Wednesday Weekly # 11 – Slow Week!

Happy Wednesday All!

It has been a fairly slow week, hobby wise, so I will just talk a bit about what I was about to do in my free time!

This weekend, my Wife and I traveled to Montana to see family and to go for a "fun" run for St. Patty's Day. There was some drinking, some running, some horseshoes, and even some swimming.

Needless to say, it was a great, fairly relaxing weekend. And I actually love driving on these long trips because it enables me to listen to my books. I am currently on book 11 of the Wheel of Time series, so I got to put a decent dent in that.

For those interested, I did 3 miles in 22:10, which would put me well on pace to do a 3.1 in 22:30. Puts me at just under a 7:30 mile pace... for 3 miles. Happy about that, that’s for sure. And it was my fastest time since I was a junior in high school. I would love to keep training, and get into the sub-20 3.1 mark, but that will definitely take some time.

 

On Monday, I got rolling in some War Thunder for the first time in several months... Man, I miss that game. I will make a post about that game in the near future, but needless to say, I love that game. A buddy and I were rolling out the new British Tanks, and I have some tactics I need to learn to be effective.

Also, yesterday was the weekly Game night with my buddies, so we did get to rock out the last of a pathfinder campaign I started last week.

Thank you!

Have a great rest of your week!

-Rob-

Fun Friday # 10 – May the Combo Be With You

Happy Friday everyone!

For this week's fun Friday, I wanted to talk about a card game that is near and dear to my heart... Magic the Gathering. As many of you have played, and are experienced with, Magic the Gathering, I am not going to talk about basic rules. What I am going to talk about... are some nasty combos that I have discovered through my investigations of the game. I am going to start out with a few combos I myself have in deck form... then I am going to talk about some combos that are so crazy, so cheesy, that I will never subject my friends to face them in a competitive format. I like to win, but I am not that much of an Ass. Though some may tell you otherwise.

Ok! Some combos that I have rolling... Starting with my first, which is not optimized, but it still competitive in the format. One of my main decks right now is a Heroic Counter combo deck, which utilizes small creatures with the heroic mechanic to blast out huge creature quickly. I am running it as a Green/White deck, though I am putting thought into splashing a bit of blue into the deck as well. One of the key pieces to the deck is a card called Hardened Scales. Because of the cost, and the effect of that card, I can drop one, maybe even two by turn 2, with a creature, and by turn 3 have a creature that is already being bumped up toward lethal. Pivotal Cards below. 

The second Combo deck that I want to cover is actually a commander deck, with Kaalia of The Vast as the commander. This combo is meant to be a turn 4 option for the kill, though because of the nature of commander, I have only gotten it to go off once, and it has to be the right circumstance. You need to be able to bring out Kaalia by turn 3, which is possible, and swing with her on turn 4. Drop Master of Cruelties onto the field attacking with Kaalia, and if they cannot block, they lose the game.

The last combo I wanted to talk about is truly ridiculous... a student at the school I work at was telling me about it... actually showed me the deck itself. Starts like this... play a Gemstone Cavern before the game begins. Strange, I know, but I will include the cards for your perusal. Discard either Elven Spirit Guide or Simian Spirit Guide from your hand, then play Flash. Play Protean Hulk from your hand... then let it promptly die. Search your library for 4 Disciples of the vault, 1 carrion feeder, and play the 12 (!) X cost artifacts from your library.  They die because they have no toughness... Ready for this? Opponent takes 48 damage, loses the game before they even get to go. On their turn. When they are playing first.

…

Only play this deck if you really want no one to ever play with you again.

Stupid.

I was speechless.

It should be important to note that Flash has been banned, so this deck would not work competitively. But in a casual game.... Holy Hell

Know of any cool combos you would like to share?

Thank you for reading!

-Rob-

Fun Friday # 8 – Holy Heck, X-Com 2!

Happy Friday Everyone!

Hope everyone is feeling good, gearing up for a weekend!

For this Friday, I am going to talk about the game I have been playing the heck out of.... X-Com 2.

