I’ve been needing to work at my desk for a while. When we moved my stuff out of the spare room and the boy in, time was more of a crucial factor so I didn’t have the time to properly sift through things. With the extra space in the storage unit, I needed to go through the boxes already on it as well as the extra 6 months of stuff that has been piled up on top of that.
With the holidays coming up, I’ve had a bit more impetus to get it done. I have taken everything off my desk and have been working at sifting it and putting some of it back. Some of it will go back on and in the desk, some will go in storage in the back room, and some will go in deep storage in the storage unit.
For a first pass, I've gotten it back to a reasonable mess. The wife may disagree.
Friday, December 20, 2013
Monday, November 25, 2013
My Ogre has landed
My Ogre has arrived. It came on Friday, November 15. I got the email notice that it had been shipped and the notice that it had hit the local sorting facility. I was going to call them about picking it up but when I checked it was already out for delivery. I had a bit of concern as no one was home to receive but it sounds like he tried again later and was able to deliver to the kids – who were able to cover the $28 duty charge. I was glad to pay that to ensure that it did not get stuck out in the weather.
We took it to Jimcon – a local gaming convention – that weekend on the Sunday. They cleared some space for us on the newer tables so we were able to spread it out. We had a few people come by to check it out – some had heard of the Kickstarter and some had never heard of Ogre at all.
My first thoughts? It’s very nice. And big. So very big.
The pieces are nicely die cut – they popped out without any trouble and stayed in until worked on. I still haven’t had time to remove and sort them all. I wish they had been better packaged with the basic sheets together. The over-abundance of the Kickstarter extras made it tricky to find the pieces needed for the classic game. The insert trays are a thing of beauty – nice and solid and look to have enough room to hold everything once done.
I really like the classic Ogre game included – although this one has dice cut counters unlike the original cut-your-own ones. I will need to buy a bunch of them when they become available to give to friends to indoctrinate them. I expect I will also end up playing that version more often as it will be easier to find the space needed.
I played the classic game with my son. I was a bit out of practice, and busy popping out more counters while we played, but still lost. He player the mark III Ogre and was able to pull off a complete Ogre victory. It was his first game with a classic CRT (combat results table) and he was able to figure it out pretty well. The basic map isn’t too huge and will fit on most tables. This will allow it to get more use than the size of the box would imply.
My only negative about this is the sheer size of it. It should really have been made into two boxes. This would allow one to carry and store it much easier and allow you to take only part of it out as needed for most games. It would also have been easier to sell later – with a more “stripped-down” version and a massive extras set. It seems to have done well enough for more support – maybe the supplement box will be able to double as a travel box as needed. If not, I will have to make a box to hold the basic components. At least until I get some of the rereleased miniatures.
We took it to Jimcon – a local gaming convention – that weekend on the Sunday. They cleared some space for us on the newer tables so we were able to spread it out. We had a few people come by to check it out – some had heard of the Kickstarter and some had never heard of Ogre at all.
My first thoughts? It’s very nice. And big. So very big.
The pieces are nicely die cut – they popped out without any trouble and stayed in until worked on. I still haven’t had time to remove and sort them all. I wish they had been better packaged with the basic sheets together. The over-abundance of the Kickstarter extras made it tricky to find the pieces needed for the classic game. The insert trays are a thing of beauty – nice and solid and look to have enough room to hold everything once done.
I really like the classic Ogre game included – although this one has dice cut counters unlike the original cut-your-own ones. I will need to buy a bunch of them when they become available to give to friends to indoctrinate them. I expect I will also end up playing that version more often as it will be easier to find the space needed.
I played the classic game with my son. I was a bit out of practice, and busy popping out more counters while we played, but still lost. He player the mark III Ogre and was able to pull off a complete Ogre victory. It was his first game with a classic CRT (combat results table) and he was able to figure it out pretty well. The basic map isn’t too huge and will fit on most tables. This will allow it to get more use than the size of the box would imply.
My only negative about this is the sheer size of it. It should really have been made into two boxes. This would allow one to carry and store it much easier and allow you to take only part of it out as needed for most games. It would also have been easier to sell later – with a more “stripped-down” version and a massive extras set. It seems to have done well enough for more support – maybe the supplement box will be able to double as a travel box as needed. If not, I will have to make a box to hold the basic components. At least until I get some of the rereleased miniatures.
Wednesday, October 30, 2013
bubble suits - Zoltan!
