One of the things that I really love to do is keep my eyes on the miniatures industry and what games are coming. One of the games that I watch for is SAGA.

(All Images in this post are from Gripping Beast’s Website)

SAGA

SAGA is a game that I have head my eyes on for a long time. The original game from 2011 was set in the Dark Ages and they later released a version to cover the Crusades. The official miniatures by Gripping Beast look awesome and there are a number of players within a two-hour drive of where I live. A few years back, there was even a SAGA tournament at one of the local conventions. I think, there may even be a few players in my city and I hope to give SAGA a try and write about it on this site sometime.

The game itself looks interesting and there is a dice mechanic to determine what actions your figures can take and it looks like you can get into the game with 25 models. Many players have described the game as highly strategic, but I have yet to try it or read the rules.

The Books

Studio Tomahawk is the company behind the rule-set for SAGA. According to their website, they changed the structure of the rule books for the second edition.

Instead of selling a separate set of rules for each era of the game, they are printing a single core rule-set and a number of “Universe” books. Each Universe book covers a different era and is planned to contain all of the army lists for that gaming world. You can pit armies from separate universe books against each other (if you really want to) but there is no promise of game balance if you play the game like that. The armies in each universe, however, will be balanced with each other.

Right now, they plan to publish three universe books; one for the Dark Ages (that one is planned to be released at the same time as the core rules), one for the Crusades, and one for a fantasy setting. Other books are also planned, but the above three are the universes planned for the first year of the game.

The Miniatures

All of the same miniatures that previous players used for the first edition can be used in the second. Studio Tomahawk promises that they will not make any of the old figures obsolete with the new rules. That is something I can appreciate as I play another system and when they upgraded to a new edition, some of my miniatures no longer had a function in the game.

For those that don’t already have SAGA Miniatures (like me), Gripping Beast has two new starter sets available. I don’t know for sure, but they look like their previously released plastic warbands with the addition of measuring sticks, dice and the two new rulebooks. These new starter sets are available for pre-order right now on the Gripping Beast’s Website. The rulebooks are also available individually. The shipping date is slated for the week of February 12 (2018).

Considering that the starter sets come with both of the new books, all the plastic figures you need for your first warband and a number of extras, the price seems very reasonable.

Summary

Hopefully you enjoyed this quick post about the second edition of SAGA. I like to draw people’s attention to games that are not necessarily made by the biggest miniatures company out there. There are so many options and this is one that has captured my eye for a long time now.

If you haven’t heard of SAGA, hopefully I have provided you with some quick and interesting information. If you know of SAGA, get ready. The second edition is coming soon!!!

Until next time, Happy Gaming Everyone!!!