2021 Year in Review

As I always say each year, the two blog posts I enjoy writing the most are "What's in store for" (next year), and the second one is my "Year in Review". 

2021 started with a "What's in store for 2021!" so we will use that post as basis for our year in review.

Arena Rex 2021

Painting Goal: None, I am not setting any expectations for painting.

Gaming Goal: I missed my planned goal of 5 games last year with only 2 played, so we are going to shoot for 3 games played in 2021.

Arena Rex was a big MISS in 2021 with no models painted and 0 games played.

DCU Miniature Game 2021

Painting Goal: If Knight Models would ever ship me my models, there may actually be a goal in place.  I placed an order in November and still have not heard anything from them, honestly I do not think I ever will.  If my models arrive, then I may put a few on the painting table through out the year.

Gaming Goal: Just like with Arena Rex above, this game be played every now and then when we want to change it up.  I think 3 games played may be a good expectation.

DCU was pretty much a MISS, but I did get a few models completed in January 2021, but 0 games were played in the year.  I did offer to play a game with my son, but then we ended up playing Warhammer 40,000 instead.

Blitz Bowl / Blood Bowl 2021

Painting Goal: 1 full Blood Bowl team box of 12 players will be my goal for 2021, I really think this is attainable and may surprise myself with another.  I just need to decide which team will be first.

Gaming Goal: I have high expectations for Blood Bowl this year (at least with Blood Bowl 7's).  We are planning on playing an in house League with 4 Teams to start the new year off and then add a few Teams in future Seasons.  Blood Bowl does still take a few hours to play, so combing Blitz Bowl/Blood Bowl.... I am going to shoot for 30 games played in 2021.

I had really high hoped for Blitz Bowl / Blood Bowl in 2021, with purchasing a lot of new armies for the game.  But with like most games lately, it was a big MISS.  We did end up playing 2 games of Blitz Bowl, so far that is better than the above two games.  I also did not get a Team painted for the game either.

Middle-earth SBG 2021

Painting Goal: I did buy a lot of models at the end of 2020 for quite a few different armies so I may concentrate on getting some of them done.  I am not really setting any goals or armies completed, where I can see myself painting a few models / warbands here and there through out the year.  There is a big convention in the Fall (that actually may happen) where it would probably kick my painting into high gear if I elect to play MeSBG there.

Gaming Goal:  My plan is to try and play 1 game a month, so in theory that would be 12 games for the year, but we all know other plans do happen.  So I am setting a goal of 10 games for 2021.

Well I did paint a few models for Middle-earth SBG, like with DCU above, they all got completed in January 2021, and nothing since.  NOVA Open 2021 was cancelled, so that Fall event did not kick start me into a higher gear.  Unfortunaltly 0 games were also played this year.

Warhammer 40,000 2021

Painting Goal: With AdeptiCon 2021 already cancelled, it is tough to set any painting goals.  I think it will be more like MeSBG above and when I am in the mood to paint a model for Warhammer 40,000, I'll just paint it.  I have fully painted Imperial Fists army for 1000/1500/2000 point games, and plenty of more models to add to that army.

Gaming Goal: Last year I had a goal of 30 games and I hit it with 38 games played.  If we are not attending any events this year for Warhammer 40,000, I have it scheduled for twice a month which would be 24 games.  That is less than last year, but we are adding MeSBG and Blood Bowl into the mix.  I think I will stick to what is scheduled and set my goal of 24 games played in 2021.

Warhammer 40,000 was our mainstay game of the year and we stuck with it.  This is where most of my painting time was spent with expanding my Imperial Fists army, and in October starting a whole new army with the Necrons and completing over 2000 Points of them.  I had a low amount of games set for the year with 24, and we barely just hit that with 29 games played, at least I did hit my goal for the year.

X-Wing 2021

Painting Goal: Not Applicable (pre-painted miniatures)

Gaming Goal: Last year I lowered my expectations with a goal of 6 games played, and I hit it with 10 games played.  For 2021 I will keep the same goal of 6 games played.  If more games are played again in 2021, that will be a bonus.

X-Wing was another HUGE MISS for the year, I honestly thought we would get more than 1 game played in the year.

Events 2021

As I had thought, the early part of 2021 were not good for events with most of them being cancelled due to COVID.  The first event we attended was Motor City Mayhem in April which was a nice event and close to home.  Then in October was the Michigan GT that we attended and once again was close to home.  At least we were able to get away to two events for the year.

New Games Played 2021

Warhammer Age of Sigmar

Painting Goals: None

Gaming Goals: None

Warhammer Age of Sigmar was a new game I picked up for 2021.  We started off the year pretty hot about it with building a whole Kharadron Overlords army and playing 4 games, and then it kind of simmered.  Age of Sigmar v3 was released in the Summer and thought we may get a few more games in, but it has still been sitting.

