The Warriors...er, Kings! Came Out to Play at Cincycon 2024!

Streets of downtown Columbus degenerated into a chaotic gang fight on Friday night at Cincycon 2024

With it being the 45th anniversary of the release of the movie "The Warriors" -- which was my inspiration for my Mean Streets rules -- I thought I should host a scenario that is a nod to it. My convention scenarios are often six player free-for-alls. However, I thought I would have two players representing a single gang and the other four being independents. The two player gang, aka the Warriors, would be trying to get from one side table edge to the other. 

    The table at Cincycon 2024 all set up and ready for players to "come out to plaaaaayyy...!"

Perhaps surprisingly, I don't have miniatures for the Warriors themselves. So, I chose one of my larger gangs, the Eastmoor Kings, and have them stand in. As you may know, my gangs are all named after Columbus neighborhoods. The Kings are an African-American gang, while the other four in the scenario would be the Indianola Mohawks (punk rockers), Franklinton Flippos (clown masks), Santanas (Hispanic gang), and the Linden Daos (black martial arts gang). I decided to give each Kings player one extra figure compared to the independent gangs to give them a fighting chance to get all the way across the table.

    Santanas keep watch on their corner of Bridge Street, making sure no one trespasses on their turf

All of the gangs would be given a variety of ways to earn victory points. Simply knocking out a member of a rival gang would be worth points. For the independents, each had one of the other three as worth extra points (you owe them payback for a previous beat-down). In addition, they had a criminal mission to carry out in a rival gang's turf, such as the Linden Daos had to enter Mohawk territory and "steal some smokes" from a cigarette kiosk. Finally, those four gangs also had two buildings to protect from rival gangs "tags." Players always seem to enjoy the "tagging" mission, and this would give a reason for each gang to protect its turf. 

    Just across the street, two of the Linden Daos strike an aggressive pose, marking their turf

The Kings, on the other hand, had the main mission of reaching the bridge that stretched across the table and catching a bus home. Just like with the Warriors, they had been double-crossed after going across town to a gang parley. Seeing how things in my gang warfare games typically devolve into -- shocker -- street fights, I figured the Kings would struggle to make it unscathed across five feet of tabletop. As it turned out, I may have underestimated the redoubtable street thugs and their canniness!

    My 6 players gathered around the table -- you can see the big bridge (King's goal) in the foreground

Scenery-wise, I had a couple new debuts for my Mean Streets games. The big one, so to speak, was the nearly three feet long stone bridge I had recently painted. See my earlier post on assembling and painting this monstrosity. Also new to the tabletop was my 6'x4' fleece city mat. I had picked up this mat with a concrete pattern from Shieldwall Gaming Club at the Hold the Line convention last Fall. I wasn't sure if my asphalt streets I made from cork material would look good on top of the concrete (since a street is lower than the concrete sidewalks). I set it up in my basement and was very happy with how it looked, so took it along instead of my acrylic tiles I'd used previously.

    You can see the back side of the Silent Slumbers motel here, along with Smith's Smoke Shack

Another new appearance on the table was the Silent Slumbers motel, a two-story resin building from Miniature Building Authority. This hefty model looks great on the urban tabletop, especially the back side with the air conditioning units and wires. Although no fighting took place in the motel, it was the scene of a couple big rumbles in front of and behind it. I did another thing to my scatter terrain. More than a year ago, I painted up a dozen or so streetlamps from pieces of bass wood purchased at the craft store. I don't know why I put them in a ziploc back and then forgot about them. I decided to take them along this time and put them on various street corners. I loved how they looked and feel like kicking myself for not debuting them in my games sooner!

    Early in the game, the Kings concentrated and ganged up on the Indianola Mohawks

The Mohawks, Daos, Flippos, and Santanas all deployed in their city block turf. I probably made a mistake in telling the two Kings players -- my friends Derek and Homer -- that they could deploy just off-board anywhere along the edge abutting Flippo and Mohawk territory. Most GMs have learned that miniature gamers can be counted on to their best to "break" a scenario you felt you balanced. What did Derek and Homer do? Well, of course, they came in like a ton of bricks on Michael's poor Mohawks, concentrating on one half of the side edge. They ignored the Flippos, who made things worse by ignoring the Kings entirely the entire game, too! Next time, I think I will be more specific in where they can come in and ensure that one of the independents isn't ganged up on and outnumbered from the outset.

