Knight Models has been talking more about the upcoming Batman Miniatures Game and its 3rd Edition. To keep you in the loop on the rules with some more examples and snippets they chatted today about activations, formations and how the crew comes together.

Here's what they had to say about the way things work now...

"In the Batman Miniature Game, a crew usually consists of models with different ‘ranks’: A Leader, a Sidekick, a Free Agent and several Henchmen. Initially, the Leader or the Sidekick will be appointed the Boss (represented by the crown marker). This model determines which characters will be able to join the crew, controls the placement of Suspect markers (thanks to the Inspire passive trait), and will normally possess one or more special skills to assert their leadership. The choice of Boss is perhaps the single most important decision you’ll take when forming a crew.

If something bad happens to the Boss (removing it from the game), another model from the crew may be chosen to gain the crown marker and take over as the new Boss. This allows you to continue with the crew’s plans, but the radius of the Inspire trait is halved – so take care of your Boss!"

This sounded rather cool and whilst it is akin to a lot of other skirmish games of its ilk its good to see that the Boss character in your group really has an impact. You are playing with superheroes and villains after all so it makes sense that this would be the case.

"Every model has an Affiliation, which determines which Bosses they will fight for; conversely, they also have a number of Rivals – a model cannot be recruited if its Rival is the crew’s Boss. However, if you feel that your crew is missing that certain…something, you can also recruit a Free Agent. These mercenary characters make the perfect complement for any crew, shoring up their weaknesses or enhancing their strengths."

Again this seems like a bit of fun. I like the idea that you could potentially play around with the makeup of your crew in some interesting ways and do some 'comic book' things like bringing in guests to change things up in the story you forge on the tabletop.

Activations & Heroics

Then, we get onto the case of how activations work in the game...

"During a game, models will influence your crew’s fortunes by performing actions during the round. Every model can perform a single action, regardless of their rank (although the relative power of those actions will often be dictated by their rank).

However, each round, you will have four Audacity markers to place on members of your crew, which will allow selected models to perform additional actions. This is one of the key elements introduced in this edition of the game, which keeps the action flowing. During the Raise The Plan phase, the careful use of Audacity markers can make even the lowliest model pivotal to victory – so use them wisely!"

I've seen this kind of mechanic used in other games where you can try and make that last-ditch attempt at heroic (or villainous) intervention with a lowly member of your crew. I really like the idea of one of Gotham's finest (if you can find an officer which hasn't been bought by the mob!) being the one who watches Batman's back and brings down a nefarious villain whilst the Caped Crusader is otherwise engaged.

This all sounds rather fun to me and it will be fun to see the kind of crews people build for the game...