I wanted to take this chance to give you a few details about my hobby life. I got into wargames early at about 9 I was taken by my Dad to the local club on a Sunday so he could finish his game, while watching Singe (Dads opp) let me move his Roman Aux archers and roll the dice, I guess I was hooked from then. By the age of 10/11 I was attending the club nights at Akrotiri Wargames Club (RAF Akrotiri Cyprus), I mostly played SYW and colonial era all in 15mm and with club rules mainly written by Jed. My first army was a 15mm Carthaginian WRG army which I painted (badly with enamels), but as a few more followed (roman, Zulu, Afghan) I got better and by my teens I was painting others figures.
My teen years where great for my gaming I had a few other lads my age all keen to game all the time, school holidays would be filled with all day colonial battles and SYW conflicts. Then the new Army Regt arrived and my world was blown apart these guys (Royal Regt of Fusilier's) had a new game called Warhammer and 25mm figures. Well soon lots of fantasy armies were winging their way to Cyprus and Dad and I had great fun painting them. My happy years of gaming had a few breaks mainly due to security threats meaning the club became off limits (due to it being a stones throw from the air field). Nearing the end of my schooling I started to find other things to do with my free time and then the Gulf war started. The club stopped as most of the members had to work pretty much 24/7. By the time things calmed down I was into my A-level and my main gaming buddy had returned to the UK his tour over, so wargames slipped down the pecking order and I grew older and wiser.
A-levels were taken some passed and Uni beckoned, on returning to the UK I reconnected with my gaming buddy so my student digs always had a painting area and I would traval down to my friends every couple of months for a weekend of gaming. Unforunatly my friends marrage broke down and we lost contact so once again gaming and paintng got packed away. Uni lasted a few years till I dropped out and got a proper job. The next few years went the way of many gamers work, marrage, kids and not much more. Then my old man told me that Games Workshop were looking for managers ( I had drifted in to retail by now) and I applied, dusted off my paints and figures. I got the job and spent 11 months working for GW while the job was a dream the money was a nightmare and with a family to support I had to swallow my dream and left to take up a job in Warehouseing. I lost the gaming bug for a few years again but then found WAB and was reborn, before long I was attending a gaming comp every month or so and had started doing commission work on 28mm armies. I stopped the gaming after awhile but kept on painting and in the last few years have been using the on line community to improve my level of painting.
At first I thought I could get good enough to win a Golden Demon but having now seen and talked to many winners I know I do not have what it takes to do that, but I do have a very good skill in being able to produce great TT minis in a very short time. So where does today find me, well I work nights in the Warehouse (I supervise now) and with the release of WAB 2.0 I am getting back into gaiming ( I have always played a few games every year with my Dad mostly ECW).Also with the new Black Powder rules my Dad and I are keen to return to one of our fav periods the Colonial era this we plan to do with some great 10mm figures starting with a few packs at Recon next week. My daughter is at Uni herself now and I have 2 mad Scottie dogs to keep me active, I have launched my painting company Exiles Painting and am starting to pick up a few jobs. Over all life is rosey if I could lose a few more stone ;D I would say life was perfect. If you are stil reading thanks for sticking with it .
Do I get the prize for longest intro now :-[
(http://4.bp.blogspot.com/_bLzreYSk1yw/TFOOjVcdSTI/AAAAAAAAAIo/vikU4nYPQP8/s1600/DSCF3185.JPG)
www.exilespainting.blogspot.com
Hi, welcome to the Forum!
Quote from: exilesjjb on 27 November 2010, 02:59:55 AM
Do I get the prize for longest intro now :-[
And yes!
Greetings
It's a good intro though :-)
Regards
Edward
Hello sir, one heck of an intro :D
Welcome aboard
Welcome,
I'll certainly be dropping into that website of yours from time to time... nice mix of manufacturers, periods and scales. 25 minutes to paint those two Romans though :o
I couldn't paint two Romans that quick if they were 6mm :-[
The Victorian Gentlemen commission looks interesting as well...
Blaxkleric
http://fantorical.blogspot.com/