Wow, it’s been quiet in here since my last post! A full two months have passed since I last put finger to keyboard, and while it’s been quiet here, Real Life ™ hasn’t been! I’ve not done my usual yearly roundup, but I’ll give a fairly wordy update to what’s been going on in the last few months.
I’ve still been gaming, mostly playing lots of Imperial Assault, where a couple of friends and I have been working our way through the main campaign. I’ve also had a few games of X-Wing, both regular games and Heroes of the Aturi Cluster. I’ve not had much time for Infinity of late, which is a shame, but I think I needed a bit of a break from playing it as it’s a complicated game, and there’s only so much I can remember at once!
That said, I did gain a new addition to my roster of games; Dropfleet Commander. I’d initially avoided looking much at the game (and it’s sister game, Dropzone Commander), mostly because I knew it would draw me in and cost a heck of a lot to get into. This all changed when I was given a demo by my friends who had all pledged on the Kickstarter for Dropfleet, and I was hooked. One of them sold me the small number of PHR ships that he had, and so I got to painting them up.
I deliberated with Photoshop for quite a while over how to paint them, and initially decided on a black scheme. However, upon looking at it on a table, it really wasn’t terribly eye-catching, and so I decided to try again, this time drawing on my old Space Marine army for inspiration, and settled on a grey scheme with white stripes. Perhaps somewhat uninspired, but it works for me!
I decided early on that I wanted some kind of simple pattern on the canopy, if only to break up the large smooth areas a little. The Medea above is pretty much finished, barring some additional highlights/detailing, but I’ve also gone ahead and basecoated the rest of the fleet:
At the start of November, I made a decision to start up a little side-business for myself, as I’d had some really positive feedback from friends who I’d produced wargaming mats for. I’ve got myself a little online shop at www.highorbitdesigns.co.uk – I’m adding new designs to the store all the time, and I also offer a bespoke design service (the first of which was commissioned last month). I’m always open to suggestions for designs, so do please feel free to contact me about it if you have any queries!
During all of this spaceship and table mat madness, I also finally finished off Armand Le Muet, who can be seen here:
That about wraps up my short re-cap, other than the models I got over Christmas – not only was I given a whole heap of Imperial Assault models early by my wonderful wife, but also two of my friends decided to pick me up some extra models too! I was given Greedo, a pair of Hired Guns and also a pair of Echo Base Troopers. I can’t wait to find some time to paint them up!
