Black Age Wargame Project Update - Lots of Artwork and Pictures

coonass

New member
This Post is divided into two parts, the information about the game is first, the second section is the art (you might as well read the information, the art is going to take a while to load) As always, I really need input, so any crits, comments, suggestions would be greatly appreciated

The Information

Alright, For those of you who remember, Last April I put up a post talking about a wargame project known as Black Age, set in the year 3800. Well, in the last two posts I talked some about potential races and faction, tried to solve some problems, and had a lot of discussion on modern copyright laws. However, I’ve never given you anywhere near a clear picture of what the Black Age universe in like, or how it will play as a table top wargame, both of which I hope to remedy. Note: I’ve created a Black Age wiki article, in it can be found the human history of black Age, and some information on the factions. Please note its still has some grammatical errors and that the history is still incomplete. The missing parts include that big chunk in the middle, which I haven’t ironed out yet, and last three hundred years, within which basically the empire and confederacy develop into a cold war like state. The Wiki can be found here

First of All, the title of the game had been changed from \"Black Age\" to \"Black Age, Fall of Man\". This is because I might later make other things set in different setting, such as \"Black Age, Old World\", a fantasy game, or \"Black Age, Midnight Sun\" which takes place during the black age universe\'s WW3

A short overview:

Note, Everything on this page, pictures and Story, are copyright William Melancon (me). Sorry, but Ive got to cover myself

Black Age, Fall of Man takes place in the year 3800 in the milky way galaxy, two major human factions, The Second Ramiatic Empire and the United Human Confederacy, vie for control of the their respective corners of space. There is also an area of space in between in the two states known as the Outlands. The story at a glance in that in the late 21st century we blew ourselves to tiny bits and have been rebuilding ever since. Some things that characterize in Black Age universe: 1.) Humanity is not a push over, unlike some universes where Humanity is attacked (Independence Day) or has to rely on alien technology. Human technology is pretty much as effective (although usually not as advanced) as their human equivalents. 2.) There are no “chrome” aliens, there’s a reason I haven’t released anything yet discussing the aliens of the black age universe, its because I want to make them unique, but I also want them to have a history, culture, and a past. I’m not a fan of sci fi universes that offer little or no description of a alien’s race or history, and give them “super advanced technology that humans don’t understand”. 3.) The Black Age universe is one where lawyers and politicians have not yet gone extinct. Unlike some stories where aliens and humanity are locked in eternal war (WH40K) Black Age humans are not above using diplomacy to achieve their end. However, Humanity is not part of some intergalactic alliance.

I also found that to make my universe distinct I needed a sort of calling card that could be associated with it (like the force in Star wars or chaos in Warhammer). I came up with the solution when I was trying to explain how psychic powers would work, and I came up with the Theta wave. Basically Theta waves are given off by high energy bodies (like stars) and when organic beings trigger synapses. Theta waves are also unique in that they can exsist as a wave and a particle (like light). So how is this important. Well, Theta particles have interesting (and most likely scientifically impossible) properties. One such property is that theta particles released by beings carry the being\'s thoughts with in a type energy morse code, which some beings can read, other beings can wrap theta particles around something to move it, or ignite theta particles in the air to create fire. A better explanation can be found here (beginning of the second paragraph)

An Overview of some of the Races:

The Ramiatic Empire:

The Ramiatic Empire is the Largest and Oldest Secular institution of man in the galaxy. It controls a large portion of territory on the Ramiatic Arm (formerly known as the local arm) of the Milky Way galaxy and is situated to the galactic east in comparison to the other known races of the galaxy. The Empire, as it is more commonly known, is governed by the Imperial Senate, with the emperor and his ministers at its head. The Empire’s capital is located on Terra prime, where the origins of humanity lie. The imperial military is one of the largest in known space, consisting of billions upon billions of men. In battle, the imperial military relies on large numbers of men and massive war machines of accomplish its objectives

Technology:

Most of the Imperial economy is focused on development of “heavy” industry (think cloths washers and larger) and computers, most small appliances and furniture, as well as entertainment devices (TVs, consoles, est.) have advanced little while things such as large equipment and vehicles have advance more. Most Imperial technology is also strictly utilitarian, it also usually has a industrial, mass produced look to it (think aliens, doom (the game not the movie), and the matrix) also, the empire make heavy use of prefab tech, including such things as houses, streets, bunkers, buildings, and space stations. Imperial soldiers wear armor that is several times as effective as today’s body armor (but in their terms it stops about half of the projectiles shot at them). Imperial weapons, as well as most of their other technology, are known for their power and reliability. The F.O.B. (focused ozone beam) rifle has a longer range and is more powerful than most infantry weapons, but is limited to semi automatic fire. It is also one of the most reliable weapons used by any military of the time.

