I'm alive!!! (and upcoming plans)

The last six months

As with many gamers, real life can get in the way of our hobby. In the last few years, spring and summer are peak times for me at work and I can find myself travelling all over the country, working late into the evening (and weekends). Sadly, this leaves next to no time for hobbying.

Getting back into the swing of things this year also took longer than it usually does. A combination of being hooked on the Olympics/Paralympics, catching up with family and friends and a big project at work kept me busy until September.


I'm aware that I've not posted since the beginning of April. Initially, this blog was intended for the 'Battle of Varlislia' 40k campaign is was running at the Charing Cross Club earlier in the year. If I'm honest,  I was overly optimistic about what I could achieve with it and it died off towards the end. Building a narrative that encompasses so many factions was simply too ambitious and too much work for me.

New things in my hobby

There have been some big movements in my wargaming world recently.

As with the rest of the 40k community, I'm getting to grips with 6th ed. So far, I've played 4 games with my Dark Angels, all against different opponents and armies (CSM, Eldar, Necrons and Woofers). I must admit I'm very impressed (although I'm not sure how much that says; I can be a bit of a fanboy). The scale, breadth and depth of it is absolutely huge! Hopefully this will bring a more varied game, that holds players interest for longer.

I'm hoping this seriously dampens any notion of a global 'meta', something that has becoming increasingly strong over the last few years with the internet and tournament scene. The problem is that a few list dominate. Hopefully the range of options available will mean that one style of play or list doesn't dominate. Variety is the spice of life, and part of what sets 40k apart to me are the directions in which you can take your own hobby and 6th ed really boosts this.  At this stage (I know its early days) I can't see this happening with 6th ed. With the introduction of psychic powers, allies, FW units etc. When 5th ed came out in 2008, I thought it was a big improvement on 4th ed, although towards the end it began to get a little stale. GW seem to have finally found a way of peddling more plastic crack to boost their bottom line, whilst giving the gamer a lot more freedom with their hobby. Its more intelligent than 'buy this new overpowered codex' and should serve all parties.

I have also started attending the OG Games Club in Wandsworth on a Thursday evening. Some of the guys I used to game with when I was a student in York attend (I'm looking at you, Sami Michael). whilst others know some of the guys I know from York from campaign and tournament weekends. Im really looking forward to an OG North v OG South ashes style event currently being planned for the end of November! It'll be great to get everyone together, have a few beers, throw some dice, push some toy soliders around and generally have a good time!

Going forward

Anyways, I've rambled on enough about the last six months. The main reason I wanted to post this blog is to let people know that I'm looking to start posting again. I've signed myself up for a 'Tale of Gamers' campaign down the OG Club. This will involve building and painting a 1750pt 40k army over a period of seven months. Each month has a deadline of building and painting 250pts towards this force, with gaming events at certain points. Taking part will be a good way of getting to better know some of the people down the club, make sure I have a fully painted army (giving myself deadlines) and it should be a lot of fun. For the last couple of years, I've wanted to go to town on an army that's properly painted, includes lots of customisations etc. This campaign presents a great opportunity to do this. I'm angling towards Chaos Marines my army; either Khorne or Nurgle in flavour.


Resurrecting the blog will help me monitor my progress over the next seven months. I'd love comments and feedback, as I'd love to make this the best army I possibly can. It hopefully will also enable me to also keep in touch with one or two gamers I've lost contact with.

So please, keep an eye on this blog. I'll be looking to tidy things up and plan to post regularly...

Enjoy!

Matt