Looking at the first Month of The Ion Age

IMP01 The Kneeling Knight to be retired on 30th September 2013

At midnight on the 30th of September the first free miniature we offer on all placed orders, the Kneeling Retained Knight, will come to the end of its run and be retired forever.  Another free miniature with all orders will take its place on October 1st but in this post I would like to look back at what has been an awesome first long month for this new wargaming enterprise.  What we have done and where we are going next.  In fact if this posting proves popular enough I will do it every time the miniature changes!

Lets begin where a wargaming brand should with the new releases.  Since we began with the original core of the 15mm Ion Age miniatures we added firstly the archive codes Retained, Muster, Nox and Malig before mixing in half a dozen brand new poses of Retained into codes IAF001 to IAF004.  We were ready to begin in earnest and the website went live.

Since our launch we have released the following codes all sculpted and painted by our lead designer Sam Croes:

IAF005 Balthazar and Jerome

IAF006 Legionary 1^st Tesseran 

IAF007 Legion 'Canthus' Monocycle Set

IAF008 Retained Post Charlie

IAF009 Desteria Demi Alpha

IAFL01 Hackett and Tasker (500 Limited Packs) 

IAFL02 Grimwood and Wyrme (500 Limited Packs)

IAF010 Desteria Demi Beta

This is a total of thirty six miniatures in weekly releases so we have more than doubled in size since launch.  Not only that but we expanded the 15mm Ion Age into the wider scope of the existing 28mm Ion Age range with several new ideas and new types of troops. 

IAF006 saw the first of many to come 15mm Shia Khan Legion packs which brought a new 15mm force into being which had been requested hundreds of times over on 15mm.co.uk.  IAF008 brought new Retained Knights for the first time in more than a decade. IAF005 brought us character miniatures and gave us the first space opera heroes to follow in the future.  IAF007 replaced the original Khanate Monocycle from the HOF Range with a better Canthus MkII.  Brought into being for the first time ever also were 15mm versions of the Ion Age Desteria Knights in super heavy armour in IAF009. Last but not least two limited edition codes which brought collect ability to the Ion Age and introduced limited codes to 15mm science fiction as I outlined on my own personal blog.

This first month also saw the beginning of playtesting for our initial 15mm rules set Patrol Angis.  Twenty persons chosen from more than sixty applicants.  Six weeks of testing on a rules set which I feel is one of my very best.  Testers include Bob Minadeo rules writer and Flintloque fan and Chris Knowles he of Dropship Horizon along with Orcs in the Webbe guru Craig Andrews so it is a great group with a lot of experience.

I have ten years experience in this industry and want it to keep the fun and originality that makes wargaming a fantastic hobby.  Not for it to fall into 'cookie cutter' sameness. 

The next month will see the Ion Age expand onwards and introduce more firsts for us and also items that are not miniatures but something else entirely.  We will maintain the weekly releases giving you material to play with now instead of promises of something off in the future.

I would like to end with a sneak peek at October 2013's free miniature with all orders.  There will be a separate post on it but I wanted to show it now.

Thank you, all of you who have supported the team especially myself and Sam Croes in bringing to life an idea that both of us adore and want to share with the wargaming world.  We have been let down sure but we have been supported by a great many.  So bring on the Space Opera, the Heroic, the Knights in Space!

GBS

PLEASE READ THIS
May 2019 and The Ion Age has been taken back into Alternative Armies.  It continues with new releases into the future!  Go to Alternative Armies for Ion Age pages of the 15mm Range the 15mm Terrain Range the 28mm Range the Publications range and the Free Downloads collection too for the latest.  All links to the ion age site are now defunct sorry!  If you wish to see something or ask a question email me on sales@alternative-armies.com.  GBS

IAF010 Desteria Demi Beta Released!

