The First Step....

"Hi, my name is Chris and I'm a bit of a hoarder...."

<Appropriate OSR 12 Step Group> Hi Chris!

Like so many of us, I like to collect stuff. I've been adding a few items from online auctions and generally quite happy with the finds. Not totally sure if I'll be happy shelling out some big bucks for some choice items (to me) currently available, but time will tell.....

...one of my weekend tasks was to take stock of my HeroQuest game, which I have never played, which is my problem. I thought it was an overly expensive game, but I managed to find a copy at Gamestop that wasn't $135 (?!) As soon as I picked it up, before I even broke the shrink, I noticed there were "already" some expansions available. One was clearanced at a Gamestop, and a couple were available from my FLGS.

I'm planning on making a custom box to store all the bits and bobs, which is why I needed to take stock. Since I had no idea how many expansions are available I figured a quick interwebs search will help...

....and now I have discovered that Hasbro/Avon Hill has put our four (4!) expansions this year so far. One was a new character which evidently sold out immediately and unless I want to shell out $80+ for what should be $15, I'm not getting it. Luckily two of the others are available at Amazon, one at a bit of a discount and the last one is "currently unavailable". Not sure if it had actually been released yet.

I did not actually purchase them on Amazon but instead drove down to the FLGS and sure, enough the three non-new-character expansions were available. I paid a bit more than Amazon, but really only because the one was on sale there. The FLGS thinks they might be getting more of that character pack/expansion in. I don't think so, but they told me that the distributor is quick to point out if the stock is sold out and they were allowed an order.....and now my name is on "the list".

Amazon doesn't do "a list". Best you can do is make a wishlist and maybe get notified if the item is available.....but that doesn't save diddly squat for you. Also, Amazon didn't have a copy of Sgt Fury and His Howling Commandos #167 for sale.....

So now I have the base HeroQuest game, one extra character pack, and eight....eight freakin expansions, for a game I haven't played yet. I just wanted a D&Dish board game with minis and I have what is becoming a monster of a game.

Yeah, I clearly have a bit of a problem......but if I pull this off it could be a good problem to have. If I can get my shit, er game sets, together, well I might have a game worth playing.

Getting My Zines Organized....Kind Of

While I've been accused of being a(n).....associate, no.......crony, maybe...of Erik's, truth be told I don't always drink the Kool-Aid, but that's probably more due to me be lazy. What I'm getting at is that my participation with the Tavern is generally limited to my Sunday postings and an annual Whisky testing at NTXRPG Con. I do, however, occasionally tune in to Tavern Chat on YouTube. 

This week I did tune in for a whole five minutes or so and while it was a bit of an aside, Bad Mike was talking about zines and zine storage. Jump forward to this weekend and I'm trying, a bit in vain, to go through my hugs stack of loose adventures, unbagged comics, and a fairly decent stack of zines. While it may seem a bit anally retentive I HAVE to bag, sort, and store these things or I will undoubtedly break, lose, or worse off......re-purchase stuff I already have.

I pretty much hate not being able to find crap I own, but not nearly as much as I hate throwing money away on needless duplicates. For example I have a small stack of duplicate Judge's Guild stuff that Bad Mike was more than happy to sell to me....

Comics are super easy to sort, bag, and store as there is an entire industry of collectors. That same industry does also make magazine bags & boards, as long as you remember to get the two main sizes of magazine bags 'cause if you have a thicker adventure.....you'll need that larger bag.

Unfortunately for me Zines come in all shapes & sizes....part of the charm. Most of mine come in at 6" x 9" and while the company I got my other supplies from doesn't carry bags in this size, others do. Backer boards have been a bit of a let-down. An hour of searching and I can definitely find "boards" that are 6" x 9", but they are expensive and probably too thick. I ended up just getting me some slightly oversized Sheet Music Backer Boards that I can basically cut in half to make them the right size.....

.....no to figure out how the hell to put these things on my shelf so they aren't wasting space. Bagging and boarding Zines aren't that big of a deal, but being able to access what I want, when I want is. 