30 hours in, and going strong. Heck, I haven't even beat it yet. I am just enjoying it, playing though and enjoying myself.

Before anything, let's talk about what X-com actually is. X-Com is a series of games revolving around alien invasion. It involves fighting off waves of baddy aliens who are gross, and bad, and clearly want to enslave the world. You are responsible for stopping them, and pushing them off earth.

I got my start in X-Com: Enemy Unknown... and it was a whole new thing to me. Enemy Unknown was the reboot of the original series, and was a turn based tactical squad game. There were also some base management mechanics, but the game itself was all about the tactical turn based gameplay. I put hours and hours into this game, struggling to get the right combination to ease my path to victory. It can be a very unforgiving game, but when you get that victory it is so sweet.

 

Now, X-Com 2 is an awesome continuation to this series. Many of the mechanics are similar, but there are a ton of tweaks that completely change the way the game is played. Keeping your squad in cover and in concealment is extremely important. Also, the enemies in X-Com 2 are particularly unforgiving... made worse by the armor mechanic, which reduced the amount of damage you are doing.

To make things even worse, there is a count-down timer till the end game... so if you do not interact with the main story enough, you can lose the game straight out. The trick is, of course, to let it get close, before doing something to reduce the time.

I would highly recommend this game to anyone who is interested in turn based games, squad tactical games, shooting aliens in the face games, or even just games where you get to sneak around and break things.

This is the type of game I will be playing for years to come.

And with that.... have a great weekend everyone!

Thank you!

-Rob-

Fun Friday # 7 – Magic the Gathering, and the many ways to play

Hi there everyone! 

Happy Friday! 

So for today's Fun Friday, I decided I wanted to talk about something that is near and dear to my heart... Magic the Gathering.  

I have been playing magic for only about 5 years now, but I really took to it quickly. I have built a solid friend base that plays with me on a fairly regular basis, as does my beautiful wife. Now, For this Fun Friday, I decided that I am going to talk about the different formats of magic. There are several different formats, each with a different feel and flow to them.  

The first format I want to cover is Modern. The Modern Format covers all cards from 8th edition on, and as a general rule is the most casual of the formats. There are banned cards, but those only really matter in a tournament setting. I really like playing this format because the majority of my decks fit within this range. The modern format deck building limitations are pretty forgiving, you can have up to 4 of the same card in the deck (Playsets), and the deck minimum is 60 cards. The max is actually as many cards as you can shuffle unassisted. These same guidelines apply to Standard.  

The next format to talk about is the Standard Format. Standard is much more competitive because it forces the deck building to be at the forefront of your mind... you can only use the last two blocks of cards to build your decks. I have built standard decks that I really liked, but because the blocks rotate every 9 months or so they quickly step out of standard into modern. As it currently stands, I have no standard format decks. And frankly, I am ok with that. I am a casual gamer, I play for fun with my friends. If I ever move to a competitive setting (Friday Night Magic, Tournaments, Release day events) Then I will have to move into Standard. But I will never move to competitive. It sucks the fun out of the game, and for me, I would much rather enjoy the game and lose than stress out and win.  

The last format I am going to talk about is the Commander Format. Commander is a system where you have a 100 card deck, with no duplicates in your deck other than basic lands. These games are much slower, and much more unpredictable. This is also the best game format for multiplayer games, because there are many cards which affect all other players. Commander is, without a doubt, my favorite way to play Magic. The games take so much longer, but it really opens up different ways to play cards together.  

Just a little note as I close up this segment. If you are a Magic player, and looking to improve your skills, there are a few things you can do. Firstly, the Duels of the Planeswalkers games that Wizards of the Coast made are actually really great for learning all the core mechanics. Secondly, Wizards of the Coast posts all the Magic Pro Tour coverage on YouTube. Want to see some good magic? Check that out. Watching how those guys and gals play magic is.... scary. The deck combinations they discover and utilize are really something else. It will make you a better player just to observe and listen to the commentary.  

Thank you! 

