Sunday, April 04, 2010

random counters


Found these on the floor of my closet while I was digging out my comics box.  The Land Whale, Carnivore, Omnivore and weird-looking Police are from Star Frontiers. The cop's a yazirian, who have flying squirrel style skin flaps between their arms and legs.  The grey counter with number six is a homemade bogey done for some spaceship shoot-out scenario, quite possible a Star Frontiers Knight Hawks engagement.  The black shuriken with the white R is a BattleTech unit marker, for the forces of the pirate Redjak Ryan.  The counter in the upper left, the A in the white bulls-eye, is an enigma to me.  On the reverse is a number 2 in a white stencil design.  Anybody know what that one's from?

7 comments:

  1. Growing up on wargames I love counters. The cardboardy, slightly musty smell elicits memories of long summers hunched over huge maps of Normandy, North Africa, Stalingrad, etc.

    I'm sad that counters carry some stigma and seem to make a game less approachable by newcomers (my RPG target audience). Mini's, tokens, wood blocks are what "modern", "friendly" games use. Counters are for old dudes who spent childhood summers in the basement rather than running around outside.

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  2. Wow. Star Frontiers. Yet another TSR product I bought because I fell in love with the Elmore girl on the cover of the box. I don't recall ever using the counters, but I sure do recognize them. I remember telling the players that during a jump through the void, the laws of the universe would get real freaky, and that you could shove a lemon through a broom and have it come out the other side intact. So the players would try doing weird things while in the Void, and I'd think up psychedelic things to happen.

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  3. I dunno, but I had a dream that I found some of the Es.

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  4. @Arkhein:

    The best part is the flesh colored pants make it look like she be nekkid. God love you, Larry Elmore. Tika Waylan, Telerie Windyarm, and the Saucy Tart of Nulb that is my avatar picture over there.

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  5. Anonymous7:19 PM

    That A with a 2 on the other side sounds like on eof my "dice" chits in my old D&D game circa 79-83 area.

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  6. That counter comes from the board game Wings of War. It's a damage counter. In the game if you manage to hit with your guns, depending on the type of gun (classified by letter;A, B, C, etc) you draw a counter and the number or sometimes symbol on back denotes how much damage or special condition inflicted on the target aircraft. In the case of the counter you have there, 2 points of fuselage damage.

    I enjoyed that collection of counters you have there! :D I was able to identify most of them. I knew the Redjack Ryan one! That was my favorite Pirate King faction from Battletech/Mechwarrior!

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