Archive for the ‘ zen garden ’ Category

I’m thinking to the next Lucca Comics & Games. Yes, it is for the 1st of November but I have to prepare something to show to the audience. I haven’t got Zen Garden boxes anymore because I stopped their production. Maybe a new release in cardboard? Well, I wish newer things to old ones so I don’t think to give new life to the garden. This year I must complete my gladiatorial rules, so I haven’t so much time to develop another set of rules. Neither a fill-in. I have a great idea and I have started to work on this new project, but now it’s not the right moment. I hope my long awaited Ferrum et Gloria will be ready for November. Yeah, I know that I’m saying this thing year after year… So what to do? A playable and simplified demo? Playing with bigger figures? Propose a larger table with special effects? However I and Andrea have to think to what will be ready at that date for Ganesha Games so we can focus our efforts on some presentation. In the meantime the old Lucca C&G 2013 strike back. I found this official video on our Miniature Island. Sad thing: I and my table is not on it! However you have a general view of our space and Andrea is on it. Enjoy.

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Lucca C&G 2013: Ganesha Games

The last post on Lucca Comics & Games 2013. Always in the Miniature Island but regarding only our space as Ganesha Games.

We had some new realisations: BattleSworn, Samurai Robots Battle Royale, Of Gods And Mortals, Non Andare Nel Bosco D’Inverno. Song of Shadows and Dust was still only in digital format.

Andrea presented his last games with a double scenario, so he could play with monsters and robots or with gods or gambling warriors.

This is my table. On the left the debut of my small arena for Ferrum et Gloria. On the right the demonstration game with Zen Garden in its best and last White Edition.

At the end I sold all the copies. Here the empty space after the last box was sold. I’m happy of what I obtain with this game. I met a lot of people and some of them now is playing with my game. I must start to think on something new to bring at convention. Maybe I will develop an easy version of Ferrum et Gloria for casual players.

An official photo of the presentation of Of Gods And Mortals by Osprey in the conference hall of the Games pavilion.

Andrea after he was awarded with the prize called Premio Conan for the 2013. It stand out the best Italian personality for wargame world.

With this photo you can note the differences between my camera (the bottom photo) and a professional one (the upper photo). Add the unstable hand of Andrea and you can obtain a blurred photo of me at the end after 4 days of fair. Ready for another Lucca in 2014!

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Dadi.Com 2013: Ganesha’s showcase

After the overall review of Dadi.Com, now we are going to see the Ganesha Games presence. We were at full force, with me, Andrea, Sergio and Diego. Among other things, we spent a lot of money in the Bring & Buy, but we offered some demonstration games too. Andrea was in the convention with an OGAM preview. In the meantime he organised a brainstorm for the boardgame that he is writing in these days, as you can see in the photo. Instead Sergio took a pause from his new games and were inspired by Bizio’s work for an entirely new game.

The new edition of Zen garden is ready! It is the white one, after the black and the red. The final edition indeed. Better than before, with reorganised rules, more pagodas, white sand glued on the board and more sand available to add a real zen garden feel at the scenery. Gualtiero Grassucci is a fan and a promoter of the game: he play it to show wargame mechanics to children! Thank you!

This was the opportunity to show the last developments of Ferrum et Gloria to grognard public. I run some demonstration games trying new tweaks. A game with 4 people divided in 2 squads (retiarii versus secutor and scissor) was held. The fight became very hard and participant. It was a real challenge! A lot of blood was spread on the sand. During these days I tried a sagittarii fight and in another game I put 3 equites versus 3 equites. To adapt the core rules to these two gladiatorial categories I had to study something to reflect their specific methods of fight, because they use bows or mount horses.

Now my arena is better too. I put some spectators on the bleaches and some improvement was done. I have got rules for referee too…

Herat was a game about Italian development in Afghanistan based on Flyin’ Lead rules by Ganesha Games. It was a valid scenario with a lot of models, houses and a bazaar. It won a prize. I wish a modern Italian army too, but these miniatures are out of commerce.

Another club chose OGAM for a demonstration game. The scenery was better than those made by Andrea. He is always focused on mechanics and the scenery is pretty scarce. These chaps instead have found a game that can substitute other fantasy games. So they have cured the aesthetic aspect too. OGAM will be out towards October, so you have to wait some months to read the rules. Here a game with Vikings versus Greeks. On the book you will find Egyptians and Celt too. If I would find some free time, I have to develop Sumerian and Shardana lists for future official expansions.

