Thon – or THON – is a new sci-fi game. It will premier on Kickstarter later this year. The setting tells of the conflict between the name-giving Thonians and their Ordhren enemies. Thon will allow players to take on this conflict not only in one, but three distinct games. It is a bold project, bound to break the mould of current miniature wargames. The people behind Thon the Game were kind enough to answer me a few questions.
The Background of Thon
To start off, a bit of the background on the world of Thon.
The name of the setting comes from the fortress world of Thon. Here, two factions are at war. Described as nimble and diplomatic, the Thonians are cast in the general role of the good guys. The game evidently gets its name from them. The Thonians defend their fortress of a home world against the ruthless Ordhren.
Background
Thon is a Starlight System: a massive artificial planet and completely self-sufficient fortress-world created with one purpose: the protection of its inhabitants, both living on its surface and entombed within its Soul Core.THON is a fast paced tactical wargame for two or more players, pitting the Starlight defending Thonians against the mighty terraforming Sons of Ord. [...]
THON: The Game puts the player in control as the Commander or Overlord of one of two primary factions; The sleek, political and nimble Thonians and the rugged and ruthless terraforming Ordhren.
Check out the Concept Art for the Ordhren Forgemaster and for the Ordhren Legion above the planet of Gengar below:
Ordhren Forgemasters are extremely unique Overlords. Each carries a Flash Production Drive (FPD) built into their body allowing them to instantly convert battlefield scrap and ores into combat-ready units.
Megallis, Capital of Gengar
I really like the look of this, both for the characters and for the setting. I hope those clean lines will translate into the eventual miniatures. The book surely will be a nice treat to read.
Thon the Game – or better Thon the Games!
As seen in the quote above, Thon is “a fast paced tactical wargame for two or more players“. So far so good. For a bit more information on the gameplay I visited the Thon-Facebook page, where I found a few more enticing features (and pictures):
-Three games in one; Versus, Narrative RPG, and Casual Multiplayer
-Truly interactive turns
-Powerful Commanders and Overlords buff your units at any time.
-Dynamic cover and environments
-Fast paced, tactical combat
-THON uses a simple and elegant D6 system
-28mm scale
It is clear that this is a 28mm wargame (including some impressive concept art for mechs, suits and vehicles).
However, the line about “three games in one“ intrigued me the most, not least because I recently made some general observations about the “comeback of RPGs” in the miniature wargaming niche.
I decided to fire off an email to the people behind “Thon: the Game” and ask them some questions on…
- The three-games-in-one and their plans for the “Narrative RPG” and the “Casual Multiplayer” that will come with the tactical wargame.
- Their plans for publishing the game.
- A preview of how all those sinister vehicles featuring in the concept art will by played in the game.
Email-Interview with the developers behind Thon the Game
Here is the short, yet informative email-response I received from them. Many thanks!
Zweischneid: Your Facebook page notes the game will be “Three games in one; Versus, Narrative RPG, and Casual Multiplayer”. How will these three games work?
Tyrian from Thon: “Versus” is your standard head-to-head battle. Games last about 40 minutes to 1 Hour. Players alternate Move, Move, Shoot, Shoot (or move again), followed by Combat. Commanders and Overlords can buff units at any time, but only once per turn. They well be able to increasing movement, help with shooting and many other unique options. Calling in orbital support, for example.
“Narrative” is more your typical Pen and Paper RPG setting with a GM (called a Lar) and any number of players playing cooperatively to meet a goal. It includes more stats (seven total), more classes, character creation, currency and an expanded armory, to name just a few examples.
The “multiplayer game” is called ’SCOMA’ (Self-Contained Mobile Armor) and is the most casual of all. It is a design-your-own free-for-all. Players decide on an experience pool and build a character using those points. With these, players battle it out in a PvP arena and the winner buys beers 
There is a grid included that lists all relevant skills, their in-game effects and weapon/equipment, stat costs.
Zweischneid: I saw you already have “prototypes” of your pocket rulebook. Do you already have a timetable for when it will be available?
Tyrian from Thon: The pocket rulebook will ship with the boxed set, provided the project gets funded. We will have a Kickstarter. ETA is mid-October this year. It’s coming up! I will also have more copies available on our website for purchase. Personally, I always like to have versions of my games on my nightstand, in my car, one in model bag, etc.
MSRP will be about 8-10 US$.
Zweischneid: Your concept art features lots of “mechs”, large “suits”, mining vehicles and flying drones. Can you tell me how you approach “vehicle-combat” and what role these vehicles will play in the game?
Tyrian from Thon: Vehicles in Thon are brutal warmachines. All units use a form of Hit Point system called Armor Points. The higher the value, the sturdier the vehicle. The Thonian Gunship (still in concept phase) is also considered Airborne. This means it can be shot at by any unit, but only Engaged! by other Airborne units, namely the Ordhren ARC Drone.
Imagine, if you will, the larger Gunship coming under attack by a swarm of ARC that attach to the hull and begin to cut away with mini-saws and plasma cutters. It’s a grisly fate for the gunship and even worse for anyone inside!
ARC Prototype for Thon the Game
Once again, many thanks to the guys from Thon the Game for the quick and thorough response. This is a game I will be watching and I am looking forward to the upcoming Kickstarter!
Do you like what you’ve seen from Thon the Game?
Share your opinion in the comments below!
Z.
Thon Prototype
Update: Thon the Game also now released a picture of their first prototype model on their blog.
It’s a model of the Thonian Leader Vakon. Pretty awesome mini!
About Zweischneid
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