-Rob- 

Wednesday Weekly # 6 - Starting the Grind

Hump day! 

Hey everybody, this week I figured I would show the little bit of work I did finally get done with those bases. I sat down to marathon all the figures.... then I looked at them... and went to play X-COM 2. I will get to them, a little bit at a time.

I did, however, manage to get 3 models built and based, and primed even. I built my Apothecary, my Librarian, and my Contemptor Dreadnought. The thing that really struck me about these models was how much larger they look over the other space marine models I have. It struck me... it was the base size. Base sizes used to by 25mm, but recently got moved up to 32mm... and the size makes space marines look so much more imposing. I will do a comparison shot, just so you can see the difference.  

25mm vs 32mm. 

On Friday, I got a chance to RPG with a couple friends. Loads of fun, playing the 13th age system these days. I am playing a rogue character, and he is surprisingly badass in a fight. That, and I was getting ridiculous rolls. Well, I am sure the dice gods will spurn me with their favor for next time.  

Thank you! 

-Rob-

Fun Friday # 5 - The Classy Gamer

Happy Friday Everyone! 

Today I wanted to talk about something that is near and dear to my heart... How to be a Classy Gamer.  

Let us define what it means to be a Classy Gamer. A classy gamer has a few different things doing for him (or her). Firstly, they must dress for the occasion. Most of the time, that just means slacks and a button down shirt, but for the truly classy of you, that means full out tuxedo with tails. Ladies, a dress skirt for you is fine, though if you want to be really classy, a dress it is. Now, accessories make the package, so as a Classy Gamer you must be able to pull out all stops. Gentlemen, I recommend a classy monocle, as well as a top hat. If you know you will be standing, a cane will truly impress. Ladies, your finest jewels, your finest hat, your finest shoes... that will suffice just fine. If you are feeling very classy, bring a cigarette holder, to filter your cigarettes better. Light if you want, not necessary. As for a drink, I would encourage a nice aged scotch, or a fine wine, held with the pinky out of course. Need to be classy.  

Lastly.... Mustaches. Everyone needs mustaches. Draw them on if you need to, the curlier the better.  

Ok, joking aside, Let's talk about what it means to be a Classy Gamer. A Classy Gamer is someone who can win graciously, and lose with aplomb. They are someone who is open to discussion about how to do better, and happy to give advice if asked. They are someone who people keep coming back to for a game, because regardless of who wins or loses, it is about the journey to get there.  

 Many people forget, at the end of the day, unless you are playing for money, it doesn’t matter who won. Enjoy the experience. Enjoy the company. Have fun with friends. Don't be a douche... that is the opposite of classy.  

Thank you for reading! 

Have a great weekend! 

Stay Classy, Gaming community.  

-Rob-

Wednesday Weekly # 4 - X-COM

Happy Wednesday everyone!

Ok, going to be honest, got nothing done model related this week. If you were hoping to see something like that, I am sad to say you better keep scrolling. 

However! If you want to see what I have been up to this week, stick around! I am going to tell you about it!

First off, talking about Friday! Got a chance to play in the first session of a hopefully ongoing campaign for 13th age. We were on a boat. It was awesome. I nearly drown, and did get thrown into jail. Again. That happens a lot to my characters in RPGs. Clearly has more to do with how the world reacts to me, rather than how I react to the world. 

Anyway! Something else nerdy I have been doing this week.  I have spent the last 5 or so days watching an awesome show called The 100. I actually posted about it on Friday (Sunday). Really an interesting show, I wholeheartedly encourage you to check it out. 

It is Winter in the Pacific Northwest, so that means Rain and Rain and Rain. As such... my hobby space has developed a leak in the roof. So I spent my Sunday trying to rectify that issue, to no avail, though I may have slowed it some. 

In the extra time I have in there, I have been playing the heck out of X-COM. I recently discovered the Long War mod, which extends the game exponentially. Love X-COM... one of my top three games. 

Anyway, how was your week?

Do anything hobby related?

Have a great week!

-Rob-

Fantastic Friday # 2 - How to RPG and Have a Damn Good Time Doing it

Hey there folks! 

