Mini Monday: Beware! An analysis of a Game Project

Recently I posted a link to a new army box soon to be released.
There were the usual remarks 'So Tempting!' 'What a deal!', but there was also a
'I'd have to get more than an occassional game to get my investment back' comment. So today I have decided to do a little investment anaylsis. Now before I start let me warn you that you should never ever let your spouse see this if she questions your hobby budget both in time and finance. Also let me point out that the following  has nothing to do with whether I buy into a project or not. If I can afford it and it's shiny enough, it's mine!

So item to be considered, Warlord Games soon to be released Pike and Shotte Samurai Army box.

$120 for 124 figs (cavalry counts as 2), a metal mounted General and decals, trust me you want those decals! Less than a $1 a fig, certainly a good price. I've personally assembled and painted the Warlord, ie old Wargames Factory figs, and though a bit tedious at first glance they come out fairly nice. So pricewise the Army Box is sweet.

Now Assembly time,  now of course this is relative to your style and speed. If you have to clip every bit off the sprue and sand down every flash it will take you longer. Also as you get familiar with the models you will get faster as well. I suggest test assembly of 5 ashigaru, 2 samurai and 2 cavalry to get the feel first, then go on and do 10 or more at a time.
My estimate is about 5 min per fig. 5 x 124 figs, 620 min or about 10 hours. Have I ever mentioned that I love plastic figs but simply hate putting them together.
10 Hours Assembly

Painting time. Certainly varies by the painter. For instance,I taught my wife how to paint minis years ago and now she paints better figs but in twice the time that I do, roughly.
Thus this is nothing but shear guesswork on my part.
First up you have the Ashigaru, which you can paint in a uniform scheme thus saving you much time. Let's say 20 minutes each, 20 x 80, 1600 minutes or about 26 hours.
I suggest playing any movie by Kurasawa in the background for motivation.
26 Hours Ashigaru

Next up we have the samurai on foot. 20 figures. Gotta give these bad ass boys  some extra love, shall I say 40 minutes each. So 20 x 40, 800 minutes or about 13 hours. (roughly I say roughly)
13 Hours Samurai on foot

Now we get to the Mounted Samurai, certainly your most stunning unit or so you should plan. The horses really won't take as long as the samurai themselves so let's just say an hour a fig.
12 Hours Mounted Samurai

pic
Last up is the Samurai General, Well you  gotta look the part so let's say 2 hours.
2 Hours General

Doing the math, we're looking at some
53 Hours Total

Whew that was a lot of math! 53 hours, does seem like a lot. That would be about 25 movies or prime time TV watching or 12 football games or 6 novels. But if you  break that down with 3 hours during the week and 4 hours on the weekend, 7-8 weeks or about two months to get the whole force on the table. Not so bad.

Now figure 4 hours for a Pike and shotte game, so about 13 games to get your hourly investing back out of it.

But and it's a big But, This all assumes that the only pleasure comes from actually playing the game. That there is no joy in planning or painting your army, that you are just a gamer and not a hobbyist. But I doubt that because, a true gamer only type would be playing boardgames, cardgames or just video games. Only a gamer hobbyist spends $125 on a Samurai army, because the thrill starts when you open that box.

Mini Monday: The New Year Itch

Now I know that it is a little early to talk about the New Year, but with all the sales going on it's time to bring up the Itch, the New Year's Itch to be specific. Throughout the year we are constantly fighting off or indulging in urges to start  a new project. But the New Year's Itch is by far the worse. Companies seem to be bringing out new releases or posting great sales daily. Plus a new year is just around the corner and you want something 'fresh' to play. Some people make resolutions, gamers take on projects!

So what will your new project be? RPG, Skirmish force or an army? What historical period or genre are you feeling for the new year? Considering a new convention game to host?
Of course it doesn't always have to be a new period or genre; some of us long-time gamers start running out of new options after a while. You could be looking at finally building a nice town for your Wild West games, or perhaps restaring a project in a different scale. (Yes some of us have the same period in as many as 5 scale) Or perhaps a new force for your Bolt Action or 40K games. Tired of Marines, tempted by the new bugs?

There is just soooooo much out there!

So welcome to my little New Years Itch Madness, in which Sabrina, tries to figure out which way I'm leaning so as to get me the 'perfect gift'. It's quite a trying time for her considering that I'm changing my mind almost daily!

But here are some possible projects I'm taking under consideration:
Necromunda, yea GW's newest revamp is  a thought, probably just my excuse to build more terrain.

Gangs of Rome, Warlord Games new venture coming in 2018, Allen is already hinting pretty loudly.

Back of Beyond, Madness in Russia in the wake of WWI , everyone seems to be involved, Chinese Warlords, Whites, Reds, Japanese, Czechs on trains etc and Copplestone has some great castings. Been thinking about this one for years. Did I mention Armored Trains!

Launching Konflict 47 in the Pacific, another of Warlord Games newest releases. Japanese in powered armor!

Of course I've just finished off another of Joe Abercrombies books and now I got the urge for some low magic fantasy with hard hitting heros in a Kurasawa style action. (By the way I highly recommend Abercrombie's fantasy novels if you like Kurasawa films) So I've been looking  at some of the skirmish fantasy rules and Gripping Beasts Viking box.
But the Kurasawa theme has sparked a look at Test of Honour and Samurai battles.

And of course the New Flames of War release. Late War armies and cards has me looking at some British armor.

Much goodness out there and still weeks to decide! So what's your new project to scratch the New Years Itch?

Mini Monday: Chess or Chaos, How do you like your Wargaming?

So how do you like your Wargaming? Stelios, of Word of Stelios once touched upon this subject. Do you prefer it to lean towards Chess, with each unit having set abilities and you in total command. No random surprises just clear tactics. Or do you prefer a bit of Chaos with movement being random and having to roll dice to see if your units carry out your orders. Of course, most rules are a blend of both, since just the addition of dice moves us from Chess towards Chaos.

After years of running your army as you see fit, many newer rule systems have dropped a wrench in the general's plans. Lion Rampant and all it's variants have you dicing to see if your units will take any action that turn. Black Powder does the same but also has random movement distances. The lack of total command can be a bit of an irritation for many players, especially if you see yourself as falling under the cloud of 'bad luck' more often then not.

Now, those that have gamed with me know that I am certainly enchanted with Chaos. I love uncertainty on the tabletop. How many shots will I get with my cannon before the enemy reaches my line? Will my peasant horde have the nerve to charge those knights when I give the signal? Can I trust my wizard to mumble the spell correctly every time? Aye, I like the general to constantly stay on his toes adjusting plan as the battle proceeds.

Even now I am typing up 'mission cards' for our Alpha Strike games to add more flavor and shake up the boring old slug match. You can draw a card that has you lose victory points for taking too many casualties, I call it the 'replacements are limited' card. Another has you lose points if your force doesn't advance to at least the center of the table,  you may be cautious but your superior is not and he/she is watching! Of course your opponent won't know about these orders till the end of the game. The intent is to give one the feel that this battle is not in a vacuum, but part of a larger scheme.

I'm hoping to play Italians in Flames of War next year, seems you have to roll their initial morale rating as well. Elites or Green troups? More to worry about!