The Ugly Phase
There’s an ugly phase in everything. It’s that liminal moment in time when everything has gotten worse before it can get better. In painting it looks like this: In fitness it looks like zero improvement after a month of work. It takes months to change your body and a few weeks of effort never go as far as you want them to. It’s supremely unfair how hard it is to make gains, when it’s BEOYND easy to lose fitness. In cleaning it’s when the room goes from “boy, I need to clean this up” to “uuugghh, I’m two hours in and it’s worse than when I started. Don’t quit! Just don’t quit. Keep going. It’s so easy to throw in the towel right now. It’s not going your way and surely never will ever again, right? WRONG! It’s time to buckle down and plow through the ugly phase. Keep running,…
Gotrek & Felix
March 25, 2024 was the day that I brainstormed a TON of blog topics. Those ideas are winding down. Note: Mild Gotrek and Felix spoilers ahead! I first became aware of Gotrek & Felix in 1992 or 1993 through White Dwarf magazine. I was already an old gate-keeping gamer at heart and I distinctly remember not liking named-characters in the universe. For some reason that rubbed me the wrong way and I wanted purity in unnamed denizens living, scraping, and dying in a merciless old world. Not sure why I was like that. But something piqued my interest in them a decade later when I used some birthday money to buy the G&F first omnibus in 2005. What spurred me to do that? No clue. I’d been out chasing cars and girls for years by then. I was living in a new city and maybe I was just looking for…
My gamespace. Game space. Games pace?
After a couple years of weekly hobby-blogging, I’m down to only four remaining ideas from the original brainstorming session. This is one of them. “Gamespace” like headspace, only gamey-er In my head, I’m still really into this stuff. I’m currently reading Callis & Toll. It’s OK so far, not bad, not amazing. It’s no Road of Skulls, but also far better than City of the Damned. I’d like to finish reading the 4th edition Warhammer Fantasy Battle rulebook, and the 10th edition 40k rulebook. I had a good reading stretch there when I was home sick and couldn’t do anything else in January, but the busyness has picked back up again. No clue why, but trying an army style game has some amount of appeal now, when it never has in the past. “Game Space” where the magic happens That saying isn’t just for MTV Cribs anymore! What’s MTV you…
My Favorite Minis
All miniatures are pretty great, but some are greater than others. I really can’t start talking about my favorite minis without starting where it all began… Britains The classic toy soldiers are absolutely where my love for these little people started. A local specialty toy retailer stocked Britains and my brother and I spent lifetimes drooling over the catalogs and peering through the display cabinet glass. Debating about which figure to get. Cowboys? Soldiers? Knights? Space aliens???? Sadly, Britains have been gone for a while. But I still have most if not all of them. I’m pretty sure some mounted knights were lost to the ravages of childhood play. As much as that pains me a bit, that’s what they were designed to do. To be loved and potentially lost. These were the days that I pined for “Indian in the Cupboard” to be a true story. Playmobil The next…
Warhammer 40,000
A few weeks ago I wrote about something strange happening (being interested in perhaps playing Warhammer Fantasy Battle). It happened again. One of my offspring has developed a real and growing interest in acquiring and playing a 40k army. I have not discouraged this. It’s made me reconsider all the 40k minis I’ve had since my own childhood. So I fired up a list at https://www.newrecruit.eu Turns out I have a roughly 1,000 point Space Marine army. Painted. š³ Including unpainted minis, it’s approximately 1,800+ points counting everything that forms up into a proper unit. That’s just the ‘Marines. I was really surprised. Shocked even that I’m sitting on a whole army. Though I have ABSOLUTELY no idea how these forces would turn out in a game. I’ve never read the Quick Start Guide, much less the full rules, despite being an original paperback Rogue Trader co-owner. I was always…
Sci-fi or Fantasy – Follow-up
GW continues to blur the lines between far-future and fantastical-past. I recently wrote about how Games Workshop mixes technology and mysticism liberally in both their fantasy and science-fiction settings. They’re at it again with their AdeptiCon announcements. Question: What GW setting features footsoldiers with machine guns and flamethrowers? If you said Warhammer 40k, you’re right! If you said Age of Sigmar, you’re also right! For more machine guns, also see the Cogfort. This ridiculous monstrosity is actually kind of awesome. I expect this to become one of those legendary sets that people will still talk about for years to come. But, it’s bristelling with machine guns (and flamethrowers) too. Which is cool I suppose, but kinda blows up the fantasy illusion in my head. Am I being a curmudgeon here, or is this genre-bending fusion just what these games need? Why is it that I find the anacronistic Wizard with…
Gargoylian Alert!
