Les Chiens de Guerre

For your information Geof just provided an important message regarding the future of the game Hell Dorado

http://arch01.forum.helldorado.fr/index.php?topic=3572.msg45921;boardseen#new

Translation of the letter: (I did it in a rush, sorry for the many mistakes)

The news came as a bolt from the blue : for financial reasons Asmodee will stop the edition of Hell Dorado. About this game I always has been honest regarding our delivery delais, our products, our problems, our mistakes and our objectives, it made sense to me to keep this true language with you.

Now it is not fisnished, not yet…in fact not everything is finished.

The current situation is :
The artist, conceptors and sculptors, will loose their job in April.
Few extensions will be produced and released until june. (the Immortal starter box end of February, 1 immortal and 1 westerner extension in March, 1 sarracen and 1 demon extension in May and finally 1 lost and 1 mercenary extension in June)

To continue the production follows two main ideas : the urge to properly finalised the game (if end there is), and to keep an open door to a potential new producer.

Indeed since the beginning of this week I worked really hard to find a solution to save this game (few options are explored for the moment)

Further more many things (concept arts, new profils, really motivated persons, already produced and paid translations – cards and rules - two books, the production moulds of the existing miniatures, the exposition models, etc…) are waiting to be used. As you see many attractive points for a potential buyer…

To release products until june should also give enough time to be prepared if somebody decides to continue the Hell Dorado adventure.

Regarding the events I let Nicolas fuseau explained the situation
« Tournaments planned until end of april will be assured. Tournaments planned in May and June are canceled.

The pionner program has no more reason to continue. The guys who offered their condidature will be rewarded as promised.

Ravage magazine will published Hell Dorado articles until june. »

There is the situation for the moment 5 days after this fateful decision.  I can easely imagine your deception, your frustrations, your interrogations. I prefered to stay honest with you before the release of the immortals to give all the cards before you spend for this game any longer.

You shall also think it is a strange desicion and a bad timing considering the annonced future of this game. To be fair my team and I fully share this feeling.  But the fact is the decision has been taken, no way to change it. Today my only target is to look forward, to find a way to save Hell Dorado and to maintain the job of 3 culptors and one conceptual artist…

Feel free to contact me if you have any question… just give me time to answeras I am quite busy for the moment.

Geof

PS : If you don’t maind I would prefer to do not comment about what shall or should have been done to avoid this decision. It is done anyway. Yesterday is the past, however if you have any idea to prepare tomorrow you are more than welcome.
Ayway I would like to thank you all to have supported this game so far.

I can't think of anything else to say other than that sucks.  I just dropped $200 on Hell Dorado figs (in addition to the stuff I already owned), and was planning on running demos and a tournament at GenCon '09  Not sure what to do about the demos or tournament now.

I doubt I'll be getting any type of support for it now.

The game is not dead yet: new minis will be released until june. This leaves 6 months to find another editor. With the English translation almost ready, it sounds like a quite appealing package. If only this didn't happen during a credit crunch...

Go ahead as planned. It may be picked up by another company. And seeing that it still has a fan-base will help it get purchased.

We, english speakers, have a real opportunity to show how much we love this game and to demonstrate how important the english market is and should be seriously taken into account...

Breten please don't give up. Personnaly I won't !

I really think there is hope for the game to continue.  I'm certainly not giving up.  If only we could get a consortium together to buy up the assets and contract with a company to cast the models.  Wishful thinking for me.....   :-\

Gutted, simply gutted... Fair play to Asmodee they aren't just pulling the plug overnight but all my sympathies go to Geof & his team...  :(

I hope like hell that an investor/buyer comes forward, takes this on, and retains the services of the sculptors and artist. Hell Dorado is too strong a product for it to be allowed to fall by the wayside, especially when most of the English translation work is already done...

Rich

I heartily agree with that. Here's hoping some forward thinking company has the stomach for it.
Soooo disappointed... please don't let my Saracens be consigned to the same, dusty box as my Griffins!

Bad news indeed.
I have to start buying those minis fast, before they become rare.

Luckily the miniatures and rules we have won't disappear from our bookshelves. There's no reason to stop playing HD even if it's production stops.

I just hope the buyer won't be "that other French miniature company"...

I share what you write at 100%...

Well, I'm thinking the Tournament stays in place for GenCon, but the number of demos I was planning on running is going to be scaled back a bit.

I still love the game and it's a sad day. :(

Ouch...  :'(

Helldorado has quickly become my favourite miniatures game and I know quite a lot of games! I was so intrigued by the background story I actually started learning French to be able to play it. I can read the rules now without major problems, but I have hard times finding people to play against. Most won't bother learning French to play a game, despite the great fluff and minis. But this game has such a potential, it only needs English (and German) rules and cards! I sure hope someone has the balls to pick it up!

I have 300€ to spare right now. What do you think, is that enough to acquire the IP?  ;D

Perhaps if we were all to chip in 1000 bucks a piece?  If only, huh?  :P  I tell ya, I'd do it in a flat second if it'd make the difference...  Either way, I'm NOT giving up on this!  I agree wholeheartedly that this is one of the greatest (perhaps THEE greatest) miniatures game that I've ever seen and played and we can't just let it fall this close to the English release.  I for one am going to do my damndest to pick up the rest of the boxes before I miss my chance and hope that it makes any difference.  Let's pray that the game gets picked up soon.  What about Fantasy Flight?  They've rescued Dark Heresy from the ashes.  *shrug*

- Alec

I think that I will have to buy a lottery ticket.

Yes, they are studying several possibilities, including an 'Open source' licensing.
Let's hope that an international editor realizes that there is very little work to do in order to capture the huge English-speaking market, as Asmodée have failed to do it.

Agreed. I was actually thinking that Hell Dorado would make it through the depression with more fans than before just because it is very affordable. I mean, putting 40 euros down for a full force should sound more interesting when the economy is in dire straits than putting down 300 euros for another mass army.

asmodee have let themselves down by failing to capture the english market from helldorados conception. the UK and US are potential goldmines of players especially since the collapse of rackhams confrontation. at the moment there isnt another skirmish game to rival it. alkemy is out there but i dont hear a thing about it being played. one assumes.

someone WILL see the potential and will snap it up, i doubt very much this will be the end of helldorado at all, and if anything im optimistic that someone will take it over, realise its potential and take into account the foreign market thats waiting for the game to come into english.

for alot of us this will mean an immediate stop to buying helldorado minis, too many of us were stung by rackham not so long ago, myself included (easily £2-3000 down the drain there) i dont think you need worry, i'll continue buying and playing because i don't think much will change in reality, 6 months is a long time and i reckon half that time will go by before someone snaps it up.

im staying positive and am unwilling to abandon ship when not all is said and done. i was forced out of confrontation to my loss and i dont want to jump ship on this game until its well and truly dead in the ground. something i hope never to see.

