MINI WARGAMING: "Barbary Pirates Are Back!" (23 June 2008)

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TOP: The workbench is cluttered as usual!

Hi All,

Well, any weekend I get to work on the hobby is a good one and I was able to spend a good amount of this past weekend working on miniatures projects.

The above photo is of a 1'x1' project board loaded up with models. On the far right is a Flagship Games resin ship loaded up with some of my 28mm undead pirate crew. To the upper left of the photo are some armored orcs that I picked up cheaply awhile back. And most of the rest of that project board is covered with orcs that I am converting to become a 28mm fantasy pirate crew.

As a side note, I picked up the "project board" practice from an old gamer buddy of mine named Kris. He would buy a cheap sheet of chipboard and have it cut up into rough 1'x1' sheets. The typical 2' x4' sheet yields eight "project boards" They're sort of like building puzzles on a flat piece of card board. By working on the "project boards" I save my tabletops and they make it easy to move projects around. At any rate, I found it a good idea years ago and am still using them to the present day. Thanks, Kris!

I've also been saving spare plastic 20mmx20mm mini bases for my fellow blogger and gamer, Drunken Samurai. If you've never checked out his blog, I highly recommend you do so. He does some pretty neat work.

Drunken Samurai URL located here:

http://dspaintingblog.blogspot.com/

Please excuse the low quality of the photos. I was having some difficulty with my digital camera and decided to go with low-quality shots rather than have none to share.

TOP: 25mm Barbary Pirate crew - mostly RAFM Ottomans and pirates.

Well, I'm up to almost 30 Barbary pirate figures at this point divided into two crews of fifteen men each. The above unit is mostly equipped with firearms. I got a deal on some old RAFM Turk and Ottoman figures so the latest acquisition really plumped out my tiraleurs (riflemen). The last batch proved difficult to work with, but this batch was a breeze. I'll update this post later with product numbers.

I haven't found a good ship for these fellows yet, but I have an extra galley or two that might do the trick.

TOP: 28mm Barbary pirate crew: mostly old RAFM.

The above lot is mostly a close-combat crew armed with cutlasses and various small arms. The two gorilla-like corsairs had their weapon swaps repositioned to stick straight up so that they'll rank better. The RAFM figures are definitely older 25mm ones and they are puny compared to "heroic sculpts" of 28mmm or larger scale.

TOP: 28mm armored orcs ... in need of headgear!

And the last batch if figures that I worked on have been orcs for my nephew Vincent's upcoming 28mm fantasy orc army. I picked up this batch of armored orcs used somewhere... I think that they are Harlequin / Black Tree although they might also be RAFM. I have a bunch of GW Bretonnian heads with nice medieval helms in my bitz box so I'm planning to add headgear to these fellows in the near future.

Have a great Monday!

And good gaming to you!

Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.

GAMING NEWS: Two PATs, Tamales, Pearl Harbor & Silly String, the Secret Weapon (7 December 2006)…

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Hi Everyone,

Welcome back to another installment of “6mm-Minis!” The past week has seen me keep busy, but enough of that and on to the content…

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PEARL HARBOR DAY!

Today is Pearl Harbor Day, that “Day of Infamy” on which a secret attack by the Japanese Empire on December 7, 1941 that sunk nine American ships, damaged another seven, destroyed or damaged over three-hundred aircraft and thus brought the United States into World War Two.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Attack_on_Pearl_Harbor

This may be the last time that the Pearl Harbor veterans meet too. It’s a sad day. Their generation was a great one that didn’t shirk their duties and their sacrifices paved the way for the prosperity of later generations. I’m grateful to them.

Check out this article about their possibly last reunion if you get a chance:

“Pearl Harbor survivors gather, maybe for last time”

http://tinyurl.com/ykun77

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YOU DO WHAT?

In other news more personal to me, my work is having a “team-building day” next week… when I heard that, I almost groaned out loud. I had terrible visions of sappy exercises where you have to fall down backwards and hope that your teammate will catch you… sort of like I had to do when I became a public educator. Without too much dithering, I hated those exercises… with a passion!

So, to my surprise, I asked my co-worker what we’d be doing and found out that… we’ll be making tamales for team-building… TAMALES? Yes, tamales. I guess that’s what happens when you work in a shop full of Latinos. Don’t get me wrong. I’m not complaining and my family does make tamales, but I never imagined being paid to do it.

What a pleasant surprise!

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TWO PATs:

In gaming related news, I have to tip my hat to the Two Pats! The two Pats I’m talking about are Patrick Smyrl of the Patrick's Hobby Shed blog and Patrick Sweeney of Firefly Games. Patrick Smyrl writes one of my favorite blogs, Patrick Smyrl's Gaming Blog, and recently volunteered to help create material for another friend, Tas, an Australian Naval officer who is unfortunately deployed and unable to tend his blog, another favorite of mine, Yours in a White Wine Sauce!.

You can find both Patrick’s and Tas’ blogs here:

http://pshobbyshed.blogspot.com/

http://pauljamesog.blogspot.com/

The other Patrick I’m talking about is Patrick Sweeney, the head honcho over at Firefly Games, maker of the ever popular Monster Island tabletop game. Patrick launched a new game earlier this year called The Faery’s Tale, which is simply an outstanding game, a sort of simply roleplaying game for children. Patrick specializes in simple, easy-to-play games suitable for children or adults. In an industry that tends to focus on adults, Firefly Games, is remarkable for producing games to introduce your favorite young people to.

