Primeval Abyssian (my extra-dimensional non-humanoid alien game)

[Asymmetrical Xeno]

Eldargal said I should post about this here, I was a little nervous to do this but decided to finally do it! Before I even start writing about this - I'm going to say this is a small-niche and taste and I am well aware it won't appeal to a larger fanbase like many other wargames.

However I know there are many of you out there that want proper weird and unique aliens - and this is whom this is appealing towards.

So the facts.

What IS Primeval Abyssian ?
It's a skirmish based wargame set in the extra-dimensional setting called the Etherium. There are about 21 different non-humanoid alien races fighting it out. The setting is inspired by Stapledonian visual styles. Each race will have 10 units to begin with, and will be built up to about 20 or more over time in a release pattern similar to how PP deal with their different races. You'll be able to buy a Strike-force of 9-10 figures (on average) which includes a commander, troops and specialised and never have to buy anything else again - or expand it into a larger force of 20-30 miniatures.

What are the miniatures like ?
Theres no gravity in the Etherium, so most of the races float. Many have a thin, wirey asymmetrical look to them - while others are larger, bulkier and more brutal looking. The miniatures are going to be ALL entirely plastic. Yes, plastic - not metal. not resin. I know some people like multi-part kits and lots of options though and I will be honest and say most of the pieces are single-piece plastics and I know that will put some people off but It's all I am capable of when I am doing it all myself. I doubt they will be as high-quality or perfect like Games-Workshop, but I am still pretty proud of them and love the way they look! and some others do too! but I'll completely understand if they arent your thing!

What's the backround like ?
I've been writing backround for this game for about seven years now. It's got a lot of depth to it. I've tried to ensure everything makes sense - and I've written extensive biologies so every visual part of a creature has a purpose to it.

Who the hell is gonna like this rubbish, are you insane ?
Yes, I am insane. Mostly fans of 1930's hard sci-fi books like Olaf Stapledon's Star Maker and other classics such as Robert L Forward and Hal Clement. Some people have said it is "lovecraftian" but I don't agree as the creatures have a lot of personality and relatable goals and purposes. Visually they are more inspired by Stapledon.

What's the game like ?
The main rules are very simplistic, tactical and fun - they only cover a few pages and can be introduced to non-gamers or people with bad memories (like me). For those who want more complexity - they'll be an "Advanced ruleset" which adds all kinds of interesting dynamics like extra-dimensional terrain and weather ect.

What will the prices be like ?
Affordable! I'd say the prices will be more in line with companies like Mantic.

What is the plastic like ?
It's a completely new process that's been created by Ed Fortae of Troll Forged miniatures. The plastic is very hard and durable - and mold-lines are almost non-existant. Unlike resin - you wont find any air-bubbles either. The Detail level is pretty high too.

Can we see some pictures of test-models or masters ?
Yes! here you go - these are RESIN MASTERS I got back from Ed which I have since converted, modified, re-posed and otherwise ruined even more into new units and such :

Tolathians -

Luuran -

And heres a badly painted tolathian I did using the spare I had to show the colour-scheme (future painted stuff will be pro-painted, you can see why ) -

I hate you, I hate your crappy models and I hope you fail you freak!
Thanks!

[eldargal]

Looking forward to seeing how this progresses, this hobby needs more genuinely odd alliens.

[robertsjf]

Who the hell is gonna like this rubbish, are you insane ?
Yes, I am insane. Mostly fans of the Cthulhu mythos, HP Lovecraft

*Looks at minis*


*Goes insane*


*Drools*

I applaud your efforts! Please keep us up to date!

[Asymmetrical Xeno]

Ok! thanks for the interest )

Here are the first of the faction-rundowns to give people an idea of the kind of races :

Tolathians ;
Wise, old, elemental race. Weapons based on lightning, long-range communication based on controlled cloud patterns. Cold, clinical and tough. Their biggest weakness is heat, they feed from the cold-electricity on their planets storms. Their cities resemble giant stone pillars. The inside of their cities is full of clouds, electrical energy - hostile environment to outsiders. They are the primary protagonists of the game.

Luuran ;
Highly religious, believe in an all seeing-eye, seek to master telepathic abilities so as to obtain ultimate enlightenment and eventually a group consciousness. Offending their religious disbeliefs is bad, really bad. They have temples and churches all over the dimension. Play on the false-gods/prophet themes alot. They are heavily inspired by Illuminanti imagery and views.

Jequerita ;
The unending swarm type army. Sentient killer-plants that seek to aggressively refoliate everything in their image. They have a variety of sub-species that include mountain sized plants which spit seeds into space, the equivilent of killer tumbleweeds for a "fast attack" style choice and the ability to "grow" new units in war. Visually they have have a primary stalk with large sharp thick vines covered in spikes sprouting out from the sides and a venus-fly-trap type mouth on the top of their bodies.

Masters of Unlife ;
Alien lords from a universe of "undeath", the universes real name is the Necroverse. A kind of anti-life faction. Huge hulking biomechanical drones reach out into dimensions with "life", lead by their ancient masters for ultimate "cleansing". Their weapons are based on Anti-matter. "Sight" is gifted to only the masters themselves.

Ekimmu ;
Ancient wind based species. They appear as swirling columns of constantly distortjng faces appearing and disapearing. They are Parasitic vampiric beings who suck souls from the living to fuel their addiction. Their technology is based on strange harnessed Vacuum technology. The Ekimmu drill holes into the fabric of space to some vacuum dimension whee the sheer ferocity of power is enough to be shaped into all kinds of eldritch weaponry.

