Planning 2012

With the turn of the year and a whole twelve month ahead to think on what you have in-store for gaming, modelling and hobby pursuits generally, it usually pays to have a plan (even if that plan doesn't survive contact with the 'enemy').

Reading several other blogs and their laying out of what they would like to achieve in the coming year made me pause. It's always interesting to see what others are into and see where their interests match your own or not and to pick up on projects that others have running which spur your own creative juices as it were.

So having never really planned my hobby activities before, and not really wanting to be prescriptive in what I intend to do in the following year, I did think it would be good to follow suit in laying down some of my thoughts and headlines on where my interests might lead in the coming months;

Abbey Terrain 001

• Abbey Terrain Project - This on going model-making scheme has kept me thinking for a while and one I'm enjoying the fruits of so will definitely be up there in my activities. Contrary to most of my hobby goings on, I have planned this one out to give it a scale and scope so will be on-going for some time as it will be pretty labour intensive, but I'm aiming to build and finish for use the next four pieces over the course of the year with pieces 002 and 003 well under way this should be achievable.
• Scatter Terrain - More an aside than a project but I'd like to produce at least two or three pieces of scenic scatter terrain. Generic multi-use pieces which I enjoy making and usually like the finished products.
• El Cid Berber Army - My Almohad Berber Army has been on-going for at least a couple of years with very slow progress on the painting front (pretty standard situation for me really) but I would like to get some progress on this one as I really like the army aesthetically and have the army pretty much sorted out in my head so just need to get the painting brush out. No set targets for this but at least two or three units painted would be nice, but determined l get the Hasham Guard Cavalry finished that have been on my desk for more than a year!

Hasham Guard Cavalry WIP 001

• Hungarian Black Army - This 28mm Medieval project has again been running (more crawling really) in the background but I would like to get a few units on the table top but this one needs a good boost to get any meaningful progress so probably resigned to the tail end of the year but might pick at it as I go. A unit of Clipeati is currently languishing on my painting table with minimal progress so maybe try and get that finished for Easter.

'Hungarian' Hussite Flailmen

• Italian Wars Project - This has always been a favourite period of mine, since I was a teenager in fact, and an on-going project for a fair while but last year I decided to pick up the pace on this and push on, with some success. I intend to put a big proportion of my effort over the coming months into this one, paying particular attention to my French forces. Again, unusually for me I have put some forethought into this project and have a framework to work around. Concentrating on field troops but may drift into some terrain towards the end of the year.
• Warhammer Empire and Kislev - An on going army for quite a while but again only needs the paint brush to push on with it. Not a high priority but a pick-up project as and when the mood takes me. The main thrust of this one will be finishing off units started last year, including some Kislevite Ursine Cavalry and a couple of Empire units too.

Empire Archer Detachment

• Future Wars Project - Having got this project to a point where getting some meaningful progress last year and expanded the scope to include a full mechanised Infantry platoon and got some bits finished (unusual enough for me at the best of times) this one one is quite high on my interest level list and I would think that this should progress nicely and maybe even....shock, horror gasp....be finished more the summertime. Finished as it stands at the moment anyway but could easily be added to if the muse catches me. Just picked up the last APC from Old Crow and awaiting Mark Copplestone sending me a couple of Assault Marine figs, this one is shaping up nicely.

Future Wars Vehicles - One more to add

• Mordheim Project - On going again with some good progress on this one last year too, this will probably go on as long as I have ideas for figures/modelling so no constraints on this one but again a pick-up project as and when for both figures and possibly terrain. In the short term the Gunnery School, Protectorate of Sigmar and Kislevite Warbands will take up the time on this one this year.

Gunnery School Warband

• Malburian Project - Early stages on this one and really only planning what I would like to do with this one. Again a period I've liked since a teenager and the first I ever read about in Churchill's 'Life and Times of the Duke of Marlborough', aiming for either/or a French or Imperial army initially probably in a managable size using a mixture of figures like North Stars' 'North Star 1672' range, Foundry or Ebor Miniatures and using the 'Beneath the Lilly Banners 2' rules.
• Miscellaneous Modelling - A plethora of different genres, styles and scales but different pieces for which I have no use other than the pleasure of modelling/assembling/painting for their own sake with too many different ones to mention here, really as the whim takes me.

A fairly dispirit group of projects, and all fairly open ended too. I do admire the focused approach I see on some wargamers blogs where you see definite progress on a particular project or theme and the fruits of this approach are always tangible and a thing of beauty but I'm a realist enough to know that that approach is not for me and a more eclectic way forward is the road I will follow.

So with that in mind I'll leave you while I plan my next move and I'll post some progress next time, probably with something not included in the above. ;-)