The Weekender: Star Wars Legion Announced & Our Gen Con Experience
August 26, 2017 by stvitusdancern
Welcome to the Weekender... IN AMERICA, BABY!
Weekender Podcast Download
We're booshed after Gen Con and what better way to relax with a Weekender in the States with our favourite American correspondents, the Dames of Games; Dawn & Gianna.
Speaking of Gen Con, who wants prizes? We have a HUUUGE list of prizes to give away this year from the fine vendors at Gencon:
- Ninja Division: Rail Raiders, Super Dungeon Arena & Ninja All Stars
- GCT Studios: Rise Of The Kage, Dockyard Expansion & Bushido Profile Cards
- Warsenal: Spider District Tower
- Corvus Belli: Manga Miniatures Set
- Everything Epic: Gen Con Swag Bag
- Steamforged Games: Blacksmith’s Guild Team
- Tabled Forged Games: Kettu + Iron & Ale
- DGS Games: Starter Set Of Choice
- Gale Force 9: Expansion Packs For Ferengi & Cardassians + Con Exclusive Naked Mal (Firefly) & D&D Collector’s Miniatures
- 4Ground: Fyreburgh Fort & Treasure Chests
- Kingdom Death: Seasonal Monster Dice & Exclusive Miniature
- Catalyst Games: Dragonfire
- Hawk Wargames: Battle Fleet Of Choice
- Shapeways: Custom Dice By Chuck
- Flying Frog Productions: Beli’al Shadow King
- Wyrd Games: Malifaux Nightmare Set
- Mantic Games: Walking Dead Core Set
- CMON: Skarrd Starter Bundle With Starter Set & Cards
- Ares Games: Sword & Sorcery
Note, we do not encourage smurf accounts to get a head of yourselves in the comments. *Looking at you, Ben.*
Star Wars: Legion Announced
With Fantasy Flight Games announcing Star Wars: Legion, we can't just sit back and ignore this piece of awesome, if only Warren and Lloyd were here to join in on the excitement. We got some time to demo the game at Gen Con and discuss what we would like to see from it in the future. What are you looking forward to most in this awesome beginning to what will hopefully be the next huge game in tabletop?
Gen Con 50
As you well know, get your comments into the live blog to win those awesome prizes, we can't describe how much we're emotionally destraught that Gen Con is over and we can't wait to get back next year!
Kicktarters
This week we have 3 neat looking Kickstarters to empty your wallets, I'm not sure which one I want more!
- Unstable Unicorns by Ramy Badie
- Adventure Gaming Mats by SEDA Interactive
- Coins to Fantasy RPG by The Copper Kingdom
Tune in tomorrow for our amazing XLBS episode of the Weekender where we'll be talking in depth about our experience and loot at Gen Con 50 this year. Check out the website's 7 day free trial and come on over to support us at Beasts of War.
Have an excellent Weekender!
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"AMERICA BABY!"
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That is a lot of prizes, and a heck of a read!
Love the idea of hosting from the studio stateside.
Happy Weekend!
whoa that was one heck of a read for prizes. then again was a great year to go to gen con
Happy US Weekend
Woo hoo, sounds like gen con was fun!
Wow I wish I was there
Need to catch up on my Gencon coverage, so much stuff coming out at the moment. Undercided on legion as i don’t really want another game, but so tempting. Have to say that the Rogue One atoll would be a great board, and the idea of a character strike force vs the legions of storm troopers appeals. I do wonder with the sad news about Spartan and Tor if that range of products will see more gaming companies facing difficulties.
@brennon is unhealthily obessed with the George Lucus money grab trilogy, but it does offer some good armies, even if the rest is garbage. Although @dignity being down on @deltagamegirl’s ewok suggestion after suggesting Gungans is shocking, for that and the impression you are the Ja ja of beasts of war. Personally I actually like the idea of an ewok force, may be it is because Jedi was my first Star wars in the cinema, or maybe it’s the flight of gliders and joy riding furry midget cannibals that appeals.