Military tactics

The Imperial military is most effective when it can engage targets from long range from a stationary position using the superior range and power of their fob rifles. While not as maneuverable or well trained as other armies, Imperial soldiers are highly disciplined, and they will follow a good officer into almost any situation

Culture:

Imperial Culture is mixed, but for the most part is similar to modern western society, however here is a bigger divide between the upper and middle class. Most imperial are mildly nationalistic, similar to the U.S. in the 50s. Living conditions in the Empire will often depend on social status, but for the common man, are slightly lower than the modern U.S. On religion, Catholicism had made come back after it, as well as all other religious orders, was banned in the early 3500s and subsequently legalized in the late 3500s. religions such as Islam and Hindu are also practiced. Buddhism and Protestant religions have largely died out or never came back after their illegalization in the 3500s.

Factions:

Factions within the Imperial will include:
1.) The Imperial Military: the main military force in the Empire
2.) Imperial Assault Troops: Imperials that focus on planetary assaults, lighter more mobile than the Imperial Military
3.) The Black Ops: The special forces unit that is a mix of delta force, and the KGB
4.) The T.A.C. Corps: Military units that specialize in combat in space, wear armored suits and carry heavier weapons.

The United Human Confederacy:

The United Human Confederacy gained its independence from the 2nd Ramiatic Empire in the year 3531 after rebels under the command of James Ryan repulsed the empire from their land holdings on the Perseus arm of the galaxy. After they gained their independence, the leaders of the rebellion decided to split their gains into smaller united nation states rather than attempt to govern their entire claim as a whole. This strategy allowed the confederacy to survive its infancy and grow into the power it is today. Today, the confederacy is the second largest secular institution of man, second in size only to the Empire. Although the Confederacy cannot match the manufacturing capabilities of the empire it is rich with rare natural resources and is known for having more advanced technology than the Empire. On the battlefield the Confederacy must rely of small numbers of more elite troops rather numbers to gain victory in battle. The confederate military is made up of 3 branches: the Confederate Army, the Confederate Marine Corps, and the Confederate Navy. Each nation state of the confederacy also sports its own military for the purpose of defense. The Confederacy is ruled by the confederate assembly as a legislative body with a President acting as an executive. Each state of the confederacy has its own independent government but all are democratic in nature and uphold the mandatory rights as detailed in the confederate constitution. Nations states of the Confederacy include:
Yemmia: Very industrial, centered around mining and manufacturing economy, soldiers look similar to WW1 Germans.
Beljade: Another rather industrial nation state, main supplier of tanks to the confederate army. Soldiers wear heavy armor and often use armor/infantry blitzkrieg tactics.
Ecclesiarchy: Center of the catholic church in the Black age universe. Somewhat isolationist, highly trained soldier corps that are supported by “militant” holy orders
Cardos: Focused of space travel, builds naval vessels for the Confederacy. Soldiers trained for close quarters fighting in space
Pharnam: Another space focused nation state, another main producer of space vessels. Soldiers similar to those of Cardos, but wear heavier armor.
Tavian: Warrior based state (think Sparta in space) soldiers trained in close quarters combat.

Technology:

Technology in the Confederacy is generally more advance than the Empire. Confederate tech is also usually more specialized than in the Empire and civilian item usually have some aesthetic appeal. The confederate military makes use of technology to make up for its lack of numbers. Most confederate infantry wear some type of power armor that increases their ability while protecting them from enemy fire. Most Confederate guns are heavy caliber solid projectile rifles.

