We'd come for the painting hour and the Sunday game, and thus we set about unloading paints and brushes and miniatures. I'm currently painting Stormcast Eternals Vanguard Hunters in black and glowing green (I've watched Tron too much, clearly. I love stark contrasts), while my little dude was catching up with his remaining Space Marines. That said, he did spend several minutes excitedly showing everyone his Ork-ized Rhino, which we've modified together and are painting together. As ever, the atmosphere was fun and exciting, and it was so cool to see so many kids coming in with parents to check out what it was all about.
There were some older lads there who I believe hadn't been before and they were having a ball with their first painting and gaming experience. The wave of positivity in that shop is utterly infectious, which is down to the extremely high standard of staff (today we had Dan, Josie and Adam for company in very fetching Santa hats). Today's session further cemented in my mind that this was the right thing to introduce the kids to.
Having something that we all get different things from and can all enjoy together is beyond valuable to me, and I will happily encourage other parents to give it a go. Don't let the rules, measuring, phases of a turn and the dense, extensive lore put you off – within a few rounds you'll be hooked, and I dare say your kids will be too. There is something about it that genuinely fires the imagination (heck, I'm writing posts here again after pretty much giving up on blogging a while ago for example) and holds the attention.
While the Crusaders pitted their models against this week's foe and the daemon that he summoned, I took some time to examine the new Blackstone Fortress boxed game, which was open and on display for fans to check out (it can be pre-ordered here), The new character minis that it comes with are delightfully varied, and the modular board tiles and mechanics of it look like it will offer a heck of a lot of replay value. Add to this that it includes data cards which allow the minis to be used in 40k and that adds yet more value. It really is a huge set which is well worth investigating this Christmas (that's not a hint to my family, btw).
What strikes me about Blackstone Fortress is a similar thing to the Kill Team Rogue Trader set – a slew of new characters and additions that really expand on the stories of the 41st millennium and show that Games Workshop has loads to offer fans new and old, even if staples such as Space Marines and Orks don't appeal. I also checked out the brand new range of Black Library novellas (perfect size and price point at £3 a book) and my immediate thought was “how do I get to write one of these?!”
Looking around me there today at the variety of ages and levels of interest, there really is something for everyone. We can't wait to go back.
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