    Derek's Kings swarm the back alley behind the motel, facing off against the Mohawks there

Homer sent his five Kings down the center street and immediately jumped Mohawks gang boss Sid and his main squeeze, Maybel. That turned out to be not the best idea, as Sid knocked out one and then another of the Kings punks who tried to invade Mohawk turf! Things were not off to a good start for the Kings with one player losing two of his five figures! Derek came in on the back corner behind the motel and apartment building. There they were met by Mohawks warchief Iggy, who held them off for a couple turns before succumbing to superior numbers.

    The Santanas cross the street to threaten Daos turf, trying to stare their rivals down

On the opposite end of the table, a dramatic standoff was underway. The Santanas crossed the street from their turf into territory controlled by the Linden Daos. The Daos had set up with their warchief and a punk to guard Wallace's Brewpub, while the Gang Boss and another punk sat poised to raid Smith's Smoke Shack and bag some points with their special mission. Upon seeing the Santanas assembling on the edge of their turf, they raced back to regroup. The two stared each other down for a moment and then the Santanas blinked, and headed back across the street into their territory. Perhaps it had something to do with a lone Flippo racing over and spray painting Sam's Quickie Mart (Santanas turf) with their clown-faced tag!

    Sidney and Dwayne of the Daos chase down Manana of the Santanas, prompting Cruz to come help

Either way, it was a mistake when they turned their back on the Daos. As half of the Santanas raced towards the Quickie Mart and the other two retreated back to the Pot O'Gold motel, the Daos sprang into action. Several of them chased down the two heading for the hotel and jumped them there. Never turn your back on a street gang looking for trouble! 

    Outnumbered, Sid and Maybel fight a valiant battle to defend their turf, but ultimately succumb

Meanwhile, things were heating up in Mohawk turf! Sid battled Eastmoor King after King, with Maybel wading in with their chain to lend a hand. However, once King gang boss Tyrese got in on the action, things got much more difficult. As vicious as he was with his fists, Sid simply couldn't fend off all of Homer's boys. The gang boss went down, and Maybel took that opportunity to scamper away and head for home. She had taken a few blows herself, and knew that if Sid couldn't stop these outsiders, she didn't stand a chance.

    The police arrive seeing a street fight between the Santanas and Daos taking place on the corner

The rest of the Mohawks had also battled stubbornly, but with Michael's whole gang down or off-table, he was the first beneficiary of my "cop rule." If a player is taken out early, I give them a police car and two officers to drive onto the tabletop on any street edge. They can come and get payback at the one who knocked them out, or show up in an entirely different place. Their choice! I began using this mechanic after a running of Mean Streets at Cincycon when two brothers, Steve and Mike Cole, played in my game. They live to pound on each other in miniatures games and one took the other out quickly in that game. I've used it ever since, and many a player has enjoyed the second lease on life in the game and had a blast playing the cops! Michael hammed it up perfectly, finding a police siren sound on his phone and playing it as he brought the patrol car onto the table.

    Police use their billy club on El Lobo after the Daos fled (or were knocked out by the Santanas)

Just before the police arrived, though, a bloodied Manana had scampered away from the furious fists of the black martial arts gang. Warchief Cruz battled on, calling for help. This soon appeared in the form of both Gang Boss Julio and his buddy, El Lobo. Encircling the two Daos, they pounded one into the pavement, ignoring the commands of the police. The Daos soon decided it was time to retreat rather than take on their rivals and the police! The Santanas refused to back down until the second officer stepped out of the patrol car and added his weight to the struggle. Perhaps it was the sight of the cop's drawn revolver, but the Santanas soon fled back down the road and turned into the alley behind the hotel.

