[Books] Skull Island eXpeditions - initial offerings

Earlier this year the company behind my current favourite wargame made a rather interesting announcement. Privateer Press were going to start their own publishing imprint to release fiction set in their Iron Kingdoms universe, the setting for Warmachine, Hordes, and the IKRPG. Under the name Skull Island eXpeditions (SIX), their plan was to offer both novels and novellas based on all three of those games, exclusively in e-book format (distinct to their deal with Pyre to publish IKRPG novels in paper form), at a release rate of roughly one per month.

I was very excited by this announcement. The 'fluff' in the Warmachine and Hordes books, whilst not the greatest example of creative writing in the world, is very enjoyable. The setting has so much potential for a wide variety of stories that's just waiting to be tapped, and people have been clamouring for fiction in the setting for years.

Games Workshop have had an analogous publishing arm, the Black Library, for a long time now. I've read a lot of the Black Library books, and whilst they're of varying quality they're usually an entertaining read. If you're a fan of the Warhammer settings, then you'll enjoy them for the most part. I was expecting similar things from SIX.

SIX launched at the start of the month with three offerings, one ostensibly based on each of their three main properties. I've now read them all, and have some thoughts to share.

First, some general thoughts. These three are all novellas, and as such are fairly short at roughly 100 to 120 pages. At $4.99 they're not a bad deal, although a dollar cheaper might make them even more attractive. The short length does present some problems for authors in terms of pacing, as it's too long for a short story but not enough for a proper novel; the three released so far deal with this with varying levels of success. It will be interesting to see what the balance of the novellas to novels is going forward.

The Warlock Sagas: Instruments of War (Larry Correia)

This is the 'Hordes' book of the initial release, and it's the first part of a series focusing on different Warlocks from the setting (each book in the Warlock Sagas will feature a different main character). The lead in this book is Makeda, from the Skorne faction, and the book looks at pivotal moments in her rise to leadership of her house.

Cover art from The Instruments of War (Credit: pinsofwar.com)

The story is fairly compelling, and give some very interesting insights into the Skorne caste system, and Skorne society. I certainly came away from the book with a new perspective on the Skorne as a race. It was interesting to see the conflict between different aspects of their society; it seems to be essentially built in at some level, although the contrast between traditionalists such as Makeda and those with a looser interpretation of the warrior code was stark. On the other hand, although the author made a good job of making Makeda sympathetic and and her actions understandable from her point of view, I still struggled with the sheer magnitude of the difference between Skorne culture and our own.

Exiles in Arms: Moving Targets (C L Werner)

This novella seems to be the first in a series following a pair of prominent IKRPG characters: Rutger Shaw, and Taryn di la Rovissi. They've featured on the cover of both editions of the game, and have even made their way into Warmachine.

Cover art from Moving Targets (Credit: skullislandx.com)

Sadly I didn't think much of this one. Not that it was bad really, just unimaginative. It very much reminded me of the usual Warmachine 'fluff' - a series of encounters tied together with a storyline that serves only to move the protagonists from one fight to another. The fight scenes were well written, but the using the same 3 part structure as Instruments of War seemed a little forced.

There were some interesting plot threads brought up though that could have an impact on the general Iron Kingdoms storyline, so I'm looking forward to seeing how those develop.

Dogs of War: The Devil's Pay (Dave Gross)

This was my favourite of the three by far. It follows the Devil Dogs, one of the Mercenary units from Warmachine, as they hunt down a mysterious warjack. They're a unit that you don't see much of on the  table, so it was interesting to see them as the focus of a novella. After reading it I'm seriously tempted to buy and paint the models.

Cover art from The Devils' Pay (Credit: pinsofwar.com)

What I loved about this story was the fact that although there was some combat in the book, it wasn't the focus. Instead, the book mostly seemed to be about the experience of being part of a mercenary company, the interactions between the different members, and the development of the main point of view character. It was engaging and funny, and full of nice touches that gave me a good idea of what life for these people was like.

The other draw was, of course, the hints at and first glimpse of the new faction, the Convergence of Cyriss. There was enough to get me interested, and there's apparently a full novel coming out that follows on from this novella. I may well pick it up.



So there you go. The initial offerings from SIX make me hopeful for future releases. I stand by my comment that they won't be the best literature in the world, but if these three are anything to go by they'll certainly be as enjoyable as I was hoping for.