Kickstarter Unboxing : Deadzone Infestation

So, it's time for another Kickstarter unboxing. I've had this one in my hands for a good month now, which has given me plenty of time to go through its contents and formulate my opinion thereof. I've been looking forward to this Kickstarter for a while, as my beta test review indicates, and I'm really happy with what I've gotten out of it.

So without further ado, let's get down to the nitty gritty.

Also yes I'm aware it's hardly an unboxing when you do it a month or two after you've already opened it and gone through the contents. Shut up.

What Did I Get? :

Weeell, quite a bit, actually. Like all Mantic Kickstarters this one certainly didn't skimp on content. Specifically I paid for the Quarantine Pledge and went for the Enforcer faction booster. I also paid a bit extra for the deluxe gaming mat which I'll talk more about later.

I'll start with the Terrain, which as you'd expect is part of Mantic's signature Battlezones terrain system. Just like the original range it's a selection of panels and accessories that can be clicked together to construct buildings, watch towers, industrial machinery and the like. This set comes with a LOT more accessories, in the form of fans, conveyor belts, walkways and a LOT of piping. I absolutely love this stuff, it's amazing terrain for the cost and as well as being nice and durable (being made of hard plastic) it looks really damn good.. Even my girlfriend who is not a fan of the early Battlezones set's chunky appearance really loves the industrial feel of this terrain.

Next up are the models, almost all of which are the same hard plastic that Mantic are shifting into using and that Games Workshop have been using for years. I got a good selection of models in my Kickstarter, which are as follows...

• 10 Enforcer Pathfinders.
• 5 Enforcer Peacekeepers.
• 2 Pathfinder D.O.G Drones.
• 2 Enforcer Jetbikes.
• 10 Veer-myn Night Crawlers / Night Stalkers.
• 2 Veer-myn Shredders.
• 5 Forge Fathers Steel Warriors
• 1 Enforcer / Plague / Reb Strider (This model is sadly not in hard plastic, instead being made of the resin plastic Mantic used for a lot of early models.)

All of the above models come with plenty of weapon and equipment options, such as Defender Shields for the Peacekeepers, Sniper Rifles and melee weapons for the Pathfinders, and a selection of weapons for the Jetbikes that the published rules don't actually allow them to use... making me think the kit was pre-designed for the upcoming Warpath 2nd Edition release. I also got a few resin models

• N7-117, an Enforcer special character.
• The Piper and his rats, a Veer-myn special character.
• Blaine on Jetbike, the signature model that I really don't care about.

All of the models are really nice, well sculpted with plenty of detail and loads of extras and gubbins making them a delight for converters and obsessive bitz-box fillers like me. They're well posed and easy to put together too, the fact that they're mostly in hard plastic making them far more durable once they've been assembled with poly cement, minimising the need for pinning. The resin models are, just like those I received in my Dungeon Saga Kickstarter, are really crisply sculpted and look amazing. I'm really looking forward to getting some of these fella's assembled and painted.

There are some minor issues, the larger models (namely the Peacekeepers and Shredders) seem a bit sparse in terms of detail compared to the other models, feeling like they've been sculpted at a smaller scale and then upsized. Unlike the awful Valandor model from Dungeon Saga however they're still detailed enough that it's not really an issue, it's just noticeable by comparison.

Here are a few of the models blu-tacced together for your viewing pleasure. Again I apologise for the poor quality of the pictures due to me being restricted to a phone camera, but I think you can make out a reasonable amount of detail. From left to right on the back row we have my jetbikes, Blaine, the Piper, and NC7-117. On the front row we have a Night Crawler, a Steel Warrior, a Peacekeeper, a pair of Pathfinders, a D.O.G Drone and the Piper's rat swarms.

My absolute favourites out of my models are the jetbikes, which you can see here. There's something about the design that I adore, they're a perfect mixture of sleek and chunky, and the pair of stabilising vanes mounted on either side of the fuselage can be fitted as shown above or in a reverse position to frame the rider, both options looking equally cool. To be honest, it may be their resemblance for Imperial Scout Bikes that's winning me over, but is that such a bad thing?

I really do love the heavy, rubberised game mats that Mantic have released for Deadzone. Pictured here are my rubber mat and the basic paper version, both of which have the same print on them but the rubber version is simply superior in every way. If you're planning to play a lot of Deadzone, thoroughly recommend that you pick up the rubber version, it gives you a far more stable playing surface and is more resistant to accidental beverage based catastrophes.

