31 December 2015

Out with the old...

And in with the new!

In all honesty, 2015 was a mixed bag as far as this hobby.  Maybe, even a bit toward the negative in some ways.

For some reason, this year saw many difficulties with ordering stuff on-line.  Late orders, incomplete orders, even one order that has gone completely missing since five months ago.  Some were excellent, On Military Matters and Warbases come to mind.  But, more miss than hit.

I did not get to any shows this year, which is unfortunately a common theme now, but I still want to get back into the swing of things.

No gaming, either, with the exception of playtesting Galleys & Galleons.  And few completed miniatures, not enough for some good gaming.

But, gears have been grinding and decisions have been made.

The first step will be to catalog and begin selling down the hobby mountain - lead, plastic, and paper.  I have books, board games, rules, miniatures, and model kits that I have hoarded for years that need to go, and I could use the funds for other projects.  I intend to start by listing items here, then on some of the various game forums.  There is a wide variety of items - stay tuned!

The second step might seem counter-productive to reaching the goal of getting enough miniatures painted up for gaming, but I am re-organizing the project list.  The hypothesis that is running through my mind is one where new projects might be enough of a spark to get them completed.

The Mesoamerican project will continue to grow.  I am quite fascinated with the era and location, and my lovely wife is also.  I am thinking that there will be less emphasis on the Conquistador angle, however.

One of the new projects is the French & Indian War.  My lovely wife has been hinting at this for some time, and it is finally time to do something about it.  The intention is to start small, and work my way up.  Rules have been procured already, with Song of Drums & Tomahawks and Muskets & Tomahawks here and waiting.  The first miniatures will be selected soon, after funding is finalized.

Another new project that is waiting on the wings is from an era that I thought that I would never work on again, and that is land combat in the 20th century.  WW2 gaming was really popular with my old group when I lived in Spokane, but my interest in it waned, until just recently.  But, of course, this will be something slightly different.  

Other projects will be around, especially Tékumel, but will not have the same focus.  Tékumel, especially, is a long-term project where the finish line is far into the distance.  Others will be worked on as my attention span and spare time allow...

But, enough text for now.  More later, including pics.




Happy New Year!


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30 December 2015

The year that was...

And that year was an almost complete miss for any sort of naval activities here.



After a promising start with Galleys & Galleons, hobby-wise my naval activities just fell flat.  I'm not certain why.  But, my lovely wife has pointed out a few details, and I am getting ready to try again.  She commented on an issue that did not really click until recently - scale.  In her opinion, the miniatures are just too small and that might be a source of friction.  So, I am going to dig out the 1/600 ancient ships again and see if I can plug them into their original purpose as ships for Tékumel gaming.  Galleys & Galleons will be a perfect set of rules for them.



As a back-up plan, I have placed a small order for some 1/1800 ships from War Times Journal, but with my luck the order has fallen afoul with technical difficulties on the production end.  I look forward to their arrival - just a bit more patience.



And, if you are curious as to my other gaming pursuits, please take a look at Pewter-Pixel Wars.











Happy New Year all!

19 December 2015

And, back

A brief but intense flurry of work-related issues put a damper on hobby-related goings on here, but with the coming of the usual Christmas slowdown I should be able to get back on track.

The lack of 'doing' has brought on more 'thinking' about my projects, past, current, and future.  Sometimes I despise having time to think too long at projects, as I always find a fault or three and pine for something different.  But, it is just a hobby (so I'm told!) for me at least, so some re-organization is due.  Projects are going to get shifted, along with priorities but it should lead down a path for actual gaming to occur (finally).

More thoughts - and pics! - later on...


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