I absolutely adore Roadside Picnic & I've had Zona Alfa sitting on my shelf for ages but I just have never gotten around to playing it. You've convinced me to buy a few cold war style soldiers to start working on a crew!
I have some bigger MDF buildings from Brutal Cities that are in a great Soviet-era Brutalism style that I’m going to build for Zona Alfa primarily. I’m just waiting for he weather to get better so I can properly prime them with filler primer. Thanks for watching!
Discourse, you absolutely should play Zona Alfa, I think it will be just your cup of tea, plus as a fellow worshipper of the Four Armed Emperor, do you know which faction makes for perfect Zone bandits and mutants? ;)
I've enjoyed the few Osprey little blue book games I've picked up. They lean towards beer n pretzels instead of simulationist style or convoluted tournament oriented games. And that's much to my tastes these days.
Love that overview. I'd rather reviewers tell me what they love (or hate) about a game system than attempt to give a neutral 'what's in the box/book' style. The fact that you took the time to do a video about 'why I like it' tells me it's worth checking out.
Agreed! "What's in the box" is useful in exactly ONE video. Reviewers saying what they like/dislike is always useful, I always check my favorite youtubers to see their opinions, even of games I already play!
"What's in the box" videos are usually produced by small channels that got their product for free from the publisher, and don't want to screw up that relationship and lose out on future free product. And yeah, there's no need to watch more than one of them for a given product. I don't expect a lot of negative reviews from TH-cam producers, because none of them really want to go on permanent record as badmouthing something that people worked hard on with good intent, even if they missed the mark. But thoughtful and in-depth recommendations, especially for games that have been out for some time and the content creator has played extensively, are pure gold, for publishers AND consumers. Keep up the good content, Uncle Atom!
Diggin' this line of videos. Also, I'm 100% behind role-playing in tabletop gaming. My buddies and I find ourselves narrating the cooler moments in any tabletop game...because it just adds a lot to the enjoyment. It's particularly good when it is involved with a campaign skirmish game - building up conflicts and stuff over several games.
I started my Zona Alfa collection end of last year and am really looking forward to my first games. As a big fan of Stalker and Metro I am in love with the setting and the more open rules and the fact that you basically have to improvise and kitbash your miniatures is very fun. If you dont want to use a lot of metal or resin miniatures and are looking for some good ol plastic sprues you can use, I really recommend the Project Z range of miniatures by Warlord Games. Especially the "Zombie Horde" Box will get you well enough Zombies and (with a nice glowy paintjob) Rad ghouls while you can use the "Spec Ops" Box to get a good plastic Soldier/Stalker/Bandit/Cultist Team together with some great modern military bitz. A very promising game system, always good to see larger tabletop youtubers review it so thanks! :)
The narrator of the audiobook is the late, great actor Robert Forster (Oscar nomination for his role in Tarantino's Jackie Brown). His vocal performance balances a tired, jaded outlook that swerves from deep cynicism to outright humanity. In my games I'm hoping to have more of a Roadside Picnic feel. Less of a "shoot 'em up" and more of the teams facing unknowable traps and horrors provided by the "Zone". This distinguishes Zona Alfa from a lot of the post-apocalyptic games. Oh ya, nice review!
I picked up Zona Alfa out of curiosity, and the concept is really enticing. There's just enough backstory in the rulebook to give you a good foundation about what's going on story-wise. I'm really happy you mentioned Roadside Picnic, because it gives me a source that directly contributes to the game's environment. Now I just have to find a friend that wants tot try it out...
Thank you for bringing light out into the miniatures gaming darkness! For those who do not wish to be force fed their gaming, this is definitely a game that allows for a great deal of creativity and flexibility. ZA is a game that should be more widely known - along with Roadside Picnic. Clean your AK, say a prayer to St. Strelok, and head into the Zone, comrades.
Bit off-topic: if you like Roadside Picnic, please take a look at other titles from the (terribly unknown) Strugatsky brothers: "Hard to be a god" has these somehow Turnip 28 vibes, and the incredible "The inhabited island" deserves a whole game for itself. Cheers!
This was a thoroughly enjoyable video - I thought your enthusiasm and passion for the game really shone through! And even though I already have the game (and love it!), I found that enthusiasm infectious and it made me want to play a game this weekend. So thank you for that. I also loved the way you summed it up at the end - brilliant! This is the hobby at its best! I really like the miniatures agnostic angle as well - my Stalkers come from Lead Adventure (the minis in the book), Empress Miniatures, Pig Iron, Spectre, Hasslefree and Copplestone and my son uses some of his Infinity minis. My rad ghouls are Tyranid Genestealers, and I use the Ripper swarms instead of rats, plus Zombicide zombies. Now I just need to find a suitable BAM!