Check out Firefly Games here:

http://www.firefly-games.com/index.php

And unlike this Pat:

These two Pats are assuredly male!

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SILLY STRING, THE SECRET WEAPON!

STRATFORD, N.J. — In an age of multimillion-dollar high-tech weapons systems, sometimes it's the simplest ideas that can save lives. Which is why a New Jersey mother is organizing a drive to send cans of Silly String to Iraq.

American troops use the stuff to detect trip wires around bombs, as Marcelle Shriver learned from her son, a soldier in Iraq. Before entering a building, troops squirt the plastic goo, which can shoot strands about 10 to 12 feet, across the room. If it falls to the ground, no trip wires. If it hangs in the air, they know they have a problem. The wires are otherwise nearly invisible.

Now, 1,000 cans of the neon-colored plastic goop are packed into Shriver's one-car garage in this town outside Philadelphia, ready to be shipped to the Middle East thanks to two churches and a pilot who heard about the drive.

"If I turn on the TV and see a soldier with a can of this on his vest, that would make this all worth it," said Shriver, 57, an office manager.

Check out the full article here:
http://tinyurl.com/saby6

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Have a great Thursday!

Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.

Notes regarding photos / pictures: These are not all my images. I am using various images from around the web, mostly from public sources and/or private sources used with permission. I have tried to include only images under public domain, creative commons, or fair use. If I have inadvertently violated any copyrights, please inform me and I will remove your image/s (if it is indeed an infringement).

NOVELS: The Book Meme Catches Up To Me...

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Hi Everyone,

Awhile back, my friend Abba Gav, tagged me with the book meme and I'm finally catching up to it.

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1. Name one book that changed your life:

"This is My God: The Jewish Way of Life" by Herman Wouk.
- This is one of Herman Wouk’s best books in myopinion, a very concise overview of Judaism and its’ meaning for secular Jews and just folks interested in knowing more about their Jewish neighbors from a religious or cultural viewpoint. An older lady friend of mine (as well as a former patient) gave it to me and I still use it at times when I want to re-clarify some point of interest for myself. It's one of my most valued books.

2. One book you've read more than once:

“Space Trilogy” by C.S. Lewis.
1. “Out of the Silent Planet”
2. “Perelandra”
3. “That Hideous Strength”
- I’ve had hankering lately to reread C.S. Lewis’“Space Trilogy” series… books as meaningful as Tolkien’s work or even C.S. Lewis’ better known works such as his “Narnia” children’s books. At times, his Space Trilogy reminds me of Burrough’s Barsoomian tales, Well’s Eloi from “The Time Machine” or even… the Traveller (classic sci-fi RPG) group called the Darrians.

3. One book you'd want on a desert island:

“Department of the Air Force, Search and Rescue Survival Manual, AFM 64-5”
- My father gave me a copy of either this manual or a related one as a boy and it was one of my favorite possessions. I still have it somewhere although it’s still packed away from my last move. It has instructions for everything from distilling water to finding food anywhere on the globe and more.

4. One book that made you laugh:

Anything by Dave Barry or Erma Bombeck:
- I can’t remember which one of these two authors I last read, but both Erma Bombeck and Dave Berry make my stomach hurt from laughing too much. Erma Bombeck, may she rest in peace, passed away a few years ago.

5. One book that made you cry:

“Genesis 1948: The First Arab-Israeli War” by Dan Kurzman.
- The struggle for Israel’s Independence in 1948 is a heart-wrenching true story of perserverance in the face of what must have seemed like insurmountable danger. There are so many stories of folks struggling bitterly just to survive, let alone prosper. What an amazing story.

6. One book you wish you'd written:

"Treason" by Orson Scott Card.
- Orson Scott Card made his break-through into the sci-fi industry with a short story named “Treason”that later turned into this book. It’s one of my favorites, a genius work that is fun to reread no matter how well you know the story. The story itslef is a classic sci-fi theme about evolution gone wild. I sometimes wonder if the classic fantasy RPG “Tekumel” and “Treason” are somehow related.

7. One book you wish had never been written:

“Orientalism” by Edward Said.
- This book, often considered a founding work in post-colonial theory, has been a huge contributor to the many misunderstandings and great difficulty that many academics, scholars and others have when trying to understand the differences between Western and Eastern cultures. The gist of the book is that Western authors can't critically judge Eastern culture because of their Western-slanted rose-coloured glasses. Meanwhile Said felt perfectly adequate to lay judgment down on Western literature. Moral equivalence and political correctness made great leaps forward when this book became disseminated.

8. One book you're currently reading:

“Mars” series by Kim Stanley Robinson.
- I’m currently on “Red Mars.” I never read the third book in this trilogy (it wasn’t written when I read the first two books in the series) and am looking forward to reading this series from beginning to end.
- I just finished reading David Brin's “Uplift” and“Uplift Storm” series.

9. One book you've been meaning to read:

“The Guide for the Perplexed” by Maimonides.
- I’ve always meant to read this book in its entirety rather than in excerpts sprinkled throughout other texts. The last book I had hankering to read in this manner was Plutarch’s “Lives,” which I enjoyed very much. It's sort of funny that Maimonides' "Guide For The Perplexed" is often mentioned in occult novels such as the Lovecraftian Cthulhu series and, interesting enough... in some of the Ghostbuster's movies.