Here we have the core rulebook, the Infestation campaign book, a small (A5) art print, the games counters, dice, and a small leaflet which has a Containment Protocol warning on the one side and a short letter from Mantic on the other

I'm a big fan of the small rulebook, it's solid, portable, well made, and presents the rules in a simple and straightforward manner. That's not to say it's perfect, as there are a few rules issues that I'll go into later in this post, and there are some problems with the layout that put me off somewhat, but overall it's a really solid rulebook. Said issues are a little messiness with the unit rules layouts, with said layout not being identical due to the size of the model pictures being used. It's a really daft, minor problem but my vaguely obsessive nature takes issue with it.

A greater problem is that there are a number of models who's unit photos are either repeated multiple times (this being the case for the Rin Nomad and Hund Rebel Bounty Hunter), or instead of having a photograph of the model have a placeholder symbol. I know full well that several of the models with these symbols did have concept art or sculpts when the book was released, so the failure to illustrate them is a bit lazy in my opinion.

The Infestation book is likewise a solid, well made little paperback that complements the core rules well. The counters are nice and thick, with just enough weight to them to make their scattering around the battlefield as models are moved a little less likely. The art print is alright, but it's too small for me to want to put it up anywhere, though I appreciate it's presence. I do like the small warning poster, and the letter to the backers on the other side is a nice touch and a nod towards the fans.

Here are the Command Dice, which I'll go into the use of later in this review. These are one of the few things in this Kickstarter that I feel a little let down by. The dice themselves feel strange, almost sticky in texture, making me think they're made of some very cheap plastic. Furthermore as you can see on the above picture the symbols on them are really poorly painted, with the pain smearing in and out of the recesses and giving them a very messy, non uniform appearance. I know it's a really minor quibble, but still I'm a little disappointed. I'll probably pick up some more at some point, once I can confirm the quality of them has improved.

Right, that's it for my physical rewards, let's move on to the game itself.

Fluff :

The core rulebook that came with my pledge doesn't really expand on the fluff provided in the first edition book and in the supplements that were released for it. The book itself focuses primarily on the rules of the game, which I'll get to in the next section of this review, and to be honest I appreciate that. Being a long time 40k player I'm used to a good 70% of the rulebook being filled with fluff, art and utterly unnecessary painting tips and model galleries. It's a breath of fresh air to have a rulebook which is just that, a book of rules.

What little background and story information the book contains consists of a single page spread near the start of the book, a half page for each faction in their respective army lists, and a sentence or two of fluff text for each of the available units. Like I said I'm not complaining, however I think for players fresh to the Deadzone/Warpath universe the contents of the box don't give them a properly detailed introduction to the setting and factions. That said the Deadzone/Warpath universe is still very young, especially in comparison to venerable franchises such as Warhammer 40,000, Warmahordes and the like.

The Deadzone Infestation supplement, on the other hand, is much heavier on story and background information as you'd expect from a campaign book. It provides an overview of the planet where the campaign takes place, it's history, and goes through each faction and their reasons for being interested in Exham IV and the orbiting facilities of Priory Station. Much like the earlier Nexus Psi and Contagion expansions there's plenty of fluff and a set of campaign rules specific to the planet in question, all of which is well written and provides valuable little story and fluff details.

Overall the quality of the fluff is solid, the Infestation book in particular doing a good job of depicting the Deadzone/Warpath universe as a suitably grim science fiction setting. It's got a much better feel to it than the background I've read for Mantic's fantasy products, and as I stated in my original Deadzone review it's a setting that I'd like to read more about and that I'm enjoying seeing expanded upon.

Currently the primary repository for Deadzone/Warpath (Deadpath?) setting information is the Warpath Universe website. As well as a basic overview of the setting the website also provides PDF dossiers for each faction, useful to new players of both Deadzone and Warpath in addition to providing extra detail for fluff lovers like myself. The original drafts of these dossiers were lack luster at best, and included a fair few self contradictory statements and fluff issues but I'm glad to see they've been ironed out over time and though there's still plenty I'd like to know about the setting the website is moving in the right direction.

Crunch :

So now we come to the rules of the game itself. I'm not going to go into a great deal of detail as I've already gone over the core rules of the game in both my original Deadzone review and my Beta game rules review. Instead I'll focus on what's changed, and how that effects the game for the better or for the worse. Overall the rules have been streamlined, with several mechanics having been removed entirely in favour of a more straightforward and easier to understand system.

Most notably the Command Cards are gone, and have been replaced with Command Dice. Instead of drawing and keeping a hand of cards that are used to augment figures and grant additional actions each player instead rolls a variable number of Command Dice, each result of which allows the use of a single special ability ranging from activating an extra model, to a bonus dice on a check, to a specific special ability determined by the model acting as the Strike Force leader. I'm happy with this change, and in my beta games it helped the game flow faster. Additionally in the first edition the size of the Command deck and its exhaustion determined the length of the game, something that always felt a bit arbitrary to me.

