All the King's Men Closes Their Doors

It’s with some surprise and a touch of sadness that I found out that Ken Cliffe, owner and operator of All the King's Men Toy Soldiers LLC will be shutting down the the business for good.

It appears that he and his wife purchased a farm that is taking up every waking moment of their lives (as farm are wont to do).  Obviously the farm is a priority of the hobby business. 

Actual casted figures are no longer available on the website.  Some accessories and some cannons are still available

By June 1 website will be down as well.

Off the ATKM website, as well as the Facebook page:

ATKM IS CLOSING

It makes me inexpressibly sad to announce that All the King's Men will soon be closing. The Lovely Gina and I have fulfilled a dream of moving to a farm. The land demands huge amounts of time and work, but is rewarding in its own right. Unfortunately, that has meant less and less time to operate ATKM and properly serve you good supporters and customers. I'm sure you've noticed my drastically reduced newsletter, Facebook and convention presence. Hell, I haven't painted a figure in almost 2 years! I guess you could say my brush has been traded in for a plowshare.

The past 13 years have been amazing. I've met wonderful people. We've moved toy soldiers, drunk drinks, and smoked smokes. None of this would have been possible without you guys. Check “Make toy soldiers and make lifelong friends” off my bucket list.

As a result of all this, the ATKM website has changed considerably. Only a few items are available for sale (mostly accessories) as I clear out inventory. Castings are no longer available since making them requires what I have least: time. Basically, if an item has an “Add to Cart” button next to it, it's still available, but only as supplies last.

The site will remain up til early June, and then will come down altogether. I wanted folks to be able to get any PDFs or whatnot from it that they wanted before saying goodbye.

Thanks again for all your support and encouragement. On to new adventures!

-- Ken Cliffe

I like ATKM and Ken.  The figures were great, the game was fun.  Unfortunately, 54mm AWI always ran fourth or fifth fiddle, at best, to my other gaming interests.   I wish he and the lovely Gina the best in their farming endeavors.

I still have a box of unpainted figures in the garage.  Probably never to get around to them, so I'll ponder any offers...

An Old List, or, The More Things Stay the Same

One things I've always loved about a blogger blog is the ability to store vast amounts of info that otherwise would be dumped in odd computer files, post-its, or lost in my Swiss-cheese mind. 

Over the weekend, I cleaned up some of my unpublished pages, usually shopping/want lists, and super-low priority outlines of scenarios like, "The Haunting II." 

One such page was simply titled "To Do Listaa"  and here is it's contents from 3/2015

3/2015

brainstorm - I needed to brainstorm for ideas?  I've got 115 ideas in my post drafts, much less the stuff on my pages.  Organizing, not brainstorming is what I need now.

Samoa - full campaign -  I so need to run some more skirmishes with CLA and get that weekend to do legit research, or at least some initial probing. 

gsm - finish up five figures – voltornus (maps?)  - Gnomish Space Marines as an RPG are dead, as a minis-game they're a subplot.  Star Frontiers though... hmm...

2 squats, sun captain  - all still unpainted. 

gi joe rpg?   - I know there's some games out there the emulated 80's cartoons, but this needs to be a legit thing.   Like Recon with damage nerfing for the heroes, and just a few more skills.  But first I need to work on Octonauts.

paint goblins. - Still unpainted, although I got the Martian test spiders done.

Robots, animals - I have no clue what this means

Traveler adv.   - I certainly have no clue what this means, and I want to know.  I don't think I own any traveler adventures, unless they're hiding in some old magazines.

 

Redo color copies of simpsons. enter event. - I should make a master copy of "Cthulhu Comes to Springfield" and just store it. 

gladiators on ice!   Fantasy hockey or gladiator combat with the kids.  Nothing came of it.

Figure out what to do with ATKM  -  Still looking to liquidate some 54mm AWI, email me at viscountericATgmailDOTcom to discuss. 

Sell Majority of Fantasy  - Don't know what came of this, since I believe most of my fantasy is nowhere to be seen, save a tiny shoebox.

I don't feel that bad. Priorities have shifted, but more than ever, I'm usually focused on what the kids what. They are my closest target audience.

(Nostalgia) Historicon 2008 Pics

It may not be Throwback Thursday like the kids on Facebook do, but I found a pile of pics from the old laptop, before we transition to the  new home computer. I don't recall posting these after the fact (I started the blog in the Fall of '09), so here goes...

