Goodbye 2008 and Hello 2009

Well, that's another year done and we're into the new one already.

Crikey, time goes so fast as you get older.

2008 was a tough year for my hobby gaming in many respects and actually a good one in others. I work for myself and the summer was a particularly lean one last year, two expensive car problems added to an already tight cashflow ensured that my hobby spending was curtailed.

However despite all that I did go to the UK Games Expo in Birmingham which was loads of fun. I played a demo of Helldorado which I enjoyed a lot - I've not picked it up yet but the minis are fantastic. And I have managed to buy a few new things to keep my inner gamer-geek happy.

Companies I bought from over the course of this year are:

Hasslefree Miniatures - Agarix (mushroom men) and a few others
Artisan Designs - Thrilling Tales 'Pulp Era' minis
LKM Direct (Quick Reaction Force) - Carnivorous Plants
Ramshackle Games - Mutant Plants
Games Workshop (at a store not via the web) - Warhammer 40k 5th edition (fancy rulebook), paints and brushes.
ebay - a few bits a bobs including the new Ork Codex for 40k which is great stuff.

Other stuff I acquired over approx. the last 12 months (including some top Christmas pressies) included Galaxy Trucker (brilliant game), Pitch Car, Doom the boardgame, Thurn and Taxis and the new Ork Kommandos from GW, D&D Miniatures game, Old Crow resin buggies, sculpting tools and equipment from Ebob.

Biggest surprise of last year was starting to buy White Dwarf again - I'm actually contemplating getting a subscription now as I've bought 7 consecutive issues. I really enjoy looking at the painting hints and tips along with all the eye candy of the new releases.

One of the bonuses of last year was getting our semi-regular gaming night into a bit more of a regular groove. Once a month instead of every few months - hopefully this year we'll be able to increase this frequency a bit.

Aims for 2009

Having set myself targets lots of times in the past and then stressed myself out by not hitting them I'm going to be a bit more relaxed about it this year.

So I'm going with a main project for the year and a secondary project to have as a change of pace (with room left for any other little diversions that will inevitably pop-up).

1. Main Project: Have a completed 1500pts Ork force painted for Warhammer 40k
I've got the minis and they've seen plenty of action over the years, they've just not seen that much paint. I'd like to get involved with one of the local organised warhammer gaming groups at some point and to do so I need a fully painted force so that's my main project.
2. Secondary Project: Complete a few sculpts in green stuff.
I've recently started tinkering with sculpting from scratch and I've found it a lot easier that I expected. Don't get me wrong it's difficult and I'm no pro-sculptor just yet but I'm hoping I can get a few minis completed this year and have a go at drop-casting some in pewter. You never know they may even have sales potential ;-p
3. Side projects and diversions
Aside from these two I've got a huge backlog of minis that need attention from a paint brush so I'll be dipping in and out of my 'mini-mountain' as the year goes by. I'll also be buying new stuff along the way when my wallet can stretch to it as there's a load of things I've seen that I'm waiting for the financial planets to be in the correct alignment to go for.

I've also got a number of games design projects on the go that could see fruition this year that I may well discuss here at some point too but they can stay secret-squirrel for now.