NEWS: Days of Wonder to release new game

[Sergeant_Crunch]

Guess this one is classified somewhere between tabletop miniatures wargame and miniatures boardgame. Apparently it comes with a butt-load of plastic minis.

Los Altos, CA; Paris, France - September 8, 2006. Days of Wonder, a leading publisher of topquality board games, today announced their newest, most ambitious project to date, the BattleLore game system. The world of BattleLore meshes history and fantasy together

- putting players in command of a vast array of miniature troops on the battlefields of a Medieval Europe Uchronia at the outset of the Hundred Years War.

Drawing on the strengths of its own best-selling and critically acclaimed Memoir ’44, Days of Wonder’s newest game takes the time-tested, card-driven mechanics to a whole new level and offers gamers and role-players a unique twist on epic fantasy. Game play takes place on a largescale hex board filled with armies, legendary races and monstrous creatures that fight over varied terrain and landmarks to capture the enemy’s banners in a series of unique Adventures. Powerful Lore Masters, such as Wizards, Clerics,

Warriors and Rogues gathered in customizable War Councils; Mercenary bands chosen from among mythical races such as the Iron Dwarves of Northern England; and Monstrous Creatures all complement the dizzying array of possibilities and tough choices that will face players as they venture in the World of BattleLore. Building on years of experience producing the industry’s most appealing board games, Days of Wonder raises the bar several notches higher with this new release. BattleLore’s over two hundred miniatures use a new patent-pending, Banner Bearer mechanic to provide both a visually stunning new look to a players’ armies and to display all the unit-specific information that was traditionally compiled in unwieldy army booklets, reference sheets, or hard-to-read wheelbases.

"Not just another game, or the latest game system fad, BattleLore is a foundation game for us - something we first envisioned long before we even started the company and that hearkens back to the days we first discovered Chainmail", said Days of Wonder CEO, Eric Hautemont. "As a project, BattleLore has been years in the making, yet what we are delivering this fall only lays the groundwork for the future. The coming years will hold many surprises for both resellers and game enthusiasts worldwide."

BattleLore includes: over 210 highly detailed plastic miniatures, including 58 banner bearers; an extensive Player's Guide, with separate Adventures Booklet; a double-sided battlemap; 46 Terrain and Landmark tiles; 60 Command cards; 60 Lore cards; 48 Summary cards; 2 War Council sheets; 24 Lore Master Tokens; 12 Battle dice; and a Days of Wonder Online Access Number, giving players free access to the BattleLore Online Adventures Editor. BattleLore is for 2 players (or 2 teams), ages 10 and up and takes approximately 60 minutes to play. The game is expected to be available in late November in both North America and Europe in English, French and German. Suggested retail price is US $70.00 and €70.00.

A promotional miniature, the Hill Giant, packed in a blister complete with figure, banner and lair, will be available through friendly local game stores and the Days of Wonder web site to any customer who pre-orders the game ahead of its actual release. A second promotional miniature, the Earth Elemental, will be available through a variety of sources including conventions and demo events leading to the game's release. The BattleLore Primer, a printed piece that further describes the BattleLore game system, will be available free of charge through the same channels starting in early October. Additional game information will also be posted online weekly in the newly launched BattleLore Chronicles weblog at http://www.battlelore.com.

Days of Wonder publishes high-quality, family-oriented board games that are easy to learn and fun to play. Founded in 2002, Days of Wonder has a global presence, with offices in the US and Europe, and distribution in 25 countries. In 2004, Days of Wonder became the youngest publisher ever to win Germany’s prestigious Spiel des Jahres, the world’s most coveted game prize.

[Wren]

My husband's all excited about this. Apparently they will be doing both standard expansions like the ones they currently do for their game Memoir '44, and blister pack expansions, like the way the hill giant promo will be packaged. Richard Borg's other games include Battle Cry, Command & Colors Ancients, Hera and Zeus, Heave-Ho, Memoir '44, Risk LoTR, Warriors and Wyatt Earp.