A good, affordable source for Zona Alfa models would be something like Warlord Games or Wargames Atlantic. Warlord, of course, has a bunch of WWII era kits in plastic, which can be used for sort of Cold War era surplus equipment. They also have their Konflict '47 kits, which might be used for monsters or for weirder tech levels that might come out of countries that have studied alien tech or dimensional anomalies. Wargames Atlantic has a few kits you can cannibalize for weapons, like their WWI/WWII kits. But I like their Cannon Fodder box, from the Death Fields line. 30 dudes in jumpsuits, optional backpacks full of stuff, optional gas masks/helmets. You could run them as lightly armored Stalkers, escaped prisoners, or the like. WA also sell a Death Fields weapon sprue, which includes a few more armaments and alternative gas mask heads, if you want more of that.
Great suggestions, I'm awaiting some Cannon Fodder in the post - plan is for some Star Wars Rebel troopers proxies, some Chaos Cultists and I am sorely tempted to go for some escapes prisoners in orange jumpsuit.
Check out Copplestone Castings' Future Wars line of models. The Sewer Scavengers and Scavenger Scout look perfect for certain factions. Of course, you could go in a completely different direction and use the Bodyguards in Bikinis.
After your video and 3 others, I picked up Zone Alfa. I’m blown away at how 64 pages is inspired me to make terrain again and I’ve already played a practice round with some proxy terrain. Hot damn.
Great video. FYI the movie Stalker (based on Roadside Picnic) is on HBO Mac and can likely be digitally rented. It's a very eerie and faithful adaptation. Also, I HIGHLY recommend everyone check out another solo/co-op Todoroff game called Nightwatch. Amazon has it for $18.99. It starts "This is a game about killing monsters. All kinds, anywhere, anytime.". Though the setting is vaguely late middle ages, you can make it both minis and era agnostic. I'm now running a Pact with an Aztec warrior wielding a plasma chain gun, Medieval alchemist, modern day stage magician and futuristic robot with sword and board. Fantastic stuff.
Todoroff simply makes good games! The original variant of Nightwatch is Exploit Zero, a cyberpunk action game which I really recommend. It follows the same design principle: fast, fun gameplay without lots of rules. It's solo/coop, the "game" handles the baddies, the H-SEC security guys.
I love that you're discussing lesser known/indie games. One in particular that I like is Fistful of Lead from Wiley Games. It's miniatures agnostic and has expansions for fantasy, sci-fi, and many historical settings. Definitely worth checking out.
I've got 'A Billion Suns' which is a space ship games book also sold by Osprey. The rules have a similar vibe to them with the dice and rolling under plus you jump in trying to earn credits etc so there could be a theme with some of these rule books? I was looking at their other books for other types of games so will probably pick this one up now. I also have a couple of credits on Audible so Roadside Picnic has also been acquired.
I bought that rulebook just 1 week ago, because I wanted to test out that scenario. So happy to hear that it should be good :) Can´t wait to test it in the next weeks.
Adam, have you seen the film Stalker (1979)? It's what that Roadside Picnic front cover image comes from, and the screenplay was written by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky as an adaptation of Roadside Picnic. One of 7 films directed by Andrei Tarkovsky, widely recognised as one of the greatest directors of all time. It's verrrry arty, rather than a traditional sci-fi film. You probably have seen it if you're super into Roadside Picnic but thought it was worth mentioning!
Splendid stuff. I have played Stalker before, on a very bad old PC that didn’t like it and complained about it while I was playing. I absolutely adore roadside picnic too; it’s one of my favourite books. Not being a massive player of TTGs but thoroughly enjoying content about them, this has piqued my interest! Hope I don’t get mangled! The solo aspect interests me a great deal. I shall have to check this one out.
I've heard of Roadside Picnic, but never knew what it was about, apart from post apocalyptic, until this video. Your description and analogy to ants at a picnic sparked that one brain cell that told me to buy it now.
This analogy is made by one of the characters in the novel. It's pretty cool, and terrifying. The setting is not really apocalyptic, as mankind is not in ruins, nor have countries or governments collapsed. It's just mankind after an alien "visitation".
You and GW :) triggered me to delve into miniature agnostic skirmish games. Reading, watching some battle reports. My first impression of reading/watching stuff on Space Weirdos is very positive. Thanks!