As far as I understand the news, it didn't say Hell Dorado was generating red numbers and hence Asmodée stops the edition. It's more a concentrating on their coremarkets due to the current financial situation and the upcoming CEO never thought much of tabletop in the first place.
I remain somewhat optimistic: someone pics it up where the game fits into their portfolio and properly introduces it into the english market (and hopefully german too). Maybe it is better for Hell Dorado in the long run.

I also remain optimistic and am determined to continue with buying the minis as the game is great and its market is expanding rapidly (and would be even moreso if the english edition would finally be released). FFG or even *gasp* Rackham Entertainment (although I'm extremely sceptical about this) could be possible.

Geoff has had a transparent and open policy with his game and that is one of the reasons I love the game - no silly business like Mr. Bey had with Confrontation.

Edit: and of course there's Privateer Press and Mongoose also to consider.

Don't give up onj this one just yet there are plenty of companies like mine who would be interested in continuing Hell Dorado, it all depends on what Asmodee want and how reasonable they would be about selling the license / moulds etc. We'll see what we can do. We have plenty of ideas and possibilities for Hell Dorado including campaign system and new factions etc but I expect it will all come down to financing.     

I'm intrigued.  What company is yours?  If nothing else, I think I'd like to look at what you have currently.   ;D

Hello - I run Simple miniature games the UK distributors of Hell Dorado. We have and will continue to have the whole range in stock for as long as possible. This means the ususal stockists should be able to do the same. July is a long way off in this industry so there is still every chance it will get picked up by me or someone else. I HOPE!!!!!! ;D

it would be awesome if you took this on graham, bring helldorado to the UK  ;D

The UK and the rest of the English speaking world!

I would be seriously angered if Privateer Press picked this game up.  I would fear for the worst.

How come ?

You just brought a tear to my eye with that ray of hope.  I hope you guys pick it up if you can!!  ;D  It's a much brighter day today.

On a side note, what if the English edition were to do spectacularilly well?  Would that mean German, Spanish, and Italian editions as well?  I can seriously see this game taking over the skirmish crowd in a very positive way if that were to happen.  :)  Let's hope it does!  (This is, of course, after it gets picked up by another company.)

- Alec

Graham, I really hope that you do!

whoever takes it on i just hopes they leave the creative side entirely to the creators of the game. its a wonderful thing in both dynamics, rules image and background just as it is and i'd hate to see someone take it over and insist on messing around with it too much. out of everyone mentioned i think should PP take it over they would be the ones to do that. i cant see it happening at all mind you but if someone were it would proberly be them.

helldorado IS the next big skirmish game, asmodee did a stupid thing in choosing not to support an english version (or any other language) the UK and US alone are ripe with players wanting to pick this up but choosing not to because of the lack of support from the producers. a timid business plan which has more than likely ended them up here. all it'll take is someone to pick this up throw out the english rulebook, english cards and promise genuine support and interest will sky rocket. develop a tourney scene to go along with it and make the game as successful as its great potential allows.

at the moment the market is devoid of a really good skirmish game. confrontation left a hole that hasnt been filled. their are loads out there but nothing to rival it. helldorado could do that easily. the majority of people on this forum for instance are recognisably old names from the conf boards and a good portion of old rackham players took to helldorado to fill the gap C3 left.

i'd LOVE to see this game take off in a big way, especially in the UK where i could be an active player once again.

we'll see what happens

I echo your sentiments Bork. It's a great game and needs no fiddling. Just support it and it will take off. Down here in AUS I've seen the player base grow steadily over the last few months - lord only knows what would happen with a proper rulebook.

ROCK ON! I'm not ready to stop playing!

You are just saying that because you won the game last night!

I find it promising that after browsing through this thread and with googletrans checking out the french version, most players are indeed supporting the HD team and are willing to hang on until the (hopefully not) bitter end.

As many here are former Confrontation players and the term "That other miniature games company" doesn't automatically mean GW anymore, there really isn't a good reason to give up on the game just yet - which is in direct contrast with Rackham who were a) uninformative b) unresponsive c) didn't listen to the players and made strong decisions about their products and in the end d) paid for it.

Now, the HD team has been very informative, responsive and actively involved with the player community - they have a strong vision but won't let that interfere with the thing that is in fact most important - the game itself. There's no reason why the game should die.

My problem with PP is that they definitely have their own take on how a game should play.  Quick kill and the game is over.  HD is much more elegant and requires longer term strategies to win the day.  They might have the best resources at the moment (and I'll admit that the games are fun - if you can get away from the quick kill mentality), but ultimately I haven't been a big fan of PP's style.  Not to mention that I haven't been overly impressed with their sculps for awhile....

But the bottom line is that whoever takes on this game and supports it correctly is going to have a huge hit on their hands.  And I'm in favor of that - no matter who it might be.   :)

Oh, and I'm definitely going to have to visit Simple Miniatures again.  Been awhile since I looked around.

   if I were into that kind of money I would buy it with  my eyes shut hands down ... keep the existing team  and give them free rein over their game ...

but as I have not, at least I can buy the rest of the minis I dont have  and  wait for june.  and hope  the best .... 

A big  thanks to Geof  and his team  for the fantastic game  and minis  and the best of luck  for the future ...

This news is a real shame, but speaking from an impartial.

I wont be buying into this game, I was. as Bork has said after the big Rackham fall, it has left a big distrust in the gaming market.
Saying that I do play Hordes now, and have bought into Alkemy, but haven't played the latter yet.

The thing about Conf is there are hundreds of minis available for the game, Whereas there are less than half the amount of Helldorado.
Now I don't profess to know anything about this game at all, but with very limited minis available are there not only a few army combinations you can make?
I think this will cause the game to stagnate very quickly.

Also I have just started getting in Helldorado commissions, and these will soon dry up too.

Now I do hope someone picks it up, as the Immortal box set was going to be my 2nd priority purchase at Salute this year.

:(

Actually, considering that most 'armies' that can be composed only number on average 5-10 figures per faction, not to mention the fact that many are Unique or Limited 2 or 3 besides the basic Troopers - of which you need a number of Command points in order to hire them to begin with - 200 points fills up rather quickly at that rate.  ;)  Even Officers that allow a lot of troopers to be hired (such as Don Quixote, for example), taking all troopers in my experience is more of a hinderance than a benefit, depending on your playstyle at least, and even then it's tricky to fill up the troopers slot to the full allowance - in his case 10, especially without wanting to make use of such godly characters as 30 Coins (1635) or Isaia Ben Moshe & Golem for example.

