01/26/15

Happy Third Birthday, GrogHeads

We’re finally out of our terrible twos.

Three years ago, a bunch of knuckleheads were unhappy with the current state of their wargaming community, and they were just crazy (or stupid) enough to not know exactly what they were getting themselves into when one of them said “screw it – let’s just start our own site.”

Our forums opened for business three years ago today. It took us a little longer to get organized enough to launch our front page – remember, we had no idea what we were getting into. But we learned, we adapted, and we’ve grown.

And all of that is 100% attributed to our members, readers, and fans. You guys have made this place what it is, and are what keeps it going every day. It’s amazing to log in every day and see a wargaming community that shares a love of a hobby, and so many other common interests – music, movies, sports, technology, and more.

I can’t think of a better real-world summation of this place than what we saw last summer at Origins, when a group of Grogs showed up to help us run the GrogHeads Central Command, and despite none of them having met face-to-face, were clearly old friends who fell right into swapping tall tales at the bar between wargaming events and exhibit hall shenanigans. And they’re all volunteering to come back and do it again this year.

GrogHeads is a success because of you, and we want to take the moment to pause on the journey to world domination to just simply say “thank you”. You guys rock.

Tell us about your favorite GrogHeads moment below, or in our forums >>

01/23/15

GrogHeads Reviews Dragon Age: Inquisition

Kimberly Poet, 23 January 2015

Many dragons were harmed in the making of this review.

click images to enlarge (Images from Doug Miller)

Trilogies are tricky beasts. Much of their success depends not only on the original story, but also on its sequels. Dragon Age has had its share of ups and downs – the promising epic RPG followed by a sequel which drew vitriol for its departure in tone and cobbled-together presentation.

Dragon Age: Inquisition, however, not only exceeds its preceding games, it sets a new standard for Bioware entirely. The relatively open-world regions give you a chance to immerse yourself in Thedas and are both lush and diverse, from the moonlight deserts of the Hissing Wastes to the verdant tangle of the Emerald Graves. Crafting also makes its first appearance and allows you to tailor your character even further. The combat system is more fluid than Dragon Age: Origins and more strategic than Dragon Age 2. Its scope is broader, the relationships between the Inquisitor and their companions more intricately written, and the customization and graphics – sweet baby Andraste, if someone tells you they spent less than thirty minutes creating their character, they’re a filthy liar.

Continue reading →

01/21/15

GrogHeads Interviews Mark Walker of Flying Pig Games

Interview by Brant Guillory, 21 January 2014

Mark Walker has launched his latest venture, Flying Pig Games. He graciously took a few hours out of his recent weekend to give us the lowdown on the new company and some of its upcoming games, as well as some lessons learned.

Of all the names you could’ve concocted, why “Flying Pig” games?

MHW: Well, Lock ‘n Load was taken. 😉 Seriously, there are a couple of reasons. I didn’t want a name that screamed “WAR GAME.” Especially not “SERIOUS WAR GAME COMPANY!” Don’t get me wrong, I love war games, I’m pretty sure they are my favorite genre, but there is so much else that I enjoy, and that other people enjoy. I want FPG to have the latitude to publish a diversity of games. To not be limited by our name. Given that thought, I tried to think up names. It came down to Howling Moon Games (a knock off of a famous Sam Bush song) and FPG. I already had the shoulder tat, so FPG it was. Oh yeah, and a flying pig is sort of the age old symbol meaning anything’s possible. And the motto? “Ipsum Sine Timore, Consector!” Loosely translated, it means “Screw it, just do it!”

Who else are you bringing along on this aerial-porcine adventure with you? What other designers are you bringing on to the Flying Pig ship that we should know about? Are they just freelancing for you, or are they committed to Flying Pig long term?

MHW: Some I can name, some I can’t. I can tell you that will have signed Shayne Logan, Tom Russel, and Brian Train. Armageddon is a co-design with a soon-to-be-announced designer and myself. We are in negotiations with another company to do a co-release that will incorporate the universe of Armageddon War and their game system. The goal is to release six boxed games and four issues of Yaah! in year one. But as many gamers have seen, it’s easy to put out snappy press releases and spiffy show and tells. Getting boxes into gamers’ hands is much more difficult. Continue reading →

01/20/15

Tuesday Screenshot – Rise of Venice

Boom!

Monty, 20 January 2015

click to enlarge

Share your screenshots here >>

01/17/15

GrogHeads Reviews Schwerpunkt’s WWII in Europe

Review by Vance Strickland, 17 January 2015

World War II – Europe, hereafter WWII-E, is Schwerpunkt’s latest offering in the operational level of computer wargaming. Literally a “Mom and Pop” operation, Ron Dockal and his wife KC have released three other games at this level. First there was Russo-German War 41-44 featuring combat on the East Front of WWII. Then came Anglo-German War 39-45 featuring the Western and desert campaigns of WWII. Third was Middle East War 1948-2010 which included the Israeli Wars, Iran-Iraq Wars, the US Iraq Wars, and what-if’s. All have involved operational level combat and all have been well received.

Returning to WWII, Schwerpunkt has combined their first two titles into one new game with a reworked user interface, higher quality map, and well researched OOB’s that has been their signature through their games.

It’s been a long time coming…here’s what it’s all about.

What’s Inside

For the $50 dollar download currently available you get 52 scenarios, 2 of which have been available since release day. There are a total of 102 scenarios planned. That’s about 50 cents a scenario when they are all released by August 2015. They range from small short actions with a few units and about 4 turns, to longer, beefier scenarios that have hundreds of units per side and last up to 34 turns. When the campaign scenarios are released they will be true monsters, including an entire War in Europe scenario played out at 1 week per turn.

The scenario listing is laid out in chronological order with the campaign for that period listed first followed by smaller scenarios in that period. The 3 largest campaigns are listed last in the selection panel.

Both historical battles and some hypothetical ones are included in the mix. Some of the What-If’s include the invasion of Malta, Gibraltar and England, variations on the fighting in North Africa and a promised 1943 D-Day scenario.