Painting Points 2021

January 2021 started the year hot for Painting Points with 66 points for the month, then it cooled way down until the Fall when I decided to start a new Necron army for Warhammer 40,000 and the points really picked up and saved the year for me finishing with 293 points.

By reading the above post, you'd probably think that 2021 was not that good of year, but in all honesty, I did pick up Bass Fishing as another hobby and some of my weekend time in the Spring thru Fall were spent Fishing instead of playing games and painting.  To me, I had a satisfying 2021.

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2020 Year in Review

As I always say each year, the two blog posts I enjoy writing the most are "What's in store for" (next year), and the second one is my "Year in Review". 

2020 started with a "What's in store for 2020!" so we will use that post as basis for our year in review.

Arena Rex 2020 

Painting Goal: 1 model, I purchased 1 model at GenCon 2019 and would like to get it completed.

Gaming Goal: Lowering my expectations quite a bit this year, even though 0 games were played last year on a goal of 20, we are going to shoot for 5 games. 

Arena Rex was a sort of a hit and a miss for 2020. My Painting Goal was to finish a model I purchased from GenCon 2019, that did not happen, but I did complete 1 other model for Arena Rex. The Gaming was a miss, I lowered my expectations for this game, but it was lower than I had planned. I was shooting for 5 games to be played, but it ended up just being 2 games played.

Batman Miniature Game 2020 

Painting Goal: This is a tough one for me, I have a huge backlog of BMG models waiting to be assembled/painted. It is on a hold pattern at the moment till we can see how the game is, interest may pick up if we like the game. 

Gaming Goal: I am going to try 3rd Edition, so it really depends how much we like the game. If we like it, it will probably be played quite a few times (since I built a lot of buildings in 2019).

Batman Miniature Game was a "no go" for 2020. We never did purchase 3rd Edition to try the game out, with the use of all the "cards" for the game really changed the game play and I was no longer interested in playing. With that feeling, no models were painted for the game either. I really do not think this will see the list for 2021.

DCU Miniature Game 2020 

Painting Goal: A lot of the DCU models are the same models as BMG, so we have a pretty good collection. I do have some models that are DCU specific so those may be completed this year.

Gaming Goal: First we need a test game, so I can say 1 for sure, if I like the speed/ease of play it may hit table more frequently and in place of Arena Rex. My plan is to get a game in early this month so we can evaluate how we like it. 

DCUMG was so so for the year. I did paint 4 models for the game and we actually played 2 games. This one will be staying on for 2021 but in a limited capacity.

Guild Ball 2020 

Painting Goal: I still have quite a few recently released Captains that need to get completed, so I do not see myself painting any complete Guilds for 2020, but at least a handful of models.

Gaming Goal: As mentioned above, I really like the game....I am going to have a new high priority game for 2020 (see below) so it is tough which game will be my second. I have a feeling it will be Guild Ball so I will set a reasonable expectation of 20 games played. Currently I do not have any events lined up for Guild Ball, but there may be a weekend here or there where I may be able to attend one.

Guild Ball was probably the biggest MISS of the year. With my renewed interest in Warhammer 40,000 all my painting time went to that and away from Guild Ball. Then came the announcement from Steamforged Games that they were ending Guild Ball and that just put the nail in the coffin. So there was no models painted and no games played of Guild Ball in 2020 and I already found a replacement with Blood Bowl.

Middle-earth SBG 2020

Painting Goal: Once again no expectations, if anything gets done, it would be an accomplishment.

Gaming Goal: Keeping my expectations low again like last year, I think at least 1 game in the next few months before AdeptiCon so my son can refresh on the rules, and then we'll see what happens. 

2020 was not so hot for MeSBG, but the fire is still burning. I did recently paint 2 models, 'Durin' and the 'Witch King' for MeSBG and 3 games were played. Looking forward to 2021 to see what happens.

Warhammer 40,000 2020 

Painting Goal: My #1 goal is to finish what I need for my 1000 points and 1500 point lists for AdeptiCon which is for my Imperial Fists army, long term goal is to get them completed to 2000 points. My plan with the Imperial Fists is for them to be my "main" Space Marine army with which to add new models too, so the army will be growing. The collector in me likes to see other armies too, so my plan is to add another Warhammer 40K army in 2020 and for now that will be Tyranids. The reason for Tyranids is, I like the look of the models and it it something different to paint than just Power Armor. I believe with the Tyranids I am going to look into the new GW Contrast Paints for them. Going to start small with them (1000 points) and we'll see.

Gaming Goal: As stated above, Warhammer 40K will be my highest priority in 2020 but I will be realistic. I'll be getting in around 8 games just at AdeptiCon, so let's set a goal of 30 games for 2020 (I still have to squeeze in all the other games in too). 

