It’s been a long time coming…

 

My first blog and my first post. As the tile says this has been a long time coming and I should have started this many moons ago. Essentially as the name of the blog suggests I am passionate about miniatures, wargaming miniatures to be precise being a avid gamer since my late teens (thanks to my elder brothers). For me collecting and painting miniatures be they 28mm Napoleonic French Cuirassiers or 6mm Epic Space Marines, is a big draw for me. I love the research of Historicals and the creativity of Fantasy and Science Fiction, spending many hours reading books or scanning through web pages.

Actual gaming has been hit and miss over the years, mainly due to domestic reasons. However, I have enjoyed many hours gaming at clubs and with friends. Social gaming is by far the greatest attraction to the hobby. I can waste hours sat in front of a computer game (I have actually developed and sold my own), but give me a group of friends around a gaming table any day.

What has enthused me to start my own blog is a re-kindled love for playing Games Workshop Epic Armageddon. I have spent many years playing historical wargames, mostly Napoleonics and WW2 however, I have become dissatisfied with the rules available or more importantly finding a group of players who are like-minded.

Over the last couple of years I have been working away from home, with the stresses that brings I have indulged myself in my passion as much as possible. I have found myself yearning back to my thirties which was a high for gaming. Spending weekly sessions at the local GW store in Sheffield and regular trips to Warhammer World to play Epic or Warmaster. Two of the best (in my opinion) games to come out of Games Workshop. What has sparked this yearning is 3D printing and the emergence of numerous companies releasing highly detailed and affordable miniatures. Two of these are Vanguard Miniatures and Onslaught Miniatures both run by like-minded enthusiasts who have picked up where GW left us hanging.

Onslaught were first on the block and quickly achieved a reputation for quality miniatures and a fast expanding miniature line. This now covers various races and now several different scales including 10mm and 15mm. I particularly like the Sisterhood, Okami Combine and desperately waiting for the promised expansion of the ‘Nids (Oops Xenomites).

Vanguard Miniatures have been running for over two years now and have been building on the work done by Troublemaker Games. Their range of miniatures cover proxi’s for Marines and Imperial Guard, Orks and a small smattering of Eldar. These miniatures are scaled at “true” scale so they are bigger than your normal 6mm, this can be seen in their Space Marines as they now look like genetically modified giants and in the vehicle designs.

I have been slowly building up both a Marine force and Nova Grenadiers as seen in the following photo’s. (these include a couple of miniatures from DarkRealm Miniatures and HLS Models).

Game Changer

I have always liked my gaming on the grand scale having re-fought the great battles of the Napoleonic Wars and re-creating the Battle of Kursk in PC format. When John at Vanguard announced a new project in grand scale I was intrigued.

Recently I have contemplated going smaller than 6mm as several manufacturers are producing ranges covering various periods in 2/3mm scale. However, I have always thought miniatures at these small scales are “essentially 3D board counters”. How WRONG could I be. John’s recent releases covering his “Dominion Wars” shows how far 3D printing design has come. Seeing the level of detail on these 3mm miniatures is astonishing.

Currently the range covers his Elite Novan miniatures, but will expand to include Novan Regulars, Skinnerz and Cybershadow stalkers, as long as the support is there so get buying!

There is a set of Dominion rules in the works with a Quick play set already available. Please check out the miniatures here.

And to support the development of the rules go to the Dominion facebook page or the Tactical Command forum

I hope this first posting open some eyes to the recent developments in small scale sci-fi gaming. I am well aware it is very much a niche genre, but if you enjoy gaming in this grand scale the miniature manufacturers need our support so please spread the word and get gaming.

I will hopefully be posting my developments in both scales as my forces grow and hopefully get a chance to fight. in the meantime please leave your comments below.

For the Gamers

Adrian