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Grobian Hunt - board game design
PeterAndCompany
Registered User regular
Registered User regular
Hey everyone. I got another project to throw down for some critiques: a full strategy board game based around my Grobian Beetles. This isn't a school project this time, just one on my own time, so there aren't any time restrictions with this or anything. I'm taking my time with it. A couple things to note about this project before jumping in:
- The beetles are creatures from my Chronicles of Ademar graphic novel. Basically they are gigantic, wild insects that are feared for their near-impenetrable exoskeleton. The males stand about six feet tall and are vicious defenders of the female, who are about three times their size and are more of a gentle, docile creature. If you want to read up more on the anatomy and habits of the Grobian (which may help you better understand their roles in this game), check out my encyclopedic study on the beetles.
- In the context of the book, the beetles have been utilized by the Ademar military as a sort of feral sentry. By using rubber-tipped arrows filled with pheromone oils, they can control the beetles by exploiting their instincts. Certain arrows are used for capturing targets alive, others for marking a target for killing, etc.
- I wanted the main characters in the book to have a way to make money while they are in exile. My original thought was to create a quick sort of gambling or pub game, but as ideas began to flow I decided to go all out and make a full chess-style strategy game. You will see characters playing this game in the backgrounds of certain locations, and there will be scenes where the game is in focus.
I absolutely hate faking my way through something. I wanted the game to be more than just a random assortment of gaming elements. If it's a playable game in real life, it is more believable when it makes its appearance in the comic. So moving right along, here's what I've got so far for the game:
Grobian Hunt
Synopsis
The game is based around the history of the beetles, specifically in how they were first captured by the military for use in the Ademar kingdom. It is a game of strategy, intended to be played by two people, with one controlling the military and the other controlling the beetles.
Pieces
A shot of all the board game pieces, crafted out of super sculpey. I still have yet to prime/paint them at this point, but otherwise they're pretty much complete.
The Grobian pieces: Six males (occupying one square each) and one female (taking up a 2x2 area on the board).
The military pieces: Four archers (arrowhead) and five soldiers (shield), each only occupying one square.
Closeup of the male Grobian piece. In the context of the book, these pieces are actually a mounted upper fang of a male Grobian. I made the sculpture to size, so it's a bit bigger than a standard chess King.
A male Grobian piece with a military piece in tow (read below).
The game is played on a 10x10 grid of 2" squares.
A bristol board mockup of the game layout. Before starting the game, both players can freely arrange the pieces anywhere within the first three rows of their side of the board, which gives a lot of room for potential strategies. Edit: this photo shows a 12x12 grid, which was the original size in the first draft of the rules. After a few test runs I decided to scale it down to 10x10 so as to balance out the play area for both teams.
For people who are interested in how the game is played, I'm putting the rules in a spoiler tag just to keep things a bit less cluttered.
So yeah, at this point I'm pretty satisfied with how the pieces came out, although I am planning on going over them with a filing point or some sandpaper to give them a bit of texture and reshaping before priming and painting them. The beetle pieces will be mostly black -- the male fangs are a solid black, and the female piece is meant to be half of a Grobian egg shell; it's actually hollow and is only about 1/4" thick -- but I haven't yet decided on a color scheme for the military pieces, so I'm definitely up for suggestions with that.
The board is going to be a pretty decent size. With a 10x10 grid of 2" squares, I will need at least a 2' square piece in order to have enough room to comfortably lay out the grid. After thinking about my possibilities, I decided I could go one of two ways:
- A good, sturdy wood, like oak or a compressed synthetic wood. I could just burn the grid in with an iron and stain the wood to finish it.
- Corian countertop. There is a corian supplier just outside town that might supply me with a 2' square piece left over from one of their jobs. This would provide a good, solid playing board, and would allow for a really nice texture and color as well. I could draw in the grid and use a chisel to carve the grid directly into the stone.
If anyone has any other ideas for what would make a good material for the board, or any suggestions for the pieces or refining the rules set, I am definitely open to suggestions. Obviously it would take a playthrough of the game to really find the holes in the ruleset, so if you want to whip up a mockup to give it a shot, I would definitely be impressed.
Otherwise, that pretty much sums up the project at this point. I'll post more pics as they are completed.