Likewise the Morale system has been revamped, with the different "levels" of morale having been entirely removed and replaced with a much simpler set of rules. Models are either unaffected by their morale or "Pinned", represented by placing the model on their size. Models can be pinned by morale effects, psychic powers, suppressing fire, and the effects of powerful explosives. 

Effectively it combines both the mental effects of a morale system with the disorientation and confusion caused by explosives and concussive effects. Again I like it, as it's a simpler way of dealing with what was in all honesty as slightly over complicated system.

A few of the modifiers for actions have likewise been removed, leaving each action somewhat simpler to resolve and with fewer variables. This is one of the areas where I actually dislike what's changed, namely that the Support Fire action that allowed multiple models to "gang up" on a more powerful model and combine their attacks into a single more powerful assault has been removed. When playing one of my Beta games the lack of such a rule as well as the fact that I had minimal anti-tank weaponry in my strike force was a major issue. I suppose the change is to force a level of tactical flexibility in force selection, which I'm not going to complain about, but still I think that the ability to perform combined attacks should have been retained.

The games Victory Conditions have also been streamlined. Whereas originally the game finished when certain conditions were met or when the Command Deck was exhausted, now the game ends when one or both players have accrued a set number of Victory Points. Under the new rules all models are worth a set number of VP's determined by the model and any upgrades it has taken (see later in this review for details of that). Likewise objectives have a set VP value that is earned at the end of every turn by the controlling player, making a mobility based game a lot more viable. I vastly prefer this to the original rules, as it adds a level of tension to the game that wasn't previously present whilst simultaneously making the conditions whereupon the game will end abundantly clear to all players.

Force selection has been altered, with a force consisting of one Leader model (and only one), along with any number of Troops, up to one Specialist per Troop, and on vehicle per three troops. In and of itself that's nice and simple, and multiple leaders were only really necessary in the original game as backups should the Strike Force leader be killed. Models are still able to take Items, with items being split into different Rarities the exact number of items available of each rarity being determined by the points value of the game. I don't have any issues with this, but I do find the naming convention in use somewhat odd, being in order of rarity from lowest to highest Common, Rare and Unique. I'd have used Common, Uncommon and Rare instead, seeing as the "Unique" items are hardly unique in the grand scheme of things. But that's me, and little things like that bother me...

Yes I'm weird, deal with it.

Also, whereas each model had set equipment under the original rules (save for the ability to take a single item), now most models can upgrade their weapons and replace them with others. I like this, as it cuts down on unnecessary unit profiles and allows a greater degree of force customisation. The way it's been implemented however is needlessly complicated, with weapons being split into many different categories and sub categories that individual models have access to specific permutations thereof. For example an Enforcer Sergeant is armed with a Pistol and an Energy Gauntlet, and has access to the Leader, Small Arms and Light (Melee) categories. Likewise I think that when replacing a weapon models should reduce the cost of their upgrade by the cost of the weapon they're replacing, as in come cases models have quite powerful armaments by default and the additional cost of an upgrade on top of that can get rather prohibitive.

Some of these categories and what models have access to them don't seem to make a lot of sense, and there are numerous typos and obvious mistakes that make equipping certain models rather confusing. For example the Marauder Guntrack has access to the Vehicle (Heavy) category, but the table of weapons at the end of the Marauders section has no weapons in that category. Likewise the Enforcer weapons table includes an "Electro Shock" weapon, this weapon has no categories and no model in the Enforcer list is armed with it by default. It seems... rushed, though I'll go into that later in this review.

The campaign rules have undergone a few alterations too, and overall they feel a lot more fluid. The need to have "Clearances" for different model and equipment types has been removed entirely, which I'm very thankful for as it was an utterly unnecessary restriction. Instead a starting Strike Force is limited in how much special equipment they can take but otherwise follows the normal rules for force selection. The way models advance as they accrue experience has also been improved, with players now able to choose their advancements instead of having to roll for them. Perhaps more importantly the entire system has been reworked to be closer to Mordheim and Necromunda, with factions making exploration rolls, being able to hold certain territories, that kind of thing. It's a lot more open and accessible than a linear campaign progression, and I appreciate it. I also really like the flavour of the exploration rolls, with variables depending on what faction is rolling and so on and so forth.

I'm undecided on how the rules for battles between a Strike Force and an "Underdog" force have been altered though, originally as a model accrued advances and special abilities it's points cost increased, making forces smaller and more elite as their members advanced in level. Now instead the less experienced Strike Force gains a number of "Underdog Dice" which can be added to rolls over the course of the game. I've not played enough campaign games to determine which approach I prefer, but that's something I'm going to try to get around to over summer.