BoW Studio Manager confirms SWL bootcamp…
Exciting Recruitment Opportunity…An internet miniature gaming and review site are looking to hire a new studio manager………………
I have not yet been able to make it over to a bootcamp yet, but I have watched them through the Blogs and they look like an absolutely amazing time with some fantastic people. That, combined with the value that the bootcamps provide in what you actually get and my love of this IP, means that I am really hoping the stars align perfectly to allow me a chance to get over there if/when this happens.
Say it with me now … SWL Bootcamp, SWL Bootcamp, SWL Bootcamp!!!!!
Hey, he said he wanted to gauge interest 🙂
LOL!
It’s the Weekend!
Wot – even on ‘Merica?
On the SWL vs 40K front – yes I can see the thinking however… just how many SWL factions are they going to be able to put out? I think that’s an important factor in terms on variety and therefore longevity of the game.
Will GW feel the pinch at SWL launch? Probably they’ll feel the “air being sucked out of the room’ for a couple of months, but so will the rest of the Industry, especially smaller players. I know it’s a bit simplistic but I don’t think it’s coincidence we’ve seen the likes of Spartan and Tor go under so soon after 40k sucked a big portion of the hobby market money out of the market… and I can only see more around the corner.
It depends on what license FFG have, but in the original trilogy you have empire, rebels, bounty hunters and indigenous forces. If they are allowed to expand into the other films you can double that and if they have broad access to the expanded universe double that number again. Even the original trilogy would be enough to sustain a game for a long time, just look at the second world war gaming. The key will be how they market it and the cost if building a big force makes GW look like the budget alternative that may put many off
The SWL rulebook says two factions. If they stick rigidly to two armies then that is an issue, but if they treat them as umbrella factions it isn’t. If FFG are smart they’ll slant the game in such a way you can recreate the movies, something which GW got very right with LotR. If they’re not smart they’ll make the games straight-up troop spam battles. Hoth and Endor are two obvious theatres the game can do, but it should also allow for characterful battles in the likes of Mos Eisley, Cloud City, and Jabba’s Palace.
There’s little evidence that success for FFG with SWL means problems for GW. If that were true then 40K would already be in trouble due to X-Wing.
It is a coincidence that GW’s comeback year has coincided with Spartan and Tor calling it a day. Market changes are a factor, but not GW’s large revenues, which are more to do it with GW adapting themselves to the marketplace.
I would suspect Spartans games rules and figures would have a completely different target audience to GW. I also don’t get SWL being in direct competition to 40K,again I think the target audience is different.SWL is just another 28mm sci-fi game based on a well known IP. But time will tell
I totally agree. I don’t see SWL as a direct competitor for 40K based on IP or army builds. Although I am not sure that the target audiences are completely different since I am a fan of both IPs. However, that said, the competition is likely to come in the form of cost and player budgets. With SWL being the new “shiny”, I may be more likely to give my money over to that system for a while, rather than to 40K. This is especially true if I can get a reasonable force of Rebels and Imperials for the price of a single 40K army (which I suspect may be the case). Given the ability of cards to change the overall flavor of your forces, rather than having to possibly purchase the latest model to get the same effect in 40K, means that re-playability could be greater in SWL than 40K and this could be a big draw to newer players (and possibly veterans alike). Just my thoughts…
From what I observed and have been told by a couple of store owners, revenues in June-July were good msinly due to 40k relaunch, but sales of other systems were a lot lower than usual as multi-system customers diverted most of their spend to GW. (Experiences from other sellers welcome)
Not saying that’s the root cause, but may have been the final straw. Anyone that got to a ‘couple of bad months and we’re screwed’ position may have hit that scenario.
There’s an obvious temptation to view Spartan and Tor’s decisions to cease trading as being part of the same trend, though they’re actually two different things. Spartan’s debts caught up with them, and as they say in their statement their finances had actually improved over the last year, just not enough. We could speculate on why they were in debt to begin with, but it’s clear this is not a recent thing.
Tor were a different type of company to Spartan. The latter has directors, employees, a large range of products, and a major license, whereas Tor was one guy who to the best of my knowledge also had a day job, doing something that interested him. I’d be surprised if there was ever much money in Relics, and it seems to have just reached a point where Gavin saw no future in continuing it as a retail concern, where it wasn’t very competitive, and he didn’t want to switch it to a crowdfunding business. The latter would have better suited the type of product he was selling, but it’s just not something he wanted to do.
