The Times They Are A Changin'

Since 2011, more than a year before JADE was officially founded, we have been playing our annual Halloween Call of Cthulhu game. We played for the last 7 years until 2017. However this year, as the title implies, the times are a changin' and we have to break from this old tradition.

There are a couple of reasons we decided to not play this year, but honestly the most dramatic and the most important is that Dave and his partner had their first child this year!'

I have the honour of introducing you all to Dave's son Quinn. JADE's newest member is only eight days old as of this article and is an absolute cutie!

Welcome to the world Quinn can't wait to teach you all about tabletop adventuring with the guys!

So needless to say Dave has been pretty busy, and doesn't really have the time or energy to devote to playing Call of Cthulhu this year. And honestly neither do the rest of us.

5 Months ago, I moved from Toronto (where we all lived) North to Newmarket where most of us grew up. This was largely due to rising housing prices in Toronto, and with my own plans to start a family my wife and I needed more space.

Well with me being a 45 minute drive or 1 and a half bus ride away, it seem impractical to get together with everyone on Halloween which being today is a Wednesday this year.

Elijah is also getting ready to follow his fiance over seas to Scotland next year, and is still getting used to her not being here and having to take care of their dog, cats and household by himself. This again makes a Wednesday game session just completely impractical.

By next year Elijah will be in Scotland making it even more difficult to do. Now we are focusing on doing more remote gaming sessions, however given the time change a weekday game across countries seem a little difficult to coordinate.

So Annual Halloween Call of Cthulhu game it has been a fun ride, but this year we must make way for new plans and new traditions.

Here's to the future everyone! And it is looking bright and exciting!


Written by: Andrew Gregory


Image Sources:

Cthulhu 1 - http://aliens.wikia.com/wiki/Cthulhu

Loch Ness Castle - https://www.brendanvacations.com/travel-styles/guided-vacations/best-of-ireland-and-scotland/

Cthulhu 2 - https://www.telegraph.co.uk/films/2016/10/30/cthulhus-evil-overlord-the-monstrous-world-of-hp-lovecraft/

3 Ways to Recap Your Last D&D Game

One of the problems that has plagued Game Masters, Referees and Keepers alike is how do you recap the events of an on going campaign? How do you get your players back into the scene after you have been off for a week, a month or even a year?

It is a problem we have faced many times around JADE's table and here are three ways that we like to handle it, with their pros and cons.

1. What do the Players Remember?

Perhaps the easiest way to handle this is to just ask your players what they remember at the start of the game. With some prodding and guidance they will largely work out where they are in the story.

This is great because it is interactive and gets the players involved right off the bat, however it can take a while, and players will often not remember the small pieces of role play that really defined the scene. So, this methods is a bit of a double edged sword: your players get right into the game, but they might forget some of the little things.

But if you are ok with that and want your players quickly involved this is the best method for you.

2. Read out a Recap of Last Game

My preferred method is after each game to record a list of the happenings and then run through that with the players at the start of the next session. Now I don't just include the bare bones events, I also through in some humorous happenings and other things like that to put a smile on everyone's face, and to remind them off the little things.

I have found that this is the best way to recap the last game because players will remember events they otherwise wouldn't have, and it it does capture a pretty complete picture of the last session. The Downsides are that it is a lot of paper work, and that there is a delicate balance between what is too much information, and what is really illuminating for the players.  Too few points, and your recap will be vague and unengaging, too many and your players will stop listening to you.

If you want your players as immersed and informed as possible in the coming scenes, and don't mind the extra work this is a great method to use.

3. Don't Worry About It

For some it simply doesn't matter. The game will go forward regardless and what is important is that the players know where they are immediately what the main goal is. If this is your cup of tea, then creating a short paragraph describing the current location and the main quest well give the party everything they need to get the show on the road.

This is without a doubt the fastest way to handle a game recap: a couple of descriptive sentences about where and why you are playing and then the game begins. Any of the details can come out in game and those that don't weren't important anyways.

The down side here is similar to having your players remember and recount the events. Essentially you will lose some of the details about the last game, and without that setup and info many players will feel disconnected from their character and the campaign. So you unless your party is just interested in murder and loot this method can pull some players out of the scene.

If you just want to get the game and don't mind it quick and dirty then this is the way to go!

So those are three ways that JADE has handled game recaps in the past. Do you guys have trouble remembering what happened last game? How does your table handle it?

Let us know in the comments!


Written by: Andrew Gregory

Image Sources: All images are from the 2nd Ed Dungeon Master's Guide. 