- The beetles are creatures from my Chronicles of Ademar graphic novel. Basically they are gigantic, wild insects that are feared for their near-impenetrable exoskeleton. The males stand about six feet tall and are vicious defenders of the female, who are about three times their size and are more of a gentle, docile creature. If you want to read up more on the anatomy and habits of the Grobian (which may help you better understand their roles in this game), check out my encyclopedic study on the beetles.
- In the context of the book, the beetles have been utilized by the Ademar military as a sort of feral sentry. By using rubber-tipped arrows filled with pheromone oils, they can control the beetles by exploiting their instincts. Certain arrows are used for capturing targets alive, others for marking a target for killing, etc.
- I wanted the main characters in the book to have a way to make money while they are in exile. My original thought was to create a quick sort of gambling or pub game, but as ideas began to flow I decided to go all out and make a full chess-style strategy game. You will see characters playing this game in the backgrounds of certain locations, and there will be scenes where the game is in focus.
I absolutely hate faking my way through something. I wanted the game to be more than just a random assortment of gaming elements. If it's a playable game in real life, it is more believable when it makes its appearance in the comic. So moving right along, here's what I've got so far for the game:
Grobian Hunt
Synopsis
The game is based around the history of the beetles, specifically in how they were first captured by the military for use in the Ademar kingdom. It is a game of strategy, intended to be played by two people, with one controlling the military and the other controlling the beetles.
Pieces
A shot of all the board game pieces, crafted out of super sculpey. I still have yet to prime/paint them at this point, but otherwise they're pretty much complete.
The Grobian pieces: Six males (occupying one square each) and one female (taking up a 2x2 area on the board).
The military pieces: Four archers (arrowhead) and five soldiers (shield), each only occupying one square.
Closeup of the male Grobian piece. In the context of the book, these pieces are actually a mounted upper fang of a male Grobian. I made the sculpture to size, so it's a bit bigger than a standard chess King.
A male Grobian piece with a military piece in tow (read below).
The game is played on a 10x10 grid of 2" squares.
A bristol board mockup of the game layout. Before starting the game, both players can freely arrange the pieces anywhere within the first three rows of their side of the board, which gives a lot of room for potential strategies. Edit: this photo shows a 12x12 grid, which was the original size in the first draft of the rules. After a few test runs I decided to scale it down to 10x10 so as to balance out the play area for both teams.
For people who are interested in how the game is played, I'm putting the rules in a spoiler tag just to keep things a bit less cluttered.
The game offers two completely different experiences, depending on what side you choose to play. Each side carries its own objectives and strategies. The basic rules are outlined below.
Basic Gameplay Rules: Grobian Side
Grobian beetles cannot be injured, so there will always be six males and one female on the board at all times. The males are responsible for capturing the military pieces, one at a time, and dragging them back to the female to feed her.
For each turn, the Grobian player is given ten "moves." Not all ten moves have to be spent. A "move" can be spent in the following ways:
- Moving a male piece one space forward takes one move. The direction the fang is facing is "forward."
- Repositioning a male piece to face a different direction takes one move.
- Moving the female piece takes two moves. She can be moved vertically or horizontally in any direction, as she has no front side.
- To attack a military piece, the male can leap any direction -- vertically, horizontally, or diagonally -- up to five spaces in a straight line. This can be done regardless of the direction the male is facing. This requires five moves. After an attack, the male piece can be repositioned in any direction without cost.
Once a military piece has been captured, it is placed in the small hole on the base of the male piece (see the photo above). The male piece must then return to the female in order to feed her, which removes the military piece from the board. A male Grobian with prey can only move a maximum of three spaces on the board during a single turn.
Male pieces cannot be killed, but they CAN be attacked if they are carrying a military piece. If this happens, the male is stunned for one turn (frozen in its tracks), and the piece it was carrying is released into the space directly in front, free to move immediately. Note: if the space directly in front is occupied by another male beetle, the military piece is automatically re-captured.
The game is won if all pieces of either side of the military are devoured by the female. This means the Grobian player only needs to remove all of the archers OR all of the soldiers to win, not both. A military piece cannot be eaten by the female if it is not being carried by a male, as the female herself has no hunting capabilities.