Warhammer 40,000 was huge for me in 2020. I was able to get everything painted that I needed to for AdeptiCon and then as we all know, COVID-19 hit. I was slowly painting more models for the game throughout the year and I am happy with my progress. I did start on some Tyanid models, but the Contrast Paints were not working with for me and had to go back to regular paints. I did not get too many Tyranids completed unfortunately as I was concentrating on my Imperial Fists. In regards to gaming, I did hit my goal even without attending any conventions, 38 games of Warhammer 40,000 were played in 2020.

X-Wing 2020 

Painting Goal: Not Applicable (pre-painted miniatures)

Gaming Goal: Last year I set a goal of 20 games, and I just managed to squeeze that in. I think with trying to add in DCU and possibly MeSBG, 20 may be a bit tough. I do like that the game only takes 75 minutes to play, I think realistically 6 games would be a good goal (1 every other month). 

I was right on par with my prediction for X-Wing, 6 games was a good expectations and 10 games were actually played in 2020. More than likely my expectations for 2021 will be kept the same.

Events 2020

Well 2020 will not be a good year for events for me. I am attending AdeptiCon at the end of March, but that is basically it for the year. My vacation days are very limited in 2020, 3.5 weeks will be spent in Europe over the Summer, and then another week in the Fall with my wife on a cruise. Any events I attend after AdeptiCon will mainly be just single day events on Saturday/Sundays and those will even be tough this year. There is a very loooooong shot that we may be able to attend NOVA Open again since its falls on a Holiday weekend, I will need to look at the schedule of events and see if it is worth it. 

So I predicted 2020 was not going to be a good year for events, but it was because of a planned vacation to Europe and not because of COVID-19 shutting down the World. Every event that we had planned was cancelled for the year and as of now it is not looking to good for the early part of 2021.

New Games Played 

Blitz Bowl 

Blitz Bowl is a faster board game style game of Blood Bowl. We picked this up late in the year just to have something to play in an hours time. I am liking it a lot since it uses the same models as Blood Bowl. We managed to get in 7 games with this late pickup. 

Blood Bowl 

Just like Blitz Bowl above, Blood Bowl was a late game pickup for us this year. At the end of November, Games Workshop released the newest edition of the game with an all new starter box, and since we just started Blitz Bowl, I thought it would be fun to grab Blood Bowl. We only played through 1 full game to learn the rules and 1 game of 7's (less models/smaller Pitch). 

Painting Points 

Painting Points were not as good as the previous 3 years, but I still managed 200+ Points. Even though COVID-19 had hit and a lot of people were stuck at home painting, I was really busy, so at the end of the day I did not feel like sitting down to paint. Another reason was all the events being cancelled. Usually I sit down to paint models I want to play in an upcoming event as a motiviation, well obviously that motivation was not to be had. So it was not a great year, but it was not bad either.

All in all 2020 was not too bad considering dealing with COVID-19. Honestly most people would think that I would have gotten in more games played, but THANK GOD my real job was keeping me busy all year long. Tomorrow we shall see what will make the list/expectations for 2021.

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Guild Ball: The Death Of Guild Ball (August 2020)

Yesterday was a pretty sad day for Guild Ball fans, Steamforged Games announced the "End of Guild Ball" was on September 1st 2020.  I had a feeling something was coming when last week during their GenCon keynote they had no mention of the game and then yesterday came the announcement.  The Guild Ball players are pretty upset with the article, not because the game is ending, but also that Steamforged put most of the blame on the competitive players, which if it was not for the competitive players, the game probably would have ended long ago.

It was not the players, it was Steamforged Games themselves that killed the game due to their lack of communication over the last 2 years, killing their Pundit volunteer program and especially their fiasco of trying to produce models and keep a stock on them.  When you have nothing to sell because of production issues for just about a year, that is your fault, not the competitors.  We were still out there playing and promoting your game.

I honestly could say Guild Ball was one of my top favorite games.  I loved the story arc, I loved the models, and I loved the low count of models needed to play the game, and I loved the COMPETITIVE players, they were probably the nicest bunch of tournament players I have ever met before.  It was an enjoyment traveling to different events last year and meeting new players.

Grant it this year has seen no games played of Guild Ball for me with my renewal interest in Warhammer 40,000, but I wont count out getting in 1-2 games before the year is up.  We still have all the models and the latest rules/cards so there is nothing saying that it cannot be played still.  Who knows, maybe we'll try and even squeeze one game in this weekend.

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Guild Ball: New Errata v4.3 Just Released! (March 2020)

The new errata for Guild Ball v4.3 just was released on the Steamforged Blog, you can read about all the changes HERE.

It has been six months since the last errata so we knew this one was coming soon and then it was confirmed this past Saturday on the SFG live keynote.

Once I get all the cards updated for 4x6 printing I will post them in the Game Resources section of the blog.

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Daily Chronicle: "DraganCon I" Friday 3/27/2020 Recap

I wrote the other day how my son and I would be spending the weekend gaming in the absence of AdeptiCon 2020, and yesterday kicked off our three day weekend of gaming.