Military Tactics:

Confederate military formations are highly mobile, and will usually try to outmaneuver their opponents rather than engage them in a set piece engagement. The average confederate trooper is highly mobile and works well on the move. Most confederates will also engage their enemies at close range using shock tactics and grenades.

Culture:

Similar to Imperial Culture, except confederate generally have more time on their hands, so things such as museum, parks, and restaurants are more common in the confederacy than in the empire. Religion is slightly stronger in the Confederacy than in the Empire. Also, classes are such less distinct in the Confederacy than they are in the empire. Living conditions are slightly higher in the Confederacy than the Empire, and the citizen in both nation have about the same level of nationalism.

Factions

1.) Confederate Military: Main army of the confederacy, highly mobile and well balanced
2.)Confederate Marine Corps: Elite force, wears heavy armor and engaged at even closer range than standard confederates.
3.) Beljade Military: Heavy infantry, less mobile but wears heavy armor
4.) Yemmia Military: has superior numbers and firpower, less mobile
5.) Ecclesiarch Military: Lots of unique troops, very mobile
6.) Cardos Military: Close range specialists, light armor
7.) Tavian Military: Highly trained. Good at hand to hand and close range, heavy firepower
8) Pharnam Military: Heavy armor, not very mobile but lots of firepower and support.

The Outlands:

The Outlands is the area of space between the Confederacy and the Empire. It is largely lawless and is often ruled by crime lords and Mafias. While the area technically belongs to the Empire, any attempt to \"Imperialize\" the area has resulted in little success. Basically a mix of the wild west, the middle east, and the colonial Barbary coast.

Factions

1.) Mernenaries: highly trained and armed with mid to high quality weapons,
2.) Bounty Hunters: Highly trained and Armed, but undisciplined
3.) Pirates: Good at close quarters and highly mobile
4.) Gangs: numerical superiority, good at close quarters
5.) Crime syndicates: Lots of different specialized troops, often highly armed and armored.

Other Factions:

The Bavin Illumate:

The Bavin Illumate Were Created in conjunction with the Greeze to serve as a sort of officer corps for the Greeze armies. While not technically smarter than humans, Bavin-humans have a greater learning capacity (basically, they’ve got photographic memories and learn faster than standard humans). They are also taller than standard humans, but have a lighter bone structure and are physically weaker. The Bavin rely on advanced tech and automated drones on the battlefield.

The Verenati Patriarch

The first synthetic human project, the Venerati have an incredibly high ration of “psychically advanced” individuals, Almost 80%. They were originally developed to be all psychic to aid in such things as battlefield communication and command and control. They rebelled during the second Merengetti war and set up their nation to the galactic east of the empire. Generally seen as hostile, most Venenati see it as their duty to wipe out all non psychic life. The Verenati military is made of up of two groups. The first group is made up of non-psychic conscripts, called Laylents, which are usually used as cannon fodder by Verenati officers. The second group is made up of psychic volunteers. These forces are well armed and often used to flank the enemy or move after the Laylents have breached the objective.

The Greeze

Developed in concert with the Bavin to serve as ground troops. Grezans are slightly shorter than average humans but are heavily built. While often thought of as dumber than standard humans, the actual intelligence difference in negligible. Grezan culture is based around warriors.

The N’Daal

The N’Daal are the first alien race to be introduced into the black age universe. They look like hunched back apes. The N’Daal culture was destroyed by alien invaders about 6000 BC. The survivors fled to earth, where in large germ pool killed off the alien invaders. The N’Daal then took to living underground, and were discovered in the year 2421. The N’Daal were first detained but later gained land and clemency within the empire. Presently, the N’Daal live in specially set aside reserves on two worlds in the south east portion of the Empire. The N’daal can serve in the Imperial military in segregated units and are allowed to maintain a small defense force.

