GMG Reviews - A War Transformed by Osprey Games

It's WWII Folk-Horror from Osprey Games! Time to check out A War Transformed from Osprey, a company level wargame with ritual magic, sudden apparitions and vehicle support. Let's dive in.
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[@ExtradaemonYT]

Didn't realise the rulebook was so gorgeous, Osprey really need to include more previews / do more marketing for their new wargames.

[@elGordo1888]

I agree, although they did do some short stories (on their site) based on it in the run up to publication which i think worked really well to set the scene. I only stumbled across this in advance as I'm interested in WW1 stuff anyway.

[@OspreygamesUk]

Hey! Where would you like to see more previews? 🙂

[@ExtradaemonYT]

@@OspreygamesUk Honestly I think reaching out to more youtubers for a bit of pre-release fluff / gameplay previews would go a long way. When this game was announced I was quite interested in preordering but opted not to as I tried to find examples of gameplay / previews from the book but couldn't find much. Even just setting up a little diorama for your website featuring some minis in mock battle representing the intended scope / experience of the game would go a long way.

[@OspreygamesUk]

Thanks for letting us know, always appreciate the feedback!

[@ExtradaemonYT]

@@OspreygamesUk No worries! Love you guys have a great weekend.

[@liberalhyena9760]

There is no Perry WWI range but the Wargames Atlantic sets allow for forces of the requisite size for British (entire war) and late war Germans and French, with Russians on the way. In the 3D printing arena, Knucklebones Miniatures have some figures that would fit quite well, though the weirdness is ramped up quite a lot so they are possibly better suited to FP: The Last War.

[@nicolassinon7789]

Great War miniatures have a great range

[@brodi4894]

Not to mention all the WW1 stuff Wargames Atlantic has a lot of 3d files for WW1 stuff AND some of the minis you might need to represent werewolves, kobolds, and all that other stuff.

[@wokehammer40k]

Thanks for covering this game! I had no idea it was a large scale game, totally thought it was skirmish and passed it by cus I thought it overlapped with last war which I already have and love. Need to give this a second look!

[@S0nyb1ack]

It actually calls itself a skirmish game in the book... It kind of falls in between I think. It really feels to big for a skirmish game, but this is no 40k in terms of scale. I just recently finished painting and basing my 38ish little Germans (The German WW1 box from wargames atlantics is amazing for the germans thanks to an unique unit they have available, which is 4 soldiers instead of the more common 8, making 30 soldiers be perfect for 3 units of 8; 1 unit of 4 and 1 captain and 1 lieutenant or witch or similar, perfectly using all 30 bodies; then I got a few more metal minis from Northstar) and 2 treeman (not 100% sure if I want to play German Empire or Freikorps, which is a splinter faction of the German empire) XD

[@kurt-the-viking]

thanks for covering this one. it looks like a lot of fun...especially the thematic bits about using tarot cards, etc. i'd love to see a batrep but totally understand why that might be difficult to pull off given the model count, size, and complexity. in any case, appreciate the review!

[@cargo_vroom9729]

The idea of adding anything to WW1 to make it into a horror game is amusing if you think about WW1.

[@elGordo1888]

This really is a lovely book and I think the setting is great - the atmosphere really does come across well. However, I thought it was skirmish so was a bit put off when I realised the number of figures needed. Now though, I'm thinking of maybe doing it in 10mm/15mm. Should be a lot quicker to get it to the table. Also maybe keeping the manifestations, etc, as 28mm scale, which could give them a real presence on the table. Looking forward to giving it a try.

[@Hundmathr]

I picked the book up last month and I'm finding the setting and theme super evocative. I love the folk horror/ gritty historical fantasy aspects of this game.

[@Kevin.Mitchell]

Ooh, interesting! It's a bigger scale (unit wise) than I'd realised, which makes getting into it a bit harder to field the regular troops without using proxies from the get go. However, Wargames Atlantic do WW1 plastic box sets for British, French and German infantry so it shouldn't be too difficult to start building up an army. This may well get onto my Christmas wish list!

