New and Varied Interests

I guess I'm an eclectic gamer. I seem to be able to get interested in just about anything I pick up in a game store. Last month I went to visit my gaming buddy, Ed, In San Antonio. He had arranged for a game in Houston to play Wellington Rules; the game we intend to GM at Millennium X in Austin come November.

While we were playing, we also were scouting out the stock in Little Wars, the store that had graciously given us the space to play. Ed spotted some good looking 1:144 model aeroplanes and brought then to my attention. They turned out to be the models used for playing Wings of War the WWI flying game by Andrea Angiolino and Piergiorgio Paglia published by Fantasy Flight Games. We snapped up the planes that Little Wars had and a copy of Wings of War: Watch your Back and Wings of War: Burning Drachens.

It didn't take us long to figure out how to play. The mechanics are quite simple; soon Ed and I were circling around each other laying movement cards out in rapid succession. Whenever one or the other found an aeroplane in his arc of fire "Thaka-thatka-thaka!" was heard and damage taken by the unlucky (or in my case, inept) pilot.

It took us one game and we graduated to the optional special damage rules. These provided more color to the game. There are effects that result from taking a damage card with a special icon like engine damage, stuck rudder, etc.

I didn't mean to turn this into a review; there are plenty of those out on the net already. I meant only to convey how rapidly Ed and I were sucked into this game and how much fun it is.

Speaking of fun, while I was in San Antonio, Ed insisted that I take some issues of Dork Tower that he had laying around. I, of course, was aware of Kovalic's art and the comic but really hadn't paid much heed to it. The comics were free and so I started to read. This is funny stuff and very much adult humor. I mean adult in that it deals with grown-ups like me dealing who are afflicted with being gamers interfacing with the rest of the world. It's sort of a Dilbert for gamers.

So, after the trip to SA, I find myself in a game store, Kingmaker Games, in Augusta GA and I espy Kobolds Ate My Baby! Super Deluxx Edition by Chris O'Neill and Dan Landis. It's illustrated by John Kovalic and published by Ninth Level Games. This small hardbound book is only $14.99 and features Kovalic's cartoons (so it must be good!) so it went home with me. Just readin the rule book was hilarious, I can't wait to introduce it to my group.

Now I find myself back in San Antonio visiting Dragon's Lair with Ed who points out Dork Tower issue number thirty-six. It contains an adventure for KAMB!SDE (their abbreviation!) entitled Vosh, Slod and Bail go to White Castle. I won't reveal too much of this (for obvious reasons) but suffice it to say that King Torg (All hail king Torg!) sends his top three minions to find the mythical "baby" burgers supposedly located in the white castle in the land New Jersey.

I picked a couple of other new things too, but I'll save those for a later post.