Just this guy, you know?

I played guitar for a while as a child and teenager. From 8 to 18 I had classical then contemporary lessons. I was alright at it. Teachers wanted me to practice more. I just wanted to be good enough to play Joe Satriani songs.

I didn’t take a guitar to university. When I went back to my parents I’d noodle around but my skill was fading. In the years after I sold my guitars.

Still on the military history kick. This time another Antony Beevor. Once again something I had a vague idea about but no details. Very good.

I’ve picked up another Beevor so expect that post in a few weeks.

I’ve been watching a lot of Storm of Steel for TooFatLardies related content. Alex does a lot of First World War scenarios which led me to realise I didn’t actually know much about the period. Secondary school history covered some of the lead up and the aftermath (knowing Woodrow Wilson’s Fourteen Points were definitely worth a few marks in exams) but not a lot else.

There’s a lot of chat about Lions Led By Donkeys which is a position I’d been aware of but not held because frankly I didn’t know enough to have a stance. The Great War by Peter Hart puts a lot of evidence forward to dissuade you from such a position.

Golden Demon

As predicted in the previous post I didn’t win a Golden Demon. I made a good go of it despite losing enthusiasm fairly quickly.

I “finished” Fire Support the day before submitting it. After a crunchy fortnight beforehand. Photos below:

Under the nice lighting of the Golden Demon display case I thought it looked quite good. I didn’t feel like I had let myself down.

I read Stronger, Faster, and More Beautiful by Arwen Elys Dayton after reading Terence Eden’s review of it.

I thought it was fine. Probably a really good intro to this sort of speculative fiction about tinkering with biology with a nice change of perspective for the protagonists.

Glad I’ve read it but I doubt I’ll re-read it. The ultimate fence sitting review. Just holding myself accountable to posting when I’ve wrangled my brain to pay attention to an entire book.

I’ve just played Everdell. It’s a pretty breezy worker placement game with a very cute forest animal theme.

You are tasked with building a city of cards in your tableau over the course of a year. You’ll be placing workers to gather resources and play cards from you hand as well as from a communal pool (called The Meadow). What’s different is that playing cards (which you do by spending resources) does not consume resources. So as long as your engine can create resources your season doesn’t end.

The Last Battle by Stephen Harding was a total impulse purchase. A different Stephen recommended it and I picked up the audio with an Audible credit.

For those who’ve not listened to the Sabaton track with the same name. It’s the siege of Schloss Itter in the Tyrols. Essentially there are some VIP French prisoners held in a castle during WW2. They manage to get help from a variety of sources. Initially relieved by a small contingent US and Wehrmacht troops but are then besieged by SS troops until an armoured column of US troops completed their rescue.

Two weeks ago I went to my first Lardy Game Day at Herts of Lard 2023. It was absolutely brilliant. Many thanks to @Joe_Wargamer for running it.

If you aren’t familiar, Too Fat Lardies are a company that produce wargames which are mostly historical in setting. Their motto is “Play the period, not the game” which is very much my jam. At a Lardy Game Day volunteers host games by providing a scenario, armies, a table full of terrain, and GM in some fashion. You don’t need to know the rules before playing and you don’t have to bring anything (though a packed lunch and a mug for tea is recommended).

Book two of 2023 is Second City by Richard Vinen.

I picked it up on a whim from The Heath bookshop in Kings Heath (which is lovely).

It’s an incredibly in-depth history of Birmingham from its geography & mythic Anglo Saxon origins, through The Enlightenment, its rise as an industrial city, the role it played in the British Empire, then onto the Second World War, its transition into the car centre of Britain (and decline there of), finally the 21st century.

A year after my last post on Assassins Creed I have “finished” Valhalla. It didn’t take an entire year because I took a huge break after playing the first couple of hours.

Why the break? Going straight from endgame Odyssey, Eivor feels so sluggish. Valhalla’s combat feels much more brutal and parry focused than the way I built Kassandra in Odyssey. Kassandra would cut about care free slashing everyone into ribbons but Eivor stands waiting to parry and do stun attacks. I no longer had fall damage mitigation and the crouched movement buff so traversal felt slow. Secondly, Eivor starts out so boring in comparison to Kassandra. Remember the Vikings TV show that started in 2013? Eivor would fit right in there. The tone feels overdone in 2023. This resulted in me never leaving Norway.