PAF F-104A Starfighters with Tip Tanks

After my move from downtown Toronto to suburban Newmarket it has taken us a while to get back on track. And while Dungeons and Dragons and Warhammer 40k got going without any problems our Check Your 6! Campaign has gone by the way side.

So I am pleased to say that we are back at it and returning to our Check Your 6! Jet Age Crisis in Kashmir campaign.

The first jets I have painted in a long time are these two Pakistani F-104A Starfighters, and like my Pakistani MiG 21's they are among my favourite fighter jets.

Pakistan purchased their f104 from the United States, realizing the need for a supersonic interceptor and when the deal for English Electric's Lightning interceptor fell through.

Armed with two sidewinder missiles and a 20mm vulcan cannon, the F-104 is truly a deadly fighter, and the pride of the PAF.

In my opinion they had every right to be proud. The F-104 was essentially a modern fighter, and was featured in many nation's air forces up into the 21st century, with Italy retiring their last one in 2004. Even the american's were still using these aircraft in their on going Vietnam was in 1965.

Despite thier frequent use, the Pakistani Air Force claims that one of their F-104's shot down an Indian Dassault Mystere IV during the Indo-Pakistan War, and this was the first kill any Mach 2 fighter had ever scored. However of course still their bitter rivals, the Indians disagree and dispute the events.

To put this to the test, our match features one of to two Starfighters against four Mysteres. So we will be putting one of these very scenarios to the test!


Written by: Andrew Gregory

Battlefleet Gothic: Plague Fleet Infidel Class Raiders

Just like my Idolator Class Raiders, these Infidel Class Raiders are also from Shapeways... and like the Idolators I can no longer find the model online.

However these 3d printed "counts-as" Infidel Class Raiders are perfect for my Plague Fleet.

Featuring batteries and torpedoes the Infidel class raiders do not pack much of a punch, but rather swarm like insects and line up for coordinated torpedo strikes.

In the past I have never really fielded much in the way of Infidel class raiders preferring instead to use the heavier Apostate Raiders instead. However at 50pts/ship the Apostates are expensive and just not that much more powerful.

I will see how they preform in game, but honestly I doubt that I have enough of them to really make a difference. 

I am Still trying to figure out what the best balance of escorts to cruisers and I suspect that the 850pt fleets I am making are a little too heavy on the Escort side, but we will see.

And so my Plague Fleet grows! Can't wait to get these guys out and into a battle!


Written by: Andrew Gregory

Dwarven Map of the Grayland Forest

In JADE's Thomas' Time Travel Adventure campaign after abandoning the party in the past, Thomas encountered a Sha'ir named Zefewé ibn Agrabah who claimed to be following this map towards an ancient temple and a hidden treasure.

After looking at the map Thomas was unable to read it due to it's dwarven runes, however he did recognize the area. And also recognized that Zef was holding the map upside down.

After righting the map, Zef explained that he was heading towards the symbol in the circle on the left side of the map. He also told Thomas that if he was interested he could join him.

Thomas agreed and the two set out together along with Zef's assistant snails. Though he agreed to go along, Thomas didn't trust Zef, feeling more that this was something to do for now, and that he would probably ditch him later.

It turned out that Thomas' instincts were right. Zef was a member of the Blackridge Thief's Guild, and he had stolen this map from a Dwarven prospector he had over heard drunkenly telling the story of the temple. This was a man decidedly more evil than Thomas had ever really dealt with and it made him notably uncomfortable.

During their travels Zef kept to himself and spendt much of his time translating the symbols on the map. Using the names of the towns that Thomas recognized in place of the Dwarven  runes gave him a starting point, and, Zef was able to decipher a fair bit off of the few letters. he had.

It was a marvelous player aid and Jeff (Zef's player) had a wonderful time working decoding the map.

Have you ever given your players something like this? this was the first time I have tried this out: a puzzle in the form of a document in game. And I highly recommend it. It was a lot of fun and really made for an interesting if cerebral game.


Written by: Andrew Gregory

Jeff's Top 3 D&D Monsters

Perhaps the most ancient mythos, the Hero’s Journey is one which almost always culminates in an epic creature confrontation. The brave knight has overcome every obstacle in his/her quest for glory or love, only to find themselves staring down a dragon so ferocious it would make Chuck Norris shriek like a banshee. The Pagemaster anyone?

If you wanna get a little shamanistic, perhaps the beast symbolizes a character’s greatest internal fears, which have manifested in a dream as a giant spider they must now face without recourse. What’s certain is that one of D&D’s most endearing features is the sheer scope and choice of monstrous entities a DM has at their disposal to just rifle at their players like a Machiavellian sociopath. Will your party stand tall against that which frightens them most, strengthening their character and resolve? Or will they cower in the wake of the monsters that lurk deep within the dungeons or their hearts, fleeing for their lives like far too many before them? Hold on to your butts cause we about to go deep.