On a side note regarding the figures, each one's pose is also game important on top regarding melee contact, so multiples of the same figure are standard and fully accepted, if not a little redundant for the hardcore hobbyists.  My point is that when it boils right down to it, there's more than enough figures per faction to make several different lists to fit any particular circumstance especially with use of the Mercenaries, even though it might not look as such upon first glance.  :)  Another way to put it to the broader gaming crowd is that with games like Blood Bowl for example, you can't even have more than 16 players per team.  *shrug*

It really is too bad you won't be getting into the game, though, although I fully understand why considering the circumstances this past week.  I hope you get a chance to at least give it a try when the English rulebook becomes available because it really is a spectacular system.  The way I see it is that if in fact the worst case scenario were to come to pass (of which I'm seriously hoping it won't, but confident enough in the fanbase and other companies willingness to pick this one up that it won't happen) that there really is enough for every faction with perhaps an extra box of basic Troopers and Independants, and along with appropriate terrain (of which has massive strategic in-game importance as well from setting to setting) I honestly believe that's really all anybody needs to enjoy the game indefinitely with their local gaming groups.  That's a big reason why I'm staying on board with this one.  Furthermore, at least they're finishing off the edition as best they can instead of just pulling the plug before things have been appropriately tied off at the ends, so to speak.

- Alec

Yeah, I got that way with chess.  Only the one army list, and half of the models you can take are too slow.  Can`t see that game lasting ....

Its not what you have, its what you do with them.

quite agree, helldorado is as varied if not more so than confrontation is..or was. the level of synergy and tactics required to play this game is huge in comparrison to confrontation aswell, every mini you use is very very differant and has differant roles to play. getting the most out of your army depends hugely on picking the right stuff and then using it correctly. i found with conf it was very point and click with tactics being replaced by brute force. its the other way round with helldorado, tectics first, force 2nd.

i can understand your point of view luke but i'd wait and see before you abandon it, its a cracking game and i doubt it'll dissapear, asmodees loss is anothers gain its just a matter of wait n see right now. obviously its your choice i just would'nt write it off until more becomes known.

There's also the aspect of the community. When confrontation basically died out it really wasn't due to lack of miniatures (which I still have... well.. lots... to say the least) or so, but the general attitude of Rackham towards the game and the thriving community which alienated the players. If you offer experimental drama to an audience that paid tickets and was expecting a no-brainer action movie, the audience will be disappointed. Admittedly, R did offer the no-brainer to a more sophisticated audience, but that's aside my point.

A "dead" game doesn't kill the community. Many Specialist Games, while officially supported, are not in fact supported at all and are really alive only due to the interest of the community. Most historical games don't even have a set "mandatory manufacturer" compared to the fantasy genre and those games are quite alive (WHA, WMA, DBM etc etc etc). Even UKCORD did not die out, which is an achievement by itself when most other CORDS (NCORD, NACORD) are dead.

The community is there and that is what really makes the difference. If the community wants to keep a game alive, it will stay alive.

and don't forget the terrain rules as they add a hell of a lot of fun to the game ...  picking and chosing the best troops will take your company as far as they are suitable to the circle of hell they are fighting... and those conflict zones than can potentially  give you the game or kill  everyone  on the table ...

 confrontation was  OK ans still OK
 but Helldorado is a proper skirmish game . to be honest  even combat resolutions pursuit movements  are more realistic than in C3
 rulewise is more compact and less prone to abuse  were no a single piece  is the  herald of doom as in confrontation , abby prime, devoures archers, griffin cannons ... etc,etc
were terrain  have a huge  influence  in the game 

I never played confrontation, but Hell Dorado is a great game. Played a scenario last week we had three players with Demons, Westerners and Saracens we played the scenario where each force was hunting one of the other forces it was great fun. Do we know what's going on re the future of the game?

its being produced by asmodee until the summer...then if there is a god someone will take it on to finance it and continue. the designers want to go they just need someone to distribute it...i doubt very much someone will pass this up.

here are some info provided by Thomas David (sculptor) in respect to the last releases planned from now up until June.

... I don't think it has been posted yet and of course the translation is mine so details may be conveyed more or less adequately and accurately. That said I've done my best to stay true to the words, and not reformulate to embellish the style, as I usually do, to make sure there are no misunderstanding or assumptions wrongly introduced by myself:



* (reference to a tester's post named Liancour in the same topic as this extract)

I can't wait to see the new sculpts. I hope that an investor comes forward and picks this game up. Maybe we gamers should all put some money in to at least get the English rules done and printed. I know that if I had the money i'd buy the company.

Well, I'm pumping money into this game as of now and I'm not gonna look back in July/August if the game goes under. If anything I've a heap of models that will be fun to paint and in the end my investment wasn't bitchslapped by the game designers. I would pay money to see someone, or given the opportunity to kick Jean Bey in the nuts and slap him with a 10kg bag full of his plastic models. 

There were only two games previous that knocked me on my ass when I started playing: Conf and Infinity. After my first game of Helldorado, I sat back in my chair and thought, "This game is gonna be a joy to be involved in."

Alkemy, Warmachine, Uncharted Seas, 40k, Urban War, Rezolution, Dark Age, AE-WWII and FoW were all like cheap dates their first time out.

A. I had already invested into Alkemy and this game is much better. Models have a better table presence and the game is smoother, quicker and more realistic (gameplay wise).
B. The models are hands down better. I HATE working with plastic. Cleaning mold lines and flash is a pain in the ass with plastic, especially when its as small as Alkemy models.
C. The universe, atmosphere and interaction of the game designers is great.

Here's to a fun next few months and hopefully longer.

Well, I just decided to buy myself a box of immortals, so an investor had better show up...  ;D

Sorry if this has been talked about elsewhere, or I'm missing something, but is the whole project getting shut down? Even the French edition(s). I've never played HD with english cards and only the pdf english rules and we seem to get by quite well. All being said if we stick to it, French or not, and give it the support people have been doing anyway then somewhere down the line things might start to look up again. The Immortals prove just how good this game is getting with some of the most stunning figures I've ever layed eyes on. If I came into the money I would start a company and snatch this up in an instant, never seen such a gold mine! Maybe we should go on Dragons Den?

http://arch01.forum.helldorado.fr/index.php?topic=3730.0

Apparently yes. That's what Asmodée is doing, as they *insert sarcastic tone of voice here* seem to be focusing on their core compentences. There seem to be several potential buyers for the license, so I don't think that HD will die.

Ayiee!