First things first... yes, I know it is Sunday. Yes, I know this post was supposed to come out on Friday. Lets just say life got crazy, and I didn't get a chance to get to it. Or we could also say I just didn't know how to put to computer what was floating around in my head. You know what, we could say lots of things, but I think we should talk about RPGing. 

Role Playing Games. 

Of the paper and pencil variety, at least. 

That is what I am going to talk about today. 

So this is going to be a Part - How To, and a Part - Good Player Etiquette guide to RPGing. Lets simplify, make this Part 1, and Part 2. I have put quite a bit of thought into this, and Part 2 is very derived from Part 1, but it all makes sense together. I think. Or not. Whatever. Apricots. Fandango. The Ministry of Silly Walks. 

Part 1 - How To Role Play

Guideline # 1 - Become your Character - This is the true heart of role playing. You are acting out as this character. You ARE your character. Understand as much as you can about your character when playing him/her/it, so when you are engaged in interactions, you respond not as yourself, the player, but as your character. This can be very difficult, and it definitely takes practice. Ask yourself, what are the motivations of my character? What does he/she/it want?

Guideline # 2 - Never be Embarrassed - You are playing in an imaginary world with imaginary people. There is no room for embarrassment in that. Don't judge people for the character decisions they make, roll with what the DM gives you. And always remember, there are no bad decisions, there are just bad rolls. 

Guideline # 3 - The Dungeon Master is God - The Dungeon master is your best friend and your worst enemy. RESPECT THEM. They are there to bring enjoyment and adventure to your group. It is your job to assist them the best you can in that. That means NOT second guessing them, that means NOT trying to tell them what is and what is not possible. A good DM can craft an incredible story that can span for months if not years of real time. Embrace that. RESPECT THEM

Guideline # 4 - Have Fun - At the end of the day, you are playing a game with friends set in an imaginary world. Set the drama at the door, and embrace the immersion in the experience. Don't be afraid to try things that sound crazy, or off the wall. Think outside the box. 

Part 2 - Good Role Player Etiquette

Suggestion # 1 - Don't Stomp on Other People's Ideas - Always remember that this is a game where teamwork is key. Anyone may have a good idea for how to get past a certain situation. be willing to ask for help, or take suggestions... but don't take all night with it, the game must go on. 

Suggestion # 2 - Don't Meta-game - You know what your character knows. not what the party knows, unless the party shares that information. Always remember to keep track of what your character knows in game. 

Suggestion # 3 - Be Involved - Play the game! If you get to a part where you do not understand what is going on, ask questions. If you need to disengage for a few minutes, step away from the play area. The single most irritating thing to do as a DM is to have to repeat information because players were not paying attention. Heck, most DMs will not repeat information. Pay attention to what is going on. 

Suggestion # 4 - Play as a party - This sounds like a dumb suggestion, but everyone is there to play, so let everyone play. Involve everyone. Discuss plans. Let others try that charisma check. Let someone else talk. RPGs revolve around teamwork, so play as a team. 

Ok, some closing statements here. Now, I am not trying to flame anyone. Heck, I think I myself may be guilty of... at least most of these. But the trick is learning from experiences, and building from them. As well as that, you may have noticed that there are not "Rules", or "Commands". These are Guidelines. Suggestions. They may work for you, they may not. 

I found a great resource for being a great RPGer on a blog, which I will post a link to. 

11 ways to be a better roleplayer

Thank you all!

what do you think it takes to be a good RPGer? Any suggestions or Guidelines to add?

-Rob-

Showcase Sunday - #1 - Aldis Silver-String and a SBD Dauntless

Happy first Sunday of the year, everyone!

Welcome, as well, to the very first Showcase Sunday... a day where I get to show you what I have completed!

Today I have decided to go ahead and show you two separate things. These things are directly unrelated, with one exception... they were each the first of their kind I have finished. 

