Back to the hills – not getting lost

#backtothehills, hiking/backpacking/camping, outdoors

It was my birthday Tuesday.

My aunt and uncle generously gave me an Amazon voucher as a present that was put towards getting a Silva Compass 5.

I’m a gadget geek. But when heading out into the amazingly beautiful British hills you can’t rely on those gadgets for navigation.

Yes technology has not stood still in the years since I was last out in the wilds.

Yet it should never be your only way to find your way around.

I did already have a Silva compass. It’s been in “hibernation” under the stairs.

But. And there is always a but. I really liked the look of this new model.

I liked the wider variety of romers on it, luminous markings, built-in adjuster for magnetic declination (including permanent local adjustment), a clinometer for measuring slope angle. Plus! its lanyard can act as a detachable scale that works like a ruler. And it comes with a slope card.

However it doesn’t matter how fancy your compass is, if you don’t know how to use it then it’s a fancy expensive paperweight.

So YouTube has been my refresher on the core skills. But they need to be practiced enough times they become second nature again.

I also got a British Army protractor!

I already had one of these too!

There is a reason I bought a second. I’ve had the first one all my life, or it’s been in the family all my life. Which currently is 56 years.

The first one was my dad’s. It’s the one he had while as a para.

I consider that one a family heirloom that is kept safe and not to be used.

But why buy this new one?

I want to be better at planning my routes and making notes before hand. Which includes adding bearings.

The drawback of this military compass is its in mills. When I want degrees. So a bit of maths is required to convert between the two. It’s not an easy bit of maths either. By that I mean multiplying or dividing by an easy number like the conversion between metres and feet. Something you can do quickly and roughly in your head. The conversion between mills and degrees is a small decimal number. A calculator is definitely needed.

Why don’t I just get a US Army protractor clone that uses degrees? It’s that dad thing. Dad used one. Even now 26 years after dad’s death doing something like this somehow feels like it’s keeping his memory alive.

Although I do seem to be quoting dad a lot lately at work! The quote being “size doesn’t matter when they are on the floor”. Nico and Loki prove this everyday playing mum up while she is lying down. And it’s in relation to them it’s mainly said.

I do like regaling folks with tales of how two little dogs play mum up.

Right time to close off this post. See you in the next one.

April is a wrap gaming wise!

bgstat, by the numbers, gaming stats, life, the universe, and everything, stats, still alive

Yeah I know the month hasn’t ended yet. But it’s looking very very unlikely that any more gaming is going to take place before the end of the month.

At the moment the Sunday gaming session will not go ahead as I’m the only person showing any interest in going.

Which means no birthday weekend gaming.

Have to say it’s a little disappointing. But this is not a post about feeling sorry for myself.

Let’s celebrate the games I have played this month instead.

That time I get to play is special. And I really should get round to finishing that post about what gaming means to me.

In the meantime while you patiently wait for that post here are the games I played in April.

My top 9 games played in April 2024

Looking at the stats for April they are inline with the new norm for my gaming.

The stats for April 2025

Man flu hits

life, the universe, and everything, still alive

Man flu has struck!

It crept up on me Monday night as I slept. I woke up with the beginnings of a soar throat. That gradually got worse.

To be honest it was more Monday evening that it started to hit.

Yesterday I’m glad I was doing my actual job and not used to fill in on a more physical demanding job. I had very little energy. The cold was really hitting me hard. Despite being dosed up on cold medicine and sore throat lozenges.

If you had cut me I’d have bled lemsip.

Somehow I made it through my shift and home.

A cough medicine induced nights sleep, and even more sleep this morning (I must of needed it). I’m feeling a bit more energetic than yesterday. But that could be just the cold luring me into a false sense of recovery.

As I write I’m trying to get the will to get up and ready for work.

Wish me luck.

I played some games on my days off!

Fenland Gamers, Game day, Game Design, Sunday Afternoon Gaming

Last Friday was the start of three days off work after a nine day tour of duty.

Which just so happened to time nicely with the fortnightly Fenland Gamers club night.

So Friday was one of my now rare appearances at a club night.

I was on a table with Colin, Charlene, and Annabelle.