    The police chase the Santanas off the streets into the alley ways, calling for them to halt

What were the Flippos doing all this time? Now, that's a good question! Every once in awhile at a game, you have that one player who decides to do things his or her own way. Rich was playing VERY safe with his four Flippos. Most of the time, he spent holed holed up in side one of the apartment blocks in their turf, guarding it. He sent the occasional punk outside to tag the Quickie Mart (Santanas turf). It wasn't until the Mohawks had been taken down and the Santanas and Daos were brutally mixing it up, that the clown faced creeps emerged from their enclave.

    The Flippos spent half the game guarding their apartment complext from interlopers in this game

They raced in a tight mass towards the back door of the Quickie Mart. Their mission had been to duck inside their and steal some food for tonight's party. Gang Boss Marvin shouted out orders and the four clown-faced gang members efficiently slid inside and began grabbing food off the shelves. Once their pockets were stuffed, they exited out the front door, considering even more mayhem.

   Santanas, having a rough night, beat feet down an alley way to avoid the pursuit of the police

Meanwhile, the game was winding down. Gang boss Juanita was the last one left in the Daos, and she headed off to tag a few buildings to rack up some victory points. The Santanas took a right turn into the alley between the motel and the Quickie Mart. With a couple of their guys beat up pretty well, they were ready to call it a night, too. They certainly were wondering why the Flippos, Daos, and cops all had decided to pick on them. It had made things difficult, and they'd never got a chance to hit up Wallace's Brewpub for some beers for the party planned tonight!

    The Eastmoor Kings cross the halfway point of the table -- which I was really happy with!

Meanwhile, things were going very much like their inspiration film for the Kings. They'd taken a few hits and losses along the way, but they were steadily progressing towards their goal: getting home. After the fight with the Mohawks, Derek's contingent did manage to knock out one of the Daos who was a little less slippery than he should have been stealing smokes from the kiosk. Otherwise, they stay "on mission" and stealthily made their way through the streets of Columbus to the bridge.

    We almost had another dust up at the 11th hour when the Flippos and Santanas met on Bridge Street

The 3-hour time I'd given the game was winding down and most of the players seemed content to get off table and tally up their points. The Flippos briefly considered having a go at the nearby Santanas. With their clown pockets full of food, though (and all four gang members healthy), they decided to head back to their base and celebrate the night's success. They could always claim the Kings kept running because they were too scared to mess with the Flippos, right? The Santanas had come very close to getting two of their ranks knocked out of action, so, as much as they wanted that beer at Wallace's to cool off, the sight of 7 black-clad Kings in the vicinity dissuaded them. Besides, the cops were out looking to bust people, so better to lay low.

    Eastmoor Kings arrive on table near Swingle's Shawarma, whose customer is obviously oblivious

When we counted it up, the Kings had won on victory points. I averaged Derek and Homer's scores and they racked up 13 points. The Flippos were next with 10, on the strength of their tagging and food hoarding. The Daos, despite having only one member left, took third place with 7 points. The Santanas were close behind, and the poor Mohawks took it on the chin having to face both Derek and Homer's gangs simultaneously and unaided. In retrospect, I will probably keep the missions for the independent gangs. However, I will get rid of the "target" points for knocking out one of the other four you owe payback on. I may keep the extra points for the Kings, though, to encourage them to make it tougher on their march through town. 

    No such thing as a fair fight in a street battle -- even with the cops looking on!

All in all, the players had a blast, they said. I thought the scenario ran well, and is certainly a keeper. Look for it at both Drums at the Rapids, May 17-18, at Fort Meigs in Perrysburg, OH. I will also run it Thursday through Saturday at Origins Game Fair, June 19-23, Columbus, OH.

Giant 3-D Printed Bridge (with Graffiti)

    My newest piece of terrain -- a large, stone bridge with brick sidewalks and an asphalt road atop it

This is probably the largest piece of terrain that I have ever assembled and painted. It is a 3-D printed bridge that I purchased from my friend Rusty Parker of Jarl's Workshop (jarlsworkshop19@gmail.com). I first saw it at Drums at the Rapids a couple years ago. I was sorely tempted to buy it then, but my cheapskate nature had me hold off. By the time that Advance the Colors rolled around five months later, I told him that I wanted it. I bought it and there it sat in my closet for nearly a year.