The Dreadnought game I played Thursday night

The Last Tanga game run before I became a full convert

Death Star Trench

D Day

Some Snazzy Flames of War Terrain

28mm Tanks

And some air support

Against the evil do'ers

A cat game (?)

Battletech

Snowball Fight!

ATKM

The Midnight Massacre game

My command:  I had a LOT of letters to write to their mothers

Prepared to take the hill...

It was almost mutual annihilation, but my attack let a large cavalry column get near the fort unmolested.

FoW Rule:  Don't Shoot the Cows

Gnome Wars Tanga

The Sikhs land

Amusing side story.  If I hadn't gone to Historicon, the next option was going to the bachelor party of a friend of ours.  Three o'clock in the morning, my wife gets a call and thinks that it's the Lancaster cops calling to explain how I didn't make in across 30 to The Continental.   Here it's the wife of one of the guys crying histerically that her husband had knocked somebody out at the bachelor party and the whole group was running from the cops.   When I stumbled back from the Midnight Massacre at four in the morning, my wife wasn't all too happy, but she was grateful my silly hobby kept me out of bars (save the Lancaster Host).

ViscountEric's Stuff for Sale!

While it was always part of the house-buying plot, a few necessary "upgrades" have pushed me to offer some items for sale:

US Shipping only

All the King's Men  AWI 54mm Metal Figures that I will probably never get to paint and play with.

• British Infantry, full gaiters and fur pack (12+2 Command)
• British Light Dragoon Infanry (8 riders + 8 horses)
• Continental Infantry (12+2 Command)
• Continental Skirmisher (6+2 Command)
• Artillery unit (4 crew + 1 Command + 1 Flag Bearer)
• Three battalion guns (no crew)

  

  Everything here, EXCEPT the Indians, they already sold

Bags have been opened,  some figures badly primed, and a little paint. All figures appear be there.   Currently $200 retail.  Asking $125, shipping included (and it's a wee bit heavy...)


Soldiers of the World 54mm WW1 : WW20/C US Army Marching Set (Montana Hat):  The five figures are perfect, the box did spend a winter in my garage, so it's not mint, with some discoloration on the side of the lid.   Fun fact, I did use them very delicately when I ran my Call of Cthulhu No Man's Land, and they went back on the shelf/box.

Box Discoloration

Looks like they retail for $110.  Asking $75, shipping included.

Please contact viscounteric AT gmail DOT com for offers or more information.   I'll accept PayPal (and will be providing a different email for that transaction).

Time to build a new page for my rotating stock that I'll be putting up.

2013 Gaming Year in Review

Saturday was a good day.  The obligatory trip down to the Bloomsburg Fair for fried food on a stick and structurally questionable carnival rides for  the kids.  I even got some laundry done for this upcoming hell week at work so I'll be able to rush in for work early AND wear matching socks!

This week also ended my "gaming season."  As I've mentioned before, I don't remember the thinking behind it, but I track my games on a Oct-Sep basis.
  

Here goes my recollections...

The Blog

Despite the last month becoming a disaster to blog, I kept up the same hectic pace as the last year. Here's the big posts of the year, by views:

1. Cold Wars 2013 --Friday
2. 500th Post!
3. Battle at the Farm
4. Attack of the 50-Foot Princess!
5. RIP: Nick Yutko
6. Pop's Culture Shoppe, Wellsboro, Pennsylvania
7. (TIARA) Belle's Birthday Brawl
8. (Twelve Days) #10 Zombie Cakes for Fun and Profit
9. (Twelve Days) #4 Comics and Comments
10. Mepacon, I will be in you soon!

Lots of kind comments, a few spam from Samoan hotels, and fewer gnomes hit the posts, but the biggest addition I've done is adding reviews, primarily stores, from my own utopian, yet utilitarian retail beliefs.  The lessons I've learned working in stores during the Great Magic Glut  of the 90's still rings true today.  It saddens me to find stores still cling to the "owners, partners, & buddies" model that never attempts to expand from a shrinking base.  My first game store review for Pop's Culture Shoppe in Wellsboro is still the standard by which other stores are measured, and all found lacking.  I hope to do a follow up in mid-October when the Missus and I go up there for an anniversary day trip. 

RIP Nick Yutko - the biggest news of the past twelve months was the sudden passing of Dreamscape Comics owner Nick Yutko.  I've managed to go down to the store a few times since, most notably to pick up a copy of ASL for Hoyce's bachelor party, but I haven't gotten updates on the stores closing in months and real life overrides any attempts to relive my awesome past of ringing up sales for comic book geeks.

