As usual, I had avoided all of the trailers and the magazine articles about the film, as I like to enjoy this cinematic feast of goodies fresh off the screen, not emotionally or visually thinned down by previous exposure to pictures. My 3D specs were cleaned and ready to see what awaited us on the final frontier. Away we go on another Trek.....
PRO'S
* Great sets and acting, as usual.
* Good character bonding.
* Interesting alien races.
* Good continuity to previous films. (The timeline is three years into a five year mission.)
CONS:
* Poor 3D quality.
* The space battle scenes were too fast and furious. Lets throw the kitchen sink against the Enterprise.
* There was not enough time spent on the Enterprise before it was trashed, yet again. (It was trashed in the Search for Spock, coincidence ?).
* An unimpressive main baddie. (Not the actors fault, he did well with what he had to work with.)
I came out of the cinema feeling let down.I had expected a red hot enchalada, I got a jalapeno. The whole was less than the sum of its parts. I was not a happy tribble. Do go and see it, it may be just me.
"Live long and watch out for Harry Mudd bearing gifts."
They reached for the stars but did not achieve warp speed. 5 out of 10.
Ivor
P.S. I have since learned that Simon Pegg and his colaborator wrote the script in about a month, so that was a good effort on his part. So, a revised score of 6 out of 10.
This is for my war gaming and role-playing exploits, including SF worlds, fantasy and post-apocalyptic settings, with a dash of history. A mix of solo and group gameplay. Terrain making is also included, with reviews of figures, TV shows and films.
Monday, 25 July 2016
Monday, 18 July 2016
Thoughts - On Ghostbusters 2016 (no spoilers)
Just to let you know right off the bat where I stand, as a general rule, I am not a great fan of what is known as "re-imagining" in film making, with the honorable exceptions of the latest two (and hopefully three - I have not seen "Beyond" yet) Star Trek movies. I would much prefer if they set the latest offering of GB3 further along the timeline of Ghostbusters 1 and GB 2, instead of a rehashing of an old favorite, this could have easily be done in this case.
The new lady team of paranormal "butt-kickers" could have been scripted as family members of the old well loved crew, this would have been easily done as Dan Aykroyd still has the rights to Ghostbusters and two of the old stalwarts did have cameo roles in the film anyway.
I watched the 2d version due to circumstances, but I would imagine the 3d version would give a better enjoyment factor in this instance. The 2d graphics were acceptable, but not in the WOW category, as you would hope for. Reasonable quality performances from the actors, but this was not supposed to be Shakespeare, so no complaints there.
The plot was average, not that I was expecting much from this slapstick genre film. But, considering they had a free hand, I was not greatly impressed with the results. It is just out there to make money, not to please the film going public.
Could have done better. 6 out of 10.
Ivor
The new lady team of paranormal "butt-kickers" could have been scripted as family members of the old well loved crew, this would have been easily done as Dan Aykroyd still has the rights to Ghostbusters and two of the old stalwarts did have cameo roles in the film anyway.
I watched the 2d version due to circumstances, but I would imagine the 3d version would give a better enjoyment factor in this instance. The 2d graphics were acceptable, but not in the WOW category, as you would hope for. Reasonable quality performances from the actors, but this was not supposed to be Shakespeare, so no complaints there.
The plot was average, not that I was expecting much from this slapstick genre film. But, considering they had a free hand, I was not greatly impressed with the results. It is just out there to make money, not to please the film going public.
Could have done better. 6 out of 10.
Ivor
Saturday, 2 July 2016
W3 - Road Attack Rules tryout - Updated
Hi all,
This is just a quick tryout of the Wastelands 3 Vehicle attack rules, with a couple of my house rules thrown in for good measure. My apologies, but a bit of imagination is needed, there is no actual "tail gunner" or shield on the back of the truck - I did not have any 15 mm characters to use or the passenger firing out of the car, plus it has a windshield, it is not exactly a Mad Max quality setting like the great layout that was at Salute 2016.
House Rule - Obstruction ahead - Roll a d20 each turn.
1-3 = Off road to Left,
or central reservation for highways.
9 = Left highway,
10 = Middle highway,
11 = Right highway,
18-20 = Off road to right.
