Mid-year 2025 Round-up, Pardner!

[Easy E]

Greetings all,

The end of July is upon us.  That seems like mid-way through the year, so it is time for our mid-year round-ups! 

I have it all written down here:
https://bloodandspectacles.blogspot.com/2025/07/random-mid-year-round-up-pardner.html

However, here is a quick breakdown.  I tend to put things into the following categories; Purchases, Painting, Gaming, Writing, and other Random stuff. 

First off, Thank You!  My purchases are driven by you.  Every time you purchase a game from Osprey, Wargames Vault, Drive Thru RPG, follow me on Patreon or support me in other ways you are funding this goal.  You see, my Purchasing goals are driven directly by the financial support of readers like you.  It is your support that allows me to buy the paints, supplies, miniatures, and rules that grace this humble blog.  Your purchases are what keeps Blood and Spectacles Publishing going.  The money I earn here goes back into the business of wargaming!  Thank you for making all of the publications and projects possible!

Purchase:
- Pacific Command
- Victory at Sea
- Mage in the Mirror for HQ
- First Light for HQ
- Wandering Monk for HQ
- Pendragon: GameMaster's Handbook
- Austro--Hungarian fleet for Castles in the Sky

Painting:
- 130+ miniatures
- Mostly Anglo-Saxons and some HeroQuest

Gaming:
- Battle of Kadesh
- Castles in the Sky
- Heroquest

Writing
- The Corinthian War
- Glittering Void: A Role-Playing Game of Space Mecha Theatre
- Odin's Ravens: Viking Age Bad Boys
- Badlands: Wild West Role-Playing

Other Stuff:
- Moving over to BlueSky

Your turn!  I look forward to hearing about what you have done!  Add pictures too please or send us to your blog!

[HerbertTarkel]

I don’t track my purchases lest my spouse stumble upon that number 

But as a commission painted, my YTD number is: 274 painted to date, the vast majority of which are here:

https://leadadventureforum.com/index.php?topic=148981.0

I have two other projects, Necrons and Victrix 12mm - but are apparently REALLY far back. Egads. Sorry? Victrix.

[Rick]

I'm trying to paint up a printed Battletech Clan cluster - not helped by me keep changing my mind on the size, composition and even clan! It's now 2 slightly different units so I'll keep plugging away.
Just bought Voidfighter (it'll get delivered late August)(I hope) so I might have the rules before I read your review this time, Easy E!
Also just weakened and bought the County Road Z rulebook - it was a steal at that price, what can I say!
I keep getting distracted (my medication issues don't help that - I have a distinct lack of mental focus) so need to buckle down and really finish at least 1 project this year!
Hope everyone else has had better luck.

[Elbows]

While I told myself I was going to reduce my painting from last year, I'm chasing a similar output, at 270+/- (28mm equivalent units) or so far this year.

[Easy E]

I have also slowed down my painting because of space considerations!

[mikedemana]

Checking my latest blog post, where I track "Acquired vs. Painted" for three categories (Miniatures, Terrain, Scatter), I am at:

MINIATURES Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025
    Miniatures acquired in 2025: 288
    Miniatures painted in 2025: 145

TERRAIN Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025
    Terrain acquired in 2025: 36
    Terrain painted in 2025: 50

SCATTER Acquired vs. Painted Tally for 2025
    Scatter acquired in 2025: 115
    Scatter painted in 2025: 138

It is only in "Miniatures" that I am behind, and that was because I purchased what I was terming my 2026 project ahead of time at a price I couldn't pass up. That said, my speed in whipping through my 28mm Vietnam stuff means "next year" will likely begin in August...!

Mike Demana

[Rick]

Mike, it's only supposed to be a hobby, no-one should get that methodical about a hobby. Relax. 

