Some of my fondest gaming moments are the years I spent playing the various editions of Warhammer (Fantasy and 40k) before moving down to the Los Angeles area. My friends and I would meet every week to do battle with our half-painted (or at least all "primed") armies for hours on end. We were devoted fans who not only played the "hard core" miniature battles games, but also most of the "Specialist" games released by Games Workshop in support of their war games.
Games Workshop was, and pretty much still is, on a rotating schedule of providing a new rules edition for their war games every 3 years or so. During the year prior to a new rules release, they would roll out a Specialist game that covered a related theme. If a new edition of 40k was coming out, we'd see "Gorkamorka." If a new edition of Warhammer Fantasy was around the corner, we'd see "Mordheim." It was great fun.
In the late 80s and early 90s, Games Workshop teamed up with Milton Bradley to create a couple mainstream adaptations of their signature games. For Fantasy, those games were Heroquest and Battle Masters. I own both of these games and they are prized possessions that have provided many an hour of entertainment.
Sadly, as passionate as I was about these games, I somehow missed out on Space Crusade. Space Crusade is a popular market adaptation of Games Workshop's signature Specialist game Space Hulk. I say adaptation, but the more I look at it the more it looks like an "improvement." I desperately would love to get my hands on a copy, but alas and alack they are rare and expensive. When I see the components, I can see why. Unlike Space Hulk which focuses solely on the conflict between Space Marines and Tyranids (Genestealers), the Space Crusade game includes Orks, Eldar, and crazed Androids who look suspiciously like Necrons to the mix.
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