What to expect over the year (perhaps...maybe)

The first thing for you to know is that I am so easily distracted that anything I say here may be complete fantasy by the end of the week - so as to render this as just another blog post - useful only to increase my post count.

So in no order (because that is even more fanciful if you believe I could be held to an order or priority):

• Punic Wars - I'll continue with the build up of forces for the 28mm Punic Wars.  With the exception of some additional Spanish and a few extras special pieces, I have all the lead that I will need.  I'm about 30% of the way through this project and expect the coming year will see Numidian, additional Carthaginians and Gauls done.  Perhaps a Roman cohort may also see the light of day.
• Seven Years War - as I said last year, John Ray's AMG book and forum have led to a significant change in how I spend my hobby time.  For those of you who aren't familiar here is a link to John's Blog so you get a taste.  A lot of my reading time has given over to the SYW, I am searching Abebooks and similar places for old manuscripts and my time on-line has shifted almost completely from WWII and the Guild over to the AMG forum.  Building up the armies will be a multi year project and will see me busy hopefully long into retirement.  This year I will continue recruiting for my Saxon army with the wonderful figures from Nic at Eureka.
• Italian Wars - I will keep going but not sure yet whether they will be more Landschnechts or if I will get some Swiss on to the scene.
• 6mm - Work has contnued and will continue on finishing my 6mm WWII armies and the Adler Napoleonics.  Terrain will also finally see the light of day.
• 20mm WWII - I have done nothing on this for a few years.  I really enjoy the period and the games, and I still pick up the odd piece here and there.  Some notable purchases over the last year were from the great ranges that Simon Ford has been getting sculpted and which are then cast by Mathew at Wartime - especially the late war US and the British Commandos in smock which you can see Here.  One thing I can say for certain that I will do this year is purchase the new Russians that Tony Barton at AB has sculpted and which will be available from Eureka around April.  I have seen the first few in the flesh as well as the entire list that is planned.  Out go my PSC plastics and in come the ABs is all I can say.
• Lastly, I expect to commence and perhaps finish a small playable force for Baroque of the great Totentanz 15(ish)mm Thirty Years War.  These are amazing sculpts and are superbly cast - as good as the 15 and 20mm AB in my opinion.

One thing I am sure of is that what will occur over the year will include things that are not in the list above .... it is a wonderful hobby.

Aiming for the stars!!

Perhaps fortunately for me, I did not produce a list of goals for the year just gone.  So I will not have to suffer the embarrassment of having to go back and see how little I delivered against the plans made.  So it is with some trepidation that I compile my first ever set of plans for the coming year.

Source http://gustavorios3d.blogspot.com.au/

But first a quick review of 2012 as seems to be the way with these types of posts.

My focus on painting was participation in The Guild challenge that went from January to end November.  Rather stupidly I nominated five projects and there were five tasks for each one.  I managed to hold the course for 4 of the 5 tasks with the fifth and last seeing me finish just three of the projects.  In any case, it still meant a reasonable amount of painting got done during the year as the following tally will show:

ACW (15mm) - 198 figs, 31 horses, 3 limbers, 3 guns, 3 wagons

ECW (28mm) - 48 infantry, 8 Cavalry

WWII (20mm) - 37 vehicles

Napoleonics (6mm) - 356 infantry, 88 cavalry, 8 guns

Terrain - 8 buildings

Modern 1/300th - 2 C-5A Galaxy transporters

My other great accomplishment during the year was to buy lead for a further two periods that have yet to be put onto the schedule - but that is probably because I can't find the schedule after 2020 :)

I haven't played a lot of games during the year, but those that I have played have been good - especially those with the boys from Goulburn.  Never having played an Ancients game before, I was introduced to the wonders of Impetus - great game.  I have so far managed to avoid the temptation to make that new period #3 - but there is still all of this year to achieve that.

The other major achievement was the conversion of a wet, flood prone, and rough basement space into our games room.  Still in the process of sorting out painted and unpainted stuff so more often than not the table is covered in goods but I did manage to christen the table with a game of RapidFire with my son.  Speaking of my son, we played a number of great games of Force on Force with his beautifully painted US, British and Afghan minis and his great homemade terrain.


So to the plans for 2013.  I have been stung into action by advice from a wise man that I should "Aim for the stars, because if you aim for the streetlight, you may just shoot yourself in the foot!”  With that in mind, what follows is the list of intentions.

ECW (28mm)

Want to get two more pike / muskets units painted as well as make a start on the wonderful resin buildings that are sitting in a box in the basement - so aim for 3 of those painted.

Napoleonics (6mm Adler)

Paint a Russian Division and possibly an Austrian one if I have time.  Also get some of the terrain painted for this.

WWII microamour

A few projects here:
- fill out and finish Guards Armoured Division
- fill out and finish 3rd Infantry Division
- organise and complete various German units for Europe
- finish the Soviets
- finish painting and basing the infantry, cavalry and support weapons to go with them
- make a start on terrain

ACW (15mm) 

Break the back of the project.  Will do this by painting and basing units for 2 scenarios from the wonderful Enduring Valour books on Gettysburg - The Wheatfield and Pickett's Charge.  This will also require dozens of feet of fencing of various types to be made.

WWII (20mm)

My main focus.  Firstly resist the temptation to buy any Russian stuff.

Having achieved that I will focus on finishing the US forces (approx 40 vehicles and 2 battalions of infantry plus supports).  Then move onto a German Recce Battalion.  If I get those done then a FJ battalion with supports.

Lastly, my second love (after family and toy soldiers) is books.  We have outgrown the bookshelves in the library and a logical solution was to re-model the room I use for modelling and painting into a "military history annexe" to the library.  The first phase is almost done as I have sorted out the multitude of boxes that were strewn everywhere and organised them into storage in the basement.  Next will be pulling out some horrid built-in wardrobes that were there when we moved in (anyone interested in some large mirrored doors please call).  Then rectification on skirtings, gyprock and (I hope not) carpet.  Finally installation of bookcases and the move of the volumes.

Along the way, I will be distracted by 100 different temptations.  Maybe the worst of which is this damn internet.