BFG Terrain & Turning Key Project

I recently played 2 games of Battlefleet Gothic with Deathbot (and surprisingly) my wife. I haven't played for probably 10-12 years so I was *very* rusty on the rules. The first game was pretty rough and took quite a long time to play, but the second game went much better. Basic rules IN vs SM 500 points.

Anyway, this isn't a BatRep. The games really inspired me to make some terrain! Back in the day I scratch built some orbital defenses, a large space station, and a bunch of large asteroids. But I wanted to have an option for all of the table top features mentioned in the BBB. I also liked the GW PDF article "New Phenomena". So I sat down at the computer and went to work. Here is what I have so far:

What you see here is a combination of original creations and modified Google finds. Here is a list of what is there:

Asteroid Field x6 (2 ea of 10 x 5 cm, 15 x 5 cm, 15 x 10 cm)
Asteroid Ring x9 (45° segments @ 30 x 7 cm)
Comet (20 x 5 cm)
Gas Belt x11 (150 liner cm @ 5 of 10 x 7 cm, 6 of 25 x 6 cm)
Gas Cloud x4 (1 ea of 15 x 2 cm, 30 x 6 cm, 20 x 12 cm, 10 x 25 cm) 4-6 more to come
Gas Ring 1 x9 (45° segments @ 35 x 10 cm)
Gas Ring 2 x9 (45° segments @ 24 x 5 cm)
Meteor Shower (15 x 5 cm)
Mine Field x6 (2 ea of 10 x 5 cm, 15 x 5 cm, 15 x 10 cm)
Small Planet (15 cm dia)
Small Planet (25 cm dia)
Medium Planet (32 cm dia)
Medium Planet (40 cm dia)
Large Planet (50 cm dia) Will be cut into 2 pieces
Large Planet (80 cm dia) Will be cut into 4 pieces
Plasma Cloud x3 (1 ea of 8 x 5 cm, 15 x 4 cm, 30 x 12 cm)
Vortex x2 (1 ea of 5 cm dia, 15 cm dia)
Warp Rift x3 (1 ea of 30 x 5 cm, 15 x 10 cm, 20 x 10 cm)
Sun-ward Edge x2 (80 x 4 cm) Will be cut into 2 pieces

I also plan on making a huge planet edge (90-120cm wide, 20-35 cm deep), similar to the sun-ward edge piece above, to place along a table edge including atmosphere, low orbit, high orbit, and a gravity well.  I have ideas for some scratch built planetary defenses and I think this will make a great scenario/battlescape. If it works out, I will probably make something similar to indicate low orbit and a gravity well of each of the 6 planets above.

When playing, I noticed my wife and son really struggled with the fiddly movement process. I sketched out an idea and cut out a prototype during the game. It worked well so I moved to the design process. This is what I came up with:

The "divots" are meant to be placed on the post of the flying stand. I also have a 20 cm version of the Range Key. After a few more games I will decide if I need and additions or adjustments.

Dublin Pub

Kilty by Association is heading back to Dublin Pub!

We will be playing Friday, August 29th, from 9pm-12am. There is a $5 cover. If you live in the Portland area and like Celtic music with a rock edge, come on down to Dublin Pub and enjoy the show!

I have slightly reworked the poster from our last show, adding a wide shot of the city of Dublin. This poster has been added to DeviantArt.

Hope to see you at the show!

Deviant Logo

A selection of logo designs created over the last 15 years.

I have uploaded over 30 of my best logos over the years to my DeviantArt account. Following are a selection of my favorites.

The logos were commissioned while I was working as a Graphic Designer with Minuteman Press, iCON Presentations, and as a Freelancer.

Shameless Plug Here ==> If you are in the market for a new logo, or any type of graphic design work, drop me a line! :)

Cheers!

Dublin Pub

Here is the poster for my band's next gig.

This was one of the most challenging posters to date! I knew I wanted a stylized "K", but had no idea what to do with the poster.

There is quite a bit of symbolism in the "K", some deliberate, some accidental--Music, growth, Celtic, aggression, luck, among others. I am pleased with the end result, but if I had more time, I would probably noodle it more.

The rest of the poster, is really simple. An oval vignette over a green/red tartan with simple Celtic text for the gig details.

I have uploaded this poster in addition to the rest of the collection of my band's posters to Deviant Art. To see the entire collection click here.

Thanks for lookin!

Alternate Band Logo

I worked on this over the weekend. Every time I look at it I add/change something... I have to call it done at this point.

At first, I was designing this orna-"metal" "K" (HA!) for our next band poster. But after seeing it on it's own, I think it works as a logo too.

I should be done with the poster tomorrow.

That's is for today.

Pit Omega

Pit was one of my favorite games as a boy. I don't remember why or when I got rid of the game, but it was at least 20 years ago.

I recently found a copy of the 70's edition of Pit (the same version I had) at a local thrift shop for a $1. I immediately bought it and played it a few times with the family. I broke it out at the last board game night with my friends. So far, I have only played 3-player games. I really enjoy the frenetic pace of the game, but with only a few players, it is easy to track what is going on.