Not that I’m suggesting GW’s increased sales have no impact on the industry, just it isn’t felt in these types of cases.
can’t get enough of those ‘kicktarters’…
Great show! Looking forward to see more starwars stuff myself. I will have too look though you gencon coverage. Ive been moving to a new place, so i had no internet connetion. And now its time to catch up ;D But sounds like you had a great time. Sounds like it should be on my travel to list ! Mind youself Bow you are on that list too
The thing i love about starwars is you can use all kinds of table to, arabic lookin cities, forrest, almost medivel, to ruins, and so on. So getting a table ready should be no problem 😀
Watch all the Gen Con videos and WOW; have to save up and somehow persuade the wife that we need to go. Also another great show everyone.
think there is a lot of scope for different themed forces. ewoks army with the special rule home field advantage were could perhaps spend points and special terrain and traps, a wookie army would be awesome .then there is an option for a jabba the hut force or even the little robed guys from the desert in the first film .forgotten their name
Jawas
gencon is a must be there for me – maybe next year….
Could not agree more. I live in the states, but have never taken the chance to go. And, compared to Ireland, Florida isn’t really that far from Indiana.
It’s a wonderful convention. If you get the chance, you should go – four fabulous days of gaming @andrax
Happy Weekend!
Oh boy, Star Wars Legon sounds awesome, very very tempting, Clone Wars era expansion, Wookies? Hell Yes! But first, Rebels or Empire? Boot Camp? Consider my interest engaged 😀 Great Show!
The US studio is looking great – a very polished Weekender! Looking forward to XLBS!
Star Wars Legion is heading to the top of my ‘to play in 2018’ list but it’s not GW that’ll be losing its share of my wallet. I’ve gotten back into 40k due to 8th and once my armies are up to full strength I intend to carry on playing. We’re in an age of multiple game systems but there is a limit to how many games one person/group can focus on. For me it’s the other, smaller, games on the ‘to play’ list that’ll lose out to SWL – at least initially until we see where SWL goes.
SWL isn’t the first competitor to 40k, the industry is full of them. I think GW are best placed of all to ride out what will no doubt be a few months of turbulence. “Air sucked out of the room” is a good analogy. GW have big lungs. I hope the smaller companies can get their air tanks on and prepare for it!
Oh yeah and if you run a SWL bootcamp you’re going to have to find a way to run a bigger one!!!
Now you’ve planted the seed..a Star Wars Legion Bootcamp 😎
This. Would. Be. Epic!
It begins to appear GenCon justifies a trip to the US of A..
A Star Wars Gungan army is the main reason why I would get into Star Wars: Legion. Yes, they are silly. But an army of them just looks cool.
I want big dinosaurs!
And getting to play Jar Jar (and annoy the hell out of your opponent) is just the icing on the cake 🙂
Gorram it @tmsmnns ! 😉
They would be a pretty fun army to play I imagine – especially if you re-created the Droid battle from Episode One.
As bad of those films were they did give you a lot of battle options.
Happy Weekend, I hope everyone in the states is managing to keep the worst of the weather at bay. As for Star Wars Legion I hope they at least bring out a scum and villainy faction, like in x-wing. The idea of a Hutt led army with a few dozen Mandolorean’s at his back sounds awesome to me.
There was some really great reporting from GenCon with lots of interesting details on upcoming releases.
For Star Wars: Legion the Rogue One characters, settings and the range of troops, ships,vehicles and settings would be tremendous. Mass battle but with objectives – it does not always have to be stealing the Death Star plans – it could involve breaking someone out of prison or sabotaging some other Imperial or rebel facility.
2 factions? What about the Scum & Villiany from W-Wing? Jabba, bounty hunters and all the other sects and feral inhabitants who welcome strangers by shooting at them.
ATAT in that scale – oh Hell yes.
Happy weekender! The Star Wars game is gonna be a massive hit l!
Weekender USA! Dawn, Gianna, Live Ben, love it!
Star Wars on the tabletop is the biggest news in ages.
Ben’s right: themes are the way to go. E.g. 40k Imperium could be considered a faction, but one with such variety. Less so for chaos, much less for xenos, but strongly themed forces are possible.
