JMGraham

Thanks for the kind words! @Guardian - Typically, there's a limited number of decks for sale to folks who can't attend the tournament, with all proceeds going towards the swag/prize pool of the tournament and, in this case, toward getting Through the Breach some fancy recording equipment (or beer, I forget which). Details to follow! @sharpobjects - No plans to do a new strategy/scheme deck, though we may update the old one with the new schemes. Every year, we try to do one "gaming aid" to include in the swag bag. The first year it was some laser-etched wood tokens. The second year it was the strategy/scheme deck. This year it will be ... something different!

Awesome! Glad you can make it. Your suggestion for dual-faction masters sounds completely reasonable to me. So long as you only have one master and one pool of 55 ss worth of models to choose from, that's fine. The pool doesn't all have to be one legal list. Keep in mind that there will be games at 25, 35, and 45 ss (and maybe even some in between). You'll want at least one legal list at each level. Also, the swag and terrain blog is live. Check it out here. I'll update the attendee list tomorrow, but we're about halfway full right now. If you're planning on coming, get signed up soon!

Hi all - It's that time of the year again: I've given up my hobby for the next several months in preperation for Walpurgis, the (now 3rd) annual Malifaux tournament we do up here in Bellingham, WA. The hallmarks of the tournament are generally a laid-back attitude, some neat, narrative scenarios, and, of course, tons of cool swag and terrain. I've got some fun stuff planned this year! If you're interested in joining in, see this link for more info on how to sign up. Stay tuned to this blog for some other ways to get involved - they'll be some contests and chances to win some cool stuff down the road. The first thing I've been working on is the custom fate deck we'll be giving away to all tournament attendees. I'm doing something different this year. It turns out the good folks over at the Through the Breach Podcast have been working on producing a custom fate deck for their listeners, and needed a hand with some layout and design. On the other hand, I was in need of a deck to layout. Suffice it to say it's proved a match made in heaven! They've generously agreed to provide the decks for this year's tournament, AND they let me play with their gorgeous art! Here's what we've been working on so far. The art is by Daria (I don't have a link to her website yet, but when I get one, I'll add it here). Mark has been acting as art director, and he and the rest of the Through the Breach crew have been making final decisions for cards (though we're open to input - that's part of the reason for posting things here!). I've been doing layout and some light design work. Here are some mock-ups of the numbered cards we've been working on: And, because everyone likes the pretty art, here are some of the face cards: Hope you like them! Jim © Wyrd Miniatures, LLC, 2005-2013. Used with permission, no challenge to any copyright or trademark intended.

Yep, still plenty of spots - only 12 are paid, and while many others are planning on attending, the list generally doesn't fill up until early April. Hope you can make it - Portland's a great town, and you'd get to drive right past the AFK Tavern in Everett on your drive to Bellingham. I've updated the participant list in the first post. Due to multiple requests, I've also extended the allowable pool from 50 to 55. The largest game will still be 45 ss, I just had quite a few folks asking for more room to play with crews.

1992.

Ahh, you're safe, then. Nothing good ever comes out of Columbus. Except me. Born and raised in Gahanna. ---------- Post added at 02:52 PM ---------- Previous post was at 02:52 PM ----------

The closest hotels are right across the street from one another and are a hair less then a mile from the venue.: Bellingham GuestHouse Inn - Pretty standard motel-type fair. 805 Lakeway Drive Bellingham, WA 98229 Best Western Plus-Lakeway - A bit nicer, has an indoor pool and a bar and coffee shop on site. 714 Lakeway Drive Bellingham, WA 98229 There’s also a Day’s Inn that’s a bit further away (maybe a mile and a half): Days Inn Bellinghammore info‎ 215 N Samish Way Bellingham, WA 98225 As far as getting from a hotel to the venue, there are several options. Our weather is generally mild enough to walk (provided you don’t mind getting a bit damp – Bellingham has the LEAST days of sunshine per year of towns of 50,000 or greater). We have a good bus station and the main bus depot is right next to the venue. Alternatively, it’d be pretty easy to arrange pick up/drop off with one of the local Warhamsters or one of the others staying at the hotels. Hope you can make it! I gotta admit, though, the standards are going to be pretty high for you, coming from Dayton. Lots of good stuff comes from Dayton: Brainiac (3RA1N1AC, not the UK science show), my mother-in-law (who taught me to make Manhattans), Martin Sheen. You’ll have a lot to live up to!