The air inside his armour was foetid and no wonder; he had not opened its seals to the outside world in nearly a week. Noblesse powered armour was some of the finest in the Prydian Army and those worn by loyal Prydians was better maintained than that of the Marcher Barons on the whole. Baron Aldo Murdo had invested a small fortune in his own armour and it was outfitted with the finest of systems and superior alloys but even so the smell of recycled oxygen, recycled waste, of man, was started to affect him. To test his mental resolve. Combat was ever present and never ceasing. The Styx Legion had deployed what command estimated was some seven thousand Maligs in this zone and they were remorseless pests. To aid the Maligs in their attempts to seize the zone the Khanate had seeded hundreds of Venefirous Venters which seeped out crawling clouds of poisonous gas. Gas lethal to Humans but seemingly ineffectual upon the Goblinoid Khanate themselves.

Desteria are a hammer and to Aldo Murdo the Maligs were but an egg. The sheer might of his retinue of fifteen Desteria were ill suited to sniping at fleeting targets in a maze of ash clouded streets. This was a job best done by Muster but there were no Muster here and the line must be held. So for six days they had hunted, had sought and found the verminous green skinned Maligs blasting apart rubbacrete walls and being showered with shattered golglass. Knight Quinen had the best fortune with his Urgan auto shotgun but Murdo had a Sequence Particle Beamer for his primary weapon and the Maligs were just too quick to hammer with his Impact Fist. It was fortunate that there were no citizens left in Pelcan city as Murdo had demolished several dozen hab blocks shooting at the fleeting Goblinoids. A hammer for little green eggs.

Despite the thoughts on his mind and the terrible odour of internal air cycle only Aldo Murdo had been intent on his helm display the whole time watching the new movement to his front and on the overlaid contour grid of the status of his Sequence Particle Beamer. It was not good. The beamer was a precise weapon, a marvel of technology, lethal and terrifying to the foe but it did not like rough handling and more vitally it could not be given a maintenance shake down by its wearer while armoured or by anyone else nearby in Noblesse armour. It should still fire but each time he activated the firing protocol he knew that it might overload and then the foetid odour would be the least of his then fatally detonated problems. Trying to avoid using it would be paramount.

Fate has a way of forcing you into critical choices and the movement to Baron Aldo Murdo's front resolved itself into a tight knot of Nox Troopers all armed with Janus Blastguns. Not Maligs, not fleeting, not soft. He would need the beamer and he would need it to work just fine right now.

To be continued....

Baron Aldo Murdo, Camarthen Prime, 4331IC

IAF010 Desteria Demi Beta - Front

IAF010 Desteria Demi Beta - Rear

Scale Shot of IAF009 Desteria and IAF008 Retained

IAF010 Desteria Demi Beta

This week we have the second code in our expansion of the original 28mm Desteria Knights into the brand new 15mm range on the Ion Age; Desteria Demi Beta! The super heavy infantry of the Prydian Precinct now have some backup following code IAF009 Desteria Demi Alpha two weeks ago. Wearing the thickest Noblesse powered armour and carrying the largest possible weapons that do not require an artillery or vehicle mount the Desteria are used for tasks just too tough for Retained Knights and the Muster. Code IA010 contains five brand new different white metal poses each with an Impact Fist (powered melee weapon) and either a Hermit 44mm Plasma Rifle or an Urgan 2 Bore auto-shotgun or a Valerin 9kw Laser Rifle. Each Desteria also sports a crest upon their helm. Desteria stand approx 24mm tall from sole of foot to top of crest. This code can be bought as single miniatures or in multiples for savings. Price per pack is 5.00GBP

IAFL02 Grimwood and Wyrme

IAFL02 Grimwood and Wyrme

This is the second limited edition Ion Age 15mm code release. Code IAFL02 contains two unique 15mm white metal miniatures depicting Knight Commander Grimwood armed with a Pelleas Mace and Carnwennan Pistol along with Jupon Wyrme armed with a Moth Type 12 Launcher. These two great miniatures are awesome for commanding your lances and adding something special in the ranks. This code is restricted to 500 numbered packs before the molds containing it are destroyed. This code can be bought as a pack or in a multiple for a saving. Price per pack is 2.00GBP

IMP01 Kneeling Knight

Information Burst!

