Void Pirates:

I spent some time this afternoon trying out Void Pirates, an upcoming release from Four-Color Studios, makers of the Goalsystem games. It was my first time playing a Goalsystem game, and I thought it went well. I statted up three crews -- a middle-of-the-road mixture of characters, a two-man wonder team of elite power-armoured commandos and a squad of rank-and-file troops led by a tough officer.

Two-man wonder team!

149th Guards Rifle Division!

Scruffbags!

The players opted for the two-man wonder team and the mook-heavy soldiers. Turns out mook-heavy soldiery are still pretty good. We only got to play one game (I took too long to get going), so we didn't use the campaign system, but that's one of the most interesting things about the game to me. I will definitely be checking it out in future games.

I cobbled together some scenery out of my old post-apocalyptic pieces and some carpet tiles I had lying around -- it turns out I don't have a good cloth for non-grassy surfaces. Need to get that sorted.

The marines take up cover behind some wreckage. 

Cautious of the enemy's heavy weapons, the soldiers spread out. 

An explosion wounds some of the troops. 

Marine player Angela assigns her Fate Dice. 

Go for the glory! The sergeant uses his jump pack to charge in. 

The enemy captain is wounded but manages to escape.

Less like a fire team and more like a firing squad.

A swirling melee in the centre of the board sees both leaders drop.

The troops fan out. 

The machine-gunner takes up a position overlooking the field. 

Shot after shot flies toward the surviving Marine, but between the cover and his
heavy armour he clings desperately to life. 

Gradually, the enemy begins to encircle his position. 

Until at last he's felled by heavy fire at close range. 

When I get the time (whenever that is) I'm gonna stat up some squads for my long-dormant Warhammer Sorta Thousand project, Space Bastards!