Other than the vehicles is there a reason for those with Imperial Assault minis to change to this new range. I understand there is a slight model size change but nothing that will stand out too much.
For me, it is the idea of more detailed miniatures and the fact that there is much more diversity in the sculpts giving a sense of individuality to each miniature. The main reason this appeals to me is that, for the early stages of its release, I expect the numbers of different unit types to be limited. Therefore, I suspect that this will mainly be a skirmish-level game for me. The individuality of sculpts makes each model feel more personal and, therefore, I might be more careful in how I use them. As opposed to a game like 40K or SW:IA, where the lack of individuality means that the loss of a generic Primaris or Rebel Saboteur is not as impactful.
You’d need the cards at the very least – but you could probably source them from online somewhere if you wanted to try it out.
Rebels are such a disparate group that even with just empire v rebels, you have so much leeway for customization that its not really 2 factions over and over again, in my opinion
I think the game’s only real barrier to compete with 40K is if the miniatures stand up to scrutiny. Say whatever you want about GW and the mistakes they have made, the miniatures really are excellent all round.
Fantasy Flight will have to get close to that, and I think this will be especially true of the vehicles, an AT-ST and so one, where the kit must match expectations for detail and ease of construction.
As an aside, that is a really nice table, beautiful woodwork and great colors, and I really liked the US based weekender, I thought you guys did great. I said it on the live blog, but a big thanks for all the hard work you four put into the gencon coverage, for me its not just about seeing the new shiny stuff, but you get across the feeling of excitement and energy from the event too, which for those of us who can’t attend is (At least for me) the best thing.
On the GW models front, it entirely depends if you dig the aesthetic. There is no question that their models are excellent examples of technical skill, but, for me at least, only Eldar and some Tyranids really hit me as ‘excellent’ models. The aesthetic of the rest just isn’t my cup of tea, so GW models are generally quite far down my list of pretties*
I don’t think Legion models will be the same level of technical skill as GW. Nor do I think they need to be. They simply need to be worth the price, which is entirely subjective. It looks like it’ll be a lot of fun, but might be out of my price range.
*The Hobbit/LotR models are exceptions. They’re usually great!
My wife has demanded Beasts if War do a battle of kashyyyk table that stands 6 feet high with multi level tree platforms and monsters on the lower levels.
That would be pretty impressive. Now we just need to see if FFG actually make a Wookie army @bazleebub
Great show…loot me please!
When Armada came out people were talking about how the second wave was going to be all the new ships from The Force Awakens. Never happened. I can’t imagine we’ll see stuff from the new movies or prequels until they absolutely run the original movies into the ground and people are still buying it, leaving them needing more material. The fact is, the original trilogy sells really well, merchandise based on the other movies doesn’t move nearly as well, whether we’re talking TV shirts, mugs, toasters, or minis. Companies have rules for maximizing profits, if they quickly start doing First Order sets, but half of all Legion players don’t want to mix timelines or concurrently buy two timelines, then they’ll be alienating half of all potential buyers before they even make their sales pitch to convince remaining players (of whom only a fraction will buy them even if they have no starting objections). That’s losing sales from the outset. Even Asmodee doesn’t think it has the money to let employees screw around like that.
Too true. And, has already been stated on here in other posts, there is tremendous potential for units and “heroes” from the first trilogy anyway. Once SWL has found its footing, then it is only logical to expect FFG to move on to other eras in the franchise. Given the fact that the second movie in this current trilogy is releasing in December and that the final is a year or two away, I think it would be a safe bet to imagine that the sequels will be the focus of FFG after the original series. It would also mean that most of the models from the original trilogy would still be viable with models from the sequels which would help with people hesitant about mixing eras…
Excellent way to begin the weekend as usual! Thanks BOW team!
The “Coins to Fantasy RPG by The Copper Kingdom” are real US Coins that are being overstruck to create the new coins. Pretty cool idea. they are following US regulations that allow that to be done.
i am seriously interested in legion… fortunately it will start 2018.
If they manage the game range the way the did with x-wing, this is going to be a huge success.
and yeah lots of give away stuff… that’s amazing ! i would definetely love some kingdom death monster goodies to help me with the excruciating wait until november for the core boxes to arrive ^^
Good to see everyone survived GenCon.
