It's the end of the year! Let's sum up the 2017. What lies ahead?

Right before the end of December, I look back on the whole year and sum up my entire hobby endeavors.

It was a crazy year. Some personal stuff aside, I can easily call it a success, when it comes to hobby related stuff. Let's take a closer look on some of the more important points of 2017.

1. Starting a new RPG group.

Time to step back into that familiar tavern...

One year ago I've returned to running WFRP live. Until then, for a year I only GM'ed it on Roll20 (and I still do!), but I wanted to return to "real life" experience. Needless to say, it went well. I've gathered a fantastic group of fellow hobby enthusiasts and we're playing once a week for a year now. There were a few changes in the group's composition at the very beginning, but right now it's all stable. During that single year we've managed to complete two classic 1st edition campaigns - "Lichemaster" and the entire "The Enemy Within"! Not only that but we've also managed to start "The Thousand Thrones", which is going better than great. The boys are already on chapter three and they've also finished a timeless classic - "The Lord of Lost Heart". We've even managed to play a couple games of 6th edition of Warhammer Fantasy Battle (we're playing the classic campaign "Dark Shadows"), something that I'm very happy about!

Finding a group of passionate, friendly and enthusiastic people has been a real boon to my hobby life. From here I would like to thank Kuba, Czarek, Paweł and Andrzej for a fantastic year and, potentialy, many more to come. Thank you guys. For everything.

2. Successfully continuing my Roll20 experience.

A good advice, if I ever saw one

When I've started my online WFRP group on the Roll20, more than two years ago now, I did not expect it to last more than a couple of months. Well, whaddya know, it's still going strong! There were a few player swaps here and there, but for a long time now, the crew is tight and works together really well. Not only do I love to play with those guys, but I also love the fact that we're RP'ing in English, since all of them are from the USA. It gives me a great opportunity to work on my language and improvisation skills, since GM'ing through a microphone is a completely different thing, than doing that live (FYI we are not using webcams). This year we've played many, classic WFRP titles. There was the legendary "A rough night at the Three Feathers", "The Haunting Horror" and a one-shot in Araby of my own devising. Finally they've reached Talabheim for a grand-scale campaign, which slowly comes to an end.

As for what will come next, who knows? We shall see. Again, a huge thanks to my fantastic players - Andy, Bryan, Jason and Sean. You rock!

3. Expanding my RPG collection.

One day I will have a similar number of RPG books

This year I've managed to greatly improve the amount of my role-playing books and gadgets. Right now I only have 3 books left to finish my 2nd edition WFRP collection. This summer a very special package came to me from Finland. Inside was a bunch of OOP books, including "Lure of the Liche Lord", "The WFRP Companion" and "The Career Compendium" among others. From here I would very much like to thank Konrad from Warhammer-Empire for a chance to purchase these beauties. I'm still hoping that you'll find "Night's Dark Masters" and "Tome of Salvation", as they're amongst the few left, that I don't have in my possession.

Aside from some WFRP titles, I've also managed to grab a bunch of Neuroshima books from a pal, which I'm very happy about. Neuroshima is a polish post-apocalyptic RPG, with a theme similar to "Fallout" and "Mad Max" series. It has some of the most well-written gaming books, ever released and the atmosphere is just awesome. I will surely buy more sourcebooks for Neuroshima, as I intend to have the whole collection, one day.

Finally there are gadgets... lots and lots of new gadgets to include in my games. I've found out that at least a quarter of satisfaction and atmosphere-building, can be achieved by using props and cool, climactic gadgets. There will be a whole article about this soon, but for now let me just say that printing a bunch of maps and laminating them, was one of my best, hobby ideas that I ever had. Then there is also "THE CHEST", a very nicely crafted, custom wooden box, for storing my whole GM paraphernalia, including dice, paper coins, leather pouches and other stuff. My players absolutely love these additional props and they really do add a lot to the game itself.

4. Continuing work on my 30K Alpha Legion army.

None more loyal!

I wasn't much of a modeler or painter this year, since I've decided to concentrate on my RPG passion. That said. I did managed to assemble and paint to a certain level, nearly all of my XXth Legion force, which consists of over a hundred Marines, two Contemptor Dreadnoughts, three Scimitar Jetbikes and a Mastodon. Oh and there's a Rhino and a Whirlwind as well, almost forgot about these. That said, only my infantry received the basic colors and the vehicles are next in line. I would very much like to thank Michał for letting me use his painting gear, without which I wouldn't be able to achieve this goal. Next year, if everything goes well, I plan to finish this army and move on to my remaining two - my mixed Imperial Guard and my Empire, with some classic Dogs of War support. Yeah, I already regret buying so many models, but at least I'm playing with them, so that's a plus. You know, as opposed to my normal Space Marine army, which I'm trying to sell for quite some time now. Never buy too many armies, folks. It's not worth it, seriously.

5. Contributing to the Warhammer Fantasy community in one way or another.

I've been very active on a couple of fan sites, dedicated to Warhammer Fantasy, both the RPG and the tabletop strategy game. For me interacting with fellow 'Hammer enthusiasts is a great thing, really positive and it brings me a lot of joy to see so many passionate people, continuing to write, argue about and contribute to this wonderful and fascinating, fantasy world. It was thanks to them, that I've managed to shake off my aversion for WFB/WFRP, which came upon me around the middle of 2014. While I still think that these games have a lot of flaws and are not that unique or original, I'm fine with that. For me Warhammer Fantasy is like a comfort food. I know it really well, I can cook it fast and easy, it's not something special or unique, but I enjoy it nonetheless. I'm cool with that.

Sites and blogs like Kalevala Hammer, Strike to Stun, Warhammer-Empire, AWESOME LIES and The Daily Empire, are all doing a great job of keeping the flame alive. Now, with just a few months before the release o WFRP 4th edition, these communities received even more attention from gamers, both old and new, who wish to learn more about Warhammer Fantasy. I can't stress how great and important, this kind of attention is, to the hobby. I'm trying to do my part, answering questions, taking part in discussions and even working on a few, fan-made supplements, which I hope to finish next year, around spring. Warhammer Fantasy is alive and kicking. Let's make sure that it stays that way.

So there you have it, a summary of my hobby-related activities in 2017. I hope that 2018 will be just as interesting and busy, when it comes to RPGs and tabletop games. That said, there are major life changes heading my way and I may have to slow down on a couple of things, including my hobbies. After all, they're just that - hobbies, but worry I shall not. For even if there will be some downtime, there is always a chance for a comeback. I'm quite optimistic about that and, of course, I will inform you about any, major changes on the pages of this fine blog, my very own slice of internet that I'm lucky to share with all you, fine, fine people.

I wanted to thank all of you, my readers, for coming back to this blog, reading my crazy, sometimes downright incoherent, ramblings and returning for more. I'm writing for you and for you alone and I intend to do it, for many more years to come. From the bottom of my heart, thank you.

All of you

Until next time... in 2018! Stay safe, people and take care.

Xathrodox86