Blood and Spectacles: Random: 2023 Will Go Down in History!

2023 is here! I won't lie, but it was touch and go there for a while I was not sure it was going to get here. So much insanity and chaos in 2022! However, that is all behind us now. 2023 will go down in history as the year everything changed.... or it will go down in history as another year where crazy stuff happened. That seems more likely.

Like previous years I will be putting in some goals to act as guard rails so that I do not go wandering down a garden path and not get anything done! They are more for my protection and safety. After all, it is easy to get swept away by what is shiny and new in this hobby! However, I want to keep my goals flexible enough that I can respond to what is happening in the Wargaming world around me too.

Like most years, I will be breaking this down into the usual categories:

Purchases- Things I plan to buy
Painting and Modeling- Things I plan to paint and build
Playing- Games that I will put on the table
Rules Writing- Old projects to complete, and new ones to start
Miscellany- All the boring stuff that doesn't fit someplace else!

So, let's not waste anymore of 2023's precious time and get to the goals!

Purchases

I feel it necessary to start this section of the Goals with a huge "Thank You!". As I have said many times, you make this section possible! Every time you purchase a product from the Wargame Vault, buy one of my books from Osprey, or become a patreon; you are helping keep Blood and Spectacles Publishing moving forward. Without your purchases, I could not get the products for me to review, the artwork for post-production, the models for the painting desk, or the terrain in the featured battle reports. Your support makes this all possible, and allows me to keep making games.

Thank you!

Last year, I spent a lot of time focusing on Blood and Spectacles publishing and materials. When you look at the results from last year, you can see that I put a lot of work into finishing, promoting, painting, and purchasing to support Blood and Spectacles. 2023, I will still be putting a lot of focus on this area, but I need to expand my gaming this year. For creative reasons, I need to expand my horizons and expose myself to a wider swath of the wargaming community. Don't worry, I still have plans for things to finish related to Blood and Spectacles too!

So, here is what I would like to purchase for 2023:

Stay up-to-date on the Osprey Wargaming Series
Purchase 1 new set of wargame rules
Purchase a new play mat, possibly for Naval or Space base battles
Buy the stuff to expand on an existing Blood and Spectacles ruleset
Buy the models and army I need for the 2023 project.

To expand on my existing Blood and Spectacles rules, I was thinking about another force like Samnites for Wars of the Republic, US Navy for White Star/Red Star, or an Arab army for Fury of the Northman. These would all be to supplement rulesets I have all ready wrote and published.

My next Blood and Spectacles rules projects could be Late Roman/Barbarian Migrations, the New World, Land Ironclads compatible with Castles in the Sky, Space Mecha, or Bronze Age Chariot Wars. I am really undecided on what project I want to pursue for 2023, and 2023 has started! Which would you be most interested in seeing more of, following along as I paint, and buy once it hits the wargame vault?

As you can see, I am much less focused than last year when it comes to purchases!

Painting and Modeling

The last three years I have been super productive on this front. The last few years I have managed to paint between 150 to 350 models, so that means I could probably finish two new "armies" or 60-70 models each. I would even have room to squeeze in a couple of other minis here and there as well.

Speed paint my Hellboy board game monsters for generic villains in various games. I am specifically thinking about some solo-play games such as Osprey's Pulp game and for use to test Darkest Knight
Paint the new projects I pick up to work on.

Well, that section was pretty short and sweet. However, I intend to start painting more and more of my projects with Speed Paints in 2023 to see if I can increase my production time for projects. That will be a big change for how I normally paint using a predominantly a "base and wash" technique. You have to use a quick process when you are trying to paint 60+ model armies!

Gaming

Last year, I had a pretty productive year in gaming. I got to play RPGs, wargames, board games, and even card games! That was a lot of games to try out and a lot of new people to play against. Last year I played more games than in the previous year, and I want to keep this trend going! To help me, I have started to make a lot of connections and in-roads in the local gaming community. When I first got to my current location there was not much of a wargaming scene. However, I have been able to slowly build, unite, and grow it and want to continue to do so! That means I will have to host more events and be an active community member. With all that said, I am targeting getting in two wargames a month, so about 24 games in a year!

