More of a re-introduction really...
Posted: Wed Oct 07, 2015 12:30 pm
Looking around, it seems like most of the big names I remember are no longer here (or at least haven't posted in years), so I'm not sure whether anyone will actually remember me.
Anyway, here goes. I have been away for over a decade, both from Druchii.net and from the hobby. I went off to train as a biology teacher and just plain didn't have the time to devote to painting and gaming any more. Plus, my stint as head of the Cult of Pleasure (the fluff-writing arm of D.net's online magazine - does that still exist?) had left me with what can best be described as major burn-out. A certain CoP member (who turned out to be a religious fundamentalist with mental issues) hacking/deleting several months' collective work did not help my enthusiasm (luckily most of it had been backed up offline, but it was still a major pain in the posterior). I ended up handing the CoP off to Darkprincess (is she still around?) and went into self-imposed exile.
Since then, my gaming has been strictly confined to RPGs (4th edition D&D, then more recently 13th Age).
There were two things stopping me from going back to WFB. Firstly, I was never really a fan of moving huge blocks of troops around. Skirmish-level games have always appealed more to me than mass battles. I wan't a fan of having to buy, assemble and paint something in the region of 30 models to make a single unit. Secondly, I was really kinda sick of the WFB setting. Don't get me wrong, I have always loved the elven (especially druchii) and chaos fluff. But the endless parade of (IMO) facile and occasionally vaguely racist stereotyped fantasy counterpart cultures were always a bit of a turn-off. I have no problem with those people that like Empire, Bretonnians, Lizardmen, etc. But they're just not for me.
So, roll on 2015. The world ends and there's this new game called Age of Sigmar. It seems at first glance like it's a sort of hybrid of mass battle and skirmish stuff. Something like 40K in terms of expected number of models per side. And there's a whole new setting based on turning the eight winds/colours/lores/colleges of magic into separate worlds. So we're presumably no longer stuck with humans all being either citizens of the Holy Roman Empire with wizards, Renaissance Italian mercenaries or extras from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Lizardmen maybe won't be lumbered with silly names like Xoccibicci and Inxiwinxi any more. And my beloved dark elves presumably no longer have to all be subjects of Malekith (six millennia of abject failures is enough!). Eight worlds (well, seven plus Sigmar's fluffy-cloud heaven full of NOTspacemarines) seems like plenty of room to come up with new stories and unique characters and cultures.
I have some misgivings, but... well, that looks mighty interesting. So I'm back. You can blame Sigmar.
Now, excuse me while I check which (if any) of my paints are still usable and order a box of ridiculously expensive but irresistably cool-looking plastic witch elves...
Anyway, here goes. I have been away for over a decade, both from Druchii.net and from the hobby. I went off to train as a biology teacher and just plain didn't have the time to devote to painting and gaming any more. Plus, my stint as head of the Cult of Pleasure (the fluff-writing arm of D.net's online magazine - does that still exist?) had left me with what can best be described as major burn-out. A certain CoP member (who turned out to be a religious fundamentalist with mental issues) hacking/deleting several months' collective work did not help my enthusiasm (luckily most of it had been backed up offline, but it was still a major pain in the posterior). I ended up handing the CoP off to Darkprincess (is she still around?) and went into self-imposed exile.
Since then, my gaming has been strictly confined to RPGs (4th edition D&D, then more recently 13th Age).
There were two things stopping me from going back to WFB. Firstly, I was never really a fan of moving huge blocks of troops around. Skirmish-level games have always appealed more to me than mass battles. I wan't a fan of having to buy, assemble and paint something in the region of 30 models to make a single unit. Secondly, I was really kinda sick of the WFB setting. Don't get me wrong, I have always loved the elven (especially druchii) and chaos fluff. But the endless parade of (IMO) facile and occasionally vaguely racist stereotyped fantasy counterpart cultures were always a bit of a turn-off. I have no problem with those people that like Empire, Bretonnians, Lizardmen, etc. But they're just not for me.
So, roll on 2015. The world ends and there's this new game called Age of Sigmar. It seems at first glance like it's a sort of hybrid of mass battle and skirmish stuff. Something like 40K in terms of expected number of models per side. And there's a whole new setting based on turning the eight winds/colours/lores/colleges of magic into separate worlds. So we're presumably no longer stuck with humans all being either citizens of the Holy Roman Empire with wizards, Renaissance Italian mercenaries or extras from Monty Python and the Holy Grail. Lizardmen maybe won't be lumbered with silly names like Xoccibicci and Inxiwinxi any more. And my beloved dark elves presumably no longer have to all be subjects of Malekith (six millennia of abject failures is enough!). Eight worlds (well, seven plus Sigmar's fluffy-cloud heaven full of NOTspacemarines) seems like plenty of room to come up with new stories and unique characters and cultures.
I have some misgivings, but... well, that looks mighty interesting. So I'm back. You can blame Sigmar.
Now, excuse me while I check which (if any) of my paints are still usable and order a box of ridiculously expensive but irresistably cool-looking plastic witch elves...