Month in Review - January 2017

Well, first things first, go me for actually updating this thing on a regular basis.  Even if I don't hit any of my Hobby Resolutions, I feel that that is a great achievement.

So, how are things looking for my 16 Hobby Resolution challenges?


1 - Build and paint a 1500 point German Force for Konflict '47.  in 15mm.  (3/34 Infantry, 0/4 Weapon Teams, 0/4 Vehicles)

I've assembled and primed pretty much all of the standard infantry and weapon teams, still have the Shrekwulfen to clean up, and a 2nd NachtJaeger to source.  Not great, but at least I have stuff ready to work on.

2 - Continue painting Microworld Beastmen for 6mm Warmaster to hit 2000+ points.   (0/17 Stands)

Yeah, took one look at the Chariots that needed glued together and promptly put them back down.

3 - Paint one of the 6 WARMACHINE Colossals or HORDES Gargantuans I have in my Backlog.  (0/1)

Nope.  Still not assembled one.  That might change this week, as I want to try and bust out a few more Circle models before SmogCon.

4 - Maintain a relatively tidy and clear games room.

Yeah, this one is happening.  I've pretty much managed to keep the table clear, to the point that games can be played on it, and my desk is still relatively clutter free.  The floor needs a bit of work, loads of stuff that could get thrown into the loft or sold.

5 - Maintain Butcher's Guild being fully painted. (1/3)

Progress was made as I painted Truffles.  Still have the other 2 to pin and prime, but they are cleaned up.  Veteran Ox is out next month, so I'm ahead of the game for the moment.  Being handed a full Hunter's team didn't help...

6 - Organise and run a two day Warmahordes event, (0/1)

Still working on this.  Ticket sales are slooooooow though.

7 - Play 6 different Board Games. (1/6)  (Zombicide: Black Plague)

So played Duffy and Sarah at Zombicide: Black Plague last week.  Probably something to add to the collection at some point.  More my style than standard Zombicide because of the fantasy setting.

8 - Paint a Dark Elf army for Warband in 15mm. (0/66 Infantry, 0/1 Monster.  0/12 units)

Not even started assembly.

9 - Place in the top half (or at least top 2 thirds) at Welsh Masters for Warmahordes in May. (0/1)

Still months away.

10 - Transfer my flip-top paint collection to dropper bottles. (1/too many)

Nope.   nope.  NOPE.   Really need to clear a space downstairs and just get started on this, I can do batches of 10 at a time, so should try and get 2-3 done a month to begin with.

11 - Paint 4-6pts of Normans for SAGA for the Falkirk District Wargames Club Campaign. (3/6pts    17/41 models)

This was probably my biggest focus this month.  Painted my Warlord, 2 units of foot Hearthguard and a unit of Warriors.  Started working on the crossbow armed warriors, then thought about picking up the official models.  Also assembled and primed 2 units of mounted Hearthguard and another unit of Warriors.

12 - Play 6 New Opponents. (3/6)

Halfway there after attending the Age of Sigmar tournament.

13 - Go to 2 Gaming Shows or Conventions. (0/2)

Nope.  But SmogCon is next month, as is Vapnartak, and I managed to shift my shift times around to make the bus trip down with the Falkirk lot.  Should be complete next month.

14 - Paint 20 Random Frostgrave Figures. (0/20)

Nope.  However, I have cleaned up and primed a bunch of random Osprey/Northstar figures for this.  Still have to do a post about my choices, but at least they are ready to start work on.

15 - Finish the Privateer Press Forum Painting challenge with Ironman Status (10+ pts painted every calendar month) (1/12)

Painted Kaya2 and Laris, the 2016 Gheorix resculpt and a Druid Wilder, so 25pts plus a Warlock.  Currently on track to complete should the following months prove half as successful.

16 - Paint 2 new Warmahordes Battle boxes for demoing.  (0/2 Starters.  0/8 models)

Not started on clean up yet, as Circle was my pre Smog focus.