Basic Gameplay Rules: Military Side
The military pieces can be captured by the males, and removed from the board if not rescued before being returned to the female. To counter this, there are a greater number of military pieces on the board, and they are much more maneuverable than the beetles. Just like the beetles, the military player gets 10 "moves" per turn, which can be spent freely in the following ways:
- Moving a soldier one space in any direction -- vertical, horizontal, or diagonal -- takes one move.
- Moving an archer one space either vertically or horizontally takes one move.
- Unlike the male beetles, the military pieces do not need to be turned. They can move in any direction freely without spending extra moves.
- Launching an attack takes one move, regardless of the piece. Soldiers can only attack a space next to them, while the archers can shoot an arrow up to four spaces in any direction (including diagonally). An archer cannot shoot over a beetle blocking their path.
If a military piece is captured, it can be released by attacking the beetle. Once a piece is freed, it can be moved within that same turn.
The ultimate goal of the military is to get within striking range of the female. Once a female is targeted by both a single archer AND a single soldier (requiring a soldier to be placed directly next to her, with an archer within firing range), she goes into "Chase Mode." This is basically the equivalent of "check." The Grobian player must maneuver the pieces in order to put the female into a space that is out of reach of the military. If there is no possible movement left that is out of range of any archers or soldiers, the female is captured and the military wins.
While it becomes significantly more difficult to win as the military pieces are removed from play, it is entirely possible to still win even with only a single piece remaining of each class.
Basic Gameplay Rules: Grobian Side
Grobian beetles cannot be injured, so there will always be six males and one female on the board at all times. The males are responsible for capturing the military pieces, one at a time, and dragging them back to the female to feed her.
For each turn, the Grobian player is given ten "moves." Not all ten moves have to be spent. A "move" can be spent in the following ways:
- Moving a male piece one space forward takes one move. The direction the fang is facing is "forward."
- Repositioning a male piece to face a different direction takes one move.
- Moving the female piece takes two moves. She can be moved vertically or horizontally in any direction, as she has no front side.
- To attack a military piece, the male can leap any direction -- vertically, horizontally, or diagonally -- up to five spaces in a straight line. This can be done regardless of the direction the male is facing. This requires five moves. After an attack, the male piece can be repositioned in any direction without cost.
Once a military piece has been captured, it is placed in the small hole on the base of the male piece (see the photo above). The male piece must then return to the female in order to feed her, which removes the military piece from the board. A male Grobian with prey can only move a maximum of three spaces on the board during a single turn.
Male pieces cannot be killed, but they CAN be attacked if they are carrying a military piece. If this happens, the male is stunned for one turn (frozen in its tracks), and the piece it was carrying is released into the space directly in front, free to move immediately. Note: if the space directly in front is occupied by another male beetle, the military piece is automatically re-captured.
The game is won if all pieces of either side of the military are devoured by the female. This means the Grobian player only needs to remove all of the archers OR all of the soldiers to win, not both. A military piece cannot be eaten by the female if it is not being carried by a male, as the female herself has no hunting capabilities.
Basic Gameplay Rules: Military Side
The military pieces can be captured by the males, and removed from the board if not rescued before being returned to the female. To counter this, there are a greater number of military pieces on the board, and they are much more maneuverable than the beetles. Just like the beetles, the military player gets 10 "moves" per turn, which can be spent freely in the following ways:
- Moving a soldier one space in any direction -- vertical, horizontal, or diagonal -- takes one move.
- Moving an archer one space either vertically or horizontally takes one move.
- Unlike the male beetles, the military pieces do not need to be turned. They can move in any direction freely without spending extra moves.
- Launching an attack takes one move, regardless of the piece. Soldiers can only attack a space next to them, while the archers can shoot an arrow up to four spaces in any direction (including diagonally). An archer cannot shoot over a beetle blocking their path.
If a military piece is captured, it can be released by attacking the beetle. Once a piece is freed, it can be moved within that same turn.
The ultimate goal of the military is to get within striking range of the female. Once a female is targeted by both a single archer AND a single soldier (requiring a soldier to be placed directly next to her, with an archer within firing range), she goes into "Chase Mode." This is basically the equivalent of "check." The Grobian player must maneuver the pieces in order to put the female into a space that is out of reach of the military. If there is no possible movement left that is out of range of any archers or soldiers, the female is captured and the military wins.