Thanks for your attention in this Ion Age notice. We are back to super heavy infantry after the two limited edition code releases (IAFL01, IAFL02) last week with another five poses. Now you can get a whole unique Post of ten on the field. So far no one has provided me an alternative 15mm limited edition science fiction code by another maker but several people have emailed The Ion Age stating they know of none; the search continues. Final note. Remember the current Kneeling Knight free miniature in all orders will be withdrawn at midnight on 30^th September 2013 so you have only a few days to get another or your first one. Signing up with our website you will earn Reward Points on all purchases. Reward Points can be redeemed once accumulated for discounts on orders or special miniatures. 

GBS 

PLEASE READ THIS

May 2019 and The Ion Age has been taken back into Alternative Armies.  It continues with new releases into the future!  Go to Alternative Armies for Ion Age pages of the 15mm Range the 15mm Terrain Range the 28mm Range the Publications range and the Free Downloads collection too for the latest.  All links to the ion age site are now defunct sorry!  If you wish to see something or ask a question email me on sales@alternative-armies.com.  GBS

Female Retained Knights - Concepting

Sam Croes imaginging of female Alwite Powered Armour

When the Ion Age went live back in late August one of the first lots of wargamers requests we got went along the lines of 'please, please, please make female versions of your 15mm Retained Knights' oddly enough we were planning on doing this but we were going to begin with the Muster and work up to the power armoured Retained Knights of Prydia.  We are nothing if not flexible so we went back to the concept board and started work on that premise.

The Prydian Army and those of the Marcher Barons such as Yordan and Canlaster have a great many troops from the lowly to the exaulted.  But what gender are they?  Well unlike some other wargaming brands that make the future a male playground I am much more for equality.  After all with the right training women are in the armies of the present day so why not the future.  In the Prydian Precinct fighting skills and the following of the Code Gallant count for more than gender so female Retained are more than possible they are a certainty.  Depending on the Regiment or the Baron they could be a small percentage, an equal percentage or actually a majority or all of a force.  Put them alongside the male knights in the same roles.

Our lead designer Sam Croes imagined that Alwite (the powered armour worn by the Retained) worn by female Retained would have the same abilities and purpose but it would be refitted to better serve a different body shape and physical needs.  He imagined that a female shape would mean a slimmer waist, a vastly different upper chest area and different hips.  In 15mm scale the differences would be minimal for the legs and waist areas with only the upper body being significantly different so additional detailing for movement was put into the stomach and ribcage parts of the armour which would stand out even at a size of a few millimetres.

It was time for some full artwork so Sam Croes created this image which we are considering selling as a poster if people ask for it.  You can also check out Sam's posting about this image on his Deviant Art public profile.  She is Ylona of Prydia!

 

With the concepting and lovely artwork done it was time to move onto the design stage and think about what 15mm miniatures were needed.  Sam and I wanted to integrate female knights straight into the existing and future male knights (no secrets on those getting spilled today!) so they would need several codes to get them up to speed.  A full IAF code of ten poses of female Retained, an IAF code lance command of five poses and also a special command IAF code of characters.

Above you can see two views of the first sculpt by Sam based on the concept art that topped this post.  A combination of 'green stuff' and 'milliput' along with the stock master white metal parts of the Angis Rifle and Back / Jet pack.  The differences in the armour require full modelling.

The final packs will feature Knights with Angis Rifles, Anvil 888, Moth Type 12, Tumbler SMG so a solid range of weapons and most will be bare headed to show that they are ladies.  On top of this we will have officers and specialists and also characters.  Personally I also want to pay tribute to the grand queen of science fiction female icons so expect a Pardoner Flame Projector and a bad attitude towards banana headed extra-terrestrials!

If all goes according to plan we expect to begin releasing these codes, beginning with the ten pose pack in late October with more codes following across weeks from then.

So we do listen and we welcome suggestions.  The Ion Age is expanding at a massive rate believe me not only at the rate of one release a week but sometimes more and also more than white metal miniatures...

Thanks for your time and attention.

GBS

Patrol Angis - Playtest Posting 0

 

It's time!  Playtesting is beginning on Patrol Angis.  All of the play testers have received their virtual packs of material from me this afternoon.  Over the next six or so weeks I and they will be putting the rules engine and all else about this excellent skirmish 15mm system to the proving ground.  While I am confident that the engine works I am sure the testers will confound me with questions both simple and complex...I do so love play testing!

