And they sail their ship on the ocean blue...

... a bloodthirsty captain and a cutthroat crew.

 

Blind Pew and crew

 Some steps further with the Goblin pirates. Blind Pew and some of the crew. Did put in some humans as well, they're pirates after all, isn't it?

Hope you enjoy them,
Thibo

How to play Alkemy with your favorite miniatures? (part 1)

What's Alkemy all about? (English)

Since four years we play Alkemy. To our opinion, it offers the most innovating system for skirmish games. Based on alternated activations (each player activates a miniature per turn), the miniatures have the possibility to react to actions directed at them. Complicated? Not at all!

The tactics are hidden in the management of your actions, allowing you to elude your adversary's plans by forcing him to react where you want him to. Say goodbye to the "old school" system based on the strategy to put miniatures in contact with an adversary and to let the stats decide of the results (hoping your dice roll will prove beneficial). 

Let's talk about the innovating dice system. On one dice roll (using 2 special 2D6) the warrior's state of health, the to hit result and the damage you inflict to your adversary are determined. The 2D6 score offers curve probabilities not so much based on luck than you have with the one dice-roll. Forget about tedious counting, the only bonus/malus to the result in Alkemy is one dice more or less.

The color of the dice are based on the characters wounds. The red dice characteristics being less powerfull than the yellow ones, meaning the character already took severe wounds.

---

Three different colors define the health-state of your miniature, the score to hit and to wound. The symbols on the dice show the damage.

 

Les dés Alkemy sont en trois couleurs qui définirent l'état de santé de votre figurine. Les tests sont lus grâce au score. Les symboles indiquent les dégâts causés.

And that's not all. The close combat system relays on the choice of 5 types of attack achieved by the use of combat cards. It's about estimating your opponent's actions and bluffing. The results give you the bonus/malus in additional dice you'll have for that particular combat.

What a pleasure ! Ever since Studio 38 bought the license, the game came to live again. The rules are downloadable for free as well as all the cards. You'll find a friendly forum where you will get help and find answers to your questions.

Le jeu Alkemy (Français)

Cela fait déjà 4 ans que nous jouons à Alkemy. Et à notre avis, c'est le système le plus innovateur que j'ai vu jusqu'à présent pour un jeu d'escarmouche. Ce système moderne se base sur l'activation alterné (chaque joueur active une figurine à son tour) où les figurines ont une possibilité de réaction envers les actions directes à leur encontre. Compliqué, me direz-vous? Loin de là.

La tactique de jeu réside dans la gestion de ses actions, sans oubliez que votre adversaire fera de même. Le système de réactions vous permettra même de déjouer les plans de l'adversaire en le forçant à réagir là où vous le voulez. Fini la tactique "old school" où la seule stratégie est de mettre ses figs au contact de l'adversaire et de laisser parler les stats en espérant que votre score sur le dé vous sera bénéfique.

Les jets de dés. Parlons-en! Alkemy utilise un système plus que novateur à l'aide de 2D6 bien spéciaux. Il ne suffit que d'un seul jet qui détaille l'état de santé de votre combattant, le résultat pour toucher et les dommages que vous infligez à votre adversaire (voir les dés ci-dessous). Les jets sur 2D6 vous donneront une courbe de probabilités bien moins chanceuses qu'avec un seul dé. Oubliez les comptages fastidieux, les seul bonus/malus à Alkemy que vous rencontrerez est 1 dé de moins ou de plus.

La couleur des dés utilisés est basé sur le nombre de dégâts de chaque figurines. Les rouges ayant des caractéristiques moins puissant que les jaunes et ces derniers moins que les blancs. 

Et ce n'est pas fini. Le système de corps à corps repose sur un choix de 5 types d'attaques qui se réalise à l'aide de cartes de combat. Il s'agit ici d'entrevoir votre adversaire et de le bluffer. Les résultats vous donneront des bonus/malus traduit en dés additionnels/octroyés.

Que du bonheur ! Depuis que Studio 38 a repris la licence, le jeu vie à nouveau et les règles sont téléchargeable gratuitement ainsi que toutes les cartes. Vous trouverez également un forum bien sympathique où l'on hésitera pas à vous aider et à répondre à vos questions.

Studio 38: http://www.figurines-studio38.com/ALKEMY.html

Pirate fantasy gang : Ogre

Here comes the ogre with canon, a big creature again.  Goblins have very low stats and this kind of big miniatures are very welcome to boost the goblins as a cutthroat crew. In addition to have very tough stats, he aslo has a crew of competent artillery snotlings. A danger at close range or at a very far distance.

Pirate Gang : Characters

Captain Krill , his drunken brother Dyphter and the sea shaman. These guys are full off originality. I love the crab on Krill's hat, the fact that you have to paint a tattooed treasure map on mr. Dyphter's belly and the crazy kraken on the shaman. I still have to make some stats for them for the Alkemy rules but I think it won't take long...

As for the painting, I really like the illustration Paul Bonner made for the crew, they all had that human skin tone (I love goblins and orks with human flesh colors). Hope you like it.