Apparently, Asmodee is shutting down production prematurely!
Whilst trying to locate a Saracen starter box, I discovered these troubling signs:

"Some items have already sold out on Asmodee's end and
 we can not get anymore since they have stopped production on them
so get these minis while you can.  Enjoy!"
http://www.fantization.com/
I came across a similair notice from Maelstrom :
"availability:
no longer available.
This item is only shown for order history purposes."

http://www.maelstromgames.co.uk/index.php?act=pro&pre=ade_hld_scn_ess_101_000&sou=bas
After Frantic orders from three different web-sites to get what I may whilst it is available, I am forced to ask:

Anyone know where I can find a Saracen Starter Box...?!?

I heard from a local dealer that Asmodée has been checking for the demand of a reprint of the saracen starter box - so possibly these boxes will be available again soonish. Since the upcoming tournament at the gencon paris is the last 'big official event' if I understand the information on the french part of the forum correctly, I wouldn't be surprised if an anouncement concerning the future of the game would follow shortly. If there is already another company who has aquired the license for the game by now it would make perfect sense for me that they'd be doing the reprint etc and I think such event would be suited for that kind of announcement. Maybe such reprint would include the english 1635 cards .. (now that's wishful thinking).

Sounds good to me  :) Lets' hope you are on the money!

Hello all of you Helll Dorado men out there,
first of all I'm new to this board and this is my first post here. Since the last Sunday (April 11th) I'm a proud owner of the Immortals starter set and I'm really happy, the miniatures are fantastic, all of them! Since I know Hell Dorado, I love the miniatures, every single mini I've seen is just great (except from a few Demons which are a bit strange, but also great models^^).  I've got also plans what faction/modles I want to have in addition, and also my girlfriend's going to start to play Hell Dorado (ordered her Saracens just a few days ago), and I think that I will buy a lot more models, as long as they are available (and as long I can afford the money^^). Also I've read the English rules  and English Cards (the PDF's) and the only thing I thought was 'they are one of the best rules I know , especially in connection with the great models'. So I'm looking happy to the future to my first game of Hell Dorado.
The only thing I hope and wish for the future of this great game is, that there will come a buyer who will bring up the English rulebokk and all this stuff, so they will conquer the English-speaking world, and maybe hell, too...^^ But also here in Germany I know a lot of people who'd like to start playing and buyng the game, if there were English rules, so let's pray to God for the future of this fantastic game.
Hell Dorado, Geoff an his team: you've got my support, even if I just started collecting the miniatures and I'm new to the game and not very deeply involved in it yet.

greets
Christian

P.S.: Hope you forgive my English if it's too bad, as I said, I'm only German^^-

Well said and welcome!  ;D

I'm off to my LGS Today (hopefully) to grab the Immortals - just need to skyve off work for an hour  ;)

Googletranslate from the french area:

Thomas David:
I believe there will be good news presented formally, as has always been the case.

CCCP
Yes there will still be news and the official site should continue longer than expected.
HD is in a transitional phase and when everything is settled, Asmodée will make an announcement on the official website. 

--

Okay... although much probably is lost in translation, but a) "transitional phase" doesn't sound too good (I may be put of by "that other french miniature games company") and b) "Asmodée will make an announcement" -part. Wasn't the game looking for potential buyers? What has Asm to do with the game anymore except sell it to the highest bidder and try to get rid of the remaining boxes they have in stock...

The people demand rumors!
 

DON'T TEASE!

I think it was mentioned on 'Le Salon de Jeu' that within a ~2 weeks we can expect an official announcment and it sounded as if chances are very good that HD will continue. A transition phase sounds to me well and might indicate that a buyer has been found by now actually - shutting down the website, making a sale would be pretty much unprofessinal and if anything I think the guys from HD did a very good job at informing the community. I wasn't in to tabletop gaming at the time the 'other french company' started struggeling, however from what I've been told they never informed anyone and they promised releases that would never make it and all of a sudden something else was released that noone expected. I'm sure the staff of HD would love to give us some more details however that wouldn't be professional either and everyone would start blaming them if it doesn't turn out that way. Trying to interpret any word of them is a bit risky too.
On a sidenote, I think it was mentioned at the con as well that the potential buyers are a spanish company, a british and an american one - this would make a release of an english rule book and stat cards in printed form more than likely. My only worry is that the company would try to interfere with the initial vision of the current HD Team. Anyhow, let's wait for the official announcment and play a few games meanwhile.

Ity sounds better than "that's it, we're all done here". :)

Thanks for the update!

So? Let's make some guesses!

Spanish: Corvus Belli
British: Simple Miniatures (as mentioned on page 2 of this thread)
American: FFG

Please not FFG. They'll convert everything to fit the "Song of Ice and Fire" setting, announce a product release schedule, and then immediately stop production on everything. Yay for us.  :P

Corvus Belli would definitely be cool, and (of course) SMG would be even better.

Oh, I don't know.  I think FFG was doing fine with Rackham stuff, but they didn't really have a good company to work with.  They've definitely been willing to take chances with their product offering, so I could see this working pretty well.  That being said, however, I'd suspect Iron Wind to be a more likely candidate (and I'd really prefer Reaper).

I'd rather see Reaper and IW stay far away from Hell Dorado personally. I haven't seen anything in their catalogues that would lead me to believe them capable of producing some of the more complex Hell Dorado miniatures.

But that's my opinion.

Well, that depends on the sculptors, doesn't it. It doesn't matter who ends up wqith the line; if they get different sculptors in, the miniatures will look different. Personally, I think Werner Klocke or Ben Siens are of a similar quality, albiet with a different style.

Werner Klocke with his female sculpts that have bubble-like heads?

I'm not a big fan of his stuff. Freebooter minis make me wince...

I'm referring more to casting processes and quality.  My friend does casting for a living (I used to do it for a bit) and everytime he sees a HD model, he often comments on how complex the mold must be. 3 or 4 parts, and venting, and pressure, etc.  And how clean the figs are coming out of said molds.

I've never had a Reaper fig I didn't have to scrape or trim, and the majority are from 2-part molds.  Similar experience with Iron Wind.

Now I'm not trying to slag on either company.

And I would hope to God they would keep the same sculptors.  That would be jarring having new guys do all the sculpts.

Heresy! I am lobbying in the righ tplaces to have a new circle added in hell for people who don't like those minis  :D

Werne's stuff is ok, but not nearly the calibre of folks like Rios and company.

i think its paramount to keep the current sculptors at all costs. if the style of the miniatures changes even slightly it will put alot of people off, myself included.

whoever takes HD over needs to literally pick up and carry on as is, dont interfere, dont change crap around just back it financially and stay away from the creative side. make sure they distribute well, get their translations sorted ASAP (because the money is in the english market here) rebuild interest in tournies and try to keep their remaining fans happy. leaving it all too long will be rackham all over again, people will get tired of waiting and drift off elsewhere.

whoever can do all that will get my vote it doesnt really matter to me who they are as long as they deliver.