Podcasts:  I finally started entering the 21st century by following some podcasts, most notably Cthulhu on Parade and The Miskatonic University Podcast.  Lovecraftian gaming and its distinct lack of heavy rules and cumbersome charts makes it easier to enjoy a general discussion, rather than a war gaming or D&D site.

Games
Gnome Wars:  Not as prevalent as last year, but the misplacement of all of my Swiss units has dampened spirits to play.    Cold Wars was still a hoot, the 2nd Annual Gnome Mega-Game was a success, and I earned the nickname "Crazylegs" Jacobson, vanquisher of Canadians, from the Gnome Joust.

Call of Cthulhu -  The year 1924 took longer in real time than game time, but we have gotten past that and two sessions in since a telegram from our good friend Jackson Elias sent them down a treacherous path.  I'm pleased, even with my recent bloodlust in the past five months (five deaths and some significant best downs of investigators.

Formula De - After years of wanting to, I got to learn Formula De at Mepacon and played some more at Hoyce's bachelor party.  Good stuff

Risus - A change in the annual Labor Day picnic reduced our guests, thus, for the first time since 2007, no Risus IOU game was run. I may attempt something at SATLOF.

TIARA - My toddler minis/rpg game had some good sessions with the girls, especially with some new eBay villains, but real life has caught up with me, right when it's perfect for my two year old, Millie. 

Trench Wars - got to play this at Cold Wars and its great for large Western Front games. I'll probably stick with CLA for my games, thanks.

Conventions:  I only got out to two local Mepacons and Cold Wars last year.  Funds and time did not work out for anything else.  I did have a great overfilled Toon game at the last Mepacon, expanding on the "Cthulhu Comes to Springfield" game. 

More Mike Lung Goodness from Historicon

Purchases:  My purchases this year were all over the place. eBay has been a blessing and a bane.  I picked up a pile of random minis cheap.  I have a few Warhammer goblin units to use as primitive Martians, some misc sci-fi stuff. a UNE fast attack vehichle, and an excellent start to my Samoa game.

Best Game: 
Attack of the 50-foot Princess - Kids' toys, my green army guys, and an 18-inch Snow White rampaging through a town?  I should probably tweak that into a con game.

Best RPG Purchase:
Masks of  Nylarahotep Companion

My eBay RPG stuff has been pretty lame, so I'll nominate this 600 page gorilla that's just a free preview pdf! As if Masks isn't big enough, this tries to flesh out everything.  I have used a few items, such as weather conditions and their good friend's library, but this far it's still a lot of fluff. 

Best Miniatures:
My Samoans.  I love the Pulp Figures sculpts. I need more, but the figures are rather clean and sturdy.

Best Misc Purchase:
The ATKM 54mm Barn I snagged at Cold Wars is one of two painting projects I finished this year (the other was some 25mm palm trees.). It also displayed prominently in two games I posted. 

54mm Stable for Little People

Part of my treasures from Cold Wars every year is always something from the All the Kings Men booth.

I think it's out of guilt that I can't find the time or the players to play AWI.  Part of it may be that in a previous life almost twenty years ago, ATKM owner Ken Cliffe was editor of White Wolf Magazine and gave me my first gaming related "job" as one of the RPG line reviewers in the back of the magazine.

At recent cons, I've moved from buying up a unit at a time and tossing them into the box in the garage, never to see the light of day, to snagging up terrain: trees, river sets, and haystacks.  This year was their new unpainted stable in a lightweight foam resin.

Unlike the haystacks and the bridges, the stable is a bit big for gnomes.  I might be able to pull off a full sized barn, but even then the doors are enormous.  No worries, as I'll make this the centerpiece for the kid's Easter game this weekend.  Perhaps there shall be a "Battle at the Farm."

In a world of Little People, 30mm Gnomes are rather tiny

We do use a lot of Little People in the kids games (they are 2 and 4), and they just about a perfect size


The Highwaymen attempt to rob the Princess

One of the factors in purchasing this was that the foam resin felt like Styrofoam, but was very resilient against normal wear and tear.  It's a goner if the dog gets it, or I sit on it, but the kids are very good with Daddy's "gnomes" of all shape and sizes.

Painting wise, I had a few disasters.  Since the kids normally paint their own things while I do, I set them up first before getting mine ready.  However, when I finally got the chance to sit down, I discovered that they somehow snagged up all my new paintbrushes.  Gah!  Fortunately, I still had a few oversized brushes to add base coats and the six layers of drybrushing for the wood.    I got a lot of paint on other figures this weekend, but this is the only thing I completed.

