So, we've reached that point that saw me now a member of Sheffield Wargames Society and most recently the Sheffield Runelords, the rub being that I now had to choose between the Runleords and my Monday night 'closed sessions;' with my friends at the 'after school' club run by Steve Roberts. I'd played a lot of tabletop stuff and even more D&D on Monday nights, and I was getting pretty slick as a DM, but Runequest and the 'glittering prize' of finding that imagined 'inside track' to the secret worlds that I'm sure all early 80s kids believed existed,. That hidden gaming session with the staff of the local games store, whose sage-like words were sure to reveal arcane secrets and I would be able to learn them, to become an acolyte of thes fell lords of die rolling. What actually happened was that I did indeed get to meet these people and many, many more.  Back then, it seemed that every connection you made opened a new gaming related pathwa...

 I'm powering through my sci-fi projects, and as I write this, I am just 12 figures away from completing the first of four different forces. It'll end up being many more than 4, but I want to get those done, along with the terrain and the starships to populate a starport and surrounding areas. Now, from the outset, I have wanted to get the 'feel' of the sci-fi stylings and colour schemes I loved back in 1982. Pete Armstrong used a stunning green on his Traveller Military and I was blown away by a fashion show which used sci-fi military stylings in similar colours and orange flack jackets thrown in for good measure. It had a very Jim Burns feel to it and of course the 80s catwalks were wild places. I have been weaned off bright orange flack jackets at last, but I do like a nice contrast on my sci-fi. I like my Marines to look hard-miltary and not like walking Gothic cathedrals, although I will admit that my 'Federal Marines' using the GZG UN hardsuites, with the ...

 Well, the last few days have been an eye-opener... It's been a loooooong time since I undertook a large project for myself in any scale, and as you know, if you follow my gaming life, for the last 6 years I've sent everything to a painter, since Lockdown meant I amassed a stash of money through the lack of shows. 2026, has resulted in attending just one show, with absolutely zero desire to go to any others for the time being, the idea of those moon-faced, wholesome idealists we seem to be plagued with these days along with over priced tickets - no the organisers do NOT bring people in, it's the xhibitors who don't get any financial recompense, and the traderts who pay for the pleasure of having sometimes sweaty and unhygienic souls pawing their wares before reaching into the coin purse to nbuy one figure, expecting the trader to act as if they are being showered (see the irony?) with largesse comparable to a trip to Harrods by a Saudi prince. Yesterday, I received an u...

 Well, with over 26,000 hits on this blog last month, I suppose I better say a big thank you, and get cracking on September... Saturdays were always fun, once I hit my 14th year as I was given a key to my parent's home and was allowed into town on my own, without question. Of course, normally I would be with Alan  and latterly Alan & Craig 'Stav' Stainrod - more on this individual at a future time. I would sometimes bump into my parents in the city centre as they did their shopping, but generally I was in a world of my own, exploring what was a seriously interesting underbelly of what was, back then a great city.   In the very early 80s, we still had proper youth tribes. Whilst there was not the gang violence we see today, it was 'exhilarating' just getting around town as I have mentioned in previous posts in this series. Alan and I were finding our feet as 'Rockers' or as many of our school colleagues would have it 'Fuckin' Hippies'. Alan...

Oldhammer... Or as we old timers call it , Warhammer is as we know all the craze. But, I think what separates the old sweats from the Johnny-Come-3rd-Ed-&-Afters is a 'vibe' which you don't just get from buying a set of rules and some over-priced old figures. Indeed as I opined previously, Citadel figures do not an Oldhammer army make. Let's take a couple of moments to look at what the middle of the road Warhammer 1st ed player looked like in 1982. I know there will always be exceptions, but there are some themes which ran deep in those days. First of all, most gamers were literate, dreamers and creatively minded. That may sound like a no-brainer, but believe me, the general intellect these days is not what it was in your local corporate gaming store. And that goes for the staff too, I fear... Secondly, there was a definite slant towards rock music, particularly progressive rock by the likes of Genesis, Pink Floyd, Marillion, Starcastle, Rush and YES. Now as...