Nearly a yard long, this 3-D printed bridge from Jarls Workshop is the biggest terrain piece I've made

Recently, I pulled it out determined to get it completed and use it in a game. The first step was to glue its seven pieces together. I used superglue and assembled and was pleased how it kind of "locked together" tightly. You can see some gaps here and there, but for the most part, it fits together very nicely. I did add a couple thin pieces of styrene to cover a couple gaps, but otherwise, there were no modifications to the bridge as purchased from Rusty.

    Multiple layers of spray paint, washes, dry brushing, and another final wash color its golden stones

My next decision was to decide on a color scheme. I decided that I wanted to yellowish-golden colored stone. I scoured the aisles of the local Menards home improvement store, and found a nice khaki colored primer. First, I sprayed two coats on it while it was upside down. After drying, I did the same with it standing upright. The next step was to take a more golden toned khaki color craft paint and water it down so that it could be used as a wash. I slathered it on a couple times and was really happy how it settled into the crevices in the stone.

    Two of my street gangs taunt each other from opposite sides of the river, daring the other to cross

The next step was to take another craft paint, a light tan stone color, and use it as a dry brush to highlight the pieces. I used the largest flat brush I own and would probably say this was the fastest and easiest step to do. Once dry, it was time to work on the sidewalks and road surface atop the bridge. The sidewalks were brick, so I did my usual method. I painted it Iron Wind Metals Red Brown and then dry brushed it Howard Hues Middle East Flesh color. Once that was done, it was time to do the asphalt road surface. I used my second darkest gray color as a base coat. As I was applying it, I noticed that I could see the tiny ridges common in 3-D printed items. I was worried that a dry brush would highlight that and draw attention to it. The road would look unnatural. What to do?

    The top surface of the bridge with its brick sidewalks and "stippled" gray asphalt

I decided to take a somewhat frayed brush and "stipple" it rather than dry brush. I used a medium gray color and stippled the entire length of the road surface. My original thought was that I would do a medium gray coat and a lighter one. However, I was so happy with how the asphalt looked that I decided to keep it as is. Almost done!

    The Santanas have painted their side of the bridge to mark their turf, warning others to "Salir!"

The last step was to give it a brown wash. I have a bottle of seldom-used dark brown "vehicle wash" from Vallejo. I took a plastic container and filled it partly full with water. Then I began squirting in the brown wash until it had a color that I thought would work well. Applying this final brown wash was probably the messiest part of the process. I dripped quite a bit all over my desk and it soaked the paper towels I had laid out to collect the excess that dripped off. After it dried, I examined it and was very happy with how the bridge had turned out. Was I done? Well...no, not really!

    Creepy clown logo & threats sprayed onto the bridge's surface warn others they're in Flippo turf!

The final step was to dirty it up with graffiti. I went back and forth whether to paint graffiti on it. I finally decided that the bridge would be used most in my Mean Streets gang warfare games. Next, it may see use in post-apocalyptic games. In both environments, a clean pristine bridge would look out of place, right? So, I Googled images of "graffiti bridge" and saw ones that had way, way too much on it. I went back and forth on how much to do, but decided I the best way would be to start in on it and stop when I thought I had enough. 

    The first graffiti "tag" on the bridge that I painted was the purple & yellow Daos logo

I began with large, colored graffiti-style letters for one of my gangs, the Daos. I then did another set of letters for The Kings. I added it a bleeding eye for the fun of it, and then scrawled various phrases like, "Hate Thy Neighbor" and "Not Your Turf." I did a couple hearts with initials -- one "J.T." for Jenny -- and another a shout-out to the movie, "The Warriors. We'll see if anyone who hasn't read this blog post catches the "Swan + Mercy" Easter egg!