Here are three of my favourite D&D monsters of all time.

Beholder

There are numerous scenarios in life where one can enter a room and be immediately faced with a stark existential realisation of being hopelessly and completely screwed. Encountering a Beholder tops the list. While you may scoff at the idea that a fat blob with one eye and 10 tentacles with smaller eyes can really be that much of a threat, we say unto thee: The devil is in the details friend.

For starters, this blobby mess can fire a sweeping field of energy from its central eye that nullifies the magic of it’s foes, but don’t think the pain stops there. 10 eyes means ten rays of the death that can be fired right into your face including but not limited to: Sleep Rays, paralysis rays, fear rays, and yes, disintegration rays. Carving out lairs deep under cities, Beholders actually take pride in enslaving other creatures to build and control immense evil empires. So not only are these despots terrifyingly deadly, their also one-eyed dicks. Behold this. (gives middle finger and then dies a horrible death)

Mind Flayer

JADE became intimately familiar with the Mind Flayer when 90% of the party in Conquest of Frey fell to it’s squiddy masochism - the only surviving member swearing fealty like the brave lad he was. Ask yourself what you would do when coming face to face with a creature whose sole motivation in life is controlling sentient minds to the point of hopeless slavery, before devouring the brains for sustenance. Any being whose physiology depends solely on consuming the hormones, enzymes, and psychic energy that brain tissue can provide just sounds like a really bad time man.

Expect to rarely encounter these creatures alone, as they are often flanked by at least 2 other beings firmly under their control. Seems the only saving grace here comes from imagining this squid-faced gangster yelling “Get ‘em Boys!” in the most cliched way possible. Though not physically dominant, as soon as your party gets hit with a mind blast leaving everyone stunned and easy pick'ns.

Black Pudding

What kind of immature icons would we be if we didn’t include pudding on this list. Though regrettably not of the chocolate variety, this pudding is certainly just as deadly, and perhaps even tastier if you know what we mean 😉 (I don’t even know what we mean). Belonging to the ooze family, this pile of goo is surprisingly hard to kill, as when struck with a weapon, it simply multiplies into smaller pieces! If that isn’t enough to satiate your palette, this healthy dessert will absorb your sword on a roll of 5 or less, and also enjoys disintegrating your armor with acid until you’re naked and alone. And they say pudding doesn’t make you lose weight.

What makes this creature so terrifying and dangerous is that fighting it is a race against the clock. Massive damage must be done before there are no more weapons left to do damage with. JADE likes goo. We try not to discriminate against goo as there are many great and delicious goos out there. But if you want our advice on this one, the next time you hit the sweet table, maybe you should opt for the cheesecake instead.

Out of all of the available D&D monsters out there, this has been but a small taste of what waits for you in the dungeons of your nightmares. The beautiful thing is that any DM with a strong imagination can also conceptualize creatures similar to those in the manuals and compendiums, and bring them to life simply by borrowing similar stats and abilities. JADE did exactly that with our Rock Worm in the Elementia Campaign’s major temple. If you’re a novice DM, we encourage to study up on what’s available for you to torment your players with, and work with each other to engineer memorable encounters that will take your immersion to new zeniths. Swipe some of our character dice as well, and experiment with creating the characters and NPCs who stand the best chance of completing the Hero’s Journey, facing their greatest fears, and finding themselves the subject of Bardish songs for centuries to come!


Written by: Jeff Clive

Image Sources:

All images are from the Dungeons and Dragons , 2nd, 3rd and 5th ed Monster/Monstrous Manuals. Oh... And the last one is from Volo's Guide.

Battlefleet Gothic: Plague Fleet Idolator Class Raiders

I had originally purchased these "counts-as" Idolator Class Raiders from Shapeways intending for them to be used in my standard Black Legion Chaos Fleet. However, that was a back in 2015 when I was still planning on doing a Black Legion army for Warhammer 40k.

But of course now it is 2018, and instead of creating a Black Legion force I actually ended up reviving my old Plague Marines.

With our new Curse of the Relictors Campaign in swing, I also needed to get my Plague Marines an appropriately sized fleet.

Now, I already had a Plague Cruiser ready to go, but what I really needed to add were some Escorts.

So grabbed these Idolators Raiders and painted them into these Plague Escorts. Unfortunately, when I went back onto Shapeways and tried to find these minis again it looks like they are no longer available. So these three will have to serve as the only examples of this specific layout of Idolators in my fleet.