And I'll buy you a whiskey to go with your beer! Marriages are every day, and Walpurgis only happens once a year!

Started the participant list. If you want a spot (and if you're anywhere in the Pacific NW, you want a spot!), I generally recommend getting signed up earlier rather than later.

It’s that time again! This is the official announcement for Walpurgis III. I’ll update this page on a regular basis as new info becomes available. The Bellingham Warhamsters Present: The Affair at Perfection Valley A Malifaux Grand Tournament in the Narrative Style Date: Walpurgis Night (or thereabouts), May 4th through May 5th Time: 9 AM Saturday to 4 PM Sunday Location: Dark Tower Games; 1431 Railroad Ave, Bellingham, WA; Store Phone: (360) 599-5127 Cost: $50 April 1st and after Size: Due to planning constraints, the tournament is currently capped at 40 participants. Dark Tower's new location is quite spacious and could accommodate more, but the comfort of the attendees is paramount. Plus, we need to plan for the amount of swag to produce. This tournament has sold out each year, so if you want to come, I suggest registering early! The Proper Attitude: The Warhamsters take their gaming seriously, but value fun and camaraderie above all else. Thus, you are encouraged to bring an attitude conducive to an exciting, fun, and relaxing weekend. Please check any must-win attitudes at the door. We have some great microbreweries and restaurants within walking distance of the event site, and random gaming and shenanigans is likely to keep us up most of the night. Meet new friends, visit old friends, but above all – have fun! Rules: • Select one Master to use for the entire weekend. • Select a pool of up to 55 soulstones of models . • Game sizes will range between 25 and 45 soulstones, depending on the scenario. • All models used (not including summoned models) must be selected from the initial pool of models. • All models must be fully painted (at least 3 colors) and based. • First round pairings will be random (or grudge matches); subsequent pairings will be determined by total victory points. • More details will follow, but expect interesting scenarios linked by a narrative. Prizes for Winners: In the typical Warhamster spirit of challenging but non-competitive “good times” we’ve intentionally removed incentives for trouncing one’s opponent. Instead of showering the winners with prizes, winners just get trophies. Three trophies will be given: Best Gunslinger – The player with the most victory points for the weekend Best Lookin’ – The player with the best looking crew (as voted by the players) Best Storyteller – The player who is the most fun to play (as voted by the players) Prizes for Everyone: Rather than showering the winners with prizes, we’d like to shower EVERYONE with prizes! As Dark Tower will be donating the space to play, all of the proceeds of the tournament will go into swag, giveaways, and prizes. As with last year, we’ll likely be selling some of the tournament swag via the internet. That way, those unable to attend the tournament can still get some of the cool swag, and in doing so create even more awesomeness for those attending the tournament. While we don’t want to give away all of our secrets ahead of time, expect: • A custom-designed deck of cards (kind of the Malifaux equivalent of custom dice) • Some sort of handy game aid that will make you the envy of your peers • A terrain piece, objective, or two. • Miniatures of some sort for use in the tourney (and beyond!) Of course, some of the proceeds (and generosity of the sponsors) will go into the prize table. The plan is to have a variety of good stuff (including a boxed set or two, some blisters, etc.) and determine who gets first pick by raffle. There should be enough that everyone walks away with something from the prize table. Enough already, man, how do I sign up?: Send $50 via Paypal to bellinghamwarhamsters(at)gmail(dot)com . Make sure you include your name and the email at which you prefer to get updates. Please indicate somewhere that the payment is for Walpurgis III. You'll receive a confirmation email within a couple days, if you don't, please let me know! Alternatively, you're welcome to pay in person if you see me (Jim) or another Warhamster. Participant List: 1) Mark Handford (Mach5) 2) Jim Graham (JMGraham) 3) Corey Wilke (VonVilkee) 4) Riley Miner 5) Steve Yarborough (Yarbicus) 6) Andy Morison 7) Joshua Nakauye (Mr. Bigglesworth) 8) Derk Kieft 9) Mark Spaidal 10) Andy Bernard 11) Glen Gordon 12) Flynn Rector 13) Blaine French (Bfrench) 14) Dan Johnson 15) Ryan Gallagher (onayr) 16) Christopher Spence 17) Tylre Arens (Yomster) 15) Ryan Gallagher (onayr) 16) Christopher Spence 17) Tylre Arens (Yomster) 18) Derek Stout 19) Chris Paul 20) Joshua Caldwell (obscure reference) 21) Adam Baumeister (Malsqueek) 22) Chris Haffner (Sway) 23) Joshua Vannelli (Kogre) 24) Ellie Babee 25) Jon Beatty 26) Sean Gallagher(BashtonRashkar) 27) Andrew Watkins (android) 28) Ray Bannon (Rage) 29) Jamie Stockdale 30) Brenden Dean 31) Terry Dean 32) Bennet Ellefson 33) Darren Thibault (Distaff) 34) Ryan Budd 35) Richard Mahoney 36) Shayne Mahoney-Mitchell Schedule: [code]Saturday 9:00 – 9:30 Check in 9:30 – 10:00 Introductions and Wind-up 10:00 – 11:30 Round 1 (25 ss) 11:30 – 11:45 Break 11:45 – 1:30 Round 2 (35 ss) 1:30 – 2:30 Lunch 2:30 – 4:15 Round 3 (35ss) 4:15 – 4:30 Break 4:30 – 6:45 Round 4 (45ss) 6:45 – 12:00 Dinner, Open Gaming Sunday 9:30 – 12:00 Round 5 (45ss) 12:00 SET UP CREWS FOR PAINTING JUDGING 12:00 – 1:30 Lunch, Judge Painting 1:30 – 3:15 Round 6 (25ss) 3:30 Prizes and Raffles[/code]