(Amend number of lanes
to suit your layout).
House Rule - Visibility - Roll for a visibility change every three turns.
2 x d6 *10 feet = This is the distance from the front of the leading truck/car to where
2 x d6 *10 feet = This is the distance from the front of the leading truck/car to where
the object/car/ truck appears out of the mist and put on the table.
Note: Different vehicles may be in different thicknesses of visibility as the winds blow about them and change the view. Possibly, you could have a roadside marker
for the smog distance as it alters for the vehicles at that point.
Optional - Roll for weaponry available.
------------------
Status
The truck, driven by Sandy, is towing a flatbed with shielding on the back end
(giving a -2 to hit roll), with a civilian "Tail Gunner", Raven using a bow and arrow.
Optional - roll a 2 x d20 for the number of his arrows left.
Optional - roll a d4-1 for the number of Molotov Cocktails he has made up.
The car, driven by Whizz, has a militia passenger, Beaky, who is armed with a pistol.
Optional - roll a d6 for the number of bullets he has left.
Roll a 1 on a d4 for a windshield fitted on the car (this gives -1 to hit roll
against arrows, but not bullets).
Note: An arrow fired from a modern sports bow can penetrate a car windscreen,
but most of its force would be spent on impact, so I estimate no damage done to the target.
If there is no windshield in the vehicle, then the driver could also be a target, not just the passenger. Both of them are classed as being in light cover. (-1 to hit roll). State who
you are aiming at before shooting.
Optional - Not used here, roll on the loss of control table instead of the "to hit" table.
Optional - Not used here, roll on the loss of control table instead of the "to hit" table.
 |
| Starting Positions |
Turn 1
Visibility = 90'
Obstruction Roll =14 - None.
The truck's speed is 5, in the right-hand lane.
The car's speed is 5.
Position = 5' behind the truck.
It has no windshield.
Initiative - Roll a d20 = The car wins 15 to 8.
The car spends its action point. -
Whizz plans to drift to the left and accelerate.
Sandy, in the truck, plans no action during this turn.
Move - The car drifts left and accelerates to 7, beginning to
overtake the truck, which remains at the same speed of 5.
The car's militia passenger, Beaky, shoots
at Raven on the flatbed, 2 and misses.
The "tail gunner", Raven returns fire at
Beaky - 2 missings also.
Turn 2
Obstruction Roll =18 - Off road to the right.
The truck's speed is 5 in the right lane.
The car's speed is 7 in the left-hand lane.
The car spends its action point. -
Whizz plans to decelerate.
Sandy, plans no action this turn.
Move the car forward relative to
the truck-Whizz decelerates by
1 to 6, to give Beaky a smoother
ride and help him aim.
The car passenger, Beaky, shoots
at Raven on the flatbed, 2 and misses.
The "tail gunner", Raven, returns
fire - 4, the arrow misses.
 |
| Obstruction appears, top left |
Turn 3
Roll for visibility - 5 + 4 * 10 = 90',
it remains fairly good.
Obstruction Roll =19
A warning post looms out of the mist, off-road to the left, 90' in
front of the truck's front bumper.
The truck speed is 5.
Its position = Right Lane.
The car speed is 6.
Position = Left Lane, 3 foot forward
of the truck's rear bumper.
The car spends its action point. -
Whizz plans to sideswipe the truck
Sandy, in the truck, plans no action.
Move car -Whizz sideswipes the truck.
Car Attack roll = 26.
Truck defending roll = 33.
So, the car takes a whopping 33 points
of damage, leaving only 2 points left.
 |
| And |
 |
| Around |
Critical Damage has been done, so roll on the Control Loss table = 8.
The result is that it bounces off the truck and spins off the road 360
degrees and comes to a complete halt, just in front of a warning post
regarding a large mast that had been knocked over in the past.
 |
They
|
Sandy, in the truck, feels a slight wobble at the back, he checks
the rear mirror and grins as he sees the car spinning wildly off
the road.
 |
| Go SKREEE... |
 |
| The car finally skids to a halt in a cloud of dust and sand. |
Beaky is dizzy after the spin, so holds fire.
