"When Was Your Peak?" Topic

At what age were you at the peak of your miniature wargaming experience?

I have not yet reached my prime.

Tomorrow.

13

I would say around 40. That was many years ago.

Missed lots of opportunities but doing better now to still going stronger

That is a moving target, and to hit it, I need a Federal Firearms License to get a full auto machine gun to bring it down… That FFL might show up when I retire in the next decade. LOL! Cheers!

College

Is there a way to rephrase that? I gain more miniature wargaming experience every year and presumably will continue to do so. That should be true of each of us.

I suspect I'm a better rule and scenario designer than I ever was before. I may be a better painter, balancing off eye and hand against that 50+ years of experience.

I was probably best as a CLS player in my college years when I was playing 3-4 games a month, but I'm not sure how that translates into anything else--even being a player of another game. And as phrased, you're not asking when I was best. I have more experience now: I'm just not as good.

In the 1980s I had released the Guard Du Corps, Napoleonic rules. I painted armies for every nation and all minor ones as well. At least 30 foot battalions per major power and ar least 12 foot battalions per minor powers. Plus a lot of independent battalions. Artillery and Cavalry in proportions. I had so much for demonstrations and playtesting.
My high water mark in 15mm. Hugh 1/285 army for WW2 as well.

Not there yet

Yes.

And I will defer to John the OFM.

Eric

I don't understand the question.

Not there yet.

I am past my peak. I have a hard time finishing things now, and am selling off inactive projects.

Have always wandered around on a plain…no peaks <lol>

In the 1980s I had released the Guard Du Corps, Napoleonic rules. I painted armies for every nation and all minor ones as well. At least 30 foot battalions per major power and ar least 12 foot battalions per minor powers. Plus a lot of independent battalions. Artillery and Cavalry in proportions. I had so much for demonstrations and playtesting.
My high water mark in 15mm. Hugh 1/285 army for WW2 as well.

You phrase that as if you don't have any of that any more – is that right? What happened?

Sometime in my late 20s /early 30s when I had more or less the right balance of time and money although already money was winning out over time. Which isn't necessarily as good as it sounds – I bought faster than I could paint.

But I played more games, I painted more figures, I got to more shows and wrote for (and read!) more wargame magazines.

Played more often as a 20-something, but I'm a far better painter, more purposeful collector and much nicer opponent now than I was in my youth. The peaks are always different, it's like being in a mountain wilderness!

I will let you know when I hit it.

I don't think I've got there yet….

30. I'm now 50+ so were talking along time ago, on a gaming table far,far away.

Used to be able to play multiple games for hours on end all weekend long and go to work on 2-3 hours of sleep and spend the whole week thinking about the next gaming marathon coming up in just 3 days!
Now I can barely game for a couple of hours every few weeks and am wiped out by staying up past midnight.
Still have fun but life (age) definitely put the breaks on me. Hardly paint anything anymore and still have the mounds from back then left to start!
Now for me it's more about just getting together with my friends that more important.

Like Son of MOOG, I can recall those halcyon days of gaming all day and into the night. Fond memories, but those are lost days. But now I am more focused, more disciplined and enjoying it just as much.

When I'm dead I wll take a rest, untill then I'm still climbing.

Back in the 70's, when I was young and in the army I could get a game of something going most any time. As I got older, married and with kids things started slowing down. Now that I am retired, I find that the hardest thing to do is to find others that want to play the kind of games that I like, which is primarily historical, without having to travel far beyond the distance that I prefer.

Now I find that most of my gaming time is taken up with doing research for a friend that has his own game company and painting miniatures that I hope to use some day, but I am still having fun doing it, and I don't have to interrupt it going to work. So I would say that now is the best time I am having.

Nope, I fell into hard times after getting out of the military. Going back to college for a couple of masters degrees is expensive, even with the GI bill. Since I opened the store in 1983, I was able to sell both the 1*5mm and 1/285 and Battletech at the many conventions that I did back then. I averaged 20 + conventions a year in the 1990s.

I am sorry to hear that TimePortal. Hope you got good prices, and they went to good homes!

Now.

I am retired and have more time for gaming and finishing projects

16, peaked again around 22-23. Small children has drastically reduced the time and money I put into this hobby. I figured I'll peak again when they're older.

30s and 40s. Now I have time and enough money for my desires but am sadly lacking in energy and imagination.

stagnant, I get that, I move to another hobby or do one in parallel, No point doing a hobby that no longer raises your passions.

Until recently, miniatures gaming was always just one of many hobbies. Now that I'm nearing 60, the infirmities are accruing and the outdoor sports are getting out of reach. Miniatures are becoming the last hobby I can actually do, so I'm getting more time with them. My peak for this hobby may still be in my future.

OTOH, I have a vague plan to try sailing next, and I don't want to be done with motorcycling just yet. We'll see.

- Ix

I've sold off a lot of figures over recent months, but I am still a dyed in the wool miniature gamer. The combination of Copplestone's Little Interwars range and as an extension of that my pulp era TinTin games is keeping me engaged. There is always another "Ooh shiny" around the corner. I'll be 74 in December.

I'm 58. Not there yet.

Yellow Admiral You just have to tailor what you can do. I have heart problems, hopefull teporay but I now have an Electic bike and a two wheeled electric scooter but yhey still let you get out into the great outdoors. Wargames is more for wet and cold days.
You are too young to give up I've just turned 70.

10 to 20 years ago: playing a lot and putting on a lot of convention games. So that was about ages 45-55.