Overall thoughts are that I am pretty happy with this month, still feel relatively fresh and invigorated to be working on different things, and it is satisfying to even have a bunch of primed miniatures waiting to be started as I was generally only assembling to paint before.  Other than actually keeping this thing updated, my biggest achievement is finishing off the Circle models, as it means that both lists I ran at Scottish Masters last year are now fully painted, so, that's great because it means I never have to worry about playing with a half painted model or proxy because something is sitting half done on my desk.

#workbenchwednesday 25/01/17

Still going strong on the updates front, a definite change from every year previous...

It's been a busy and productive week all told.  I've played 3 games of Age of Sigmar, 1 game of Zombicide: Black Plague and 1 game of Hordes, as well as finishing off 4 models.

But before all of that, the workbench update

Kaya2 and Laris are finished so have moved to the cabinet, and the Ghetorix resculpt has taken centre stage, along with the Druid Wilder to finish my 75pt list.  I've also moved the new Games n Gears brushes to be closer to hand.  The Microworld Beastmen and Frostgrave Soldiers haven't been touched.  Pallet is getting messy and my paint water is a bit grotty so could probably do with a change before it starts tasting too funky.

So, yeah, painted stuff.   I finished off Kaya2 and Laris, as the challenge for the Warmachine and Hordes for Beginners facebook page painting challenge for the month was a Warcaster/Warlock.  Although they had been started, I figured it was alright seeing as it was 2 models. 

Alongside this pair, I also painted Truffles the Pig, the Season 2 Butcher's Guild Mascot, with the intent of putting my new brushes to the test.  Figured it would be a quick and easy project as it only used a handful of colours, and, with the immenent release of Veteran Ox next month, keep me level with my hobby resolutions.

The fourth model I finished was Ghetorix, although he still needs varnished and based, so I don't have a picture of him yet.  Maybe tomorrow or Friday time permitting.

On the gaming front, my Age of Sigmar experience was covered in my tournament report.  Duffy came over Monday evening with the Hunters team, and we managed to get a game of Zombicide: Black Plague in.  It was a frantic affair, although our party of 6 was successful in recovering the 4 objectives and clearing the Spawn points.  Tuesday saw me Pit Sarah's Skorne against her Menoth, as she wanted to play her freshly painted Feora2, so I obliged by dropping Mordikaar, just to let her see what I had had to deal with for most of our MKii games.  Ultimately I was victorious, as she clocked herself, but I had very little left on the table, save Mordikaar, some Beasthandlers, an Ancestral Guardian, and the remains of a Nihilator unit.

Age of Sigmar Tempest Crusade 2017: SHYISH Report

Got a message the other morning asking if I could possibly switch shifts and pick up a Wednesday night over a Friday, now, having at least one functional braincell, the obvious answer was yes, and, as she was still working Friday night, that left me at a loose end for Saturday.  I had seen on Facebook that Common Ground had no space for drop-in games, due to another event running, so that ruled out any casual Warmahordes.. 

The event in question was for Age of Sigmar, Tempest Crusade 2017: SHYISH, and it just so happened that they had had a drop out and were looking for a stand-in player.  Obviously, Fate had intervened, and was urging me to tick off some more Hobby Goals.

I enquired about the event, and quickly found out that I needed a copy of the General's Handbook (for points values) and a fully painted army, preferably on round bases.  One of these was easier than the other, and it wasn't buying a book...

I knew I had my Mantic Dwarf army, although, it was on straight edge bases for 8th Edition Warhammer, and would probably require a good dusting, as it was just sitting on a tray in the loft.  A few exchanged messages, and Scott (one of the event organisers) kindly offered me the use of his Stormcast Eternal army (on round bases) for the day.  The fact the army included a Dragon swung the decision for me, but only slightly more than the fact I wouldn't have to dig out and dust the Dwarfs.

So, armed with only the vaguest idea about the rules, and not needing to worry about packing an army, I set off to Common Ground Games to spend a day surrounded by complete strangers to play a game I knew almost nothing about...  What could possibly go wrong?