For more information on what the testing is about look back at my last posting about it.  Every week I will be putting up some of what is happening with the testing and my thoughts about it.  Hopefully some pictures too of our testing here 'in house' and from the testers out there too.

All testers and anyone else who wishes may contact me on info@theionage.com.  I will reply to every email as quickly as I can.

By November 4th we will have a complete draft and be ready for greater things for Patrol Angis...perhaps even a sequel. 

For Prydia!

GBS

Brian Turner's IAF006 Legionary 1st Tesseran Painted

I have great pleasure in sharing with you all the first wargamer painted photos of IAF006 Legionary 1st Tesseran.  Legionaries of the Shia Khan Empire as painted by Brian Turner.  Brian is a keen Ion Age painter who have done lovely work on Muster as well and he plans to move on to Retained Knights soon.

Here are some pictures of Brian's Legionaries:

Legionary with Juno, Officer with Cupid, Legionary with Juno

Four Legionaries with Juno

Review view of Legionaries with Juno

Brian has chosen a bright red tunic and sky blue trousers for his Legionaries along with a white helmet and bare flesh hands.  This is a contrast to Sam Croes painting of the same miniatures on the Ion Age website where a blood red all in one suit along with a dark silver helmet and blackened gloves are depicted.

There are many, many Legions active in Camarthan space and who knows what the name of these fellows is? We know they are not the Styx Legion or the Cereberus Legion but... Are they are Cyclopes Legion or the Hydra Legion or perhaps even the Chimera Legion?  

If you have painted or converted Ion Age miniatures send us an EMAIL and some pictures.  We would be honoured to show them off here.

Well done Brian!

GBS

PLEASE READ THIS
May 2019 and The Ion Age has been taken back into Alternative Armies.  It continues with new releases into the future!  Go to Alternative Armies for Ion Age pages of the 15mm Range the 15mm Terrain Range the 28mm Range the Publications range and the Free Downloads collection too for the latest.  All links to the ion age site are now defunct sorry!  If you wish to see something or ask a question email me on sales@alternative-armies.com.  GBS

IAFL01 Hackett & Tasker and IAFL02 Grimwood & Wyrme Released!

“The meeting of Knight Commander's Tasker and Grimwood was no accident. It was well known to Obermann that these were two of the toughest and most resourceful knights under his grand retinue. They had quested together in the Vauldo system back in 4312IC against the Gryre and their actions had led the civilian population to safety long enough to get them into orbit. To take on the Styx Legion in the ruins of Pelcan City it would need Knight Commanders of note, of fierce determination and who had already proved their mettle. Hackett had been wounded a dozen times, including the loss of his right arm at Vauldo, since he took up the Code Gallant and now only Cynue enhancements kept him alive inside his Alwite armour but no one could question his courage. Grimwood was often silent for days preferring data pulse communication with his lances over voice comms rumour had it that he spoke only when killing a foe. Obermann assigned both of them a Gauntlet each as is befitting a Knight Commander and with more than five hundred Retained each they gave the Khanate hell. Visiting on those aliens a measure of what they had done to Camarthan Prime. I met Knight Commander Hackett on the Lemur's Eyes and begged him to make me his aide.”

Sarj Harry Tasker. Camarthen Prime, 4331IC

IAFL01 Hackett and Tasker (front)

IAFL01 Rear View

IAFL01 Hackett and Tasker

This week we have our first and second limited edition code releases. Code IAFL01 contains two unique 15mm white metal miniatures depicting Knight Commander Hackett armed with an Octa Sword along with Sarj Tasker armed with an Angis 12.5mm Rifle. These two great miniatures are awesome for commanding your lances and adding something special in the ranks. This code is restricted to 500 numbered packs before the molds containing it are destroyed. This code can be bought as a pack or in a multiple for a saving. Price per pack is 2.00GBP

IAFL02 Grimwood and Wyrme (Front View)

IAFL02 Rear View

IAFL02 Grimwood and Wyrme

This is the second limited edition Ion Age 15mm code release. Code IAFL02 contains two unique 15mm white metal miniatures depicting Knight Commander Grimwood armed with a Pelleas Mace and Carnwennan Pistol along with Jupon Wyrme armed with a Moth Type 12 Launcher. These two great miniatures are awesome for commanding your lances and adding something special in the ranks. This code is restricted to 500 numbered packs before the molds containing it are destroyed. This code can be bought as a pack or in a multiple for a saving. Price per pack is 2.00GBP

IMP01 The Kneeling Knight

Information Burst!

