GAME PLAN 2022 - Q1

This is a bit early... but I've been thinking about this for a few weeks and got it ready, and I don't think it's going to change much in the next week or so... So these are my vague (let's call it "FLEXIBLE") plans for 2022! 

I've also been putting together a Looking Back at 2021 post... Normally post that along with the Game Plan, but there WILL be stuff to add to that before the end of the year. So, stay tuned for that on the 31st or the 1st of January. 

50 Miniature Games

I turn 50 this year. This is (or WAS, initially) a Miniature Wargaming Blog. 

I'd like to play FIFTY Miniature Wargames this year - and post a game report for each. Ideally they'd be in a series of short campaigns for each. I like the idea of setting aside one day -  as pecific afternoon or evening - of each week to do this and also have a scheduled time to complete a game report to post here. Maybe play the game on a Sunday evening, and post the game report Monday evening...? I don't know. Still working out details.

Initially I was thinking I'd play five different games ten times (which would be half of the 10x10 Challenge - see below)... but I can't guarantee that will happen. SOME of them I will definitely play at least ten times and will be included in the years 10x10 Challenge... Others I will endeavour to play at least five times and may (or may not) be included in some of the Quarterly 5x5 Challenges... Others... might only get a handful of plays. There are just TOO MANY GAMES I want to play!? 

Which games? Given my constantly shifting interests, there is NO WAY I could predict exactly which games I would play over the course of the year. But I can list a few that I definitely WILL play at least a few of... 

• Frostgrave (2nd Edition)
• The Silver Bayonet
• Warhammer Underworlds (Yes, I'm counting it as a miniature game)
• Stargrave
• Kill Team
• Necromunda
• Rangers of Shadowdeep
• Warhammer 40K
• Age of Sigmar
• Maybe some games by Dan Mercy (Lion Rampant, Dragon Rampant, Rebels and Patriots, Men Who Would Be Kings, The Pikeman's Lament, etc) 
• Song of Blades and Heroes - or other games using the same engine (Fistful of Kung Fu, Fear and Faith, Flying Lead, etc). 
• Warhammer Quest - Blakstone Fortress or Cursed City (or the ones Finnegan has?) 
• Hellboy: The Board Game (I know, it's CALLED a board game... but Miniatures are an essential part of it!) 

As I'm kind of leaning towards a narrative campaign of The Silver Bayonet for the February Game Weekend. I have a feeling that I'll be starting off the year with a lot of that and will be playing it most weeks until February - just to get in lots of practice, know the system inside and out, playtest scenarios for the game weekend and make any required tweaks. 

I definitely want to get playing WArhammer Underworlds again. I may mix in a few of those games, here and there. 

5x5 (Quarterly) Challenge - 10x10 (Annual) Challenge

The Quarterly 5x5 challenges worked.... pretty... okay... last year... SURE, I kept things WILDLY flexible and often retroactively changes what the five games were going to be at the end of the quarter... simply because I'd just played different games than I'd planned three months earlier... but STILL PLAYED FIVE DIFFERENT GAMES FIVE TIMES! I liked that in the final Quarter there were enough games that were close enough to ten plays, that I was still interested in playing, to be able to turn that into a 10x10 challenge.

For this year, as with last year, each Quarter I will play five different games, five times each. That's it. I might try to guess what those might be at the beginning of each Quarter - as part of the Quarterly Plan... but I make no promise to keep to those... 

Likewise, by the end of 2022, I will shoot to have played ten different games ten times each. I probably will have NO IDEA what those will be before the final Quarter... and even then... things could very well change! (Though I can almost guarantee one will be Wingspan!) 

Generally, I'd like to pick a few games that I haven't gotten to play so much for a while, that I WOULD really, really like to play more of... (maybe looking at BGGs five and dimes? pick a few of the fives that I'd like to get over onto the "Dimes" list!?)  As well as a few that I'm currently obsessing about. 

Since planning to play 50 miniature games (above) probably need for two (or three) of those five to reflect the miniature games I'm planning to play.

For Q1? 

1. Silver Bayonet
2. Frostgrave or Stargrave or Rangers of Shadowdeep
3. Wingspan 
4. Other Board Game
5. Other Board Game

By the end of this year, we'll have played 30+ game of Wingspan... I can't see that slowing down... 

The "Other Board Games"...? Hard to say... Maybe Kingdom Builder? I'd like to play Marrying Mr. Darcy more...

The whole family seems interested (or... at least... willing?) to play some more board games over the next two weeks - hopefully trying out some different games with them might help us find some games we'd like to play more of over the ncxt three months. 

Wargaming Birthday Bash/February Game Weekend?

I have started planning for this. I started with cataloging all of the Wargaming Birthday Bashes of Past Years. I really hope to do SOMETHING... but I guess we'll have to wait and see what the State of the Pandemic is come February... Given the already rising numbers in December and the fact that people in thos province will be spreading it around over the holidaze as they ignore Public Health advisories (as this government refuses to put any actual orders in place) I can almost guarantee we'll see another huge wave of cases in January (just like last year) and it could very well roll on through February.... So... we'll have to wait and see... 

Some more thoughts about the possibilities for the Wargaming Birthday Bash/February Game Weekend can be found here:

February Gaming Weekend

As mentioned above, I am kind of leaning towards a small, narrative campaign of The Silver Bayonet for 4-6 players. 

TOONCON?

Not even sure if this is even a thing anymore...? Website is down. There has been nothing posted on Facebook/Twitter/Instagram since March 2020...  

OTHER EVENTS

Will play this by ear... 

If the February Game Weekend goes well, I might like to do something similar later in the year. Maybe over the summer or in the fall. 

There have been some Warhammer 40K events held locally... They seem to enforce proof of vaccination and masks... so, maybe it's time to attend some of those.

PAINTING

It seems likely SOME painting will happen... 

I imagine, at this point, most of it will be focused on getting things ready for the FIFTY miniature games I'm planning to play. 

Part of me wants to use the 50 games as motivation to get things done - i.e. plan for the each next weeks scenario to include a NEW UNIT (or monster, or terrain piece - something that's useable in a game) - so I have a deadline to "motivate" me and that way I'll get a new unit (or whetver) FINISHED!? I feel like making that a thing might be setting myself up for failure... Maybe I should just work on stuff that's fun in the moment and if/when I get something done, I can incorporate it into the next weeks game... and thus when making plans for the upcoming game, only use stuff that is ALREADY DONE! (because I DO HAVE TONNES OF STUFF that is already done!) 

Let's leave it at that and go play some games...