Play 1-4 sci-fi skirmish wargames from Kill Team, to Stargrave, to Xenos Rampant, to Restless Stars. Perhaps finally get the Operation: Hemlock campaign completed with my Skumgrod!
Play 1-4 games of Castles in the Sky
Play 1-4 games of an Ancients wargame from Men of Bronze, to Wars of the Republic, to Fury of the Northman or beyond!
Play at least 1 game I have not played before
Play at least 1 game from my wargaming collection that is NOT a Blood and Spectacles Publishing game, I am leaning towards All Quiet on the Martian Front

This gives me a nice range of games to play, and hopefully a broad enough range of game types. This will allow me to try out more games, play games that my local community wants to try, and keep expanding and showcasing the Blood and Spectacles Publishing line here on the blog and across the internet.

In addition, I am committing to doing the following:

Host a quarterly gaming event at a local venue that is open to the public
Create a charity game event to support a local Non-profit
Continue my weekly RPG night, and run a non-D&D game there
Try 2 new board games

That is a lot of gaming right there!

Twilight Imperium in progress

Rules Writing

Despite all this gaming I plan on doing, I still need to do what I do, and that is write games. Hopefully, all this gaming will lead me to inspiration on new projects. There are still a lot of projects in my Game Concept folder, and some of them are further along than others. On my patreon page. you can even see some of the test rules and the like I have put together for various future projects.

Last year was a bang-up year for publications! Bad news is, I do not think I have the same level of content creation in me for this one. Sorry.

In 2023, I will commit to the following:

Publish 1 new wargame to my Wargame Vault page
Pitch one new game for publication

The most likely candidates for either of these bullet points is one of my existing designs that have entered the post-production phase. However, some times new inspiration and interests spring board a game to the top spot! Here are some contenders that you can give me feedback on below:

1. Homer's Heroes - Iliad/Greek inspired model-vs-model skirmish

2. In Strife and Conflict- Bronze Age chariot wars

3. Darkest Knights- Solo/co-op modern monster hunting

4. Glittering Void - Space mecha theatre either in miniature or RPG formats.... or both!

5. Gods, Gold, and Glory - New World battles

6. Barbarians at the Gates - Late Roman/Barbarian Invasion rules

7. Mobile Fortress: Verdun - Land Ironclads in the Castles in the Sky universe

Those are the most likely contenders for actual content to be created. However, I always have other stuff lurking around in the old concept folder like Mageloque and others.

Miscellany

Finally, here is some random stuff that doesn't necessarily fall into other categories, but that I do not want to lose sight of either.

1. Post blog content on a bi-weekly basis, which is a bit slower than I do now. That gives me a bit of downtime, as my work life maybe picking up a bit this year.

2. Add Patreon content once a month for my Patreon backers. Most of this will be WIP type content that is sneak peaks of things to come and a look behind the curtain.

3. Create more "reel" content for the Blood and Spectacles Instagram account

4. Maybe 1 blog post every two months about a topic related to wargame design theory

5. Update the painting and gaming trackers for 2023. Hopefully that is easy and may all ready be done!

I all ready wrote a lot about how I want to expand the local gaming community, so I think I will leave it at that for now. I would love to go to a local Con, but I just do not think I will have it in me this year. I would also love to organize a local Con, but ditto. If I can not attend one, how am I going to organize one? Pretty low key goals this year in this section.

Final Thoughts

In previous years, my goals were much better defined and focused. This year, I am still a bit uncertain on where the year will take me. There are a lot of transitions going on around me, and the gaming industry is also evolving. This has left me a little less clear on what I want to accomplish this year, as I want to be realistic in my goals. Time, money, and capability are all laying heavily on my mind as I try to sketch out goals for 2023.

2022 was a record-breaking year for Blood and Spectacles Publishing, and I frankly do not think I can match it. Thanks again for all of your support and interest! 2023 will go down in History, but as what exactly is still unclear!