First up we have Mr. Aldis Silver-String, my ongoing D&D character. Now, Aldis is a Bard... a talker, a singer, a lover. My experiences with him are definitely varied to begin with. We are both learning, if you will. Firstly, Aldis has next to no offensive output... he has to talk his way out of situations. As you may see, he does have a sword, but he definitely does not know how to use it. No, Aldis is very adept at talking his way out of situations. He is quick on his feet, though his mouth does get him in trouble. He is quick to offer help to those in need, but does not take kindly to laws of any sort. He definitely rolls to the beat of his own drum. Or Bittern. Or whatever

As for the model itself, I believe it was a Reaper Mini, or some sort of D&D mini that I got for a campaign we were going to play a couple years ago. I finally got some paint on it about a week ago, and a fairly happy with the result. I was pleasantly pleased with the way the paint flowed on the model, and the way the detail stood out. Now, because of the nature of taking pictures of miniature figures, i was not able to get a good picture of the face, but on the opposite side of his face (This is his good side) Aldis has a scar actually modeled into the flesh of the face. Very cool modeling technique, and looks very cool as well, giving the mini more character. 

The Second thing I am going to show you today is my SBD Dauntless, a US Navy plane from the early years of the Pacific theater of World War 2. Again, this was my first airplane model, but I was very excited about how it turned out. I will say that the frosting on the windows was not intentional, but it really rounded out the model very effectively. The Dauntless was a Navy dive bomber, hence the huge air brakes in the rear of the plane. I was attempting to make it look like it was just pulling out of a dive, and so had the flaps deployed. Really a joy to build and paint. Some parts did not fit together as well as they should, and others needed to be shaved down, but that is all part of the hobby. The painting was done primarily via Airbrush, with some brushwork touch ups here and there. This was also my very first use of Decals, which was cool. 

Thank you for looking! Have a great week!

-Rob-

Star Wars - The Force Awakens -NO SPOILERS-

Well, I finally did it. I went and saw that movie that everyone has been trying to avoid spoiling. Star Wars, The Force Awakens... well... it is fresh, so I figured I had better put down my thoughts about it before I forget about them.

 

First off, before anything, I had heard mixed reviews about the movie. I was trepidatious at best. I mean, sure, it was the quickest movie to reach one billion dollars gross, and its opening nights were bigger than... well... anything. But I was perfectly willing to chalk that up to the masses flocking to garbage that they thought was acceptable. Several Star Wars aficionados I talked to were not pleased, and having seen the movie, they are not particularly wrong about what they were upset about.

 

Let me enumerate. 

 

The biggest complaint I heard about the new movie is how derived it is from all the old ones. Well, yes, it is very very derived. Sometimes it is over the top, yes, but other times it is witty and nostalgic. and that, Ladies and Gentlemen, is exactly why I think it is there... Nostalgia. I think the movie director, and producers were trying to bridge the gap in their fan base, from the people that will only ever recognize the original trilogy  to the people that like the universe for what it is. For me, episodes 1-3 were really not awful. I liked them, actually, though they were nowhere near 4-6. But I am not a hard core Star Wars fan. For a true star wars fan... it seems like the lack of any truly new and unique content is a pretty significant issue. But hey, they have 2 more movies for that.

Here are some of the things that really struck me as awesome about the movie as I watched it.

Sound Design was really great. It may sound trivial, but sound can make or break a movie, and star wars has always had a really great sound track, and this is definitely a spiritual successor to the original movies in this regard. Throughout the entire movie, there was only one point where I thought to myself, "Well, that sound cue was a little over the top... this must be a good guy". Overall, very impressed.

Another thing that was really awesome was the special effect content... the original trilogy is really starting to show it's age, and even the new trilogy is to in the face of new technology, but The Force Awakens really did a great job combining that new technology to immerse the viewer in the movie.

Another silly thing I really enjoyed... the Storm troopers were kind of awesome. It made sense that they were some of the most disciplined, strongest military force in the galaxy.  They started out pretty well put together, anyway. But then we go back to the normal Storm trooper tomfoolery.

Lastly, the Cameos are great. All I will say.