We started off playing Scooby Doo the board game from CMoN. Which Annabelle loved the Scooby and Scrappy minis.

It’s a co-op game Pandemic like where you are trying to stop the monster.

The game has great table top presence. Lovely painted minis.

It’s fun, and despite us only lasting three or four rounds before losing to the zombie.

We followed our defeat at Scooby Doo with a game of Splendor. I did crap at this. Scoring a single point! It’s a good job I enjoy the game.

After being totally humiliated at Splendor it was time to redeem myself with a glorious victory playing Spots. I don’t think it will be too long before I add this to my over crowded collection.

Next I introduced Colin to what is fastly becoming a filler game of choice Ship, Captain, Crew.

My final game of the evening was a new game I got LCR. Which is a nice quick filler too. Which also doesn’t have player elimination. Even when you run out of chips you are still in the game because you might gain some on a subsequent round.

I had a great evening game. It’s been a while since I’ve had a chance to game with Colin. So that must be the highlight of the evening for me.

Sunday saw Charlene and Annabelle join me in a pre-arranged game of Tapestry.

Sunday Afternoons Game of Tapestry

This was an all in game using all the expansions and the new balanced civilisations. So no need to take into account any adjustments.

We dealt each player three civs to choose from. There are so many when using the expansions. Just wanted to give everyone a greater chance of seeing something they liked.

This is how our starting civs, cities, and blueprints went.

  • Aliens/Forest blueprint- Windmill – me
  • Renegades/Tropical blueprint-Birdwatching Perch – Annabelle
  • Urban Planners/Mesa blueprint- Villa/Urban Farm – Charlene

Also when we had to draw a Tapestry card we drew two, chose one discarded the other.

Somehow in this game it ended up being my most aggressive game ever. Previously I’ve rarely gone conquering but this time I got to the middle first and conquered two territories to get that bonus also. Plus I got to the end of the military track to get the second place bonus for reaching the end of a track. So that was also a first for me getting all three bonuses.

I did take an early lead on the score and kept it all game. Although during the end scoring Charlene came from behind to give me a big scare that she might snatch victory. However my lead was big enough to absorb that late surge and hang in there for the win.

It was great to get Tapestry to the table again. And a great way to end the three days off.

Back to the Hills – My Coffee Plans

#backtothehills, outdoors

I think it’s fair to say I like my coffee.

I’m a big Aeropress fan. But I also love my Hario V60 coffee dripper. It’s so easy to get consistent good results with.

But neither of these two great coffee making options are ideal for taking out on the hill. I should say in my opinion (no way am I being humble about it). They might be fine for you dear reader or someone else. That’s totally fine. I respect that. I’m not having to carry or pack them. So why do I care? I don’t.

Previously back in the day I used a MSR MugMate™ Coffee/Tea Filter. I still have it. And you could make a better coffee than the instant stuff you can buy (if you like and drink instant coffee that’s fine, but why are you reading this?). However it doesn’t produce an end result that comes close to the V60 or Aeropress.

Enter the Mermoo Yilan Collapsible Pour Over Coffee Dripper Cone (that I got off Amazon). Which is a reusable silicone coffee filter holder that comes with a storage bag.

I should note the storage bag can easily hold some 02 size paper filters inside with the collapsed cone. I got some from Morrisons the other day, 40 in a box for £1.50. I bought four boxes just in case that was a mistake.

With that yes you can use a 02 sized filter with this collapsible cone. Source yours from wherever.

Now if you are going the same route as me to get a bloody good mug of coffee whilst out on the hill, then you have a decision to make. Do you take grounds or beans with you?

Remember there is no wrong answer here.

For me I’m taking beans. Mainly because if the bag bursts, less mess. Plus you could still use them! And they won’t have messed up any kit.

So how am I going to grind the beans?

I got a Hario, Transparent Black Mini Mill Plus to use. Yes it’s extra weight. It’s probably not the lightest. But I think the fresh ground beans and the reason above for me justifies its inclusion.

A couple of weeks back I got given some Kopi Luwak aka cat poo coffee as I call it. This coffee is very expensive, and most definitely out of my price range. But it has been a coffee I’ve always wanted to try.

