Office Gaming

What do you do when you have time to kill at work, a new game to learn and no minis with you?

You make your own pieces and play at your desk, right?

Well maybe not everyone does, but I did. I have had my copy of Land Ironclads forever now and have never had a chance to play yet. I've made minis for it and even read the rules once through, but still not played it and I really wanted to get a feel for the rules.

With this in mind, I created some pieces (shown below) out of simple scrap card and markers and went on my happy dice-rolling way throughout the day. The funny thing is that after a game or two I wanted terrain, and so started making sections of woods and hills out of more card.



By the end of the day I had a small greeting card envelope stuffed with an entire collection of counters that could be used to play Land Ironclads or even other games. All I would need is a copy of the rules and my handy dandy travel dice and I would be ready to play during any lull in the activity at work. That is, assuming I am not painting figs.

Give it a try, you might like it.

Take care,

-Eli

A Farewell to Mohawks

So the time has come for me to make a change and part of the change has been the removal of the mohawk that has served me well. The funny thing about a hairstyle is people get attached to it. At work, I was "the guy with the mohawk" and now I am not. There are people who do not recognize me at first.

Take a look at my profile pic if you want to see the new me. I now look a little closer to my age now, too.

Take care,

-Eli

Albedo Anthropomorphics - Spacecraft

EDF scout ship Flanked by two ACV (Autonomous Combat Vehicles)

Spacecraft in Albedo were about as hard scifi as you could get and still be scifi. Big, useform and about as plain as you could get without being lame. They came in tow forms - glorified space shuttles and large cylindrical FTL vessels. In either form, they remind me of the ships from Traveller a lot.

From what I can tell, offensive weapons fall into two categories - Autonomous Combat Vehicles (ACV) and direct fire weapons (laser, particle beams, masers). Each has its role in combat depending on the type of engagement.

The most universally useful is the ACV which is a non-explosive, self-guiding, hyperkinetic smart weapon. Capable of coordinating with one another and the launching vessel, ACVs juke and dodge, dogfighting with one another until one of them can score a hit on an enemy vessel. They do not carry payloads, hitting with enough velocity that they can inflict severe damage or even destroy another vessel with the sheer force of their impact alone. Such weapons are useful during planetary assaults and closing engagements where speeds are too great for the effective use of energy weapons.

Energy weapons are most useful during chasing engagements, orbital encounters or in other situations where ships are in closer proximity to one another or where the encounter is such that greater speeds have not been reached or where maneuvering space is limited. The nature of energy weapons in Albedo requires them to have time to chew away at the armor and hulls of opposing vessels.

Ships in Albedo are equipped with advanced sensors and navigational tools as well as a plethora of computer-assisted navigation and helm controls. Internal systems, like many things in the Albedo universe, are heavily automated and computer-assisted. Everything from crew quarters to engineering and sickbay facilities are equipped with computerized systems and robotic tools.

As the ships in Albedo do not benefit from artificial gravity, their decks are stacked with up and down only relative while the ship is under thrust and generating its own "gravity". When at a stop, the ship interior spaces are under zero-gravity conditions, Interior spaces are kept clean, useful and uncluttered. Vecro patches, anchor hooks, and push-through portals are numerous to facilitate low and zero-gravity conditions.

The two ship diagrams below show the relative arrangements of decks and ship components between an FTL scout and destroyer type vessel.


(Click on pictures for larger images)

Shuttles and other interface craft are fairly standard fair in Albedo being mostly aerodynamic shapes using vectored thrust for maneuvering in the atmosphere. Most of them function like huge aerodynes in the atmosphere. There are exceptions and various heavy-lifting vessels also exist, looking much like the spheroid dropships from the Battletech universe.

I'm not sure where to go with Albedo from here. I think I've touched on most of the really cool tech and style bits. There is a lot about the setting and the cultures portrayed in it that I could go into, but outside of the context of the comics, I'm not sure they are really all that exciting. If I think of anything else about the Albedo setting that is post-worthy, I'll be sure to do so.