The Art

Color Art
left: Confederate Marine
right: Imperial Judicator (I know he doesn\'t have a face, I couldn\'t finish it in time for the post)

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New Imperial Art
1. Imperial Judicator
2. Imperial Black Ops Operator
3. Imperial Rifleman
4. Imperial Line Officer
5. Imperial Rear Officer
6. Imperial Assault Veteran

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Old Imperial Art
1. Imperial officer
2. Imperial officer advancing
3. Imperial Soldier armor variations (the middle row is ceremonial armor)
4. Imperial soldier firing a machine gun
5. Imperial TAC (Tactical Airless Combat) Suit
6. Imperial combat armor
7. Imperial soldier personal equipment
8. Imperial soldier
9. Imperial guns
10. Imperial rocket team
11. Imperial trooper (arctic)
12. Imperial trooper (swamp)

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New Confederate Art
1. Confederate Marine
2. Confederate Regular
3. Ecclesiarch Axillary
4. James Ryan (leader of the confederate revolution)

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Old Confederate Art
1. Old Confederate marine armor
2. Old Confederate army armor
3. Beljade army armor
4. Cardos army armor
5. Yemia army armor
6. Confederate marine corps battle suit guns
7. Eclesiarchy combat armor
8. old confederate army armor
9. heavy sniper rifle


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New Outlander Art
1. Outlander Bounty Hunter
2. Outlander Pirate Captain

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Old Outlander Art
1. Outlander bounty hunter
2. Gang fighter

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Synthetic Human Art
from top to bottom
Illumate Grenadier
Illumate Sapper and Drone
Verenati Battle psychic
Verenati Regular
Grezan warrior

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Alien Concept Art
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Other Concept Art and Unfinished Work

First group

1. Imperial Black Ops Marksman
2. Imperial Black Ops Sergeant
3. Confederate armored truck
4. Imperial Veteran
5. Imperial Trench Soldier
6. Imperial officer
7. Imperial Dropship
8. Old Emperor Concept
9. Imperial Veteran (swamp)
10. Beljade Trooper
11. There is no 11, 11 is a myth created by the U.S. in the sixties to confuse the Russians
12. Imperial Rifleman (no armor)

Second Group


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Maps

made using royalty free NASA galaxy illustration

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Guns, Cause everyone loves superior firepower

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Undave

Flockwit
Well it certainly seems like you have put a lot of thought into this. I must have missed it first time round as I don\'t remember seeing anything about it before. Fluff seems good and solid as do the concepts.

From a cursory glance through it all several things pop out; first off a couple of the names seem a bit off to me. Refering to the Milky Way galaxy seems a bit un-necessary as all the action is set in the one galaxy I\'d just call it the galaxy. It doesn\'t help that Milky Way is also the name of a kids chocolate bar here in the UK so it kind of detracts from the atmosphere you\'re trying to cultivate, at least for me :D

Theta waves seem a little close to the Cult of Scientology\'s Thetans, so unless that\'s a connection you\'re trying to cultivate another name change might just be advisable. How about naming them after tha scientist who discovered them like Geller field or Holtzman effect. That would lend them an air of mystery whilst not connecting them to anything in particular

Also everyone seems to have very small feet. I do realise that it\'s just part of your drawing style but having a big pair of boots makes a soldier seem heavier and more threatening. Hence the reason GW Marines have such OTT greaves.

The vehicles are particularly nice though, I wouldn\'t mind seeing more stuff like that. Not necessarily tanks as I quite like the truck, many skirmish games these days don\'t really do vehicles much. I also like the fact that the aliens aren\'t a faction in their own right but auxiliary troops for the Humans. If the N\'Daal were forced to flee from invaders it does beg the question of where those aliens are. I\'m guessing they may show up later as a true alien faction.


Where does this project go from here? Do you have sculptors on board? Have you got production facilities? Most importantly is there a working ruleset?
 

Undave

Flockwit
Yes I know that Roger :rolleyes: It comes between eta and iota. I was just pointing out that it makes it sound similar to another science fiction term which involves manipulating things through the power of the mind.




And before you say it, yes I know Scientology isn\'t technically science fiction lol
 

coonass

New member
Well, to answer some of Undave\'s questions, I\'m not suprised you missed the first two post, I mostly just got slammed for copyright infringement anyway so you haven\'t missed much.

The milky way galaxy is the name of our galaxy (the candy bar was probably named after it), the black age universe is a continuation of our own history, with my imagination taking control at about 2070

On thetans, I don\'t know anything about Scientology, (I\'m a catholic), so the name is purely coincidental, I was just going for Greek letters like the currently discovered afla, beta, and gamma waves. Thanks for the heads up though.

