Best part of this hobby

So I've been pretty MIA lately, and I apologize to all my readers. Things are rather crazy here at work and we're pulling some crazy hours still!

As for my current progress on my hobbies, so far I've put together a fair amount of WM models.  In terms of Blood Angels, I haven't really gotten to anything other than a few ASM legs and jump packs.  Here's what I have assembled for WM..

eCaine
Black 13th Strike Team
Arcane Tempest Gun Mages
ATGM Officer
Gun Mage Captain Adept
Arlan Strangewayes
and a Squire

I have also cleaned my plastic Warjack kit and I'm waiting on my magnets to get here so I can magnetize the dude. I bought some crazy rare earth magnets that are N52 grade so they should hold together pretty well. Hopefully I'm not a total fail and magnetize them correctly when the time comes. I've read plenty of horror stories from magnet noobs (which I am).  Other than that, I have a few more metal models to pick up and finish, then I should be set to play some games.


I don't know about you guys, but I personally love model assembly. Yes, after the 50th Marine or the 5th tank, you might feel a little overwhelmed, but that's to be expected. If you do anything for a long time (especially if it's the same thing), it's normal to feel bored. The best part about a wargaming hobby is you have 3 key facets that can keep you interested. These are modeling, painting and gaming.

Personally, I'm a die-hard gamer. The biggest seller for me is the gaming aspect, obviously. I just love game design and game balance design.  Those two things have always interested me and that's what got me into the gaming industry.  As a hardcore computer gamer, the transition to table-top wargaming was fairly easy.  All the tactics and disciplines I've learned from CS, SC, WC3 and other games have proved to be very successful. When you're competitive, you always have this need to improve; never settling for second place. I think this natural "drive" is what keeps me interested in the hobby. I spend a lot of making up army lists and reading other gaming forums for other people's opinions and criticisms.

I used to be a pretty hardcore painter. When I first started with Grey Knights back in the day, I was determined to paint every model before I played. I have no idea why I did this considering every time I walked in the store, I just wanted to play. Let's just say this didn't last more than a few weeks. I quickly moved over to gaming and put my painting on the back burner. This doesn't mean I stopped painting my dudes.. I just gamed every chance I got instead of painting. The painting aspect of the hobby was for whenever I had time away from the gaming. Over the years I've been doing more and more gaming and less painting. This has been a blessing and a curse. One one side, I've become a much better gamer, but on the other side, my marines remain grey and plastic. A very bittersweet kind of thing.

The last part of the hobby is modeling and assembly. People love to see their models come to life and capture the essence of the game. As much as painting adds to aesthetics, the models themselves add to the actual feel of the game. I know some people take greater pride in creating their own dynamic poses than their painting skills, and they should! Obviously this shouldn't be a shock to anyone since some people are more creative than they are artistic, and vice versa. But seriously, seeing a really cool conversion come to life through someone elses' imagination is very rewarding.

Well, there it is guys. Some people love the gaming aspect, some love the painting and others like converting their own models. We each have our own little thing for the hobby and that's what makes it a great hobby. It pokes different areas of our brain and let's us enjoy what we truly love. This is the hallmark to a good hobby: doing what you love. Even though I get teased all the time because my army's unpainted, I bet I can mop the board with you. Maybe once I've got enough games and I'm bored out of my mind from playing, I'll get to painting my dudes. Who knows? Since Warmachine is so small scale, I might actually break out some of these new weasel hair brushes and go to town. I just hope my paints haven't dried yet!

That's all I got for now guys. What about you? What's your favorite part of the hobby?