The first round draw had been posted online, along with all the army lists, so I at least knew who and what I would be facing, even if I had no idea what it did.  I had the vaguest idea about what my borrowed force was designed to do.  So, I was starting on table 22 of 22, which I guess is alright, as it meant it was literally impossible for me to finish the day in a worse position.

One of the best things about Tournaments and Events is ConSwag, and everyone who was in attendance was given a set of TT Combat Fantasy Scenics Turn Counter and Tokens., something which immediately appealed to me because moar tokens and gamer clutter , plus it makes tracking things easier in game.

Game one was against Stu D's Nurgle and Khorne Daemon Coalition.

List was Great Unclean one, 2 Nurgle Heralds, 3 x 10 Plaguebearers, 6 Plague Drones, a Bloodthirster and 2 Skull cannons.  It was a pretty brutal Slugfest, as I teleported the Retributors directly in front of his Drones and charged them in.  Stu's Nurgle Formation benefit of Healing pretty much all the damage I put into his GUO and Heralds meant I focussed fire on the Khorne models, and tried my best to grind down the rest.  The game ended after 5 rounds with only the severely wounded GUO and a solitary Herald of Nurgle tethering on the brink of existance (1 wound left), with me having control of both the Comets that had landed on the battlefield.  Major Victory to me for having the most Scenario points, and a good 1000+ point swing in Victory points for casualties.

Game 2, and I was catapulted up the ranks to the heady heights of table 3.  Beginners luck promptly throwing me out of my depth.

Stu 2's army was along the lines of - Ogre Tyrant, Ogre BSB, 2 x 3 Ogres, 2 Goblin Warbosses, Goblin Wizard on Wolf, 3 Goblin Bolt Throwers, Stonehorn (or Thundertusk) and a manky big Wurm...

Things went south pretty quickly as the twin linked machine guns disguised as Bolt Throwers and the rest of the shooting knocked 14 wounds off the Dragon in the first turn...  Again the Retributors teleported and immediately bounced off the Wurm, which chewed through them in short order.  The game ended with a Solitary Judicator standing atop a hill surveying the carnage around him, which was cut short by more homing Bolts...

Tabled.  But at least I didn't give up maximum points, as my army was 20pts under the limit.  Clouds.  Silver lining. Something.


Game 3 and I dropped to table 11, so, thankfully, still in the top half.

I was up against Paul and his Seraphon (Lizardmen) and his list was along the lines of - Saurus Hero, 2 Heroes on Carnosaurs, and another Hero, 2 x 20 Lizardmen Warriors,, 10 Temple Guard, a unit of Saurus Cav and some sort of Dinosaur Siege Engine.  This was a custom Scenario that involved a dice game in the centre of the table, with Hero models playing Death, and that was how Scenario points were scored.

Once again, the Retributors teleported across the table, and managed to chew through most of a unit of Lizardmen, plus put some damage into the big Dinosaur.  My other flank got bogged down with the Dragon being tarpitted by 3 units, which slowly ground him down.  In the centre, the two Carnosaurs pretty much chewed through everything leaving the Lizardman General to beat Death at dice, and score 2 Scenario points.  Being that by this time all my Heroes were lodged in Lizards digestive tracts, we called the game.

So, overall went 1-2, and finished 26th of 42.  Not bad I guess for not knowing the game, or the match-ups, and using an army written by someone else.  Also picked up a Most Sporting Opponent nomination, so that's cool.

So, thoughts on the day?