Raven takes the opportunity to
shoot at Whizz as he comes into
view - 4, it misses.
Turn 4
Obstruction Roll = 7 - Nil.
The truck speed is 5.
Its position = Right Lane.
The car speed is zero, stationary.
Position = Off the highway to the left.
The car spends its action point. -
Whizz has no option but to reverse.
Sandy takes no action this turn.
Move - The car reverses by 5 back
almost onto the road and the truck gains some much-needed ground.
Both passengers hold fire.
Whizz has lost sight of the truck in the thickening mist.
Turn 5
Obstruction Roll = 7 - Nil.
The truck speed is 5.
Its position = Right Lane.
The car speed is 5 Reversing.
Position = Off the highway to the left.
The car spends its action point. -
Whizz slows to a stop
Move the truck forward and the car is stationary, but at least back
onto the road.
Sandy, in the truck, takes no action
this turn.
Turn 6
The visibility drops to 40' for Sandy, but
is still at 90' for Whizz.
Obstruction Roll =19 - A boulder appears
out of the mist, off-road to the right.
The truck speed is 5, in the right lane.
The car speed is 0 stationary.
Position = In the left lane.
The car spends its action point. -
Whizz plans to accelerate.
Sandy, in the truck, plans to decelerate,
because the mist is getting thicker for him.
Move - Whizz floors the accelerator and with a screech of
tires, he darts away again and accelerates to 5, eager to catch his prey.
tires, he darts away again and accelerates to 5, eager to catch his prey.
Sandy drops a gear and goes down to 3.
Turn 7
Obstruction Roll =10
A boulder is in the left lane. (There
must have been an avalanche.)
The truck's speed is 3.
The car speed is 5.
The car spends its action point. -
Whizz plans to accelerate.
Sandy takes no action this turn.
Move - Whizz accelerates to 8,
eager to catch his prey. Sandy remains calm and steady at 3.
Turn 8
The visibility remains at 40' for Sandy, but
drops to 70' for Whizz. He still cannot see
the truck yet.
Obstruction Roll = 8 - nothing.
The truck's speed is 3.
Its position = Right Lane.
The car's speed is 8.
Position = In the left lane.
The car spends its action point. -
Whizz plans to accelerate again
as the truck seems to have
eluded him.
(Note: I did a random roll here
to fairly decide the car's action
1-2 Slow,
3-4 Same pace,
5-6 Accelerate.
The roll was 5.)
Sandy takes no action this turn.
Move - Whizz accelerates to 9, eager to catch his prey. Sandy remains
calm and steady at 3.
Turn 9
The visibility lifts slightly to 50' for
Sandy, but drops to 40' for Whizz.
The back of the truck has suddenly
popped out the back of the mist and he yells in glee.
Obstruction Roll =19 - Off road to the right.
The truck speed is 3.
Its position = Right Lane.
The car speed is 9. Position = In the left lane.
The car spends its action point. -Whizz plans to decelerate.
Sandy, takes no action this turn.
Move car -Whizz decelerates by
(random roll) 4 to 5. Sandy remains calm and steady at 3.
Raven was surprised as well when the car appeared out of the mist beside them, Beaky got off a lucky shot (6) and hit him, which proved fatal (3).
Raven lies slumped over the shield, his bow at his side. Beaky gives
a roar of triumph.
Turn 10
Obstruction Roll = 5 - nothing.
The truck speed is 3.
Its position = Right Lane.
The car speed is 5.
Position = In the left lane.
The car spends its action point. -
Whizz plans to accelerate by 1.
Sandy, takes no action this turn.
Beaky's a roar of triumph came just at the wrong moment as it
distracted Wizz and he hit the accelerator harder than he had
planned.
Move car -Whizz accelerates by 2 to 7, that's when they smacked into the large
boulder, for a combined impact of 10.
boulder, for a combined impact of 10.
(Roll for damage 6 = -4 Body points = BOOM). The car disintegrates in a fireball.
 |
| CRUNCHH. |
Sandy looks through the rearview mirror and gives a long "TOOOT TOOOT" on his horn, expecting Raven to get up and respond too and he is shocked when he does not and realizes why. Life is hard in the wastelands.