I really love those videos, now I have to buy Zona Alfa and Space Weirdos :D One suggestion for the future: Maybe you could show some of your miniatures for the games or link us to some mini companies who produce fitting models? Thank you :)
If you like model agnostic games you should try brutality Skirmish war game. It's got everything you mentioned but a ton more. You can use any models, it's any genre, and it truly is RPG light.
Just found out my local shop has the main Zona Alfa book for less than the publisher links, I'll have to grab it next time I'm downtown. It'd be great to just be able to throw down a game with whatever is on hand
I'm a huge fan of the Roadside Picnic book, the STALKER film and games, and Metro 2033... seems like the perfect miniatures game for me, thanks for the tip! :)
I played some Zona Alfa solo while in lockdown. It's a lot of fun but, as you say, there are rules that are... missing from the book which means you're having to basically make up rules yourself which isn't great for a product you paid for. That being said it's not egregious, there's a good framework of rules and the game is really good overall.
Making up your own lore is always more fun. This also sounds great for me since I have an overwhelming amount of zombie and mutant minis and a cool treasure hunting Captain.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. video games series is great source of terrain in Zona, ie. cities, factories, underground facilities, even half finished building in the middle of woods or swamps. And MOOD. Heavy, post-apo.
For Zona Alfa minis, if someone is not going the more usual 28mm route (for example, because or money or space constraints) I strongly recommend buying those cheap 1/72 scale Red Box/Dark Alliance boxes. There's two different "stalkers" sets, each with 48 minis (so one box is more than enough for multiple warbands + bandits) and they also have a box of zombies, ideal for ghouls and mutants. You really can play this game without spending a lot of money!
somewhere around the four minute mark It struck me that Mordheim and Necromunda have a similar "team treasure hunt" vibe...in particular the weirdstone of mordheim is dangerous.
You explained the background and ‘lore’ much better than the book does! 😅 It helps to know that even you found the gaps in the rules, I thought it was just me 😅
Ashe,over on Guerrilla Miniature Games has done a few vids on Zona Alfa. You can see how game play goes. Once my Stalkers bubble up to the top of my To-Do list I'll be getting some games in myself.
I just bought the pdf this morning! I think it is a great niche theme to justify urban abandoned terrain, yet not totally totally destroyed as in 40k or gaslands...
I’ve tried to watch the movie Stalker but I have to be in the right mood & have the time for it. Never occurred to me to try to audiobook of Roadside Picnic, might grab that while painting today. I also wonder about putting these concepts into a fantasy game, or running a fantasy ttrpg where the only “magic” is artefacts from the zones.
My wife told me about Roadside Picnic because she thought I would enjoy it. Well, I ended up falling in love with the story and went down the rabbit hole of the Strugatsky Brothers. If you enjoyed that book check out Monday Begins on Saturday:)
i'm an huge fan of the stalker series game, really looking forward for stalker 2 Didnt know there were wargame for this will definitely try it out Thanks for showing it
Been watching Ash from Guerrilla Miniature Games play through this both in PvP and solo play and it looks fun as hell. Grabbed a copy and went right into gathering up some Copplestone Castings Future Wars miniatures for my stalkers. Plan to use many of my Reaper Bones monsters I use for This Is Not A Test as zone creatures.
i use it as solo and as a co-op but I found Five Parsecs from Home and I'm not even sure where my Zona Alpha book is now. Now I'm excited for it again so I have to go search the game piles in the basement.
I really love the Roadside Picnic story. I'm a very big fan of the Metro and Stalker series (The dev team for Metro used to work for the dev team for stalker). I've been considering picking up this game, and if I see it I'll probably be getting it. I've designed a lot of my paint schemes to kind of fit into this grungy underhive post-apocalyptic greasy gangster cultist vibe. I think that fits this game really well.
I would say the gameplay rules in Zona Alfa are lighter than those in Stargrave. However, it still has a nice campaign progression system. Thanks for watching!
A good listen. Liking the smaller games now cos I can get enthused about lots of 'teams/factions/groups' each with a different vibe. Check out 'Gray for Now' Test of Honour. Beautiful Samurai era small scale game.
This sounds amazing! You really sold the game and the short story. Osprey seems to be making a lot of skirmish games for different "genres". Do you think skirmish games work better for non-traditional settings and lore? Check out the Carbon Grey comic and RPG. This would make a great war game. Thanks!