Thanks for your attention in this Ion Age notice. We hope you enjoyed our new limited editions following up as they do on last week's brand new 15mm Desteria Knights. As far as we know 15mm science fiction limited editions are rarer than hen's teeth so if you know of another company doing them please drop us a line. We would also like to remind you that every order placed automatically gets the current free unique miniature (IMP01 15mm Kneeling Retained Knight to be retired on 30^th September 2013) included and that in signing up with the website you will earn Reward Points on all purchases. Reward Points can be redeemed once accumulated for discounts on orders or special miniatures.

GBS

PLEASE READ THIS

May 2019 and The Ion Age has been taken back into Alternative Armies.  It continues with new releases into the future!  Go to Alternative Armies for Ion Age pages of the 15mm Range the 15mm Terrain Range the 28mm Range the Publications range and the Free Downloads collection too for the latest.  All links to the ion age site are now defunct sorry!  If you wish to see something or ask a question email me on sales@alternative-armies.com.  GBS

Hablas Inglés? Te gusta el Ion Age?

Do you speak Spanish?  Do you love The Ion Age?

Well we have one big fan in Spain who does.  Slorm has posted a translation of this blog's page on The Prydian Army into his native Spanish.  If you want to visit him to read it then please do so and if you want to read it in English then go ahead.

One of the best things about wargaming is the sense of global community that it gives with players of many nations and languages happily reading, painting, playing the same games.  I have seen it done many times for Flintloque and for USEME as well.

GBS

IAF009 Desteria Demi Alpha Released!

Pounding for hours at the rubbacrete making no impact was starting to get rather tiresome. I was at the head of an advancing column trying to push its way into the outskirts of Pelcan City on Camarthen Prime. Our lord Knight General Obermann had decreed that the focus of the assault was to be upon the Matter Gateway and I agreed. Unfortunately the city was a smoking ruin seeded with Khanate troops like a virus culture. Every rock you shook loose led more of them to appear. We had gotten stuck on the site of what my helm overlay said used to be a hospital. It was a barren place now but its walls were solid and its sheer size an invitation to siege. There was little chance of calling up artillery or vehicle support but I did get the call that a lance of Desteria were nearby and offering to aid us as according to the Code Gallant.

While my Retained exchanged fire with the Legionaries in the main complex the Desteria readied themselves for the assault. Noblesse armour is a wonder to behold. It takes months of training to be able to control its strength and to learn its motions. More complex and far superior to the Alwite worn by the Retained it is the ultimate in worn armour in the Prydian Precinct. The Desteria numbered only sixteen but they strode forward and attracted a hail of Juno and Maia fire from the façade of the building. We aided them and 12.5mm fire put down a number of Legion and Malig snipers. Bullets and beams glanced from the Desteria and soon they had reached the main doors. Then the Khanate sprung their surprise on them. I felt a moment of dread. That could have been us!

Rubbacrete and shards of Golglass exploded out as the main doors disintegrated in a streak of weapons fire. Three Khanate Warlords strode out with their chain cannons levelled and firing. One of the Desteria went down having caught the full might of a Warlords cannon and several of my Retained two hundred metres back were plucked up and shattered by the outgoing rounds. In moments the remaining Desteria closed the distance to the Warlords and engaged them in close quarters combat! Even to a Desteria the Warlords tower above, but the knights barrelled them back into the building and even at this distance I could hear the roar of Urgan auto-shotguns and the sickening crunch of Impact Fists on flesh.

With their hulking surprises dead the Khanate began to abandon the hospital and we pressed on. I asked the Desteria to remain with us as part of my retinue but they refused. Their place was at the fore, at the sword tip, at the point where it mattered. I wished them good hunting and kept my promise to collect and restore their dead.