We started the day off getting ready to play a game of Warhammer 40,000 Kill Team at 125 points.  Being this is only our second game of Kill Team, we introduced the use of Command Points in this game, but just the non faction ones for now.

Once we got the table and our armies ready to go, it was already 10:00 AM so we decided to watch the the live keynote session from Steamforged Games on YouTube.  I mainly was just paying attention to the talks about Guild Ball and how this Monday there will be an errata coming out for the game.  Once we were done listening about Guild Ball, we just kept it playing in the background.


Kill Team

As I mentioned above, this was our second game of Kill Team, so we used the second mission in the Core rulebook for Matched Play, "Take Prisoners".  Seeing how both of our armies (Imperial Fists and Dark Angels) like to stand and shoot, I had feeling while reading this mission, the game may end up in a tie.

Sure enough I was right, even though my Imperial Fists killed more of the Dark Angels, neither of us met any of the criteria and scored no actual Victory Points.  The gamed ended at the end of Turn 4, 0-0.  Originally our plan was to get in two games of Kill Team, but it was no lunch and we took a break and wanted to get started in the other two games systems.

MeSBG

After we finished lunch (fine take out from McDonald's) we prepped the table for a game of Middle-earth Strategy Battle Game.  Just like two weeks ago we elected to play 400 points and a scenario from the new "Matched Play Guide", it was randomly determined and we played "Fog of War".  My sons 400 point list was very different that his last game, instead of running some Gondor Warriors, he wanted to have fun and just run Aragorn, Legolas and Gimli.  In this mission we had to selected a non Leader Character who we wanted to target, along with a piece of Terrain, keeping our own Leader alive and keep the Army from becoming broken.  I could not choose his Leader Aragorn, so I selected Legolas, and since I only had one Character, the King of the Dead, my son chose him.

Basically with only 3 models on his side and 20 on mine, it was not that hard to surround his modes.  He kept Legolas back a bit to try and get a few shots, I sent one warband to my right flank to go and capture the terrain piece and the rest of army concentrated on the three.

I lost a few of my Army of the Dead, but I managed to wrap up Aragorn with the King and 5 models for support and after 2 rounds of combat, Aragorn was slain.  U next I concentrated on Legolas seeing he was the model I was going to score points off of, it was not to difficult, once surrounded, there was not much he can do and the Elf boy went down.  His army was now broken and we rolled to end the game (1-2 it ends, 3+ we continue) a 2 was rolled and the game was over.  I managed with my Army of the Dead to achieve all 12 VP's to his 3 VP's.

We finished that game around mid afternoon and then started to prep the table for DC Universe Miniature Game.

DCU

Back on January 1st in my "What's in store for 2020" post, I mentioned about trying DC Universe Miniature Game (DCU) this year and hopefully getting in a game back in January, well January became March now and we finally got in our test game.  We originally were going to play with the full 60 points (about 5 models) but we both decided to just play with 3 and pretty much the same 3.  My son played Justice League with Superman, Batman and Green Lantern and I plated the Villains with models from the Crime Syndicate box, Ultraman, Owlman and Power Ring.  The scenario that we chose was the just the first one from the rulebook, "The Artefacts".

The game played very slow, not because of the rules, but because we were still learning them, but it seems like it will play at a pretty decent pace.  Last year I played 24 games of BMG (Batman) and I honestly think I enjoyed the mechanics of DCU than BMG (2e).  It is nice that each model has a Power Level and you can elect to spend those points however you want, standing still and just punching or moving or shooting.  The Crime Syndicate ended up winning this game 5-2 and only leaving Superman left on the table for the Justice League.

I am actually really looking forward to trying this game again sooner than later and possibly with the full 60 points.  Who knows, I may even paint a few of my DCU specific models.  I know Warhammer 40,000 for 2020 is my go to game, but we definitely need to keep this one up there also.

Up for today is a couple games of Warhammer 40,000.

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Weekly Chronicle 2020 #10

Another week goes by in 2020 and there are only two weekends left before AdeptiCon 2020 and I am sitting in a good spot.  My lists are all painted, carrying trays are ready, team shirts are on order, all that is left to do is print our lists once I completely finalize on the one I want to use.

This past week was a pretty average week for me, I was able to get one Unit for my Imperial Fists completed with my 'Aggressors', and we got in a 1000 point practice game of Warhammer 40K on Saturday.

On Sunday I spent some time building more ruins for Warhammer 40K, not sure when these will get painted (maybe next week) but at least they are now completed and we can swap out some of the BMG buildings we were using.

Not much is in the pipeline for this week at least for Imperial Fists, I do have some more 'Intercessors' with Stalkers that are built an ready to go, but at the moment I have no rush for them and may wait till after AdeptiCon before I get back into painting for the Imperial Fists (to prep for NOVA Open).  If time allows, I have another 5 'Termagants' all primed and ready to go and more than likely they will be next.