    As my most numerous gang, the Kings are slated to take on a starring role in my upcoming games

Most of the graffiti was based around my painted up gangs, also including the Mohawks and Santanas. Once most areas of the bridge sides had something on it, I called it quits. In "reality," it would probably have more graffiti -- somewhat like the photos I saw on my image searches. However, I didn't want to cover up the beautiful golden stone color of the bridge completely. I figured in this case that less was more. I did one final matte spray coat and the bridge was finally done. The process had been dragged out much more than it should by my two bout of sickness. I accomplished little during that point. In actual, sheer hours put into it, I would say it took less time than a building of similar surface area. 

    Not all gangs got their 'tag' on the bridge, but I tried to cover most -- like the Indianola Mohawks

I think it is an amazing terrain piece. If you like it, contact Rusty of Jarl's Workshop at the above email and pick up one yourself. It is a definite eye candy cornerstone for a tabletop. Those who show up to Cincycon 2024 in less than two weeks will get the first look at it in person. I will be using it as part of my Mean Streets game scheduled for Friday evening. If you want a really close look at it, sign up to play in my game!

Rumbling on the Mean Streets of Columbus at Origins 2023

    The presence of the police doesn't deter the Mohawks from some mayhem on the streets of Columbus

The streets of Columbus were packed with punks, warchiefs, and gang bosses during our two games of Mean Streets at Origins 2023. Jenny ran two sessions and both were completely full of players, some of whom had stayed up the night before to watch "The Warriors" to get inspired for the game! Plenty of street warriors "came out to plaaay," and there were lots of laughs and fun around the table.

    The Hilltop Highlanders prowl the streets of Columbus, looking to rumble with rival gangs

We used a similar setup to previous convention games, with a downtown jumble of streets, buildings, market, park, etc., depicted in 28mm. Six gangs entered at various points, each with several missions they wanted to complete. A primary mission involved some sort of illegal mayhem, such as stealing a car from the service station, shaking down a restaurant owner, shoplifting, etc. In addition, each gang owed another "payback" for a previous beat-down they'd inflicted on their gang. Players were awarded double points for knocking gang members out of action of that specified gang. Finally, gangs received victory points for "tagging" buildings with their gang logo.

    Bobbie, of the Eastmoor Kings, is jumped by a posse of clowns from the Franklinton Flippos

I like to give players a lot of choices in my games, and especially in Mean Streets. I think player choice is a big part of an enjoyable scenario at a convention. Personally, I am not a fan of games where the troops are all deployed and all I can do is march forward and roll dice. With Mean Streets, I give players both a Gang Boss and a Warchief, who both can exercise command and control. This gives a player a chance to split his gang members up to accomplish more than one mission. Alternatively, he or she can keep their gang members together for better protection in case they get "jumped" by rival gangs.

    Hearing Bobbie's cries, Gang Boss Tyrese and others of the Eastmoor Kings come to his rescue

Although I have had scenarios where players went about their various missions without fighting rival gangs as much, most games end up with several sprawling brawls breaking out near the gas station or some other centrally located spot. This is partly be design, with all gangs having it in their interest to beat up on a specified rival gang. I also nudge the players that way by making sure their starting locations and destinations for their primary mission intersect with the paths other gangs will take, too. So, one gang may need to cross to an opposite corner of the table, for example. Getting there will mean they encounter more than one rival gang, so the chances of punches being thrown increases as more gangs intersect. I definitely plan it out so most gangs will end up "meeting in the middle."

   Several gangs converge on the streets of Columbus - a rumble is sure to break out soon!

I feel this gives a nice mix of mission completion and combat. I always remember an old gamer friend growling to me during a convention game where little was happening, "I just want to kill something!" I think that conflict is a big part of our miniature wargames, so a game about gang warfare needs to have fighting to be accurate. So, I set the players up to rumble and they usually oblige.

    Friday evening's crew of players had a great time and were soon locked in sprawling brawls

Both sets of players were a lot of fun and seemed to enjoy themselves. All but one or two players were brand new to the system. Everyone picked up the rules quickly and were able to adjudicate their combats without too much assistance from either Jenny or myself. Jenny did a great job running the game, while I hung around, elaborated a few points and mostly provided color commentary. I like to joke about what is happening on the tabletop in the context of the world of street gangs -- or at least the romanticized vision of the streets in the movie, "The Warriors."