[Ran The Cid]

Painted:  172 figures
2/3 Saxon and Viking; 1/3 Roman and a pair of Fire Giants
Several farm fields and assorted minor terrain

Purchased:
2 packs of West Wind Romano Brits (shipped for only a few dollars from Greece of all places)
Midgard
Saga rule book
3D printed house, a pack of 3D printed Crusaders & a pair of Warlord blisters
Saxon village from the Ragnarok Kickstarter
handful of 3D printed terrain items (free files, printed at the local library)
various bits when JoAnne's went out of business

Gaming:
Little wars - To The Strongest participation game

[mikedemana]

Mike, it's only supposed to be a hobby, no-one should get that methodical about a hobby. Relax. 

Hahaha! I have found being anal (a pejorative I have been accused of being more than once through the years) in this way, has actually helped me be more focused in my purchases. Instead of just buying whatever strikes my fancy at a convention, I pick up things I need and tend to paint them up quickly.

Hmm. I suppose now is NOT the time to mention the Note on my iPhone that lists every piece of terrain or scatter I own? Or the one that lists all my unpainted lead...??   

Mike Demana

[Easy E]

I follow your approach Mike.  I almost never pick-up anything on a whim anymore, and anything I buy I paint almost immediately.

I never have more than a two painting projects available to me at once, because more than that and they will just sit on the shelf and stare at me!

[Pattus Magnus]

I agree about the value of being organized about purchases, but I’m really poor at practicing it! I just added a few hundred 15mm to my backlog because they were on a really good discount and fit with a project I want to do someday. When will I get to them? No idea, but now I have them…

As for actual numbers, my painting was having its ass kicked by my buying (even before my recent binge). I have completed about 40 28mm figures, about 16 pieces of scatter terrain, 1 mid-sized MDF building, about 10 movement trays, and scratch built and painted a set of dungeon tiles. I bought at least double that in 28mm figures, and around 10 MDF buildings (plus the 15mm guys mentioned before).

I’m implementing a near moratorium on new acquisitions until Christmas. Paint and basic supplies are allowed, but other stuff needs committee approval.

[Keeper Nilbog]

I'm with Mike again on this, but do things in a different way. I track models by Size/Scale, and also the general incoming/outgoing of finances.

As of end of july-
Funds outgoing - 2795:41 (gaming is expensive, and this does include "everything gaming related" - RPG, Kickstarter/Gamefound, hobby supplies and so forth).
Funds incoming - 600:35 (through general sale, eBay and other sources)

Miniatures
28mm - Brought : 181, Painted : 81, Sold : 488
15mm - Brought: 193, Painted : 82, Sold : 000
10mm - Brought : 2, Painted : 51, Sold :1447
6mm - Brought : 1825, Painted: 660, Sold : 70.

As can be seen from this I'm moving more towards 15 and 6mm, though I have the "Epic Warpath" Kickstarter coming and "Armoured Clash" in storage so 10mm will see an upswing. The main thing is a general move away from large scale (28mm) mass battle - but not skirmish, got into both Warzone Eternal and Bushido this year - to either 15 or 6mm (generally using Midgard at present), and a few "Epic Armageddon" forces - buying GW Nids is an expensive past time but I have enough in storage to not need any for a while.

On review, I'm generally happy with my current situation, and think I have enough stock/pile of opportunity/pile of shame/lead-plastic mountain to not require further purchases outside unit completion.

[Kelly_]

Normally I would be happy with my painting totals for 2025 so far...
15mm Fantasy - 28 infantry
Epic Hail Caesar - 716 infantry / skirmishers
6mm Sci Fi and smaller - 125 infantry / 14 vehicles
Ships / terrain - 9 pieces

...but I am going to be in the same boat with Keeper Nilbog it looks like with Epic Warpath on the way.

...though I have the "Epic Warpath" Kickstarter coming...

Over 800 more plastic models are coming in from that Kickstarter, not counting any of the STL reinforcements from the campaign, and will be taking over all of my project time for the next few months.  To get ready for that I have been trying to finish up as many partial projects as I can, and have sold or traded out over 1500+ Epic Battles models I will not have time for, but there is still so much more to work through.