I remember a great Carnival of Chaos Nurgle-themed board for Mordheim. I think it was over on leadadventure, but my search-fu has failed me. Featured a top that lifted off the main tent, bleachers, and the like. Really cool. Wish I could find it.

Thanks a million for all of the responses and offers! Everything is sorted now, and I couldn't be more pleased with the results. It turns out, that instead of looking to draft someone to collaborate with me, someone drafted me to collaborate with them. This year's deck should be nothing short of amazing! Details to follow...

Thanks for the replies, all! I think I might have something worked out, but will post here when I know for certain. @Dan - That's too bad - how far along were you?

Thanks for the leads, but I definitely wouldn't ask a commercial artist to do it for free - that's why I'm asking here. Since it's not a commercial enterprise, it's got to be a labor of love, by a fan. Walpurgis is a non-profit, largely donated time sort of gig, with some cool stuff kicked in. Re: The ideas, I'll keep those close for now. A lot would depend on the artist, but I've got at least 2 or 3 decks I'd love to see made!

Hi – My name is Jim, and I run an annual two-day Malifaux tournament up here in Bellingham, WA on or around Walpurgis Eve. This year will be our third year. The tournament has grown steadily, from 20 participants in the first year, to 30 the 2nd year; we’re aiming to have around 40 participants this year. The hallmark of the tournament is a combination of a series of linked, narrative-driven scenarios with lots of themed swag to go along with it. Possibly the most well-received piece of swag has been our custom fate decks. The goal is to design a new deck every year. The first year, I cobbled together some card designs myself from a variety of sources, including some original hamster art from one of our locals. The second year, a different local produced some gorgeous art for the face cards and jokers, to create a neat Western-themed deck of cards. I also made some Strategy/Scheme cards, in the style of the first year’s decks: THE PLEA! This year, I don’t have an artist lined up yet. Unfortunately, last year’s artist doesn’t have the time to commit to doing this year’s deck. I’m hoping someone out there in the community is interested in helping out! What I need: I’m looking for an artist that’s interested in collaborating on a custom fate deck for this year’s event. At a minimum, I’d be looking for art suitable for 12 face cards and 2 jokers. Of course, other things (back of cards, ace of spades, unique suits, borders, etc.) are also possible, but not completely necessary. Unless you’re really keen to do it, I can take care of layout, design, and production. The theme is negotiable; I’ve got several ideas for decks, including one of which I’m particularly fond. Of course, I’m open to other ideas as well. I'd be looking for black-and white line art, suitable for sizing to a 2.5" by 3.5" poker-sized playing card. If the art wasn't already in an electronic format, It'd need to be either scanned or mailed to me for scanning. I prefer to work with vector graphics (AI or Inkscape) and can vectorize the graphics myself, if need be. What you get: Unfortunately, because this isn’t a money-making venture, I can’t shower you with wealth. Traditionally, anyone who helps out with producing the goods for this tournament gets a full tournament pack, including all of the give-aways. Of course, you’d get some extra decks of cards as well. If you are in the Pacific NW and can come to the tournament, your tournament fee would be taken care of, you’d be welcome to crash in my guest bedroom, I’ll buy you drinks, etc. Other than that, you get the praise and admiration of your gamer peers. We generally make some decks available for sale to folks outside the tournament to help fund the swag and prizes for the tournament (the giveaways generally exceed the cost of tournament admission). Depending on how that goes, we could possibly arrange a small honorarium of some sort. No promises, though I’d expect something in the range of a bottle or two of decent scotch. If you’d like an idea of the swag from past tournaments, see these threads: Year 1: http://www.ordofanaticus.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=5897 Year 2: http://www.ordofanaticus.com/forum/viewtopic.php?f=16&t=11192 Timeline: The tournament will be May 4th and 5th, 2013. Generally, this means that the card order should go out by early April, which means that I’d need finished art in early to mid-March (though I reckon we’d be communicating regularly throughout the process, tossing ideas and concepts back and forth, etc.). If you’re potentially interested, drop me a PM! I’m happy to give you more info about the project, and I’d love to see some examples of your artwork. Thanks for your interest! Jim