10. Tag 5 people:

Andy Cowell
http://www.littleleadheroes.com/

Patrick Smyrl
http://pshobbyshed.blogspot.com/

Paul James “Tas” O’Grady
http://pauljamesog.blogspot.com/

PixelGeek (Zac Belado)
http://crusades.blogspot.com/

Yehuda Berlinger
http://jergames.blogspot.com/

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Have a great Friday!

Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.

MINI WARGAMING: New E-A Photobucket Galleries...

Hi Guys,

I thought I'd share some links for some miniatures photo galleries from two Epic-Armageddon miniatures enthusiasts...

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Consectari:
http://s99.photobucket.com/albums/l297/the_consectari/

C. has been working on some terrain boards among his other projects.



I really like his use of manufactured packaging as 6mm sci-fi structures:

Please check out his link for more photos of his amazing miniatures projects.

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And the later Necron efforts of PipBoy:
http://scc13hq.blogspot.com/

PipBoy does amazing work. The below photo is of some Necron Warriors he converted using DRM's Andrayada figures:

And here's some photos of his Necron Destroyers using plastic 28mm Necron Scarab bitz converted with DRM Andrayada torsos:

He has much more on his blog if you're interested in taking a gander...

And DRM Miniatures can be found and purchased here:
http://www.darkrealmminiatures.com/index.htm

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On a side note, I was able to get together with Dick M. yesterday and we played a few games:

- War Galley from GMT Games...

Link here:
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/1894

War Galley was a bit complicated. Dick and I hadn't quite mastered the game mechanics when we decided to close out the game and head out for lunch... it was really nice though to see all of those beautiful ancients ships heading for a rumble on the seas...

- Comand & Colours: Ancients also from GMT Games...

Link here:
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/14105

We played a Hannibal vs. Scipio scenario and Dick severely trounced me two games in a row...

Mazel Tov, Dick!

I picture Kimbo and Mike O'Brien smiling somewhere!

We also played a game of Settlers of Canaan from Cactus Games, an old favorite of mine...

Link here:
http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/3655

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Have a great Sunday!

Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.

Notes regarding photos / pictures / videos: These are not all my images and videos. I am using various images and videos from around the web, mostly from public sources and/or private sources used with permission. I have tried to include only images and videos under public domain, creative commons, or fair use. If I have inadvertently violated any copyrights, please inform me and I will remove your image/s (if it is indeed an infringement).

HUMOUR: New SFB Motivational Posters (sic.)...

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Hi Everyone,

I thought I should quickly make a small post about my friend, Andreas Udby's AKA Javelin-98's web site... He's a great guy, very generous with his time, generous with sharing his many fan-created game aids and always ready to brandish his wicked sense of humour!

The above poster is only one of many that he desihned on a lark... snarky spoofs of "motivatial posters" made for gamers. You can find a larger version of the poster here (...as well as the rest of the series):

http://s76.photobucket.com/albums/j20/javelin98/

Just in case you were wondering, the poster features an image of an ACTUAL Star Fleet Battles (SFB) game record sheet... just a wee bit complex, you might say...

And despite the complication inherent to the game, SFB can be fun. I've shared many a game of SFB with good friends over the years and most recently with Vynnie & Gang, whose awesome web site can be found here:

http://www.recon-in-force.com/index.html

Andreas's web site, which is chocked full of gaming goodness, can be found here:

http://home.comcast.net/~kudby/

Enjoy! Have a great day!

Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.

MINI WARGAMING: Cool E-A Necron Scratchbuilder!

Hi Guys,

Wow! The Epicomms boards are down, but a new poster, PipBoy, has put up some great photos of some of his custom work for Epic-Armageddon on the temporary standby until CyberShadow restores the boards... Orkz, Eldar, Necrons and Space Marines, oh my! ...very impressive!

TOP: PipBoy's home-made Necron Pyramid.

You can find more here at his blog:
http://scc13hq.blogspot.com/

Have a great Thursday!

Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.

Notes regarding photos / pictures / videos: These are not all my images and videos. I am using various images and videos from around the web, mostly from public sources and/or private sources used with permission. I have tried to include only images and videos under public domain, creative commons, or fair use. If I have inadvertently violated any copyrights, please inform me and I will remove your image/s (if it is indeed an infringement).

GAMING NEWS: Shoot Out At The A-1 Corral (19 April 2006)!

Hi Everyone,

Well, Wednesday night has come and gone and the gaming was good. The one game that most characterized the evening was Bang!, a spaghetti Western themed game (even subtitled in Italian)! All hail Clint!

The following came... veni, vidi, vici!

Players:
- Barto Riggs
- Crystal
- Daryl
- Dave Story
- Dick
- Keith
- Kimbo
- Kurt
- Maksim (me!)
- Mike O'Brien
- Todd
- Tony

And we played or tried to play several games:

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1. Nature Of the Beast

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/20906

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/20907

Players:
- Dave Story: Suburb - L.
- Dick: City - L.
- Kurt: Farm - L.
- Maksim: Forest - L.

Dave wanted to try this game and that's as far as we got... the game is very card-driven and it didn't pass the Kurt & Dick "macho meter"... After puzzling over it for about forty minutes, we all came to the conclusion to try something else and that game got stuffed back into Dave's box... Woohoo! What a start!

And that Kurt, what a mind on that man! He's full of more one-liners than... uh, well... uh... Wayne Brady in a singles bar?