Hope you've enjoyed reading about Albedo.

Take care,

-Eli

Albedo Anthropomorphics - Non-Combat Uniforms

This is just a brief post to show off some of the other uniforms in the Albedo/Erma Felna universe. These are all EDF uniforms and the plate includes an EDF Battle Dress picture for comparison. Unfortunately, the comics never really show us much of the ILR out of battle dress. Being the "bad guys" of the comic, and given that the story is told mostly from the EDF side of things, their wasn't much call for it.




Next time, space ships!

Enjoy,

-Eli

Albedo Anthropomorphics - Aerodynes

One of my favorite vehicles in all of Albedo has got to be the aerodyne. Seen in many sizes and in many duty roles, aerodynes are the work horses of the Erma Felna setting. Seen in both light and heavy forms and fulfilling any role from simple utility to troop transport and even gunship. Light aerodynes usually mounted just a couple of weapons mounts, usually ventral turrets for laser or autocannons and could carry up to six fully equipped soldiers or two more weapon mounts and 1 to 2 specialists to operate the additional weapons. There are high-performance aerodynes that are better versions of the light aerodynes having greater engine output and payload.

Heavy aerodynes are mainly transports and are used for vehicle and bulk supply transport, carryign anywhere from 10-36 tonnes of cargo. In the RPG materials for the setting, they are designated by a "D" an then a number designating its tonnage capacity (D10, D20, etc). They are usually armed with a pair of ventral weapons mounts, similar to the light aerodynes. There are even gunship models that carry up to four ventral turrets and up to two central mounts capable of mounting light hyperkinetic guns. Gunship models carry no passengers but carry a number of weapons specialists and extra ammo instead.

The diagram below shows the parts of a common light aerodyne.

I do hope you are enjoying these posts as much as I am enjoying sharing the world of Albedo and Erma Felna EDF. The next posting will be a short one, showing off some of the non-combat uniforms.

Take care,

-Eli

Albedo Anthropomorphics - Vehicles Part 2

The tech level in Albedo is pretty advanced, despite the very familiar look of it. Much of the technology is automated to some degree and many systems in the universe utilize sophisticated interfaces and intuitive technologies. The worlds in the pages of Erma Felna EDF are highly computerized, surveyed, and secure. Cameras, sensors, and monitors of all sorts are everywhere, making for a controlled society. This same level of technology spills over into the vehicles in the setting.



The ILR 6-wheel Scout Car in the cut-away diagram here is from one of the Albedo RPG books. It shows how the vehicle has been made small and compact, easily transported from world to world and reliant on a minimal number of crew.

The vehicle is powered by a hydrogen combustion turbine. This is backed up by thermoelectric converters that convert engine heat into electric power and help dampen the heat signature of the vehicle. The vehicle is driven on electric hub motor/breaks in each of it's six wheels, each wheel being independently powered. These features make the vehicle quiet and very efficient.

For protection, the vehicle is covered monomolecular armor that is incredibly strong due to it's layering of materials. the RPG resources state that vehicles in Albedo tend to run small and polarize along anti-vehicle and anti-infantry roles because of this armor which makes most vehicles immune to all but other vehicle weapons.

Control and crew interface systems are really cool with both driver and gunner/commander having multiple foot pedals and side stick controls that can be selected for various control functions. Both driver and gunner/commander can operate the vehicle on their own, each having full control over driving and gunnery. Each crewman is provided with full periscope sensors with a suite of IR, low-lite and even thermograph optics.

The vehicles has passenger space for four, allowing it to carry a scout team, or as seen in some of the comics assault teams. Internal blast doors and fragmentation screens protect those inside. The turret is very streamlined and features both a 10mm caseless MG and a 24mm caseless autocannon both electrically fired automatically fed.