I definitely agree that they should try to keep the same artists and sculptors, but the actual casting is something that I feel IW or Reaper could adapt to.  Their models are geared to a different type of gamer for the most part, so the complexity doesn't need to be as high.  Does that mean they are incapable of producing them?  I don't think so.

As for Werner...I like some of his Freebooter stuff, but I'm typically very impressed with the work he does for Reaper.  But for some reason I like Bob Ridolfi's stuff better - and I do think he could do some interesting things with HD (but hope he never has to).

Nearly a week since my previous post and still no news. Come on! My painting inspiration is depending on this! If we could get some semi-reliable new information on the issue, I will finish my immortals within 10 days and post pictures!  ;D

Who me impatient?

Hmm.. been checking regularly for an update too...

Love the game, but really need to know what lies in its future...

Dennis

In the absence of any news its probably fair to say that something is going on behind the scenes. As to what... Who knows...

But of course (http://www.bibliotecapleyades.net/sociopolitica/esp_sociopol_illuminati_30.htm) we all know (http://d.imagehost.org/0406/IlluminatiPyramid_001.jpg) who are really (http://rubenerd.com/uploads/300px-Not_Illuminati.jpg) behind the scenes (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/David_Icke).

Come on, the forums are dying... just give us a "patience dear fans, we are working towards a solution" kind of an answer to keep us wanting for more.

Yes, please provide some calming feedback or some closure to work with. If the former, then also tell us the Mercenaries/Westerners are getting Illuminati troops.

 ;D

In regards to some info on whats happening this was posted amongst some 1635 rules and cards information today on the front page of the main site, information relevant to this post includes the original text and as translated through google :

Regarding the official site, it resumed normal operations at least until June 30 Nous publierons divers articles et news jusqu'à cette date. We will publish various articles and news until then. Je vous rappelle que nous commencerons à dévoiler les 4 derniers officiers à partir de la première semaine de juin et que ces derniers seront disponibles à la vente le 26 juin. I remind you that we will begin to reveal the last 4 officers from the first week of June and that they will be available for sale June 26

Asmodee négocie toujours la reprise de la gamme Hell Dorado et bien que ces négociations avancent dans le bon sens, nous ne sommes pas encore en mesure de vous annoncer une quelconque bonne nouvelle. ASMODEE still negotiating the resumption of Hell Dorado range while these negotiations are progressing in the right direction, we are not yet able to announce some good news. Encore un peu de patience ! A little patience.

So it would seem all is not yet lost as it says at the end of the 2nd paragraph, which is certainly a good sign  :)

Well, they would have to be really from the Lost, as the Illuminati are really reptilian shape shifters. David Icke can't be wrong on this.

Googletranslate is your friend:


Best rumors are the badly translated ones. ;)

Huh? I don't understand what this is supposed to mean. Can anyone translate?  :D

To sum up:
Geof said he would give us some nuze in 3 weeks (which have now past), still no official report but some clues: "Paella, bullfights and sun"
These seem to be positive and push Desrues to wunder if the new buyer would be Corvus Belli or Tales of War.
M120 answers its time for "la feria", its the season when buisnes commes back (?)
Now to bee clear, i have no idea why they arived to such conclusions, but the late rumors have been positive, we are just waiting for an official statment.

Hoping, hoping. If this happens, I can finally get some Sarassins.

*mutter mutter*

Still nothing and even the french area seems to be rather quiet about the issue. Do I need to start foraging the published french and english PDF:s for later use in case the main site and the forums shut down in the near future?

Rough (and loose) translation (Googletranslate is my friend):

Due to health problems of a close relative of the main actor in the negotiations, the negotiations are on hold at the moment. They will resume next week and hopefully will soon finish.

I really like this translation ;P

I await news with anticipation....

Oi! I wrote it hastily between my clients. I don't speak/write french and english isn't even my native language (although I consider myself to be fluent). The point got across though and french sometimes seems to have rather curious expressions from an english point of view. Put the original text into google translate and see what it produces. That's what I had to work with.

(no, I'm not really ticked off by your post - I just felt that the way I translate french into english might need some clarifying before others start to complain about my curious choice of wording)

Every language sometimes has rather curious expressions from another language point of view ;). You don't even need to look into another language to find expressions that make no sense, just visit a region you're not from in your own country.

The natives are restless (http://translate.google.com/translate?prev=hp&hl=fi&js=n&u=http%3A%2F%2Farch01.forum.helldorado.fr%2Findex.php%3Ftopic%3D4104.15&sl=auto&tl=en&history_state0=)

Still twiddling my thumbs... any news?

Not on the french area. They seem to be nitpicking on the rules and the argument is the general "Hell Dorado's rules need revising bad" vs. "No they don't". Not really that interesting - you can read the googletranslated version via the link above.

well the main things of the argue is that for some players, Hell Dorado is too complicated in the way it presents the rules, and should be simplified, and for the others, that is its complexity in terms of interaction that gives it a soul as a game.

For the rumors, we heard sometimes things about spanish, and here about an american. the rumors with the Us said too that if they took the game, tehy don't keep the scluptor of the minis.

And that's all what we have currently.

Cheers,

Have to just sit back and wait untill this whole affair is settled. Hopefully everything still remains the same after everything is said and done.

Quite happy with the english rulebook translation... Not sure if any drastic changes need to be made... It isn't too complex, when compared to other skirmish games on the market...

Regards,

Dennis

HD is complex but still easy to learn and play. dumbing it down would ruin it with it me. i like a bit of depth and tactical play in my games not just rolling dice and moving stuff about like some games are.

yeah I agrre with you, but I think that it is more because of some evil players that try to win using all the little points, and so there is a lot of explanations in the rules part of this forum and each new explanation leads to new evil using of the little parts that are not covered and so on. So for some rules there is now a lot of exceptions (like with the contacts without reciprocity (i'm not sure you call that the same) that lead to a lot of struggles, while some normal players like me don't need so much exceptions cause with common sense, it's quite easy to solve a lot of problems, but oh well...
I think that when you try to exploit all the flaw, you complain cause the game souds to complicated.

I get what you mean.  I tend to ignore the whole reciprocal contact bit.  That bit could do with a trim.

That's sadly how popular games tend to evolve though, presumably to appeal to a "broader" audience. The kind of audience that though C3 was way too math intensive (as I read on their board), or who has a hard time putting lists together if AP costs get more than 3 digits in Warmachine, for example.

but look where it got rackham when they decided to appeal to the "wider audience" and scrap C3 for age of crapenrok. possibly the worst case scenario of dumbing a game down in wargaming history and a lesson for all companies thinking of changing things themselves. of course a differance between dumbing down and streamlining for the betterment of the game exists it's just a very fine line and entirely dependant on taste...the ONLY thing id proberly like to see simplified is the shooting rules because i can never remember it lol but everything else is just right personnally. loosing the detail robs the game of depth and in a skirmish game with such a strong narrative storyline and background it would make it a redundant hour or two of rolling dice.

i HOPE and pray we don't see HD turn into age of the ragnarok should any rules changes happen. no use worrying about it as we know nothing at this stage mind.

