Read This Blog Post

Just read Tomsche post over at Società di archeologia e cimeli. It's a rant about gamers and fanboys and I do love to rant myself. I don't do recommend other bloggers posts much but I think this was a great, heartfelt post which struck a real chord with me.

Eleventh Hour Of The Eleventh Day Of The Eleventh Month

Remember the dead, think abut the living. Then dig deep.


When you've shouted "Rule Britannia": when you've sung "God Save the Queen"
When you've finished killing Kruger with your mouth:
Will you kindly drop a shilling in my little tambourine
For a gentleman in khaki ordered South?
He's an absent-minded beggar and his weaknesses are great:
But we and Paul must take him as we find him:
He is out on active service wiping something off a slate:
And he's left a lot of little things behind him!
Duke's son – cook's son – son of a hundred kings,
(Fifty thousand horse and foot going to Table Bay!)
Each of 'em doing his country's work (and who's to look after the things?)
Pass the hat for your credit's sake, and pay – pay – pay!


There are girls he married secret, asking no permission to,
For he knew he wouldn't get it if he did.
There is gas and coal and vittles, and the house-rent falling due,
And it's rather more than likely there's a kid.
There are girls he walked with casual, they'll be sorry now he's gone,
For an absent-minded beggar they will find him,
But it ain't the time for sermons with the winter coming on:
We must help the girl that Tommy's left behind him!
Cook's son – Duke's son – son of a belted Earl,
Son of a Lambeth publican – it's all the same to-day!
Each of 'em doing his country's work (and who's to look after the girl?)
Pass the hat for your credit's sake, and pay – pay – pay!


There are families by the thousands, far too proud to beg or speak:
And they'll put their sticks and bedding up the spout,
And they'll live on half o' nothing paid 'em punctual once a week,
'Cause the man that earned the wage is ordered out.
He's an absent-minded beggar, but he heard his country's call,
And his reg'ment didn't need to send to find him;
He chucked his job and joined it – so the task before us all
Is to help the home that Tommy's left behind him!
Duke's job – cook's job – gardener, baronet, groom -
Mews or palace or paper-shop – there's someone gone away!
Each of 'em doing his country's work (and who's to look after the room?)
Pass the hat for your credit's sake, and pay – pay – pay!


Let us manage so as later we can look him in the face,
And tell him what he'd very much prefer:
That, while he saved the Empire his employer saved his place,
And his mates (that's you and me) looked out for her.
He's an absent-minded beggar, and he may forget it all,
But we do not want his kiddies to remind him
That we sent 'em to the workhouse while their daddy hammered Paul,
So we'll help the homes that Tommy's left behind him!
Cook's home – Duke's home – home of a millionaire –
(Fifty thousand horse and foot going to Table Bay!)
Each of 'em doing his country's work (and what have you got to spare?)
Pass the hat for your credit's sake, and pay – pay – pay!

X-Com:Enemy Unknown - Can I Turn It Into A Tabletop RPG?

I've been thinking about doing the new X-Com as a project in 28mm for some time. I got the game as a Christmas present last year and have been thinking about it off and on since then. I assume that this is going to be my next RPG after my Skyrim themed game which will hopefully be ready in the new year so I am trying to forward plan. Setting it up, especially the figures, is taxing me a little though so I am asking for help.

I have a soft spot for the old X-Com game and is probably the computer game I have played the most over the years. The old X-Com never seemed to get off the ground and I was hoping to turn the idea into a role playing game more than a wargame. I am not set on an exact duplication because I don't think it's going to be achieved without a massive effort. What I am trying to achieve is something that evokes (as closely as possible) the game.

I've looked around the web and there doesn't seem to have been many people all that keen on the idea (the game was pretty good even of it wasn't old x-com) so I was wondering if any one had given miniatures for the game any thoughts? This is what I have so far.

Sectoids There are currently several options but think I am going to use Tengu models. I have some already so that makes the choice easy.

