September review and October goals

Summer and holidays are definitely gone now, hello school year and glorious autumn! 

Just kidding, I hate the changing weather and flu.

Anyway, with the holiday season gone, schedules are somewhat on track. I had some more leg-related issues, but those should be done for the time.

We did not manage to restart the Dungeon of the Mad Mage due to... as I said, I hate the flu. At least we sneaked in some Descent into Avernus, with the bodies of fiends piling high everywhere we go. D&D5.5 is a great extension of the game. Triss is having a blast.

ASOIAF is based, with a small local tournament serving as training with the new patch. I also dipped into Chaos Daemons, and got my ass kicked, although I can see the potential. My excitement for 11th edition is waning, and we just got another massive changeset... we'll see.

At least the hobbying went well. My backlog of Imperial Guard infantry is almost finished, and I also went through some vehicles. Fantasy miniatures help shore up the numbers: several dragons, which I've been eyeing since the start of the year, are done. For the first time this year, I was ahead of schedule, even if by a measly 2... I'm behind again by 7, but a new batch of minis is soon done. This includes low effort Warhammer marines, ASOIAF commissions and some Free Folk for yours truly. All this should eat into the 98 minis scheduled to be painted until the end of the year.

As for the next batch, I will continue in the same vein. I have just two more units of Free Folk to paint up, one being already converted. I have a large amount of Warhammer minis converted and primed, ready for some paint. And of course, fantasy minis, mostly of the Reaper kind, also sit in boxes. I have no plans set in stone. I just want to get this through!

August review and September goals

August is done, and life should be back to the same old... somewhat.

The gaming side took a pause with everybody on holiday, though I still managed to sneak in a couple of games of Warhammer. Also D&D5.5 is now trucking on.

On the Warhammer side, I am now officially ditching the guard after 6/6 lost games. I actually wanted to quit earlier, but that would mean motivation to paint the rest of my stuff would vanish. I kept it up as long as I could. In September, I'll go back to my original army: Chaos Daemons.

On the D&D side, motivation is soaring. I love playing Triss, my sorceress. The big reveal was finally done: we are playing Descent into Avernus. Although we might go back to Call of Cthulhu at some point, this is perfect for now.

Note that in September, the Dungeon of the Mad Mage should get back on track, and I should play a couple of games of ASOIAF as well. Just bring out the damn patch already! 

But all of this might not go anywhere if my leg keeps acting up...

Finally, on the hobby side, August saw a monumental effort to get back on track. Even though we were on holiday as well, with my bad leg, we didn't go anywhere far, so I could sneak in some painting here and there. I am now only behind schedule by 67, with 188 minis to go by the end of the year. This... is a tall order. So how to fix this? Well first of all, I do have some things in progress. The final, final batch of Guard infantry in the shape of Krieg command squads is on the table, as well as a bunch of 3d printed vehicles. Getting all of it done should provide a big boost. Then it's on to whatever next... probably some fantasy minis, to escape the Warhammer fatigue.

July review and August goals

July was better on the gaming side, but let's dive in.

Dungeon of the Mad Mage is still trucking on, with the players currently dying on the level before the last. D&D5.5 also got on track, with our characters now level 4 and a good chunk of the adventure behind us. Both should see a pause during August due to holidays, but that's just how she goes.

We had our national ASOIAF tournament, where I scored 3rd place... same as last year, literally. Cool experience, will join again. Warhammer 40,000 11th edition scarred me for now, with the amount of killing my army suffered over 3 games. I'm working on some Guard vehicles that might help me out in the future. Unsure how these games will fare over August, we'll see.

On the miniature painting front I actually regressed, behind schedule by 112 due to getting some 3d printed guard vehicles and snapping up some Free Folk models. This should see a boost as I'm just finishing a large batch of Guard minis, and then on to some easier commissions. 

So that's literally the plan for August. Chip away at the Guard infantry, most of which I got in February and they're still only primed. Do Guard vehicles, freshly off the 3d printer. Do commissions, then pause with them for a while. Sneak in some easy fantasy miniatures if possible.

And don't die in the summer heat.

June review and July goals

Re-reading this month's goals, my motivation just went through the roof. Let's take it piece by piece.

