Competiton Player Numbers - Food For Thought

On the Slitherine Field of Glory (FOG) Ancient & Medieval forum there's a recent thread that started with a suggestion about adjusting the winner's attrition points in subsequent games so that the stronger players will have to try harder for the remainder of the competition.

Later the original poster, hazelbark, stated their assumptions which proved to be very revealing:

1. There is an attendance and interest problem in [FOG AM] events.
2. [M]ore people [are falling] away [at] the lower end of the standings than the higher end.
3. [Gamers] don't like [being] repeatedly stomped ... Some will keep playing, but [some] will fall away.
4. The 800 4x6 straight jacket is killing the game just as 400 killed DBM.

Sometimes these "the sky is falling" threads arise for no good reason but in this case there appears to be genuine concern about the speed of play in FOG AM, retaining existing player and attracting new players. The thread developed into a broader discussion and I was prompted to join in by this comment:

Being repeatedly stomped is always dull, but when players start to expect that they will experience some dull repetitive games even in the rounds where they aren't being stomped as well, the risk/reward ratio of entering a (more open, 800 6x4-type) competition starts to get too far out of kilter to be attractive.

2013 A Year In Review

Despite being only part way through the year, I think it's time to review the gaming aspect of my hobby. Why now, I hear you ask? Firstly, the pattern for the year is well established. Next, I don't see much happening in the remaining months to change things. Finally, you've got to admit it's unusual doing a review so early.

2013 has been, and will continue to be, a year of transition from mainly medieval to exclusively renaissance wargaming. This has been governed by three major trends.

Armenian Archers - A Few Extra Figures

Today's post is typical wargamer's tale but first the new eye-candy:

Step #1: A few bases to a battlegroup - some time ago I painted half a dozen Muslim archers. They were intended for an Islamic Persian DBA army however, with the addition of "few" extra figures, they have been masquerading as allied Armenian medium foot in the service of my Field of Glory (FOG) Ilkhanid Mongols for over a year now. It's not an unreasonable morph and they have delivered sterling service.

Doh!

I made a big mistake today. After varnishing some newly finished figures I had a close look at some of the very first figures I'd painted for my Timurid/Islamic Persian/Moghul project. In particular, I looked at the Afghan spearmen (May 2009) and some late medieval handgunners for the Timurids (of a similar date). They've been sitting happily in their toolbox waiting for the rest of the lead pile to join them. I have to say I wasn't impressed.

In Dec 2009 I bought my magnifier so looking at these pre-magnifier figures was a shock. The edges of the main block colours were untidy and the highlights were high contrast and "stripey" to boot. On some figures my painting was just plain awful. I certainly wouldn't paint them like this today.