While it becomes significantly more difficult to win as the military pieces are removed from play, it is entirely possible to still win even with only a single piece remaining of each class.
So yeah, at this point I'm pretty satisfied with how the pieces came out, although I am planning on going over them with a filing point or some sandpaper to give them a bit of texture and reshaping before priming and painting them. The beetle pieces will be mostly black -- the male fangs are a solid black, and the female piece is meant to be half of a Grobian egg shell; it's actually hollow and is only about 1/4" thick -- but I haven't yet decided on a color scheme for the military pieces, so I'm definitely up for suggestions with that.
The board is going to be a pretty decent size. With a 10x10 grid of 2" squares, I will need at least a 2' square piece in order to have enough room to comfortably lay out the grid. After thinking about my possibilities, I decided I could go one of two ways:
- A good, sturdy wood, like oak or a compressed synthetic wood. I could just burn the grid in with an iron and stain the wood to finish it.
- Corian countertop. There is a corian supplier just outside town that might supply me with a 2' square piece left over from one of their jobs. This would provide a good, solid playing board, and would allow for a really nice texture and color as well. I could draw in the grid and use a chisel to carve the grid directly into the stone.
If anyone has any other ideas for what would make a good material for the board, or any suggestions for the pieces or refining the rules set, I am definitely open to suggestions. Obviously it would take a playthrough of the game to really find the holes in the ruleset, so if you want to whip up a mockup to give it a shot, I would definitely be impressed.
Otherwise, that pretty much sums up the project at this point. I'll post more pics as they are completed. 
PeterAndCompany on
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That is my critique.
But seriously, the pieces look very nice and the rules sound interesting.
If this were my game (and I'm fully aware that it is not), I would be very tempted to carve the female piece into a stylised scarab-style beetle, rather than leave it as half a shell.
But, that would be just me. It's otherwise all good.
Other than that, I'm going to call up the counter fitters place today to see what they can do to help me out. I just hope a 2' square chunk of acrylic stone doesn't cost too much.
Grenn: Thanks! I actually did consider making the female a more sculpted piece at first, but I decided against it when planning the construction of the pieces within the story. If an actual fang was used for the male piece, I wanted another part of the beetle anatomy to be used for the female, and an egg shell just seemed like the logical choice for someone to grab and put on the board. Granted that the military pieces are all detailed and miniaturized, but I think it also brings a cool effect with the beetle pieces having a more straight-out-of-nature look to them.
I decided to make things a bit easier for people to test out the game on their own. Download this zip file, and inside are two images I threw together to print out on standard printer paper. The dots on each of the playing pieces are there as a reminder of the directions each piece can be moved on the board. This at least will give you a quick mock-up of the game design to test out the rules, if you're wanting to give it a go for yourself.
And that's a good point about the eggs: considering that the softer eggs are usually eaten by the young immediately after they hatch, it would make it much more of a rare find to obtain an egg shell that is intact enough to use as a board piece. I don't really mention anything about them hardening, so perhaps the occasional remnant of an eggshell that is left behind could actually harden in the sun like any other part of the beetles' anatomy.
Plus, not to mention how hard it must be to actually get an intact male fang (probably stolen from one of their graveyards before they get sunbleached), and you could imagine the work (and luck) required to have a complete set of authentic pieces. It makes me wonder if I should give any sort of a hint of counterfeit pieces, or have the majority of sets in the story actually just be sculpted to look like the real thing, with real pieces being reserved for only the most dedicated and/or wealthy players.
As for the game itself, the instructions sound interesting...have you figured out roughly how long it would take to play one game?
As for the play time, most of the latest test runs I've done have taken close to an hour. Initially the rules only called for the military to target the female with a single archer and soldier in order to capture her, but this proved entirely too easy and most games were over within 10 minutes. Adding the "Chase Mode" rule extended the game significantly, forced the military player to use more of their pieces at once, and extended the game to last anywhere between 30 and 60 minutes. If you give it a shot, be sure to include how long it took you to play, as I'm curious to see how long the average play time lasts for other people.