@@tabletopminions Thank you so much. Your videos have been my go to Friday breakfast show for years now. (here in Italy is when we get them) Keep it rolling and thank you for all your work.
damn I never knew! im actually making my own TTRPG with the same inspirations (plus a few others). I dont have anyone I would play zona with, but man I might paint the minis just for fun since I am getting back into it. Love stalker, Love Metro, love the post-apocalyptical Russia vibes of this genre.
Perhaps you are not into 'lore' per se, but it's always seemed to me that you are quite into 'setting.' IE: Your backstory description of Zona Alpha, or The Last War's description of sentient mustard gas clouds. Perhaps it would be worth discussing the difference in your eyes? I have always thought you were quite drawn to the setting of particular games you invest in.
Oh Metro is based on a russian novel about pretty much just a socity after a nuke war. Which Exudos is an orginal work following the novels and first 2 games... Still really good and both are in the same genre.
if I had know zona alfa was basicly stalker the table top game I would have baught it ages ago. love stalker so much so if I can play it on the table top I will thanks 😊
oh hell yeah! I played a lot of zona alfa in 10mm /smaller scale with friends on release. I like it even better than Stargrave to be honest for a fun game night
This is freaking crazy, I was just listening to Roadside Picnic before I watched this. I guess I have to get this now 😂 Aliens work in mysterious ways.
Lore… I’m with you, there. While I like GW’s background, I couldn’t care less about the thousands of books. As long as there’s a broad setting I can get into, then I can come up with a story for my army/warband/gang etc.
I would love to hear in this not mainstream games reviews about if it has "single player" mode with campaigns and how popular the game is if you want to play campaigns
I mentioned that it has a free downloadable solo play add-on and it also has campaign play. How popular it is depends on where you live, to some degree, and isn’t something I can tell you. Thanks for watching!
Love the "Why I like it" format. Look forward to more like this.
I absolutely adore Roadside Picnic & I've had Zona Alfa sitting on my shelf for ages but I just have never gotten around to playing it. You've convinced me to buy a few cold war style soldiers to start working on a crew!
I have some bigger MDF buildings from Brutal Cities that are in a great Soviet-era Brutalism style that I’m going to build for Zona Alfa primarily. I’m just waiting for he weather to get better so I can properly prime them with filler primer. Thanks for watching!
I would love to see a discourse video on Zona Alfa or other fun skirmish games!
@@teller7009 YEAH!!
Discourse, you absolutely should play Zona Alfa, I think it will be just your cup of tea, plus as a fellow worshipper of the Four Armed Emperor, do you know which faction makes for perfect Zone bandits and mutants? ;)
@@tabletopminions thanks a lot for costing me money!!! Just ordered both Zona Alfa and Roadside Picnic after watching this.
I've enjoyed the few Osprey little blue book games I've picked up. They lean towards beer n pretzels instead of simulationist style or convoluted tournament oriented games. And that's much to my tastes these days.
Love that overview. I'd rather reviewers tell me what they love (or hate) about a game system than attempt to give a neutral 'what's in the box/book' style. The fact that you took the time to do a video about 'why I like it' tells me it's worth checking out.
Agreed! "What's in the box" is useful in exactly ONE video. Reviewers saying what they like/dislike is always useful, I always check my favorite youtubers to see their opinions, even of games I already play!
"What's in the box" videos are usually produced by small channels that got their product for free from the publisher, and don't want to screw up that relationship and lose out on future free product. And yeah, there's no need to watch more than one of them for a given product. I don't expect a lot of negative reviews from TH-cam producers, because none of them really want to go on permanent record as badmouthing something that people worked hard on with good intent, even if they missed the mark. But thoughtful and in-depth recommendations, especially for games that have been out for some time and the content creator has played extensively, are pure gold, for publishers AND consumers. Keep up the good content, Uncle Atom!
@@jeffreygeorge8884 An excellent & very well reasoned comment. 😊👍
Also check out Stalker, the classic Soviet sci fi movie from the 70s. The screenplay was written by the authors of Roadside Picnic.
Tarkovsky - and one of the greatest art films ever made.
Also check out Geoff Dyer’s book on the film, Zona.
This kind of video is great. Putting more obscure stuff into the spotlight is awesome for us and also the product.
Diggin' this line of videos. Also, I'm 100% behind role-playing in tabletop gaming. My buddies and I find ourselves narrating the cooler moments in any tabletop game...because it just adds a lot to the enjoyment. It's particularly good when it is involved with a campaign skirmish game - building up conflicts and stuff over several games.
"What are you doing with that Warhound Titan?"
"You said that the game was Miniatures agnostic and I could use any I wanted."