Seriously, I'm "overly" fond of Kurt and he really does his bit to make the evening interesting... Many thanks to Kurt!

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2. Killer Bunnies And the Quest For the Magical Carrot

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/3699

Players:
- Dave: Winner!
- Dick: L.
- Kurt: L.
- Maksim: L.

This game was characterized very early by Dick and Kurt forming a carniverous partnership. That is, they tried to send all their hurt towards Dave and I unless we were both down for the count, in which case, they gnawed on each other... That worked for awhile, but I immediately got their number so I saved up a major wallop for them and when I was at critical mass, I let them have it. I brought out a holographic bunny to play supported by the Minilith that launched the Ebola Virus at them... TAKE THAT, craven bunny bullies!

And they did, The two of them were pretty well wiped out the rest of the game and my bunny brigade slowly grew and grew... I finished the game in a dominating position... controlling the cabbage, water, carrots, defense cards, etc., etc. And I had about eight bunnies at the end... Dick mentioned that "we all knew who left that game walking tall"...

Of course, that doesn't matter one bit because KB is completely random so... Dave, who had a cruddy "rotten carrot" game, managed to win with his one lucky carrot! Mazel Tov, Dave!

I'm not sure if I like KB much... it's pretty mean-spirited and brings out some of the worst in players much of the time... Too much "Dick-Kimbo" (DK) factor as Richard would say...

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3. Unexploded Cow

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/1690

Players:
- Crystal: L.
- Kimbo: Winner!
- Todd: L.

This was the first game of the day for the TLC unit (Todd Loves Crystal... somewhat along the lines of Joanie loves Chachi) and Kimbo tagged along and managed to pull off victory! Mazel Tov, Kimbo!

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4. Twilight Struggle

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/12333

Players:
- Barto Riggs: Leading as Russians!
- Mike O'Brien: Trailing as Americans...

The infamous Barto Riggs finally shows up! And it was Mike that called him out. Too bad, Dean Volpicelli wasn't there. He makes a good side kick, "lil partner" for someone. Mike and Barto started a fresh Cold War and they left around eight'ish with Barto leading. TS is a long game and I rarely see one go to the final count. Mazel Tov, Barto! Better luck next time, Mike!

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5. Bang!

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/3955

Players:
- Crystal: Sheriff - Survived albeit with a half a gol'darned dozen er so Swiss cheese holes in her "dainties"...
- Dave: Outlaw - Shot Down Like A Dog (SDLAD)! Rest in Peace (RIP)!
- Dick: Deputy - Survived through Italian mafia-style negociation...
- Kimbo: Outlaw - SDLAD-RIP!
- Maksim: Outlaw - SDLAD-RIP!
- Todd: Renegade - SDLAD - Couldn't bluff his way out of a box...

In a majorly wicked game, Dave was slain very early and Todd, through his inferior bluffing skill, was marked early. Todd fell next under a barrage from "Black Kimbo," feared outlaw. And then there were four... (whistling Western music... Oh, Ow, Oooooooo...)

We knew Crystal was sheriff and that Kimbo and I were outlaws... Dick was the wild card and what a wild card he was! He slew both Kimbo and I in a "rage of lead-fisted fury" leaving the forces of good with victory! Mazel Tov, Dick 'n' Crystal!

And that Crystal... I'm tell'in ya. She has more lucky than Dick in an "I-talyan" noodle restaurant. I literally shot and wounded her EIGHT times, riddling her with holes, and she pulled more beer than you can imagine. Lucky puke! And that was only the times I hit that law-sucking scumhole... I missed her about another EIGHT times! That's a lot of shoot'in there, partner!

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6. Ticket To Ride: Marklin Edition

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/21348

Players:
- Crystal: L.
- Dick: L.
- Kimbo: L.
- Maksim: Winner!

G-d bless Kimbo! Where the others have no problem ganging up on me, Kimbo decided to let nature take its own path. I set up an early passenger line and managed to finish it with aplomb. Kimbo couldn't quite block me in time and the other two were busy with their own lines. Before long, I had lined up two passengers at either end of a "wallop'in" train line and launched both scoring about fifty points, which is about what I won by. It was my game and as Kimbo put it: "Maks plays smart; he earned that win."

It was a good game... Crystal got tricky in the end... but her secret "back door maneauvers" availed her none. I think she distracted herself more with her banana more than it distracted the others (don't ask) except maybe Dick... Dick was uncharacteristically quiet during the game. Either that banana utterly captivated him or I conjecture that he might have been thinking...

I hear that Dick is on an all fruit and vegetable diet...

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7. Advanced Squad Leader

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/243

Players:
- Dave Story: ?
- Todd: ?

Dave and Todd pulled out this old warhorse near the end of the night and started "banging" their way through a scenario. I have no idea how the game turned out, but it did keep Todd more quiet than I've ever seen him. Strange... Dave's a card shark... he probably won.

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Have a great day!

Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.

P.S.
For those in post-Passover mode, that means you, Mike, I have two links:

1. A little surreal "Sign-O-Chumitz" in the 'ol Eretz city of Jerusalem:

http://www.israelity.com/gallery/view_photo.php?set_albumName=around_israel&id=P8230841

2. Matzomeletes - What to do with all of your leftover Matzo...

http://www.thisnormallife.com/blog/_archives/2006/4/17/1878370.html

Notes regarding photos / pictures: These are not all my images. I am using various images from around the web, mostly from public sources and/or private sources used with permission. I have tried to include only images under public domain, creative commons, or fair use. If I have inadvertently violated any copyrights, please inform me and I will remove your image/s (if it is indeed an infringement).

