RPG & WARGAME NEWSLETTER #117
July 7, 2025
Greetings, Gamers!
It’s hard for me to believe, but I’ve now published 17 Delver zines (OSR zine) over the last few years, and #18 is about to be released to backers. The zines I create (that includes Runes) consist of content I create for the games I run… mainly an Old-School Essentials campaign and a bunch of one-off games for Shadowdark. I’ve been a writer since 1997, hired out of college as a technical writer. I was a tech writer up until 2016 when I just knew I was burning out. Being a tech writer means keeping up on the latest/greatest tech… and often it means LEARNING a new tech before it is released to the world and then writing a book for the general populace. It gets tiring, and I tired. In 2014, I returned to gaming after a decade of absence. Still having a desire to write, I approached a few companies (such as Goodman Games and Jetpack 7) and got a chance to write adventures and even a few resource books. I wanted to write again, but NOT technology. I wanted to create stuff for my hobby. Over the years, I’ve written numerous published adventures, a monthly gaming magazine called Bexim’s Bazaar (31 issues) and then I started Delver. And then Runes. Delver 18 is coming out soon as is Runes 7. I am grateful that I was able to take my love of writing and move it into my hobby world.
If you’re interested in writing a zine (or just knowing about the process), you might be interested in checking out a new title releasing soon called Quest for Zines: A ZineQuest Zine about Zines. It has 28 interviews with zine writers (myself included) done by Philip Reed. I was honored to be included in the mix. I’ll include a link to it in an upcoming newsletter as soon as it goes public, but I got an advanced copy and I loved reading every interview. Future game zine writers will have a great resource to turn to in this little 76-page book.
Now, let’s get to the fun stuff.
RPGs
So… someone sent me (anonymously) a copy of the Daggerheart Core Box Set. Now, I’m not one to ignore a rulebook… I read a LOT of wargame and RPG rulebooks, so I suspect the person who sent it to me knows this. And it’s NOT a short rulebook, either. I’m about halfway through it at this point. And I have to admit it… I do like what I’m reading. For a LOT of reasons. So, where to start?
It’s an RPG that pulls the players into the storytelling. I don’t see how a GOOD game of Daggerheart can be played if all players aren’t on board to tell an epic tale and do some crazy action stuff. The game and its rules seem to be designed for this kind of play.
The combat has gotten a fair share of negative reviews, but I’m going in the opposite direction. I really like the fact that HP is still low for characters, but the maximum HP you can lose (typically) is between 1 and 3 points per attack. And there have been complaints that it’s just too much math, but honestly… I’m not seeing it. You have this range. If the damage roll is lower than X, you take 1 HP of damage. If it’s equal or greater than X but less than Y, -2 HP. And equal or greater than Y, -3 HP. The range is right there on your character sheet, and it changes as you level up, BTW. You also have this Stress track that can start inflicting HP damage when it fills up.
Players can help one another - teaming up is actually a rule that allows both players to roll and take the best roll for both. Crits are cool - roll doubles on the 2x d12 dice and BOOM… big damage coming. But again… heroes and creatures don’t take the dice damage… just 1, 2, or 3 depending on the severity of the roll. It’s pretty slick.
Settings? LOTS of them — there’s a cyberpunk one… a western one… and more. While the game sits on a fantasy backbone, you can totally take it in a direction your players wish to go. It’s seems very flexible.
It’s NOT Dungeons & Dragons. Look, I cut my teeth on D&D. I’ve played it for decades, and it has a place in my heart forever. But D&D lost its way for me. And I’ve been looking for a suitable replacement for a long time. Daggerheart is looking pretty good at the moment to fill that spot.
Negatives? I’m sure there are some (right now, I’m just irritated I can’t get the PDF for free), but as I said… I’m currently about halfway through the book as I write this. Maybe I’ll make this a 2-Parter and come back next newsletter with my concerns. Let’s do that.
One thing I can honestly say at this point is this - I really REALLY want to run a game of Daggerheart in the near future.
WARGAMING
If you’re not familiar with Osprey Games’ Blue Books, you are really missing out. These are self-contained mini-skirmish wargames, all genres, that Osprey releases with a blue spine and they are outstanding. I have a collection of 10 or so of them, and I never fail to find inspiration in them for my other wargames. Well, Osprey has just announced a brand new one called Voidfighter, a scifi dogfighting game. From the description:
Voidfighter is a wargame of space-fighter combat where players pilot their squadron, perform special maneuvers – including barrel rolls and Immelmann turns – and unleash a barrage of laser blasts, all in an effort to defeat their foes.
It’s hard for me to tell if this is a miniatures game or not, but I suspect so… and it also looks like it’ll be a perfect game for trash-bashers, those crafters who like to make their own ships from junk.
Releases on August 26, 2025. More info here.
Modiphius is now LIVE with its new 6mm miniature wargame featuring mechs. It’s called Hardwar, and the KS is now running through July 31, 2025. One thing that has grabbed my attention are the solo rules that are available for free download here. I’ve been waiting for Battletech’s solo rules (due out later this year) but this could also be an option. You can get more info here. I’m quite impressed with everything planned for the game, BUT… that $500 price tag for the all-in is hefty. You get all the STL files, which is really good… but for that price I’d prefer to know I’m going to have players in my area to play the game. I’ll keep my eye on this one, but just not sure I’d get the full value out of this one… plus the April 2026 fulfillment is a LONG way away.