Things I was not impressed by... throughout the time I have had to think about this, I have only be able to come up with more and more that... I was not impressed by. Now, like I said, I did not go into this movie expecting perfection, so my sights were set pretty low. But, as a whole, these are the things that I saw that disappointed me.

First of all... the character development. The character development for 3, maybe 4 or the main characters was truly lacking. I felt like I knew nothing about them, and all of a sudden they were going against their nature. All of a sudden they all could do various things that just... didn't make sense within the confines of their character development... and I expected more. Now, again, there is room for growth, to show where these characters came from, their motivation in future movies. I, for one, fully expect back stories to be fleshed out. But, for a kick off, I expected more.

Another thing that really bugged me after a while was... I know, I hate to say it... how derived it was. There was so little changed in terms origin stories, role within the story, even core planets. it is a great, big, wide universe. Show us more of it. There is really not a lot i can say about it without doing spoilers, so I will stop there.

Regardless, it was definitely an enjoyable movie. Would I go see it again in theatres? Probably not. if I had endless free time, maybe, but as it stands, I don't, and thus, I will not.

What did you think?

-Rob-

Going into the New Year... Resolutions!

Resolutions are always difficult.

 

You want to choose one that will work for you... and yet make you just uncomfortable enough to actually do it.

 

As a whole, my... track record of resolutions is not actually that great. I usually make it about half-way though January, then tap out. Or, better yet, I make my resolutions too abstract.

 

Not this year. No Sir. This year, I am going to make it.

 

I am tying to avoid as much quantity as I can.... I don't want to say I will run 5 days a week in order to get back in shape. No. I dont want to do that. What I will do is give myself managable goals that will set myself up to succeed.

 

As such, here are my Resolutions.

 

 

I resolve to change my Fitbit goal steps to 15,000 steps, and resolve to meet that goal 4 times a week.

 

I resolve to stop drinking Coka Cola for the duration of 2016.

 

I resolve maintain and update this blog, and stay active in my Hobbies.

 

I resolve that I will only purchase more models once I have completely painted an equivelent model/number of models.

 

I resolve to finish atleast one unit a month, or one model a week.

 

 

Pretty steep in some parts, but I think I can do it. I suppose let me explain a bit. I, of course, want to get in better shape. Hence Resolutions 1 and 2. I have had a Coke problem (Drink) for a number of years, and it is about time I did something about it. And the nice thing is that I dont actually like any other Sodas, so... should work out ok. The last 3 resolutions are a... call to arms, if you will. Like I have stated, I have an enormous stack of plastic just waiting for some love, and by God I better take care of it. I am not the quickest painter by any means, so I decided Low and Slow was the way to go.

 

Do you have any hobby related Resolutions you would like to share? 

 

Or just resolutions?

 

Feel free to comment Below!

 

-Rob-

Origins - Part 2 - Miniuture War Gaming

 

Welcome to the Second part of my... well, who knows how long series, Origins!

In this Episode of Origins, We will be covering my rise to Wargaming in a miniature scale!

 

 

It all started, as most of the time it does, with Legos. Legos for me were the ultimate expression of creativity. I could make whatever I wanted.... and after that I could make even more and SAY it was what I wanted. This pile of bricks there? That is the fort of the enemy brick soldiers. This pile here? Why, that is the super awesome radical transport for my superpowered soldier dude to attack the enemy base. The Best part about Legos was the ability to create whatever you wanted, then just imagine. Even now, as a 25 year old, I desperately miss that imagination of the 6 year old me. It was always interesting, looking back, that you could make these blocky, knobby creations look smooth, feel right for your uses. I remember building planes and cars that would be perfect for my uses, then keeping them for well over a year, seperate from my other legos, so they could be easily accessed and played with. In addition, the customabilty of the mini-figures themselves was... well, staggering. Once you have a few sets under your belt, you could make literally any number of combinations of little dudes, who were then your friends. Sometimes he was you, kicking baddie butt and taking baddie names, other times he was your best friend, kicking baddie butt and taking baddie names. And he always had a travelling armory... Sword, gun, torch, laser beam, a freaking plane with ALL the missles, no baddie could survive long. Regardless, and the point of this exposition.... Legos are AWESOME. And led me straight into my next Minifigure love... Mage Knight

