Halflings and Fubarnii and Delgon

I must start with a confession.

For the past few years my toy soldiering has dwindled and dwindled. Lack of time, falling out of the loop, not quite finding the miniatures and games that really caught my imagination, all of these things took their toll on my hobby muscles. It’s a common story. Real-life commitments often take over for a period. However, like many reformed hobbyists I speak to, I have never considered myself ‘out’ of gaming. It may have been some time since I picked up a brush in anger, or pushed a miniature across a tabletop, but I still have that ‘gamer gene’. Just as I go through troughs in my reading of sci-fi and fantasy, I still consider myself a genre reader. It never really goes away.

The Open Combat rules

Helping my friend Carl at Second Thunder develop the rules for Open Combat relit my fire a while back – the fact that you can play with a handful of whatever miniatures you like is a real blessing for those of us who know that it’ll be a long, long time before we get anything like a massed battle army painted. Buying some cool toy soldiers at conventions, starting to paint again, the wheels started to turn with much creaking and screeching and slowly the gears in the hobby part of my brain have started moving again. I will be blogging about my Open Combat exploits and writing some extra stuff for Second Thunder in 2015.

Available as a large-scale painting model and a smaller gaming piece.

Slightly more immediate but tangential, Voodooworx miniatures have released their first model – this charming Halfling warlord called Hau’rax. Sculpted by Lucas Pina Pinechet from original concepts by Wayne England, Hau’rax is a nice change from the normal Halflings we see. In celebration of this first foray into the world of Tir-Dagrau, I’ve written a short biography of Hau’rax which you’ll be able to read in the Voodooworx newsletter, and there’s a full 5,000 word short story coming soon too. It’s been great exploring this new mythical realm with Will from Voodooworx, inspired by a mix of celtic myth and modern fantasy, and wonderfully encapsulated in some great concepts by Wayne. I’m looking forward to writing more for this exciting range.

A box of swag to be proud of!

Last but not least, a Kickstarter I backed last year has now turned up on my doorstep. I’m not that keen on backing miniatures on Kickstarter, I have to say. A 3D computer render is one thing, but it has no bearing on the finished production quality. While most mini Kickstarters have turned out fine, there have been a few that have delivered less-than-expected quality once production has kicked in. However, World of Twilight has been going for a few years already and has proven itself both in terms of delivery and quality. It first came to my attention whilst researching an article on ‘out there’ fantasy ranges for a blog post on The Shell Case. The KS started soon after and I had to put my money where my mouth is.

I’m looking forward to assembling my various warbands (I had to get something from each faction, obviously…).

The book is also beautifully laid out, with fine illustrations and painted miniatures that really capture the flavour of this lovely fantasy world. An obvious labour of love.

I need to update my paints and other hobby supplies (good timing for Christmas) and I’m going to start on these lovely chaps in the New Year.

Anyway, that an some Undead for Open Combat should keep me busy for a few months (plus primping some Normans and Saxons and finishing some WWII Red Army guys for some rules Ive been tinkering with…). I’ll be posting updates here and, hopefully, on the World of Twilight Forum, and also you can keep track of what I’m up to over at the Second Thunder forum too,

So, what’s inspired you in the miniatures hobby lately?