Finding something workable so far has been problematic. There is a $5 DTRPG product, Tomb of Zines, that I can pick up to make my own boxes. Great...another assembly project. It would be cost effective...but that's going to be my Plan B (no, not that Plan B!). I'm still looking for boxes and I may have found a relatively cheap alternative at Harbor Freight, of all places. They have a .30 cal ammo box with an interior dimension of  9.5" x 6" x 4.25". These boxes can nest on top of each other and with a width of over 4" I think for $4-$6 a box I can get a bit more protection than a cardboard box and while it is a bit more expensive...if I factor in the time and frustration of making boxes....they might work out.

If it works, I'll come in and edit this post, but in the meantime if there are any suggestions, please....by all means, post it in the comments. 

EDIT: I realized I had a little more than an hour before Harbor Freight closed, so I went ahead and picked some up because they were on sale for $4. They don't have the big logo on the side (like the pic) and they work just fine for most of my Zines.

What Happens to Your Gaming Stuff?

 

This week I've seen a few interesting posts on Facebook, and elsewhere, not just the notice that we've lost Steve Perrin.

Now I don't know Steve and I'm not sure if I've played anything he's written, but that is beside the point for me today. I do have friends that knew him and are feeling this loss on a personal level.

The news of Steve's passing, and again...some of the other posts I've seen here & there made me think a little bit about my own mortality and the simple fact that a lot of us grognards are aging. Estate panning is a thing and not really my focus here today, but it kind of is.

I'm sure some of you are lucky in the fact that you are part of a gaming family....as in your family actually games, maybe even together. In the other sense we're all part of a larger gaming family, but that's not what I mean.

Now my family...I don't think they get my gaming "thing" at all. I'm 95% certain that despite my repeated attempts to show, explain, and even demonstrate table-top RPGs, they think I sit in front of a TV playing Xbox. I mean, I do that, but in addition to, not instead of RPGs (unless I'm in the middle of a dry die-rolling spell).

Like many of us, I have a decent amount of RPG "stuff" and there are a few gems in my collection...and I bet you do too. For example, I saw a Facebook post this week of some guy who got a cheap core book at Half Priced Books and it ended up having Gary Gygax's signature from like GenCon X or something. All I could think about was how upset I'd be (in the rhetorical sense, clearly) if, after my death, my folks just took all my RPG "stuff" and just dumped it. Sorry, but getting $5 for a signed PHB at Half Priced Books is "dumping it" IMNSHO.

Honestly, I'd rather see my RPG collection, which is far more than just books, go to my gaming friends, or have it all sold at auction (with the proceeds donated), but really...in order for it to be, for lack of a better word, appreciated, I have to go through the effort to document my collection so my family might have a clue that white box is "special" or that those d20's in a little baggie are not loose with the rest of my dice for a reason. Yes, this piece of art is just a cheap print, but this other one is an Artist Proof, or this one is a valuable limited edition. Those old books.....they're just old-assed books. If my brother's grandkids want to pick up AD&D, by all means let them play with those books....and if they get into it, maybe don't auction off that other stuff.....

I'm currently fortunate that I have a gaming buddy who has agreed to be the Executor of my estate should something happen, but then again I do need to update my will to make that all legal and shit.

Just tossing this idea out there....I know it's a bit on the downer side, but knowing that things will be taken care of after we're gone makes collecting certain RPG "gems" a little more worthwile.

Doing Less With More

Looking at my list of D&D games in one of my recent posts has led to the following decision:

It's time to pack up any and all that won't be seeing use from me anytime soon. Box them up and put them in the basement - above the flood line ;)

Those that will escape the purge:

Castles & Crusades - I do play it monthly - I'll pack up all but the Player's and the Monsters &Treasures books

Swords & Wizardry Complete - I like the rules presentation - Besides, its a recent purchase

Labyrinth Lord and the AEC - This is my current go to D&D variation

Everything else RPG related (aside from my Tunnels & Trolls and other solo gaming products) are going into storage. Besides, much of my gaming material is in PDF format these days anyway.

Maybe pruning the tree of RPG-ness will allow me to focus on - gaming. Go figure ;)