For the upcoming weekend we are planning on getting in two games on Saturday.  First thing in the morning will be a game of Guild Ball (it will be a first in a long time and first for the year) to give my son a practice game before AdeptiCon (he is playing in a Thursday event).  We will then move over to the 6x4 table and get in a game of Warhammer 40K, not sure if we will practice our 1000 point lists again, or my 1500 for the Friendly.

Models Completed: 3
Games Played: 1

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Guild Ball: Shepherd's Guild Reveal 'By Hook or By Crook'

Finally some news from Steamforged Games about upcoming Guild Ball products, it has been pretty quite from them lately.

Just announced on their Facebook Page is the new upcoming Minor Guild, the Shepherd's Guild box has been revealed with a pre-order date of March 13th, 2020 and a release date of March 27th, 2020 (who knows, maybe they will have some at AdeptiCon).

As of late, I have very little excitement for Guild Ball, with the silence from SFG in the recent months to the dismantling of their Pundit program, I have been pretty down about the game (with my resurrection of Warhammer 40K).  As of this moment, I am unsure if I will get the new Shepherd's Guild, I do like the models and I think I can paint them fairly quickly, just not sure how much we will be playing.

 By Hook or By Crook

 Herder, the Shepherd's Guild Captain

 Babe, the Shepherd's Guild Mascot

 Hook and Crook

 Lamb

 Ram

 Shearer

Goal Token, Ball, Terrain Piece

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Weekly Chronicle 2020 #4 (Worried About AdeptiCon)

Week four was not a total waste of a week where a little bit was done during the week.  Luckily mid week I had decided to paint up the newest Captain for the Alchemist's Guid with 'Soma' and then I did spend some time over the weekend continuing on my Imperial Fists.  Hopefully this week I will be able to complete that Unit as AdepriCon is getting closer and closer.

Then on Saturday my son and I got in another practice game of Warammer 40K, with a handicap.  We wanted more practice in the Fight Phase so we played a smaller point game that no Shooting was allowed except for Overwatch and if already in Combat.  It was a good game and we had quite a bit of combat, once we each got into our opponents Deployment Zones ad captured the Objectives, the game ended up being a Draw, but it was nice to recap the Fight Phase, but I want my shooting LOL.

AdeptiCon 2020 is fast approaching (as noted above) 58 days and I was kind of getting worried about the Warhammer 40K Team Tournament.  My son and I formed a team with a friend of mine from Chicago and his adult son, they have never played Warhammer 40K and wanted to start learning and I thought this would be a fun event for all of us to play together (this was back in November).  Now here we are at the end of January and they still had not purchased their models nor any books for the game.  My friend was suppose to come out for a learning day this past Saturday, but life gets in the way (started a new career as a Realtor after 30 years in his family business) and had 2 showings that were scheduled for Saturday and could not come out.  Saturday morning I then decided that more than likely I was going to have to cancel the Team Tournament event and receive store credit or possibly make a post in the Grand Rapids area for anyone looking to fill our Team.

I called my son downstairs into the mancave to discuss our options.  My friend Frank from Arizona (now in Indiana) was busy doing the Middle-earth Grand Tournament on Saturday/Sunday (I had thought) so I had not originally asked him.  I sent Frank a message Saturday morning asking if he had gotten into the Middle-earth event, it turns out he did not, and the other event he was also signed up for Saturday he was on the wait-list.  As soon as I asked Frank if he and his son would join us on our Team, he was all in...... and the plus side is, Frank knows how to play the game.....our Saviors!

So I am back on schedule for AdeptiCon 2020. and nothing to worry about now.

Models Completed: 1
Games Played: 1

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Guild Ball: Alchemist's Guild 'Soma/Pneuma'

I had to change it up a bit from painting Imperial Fists for Warhammer 40K, so I thought I would go ahead and get a model painted for Guild Ball.

'Soma/Pneuma' is from the latest wave of new Captains was just released this past December and is the first player in Guild Ball with dual roles /duel cards.  The character can change between 'Soma' and 'Pneuma' during the game.

My son is leaning towards playing this model for AdeptiCon, so I wanted to get it done, now the question is, should we paint it as 'Soma' or 'Pneuma'.  For the sake of speed, we elected for 'Pneuma', we can always purchase another model in the future if we want it to look like 'Soma'.  There are 2 cards for the model during the game, so you just flip to which card you are playing so it does not cause any confusion.

Painting the model still took a little bit of time even though it was all greens, started with a darker shade of green and worked my way up, then a green wash followed wit more shades of green and green/yellow until the model was completed.

 Soma/Pneuma

Soma/Pneuma

Painting Points: 1

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What's in store for 2020!

Happy New Year 2020!

