Beasts Of War At SteamCon 2017

Before everything kicks off and Beasts of War arrive at the event we thought we'd let you check out the amazing players hoping for a last minute slot at worlds.

"So you think you have what it takes to be one of the best coaches in the World? Prove it! The Regional Cup qualifier pits the most promising Players against one another on the Pitch. Who will earn the right to represent their Guild in the finals? IT COULD BE YOU! The top Player from this event will receive a free ticket to the World Championship Finals at SteamCon USA. Prove yourself on the Pitch and earn your Guild’s favour!"

Check out the amazing box every attendee if given for coming to SteamCon 2017!

Alt art players, metal goal, Skulk for the Morticians, stickers, and two inflatable "bangers" which I may or may not use excessively this evening 😀

At the SteamyCon Mixer everyone was given a random envelope of alt-art Guild Ball cards which they then had to trade and barter with you get what they wanted.

I managed to complete my set of Season 2 and errated Alchemists so I'm a happy chap 🙂

The Victoria Warehouse and the awesome Cellars below are giving us a fanastic environment to enjoy everything Steamforged Games have to offer.

Four rooms beautifully lit offer up a relaxing store, competitive hall, casual games room and a chill out bar area. Very atmospheric and wonderfully themed, especially to Guild Ball, it's a great location to visit and enjoy your hobby.

One of my favourite part of attending events like SteamCon is getting to meet like minded people and sharing your love of gaming.

I was incredibly happy to bump into Andreas from STF sSpillforeningen The Fellowship on YouTube. These guys do amazing videos including battle reports and grand campaigns on games like The Hobbit and Age of Sigmar.

They're also currently less than ten subscribers away for a thousand so if you think you'd enjoy it, head on over to their YouTube channel to check them out.

I got a chance to check out the simply terrifying new miniatures coming for Dark Souls the Board Game.

The Gaping Dragon is simply spine shudderingly hideous though my heart did warm up a little to Sif, the Great Grey Wolf who picks up his master Artorias' sword when he dies... they aren't tears... someone's cutting onions.

Some of the paint jobs on the minis at SteamCon are out of this world!

This Alchemist team not only has a gorgeous goal but also, Smoke from the team also has an led built in that changes light constantly and adds a beautiful glow to the mini.

Az sits down with the Lead Developer of Dark Souls: The Card Game, Bryce from Steamforged Games to check out how the game plays.

The game features lots of interesting decision points as you tailor and grow your deck, pushing yourself to make riskier and riskier choices.

I've been fortunate to see loads of Guild Ball teams painted amazingly and with such care and attention to detail.

But what I've found is that the humble Goal Post in Guild Ball can be as important as any player and the level of personalisation and Guild pride represented in this is astounding. Hats off to them all!

Loads of updates from the Key Note, here's a brief overview.

Union in Chains is over with Butcher's beating Fishermen, Brewers beating Masons, Engineers beating Alchemists and Obulus messing with the Hunters Guild as we reported on previously.

Minor guilds are coming and they can ally with major guilds. The first up will be the Rat Catcher Guild and 9 more should follow.

SFG are opening up a new HQ in Manchester with a Play Centre where you can get in to NDA play testing soon.

Rookie League legacy system to grow players is coming in full next year while competitive play will also see changes plot cards and initiative order. Rookies will also get alternative sculpts!

Season One teams are coming in PVC but SFG will be putting the questions out to their community one what guilds they want and if there's interest in a full PVC range.

SFG Innovations will be a new publishing arm publishing internal and external games. "Ghost Patrol" is a simple fun card game looking to be the first SFG Innovations product.

After two years of prep Mat and Rich revealed GODTEAR! The game will be classic fantasy and feature legacy gameplay, narrative driven, preassembled PVC models, 60 min play time, huge list potential, faction free, warband based combat.

Early access pack will be available from 29th January with metal prerelease minis and should be competitively priced.

The game should be skirmish based and play on a 30' deep and 40' wide play area. The game will be released via Kickstarter but will have strong retail support and SFG will avoid KS exclusives that would spoil a level playing field.

We sat in on a seminar with Sherwin Matthews, lead writer for Guild Ball as he talked through what's been happening in the world of Guild Ball in Season 3.

The depth of the stories, the relationships tearing each other apart and the twisted betrayals, as struggles for power in the lore of this game is incredibly impressive.

Getting to meet up with lovers of the game and especially fans of the site is always truly humbling and rewarding.

If you don't attend conventions regularly, make a note to go share your love with some fellow gamers some time, as enough good things can not be said for it.

Last night I had the absolute pleasure of bumping into some fans of the site including Chris, @cassaralla on Beasts of War, who incredibly kindly lent me his Fishermen to play against his Farmers.

Playing with two wonderfully fully painted teams was awesome and Chris was amazing at taking me through the ropes again as it was only my third time playing Guild Ball.

In the end I squeaked out a win, very much aided by Chris' kind guidance and overall had a real ball. My face was sore with smiles by the end 🙂

Az & Justin sit down with Sherwin Matthews to play through a full scenario of the newly updated Resident Evil 2: The Board Game.

The tension really builds fast and those zombies are learning how to get around doors which creates such a sense of excitement at every turn.

It's great to see SFG team take on feedback from the community and keep developing the game even after an incredibly successful Kickstarter campaign.

I got the chance at SteamCon to bump into Maarten from DTR Spincasting, translates as The Tin Rose, who have some insane statues to show off.

These pieces are a wonderful way to indulge your love of Guild Ball and they come in three different stages so you can choose for raw, inked or fully mounted

I couldn't leave SteamCon without featuring another guild and this Morticians Guild.

These models each have identically themed coffins that were sculpted and then actually cast for the entire team!

I sat down down with Mat from Steamforged Games to chat about SteamCon and more excitingly, pull out some key spoilers for the latest announcement from SFG "Godtear".

It's really great to see that the community focused mentality is part of SFG from the top down and it now forms a key part of how SFG build games.

The Master Artisan Trophy has been awarded for some incredible work here at SteamCon 2017.

The Winners are:

Single Miniature - Sven Bieruant

Entire Team - Mark Rodgers

Diorama - Sven Bieruant

Overall Master Artisan - Sven Bieruant

Az & Justin bring a great weekend with the Steamforged Games team to a close.