So when I was offered some I jumped at the chance to try it.

I love it. It’s not as bitter as other coffees. I’d almost say lighter. But that could be the roasting.

Definitely worth getting when/if I can afford it. Luckily I was given a 300g bag after the first one. So that will be my guilty pleasure for a week or two.

Right so that’s my coffee plans taken care of. Time to make a brew.

What does…? A response to A Double Double ‘n Dice

dice masters, Dicemasters

It seems at the moment my only Dice Masters posts are “responses” to the excellent Dice Masters podcast A Double Double ‘n Dice, hosted by Kim and Jocelyn.

Ok we know by now the reason why I’m not getting Dice Masters or any other lcg/ccg to the table. But for those that have worse memories than myself I’ll remind you. The venue where we play games currently isn’t open on a Tuesday. I believe they will be once again as we get nearer to the Summer. However unless a new venue can be found we are unable to play at the moment.

But less of my gaming woes and back on to topic.

In the latest episode Kim and Jocelyn ask…

Before we get onto my thoughts on what was discussed, take this opportunity to hear Kim and Jocelyn discuss this subject first by playing the embedded YouTube video below.

Welcome back.

The discussion started off with mulling over the release schedule of product and what the “perfect” frequency of new sets would be each year.

Eventually Kim and Jocelyn hit on three sets a year. Which was the number I initially thought of when they started discussing the subject.

For me three sets a year, which is basically every four months, gives folks time to buy, collect, and play with the new set before starting all over again.

It also doesn’t flood the market, stretch store finances, or milk us players.

One thing WotC used to do. But they have stopped any pretence now and are just out to squeeze as much money as they can out of players. They release way too much product, you barely get chance to play with it before the next thing is out. And the end result is there are some really poor sets released that don’t sell. Which hurts the LGS who get left with product that isn’t selling.

And I want Wizkids to learn from the WotC mistakes.

The three sets a year should allow Wizkids enough development time to release a higher quality product that players will want to.

I would add along side three sets a year I’d love to see some supporting products like the original style two player starter sets, or a preconstructed team that would be competitive in a LGS game night. Something new players could buy and get a good start to playing the game with.

I’m going to skip over the competitive play of worlds and nationals. I’d never make it to worlds (would need a passport first). A UK/EU nationals held at UKGE each year would be cool. I’d go to that.

It’s the OP kit discussion that I went…

You can’t have exclusive cards with new abilities that can only be gotten by winning a tournament of some kind.

We all know that there are some unscrupulous store owners out there (mainly in the US I think) that would sell on the OP kit or the exclusive card on eBay for silly money.

But more importantly if the card turns out to be a Master Mould or Gobby level card only a very small handful of players will have it. They will have an unfair advantage.

If I buy a booster/draft pack I have as much chance as the next person in pulling something good.

This suggestion puts the card in the hands of a minority, and makes it accessibility or chances of getting it very restricted. What if your FLGS doesn’t run Dice Masters events? You’re screwed.

Wizkids could ban the card. But that then makes it worthless as a prize.

Easiest solution don’t do it in the first place. Make prizes stuff like playmats, or as also suggested alt art cards, or even mini booster packs of three cards, possibly with alt art of cards from the last three sets, for example.

Don’t give participation prizes to everybody!

Nooooooooo! I was going all Luke again.

You pay your event entry fee. You need something back apart from just playing the game. Stores can’t not charge. They have to pay for the OP kit, and any additional prize support. They need to cover the expense of the kit.

But at the same time not everyone is going to win a prize. So a participation prize is a necessity.

These store events are about building the game and its community.

Participation prizes are a key part of that.

Come to our event, take part and get a cool card for doing so. It’s a great selling point.

I think Wizkids could even learn from FFG and Star Wars Unlimited here and borrow their OP format. I like the encouragement of the casual side where even just turning up talking about the game, trading cards, building decks will get you a participation prize!

The rest of the discussion I totally agree with.

I did get another brief mention in the mail bag section of the show. And now know Kim will never read these posts of mine.

Still a great episode that as you can see obviously sparked some thoughts.