Overall it was a good way to spend a day off (even if I did have a Nightshift straight after...) and it was really cool to see so many fully painted armies,, guessing somewhere in the region of 35+ of the 42.  Kudos to all 3 of my opponents for being understanding of my noob status, and keeping me right in the switch from unit based activations, to full phases.  I'm not sure that my army was optimal, I constantly felt that I was seriously outnumbered, and dealing with so many models that had saves versus Mortal Wounds was a drag, the damage output for such low numbers was telling, and I feel the Dragon is seriously overcosted for his potential output.  Age of Sigmar has been on my radar for some time, having played most previous editions of Warhammer from about 4th -8th, although, never really competitively or with a major focus.  I do really like the idea of narrative battles however, as a change of pace from constant tournament scenarios, and in a lot of cases, having a suggested Force composition can steer an errant mind towards actually getting stuff together.  I currently have the Stormcasts from the starter box, alongside a huge amount of chaos Deamons, Ogres,, Chaos and a smattering of Undead models, so I am considering getting something painted up (Great, not even a month into the year and new projects are popping up), more with a view to playing a campaign rather than a tournament force.

So yeah, glad I went along, good to try out something new without the pressure and time commitment of having to paint a full army first, and definitely something  I would consider in future schedule permitting.  Also, as a bonus, 3/6 new opponents ticked off the Hobby Resolutions for the year, so the day still contributed in some way.  Even if it does cost me time and money further down the line.

#workbenchwednesday 18/01/17

Guess I've been a busy boy.  It all kicked off about 1.30am Saturday, after waking up on 3 hours sleep after being on the go for like, 28 or something...

Spent the wee small hours building wee small men, and made pretty good progress with the Konflict '47 force, my Frostgrave pile, and the remaining Saga models.

Currently, I have a tray sitting with a lot of models still to have bases textured before priming, and the horses need some gap filling.

So, 8 Mounted Hearthguard and a unit of 8 Warriors for Saga, a Tanks Puma for Konflict, and a motley crew of Frostgrave models.  I plan on doing a seperate post on the Frostgrave choices to discuss the reasoning behind them.

My assembly station is cleared slightly to allow me to get started with the basing work, and currently looks like this -

Couple of the Guildball Butchers still to be pinned, and some Frostgrave dudes for cleaning.  Plus a couple of Circle models for Hordes.

The Paintstation is still looking tidy, I've cleared off the finished SAGA models, and have both Kaya2 and Laris blocked in and inked awaiting layering and highlights, and the Ghetorix resculpt is also coming along nicely.  Haven't touched the crossbowmen (still on the fence about finishing them in the blue and white livery if they are to be replaced) or the Beastmen.

In other news, I managed to get the majority of the German Infantry primed before running out of Grey primer, along with my Druid Wilder (not the Convention exclusive one in the workstation shot) and Truffles for Guildball.  Not happy with just doing actual physical Hobby work, I signed up to an Age of Sigmar tournament this weekend at Common Ground Games, after my shifts got rearranged leaving me free Saturday, and I've been playing about with the site a little, adding images for the Warmachine models I have currently painted (Khador, Retribution and Cryx).  Hopefully I can cross a few new opponents from my goal of 6 at the weekend, and I've also wangled an early start and finish to make the club's annual pilgrimage to York for Vapnartak, which should prove... hopefully cheaper than previous years.  At least it counts towards a show or convention for my list right?

To be this good would take SAGA... 13 days apparently.

So bonus points if you are old enough to get the above reference.

Work has continued apace on my Saga force as the club campaign is gearing up again (gotta keep the campaign master happy right?  Especially after drilling his dudes full of crossbow bolts...) and I have so far finished off my Warlord and 3pts of units (2 x Hearthguard, 1 x Warriors).  That just leaves the crossbowmen to do for my Campaign army (4pts starter) and they are partly done.  The more I look at using the Frostgrave plastics in conjunction with the Conquest ones, the more I think I might just grab a pack of Norman Crossbowmen from Gripping Beast or somewhere to fit in a bit better.