ATKM Releases its 54mm Civil War Range

Per Facebook, TMP, and every other social media site I could find, All the King's Men has announced their line of Civil War figures in 54mm.

Just like their Revolutionary War and War of 1812 lines, this one covers infantry, cav, artillery, mounted generals, irregulars, and disorder markers. Many ACW figures offer separate heads for even more variety.

The majority of the figures were originally made in plastic by Classic Toy Soldiers, which have been licensed for ATKM to make the metal versions.

The variety of poses is the thing that throws me off. The finished product is beautiful, but when I think of 54mm I either think of figures in lockstep formation for AWI/Napoleonic era, or the very limited poses when using Britains. I hate to say it, but these might be TOO nice. Plus, it's the standard $40 for a unit of 12!

http://www.allthekingsmentoysoldiers.com/ for more info.

(Cold Wars) The 2013 PEL is up!

Alright, time to come clean, the PEL has been up for a week.  It's just that I don't to make announcements during my 12 Days of Blogging, and the Mega Game was finalized on day 2.

For a full listing of the PEL, check them out here.

I've picked out a few "ViscountEric Preferred" games, with commentary.  Some of these games run more than once, so check out the PEL for even more options.

F-275 - Advance to Longueval, 14 July 1916
Fri. 10:00 AM, 4 hrs, 6 players GM: Phillip Gibbons with Joe Brimer and Ron Bingham and Battle
Barn of Williamsburg  Sponsor: U.S. Army Women's Museum at Fort Lee
WWI 25mm, Rules: Trench Wars modified for skirmish fighting
The advance starts in the early morning hours just after a quick, 5 minute barrage. The Germans are believed to only have a thin screen of troops in your sector. The 9th Scottish Div has assigned the 26th Bde the honor of leading the advance. Can elements of the 8th Black Watch and 10th Argyll & Sutherland Highlanders takethe crossroads?
Gnome Wars was developed out of Trench Wars, so this should be an easy one to jump into.

F-307 - Duke Morrison and the Mounties
Fri. 10:00 AM, 3.5 hrs, 6 players  GM: Buck Surdu and HAWKS  Modern 28mm, Rules: GASLIGHT
Professor Nannini has developed an anti-gravity ray the Venusians and their gangster minions want. To convince the professor to share his invention, they have tied his daughter (also a physicist) to a log, which is inching toward a large saw blade. Nannini is the kind of girl wounded Marines crawl through broken glass and burning desert to catch a final glimpse of before they die. Duke Morrison and his companions, along with Sergeant Preston and a squad of Mounties, try to rescue the girl, defeat the gangsters, and break up the Venusian laboratory.
Venusians and Mounties?  THAT is what I've been waiting for to learn GASLIGHT!

F-336 - Fire in the Steppe: Raid at Hanacivka, 1676
Fri. 10:00 AM, 4 hrs, 6 players  GM: David Bonk and Triangle Simulation Society
Renaissance 28mm, Rules: C&GII Pike and Shot
Cossack, Russian and Turkish forces advancing towards Lvov aremet by a Polish/Tartar raiding party near the village of Hanacivka.
Not my normal thing, but this has got to look cool in 28mm.


F-266 - Gnome Wars: The Battle of the Bees
Fri. 11:00 AM, 4 hrs, 8 players
GM: Jim Stanton with Steven Stanton and Stout Gnomes   Sponsor: Brigade Games, Prize: Gnomes! Fantasy 28mm, Rules: Gnome Wars
After securing the beach the combined force of Indian and British troops will attempt to drive the Germans from the rail station on the outskirts of Tanga. The Allies must approach Tanga through a wooded area that is the home to some African Killer Bees. Let's hope loud noises don't startle them.
One of the "normal" gnome games

F-168 - All the King's Men Demo Games
Fri. 1:00 PM, 1 hrs, 4 players GM: Ken Cliffe with Dave Hoyt
Sponsor: All the King's Men Toy Soldiers  American Civil War 54mm, Rules: All the King's Men
Join ATKM as we demo our own rules and debut our new line of ACW 54mm miniatures! This is not skirmish gaming! Everything  is provided. Just bring your memory of what got you into wargaming in the first place. Demos run at the ATKM booth in the dealer area. Just walk up and play; no tickets needed. It takes about an hour.
Ken just posted pics of his ACW, and they are Saaaa-WEEET!  If you don't have a spare hour to pick up a demo, rearrange your schedule.