So, this was Dadi.Com, the wargame convention of South Europe… I don’t know if the next year I will present here my finished gladiatorial rules or if I will be in San Marino again. In the meantime this year we will have two big convention in Italy, Lucca Comics and Games in November and Ludica in December. And for the 16th of June a new wargame convention will be held in Rome. On these pages the future reports.

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Upcoming: “Dadi.Com 2013”

The next weekend is Dadi.com time, the 13th edition of the southern Europe’s foremost wargame show. It is held in San Marino, an enclave State inside Italy. This is the first time that I will participate in this location. I’ll run Ferrum et Gloria and Zen Garden demonstration tables. Andrea from Ganesha Games will be with me and his new Of Gods And Mortals. San Marino is far from Rome, so I will be involved with this trip from Friday to Monday. On these pages a report as soon as possible, even if I think I will pretty tired after this holiday.

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Annual Legio Palatina reunion

Christmas is the time of the year when Luca come from London to meet his old mates here in Rome. His wife is a writer for the Roma guide by Lonely Planet so all the family is here for the copy edit of the new annual edition. So we have got Luca, while Narciso come from Canino. Hence we can organise a Legio Palatina reunion year after year, even if Maurizio is missing while Paolo is in Switzerland with his pregnant wife. Our club still lives for a day.

This time we have got two new full members: Gabriel and Jack. Their father is teaching them the wargame basis for future glory on the game boards. But they still have some confusion. Gabriel displayed some 15mm single based modern troops with flamethrowers in our mini Large Battle SDS in 28mm scale. Smaller but more deadly indeed.

Diego opened his house for the first time ever! It could be perfect headquarters for our club, but he wants to preserve it for something less important. As you can see, it is along a railway. This fascinate me in some way.

Andrea was with us from the morning. We playtested again Song of Spear and Shield with Diego. Later we did a collective visit to the local wargame store, now only few blocks from Diego’s house. And after a lunch with pasta, the afternoon with the kids, SDLB and snacks, the evening with some ugly reality shows about Yankee food while we were waiting that Luca consigned the kids to their mother in another part of the city, we ate the annual dinner based on pizza and beer.

To digest we playtested a new game from Ganesha based on western films. Four players, two sides. My dices were so bad that I did nothing at all! At least the others had fun with the game.

The classic reunion photo. So we can see photo after photo the passage of the years, but even the fact that we are always here together year after year!

In the night Narciso and Andrea slept in Diego’s house. Because they are two famous long-winded people, they fell asleep very late. In the late morning we visited IKEA to buy some stuff: assorted for Narciso, two bookshelves to put inside the miniature closet for Andrea, some Zen Garden bases for me.

Then me and Andrea made another playtest to the western game. On my Christmas red tablecloth. This time I had only good dices and Andrea the bad ones. I can say that they are some interesting concepts in the game but there are lots of things to do before it can be full playable. Something for late 2013 or 2014 because there are so many new rules that have to be published by Andrea this year, and the next.

The 2012 passed away, the begin of 2013 was still with a holidays atmosphere, Luca was almost leaving for London, so we setted another reunion, even if shorter. This time Diego and Narciso were playtesting Ferrum et Gloria with some tweaks about thraeces and andabatae.

Another club photo before of another pizza and beer dinner. Maybe I will see Luca in London for Salute. Maybe we will be here another time 12 months more later.

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Ludica Roma 2012: ganesha

Thanks to Luciano and Valentina we had got a huge space for our Ganesha Games stand. Andrea was running a demonstration table for beginners with the new edition of Song of Blade and Heroes. So some people and children discovered the world of wargame. At the same place were possible to taste the water of the upcoming Of Gods And Mortals. We sold half of the book rules that we brought. And my Zen Garden game gone sold out quickly. Now I want to realise a little more luxury new version of it. Ready for Play Modena next year, I think. Only 15 copies and nevermore.

As you remember my arena was stolen in Lucca convention. Now I have built a better and larger arena by a Playmobil set. It is still needy of a paintwork to give a less toyish feel and some structure improvements. In the works, but good even now. A lot of children was attracted by it. Hey, it is not a toy for children, it is a toy for adults! ; )

Andrea stayed in Rome for 5 days. We playtested Song of Spear and Shields the day before, the first (desert) day of the fair and the day after. Andrea was not so happy about some aspects of the game so he wanted to stop it and to throw it away. But I insisted to save the core rules, leaving the group rules to a future game with more miniatures. I want this game a lot, I am almost a co-author of it. Now I’m waiting the feedback from the drafting of the version for external playtesters to have something more delineated to work.