I need to pick up some shield transfers at some point (hopefully I can get some shift swaps sorted to make the club trip to York next month) but at the moment the Hearthguard units are differentiated by having one in blue tunics with white undershirts, and the other the reverse.  I plan to follow suite on the Warriors, and will probably end up doing a half and half pattern on the third unit.  The real reason for doing three units is so that I can also use these guys for Dragon/Lion Rampant.  Three units of Hearthguard will give me a unit of Heavy Infantry, and three units of Warriors will give me two units of Light Foot.  Same will apply when I get around to adding the mounted options.  I actually have a spare knight set aside to add to a Reaper Bones Griffon to make a sweet looking General or Hero for more fantasy themed games.

On the subject of bases - Yeah, I went with lipped bases, so what?  The simple answer is that I really like them, even if I am mainly constrained to 4 common sizes (30/40/50/120mm) although I am sure Resin versions in other sizes exist.  I like the lipped bases mainly from Warmachine, many (many) years ago I started stockpiling lipped bases for projects because I liked the look so much.  Since then, I mainly use resin bases on my Warmahordes stuff, so I have an even greater excess of plastic ones to spare.  I figured seeing that I put my Frostgrave Warband on them, I would continue the trend with all my skirmish games, and that progressed to Saga, and will extend to Dragon/Lion Rampant (Double duty figures, right).  I guess the next step will be to start using them on 6 or 10 or 15mm stuff too.

One thing to note is that I really dislike black rims.  I feel that they may have a place on display models, but for gaming models, it creates a barrier between the model and table, hence the majority of my rims are painted Army Painter Leather Brown, and it turns out it is a pretty close match to my gaming mat.  I must confess that my Guildball Butchers have black rims, but that is purely because the brown did not sit well with the bone coloured tiling.  I feel I may hit a similar issue painting up some Protectorate of Menoth on Rivenstone bases, but will cross that bridge when I come to it.

So what's next?  I should really get my Warmahordes quota filled for the month, and get the crossbowmen finished, even if they are going to be replaced.  Then I need to start assembling some of the models I plan to paint this year.  I am already coming unstuck, as I really want to put together a Broken Legions Warband for the club, but might be able to wangle that into the category of Frostgrave figures.  Time is also ticking to have at least one fully painted Circle list to run at SmogCon, so that may take priority.

#workbenchwednesday 11/01/17

(Originally posted 11 Jan 2017, 23:40)

 

Wow, another update.  Obviously still fresh into the New Year. So, what's been happening?  Not a huge amount, managed to get the basecoats and washes down on my Warlord, 2 Hearthguard Units and a Warrior Unit for SAGA, started the crossbowmen too, but they are a lot more detailed being the Frostgrave plastics rather than historical figures. Snapped my workbench shot So, since that was taken this afternoon I managed to finish off the Warlord and Hearthguard models, Just waiting on varnish drying before I base them.  I need to pick up some shield transfers too, as I only have a huge pile of fantasy type ones.  I think 'll try and get the warrior unit done next, plus something for Hordes (hopefully Ghetorix) as the Club SAGA campaign is back on. On that note, a few of the guys were playing Broken Legions on Monday night, which I really want to try, so I need to figure out a warband for that.  Thinking probably Dacians, as they seem to have the most weird stuff straight out the gates.  Figure wise, I'll probably pull a few Frostgrave figures for it, and have a rummage for other suitable types once I have a warband written out.

#workbenchwednesday 04/01/17

(Originally posted 4 Jan 2017, 22:32)

OK, so, already beaten last years record by writing 2 blog posts this year...

Came up in a facebook discussion this morning, with everyone showing of their freshly cleaned (or not) workstations, and it was suggested that people post a picture once a week to show the steady decline into chaos, or productivity (YMMV) Figured it was a pretty good idea, especially to help me maintain some semblance of organised chaos, and maybe push me towards clearing stuff and keeping this updated.

So, how's it looking?

Pretty snazzy huh?  The figure on the cutting mat is no longer there as he will be winging his way to Germany as part of a Warmahordes Press Gang Secret Santa, so that just leaves the figures to the left.

