Wednesday, May 29, 2019

Some Expected Ruins and unexpected complications





Hello There!

Lets play around with some Hirst Arts molds and bricks and make some kick ass ruins for the Osgiliath table. And then I complain. 

Expected Ruins


Because you see, the last time I did a ruins terrain project it was kinda on a lark, so the series of posts were titled "unexpected ruins" (which also had a nice tie in to the hobbit film 'an unexpected journey') but this time it's all planned out and so called 'expected ruins' which adds a bit of symmetry and provides the blog with that high level of literary prowess that my intelligent and upper-class readers expect and approve of....

and I just like fun titles.


I got a plan, and I do feel better when I have a plan, a goal to work toward.  I require structured fun, it has to have a purpose.  That's probably reflective of my personality.  I swear, I am really fun at parties.
My first game convention of the year (and maybe only convention the way things are looking) will be at the end of July and I want to put on 2 games of LOTR, because these days I am living and breathing LOTR.  These will both be set in Osgiliath and are basically the first 2 scenarios in the Gondor at War supplement, but I'll increase the size of the forces some to make the scenarios 2 versus 2 (so 4 players total).  The good news is that all the miniatures needed for the scenarios are already painted.  There are a few that I would like to repaint and I'd love to rebase them all so they all match but none of that is required.  If there is time for that great, but if not then no big deals.

with miniatures out of the way, it's time to focus on the terrain.  OFF and RUNNING.


Casting blocks from the molds.
Ambitious with my project here



I "finished" this small corner piece.  I really love the brick pattern on the corner (in the top picture)
It's not quite finished, as it needs basing and I'd like to put a little something on the top.
But it's a good start.


There's a larger Ruin in the works as well, but I seemed to have misplaced the picture...
And unfortunately that's as far as I got for now.

My Name is Stew, and I have no Fun.

Plans fall apart.


Truth being; that in the past month I've had little time for gaming and hobbies, as I've been hit by a bus full of responsibilities that require my time, effort, and attention.  Time is spent as needs dictate. 
It's something that happens now and again I imagine to most people.  But still, it kinda bums me out because I tend to measure the success of my life by the amount of free time and fun I have.




So the Month of May was something of a bust.  I had 2 games scheduled in May and had to cancel both at practically the last minute due to emergencies / unexpected circumstances.  And I hate being that guy.  "Come over to my house for great gaming."  "Nevermind, game is canceled."  grrr


And there are a lot of plans in the month of June, as well as 2 visits from 2 different sets of in-laws staying with us and Birthdays and what not. 

So Clean, but so Empty.
Least I finally got all my little paint pots organized. 

SO, near the end of May I basically decided to put the hobbydesk into storage mode.  There will be no hobbying or wargaming in the near future, while I do a lot of work for the family and the house.    Makes me wonder what I'll blogging about.  Time to dust off one of those titillating opinion pieces.


Hopefully hobby time will return near the end of June with a vengeance!
I'll have to buy myself something nice.

Thanks for reading!

24 comments:

  1. A Haiku for you...

    Ruins look superb.
    Painting desk neat and tidy.
    Await your return.

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  2. Ruins do look look, very precise and deeply cut. I picked a coulple of N Guage (for 10mm) building up yesterday in a model shop, they had been done in a sort of plaster and the definition is not as nice as your models have, but that may be to do with the scale.

    The hobby is always here, dipping in and out as time allows just increases the quality of the time that we do get.

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    1. Thanks Norm. I suspect it is the scale that makes the difference.

      I’m just a little miffed bc I am excited about hobby stuff and had to put it away. First world problems though so it’s not really the disaster I’m making it out to be. 😀

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  3. More "ruination" is better than none, I supposed. If you need a pause (or have one imposed upon you), it's at least consistent with a general downturn in hobby activity once summer is upon us (here in the Northern Hemisphere). Blog when you can; it's all good.

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    1. Thanks Ed. You’re right about summer, this will be the first summer season with 2 young kids running around so I wonder if there won’t be a natural decrease in hobby activity anyway. 😀

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  4. What you did get done looks pretty good, so at least you will have that as something to build on when you get time again.