It is the first day of 2020, and the day to predict my gaming future for the year.  Each year I always say I am going to try and be reasonable, but somehow things always change.  So once again for 2020, let's try and be reasonable.

Yesterday I posted my "2019 Year in Review" and some of those game will not make the list for this year, so below are my list of games that I think will make it through 2020.

Arena Rex

I need to keep this one on the list for 2020, even though it was a huge MISS in 2019, it still is a nice game to throw down for a quick game.

Painting Goal: 1 model, I purchased 1 model at GenCon 2019 and would like to get it completed.

Gaming Goal: Lowering my expectations quite a bit this year, even though 0 games were played last year on a goal of 20, we are going to shoot for 5 games.

Batman Miniature Game

This one is going to be a tough one for me.  The rules for 3rd Edition were just dropped the day after Christmas electronically on Knight Models (the physical rules/starter box are yet to be shipped).  I like most of the changes they did with 3rd Edition to speed up the game, but they also introduced Objective Cards to be used instead of objectives on the table, and no Victory Points for casualties unless it is on the Objective Card.  So currently I am on wait and see.....waiting to see if the Rulebook and Objective Cards will be sold without the starter box, if they are, we will make the purchase and see how the game goes.

Painting Goal:  This is a tough one for me, I have a huge backlog of BMG models waiting to be assembled/painted.  It is on a hold pattern at the moment till we can see how the game is, interest may pick up if we like the game.

Gaming Goal:  I am going to try 3rd Edition, so it really depends how much we like the game.  If we like it, it will probably be played quite a few times (since I built a lot of buildings in 2019).

DCU Miniature Game

DCU was not on my list last year, and it is now on my list since I do not know the outcome of BMG.  DCU 2nd Edition was released right around time of GenCon 2019, my son and I did not purchase the rulebooks till late November while we were up at the Renegade Open.  We have yet to try the game, but we will.

Painting Goal:  A lot of the DCU models are the same models as BMG, so we have a pretty good collection.  I do have some models that are DCU specific so those may be completed this year.

Gaming Goal:  First we need a test game, so I can say 1 for sure, if I like the speed/ease of play it may hit table more frequently and in place of Arena Rex.  My plan is to get a game in early this month so we can evaluate how we like it.

Guild Ball

Guild Ball was my main priority for at least the beginning half of 2019, the last few months it has taken a back burner.  I can honestly say I love the background, the models, the low count of models to play but I do not think it will be a high priority for 2020.

Painting Goal: I still have quite a few recently released Captains that need to get completed, so I do not see myself painting any complete Guilds for 2020, but at least a handful of models.

Gaming Goal:  As mentioned above, I really like the game....I am going to have a new high priority game for 2020 (see below) so it is tough which game will be my second.  I have a feeling it will be Guild Ball so I will set a reasonable expectation of 20 games played.  Currently I do not have any events lined up for Guild Ball, but there may be a weekend here or there where I may be able to attend one.

Middle-earth SBG

I am going to take a chance a chance and include this one once more for 2020.  As of now I have too many unknown variables with what games will be played that this one may slide in.

Painting Goal: Once again no expectations, if anything gets done, it would be an accomplishment.

Gaming Goal: Keeping my expectations low again like last year, I think at least 1 game in the next few months before AdeptiCon so my son can refresh on the rules, and then we'll see what happens.

Warhammer 40,000

This game was a huge surprise for me late 2019 with my interest in the game resurfacing, I think my son is just as excited for the game as I am.  As of writing this today, Warhammer 40K will be my highest priority game for 2020.  I am signed up for the Friendly and Team Tournaments at AdeptiCon 2020 so I know I will need practice games for that, plus I already see myself looking at other armies like I have years and years ago.

Painting Goal: My #1 goal is to finish what I need for my 1000 points and 1500 point lists for AdeptiCon which is for my Imperial Fists army, long term goal is to get them completed to 2000 points.  My plan with the Imperial Fists is for them to be my "main" Space Marine army with which to add new models too, so the army will be growing.  The collector in me likes to see other armies too, so my plan is to add another Warhammer 40K army in 2020 and for now that will be Tyranids.  The reason for Tyranids is, I like the look of the models and it it something different to paint than just Power Armor.  I believe with the Tyranids I am going to look into the new GW Contrast Paints for them.  Going to start small with them (1000 points) and we'll see.

Gaming Goal:  As stated above, Warhammer 40K will be my highest priority in 2020 but I will be realistic.  I'll be getting in around 8 games just at AdeptiCon, so let's set a goal of 30 games for 2020 (I still have to squeeze in all the other games in too).

X-Wing

Painting Goal: Not Applicable (pre-painted miniatures)

Gaming Goal:  Last year I set a goal of 20 games, and I just managed to squeeze that in.  I think with trying to add in DCU and possibly MeSBG, 20 may be a bit tough.  I do like that the game only takes 75 minutes to play,  I think realistically 6 games would be a good goal (1 every other month).

