Review | Space Dinosaur Minis 2024

And so another year comes to a close. This was the year of exploration for me, as I tried a plethora of new games, from the far distant future of 40k to naval warfare during the age of Napoleon. Of course, a few little models got painted as well. I joined a few challenges from various other blogs, and now I'm a part of the Analogue Hobbies Painting Challenge to finish of this year and start the next. Overall, I would say that it's been a good year. 

Typically, this is the point where I'd have a photo of all of the models I've painted throughout the year. I have family over, which makes that a tad difficult, so I instead I'll just talk and re-use old photos. I know, I know, everyone's favorite. Without further ado, let's get to the actual post. 

Mordheim

For the first half of the year or so, my main game was Mordheim. I played a total of two campaigns, the first with the dastardly Skaven, and the second with the shambling, agonizingly slow Restless Dead. As games go, it has become one of my favorite. I like not having to paint an entire army, and that each individual model gets a bit more love and attention. The game itself also doesn't really take itself too seriously, which makes playing it a load of fun. 

Age of Sigmar

Ah, Age of Sigmar. I didn't get a lot done for you, at least not in a presentable way. While technically, my Mordheim models can do double duty in Age of Sigmar, that's not why I painted them. So the favorite of Space Dino had to take a bit of a back seat, and got a nice, if lonely, Chaplain Knight Relictor for the Space Marines Stormcast Eternals. 

Warhammer Fantasy: The Old World

A lot of hustle and bustle happened behind the scenes with The Old World. While not a lot of painting occurred, a lot of models got built, movement trays were agonized over, and no games were played. I just didn't have the window of opportunity to play a multi-hour game on a weekend. 

Star Wars Armada

The first of two games this year named Armada. I love this game, but there aren't enough people around to play it. And it also requires the sacrifice of a weekend, of which there are only so many. So just the one game this year, but it was a fun one. Then the game went and died, right when I was painting some squadrons up. Go figure. I still intend to stick with the game, but we'll see what happens. 

Black Seas

The new kid on the block. The youngest kid who seems to get all of the attention from your parents. That was Black Seas this year. It came, it saw, and it conquered my wallet and time. The last half of the year has been dominated with little ships, and honestly it looks like it'll continue into the new year. So I hope you all like them, because the ships will continue until morale improves. 

Star Wars X-Wing

Not much to say here. The game died, and there was a scramble to get those last little bits of the collection filled out before it became impossible. Oh, and I did get a game in, where I played one of those scenarios. It was fun. 

Black Powder: Epic Battles - American Civil War

Because one new historical game was not enough, I had to go in and get a second one. It's what happens when there's good deals. I now have a small force on both sides for the American Civil War (the best Civil War). Did I paint any of them? No, I painted little buildings instead. 

Necromunda

I hate it. I'm tired of thinking about it. I played it too much, and I don't want to touch it again. 

Miscellaneous

This is the grab-bag category, where I throw in the random things. I painted up a little bit of cursed Egyptian terrain, which can fit into any game that could use them, for The Old World to D&D. I also played a single game of Mantic's Armada, which plays very, very similarly to Black Seas, but the fantasy version. It's pretty fun and easy to learn. 

The Blog

Now, let's look at how I did with my goals that I set way back at the start of the year: 

1: Paint 100 models

Ha - not even close, I got to 47, which isn't even half way. I blame it on all the games I was playing.

2: Try a new game system

Here we go, something I totally crushed. I tried several: Necromunda, Black Seas, X-Wing 2nd Edition, and Mantic Armada. 

3. Play 10 physical games

I think I played 20 or so individual games, so another one I crushed. 

4. 48 blog posts

I got to 37, including this one. It was a busier year than I expected, so not terrible. 

5. Paint with an airbrush

I just never got around to it.

All in all, a good year. Thanks to all of you readers, I'll see you all on the other side. 

-The Space Dinosaur