As we enter a new year I would like to take a look at my gaming habits in 2017 and reflect on the state of the blog.
Boardgame Highlights in 2017
One of my struggles as a game collector is finding a multitude of great games but then not actually playing them. For years I have been interested in the game lines from Starfleet Games, such as Star Fleet Battles and Federation Commander. Both of those games have free print-and-play demos and I have tried both of them solo. This year I convinced a friend to try out the Federation Commander demo. We ran a basic Federation vs. Klingon scenario. I now own a copy of Star Fleet Battles so my goal for this year is to find an opponent for that game.
Returning to Magic the Gathering was another gaming highlight. I have always been curious about Magic and I found someone to teach me the game about six years ago. At that time I had steady opponents. I played for a few years but them my Magic playing trickled to a drip, and Magic is a game that requires practice in order to be proficient. In 2017 I started playing more and I even participated in a sealed league, which is a format that was new to me.
Play-by-Mail Highlights in 2017
I continued to experiment with play-by-mail in 2017. I dropped Duel2, the gladiator combat game run by Reality Simulations. I enjoy the game, highly recommend it, and will probably return to it again. I just needed to spend my time and financial resources elsewhere. I am still playing Hyborian War, a grand strategy wargame in the Conan universe. Once this current game ends I will sign up for another one. I have started a science fiction game called Starweb run by Flying Buffalo. Starweb is an exploration/trading/combat game. I plan on writing reviews for both Hyborian War and Starweb this year.
Role-Playing Game Highlights of 2017
I was reviewing my rpg plays over at rpggeek.com and I was pleasantly surprised to see that I started 2017 by running a Pathfinder session. I have wanted to return to Pathfinder as the first time I ran it I didn't feel that I knew enough at the time to make it work as smoothly as it should. That session ended in a TPK! I continued to be a player in a D&D 5ed campaign in 2017. I enjoy playing and I think that every gamemaster needs to play a lot in order to understand gaming better. However I am definitely getting the urge to run a campaign and I ended the year running a Black Crusade scenario.
Life Highlights of 2017
We moved! Moving has put some chaos into my life. We moved into an apartment and my gaming space shrunk. I have two FLGS in the area, both that have game nights. I have not been to either game night yet. I also applied for a job in the tabletop game industry. I did not get the position, but I did make it to the second round of applicants. Not bad for someone with no profession game industry experience.
State of the Blog in 2017
I did not write as many entries in 2017 that I would have liked to. I had 35 posts, which is the 2nd lowest total for a year. I was hoping to keep up Rolling Wednesday throughout the year. I thought that posting a picture of dice wouldn't be too hard. Well, moving really messes up our life and my Rolling Wednesday experiment did not post every Wednesday. I also failed to make any big changes to the visual look or design of the blog.
No Resolutions!
We are in 2018 and like the title says, I have no resolutions. My goals are what they always have been, try to play and create more. I will continue posting to the blog. I will continue writing reviews. I am consciously trying to limit my acquisition of game products and enjoy what I already own. In fact, I have a bunch of unpainted miniatures that I hope to paint soon. When I do I will post pictures! Game on!