It seems to me that Geof Picard has a very clear vision on the game and if he should continue it I doubt it would be watered down  just 'another tabletop game' (rule clarifications and if needed some simplifications are a different matter ...  and there is that great 'the tap' rule ;)). I think I read somewhere that Geof Picard enjoyed most the game systems of infinity and warmachine and I think HD features some strong characteristics of both games, adds its own flavor to it and avoids some problems of these games (and likely adds its own problems). As long as it keeps its main characteristics (synergies, alternative acivation, expandable resource (cmd points), heavy influence of terrain and scenario, 6 forces that feature quite different play styles, fairly predictable outcome of the dice results, fantastic miniatures, storyline, skirmish) I'm very happy with the game.
I hope that part of the reason why HD negotiations take so long is due to the fact that Geof and his team want to ensure that they can follow their vision of the game mostly.

i hope so too. i can imagine they would rather not let the game be produced if the new "owners" wanted to meddle too much.

Oh I totally agree, I would hate the game to be simplified. I was merely observing that games seem to evolve that way when the dudes in charge of selling realize (or decide, I don't have figures) there are much more people who don't want wargames to require much thinking. In the case of confrontation and warmachine, I think "dumbing down" is an incredibly appropriate term. But like you said, that's very much a matter of taste.

yep its the sad reality of war games, i know "simpler" games have their attraction i just don't have interest in something i can't think about during the game.

If the rules are done, tried, tested and loved I don't see why anyone would change them. Aside from all the extra work it would be they'd risk pissing off the already numerous fanbase. I did hold my head in my hands and sway a lot after *that other company* killed their best game, I don't think I could handle it twice in one lifetime. Although at least I haven't spent £500 + on Hell Dorado!

So... no more news on the future of the game in the french area? The tops guys don't give any info??

No we don't have any news since a lot of time (we even don't have news about the delay of the new officiers, that didn't come the 26th as they were supposed to do).

The last stuff in the topic were a discussion about poor language of our youth

and the latest official updates we had were from Thomas David the 17th of june to say "you will have some news quite soon, juste be patient. We are on the last straight line"
If the last straight line has not the same meaning in english, it's an expression that is used at the beginning in race for the last straight line of the race, and so that means that we are in the last step of the process

I really hope so. I like the game, love the minis, but they better hurry if they don't want to lose lots of potential players.

Well I think that the game is quite already good as it is. I mean if they stop now, I will be sad, but i think that we can play anyway. So I prefer the game stopping now than some bad new editions or stuff like that if you see what I mean.

But I'm in a wait for news cause if the game can continue the way it is, it would be marvelous

This impass of zero information is driving me crazy....

Well I think that it's because they have nothing new to give to us (I mean if it's to say again we are discussing, that doesn't have a lot of interest). So the only thing to say is wait and see (or wait and hope)

all right Asmodee enoughs enoughs eh i'll buy your bloody game and sort out this mess. how much?

And I'll make a donation if you do! However little.

But then the game will be "Borken".   ;D

 ;D

Now all we need is the obligatory drumfill.

No really team HD. Even a small message that there still are no news and things may or may not be processing along may be helpful, if uninformative. At least it would show that you still follow the forums.

Well it seems that some parts of the crew of the forum (like CCCp who is the administrator) are on hollidays, so nothing from them, and I saw in some topics  that right now, no news go out the room of negociations, even for the former Hell team, and as there was no news, well they said nothing.

and furthermore, in a certain way, no news good news (or at least not a bad)

Unfortunately no. No news is no sign that the game will make it, no indication that the HD team gives a crap about their gamers, nothing suggesting they realize how inefficient, dumb, and eventually deadly this silence has been for the other French company they end up mimicking the behavior of. And, to tell the truth, it's also embarrassing.

Maybe, but it isn't too a "Nobody takes the game after Asmodée"

The fact of the matter remains that people are leaving. No matter how good or bad a news no news is in the grand scheme of things, not giving any piece of information on how things are progressing (or not progressing, at this point) has proven to not be the very best strategy to keep customers around.

I agree, I would prefer empty promises and talk of wondrous things to come, than silence. Information is key in this phase, I have 95% of the Helldorado Catalogue so this does not affect me much, but all newcomers, when they see what's going on, will go back the other way...

I heard that an American company is still interested from the guys at my LGS.
I've been buying what I want though - just in case  ;D

i agree any news even if its just waffle would make people feel better. as mathieu said people are leaving the game and the longer it lasts the worse it will get until it gets to a point where only a few die hards will remain and when and IF HD comes back it will have to battle it's way back after undoing all its good work getting it's current following. i can understand they don't want to say anything until its concrete but they could at least tell us if things are progressing rather than just nothing.
 

More loose bits of rumor from the dark french side


Interpretation: the negotiations with the US buyer seem to be proceeding well, but before the deal is closed, we cannot be given any further information, but the signs seem to be more good than bad.

heres hoping...the silence is flustrating though.

Well, the longer this takes, the harder its gonna be for them to jump back into the market with a couple new fantasy-esque skirmish games launching.

I don't think there is any chance of firing this game up around my area any more. Unfortunate that gamers tend to be very impatient.

Oh well.

i'm starting to feel like that too. if and when HD returns im pretty sure it's dead in my area already.  :-\

Well surely if people have been playing it they'll have models already. All it might take is a nice new shney english rulebook!

Not really playing much at the moment, but as soon as a nice shiny rulebook and some even shiner new models come out I`ll be there. 

As will most of you, I suspect.   ;D

I wouldn't worry too much - those who have some miniatures and might neglect the game a bit currently will at least have a close look at the game once there is a new publisher with the more than likely english rule book and some new miniatures. Than there are those who'll love the miniatures for the sake of painting, if you like the style for my part HD miniatures are pretty much the highest quality you can get your hands on - they don't care much about how 'alive the game is'. And finally there are those who have only heard of the game and it's a skirmish game ... it's not like you have to invest that much of money. Most people who like skirmish games enjoy trying out new ones.

I hope that we'll know more within 2 month the latest.

THe thing is the guys at your LGS most likely got the "info" from here, they only relay the same completely unconfirmed rumor we've had for months.