[@philippelegault3928]

Was also going to comment about Wargames Atlantic minis. 30 per box so not too many boxes required :)

[@S0nyb1ack]

Their Germans are insanely good for this game - the standard infantry section is 8 soldiers, but German empire also has a unique elite unit that only has 4 soldiers (armed with the pretty rare (during that time period) machine pistols, which there are 5 of in the wargames atlantics box). So you can easily make 3 infantry sections (24 soldiers all together), 1 unit of those specialists (4 more soldiers used), 1 captain and you still have 1 soldier to be your witch or maybe an infantry lieutenant. I then also got a few more metal minis from Northstar military figures - there is a nice pack for the German Empire containing 2 soldiers operating a flamethrower, 2 manning a small mortar and 1 guy with an anti tank rifle (the pack costs 8 pounds), which all 3 are unique units available to the German Empire in the book

[@cunningwarrior1827]

For miniatures, you could always go to your local Ollies Bargain Outlet and buy a few boxes of Rivet Wars.

[@donmak1614]

It looks like Osprey blended the best games from their stable together and covered them in Great War sauce. I wonder how does it look and feel in practice.

[@andrewmacdonald1749]

Awesome review, but think camera may have been zoomed in too much. Often couldn't see the section of the page being talked about and pointed at.

[@TheAlwaysPrepared]

21:53 "Haxenjäger" means hunter of roasted pig shanks! 🤣

[@SpannSr1970]

Ready for a let’s play so I can wrap my head around it! Good review Ash!

[@worlds-in-conflict]

If you squint hard enough at some of my Weird WW 2 stuff the basic infantry could pass for late WW 1 Brits . ..

[@Vorpal_Wit]

I'm really diggin' the time-period/setting. Maybe even enough to sculpt some minis for it.

[@commodusleitdorf2726]

Wargames Atlantic Ash! All their minis are great but if you need WW1 minis in plastic they are the go to!

[@hjorhrafn]

This setting has really caught my imagination. I'm 2/3 of the way through reading my copy of the book, and I'm getting ready to start assembling a force later this week.

[@snackelwolf4462]

We're excited to play this, making our lists soon. Got to admit it is a bit crunchy in rules, but the theme is so appealing and cool we're in.

[@Slurgical_3D_Terrain_Channel]

Very interesting, love the mix with magic and monsters with this setting. Pretty cool.

[@thomaswilliams5005]

It’s a good ruleset. But yes it requires a ton of models. I’ve been working on my Germans and french

[@1000buffalo]

Picked this one up based on the review and very pleased. A bit confused on where the company level description is coming from through. The game bills itself as a platoon level skirmish game.

[@GuerrillaMiniatureGames]

Captains lead Companies. This game has Captains as unit leaders. From the USDoD website - “A company has anywhere from a few dozen to 200 soldiers. It's a tactical-sized unit that can perform a battlefield function on its own. A company consists of three or four platoons and is generally commanded by a captain.”

[@1000buffalo]

Cool. I figured it was something similar that I hadn't picked up one. Thanks! @@GuerrillaMiniatureGames

[@AlexisGraf]

The Sword, Madvillian, RTJ, and Clutch on your walls? Wait…Am I Ash Barker

[@PapaWargamer]

Thanks for the review. Was wondering what this game is about. For WW1 miniature I think Wargame Atlantic produce everything needed. If you could get a wider angle on the camera next time that would be great. Thanks for your work. 🙏

[@mwu2712]

I'm considering doing it in 15mm skirmish. I have STL and using models from Peter Pig and Khurasan. I also want to make it very much like the post apocalyptic book final blackout.

[@veilofdarkness000]

Ash with the DOOM print and the record player. Impeccable taste good sir.

[@matsolsen3901]

This looks great. I love the setting and feel of the industrial, magic early world war feel. I think you can easily play both Sludge and A war transformed with the same miniatures?

[@captainferrite]

Kinda feels like somone rewrote 40k 3rd-4th edition with different mechanics but kinda aiming at the same sort of scope, detail level and play logic

[@aslbaron1]

Beautiful book!

[@adammakey3047]

I only just started the video but I like the sound of WW1 plus The Witcher sort of.

[@TheWarpForge]

Ive been looking for an excuse to buy Wargames Atlantic WWI British troopers! I love Alt. WWI setting and this really speaks to me!