I started my Zona Alfa collection end of last year and am really looking forward to my first games.
As a big fan of Stalker and Metro I am in love with the setting and the more open rules and the fact that you basically have to improvise and kitbash your miniatures is very fun.
If you dont want to use a lot of metal or resin miniatures and are looking for some good ol plastic sprues you can use, I really recommend the Project Z range of miniatures by Warlord Games. Especially the "Zombie Horde" Box will get you well enough Zombies and (with a nice glowy paintjob) Rad ghouls while you can use the "Spec Ops" Box to get a good plastic Soldier/Stalker/Bandit/Cultist Team together with some great modern military bitz.
A very promising game system, always good to see larger tabletop youtubers review it so thanks! :)
The narrator of the audiobook is the late, great actor Robert Forster (Oscar nomination for his role in Tarantino's Jackie Brown). His vocal performance balances a tired, jaded outlook that swerves from deep cynicism to outright humanity. In my games I'm hoping to have more of a Roadside Picnic feel. Less of a "shoot 'em up" and more of the teams facing unknowable traps and horrors provided by the "Zone". This distinguishes Zona Alfa from a lot of the post-apocalyptic games. Oh ya, nice review!
Wow, thanks for that info. I loved Forster's performance in Small town Crime, a great indie flick.
Yes, listened to the audiobook two years ago. Great choice for the reading .
@@paulaceto6492 thanks for the heads up.
I picked up Zona Alfa out of curiosity, and the concept is really enticing. There's just enough backstory in the rulebook to give you a good foundation about what's going on story-wise. I'm really happy you mentioned Roadside Picnic, because it gives me a source that directly contributes to the game's environment. Now I just have to find a friend that wants tot try it out...
This sounds perfect. I love the combo of skirmish, mini agnostic, and good story.
Appreciate the reviews of late. Great addition to your content sir. Thanks for doing what you do!
Please cover more of the Bluebook series when you try them out.
Thank you for bringing light out into the miniatures gaming darkness! For those who do not wish to be force fed their gaming, this is definitely a game that allows for a great deal of creativity and flexibility. ZA is a game that should be more widely known - along with Roadside Picnic. Clean your AK, say a prayer to St. Strelok, and head into the Zone, comrades.
I have always loved the post-apocalyptic genre and Zona Alfa has been on my radar for a while, thanks for this "review"!
Bit off-topic: if you like Roadside Picnic, please take a look at other titles from the (terribly unknown) Strugatsky brothers: "Hard to be a god" has these somehow Turnip 28 vibes, and the incredible "The inhabited island" deserves a whole game for itself. Cheers!
This was a thoroughly enjoyable video - I thought your enthusiasm and passion for the game really shone through! And even though I already have the game (and love it!), I found that enthusiasm infectious and it made me want to play a game this weekend. So thank you for that. I also loved the way you summed it up at the end - brilliant! This is the hobby at its best!
I really like the miniatures agnostic angle as well - my Stalkers come from Lead Adventure (the minis in the book), Empress Miniatures, Pig Iron, Spectre, Hasslefree and Copplestone and my son uses some of his Infinity minis. My rad ghouls are Tyranid Genestealers, and I use the Ripper swarms instead of rats, plus Zombicide zombies. Now I just need to find a suitable BAM!
A good, affordable source for Zona Alfa models would be something like Warlord Games or Wargames Atlantic. Warlord, of course, has a bunch of WWII era kits in plastic, which can be used for sort of Cold War era surplus equipment. They also have their Konflict '47 kits, which might be used for monsters or for weirder tech levels that might come out of countries that have studied alien tech or dimensional anomalies.
Wargames Atlantic has a few kits you can cannibalize for weapons, like their WWI/WWII kits. But I like their Cannon Fodder box, from the Death Fields line. 30 dudes in jumpsuits, optional backpacks full of stuff, optional gas masks/helmets. You could run them as lightly armored Stalkers, escaped prisoners, or the like. WA also sell a Death Fields weapon sprue, which includes a few more armaments and alternative gas mask heads, if you want more of that.
Great suggestions, I'm awaiting some Cannon Fodder in the post - plan is for some Star Wars Rebel troopers proxies, some Chaos Cultists and I am sorely tempted to go for some escapes prisoners in orange jumpsuit.
Wargames Atlantic also have a modern set in the works, although there are no details beyond some teasers.
Check out Copplestone Castings' Future Wars line of models. The Sewer Scavengers and Scavenger Scout look perfect for certain factions. Of course, you could go in a completely different direction and use the Bodyguards in Bikinis.