First up is my Microworld Beastmen for 6mm Warmaster.  All in there are 2 units of Chariots, a unit of Dragon Ogres (points sink), a unit of Minotaurs, a unit of Herdkin and a Doombull and Wargor character stand.  17 elements all in, and 785 points, which is enough, should I get it all painted, to take me to over 2000 points.

Finally, there are a couple of unfinished Circle models, Kaya2 and Laris, and the new Ghetorix resculpt, which are part of one of the lists I used at Scottish Masters last year (I switched to the army at 3am the morning of the event).  Getting these done would not only cover my PP forum painting requirement, but also means I would be only one model away from having the full 75pt list fully painted.  That model in question is the Druid Wilder warlock attachment, and she is currently awaiting primer.

Hoping to do an hour or so before hitting the hay tonight, and once the kids ship out to school in the morning I am free for the rest of the day to start assembling some of the models for the year and doing some painting.

Fresh Start

Originally posted - posted 14 Mar 2016, 00:53


 So, I go through bursts of hobby... I dunno, despair, and have so many projects and things on the go at any one time that when I do find time to get on with them, I feel overwhelmed and just sit and play videogames...

Spent all of last year just painting Farrow mainly for HORDES, and have nearly filled out the entire line in painted models, and I played a few competitive games and tournaments and did alright.  Figured I should look towards getting a few starters painted up for different systems to branch out a bit.  Success so far as I finished up all my Butcher's Guild for Guildball and a full warband for Frostgrave.

Next up is probably a demon themed warband for Ronin/Daisho/A Fistful of Kung-Fu, and some Conquest Normans for SAGA that might get expanded into a Lion/Dragon Rampant army.

Also made a start on some 6mm Beastmen from Microworld Games for playing Warmaster in that scale.

Fresh(er) Start - 2017 Hobby Bingo Resolutions

ORIGINALLY POSTED - 3 Jan 2017, 17:41 

Here goes with the obligatory January update, your one post for the year and all that...

Actually, I am going to try and keep this updated semi Regularly, hopefully at least once a month, whilst still tinkering away at making the site look a bit nicer and getting more pictures up.

This post was prompted by a Hobby Resolution Image that was floating about on Instagram from hobbyvices where he was looking for people to share the #hobbyresolution2017 (I think that counts) and it kinda mixed in my head with someone else who had posted up a Hobby Bingo sheet for the previous year.  So I floated the idea with Brushchewer about doing something similar.

I figured 16 various things, spread across Painting, Gaming and Hobby would be good (we both chose different amounts) and quickly set about working mine out.  Ultimately, mine ended up being mostly painting related (10 choices) then split evenly between gaming and hobby ( 3 a piece)

I'll List them here with a bit of explanation towards each, and keep them updated on the Homepage once I've worked out all the lists and what is actually done.

2017 Hobby Resolutions

1 - Build and paint a 1500 point German Force for Konflict '47.  in 15mm.

I've had a bunch of Plastic Soldier Company and Battlefront Germans lying around for a few years now, from when a few guys at the clubs I went to were all over Flames of War.  I never got beyond building and modding a few tanks before they moved onto something else, so that was as far as that project went.  So, general love of werewolves, and having a bit of an interest in Weird War, I was very interested in Konflict '47, especially as I had been following Clockwork Goblin when they were producing the 15mm versions.  Talking to my Erstwhile partner in 15mm Crime, I figured I may as well get some of the stuff painted up.  I've worked out a preliminary 1000pt list, but will take it up to 1500 or so, as I didn't add a tank.

2 - Continue painting Microworld Beastmen for 6mm Warmaster to hit 2000+ points.

Warmaster was a game I really enjoyed back when it was released, and despite never playing much, I've always had a soft spot for it.  Despite owning both an official Chaos army and the Copplestone 'Honestly not Lord of the Rings' Orc army, I decided to go for 6mm as I had fallen in love with the models from MicroWorld Games and it was a lot cheaper than starting a new Ebay army.  I settled for Beastmen (although both Demons and Wood Elves were tempting) and got a fair amount painted up last year in a couple of sessions.  Currently sitting at about 1400pts painted, and I hope to get the army to at least 2000pts, which I can hit by finishing the units and characters that I had already started.