Thin man There must be some badly designed, very thin humans n suits out there that I don't know about. I was thinking that there might be something.
Outsider I have no ideas about this race. So much so that I am likely to just forget about it and come up with something else.
Floater Currently thinking an old space marine body with some very old flight packs I have around. Stick the torso on a flying stand, give it a weapon and away we go,
Muton Large brawny, armoured humanoids. This seems like it is back to GW, I am currently favouring a chaos terminator torso because of the cowl on very old plastic space marine legs with a little bit of work especially for the specialists (elite and berserker)
Chryssalid I am guessing that there must be something out there maybe Tyranid (why does it all have to be GW? I dread going in there, I hate being the oldest person in the room and the staff always home in on me because they think I have money). Making something like this is beyond my green stuff skills and I need a few of them so I don't really want to put in any unnecessary time on these so a whole model would be nice.
Zombies Think I can work this one out for myself (I have a hundred or so)
Cyber Disc Much as I like the new ones, unless there is something easy and cheap I am probably going to find a disk about the right shape, score it a little and paint it white. The nw ones are just a little too techno for me.
Drone As if these things weren't annoying enough in the game, I have drawn a blank when coming up with ideas. I might go down the cyber disc route and stick something like a marble on a flying stand and have done with it. Suggestions would be nice

Sectopod These are large fighting robots. Now I can't find what I want but I have something that I can use, which is a small 15mm combat mech which is big enough to fit on a large base. I like the old one more than the new one, so I guess I will live with that. If anyone has any ideas for something I could use instead I am open to suggestions.
Ethereals This is another race where I preferred the older version of the race. Tall skinny humanoids with Ben Kenobi robes. Still I have no idea about what I can do to make these so suspect that this is going to be a green stuff job. I guess that there is some scope for the use of Eldar (sigh) but I would sooner have something else.

There are still a few aliens from the old games that might be nice to include. Snakemen and various blobs spring to mind. All would be nice to include and I may make up a few more for good measure.

Then of course there are the humans. The key things are that they must be modular. Preferable they should have several forms of armour and come equipped with a range of weaponry. Something that would be easy to chop and change would be nice. In my mind, I will be upgrading the soldiers as the game goes on. I was originally thinking the denizen 25mm stuff but it is really small compared to the rest of the stuff I have and Pig Iron has also sprung to mind but I am drawing a blank at the moment.

I have no intention of making terrain so I am looking at using maps. I can't find any maps for the game online so I guess I'm on to the home made front again. I'll want to make some myself so a good source of overlays would be nice.

Birthday Elves Again

This is just an update of what I started earlier. I wanted some "white elves" or light elves because they are part of the Norse myths. There is nothing much that really says what they look like out there so I thought I would try to make them multi use. The "white" bit is about their fairly pale colouration. This allows them to be used as wood or sylvan elves which are a bit more mainstream. They do have the radiant and beautiful "fairer than the sun" vibe. These figures also have a bard like figure which I feel fits in very much with the background. They have a nice haughty look which makes them useful as a bad guy as well as a player character if I decide to let them in as a player race.

Birthday Elves

Never start thinking you are on a roll when you are blogging. The self confidence makes you a bit cocky. Family arrive, puppies poop all over the kitchen and suddenly you remember all sorts of bits of work that need doing. I haven't done much but I do have a bit of work in progress to show.

I've even managed a conversation from a bow man to a wizard

They just look haughty (uppity maybe?)

I haven't done much since my birthday, hence birthday elves and no, not the kind that leave well packaged presents at the foot of the bed. I started doing some painting on these elves for the Viking game. These are actually some old grenadier miniatures and not the Mirilton recasts. Since starting these, I have ordered a batch more from Mirilton. Some more elves and a lot of bits and pieces. They fit the world I am planning. Whilst they look a little wood elf like, they have a bard (or musician if you like) which is very Norse. They are destined to be white elves from Norse mythology hence the platinum blond look.

 As a Birthday present I ordered some more stuff from Gripping Beat and got some stuff at a wargame show. I'll get round to posting some pics of what I got and a bit more brain numbing dialogue soon. I think I am feeling the Berserkers as the next paint  job although I have a few bits and pieces to finish. I got some more at a show a while back but on closer examination I really didn't like them much so I'll stick with the gripping beast stuff. I have seem some nice paint jobs done of these on line as well so I am quite hopeful they will turn out okay.

More weapons than I will ever need