An Interview With Chris Lites, part of the Free League Publishing Twilight: 2000 team!

I know it's been a while, but I wanted to have some more information on what's going on with the upcoming Twilight: 2000 4th Edition Kickstarter campaign by Free League Publishing! We've seen some interviews online with the design team here, I am not a big video person myself, having been told once that I had a "face for radio, and a voice for television."

But I digress, in any event, I have here the questions and responses from Chris Lites, who is part of the design team, and his thoughts on where the team wants to go. Chris was extremely responsive, and gracious considering the amount of development time he is putting into the release we hope will be sometime next year! (My thoughts, noone elses, please don't bug FGL about it!)

The interview is below, the questions were either formulated by myself, or submitted by readers. Chris's responses are in italics.

1.     Will Character Generation be limited to Army characters, like in the 1st Edition will it be more diverse like in the 2nd Edition?

You can play military or civilians from the start.

 

2.       Will there be setting sourcebooks that do more modern apocalypses?

I’m not sure what the future holds. We’ve discussed an option that might lead to a contemporary sourcebook...possibly.

 

3.       What can you tell us about the proposed mechanics?

One set of mechanics is a more detailed version of the Year Zero System. It includes a much heavier focus on combat. We are also playtesting an alternate ruleset. I can’t say more now.

 

4.       Have you brought anyone on from the old GDW team?

Marc Miller is involved.

 

5.       How many of you are fans of the game?

I don’t think anyone involved isn’t a fan of the old game. I started playing it in about 1986 as a kid. I was pretty obsessed with all things military. I memorized cyclic rates for NATO and Warsaw Pact small arms at one point. Twilight: 2000 was probably the third game I played after D&D and Recon. It was pretty much designed for kid me.

 

6.     What made you all decide to keep the game in 2000, considering younger players are, well, barely aware of the Cold War and all that came with it?

We kept the game where it is because it’s the most plausible scenario and the one fans are familiar with. I think the idea of apocalypse never gets old. Given our current world, certainly, “the end is nigh” is very much in the air. The specifics of what any causal factor were pale in comparison to what we, as a society, deal with mentally: the aftermath. We were perilously close to apocalypse in the Cold War and find ourselves in a different, longer apocalypse now. One that is multi-causal. However, the effects of a Third World War have most of the trappings of what we’d see if everything that can go wrong now continues to do so. While new players might not get the Cold War sense of doom, I think younger generations can relate to the feeling of a dark cloud over the world. Setting it in a recent era makes it realistic but still a bit escapist.

 

7.       Will you be re-issuing old adventures for the new system?

The old adventures serve as a road map. You’ll see the Poland campaign but, in true sandbox style, we present it in such a way that is can be set in the UK, Germany, Sweden, wherever you want.

 

8.       Miniatures, what scale and whom if anyone, have you approached? Or can you talk on that?

Miniatures have been discussed. I am a huge minis gamer. Nothing is decided. The RPG certainly does not require them.

9.       If there’s one thing you want to tell the fans, what is it?

 I’d tell the fans that I was a huge fan of Twilight: 2000, studied the Cold War as a kid while it was going on and both myself, and Tomas intend to do the old game right while making it mechanically modern.

 

10.    Do you think, with what’s going on in the world now, and the rise again of PA entertainment over the last few decades, has Twilight:2000’s moment in the sun finally come?

I think the current state of the world makes the return of Twilight: 2000 as timely as it was when it appeared in 1984. We live on the edge of a vast unknown, a very likely dark abyss, and it permeates our global culture. If you can turn that experience into an exercise for fun, you might find it cathartic. At least in our game, players have agency. In the real world, as individuals, we are very much subject to the agency of others save when we come together. If we’re going to get out of this era’s looming end times, it’ll require global movements from the people who will suffer the consequences. That said, it is a game at the end of the day and the object is to have fun. But, as a writer, I’m very aware of how close some of the scenarios in the game are to what might happen in the not too distant future. There is, for example, a virus in game as an optional plot thread. I wrote that prior to COVID. I hope other things we’ve put in the game remain conscripted to the land of “might have been.”