F-182 - Red Dawn: The Road to Los Alamos
Fri. 2:00 PM, 3 hrs, 6 players GM: Henry Kyle with John Currin  Modern 28mm, Rules: Force on Force
It is the dawn of World War III. Cuban and Nicaraguan forces, along with their Soviet masters, have crossed the border and are charging up I-25 for Los Alamos and its hi-tech labs. Their plan calls for scrounging fuel along the way, and the people of Desert Flats can derail the Commie timetable by denying the Reds the fuel in their town.
An Expansion of, dare I say, "Classic" Red Dawn!

F-238 - Zombie Cardio
Fri. 6:00 PM, 3 hrs, 8 players GM: Chad Miller and Woodbridge Area GamerS (WAGS)
Modern 20mm, Rules: Zombies!!!
Remember the 1st Rule of Zombie Land, Cardio. You want to make it out of Mid-Town safely, then you better Run, Kill and make it to the Chopper in time before it moves again. 6 Players can come and try their luck at running through Central Park. Pick up weapons and aids to get out of town, but you gotta know the
Rules from Zombieland in order to pick up the special cardio boost. Come kill some Zombies and test your luck at the apocalyptic die rolls.
I hope no pretentious Napoleonic player signs up for this accidentally.

F-291 - Clash near Regensburg - April 1945
Fri. 7:00 PM, 4 hrs, 6 players GM: Jim Mackey and HAWKS WWII 54mm, Rules: Battleground WW2
It is April 23, 1945, US forces are driving into Germany. Patton's 3rd Army is approaching Czechoslovakia. One approach to the Czech border is through the town of Regensburg. This town and road leading into it must first be taken. All this in 54mm!! Yes, it is true, bigger is better!!
54mm WW2 is just so frickin' sweet to watch, much less play.

F-175 - Wooden Wars Demo Games
Fri. 8:00 PM, 1 hrs, 4 players GM: Ken Cliffe with Dave Hoyt  Sponsor: All the King's Men Toy Soldiers
Napoleonic Wood Soldiers, Rules: Wooden Wars
ATKM debuts Wooden Wars! Command armies of sturdy wooden soldiers, cavalry and artillery on a floor battlefield. Win by knocking over the enemy army by shooting (tossing small rubber balls) and rolling dice, all in the spirit of HG Wells. No tickets needed. Just walk up and play throughout the session.
I've mentioned Wooden Wars here.  Awesome that ATKM has offered to help promote it.

F-265 - Gnome Wars: The Joust
Fri. 8:00 PM, 2 hrs, 30 players  GM: Jim Stanton with Steven Stanton and Stout Gnomes
Sponsor: Brigade Games, Prize: Gnomes! Fantasy 28mm, Rules: Gnome Wars
Come try to win the jousting tournament. Rules taught. Quick, easy, FUN!
The joust is back!  So making a custom mount for this bad boy.  If I get embarrassed in the first round, I will be jumping into Wooden Wars.

S-242 - Trench Wars: Treat Them Rough!
Sat. 9:00 AM, 3 hrs, 8 players GM: Steve Robinson and Woodbridge Area GamerS (WAGS)
Sponsor: Acheson Creations, Prize: None WWI 28mm, Rules: Modifed Trench Wars
Tommy is facing the formable Hindenburg line. Can the shear bravery of Tommy and the steel behemoths punch their way through Jerry’s defenses? Or, will a sea of wire entanglements, bunkers and non-ceasing hail of machinegun fire defeat Tommy’s juggernaut? Come and pick a side and taste once again the rotting, acidic smell of the western front. I know for sure that lead figures do not bleed, but allot will have to wait until the afternoon to be played with again.
Another early morning Trench Wars games.

S-395 - Rorke's Picnic
Sat. 12:00 PM, 2 hrs, 7 players  GM: Jim Reynolds with John Brennan and WNPG  Sponsor: Eureka USA, Prize: Bears  Colonial 28mm, Rules: Teddy Bear Picnic
It is picnic time for the 24th Bear Foot, but visitors have rudely interrupted. With the boys have their picnic or will the Zulu bears ruin tea time.
Eureka Bears,'nuff said, even if it is for kids.

S-145 - Battle of Tanga - German East Africa, 4 Nov. 1914
Sat. 1:00 PM, 4 hrs, 6 players GM: Mark Kinsey with Jonathan Yuengling
WWI 15mm, Rules: Too Fat Lardies - If the Lord Spares Us
The Battle of Tanga was an attempt by the British Commonwealth to invade the colony of German East Africa through an amphibious landing near the town of Tanga. Players will command 8,000 British Indian forces against 1,000 German Sharpshooters and Askari. But whose side are the African Killer Bees on?
Someone else running Tanga?In 15mm? Inconceivable!