On big feet, I\'m just trying to draw them a anatomically correct as possible (ill have to look see how big feet actually are), one of things I don\'t like about GW and some of the other mini companies is that they fudge their proportions (ie dig heads and feet). and it detracts from the realism of the piece.

On rule set, Ive got an incomplete alfa ready now. ill try an organize it and see if I cant get it up here

In any case, thanks for the comments, its always nice to see my work through a fresh set of eyes
 

demonherald

New member
I like the look of those N\'daal.

certainly looks like you\'ve put a lot of work in.. the only thing for me at the oment is you need a few simplified daiagrams to pick up a strong design element to distinguish each faction.. Although there is a difference with each they are heavily detailed and a few simpler designs would just help differentiate the guys ..(does that make sense??) overall though nice work so far.
 

Undave

Flockwit
Milky Way has always seemed like a bit of a childish name to me (mainly because of the chocolate I suppose), to be honest I\'m surprised they never bothered giving it a more scientific sounding name.

IIRC our galaxy is part of a group of galaxies called the Virgo supercluster. Every Sci-fi game I can think of has all the action set in a single galaxy so one way of making yours more original could be to expand the scope a bit and have factions from more than one galaxy involved. This would of course involve a means of travelling between them. Have you thought about the way FTL travel is handled in your game universe? The way interstellar travel is achieved tends to be a major point in many sci-fi settings, Spice in Dune, the Warp in 40k, Jumpgates in B5, and less so in others like Star Wars (ludicrous speed anyone lol ) This kind of thing can also tie your factions down to a specific reason why they are engaged in conflict as opposed to more nebulous reasons like territory, resources and politics.


I look forward to seeing what you\'ve come up with for the rules.
 

Roger Bunting

New member
I\'ve just done a bit of googling and there is something called a theta wave.

http://www.bethcoleman.net/theta.html

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Theta_wave
 

coonass

New member
On Roger Bunting\'s Comment
crap, I thought I looked everywhere to make sure there weren\'t already \"theta particles\" in existence, thanks for the heads up.

On demonherald\'s comment:
Thanks for the support, on the design elements, I see what you mean. At the moment, the confederacy is characterized by power armor, while the imperial incorporates a lot of old style uniforms and \"soft armor concepts. However, it couldn\'t hurt to make for elements identifiable to each faction.

On Undave\'s Comment:
I like the super-cluster idea, defiantly an original idea. On FTL travel, heres a link to the Wiki article that sorta explains it link (beginning with the third paragraph)

basically, FTL travel in the black age universe involves catapulting a ship off a special device or a high energy body and into a temporarily open wormhole, or using a gate, which opens a wormhole which you can travel through. Some ships also have their own drives, which create a pseudo gravitational body to catapult off of.
 

coonass

New member
Alright, At least one of you have asked about the rules for this table top wargame, and I probably should have seen it coming. I put to rules in an attachment, so you can look at them there. Note, this game is set up so that each player will command 10 to 20 models, so the rules are quite complex.
Since I dont think the attachment worked, the rules can also be found here: link

Things the rules cover:

1. general game knowledge
2. the character attributes
3. moving
4. shooting
5. moral
6. Injuries

Things that have not been added yet

1. close combat
2. descriptions on some of the character attributes
3. Leadership
4. how unit coherency will work

Some more Artwork

Possible Logos for the game

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More Guns

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Some concepts for Black Age, Old World

dwarf
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undead abomination
Abomination.jpg
 

demonherald

New member
I like the logo with the blood...

but the game of war at it\'s most personal level seems a bit strange especially considering the rules set concerns 10-20 man units .. (not too personal)

also seems a bit of a marketing nightmare...calling war a game.. (yes I know that we all enjoy wargames but \"the game of war just doesn\'t feel right)

what to replace it with I have no clue..

err strategic warfare in a future of turmoil????


also regards simplifying the design don\'t get me wrong on thinking that the artwork doesn\'t suit it does it\'s just especially on the tabletop some of the elements that some companies exaggerate are done purely to make the pieces easier to read on the table....

GW is the most familiar example but if you take one model from each army each has it\'s own distinctive look , uniform, weaponry....
 
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