Other than those changes and a few other minor tweaks the core rules are unchanged, and quite frankly that's a good thing as they didn't really need changing. I appreciate that Mantic don't feel the need to change everything when they update a game, and with the exception of my minor issue with the removal of combined attacks I think the rules have been greatly improved.

However while the rules themselves are very solid, a fair few of the entries for individual models have rules that are blatantly incorrect. For example the Enforcer Strider lacks the Construct rule (which both other Strider variants have), and instead has the Scout special rule. This is an obvious mistake and it's not the only one, I've already mentioned the discrepancies with weapon selection earlier in this review but another example would be that the rules for how many Victory Points are needed to win a game when playing games larger than the standard 100pt size are, well, missing. There is a table for them, but the contents of that table are completely incorrect and seem to reference a mechanic that was removed from the game in one of its earlier incarnations. Again Mantic seem to have been in a bit of a rush to get the book printed, and whilst the mistakes aren't as egregious as those in their Dungeon Saga kickstarter they're still present and make the need for more careful editing very obvious.

Conclusion :

Despite the fact that the last paragraph or so may seem rather negative, overall I'm really happy with the second edition of Deadzone. I regard is as very much an improvement over the games first edition, it plays quickly, it plays well, and despite the slightly obnoxious number of mistakes it's still a well made product that I'm more than happy to recommend.

Mantic still have some issues with quality, not of their models necessarily but of their rulebooks, their editing, and their peripherals. While I realise that a Kickstarter reward is not necessarily the final product, indeed I hope they learn from the handful of mistakes they've made with the Kickstarter version of this game and release a more refined product for the retail release, it's still an issue that keeps rearing its head with their products.

That aside however I'm really happy with my Kickstarter rewards, and I'm looking forward to playing a lot more Deadzone over the rest of the year. The quality of the models and improvements to the rules have actually left me regretting that I didn't get in on the Warpath 2E Kickstarter, my concerns with Mantic's Kickstarter quality that reared their head with my Dungeon Saga rewards having been mostly negated by the improved quality of this one.

I'm looking forward to see what Mantic do next, and while I'm unlikely to back their upcoming Dreadball 2E Kickstarter, I'm certainly going to be keeping an eye on whatever they decide to work on next as well as looking forward to the retail release of Warpath.

Until Next Time
Happy Gaming
Michael

Deadzone Infestation : Beta Playtest

(Rats! They're at it again!)

So, Deadzone.

As those of you who've read my review (one of the first posts I wrote for this blog in fact) are aware, I'm quite the fan of the Deadzone tabletop wargame. Released a few years ago now by our friends at Mantic Games it's a small scale skirmish game, notable for having rules that balance mechanical simplicity and tactical complexity remarkably well, in addition to its use of "Cubes" for both the effects of terrain and the measurement of distances. I played a fair bit of it when I first got my hands on the boxed set and have made sure to pick up all the expansions as they've been released, though unfortunately I've not played as much as I'd have liked over the last 6-8 months. That's something that I aim to change this year, both due to my 40k Campaign (yes, it's STILL in progress) having made me appreciate a system that lets you set up, play, and pack up in less than an hour; and the upcoming release of Deadzone Infestation.

Deadzone Infestation is effectively Deadzone 2E, with a new boxed set being released alongside an updated rules set, new models, and more factions. I kickstarted the project shortly after it was announced and am very much looking forward to its release which, according to a recent Kickstarter update, should be some time in March. As a backer I've been getting regular updates with regards to the project, which have included beta versions of the rules and Strike Force lists. Yesterday (as of the time of writing) one of my friends and I got together with our Strike Forces to give the latest version of the beta rules a whirl, which leads to the point of this post, an overview of the updated rules and how they compare to the original version.

So, let's get down to business shall we?

What's Changed? :

What, indeed, has changed? Quite a bit! Though the core rules of the game have stayed the same with regards to dice pools, combat actions, and the use of Cubes for movement and range measurement, many of the other mechanics have been tweaked if not dramatically altered.

Firstly the entirety of the Command system has been dramatically reworked, with the Command stat having been entirely eliminated along with the Battle Cards and the Command action. They've been replaced with a massively simplified system in the form of a set of Command Dice and Faction/Commander specific command effects, it's a much simpler system but one that even after having played a handful of games I'm already quite pleased with. Basically at the start of each game turn both players roll 3 Command Dice (D6's), rolling additional dice if they still have an active Leader model with the Tactician special rule. These dice are put to one side, with the number rolled on each determining what that dice can be expended during the turn to do. A 1, for example, allows a second model to be activated immediately after one completes its activation. A 4 allows the model currently being activated to make a second Shoot action, even if they've already performed one this round which is an exception to the rule that a model may not perform the same action more than once in a turn. Most interestingly a 6 can be spent to perform a special action depending on the faction and commander leading the strike force, with the Enforcer Captain I was using allowing me to spend a 6 to re-roll any number of dice in a single Survive test. It's simple and elegant, trimming down what I thought of as one of the few needlessly fiddly parts of the original Deadzone rules.

