Is wargaming a Risk-y hobby?

 As we get ready to head into the winter months, it is good to clarify a few hobby goals.

 

One of my updated goals is to play a bunch of the wargames that I have purchased over the years, as well as a bunch of the historical wargames that have led us to where we are in the hobby now.  I want to play Little Wars, the Jane’s Naval War game, through Donald Featherstone Wargames, Chainmail, and then into more modern type games.

 

I’ve picked up some books with the old game rules but need to find people with which to play, as well as the space for it.  We’re a mite cozy right now at home.   

 

When picking up the Halloween decorations from storage, I confirmed that I have easy access to the boxes with the Warhammer, and Warhammer 40K books.  I’m toying with the idea of playing through the editions with my son, painting up the boxed starter sets as we go.

 

I’ve picked up a lot of the Osprey Wargames series.  Because they are numbered, I am compelled to pick them all up.  I want to start playing through them as well. 

To aid that goal, I’ve picked up a few Risk games from the thrift store with the idea of taking out the figures, and painting and basing them to use for the Napoleonic and America Civil War games that Osprey has published – like Chosen Men, Absolute Emperor, The Pikeman’s Lament, as well as Rebels and Patriots, and With Hot Lead and Cold Steel.

I’ve been looking for sets with suitable figures for a few years now, but have gotten more serious about getting them and am now at the tipping point.  In addition to the set I picked up in September, and two more last week.  The last two sets that I bought were $7.99 each for almost 300 infantry, cavalry, and cannons.  Now, I already have multiple different versions of Risk games, but those are keepers, not for gutting for pieces as these were.

 

I am also keeping my eyes open for any Axis and Allies sets at a decent price – to take the tanks and ships.  In a pinch, I could always use the ships from Battleship games and fill the holes, or even just use counters.  I would love to find some cheap copies of some of the Gamemaster series – like Shogun, Conquest of the Empire, or Battlecry, or their remakes.

I’ve also been going to a lot of the Dollaramas looking for the Lightyear Hyperspeed ships.  They dropped the price from $5 to $2.50 and that is a perfect price for 1/72 or 25mm scale fighter ships.  If I can find enough, I can use them for an upscaled space game, or terrain for Stargrave.  I also picked up the dropships to use as alternate drop pods for 40K and other space games.

 

Figure Painting Total - September 2026

 I was able to pick up the Final Model of the Month from Games Workshop.  They are changing the promotion in October.  I didn’t get the model every month, just some of the ones that I was interested in.  Even then, a couple of times I was not able to get the model as they were out.  In talking to the manager, he had said that they usually gave away about 100 figures a month, and about 20% of them came back at the end of the month to show off.

Since my son has switched his allegiance from Space Wolves to Blood Angels, I will try out the Blood Angels paint scheme.  This is also the color shown on the Lost Patrol remake, which I haven’t painted yet.  This will also be a good chance to test out the paint scheme for my Tyranid army on the Genestealers.

I was finally able to get a copy of Fireteam with the figures.  So now I can also try out my Necron paint scheme.

 

I’m still working away at the Federation figures from both the Star Trek Away Team starter, and the Picard expansion.  So far I am liking the colors for the uniforms.

 

 

Bought

Fireteam – 18 (5 Primaris Assault Marines, 5 Necron Warriors, 5 Necron Destroyers, 3 Canoptek Scarab Swarms)

40K – Marine Scout (Model of the Month) – 1

Dust Tactics – SSU – Red Guard Battle Squad – 5

 

Painted

 

 

Sept total – 24 figures bought, figures painted

Running total 2026 – figures bought 182, figures painted 7

 

Books Read - May to August 2026

 

 May

Lunacy by Jennifer Blackstream

Stargrave: Quarantine 37 by Joseph A McCullough

Burn Book by Kara Swisher

Stargrave: The Last Prospector by Joseph A McCullough

Wicked by Jennifer Blackstream

 

June

Donald Featherstone Naval Battles by Donald Featherstone

Good Game, No Rematch by Mike Drucker

A History of Video Games in 64 Objects by World Video Game Hall of Fame (Jon-Paul Dyson and Jeremy Saucier)

Warhammer 40,000 (9th edition) Codex Tyranids by the Warhammer Studio

Guilt by Jennifer Blackstream

Oathmark: Battlesworn by Joseph A McCullough

Oathmark: Oathbreakers by Joseph A McCullough

 

July

Oathmark: Bane of Kings by Joseph A. McCullough   

Disney Encanto: The Official Cookbook by Patriicia McCausland-Gallo and Susana Ilera Martinez.

