Happy New Year!

Well, I have no idea if anyone is actually reading this stuff any more... But I'm gonna keep posting anyway.

2019 has been an interesting year! I finally managed to move out of the family home in June - a full 13 months after my separation from my wife. Got myself a nice little place round the corner. It's not quite feeling 100% like home yet, but I'm almost there. I've managed to sort my mental health out too. Again, I'm not 'cured' but I'm about 400% better than I was in 2018, so I guess that's great progress. That also meant I managed to do some hobby stuff in 2019 as my poor mental state had pretty much curtailed any and all that in 2018 and to be honest for much of the preceding .two years.

I've posted more in December 2019 than in the entire of 2018. I've also done more posts in total in 2019 than in the last two years. I've managed to fully paint 26 Elves and to part-paint or fully paint 42 Orcs and 3 trolls. Quite some going especially since that lot has pretty much been done since October!! More in three months than in the last several years!

I have another 21 Orcs and 24 Elves in the painting queue, intending to complete those by March 2020 ready for my Davale Miniatures Bloody Elves Kickstarter to arrive. When that lot (about another 30 Elves) is done that will give me two good Middle Earth forces, although I do need cavalry for both. Warg riders are being assembled as we speak and I'm mulling over options for Elves.

Mike (Trouble at t' Mill) and I are also planning to pick up our Dux Brit campaign again this year so watch out for that.

I'll leave you with this. Tonight, my son, who is 11, decided he wanted us to do some drawing. He has a cousin (16 years old) who is a demon artist and who really inspired him when they met recently and as I'll do anything to get my lad off tech, I agreed. He sat down to copy Azog from the Hobbit films and Chewbacca from Star Wars while I sat down to draw out my vision of what a First Age Silmarillion Noldor Elf would actually look like. I kinda based it on what I read in The Silmarillion, the Victor Ambrus pictures from the old Tolkien Bestiary by David Day, a bit from the LoTR movies (I do like the Elf armour/clothing in those and The Hobbit films - not at all 'right', but good anyway) and a bit from what I know of Dark Ages armour. I hadn't drawn properly in years, especially not a humanoid figure that wasn't a caricature, but actually, it turned out pretty well. If only I could afford to commission a really great sculptor to do a small range like this...

Anyway, I'll leave you with the drawing and wish you all a very happy, healthy and hobby-filled 2020

2015 Review

2015 was quite a productive wargaming year at Guitarheroandy Towers...

I finally got myself into War and Conquest, to the point of actually writing sone Arthurian era Army Organisation Lists and even helped to organise a gaming day at the club, which was well attended and enjoyed by all who came. Great set of rules, WAC. I must play more of it. It has supplanted WAB in my affections for sure and is my 'go-to' Ancient/Dark Ages rules et now. I also owe Rob Broom a few more lists as well, so that's on the agenda for 2016.

I was also really proud to be asked by Dan Mersey to join the play testing group for 'The Men Who Would Be Kings, his upcoming Colonial rules. This proved to be one of the most enjoyable gaming experiences I have ever had as the experience of play testing was both interesting and very rewarding. Also, the fact that the rules are bloody great really helped, of course!! Thanks must also go to my fellow club members who helped out, especially Andy MacTaggart who has shared many games with me during and after the play test period

Linked to that was the inaugural Hereward Wargame Show, where Andy and I put on a 'The Men Who Would Be Kings' demo/participation game. - the first 'official' outing of the rules at a UK show!!! This was such a great fun endeavour! While I had previously been involved in demo games with James Morris at a couple of shows, this was my first one taking a lead and it seemed to be a great success! There was something of a mammoth painting drive from Andy and myself to get the forces ready - incidentally, almost all of my NW Frontier forces were painted in the past 18 months - quite an undertaking!! Anyway, all who played on the day had a good time and most seemed to love the rules. Andy and I are already talking about ideas for a similar kind of thing at next year's show.

Then there was Lion Rampant and Dragon Rampant - I have really enjoyed playing with these rules, especially using Lion Rampant for Arthurian gaming. I intend to use Dragon Rampant for a few Arthurian games in 2016 too!

