I Hit a Vein!
New Showdowns & Shootouts adventure released
Nov. 12, 2008

There's gold in them thar hills… and unfortunately, everyone knows where it is! Old man Clem N. Tine lives out in the hills with his daughter where they kept to themselves. That is until the day a sudden rain revealed the opening to a cave just chock full of the richest deposits of gold in these parts. Clem's brought in guards from the "Tough Luck Mining Company" to protect his fortune, but unfortunately, a group of thieves known as "The Band'its" have gotten word of the strike and are heading to the cave to jump that claim. The race is on to find out who will get the gold and who will wind up in an early grave.

Get on over to the Gutshot: Showdowns & Shootouts winners page and download the 10th Wild West adventure in Hawgleg Publishing's long-running contest. This winning adventure is by their old buddy, Dion Duran.

"I'm honored! It was totally unexpected. I got the idea from watching Dr. Quinn, Medicine Woman. I love that series. There were several shows about hidden caves, mining operations, and people finding nuggets, so I did some research on it and found dates and regions which had activity," Dion said when he learned the good news.

To do full justice to Dion's inspired contest submission, the Hawgleg posse pulled out some special beta rules they had been working with to handle the underground mayhem and greed that this adventure calls for.

"The nugget tokens, torches, and special encumbrance rules had been playtested for our upcoming game, Gutshot: Night of the Living Deadwood," said game co-creator Mike Mitchell. "Even though this game is set soundly in the world of the living, those rules really helped add a special touch to this game."

Even though the rules and guidelines printed in this adventure are still in the beta stage, Hawgleg partner Paul Mauer said they are still fairly polished and almost ready for release.

"We have been working on Deadwood for a long time now. So the new material in this game is almost ready for publication," Paul said. "There are a few things that still need work, but for the most part this stuff is good to go."

In addition to the new rules, this adventure also presents another first. Since this game takes place partly underground in a mine complex, Hawgleg has created a full-size printable underground mine complex. Split into separate sheets that can be printed on a standard inkjet or color printer, the mine complex stretches more than 18 x 25 inches, spread across 9 sheets of paper.

"You don't have to print out this map to play this game," Paul explained.  "You can use a dry-erase game mat, or make your own.  Just do whatever is easier for you."

Back in the saddle after Hurricane Ike

This adventure marks the first significant release from Hawgleg Publishing after it had shut down in September because of damage incurred during Hurricane Ike.  "We were very blessed that no one in our family was injured during the storm," Mitchell said. "But it was still a significant disruption in our lives and schedules, and we're just now starting to get back on track after two months." The team is back at work and is trying to complete the remaining adventures in this contest by the end of the year.

"We want to have everything completed by the end of the year and then open voting so we can award all the prizes in early 2009," Mitchell said.

Thanks to our sponsors and previous winners

As with previous winners, Dion is eligible to win part of the more than $500 in prizes, graciously provided by the contest sponsors:

• Arnica Real Estate
• Knuckleduster
• Scale Creep Miniatures
• Whitewash City
• Hotz Game Mats 

The adventure is available for free download from the contest Winner's Page: www.hawgleg.com/2007_contest_winner.asp So far, the winner's circle includes: Al Theobald, Ross Edwards, Carmen Cerra, Dan Hash, Lance Gamble, Richard Nelson, Tom Reed and Andrew Collins and Carmen Cerra, Dion Duran. In addition to the indescribable thrill and glory of having their names attached to a Hawgleg product, each winner will receive a limited edition ‘La Vaquera’ miniature. Check out the full prize list on the Contest Page.

The contest is currently closed to new submissions.

Special thanks to this adventure's featured sponsor:
Scale Creep Miniatures

We Remember
To all Veterans, we say 'Thank you'
Nov. 11, 2008

In Flanders fields the poppies blow
Between the crosses row on row,
That mark our place; and in the sky
The larks, still bravely singing, fly
Scarce heard amid the guns below.

We are the Dead. Short days ago
We lived, felt dawn, saw sunset glow,
Loved and were loved, and now we lie
In Flanders fields.

Take up our quarrel with the foe:
To you from failing hands we throw
The torch; be yours to hold it high.
If ye break faith with us who die
We shall not sleep, though poppies grow
In Flanders fields.

-- Lieutenant Colonel John McCrae, MD
Canadian Army, 1915

For the story behind this poem, please visit: http://www.arlingtoncemetery.net/flanders.htm
And, at Wikipedia: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/In_Flanders_Fields

Hawgleg reopens after Hurricane Ike
It's time to get Gutshot (again)!
Oct. 22, 2008 -- Houston, Texas

SMACK DOWN!  Sawdust and kindling are mostly what remain of this corner of the Mitchell's garage after one of four trees hit their house during Hurricane Ike.