Donald Featherstone’s Naval War Games by Donald Featherstone

Visual Quickstart Guide- Microsoft Word 2002 for Windows by Maria Langer

Skinned by Jennifer Blackstream

Never Go Back by Lee Child

 

Aug

Pacific Command by Mike Hutchinson

Void Fighter by Casey Garske

Freakz! Mutant Murder Machines by Michael “Wheels” Whelan

Hide, Stone, and Bone by Austin Hunt

Breed by Jennifer Blackstream

Stargrave: Hope Eternal by Joseph A. McCullough

Figuring Painting Total - August 2026

 I was able to get, and paint, the model in a month from Games Workshop (Warhammer).  It was a good practice for painting ork flesh.  I am pretty happy with the result, and hope to let this momentum carry me on to working on my orc Blood Bowl team that has been sitting on my paint table for the last two years. 

I also picked up a Risk game strictly with the idea of painting the figures for use in Osprey Napoleonic wargames.  However, I am not adding it to the bought list.

Bought 

GW - model in a month - Ork Boyz - 1

Painted 

GW - model in a month - Ork Boyz - 1

August total – 1 figure bought, 1 figure painted 

Running total 2026 – figures bought 158, figures painted 7

Figure Painting Total - July 2026

I've painted a bit here and there but haven't finished anything. 

I was able to pick up a Ork for the August model of the month, so I'm a bit more motivated. 

 Bought 

 Unmatched: Stars and Stripes - 4 

 Painted 

 July total – 4 figures bought, figures painted 

 Running total 2026 – figures bought 157, figures painted 6

Is election math really that hard?

It seems that, for a set of the population, it might be. The current format for reporting election results is that the networks report the current total, that total as a percentage of the counted votes, and the percentage of the votes counted.



For a very simple example, in a riding of 100000 people, at the start of the counting the counts could be:

Red 9000 90%
Blue 1000 10%
With 10% of the vote counted


As more votes are counted, the score could be:

Red 25000 50%
Blue 25000 50%
With 50% of the vote counted.


It could end up being:

Red 30000 30%
Blue 70000 70%
With 100% of the vote counted.


Now, if you understand how math works, (and have a decent grasp of time progression) this seems entirely reasonable. The amount of votes keeps increasing for both candidates and the percentages reflect the percentage for each of the percentage counted.


But, if you don’t, and you are only looking at the percentages, it can seem odd that some numbers are dropping.



To help those people out, and to avoid them complaining about rigged elections as the percentages adjust as more votes are counted, I propose the following change.


I believe the networks should report the current total, that total as a percentage of the total votes, and the percentage of the votes counted.


So using the previous example of a riding of 100000 people the same results would now look like:

Red 9000 9%
Blue 1000 1%
With 10% of the vote counted



As more votes are counted, the score could be:

Red 25000 25%
Blue 25000 25%
With 50% of the vote counted.


It could end up being:

Red 30000 30%
Blue 70000 70%
With 100% of the vote counted.


This way the percentages only increase as more votes are counted, and they never decrease. It also becomes quite clear when one candidate has won as they finally achieve over 50% of the total votes, not just the current counted total.

Figure Painting Total - June 2026

I've painted a little bit, but not finished anything.
I was able to get the Armegeddon launch box. Now that they have relvealed what will be in the starter boxes, I am very glad that I did.

Bought

Unmatched Adventures: TMNT – Extra Toppings - 16

40K Armageddon 11th edition – 62



Painted



June total – figures bought 78, figures painted 0

Running total 2026 – figures bought 153, figures painted 6