Events

Well 2020 will not be a good year for events for me.  I am attending AdeptiCon at the end of March, but that is basically it for the year.  My vacation days are very limited in 2020, 3.5 weeks will be spent in Europe over the Summer, and then another week in the Fall with my wife on a cruise.  Any events I attend after AdeptiCon will mainly be just single day events on Saturday/Sundays and those will even be tough this year.  There is a very loooooong shot that we may be able to attend NOVA Open again since its falls on a Holiday weekend, I will need to look at the schedule of events and see if it is worth it.

The list is actually longer than I had intended, there were a few games I purchased last year that did not make the cut along with some others.  We shall see in 364 days on how well I did.

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2019 Year in Review

As always, the two blog posts I enjoy writing the most each year, the first one is my "What's in store for" (next year), and the second one is my "Year in Review".

2019 started with a "What's in store for 2019" so we will use that post as basis for our year in review.

Arena Rex

2019

Painting Goal:  I still have quite a few models in my backlog for Arena Rex (11).  I honestly feel it may be a doable goal to have these all completed, as long as I do not add anymore to the backlog.  I think as long as I stick to the two Ludus' that I have, this goal should be completed (especially if one the games way down below takes a back burner).  Once these get completed (maybe by GenCon in August) then I may add a third Ludus.

Gaming Goal:  Currently Arena Rex for me is just a game I am playing for fun, the play is quick and enjoyable.  At least in the first quarter of the year I do not see myself partaking in any events, but the goal will be to at least play the game every other week.  I am going to shoot for at least 20 games played in 2019.

Well, this was a huge MISS for me (mostly in part to picking up BMG this past year).  My Painting Goal was non existent, and only 1 game of Arena Rex was played for the entire year.

Batman Miniatures Game

2019

Painting Goal:  Maybe the occasional one off miniature to paint, I am not setting any expectations on getting a Team completed.  I do have some models already completed painted that I can play with.

Gaming Goal:  As I mentioned yesterday, my feeling right now for BMG is just to be a punching bag for my son so he can warm up for AdeptiCon, who knows, maybe after all those games I may actually enjoy it some more.  I can see us playing a handful of games before the end of March and then I will need to reevaluate.

This one was a huge change of events and probably received the most time from me in 2019, at least in the Painting aspect of the hobby.  My Painting Goal expectation was not even to get a Team completed, well I far exceeded that and painted around 100 models for BMG this past year.  I also managed to play 24 games of BMG which is much more than I had expected. Although the last 2 months of BMG has taken the back burner with the release of 3rd Edition, and currently I am not sure where I stand with the game.

Bolt Action

2019
Painting Goal:  As of now, no expectations to paint anything for Bolt Action...again that may change come June.

Gaming Goal:  The current plan is to play at least two games of Bolt Action this year.  A warm up/practice game, and then a game to be played on June 6th, 2019 to commemorate the 75th anniversary of D-Day.  After playing this game, the interest to play more may happen.

This was another MISS for me and nothing was ever done with Bolt Action.  In fact most of my models have been packed away in my storage shed. I really do love the era, but there is just not enough time.  I can probably say for certain this one will not make the list for 2020.

Guild Ball:

2019

Painting Goal:  I need to make this one a bit realistic compared to what I actually want.  I would love to say to finish up my entire backlog plus any new models that are released.  Right now my backlog is at 39 models (not including the Union Guild) nor the Cook's Minor Guild releasing in February.  Main priority will be to finish the one off models to complete my Guilds, then I will tackle some of the Minor Guilds. With Guild Ball being planned to be my main game for 2019, my painting priorities will be with Guild Ball.

Gaming Goal:  I shocked myself at the end of 2018 having played 32 games of Guild Ball (with the majority of them coming the last two months of the year).  If I want to be somewhat decent at playing the game, I cannot take long breaks in the game. My goal is to attend a monthly tournament (if there is one in a close vicinity) and to try and play a friendly game at least once a week.  The total goal for the year will be 50 games of Guild Ball (which is very doable with the tournaments).

Guild Ball was my main priority at least for the beginning of the year and I can say I am pretty happy with my outcome.  I did not complete everything in my backlog, but I did manage a few one off’s, some new Captain’s, Rookie’s, and the new Cook’s Minor Guild were completed.

I was short of hitting my Gaming Goal of 50 games, but 40 games played of Guild Ball is still pretty good.  I also managed to host 2 events, one in February down in South Bend, IN and the second one this past October at the Michigan GT.  I did start out of the 2019 gate really good with games played, but it also has recently taken a back seat as priorities have changed.Guild Ball will definitely make tomorrows list for 2020, I just need to see how much.

Middle-earth SBG

2019

I actually almost forgot about this game, that is how much I have been thinking about it recently.

Painting Goal:  No big goals for me.  An accomplishment would be to finish the models I have for my The Dead of Dunharrow army.  I believe I still have another 20 models on foot and 8 riders on horses.

