2025..... as a youth the year 2025 signified the exotic near-future that was nothing like the world I grew up in. In some ways, that is very true. 2025 is nothing like the world I grew up in. The internet has changed a lot, media has changed a lot, politics has changed a lot, wargaming has changed, and culture has changed in ways my teen brain would not be able to comprehend. So many things have happened since I was a youth. To name a few; the Columbine shooting, The Matrix, 9/11 attacks, the War on Terror, the invention of the Smartphone, Social Media, new Star Wars movies, Crypto-Currency, and so much more that we take for granted now.
One of the biggest changes is how much "Nerd Culture" has become mainstreamed. In my day, you had to keep your RPG hobby on the down-low thanks to the Satanic Panic. People thought you were some sort of cultist if you were into that sort of thing. Wargaming was for old British dudes and you only saw it in media for wacked-out Bond villains or social outcasts. There was a clear line between Nerds, Jocks, and other groups. None of that is the same anymore, and I would argue that "Nerdsploitation" is en vogue right now.
This niche hobby has gone mainstream.... and I am not exactly sure how to feel about it! Part of me is excited to see things I was interested in going mainstream. That means more players, more people to game with, and more chances to show-off my stuff! It also means more access to things I am interested in. Things like movies, TV shows, action figures, LEGO sets, and more and more merch! If I need something for gaming, I can find it in the marketplace with ease.
However, part of me is also sad to see it go so mainstream. You see, it use to feel like a bit of a secret club that you could signal you were part of through subtle references in passing to show your allegiance to others in the secret club. You couldn't walk into any big-box retailer and see material related to your niche, you had to seek it out and delve in dungeons deep for such esoteric knowledge and loot. Plus, being part of the secret club was "radical" in the sense that you were against the status quo, you were an outsider, and didn't follow societies' rules. You were "punk" because so much of the culture around these hobbies was Do-It-Yourself. None of that is necessarily true anymore.
Therefore, I enter 2025 at a bit of a crux of my hobby life. Normally, this time of year I like to try to put some goals and objectives down for the year. These act as guidelines for the year and keeps me from going off the rails. There are always a lot of new games, miniatures, and "things" going on in the world of tabletop wargaming. This makes it much harder to keep to fixed goals, which is why I prefer guard rails instead. It can be really hard to stay focused. These guard rails help me stay focused and get things done for the year.
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| Heirs to Empire - Wargaming the Diadochi |
Normally, I break my goals down into the following categories:
- Purchases
- Painting and Modeling
- Playing Games
- Rules Writing
- Other Games Related Stuff
Purchases
Of course, I always start this section with a huge THANK YOU! Every time you purchase one of my games from Osprey, Wargames Vault, Drive Thru RPG, follow me on Patreon or support me in other ways you help make this all possible. It is your support that allows me to buy the minis, paints, artwork, web domains, and other supplies needed to keep Blood and Spectacles Publishing operational. Therefore, I try to keep all the money earned in these endeavors going back into the business of gaming. Thank you!
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| Homer's Heroes: Bronze Age Bad Boys |
With that said, it is always hard to determine what purchases I might be making in the coming year. Do I purchase things for new projects, expand on existing rulesets with further support, or do something completely different? So, here are some thoughts for where I am right now:
- Stay caught up with the Osprey Wargaming Series
- Purchase Victory at Sea or the Nimitz rulebook
- Purchase three Fantasy Ice Hockey Teams
- Start one or more of the following: Carthaginian, Theban, Late Roman, or Aztec Army
- Cowboys, terrain, and Fistful of Lead rules for Wild West
- A new set of RPG rules
- A new Heroquest Expansion (or two)
- A fourth Reaper Nativity Scene to paint
This is pretty aggressive as I still have an Anglo-Saxon army to paint up carrying over from last year. However, the items listed above are for promotions, new rules, post-production, or reviews for the blog. I am also thinking of trying to get some Cowboy themed gaming for the True Crit Gaming Guild for the year, and I have some mechanics up-my-sleeve too.
