Tabletop gaming can be cost prohibitive. You can easily spend hundreds of dollars building up an army for your game of choice, and there’s quite a time investment that goes along with assembling and painting all of those miniatures. Those two factors alone have kept me from getting into something like Warhammer 40k (beyond reading the awesome lore books).
But not long ago, I accidentally stumbled into a tabletop game where the miniatures are readily available for around a dollar. I’m talking Hot Wheels, Matchbox, and even some knockoff brands. Not only are they cheap, but you can find them everywhere. Once I started modding and painting Gaslands cars, I realized you can find Hot Wheels in nearly any store you walk into. (But various dollar stores are a reliable source.)
The only other thing you really need to play is the Gaslands rulebook which can generally be found for less than $20. The book has all the templates and vehicle cards printed right in the back, so if you wanted to start on a budget, you can photocopy them out.
It’s Not Just Cheap…It’s Awesome
Of course, Gaslands has more going for it than a low price point. It’s basically Mad Max, Twisted Metal, and Deathrace all kitbashed into a fast-paced strategy game. If you like the post-apocalyptic theme as much as I do — especially the car-heavy version — then it’s hard not to love the premise.
And getting your cars on theme is part of the fun. I started by simply painting my first Hot Wheels finds into ratty, wasteland-appropriate color schemes. Then I discovered the plethora of bits and pieces available on Etsy. Tiny armor plates, guns, missiles, trailers, skulls…you name it. Now I’m gluing together full-blown Fury Road vehicles. (And slowly learning how to paint miniatures. Some of my attempts are better than others!)
I’m Obsessed With This Idea
I’ve dabbled with making my own games, and we definitely mod our favorite board games a lot around here. But I have to bow to Gaslands creator Mike Hutchinson for the “why didn’t I think of that?” genius of this idea. Taking a really fun idea and producing it into the cheapest tabletop game you can possibly get into is brilliant.
Even better, Hutchinson is extremely open to “pseudo-licensing” the Gaslands IP. He states that he wants to focus on publishing the rulebook, so fans are welcome to craft and sell custom accessories for the game. They just have to become a “Friend of Gaslands” — which I am…
I’m a Modder — Can’t Help Myself
That said, I’ve been working on a somewhat ambitious mod for Gaslands that will take a bunch of ideas (and characters) from my Hope Cyberpunk Universe and add them to the game.
I feel like it’s okay to announce it at this point, because I’m planning to start playtesting next week. Open playtesting…so if you’re a Gaslands player, please reach out to me and I’ll get you a copy of the rulebook. Here’s the development cover mockup (not official at this point):
The mod adds a few cool things:
- A Driver character creation system with their own abilities and weapons (along with pre-built characters from Into the BeanStalk and The Game State!)
- The addition of cybernetic wetgear from the books.
- A hacking mechanic.
- Lore from the Hope Cyberpunk Universe.
- Scenarios based on the same.
- New corporate sponsors from the HCU
All of this is subject to change as playtesting commences, but I expect all will go well!
So there’s the semi-official announcement of this fun, new project. I’m looking forward to getting this in the hands of experienced players (and maybe introducing some BeanStalk fans to this killer tabletop, as well!)