Justin, you’re a joiner. A table such as that should be right up you alley.
I wonder what will happen the Spartan stuff. It will have to be one of the big companies to take it all
When Skytrex went under a few years back they were looking £200,000 and they had a turnover of £300,000. Spartan Games is probably worth more than that
On another note MMS models have decided to close as has Steel Fist though in this the first is retirement the latter because the guy who also has a full time job couldn’t be bothered with the admin any more
two factions in STAR WARS ? there are probably more factions in the STAR WARS underworld than exist in any other game setting. the number of races alone is astronomical. but this does STAR WARS an injustice. a twi’lek isn’t just a twi’lek and a wookie isn’t just a wookie. each race is as complex as our own and they fight for a multitude of reasons. they’re as likely to be flying with pirates as they are the rebellion. the customisable nature of multiple factions and races leaves the door open for some incredible diversity.
Hondo Ohnaks’s Weequay pirates would be epic, cause Hondo.
night sisters army anyone ?
Gungan army would be awesome, definite tactical edge having Jar Jar as a bullet magnate.
he should be virtually impossible to kill though, with Jar Jar causing the attacking unit damage as he falls over a battle droid at the opportune moment and causes its blaster to go off. if you think about it despite everything he is in fact a monster on the battle field and having him a nightmare to take down would be epic if they can’t and epic if they can.
how satisfying would it be to beat your opponent with ewoks ? the look of horror on the face off your opponent as you take down his shinny thing with an ewok ambush. turns out that bush the sniper is behind is an ewok at the same time you play a card allowing you to use a glider to drop a rock on his tank commanders head. that perfect moment when they realise the movie is actually happening and they’re getting their arses handed to them by the ewoks.
I only thing i’d like to see would be collectors edition versions of the game and the minis.
it’s not like they wouldn’t sell. pretty please FFG.
best of show though for me was kingdom death monster, it’s just so pretty.
SWL boot camp you say, well colour me interested!
Awesome episode. Hope you guys are enjoying your stay in the states.
Holy prizes, Batman….
I can get behind a Gungan army, that is minus JarJar.
It was a blast having the guys in the states! Looking forward to more visits. 🙂
great show guys and coverage of Gencon, always lovely to see our BOW ladies.
I think you might have a much grander interest in a SWL bootcamp than you think! I would say you need to have a bigger studio space or host a couple across the world! All that said, I am up for coming back for another Bootcamp. Good times!
As far as factions for SWL…
1. Criminals (Hutt, Black Sun, etc)
2. Mercenary group
3. Sisters is Dathomir with their Rancors!
4. Rogue droids
Then one could consider going to the past.
Somebody upload a scale reference of a 32mm (Star Wars Legion scale) figure next to an AT-AT model kit.
Great run down from Gen-con, and you didnt mess up when let lose on your own!
Maybe we’ll see some more vids from the US now?
I am really looking forward to the release of Legion, the minis look really awesome. Id love to see them eventually expand it into mass battles like 40k, plus that sort of thing will pull so many people into the hobby. Id definitelt have to get some gungans, jar jar may have been a bit of a flop but the gungans with those shields woild be great!
Great episode bow! Look forward to next gencon.
Great episode love the SWL coverage! As mentioned their is room for plenty of factions. Scum and villainy for starters. Break away Imperial or Imperial Remnants. In the Start of Rogue One they talk about the friction among Rebels. Mandalorians, Bounty hunters, Trade Federation, Old Republic, Jedi, Sith, New Republic, Witches of Darthmore, local Planetary Armies, Knights of Wren plus more movies to come. All of that than you can theme your force such as snow troopers are desert trooper etc…. . Yes this came has been a long time coming. I think in was West End Games that tried years ago but didn’t support it properly. With FFG a Star Wars mini game will do well.
Well if anyone’s looking for ideas for where Legions could go, or just the sorts of battles that could be fought using the rules, this compilation of the cinematics for The Old Republic could prove inspirational….
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=R51LMIAJtsc
And I certainly will be digging out the tubs of WOTC Star Wars minis to expand the options for legions. Empire? Check. Rebel Alliance? Check. Grand Army of The Republic? Check. Separatist Droid army? Check. New Republic, Galactic Alliance, Imperial Remnant, Yuuzhan Vong, Sith Empire, New Sith Order, Mandalorians, Old Republic, and the all-encompassing Fringe? Checkedycheckcheckcheck!