With more players, I imagine that it would be harder to track cards, especially the Special cards. But I still want to up the play-ability within my gaming group--alcohol is likely an increase in fun too!

Pit Omega card back

That got me thinking. I am putting my Omega treatment to Pit, focusing on two aspects: 1) Allowing more players, and 2) Adding more special cards. I researched the interwebs and found that Pit was released in 1904. It is almost an exact copy of a game that came out the year before--Gavitt’s Stock Exchange. In that game there are no Bull or Bear card, but there is a Telegram special card.

In addition to the different special cards(s), there are also a couple mechanical differences between GSE and Pit:

• Must trade one or two cards only (in Pit: up to four)
• Winner gets 2x points printed on their commodity (in Pit: 1x)
• Anyone that has 6 or more of their commodity when the winner is rings the bell gets the points printed on their commodity (in Pit: no equivalent rule)

So I set forth to create a new set of rules and to design a new set of cards. The commodities in the 70s edition are all grains, so the three new commodities I added are also in the grain family. The complete set of Commodities in Pit Omega are:

• Wheat - 100 points
• Barley - 85 points
• Corn - 75 points
• Rye - 70 points
• Poppy - 65 points
• Oats - 60 points
• Millet - 55 points
• Hay - 50 points
• Rice - 45 points
• Flax - 40 points

I decided to include all three special cards from both Pit and GSE (Bull, Bear, and Telegram) and I came up with an additional 2 (Hybrid and Surplus).

• Bull: A Wild Card if you are winner, but worth -20 points if you are not the winner. Score triple points if you win with a set of ten commodities plus any Bull cards(ie a set of eight plus two Bulls)
• Bear: Worth -20 points. Can not win with it in your hand.
• Telegram: Worth +30 points if you didn't win, worth -30 points if you did. Two telegrams in the same hand cancel each other out.
• Hybrid: Worth -40 points. May win with a set of six commodities (instead of nine). Score points based on the majority commodity.
• Surplus: Worth -30 points. May win with this card in hand.

For the design of Pit Omega, I wanted to pay homage to my version (the 70's edition) as well as earlier sets. I took inspiration from the colors from the 70s edition (orange and ocher/green) and the art within a circle from earlier editions. This is what I came up with for the front:

Sample card from Pit Omega

In full disclosure, I used clip art for the grain artwork and the pattern on the back of the card.

Pit is an excellent party game! If you are interested, pick up a copy of the game and download my variant of the rules below.

A PDF of the Rules can be found here. 

The rules presented in this post are home brew variant rules for Pit. No copyright intended.

Spyke And Flower Photobomb Contest

Steve Jackson Games is running this contest. The top five favorites will win a Munchkin Imaginary Friend!

I decided to enter, and following are my (13) contributions. Of course I waited until the last day to turn them in!

2nd Annual Rockfest BBQ Party

My son will be singing with my band again during his birthday party this year. 

Last year's party was such a huge success, were doing it again this year. Deathbot has been practicing one of our songs on guitar--there are only 2 chords. He doesn't have it down yet, so it will probably be a day of decision whether he plays.

Here's hoping for good weather!!

2014 Tartan Day

My band, Kilty by Association will be playing at Paddy's Bar and Grill in downtown Portland, Saturday, April 5th!

Here is the poster for our next gig. I simply made a few changes to last years poster. Looking forward to going back to Paddy's. They are always an excellent host.

Designed by John Hanan III

Our St Patrick's Day gigs turned out great! At one show, we were asked to play a second set and wound up playing a 4-hour show that day! Good times were had and good drinks were consumed!

If you want to know more about my band, you can check out our Facebook page.

March Gigs

My band has a new member! Our bassist left the band a few months a go, and a long time friend of mine has joined the Cletic cause a few weeks back.

We have 3 shows in 8 days coming up in honor of St. Patrick's Day. I reconfigured last years poster, grouping all three shows together.

Designed by John Hanan III

Hope you like it! If you want to know more about my band, you can check out our Facebook page.

Ardbeg Scotch Party

Well, my plans for 23 more posts by the end of the years have slipped by. They days have been a blur with the looming holidays and my wife going in and out of the hospital. She is home now, but has began the process of retiring and starting disability.

Enough of RL... on to why I am here!

My band has another gig. After our last show, we were offered a weekly spot at Paddy's Bar & Grill. We unfortunately had to turn down the offer due to scheduling. Kilty by Association only practices once a week, and collectively we simply don't have the time. However, we countered with a once a month gig and Paddy's liked the idea.

The event will be showcasing Ardbeg Scotch. There will be Scotch tastings and, well us! Here is the poster I created.

The concept and composition was my idea, but I turned to Lord Grimskull to draw the line art. I then dropped in the colors, the background and added the text.

Only 1 practice and 1-1/2 weeks until the show... can't wait!

Jass Posters

Back in this post I showed you a CD design project I completed for a 20's style Jazz band. I forgot to include the posters that were also part of the project.