On the RPG side, Dungeon of the Mad Mage still carries on. The return to Call of Cthulhu failed due to summer holiday intermittence; we decided on continuing our escapades into D&D5.5 instead. Triss has her work cut out for the month.

ASOIAF will see me joining the national tournament in about 2 weeks. Mag smash!

Warhammer 40k is back on track, with one game of 11th edition already under the belt and more planned within reason.

Obviously all this is subject to summer holiday nonsense... we'll see where it goes. I'm happy with the pacing so far.

Now on to miniatures. A month ago I wrote: 'I am now "behind schedule" by 188'. Apparently, I smashed the month's goals. All Cadian infantry nuns are now finished. Plastic guard vehicles are painted, magnetized and/or LED-enabled. Lots of Free Folk done, including a set of heroes, Frozen Shore Hunters, as well as a nice little zoo. And I painted some D&D minis on the side. I am now "Behind schedule" by 98. Whew.

So what is up for July? I'm already working on stuff. I started with two batches of commission minis, one for ASOIAF (in return for more guard vehicles) and one for D&D (in return for beer). Finishing both should boost numbers by a good chunk. After that, I have the usual projects to continue: Guard infantry (on to Kriegers) and vehicles (3d printed armored car and halftrack); Free Folk (bear riders); D&D minis (for extra gains). Pedal to the metal!

May review and June goals

Choo choo, the time train has no breaks. May wasn't bad though. 

D&D took a hit due to external factors, but the Dungeon of the Mad Mage is still trucking on. We are scheduled to enter its next level this month.

Other RPGs also took a lesser hit, but we explored Blades in the Dark and we're scheduled to return to Call of Cthulhu, also this month.

ASOIAF is the new wargame staple, as I am more capable of transporting smaller armies and moving minis across a smaller table. But I also tried Warhammer in a smaller format, to my great delight. This should carry on during June.

As for minis, I had the new Guard vehicles delivered, and I'm getting more 3d printed. Alas, poor painting table. I am now "behind schedule" by 188. But I'm also getting ahead. Finished some ASOIAF commissions, in return for the future tanks. Finished some Guard infantry, with more WIP. This is still a big chunk of work to do, and they will overflow into June. Prepared a lot of Free Folk stuff, but the infantry is still disappointingly weak. Giants it is.

And so my goals are already set. Continue painting nuns and Kriegers. Paint the new Guard vehicles (at least the plastic ones). Paint the Free Folk heroes, so I can finally field a complete army made up of my own minis. Stretch goals: include some D&D minis for quick gains, and more Free Folk.

April review and May goals

May the 4th be with you! Wield lightsabers instead of crutches.

April passed and I can't complain. I eased back into doing live D&D sessions, tried a new RPG, and went to some games of ASOIAF. No Warhammer as of yet, transporting minis is a pain. Probably none this month either, but I'll try my best.

With live games and painting back on the table, and of course work taking up most of the day, video games have slowed down to their usual trickle. I might do a review or two in the future, but for now, this is it.

Speaking of painting, I threw myself at it like a man dying of thirst. Which I was, metaphorically speaking. But everything is annoying, besides the sitting part. I barely finished my April goals, there's a couple of final touches left. 

As for this month, my painting/accounting table looks even worse, with the delivery of the Reaper Miniatures' latest Kickstarter. With the advent of 3d printing, I really wouldn't have ordered all this stuff; but that was then, this is now. And anyways, most of it is 3d printed already. Kind of disappointing. Good quality though, we'll see about durability.

I'll see what I can do during May. I have some ASOIAF commissions scheduled; I want to continue and finish my Warhammer guard infantry; and ASOIAF Free Folk look rather enticing with the advent of season 7. Who knows, maybe they'll be good for something.

March review and April goals

We're back in business! Somewhat.

On the gaming side of life, I did a couple of online sessions of D&D, keeping them short. However, I am now able to walk around on crutches and my first outing consisted of a live session! Not much gaming obviously, too much to talk about, but it's a start. I will ease back into going out, gradually.

I also played some video games. Barely any, considering the time spent in bed, but I'll do a couple of reviews in lieu of other posts.