3 - Paint one of the 6 WARMACHINE Colossals or HORDES Gargantuans I have in my Backlog.

Imagine Mt. Everest.  Made of Lead...

So between the various factions I collect (read: Most) I have ended up with 6 (at current count) Gargossal models.  All of which are unassembled.  I would like to change that, and get at least one of them built and painted this year.  Current though is that it will be a WoldWrath for my new Circle Orboros army, But it might be the Storm Raptor (also Circle) or Mountain King (Trollbloods).  May even be the 7th one I get...

4 - Maintain a relatively tidy and clear games room.

Pretty Straight Forward.  Once everything starts getting cluttered it becomes a real drain on my hobby mojo.  The table becomes a dumping ground for boxes, cases and figures, and it then stops me wanting to play (as I have to clear it...)  I also immediately feel more settled when it is clear and that helps productivity.  Managed to clear my desk and the tabletop yesterday.  Cleaned out my painting mug, washed my pallet.  Was tempted to wash my painting towel, but I think it is now more paint and glue than fabric, and that is all that would survive a wash.  May just invest in a new one.,

5 - Maintain Butcher's Guild being fully painted.

Seeing as it was one of the few Game Systems that I actually had Fully Painted for a while, I figure I had better keep on top of at least one team, it is currently only 3 figures to paint to get them back there, and I have another 2-3 teams to deal with after that.  Fully Painted straight out the window...

6 - Organise and run a two day Warmahordes event,

So part of being a PressGanger is getting new blood into Warmahordes, and the other part is keeping them there with various events.  I've been running a 4-weekly Steamroller, mainly at Common Ground Games in Stirling, and I really want to put on a big two day event, as I've been to a fair few and have always enjoyed them from a Player Perspective.  I have a venue and date set up for this already, it's just a case of getting it all planned out and sorted now,

7 - Play 6 different Board Games.

Kinda self explanatory this one.  Now I've spent a fair bit of cash on various kickstarters, mainly miniature related ones, and that has included a lot of board games.  Beyond organising them, and spending even more cash buying card sleeves, I haven't really done anything else with them.  We had a kinda impromptu weekend gaming session early last year when my friend Mark was over from Northern Ireland around March, but that was really it. Fast forward to the last couple of weeks, and I managed to get Brushchewer,  Jimboba and Duffy together to play Bloodrage at CGG, which was a blast.  So, yeah, play 6 different boardgames at least once, hopefully more.  I know Bloodrage and Battlelore 2nd edition are going to be part of that, probably Zombicide, and seeing as she bought me Star Wars Imperial Assault and B-Sieged for Christmas, I figure I better play those too.  (once suitably sleeved)

8 - Paint a Dark Elf army for Warband in 15mm. 

I've painted up 3 Blighthaven warbands now for Paul at Ral Partha Europe and have amassed sizeable forces of Beastmen, Elves and various other models.  I absolutely love these sculpts, they are, in my opinion, some of the best 15mm available despite being more that 20 years old.  Seeing as Jimboba is fielding his Celts, I figured I would do something a little different for a new army, rather than the Copplestone Northlanders I had been working on.  I picked up Pendraken's Warband rules a while back, along with a Taurian army pack, but I immediately looked into switching to 15mm for this over 10mm.  I got some sabots made up at War Bases so that I could use individually based 15mm models to play, and still have them able to pull double-duty for skirmish games.  Turns out that the list I have planed for Warband will cover me for Dragon Rampant once I add a Dragon.  Go figure.

9 - Place in the top half (or at least top 2 thirds) at Welsh Masters for Warmahordes in May.

Again, pretty self explanatory.  Went to Welsh Masters last year, had a blast, want to do the same again this year, and place a bit higher than I did with MKii Thornfall.  Top half of the table would be great, but I'd settle for anywhere in the top two thirds.