So, that is our interview thus far. I plan to do another one, hopefully before the beginning of the kickstarter in August! So, send me your questions care of the blog!

 

In other news, there's been quite a bit coming out via Battlefront Miniatures, including this curious development! 

Image taken from Battlefront Website

 Yes, reader, your eyes do not deceive! LAV-75s in 15mm! Yeah, I know, there must be a T2K player at Battlefront. It's the only explanation. They are due to be released in July, and I do my T2K gaming in 20mm, but I might get some for my 15mm Sci-Fi armies. I'll keep ya posted. 

 In other news, my 20mm projects have been slowly humming along. Well, not so much mainly because I have a literal ton of 15mm projects to work on in the sci fi realm, then some WWII, so I am doing the Twilight: 2000 miniatures projects as I can, when I can. But some progress has been made!

A Revell M2 Bradley, a Trumpeter LAV-25 (third one of these I have built) and a S&S GAZ-66 Flatbed, all in 20mm

Another view of the above pictured.

The completed Elhiem "Cover Stars" pack, along with the HMMWV that goes with. Need to weather the HMMWV, but they're almost ready. Good figures that paint up great.

For future installments, I plan on doing a review of Battlegroup: NORTHAG, and perhaps writing some ideas for T2K for it, as well as reviews of Spectre: Modern Operations, and Contact Front, two newcomers (relatively) on the block for potential T2K Miniature gaming fun. I also plan on showing off some of the moderns I picked up recently second hand, and from Butler's Printed Models. I'm also got an idea to doing some Twilight War orbats for Fistful of TOWs, as well as doing a series on where to get the miniatures! 

News All Around, and a Question to the Readership?

Well, there's much to discuss. First, the Battlefront Team Yankee line is just going strong as usual, and what I am seeing is interesting, namely, Oil War!

Taken from Battlefront Website

It's not just the book which is interesting, it's the product line. Not only do we get Israelis, Iranians, Iraqis, and a host of other stuff (US 9th Division everyone!) but we're getting M1A1's finally! So yes, 15mm players rejoice, no more scratchbuilding required.  We'll stay on this news but I have attached Episode 38 of "No Dice, No Glory" for further details on this release. Thanks to contributor and reader Jorge Del Rio for this big heads up!

Now, let's discuss the big news for the Twilight: 2000 fans in the room. Marc Miller has told us that a V4 is being worked on and a formal announcement about the new version will be made in the fall. 

I am cautiously optimistic regarding a V4. But considering what happened with Twilight: 2013, that caution is akin to Charlie Brown seeing Lucy with that damn football again! 

So here's what I am going to say to Mr. Miller. Please, you have hard core fans who love that game enough to write about it, blog about it and just plain spend their time with it 35 years on! Give it the treatment (and especially the timeline) it deserves. Ask us! Many of us have spilled so many electrons for this game, we'd be willing to do more. And most of us would probably do it for little if any remuneration other than our name in a book or two. 

I know this might very well fall on deaf ears, but it's worth making an appeal. We'd certainly like the old girl given the justice she deserves.

We'll keep you posted, gang!

American Mechanized Forces - A Contribution by a Reader

Editor's Note: Matt has been very kind to provide a couple of "how to" articles on his 15mm Twilight: 2000 armies. May I say I am honored to host them here for the readership!

American Mechanized Forces (ETO) by Matt Weaver-Uzelac

When I design my wargaming armies I try to make them as flexible as possible, so what started out to be elements of the 5th Infantry Division’s Cavalry Troop ended up being much bigger but have so many more options. This philosophy allows me to use the troops and vehicles to represent almost any American unit that a scenario might dictate. All of the units are 15mm in scale and everything is based on magnets. The vehicles are on magnetic sheets cut to size, and the infantry is based on ½ inch round magnetic buttons I found at the Lakeshore teaching store/website (they sell them in a 300 count pack for around $9). Heavy and support weapons as well as sniper teams are based on 1 inch magnetic buttons.

