Dragged into Turbolasers 122: Chatting with the creators of Trench Crusade - Mike Franchina

This is the start of a three-part series in which we interview the creators of Trench Crusade. In this first episode, we chat with Mike Franchina, the artist and creator of the world of Trench Crusade!

NOVA Open 2025: Recap

Two Heretic Legionaries created by DOOMGIVER, as seen at NOVA Open 2025.

NOVA Open is a tabletop gaming convention held annually in Washington, D.C. Despite living within an hour of D.C., this year was the first time we attended the convention. We decided to go after realizing how many of our friends were attending, chief among them some friends who helped start 28 magazine (and now Trench Crusade). Ultimately, we did not sign up for any events or classes; instead, we wanted to talk with people and photograph anything that caught our eyes.

Trench Crusade: First Impressions

Cartography of Suffering.

Trench Crusade is a miniature wargame set in a horrifying alternative timeline set around World War I, in which the forces of Hell have been unleashed on Earth. Created by a fantastic team of talented individuals, including artist Mike Franchina (who created the setting), sculptor James Sherriff (who created some of the initial miniatures), and game designer Tuomas Pirinen (the designer of Mordheim), the game has attracted a lot of interest and held two successful Kickstarter campaigns. I have been following the game’s development for the past few years, but just recently played my first game of Trench Crusade! Dave Taylor provided all of the terrain and miniatures for my first game, which was fortunate, as I have yet to paint any models for the setting. I controlled a small New Antioch warband engaging in a skirmish against an Iron Sultanate warband for the game. Perhaps unsurprisingly, Trench Crusade plays very similarly to other popular skirmish games like Necromunda and Mordheim. The game distinguishes itself by using a +/- DICE system that influences how easy or difficult it is to be successful with an action (like successfully hitting a target with a machine gun). Usually, you need to roll a 7+ on 2D6 for an action to be successful. If a + DICE is added to a roll, you roll 3D6 and choose the two highest to determine if the roll is successful. Conversely, if a - DICE is added to a roll, you roll three dice and pick the two lowest to assess the success of the action.

Dragged into Turbolasers 121: Talking about 3D printing

3D printing!

 

In this episode, we chat with our good friend Brad about his recent venture into 3D printing. We talked about why he took the leap to buy a printer and his experience with it. We also discuss some of the indie games the printer has pushed him to start playing!