"Frustration part 2" Topic

Ok does this happen to anyone else? I actually started a project 2 years ago. Initially U.S. Marines in the Pacific in 28mm. I Play tested a skirmish game it went well . I then decided to up the ante. Now I am making terrain,palm trees (some have to be blown up right) A Plantation house. The LCI/G is made but the rubber rafts need painted and I need more Marines and Japanese (to paint differently). I have also been distracted by Arnhem Bridge in 28mm, Normandy Bocage and Current U.S.Marines . The Modern element led to Taliban/Insurgents/ Chenya rebels. There are still Special Forces and Helicopters (at least One medivac ) I did a poppy field but there never seems to be enough terrain Oh yes and I left out the Army…American British French and German. How do you organize your projects to get a game ready?

organize? don't understand the concept!

You can actually game with these things? :)

Most of my projects take the long view. One day I will get a game going….

Don't beat yourself up. This is a hobby and not a job.

I was working full tilt on some 22mm ACW all summer. The project is at about the half way mark. I came to a stopping point last month with limited time, so I pickup on some Sudan war figures I had started early this year (from a project I started about 18 years ago). I'm almost done with the Sudan figures and will be ready to get back to the ACW project sometime this month.

Vince

Discipline. Set up a deadline list, dates and projects to be completed by said date, then work to meet your goals. Without a plan, you will get distracted, by new, shiny toys, and progress will be spread so thin, nothing will see the finish line. Dates may come and go, but just keep working away, pushing deadlines out, as necessary, but keep plugging away at it. You will evenutally reach the end of a few tunnels. Cheers!

That sounds too much like work.

"Frustration part 2" Sounds like a Stephen King sequal.

I actually try to keep 2-3 different projects going at the same time. Idea being that when I get tired of painting 15mm infantry, I can shift to vehicles or 28mm Infinity minis.

Along those lines, I try to alternate Brits/Portuguese for French units, for a break in painting colors. I really get bogged down trying to paint multiple platoons of nothing but browns.

I plan one, maybe two projects a year and I stick to it. No matter what other eye candy is out there or new rules appear, I don't start on any other project till what I've planned is done. Otherwise, I'll have a dozen half-finished projects cluttering up my table, and none of them at the point with which I can play a decent game. And that would be so unsatisfying.

yes it does. Then I realized this was supposed to be fun.

You need to realize you're not a prize winning modeller or painter (even if you are) and either focus on quantity, quality, or time. Not every figure will be box art, not every battlefield needs to be a photo shoot.

In short, separate the gaming from the painting. If it's time to play the game, then just play with whatever you have done. If it's time to paint/model, then do so. Don't try to compete in quantity AND quality with the guy who has been playing that game for 10 years.

STOP BEING A PERFECTIONIST. You'll never play a game that way.

I too am hopeless when it comes to projects. I have major battle projects (armies and terrain) for Lewes, Balaclava and Quebec and a dozen ongoing armies, major modelling (I don't even want to discuss the castle) and then there's the unpainted figure collections. Hell, I'm not even the worst person I know for this sort of mania.

Join the club – we have a large membership.

Just enjoy the ride – if it's fun, you won't care if it ends. I am troubled that I may die before all of my wargaming dreams are realised. I find that helps push me along a little.

CB:
You recreate the entire world in 28mm through all major gaming periods of history. Then you begin working on alternate realities. Just remember, baby-steps and never give up! One day you'll get there. In the mean time game on nearly completed tables with almost finished terrain and have a ball!
Cheers.
Rod Robertson.

I have virtual projects, nothing is bought, nothing painted, but I do all the research, go figure!

1. Sign up to run a game at a Convention – gives you a goal.

2. Job out some of the more mundane figs – I needed to finish a bunch of medieval bill, crossbow and longbowmen but ran out of steam. Had someone do a very nice inexpensive basic paint job with no detailing and I did the dipping (or inking) and basing – completed an 85-90% done project lickedy-spit. Gave them to the painter at about 20-40 figs at a time.