Pirate Troll

Working on a Goblin Pirate gang for playing with Alkemy. As a start, the Black Troll from Rackham. This is a lovely miniature to paint, full of funny details, like a cyclopic eye, rhum bottles, a fish tail, mushrooms, etc. I gave him a copper armor to avoid a too greyish overall appearance, especially on the rear.
Hope you like it.

Last act (4): The Oracle of Fire

The closing of our mini campaign: The Oracle of Fire will be attacked by the malicious Drunes. The Kelts must do everything in their power to prevent this from happening.


The Oracle: The Kelt player has the Oracle on his side. He has no magical power but can command the magical fires surrounding him. He can disperse a total of 8" to move the fire counters (8 in total) in any direction he wants but no fire counter can move no more than 3". If a model makes contact with a fire counter, he loses 1 wound level and is pushed back 1". Models may not pass through the magical fires, but they can jump over it.

The Drunes can extinguish the magical fires by using water mana. One water mana annihilates one fire counter in contact. Shamans and familiars can pass one or more water mana stones to a friendly model just by making contact.

The objective of the scenario: the Oracle of Fire.

Deployment: the Oracle is protected by kelt warriors functioning as bodyguards and a wall of magical fire. A Keltic archer stays in cover and will work as a sniper to anyone approaching the Oracle.

A group of Fiannas, the Danu warrior and the Kelt giant, supported by Orhain the Erudite form an advanced guard to protect the Oracle.

Taken by surprise by a Horned Raider's devastating charge, the rear left flank of the Kelts tries to recover itself and charges into the fray.

A lone Formor and Feylin charge the advanced guard hoping to cause maximum damage and create some diversion, but the Kelts stand their ground.

The horned raider finds himself engulfed in a three to one combat. Without the impetuosity of his cavalry charge, his situation becomes critical.

A wounded Feylin disengages the Kelts and jumps over a wall of fire, extinguishing a sacred flame with corrupted water mana in the process. Charging the Oracle, she wounds him in the action.

The Danu warrior transforms after several hits taken by the Giant. 

Boosted by the shamanic powers of Orhain, the Fiannas hold their position.

Due to the regenerating powers of the Soul Snatcher, the critically wounded Formor cannot win close combat with the Kelts and overcomes them.

A duel ensues between the two monstrous creatures.

The Oracle searches for safety in the stone circle.

It's Morgwen's turn to enter the battle. Overwhelmed by a feeling of revenge she attacks but quickly joins her sister in death.

The Oracle commands...

...the holy fires to protect his allies.

The battle of the titans continues as on their left, the Formor hears the screams of agony from the Soul Snatcher.

Exhausted, the Formor wins and pursues his mission.

Strongly positioned, the defenders regroup around the Oracle.

Surrounded by the magical fires the demonic Formor abandons its prey, leaving victory to the Kelts.

Act 3 : Tresim Ruamna - The Pillar of Earth

After corrupting the elements of water and air, the Drunes continue their quest into the forest of Caër Mna. The new objective is a sacred pillar that can generate earth mana by the sacrifice of blood.

The scenario : Both gangs try to retrieve as much earth mana stones as they can. Due to the Pillar of Earth, every time a kill happens the blood of the victim is soaked into the ground and turns into an earth mana stone. If a warrior is killed close enough towards the pillar (12"), two earth mana stones are placed instead of one. Recuperating a stone costs one action, except for shamans who can just pass over to retrieve it.

Setting : The Kelts are ambushed and deployed first at 6" of the pillar (in the center of the table). The Drunes start at 18" from the center of the table.

Duration : 6 turns. The gang obtaining most mana stones wins the game.

The Formor engages the giant while counter-charged by the hunter. The slow Manes come closer to support their demonic ally.

On the other side, the fight starts in the streamlet. The Kelt warriors try to reach the Hunchback who's protected by the Karnaghs.

Strengthen by Kelt magic, the giant can stand his ground against the Formor.

Hit by poisonous arrows the lion cannot engage the Drune archer. At the last moment, a Mane charges the creature in the back and collects its life power in the form of an earth mana stone.

One Kelt warrior fell. Corwyn recuperates an earth mana stone where the warrior lost his blood and his life.

Back on the other side. The hunter dies in agony, sliced in two by the Formor weapon. The familiar honors his dead by picking up two mana stones.

The Soul Snatcher and the Mane come closer to the central fight.

 

More wounds are taken by the Kelts in the streamlet. The Danu warrior is close to transforming any time soon.

 

 The Drune Formor finishes the giant off and takes his attention towards the druid. He will kill the shaman and his familiar and collect the precious stones.

 A cunning Kelt warrior disengages and charges towards Corwyn. 

 

The Karnagh charges back to help his master.

The Danu warrior finally transforms

and goes for a deadly charge to finish the Drune shaman. This would not be enough for the Kelts as the fight ends in favor of the Drunes who recuperated more mana than their counterparts.