The Painted Thumb

Not a whole lot to post this week. I'm starting on the late war elements of my US Rifles list. This will be used at the next FoWSA tournament.  More about that in a later post. Back in June, the local Lord of the Rings/Hobbit SBG group held a tournament. Most of the players have moved on to play more Bolt Action but we all wanted to get together again for some fun in Middle Earth. I brought my venerable Wood Elf army, led by Legolas and Thranduil. I really love those guys! The new Hobbit rules have not been kind to the Wood Elves. They have weak armor ratings (3) but are supposed to be balanced with a strong ranged attack from massed archery. Most of the players are bringing armies with much higher armor ratings (5 minimum, 6-7 for many heroes) such as Easterlings and Dwarves. Monsters such as Trolls and Dragons have new special attacks that are even more effective to the squishy elves. Given the style of play that has developed, the Wood Elves just really aren't a competit

Most miniature gamers know that storing and transporting your minis can be a challenge. The ubiquitous Battle Foam trays are nice but spendy. They can also be bulky, and you still need to carry your books, dice and extras in a separate container. I'd rather spend that money on more miniatures! So, I built my own custom miniature transport container that is affordable and functional. Back when I started this hobby, my wife's friend was selling Thirty-One bags. You might have heard of them. The wife bought me a bunch of the open top bags in the very manly color of slate grey. They have a box shape with a square metal frame at the top and some long handles to carry over my shoulder. I got a few in different sizes. They work great for transporting most of my gaming equipment. Their big drawback is that they don't have rigid sides which is a problem when you're hauling around your fragile little soldiers. Another drawback is the typical cheap plastic "shoebox"