Hi all!
In this first of two very special episodes of the Life of Die Podcast I've been lucky enough to be joined by none other than Andy Chambers himself to discuss the Strontium Dog Miniatures Game and the Judge Dredd Miniatures Game!
This first podcast takes us through Andy's journey as lead designer in creating the system which was the template for both games and, in my honest opinion, makes for a fascinating listen for anyone interested in either of those, or indeed anyone who wants to know more about the development process of a tabletop gaming system.
If you enjoy listening to this half as much as I did asking the questions, you're in for a treat!
P.S. There's a juicy piece of news in there too...
https://youtu.be/Ev_HO8U8B34
That reveal! I was braced to hear the words 'Rogue Trooper', but instead, fffffffffffff...!
One of my 3 Most Wanted minis ranges, just ahead of Nemesis and Dante. Sign me up, you bastards.
Quote from: TordelBack on 28 January, 2021, 11:58:34 PM
That reveal! I was braced to hear the words 'Rogue Trooper', but instead, fffffffffffff...!
One of my 3 Most Wanted minis ranges, just ahead of Nemesis and Dante. Sign me up, you bastards.
Yeah, I was geeking out about that at the time!
And I was so pleased when he mentioned that he was such a fan of Nemesis & the ABC Warriors - so hope springs eternal! Thanks for listening Tordelback, I'm delighted you enjoyed it!
Enjoyed that Bissler Good work👍🏻
Nice podcast (even if I only listened to the first ten minutes and the last two.) I would undoubtedly spend a ridiculous amount of money buying up all the initial models for the new game and then leave them in their boxes for years as I'm afraid to ruin them with my shite painting skills.
Thanks chaps, I greatly appreciate your taking the time to give the podcast a listen and commenting with kind words! Obviously there's more to come from Andy Chambers in the second part (hopefully in a week or so), but it's my intention to try to step up with some more 2000AD-related gaming videos to add to the few already on my channel.
Out of interest, are there any things in particular you'd like to see more of? Gaming reports? Unboxing videos? Miniatures videos?
Quote from: I, Cosh on 29 January, 2021, 03:07:48 PM
Nice podcast (even if I only listened to the first ten minutes and the last two.) I would undoubtedly spend a ridiculous amount of money buying up all the initial models for the new game and then leave them in their boxes for years as I'm afraid to ruin them with my shite painting skills.
Cosh, I similarly don't think I'm the greatest at painting miniatures, but I'd encourage you to give it a go. You may well already know this, but one thing I think really makes miniatures look at lot better is adding a wash like Nuln Oil as it pulls all the details out of the miniatures. It was something I didn't know for years and it came as a bit of a revelation to me when I found out about it!
Enjoyed this, thanks for posting! I'll give the video about the Alien RPG a listen in a bit too.
Quote from: The Bissler on 29 January, 2021, 03:32:05 PM
one thing I think really makes miniatures look at lot better is adding a wash like Nuln Oil as it pulls all the details out of the miniatures.
This. If you're feeling a bit more adventurous check out the contrast paints from Games Workshop. Like most things GW they're hugely expensive but they combine base coat, inkwash and limited highlight in one go. I use them for big chunks of figures or for boardgames etc and you can get a good looking model in very little time and with very little effort. Plus it'll boost your confidence on painting and your models will looks totally sweet!
Quote from: Barrington Boots on 29 January, 2021, 03:45:37 PM
Enjoyed this, thanks for posting! I'll give the video about the Alien RPG a listen in a bit too.
Quote from: The Bissler on 29 January, 2021, 03:32:05 PM
one thing I think really makes miniatures look at lot better is adding a wash like Nuln Oil as it pulls all the details out of the miniatures.
This. If you're feeling a bit more adventurous check out the contrast paints from Games Workshop. Like most things GW they're hugely expensive but they combine base coat, inkwash and limited highlight in one go. I use them for big chunks of figures or for boardgames etc and you can get a good looking model in very little time and with very little effort. Plus it'll boost your confidence on painting and your models will looks totally sweet!
Ah, I'd forgotten about the new contrast paints, I've never gotten around to ordering any but I've heard nothing but good things about them!
Quote from: The Bissler on 29 January, 2021, 03:32:05 PM
Quote from: I, Cosh on 29 January, 2021, 03:07:48 PM
Nice podcast (even if I only listened to the first ten minutes and the last two.) I would undoubtedly spend a ridiculous amount of money buying up all the initial models for the new game and then leave them in their boxes for years as I'm afraid to ruin them with my shite painting skills.
Cosh, I similarly don't think I'm the greatest at painting miniatures, but I'd encourage you to give it a go. You may well already know this, but one thing I think really makes miniatures look at lot better is adding a wash like Nuln Oil as it pulls all the details out of the miniatures. It was something I didn't know for years and it came as a bit of a revelation to me when I found out about it!
Not having a steady hand I opted to make my Stront figures black, white & grey (just like most of the strips I read all those years ago). A wash with black and Little dry brush with white and the details start to pop out. This way I don't have to be too careful with the 2/3 colours I use as base coats. 👍🏻
I only add colour to one item i.e. a hat, hair or badge just to make it a wee bit interesting. I found the amount I had bought daunting to start with but I found the above quite a quick way to get through the minis and ready to play. 😁
Fantastic listen! Good to hear both of your 2000AD histories there - like yourself, I got into RPG/Gaming via GW's 2000AD line. I'd be interested in Andy Chambers thoughts on Necromunda being originally designed as a Dredd Gang based game - didnt realise he was behind it (had wandered away from GW when they dropped all their franchises)
Interesting to see Andy pick up on the scale problem - hadnt considered it might be due to digital sculpting, but kinda makes sense - doesnt make sene of how it is still happening on the Dredd range though!