You may have noticed that I mentioned model activations, now, in the old rules players alternated activating a set number of models depending on the highest Command stat amongst their models. it wasn't exactly an intuitive system, and I'm pleased to say that it's been entirely stripped out. Instead each turn the players alternate activating a single model, the only exceptions being if a 1 is used to allow them to activate two in a row or if one of the players has run out of models to activate. Turn order is also determined by model activation, with the player that runs out of models to activate first going first in the following turn. It's a major improvement to my mind, and it accentuates the fact that smaller, elite forces will have a few minor advantages in terms of training and personal initiative to make up for their lack of numbers.

On the subject of model activation the number of available actions has been trimmed down too, with certain effects and modifiers likewise having been removed. Aim, Command, Get Mean and Overwatch have all been removed entirely, while Blaze Away and Throw Grenade have been folded into the Shoot Action and Climb into the Move and Sprint actions. Again this is an example of the game being streamlined, with the ability to activate more models per turn partially negating the need for Overwatch, while Command and Get Mean are no longer used due to alterations to the game mechanics. The only action I really miss is Aim, as personally I'd like the option to give up an additional action in exchange for accuracy, especially when trying to bring down a particularly tough target.

I mentioned earlier that the Command system has been revamped, so have the Aggression and Damage mechanics. Aggression has been massively simplified, with the gradation from Suppressed to Enraged having been removed entirely in favour of models being either active or Pinned, with pinned models being placed on their side and requiring them to spend a short action on their next activation to stand up. It's a simplification in line with the rest of the rules modifications, but one that I'm not entirely sure about as personally I was a fan of the older rules and never regarded them as being particularly overcomplicated. I'll have to play a few more games where suppressing fire and the like are in play before I make up my mind on this one. Damage has been altered to be dependant on model Size, with the damage scored after both players have made their fight/shoot/survive rolls being compared to the models Size. If the damage equals their size then they are Injured, while if it exceeds their size they are instead destroyed. Injured models have Damage Counters equal to the amount of damage sustained placed next to them, and these count against their Size when determining the effects of future damaging hits. Nice and easy, and I like the fact that even if a model is an officer or an elite soldier they aren't arbitrarily more durable than their subordinates unless they're considerably better equipped. It also negates the need for special vehicle specific rules, making the mechanics for damage universal, definitely a good thing.

While I'm talking about the removal of the Battle Cards, this is probably a good point at which to mention that the games rules for Victory Conditions as well as those for determining game length have been revamped. Whereas previously the game ended when one Strike Force has been wiped out or when one player runs out of Battle Cards, now the game ends either when one side is wiped out or when one has managed to accrue a set number of Victory Points. Each mission has a set VP requirement in order to claim victory, with Victory Points being earned by removing enemy models (each of which has its own VP value, which increases if they're upgraded with better armaments, a nice touch), or by holding cubes with an Objective marker in which  grant the controlling player 1 or 2 VP's at the end of each turn in which they have only their own models in the square. I really do appreciate this, as the somewhat arbitrary game length was one of my few sources of frustration with the original games rules.

The last major change that I want to talk about is the increase in customisation options. Whereas previously all model stats were predetermined, with each having a stat card with all the essential information on, that's been thankfully replaced. Much as I appreciate stat cards in general, I really do prefer having access to a book with models statistics, with the cards being used as a quick reference sheet in the same manner as Malifaux and Warmachine/Hordes. The reason for this is that models no longer have completely predetermined and immutable statistics, instead each model type has a set of base stats that can then be modified by upgrading their equipment. For example instead of there being several different types of Enforcer with various support weapons, there is simply a set of stats for the "Enforcer Specialist" for whom you can then buy weapons from the Enforcers list of available equipment. I really do like this, I've always been a big fan of force customisation and one of my issues with Malifaux and Warmachine/Hordes is the inability to do so under their rules, though Malifaux's Upgrade cards have made that less of an issue.

The Playtest :

After spending a little time reading through the rules my friend and I set up the board and picked out a pair of 150pt Strike Forces. Now, it'd been quite some time since our last game when we played and we did make a few major mistakes during both games but I think we got a good handle on how the game now plays. Needless to say we both felt like a pair of absolute wallies when we remembered that a model can't take the same action more than once in a turn, shortly after a certain rebel scumbag had killed three Enforcers with repeated shots from her rifle...

