Failing Out of Infinity and 30k

“Failing” is perhaps the wrong phrase, but I have certainly failed to bring a project to fruition. Six or so months ago I intended to play Infinity and Warhammer 30,000 to explore special rules, game complication, and differing styles of adjudication.

Ultimately, I haven’t gotten anywhere with the project. I recently sold my Ultramarines for Warhammer, making it just past the six month mark I originally predicted. I haven’t played Infinity in earnest for months now. I wish I could point to some flaw in the games or some grand realization, but the reality is simple: life got in the way.

With Warhammer 30,000 I fell out because it essentially had to be a weekend game for me and I already have my weekends full playing with my regular gaming partners. Once my primary opponent shifted interest, Warhammer dropped off and I can’t just sit on that army while it’s worth good money and taking up valuable space. I know myself—I had moved on and I was done.

For Infinity, I’m not quite out yet, but I have zero desire to paint more stuff or finish up the boards I was working on. This is also a matter of timing, but a little more nuanced. My local group plays on Wednesdays in a store in a downtown area. I find it hard to get to this store on weeknights and generally hate city parking. They start at 7, which makes games go until 9 before the store closes. As a new player, two hours is not generally enough time to actually finish a full game of Infinity. I was told that most new players don’t really start to finish their games for a few months. It’s just normal, as the game has so much to consider in every action and even fast players will take a while to consider those options.

So basically, you don’t get to finish your games and see the full consequences of your actions for a few months. That’s… awful? Truly awful. I feel like something fundamental is missed in the acceptance of that idea.

Now, the player group is amazing and full of great people. They’re running a slow grow league as I write this, which I intended to join. Half size games are actually possible to finish. Unfortunately, every time Wednesday evening rolls around and I consider heading down to the store… I start looking for excuses not to go. I never regret going, but I hate the timing and friction of it all.

Not a very exciting post in the end, I suppose, especially after a week of radio silence. My basement decided to become a swimming pool for a bit, so I haven’t had much hobby time as I’ve dealt with that unilateral decision (we settled back on being a water-free basement). It’s given me some breathing room, again, to consider my habits.

I love hopping around with my games. I’ve come to enjoy the new experiences and new opportunities to hobby. Presently, I’ve mapped out a Battletech campaign system with a friend of mine and we’ve been playing some exhibition matches as we spool up to play the campaign. It’s been a lot of fun playing Battletech Alpha Strike with proper combined arms and exploring what can be done within the system.

My son even got in on it! He painted his first miniatures: a lance of mechs for Battletech.

If we see the end of this campaign, I’ll be more than satisfied. I plan to release the system and discuss its mechanics and intent in the coming months.

On other fronts I’m working on more Silver Bayonet and Chain of Command game days for my group. We had our first Silver Bayonet game day and it was a catastrophic success. My level of excitement for these projects is, perhaps obviously, considerably higher than Infinity or Warhammer 30,000. There’s probably a lesson in all this—stop chasing the mainstream? Don’t bother investing in expensive games?