MINI GAMING: Miniature Games - The Good, the Bad & the Ugly!

Hi Everyone,

Well, Scott DiBartelo has started a blog and it's coming along. Just the other day or so ago, he decided to discuss the hobby of miniature wargaming and came up with a few questions he wanted to pose to his friends and readers...

Read his entire discussion here:

http://nothingbutgames.blogspot.com/

http://nothingbutgames.blogspot.com/2006/04/miniature-games-good-bad-and-ugly.html#links

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The specific questions he posed were:

So there ya have it, my take on why I love (for the most part), miniature games. They aren't perfect - though some do come real close for me, they are open to rules lawyering - though often it's unavoidable due to the nature of the game, the look absolutely fantastic - no denying that! and they provide an appropriate outlet for my creative tendencies that is both satisfying and appealing.

How about you?

- An oddball uncle got me into the hobby in the 1980s and I haven't looked back since although I have taken several long hiatuses from the hobby several times for work and/or university studies. I started off with board games and RPGs, but quickly switched over to the entry-level miniatures games, where miniatures replace game chits / counters. I remember the early fantasy rules like Chainmail and the Star Trek mania that Starfleet Battles brought about.

- Your statement, "Show me some cool scenery or terrain and give me some nice looking figures to push around and I'm a happy camper," certainly applies to me. I also enjoy the hobby on many different levels: artisanry, craftsmanship, social interaction, intellectual challenge, historical interest, etc., etc.

Do you enjoy miniature games?

- Oh, yes. I've had a great time with the hobby over the years and one of my favorite aspects of the hobby is that it's a very calm and peaceful outlet. It's also relatively inexpensive compared to hobbies like extensive television watching (...need that big screen TV sooner or later), sports cars, boats or even bar hopping... traditional domains of the male stereotype.

- And one of the greatest benefits I've gained from the hobby is a group of great friends all over the world from...

- Dafrca down in Burbank, CA in the Greater Los Angeles area to...

- Peter "Primarch" Ramos in Puerto Rico to...

- Ronen Tamari in Karmiel, Israel to...

- Stephane in France, to...

- Ian "Cybershadow" Weir in the UK, to...

- Mark and Tas in New Zealand and Oz respectively, to...

- John VanVlak in Malta, to...

And the list goes on and on...

- John, the other day ago, posted about Easter on Malta:

http://www.epic40k.co.uk/epicomms/ikonboard.cgi?s=281f1214f9ce24f7d9f9e7ef66d4b2aa;act=ST;f=59;t=6704;st=0

- I'm interested in trying some of his Maltese recipes now:

http://www.maltagozo.com/recipes#figolli

- This one sounds particularly good: "FIGOLLI - TRADITIONAL MALTESE EASTER PASTRY"

Have you had the same kinds of experiences?

- Yes. I think I've gone the full gambit of gaming experiences, but, on the other hand, the nice thing about the hobby is that there is always something new coming down the pipe. You never know what the next popular trend or historical interest will be...

- I know that in my time, I've tried out a huge variety of games from an equally large number of historical periods and a few nonhistorical ones as well...

- Overall, my gaming experiences have been very very good. I've made some very positive friendships and had some great experiences.

Do they appeal to you for the same (or maybe different) reasons?

- Gaming for me is first and foremost a social outlet. I like the social banter, the camarderie and the feelings of warmth from interacting with nice folks.

- The collecting and craftsmanship angles are nice as well, but the social aspect is more attractive to me.

- And the historical aspect is up there for me as well. I love the interest in history that gaming often brings about. I've learned a lot about history that I might never have learned if it wasn't for gaming.

Have you played with a miniature rules lawyer?

- I think we all have at some point and they do put a crimp in the hobby, which is a bummer, but nothing is perfect.

- One of my favorite local gamers is KIMBO! And he specifically avoid miniatures games because of rules lawyers. He likes the dependability of games with less "rules lawyer'in." Bummer. Kimbo would be a fun fellow to share those sorts of games with.

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/user/kimbo

- A trend that I've noticed is that groups often shrink and become insular to prevent entry of "rules lawyers" and other such undesireables. I can't blame such groups for the trend, but I have a sort of pet peeve to introduce gamers to each other and keep the player pool from stagnating too much. I think that that is one of the great saving graces of the Internet:

- On one hand, cyber-relationships are impersonal and keep some from interacting face-to-face, BUT, on the other hand, the Internet is great when used as a tool to gather like-minded folks. I've made a number of interest groups for the hobby and one of the most successful has over 1,500 members. I think of the Internet as a tool to help me meet quality folks and... it's pretty much worked out that way for me.

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Scott is known for being a generous great guy and has hosted at local Nothern California gaming conventions for years and year. One of his favorite games is Man O War, the classic GW game of fantasy naval combat from the 1990s. He started a Yahoo support E-group for Man O War called "The Sea Of Claws," which now has over 1,200 members!

Here are links to his favorite game and his venerated Yahoo E-group:

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/2516

http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/theseaofclaws/

Have a great Wednesday!

Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.

P.S.
I dont know exactly why I picked that comic for today's post, but I enjoyed it and why not?

HUMOUR: Doctors, Pirates & Ninjas... Oh my!

