5 on Friday 23/08/24

It’s Friday, and here on No Rerolls that means it’s time for an all-new 5 on Friday. We’re going to start with 5 exciting releases for this week before moving on to our usual digest of some of our favourite articles from the past week. Of course, we’re slow readers, so don’t be surprised if there are some articles that are a little older – these are just some of the great articles we happen to have actually read in the past week.

Releases & Previews

Every week there are many games, books, and miniatures released. This will probably be a mix of previews, preorders, and releases, and with release dates being the way they are in this industry, it’s always pretty approximate. Excuses out of the way, here are 5 of the releases that caught our attention this week:

Games Workshop re-releases Fortified Manor terrain set – I’m really delighted to see this classic terrain kit come back to sale:

It’s such a fantastic kit! I have one, build and, naturally, unpainted. I’ll get around to it at some point. As much as I do think The Old World attracts some of the most toxic Warhammer fans, it’s great that some classic kits are being brought back.

Affiliate Links:

Element Games
Wayland Games

TTCombat releases Half Tilt Core Set – I wonder if this jousting game has come about due to the success of TTCombat’s wrestling miniatures game, Rumbeslam?

As with Rumbleslam, Half Tilt seems to be quite contained and small in scope, with a range of themed teams to field. This could be a fun, little game, especially once TTCombat starts getting more creative in designing their various teams.

Renegade Game Studios releases Alma Maters sourcebook for Hunter: The Reckoning – I’m a bit behind on the current edition of Hunter. I’ve just not got around to picking it up or looking all that closely into it. Renegade does continue to put out content though, as with this sourcebook:

Given the fact that Hunters are more embedded in human society than you Vampires, Changelings, Werewolves, and the like, sourcebooks like this are really interesting, You’re not going to have a sourcebook on education in Vampire. These different World of Darkness lines should embrace and pursue their own personalities.

Affiliate Links:

DriveThruRPG (PDF edition)
Wayland Games

Leder Games to release The Blighted Reach expansion for Arcs – I’m really pumped for Arcs. My gaming group is really pumped for Arcs. We’re also really pumped for this interesting expansion for Arcs:

As much as Arcs will be a fully playable and engaging experience out of the box, this expansion kind of feels like it’s how the game should be played. It sees players engage in a little 3-game campaign that includes persistent elements between each one. Pricewise, it’s a big ask, and this expansion actually costs a fair bit more than the original box. I suppose this might be why it was separated out from the core game.

Affiliate Links:

Wayland Games

Warlord Games releases the Battle of the Bulge starter set for Bolt Action – There seems to be a fair amount of Bolt Action starter sets. That makes sense, I suppose; It’s easy to pick a famous battle from history and theme a box around it.

This box is all about the Battle of the Bulge and contains a lot of minis. There’s some real value in this box, and it’s a great place to start with Bolt Action!

Affiliate Links:

Element Games
Wayland Games

Blog Posts & Articles

The meat of 5 on Friday, the articles are listed in no particular order, so let’s get into some recommendations:

Top Three AOS Lists for Feed the Horde @ Woehammer – Some fun lists, here! I like Neferata. I love the idea of doing all three Maggoth riders. I’m somewhat terrified of extreme Sylvaneth Herohammer. Fun times!

Commander: what to do about windfall @ Scent of a Gamer – Ooh, a dilemma! I find packs really dangerous, largley because you often end up with something around which you then want to build a whole new deck. A dilemma here, for the author, though! I do really enjoy this blog’s MTG content.

Fortified Manor @ A Tabletop Gamer’s Diary – A painted up copy of the newly re-released Fortified Manor. Looks fantastic! I need to paint mine.

The Primal Innovation of Mörk Borg @ Refereeing and Reflection – This is a really fun article about Mork Borg, concluding with the ap observation that, “the game blends decades-old game design principles and modern innovations so seemlessly that it seems perilously like Nilsson actually knows what he’s doing!”

August 2024 Monthly Update from GMT Games – Stepping into Hell and 2nd Printings Galore + Final Fall Sale Date Revealed @ The Players’ Aid – There’s always so much going on over at GMT. This is a rundown of all the bits and bobs and happenings for this month. I maintain that GMT is just one of the best publishers out there, today.

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There have been a few posts since my last 5 on Friday: