Hey all…today seems to be the day of posts! I thought it would be fun to interview Aaron aka Blokhead. He’s been doing the English translations from the French work that Rackham has been doing for their recent Army books. He’s also a Sentinel and I have emailed him back and forth a few times and can say he’s a good guy. I for one and excited to see his work on the Cogs book. Unfortunately the original rule book has a few translation errors or oddities (Not Aaron’s work). From what I’ve seen from his work, that should be a problem of the past! So here is the interview. You’ll note some interesting tidbits. I must say I was surprised by a few of his answers.

EDIT…these are updated answers.

1. How did you become the official English language translator for Rackham E?

I played Warhammer 40k for about a decade. I grew tired of what we (in my gaming circle) described as “first turn victory”. Still, I liked the game, but I didn’t love it anymore. I found myself being drawn in more and more by the fluff, and not necessarily the game itself. I really enjoyed the fluff and began reading through many of the novels starting with Gaunt’s Ghosts, a few Dark Angels novels, and then moving into the Horus Heresy series (I absolutely love Dan Abnett’s work).

Being a father of two small boys (at that time, 1 1/2 and a newborn) I didn’t have time to commit to painting and modeling any more. So, I decided to give pre-painted miniatures a try. I was much happier to see painted miniatures being used on the gaming table instead of the Gray or Black primer colored miniatures I had seen proliferating the 40k gaming tables.

Why did I write all of this…? Well, the past is a good indication of why I decided to do what I did with Rackham.

As I do with most things, I “dove in head first”.  I read through the books, and discovered that I really enjoyed the AT-43 universe. Still, there was one thing that bothered me…

So, I contacted Jean Bey and mentioned that I really enjoyed Rackham’s games (AT-43 and Confrontation: The Age of the Rag’narok/CAoR), and that I liked what Rackham was doing.  I mentioned I had become a fan of their games, and that even though I was a new player, I really wished to see them succeed as a company. Yet, there was one aspect of their games I really didn’t like: how the fluff read. Now, it isn’t that I didn’t like what was in the fluff, as I really do think that Rackham has created beautiful and intriguing universes, but the fluff itself was difficult to read. The manner in which the books were written was not conducive to “easy reading” and I found that it really detracted from the wonderful stories and background.

So, I offered to assist Rackham, as a gesture of good will. Since doing so, I have translated press releases, Army Box text, Cry Havoc Online, Cog and ONI Army Book text (AT-43), RAM Army Book text (CAoR), Rush ‘N Crush rules, scenarios/missions, emails, etc.

2. What was the first thing you translated? What straight forward, or challenging?

The very first thing I was given as a test bed was the first eight documents in the Cog Army Book. Jean Bey sent them to me, and within about two weeks I had returned them. He gave me the fluffy parts of the book, and I really don’t think he trusted me with the rules. I can’t blame him, but to tell you the truth, I was very surprised he even gave me the chance.

We had an early conversation that went something like this (clipped):

Aaron: “What kind of liberty am I being given as far as translation goes?”

Jean Bey: “The most important thing for us is that the sentences aren’t a factual translated but immerge the player in the universe like if it was originally write in English (not like I write English).”

Obviously Jean thought the English grammar could be improved on, and he was happy to have someone who was a native English speaker and reader work on the book. So, I began my work. It took me about 2 weeks to finish the first 8 “parts” of the Cog Army Book.

I sent a reply email to Jean, eagerly awaiting his reply. The response made me VERY excited: “I’ve just finished reading your translation and it’s simply excellent. I can’t wait to read the rest.”

And, as “they” say, the rest is history…

3. How long have you spoken/written in French? What made you learn?

You are probably going to have a heart attack, but I do neither. I can read a small amount of French, more German than French, but I am very good at understanding bastardizations of English. What I mean by this is a sentence may read one thing when ran through an electronic translator, but it takes a true understanding of the language being translated INTO and the language being translated FROM in order to understand the meaning and intent behind the text. I have always had a knack for understanding those who use English as a second language; I have no problem comprehending the intent behind.