If you find these minis on Shapeways please let me know! I would love to find more.

Tthankfully in the mean time I only needed these three. So without any records of my previous paint job, I set to work trying to recreate the scheme of my old plague cruiser... And honestly I completely failed. However I was able to change the colour of the old Crusier to match these ships so it all worked out!

And here's the plague fleet so far! A little small, but this is a real easy paint job and I should be finished the whole fleet soon.

Written by: Andrew Gregory

3D Printed Hunter Class Destroyers

Getting reall Battlefleet Gothic minis can not only be difficult but incredibly expensive! Thankfully the fans have brought so much of it online that you have a lot of options! From Ebay to Shapeways you have a lot of options. And of course if you have access to a 3D printer then the options are endless!

These twelve Battlefleet Gothic Space Marine Hunter Class Destroyers I found on Thingiverse and had my buddy Coy print out for me! I actually only needed nine, but he forgot to change the setting on his printer, so in the end I got twelve, which is great because I can use the seven I need for my Relictor Fleet, and the other five can get added to my Space Wolf Fleet.

I have had a few battles against the Space Marines in the past, but that was of course only using a handful of ships, and two Strike Cruisers. So I am really curious to see how the Hunter Class Destroyers preform on the table, but only time will tell!

Written by: Andrew Gregory

CorSec Engineering's Omni-Stands

Ever since JADE got started as a group playing Canvas Eagles of all things, we have used various types of stands to represent our flying models. After a couple of years of trying this and that, we landed on the Omni-Stand System by CorSec Engineering 

I currently use Omni-Stands for three different games. Canvas Eagles, Check Your 6!, and Battlefleet Gothic. And let me tell you there is no going back.

The very first type we bought were these telescoping rods and hexagonal bases for the various air wargames that we play. These have counters on the bottom to represent altitude levels, and the telescoping allows for a more visual aspect and view of what is going on.

The planes attach to magnetic sphere on top by means of a small metal mount that you glue to the bottom of the plane.

All of the pieces come apart allowing you to mix, match and swap out parts as needed.

I also use Omni-Stands  in games like Battlefleet Gothic and Dystopian Wars. Having swappable bases allows for a small collection of stands to serve multiple fleets. All you need to do is remove the ships from the stand. It also has the added bonus of making it easy to replace anything that breaks

We originally used magnetized stands (as seen above) to make the ships easily swap-able, however I have had some trouble with this. In larger games of BFG the number of magnets on the table meant some weird magnet stuff started to happen. Thankfully the Omni Stand Mounts also screw on to the bases which solved that problem. While this screw-method makes the ships not quite as easy to remove, they can still come off of the stands making them easily reusable.

Now despite how much I loves these stands there is one downside to them, and that is their price. The airplane flight stands cost around $12-$15 each, and the starship stands without the magnet cost around $3. So in all this means that getting a lot of stands is quite the investment if you have a large collection of minis you want to mount. But, you will never need to buy another base again once you are done.

So get yourself some reusable stands, and up the level of your game!


Written by: Andrew Gregory

Battlefleet Gothic Eldar Nightshade Class Destroyers

The final pieces of my Eldar fleet are complete! To accompany my Eclipse Class Cruise, Aurora Class Light Cruiser and Hellebore Class Frigates I have painted these 5 Nightshade Class Destroyers.

These models are not real Games Workshop figures and are were 3D Printed from Thingiverse. But honestly with this kind of detail who can tell!

Despite being the same size as a frigate and costing a whopping 50pts to field, the Nightshade is indeed a destroyer class making it one of the smaller ships the Eldar can field.

Nightshades are largely torpedo vessels, featuring only a small forward battery and two torpedo tubes. So these vessels aren't much, but with their speed they should be able to hold their own at range.

And there it is the Eldar Fleet in all of its glory! So that is 850pts, based off of the BFGXR rules which are fan made revised rules, but I have found to be much more balanced than the original game.

After this we are on to creating the Plague Fleet Commanded by Typhus (and eventually the Terminus Est) and then on to the Relictor Space Marine fleet. All three of these will feature in upcoming games in our Curse of the Relictor's Campaign!


Written by: Andrew Gregory

Coloured Map of the Southern Graylands

In my Arachnophobia Campaign I have a habit of creating maps for my characters. Personally I love giving my players their own maps, allowing tyhem to plan and plot their own course as they adventure through my world.