S-214 - Gnome Wars: The Battle of the Bees
Sat. 2:00 PM, 4 hrs, 6 players
GM: Kevin Jacobi with Jim Stanton and Stout Gnomes

S-215 - Gnome Wars: The Landing in East Africa
Sat. 2:00 PM, 4 hrs, 8 players
GM: Eric Jacobson with Jim Stanton and Stout Gnomes

S-216 - Gnome Wars: Storming the Town of Tanga
Sat. 2:00 PM, 4 hrs, 8 players
GM: Steven Stanton with Jim Stanton and Stout Gnomes
The MEGA-GAME!  No Pre-Reg needed if you bring your own 300-320pt unit.  Last Cold Wars was a  blast, this should be even better.

S-204 - Wooden Warriors capture the Flag - sometime in 1815
Sat. 5:00 PM, 1 hrs, 8 players GM: Jeff Wiltrout and Potomac Wargamers  Sponsor: Skull and Crown Strategem INC.Napoleonic 80mm, Rules: Wooden Wars
Time to get the games off the table and back on the floor where it all began. 2 armies of Wooden Warriors battle it out on the floor capturing objectives and knocking down opponents. Thrown rubber balls are the objects of destruction here. Kids over 12 only accepted with a younger player.
EXTREMELY KID FRIENDLY. Not recommend for those with bad knees.
More Wooden Wars daring to go where few would venture:  the floors of the Lancaster Host!

S-209 - Haitian Slave Revolt
Sat. 7:00 PM, 3 hrs, 10 players  GM: Brian DeWitt Colonial 25mm, Rules: The Sword and The Flame
The Haitian Slave Revolt started in August 1791 with central leader Voodoo Priest Boukman. French forces loyal to the French Crown and Colonists battled back and forth with the Slave Army. In 1793 many French units were called back to Europe and the Slave Army took to the offense. Here Haitian national hero Toussaint L'Ouverture leads the way.
Great obscure, under appreciated action, a plus to use TSATF to play.

S-355 - Carnage and Glory: Russia 1920--"The Commissar's in Town"
Sat. 8:00 PM, 2 hrs, 12 players GM: Tom Cusa with Frank Luberti, Jr. and Connecticut Game Club
Sponsor: Carnage and Glory  Inter-War 28mm, Rules: Carnage and Glory II
Baron Waxtel's White Russians clash with Red Army forces under Comrade General Spiess. Regimental level game. Novices, children with adults, rules lawyers and GMs looking for revenge welcome. CGC members, family and friends always welcome.
The Russian Civil War always deserves some support, in my book.

Cold Wars 2012 AAR: Pushing Non-Gnomous Metal

Cold Wars always holds a special place in my heart. It's guy's weekend. No females, the alcohol can flow freely, and if I did them right, my tax return has hit my bank account and I have a little more flexibility with my purchases.

The start to Guy's Weekend was tempered by my late work schedule, my wife's early morning Friday schedule, and two rambuncious little scamps called my daughters, who refuse to sleep. Sticking them on my wife on back-to-back nights was one thing. Three nights might involve lawyers and alimony.

Friday morning, I dropped the rascallions off at daycare and mosied on down to Lancaster, getting there around 10-10:30am. Outside of a long line of idiots during gas stop and the normal Fast and the Furious traffic which US 30 can be, it was uneventful.

I caught up with a few people and wandered down to the dealers to start my extravaganza of shopping, only to discover a line from the Tennis Barn/Expo Center to the base of the stairs of the Host proper! I don't remember the dealers opening so late on a Friday, but perhaps I've always jumped in games when I've shown up earlier. When I did get into the dealers later, they seemed to have a good steady stream of business. No one was showering the building with twenties, but everyone could afford a good drink or three in the evening.

If it were better beer, the line should have just turned around.

Friday attendance was slow and building throughout the day. It took until 7pm to have Distelfink really rocking with games. Saturday started up by 10am and was at full throttle when I left around 10pm.

There were a lot of the old stand-bys, not that it's a bad thing. For a number of games, the only difference from last Cold Wars was the location of their table. Battletech got upgraded to a better room, the HAWKS were ready to rock as always and the upstairs lobby was full of fun.

