Random: Forward into the Future of 2026

 

Look at this!  I have been doing this for 9 years now.  That is a long time.  I have 43 publications out in the wild on my various platforms.  I doubt I will make it to 50 publications before the 10-year mark but my goal is to make it to 50.  Now, not all of those publications drive revenue, as some of them are free content.  However, 50 is 50!  I am sure you all recall that a friend in the publishing business said, "Great you got a book published.  Don't expect to make any money until you have 50 publications."  Therefore, my goal is 50!  I still do not expect to make any money though.  

However, the point is not to make money.  That is a side benefit.  The point is to make things that I want to make.  It is nice if it subsidizes my hobby, but it is still a hobby.  I don't expect to put food on the table or pay my mortgage with my 50 publications.  

The truth is, I can not stop making games.  It is what I do and who I am.  I think about it when I am not thinking about other things.  I see media and think about how I can make it into a game.  I literally dream about making games when I sleep.  It is part of me.  I have to do it.  That is the best part about making games.  I do not do it for anyone else.  I do it for myself because I have to.  

I expect 2026 will be no different. However, I may start making more "less finished" content.  "Dump it out of my head and move on"-style work.    

Castles in the Sky - Osprey Games

Anyway, that means it is time to think about my goals for 2026.  As usual, I keep these goals as guidelines more than anything else.  They help keep me focused and avoid chasing the new shiny and actually finishing stuff.  As usual, I break this down into a few basic categories: 

• Purchases
• Painting and Modelling
• Gaming
• Rules Writing
• Other Stuff

So, let's get into it.  

Purchases

 None of this section would be possible without the generous financial support of readers like you! 

Every time you purchase one of my books from Osprey, my Wargame Vault page, my Drive-Thru RPG page, and/or follow my Patreon you are helping to fund the continued existence of Blood and Spectacles Publishing.  The money I earn from these areas I put back into content on the blog, content on Social Media, and new products for you!  Any money I earn goes back into the business of wargaming and role-playing.  Thank you!  I could not continue to do it at the level I am doing it at without you!

Odin's Ravens: Viking Age Bad Boys

With that said, it is always hard to decide how I intend to use these investments as purchases for the year.  Going into this year, I had a few goals lined out for what I should purchase to help generate content.  Some of this is carry over from 2025.    

• Stay caught up on the Osprey Wargaming Series
• Three Fantasy Ice Hockey teams for PHUCK! 
• Wizards of Morcar for Heroquest
• Cowboy Miniatures, Terrain, and rules 
• Some "Cold War Gone Hot" 15mm forces for US/NATO v. Soviets
• One or more new Wargaming rule sets
• Some new RPG system
• Start a Carthaginian, Late Roman, Aztec, Conquistador, or Theban force
• Desert battle mat

It was aggressive last year, and it is aggressive again this year.  No idea how much of it I can get done. However, I have faith that with your help I can make some progress.  

Anglo-Saxons - Fury of the Northman

Painting and Modelling

Going into this year, I have a backlog of Heroquest models from all the expansions.  I got the Heroes all painted, but I still have monsters and furniture.  Therefore, any new stuff I buy will by default need to be painted as well.  So, here is what I am going with: 

• Heroquest elves- Mage in the Mirror and Dread Moon
• Heroquest furniture- Dread Moon, Jungles, and Frozen Horror
• All the other Heroquest things - Prophecy, Spirit Queen, Frozen Horror, Jungles
• Those three Fantasy Hockey Teams

That means that I will be painting stuff as I get it and try to keep my backlog clean this year.  Therefore, how I do with my Purchasing goal will impact this goal as the year goes on and vice versa.  If I am slow to paint, I will probably be slow to purchase as well.  I do not like having a large back log of miniatures.   

Gaming

I try to get at least one game in each month.  That seems like a reasonable approach again for this year. 

 However, I am not sure if I will manage it.  My Skumgrod is gone.  However, I still have a few solo-campaigns for Heroquest and Under the Martian Yoke ongoing so I can hopefully complete those.  However, my time is being eaten up by other "real life" things that are taking up my time.  I am also unsure how often I will be able to go to the True Crit Gaming Guild due to my schedule.  This year, a big public game is not on the cards, and I am not planning on attending any big cons!      

I expect my normal weekly RPG campaign will continue.  A board game night or two seems like a thing that will happen as well.  

Men of Bronze - Osprey Games

Rules Writing

I have several games in the hopper, but as usual it is slow going on them.  A lot of these games are still being worked on from the last few years: 

1. Rise and Fall - Wars of the Republic supplement for Carthage 
2. PHUCK!- The game of Fantastical Hockey
3. Barbarians at the Gates - Late Roman ruleset
4. Gold, Glory and Guns - Wargaming the New World
5. Mobile Fortress: Verdun - Land Ironclads in the Castles in the Sky world
6. Super, Sexy Swingin' Spies - 1960's Spy-fi RPG

I think the only adds would be: 

• Cold Depths - Cold War Submarine wargaming
• Blood Reign - Modern Vampire warband skirmish
• In the Garden of the Red Weeds - Post-Martian Invasion of 1938, survival RPG
• Rise Against - A solo wargame similar to Under the Martian Yoke, but against (space) fascists. 

However, I also have a few RPG Modules that are banging around in my head.  Sometimes, I have to clear that stuff out before I can make good progress elsewhere.  Those involve modules for Legend of the 5 Rings, Star Wars WEG, and Pendragon.  Of course, we will see what happens.   

The rough drafts of many of these rules are available on the Patreon but not all of them are that far along.  

One of the biggest roadblocks to these games getting completed is a lack of miniatures in my collection, or even on the market in some cases.  That is limiting what I will be able to produce to completion.  For example, there is a dearth of great Land Ironclad or Cold War Submarines on the market.  Therefore, it can be hard to make progress on those designs.  

Despite that, I am well on my way to 50 publications and hope to get there in the next two years! 

 

Turf War

Other Stuff

Of course, I will keep tracking what I paint and play.  That helps keep me motivated.  

Beyond that..... I have no idea.  I am not even sure if I will have enough content to keep me posting on the blog once a week?  Instead, I want to focus as much of my free time as possible on writing rules, painting, or playing games.  

The rest is a bit of a distraction.  

Conclusion

In some ways, this is a very ambitious year but in other ways it is a repetition of things not completed in 2025.  Not much else to say or add at this point.  2026 will be my ninth year.  By this point, I have a process.  I have a plan for my work.  Now all I need to do is work those plans.  Bing-bam-boom.  

This year, "Real Life" maybe a challenge to this year's goals.  Nothing new there, I mean this is my side hustle.  Therefore, sometimes it has to go to the side while I manage the rest of my life.  It happens.  The end of 2025 fell into this trap too.  It has limited my time, space, and mental bandwidth.  Hopefully, I will be able to put some of this behind me and get back up-to-speed.  I still have not hit my goal of 50, and I am nothing if not goal oriented. 

Well, keep your eyes on this space as the year goes on.  Let's see how I manage in 2026.  I think it will be a surprise to all of us! 

Until next time! 

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