Hi Everyone,

My friend "Tas" who lives Down Under has been playing around with those silly quiz thingies and he motivated me to see which of the Dr. Whos I am so...

http://quizfarm.com/test.php?q_id=166656

And I scored as the third Doctor Who... Mr. Pertwee.

You scored as the 3rd Doctor.

3rd Doctor = 92%
9th Doctor = 75%
1st Doctor = 58%
4th Doctor =58%
A Dalek = 58%
8th Doctor = 50%
5th Doctor = 33%
7th Doctor = 33%
10th Doctor = 33%
6th Doctor = 25%
2nd Doctor = 17%
Davros = 0%

Bummer, the 4th Doctor, Tom Baker, was my favorite. I must be too straight-laced to score as him. Oh well, Pertwee wasn't so bad as they go.

I still haven't caught the new Dr. Who series... I keep trying, but it has been accidently deleted sveral times now after I set it to be digitally recorded. I suppose that's OK though since I'm in no hurry.

You can find Tas's site, which is mostly focussed on Victorian Science Fiction (VSF, but sometimes called Steampunk), here:

http://pauljamesog.blogspot.com/

He also found this link and was wondering what it was about... I think I'm with him on this one. Super Geek or not, this site is pretty wacky.

http://www.piratesvsninjas.net/

Have a great Friday!

Chag Sameach and Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.

P.S.
I'd also like to promote Scott DiBartelo's new blog here. He's a Northern California gamer who has been hosting Man O' War tournaments since practically the beginning of time. He's a great guy and I'm happy to help promote his new site.

Check it out here:
http://nothingbutgames.blogspot.com/

Notes regarding photos / pictures / videos: These are not all my images and videos. I am using various images and videos from around the web, mostly from public sources and/or private sources used with permission. I have tried to include only images and videos under public domain, creative commons, or fair use. If I have inadvertently violated any copyrights, please inform me and I will remove your image/s (if it is indeed an infringement).

HUMOUR: It's Official... I'm a Geek!

Hi Everyone,

Well, I finally got around to taking one of the "geek tests" and it's official... I'm a geek!

And I ranked:

74.75345% - Geek God!

Which is just short of:

Dysfunctional Geek.............≥75%

Which got me thinking... if I was just a little more geeky then I'd be dysfunctional... or maybe I should say totally dysfunctional since I know that I'm probably not a "smooth operator" despite liking the song.

Although I've had a date this year so maybe that should count against me?

Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.

P.S.
You can find the "geek test" here if you want to find out the awful truth:

http://www.innergeek.us/geek-test.html

HUMOUR: Are YOU a Geek?

Hi Everyone,

One of the latest fads going around are "geek tests," a test in which to see just how much of a geek you are based on silly questions. In fact, the whole "blog poll" thing has really taken off... you can see which sci-fi ship captain you are, which languages you should learn and all sorts of other kinds of silly fun.

Here are two geek tests for the more adventurous of you:

http://www.msnbc.msn.com/id/11977271/site/newsweek/

http://www.innergeek.us/geek-test.html

I haven't taken either yet, but I probably will later...

Have a great Wednesday!

Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.

P.S.
If you're a miniatures enthusiast, check out this beautiful site for the South London Warlords game club:

http://www.salute.co.uk/warlords/whoare.htm

HUMOUR: What Kind Of A Die Are You?

.

Hi Guys,

Please check out this cool quiz:
http://dicepool.com/catalog/quiz.php

You are reading the blog of a:

D6

You are a good old-fashioned six-sided cube, otherwise known as a d6. Others know you to be plain, predictable, conservative, average, ordinary, and downright boring. You prefer to describe yourself as dependable, honest, practical and trustworthy. People usually know what to expect from you, since you rarely hold any surprises. You hate to make decisions, and if forced to decide, you'll always fall back on how it was done in the past. You always order the same thing at your favorite restaurant, and your jokes, while funny, are never too offensive. It seems that you are well liked, but maybe that's simply because there's nothing to hate.

Anyone that knows me can cite a few differences, but...

That was fun!

"You hate to make decisions, and if forced to decide, you'll always fall back on how it was done in the past."

Hah! I've rocked the boat more times than there are letters in that sentence!

Shabbat Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.

P.S.
The Epicomms discussion thread for this "quiz" can be found here:
http://www.epic40k.co.uk/epicomms/ikonboard.cgi?act=ST&f=10&t=6573&st=0&&#entry156371

P.S.S.
My friend Tas also took the quiz. His results are here at his blog:
http://pauljamesog.blogspot.com/

Apparently, the D4 entry is even worse than the D6 one!

WARGAMING: Saturday (4 March 2006) At Great Escape Games!

Hi Guys,

Well, yesterday, I mosey'ed (How do you spell mosey?) on over to Great Escape Games with two objectives in mind:

1. Possibly play a Battleground WWII minis game with Kurt, Mark and gang and/or...
2. Play some board games with the excellent Dave Story, Kimbo and anyone else around for boardgaming day...

I came out very well, indeed!

======

Dave and Kimbo beat Kurt and Mark to the store by a good margin so we all sat down to play one of Dave's latest acquisitions:

"Conquest of the Empire," the newer Eagle Games variant.

Here's a Board Game Geek (BGG) link:

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/17710

And here's the BGG blurb:

This game is a remake of the 1984 classic that was part of Milton Bradley's Game Master Series. In this game you are one of many Roman generals vying for power in Imperial Rome, employing legions, cavalry, and catapults to reach your objectives.