I think the ILR scout car shows what makes the vehicles of Albedo so fun and interesting. Steve Gallacci definitely put his time into these vehicles both in making them aesthetically pleasing and technically believable.

Albedo Anthropomorphics - Vehicles Part 1

Vehicles in the Albedo comic are done in a very gritty manner. Wheels, tracks, all on the high end of mid-tech. Lasers exist but are not universal. Weapons range in size from 8-10mm caseless MGs to liquid-fueled auto-loading cannons of 120mm size.

As can be seen by the pictures above, the designs elements of the vehicles in the Albedo universe are very similar to some of those that were starting to creep into the vehicles in the world's armies in the 1980s. Multi-wheeled designs with lots of angular sloped fittings and a lot of obvious utility in the chassis are the norm.

One thing I really enjoyed in the vehicles designs was their use of small crews and automation as demonstrated by the use of remote turrets on the ILR 6-wheeler above and the tracked EDF APC below. Many of the vehicles even sported multiple remote turrets.

The next installment will continue to look at the vehicles in Albedo.

Thanks for reading,

-Eli

Albedo Anthropomorphics - Combat Uniforms

Erma Felna EDF always had a very solid aesthetic to it and one of the things that established this was the solid uniforms and very defined kit on the soldiers. This was often in stark contrast to the loose-fitting civilian clothing depicted in the comics. I remember reading or hearing someplace once that this was a result of Steve Gallacci being a bit unsure of his ability to draw good anatomy. Whether or not this is entirely true Erma Felna EDF features some very believable uniforms for both field, base duty, and utility.

As you can see by the pictures of the combat uniforms above, Gallacci has put a lot of thought in how the uniforms function and accommodate the anatomy of the humanoid animals that wear them. I have always loved the layers of armor and the numerous utility pockets. Some of the helmets must really be uncomfortable for the animals (especially the rabbit in the helmet at the bottom) but like a lot of real world combat gear I suppose it's best to be a protected and a bit uncomfortable. If the weapons look a bit small it's because in the Erma Felna universe they use sabot bullets with extremely high velocity penetrating flechettes instead of conventional bullets but I'll do more on that later.

In the next post, I'll look int othe vehicles of the Albedo/Erma Felna EDF Universe

Take care,

-Eli

Albedo Anthropomorphics - Inroduction

Back in my high school days in the 80's there was a huge craze in comics over furry animals. I never understood the appeal myself and for the most part ignored the genre craze and stuck to my super hero comics and gritty independents, but there was one comic that got stuck in with the rest of the "furry" stuff that I really loved and always thought was misplaced, genre-wise. This comic was Albedo Anthropomorphics.

Albedo was a sort of magazine dedicated to collecting independent furry comics under one one binding but what drew me to it was the story of Erma Felna EDF. This was a comic drawn by a local (to WA) artist by the name of Steve Gallacci and it depicted a rather interesting blend of furry animals and a very gritty, hard sci-fi setting. Though the animal art was cool, what always gripped me about this comic was the sleek, defined technology and scenery that really set this up as a believable science fiction setting.

Lately I have been looking back through the scattered issues of this series that I have as well as the RPG resources that have come out for it over the years and marveling at how well it stands up two decades later. The stories are very political and serious and the gear is very much thought out and believable. I really wish it had done better and/or found a solid comeback. Unfortunately, I think it's humanoid animal cast has always colored people's views of the series. For me, it was always more like reading about a setting where all the characters were Aslan, Vargr, etc.

My hope is to show off a few of the fine details of this series that I loved so much. It's not miniatures, but there certainly are some huge possibilities for inspiration here.

-Eli

Not Dead!

Hey all,

Sorry there hasn't been much in the way of new posts here. I've been caught up in the whole back to school thing. My oldest daughter is returning to school and my youngest is starting this year, so there is much to do.

I hope to be back up and running with some new stuff soon, so keep on checking in.

Thank you for your readership,

-Eli