    Kira of the Mohawks snatches open the patrol car door and lands a punch on the officer driving it

Another thing I like to do in my convention games is to keep players involved whose forces have been whittled down to almost nothing. So, when a gang is down to just one member left, they are given a police car and two cops. They can bring it in on any street board edge and send the police after any gang members they choose. This usually involves a little "payback" against the gang that took out their own members. Saturday's game was particularly raucous. Two players were brought down to one and both police car converged on one corner where the Indianola Mohawks were getting ready to steal from Sams Mini Mart. The Mohawks were full strength and had been busting heads, so had no qualms about wading in and fighting the cops. 

    Five of 6 gangs on the table converge on the gas station, throwing punches and laying a beatdown

Mayhem ensued, which involved an officer ramming two punks who were attacking policemen with his patrol car. A punk snatched open the door and punched the cop, who promptly threw the car in reverse, whacking the punk with the door. A couple Mohawks went down, but the gang didn't give up, and kept throwing punches until the game was finally called. It was a great, cinematic finish to the game and I think Jenny's players all went away happy and having enjoyed themselves. 

    Julio, boss of the Santanas, is surrounded and pounded by a trio from the Eastmoor Kings

    Several of Saturday night's players had stayed up the night before to watch 'The Warriors'

 

    Clown down! Emmett of the Franklinton Flippos is knocked down by Highlanders Snake and Juan

    Linden Daos and Hilltop Highlanders scrapping by the pumps of the gas station

 

    The Santanas and the Flippos battle it out in front of an apartment building in Columbus

Gang Rumble in the Short North, Columbus

    The streets of the Short North in Columbus were taken over by gangs at Origins Game Day

A new Winter game day here in Columbus, OH, gave me the opportunity to host a gang rumble using my Mean Streets rules. The Origins Game Day was held Jan. 14, and was the brainchild of my old friend, Bryan Borgman. It was an incredible success, with 400+ folks coming out for a free day of gaming, flea market tables, and fun. I ran into a number of Columbus area gamers I had not seen for awhile, so it was good to catch up. I also spent the rest of my Christmas gaming money on some great purchases from Bryan's flea market table, and RRB Minis & More (who drove down for the day from Youngstown).

    I had full table of six players for Mean Streets -- three of them brand new to the rules!

I used the same six gang setup that I used for Historicon 2022, this past July. Each of the six gangs was given a primary mission and two secondary missions. As a GM, I like players to have choices on what to do with their forces in a game. Not only does it make the game more interactive, it also helps make each running of it a different outcome. Saturday's' game was a perfect example of that. The gang that scored the most points was the Eastmoor Kings. In the beginning of the game, they stayed away from the other five gangs, concentrating on "tagging" buildings with their gang logo - a green crown with a black "K" on it. I make up circular discs with each gang's logo that players place against the walls when they tag a building. John, who was playing them, had an opportunity to engage in some of the multi-gang scrums, but waited until it had broken up and his "payback target" -- the Santanas -- had split up. He pounced, and after knocking two of them out, finally headed off to Wallace's Brewpub to complete his primary mission -- steal some beer for the gang's Saturday night party!

    With five other gangs on the streets, the punk rockers, the Indianola Mohawks, stuck together

Some gangs stayed together as a mass, others split off 2-3 to complete their primary mission. The Indianola Mohawks, played by Michael, kept together and waded into a big melee by the Shell Station's pumps. He admitted his die rolls were above average while his opponent, Mike S (playing the clown-faced, Franklinton Flippos) continued his run of miserable die rolling. Normally that is MY specialty, but Mike took over the job in earnest, that day. His gang boss and two punks were knocked out in short order. The Warchief and another punk did make it to the Market Booths, though. They completed their primary mission of knocking out several of the vendors and convincing them to give the gang "protection money." After completing that, and seeing how the rest of the gang was laying, bleeding on the gas station's asphalt, they skulked off the table.