That’s a really good haul !! GenCon is awesome.
I stand by my comments I will kill anyone @warzan requires for a bootcamp ticket, if it needs to be more star warsy I’ll even dress in my storm trooper armour when I do it!
How will you be able to hit anyone if your dressed as a stormtrooper?
of course, they’re the elite after all “these blast points….too accurate for Sand People, only Imperial Stormtroopers are so precise”
if you come as a stormtrooper they should give you a bootcamp ticket for free
normally if I go to a bootcamp I bring new t-shirts that have never been seen before.
If they do this one I’m pretty sure I have 3 star wars outfits I can wear ^^
Happy US weekender!
Yes, Star Wars is going to be my must buy game when it comes out, i have been waiting for this for ever! Themed armies could be a way to go but they could add something like a neutral grouping (mercenaries, native conscripts, etc) that can stick with either forces if they stay with only Rebels and Empire.
About Star Wars Legion. I am happy for everyone who is excited for this I know alot of people wanted it, but I find I am not all that excited. I don’t know I just feel burned out on the whole Star Wars thing, I got into X-wing and then Armada for awhile but I just got bored with it. I was a fan of the expanded universe but since Disney has Kinda thrown that out or changed it to legends or whatever its called I don’t know how I feel. One thing is for sure, for me atleast this is no competition to 40k especially if they stay with just the past and current movies. Now if they do something around the Thrawn Trilogy I might reconsider.
Great episode, and really excited to see a weekender from the USA! 😀
I would love to see Justin vs. Dawn in a Gungans vs. Ewoks in a SWL battle. But only if I’m allowed to join, and play my Jawas. We will arrive on the battlefield with out huge tracked crawler-junkyard, and once the doors open we deploy our army of invincible Gonk-Bots!
😀 😀 😀
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Udk6b5o0uME
Gonk, Gonk!
Really looking forward to both Star Wars Legion and the Shadows of Brimstone next series
That is a big list of prizes! Looks like Gen Con was a hell of an event, and the news is great. Looking forward to SW Legion a lot, and the rest of the goodies that are on the way.
For myself the Star Wars Legion announcement was exciting but right now there are enough figure ranges out for SW gaming,WOtC, Knight Models, Imperial Assault, Micro Machines depending what fan set rules you have.
I think like a lot I’ll pick up the starter and see how it develops.
I am so in for star wars legion…. As long as there is no gungan army…
Bring on da ewoks n gungans! 😀
I’ll be making an Endor table for SWL! I really wanted to do Sullust from Star Wars Battlefront, but Endor is more versatile to really.. I’ll steal all of @lloyd ‘s foam tricks and @avernos pointed me in the direction of the flock, found some on ebay and it’s on it’s way here!
Thanks for the show!
hope to see some photos when you’re done @while , let us know how it turned out
Will do! Hopefully it’ll be done before the game is out. I tried getting foam the other day, but the store was out. And the sample they had might have been a bit too soft..
Nice one guys love the mats and the unicorn card game.
@stvitusdancern I cannot remember if it was this or the XLBS it was discussed, but any more infor on where to get the plans for the awesome table? Thanks again for the show!
There should be a series coming together for this showing off how it was built.
http://www.julioswoodshop.com/ the gallery has some beautiful tables, including an Imperial table that would look great under your Endor table
@avernos Thanks! I just gotta convince my girlfriend when we move to a new apartement in a year!
What different factions is FFGs going to do? Outside of Rebels and the Empire, do we know anything else? Are they going to do a bounty hunters or Mandalorians? Are they going to do Hoth rebels as a separate faction? Without many many factions that have a unique feeling, I dont see the point.
Star Wars skirmish I still haven’t played the imperial assault I got over a yea ago. damn you FF lol
I’ve seen the close-up scale difference between IA and SWL, but, from the tabletop view, is this still noticeable?
Definitely want the furry cannibals! The Reaper KS just showed off the Lost Valley expansion, and it has a primitive hut that should work for the little monsters!
Prizes, prizes everywhere!