Scrapes (3) - Developing devices

More cool rules ideas, with something for almost everyone this time. A quick recap.

In the first we had horrific injury ideas from Tales from the Maelstrom, for wargames and 40K especially, with new counters from me too. More Maelstrom house rules here.

In the second, we had Ork fungus brew from Digital Waaagh!, also for 40K, and a set of numbered counters useful for remembering D6 results.

Today magic items and high technologies, bringing together excellent ideas from five different blogs and some of my own thoughts on expansion.

Scrapes (2) - Fungus brew and D6 results

After the horrific injuries of the first in the series, a unit upgrade, this time from Digital Waaagh!, where Auberon has let his interest in the Orks throughout 40K history feed through into a modern take on fungus brew.

More counters to tie in with this, and to give some help with D6 tables and results in general. Where an effect lasts long enough it might be forgotten, just place one of these next to the models to remind you of the number rolled. The '+ -' counter can be used with another number to show a penalty or boost to a stat. Again, they're all yours to modify as you wish; just print to thin card and cut along the divisions.

Scrapes (1) - Horrific injuries

The first of a series on characterful optional rules, mainly for wargames and skirmish games, but possibly inspiring adaptations of other kinds of game too. I'd imagine most gamers collect this kind of rule to try out when an opportunity arises, or incorporate them into their house rules, and the point here is to help in this, by suggesting rules not matching a triffle or drawing attention to rules other gamers are using.

What got me thinking about this most recently was a post at the excellent Tales from the Maelstrom with a couple of their house rules. Have a read of those, and the first comment at least. For me they're simple, but realistic, and they add a lot to gameplay. They're also a reminder of the danger of war and the natural reactions of combatants.

To add to them, how about the need to take a test not only for taking cover nearby, but for approaching too, or modifiers to morale tests for proximity? Perhaps a mechanism to represent the desire to retrieve the remains and remove them from the field?

If you decide to use any of this yourself, it could help to have a way of marking the locations, so I've put together a quick set of 16 rather graphic counters to this end; just print to thin card and cut along the divisions. They're all yours to modify and print as you wish and I dedicate them to Colonel Kane and all the other guys at Tales.