if Leon could get a lovely HG Wells style Martian or two sculpted up that would be perfect :D Hehe...
I've got all the Dungeon stuff ready for photo'ing, so that should be done over the next couple of weeks. The 'Watcher' could be a good one.
There won't be any HG Wells stuff coming though!
Excellent Luddite ;D
Top-notch Luddite - many thanks for taking the time to post all this; very much appreciated.
It's given me lots of food-for-thought as well as some pointers on possible 'looks' for this in my own little world ;D
I do hope you find some time to take some more pics - the ones you've linked to here are great, but leave me wanting to see more!
WOO HOO Luddite :P Thanks for posting the rest of your fluff. Like Nik said, it has given me waaaay to much food for thought on how to build up forces and how could I have forgotten the French!!!
Okay so what are you using on Venus as the natives- - hmmmm ?
And then in the Space 1889, there are colonies on the Moon too.
Speaking of Colonials, have any of you see the Orcs' Drift rules about colonial expansion in the center of the earth? Yeah, the Earth is hollow after all and all those fairy tales about goblins, orcs, dwarves and elves, etc, were true. They all lived in the hollow Earth, and Victorian Britian found the way in and told the world, now everyone is invading the inside of Earth and having to do battle with all the fantasy people we grew up reading about, not to mention the other Colonial powers wanting land space and resources. Something inside the Earth is very precious on the surface that cures many illnesses and is rumor to prolong life? The rules were written by Ty Beard, but he never finished the army lists for all the different races, so if you tire of conquest on Mars, Venus or the Moon, then go inside and discover inter world of Earth 8)
But really, Luddite, I agree with Nik, we need more pictures of your wonderful battle reports next time your group plays. And Thank you again for posting your Batrep and your fluff for your world.
cya
I still havent made it out to the barn yet sooo just going on caffeine and memory so be kind :)
Of course in the Space 1889 world, Venus, is a lush, tropical jungle. Soo the native of Venus were lizard looking soo we could use the Lizardmen range from Pendraken and of course, they had dinosaurs still roaming the jungles - cool dino hunt on Venus :D
As far as the Moon Men in the Space 1889 world, I dont know, maybe the Gnomes and in the fantasy accessories range AC 20 and AC 22 ??
Could make for some very interesting match ups on those two worlds.
Oh well, probably need to go find some sleep :o
Thanks for the background info and lists Luddite.
As Blakers says, Venus is a lush jungle world, and a sort of 'forgotton world' thing so Pendraken Lizardmen will be used for the native tribes.
And of course the local flora and fauna will be as lethal as anything else so lots of dinosaurs, killer plants, etc...
Although i'm still only working on the Martian thatre at the moment, i'm already planning the Venus campaign to have a real 'heart of darkness' Luoisiana bayou feel.
As for the moon?
Well, i've incorporated that too, but as a relatively minor 'staging point' on the ether routes off-world. It's mostly ignored by the Earthmen, having little noticable value or resources. It is populated by two warring races; the insectoid Selenites, and the traditional 'Grey' aliens with their flying saucers...
Howdy Luddite,
Just wondering if most of your battles on Mars and Venus will be 72pt affairs or will you do larger or smaller battles?
I had to go back and look at your last BatRep, it is really inspiring .
cya
Quote from: Blaker on 11 August 2010, 04:33:01 AM
Just wondering if most of your battles on Mars and Venus will be 72pt affairs or will you do larger or smaller battles?
We'll be doing small and indeed larger battles (once i've painted up the reinforcements!!
Currently concentrating of a 30mm Warhammer Fantasy Battle conversion for Hordes of the Things rules at the moment though.
Surprising how much bare GW plastic we all had lying about when we looked!!
Great figures, unplayable rules... ::)
Hey Luddite,
We have been playing, what is called on this side of the pond, HotT-Hammer. There are a big group of players using their old GW minis to play HotT. If you would like more info, shoot me an email off forum 8)
WOW has it almost been a year since we last visited the affairs on Mars and Venus? :o
Luddite, did you ever get your Venusian Campaign started? If so, please tell :D
Not yet Blaker. I've been doing other projects.
However, 2012 is a new year and you never know! To be honest its more likely that i'll do a bit more on Mars before moving onto Venus.
Although my 10mm plans at the moment are revolving around trying to sort out my DungeonWorld (stalled for lack of rules, but just yesterday i purchased an old copy of HeroQuest to see if those rules will fit the bill), and i'm also considering the viability of using Pendraken figs for WFB (base sizes as normal but 10mm figs instead of 28mm...) or doing something similar with LotR. The problem with GW is that their background is so interesting, but their rules tend to suck and their figure prices are utterly insane - especially Failcast. I'm in the priviledged position of not having to worry too much about money at the moment, but i wouldn't buy GW figs on general principle...they are massively overpriced. But i do rather want to give WFB a go!
Over the last year though i've been drawn into 15mm Field of Glory tournament play (not a patch on DBM, buts its what the tournaments now use...sigh), 28mm A Very British Civil War (developing my own tactical scale rules for the 'pulp' era), playing LOTS of WWII (in 10mm with Pendraken of course) - mostly in the search for a decent set of rules to kick off our 'Bulge' campaign. We've also done a fair bot of Force on Force mostly Afghanistan/Iraq in 20mm. Nice little ruleset with some very difficult 'objective based' tactical gaming challenges.
I've two projects live on the bench at the moment (and several in the queue!), one of which is a 6mm sci fi project (using DRM figs. - wanted to go 10mm but the Pendraken range didn't fit my requirements), and another 'secret squirrel' project that i can't reveal (careless talk cost lives etc.)...
We did do a couple of HotT Mars clashes last years, as well as HotT fantasy (i've built Elves, Dwarves, Orcs and Goblins forces from Pds lovely fantasy range, as well as a 'Rohan' style human force and a 'Medieval' style force of men (converting out my Med German Warmaster Ancients army to something i'll actually use!)
So...busy, busy...
No problems Luddite. I just asked because I found your Mars Colonial descriptions I printed out last year out in the barn whilst looking for something else and oh those memories flooded back. My Mars project, sadly has been put on the back burner due to way to many new shiny things being produced and of course, lacrosse season, and getting ready for the summer school wargaming classes.
Havent seen John Carter yet but its on my to do list, might get inspired to paint up the Colonial Mars stuff :D
I will be checking back to see how you are doing and maybe I might have some surprises also.
I was thinking that the new Worms in the Dungeon range would work for Desert Walkers in the Martian Red Man lists, or is it suppose to be a machine?
cya
Quote from: Blaker on 23 March 2012, 01:36:46 AM
Havent seen John Carter yet but its on my to do list, might get inspired to paint up the Colonial Mars stuff :D
Is that the film that's getting a right old panning at the moment ?
Anyone seen it ?....Is it as bad as it's being portrayed ?
Cheers - Phil.
Oooh. Just seen this thread.
To Luddite: very impressive, shame it's on the back burner.
I love Victorian sci-fi. As you say, the first two League of Extraordianry Gentlemen series give you plenty of inspiration, and I would recommend these to anyone to read.
Cheers, Martyn
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