The primary poster. At my customer's request, I left space for the venue to add the details of the event. 

This high contrast version is intended for senior centers and assisted living facilities. Again, the open space is for the venue to add the specific information about the event.

I left a white border on these posters as it is likely that whoever is printing these will not have acces (or want to) print on over-sized stock and trim to size. I prefer the look of color/art to the edge of the page (called bleed) but the parameters of this project would not allow.

Samhain

My band has a gig on November 2nd celebrating Samhain, a Celtic harvest festival. We are getting a lot of good buzz and hope to get a really good turnout!

I designed the poster. I started out laying everything out in CorelDraw (vector graphics), but as the design developed, it looked too "graphic". So I printed what I had out and traced it giving the art a more rustic feel. Then I scanned it back in, opened it in Photoshop, finished a few more details before coloring it.

Jade's Furry

Here is a ship I designed for my Eberron campaign...

In Eberron, low-level magic is very common and has enveloped every day living, from city street lamps to a continent wide "lightning" train. This ship is one such magical powered vessel.

Instead of sails, airships have a fire elemental bound to it. A ring of fire surrounds the ship and the pilot "controls" the elemental in order to maneuver the ship.

I designed this ship with the expectation that my players would eventually take control of it. So I deliberately included elements that would be helpful and others less desirable. That said, I expected the players would modify it at some point.

Image taken off interwebs without permission.

Jass Two Plus One

Mock-up of completed project

I just finished this project for a customer. "Jass For Fun" is a local 20-30's style jazz band. This was a very fulfilling (and fun) project. I designed the exterior elements and the CD label to be in the style of an era LP label and jacket. I even went as far as aging the CD label as if were a well used vintage label.

The photography was done by a local photographer whom I have done business with in the past. She actually put me in touch with this customer.

The inside spread of the insert has a brief bio of each member and a casual shot. There were over 100 pictures to choose from, although the client and photographer had their favorites.

I like how the color pallet for this project turned out on the back.

My favorite part of the project was the CD label. I sourced a stock photo of a vintage LP (there were no spaces in the grooves between songs) to make the CD look like it is a small record.

The client is happy with the project, and I will be designing a poster and a mailer next.

Drinking by Association

My band has another gig, this time with another band opening for us! Drinking Birds will be opening for Kilty by Association on July 12th!

Poster by zorcon

We are returning to one of our favorite local spots--Velo Cult for [about] a 2 hour set.

New Rock Star in Town

For my son's 10th Birthday, he asked if he could sing with my band. It made me all tingly inside knowing my son looks up to me and want to take part in playing music. My band mates were amazing--They embraced the idea and encouraged and coached my son during the two practices he came to.

Marcus actually practiced quite a bit more than twice. I record many of my band's songs during band practice and listen to them while I am driving (I spend about 2 hours a day in the car). Often my son is with me and over time he learned almost all of our songs.

A few days ago, we had the backyard BBQ. Kilty played about an hour set, with my son singing 4 songs as an opener. Marcus did such a great job! The party was a huge success, the weather was nice, and we had a blast.

I really appreciate my band mates helping to make this a very memorable night for Marcus!!

May the Fourth be with You!!!

Happy May Fourth!! In honor of one of my favorite movies, and in celebration of the day, I am sharing some chibi-style artwork I created a number of years ago.

Something has changed for me recently, I don't know what it is yet, but I have taken a new approach with this blog. Over the last two plus weeks, I have been posting every three days. This pace has been easy to keep--Because I already have about 30 posts written or in progress!! I am simply scheduling out about a week at a time to allow for additions or changes.

The number three has always been an important number through out my life, least of which I am a third (named after my father and great grandfather). When I came up with this idea a few weeks ago, it just clicked and I immediately had the drive to do it. It certainly doesn't hurt that I also have been getting content from friends!! I don't mind if an important date or topic hits an off post day, I just want to post at least every three days.

That's about it for now and I just want to close with... Fun may have you today!!

Tartan Day

Designed by John Hanan III

My band was on local TV yesterday promoting our next gig! We will be celebrating Tartan Day this coming Saturday--Unfortunately we were unavailable to play on the actual day, so this is a Post-Tartan Day Celebration. Paddy's is a local Irish bar and one of the oldest in Portland. We play there for both St Patrick's Day and Tartan Day, so it was really great of them to accommodate our schedule this year.

Wanted Poster

Designed by John Hanan III

My band has 5 gigs coming up in the next 5 weeks, with 4 of them in a 4-day stretch, and 2 of those in the same day!! Here is a poster I created to promote all 5 shows.

We have learned 3 traditional songs, a cover, and finished an original specifically for the 3 St. Pattrick's Day shows, but all of the songs will be added to our rotation.

Our style is best described as Celtic Folk Punk, and our biggest influence is The Pouges. However, we are starting to branch out into other styles of traditional and original songs like polka, bluegrass, and other cultural influences.

Hope you like it! If you want to know more about my band, you can read this previous post and check out our Facebook page.