3. Get rid of stuff that has been sitting around for more than 5 or so years that you know you will never get to. Particularly those over grandiose or obscure or unsupported rules figs. Use the money (or trade) to complete other projects or go for terrain.
[This does not apply to the 1000's of unpainted SYW figs that you have sitting there though -the SYW codocil applies here).
- I gave away as prizes a bunch of 15mm ancients as prizes at a game I was running to encourage others to get started with the rules.
I've found that as long as you use the money for completing present projects you will never regret getting rid of other stuff.

To echo the comments above, it is a hobby not a job an different people do things in different ways.

Having said that, achieving anything at all is about breaking big jobs into smaller ones with attainable goals.

I generally pitch projects at fighting particular battles or elements of a campaign with a number of battles at a particular level. Gives the thing some focus and boundaries.

I am very task oriented, so find this very easy, other people may not. The downside of task orientation is that once I have 'solved the problem' so to speak, I immediately lose interest and move onto something else.

Recognising that you aren't going to finish something as brucka says probably helps, reduces the competing demands.

My group uses the method brucka suggests:we sign up for a convention game. That way we are forced to have something we can present at a given date.

will Power.

Stick to your project. Make some excuse for not buyng anything that doesn't evolve around your current project.IE avoid the new and shiny syndrome.

Don't be pushed by others to make sure you field a unit that isn't complete. Do everything on your terms.

If you feel that you are suffering from burnout then make sure you finish the unit you a currently working on first. You then call this phase 1 completed . This will ensure that when you return to your project that you know exactly were to restart it . This will become phase 2.

Keep buying books on the project that your doing to help keep it fresh .

And remember your are in this for the long haul and Rome wasn't built in a day:)

Keep a log of your painting/progress and set goals as Sgt. Slag has stated. I've kept one for years and it really helps. It's not 'work': it only takes a minute or two to make an entry every time you have a session.

If your budget allows then purchase 'stuff' for other periods/projects but don't work on them; make lists, notes and plans but only work on the main project.

Regards,

J. P. Kelly

Organize? You speak a funny language….

I've generally have about 4-5 things going on at the same time. If one gets too boring (like painting hordes of ACW Union), I switch to something else that's in the line-up (like 1/6000 WWII naval ships). I may never finish them all (well, to any organized time schedule), but they eventually get done. And, besides, I get way too many deadlines at work to do the same to my hobby….

You'll laugh, but I used MS Project to keep track of my modeling/painting schedule. Mostly just to teach myself how to use MS Project, but it did help.

Reward and punishment – if you complete a project by a set date, give yourself a reward; if you fail to get it done by that date, give yourself a punishment.

Personally, I think your punishment should be that you have to paint 100 of my figures before you can return to any of your projects. : )

Agree with setting a deadline for a game. It makes it 'real' and gives you motivation to finish what you need for a scenario. Then you can regroup, take a break, set another deadline and work towards the next scenario. Adding a few extras as you go.

As an example, I have had a project in the works for around seven years! I recently set up a time-table, with dates for completion, of the various parts of the project. I have a convention date to work with (actually, two: one in January, and another, more realistic goal date, in the Spring). I wrote down the list of things to be done, as well as noting the percentage of completion for each task (mini's to be painted; terrain pieces to be painted; rules review; playtesting; actual running of the con games).

With the time-table in front of me, it serves as a reminder that I need to prioritize my projects, providing the necessary direction, and gentle nudging that I need, to work on the project in an orderly manner. I am making progress, and I do have several different items to complete, which allows me flexibility to switch from job to job, as I grow weary working on one thing, which helps me avoid burn-out.

Seeing the progress mount, on the different tasks of the whole project, is very rewarding. It serves to encourage me to continue to reach for the goal of finishing the entire project -- then I can play the games I've longed to enjoy for 32 years… That will be satisfying, and I will savor those moments.

There will be other projects after this one is finished, gamed, and become another cherished memory of my gaming history. Cheers!

I'll agree with Brucka's points 1 and 3.

I used to have real trouble getting things painted, but running games at conventions really helps focus the mind.

As you can see you are in good company. Discipline is too strong a word maybe focus is what you need. Only have one project on the go. Reward yourself at stages 20% etc. by buying for your next project. When it is complete start again!