As for the new game, that should be a huge success - the various factions are perfect for translation into a war game setting
Quote from: Leigh S on 30 January, 2021, 06:13:27 PM
Fantastic listen! Good to hear both of your 2000AD histories there - like yourself, I got into RPG/Gaming via GW's 2000AD line. I'd be interested in Andy Chambers thoughts on Necromunda being originally designed as a Dredd Gang based game - didnt realise he was behind it (had wandered away from GW when they dropped all their franchises)
Interesting to see Andy pick up on the scale problem - hadnt considered it might be due to digital sculpting, but kinda makes sense - doesnt make sene of how it is still happening on the Dredd range though!
As for the new game, that should be a huge success - the various factions are perfect for translation into a war game setting
Thanks so much for listening and giving your feedback! I love that we have similar gaming origins! I've had a lot of fun running the old GW game again of late, and it was really weird that Andy's first experience Judge Dredd was for a story I've factored in to a JD adventure I've just written! Presumably at the time you picked up the Companion and the Judgement Day and Slaughter Margin supplements as well?
Yes, Andy was great to talk to and agree that he was very open and honest - and I also agree that the new game does have that potential for an exciting translation to the tabletop. It's been news has largely gone unnoticed, probably because I think people aren't listening all the way through and missing out on it. I appreciate that the fans like yourself who are listening have been careful not to reveal the secret because I think what Andy is talking about should be the real focus, exciting as it is!
I'm looking forward to the next chat, this time with us focussing on the Judge Dredd Miniatures Game.
In the second part of my exclusive interview with Mr Andy Chambers, the focus moves on to Warlord Games' Judge Dredd Miniatures Game...and beyond! Enjoy!
https://youtu.be/tegqQb9nXMw
Another good listen Bissler 👍🏻
I'll be looking forward to more Dredd characters in the future and I hope they don't take too long in bringing out further ranges other than the one mentioned in your blog.
Quote from: Trooper McFad on 05 February, 2021, 10:38:46 PM
Another good listen Bissler 👍🏻
I'll be looking forward to more Dredd characters in the future and I hope they don't take too long in bringing out further ranges other than the one mentioned in your blog.
Thanks for listening TM! There hasn't been a release date given yet for Slàine yet, so if there are other 2000AD games in the pipeline, I wouldn't expect them any time soon. From memory the SD & JD games were released at least a year apart, so even if Slàine was to be released this year, that's still a bit of a wait until the next one.
Now that the Andy Chambers interview is completed, I was wondering what 2000AD gamers would like me to do next?
More podcasts with me talking about how the games captured some of the flavour of the strips?
Discussions about the different units?
A How To Play Tutorial?
Battle Reports? Should I complete the Strontium Dog "Conspiracy" video series I started? e.g. https://youtu.be/yZxsc8U3LU0
https://youtu.be/VUc1yx3kL2I
I've finally posted the interview up as a single podcast! There's no additional discussion, just to save people clicking on two links!
https://youtu.be/_X2U9sSQmtA
Cheers dude. I'm not a huge podcast guy but I enjoyed this. Going forward I'm always a fan of Battle Reports..
Quote from: Barrington Boots on 22 February, 2021, 12:37:37 PM
Cheers dude. I'm not a huge podcast guy but I enjoyed this. Going forward I'm always a fan of Battle Reports..
Thanks BB - and I appreciate you letting me know what you'd like to see! I've had a few requests elsewhere to put together a how to play video, so apologies in advance, but I think that will be first. That said, if I could trouble you to ask a little bit more about the battle reports, would you prefer to see the game played out real time or something more in the vein of my Strontium Dog battle reports which are really narrative driven and boil the action right down to a minimum? Videos for the latter don't really explain the mechanics as such and would last probably only for about 10-20 mins overall, whereas realtime play would probably come in around the 1/2 hour to 2 hour mark depending on size of game. Making realtime videos are easier to do than the large amounts of video editing I do for the other ones, but I have my doubts about how many people would really be interested in watching something that long so your thoughts are welcomed!
No need to apologise to me!
Personally I prefer a shorter video due to time constraints. Definitely narrative for me - like the old battle reports you'd get in White Dwarf. I liked the previous SD battle reports, I'm not sure I'd watch a 2 hour video of a full battle in all honesty but I'm not sure how well I represent the average user.
I'd say do what you are happiest doing, tbh
This is good to know, thanks! I enjoy doing the bite-size narrative-heavy videos (and agree with you that I personally think they're more interesting and accessible to watch than raw footage of a game) but, equally, I would have understood too if there was a preference to show a game unfold in realtime so people can really understand the mechanics and see the ebb and flow of a game unfold in full unedited realtime. I've heard anecdotally though that a lot of people watch these longer videos while they are painting their own minis, so I wouldn't rule it out if I felt there were people who would prefer that kind of report. Thanks again for sharing your thoughts Mr Barrington Boots! I know you're not a man to be trifled with, so it's greatly appreciated! ;)
I'd welcome thoughts from other forum members too about what they'd like to see!
Quote from: The Bissler on 24 February, 2021, 02:47:34 PM
I know you're not a man to be trifled with, so it's greatly appreciated! ;)
You're welcome and good spot on the reference!
I've never considered a video whilst painting - I usually prefer music - but I will give this a try!
Quote from: Barrington Boots on 24 February, 2021, 03:55:57 PM
You're welcome and good spot on the reference!
I've never considered a video whilst painting - I usually prefer music - but I will give this a try!
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'Outlaw' is my favourite ever Strontium Dog storyline so I got lucky there!
Yes, I love my music so I would choose to listen to music as well! But if people find my videos or podcasts fun and/or relaxing to watch/listen to while they paint, I'm chuffed with that!