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On Getting Close To Completion And The Price Of Old Toys

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 The fact that I am now of pension age, is still settling on my mind, but even though it sifgnals the third and final stage of my time on this planet, it has acted as a supercharged burst of hobby-based determination, not only for me, but a couple of other friends too. I have been making lists and opening long forgotten boxes to get my fantasy collection thoroughly completed, but the cost is not something I think reasonable, as scalpers and profiteers run amok on the internet, claiming that figures produced in their thousands are 'rare'... The truth is that they are not generally rare and can be found very easily. Let me demonstrate... The pic below represents some of the stuff I've purchased this week: As you can see there are 4 of the 5 Dark Elf War Eagles I managed to find from various sellers, both on and off eBay. These averaged £45 per model against an original £7.95 40 years ago - Not bad by modern standards but still eye watering. They weigh around 400g each so are
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It Ain't Over Until... Well, Actually It's NEVER over...

 In 1981, I found gaming, without realising it. Now, some 43 years later, I'm still obsessed with this hobby and enjoying it at a personal if not group level, more than I ever did. I was chatting with the Memsahib recently and trying to convey to her just what it was like back then.  We are the same age, but our experience of our own home town is totally different. I suppose that to some degree, it's just what Joe Jackson sang about, but moreover, my wife comes from the semi rural fringe of the city, whilst I am from a 10 minute bus ride from the heart of the Steel City. I met my wife in '88 so she saw the final throes of Games Workshop allowing stores to have an individual identity and sense of autonomy and saw the high water point of the Sheffield Wargames Society domination of Northern wargaming, so her own gaming experience since then has mirrored my own. But S.W.M.B.O missed a critical period in our hobby (as did all those who somewhat ironically profess their love for
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Of Ogres, Balrogs & Massive Birds

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 It's been another hard week at work as we have had assorted surveyors and contractors crawling all over the manse, but I've managed to add a few more pieces to my fantasy collection. First up, is a full set of Golfag's Mercenary Ogres in their original format. The trooper is a bit on the ugly side but the command models are what always made my heart skip a beat, so getting a full 15 figure regiment was a treat at a reasonable but considerable price.   And to round out the week, I today bagged Golgoth the Giant Balrog, part of the Tony Ackland Arcane Monstrocities range. It's a heft lump of lead and is in it's original box to boot...      And as if these gems were not enough, I set myself the challenge of finding one of the old Dark Elf War Eagle from the Arcane Monstrosities range on Wednesday. And I acquired 4 - so far...     If you have another one of these, with or without rider, please reach ou to me if you want to sell it. So, all in all It's been a great
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Lost For Inspiration, But The Fantasy Continues To Expand...

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 I confess, that I'm not getting as much gaming in as I may like, and it's all my own fault, because I have a games room filled with stuff related to the renovations, although the pile is now somewhat smaller and I can see the tables. We had the builder quote for 5 more projects yesterday on the basis that we aim to get this place exactly as we want it when we retire. There's a lot to be done, so I am already planning for how not to have to use the games room as a builders storage yard, and have been quite firm with my position in that regard. As I write, it's 5:40 and I have been awake since 4AM. I'd hoped to find a new project which interested me over a first fruit tea of the day, but I confess that I really cannot find a period that gets my juices flowing. This is both worrying and at the same time rather pleasing because it implies that whilst not tired of the hobby, I'm fulfilled with what I'm already doing. But it has to be admitted that, after 46 year
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Not mushroom... Be Careful You Don't Sit On A Toadstool

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 The Memsahib finished basing a few giant toadstool forests over the weekend. The mushrooms are ready painted resin models ordered from China through 'Temu'. They do the job nicely and are in the game room awaiting use...  
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A Good Day's Work... Greblord Celebrated.

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 I spent Easter Monday painting, after first booking another meal for two at the Cavendish in Chatsworth - Look, you get one life and that tahini and white chocolate torte, really is something special. I've had several character models for my fantasy collection, sitting on my desk for over 6 months noe, so I decided that despite hating spending my free time doing what I do every day for a living, I'd crack on. As a kid, I lived in the 'original' Games Workshop store in Sheffield, the lair of one of the pioneers of fantasy painting - and GW staff member - Peter 'Greblord' Armstrong, from whom I learned a lot and in doing so, also got picked on a lot, which toughened me up to the world, being (as I became) a student of the 'Armstrong-Gilbride Youth Education Programme', graduating summa cum laude in 1984. Pete is no longer with us, but his blog  remains as a deliberate memorial to him. I always loved Pete's work in the early 80s, and Pete pretty much p
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More Fantasy Enters The Dark Tower...

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 Happy Easter to you all, from the Dark Tower, where there are no chocolate bunnies, eggs orindeed,  fluffy chicks (the Orcs in the lower levels, choke on them). Earlier in the week, I reached out to my former friend Roger, but received a two line polite 'fuck off' reply. Such is life... And so off I jolly well fucked, and fucked off I shall now jolly well remain, because, you know... life is too short and I previously allowed my friendship and affection for Roger, to cut out several other older friends back in the Christmas of 2020. I have since apologised to all those individuals, and will never repeat that mistake, nor will I allow myself to be made to be feel somewhat inadequate in the estimations of others who should know better. Life is simply too short for teenage angst revisited. End of lesson... I'm enjoying day three of a 5 day extended Easter break, and we spent Friday in the Peak District, taking an excellent 5 course lunch, which was well worth the £124 includ
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