I created this map for John the Greenwood Ranger so that he could figure out how to get from Troutbeck (up at the top in the lake) to Malbridge (just South East of the Wolf's Head). When Thomas the Chronomancer took his TARDIS, map, much of the party's supplies, and then abandoned them in the past forcing them to redo the first chapter of the campaign, John has been in need to some directions.

Since the group has gone completely off track from where they went time, John has been in desperate need of map to help figure out the party's next course in the Southern Graylands. He found this map made by a Gnomish cartographer in the town of Troutbeck. It being a full colour map made with expensive inks, John was forced to pay quite a bit more then he was expecting to.

Flipping the map over John saw that it indeed had the seal of the Map Maker's League, meaning that the map had been verified and was accurate. Seeing that he had little choice, John bought the map on behalf of the party and her and Shan the Sha'ir began plotting their course towards, Malbridge, Chester and ultimately Darfiled and Harbour Town.

As the Dm I loved the look on everyone's face as I pulled this map out from behind my DM's screens. I find giving your players a physical map really helps them get into character, and into the game. Letting them see where they are in relation to where they are going just helps them get a sense of your world!

And like my maps they don't even have to be very good! Just enough that they can plan their next steps.


Written by: Andrew Gregory

4 Reasons Why Food is Important in D&D

Are... Are you gonna eat that?

Since my very first D&D campaign I have always asked that my players make sure their characters eat in game. Whether they keep a tally of rations or specific food items they carry as a DM I like my players to be thinking about food.

Now, I am not picky, I just ask that you eat something. So a meal comprised of an apple is good enough for me; it is simply that you have to eat and of course the less you do, the hungrier your character will become.

Some people can find this tedious, but here are four reasons to include food in your D&D game.

1. It Sets the Scene

What would Dragonlance be without Otik's Spiced Potatoes? Honestly, probably the same, but what those potatoes did was set a scene. They made you care a little bit more about the Inn of the Last Home and it's owner Otik Sandath. The same will go for your players in game. So setting a lavish feast, describing how little food the party has remaining, or even just giving a tavern a special on the menu will help absorb your players into the scene.

This is probably the easiest way to include food in your campaign, as it doesn't require your players to keep track of it. You can simply include food/meals as a driving force, or description where you deem necessary. So you want the party to feel desperate and a little helpless? Tell them their food is low. On the other hand you want to shower them with affection, throw them a feast with a seven course meal and come up with each course. Your players will appreciate it and it will help them get into the scene.

2. The Unending Quest

The thing with food is that you always need more of it eventually. If you are interested in having your players keep track of their rations, then you have given them an unending side quest. They always have something to do and something to be concerned about: the food supply.

I have also done this with water, and I personally find that a little too tedious (unless you are in the desert ), so I tend to leave it out. But up to you of course!

If you look through the lists in magic encyclopedias, gnome inventions, and all manor of D&D resources, you will find a ton of magical items that solve the problem of food. The designers (at least at one point in the game's history) obviously wanted you to consider food, and have it be a problem. So why not add it to the list of things your players need to deal with in their party?

3. A Reason to spend Pocket Change

Gold in D&D is very easy spend. Silver and copper however are not as easy to empty your pockets of. Since most items your players will care to buy are valued in gold; silver and copper can tend to get ignored. However once you add food, you have a whole new story.

Bread, Vegetables, Cheese? These items are certainly not worth a gold piece, but a copper or two? Maybe as high as a silver depending on size and quality? Absolutely!

Food gives your players a reason to get rid of their pocket change in the market, in taverns, at a farmers field, etc.etc. And since they are always looking for more food, they will always be spending that cash.

4. Helps With Timing Events

My Players like to role play through every day. This is largely because we have a campaign featuring time travel, and it simply made handling that easier, but also the guys just wanted to.

Mentioning that your players are hungry and need to stop to eat is a useful way to break up and help plan out your game. Lunch time for example can serve as a good middle point for each day, to arrange a small role play or battle based encounter around. It also gives the players a chance to stop and talk about the events in game.

Whether it is a simply roadside lunch stop, or a grand feast with a nobleman, a meal can serve as a specific encounter in game and you can plan events accordingly. I have hosted a few games where the players get invited to meals with Lords, Ladies and other important figures and these events become the pinnacle feature of the day that the players must plan around. Which is good focus and pacing for a DM.


So there are four reasons to include food in your campaign. Of course, if you focusing on a more battle intense, dungeon crawl type game then perhaps leave food out of it, unless you want to add in a hardcore survival element. But if role play is your focus, then food will only add to that.


Written by: Andrew Gregory

Image Sources: All images from the 1989, and 1995 2nd Ed AD&D Player's Handbooks and the 1995 DM's Guide