New Year Means New Plan

  I mentioned, repeatedly now, how busy I've been and how much I regret not being able to keep up with my blog like I used to.  But here's the thing- that's the point of a hobby.  If you are required to do it all the time, then it becomes a 'job'.  A hobby, on the other hand, is something that you do when you have time and the motivation to rock it.  Luckily, I have the time and motivation to do it, so I'll be focusing some more on the hobby.

  I used to run a game group at the local comic shop, but life's responsibilities and a group that evolved away from stuff I enjoyed wore that away.  Now those responsibilities have evolved and that group dissipated, so I get to start that up again.  Better, I've spent the last couple of weeks recruiting and selling so that I'll actually have some people to build a group with.  And it feels good...

  Okay, so what's my plan for this year?  Let's see...

  I miss playing D&D so much.  I had three different customers yesterday come in just to buy their books or dice and I injected myself as much as I could.  I even shared my contact information with a gentleman that's getting back into the game and looking for another to share DM'ing duties with.  Hopefully that will translate to some d20's clattering across tables within weeks.  If not, I'm going to reform my group and start running the Tomb of Annihilation.

    If you're unfamiliar with D&D's Tomb of Annihilation, just imagine dinosaur races in the jungle, totem poles made of goblins, and a very evil lich lord forcing the adventurers into an Indiana Jones-style dungeon or two.  How can anyone not want to play in that!?!?

  And yes, I will wax literal about those adventures as and when they happen.  But easier to blog about is my wargaming, and we know that'll be happening often (like, every weekend often if I can).  The gaming group that I used to have all played and had armies and even enjoyed the occasional painting day.  I want to bring that back.  

  I've been playing the almighty 40k almost every weekend since its release, beating my son and introducing others to the glory of the grimdark.  I've faced 'nids, Death Guard, the renamed IG, and even some Eldar, while using my Ultramarines (no, Bobby G hasn't made an appearance on the tabletop yet- he's been a bit busy) and Eldar and even sprinkling in a bit of those IG.  But mostly I've been using the boyz-in-blue as they're my army.  Now I can start recruiting others to play at the shop and really focus on that.  In fact, I spent the weekend talking to a number of players building their armies (one Tau, a couple marine, and even an Ork player).  I've even convinced a local gaming celebrity to get back into the game with the promise to teach him how to play next weekend.  That makes me so excited!!!

  More than anything, I just want to push my soldier-mans and roll some funny-shaped number tools against people other than my poor son.  The good thing is that my son is all about the game rather than the concept of winning.  The mystery is whether I can get a game group together with that same mentality.  That's what killed the game group before- certain gamers cared more about winning than helping others enjoy the game and eventually chased away many of the other gamers.  That's not what I like and I needed to wait for the group to die before resurrecting it.  It's time!!!  

  Another game that I'm going to pimp is Age of Sigmar.  Put that sigh back in your lungs!  I really like the game and my wife even loves it.  I haven't kept up with the game, as in I don't have any of the army books and absolutely none of the goofy Stormcast (armored warriors riding six-legged chocobos and crossbow-wielding rangers with support from a bunch of Alfred Hitchcock's birds).  But I own everything for the undead, orruks, and the old stuff like Free Peoples and Slaves to Darkness.  Add in the big collections of gold dudes and bloody dudes and we're not hurting for stuff to play the game with.  Unfortunately, even my local comic shop refuses to carry the game (I was the only customer that actually bought any of it, so it makes sense) and the reopening game shop never will (that's another post, in case you're now piqued).  But I like the game enough and just want to roll dice and push miniatures enough to bring it in.  After all, many 40k players have plenty of fantasy miniatures just collecting dust now!

  Now, none of these wargames mean very much if I don't also get the 'hobby' on.  I have a partially painted Bobby G that's kept me distracted for some time.  But I've also been painting some Ashigaru for Test of Honour and helping my son work on his 'nids.  I want to finish painting the Primarch and set up a super list before the other Imperial monsters make their appearance in the game, so that's going to be a focus for sure.  Better, I like to teach how to paint so that'll give me something to do.  Also, here's how far I've gotten, just in case you were wondering...

  Beyond that, I also want to share the Mythic Battles with everyone as well.  Remember from my last post that it's a game that my wife convinced me to get and we all enjoy immensely.  The game is even so popular that it's selling for triple the initial cost on eBay right now!  My wife wants me to paint those models and really go to town, but I'm more interested in the hobby dedicated to my wargaming.  However, that doesn't preclude playing it lots and lots!

  Now I'm not sure if I'm going to put any effort into the Flight Path stuff (X-Wing, Attack Wing, D&D-wing), but I do know that I'm going to try out some other games.  The guy that I'm convincing to get back into 40k is actually a contributing developer for a neat little game called 'Tanks'.  You can find information for it here.  Now I've already tried to get into Flames of War TWICE and just didn't stick to it (plus, the interest for that game flamed out quickly- and I live on an Army base full of tankers!), but this little skirmish-style version may be exactly what I'm looking for.  It's cheap, quick, and also cheap.  Yes, I'm well aware that I said that twice...

  Speaking of cheap, I've also gotten back into playing poker.  I used to play all the time back in the day, but karma was regularly punishing me so the best hand I had for over three years was a pair of Queens in a hold 'em game with six other players.  It doesn't matter how strong of a bluffer you are or how smart you are with the chasing and the folding if you never get good cards.  There has to be something in there to bluff on or chase with.  These days, I'm actually lucky enough to fake my way into a rake or two.  Unfortunately, I still lose more often than I win and it can get pretty expensive.  But I'm smart enough to keep it cheap, and it requires no painting or tactical maneuvering!  Just a quick mention...

  

  But wait, there's more!!!  Not only do I have toys to sell and strokes to brush, but I also have some tales to tell.  With some cajoling by my wonderful wife, I've decided to start writing.  That's right, I'm also trying to be an author.  Luckily, I personally know a few published ones and have already used a great deal of their advice (one in particular, whom I respect for far more than his writing talents).  I won't post anything here about that, but maybe I'll use one of my other sites.  It can wait until I do more than develop the characters and establish the setting.  I'd like to at least lay the foundation for the conflict before I embarrass myself in the blogosphere.  That being said, check out another blogger who's working to be an author here, which probably planted the seed a bit more than I'd like to admit.  I hope that my keyboard skills are as intriguing as his...

  This is the year I come back.  I'm not saying I'm going to be back to blogging all the time like years past.  In fact, my schoolwork alone will certainly prevent that (Accounting and Business Ethics as graduate studies are not light in the workload arena).  But I will be focusing my weekends on gaming and hobbying again.  I'm going to become the teacher and salesman that I used to be.  More than anything, I'm planning on just having more fun!  Now let's go!