As we roll into the holidays, my wargaming time starts to shrink. The only gaming partner I can solidly expect to see between now and end of year is my 10 year old. I may get another game in with a buddy who is around for the holidays, but time will tell if that aligns. I have my parents in town and, as a result, my hobbying has dropped to pretty much nil. It’s like I have two more kids in the house, at least one of whom has not solved how to make his own food.

But that’s not the point of this post. I’m now daydreaming about Q1 2026. I’ve ended this year with a wandering eye, looking for what my next hobby investment might be. In the short term, I’ve sold off my old Nighthaunt, which has funded my acquisition of all of the remaining Dice Throne characters. My son and I play almost nightly, so this seemed like a pretty solid investment. I can’t say it’s the most impressive game ever or anything, but he gets it and can actually compete with me. The dice screw you on rare occasions and the game isn’t all that deep–I know this. When my son sits across from me, though? I get to watch him understand, manipulate, and deliver on a fairly complex system for a ten year old and I’m darn proud to see it.

So beyond that, what else? Well, I’ve got a helicopter to paint for my dwarves and a fantasy ruleset I need to work on. I’ve started the Excel from my last post and just need a bit of time away from my parents so I can wrap it up. I should be able to do it this weekend. Fantasy themed armies have really been a ton of what I’ve worked on and printed off this year so I really look forward to more fantasy gaming.

And then of course come the Quar. These little oddballs have really captured my imagination and I’m hoping to carry the interest over into next year. I have two forces and need to figure out a test game come January.

Then there’s the gladiators! This campaign is ongoing with preset dates which has really helped me to actually stick to this. I don’t have much to say here: there’s little to no additional hobbying to do, just dice to roll, which has proven to be a great way to keep diversity in my gaming diet.

Oh right, Chain of Command. In my gaming diet, Chain of Command remains the prime rib I always crave. I’d love to get a small campaign in next year and I intend to keep pushing it for the club. I have a game setup for January already, so I expect this to be a regular going into next year.

And then there’s cowboys! I might be able to get a What a Cowboy campaign in next year with a good buddy of mine. We haven’t had much luck playing games in 2025, so I really hope 2026 sees some resurgence here.

What really surprises me in all this is the lack of a scifi game. I have some stuff I want to paint but I don’t have any science fiction on the horizon for now. As a result, I totally expect to drop all of the above and play Battletech instead. Wait. Wait. Wait.

I also look forward to playing some Battletech: Classic. I think?

The old adage remains ever true: too many games, too little time.