Just checking in

Game day, life, the universe, and everything, still alive

I’m in survival mode at moment.

Just trying to make it to the next day.

Drained. Tired.

Work gets like that sometimes.

Especially when you are given a shift pattern that is nine days without a break.

The upside is I get three days off at the end of it. Which will allow me to get along to a Friday club night.

What has made this time more difficult is getting the car repaired last Friday. Meaning an early start after a late finish. Plus squeezing in a prearranged gaming session the next day before work.

So you can see why I say I’m knackered and just surviving.

On the upside I got to play some games this month. I’ve just not written about them.

Diego and I are building up to play BattleTech Alpha Strike. Now with the full Alpha Strike rules in my possession we can use the full games hex maps on Diego’s table. This means for the other starter box sets they are even better value, as I can use more of the contents. We just need some hex maps now! Which Diego is ordering.

I’m going to leave it there for now. I’m tired.

Back to the hills – new kit

#backtothehills, hiking/backpacking/camping, outdoors

Ok second time writing this post, because the Jetpack app that I use to write my posts decided instead of publishing my words it’d just throw them away into the ether and lose 40 minutes of work!

With my planned return to the wilds of the UK after such a long hiatus from them. I’m using this time to reassess my “philosophy” or approach to the outdoors.

Part of this reassessment has involved my thinking on kit. And naturally new bits have been arriving. How I’ve missed this.

So this post is a catch up on some of the stuff that has dropped through my letter box recently. It’s not all of it. But I’m sure I’ll talk about the stuff not mentioned in other posts.

First up is the SOTO Thermolite cook set. Unusual for me this is not titanium, it aluminium! I know a major shock. It’s not like I needed a new cook set. But I did like the look of this when I saw it on a YouTube video. I like it comes with a pot cozy. It is a 750ml handless pot that comes with a small pot gripper that I might also use with other pots. It’s definitely smaller than the Trangia pot gripper I have. The lid is multi use and can be used to drink from the pot, and strain liquids. I like this set a lot.

Next is the 18cm diameter iBasingo Titanium Non-Stick Frying Pan. Can you believe I didn’t have a specific frying pan in all the pots etc I have? You could get the Trangia. You could buy/add the Trangia Multi Disc for 27 Series Cookers to this. That is 18cm diameter as well. Something I might do in the future. I believe this frying pan has a capacity of about 900ml. It should be able to fit the small tortilla wraps UK supermarkets sell. And looks ideal for one person. To go along with this I got a Tala Silicone Mini Spatula so I don’t ruin the non-stick surface. It’s about 6 or 7 inches long, light. Perfect for my needs.

SOTO Thermolite
iBasingo Titanium Non-Stick Frying Pan & Tala Silicone Mini Spatula
Vargo Alcohol Fuel Bottles
Goshawk OP-100
Pure Clear Collapsible Filter Water Bottle

Ok did I need another stove? Technically the answer would be no. But this Goshawk OP-100 looks pretty cool. It’s a bit of an alternative to the Trangia as far as I see it. It has this swirling flame (yes I’ll be doing a video) that looks cool. It comes with a sealing cap. So fuel can be left in it. It did come with a handy little stuff sack.

I got two Vargo Alcohol Fuel Bottles. They are expensive for what they are. Pretty sure paying for the Vargo name. But I do like the fuel measurement marks on the bottles.

Finally in this post is the Pure Clear Collapsible Filter Water Bottle. I have water filters that are over a decade old. I’m not sure how effective they would be now. So I decided to play it safe and get a new one. A bit of research and taking into account budget and planned usage ended up on the Pure Clear.

I have a shit load to do before I get back into the hills later this year. Kit to test in over night trips. Yes I have one or two over nights planned, along with day hikes.

In another post I’ll talk about the food/ingredient bits I’ve got in. But I’ll be testing recipes and sharing them on here.

Star Wars Unlimited two-player starter set experience

ccg/tcg, game night, lcg/ccg/tcg game night, star wars, Star Wars Unlimited

In my previous post I gave my impressions of the two-player starter set from FFG for Star Wars Unlimited.

