Carnevale: Escape From San Canciano

I'm on a bit of a roll with posting content at the moment, mainly because I had several games over the Christmas period that needed writing up.

However, this is my first actual progress post of the year and is testament to me taking a couple of my resolutions seriously in that I'm decreasing the mountain and getting something 'finished' quickly.

In this case it's the contents of Carnevale: Escape from San Canciano intro box from TTCombat that I received for Christmas.

One of the reasons I wanted this set, even though I already had the main starter set, was that it conveniently added to both the Guild and Rashaar forces I already have. I think it's meant to be another 50 ducats for each gang, taking my total to around 150 ducats. However, there have been points adjustments to the stats available online so, along with the extra Pilferer I painted last week, I've now got a disparity of about 20 ducats between the gangs (more if the Guild get a Gondola).

Both gangs get a hero and three henchmen to add to their forces meaning, as there are no leaders, I can make use of everything in appropriately sized games.

The new Rashaar additions include (from left to right): a Cult Officiant, a Lesser Rhyll (I think he's welsh), a Cult Enforcer and a Hybrid. The Cult members bring some additional land based (and slightly faster) combat prowess, whilst the Lesser Rhyll and Hybrid further cement the Rashaar control of the canals of Venice.

Perhaps the biggest bonus to the gang is the fact that the Cult Officiant and Hybrid can be trusted far more than the frankly awful Slaves to get on with objectives and agendas whilst the monsters are occupied with fighting, leaving the Slaves to focus on their true purpose: getting eaten.

In terms of painting I've largely stuck closely to the official paint scheme, although I'm using a more definite green (as opposed to blue-green) for the robes, to match what I'd already done with the Slaves. I've kept the Hybrid in drab colours as the seem to be the dregs of Venetian society in the game.

For the Lesser Rhyll I didn't know how I was going to approach him and so had a play with washes of Biel-Tan Green and dry brushing Elysian Green to achieve something that is, given the long limbs and distended belly, not totally unlike the lovechild of the Great Cthulhu and Kermit the Frog.

Whereas the Rashaar gained all new gang members, the Guild get a couple of duplicates amongst there number (from left to right): a second Gondolier, a third (THIRD!) Fisherman (woman), a Pilferer (this is my second, but that's not TTCombat's fault) and an Arbalest. Perhaps the most notable addition to the force is the Arbalest, which adds the first genuine ranged threat to the game and, along with the Capodecina, will allow the Guild to rule the rooftops.

I'll be honest, I'm not overly keen on some of these sculpts, although I appreciate that the sculpting is limited by the desire to keep these as one piece models for ease of introduction and so they are a bit flat. However, apart from the fisherman, they lack the character of the starter set Guild models, the Gondolier and Arbalest are stood weirdly (that's not how you hold a loaded crossbow) and the Pilferer has a strangely large and doll-like head.

In terms of painting, I've kept to the same sort of palette I used for the rest of the gang, ensuring an element of red on each of them to tie things together. I did have to put a bit of thought in to the colours to ensure that I didn't end up with the same trouser/shirt combos leading to them looking too uniform.

Although they're not my favourite group of models for the game, I'm pleased with how they've come out as a whole and I'm not read to play the two scenarios that com in the Intro box.

Whilst I'm talking about the intro box, it seems appropriate to do a little bit of a review. It's about half the price of the main set and can be picked up for under £30 from some sources - which is not bad given that you get pretty much everything you need to play. It's definitely a price point that allows people to impulse buy, and if you factor in that expanded rules and stat cards are available on the Carnevale game website, it's arguably all you'll need to buy for some time if you proxy models from an existing collection.

The game comes with a mini rulebook that seems to include everything apart from the rules for magic, the gang specific campaigns and the detaled background. However, there is more than enough to be going on with, as the rules do include the generic 5 scenario campaign, 'The Winds of Fate', for after you've played the initial two tutorial scenarios: 'Breakthrough' and 'Fight to Survive', which are detailed on a separate card.

Also included are stats sheets with a little bit of background on the gangs, dice, tokens, a quick reference sheet and even a cardboard ruler. If it weren't for the fact that the resin miniatures need cleaning before use, this would be a genuine 'straight out of the box experience'.  

This is especially true as, unlike almost every other game out there but just like the starter set, this comes with terrain too. A double-sided 2'x2' mat is provided (this size is fine for a small 8 figure skirmish) along with three cardboard buildings and a smattering of 2D terrain (a bridge, a gondola, a fountain, piles of barrel and boxes and floating debris). Obviously these aren't as good as 3D terrain (although I suspect I'll get good use out of the floating debris), but this is an intro box and it's a good way to ensure new player get to experience the different elements of the game in which terrain is important.

If I have a gripe about this intro box, it's with the buildings. Although they are actually better looking and more sturdy that those found in the main starter set, the do not go together without glue and a good amount of swearing. This means that they are not collapsible, which for me is one of the joys of the starter set as it means it doesn't take up much storage space.

However, it add three more buildings to my larger board set ups and given that I now need to find more space, will probably prompt me down the line of getting some of the MDF buildings.

All in all, this is a great intro to the game and if you've already got the main starter set it's probably the most cost efficient way to expand your gangs and terrain set up. I don't think it is as good in terms of value as the main starter set, although the price point probably means that more people are likely to encounter Carnevale for the first time through Escape From San Canciano.

On a personal level, I'm really enjoying the painting and the game, and I suspect I'm about to get neck deep into the canals of Venice. Additionally, these eight miniatures mark the start of this year's tally. There's no Hobby Bingo card at the moment (more on that in a future post), so you'll just have to make do with the raw numbers:

Acquired: 0

Painted: 8