This version of the game has two sets of rules, one set similiar to the original version (except that it has fixed the broken catapult rules) and an original set of rules based on Martin Wallace's Struggle of Empires.

Mike O'Brien and Charlie joined us so we had a full table of five.

Like most Eagle games, while it was rich in game components (...hundreds of little plastic gaming pieces and hordes of little cardboard counters), I found gameplay a little lacking.

I also suffered one of my all-too-regular curses... of playing opposite Mike O'Brien. Mike's a great guy and all, but we seem to have gameplay styles that conflict HEAVILY with one another! I ended up planted in the East with bases in Macedonia and Egypt. And, of course, Mike also ends up in Egypt and decides to make it his home base of operations... right where I wanted my home as well... ensue COMBAT!

I barely won, and only because I was persistent. And meantime, my chances for victory were utterly lost. It turns out that "Conquest" is as much a political game as a game of ancient warfare.

We ended early and Kimbo and Dave were the only two competitors. I had a good time and saved a whole ton of armies to give someone else a hard time. Poor Mike was nearly wiped out.

======

Meanwhile, Kurt and Mark showed up.

As usual, Mark showed up with some gorgeous new terrain that he SCRATCH-BUILT and a horde of 15mm WWII figures. Kurt showed up too in his trademark brown leather jacket with his trademark sense of well-honed sarcasm...

Kurt, Mark, Dick and I have been experimenting with Star Mogul from Alpha Forge Productions and have, well... been disappointed.

http://www.alphaforgegames.com/

Star Mogul has some balance issues and when Dick's forces were slaughtered in the last game, the guys decided to try and rewrite the Star Mogul rules a bit and in the meantime, find another skirmish game to play around with.

Well, it turned out that Mark liked Easy Eight's Battleground WWII (BGWWII) so... lo and behold, that'll be the next rule set!

Two links to BGWWII:

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/20441

http://theminiaturespage.com/rules/ww2/bgww2.html

While, I didn't play I did observe the game and I liked it. Kurt played Russians and Mark, Germans. Mark, as usual, set up a scenario in which he was hard-pressed and Kurt's troops carried the day.

The game mechanics are good and flow well. I can't wait to play the game again.

And speaking of BGWWII, one of my friends who I played BGWWII with has recently moved (...studying in grad school) and has set up his own web site. I'm talking about Jon Compton, the editor of Fire & Movement magazine and one heck of a nice guy.

Here's a link to his new web site:

http://www.joncompton.com/bio.html

======

Meanwhile, Mike, Kimbo, Charlie and I decided to get one more game in before we headed home and somehow, we decided on Wellington from GMT Games.

BGG link to follow:

http://www.boardgamegeek.com/game/11265

BGG blurb:

Adapted from the designer's "The Napoleonic Wars" covers the campaigns in Spain
and Portugual between 1812 and 1814.Simplified diplomacy as the four players
play in two teams (Spain & Britain vs France Nord & France Sud).

We each took the following roles:

The Good Guys (...because I played them!):
1. Me as the Spanish
2. Kimbo as mighty Wellington and the English

The French (...and Bad Guys!):
3. Charlie as France Nord
4. Mike O'Brien as France Sud

The game was an interesting historical scenario and I had a good time overall, but I wanted to mention that the event cards had some pretty confusing wording. If it wasn't that I was playing with an easy-going bunch, I could have foreseen games ending over such arguments. Rules lawyers would have loved those cards.

Well, pretty early on, it started getting ugly for French. After a few initial victories, my Spanish really started kicking Mike O'Brien around (See! I told you I end up opposite him just about every game... even when we're allies!). By the end of turn three, the French were almost entirely forced out of Southern Spain.

Charlie did a better job with France Nord until about turn two when Kimbo set out with a reinforced Wellington and started ripping holes in the French bulwarks in central Spain.

And, it just went downhill from there.

We fell into a pattern:

- The French threw everything they had at Wellington... who ran when necessary and...

- Meanwhile the Spanish cleaned up, claiming the open territories that the English created.

- Which oddly enough, are rather historically accurate results.

I won the game... allied victory that time.

======

And I also wanted to report that my friend, Tas'es new blog is going gangbusters:

http://pauljamesog.blogspot.com/

Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.

MINI WARGAMING: New Blog From Tas!

Hi Everyone,

My friend Tas has created his own blog now called "Yours In a White Wine Sauce!"

YIAWWS is primarily about Victorian Science Fiction (VSF), which is also called steampunk among other things.

Here's an intro from Tas:

Whats this humdrum all about Chaps?

Well, it's this new Officer's adventures in 2mm VSF wargaming and general ramblings about Aeronefs, Land Ironclads, Terranefs and all manner of contraptions and steam conveyances. It may not make sense, but there will be large quantities of claret and a nice cheese board at the end.

Tally-Ho!

It all looks like good fun and I'm happy to announce his new blog here!

http://pauljamesog.blogspot.com/

Tas is an old friend as well as an Australian Navy officer and is best known to the gaming community for one of his previous web sites about SJG's OGRE game.

http://panpacalliance.tripod.com/index.htm

Watch out for the pop-ups at PanPac Alliance... it's an older free site that pays for itself though pesky advertizing. It hasn't been updated for several years and has some bad code, but Tas hopes to rebuild it someday.

Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.

QUIZES: Blogger Tagging...

