Lost and Found: How Hobby Burnout Happens, Part 1

I've been thinking a lot about the Warhammer 40,000 hobby lately, and I think I'd like to share some of those thoughts with whomever is kind enough to have a read here at A Wretched Hive of Scum and Villainy.

Now, I've had something of a love/hate relationship with Warhammer 40,000 for quite a while. I started the hobby nearly 12 years ago, and when I got into the game it was awesome! It was affordable, the local community was huge and full of good people who were excited just to play the game, collect and paint the models! I got into the game with a Space Marine Tactical Squad, a Rhino and a Space Marine Captain with a Power Sword right after my very first demo game at Ga mes Workshop Great Lakes Crossing. From the moment of my first beginner game I knew I was hooked. Every time I got paid from my McJob I'd get a new box of something and after a few months I was swimming in Space Marines.

Life was awesome (hobby life, that is). I collected Space Marines exclusively for longer than I can remember... it must have been at least 5 years. It was the only time in my hobby career that I remember having multiple painted armies (all of them were Ultramarines... but I had 3 or 4 distinct "themed" armies.) It was also the only time I recally being so passionately into the hobby.

But soon it all came crashing down because I started collecting other armies.

A new Tau rulebook came out and I thought they were frakkin' awesome! I bought up a bunch of Tau, painted them, got them on the table and started playing games. And I got totally spanked on the battlefield. Why? Because they didn't play like Space Marines. So I started to add things to my collection to make them MORE like Space Marines. "Fire Warriors are Toughness 3 and 4+ armor? Pfft. I'll take minimum troops and lots of Crisis Suits! Then they'll be the equivalent of Space Marines! Yeah!"

Soon I had about 2,500 points of Tau and I was totally depressed. I had won probably... 3 out of dozens of games. I started to lose faith in my army and my skills as a player. Because I started to lose so often, I started to avoid playing games. Because I didn't play games very often, I found little point in painting my armies. Because I had no interest in painting, I lost the inclination to buy and collect and soon.... my hobby was dead.

And it died for a stupid reason. It died because I had already found my army and my chosen play style, and was trying to force a different army with a different play style to be just like Space Marines... and when I think about how ridiculous it all was I sort of want to kick myself for causing my own hobby burnout.

My point here is that for some people it is sometimes better to focus on a single army and project rather than multiple different armies and multiple different projects. What starts as a simple exlporation into the varied aspects of the Warhammer 40,000 hobby can quickly end in flames and frustration.

Right now I have been super focused on building and painting my Eldar army and I'm making more progress at a greater rate at a higher quality than I ever have before in my hobby. If any of you reading this are experiencing this type of frustration, maybe do yourself a favor and take step back, get back to your original hobby roots and stop yourself from being so busy inside the hobby. Play a few games or, if you're more interested in the hobby side of the hobby, paint or convert something.

Calm down with your hobby. You might be glad that you did.

Hobby, My Old Nemesis. We Meet Again.

I'm back into the wargaming and painting hobby. For exactly how long that will be is a matter of conjecture, but so far I'm feeling pretty positive about it so far. I've recently started three awesome wargaming projects, all of which promise to be pretty awesome.

The first is an Ork army for Warhammer 40,000. The whole thing clocks in at exactly 1,500 points right now, and is going to be as much fun to paint as it is to play. The two games I've played with the army so far, against Tau and against Space Wolves (both losses...oh well), have been some of the most enjoyable games I've ever played during my 40k career. Getting into the mindset of an Ork is so fun to me. No matter that the enemy is fortified, in an elevated position and possessed of heavy firepower! We're going to run over there - sometimes across open ground - and we WILL be stompin' you! I have a great paint plan all set for the Orks, which will yield quick results, while still maintaining a fairly high level of quality. They'll look great on the table, and I'll be including a step-by-step painting guide for those who would care to check it out.

The second project is a small Legion of Everblight force for Hordes. I have already painted Lylyth, Herald of Everblight, and I think she turned out very well so I'm going to run with it. The whole army only comes to about 15 points, but I think I'm going to really enjoy that. Like everything else, I'll be including step-by-step painting guides for those guys too.

The third project was kind of an after thought. I was casually milling about my bitz box the other night, and I uncovered a LOT of Space Marines - a lot of which are already fully assembled, and some of them in sealed boxes. I have all the makings of a respectable Blood Angels army, including several named characters that I forgot about purchasing long ago. This will be a project that I'm putting significant time and effort into. I'm going to be converting some awesome Sternguard and Vanguard Veterans, and I'm doing a lot of kit bashing. It should be a lot of fun.

I'm feeling pretty movitated as I type this. I look forward to going home tonight, and working on my first Blood Angels test model. White Primer, Mechrite Red, Red Ink, here I come.

Stay tuned, and I may actually have some content in the future.