    Fortunately/unfortunately blog reading and online shopping is always easier than actually doing any hobby...

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    1. Thanks Las, don’t I know it. Much easier to goof off online than getting anything done.
      I’m gonna have to practice some self control and not increase the lead pile too much in the interim. 😀

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  5. Ruins are fantastic and worth the effort.....modern lives always a challenge but I have learnt with increasing age that allowing a small moment even if only a few minutes of hobby massively helps my well being. Try and be kind you yourself 🙂

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    1. Thanks Matt for the kind words. I just know that you can’t increase time spent on one area without decreasing time on another.
      So no hobby for awhile but it’s a temporary state. 😀

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  6. Nice bit of ruination! Every little helps! I'm chipping away at bits and pieces and not getting the sustained block of time I wanted/hoped I would get, so I know what you mean! Little bits and bobs is the way to go,I'm frankly surprised how much you have got done since you've had two children!
    Best Iain

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    1. Thanks Iain. I’m sure it’s a universal experience to have a lack of hobby time now and again. The children do take a lot of time being the needy things that they are. 😀
      Hopefully I’ll be returning to more a normal schedule next month.

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  7. Sorry to hear things will lie fallow for a bit, but it does happen. Just means you have a chance to build up some enthusiasm for when time loosens up a little ;)

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    1. Thanks FMB. You’re right, I’ll have to save all my pent up enthusiasm, so when the time comes I’ll be practically manic. 😀

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  8. The terrain you've started looks fantastic! I will eagerly await more pictures of it. With that said, not having much hobby time is a real bummer and I share your outlook on making time for fun is really important. I hope that you're able to get more hobby time soon and I will be looking forward to more updates (no matter what they cover) as well! :)

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    1. Thanks Kuribo! Hopefully a few weeks to a month will see me back at the hobby desk.
      I appreciate the comments and our following each other’s blogs. This is fun. 😀

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    2. It really is and I don't think it would be half as much fun if not for being able to see how yourself and others get on with their projects so that is why I enjoy reading each update :)

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  9. Well in my opinion Stew those ruins look sensational. I love the whole Osgiliath theme here and am still very much taken by the wonderful battle that was in the back of the GW publication of War of the Ring. I have six boxes of unopened Osgiliath ruins just crying out for me to do something with...eventually. Like yourself time can be a pull at the best of times however as I've always found, amazingly something glorious can pop up at a moments notice. Keep on fighting the good fight mate.

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    1. Thanks Carlo. Those ruin sets are pretty awesome and I’ve been tempted by them myself. So much of LoTR gaming is based off the terrain huh?
      I appreciate the words about time. 😀

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  10. Your painting table looks SO.LONELY!😭 I will say though, that I am impressed by your organizational skills. My table doesn't look that clean even when I'm in a slump.

    Don't get too down on yourself though. As so many other people said, these sorts of things just happen now and again. Real Life(TM) can be really rough like that sometimes. It'll pass.

    The ruins are beautiful. I am curious as to how much paint they soak up, being plaster. Do you seal them in advance, or something?

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    1. It does look rather forlorn doesn’t it?
      I am getting a lot done though which is the important thing.
      Regarding the plaster; I don’t think it soaks up paint any more than anything else. Especially once it dries the blocks are quite solid and non porous. The plaster I use is called Hydrocal and is designed to be painted/ hobbies. 😀

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    2. Oh, OK. I've heard of Hydrocal, but I've never used it. I don't have any minis that would be used with those sorts of ruins. More importantly though, I just don't have that sort of thing in my skill set.

      As for the desk, well, as long as you're getting things done then it's all good, right? 😁

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  11. I have never tried using the moulds for making blocks but your ruins look excellent and may be the way forward for me, thanks for sharing.
    Hopefully things on the hobby front is improving for you.

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    1. Thanks Pat. The molds are a little labor intensive but the stuff does come out looking good. The frustrating bit is that blocks don’t come out the exact same size sometimes and you have to sand them.
      Things are looking up hobbywise and I might even have enough to done to warrant a blog entry soon-so says the optimist. 😀

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