Available Forces (Pictured)

Infantry: I have approximately 60 infantry troopers wearing the 3 color camo pattern worn in Europe during the 1980’s (The type always pictured on the front of the adventures) A large majority of the figures are from Battlefront’s Team Yankee line, but with some Khurasan, Peter Pig and Rebel Minis.

To help Identify individual equipment during the game, I paint the edges of the bases specific colors for support weapons. I paint AT “penetrator” type weapons yellow (the color of RPG rockets in movies). Things that generally cause HE damage (like Grenade Launchers and mortars) I trim the base in red. For high rate-of-fire weapons I paint GW Jokero Orange (the same color I use for the plastic magazines on the AK74 family of weapons), If anyone is carrying a special weapon (like 9mm SMG, Sniper Rifle or shotgun) I paint the base blue. I have additional empty ½ inch bases I have painted blue that I stick to the bottom of the figures base if they need to have a modified weapon during a game. Finally I have Metallic-painted bases that I can stick to the bottom of a figure to designate it as a “Commander” or a Sergeant (something I use to organize my units in game-1 per squad))

Vehicles: My “motor pool” consists of the following vehicles and their makers:
• 2 M113 (Battlefront)

• 1 M106 (Battlefront)

• 1 M163 (Battlefront)

• 1 M109 ITV (Battlefront)

• 1 “LAV-75” (Battlefront body and the turret of an M5 Stuart with a rectangular “main gun.” It doesn’t look much like the pictured LAV-75, but since none of my players know what the prototype looked like, they can’t complain).

• 1 “other” LAV-75 For this one I used the hull of a Battlefront M551 Sheridan with a rigged up turret. Since I made this one I will “Re-convert the other LAV-75 into something else.

• 1 LAV-25 (QRF)

• 1 5-ton Gun Truck (Old Glory-an M113 ACCV mounted on the back of a 5-ton truck)

• 3 M35 2 ½ ton Trucks (Old Glory)

• 3 HMMWV (Khurasan)

• 2 FAV (QRF)

• 1 M2 Bradley (Zvezda-Not Pictured)

• 2 Abrams “Kits” I used the Battlefront M1 kits and built 2 “active” M1 kits with 4 Turrets (1 M1, 2 M1A2, 1 M1A3 and 1 M691 Dana). I use two hulls and just choose the turret for the battle. A third hull I made to look like it was broken down and turned into a checkpoint Bunker. The fourth I left turretless and turned it into an appropriated Training tank with a Mocked up fighting position used by my North American Marauders.

• 1 M728 (well… this one is actually a prototype M60 printed by a friend of mine. He accidentally made it a little too big so he gave it to me. I used some Leman Russ Parts to rig up a damaged crane, and the 165mm Gun and a dozer blade. I painted a smiley face on the front and named her “Happy Homewrecker. “ As I just finished her last week, I haven’t had a chance to have her go into battle.)

• I also have a ton of horses, bikes and motorcycles. I don’t have any actual models (which would be a pain to paint anyway) so I cut half inch wide magnetic strips in to 1 inch lengths and simply spray painted them (brown for horses, chrome for motorcycles and bright red for bicycles). When a model is mounted, I attach the magnetic base to the strip and count it as “riding.” This way if I wanted my units to be from 4-12 Cavalry or any other mounted unit I can.

My pretend LAV-75

The Happy Homewrecker

Delta Team/Convoy Escort Gun Truck

3 of my favorite vehicles in the Game, The HMMWV, The FAV and the M35

Examples of the Color bases

“Look ma…” Magnets are a brilliant idea for your Army (or gang/fleet/team/tribe/crew).

“My Better” LAV-75

M1 AAA Tank

M1A1 (complete with barrel rings) and the M1A2 (remote turret version)

My M1 “kit”