Knight Commander Hackett. Camarthen Prime, 4331IC

IAF009 Front View of Poses

IAF009 Rear View of Poses

IAF009 Desteria Demi Alpha

This week we have the first in an expansion of the original 28mm range into the brand new 15mm range on the Ion Age...Desteria Knights! The super heavy infantry of the Prydian Precinct are now in the 15mm Prydian Army as well as the 28mm Prydian Army. Wearing the thickest Noblesse powered armour and carrying the largest possible weapons that do not require an artillery or vehicle mount the Desteria are used for tasks just too tough for Retained Knights and the Muster. Code IA009 contains five brand new different white metal poses each with an Impact Fist (powered melee weapon) and either a Hermit 44mm Plasma Rifle or an Urgan 2 Bore auto-shotgun or a Valerin 9kw Laser Rifle. Each Desteria also sports a crest upon their helm. Desteria stand approx 24mm tall from sole of foot to top of crest. 

Desteria and Retained side by side.  Scale Photo.

This code can be bought as single miniatures or in multiples for savings.

GBS

PLEASE READ THIS

May 2019 and The Ion Age has been taken back into Alternative Armies.  It continues with new releases into the future!  Go to Alternative Armies for Ion Age pages of the 15mm Range the 15mm Terrain Range the 28mm Range the Publications range and the Free Downloads collection too for the latest.  All links to the ion age site are now defunct sorry!  If you wish to see something or ask a question email me on sales@alternative-armies.com.  GBS

gavinsyme.co.uk on Limited Edition 15mm Ion Age miniatures

I have made a posting on my personal blog all about the idea and the execution of limited edition 15mm miniatures in The Ion Age.

Head on over and have a read as it has a direct impact on what will be releasing on the website end of September 2013.  I normally do not do teasers or any or the 'promise and eventual' reward of Kickstarting or Indigogoing (preferring to actually just give you something to buy straight up) but this posting is special as its an insight into my thought process on the matter.  Oh, and there is a picture too...

GBS

Patrol Angis - Play Test Announcement

Prydian Army Retained Demi under fire!

The entry period for applying to the Patrol Angis play testers is now over.  I am emailing every single person who applied and I have informed each of them if they were successful in securing one of the limited slots for the testing.  Apologies to those who were not successful as I had to limit the slots to just twenty places.

At this time I would like to thank everyone who applied and tell you all that I will have more playtesting for expansions in the future and you will be in a 'round robin' about it first.

All of the Patrol Angis play testing will be done remotely and by email with digital files and no physical posting / mailing of any materials by myself or by those doing the testing.  No cost will be incurred by the testers other than their time.

On September 23rd 2013 a message will be sent to the play test group with a link in it to download the testers pack!

This pack will include:

• Covering Datasheet - outlining the testing and what is to happen.
• Patrol Angis Rules - core rules with diagrams. 
• Solo Play Rules - Test Draft.
• Sheet of Counters and Roster.
• Stats Sheets for Troops and Weapons.
• Results Form and Procedure.

Playtesting will run from September 23rd 2013 until November 4th 2013 in those six weeks all games must be played and results sent in.  During this time results can be emailed and questions asked with a 'Yes' or 'No' answer preferred.

There will be full details in the pack about the requirements of the testing.  Those who complete the testing will be rewarded with fame and bribery!

There will be updates on the blog as to the progress of the testing about once a week which hopefully will also include images that I can re-construct from questions and reports.

GBS

Space Babes in Sensible Armour!

Hello IonFans!

A quick repost here from the personal blog of lead Ion Age designer Sam Croes.  Sam is a big fan of women in science fiction art and in wargaming and as a result of this he has created a piece of art to celebrate the female Retained Knight in the service of the Prydian Army.  Much like Sam I believe that warfare in the future will greatly feature women as skill beats physical strength especially against a foe such as the Khanate Empire.

Retained Knights, much like the Muster, are both male and female with some regiments being one of one or less of the other.  There is little difference in the protection and abilities of the Alwite powered armour worn by both genders.  The female version is actually technically superior as it has to be on the whole slimmer and more form fitting but this makes these knights capable of greater dexterity especially in urban warfare.

