The Hobby Shed Sale is now open

As proposed in the 2011 Plans post, I'm having a clear out to create space and bolster funds.

At the top of this blog you'll now see a For Sale link which will conveniently take you to a sale page. I shall be adding items as I dig them out, with them going up on ebay with no set schedule. Rest assured they will be up here for first dibs...

Warmachine - Cryx Mechanithralls

If there was something my Cryx force was missing it was a first wave unit to take the flak as the rest of the force make their way somewhere towards melee range. So here are the Cryx stock and trade bullet magnets, the Mechanithralls. This also lets me play with the idea in the future of adding a Necrosurgeon or Necrotech.

Slow start to the new year

It's all been a bit quiet in gaming land, at least on the surface. Hopefully now the end of the holiday season (which for me means the school holiday schedule) everything can get back to a normal routine.

Arabiansquire potentially has an interesting year. He's just had a birthday which means he can join the local gaming club as an associate member in his own right, technically meaning I don't have to supervise him. In theory he can find a couple of friends to play with  if a common game can be agreed upon (and I can play against adult opposition). This may require a bit of education for the other club members, as they are all stuck with Games Workshop armies that they spend the whole session setting up, palying 2 turns then running out of time or interest. I'm sure they'll see the light when we find a game that can use they're figures AND play an entire game... There's no rush for this though, it's just nice that he can become a member of a club that he's been attanding on and off for over 2 years for now.

Part of his birthday haul was a Games Workshop 40k Starter paint set, which he's seen a couple of times in store and asked about (yes, yes I know the irony/hypocrisy of this from the last paragraph!). I had put him off, saying I had more than enough figures and paints for him to use if he wanted, but the hours of painting were never forthcoming. I hope that this gift will start him, as he'll have all his own equipment and figures to relax and get going with instead of gingerly using Daddy's.

As for me? Well having signed up for a Warmachine League at the local store in Livingston, I've started painting up a few new figures to hopefully field - a DeathJack that's been sitting part painted of months and a new unit of 5 Mechanithralls to act as early round bullet magnets. The league officially starts this Saturday, so I'll need a couple of practice games first to remind myself of what everything does!

Looking Forward to 2011

If I was doing this whole thing properly I'd be review the past year first, but I fear turning into a pillar of salt for looking over my shoulder so we'll just plough on regardless into 2011.

The aims for the the coming year will split into 2 categories - Game Play and Gaming Practice.

Game Play

• Warmachine: in the last 6 months I've managed  to start (and paint) my main Cryx army and have only half a Death Jack to paint to have all my models painted up. Well almost. I've put my name down for a league at the new local gaming store, Worlds @ War, in Livingston, Scotland which has slightly brought forward the purchase of another (Mechanithralls) unit by a couple of months. No big deal. Oh and I did also buy Cygnar battle group (& proxy additional forces) but they aren't on the painting list yet.
• 20mm WWII: This is the biggy this year. I've already managed to pick up a selection of Airfix 1:72 figures and scale vehicles (mostly on the cheap) and this year sees the glue and paint hitting the plastic and the results hitting the table.
• Gladiators: Having started a Gladitorial School RSBS solo campaign I aim to play a months gametime each month.
• Songs Of Blades and Heroes: A much delayed (due to Warmachine) campaign has been in the offing for months now - I hope to get my skaven into action this year in an extended run of games.
• 10mm Dungeon Crawl: I need to finish off the10mm Dungeon pack I've started and get some good old fashioned crawling done.
• Projects: I've a few half finished projects left over from 2010: Sci-fi tunnel complex, modular spaceship, Racing Pods to name just 3. I will be aiming to get these finished in the first 6 months of the year, or at least before I start any other projects.
• Modern/Zombie/Horror: After making roads into this last year I hope to continue with a few more painted mini's.

Gaming Practice:

• The Second Great Scottish Clearances: It's sad to say, but I have had to finally agree with Mrs AK. that the Arabian Towers Hobby shed is too full of "stuff". I'm going to have to take that tough, heartbreaking journey to ebay (and in some cases the charity shop) to make the space more habitable. On the up side this'll hopefully bring in some cash and assuming that the British Goverment don't start an new hobby tax (best not joke, actually) this'll help balance the books.
• Open Accounting: which seemlessly brings me onto my second grand plan. Although I try to keep costs down I've never been brave/bothered enough to keep note of what I spend on my hobby. Some stones are best left unturned as they say. Well it's time do bring out the lifting gear and tip this mighty menhir over this year. In an attempt to see what the true cost of gaming is I'll be keeping a running spreadsheet of comings and goings. What's more I'll be airing this dirty laundry in public with a linked page from the top this blog. Here's hoping that I don't end too many months with my head in my hands muttering "Oh no, what have I done. The wife'll kill me!"
• Playing more games: This isn't just a bid to wrack up the hours spent rolling dice. To get full "Value For Money" the gaming resources need to be used, so I'll be looking to play a variety of games to get the most from my figures. To start off I've joined a league at the local store which will force me to play at least a game of Warmachine each month. Good start.
• Bought v Painted ratio: Which start of year list would be complete without this old chestnut. I think I did OK last year but without having accounted it I can't be sure how well. So this year I'll be keeping a note of that as well in the accounting page.

Well, watch this space...