For Halloween parties we made costumes again. This year went as followers of Zoltan from Dude, Where’s My Car? A version of this was available at Spirit of Hallowen but there are a few differences from the movie – the biggest being a top and pants instead of a jumpsuit as well as Velcro closures compared to snaps.
Ours are a bit incorrect as well – we grabbed the small bubbles instead of the more accurate larger bubbles. The other concern was the sizing – making our bubble suits allowed us to make sure the fit our various sizes. There still is a bit of tailoring to make them fit a bit closer, but easy to fix.
We laid out the bubble wrap over a pair of pants to measure them for size. The seams were joined with medium weight packing tape. A double layer of packing tape along the middle seam gave enough of a solid material to allow the pop snaps to grab without pulling through the plastic. We measured the top part against a long sleeve shirt
We wore a black tshirt instead of the muscle shirt as well as the black shorts. The plastic doesn't really breath so it keeps warm enough for inside wear. I brought along some extra packing tape for seam repair but didn't need it.
Ours are a bit incorrect as well – we grabbed the small bubbles instead of the more accurate larger bubbles. The other concern was the sizing – making our bubble suits allowed us to make sure the fit our various sizes. There still is a bit of tailoring to make them fit a bit closer, but easy to fix.
We laid out the bubble wrap over a pair of pants to measure them for size. The seams were joined with medium weight packing tape. A double layer of packing tape along the middle seam gave enough of a solid material to allow the pop snaps to grab without pulling through the plastic. We measured the top part against a long sleeve shirt
We wore a black tshirt instead of the muscle shirt as well as the black shorts. The plastic doesn't really breath so it keeps warm enough for inside wear. I brought along some extra packing tape for seam repair but didn't need it.
Tuesday, October 29, 2013
Been Busy - part 5
October has been a very busy month - mostly with chores and renovations though.
We finished painting the outside of the house, including the trim. The kids were very helpful with painting. I also managed to paint the exposed platform of the new shed - which should help it last a bit longer through the weather.
We replaced the fascia on the back of the house - which included painting the boards before putting them up. Changing the lower fascia involved removing the eavestrough and putting it back. I was concerned that this would very difficult but it went quite easily.
My brother came over and replaced the outside lights with motion sensor versions. He also replaced some of the loose switches inside. Being a electrician, he swaps them out without pulling the breakers which always makes me a bit nervous.
I was able to get to the storage locker and spend about two hours sifting the contents. I pulled out a bunch of the boxes and restacked the plastic tubs together and put a bunch of the cardboard boxes on a skid. I was also able to move some of the more needed boxes to more handy locations to make them easier to get as needed. This should allow even more boxes to be stored.
It stayed warm enough for my dad to come over and help replace some of the trim which had rotted with flashing and new boards. If the weather holds later this week, I hope to get a layer of paint on it before the snow comes. While he had his table saw here we also cut the wood to put together a bench for the shed. This should let me stack things better and move more stuff out of the old shed before the squirrel settles in for the winter.
Sifted storage locker.
We finished painting the outside of the house, including the trim. The kids were very helpful with painting. I also managed to paint the exposed platform of the new shed - which should help it last a bit longer through the weather.
We replaced the fascia on the back of the house - which included painting the boards before putting them up. Changing the lower fascia involved removing the eavestrough and putting it back. I was concerned that this would very difficult but it went quite easily.
My brother came over and replaced the outside lights with motion sensor versions. He also replaced some of the loose switches inside. Being a electrician, he swaps them out without pulling the breakers which always makes me a bit nervous.
I was able to get to the storage locker and spend about two hours sifting the contents. I pulled out a bunch of the boxes and restacked the plastic tubs together and put a bunch of the cardboard boxes on a skid. I was also able to move some of the more needed boxes to more handy locations to make them easier to get as needed. This should allow even more boxes to be stored.
It stayed warm enough for my dad to come over and help replace some of the trim which had rotted with flashing and new boards. If the weather holds later this week, I hope to get a layer of paint on it before the snow comes. While he had his table saw here we also cut the wood to put together a bench for the shed. This should let me stack things better and move more stuff out of the old shed before the squirrel settles in for the winter.
Sifted storage locker.
Monday, September 30, 2013
Neca sets - Pacific Rim and KA2
It seems to
be another year when Neca is pumping out a lot of Heroclix sets. I picked up the Pacific Rim and KA2 starter
sets and need to get the rest of the singles.