Battle 1 - Rebel Victory

Enforcer Forces

• 1 Enforcer Captain (34pts)
• 3 Enforcers with Frag Grenades (66pts)
• 1 Enforcer Specialist with Burst Laser (20pts)
• 1 Enforcer Specialist with Sniper Rifle (28pts)

Total = 148pts

Rebs Forces

• 1 Rebel Commander with Sniper Rifle (46pts)
• 4 Rebel Troopers (28pts)
• 2 Judwan Medics (24pts)
• 1 Rebel Specialist with Sniper Rifle (23pts)
• 1 Rebel Teraton (30pts)

Total = 151pts

You may have noticed that a certain somebodies Strike Force is over the points limit. Unfortunately he had a bit of a brain fart whilst working out the cost of his troops and we didn't realise until after the battle was over, which means I claim a moral victory...

This battle was brief and messy. As I mentioned earlier we made a bit of a mess of the rules with this one, and the game began with my Enforcer Sniper blowing the head off the Rebel Teraton, after which the Rebel Commander used a Command Dice to move into a better firing position and promptly gun down both of my specialists and my captain when she took 4 shoot actions in a single turn...oops! Already at a massive disadvantage I did my best to move forwards and force the Rebs into a short range firefight where my Enforcers better armour and mobility would give them the advantage. I was partially succesful due to a lucky Frag grenade blowing apart a cube full of Rebel Troopers and an excellently placed burst of Genling fire decapitating the Rebel Commmander, but in the end I was outnumbered too badly and was picked apart, my last remaining Enforcer using their jet pack to leap into melee with the Rebel Sniper where he was promptly dog piled.

Damnit.

Battle 2 - Rebel Victory

Enforcer Forces

• 1 Enforcer Captain (34pts)
• 3 Enforcers with Defender Shields (63pts)
• 1 Enforcer Specialist with Burst Laser and AP Ammo (24pts)
• 1 Enforcer Specialist with Sniper Rifle (28pts)

Total = 149pts

Rebs Forces

• 1 Rebel Commander with Sniper Rifle and AP Ammo (50pts)
• 2 Rebel Troopers (14pts)
• 1 Rebel Yndij (12pts)
• 2 Rebel Grogan with Onslaught Cannons (30pts)
• 1 Rebel Strider with Polaris Cannon (40pts)

Total = 146pts

So... this one started badly as well. Due to us having rushed the terrain setup I ended up with bugger all cover, something that immediately became evident due to the death of my Sniper at the hands of the Rebel Commander, and my Enforcer Captain getting turned into a fine red mist by a Polaris Cannon blast. Not a good start. Going on the offensive I pushed my Enforcers forward, taking the tower that dominated the centre of the map and keeping my Burst Laser specialist in cover. While doing so I developed a very serious appreciation for my Defender Shields, which allowed my Enforcers to basically ignore the incoming fire from the rest of the Rebs as they cut their way through the Grogan, Troopers and Commander with the only loss being the Burst Laser specialist. At this point I was down to three Enforcers, whilst the Rebs had one trooper (who'd found an experimental weapon due to their scavenging abilities) and the Strider, the damnable Strider. With its heavy armour and good Survive stat the walker proved nearly impossible for me to damage, even stacking as many advantages such as high ground and clear fire as possible, and it eventually managed to pick apart all of my Enforcers once they'd hunted down the last of the Rebs. Another loss, another lesson learned (albeit one that I should already be familiar with from 40k and the like), don't forget your anti armour weapons!

Conclusion :

So, what do I think of the new Deadzone rules? Well, for the most part I find the changes to be very much positive, with the games small handful of more fiddly mechanics having been stripped down and streamlined without necessarily cutting down on game play complexity. The two of us agreed that we did like the number of potential effects generated by the Battle Cards, and that we missed having those options to play with, their removal didn't really impact the game too negatively. We're both big fans of being able to customise your forces, and the streamlining of the activation rules were met very positively, though again the removal of a few options such as Aim and Overwatch are one of the few cases where these rules have cut down on the players tactical options. Possibly our favourite change though was the removal of the games arbitrary turn limit in favour of more specific victory conditions.

Overall the new rules are an improvement, the game play remains fast, streamlined, and most of all FUN. That being, after all, the most important factor of any game. We enjoyed our games and will be having a few more sometime soon, possibly when we next meet up early before the rest of the DnD group turns up. I'm looking forward to seeing the final version of the rules in the next month or so, and needless to say once I get my grubby mitts on them I'll do a post to fill you all in on the quality of the final product.

I do have to admit, despite my response to the Dwarf Kings Quest kickstarter, I'm much more positive with regards to this one. Fingers crossed!

