Wargames History - Traitor Guard edition

Since YC (crazyrat) wrote his story about how he was inducted into the wargaming industry, I guess it would make a good idea to write a bit also, to share with each of us our own background.

I have to confess that I have always been a gamer (though not exactly the tabletop type).
It has always been my destiny to spend countless hours huddled, forming big armies and dreaming of epic battles.

My drop into the rabbit hole that leads to the fantasical world of wargaming started at a tender age of six, through an impulsive buy by my father while out for dinner one night as a family.

It was a packet of toy soldiers.

These soldiers were the normal WW2 toy soldiers you see once in a while, hanging by the packet or with a cardboard base (as mine was), colour coded in different countries. They are 1/72 size. Mine was divided into 6 countries, some 160 in strength total. I still have them with me, packed in a bag.

I spent countless sleepless hours in primary school with my plasticine, forming them into big models with toothpicks as either spears or guns.

As I entered secondary school, I stumbled upon the computer. Namely the Koei historical simulation series (RoTK, L'Empereur). Gone are the battles where twenty soldiers duked it out. An entire empire of armies led by renown generals are now at my disposal. My obsession with large armies continued with the Civ games by Sid Meier.

Even as I had deviated from miniatures into the virtual, I had continued my collection of 1/72 models. I knew this store in Katong Shopping Centre that sells models from my childhood times. It is presently still there. It is from this store that I grew my 1/72 army when my spending power increased, from knights to celtic warriors and napoleonic troops guarding artillery batteries (they number now in the 600s).

But Fate still has the last laugh. I met Daniel (The Beardy One) while serving NS as our offices were near each other. Chance has it that I met him again, in NUS, when I stumbled upon him in the same lecture hall. We began our reacquaintance. I mentioned to him one day about this new store in Katong that sells Warhammer Fantasy, the new GW store in Plaza Singapura and how I would like to one day game. It was then that he revealed that he played WHF before as a dwarf. My fate as a wargamer is sealed.

I browsed through the selection in the GW store, and finally decided to take on the mantle of a Dark Elf (6th Ed). My first GW buy was the Druchii Army Book and a box of 16 Spearmen.

I started my Dark Elf Army and never looked back, despite severe trauma in Daniel's hands (I still hold grudges against the Dwarven Gunline). Fate continues its IF rolls such that one day, I was playing with Daniel in one of the Engin Faculty tutorial rooms when Chan saw us one day. I think he was every bit surprised to see 2 Fantasy players playing using 6 desks as the battleground.

I met YC's Skavens and then was introduced to Raymond's Elves. It was also there that I met Yanxian and Sam. We began to game regularly at their place until they moved.

I continued gaming with Daniel and Sam with battles hosted in a variety of locations (floor gaming was my specialty since I did not have a table big enough for the board at my house). Then YC joined us back to game at Kenny's place and then over at his side.

I was the last person to enter 40k as I liked my spears and swords. But I finally did join as a IG as I liked the notion of tank armies plowing through the battlefield (my army lists is a hint).

YC introduced Defu to us and our gaming continues.

Will I still be gaming in 10 years time? You bet.
I will continue to battle, parley and beg with the dice gods years from now.

Wargaming is in my blood, my soul.

JaeRoler here, signing out.