Love the game and so glad to see more of it on here! The author is very active and always quick to answer questions. Great game and a lot of fun solo!
After your video and 3 others, I picked up Zone Alfa. I’m blown away at how 64 pages is inspired me to make terrain again and I’ve already played a practice round with some proxy terrain. Hot damn.
Great video. FYI the movie Stalker (based on Roadside Picnic) is on HBO Mac and can likely be digitally rented. It's a very eerie and faithful adaptation.
Also, I HIGHLY recommend everyone check out another solo/co-op Todoroff game called Nightwatch. Amazon has it for $18.99. It starts "This is a game about killing monsters. All kinds, anywhere, anytime.". Though the setting is vaguely late middle ages, you can make it both minis and era agnostic. I'm now running a Pact with an Aztec warrior wielding a plasma chain gun, Medieval alchemist, modern day stage magician and futuristic robot with sword and board. Fantastic stuff.
I’ve heard such stories about the “cursed” production of that movie. I should watch it again, it’s been ages. Thanks for watching!
Todoroff simply makes good games! The original variant of Nightwatch is Exploit Zero, a cyberpunk action game which I really recommend. It follows the same design principle: fast, fun gameplay without lots of rules. It's solo/coop, the "game" handles the baddies, the H-SEC security guys.
This is absolutely a game I've been keeping an eye on for the longest time, glad to see it getting some love!
I love that you're discussing lesser known/indie games. One in particular that I like is Fistful of Lead from Wiley Games. It's miniatures agnostic and has expansions for fantasy, sci-fi, and many historical settings. Definitely worth checking out.
Big agree on the Roadside Picnic Audiobook. Brilliant reading.
This is why I watch this channel! Detailed semi reviews and new things!
Really digging the "Why I like It"s so far👍
I’m still building up the terrain and mini collection to really get into it, but I can’t wait. Had a few quick games and it’s good fun
I read Roadside Picnic decades ago, and bought another copy recently to re-read it. It's a fantastic book, and Zona Alfa looks like excellent fun.
I've got 'A Billion Suns' which is a space ship games book also sold by Osprey. The rules have a similar vibe to them with the dice and rolling under plus you jump in trying to earn credits etc so there could be a theme with some of these rule books? I was looking at their other books for other types of games so will probably pick this one up now. I also have a couple of credits on Audible so Roadside Picnic has also been acquired.
book ordered, thanks! Love your Videos and content, and your voice is easy to listen to, thanks for your nerd gaming!
These Osprey "blue book" games are all pretty great.
I bought that rulebook just 1 week ago, because I wanted to test out that scenario. So happy to hear that it should be good :) Can´t wait to test it in the next weeks.
....you know, I kind of want to pick this up and then use my Konflikt 47 guys to make a weird war skirmish game out of it.
My thoughts exactly. Sounds perfect for using those altered Soviet "super soldier" figures.
Adam, have you seen the film Stalker (1979)? It's what that Roadside Picnic front cover image comes from, and the screenplay was written by Arkady and Boris Strugatsky as an adaptation of Roadside Picnic. One of 7 films directed by Andrei Tarkovsky, widely recognised as one of the greatest directors of all time. It's verrrry arty, rather than a traditional sci-fi film. You probably have seen it if you're super into Roadside Picnic but thought it was worth mentioning!
Splendid stuff. I have played Stalker before, on a very bad old PC that didn’t like it and complained about it while I was playing. I absolutely adore roadside picnic too; it’s one of my favourite books. Not being a massive player of TTGs but thoroughly enjoying content about them, this has piqued my interest! Hope I don’t get mangled! The solo aspect interests me a great deal. I shall have to check this one out.
I just ordered a copy. I love the film Stalker and the Metro games. Thanks!
I've heard of Roadside Picnic, but never knew what it was about, apart from post apocalyptic, until this video. Your description and analogy to ants at a picnic sparked that one brain cell that told me to buy it now.
This analogy is made by one of the characters in the novel. It's pretty cool, and terrifying. The setting is not really apocalyptic, as mankind is not in ruins, nor have countries or governments collapsed. It's just mankind after an alien "visitation".
Watch the Soviet film Stalker (1979). Сталкер. Available on TH-cam.
You and GW :) triggered me to delve into miniature agnostic skirmish games. Reading, watching some battle reports. My first impression of reading/watching stuff on Space Weirdos is very positive. Thanks!