Until Next Time
Happy Gaming
Michael

Deadzone : Review

So recently I've been playing Deadzone from Mantic Games. Though I picked up my copy of the special edition way back in...ohh...march I think, Ive only actually started playing it in the last two weeks, and overall Im slightly annoyed that I didn't give it a go earlier as its quite a lot of fun.

Overview :

Deadzone is a miniature skirmish game originally funded through Kickstarter and published by Mantic Games, known for their lines of affordable fantasy and science fiction models as well as the science fiction sports game Dreadball and board games such as Dwarf Kings Hold and Project Pandora. The game is notable for its use of a small (2ft by 2ft) half rubberised gaming mat alongside customisable clip together plastic buildings meant to represent prefabricated colony structures and the like. There's still a LOT to be released for this game, looking at the Kickstarter unlocks, but I've only had experience of the “Wave 1” releases so far. Lets crack on shall we?

The Fluff :

Deadzone shares the same science fiction setting as Mantics games Warpath, Dreadball and Project Pandora. This being a dystopian future where humanity is united under the rule of the monolithic Corporation and its overseeing Council of Seven, with alien races and colony worlds subjugated for their resources and technology by the Corporations overwhelming millitary and technological advantages. Alongside humanity a number of alien races are present, some of whom owe a fair chunk of their inspiration to existing franchises (namely the Forgefathers and Orx to Warhammer 40k's Squats and Orks, and The Plague to Halo's Flood and Dead Space's Necromorphs), though admittedly with their own interesting twists, whilst others are pretty darn original (such as the newly released Asterians and the various races allied with the Rebs).

More specifically the game is set in one of the eponymous “Deadzones”, planets or solar systems that the Corporation has temporarily (or permanently) taken off the grid and blockaded for whatever reason, be it an uprising, viral outbreak, alien incursion, whatever. Such Deadzones are enforced by the Enforcers, fanatically loyal elite infantry equipped with the best weapons and armour available to the Corporation's armed forces as well as their own starships, supply chains and so on and so forth. Other factions commonly found in the Deadzones are...

• The Orx Marauders, a race of Space Orcs who in contrast to their usual depictions in fiction are highly disciplined and well equipped mercenaries and opportunists, with more in common with Spelljammers Scro than Warhamer 40k's Orks. They're commonly employed to fight for the Corporation but also operate in independent forces when it suits them to do so.
• The Rebs, a ragtag alliance of human and alien rebels (in case the name didn't tip you off) against the rule of the Corporation and the Council of Seven.
• The Plague, a common cause for the creation of Deadzones. These dangerous and violent lifeforms are created by a multi stage infection caused by mysterious alien artifacts. Think Necromorphs, save that the weakest variants are still capable of using technology, like guns.... and spaceships... yeah...
• The Forgefathers, the Space Dwarf counterpart to the Marauders Space Orcs. A highly technologically advanced race who are one of the few nonhuman species not under the thumb of the Corporation, due both to their technology and their strong millitary forces.
• The Asterians, a mysterious race who's Deadzone forces are composed of cyborgs and remotely controlled robots. They are the glass cannon to the Forgefathers mighty glacier and according to the Kickstarter posts they are the only existing race who understand the origins of the Plague.

Whilst the setting has some interesting ideas and factions it's not especially detailed as of yet, something that Im very much hoping that Mantic rectify as the years go by. I for one think that theres a lot of room for them to expand and elaborate on what they've started, as well as there being the potential for numerous additional games set in the same universe. A ship combat game featuring Enforcer and Corporation warships enforcing Deadzone Blockades in the face of infected and ramshackle Plague vessels for example?

The Crunch :

The Deadzone boxed set comes with models for two of the above factions, the Enforcers and the Plague, both of whom I have now played. I'm planning to pick up some of the other factions in the future and will possibly do a faction by faction overview at some point, time permitting. Now, I'm not going to go into a detailed rundown of how the game works, if you're that interested then check out the Mantic website or see if any game shops nearby are running demo's. Instead I'll run through the mechanics that distinguish the game from its competitors and my thoughts thereupon.

The Deadzone battlefield is split into an eight by eight grid of cubes (the rulebook is careful to note that these are CUBES, not squares). These are used for determining the limits and effects of terrain as well as for all in game measurement, movement, shooting, area of effect weapons, etc. Each cube can contain a set number of models, with larger models taking up a greater number of model "slots" in each cube. This is an interesting mechanic, as well as making measurement much simpler (and eliminating pedantry over whether that model is within the requisite quarter of an inch or not) it also speeds gameplay considerably and ensures that the extent of all buildings, effects and so on are very clearly defined.