Neither of these had really been mentioned on the www.Heroclix.com site.
The Pacific Rim set comes with a Gipsy Danger and a Slattern - not the Knifehead that it shows on the back. Both figures are visible in the package so this is not too much of a concern. Also included is a tiny 3 x 8 map on a four-folded board as well as 32 pogs for tanks, jets, and battleships. These figure seem to be part of the basic 10 figures available in the single figure counter packs. What it is missing is a basic heroclix rulebook explaining any of the special abilities on the dials - instead coming with a very simple rule set to be able to play with the figures given ignoring the special abilities.
I also picked up 6 single figure packs - getting only one duplicate. I now have all the Kaiju and two of the Jaegers - Gipsy Danger and Striker Eureka. I'll probably pick up the remaining 3 figures on the secondary market.
The KA2
starter is a great fit for the Heroclix system – I snapped it up as soon as I
saw it. The 6 figures in the starter are
in addition to the 11 available in single figure counter packs. There are a few interesting things about this
set – mostly having to do with the names.
The set is notably missing Colonel Stars and Stripes (and Eisenhower). I suppose with Jim Carrey’s disillusionment of the violence, he has not allowed his image out. Also missing is Dave’s friend’s Todd in his inverted A**-Kicker costume.
The characters that have names that might be questionable instead are marked with their secret identities. Kick-A** is listed as Dave Lizewski, Mother-F***** is listed as Chris D'Amico, and Night B***** is listed as Miranda Swedlow. Since a big part of the movie involves finding out their secret identities, this makes it a bit odd.
I haven't picked up any single figure packs for KA2 yet but probably will. Any dupes of KA, MF, or NB I can always fix the names or repaint a KA to an AK - using a Battle Guy dial.
Friday, September 27, 2013
Kickstarters - updates
My
Kickstarters have been paying off. I’m
still waiting for my first one – OGRE Designer’s Edition from May of 2012 – but
should finally be shipping soon. This
one is going to be huge. I’ve even
ordered a few of extra sponsored counter sheets.
The Dungeon
Roll from back in March came in earlier this month. It’s so tiny.
The box is the Kickstarter mimic version instead of the regular treasure
chest version.
I just got
Walk the Plank in this week with my extras.
It too is a bit smaller than I would have thought. I got the pirate stickers and ghost pirate
figure as Kickstarter bonuses and had ordered the Sharkspansion and Pink Robot
for Get Bit as well. This had been paid
back in April – so that makes it the shortest turnaround time I have.
My only other
Kickstarter was a non-game one – the Veronica Mars movie. That was paid back in April too. We already got the DVDs back in August but
still are waiting for the t-shirts.
So far, my
experience has been very good with these.
I haven’t been checking as often as I could but, so far, nothing else
has caught my eye – or my pocketbook.
Thursday, September 5, 2013
Books read - May to August 2013
May
The Six-Gun Tarot by R.S. Belcher
Iron Maiden: The Ultimate Unauthorized History of the Beast by Neil Daniels
The Monster Show: a cultural History of Horror by David J. Skal
Because I Said So! The Truth Behind the Myths, Tales, and Warnings Every Generation Passes Down to Its Kids by Ken Jennings
June
The Lego Book by Daniel Lipkowitz
The Big-Ass Book of Home Décor by Mark Montano
Stan Lee’s How to Write Comics by Stan Lee
The Art and Making of the Dark Knight Trilogy by Jody Duncan Jesser and Janine Pourrot
July
The Big-Ass Book of Crafts 2 by Mark Montano
DK Star Trek the Visual Dictionary by Paul Ruditis
The Making of the Empire Strikes Back by J.W.Rinzler
Aug
Robot Building for Dummies by Robert Arrick
The Complete Photo Guide to Making Metal Jewelry by John Sartin
Warhammer Armies: Orcs & Goblins (6th edition) by Rick Priestly & Jake Thornton
Made by Dad: 67 Blueprints for Making Cool Stuff by Scott Bedford
10-Minute Puppets by Noel MacNeal
Time-Life Books: The Old West – The Gunfighhters by Paul Trachtman
The Star Trek Craft Book by Angie Pedersen
Star Trek Cross-Stitch by John Lohman
Stan Lee’s How to Draw Superheroes by Stan Lee
Dad’s Book of Awesome Projects by Mike Adamick
The Monopoly Companion by Mr Monopoly as told to Philip Orbanes
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