Gaming Plans for 2017

The 1st of October is the first day of my odd gaming calendar, but it's also one of my busiest workdays of my year.   Since it lands on a Saturday this year, all my worries are pushed off two days.   Better yet, my wife and her friend are taking a bus trip to the Notre Dame game at the Meadowlands, leaving me with the kids... and the will to game.

So with a few moments this morning, let's try to compose some reasonable goals for all facets of gaming for 2017 (Oct 2016 - Sept 2017)

My Girls:  I think I could have done better playing games with them last year, but they're happy, and that's all that matters.   Activities with the girls:

• Savage Showdown Worlds:  Winding down the second story arc with some urban games.  We'll start my Codename: Savage2 story arc once I acquire some Arab Revolt figures from Brigade Games OR I can launch a different arc with my  "Jungle Witch Doctor" game. 
• Role-Playing: I managed to keep true to my last year's demand for "Plastic Tanks and Princesses."  This year should be more "Village on a Hill" games and some Heroclix fights.
• Kid's Game, avec Mom:  The game collection slowly grows larger, and the kids are patient enough that we may need to involve dear old Mom (aka, my wife) into the games.  She's always avoids participating, and even during our "Family Game Decathlon" she came down with a cold that rivaled anything she got in the winter.  I'm don't want her to play hardcore Fantasy boardgames or Arkham Horror, just something a step above Fluxx. I also want to avoid

Call of Cthulhu:  Masks is over, and we're taking a break for awhile, although, with our normal schedules, a hiatus might not be noticed.    Might do some unrelated one shots, just for a change of pace.

Savage Rifts:  One of the stronger candidates for game to replace Cthulhu looks to be Savage Rifts.  A gamer's mid-life crisis should strongly resemble a teenage boy's power trip, although years of experience allows me to assemble this thing called a plot.

Hackmaster:  The Burning Trogs Redux has picked up steam.  Scheduling might be its downfall more than anything else. If we managed to meet, this will not fail.

Of Mortals and Men/Song of Blades & Heroes:  If I can assemble the figures for my "Mousageddon/Ratnarock" game, I'll need a few sessions to familiarize myself with the rules.  Of course we have three half finished Egyptian avatars and a slew or Arcane Legions Egyptian hordes we can practice with... hmmm...

Samoa:  I'm sticking with the first half of my Samoa goal from last year: The great thing about painting up all the Samoans is that I can pop them of the shelf and have a skirmish any time I want to. Village raids were commonplace, so a few huts and that's all I need.   I might add a few more figures and some paper huts and BOOM, there's my game for Cold Wars... without borrowing stuff from other gamers.

Conventions:  Fall-In! (Daddy-Daughter Weekend - Paying Attendee), Mepacon Fall (Post-Apoc) Cold Wars (Guys Weekend - Mousageddon), Mepacon Spring 2016 (Gnomes?)  Birthday Weekend - To Be Determined).   The Weekend (per the request of my wife).

Gnome Wars: It's the original inspiration for the blog.  It shall never go away, even if I'm just doing the joust for Fall-In!  Perhaps I'll try to assemble enough material to run the Battle of Yellowstone for Fall-In! 2016, without borrowing stuff from other players.  I'd like the girls to be re-interested in them so I we can play another game or two of the Astro-Surfian War.    And after I recharge and get motivated by the Gnomes at Fall-In! I'll go back to writing.

Painting:  Nothing grandiose again... or perhaps... just a bit:

• Mousageddon!  Mouslings and Giants, oh my! 
• Gnomes:  Last year was a decent year for gnomes, and I barely touched them.  Working towards Germans.
• Samoa:  Whatever I buy must go the front of the queue  (but behind Mouslings/Giants)
• Martians:  the bin o' GW/Heartbreaker goblins I've snagged on the cheap is calling my name, and the paint schemes I have for them are fairly unique and inspiring. 
• Battletech:  I've got 18 more to go.   When the system was hitting all cylinders over the summer, it was fun to paint them up.

Purchases: 

• Battlemats: The Next Generation.  A trip over to Jo-Ann Fabrics might be in order for new mats (2 each to combine on a 6'x10' board)  Green, Mid-Brown, White,  Stone Grey, and  Sea Blue).   Perhaps a Large Wrapping Paper Storage Tote to store them. 
• Minis:  Brigade Arabs, Pulp Figures, and Tin-Soldier Mexicans.  If I can stick to what I'll need for future games, plus the occasional Reaper Bones impulse buy at the FLGS, I might be able to keep the lead (and plastic) pile low.
• Kickstarter:  Who knows what craziness is coming out next year, but I'll probably settle on three or four projects.  Talislanta: The Savage Land should be one of them, and that I might go overboard on, even though there's no guarantee that I'll ever play it.
• RPGs: Looking over the last year's worth of Apathy columns, the only thing I might pick up is Bubblegumshoe.  I may need to get some Nancy Drew books as well, for myself and my daughters.