She might be a babe as Sam says but she is all business and from the look on her face and the blood staining her armour...I would not mess with her!

GBS

Pages on Prydian Army, Marcher Barons and Khanate Empire added!

Eat This!  Artwork by Edward Jackson

A week or so ago as part of the Questions Answered post on this very blog I was asked by some IonFans if I could add some pages to the blog giving an introduction to the 'big three' that currently make up the fiction of The Ion Age.  I said...Sure thing!

Well its now done and if you look at the top of the blog you will see three pages next to the home page.  The Prydian Army which tells you a very short background to the red and white forces that are attempting to win the civil war and keep off the Khanate.  Secondly the Marcher Barons, those nobles of Prydia who rebelled and are involved in the Leagues fighting the civil war.  Lastly the Shia Khan Empire whose return to Human space after a millenia has sparked off a new war entirely.

Each of these pages contains text and images too of 15mm miniatures from our ranges and I will update the pages each time a release is made which suits a page.  There will be a number of updates of pictures!

Enjoy the read.

Email me directly if you have any questions about your Ion Age miniatures and or the gaming universe.  I am always happy to help.

GBS

IAF008 Retained Post Charlie Released!

We were knights of Prydia and it was our duty by the Code Gallant to ensure the safety of the people if we could; even if it meant death in the attempt.  However I had not expected to be called upon for battle against such a deadly foe.  The Camarthen system was remote, uninteresting at that time, well away from the fighting with the League of Canlaster that dominated the thinking of the loyal Barons in those years.  At most I expected my four hundred Retained to be training the enthusiastic but raw Camarthen Planetary Militia or seeing off the freebooters that think lonely planets easy pickings.   We did not even bother to send more than a Demi into the Belkus Labyrinth with those exploration teams and I was in no way suspicious of Hugo Sevaris at the time.  Then when the alert came through it was garbled but one thing was clear enough from the audio; energy fire was being used.  Now I was young once and I wasted my auto-learner's time by a love of legend and tales.  I knew of the Shia Khan and the sound coming to my helm was just as the texts described.  Legend was not my sole love though I also harboured a hankering for mathematics too and therefore I also knew that I would best serve the Aeddan by telling the whole Precinct of what was occurring.

So I sent my knights to the underground Labyrinth and authorising the Wicca Protocol I also had a civil reactor sent with them on a separate Bantam repulsar platform.  Without word to the authorities in Pelcan city I boarded a shuttle and boosted for orbit.  As we made speed to exit the system I readied that now infamous message.  The Khanate had returned.  My actions were found valid and my honour preserved.  Each day that passes I think of those I left to the Legions.

Some have inferred that I should have stayed, should have died with my knights.  But they are wrong.  I did the greater good and once done I was among the first to volunteer for Lectus Bower's retinue and I have been back on this now ravaged world since. 

Report by Knight Commander Grimwood to Knight General Obermann.  Fleet Command.  4331IC

IAF008 Retained Post Charlie

This week we have the first totally new pack of Retained Knights guardians of the Prydian Precinct and first in the line in the fight against the Khanate Empire.  Code IAF008 contains ten brand new different poses all wearing Alwite powered armour and carrying a variety of weapons including Tumbler Mpi, Angis Rifles, Anvil Launchers and Moth Type 12's.   As always this code can be bought as a pack or as single miniatures or select the three packs and save 10% option on the page.  Price 5.00GBP per pack.

Sculpted by our lead designer Sam Croes this release brings the total number poses of 15mm Retained Knights so far to a whopping thirty seven meaning fantastic variety for your wargaming needs in the Ion Age already; just three weeks after our launch.

For Prydia, for Cyon!

GBS

PLEASE READ THIS
May 2019 and The Ion Age has been taken back into Alternative Armies.  It continues with new releases into the future!  Go to Alternative Armies for Ion Age pages of the 15mm Range the 15mm Terrain Range the 28mm Range the Publications range and the Free Downloads collection too for the latest.  All links to the ion age site are now defunct sorry!  If you wish to see something or ask a question email me on sales@alternative-armies.com.  GBS

Patrol Angis - An Introduction to 15mm Ion Age skirmishing!