I'm not quite sure we can assume anything about anything based on unreferenced hearsay and wishful thinking. For all we know Feu06 could have "indirectly learned" the info it at his LGS as well (unfathomable source of indirectly learned but inaccurate information), and lolo really is only wishing that no news is good news.

I don't have any info, only a strong feeling that indeed they've been demanded to remain silent (why else would they be so quiet?). I don't get what good whoever demanded that thinks it's going to bring. Perhaps they're just giving a try to Rackham's way of conducting business ;)

Oh, sweet jesus, I hope its not Rackham.

Nah, its probably GW :P

Things are quiet around here but we can't get new players involved or buy new shiny things until solid news is released and retailer restocks get put out... Its in limbo but a great way to relight the blue touchpaper would be to announce a deal with a new publisher/owner and to set a release date for the English rulebook. Once that happens it'll take on a life of its own again!

Then again, perhaps they have been ordered to remain silent so as to ensure the sales of the products still in stock. Who knows. I really can't say that gamers have been that impatient. Perhaps there have been flamewars on the french side, but considering it has been 5 months since the initial information on the cease of production and most players still seem to be interested and some new players are still recruited as stocks last, I wouldn't call the gamers impatient as such.

Heck, if the game would lack official support, the best thing for Asmodée to do would be release the books and current translations for public release (as the rulebook has been out of print for a while AFAIK) and create a limited open license for the future development of the product. They could even keep the copyrights to themselves. The community is there and it is still fanatical to the bone and unless there is an unbelievable slap to the face (like Rackham did with C:AoR) of the community, there are still good chances that the game will survive and thrive. Heck, probably the last stocks of the miniatures would sell quickly enough.

If it is indeed an American company maybe they're waiting until Gencon to give an announcment. I was kind of hoping CB would pick it up, I love Infinity and would trust them to not balls it up. As long as whomever buys it doesn't change it (well, I can forgive some degree of censoring) I'm happy.

Well, GC would be acceptable, but if there isn't any real information within a week of the event, I'm REALLY going to be pissed. Right now, a small(ish) 7-8 player tournament that I'm arranging the 2nd of August is keeping me busy.

W00t! (http://translate.google.com/translate?prev=hp&hl=fi&js=y&u=http%3A%2F%2Farch01.forum.helldorado.fr%2Findex.php%3Ftopic%3D4272.0&sl=fr&tl=en&history_state0=)

Hot damn!

What interests me now is the question of the mysterious american who has followed the project since the beginning. It has got to be somebody that WAS active in the english forums (well, a long shot anyway) but has since then ceased writing for the duration of the negotiations.

On with the conspiracy theories! Since really, how else do we spend our time now bickering about as our worst fears are mostly alleviated?

English rulebook and cards a priority ;D It may be going to the wrong side of the Atlantic but I'll take that! ;D

*Tips hat to mysterious American entrepreneur*

Can't wait!

I posted a separate topic (http://arch01.forum.helldorado.fr/index.php?topic=4274.0), with a translation which, I hope, is a little less exotic than google's ;)

Well, seems like there is going to be some sticky issues and logistic challenges to overcome. So, all artistic work is to be done in France and then production to be done in the US.

Seems like this is a private buyer (or group) and not a company so that is positive news to me as I would gather that the buyer has an appreciation for the artistic quality of the game and not looking to make money hand over fist by changing things around ala Rackham.

To who ever bought Helldorado, I stand ready to assist in promoting the game in the area.
Terrain, demos, tournies, etc..

Well, the buyer is still in for it to make profits from his purchase.

One of Rackham's mistakes was assuming that people really wanted to play Rag'narok instead of C3, but found the game too complex to be worth the trouble, thus they scrapped the skirmish game that the players loved more than any other game and replaced it with a half-arsed version of the AT-43 ruleset.

Another big one was switching to PPP in C:AoR - perhaps with unpainted plastics at least some of the die-hard fans would have remained, but people really weren't really willing to spend extra money for left-hand paintjobs on low-detail vinyl miniatures, when they were used to pay good money for unpainted high-detail metal miniatures - especially as most of the players were of the old skool sort that felt that their playing pieces should at least weigh something.

But the absolutely WORST mistake was ignoring the fanatic fanbase they already had who were actively recruiting more players to the game they loved that yelled at them not to do the things they were planning, especially as most of the time they were far from informative on their plans.

...

But this is about HD and as the buyer is claimed to have been following the game since the beginning, I would suppose the buyer isn't that stupid and realises that as the market is still marginal, expansion at this stage - especially into a new continent relies heavily on the "foaming at the mouth" fanatics that are willing to do volunteer work demoing and promoting the game - perhaps for a marginal fee of lunch and a few miniatures. And as long as the fanatics are kept happy, the rest of the players will follow suit and well, I would suppose that the best way of keeping the fanatics happy would be by NOT repeating the mistakes Rackham made.

I for one would want to keep the game as a skirmish game with good and swift (as long as you remember the various special rules) mechanics, excellent METAL miniatures (although I wouldn't mind resin) and a background with conflicting ethical issues. HD isn't a game where you blast the foul enemies of the human race apart with massive overpowering weapons whilst whistling "La Marseillaise" - it is a game about conquering someplace where you really shouldn't want to belong, plundering things that really shouldn't belong to you and as a result, immersing yourself thus in vices that would eventually lead your soul back to hell. It is a tale of mortal souls finding damnation and the damned ones finding salvation... not a game that should make you really feel that happy about yourself... or at least that's how I view the game.

This makes me very happy.

Thank you mysterious stranger!

finally the good stuff. can't wait to see how things go.

So Asmodee keeps the license, Americans will produce the goods, the Frenchman will continue with the art direction and design. Yup, seems like some serious coordination is necessary.

This is teh age of teh internets. I don't think that coordination as such will be a problem, but from what I've gathered, the language barrier might be.

I am also very happy that there is some good news at last. I played a game the other night after a long lull. And I had a great time. Succubus rocks! She's always the Woman of the match. It's a great game and I hope it continues for many years.

Showing my age a bit here....

HAPPY HAPPY JOY JOY!!!!!   ;D

STIIIIIIIMPY YOU EEEEDIOT!!

A-HA! The plot thickens. It seems that the "mysterious american" is a metal smelter, so he will be producing the miniatures himself.

Oh Great Saviour, we implore you, make yourself known so that we may throw gifts of gratitude at your feet and tell you how great you are and stuff.

Yes, Oh Great Savior, we may even be persuaded to purchase the end products.

This is great news to hear. I'm hoping that unlike Rackham's many mistakes, the new buyer will not be turning away, but rather he will be taking in with open arms other representative groups who are willing to push forward this great game, much like the UKCORD has been trying to do in the UK.

Please let it be! I am really looking forward to copious amounts more from this system.