Prymarsiam Dominion ;
An isolationist race. They are an aquatic leech type species. They live in large sea shell style domes on the bed of the oceans. Their realm of space is like a cosmic bermuda triangle. Hostile to outsiders - being that the triangle is liquid-space. Many ships have been lost or vanished in this liquid-space, and nightmarish tales of the legendary Prymarsiam have created an element of Fear that ensures few but the desperate travel through this hell.

Lumenenion :
The Lumenenion are the guardians of doomsday technology. Long ago they developed weapons beyond what the Ether had ever seen - but due to sabotage or some other reason, many of the weapons self-destructed, annihilating the Lumenenion's material bodies, leaving behind the liqenergy forms. Now they reside on their doomed worlds watching over their past-mistakes and guarding them from outsiders, pirates and those of greed.

Yltaran Nexus :
The Nexus are an intelligent and nightmarish race of yellow, wirey entities that see the Etherium as a perfect home. Their bioforms and technology are naturally dimensionally-transcendent - allowing drop-pods to contain a vast amount of infantry due to them being bigger on the inside. Ancient scriptures tell that they have conquered entire dimensions in the past - and the Etherium is the next target.

Iaethlein :
A wise species who gave up the flesh to become Hard-Holographic forms. The Iaethlein have advanced stellar engineering technology. Their Commander Node-warriors have the ability to create Hard-light factories which create limited/inferior holo-clones of the parent Commander. Their realm of space is like a large cosmic holographic circuit-board.

Paradox Smiths :
Techno-lovecraftian mechanical abominations from a giant robotic galaxy. Originated from a world of liquid-metal which became sentient and used it's vast mass and form to shape and convert star-systems into an extension of itself.

[scadugenga]

Very intriguing! I'm glad you decided to post this on the main forum.

Keep up the few-degrees-from-center work!

[Asymmetrical Xeno]

Thanks mate! )

Well heres the second part :

Gcnuroids :
A genetically engineered Macro-Virus race of disc-like cells created by a long dead alien-race as a bio-weapon. The bio-weapon however effected the creators as well as the enemy and over centuries the microbes gained sentience. The Gcnuroids learnt to mimick themselves on a larger scale with trillions of them forming into larger and varied forms until a visable cluster could be seen. Their technology seems reminscent of alien biological systems.

Quarzen Anomoly ;
The White Ether was built around a hidden realm, the Quarzen Anomoly, a crystaline paradise where forests and rivers ran with crystal energy that converge into glowing pink diamond roots and liquid electricity. The roots of the anomoly have watched and waited for aeons waiting to grow forth outside the anomoly into the real space of the Etherium where they can expand their elemental paradise. Their first victim was the Shardrak Galaxy, which they very nearly obliterated, turning almost the entire mass of the galaxy into a crystal paradise.

Shardraks ;
Many would think this is an alien race, but they are far more than that. The Shardraks are actually the physical and energy remains of a long destroyed galaxy which have become sentient. Their ultimate plan is to rebuild themselves into a new galaxy, where their minds and bodies will expand and merge together to recreate the lost star systems and burning black stars of their past.

Adrifell ;
Long extinct, they were the cosmic-engineers that created the Etherium using advanced Hadron Collider experiments. There are evidence of their civilization everywhere on most worlds in the Etherium - ancient ruins, crumbling citadels and vast arrays of glowing coffin-like structures that other races dare go near.

Karuthrax ;
Stubborn yet honourable race of squat abstract fleshy forms with large talons, pores and other strange edifaces. They mine the worlds of the Karuthian Cluster Domain. Nomadic tribes of Karuthrax travel the Cluster Domain in search of new worlds to mine. They can be allied with by other neutral races such as the Tolathians and Iaethlein.

Mind-Harvest ;
A race of disembodied telekinetic Brain monstrosities. The Mind-Harvest Brain-Organisms have high-technology and as such merge themselves to a wide-variety of techno-suits, the most common being various forms of robotic spinal-chord type constructs. The Mind-Harvest live up to their name - they gather knowledge and information as almost a drug to them, however to extract the information they need to devour the minds of other races.

Dimension Talons ;
When an entire species is made extinct in the Etherium, the life-energies "fall" to the very walls of the very Ether itself, sometimes these energies coalesce and form new species to rebalance the cosmic-nature - but sometimes the natural order goes wrong - and abominations are born unto the Ether. These abominations are the Dimension Talons, disgusting brutish hordes of chaotic half-formed creatures with no goal beyond revenge.

Asag ;
Little is currently known of the crusading empire of the Asag beyond the fact they are rock-formed monstrosities created from fire and brimstone within the depth of the Volcanic worlds known as the Saagurath. It is said their technology is based upon intricate stone-circuitry and powered by the lava and magma substances from their firey homeworlds.

Scions Of Thulhux ;
The insane tentacled scientists of the planet Thulhux are a species of mad-scientists who have constantly experimented on themselves and other living things for aeons, now their tendrill-laden bodies are hidden under corroded robes and garments. They seek only to experiment on other races.

[Asymmetrical Xeno]

The first wave of Tolathian sculpts can be seen here :
[url]http://outsidetheuniverseitself.blogspot.com/2011/07/primeval-abyssian-tolathian-kits.html[/url]

hope you like them.

[eldargal]

Nice, I particularly like the cyclone master and the mammatus.

[archimbald]

really really like the new direction on the game. might even get a few on prinicple

[Asymmetrical Xeno]

Heres the PA logo, created by my artist Reuben Liew :