After spending more than half a month in the dark and hauling away more than two tons of debris, Hawgleg Publishing is ready to resume operations in the wake of Hurricane Ike. The hurricane force winds struck the home of Gutshot co-creator Mike Mitchell in the wee hours of Saturday, Sept. 13, 2008. As the storm rampaged through South Texas, it knocked down power lines, ripped shingles off roofs, tore up businesses, tossed trees around like they were kindling, and disrupted the lives of millions of people.

"Compared to our neighbors, we got off very lightly," Mitchell said. "The neighbors to our left were struck by a tree which destroyed three rooms on their upper floor. The only rooms it didn't hit were the one they were sleeping in and their bathroom. I saw how hard the tree hit and how far down into the rooms it went. Honestly, if it had hit their bedroom I think they would have been killed in their sleep. As it is, they've moved out and do not plan on returning."

A quick drive through the neighborhood showed several houses that were severely damaged; a few beyond repair. The Mitchells, in comparison, did get off lightly… but they didn't get off completely. One large tree landed on the house, another crushed the corner of their garage (damaging the garage door and trapping their cars inside), another struck the back porch causing moderate damage, and yet another snapped off into the pool.

"When you look at the pattern of the damage, it makes us think we got hit by a small tornado," said Mitchell's wife, Donna. "I don't think it touched down, but the way some of the trees are twisted around, it makes you wonder."

Tornado or just hurricane-force winds, Ike left damage in his path.

"The roof will have to be replaced," Mitchell said. He also commented that the corner of the garage was crushed, the back of the detached garage suffered damage and leaking which tore up the roof to an attached storage building, as well as other damage, including a power surge that fried some electronics equipment in the house.

A tree removal service estimated that they hauled off at least two tons of wood from the house; possibly more.

On the road: Leaving Ike Behind

After four days sitting in a dark house, with just a pair of battery-operated fans and a camp TV to provide news of the devastation, the Mitchells left town for a scheduled trip to East Texas.

"My youngest brother was getting married the Saturday after the storm, and there was no way we were going to miss it," Mitchell said. "Fortunately we had our reservations in place, so we had a place to stay when we got there."

Mitchell has summarized some of the highlights of that trip in his new blog, which can be read here. When they returned, they stayed with his in-laws, who had just gotten their power back on the previous day.

Reconstruction in the area was slow. Talks to electrical crews working in the area revealed that this area, an older neighborhood with established growth, had so many trees down that it would be slow going to cut up the fallen trees and restore power.

All in all, the Mitchells were without power for 16 days, and have spent a significant amount of time since then trying to get their lives back in order.  After one month, though, Mitchell said he is pleased that he can finally devote some of his time back to Hawgleg Publishing.

Back in the saddle again!

"I am back at work, filling orders and starting to resume work on the various projects that were scheduled before Ike struck," Mitchell said. "However, this disaster will have a long-reaching effect on our production schedule for the rest of this year, and into next year, as well."

Part of the reason is the disruption itself, and the other part stems from the fact that Mitchell will need to focus more time on repairs and rebuilding, which will force him to shift his attention away from Gutshot, Arnica Real Estate, and Gutshot: Night of the Living Deadwood.

Even though both partners, Mike Murphy and Paul Mauer, have stepped up and are working harder than ever, the fact remains that we're going to fall 3-6 months behind on some release dates.

"Right now, my priorities must be focused on my house and family, Mitchell explained. "It's regrettable, but there's nothing we can do about it."

For now, though, the three partners are focusing on the positive.

"The good thing is that Mike and Donna are both fine. They're rebuilding and Mike is back at work filling orders, finishing the Showdowns & Shootouts contest, and is working on a new book and even a few surprises," Paul said.

Murphy echoed those sentiments, and added that despite the Hurricane, the company was never completely offline.

"I was using TheMiniaturesPage.com and other forums to keep people abreast of the news from ground zero, and Paul was on hand to handle shipping emergency orders, or to handle other production emergencies," Murphy said.

"Many people contacted us, and even offered to let us stay with them while we were out of power," Mitchell said. "One thing that touched me especially was that one of the first Gutshot playtesters, a nice guy by the name of Austin, took the time to track down my phone number and find out how I was doing.  That really touched me a lot. To him, and everyone, my wife and I just want to say thank you."

Specific news on release dates and product availability will be released at the Hawgleg Website and theminiaturespage.com as it becomes available.