Oh god, I hope this isn't related...

http://privateerpress.com/company/see-the-next-big-thing-for-warmachine-at-gencon

Dennis

I don't think it is. The buyer manufactures miniatures, but the hints have more pointed to a single person instead of a known miniature company.

This is most unlikely it would have anything to do with PP and besides PP announced something for the product 'warmachine' and HD just doesn't fit at all in there (and knowing the casts of PP miniatures I'd be worried ...). I think "AsmoNico" mentioned that a product such as HD can be profitable for a small scale company - something such as Dark Sword Miniatures would seem much more likely to me (high quality casts and sculpts, rather realistic sculpts, some miniatures more for an 'adult' audiance). But well.. guessing won't help much - hopefully we'll know soon more.

The "next big thing" is likely to be the Retribution - IIRC, the minis and the book will go on sale then.

Also, why on earth would PP buy Hell Dorado? What possible reason would there be for them to have two competing product lines?

barring that it's just not their style either. no i'd bet my life PP have nothing to do with this.

Yeah I am pretty sure is not related. 

But it does send shivers down your spine doesn't it.  ;D ... the timing, the secrecy, the american...

Dennis

Note that they have been talking about an american, it could thus also be a canadian (french connection!) or something south from the mexican border.  ;D

Yes, HD has been sold to Cuba!

And it's just been confirmed, the 1635 version of the cards should be coming shortly.
OK, it's Asmodee shortly which can take a little while, but it's good new anyway  :D

It's been confirmed that they should come shortly after (after the latest French version? I'm only guessing as this detail isn't specified). That could make a bit of a difference.

I kinda hope to see or hear about good news at gencon.

We should get the pdfs shortly. They are on the site in French, and they should be provided in English soon. Then for the actual print of the cards, I guess whoever is taking over should do them at the same time as the book, it would make sense as a combined offer.

i think it's vital to get the english cards out ASAP. english rules and english cards arriving at the same time could kick start this game back to life overnight.

i eagerly await both myself.

Well, hopefully the aforementioned Mysterious American Savior Person Thingy follows the english area of these forums. Of course the US market differs somewhat from the UK and European markets, but the people here do have previous experience of following the antics of "that other french miniatures company" and thus can haphazard a good guess on what could work and what most probably will not - and best of all, free of charge!

The rumours were flying around at GenCon, and I was assured it's in good hands, so it sounds like things are progressing.  I heard rumours about who it could be, and I am happy with it if it turns out to be true.  I'd rather not say who it is as I heard it second and third hand so I don't want to perpetuate any rumours.

C'mon you can tell me I wont tell anybody.  ;D

Yes, share it with us, with a PM, if you're too concerned about publicly saying something that may eventually turn out to be completely inaccurate.

Heck, it can't be worse than the cuban outsourcing idea that I suggested. :P

Yes, I'm dying to hear even a rumor at this point - even if it isn't accurate.  ;D

TELL ME YOUR LIES!! YOUR SWEET COMFORTING LIES.

Fresh from the press, image of the new (central) american facities for creation of new HD miniatures! (http://farm1.static.flickr.com/117/280287699_330bdd323b.jpg?v=0)

Hey, at least I had to keep the thread going... the anticipation is killing me slowly but surely and if there's no hell to end up in, what would my poor soul do?

Just heard the news that HD may not be dead (sounds a bit Lovecraftian doesnt it!). Oh I hope its true, I really thought HD could be something special.

Don't know what the rumors were, but the buyer ends up being Cipher studio (http://cipher-studios.com/2009/09/cipherstudiosacquireshelldorado/) (which I thought was a SPanish manufacturer - you learn every day...). I wonder if that means HD models will be distributed by FFG.

That was indeed who the rumour indicated.  Happy days!!

Great news. My only concern now is the new competition for fantasy skirmish dollars.
I'll at least be making space for the tourney next GenCon.

Oh yes! I've never played Anima Tactics but I've heard it's good. Seems like a good company to take the reigns. By "early next year" I hope they don't mean June......

Wow this has really cheered me up! (back to work today :( )

This is good news indeed!  Cipher has made some pretty good sculpts on their own, so I feel confident that they can produce the HD minis in the quality we've grown accustomed to.  Really looking forward to resuming my conquests of Hell....

I must admit, Cipher's rather ... minimalist ... website doesn't inspire me with confidence. I can't even tell from that site whether they [i[created[/i] Anima Tactics, or if they just liscence the miniatures game, or even are only the US distributor.

We are the developer, publisher, and manufacturer of Anima Tactics.

Anima: Tactics was created by the collaboration of Cipher Studios, Edge Entertainment, and Anima Project Studios.  The impetus for the miniature game was Cipher Studios and after acquiring the license to develop the game, Anima Project Studios was so excited that they submitted a game design within two weeks...before we had decided on a designer.  It was a great design so we have been working with them on a strong collaborative basis where our licensor is also our primary game design and storyline developer..a very novel relationship but it works really well for us.  Our site was thrown up very recently, primarily to have an avenue to announce new projects so it is still quite bare.  We never felt it necessary with Anima since our various partners maintain their own sites in their territories (We produce Anima in 5 languages). 

The relationship with our Anima partners is very similar to the relationship we will have with the Hell Dorado team.  We'll be taking over the Miniature game from development to production but will be working closely with the original design team to continue the development of the storyline.  We'll also continue working with the sculptors of Hell Dorado to maintain the continuity of the line. 

Oh, these are such good newes...
And I have to admit that your plans sound also quite well and I'm looking forward to the English rulebook (even when I'm from Germany, a Gemran version isn't primarily the most important thing to me, an ENglish version would be enoug, it reaches more people and Idon't have any problems with the English language).
I'm also looking forward to a lot of great miniatures that I hope you are going to produce... ;-)

greetings
a happy Christian

Thank you Cipher Kai for guaranteeing the continuity of a game we love. Let us know if we can be of assistance.

I can finally buy my 4th army without concerns ;)

Fantastic news I'd say. Can't wait to see english version.

Thanks for the quick response. :) Is FFG your primary English-language partner, then? Like I said, I've never been able to find much infor on the game in English, other than photos of the miniatures and the brief blurb in the starter set rules booklet.

whilst not being my cup of tea personnally vicually, the game is a quality product and good game in itself from what i hear. glad to find it's in good hands and seriously can't stress enough GET STUFF RELEASED ASAP.

i'm dusting off my hell minis that have been lanquishing in limbo(my mini case) for too long. can't wait to play this game and without having to remember what everything means in french.

This will be a day long remembered

Roll on the English edition, get the Lost released with English cards so I can grab a second faction 8)

I've got a few of the special art cards from tournaments. I wonder if there'd be a way to replace them with English ones, or would I have to go to more tournaments?