And speaking of Battletech, I can’t make this convention (this year), but I’m going to definitely keep it on my radar for 2026. (If anyone attends, I would LOVE some information about how it went). Southern Assault is in Clemmons, NC (about 30 minutes NE of Charlotte?) and runs five days (!!!) - Friday, Nov 7 to Tues Nov 11.
More info here. Event schedule and pricing here.
Mantic is offering the complete PDF rulebook (not a quick start version) for Halo: Flashpoint for a short period of time. If you’ve been wondering about the game, give the manual a read to see how it plays. I really enjoy playing the game… and I’m not very good at it… yet. Mantic is running fast with the license and producing a lot of expansions and new miniatures for it as well as terrain and tools. You can find it all here and the FREE rulebook here. They’re also offering the Master Chief miniature for FREE (normally around $18) if you buy the Recon Edition Starter Set (This one.) Limited time, so may not be around by the time you read this.
TERRAIN (FREEBIE)
Jarrad Lajeunesse has a new MyMiniFactory project called Tiles from the Crypt related to 3D printing. If you sign up, you’ll get access to a free set of STL files for the Mausoleum (seen below). Sign up is here.
Last week I shared the link to download the free watchtower for the current City of Tarok 2 Black Scroll Games Kickstarter (this one - download link is in the project’s text). Well, I printed mine up and painted it… very impressed with the design! You can still grab it… the KS ends on July 17.
HEROQUEST PROJECT
When you design something in 2D that will eventually be cut out with a laser and converted to 3D, you learn over time to start small and move towards the larger project in steps. What you see below is my first attempt at the 1/2” tall walls for my HeroQuest board that will be inserted into the floor. I needed to test that I had the slot sizes right (I don’t want them visible after the walls are inserted - the blue line is the centerline for the walls) and I wanted to test how the engraving of the floor patterns would look using a fine beam versus a slightly out-of-focus beam (to get a wider, thicker line). Up next is getting the various patterns recreated in the Inkscape software… this could take a long time OR I might be able to find some hi-res images of the game board and try to scan them in. I also just remembered that the walls will need to be engraved on both sides with the brick pattern.
CARD GAMES
I want to thank two friends of mine, John and Cathy, for introducing me to a new card game that my family is going crazy over. John and Cathy brought the game out at Southern Fried Game Expo a few weekends ago and I absolutely LOVED it. It’s called The Vale of Eternity (from Renegade) and it’s one of those games that has such variety in its play that there are many ways to win… or lose. Your job is to “Tame” creature cards (the artwork is amazing) by bringing them into your hands and then paying to “Release/Reveal” them on the table. Over 10 rounds, you can only have a maximum number of cards in front of you (Released) equal or less than the round #. You can ALSO only ever have four coins (values of 1, 3, or 6) in front of you… and you do NOT get change back when you release a card by paying its value. There are five “families” of creatures, each with their own special abilities that can stack, alter, discard, and more… not just from you, but also your opponents creatures. There’s way more to it than I can write here, but seriously… my youngest (age 14) continues to whoop my wife and my oldest and me… but we don’t care. It’s just an amazingly well-done game. Highest score after 10 rounds wins, and there are lots of twists to the game, too. A play-through video is below, and the game can be found here. (There’s an expansion, too.)
MINIATURES
I’m almost done with all the minis for the Guards of Traitor’s Toll game. I’ve got about two dozen, maybe more, townsfolk that will be scattered across the board, going about their business… until a crime occurs. Honestly, I could have started playing this game a week ago, but I have this issue with unpainted minis. My goal is to get them painted this week so I can start playing.
YOUTUBE
I love this terrain setup — custom made for the Halo: Flashpoint game. In the video, Forging Flashpoint shares yet another one-off gameplay area for the game, and this one is outstanding!
UPDATE: The original video was removed and audio fixed - sorry about that. Corrected video is below.
CLOSING THOUGHTS
If you enjoy 3D printing as I do and are looking at organizing your game room or workshop, you might be interested in the free Multiboard Demo Pack from Multiboard that lets you see how it all works. I’ve been a supporter of Multiboard and have many of them in my workshop for hanging tools and storage. You can grab the free kit here.
July’s a good month for gaming, and one of my favorite publishers, Osprey, is offering some significant discounts on its wargames. From the site:
Our website is offering a range of discounts up to 70% off for the whole month: https://bit.ly/4lru1G2 Games released June 2025 or later not included. Sale ends midnight GMT Thursday 31st July.
My recommendations? Get the Undaunted 2200 boardgame ($60, down from $85). So fun! But Stargrave books are also on discount, and you can’t go wrong with that game IMO.
See you next week!
Jim, The Tabletop Engineer
TO MY SUBSCRIBERS
If you know of a local and/or independent gaming convention, email me at jimsworkshop@fastmail.com to get it listed.
You can find my zines and laser-cut terrain at thetabletopengineer.bigcartel.com - 10% off to newsletter readers with code RPGWGNEWS.
Digital copies of all my zines can be found on DrivethruRPG.
My game play-through videos can be found here.
The YouTube Channel name is The Tabletop Engineer Plays