I really love those videos, now I have to buy Zona Alfa and Space Weirdos :D
One suggestion for the future:
Maybe you could show some of your miniatures for the games or link us to some mini companies who produce fitting models? Thank you :)
If you like model agnostic games you should try brutality Skirmish war game. It's got everything you mentioned but a ton more. You can use any models, it's any genre, and it truly is RPG light.
Just found out my local shop has the main Zona Alfa book for less than the publisher links, I'll have to grab it next time I'm downtown. It'd be great to just be able to throw down a game with whatever is on hand
I'm a huge fan of the Roadside Picnic book, the STALKER film and games, and Metro 2033... seems like the perfect miniatures game for me, thanks for the tip! :)
I played some Zona Alfa solo while in lockdown. It's a lot of fun but, as you say, there are rules that are... missing from the book which means you're having to basically make up rules yourself which isn't great for a product you paid for. That being said it's not egregious, there's a good framework of rules and the game is really good overall.
Making up your own lore is always more fun. This also sounds great for me since I have an overwhelming amount of zombie and mutant minis and a cool treasure hunting Captain.
S.T.A.L.K.E.R. video games series is great source of terrain in Zona, ie. cities, factories, underground facilities, even half finished building in the middle of woods or swamps. And MOOD. Heavy, post-apo.
A very useful & informative review. Thank you very much. 😊👍
I love this game! I started playing it after watching one of Ash's videos on it. Thanks for doing this video!
ZA is a great little skirmish treasure hunt game, playable with any modern military or civilian, postapocalyptic, or zombie survivor miniatures
I have this rulebook and it is awesome. Stalker and Tarkov are some of my favorite games at the minute. Love the setting.
Great segment. Glad to see another iteration of WILI
Honestly the setting and lore sound amazing. I'll have to keep an eye for the novel.
For Zona Alfa minis, if someone is not going the more usual 28mm route (for example, because or money or space constraints) I strongly recommend buying those cheap 1/72 scale Red Box/Dark Alliance boxes. There's two different "stalkers" sets, each with 48 minis (so one box is more than enough for multiple warbands + bandits) and they also have a box of zombies, ideal for ghouls and mutants. You really can play this game without spending a lot of money!
Nice! Got the book but did not know about the soll rules. Ten-thousand-thx!!!
I have always loved the STALKER and Metro games, but never been one for small skirmish tabletop games. But this I may have to check out.
somewhere around the four minute mark It struck me that Mordheim and Necromunda have a similar "team treasure hunt" vibe...in particular the weirdstone of mordheim is dangerous.
Would love to see you do up a little narrative battle report series with this, would be a lot of fun to meet your teams!
The Osprey blue books are such a good value. I played Ronin with just paper minis and it was an absolute blast. And that’s where Gaslands started too.
Agreed. You should try out En Garde too. Same author, but expands your gaming quite a bit.
Zona Alfa is a great game, fast playing and you can develop a pretty cool exploration campaign game and is fun to play!
I had read roadside picnic years ago gonna have to read it again and this game sounds great!
You explained the background and ‘lore’ much better than the book does! 😅 It helps to know that even you found the gaps in the rules, I thought it was just me 😅
Those blue book games are some of the best you'll find..
Game looks cheeki breeki. i'm in!
Ashe,over on Guerrilla Miniature Games has done a few vids on Zona Alfa. You can see how game play goes. Once my Stalkers bubble up to the top of my To-Do list I'll be getting some games in myself.
I just bought the pdf this morning! I think it is a great niche theme to justify urban abandoned terrain, yet not totally totally destroyed as in 40k or gaslands...
I’ve tried to watch the movie Stalker but I have to be in the right mood & have the time for it. Never occurred to me to try to audiobook of Roadside Picnic, might grab that while painting today. I also wonder about putting these concepts into a fantasy game, or running a fantasy ttrpg where the only “magic” is artefacts from the zones.
My wife told me about Roadside Picnic because she thought I would enjoy it. Well, I ended up falling in love with the story and went down the rabbit hole of the Strugatsky Brothers. If you enjoyed that book check out Monday Begins on Saturday:)
This is a great series Uncle A
i'm an huge fan of the stalker series game, really looking forward for stalker 2
Didnt know there were wargame for this
will definitely try it out
Thanks for showing it
The stalker game series is one of the best Blyat! Love Zona Alfa, Duty squad rules all!
This game sounds very interesting, and I will have to check out Roadside Picnic! Thanks!