One of the unofficial themes I've noticed is the conversion of boardgames into wargames. Not that it hasn't been done before, and the reverse in fact, but if I saw one Memoir '44 game, I saw a dozen, and the hexes just don't look appealing, even compared to 6mm Napoleonics with felt terrain. At least the game using Britains gave some honesty to the whole scenario.

Memoir '44 using Britains!

Betweent the other blogs and my travels, the amount of things I consider boardgames being played as, well, boardgames increased dramatically. Zombies, Battlemasters, and a pile of Euro-esque games took up table space, if not space in the actual con book.

Battlemasters?

Despite a loud "harrumph" from the grognards, non-historical gaming took center stage. Zombies, Victorian Sci-Fi, even kids stuff overshadowed the traditional games, and even most 1812 theme games, because they looked spectacular.

Force on Force Red Dawn: Wolverines!


Rollerball in the Setting Sun

Freakin' TRON Light Cycles!

One of the Snowball Fights

Seriously boys, I know you love your 6mm Napoleonics and your World War 2, but outside of a student of that era, to the average person the games all look the same.

The All the King's Men Mega-Game: The only 1812 game I even noticed
Size does matter

Next up: Perhaps more pics, if the camera cooperates, or we may descend into GNOME MADNESS!!!! Mwhaahahahaah *cough cough wheeze cough* hahaha!

(Cold Wars) ATKM looking for Cold Wars GMs

I might be trying to sell all my All the King's Men Minis ($100 plus shipping by the way), but I do want to spread the the word on a great product.

Per TMP, ATKM will again be offering a $50 bounty in product for each game run at Cold Wars.

Besides that, they did bring up the important point. Deadline for the event entry in the Cold Wars PEL is December 9th.

I can't even finish up the posts about Fall-in! and I'm already scrambling for the next con. At least this means Christmas and tax returns can't be too far off.

(FOR SALE) 54mm ATKM AWI for Sale!

The hammer has been dropped. As much as I love 54mm, I can't expect to paint my figs, much less play with them, anytime soon.

Below is the list of all the All the King's Men figures I've accumulated. It isn't much compared to the mega-games, but I've only budgeted a pack per convention usually, and the terrain caught my eye lately. Sorry, the terrain stays. Gnomes + giant haystacks = awesome!

• 1 unit, British Light Dragoons (8)


• 1 unit Continental Infantry (14)


• 1 unit British Infantry (14)


• 1 unit Continental Skirmishers (8)


• 1 unit Artillery


• 1 pack of three pounder field guns (3)


• Northeastern Woodland Indians plastics boxed set (18)


• Another set of Indian plastics (12)


• Litko 1.25 in circular bases, 3mm plywood (25)

I'm asking $120.00 for the whole set, shipping included. I think this is a fair price, given that I do believe Ken at ATKM was forced to increase prices for the new casting.


I would prefer not to sell this piecemeal, but I am willing to make any decent offer. I'm even willing to meet at a "offsite" location to deliver the figures at Fall-in! if need be.




Feel free to contact me at viscounteric at gmail dot com. We can talk turkey get these into the hands of someone who can give them a good home to be killed little lead deaths over and over again.

My Gaming Master Plan for 2012

My wacky schedule has decreed the end of my gaming year, I've done a nice little recap of a rather bare year of gaming for me, so now it's time to figure just what I want to/can accomplish for 2012.

Gnome Wars: If I have named the blog in conjuction with the game, I guess I need to play some games. I have to mention that evil word again: Tanga. Unless the space miraculously appears at someone else's house, the summer will be a mad rush to play the battles in and around the city... in my garage. I have my game for Fall-in! and I'm 90% certain to run Chicka Zulu at Cold Wars. I'm one of the weenies not going to Fredericksburg for Historicon, but I'm pretty certain a few conversations at Cold Wars will net us a replacement GM to help Jim or run an alternate to the GW mega-games.

Call of Cthulhu: It's crunch time for the campaign. I need to stoke the interest in it so we can get a few sessions in this year and prepare for the fallout of 1925. I have at least five different scenarios to lay future plot scenes, get characters further into the perdicament, and generally just have fun in the Big Apple and Boston. I also have my sights on a campaign with the tenative nickname, Plausible Deniability. More on that in the weeks to come.

Fantasy: Is basically dead. It requires to much prep work and constant playing that I just don't have to the time to give. "Home" and "City-State of Kathad" games aren't even on the back burner nowadays. It is a bit depressing that the new Hackmaster 5e books are coming out and I have zero desire or need to pick them up, and there's a part of me that should crave them like a drug.