Absolutely gorgeous!

For a more rigid, less expensive epoxy putty than greenstuff, I've used Magicsculp for years. When I tried milliput (the "extra fine" white stuff, I believe), I found it to be too prone to breakage. Magicsculp is hard as a rock. I got 5 pounds of the black stuff for $35, and it's lasted me for years and years of work. Not even half gone yet. http://www.mckenziesp.com/MGSBR5-P11261C96.aspx

At second look, the color choices strike me as even more inspired. Things look like a sepia-toned photograph, with bursts of color - kind of like a cross between steampunk and the Sin City film. I love it. I really hope you have plans for a display base for these - they'd look even more amazing with an appropriate backdrop. Also, the songs stuck in my head. Thanks for that, you seasick crocodile.

Gorgeous! LOVE the subdued colors, the washed out depleted, and the bursts of colors. And the freehand on the cards? *swoons*

I don't think the OP is asking for everything to be the exact same size. That seems a straw man if there ever was one. I own all of the new Neverborn plastics. Generally, I can tolerate some variation in scale, as I tend to mix and match models from different manufacturers. With the old metals, some variation was to be expected, as sculptors differ. It doesn't tend to bother me, generally. However, with the new Neverborn, the scale differences were enough to bug me. Some of the models don't seem like the same manufacturer, let alone the same crew.

LOL! They'll get corrected when I break out the red paint for Jakob Lynch and friends. Honestly, I always prefer a limited color palette. I think my preference developed from painting Warhammer armies. Masses of troops need to look like they go together while still being individuals. A shared palette really goes a long way for that. My usual M.O. is to select one "accent color" that will pop and stand out, two or three base colors that will form the bulk of the army, and a handful of neutrals that I can mix in as needed. In my Neverborn, red is the accent, purple and black-blue are the base colors, and grey, brown, leather, bone, and flesh are the neutrals. The trick with Malifaux, versus other games, is trying to get color and basing schemes that are consistent across crews and factions, while still being different enough to differentiate factions. I've tried to keep the color scheme of my Neverborn close enough to my Ressers that I can have models go back and forth without being too jarring, but still different enough that they look like different crews. I'm not sure that I've accomplished it, but I've tried!

Thanks! I figured if any subject would work well with vivid colors and my cartoony, graphic painting style, it'd be a little boy's dream world. Got the skin finished on the Dark Debts models last night. In order to stick to the color scheme, I'm thinking of showing "active" brilliance in purple, and do the Hungering Darkness and the skin of the Depleted in my dark blue/black. Not sure how the blue/black skin will work for the Depleted, but I'm trying to avoid the "zombie skin green" I use for my Ressers, while still limiting the color palette to what is already in my Dreamer crew.

Update on my Neverborn. Finished off my Dreamer Crew: The wonder twins: From left to right, Coppelius, Insidious Madness, and my proxy for either an Alp or another Insidious Madness. The whole crew, together at last: I got my Dark Debts models assembled (and cleaned, and greenstuffed) and primed, and have started painting them. I didn't care for the tadpole look of the Hungering darkness, so I added some gribbly bits (spider legs from the Battle for Skull Pass set). Here's what it looks like with the brightness cranked way up so you can see something other than a black blob:

Marvelous, marvelous, marvelous!

Thanks for the pics - great work! Do you have one from the front and above of the Hungering Darkness? I'd love to see how it looks with a filled gap.