So continuing on from that post I’m going to share my thoughts on playing Star Wars Unlimited using the two starter decks included in the starter set.

Both Diego and myself have played other competitive collectible and living card games such as Magic the Gathering, Android Netrunner (not sure if Diego has played this) and Vampire the Masquerade Rivals.

Obviously for this starter set to be playable by two-players as its name suggests, it has to come with two preconstructed decks that can be played straight out of the box. You’ll find the deck lists for both decks at the end of the post.

Every deck built for Star Wars Unlimited has to have a leader and base. They determine the cards you can play in your deck. You can play out of faction cards but there is an extra cost in doing so.

In this two-player starter the two leaders you get are Luke Skywalker and Darth Vader.

I love that the art for both is from the duel between them on Cloud City at the end of Empire.

I’ve not looked at all the cards in the decks. But there is one that ties in with this called “I am your father”.

Even the way the card works (above) is so thematic. Love it.

Luke’s base is the Aministrator’s Tower, and Vader’s is the Commander Center. Both 30 health, and add a third faction symbol.

Luke’s Base
Vader’s Base
The two bases

Obviously the game shares mechanics common to all ccgs. Such as exhausting cards (tapping in mtg), units coming in exhausted (summoning sickness), spending resources to play cards. You get the idea.

So coming from a ccg background it was very easy to pick up the game.

I did like that you draw two cards at the end of the round, and may play a card from hand face down to be used as a resource.

This for me this is a major difference to other games I’ve played. It also introduces a hard decision because once a card has been played face down as a resource there is no getting it back. Which card becomes a resource? Which do you hold on to? If you don’t play a resource it delays when your leader can come out, it limits what cards can be played. It has such big implications. Especially early on.

I also like the back and forth of actions. And the gamble of passing. On your turn you can pass, waiting to see what your opponent does. However if your opponent seizes the initiative, or passes also. That’s it the round has ended. Even if you wanted to do more! That’s the gamble.

Diego and I played a game with each deck.

The decks seem fairly evenly matched. Our first game was pretty close.

Although our second game was more one sided. But that was more down to the draw of cards. You get games like that. You just have to put the game behind you, and move on to the next one.

I liked playing Star Wars Unlimited with these decks. They were fun to play. Great decks to play casually with a friend over the kitchen table.

I’ll definitely buy the next sets two-player starter set. Hopefully they too will be as balanced.

Finally here are the two deck lists for the decks.

Deck list for both decks

It should be noted there are some cards in this starter set that are only available in the starter set, or in the op kit promo kits.

First impressions of the two-player starter set for Star Wars Unlimited

ccg/tcg, first look, game night, lcg/ccg/tcg game night, star wars, Star Wars Unlimited

Last night I got to play the two-player starter set for Star Wars Unlimited with Diego.

I have some mixed thoughts about the whole experience.

Let me just say up front I really like the game.

However I do have some issues with the quality of this product.

First up is the flimsy very thin card tokens included for tracking damage, first player, etc. That’s my issue they are so flimsy. I hate them. If you intend to get into the game you will want to upgrade these as a priority. Maybe that’s what the aim was. To “encourage” you to buy the GameGenic acrylic tokens. That’s if you can find anywhere that has them.

I was also very disappointed with the quality of the cards themselves. They too are very thin. You will be sleeving the cards. You have to. These are boarding on unusable. This means that opening boosters will be a bitter sweet experience. On one hand I’ll be excited about opening the packs, and the cards I pull. On the other repulsed by the poor quality of the card stock used.

The two folded paper playmats were as expected quality wise. I like they have the play areas on them. Plus act as a player aid with setup, what you can do on a turn, end of a round summary, plus keyword summary. All very handy for learning the game, and teaching it.

The quick start/learn to play booklet is nice and does the job well. We hardly had to refer to it.

The two cardboard deck boxes a nice touch that don’t need assembling. They are large enough to hold the cards sleeved.

Overall I think value wise this is a great starter set. However quality wise of the cards and tokens it feels cheap and that FFG are cutting corners to cut costs and maximise profit.

In another post I’ll talk more about the play experience of Star Wars Unlimited using this two-player starter set.