A Case for More Gnomish Space Marines.... and Other Figures

 With no convention to plan for, and our potential cruise paid off now for two years, my normal plan of doing the taxes and waiting dutifully this week for the refund to be direct deposited is unecessary.  I'll complete the taxes this weekend and casually look at the Virtual Vendor's Hall that is the internet to fill in a few items.  

I fell upon a quick sale over at Battle Valor and will be getting yet another wave of Space Dwarves and other humorous figures, but my high point yesterday was the arrival of a new 80-figure Chessex Carrying Case.  

It's been a long time since I've purchased a new Chessex case.  Sure I've owned GW cases when they were only moderately ridiculous, I've appreciated the Armoury and Global Games "gun cases," and my current set-up for Gnome Wars and Pulp figures involves hardware/fishing tackle containers ($7 at the local shop), but the Chessex containers feel... professional, and far sturdier.  

The 80-figure case hasn't changed much.  Two tiers of forty spaces, the foam is far more rigid until you start taking pieces out, but I did discover that the plastic latches are a little bigger and a lot sturdier.  Once this one is full of Gnomish Space Marines, I'll move onto a second, identical case.  At $26-30 on Amazon (they're almost never at a FLGS), it's an online order I'm willing to make.  

The Virtual Shopping List

Before COVID, Cold Wars was my usual restock convention, prepping all the supplies and projects for the remainder of the year.    For 2021, it's far more focused.

This year, my change of pace is deciding to run Pulp Alley's Tomb of the Serpent campaign, once we ever get time and motivation to finish up Season 3 of our pulp game. For a 44-page digest sized book, it is dense, and should provide myself and my girls plenty of gaming for quite awhile.  While I'm not setting up the Sally 4th buildings, I am making sure I have a good variety of figures so visits to Pulp Alley, Dark Fable, and maybe even a Reaper order might be due. 

The much overdue purchase might be the Spanish/Caribbean style building set from Brigade Games.  While the MBA Spanish buildings are pre-built, pre-painted, and back in stock, some of them are almost double the price of a few years ago.  I know I didn't pay $200 for the Customs House back in the day...  although Jepson's Hideway is still $124.95, I should grab that before it skyrockets.  I do need that for another future project.

For an even longer-term project I need to pick up some African huts, and even further still, a revisit to the Colonial and Great War Africa AND the Back of Beyond might fare better next year, with early tax returns... and pre-order con pick-ups.  

For now, there's Gnomish Space Marines to fill in a case!