   Julio, Cruz, and Manana of the Santanas disembark after their joyride on the stolen car

Another gang that completed their primary mission towards the end was the Santanas. Not only did Julio and his gang mates steal the car from the Shell Service Station, his several of them went for a joyride around the table in their hot, blue convertible. I had never seen a player take the stolen car for a joyride, so it was kind of fun to see what Jenny (who was playing them) had in mind. The trio in the convertible were the only three from the gang not knocked out of action, though, as shortly after they split off from Ramona and El Lobo, those two were jumped by the Kings and taken down.

Hilltop Highlanders split up at the start of the rumble, though Lenny's calls brought the others back

Two gangs mixed it up almost immediately. The black martial arts gang, The Daos, ambushed the leader of the Hilltop Highlanders and an accompanying punk in the back alley behind Wallace's Brewpub. Lenny fought off the first wave of attackers, and his shouts brought the rest of the gang sprinting around the building to join in the melee. It was a fairly even fight for most of it, as each side knocked out opposing gang members. Slowly, the Highlanders began to get the better of it, though. Eventually, the two agreed to call it even, and scampered off to complete their primary missions. The Highlanders hightailed it to Jack & Benny's Diner, while the Daos made their way to Finn's factory. 

    Bobbie and the rest of the Eastmoor Kings are tempted to wade into the rumble at the gas station

There were three brand new players in this game, and they all said they had fun. I believe they also picked up the rules from RRB Minis & More. Rich, the owner of the store, said they needed a restock of the rules, so I ducked out to my car and got some for him. The thing I like about the Mean Streets rules is that it is very easy to teach. Typically, it takes only 20 minutes to go over the rules at a convention with new players. Within a turn or two of combat, the players have the mechanics down, too, and are figuring out their combat factors by themselves without my help.

    I like how my new wound markers look - clear bases with blood splotches arranged like a d6

One new thing I introduced for this game were my brand new wound markers. In the past, I've used red pom-poms from the craft store to mark on a figure's base how many wounds it has suffered. Recently, I picked up 100 clear square bases from Litko. I painted varying numbers of blood red splotches on them to indicate the number of wounds. I arranged the blood spots to match the pips on a six-sided dice. This makes it easy for a player to recognize with a quick glance whether the figure has suffered three wounds (three blood splotches arranged diagonally), or four wounds (one in each corner). I was much happier with how these bases looked on the table. I had coated the clear base with Vallejo Matte Clear, which takes the shine or reflection off the material, but it is still transparent and you can see the street underneath of it. Success!

    Gang Boss Marvin leads the creepy, clown-masked Franklinton Flippos through an alley

One of the players had signed up to play because he was interested in using Mean Streets rules for Mad Max-style, post-Apocalyptic biker gang battles. That was interesting, because I had just been exchanging emails with Rich about how to treat a character mounted on a motorcycle in the rules. We put some ideas together and he said he is going to play test them. I will probably also post on the Mean Streets Facebook group page and see if anyone else has ideas. I don't have any miniatures mounted on motorcycles, but biker gangs certainly fit the theme.

    Mohawks gang boss Sid taunts the Eastmoor Kings for avoiding the fight

I had planned on running my game only once, so I packed up, took my stuff out to the car, and returned to do my shopping. It was great to see so many people coming out to support Bryan's idea. Most of the tables in the room were still full when I finished my shopping and headed out for a late lunch. The weather had been as perfect as can be asked for in mid-January, Ohio. So, all in all, the game day was a success!

    The Linden Daos jump Lenny & Bo of the Hilltop Highlanders behind Wallace's Brewpub

    The rest of the Highlanders come running when they hear Lenny's shouts - the rumble is on!

    The Eastmoor Kings stayed disciplined and focused on their missions throughout the game

    The Kings get closer to their objective - the brewpub - and beers for their Saturday night party!

    After busting some heads in the rumble at the gas station, the Santanas head around the back

    Although gangs were completing their missions, there was still a lot of mayhem on the streets

    Great turnout at Origins Game Day - Bryan said more than 400 people showed up to game and shop!