Painting Update - Wild West Exodus

Wild West Exodus is a game that I haven't talked about much on my blog. It's certainly an interesting premise - a skirmish game featuring a sci-fi Wild West (with some magical elements) with grav-bikes, robots, laser guns, zombies, and werebeasts. The rules are interesting, although the individuals factions could use some rebalancing, and unfortunately the company is suffering from distributor problems and Kickstarter-itis (i.e., big expansion from Kickstarters and a reliance on them to get out new products).

Since the interest in the game has passed on at the local store, I'm looking to sell my small collection of Warrior Nation models. I thought I should at least post some images up on my blog, as I did manage to get all of them painted. 

This is Sitting Bull, one of the Bosses (leaders) for the Warrior Nation. In the WWX world, all the Native American tribes in the west came together to form one large nation to combat the Union and Dr. Carpathian (one of the most prominent villains). The Native Americans are able to find their spirit animals and transform into a hybrid with them. Sitting Bull's is obviously a wolf.

Another Boss - Chief Irontooth, a cougar hybrid.

Stone Fist and Running Foot, one of the Underbosses for Warrior Nation. Because nothing says "Don't mess with us" then strapping a pair of cannons to your mystical energy infused horse.

And another Underboss, Sky Spirit. I'm guessing he's some kind of eagle hybrid.

Sidekicks are a step below Underbosses, but are still powerful named models. Walks Looking is the daughter of Sitting Bull, and ostracized from the rest of the Nation for not being able to transform. She becomes a Boss in another faction, the Dark Nation (essentially, an Evil Warrior Nation).

Light Support units bring a lot of firepower in WWX - only being outclassed by Heavy Support, which can cause some balance problems - and these Energy Beasts are considered some of the best in the game. They're fast, can move once for free per activation, and their shots are both powerful and can pass through terrain. They're no slouches in close combat, either.

Light Support can also come in the form of infantry models wielding heavy weapons. For the Warrior Nation, that means Gatling guns and crossbows. Other factions have infantry equipped with rocket launchers, sniper rifles, and shotguns. 

The lowest tier of power in the game are Hired Hands, but enough of them can still drag down more powerful models, and you'll want a few if only to avoid being out-activated by your opponent. These Close Combat Braves might only wield pistols, knives, and tomahawks, but they can still take a chunk out of a bigger model with some decent dice rolls.

And if you have Close Combat Braves, you obviously need Long Range Braves. Although I think the usefulness of the guy with the spear is debatable, especially when compared to the rest of the Braves who at least managed to arm themselves with bows and rifles.

So, hopefully passing these miniatures along to someone else will mean I can invest some cash into another game that seems to be building steam in the local scene - Guild Ball!

Shootout in Jaynestown - Wild West Exodus AAR

One of the games I've recently delved into is Wild West Exodus. It is, in a way, a kind of replacement for both Warhammer 40k and Warmachine/Hordes. While the models may be expensive enough to turn some wargamers away, the game doesn't require many models for a good sized game, especially if one invests heavily into the Underbosses and Sidekicks (i.e., the "characters"). And the rules are not nearly as cut-throat as Warmachine/Hordes, nor do they need constant practice to maintain a level of competent play. 

Recently, one of the local gaming stores had a WWX day, in which members of the community who already played or were interested in the game could come out and play a few games. We had enough players to fill up two games with four players in each, with each Posse looking to be the last one standing when the dust settled. 

I was one of the two Warrior Nation players, and somehow we both ended up on the same table. 

And on the same side! Tommy, Jr. had his Warrior Nation as well, lead by the ever-terrifying Geronimo in all his werebear glory. 

Tom, Sr. was fielding a Union force that was very heavy on the characters, lead by the axe-wielding Lincoln. 

And opposite me was Rob, with his Outlaws and the infamous Jesse James. 

Tommy and I advanced across the table, content with dealing with Rob and Tom instead of each other. My horde of Braves advanced, hollering and whooping, into the center of town. 

Rob scored an early and important blow against me, however, when he used his Iron Horse (basically a grav-bike) and its rocket launchers to destroy Walks Looking, a Warrior Nation character who is absolutely deadly in combat.

As Rob fought off the Indians, he also skirmished with Tom's force. 

Tom had bigger concerns, however, as Tommy was out to put his Pa down! 

The powerful guns of the Outlaws took a toll on my Braves, eventually wiping most of them out. Even Sitting Bull was incapable of taking down Jesse James before being turned into swiss cheese. But the Energy Beast was able to do some damage. However, Stone Fist (the horse with the two cannons on it) couldn't seem to find his range. It seems like I'm incapable of judging what 24 inches looks like. 

The Union was forced to retreat, hoping to stall the time before Geronimo was able to get into close combat with them. Unfortunately, this put Abe & Co. in the range of the Outlaws' guns, and Rob was able to score some hits into the opposing Posse. 

The tide soon began to turn against Tommy, who had spent most of the game being ignored as Rob, Tom and I fought. Realizing that most of his Posse was still pristine, I began to fire bolts of spirit energy into Geronimo. 

Rob realized the same thing, turning his attention to focus both on Tom and Tommy. I was glad for the relief!

Tom was knocked out first, and the Tommy went down. By this point my Posse was severely mauled, with only Stone Fist left standing. Rob's remaining models quickly sent the Indian and his horse packing. So when the guns finally stopped firing and silenced settled on Jaynestown, it was Jesse James who was left standing tall.

It was a fun game (if a little long), and it's definitely cemented my interest in the rules. Hopefully the community grows as a result of the game day, as there were plenty of other people interested who were asking questions about the fluff and mechanics.