Mage Knights were a random thing I found, browsing around in a Games Plus... Packs of 4 dudes, usually will little to no relation to each other... but sometimes you would get those really nice, rare heros and it would all be ok. This was the first actual game I discovered for miniatures... I think I still have a boat load of them buried in my house somewhere. I may dig those up, just to remember. ANYWAY! Mage Knight was a fairly simple game using D6 dice and a tape measure to run around about.... well, usually kill enemies. There was also a series of dungeons that came in the form of maps with the starter packs. I think my favorate thing about Mage Knight was the random little treasure chests you could get. Actually, I take that back. I had two more favorate things about this game... the first being the Fluff behind the game. The Lore for this game was fairly well expanded upon, giving rise to huge fan-fictions, spanning pages and pages and pages of content of random websites I would find. I spent hours absorbing clashes between The Atlantean Empire and the Black Powder Rebels. Lastly, Some of the sculpts and models for this game were truely incredible. For example, the Solonavi... were these beings made of... magical etherial powers formed together, and the model representation of that was a multihued translucent plastic that made them look SO AWESOME. You can actually see one in that picture above, bottom left corner.

 

A quick jump from Mage Knights was Mech Warrior, a very similar style game with huge mechs. Very cool, but I like this more for the models than the game. But again, I was young when I got into it, so I may not have really understood the rules. This was my first real brush with Science Fiction in the miniature, and again, the Fluff was really cool, particualarly because Mechwarrior had a ton of Stand alone content well before these models.

 

And then... I stopped it all. I purchased my last Mechwarrior Booster in... 2003.... and that was it for YEARS. For 5 years I had nothing to do with miniature wargaming. The friends I had at the time were not into it, and that is ok. But after my freshman year of college, it all came back

 

The summer after my freshman year of college, I was gainfully employed by a local Parks and Recreation Department (Still am). I met a Gentleman named John. Now this John, he was 6 years older than me, smart as heck, and one heck of a Nerd. Of course, through the course of our discussions, I asked him if he had ever played Dawn of War. He looked at me, scoffed a bit, and said, "You know that is based of a Miniature war game, right?" I was flabbergasted. I hadden't known that. What... what is this? What is that? What does this mean? As it happens, John actually played Warhammer 40k... though he hadn't in a long time, and was currently working on a project on the Blood Angels. Every time we worked together after that, all I could do was as questions about this game, about the Fluff, and about the models. If you could not tell, the Fluff behind games is what captures my attention. And, as most of you well know, the Fluff behind 40k is... Prodigious. Eventually, I purchased the Assault on Black Reach Painting set, 5 Space marines and some rudamentry paints to use. The end result was ... awful. But to me, they were everything I could have wanted. They were nostalgic and new at the same time. I still have some of those first models, and will eventually post a showcase of them. I was so excited and proud, my second marine I painted I made a Salamander, and gave it to John, because, you know, introduced me to the hobby and all. It has been nearly 7 years since those fateful conversations... My painting has gotten much better, though it could always use improvement, and my model collection has become absurd, grand majority unpainted and unassembled. And, as always with these things, ever expanding.

 

Now more recently, I have branched out of 40k, first into Infinity, then into Bolt Action, Warhammer fantasy/Age of Sigmar, and then, newly, Frostgrave. One of my biggest inspirations has been watching people play games on Youtube, big ones being Miniwargaming, and Guerrilla Miniature Games. These people have such a passion for what they do, and so really helps refresh the passion in myself.

That brings me to about right now, the Present, the end of 2015. From Legos to Mage Knight, Mechwarrior to Warhammer, Warhammer to Literally Everything else. I hope through this blog to share my... ever expanding delving into the Hobby of Model Building and Miniature War Gaming.

 

How did you get into Wargaming?

 

- Rob -