On the painting front, lots of Colonials, and a few Fantasy models was pretty much the sum total of my efforts and it'll continue in a similar vein in 2016.

Thanks to all who read and  comment on my occasional posts... I do hope to blogs  little more frequently in 2016, real life permitting!!

Happy New Year!!! Plans for 2015...

As I am out later gigging with my current bunch of ageing rockers known as Sidewynder, I thought I'd post quickly now, as I'll be in no fit state tomorrow.

2014 has been an interesting year. I have suffered major problems with my painting mojo this year and have actually achieved very little. On the plus side, I have made decent inroads into my Colonial collection and the LoTR forces continue to grow at snail's pace. Aside from that, very little. This is a shame as I have a lot of French Indian war/AWI skirmish stuff I want to start gaming and I had hoped too have got somewhere with that, but to no avail.

On the plus side, 2014 has seen a major new gaming interest: Rob Broom's War & Conquest. This has pretty much replaced WAB as my ancients/dark ages game of choice, although I still enjoy Dux Britanniarum and Dux Bellorum. I also enjoyed trying out Lion Rampant and hope to play more of that in 2015.

Plans for 2015 as follows:

1. Continue to expand the NW Frontier collection. I need to finish highlighting & basing 12 Gurkhas in the short term, then move onto a Mountain gun and about 60 more tribesmen, of which 30 have been started. I do have a couple of chaps at the club keen to do a bit of gaming with these.

2. Continue with the LoTR collection. I have decided that my recent 'scour EBAY for painted Orcs to tidy up' is the best way to build up the evil forces. It's not cheap, but it might mean that I get a few games in this side of 2020!!! The Elves, well, we'll keep on with those as and when. I do want to get 12 more and a hero done in the short term, as that'll give me enough for a few LoTR SBG games with son and heir.

3. Finish the Saxon characters I am painting for Andy M at the club...he asked me to do these in September and I have thus far got them undercoated!! Good job he ain't desperate for 'em!!!

4. THE BIG ONE!!!! Complete the late Roman/Arthurian/Early Byzantine/5th-6th century barbarian army lists I am drafting for War & Conquest. I have submitted Romano-British, Early Saxon and Patrician Late Roman (Aetius, et al) to Rob already and am in the middle of Belisarian Byzantines. This latter list is important because Andy MacTaggart and I have plans to do a demo game at our club's planned wargame show in November based on a battle during the Ostrogothic Siege of Rome during Belisarius' Gothic wars in the 6th Century. I will be the Byzantines and Andy the Goths. I therefore need to paint 3 more cavalry units for this (regular Roman horse archers, Roman Bucellarii and Hun mercenaries) and finish the army lists. This could be quite an exciting project and I am about to order the final 12 models from Footsore Miniatures who have taken over the Musketeer miniature ranges. The rest of my army will be composed from my current huge force of late Roman/Arthurian models as they are more than adequate for the army of Belisarius in Italy in the 6th century. This will be a tall order, as 36 cavalry is a lot to paint! To be fair, I can get away with doing 24 and leaving the Huns, so we'll see... Also, 'dip & highlight' is a much more speedy method, so it's not an impossible task. I also have to design the scenario and write a Goth army list. I can see lots of play tests for this taking up most of my gaming time this year...

5. Paint enough models for a Songs of Drums and Tomahawks war band. I have enough Indians for half a war band already but want to paint some AWI American riflemen to go with them. The latter are undercoated and the faces are base coated, so they are under way. You only need 10 models or so, so it's not impossible. They would make a good break from the Byzantines!!

I realise there's a lot to do there. I probably won't get anywhere near most of it, although I am slowly coming out of my painting slump. My New Year resolution is to spend less time on the laptop in the evenings trawling the internet and more time painting and list writing (and playing guitar, as I have a reunion with my old band 9 Lives coming up in Spring/Summer.) If I can manage to use my time more effectively, most of the projects above might get at least some progress in 2015.

Whatever you plan to do in 2015, I hope that it's a very happy, healthy and prosperous year for you.
Please keep looking back at my blog, as I will try to get updates going a little more regularly next year, especially as I get more models painted.