More of my favorite little creatures are coming out! The 2026 AdeptiCon preview has a trifecta of critters! Check these things out! I’ve taken the liberty to provide them names.
White Dwarf 522 – Idoneth DeepkinĀ in Darkwater
The March 2026 (White Dwarf 522) has card inserts for 3.5 Idoneth Deepkin heroes in the Jade Abbey (Icthil and Dorentar are alternate assemblies of the same model). Don’t miss Always Board Never Boring’s video: The Heroes: For a grand total of: $150.00 U.S. (plus tax). Ummmm… What? Four minis. $150+ Icthil The miniature is an Ikon of the Sea $40.00 U.S. Dorentar The miniature is an Ikon of the Storm $40.00 U.S. Narind The miniature is an Akhelian Thrallmaster $35.00 U.S. Vahadris The miniature is an Isharann Soulrender $35.00 U.S. As much as I love “official” minis… These expansion characters are pretty steep (deep?). But remember! You can use any minis you want. There are some decent 3D proxies available at myminifactory.com Alternatively, you could pick up the Warhammer Underworlds Direchasm Elathainās Soulraid box for around a quarter of the price of “official” minis and get a reasonable assortment of…
White Dwarf 521 – LuminethĀ in Darkwater
The February 2026 (White Dwarf 521) has card inserts for Four Aelven heroes, ready to delve into the Jade Abbey. Don’t forget to check out the video from Always Board Never Boring: The Heroes: For a grand total of: $148.5 U.S. (plus tax). Ummmm… What? Four minis. $150+ Iladrein Sunblande The miniature is a Vanari Lord Regent $43.50 U.S. Taysha of Tor Limina The miniature is a Scinari Enlightener $35.00 U.S. Zenthil Taior The miniature is a Scinari Loreseeker $35.00 U.S. The Lady Mylathir The miniature is a Scinari Cathallar $35.00 U.S. As much as I love “official” minis, I’m all about proxies to make games more affordable. I haven’t looked too hard, but I didn’t really see any good free or cheap STLs online. A pretty good option is Myari’s Purifiers from the Order Warbands: Heroes and Hunters set. These can be purchased from shuckers on eBay (or similar)…
White Dwarf 520 – GhoulsĀ in Darkwater
Warhammer Quest: Darkwater has its first expansion content. Ghouls. I’ve been a little slow making posts about Darkwater updates because they’ve been coming out in White Dwarf magazines. I’m incredibly fortunate to have a subscription to White Dwarf, however, that means that my issues aren’t delivered until midway through the following month. So, I’m a bit delayed. No big deal. As always, check out the video from ABNB: So, I just received my copy of White Dwarf 520 and will soon check out what the Flesheater Courts bring to the labyrinthine corridors of the Jade Abby. The Heroes: For a grand total of: $168.00 U.S. (plus tax). Ummmm… What? Four minis. $170+ Rawthroat Gorse The miniature is a Marrowscroll Herald $39.00 U.S. Porvyle the Bold The miniature is a Royal Decapitator $39.00 U.S. Friar Skinseam The miniature is an Abhorrant Cardinal $42.00 U.S. Bledivir Blackwing The miniature is an Abhorrant…