On the hobby side, I started painting again, beginning with the January WIPs. The state of my excel is depressing. But I got a couple of things done, just waiting for a nice sunny day to spray varnish, which will be a challenge of its own. In any case, it will be some time until I paint enough to try a photo session.

So those are my April goals: finish the nuns and D&D monsters started, and continue with all the Astra Militarum infantry that I had optimistically primed before the happening. Perhaps sprinkle a couple more monsters and/or commissions to keep things varied.

February review and... no March goals

Yep, everything is still the same.

January review and... no February goals

January started off quite nicely on the painting front, with me finishing some WIPs and starting new projects. I was quite pumped to finish my Imperial Guard, do some fantasy minis, dragon inventory and the like.

But then life said: how about you break your leg instead. That's the last time I'll ever visit a skating rink.

So I'm currently bedridden, and will be for the near future. All the stuff I've published during January was whatever I finished and took pictures of before the happening. At the moment I can't even sit to paint, nevermind going to gaming sessions. 

So: I'll go dark during February, and here's hoping that I'll recover enough to start doing stuff again come spring.

November review and December goals

December is upon us!

November was kinda sad as far as diverse gaming goes, with both RPG groups canceling left and right. However, that just left more time for Warhammer! I am now really into doing narrative scenarios in 10th edition. The terrain sometimes messes us up, or the random teams or scenarios make it wonky, but it sure beats regular matched play.

Hobby wise, this time I actually kept to the goals set out a month ago. I painted a load of Free Folk and Palatine Guard/Kriegers, and I'm rounding off the year's last commissions. I should break close to even on the yearly painting goals. With the influx of nuns and other Guard models, that is still a great result, with currently 671 minis painted, with modifiers. This already beats what I did in 2024. 

During December, it's more of the same. Finish the Free Folk - not all of them, not this year, but this is more of a finite project, so let's hack away at it. More Palatine Guard remain to be painted, again a finite project as I've used up almost all my Napoleonic minis in this endeavor.

I suppose this is a good place to reflect on the year as a whole as well as the next. Rumors of a 2026 Guard codex are already floating, and I just really, really hope they don't get much of a model update. That should leave me with breathing room to round out my Guard and Chaos Marines. Beyond, I might shake up my Daemon army as they are currently not very coherent, and of course there are plenty of fantasy minis to be painted. I am expecting the latest (and for a while, the last) Kickstarter mini package to come in during 2026, and so I'll continue with counting acquired (but not gifted or won) minis in my excel table. Onwards, toward net zero!

October review and November goals

October was really cool!

D&D is back, and I am freshly motivated to apply more torment to my players. If this keeps up, we might actually finish this stupid dungeon. 

Cthulhu went on a campaign hiatus but I'm doing a one-shot integrated into the story instead, already stretching across 3 sessions. Still no end in sight!

Warhammer is still on, with an influx of new players. ASOIAF is also great, with a small local tournament won by a phantom player... that was hilarious.

Hobby wise, I leant into fantasy minis, including young dragons, and my own Free Folk converted and slapchopped up to speed. Next tournament I might bring my own stuff. I am now back on top of things, barely a couple days behind painting schedule. With no more purchases scheduled, I should finish on track with all the primed Palatine guardsmen and Free Folk. Movement trays are really cool, expect to see some work put into them. 

That's about it, November should be centered around continuing what I have begun and wrapping up WIPs.

September review and October goals

September went... not as I expected.

D&D is on break, due to a lack of interest. Call of Cthulhu is the new staple, with us blazing through the Australian chapter and only losing 2 investigators in the process. 

Wargaming is also alive and well. I played ASOIAF, tried a new army and bought into my own Free Folk. I also played some Warhammer. The nuns are back in action!

Hobby wise, I finished my giant commission, and also an unexpected dragon commission. I just had to paint Daenerys and her dragons! Commissions will now take a sideline, as I struggle to paint my own stuff during October.

Otherwise, I primed a lot of Bones using my airbrush. I also tried some color shifting paints on Stormlight shard bearers. So more preparations, less minis finished. I compensated by leaning into random fantasy minis, animals, monsters, whatever. I also painted the final batch of Tempestus nuns. I hope to never paint that color scheme again.