Hi Guys,

The somewhat infamous Zac "Pixelgeek" Belado tagged my with one of those "travel the blog" questionnaires and I'm in a good mood so I'll play along. Normally, I'm not much for chain letters and their like, but Zac is an OK guy and wants to see this thing move on. I mostly watch gaming blogs, rarely anything else and at that, I don't check out other blogs very consistently (usually once a week). Well, here goes:

Four Jobs I’ve Had:
- Chef For a Nice Italian Restaurant
(It takes work to make pasta by hand!)
- ESL Teacher
(Have taught numerous immigrants how to speak English)
- Illustrator
(Illustrated for books and magazines some time ago)
- Military Interpreter / Translator
(Spanish while in Cuba)

Four Movies I Can Watch Over and Over:
- Aliens
(A classic... love the heart-pounding end)
- Gladiator
(Makes me feel heroic while I do mundane tasks like laundry!)
- The Thirteenth Warrior
(Love the flow on this film, better than the book)
- Zulu
(The Welsh songs really make the film)

Four TV Shows I Love to Watch:
- Lost
(I watch it with my sister... very cool X-files style mystery / drama)
- Battlestar Galactica
(Not too fond of the new Starbuck, but love the series overall)
- Invasion
(Who doesn't like sneaky invaders from space?)
- Just about anything on the History Channel
(I can flip to this channel just about anytime I want and catch something interesting)

I don't actually own a TV that has antenna, satellite or cable recption. Mine is hooked up to a VCR and a DVD players and that's it. I've always felt that too many people watch too much television alone... if I do it, I generally watch it at other folk's homes as a social activity. I don't ever want to let the boob tube dictate my schedule.

Four Places I’ve Been on Vacation:
- Suzdal, Russia
(The history in Suzdal is amazing, you can almost feel yourself back in time)
- Massada, Israel
(Another haunting place where you can feel the history...)
- Kiev, The Ukraine
(Kiev is an acient city and full of interesting historical sites...)
- Mexico City, Mexico
(Mexico has its own charm despite the crowding and filth)

Four Favorite Dishes:
- Mom's home-made Enchiladas
(My mother makes the best enchiladas hands-down of any I've ever tried... the trick is in the sauce... browned flour really makes it happen)
- Mom's Spanish rice
(She's a genius at this... the perfect mix of rice, tomato sauce and seasoning... I've been taught the recipe, but can't quite match her expertise with it)
- My blueberry polenta tort
(I used to experiment with polenta torts years ago and came up with this recipe which is scrumptious)
- My Scrambled eggs with the good mixed in them
(...a little pico de gallo seasoning, fresh veggies, left-overs, etc.)

If you couldn't tell, I enjoy cooking and baking...

Four Websites I Visit Daily:
- http://www.yahoo.com/
(I get my E-mail here...)
- http://6mm-minis.blogspot.com/
(This is my blog, I try to update once or twice a week...)
- http://www.epic40k.co.uk/
(The Epicomms community has been my homes for years upon years...)
- http://games.groups.yahoo.com/group/6mmScienceFictionWarGames/
(I run a number of Yahoo E-groups and this is one of my favorites)

Four Places I’d Rather Be:
- Karmiel, Israel
(Israel is beautiful in a way that words can't capture... you can palpably feel the warmth of the people of Karmiel)
- At my home
(...rather than work!)
- At my parent's home visiting
(I love my folks and enjoy visiting them when I get the chance)
- Visiting friends just about anywhere
(My friend Vince, sister, Dick, Daniel "Dafrca" C., Kimbo, etc., etc.)

I really think that people make the place and not the other way around.

Four Bloggers I’m Tagging:
- Jeffro's Gaming Blog: Car Wars, Star Fleet Battles, Ogre, Battletech, and More!
http://jeffro.mindsay.com/
- Ty Beard and his FFOT blog
http://fftows.blogspot.com/
- Yehuda Berlinger & The Jerusalem Strategy Gaming Club
http://jergames.blogspot.com/
- Zac Pixelgeek Belado at his blog Mini Crusade
http://crusades.blogspot.com/

I don't know if it's kosher to tag Zac back, but I do like to read what he writes.

Four of My Favourite Books:
- Any of the original Conan novels by Robert E. Howard
(Pulp adventure goodness at its best!)
- Duel for the Golan: The 100-Hour Battle That Saved Israel by Jerry Asher and Eric Hammel
(The story of the near miraculous defeat of the USSR through its proxy of Syria on the Golan Heights in 1973)
- Ender's Game by Orson Scott Card
( I love almost every one of Card's novel... he is a genius at characterization)
- Any of the Hammer's Slammers novels by David Drake
(Gritty goodness!)

I'm an avid reader so this was a tough list to write.

Four of My Favorite Games:
- Command & Colors: Ancients by GMT Games
(I'm really starting to groove with this game)
- Dirtside II by GZG Games
(The run-away classic of sci-fi miniatures gaming...)
- HOTT by Phil Barker
(A fun, quick and simple way to relive those favorite scenes from Tolkien and other fantasy favorites...)
- Settlers of Canaan by Cactus Games
(Settlers is now a classic game and I really like this Biblical variant of the Cataan theme...)

This is a gaming blog community so it seems only appropriate to list games.

Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.

NEWS: Brand New Blog!

Hi Everyone,

While posting over at PG's blog, I was required to create my own and this is the result... pretty easy way to make a blog!

Shalom,
Maksim-Smelchak.