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Lucca C&G 2012: ganesha stand

This year the Ganesha Games team was composed by me and Andrea. We were in the Miniatures Island managing a demonstration table.

Every day Andrea chose a different game to show to the public. This one is Song of Blades and Heroes II. He was showing to people that you can play with just a bunch of miniatures and it isn’t necessary to buy tons of minis from a multinational game company.

My duty in the fair was to show the Ganesha Games concepts and rules to promote wargames with miniatures. I had my games side by side with Andrea’s games. Other tables were running their demonstrations at only few cm from us. But I was so busy that I barely glance at them!

Another game showed was a preview of the upcoming Samurai Robots Battle Royale. Tomorrow I will meet Andrea at my home for another playtest.

Some people had the opportunity to give a try to Of Gods And Mortals, that will be published by Osprey the next year. Sorry, I didn’t take a photo of it. You can only see a leaflet with its cover. Instead here again Go Nagai’s creations.

I sold all the Zen Garden copies that I brought with me to the fair. Girls are genetically attracted by my little beautiful garden. I demonstrated or explained this game to enthusiastic and curious people. The best selling was to an operator for autistic boys and girls. He told me that autistics have a lack of interest in larger and complex things but they pay special attention to details. My game, with its small and delimited elements, can be useful to create a play moment to communicate with these kind of people.
Now I have got only three copies for Ludica convention. They are the lasts of the 30 made. I’m thinking about a Zen Garden II for the 2013, but only in 15 copies. I prepared a demo version of Ferrum et Gloria too.

Gualtiero Grassucci was in Lucca with his “À la guerre” rules. And he was there even to take a prize for his activity as “wargame promoter” at school. Yes, he is really a promoter: while I was around in the fair, he explained my game to a father and son. He mastered a game without my help!

This is the last photo took to my gladiator arena. In the night between Saturday and Sunday someone stolen it! I leave it on the table after the fair closure of Saturday. They could steal miniatures or other more precious things, but only my arena was missing. I presume that a cleaner saw a box (the arena!) and threw it away… It is sad to be criticized in this way…

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Alt si gioca 2012: the report

More on the beautiful Alt si gioca convention. This time some photos and comments. There are some previews about Ganesha Games new games too. But if you want to see more photos go to the two Dropbox photo archives:
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/upm85fpqbni2m3y/jmdS3HOhyL
https://www.dropbox.com/sh/3hezsv8m5sm74as/-rvZ1WN1bT

Former city of Bologna fair manager, now author of SDS game series and other games, Sergio Laliscia at the convention organisers desk.

The huge Ganesha Games stand with the Origins prize among Napoleonic rules. A show of some of the rules produced by Andrea Sfiligoi. Some are still in the works. On the wall some funny posters about dance folk music performed when the hall is populated by local elder people.

A demonstration game and playtest of the upcoming Of Gods And Mortals, out the next year for Osprey publishing. A classic: Greeks versus Vikings. Another time we have to test it with Egyptians…

Monsters Island with Mighty Monsters rules. This is only a display indeed. An usual fight is with 3/4 monsters per squad.

Samurai Robot Battle Royale is in an advanced development. We are thinking about a Gundam style match at my home soon. We have the book cover and some posters will be ready for Lucca Games in Halloween time. The rules are almost ready for an open playtest.

A display with Apocalypticum miniatures. Andrea postponed the development of these rules because he wanted to dedicate himself to other books. But now he wish to fix the rules utilising the notes that he collected with playtests. To start a new and definitive playtest phase.

A game with Drums & Shakos Large Battle. I think that these rules don’t have the right attention that they deserve from the potential players. It is a really valid Napoleonic system. Well, it is a bestseller in Ganesha Games sales but I don’t read about it often on the web. Please, give it a try, it is revolutionary, historically determined, fast and fun.

My children: Zen Garden and Ferrum et Gloria. I sold two boxes of the former at the convention. The gladiator game instead was practically proposed in a display mode here, but at Lucca Games convention I will present a scenario to show it easily to people.

Sherlock Holmes display. A gracious scenario full of Victorian little scenes: lamps, cobblestone ground, coaches, tramps, dogs and cats and other life scenes. I fell in love with it! I like the houses very much too. I saw them in Salute a year and half ago but here they are painted better. I want them for my Flyton city.

The huge 15mm Napoleonic display. Almost 11000 pieces. Sergio spent 5 hours to place them on the tables! Maybe next year he will have got more miniatures…

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