With these shifting priorities, my plans were delayed. But I also got a batch of 3d prints, so new avenues opened up as well. Therefor, the immediate priority is painting up what I already have primed - some Kasrkin and other random Imperial stuff. 

What I do afterwards depends on the weather. October is rainy so I might not be able to prime much. But I do want to prepare a lot. I can lean into rounding out my Guard army with Kriegers (including heavy weapons) and more Kasrkin. I can start on my own Free Folk, which will require some conversions to avoid identical models. This also requires a lot of magnets and movement tray work. I plan on doing more than just flocked trays, that's for sure. And speaking of magnets, I am in need of organizing my shelf space by producing more magnetized trays.

So the possibilities are endless!

August review and September goals

August is done and it went... about as expected. RPGs took a break, indeed I played nothing else but a small ASOIAF event. I'll be writing about it next week. However, we'll be starting September in force with both the Dungeon and our adventures in the Australian outback scheduled to resume this week. After, we'll be back at Warhammer as well.

Hobby wise, I finished stuff, including the entire 1920s investigators project (32 girls done total), both squads of Free Folk, and the Krieg artillery teams. Publishing soon. I also advanced on other fronts, by priming Bones miniatures using my airbrush whenever the weather allowed it.

As for September, I have a small commission of 2 giants (including Mag the Mighty). Otherwise I'll be going into painting fantasy miniatures and rounding up my remaining Guard infantry. Also airbrush prime whatever I can while the weather allows it.

All in all, the lull in hobby time is over. Games will resume. I'm ahead of schedule painting wise by 23. Let's have at it!

July review and August goals

We just had the Warhammer Apocalypse event this weekend, I am exhausted and also overjoyed. Read all about it here. This now seems like the sum of all July, but I also continued with the Dungeon of the Mad Mage and Call of Cthulhu. I still enjoy the 1920, we are in a new chapter now, and we're probably skirting very close to death and/or insanity. Both RPGs took a break due to summer holidays, but we should resume both during August.

Painting continued during July, with me grinding towards the end of the Astra Militarum project. Initially aimed for Q1, then Q2, now, to be honest, if I finish this year, I'll be happy. I am done with the bigger stuff, including the Valkyrie. Now there's just a load more of infantry to round out the army.

There's also a last batch of 1920s investigator to paint, Free Folk to finish (including movement trays with extra effort), and some random D&D minis to paint. With more holidays coming up, I cannot finish all this during August, but I will have a go at it.

June review and July goals

I am revitalized.

Warhammer 40k is back at the forefront with occasional 2v2 team games. Such a breath of fresh air. Also can't wait for an Apocalypse event later this month.

Dungeon of the Mad Mage is again engaging, with custom side quests thrown in and a random session of roleplaying in Waterdeep.

Call of Cthulhu keeps me plugged in as well. I started using my miniatures to good effect. We just finished a chapter. Lucy escaped certain death by spending luck. I love everything about this.

All this should continue in the same vein during July.

Painting wise, I got a good chunk done. This includes a load of Warhammer stuff, like Tauroxes and random inquisition minis; D&D minis, either purposefully aimed at Dungeon of the Mad Mage, or randomly acquisitioned; and some commission works, although this should wind down during the summer. I am now once again ahead of schedule. Whew.

As for July, I will carry on with more Guard stuff. There's some artillery and other things to go. I will sprinkle in some more simpler D&D minis as well. Maybe do my own Free Folk by experimenting with slapchop variants.

May review and June goals

Ever trucking forward. Some real life monkey wrenches but generally all good. 

Warhammer 40k... I am just so pumped for this. We even had a 2v2. I'll get another one in, as soon as I can. More Dungeon of the Mad Mage. More Monty Python. Restarted Call of Cthulhu. Everything looking good.

Painting wise, I got plenty of stuff done. Some simple D&D commissions. Finished more ASOIAF free folk. I did a huge photo session, getting them out slowly over the coming weeks.

In June, I'll be focusing on the remaining Astra Militarum models, although I'm pretty sure at this point I can't get everything done during the month. I'll start with the scion transports, and we'll see how much artillery, eschers and other stuff I can cram in.