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| White Star/Red Star |
Painting and Modelling
Last year was another strong year for me in this realm. I doubt I can do it back-to-back without causing some lag in my other areas. Therefore, I want to paint the following:
- Anglo-Saxon army
- 3x Ice Hockey Teams
- Reaper Nativity scene
- A Heroquest Expansion
- A good start on anything else I happen to pick-up to keep my Pile of Shame to near 0
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Half an Anglo-Saxon army for Fury of the Northman
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I do have a start on the Anglo-Saxon army, but still need a lot of painting. Plus, there is about 3-5 more units to add. Thankfully, I have a pretty good system for batch painting and Speedpaints help too. However, other than this Anglo-Saxon force I went into the year with a relatively clean backlog for painting.
Gaming
Last year, I jumped out of the gate early with a lot of games then petered out and ended the year mostly doing Solo-gaming and RPGs. This year, I need to get back to playing with the True Crit Gaming Guild. They wrapped up some Kill Team, and now it is probably time to offer something different for a bit, we will see. I am leaning to try to get some Cowboy, Ancients, Heroquest, or Castles in the Sky going there. However, I think for a bit I will be doing mostly solo-wargaming for a while. I am still feeling really anti-social for a lot of reasons.
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| Under the Martian Yoke |
All that being said, here are some Gaming related goals: I would be pretty happy with a total of 12-18 wargames, to GM about 3 session for RPGs, and play about 25 RPG sessions for the year. I don't think that is overly ambitious, fits in with my historic output, and forces me to get out of my shell a bit.
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| Castles in the Sky |
Rules Writing
This has been a real slog for me lately, and I really need to shake-it off and get finishing stuff. What exactly is still a bit up-in-the-air. Based on my painting and modelling goals, it looks like I have a few ideas of what I need to finish this year:
- Rise and Fall - Wars of the Republic supplement for Carthage
- PHUCK!- The game of Fantastical Hockey
- Barbarians at the Gates - Late Roman ruleset
- Gold, Glory and Guns - Wargaming the New World
- Glittering Void- Mecha RPG
- Badlands - Wild West RPG
I have started other works, but those ones are furthest along in the pipeline. However, who knows what inspiration will strike and drive a game forward faster than expected, or delays that will slow getting a game into production.
I have a long standing goal of getting 50 publications into the world. I am at about 25, so half way there. It only took me 10 or so years to get this far, so there is still a long ways to go.
Other Stuff
Yeah, this is miscellaneous stuff I want to accomplish. The list this year is pretty short.
- Continue my Painting Tracker
- Continue my Games played tracker on my blog
Traditionally, I have put other Social Media, Online Presence, Networking, and other goals in this area. However, I am a bit torn about how much of that I am going to be doing this year. I am considering scaling back my Social Media content, or at least re-thinking it. Facebook and Instagram keep getting worse and worse, and I am not confident that any other Social Media won't be different. Eventually, the user becomes the product instead of the platform being for the users. It takes a lot of energy to post decent content on Social Media. I have upped my game a lot in this space, but I think I might be better served using that time and energy for writing more games?
I will still keep up with the Blog and my
Patreon, but everything else might have to go. I only have a precious amount of time to devote to Wargame Design and making Social posts may not be the best use of it? I don't know. What do you think?
I also toyed with the idea of going to one of the big Conventions for Historical Wargaming, but ultimately I am not sure it is worth the cost. I live in a remote part of the US and airfare to anywhere is brutal, much less the East Coast. Again, I am not sure it is a good use of my limited game-related budget. Again, I am open to thoughts on the Pros and Cons?
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| Turf War |
Conclusion2025 is here, and it finds me in an odd place. It is not the shining, neo-future I had hoped for back in 1995. However, the hobby of RPG and Wargaming is more popular and accessible than ever! Despite this, I find my real-life taking up more of my time than I have expected, and the energy and time for wargame and RPG design is at a premium. Therefore, it may end up being a sparse year on this front. However, I have said that before and the opposite has happened. We will see!
One thing that helps keep me going is YOU! It helps energize me a lot when I hear from folks playing my games and who share pictures with me. I love to hear about people playing my games, and even better people enjoying them. That is a big motivator. Feel free to drop me a line anytime on any of my
Socials, the
MessageBoard, or directly at Eric@Bloodandspectacles.com.
Until next time!
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