There you have it, Furiosa or Mad Max compatible action scenes, easily able to generate your own factions for some sandy action. I hope you like it, please comment below.
Ivor Cogdell
Furiosa and Mad Max (C) 2024 ABC Entertainment.
Sunday, 26 June 2016
Thoughts on Independence Day 2 (No Spoilers)
Here are my thoughts on the Independence Day film sequel. The story is fairly fast paced as you would imagine and it blends in well with the previous film timeline. One comment that I heard was that you could play them back to back and hardly notice the join. It was nice to see some of the characters again. Good acting by all involved. The Special Effects team must have been on overtime, there are plenty of battle scenes to get you on the edge of your seat, chewing the back rest of the person in front of you.
I saw the 2d version this time around, occasionally I found it hard to judge the scale of the mothership, but that may have been just me. I may well go for the 3d experience too, at a later date. I would have liked to see more of the action set at the moon base, but that's just me being greedy for space stuff. It was well worth a visit to the big screen to find out if our heroes can save the day once more.
8 out of 10.
Ivor
I saw the 2d version this time around, occasionally I found it hard to judge the scale of the mothership, but that may have been just me. I may well go for the 3d experience too, at a later date. I would have liked to see more of the action set at the moon base, but that's just me being greedy for space stuff. It was well worth a visit to the big screen to find out if our heroes can save the day once more.
8 out of 10.
Ivor
Tuesday, 14 June 2016
W3 - Star Subway Station
Star Subway Station
Situated in a ruined central city area.
Settlers
Rep = 3 Morale = 5+ Heroes = Merchant, Doctor. Current resources = 40 Income = 35
Move Aimed Combat Kill Special Kit Cost
Civilians 5 2 5+ 5+ 3+ - Bow, Knife G_mask 10
Dreg 5 2 6+ 6+ 3+ - Bow, Knife G_mask 8
Dog 3 4 - 4+ 3+ Bite _ 10
Bow (Power -1) Range = 9
Notes: I'm just deciding on the layout of the station. I will probably use D and D maps to portray the site, rather than in a 3d model, as it is multi level.
Just to prove that research pays dividends, I have just checked, there is actually a Warren Station (my original name for this station) on the London Underground, so I have changed the name to Star Subway Station.
Ivor
Situated in a ruined central city area.
Settlers
Rep = 3 Morale = 5+ Heroes = Merchant, Doctor. Current resources = 40 Income = 35
Move Aimed Combat Kill Special Kit Cost
Civilians 5 2 5+ 5+ 3+ - Bow, Knife G_mask 10
Dreg 5 2 6+ 6+ 3+ - Bow, Knife G_mask 8
Dog 3 4 - 4+ 3+ Bite _ 10
Bow (Power -1) Range = 9
Notes: I'm just deciding on the layout of the station. I will probably use D and D maps to portray the site, rather than in a 3d model, as it is multi level.
Just to prove that research pays dividends, I have just checked, there is actually a Warren Station (my original name for this station) on the London Underground, so I have changed the name to Star Subway Station.
Ivor
Sunday, 12 June 2016
W3 - More mobile mayhem
Here are another bunch of roadsters for the wastelands.
Matchbox and Hot Wheels Copyright (C) 2015 Mattel. All rights Reserved.
I have done a short run through with a single vehicle against a Flatbed truck to try out the vehicle rules. Part of it has been posted.
Ivor
 |
| Bad Mudder 2 |
 |
| Sting Rod II |
 |
| SWAT Van |
I have done a short run through with a single vehicle against a Flatbed truck to try out the vehicle rules. Part of it has been posted.
Ivor
W3 - More mobile mayhem
Here are another bunch of roadsters for the wastelands.
Matchbox and Hot Wheels Copyright (C) 2015 Mattel. All rights Reserved.
I have done a short run through with a single vehicle against a Flatbed truck to try out the vehicle rules. To be posted shortly.
Ivor
|
| Bad Mudder 2 |
|
| Sting Rod II |
|
| SWAT Van |
I have done a short run through with a single vehicle against a Flatbed truck to try out the vehicle rules. To be posted shortly.
Ivor
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