Gaming Goal:  I have a feeling that this one may be a lot like Bolt Action where it may only see 1-2 games for the year.  Considering we have only played once since the release of the new rules set back in September.

Another MISS for me. No models painted, nor any games played this year.  I know my son is still excited for this game, but the playstyle no longer interests me.  I won't count it quite Dead yet for me.

Warmachine/Hordes

2019

Painting Goal:  I own a lot of models for Warmachine/Hordes (between what I own and what my son has).  I feel that for WM/H I will still will be painting them throughout the year. I know there will be times when I want to paint something different than Guild Ball or Arena Rex, so that is when I will throw down a WM/H model to paint.  I have a lot of models that I received in the last half of 2018 for a Cryx army, and thought of a fairly quick paint scheme, so I may decide to work on them a bit.

Gaming Goal:  This is a tough one...between my son and I, we have a lot of completed models between my two main factions Khador/Minions and his Cygnar/Circle.  I opted not to sign up for any WM/H events at AdeptiCon 2019, but that does not mean I will totally be giving up on this game. I just do not feel it will be played as much as it was in 2018.  I think it will become the occasional throw down game just to have some fun. Goal for the year, probably a bit low, but lets shoot for 12 games (average one a month, especially with no tournaments planned at the moment).

I wouldn’t technically call this one a MISS, more like there was/is no more interest in the game for me at the moment.  This will be a tough one for tomorrow’s list, it may still make the list for 2020.

X-Wing

2019
Painting Goal: Not Applicable (pre-painted miniatures)

Gaming Goal:  I really like what was done with the release of X-Wing 2.0 bringing all the Factions back to a balanced playing field.  So for at least for the first half of the year I see that this game being played the second most behind Guild Ball and to prepare for AdeptiCon.  After a few months my mood may change. Having this game and Arena Rex to counter some of the games played of Guild Ball will be a nice change. I did not get in as many games of X-Wing since the release of 2.0 (8 games), so I will be once again realistic and will place a goal of 20 games played for 2019.

I can say I really enjoyed X-Wing for 2019.  I hit my goal of 20 games played for the year (barely), but it was still achieved.  Like stated above, it was a nice game to play as a filler game, and it does not take more than 90 minutes to play.  I did try signing up for a few events, but only played in 1 game at this years NOVA Open. This is one that will still make the cut tomorrow.

Events

2019
So what kind of events and I am looking at for 2019.  In my previous years, this section mainly was for the larger conventions that I had hoped to attend.  But for 2019, there are a lot of 1,2 day out of town Guild Ball events that I will be looking at also.  There is still not much info out there for the later part of 2019, but here is what I am looking at:
February: Bourbon Trail Open IV (Guild Ball)
March: AdeptiCon (Guild Ball, X-Wing)
April: Spring Fling ? (Guild Ball)
May: MuseOn Con ? (Guild Ball)
June: East Canadian Nationals ? (Guild Ball)
August: GenCon 1 Day (Vendor Hall)
October: SteamCon USA (Guild Ball)
December: Second Wind (Guild Ball)

To be honest, 2019 was a really great year for Events and exceeded the above list.  In June, I did not attend the East Canadian Nationals, it ended up being too close to MuseOn Con in dates.  SteamCon USA never happened in October, so in September we attended NOVA Open again, and October I hosted the Guild Ball Championships at the Michigan GT.  I cancelled Second Wind in December in favor of attending the Renegade Open in November. 2019 saw a lot of travel to events, and unfortunately the list for 2020 will be very slim for me.


New Additions:

Aristeia!
While at AdeptiCon 2019, Aristeia! really caught my attention and thought it would be a fun game to throw down every now and then and I jumped all in.  Well it was another MISS, we played 3 games and it has since been just sitting on the shelf.

Judgement
Boy did AdeptiCon 2019 do a number on me and bought into another game, just like Aristeia! Above, it was MISS.  Models are still sitting in the same boxes as purchased and no games were played. I am going to have to look at unloading these models as I really see no time for this game.

Comebacks:

Warhammer 40000
This one really surprised me!  The past few months I got the itch to break out Warhammer 40000 again, I had told myself I was done with GW, but we seem to always get sucked back in.  One of the huge benefits of this game is that you can find models at any gaming store, and I like to impulse buy, so it is nice to walk into a gaming store and purchase a model and not just a pot of paint.  We are still getting our feet wet with the rules of 8th Edition, but I see 2020 looking really good for this game, with a new Imperial Fists army that I am currently working on, and I have my eye on one more for 2020.

Conclusion:

All in all, I can say 2019 was actually a really good year for painting models (mainly BMG) and getting in some games.  I had a goal of 110 games played, but fell short of that mark, not too bad as it was still in the 90’s.

Here’s to 2020! and Happy New Year1

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