[@maxxon99]

Hmmm... I like the idea, but I'm not really sold on the rules. They seem clunky with loads of unnecessary tables, like the separate to hit tables per troop quality.

[@zenkinet1]

Love the review; Perhaps you need to change the camera angle when doing book reviews.

[@wolvermonkey]

hhmmm....as it's a larger battle type game do you think it can be played with 15mm miniatures?

[@andrewcook3983]

Is it just me or are the top of the pages cropped off the screen for everyone?

[@ImbaSharkun]

Jop😅

[@dndsl3436]

Yep

[@BadgerRobot]

Can't stop staring at mf Doom over your shoulder.

[@samsolopeeps]

Any demo games anywhere? Sounds great but can't see anything. Top review as always!

[@GuerrillaMiniatureGames]

It’s only just come out!

[@samsolopeeps]

@@GuerrillaMiniatureGames just a bit excited 😆

[@allenforbes8108]

I find it strange that it isn't set in further in WW2 as in the later days, factions sought after particular artifacts. Also how well would a mash of that "lost in fog" game you were running meah with this?

[@edwindrood2816]

Interesting

[@maxxon99]

So it's like 50 models per side for a small game?

[@GuerrillaMiniatureGames]

Bout that yes!

[@maxxon99]

@@GuerrillaMiniatureGames do small games actually work, or is it really 100+ per side for a reasonable game? This is interesting, but that’s a shedload of painting since I have nothing ready for the period and I need to paint both armies…

[@S0nyb1ack]

​@@maxxon99 50 models would be closer to a big game I think (I do own the book have read through it, but haven't gotten it to the table), unless you specifically try to do something weird. What do I mean with that? There is a unit that is basically zombies (though a different term is used so you can flavour them however you want), that is 8 minis and only give you 1 point. Yes in a 20 point game if you go 100% zombies you would have over 100 minis, but I also think you would achieve nothing (you can't even command them, they just shamble towards the nearest enemy to try to devour them). And you can go into the opposite direction: most factions have at least some options where 1 or a few minis get you a bunch of points. E.g. the french can take a nature spirit in their ranks that is 1 mini giving you 2 selection points worth in list building, as much as the 8 person infantry section. The Freikorps (german empire splinter faction that has completely given into following the old ways again) can recruit the so called Baumkrieger, which is 1 mini (a human that is magically and surgically fused with a tree, should be a somewhat bigger then the run of the mill humans) that is worth 3 points. And of course: tanks and armored cars are worth a bunch of points if you want to field them. There are 6 scenarios in the book, the smallest one is 10 points, the biggest is 30 and I think half of them are 20 points (at least 2 are, and I think a 3rd as well). So the standard infantry section, which will often be the core of your army is 8 people and gives you 2 points. But a machine gun nest or mortar team is probably useful as well and will give you 2 or 3 points for 1-3 minis (on one base for the weapon teams). I painted up 30 - 40 little germans (1 wargames atlantic box and some metal minis from Northstar) and I'm thinking of trying to get my hands on 8 more basic soldiers (though I'm not sure yet), so I could assemble something like this: With less then 50 minis I get to: * Captain + witch are free (2 minis) * 4 infantry sections (each is 8 minis big) = 8 points in 32 minis; * flamethrower team = 3 points in weapon team (1 base, but the one I bought has 2 soldiers operating the flamethrower, so you might see that as 2 minis instead of 1) * unique German empire machine pistol unit = 3 points in 4 minis * machine gun team = 2 points in 1 weapon team * mortar team = 2 points in 1 weapon team * anti tank rifle = 1 point in 1 mini * infantry liuetenant = 1 point in 1 mini TLDR: 20 points, which is enough for more then half the scenarios and we need: 43 - 50ish minis (again very depending on how elaborate you want your weapon teams like the heavy machine gun to be, I have 2 minis for both my machine gun and mortar team, but maybe you would use only 1 or maybe 3). And I went super hard into infantry here. Cavalry units also come in teams of 4 and might reduce the amount of painting needed to be done. And to be honest with 20 points available I would consider buying a tank maybe - the German empire thank is 7 points on its own, almost half the points of those standard scenarios. My personal issue is more the table size required to play those scenarios ;) The 10 point one still asks for a 4' by 4' table... All other ones are 6' by 4'...