Otherwise, translators (the human kinds) wouldn’t need jobs as electronic translators would replace them. As to how I do it, well, that is a secret.

4. How much time are you given on a translation project? Are your deadlines pushed out when the release date gets changed?

I am typically given a month to two months for Army Books, and less time for smaller projects…mostly to accommodate my schedule (I am a Computer Engineer). I have had a few “I need these yesterday” type issues, but for the most part Rackham is very good at giving me ample time to do the work.

My deadlines remain the same even if a release gets pushed back. Typically, the releases being pushed back have nothing to due with translation.

5. Have you been responsible for any of the delays?

I am glad to admit that I have not. The only real bind I have been in was with the Rush ‘N Crush documentation. I was given the raw text the weekend before Mother’s Day, and thought I would have time to finish it. I had to push my deadline back by two days due to some unfortunate life issues. Rackham was very understanding of my situation, and everything went smoothly after that.

6. What are you working on right now?

I just finished the ONI Army Book (AT-43) as a “first pass” translation. The next step is to do a final polishing of it prior to the end of the month (June). I am also in the middle of the RAM Army Book for CAoR, just finished the Tarascus rules for CAoR, and am working on a few other side projects.  I am working on all of this in addition to my “real life”.

7. Can you share any information about your current project?

Both ONI and RAM Army Books are going to introduce new game mechanics to their respective games. ONI looks like a fun army: zombies and corporate greed. For a lack of a better example, imagine Umbrella Corp. from the Resident Evil series. Loving everything Undead, I am very excited for the release of the RAM army…zombies ‘n’ skeletons ‘n’ wamphyrs, oh my! The creation and mechanics for this army’s units is very different from the released armies.  I think the in-game dynamics that this will generate should make for interesting army builds. I am sorry, I really am not allowed to elaborate much more than this.

8. What do you see as the future of AT-43? Confrontation?

Wow, that is a tough question.

AT-43 seems to me to be Rackham’s hot selling item at the moment, and I believe even more players will take a look at Rackham as a contender in the table-top wargaming industry once the Army Boxes are released. I think the Krygs and the unknown 8th army should cap off their universe nicely. After this, a revision of the rules and constantly updated errata are in desperate need. I am hoping to be a part of the revised rulebook, and I would like to join up as a play tester at some point (as long as my schedule permits).

For CAoR, there are going to be 12 armies (or is it 15, I forget). For each of those armies, there will be 2 Army Books. So, that is either 24 or 30 Army Books. Currently, Rackham has produced 4 (Griffon: Temple, Lion: Lahnars, Wolf: Wolfen:, and Scorpion: Dirz) with 1 in the works (Ram: undisclosed). I have noticed serious decline in Confrontation players in my area, and I really wish it wasn’t so. I believe Rackham needs to do a little more “personal relations” work to get CAoR back on the map and to appeal to the Confrontation 3/3.5 players.  I truly believe the Army Boxes will help tremendously in this regard.  Still, this game won’t see the last army released for a long time. This fact alone has dismayed certain players in my area from starting armies because the armies they enjoy may not be released for years to come.  Ultimately, this may be the game’s demise. So, to Rackham’s credit, they have been releasing miniatures from each army to maintain customer interest.

The company knows what direction they want to go in, and I believe that (so far) Rackham is doing a decent job at getting product out (especially for just having come out of bankruptcy). Yet I, as well as many other players, believe Rackham desperately needs to increase their communication with the end customer. Information leaks, works-in-process, etc., are not detrimental and can provide customers with the necessary “teasers” to keep interest in the products high.  If Rackham can keep customer interest in their games, I think the company will be around for a long, long time.

He adds at the end this:

I have to tell you that I am not the only one working on the books. There is a group of guys who help me by proofreading my translations, and they should get just as much credit for the final outcome of the book as I get. I translate and proofread, and they find my mistakes (yes, I know, I am not perfect). So, Jon, Grant, Kenton, and Jez…thanks a million!

Thanks for your time Aaron!  I really appreciate it.

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