10 - Transfer my flip-top paint collection to dropper bottles.

Some of my paints are old.  Like, 15 years old or more, and recently I've had a few of my Foundry paints lid's shatter when opening them.  I have the complete collection, so that's a lot of paint.  Add the P3 line to that, as well as the newer GW line, and that's even more.  Now, most of the little nubbins on the flip tops are breaking anyway, so, 400 dropper bottles from Ebay and a bunch of little funnels are waiting for me to begin what is surely going to be a messy and tedious task.

11 - Paint 4-6pts of Normans for SAGA for the Falkirk District Wargames Club Campaign.

So Tim is running a SAGA campaign at the club, and I figured I would join in last year when it kicked off in a bid to play new people and learn a new game.  And clear some of my unpainted backlog...  The Campaign petered out after the first round or so due to various real life events, but is scheduled to start up again this year.  I am using the Conquest Games plastic Normans for my force, and aim to have 6 points done, hopefully with a few points of extra options.

12 - Play 6 New Opponents.

Again, self explanatory.   Get out the house, stop being a recluse and play games versus new faces..

13 - Go to 2 Gaming Shows or Conventions.

Similar to the above, just something to force me to get out of the house once in a while.  Between Nightshift and kids, free weekends are a luxury, and never seem to coincide with anything exciting.  Already booked in for SmogCon in February, so that's a big one.  Sadly I'll miss our clubs show (Carronade) this year as it clashes with Welsh Masters, so hopefully I can either get down to York for Varpartnak or one of the other Scottish shows.

14 - Paint 20 Random Frostgrave Figures.

Frostgrave really took off at FDWC, probably because most folk had a variety of old models to shoe into a warband (and trigger random basing OCD...) and I got pretty much all of the original Kickstarter.  Did I mention I am a huge Copplestone fan?  I painted up an Enchanter Warband (Witch and Necromancer were close choices) and both the standard and Cult Barbarians.  Added enough models to have a starting warband, and that is as far as it got.  Total games played 0.  But at least I can say that my warband has won more painting awards than it has won games, right?  I want to chip away at some of the Frostgrave drawer, probably because it is full, and just to give me some random stuff to work on.  The 20 figures I have chosen (at the moment) include the Apeman from Empire of the Dead, and the Demon gang from A Fistful of Kung-Fu, as both should fit in pretty well.  I like getting double duty from models these days (even if I continue to buy the official ones too) and the Demons should be a good choice to work in AFoKF, Daisho, Ronin and Frostgrave.  I will do a seperate blog post detail the 20 figures and why I chose them.

15 - Finish the Privateer Press Forum Painting challenge with Ironman Status (10+ pts painted every calendar month)

For the last two years I have participated in the "A Tale of Warmachine/Hordes 20xx" on the official Privateer Press Forum.  The general idea is to paint 10+ points a month (MKiii) or a Warlock or Warcaster.   You are allowed two gap months by playing a get out of painting free card, which can also be won back by painting 20+ points in a single month after that.  There was a list of various titles and achievements listed somewhere, and one of those was the Ironman award, for completing all 12 months without using a GooP card.  I've managed it for 2 years, so aiming for a third.  Should be alright with my 2 new battleboxes, a colossal or gargantuan, and adding to my Circle army.

16 - Paint 2 new Warmahordes Battle boxes for demoing.

This one is relatively easy, and also contributes to number 15.  I have a number of starter battle boxes painted up already over MKii and MKIII, and I figured that I might as well go for Trollbloods and Skorne as they are the last 2 Hordes boxes I need to do, and are also the ones included in the 2 player starter box.  Although both 0pt choices in game, that gives me 2 Warlocks and probably 3-4 months of stuff to complete for the Forum Challenge.

So, yeah, That is pretty much it for my goals in 2017.  Obviously I'll get distracted at some point, but I hope to use this as a guide to focus myself a bit.  I'll hopefully update soon with progress, or you'll be waiting until 2018 for the next post...