Dice rolls are resolved using a pool of three dice rolled against a target number, with each die that rolls that number or higher producing a success in a similar fashion to OWoD. Each models Shoot, Fight and Survive statistics determine the required target number, with lower being better, with special equipment, cover, injuries and the like adding additional dice to or removing dice from the pool. This is the first time I've seen this system used in a wargame and it works well, especially considering that the rulebook sections for each Action that requires dice to be rolled includes all the appropriate modifiers for that test in a single location. I cannot overstate how useful that is.

Now this is an interesting mechanic. Models have an "Aggression" state, ranging from Enraged to Suppressed, with them taking bonuses and penalties depending on which state they're in. Enraged models have their shooting penalised but their melee attacks augmented, Suppressed models benefit more from cover but suffer badly in melee, that kind of thing. Models Aggression states most commonly change due to being hit by a Blaze Away action (suppressive fire) which if successful causes them to drop towards Suppressed, or due to taking the Get Mean action which raises their aggression towards Enraged.

Deadzone uses an incredibly simple damage system. Models are unharmed, injured, or dead, thats all. There's no tracking of Wounds / Hit Points / Hull Points, no locational damage, nothing. Actually inflicting damage on a model can be surprisingly difficult at times, most models in the game seem pretty durable with concentrated fire being needed to ensure the target drops.

The game uses a slightly modified "Alternate Activation" system for turn progression, similar to Malifaux. However instead of players alternating models they may instead activate a set number of models at a time. The number of models activated being determined by their force leaders Command statistic, making these models especially important as if they are eliminated then the model with the next highest Command statistic takes over, to the almost certain detriment of your strike force.

Finally the game comes with a deck of Battle Cards, serving two purposes in game. Firstly each of the cards in the deck has two possible effects printed on it, such as granting additional movement actions, giving bonuses to dice rolls, or preventing an opponents model from activating for a round. Secondly the deck serves as a turn counter of sorts, with the game ending once one of the players battle decks has been exhausted. Importantly the number of cards each player draws per turn is determined by the Command statistic of their strike force leader, once again these models are particularly important... and equally valuable targets.

All of the above mechanics seem designed to ensure that the game moves quickly, that the rules and boundaries are clearly defined, and that the mechanics are easy to understand but retain sufficient complexity to keep the game sufficiently interesting to more experienced gamers. All very laudable in a skirmish game. Interesting mechanics aside however I've a few minor issues with the games manual and model stat cards. Namely that certain cards have rules on them that are not in the rulebook, notably the Enforcer Defender's Defender Shield. I understand that what's available so far is only the first wave, but still it wouldn't have taken any appreciable effort to make sure that all the rules for what's in your starter box are actually in the rulebook. Likewise some of the models who's stat cards are in the box aren't even available to purchase, such as the aforementioned Enforcer Defender as well as the Enforcer Medic. This is just... strange.

The Miniatures :

As already mentioned the Deadzone box comes with a pile of models for both the Enforcers and the Plague. As is the standard for Mantic these models, whilst not the highest quality available, are perfectly serviceable and with a bit of care look pretty darn good. The Enforcers have some excellent, dynamic poses as opposed to the standard “holding rifle across chest” stance far too common to firearm equipped models, whilst the Plage 1A and 2A models look suitably monstrous and dangerous, though the 3A's are rather...oddly proportioned with enormous chests and shoulders. The only real issues I have with the models are that they're not especially easy to assemble, requiring some filing to make sure the parts fit properly. Likewise they're made of plastic resin that doesnt take superglue as well as either normal model plastic or resin for some strange reason.

The clip together terrain is crisp, durable, looks good when properly assembled.... and is anything but clip together. Despite being touted as a modular terrain system that you can take apart and rebuild whenever you want the lack of sufficient connector parts as well as the slight inconsistencies in slot size make this impractical. I will instead be deciding on a specific set of terrain builds and gluing them together. That way I can paint them properly without worrying about inconstistencies when reassembled, as well as not having to concern myself with my buildings falling apart during a battle, as happened during my second game. I laud the idea, the execution however is sadly somewhat lacking.

Conclusion :

Overall Deadzone is a fun little skirmish game that you can play in an hour or less, the small mat and the clip together terrain make both game setup and packing away quick and easy, and its not so complicated as to be overwelming whilst simultaneously having enough depth to be interesting. If you've some cash spare and fancy trying out a new skirmish wargame then I heartily recommend it despite the handful of quality issues that I've mentioned over the course of this review. Issues that I hope Mantic will deal with in the future. Theres some good ideas here, fluffwise, crunchwise and modelwise.

Now, what colour scheme should I use for Enforcer Strike Force Thanatos 72/14/Omega, aka The Deadboys...

Until Next Time
Happy Gaming
Michael