The post just delivered a small order of figures from Irregular Miniatures. They now have a number of insectoid sculpts. Some are tool user with weapons, others have nothing but the dangerous appendages granted to them by evolution (or bioengineering, or an evil God’s dream).

First let’s handle the tool using fellows. In the 25mm a range of Spice Lice would prove dangerous adversaries for high tech human warriors. The online catalog shows several of the line troopers with various weapons. I am always looking for interesting unarmed arthropods to fill the ranks of The Hive (since they are dangerous enough without gifting them technology). I picked up the Spice Lice officers. These weren’t pictured. When the minis arrived they came in two poses. One has a pair of horns on the sides of its head while the second pose lacks the horns but has a third eye on a stalk protruding from its forehead. Both poses have a handgun of some sort clutched in their front claws. The guns can be removed with a moderate amount of surgery. Suitably modified they would make good drones or workers. With or without the gun the figures are nice. They are well animated and look fairly scary. Even though they don’t fit my particular and peculiar needs they are nice and the Spice Lice range has enough figures to make up a decent army. Well done!

The next figure I got was the “Cave Bug” are from the new 25mm  near future Sci Fi Bug Hunt/Invasion of the Bugs range. These guys a four legged figures, and no technology is apparent.  They are perfect for workers, even though most of the Hive have six or more legs. They would also make great larva if their legs were removed. They are a bit light on detail but the Scorpion Bug which are crisp and well detailed more than make up for the “rolly polly-ness” of the Cave Bugs. The Scorpion Bugs have two small claws on their front limbs and a long stinger tail. The tail could be removed to make these guys crabs or crushers, or perhaps media sized workers (Butchers would be well represented by these guys). There is also a giant spider (which in 25mm scales out to be 4-5 feet in length) called a spider bug.

ll in all these were nice figures and the service was excellent. The postage, even from the UK wasn’t terrible and the box arrived with laudable alacrity. Nice job and I have high hopes that both the Spice Lice and the Bug Hunting lines will breed additional figures that can be used for Hive Warriors, Workers and Drones or any other generalized bug warriors.

I look forward to seeing more good work from Irregular!

http://www.flickr.com/photos/scarletgenesis/sets/72157623124084408/

These are some pictures of a game we had at our house using the Hive and the Flame variant of The Sword and the Flame. The Bugs are from GFI. The British figures are from various sources, including GFI, Old Glory and Frontier. The vehicles either Thomas the Tank Engine toys or designs from my own imagination but sculpted by the Scott Flowers formerly of GameTech. Some of the photos give a good view of my occasionally mentioned gaming room.

The scenario was based on one designed by Alan Hamilton (and it will be available as part of the book when The Hive and the Flame is released) The British forces must hold the town and prevent the alien Hive from “harvesting” any of the livestock (to the Hive people are part of livestock). The Bugs just want to feast!

The peaceful English village waited at one end of the board, the bugs entered at the other. A river courses through the valley and a road follows it. The river is from Armorcast the roads from Adventure Terrain. Buildings are from the dollar store.

Initially the British defenses consisted of two companies of Royal Marines with bolt action rifles and two sections of Royal Marine Artillery with light field guns. Two large herds of sheep and a herd of swine were scattered across the valley in the path of the invaders.

The British player divided his two companies with one attempting to recover the livestock from the lower valley while the second company and the gun sections set up to defend the village and await reinforcements.

The bugs entered and began marching up the towards the food. On the right flank the bugs got held up in some rough terrain and half a company of Marines was able to escape back to the village. The other half company became trapped in the pig farm and was cut off. More and more bugs entered the fray. The British were forced into a totally defensive posture, unable to relieve the garrison of the pig farm and forced to meet the aliens with long range artillery and rifle fire.

The rescue train pulled into the station and the relief force began debussing, while refugees and livestock huddled in the station awaiting escape. The relief force of three infantry companies, two heavy landships, two light landships and two 1 pdr Pom Pom sections was slowly exited the train cars and hurried to defend the town.

The relief force arrived too late to help the garrison of the pig farm. Massive lancers tore through the hedges and overran the Marines. After fierce hand to hand combat the Marines and swine were slaughter.

This was to be the aliens’ only victory. The delay in the rough terrain and some early set backs due to casualties in the controlling drones slowed the Hive so much that the British were able to establish a strong defensive line and using firepower able to destroy the aliens as they moved forward. The aliens were forced back.

Photos were taken by myself and my wife.

Terry

I started the HQC list in January of 2007 to discuss the Hive War setting that I’d begun to develop several years before. I figured it was different enough from the published VSF/Steampunk settings that those lists deserved to be free of the chatter about something that was becoming progressively more off topic. It had also begun to take on a life of its own and I thought it might interest people as a stand alone set of ideas.

The list began as a place where I could bounce ideas off a few individuals that had shown an interest from other lists or other places. Very quickly it started to pick up steam. I think now it is something that if it isn’t unique is certainly different than a lot of internet venues. On the Yahoo! Group a community of people is helping to design and flesh out a game universe. I’ve always viewed role playing as collective storytelling. The referee or game master does much of the work but without players who contribute their creativity in the form of characters and character actions and interactions with the referee’s setting all you have is a still life, like a stage with great set decoration but no players, sort of an intellectual diorama. On the list I think we’ve taken things a set beyond that. This is role playing universe creation done interactively with ideas and information being injected by anyone that wants to speak up.

When I was at Archon describing the setting someone asked if I had “back story”. I nearly fell over laughing. The universe as it stands is certainly one of the most detailed in existence. It was pointed out to me by a writer friend that if I had no additional input from this point on I still couldn’t do justice to the back story already created. People on this list have been extremely diligent in preventing me from tripping over myself and producing an HQC canon that wasn’t internally consistent. At times discussions have been far down in the weeds, other times we’ve looked at over arching concepts. I’ve been prevented for numerous errors by the wide ranging knowledge that constantly dazzles there.

If anyone is interested in being a part of this they are welcome to join the list!

http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/Hivequeen/

I was asked to post the other entries in the  2009 writer’s contest for Hive, Queen and Country. I have done so in heading labeled 2009 Contest under Fiction in the HQC Universe. As you can see the quality of entries was excellent and each had interesting things to say either about the HQC universe in particular or Steampunk in General. Good work to everyone and I hope folks enjoy them as much as I have.

Terry Sofian