Quick Review of 2012...and plans for 2013.

So, what were the standout gaming moments of 2012 at Geetarhero Towerz?

Well, standing proud at number one is...(drum roll...)

DUX BRITANNIARUM, the fabulous Arthurian wargame and campaign rules from Too Fat Lardies. I truly haven't had this much fun wargaming since WAB's Age of Arthur supplement came out!! Hats off to Rich Clarke and co for a set of rules that is at once both simple yet tactically interesting and that has never-ending 'replay' value. For example, Mike and I have played the 'Village Raid' scenario 3 times now and each game has been completely and utterly different. Brilliant set of rules that I will be playing a LOT more of, as the campaign for Linnius continues. We hope to do a club campaign once the multi-player version is out and we are also eagerly awaiting the Northern supplement with Picts, etc, in it!!. Watch this space for some ideas for migrating it to Middle Earth as well...

Standing a (very) short distance behind at number two is...

The Battle of Catraeth!! This was the Hail Caesar mega game designed by James Morris and including 'the Dark Age crew' from across the country (but primarily Nottingham way...) Playing this game was a joy and a pleasure both when we originally did it for the Wargames Illustrated 300 article and when we re-ran it Partizan in September! Great bunch of guys, great fun all round and a grand job with the article, Mr Morris (and Mr Faulconbridge on the photos!)

Following up behind in no particular order...

The Age of Arthur and El Cid days in Mansfield organised by Scrivs and Tom. Top days out with top chaps..grand stuff all round!

Our own Age of Arthur day in Peterborough. As co-organiser and MC for the day, it was a pleasure to see people enjoying themselves so much with something I'd had a hand in organising. More of the same sort of thing coming in 2013 I hope...

Getting my models on the cover of Wargames Soldiers and Strategy magazine along with an accompanying article. I really enjoyed that whole experience and would certainly have another bash at some point if they wanted me to do it! Also, my models getting into Deus Vult and Dux Bellorum was VERY nice, plus of course, War and Conquest (or was that 2011? Memory going now!!)

ECW campaign and BIG battle at the club. A new period for me. I quite enjoyed it and the big battle was a hoot...Pike and Shotte is a good rule set!

Saga...continues to be very enjoyable, although my brief foray into a Norman warband sucked...I'm better with Welsh!!

Just getting down to the wargames club regularly!!! After a few years of 'on-off' attendance, I have really enjoyed playing regularly. A lot of that is finding great games to play with great people and I would particularly like to thank Mike, Grahame and Carl for being regular and always splendid opponents across a variety of rule sets this year, plus thanks to Reuben our club chairman, who does a bloody great job organising an... erm... 'interesting' bunch of gamers such as we are. I think we have a great club with a good range of different games going on. It has gone from strength to strength recently and I'm very pleased and proud to be part of it!

Coming up in 2013...

Lots and lots more Arthurian Dux Brit...Mike and I hope to take a game to The Other Partizan, so that'll need some thought and some work...luckily Mike seems to be becoming a bit of a terrain builder expert, so that'll be helpful!!
Dux Bellorum (finally!)
Painting Tolkien stuff....Elves initially (using the silver colour scheme (thanks to all who responded to my recent post!!), then Orcs if I can manage it. I may play LOTR SBG and am going to have a go at using Dux Brit mechanisms to create army profiles and some scenarios set around the part of the 3rd Age pre-the Hobbit, so raids from Angmar into Arnor, Rivendell and Lindon, plus raids from the Misty Mountains, Mordor and East the into Rohan, Gondor, the Dwarf Realms and Lorien/Mirkwood. I reckon that'll be fun to try and hopefully a few folk can be encouraged to give it a whirl at the club...
Maybe painting some more Late Roman/Arthurian era models
Maybe painting Colonials and French Indian War models...maybe actually play a bit of Muskets and Tomahawks...
Hopefully a bit of Hail Caesar.
Organising another WAB day, possibly with a different period/theme...

We'll see how that lot goes this time next year then!!!!! :-)