Yeah, yeah, busy busy busy.

Obviously, I've been really busy, but I swear I'm not done blogging yet!  I won't get into all the various things that are keeping me away from the computer here (you can look on my other blog for that, it's not very interesting though, I promise).

The important thing is that I'm going to try to blog more.

I don't know if I'll ever get my various battle reports up from PrezCon, mainly because it's been so long now that my memory faded.  We ended up leaving from it early, but still got a few other games in that I haven't posted about: Imperium and Triumph of Chaos come to mind immediately.  Man, Triumph of Chaos has potential to be a fantastic game, but it's going to have to be one I'll need to own to play it effectively.  I need to actually study a few of the parts of the game to see why I would want to do certain things, or to see the penalties from playing certain cards, etc.  One day.

Upon coming home from PrezCon, I broke out (at the time) ATO's newest issue: The Lash of the Turk.  Played one of the scenarios solo.  I really like the overall flow and rules of the game, but it needed some errata (for instance, the setup was completely screwy).  Also, the siege rules are bit peculiar.  It's one of those eras of history that doesn't seem to get enough games covering though, so I'm definitely going to give it some slack.  Again, maybe someday I'll post pictures and a report of that game.  More likely, however, is that when I play it again, I'll post THAT.

Rob and I have been playing occasional games of Combat Commander.  We've been eyeing the Stalingrad campaign game, so maybe in another few weeks we'll do that.  Combat Commander is a blast, but I swear that has to be the most complicated game in existence.

I still do my ASL playtesting when I have time to.  I won't say I'm decent yet, but I'm certainly getting better at playing.  Every time I play it, I'm just reminded how great a game it is.  I have dreams of playing a lot of the scenarios solo (and even grander dreams of running some of those massive Valor of the Guards scenarios *drool), but it won't be for a bit.

Regardless, I'm sure I wasn't missed much, but I'll be coming back with some new posts, I promise.  I've been trying to tackle Fields of Fire lately, so I suspect there will be some posts on that coming up soon.

See you guys soon!

A set of wonderful Christmas gifts!

Well, with Christmas (and the gifts) done, I finally can post and enjoy my new gains.

To start, Rob bought me Conflict of Heroes: Price of Honour - Poland 1939, an expansion to the Conflict of Heroes series.  I've never managed to play more than the first 2 firefights from the first game (Awakening of the Bear), despite really liking the rules.  Let's hope I can get some time and drive to get it and this expansion on the table.  Thanks Rob!

Next, the girlfriend bought me a Nook, from Barnes and Noble.  I'm in love with the thing.  Currently, I'm reading Anabasis by Xenophon.  More on all of this in a later post.

When I came home from spending the weekend with the girlfriend's parents, I found on my doorstep a copy of GMT Games' The Spanish Civil War.  I had apparently ordered it, and long forgotten about it (I had canceled all my GMT preorders earlier this year because of financial constraints).  That was a pleasant surprise, I don't own a single game on the subject, and I've heard good things about this one.

Finally, I received a ton of free ASL products, to help assist with playtesting, as well as being a better player.  This included a bunch of the old ASL Annuals, which was a huge surprise.  I'm almost done clipping the counters for Beyond Valour, and once that's done, you can be sure to see several battle reports of Advanced Squad Leader as I work to gain more proficiency with the rules and tactics.

I got a ton of other great gifts, but they aren't really relevant to my wargaming, so I won't list them here.

Anyway, hope everyone's Christmas was awesome!

News for week ending 6/11/10

• Amarillo Design Bureau has listed Captain's Log #41 up for order, to be shipped next week. Lots of new ships and scenarios for all their games.
• Battles Magazine is taking orders for Issue #4: Race for Berlin - The Final Struggle. Don't know a whole lot about the game in the magazine, but there is sure to be great reviews, articles, and news inside as there has been for the past three issues. It should ship next week.
• Columbia Games has begun shipping Julius Caesar. A card-driven block game about the later Roman Civil wars. Looks pretty good, but you'll probably need to be a fan of both block games and CDGs to get the most enjoyment out of it.
• DVG added Battle for Stalingrad to their pre-order page. 2-player card game based on the battle.
• GMT had a new news release. New release schedule, charging schedule, etc. Take a look! Good news at least- Wilderness War is coming out soon! They are also going to be handling the distribution for Consim Press' first game, Beda Fomm. I believe this is a remake of the old GDW game.
• MMP added Out of the Attic #2 to their pre-order page. It includes several ASL scenarios that have appeared in tournaments (total of sixteen scenarios), and six articles to enhance your play. If you like ASL, it's definitely worth picking up (I plan to!).
• MMP also announced they would act as the point of sale for Bellica 3rd Generation. I've heard of Roads to Stalingrad, which is supposed to be a good game, but I have no other knowledge of what this means. More games available, one hopes?
• Panzer Grenadier Headquarters is open! Tons of information about the games and their scenarios, including ways to search for scenarios, find good ones by rating, and so on. If you like the sceries, you'll love the site. Very similar in mission to the ASL Scenario Archive, if anyone's used that.

Also this week, I received Tarleton's Quarter from Against the Odds Magazine. Haven't yet opened it, but I'm sure it has some good historical articles.

Moving in a week! Then maybe gaming again. One can only hope!

New arrivals!

Alright, more things came in the mail today:

• ASL Starter Kit Bonus Pack #1: Beyond the Beaches. A small scenario pack for the ASL Starter Kits. Can never have too many scenarios.
• Counter-Attack! Arras. Magazine Game in Battles Magazine #2.French and British try to stop Rommel's Advance on May 21st 1940.
• A Week in Hell: The Battle of Hue. A solitaire, platoon level game during the Vietnam War, in Battles Magazine #3.

Not a whole lot going on otherwise. I've been playing Advanced Squad Leader on Tuesday nights at the MMP Headquarters. ASL is a great game, it's always great to get more time playing it. I've started writing a game review, it's just slow coming, since I've never tried it before. Hope to have an attempt at one soon!