Been watching Ash from Guerrilla Miniature Games play through this both in PvP and solo play and it looks fun as hell. Grabbed a copy and went right into gathering up some Copplestone Castings Future Wars miniatures for my stalkers. Plan to use many of my Reaper Bones monsters I use for This Is Not A Test as zone creatures.
i use it as solo and as a co-op but I found Five Parsecs from Home and I'm not even sure where my Zona Alpha book is now. Now I'm excited for it again so I have to go search the game piles in the basement.
Sure I’ll get a copy of that rulebook. Any tabletop game that’s easier than Warhammer that I can make a teenager play for me is with a shot
I really love the Roadside Picnic story. I'm a very big fan of the Metro and Stalker series (The dev team for Metro used to work for the dev team for stalker). I've been considering picking up this game, and if I see it I'll probably be getting it.
I've designed a lot of my paint schemes to kind of fit into this grungy underhive post-apocalyptic greasy gangster cultist vibe. I think that fits this game really well.
sorry if this has been asked already but what are those gas mask miniatures at 1:48? They are rad I need them! xD
Sounds really good and I'll have to check it out!
This sounds like a very interesting game. What I immediately I wonder about how this compares to Stargrave in mechanics and depth
I believe it's rather lighter than Stargrave in terms of rules.
I would say the gameplay rules in Zona Alfa are lighter than those in Stargrave. However, it still has a nice campaign progression system. Thanks for watching!
A good listen. Liking the smaller games now cos I can get enthused about lots of 'teams/factions/groups' each with a different vibe. Check out 'Gray for Now' Test of Honour. Beautiful Samurai era small scale game.
Oh good, the book I ordered a couple of hours ago is Uncle Atom approved!
This whole time I thought you were saying "Zone Alpha"
I can see that. Thanks for watching!
1:49 what miniatures are these?
The two soldiers are from Eureka miniatures. The one on the left is a Soviet NBC soldier, the one on the right is a US army soldier in MOPP gear.
@@stevebull7105 thanks
You should play it on the channel!
This sounds amazing! You really sold the game and the short story. Osprey seems to be making a lot of skirmish games for different "genres". Do you think skirmish games work better for non-traditional settings and lore? Check out the Carbon Grey comic and RPG. This would make a great war game. Thanks!
Is there a place where we can see photos of your Zona Alfa miniatures/games?
Does someone knows where the two soldier miniatures at 1:48 come from?
Thank you in advance
They’re from Eureka Games. I forget exactly what they’re called, but they’re in MOPP gear. Thanks for watching!
@@tabletopminions Thank you so much.
Your videos have been my go to Friday breakfast show for years now.
(here in Italy is when we get them)
Keep it rolling and thank you for all your work.
That shirt is pretty great!
damn I never knew! im actually making my own TTRPG with the same inspirations (plus a few others). I dont have anyone I would play zona with, but man I might paint the minis just for fun since I am getting back into it. Love stalker, Love Metro, love the post-apocalyptical Russia vibes of this genre.
Perhaps you are not into 'lore' per se, but it's always seemed to me that you are quite into 'setting.' IE: Your backstory description of Zona Alpha, or The Last War's description of sentient mustard gas clouds. Perhaps it would be worth discussing the difference in your eyes? I have always thought you were quite drawn to the setting of particular games you invest in.
you are the man uncle
Oh Metro is based on a russian novel about pretty much just a socity after a nuke war. Which Exudos is an orginal work following the novels and first 2 games... Still really good and both are in the same genre.
if I had know zona alfa was basicly stalker the table top game I would have baught it ages ago. love stalker so much so if I can play it on the table top I will thanks 😊
oh hell yeah! I played a lot of zona alfa in 10mm /smaller scale with friends on release. I like it even better than Stargrave to be honest for a fun game night
This looks really cool. Thanks for pointing it out. Can it be played solo reasonably well?
Maybe a zona alpha battle report from you some time in the future....maybe..
This is freaking crazy, I was just listening to Roadside Picnic before I watched this. I guess I have to get this now 😂 Aliens work in mysterious ways.
Lore… I’m with you, there. While I like GW’s background, I couldn’t care less about the thousands of books. As long as there’s a broad setting I can get into, then I can come up with a story for my army/warband/gang etc.
that shirt is too good ;) love it!
I would love to hear in this not mainstream games reviews about if it has "single player" mode with campaigns and how popular the game is if you want to play campaigns
I mentioned that it has a free downloadable solo play add-on and it also has campaign play. How popular it is depends on where you live, to some degree, and isn’t something I can tell you. Thanks for watching!
@@tabletopminions thank you, i was drowzy when i was watching cause your videos are first thing i wanted to watch when i woke up
Killer t-shirt!