April review and May goals

Choo-choo, goes the hobby train.

Warhammer 40k against brand new opponents. ASOIAF local tournament with practice games. More Dungeon of the Mad Mage. Finishing the Golden Vault series. More Monty Python. I just love the amount of gaming I can get in. This should continue, with more D&D, perhaps some CoC, and more Warhammer.

Painting wise, I did get another ASOIAF commission, just in time for that tournament I mentioned. I did finish some Astra Militarum and D&D minis as well, but I just couldn't fit in a photo session, hence the double story time this week. There was also a lot of assembly time, as I magnetized and LED-enabled two, count them two, brand new Guard vehicles. 

I'll start May by doing some simple D&D commissions - helps me pump up those numbers. I am almost on time with the count, hampered by the bucketload of nuns I received so far. Speaking of, I'll finish the rest of my nun scions, and as much of their new rides as I can. Then, I can try out the Bridgehead Strikforce.

My initial plan of finishing everything Astra Militarum related in Q1 is in ruins, but at least Q2 should be enough for the rest of the pending artillery and vehicles. Then I can get back to painting those 40+ converted and primed chaos marines... maybe.

March review and April goals

March went by, and it was loaded.

Gaming becomes ever more varied. Warhammer 40k is a mainstay, but I just couldn't put out any more new stuff for the Guard in time, so I dusted off my Daemons to try out the Shadow Legion. ASOIAF is also an occasional treat, although the Giants will not see the table again for some time. The Dungeon progresses slowly, and Golden Vault is still hanging. But I got my Kickstarter for Monty Python's Cocurricular Mediaeval Reenactment Programme and we tried it out - it's hilarious.

Hobbying was dominated by painting nuns. Another ASOIAF commission is also done - that's it until May or so. And a little dip into simple(r) D&D minis to be used in the Dungeon. And some investigators for Call of Cthulhu.

Next up, is pretty much the same. More nuns. More Escher Kasrkin. More D&D minis. Maybe some simple D&D commissions. Fortunate Sons still playing in the background.

February review and March goals

February's done and eagle eyed readers might have noticed the lack of hobby posts on the blog. That's because I did not paint in January, then I was sick, then stuff... so I published all my backlog of odd posts. But now I'm done with some stuff, so back to our regular schedule.

Gaming went alright, with some Warhammer, ASOIAF, D&D... Dungeon of the Mad Mage is back off track, read all about it soon. Golden Vault needs one more session to end the campaign, but scheduling conflicts hit hard. We tried out something else in the meantime. But all good!

Hobby wise, it's full steam ahead. One set of ASOIAF commissions is done, as well all the WIPs from last year. I also painted some D&D minis for Dungeon of the Mad Mage, and finished a bucketload of Warhammer related items. Only 30 behind schedule!

As for March, the objective for Q1 2025 is to have as much Imperial Guard done as possible, given that the new codex is out, and I'm having my first game on Wednesday. I still have to receive some nuns, so numbers will fluctuate, but I'm painting up a lot of them as Tempestus of both kinds, and I'm getting lots of new turret options for my tanks. Also... Fortunate Sons added to the playlist.

January review and February goals

New year's come and gone, goals achieved, all the good stuff. Now, for January...

Gaming was... OK, with a slow start after the new year. I did one of each 40k, ASOIAF, Golden Vault and Dungeon of the Mad Mage. Then I got hit with the flu and didn't go out of the house for over a week.

Hobby wise, I just couldn't put myself to paint anything. Partly because I discovered Baldur's Gate 3, which I'm playing multiplayer with old friends. It was fun during the holidays because I could go at it for days on end, now it's just some evenings of weekend afternoons. But also because I wasn't feeling it. So I did assembly/conversion work instead. I have around 45 marines, a load of cultists, traitor guard, nuns of all kinds, tanks, as well as other projects, ready to go.

And it would be time to go... due to some acquisitions, I am now at -50. Yeah, you read that right.

Now that I'm kind of over the flu... it's pedal to the metal! I want to finish as many nuns and tanks as possible before the Guard codex hits.