The next Frostgrave expansion will be The Wildwoods, coming in June, according to a blog post released by publisher Osprey on Wednesday. The UK game publisher revealed the expansion for the fantasy skirmish wargame alongside expansions for sci-fi wargame Stargrave and gothic horror wargame The Silver Bayonet – all three games come from designer Joseph A. McCullough.
The base game of Frostgrave sees bands of wizards and their servants hunting treasure in the ruins of the Frozen City, but Osprey says that the expansion will bring “rules for running expeditions in search of secret places and forgotten treasures in the dark Wildwoods”.
Players can expect “new soldiers and magic items”, but must contend with “dwindling supplies, the hostile environment, and terrifying new creatures”, plus new scenarios, according to the blog post.
Two expansions are incoming for Frostgrave’s sci-fi game sister game Stargrave. The first, Side Hustle, will be available in March. The article explains that this expansion is a deck of cards rather than a book: each card contains a mission parameter and a reward, with each player picking one at random to give them a different, and potentially secret, objective for the mission.
These are a little like the Open War cards for Warhammer 40k, or the random scenario generation tables from the venerable Rogue Trader.
‘Bold Endeavour’ is slated for an October release in the UK and January 2024 in the US. Osprey’s blog says that this will take Stargrave crews to a location where the known laws of physics don’t apply – whereas previous expansions borrowed themes from Aliens and Star Wars, this one might be somewhere between Star Trek and Roadside Picnic.
The Silver Bayonet: A Wargame of Napoleonic Gothic Horror will gain two narrative campaigns in May in ‘The Carpathians: Castle Fier’. According to the blog post, the book contains a co-operative and a competitive campaign, allowing one or more players to explore a haunted castle in the Carpathian mountains with their warbands of Napoleonic soldiers.
Joe McCullough games always come with plenty of excuses to use the strange DnD miniatures, and these expansions are sure to give you a reason to get painting miniatures from all sorts of sources.
If you’re looking for inspiration on other wargames away from the beaten path, check our guide to the best miniature wargames. If you like the idea of mashing up Napoleonics with gothic horror, try Turnip28, a game we’d call Warhammer with root vegetables.