Gladiator Arena: I have the figs, I just don't know if I can get things ready for SATLOF. And it's mundane friendly!

Advanced Candyland: My daughter, Maja, is getting Candyland for Christmas and I will be working feverishly to teach her how to play the game and to integrate different figures and stories using the board. This will be an experimental gateway drug, slowly moving into a game based on Mouse Guard using lots of dollar store props.

Savage Gnomes: This is a project I just thought up in the last week: Using Gnome Wars figs in a role-playing setting. I've seen what good Savage Worlds has done to a variety of settings, so I might as well give it a go. Plus, it's an excuse to use more terrain in more games.

Risus: Always a stand-by game. Might even break out Geezer for it. Hopefully 2012's Day of Sloth is better attended that this years and we get a game off.

Legions of Steel: I will get a couple games in, even if I don't have all the figs. I still scour eBay looking for bargains.


PURCHASES:
I have to admit another "urge to purge", this time for financial reasons. I love All the King's Men, I love the 54mm AWI, but they are so low on my list of priorities, it's wiser to sell it off and use it towards bills or other *coughFallincough* ventures. I'll have the listing up here by the beginning of the week. I'll also post a pile of other stuff I'm getting rid of.

Besides some gnomes and MBA buildings, I don't see any major purchases in the future. I have a bunch of CoC books on my list but I just don't need any of them, and the gaming store I could venture to wouldn't stock them anyway. Okay, maybe the Mouseling tavern set by Reaper, but not much else.

Cons: Definitely Fall-in! and Cold Wars, no to Historicon, but we might throw something together for the summer. This time I'll announce something if it's a bit more concrete.

And, of course, I'll just keep blogging....

ATKM Not at Historicon, but there's a sale!

My Saturday daytrip of GMing and window shopping at Historicon got a little bit shorter.

For whatever reason, All the King's Men (ATKM) will NOT be at Historicon this year. Let's just hope it's not family-related, or entirely focused on the financial inquities which is a convention at the VFCC.

Ken is usually one of my guaranteed stops at a con. I'm not dropping hundreds, but the dealers always like those guys who show up each con, buy a couple things, shoot the breeze, and most importantly, aren't THAT annoying. (Oh God, I hope he doesn't consider me one of the annoying ones....) He will be missed next weekend.

That being said, he is running a "No Historicon" sale!

Per TMP:

"Just mention Historicon or accuse us, "Hey, aren't you having a sale?" and you're eligible for a free skirmisher set of figures (six figures plus two command) after a $50 USD order

or...

A free infantry set (twelve plus two) after a $100 USD order
Order minimums do not include the normal cost of the free set, or shipping.

Still not going to have the fundage to do a serious order, but it doesn't hurt to spread the good word. And remember, ATKM does AWI, 1812 and some nice Napoleonic stuff now.

Cthulhu ate your brains... and he wants your wallet too...

I admit that I don't use Facebook to its full gaming potential. I have only a select group of companies that I follow for updates. I argue that if companies would actually update their Facebook walls, I might be more inclined to "Like" more companies.

The only company that does a spectacular job of this is "All the King's Men Toy Soldiers LLC." Ken Cliffe has done a phenomenal job posting painting updates, figure development, and most recently posted in regards to new scenarios on the website for the Battle 1812. Check them out, drool at his stuff, and give me a bag of money and tons of time to purchase and paint more troops.

That being said, I was absolutely flabbergasted Saturday when Chaosium made not one, but THREE posts on its page.

First was Mythic Iceland for BRP (Basic Role-Playing). I haven't decided to delve into BRP, outside the fact that it's CoC's system, with a number of refinements/bells and whistles. They do use "gigantic" in its description, and most things Icelandic are pretty freaking cool. Check it out.

Second was Cthulhu by Gaslight (3rd Edition?). Role-playing in Victorian (1890's) England. There are enough fictional characters associated with mystery and horror in that era, throw in some Cthulhu Mythos for even more fun. Scheduled for late summer release. $28.95 Finally, the Call of Cthulhu 30th Anniversary Edition will be available late summer as well. This will be a red leatherette edition of the current 6th edition rules. It will look great on my bookshelf next to the 20th Anniversary Edition, and other quality books like Aces & Eights. Only $64.95, which means after five years, you can trade it for a small car payment if you needed the money.

Oh well, that's $100+ (when you calculate shipping from CA) of Chaosium product I didn't expect to spend this year. Wouldn't be great if there was a local game store that I could order this from so they could get paid too?