'Those Cannies are nearby.  Thermal is damp in this heat but they will have their chameleon circuits engaged so use visual spectrum scanning only.  Helms locked and secure, keep data burst to a minimum, command only from this moment in.'

The Prydian Army patrol moved into the thickening jungle with a practised loping gait that well suited their bright white and red Alwite powered armour.  They moved quietly despite it and the jungle floor.  As knights of the 512th Regiment they had seen a lot of action in the last three months on Jualdore IV.  A horridly hot world that was murderous on Muster troops and as a result most of the fighting outside of the main spaceports fell to the Retained whose Alwite could hold back the heat and allow the freeing of the world from the League of Canlaster.

Protect Life when Life needs be Protected was foremost among the guiding principles of the Code Gallant, the code by which all Prydian and a lot of rebelling Retained live and this meant warring on as limited a scale as possible.  It also secured the loyalty of the mass of people as well as when it was possible the war was kept away from them.  There was precious little prime real estate in the Precinct, even planets like Jualdore and to go around using nuclear seed and nano burst weapons would reduce it even further.  Soon in warring like that humanity in the Precinct would be reduced to scarred rock and sealed domes drinking sewage resyc water.  So this civil war was fought by men and women in the knowledge that they wanted a life after it was over.  Not that they were scared or weak far from it...it takes courage to raise a rifle and not press a button from orbit.

'Neuer take the safety off the Hermit and warm it up.  The Cannies are close; call it a hunch.  I want the plasma in play as soon as they open up.'

The patrol fanned out into four demi's of five knights and engaged their own chameleon circuits.  The circuit took a lot of power and even with it on they were far from invisible.  Dirt and dust and damage weakened its effect but used well it could make the difference between victory and death.  Holding back their Sarj activated his own circuit and made an active scanning pass over the area ahead looking for signatures.  His helm brought up pings in blue only a hundred metres ahead.  Camo on but the signature was strong.  Canlasterian Retained!

'Neuer!  A hundred out and thirty off to your left.  Hit them!'

With a thrum and then a sizzling roar the Hermit 44mm Plasma Rifle shot a sphere of blazing bright plasma at the target area and as one the patrol's helms auto-activated dampening in their visors to protect eyes.  Before the sphere covered half the distance there was a blur of movement as twenty or so enemy Retained spurred from statues into rapid action.  Without waiting for an order the Prydian's opened fire the thunder of 12.5mm AP Angis rounds filling the jungle air.

'This is the part I love.  Target free and then put holes in those Cannies.  For Cyon!'

RWP01 Art made Miniature!

A while ago on this blog I posted about 1 Hour Play and that The Ion Age would be working up towards its first 15mm scale skirmish wargames title and that it would be called Patrol Angis.  Well the time has now come for me to show you not only the stunning art for the book cover by Sam Croes but also to say that the time is near for play testing.

Patrol Angis focuses on one platoon of miniatures per force with a player controlling one or more forces in play.  Its fast and furious and rather different.  Easy to learn but tactically challenging.  A hint of space opera but also grounded in reality too.

Using the often overlooked D8, eight sided dice, the brand new engine that powers Patrol Angis has been tested out here but I am looking for a dozen or so keen wargamers to try it out themselves.  That is solo or with one or two others.  If you are interested in getting a PDF copy of the core mechanics by email and throwing the diamonds (cubes for D6's same idea!) for a few hours and telling me your thoughts on the questions provided then EMAIL me and I will let you know. I have three confirmed already (keen lads those!). All those selected who report back will get a mention in print and also a wee goody bag in the mail from me personally upon release.

I will follow up on this post with more information and play test period once we have everything sorted out.

GBS

PLEASE READ THIS
May 2019 and The Ion Age has been taken back into Alternative Armies.  It continues with new releases into the future!  Go to Alternative Armies for Ion Age pages of the 15mm Range the 15mm Terrain Range the 28mm Range the Publications range and the Free Downloads collection too for the latest.  All links to the ion age site are now defunct sorry!  If you wish to see something or ask a question email me on sales@alternative-armies.com.  GBS