@scribbs I got both Hobbit saga expansions and the complete Shadows of Mirkwood Cycle. I think that’s a good start and have a lot to be going on with for a while before I look at getting any more. It’s very easy to be tempted on collecting everything from the start but most of it would just sit there for a while.
I’m actually rereading The Hobbit since I’m so in the mood and it’s one of my favourite books.
The Hobbit Saga sets are very enjoyable. There is a lot of fun seeing how well thought out and designed the quests are to match the narrative from the book.
@scribbs if you want to try learning (or updating) a foreign language then starting with a game you know and reading the rules in a different language is a way to do it.
I would suggest the new AoS core rules, because GW have translated them in multiple languages, but I’m not sure if you would want to be exposed to AoS to begin with 😉
There’s Settlers of Catan, Monopoly, Risk and Scrabble.
(sidenote : things like Scrabble are extra challenging in a foreign language… )
Books are another option. Both ‘The Hobbit’ and the Harry Potter novels have been translated all over the world, so you’re bound to find one in your target language. (HP novels do translate character and location names too which can make it more of a challenge).
Where there is a will there is a way 😀
Then again the best time to learn languages is when you are a kid. Somehow your brain can adjust to that sort of stuff better.
I already know 2 foreign languages so I don’t see the need to add another one.
I like to read GW rules in German. Sometimes you can see where the mega words come from, but other times it a little less clear. That being said, the second I hear a fluent German speaker read them out I’m always reminded just how bad (and usually mildly offensive) my German is. 😛 As soon as I can get myself settled somewhere I want to get back into learning Norwegian. Not the most ‘useful’ language to know, but it’s one I like as well as wanting to be in Norway eventually.
When looking for videos podcasts and blog on topics for the hobby (How to… etc) do you just look at stuff in your native language or in other languages too? Pretty much exclusively in English. I watch a couple of channels on Youtube that are in German, but without the subtitles, I’m not sure I’d have much of a clue about what’s going on!
Have you ever tried to play a game that is written in a language you do not speak? I once got up to 128,000 euros watching Who Wants To Be A Millionaire (in french) when we lived in France. Does that count? I tried learning French Backgammon from a ruleset in French. I never quite got the hang of it. But now it seems that I don’t know how to play backgammon according to the “traditional” rules. In fact, had I not tried, I simply wouldn’t know how to play backgammon – as it is, now not only do I not know how to play it, but when anyone tries to teach me the rules, my previous knowledge kicks in and I play it “wrongly”. Trying to play in a non-native language ended up making the game *worse* for me!
Looking back 15 months: what was your biggest hobby achievement? I’ve had three golden buttons since posting my projects on this site. That’s pretty sweet. I painted up an entire squad of Cyberpunk OTTers – that makes me smile. I won a painting competition (for the Little Alice diorama) and used the money to buy a guitar.
The last fifteen months have been pretty great for my hobby. But, by far, my biggest *hobby acheivement* was giving away about 90% of my unpainted miniatures. It was so cathartic!
Here’s some music for you:
And this week’s pledge? Well, I never did finish painting my Scooby Doo minis (in fact, I’ve not picked up a brush up for nearly a fortnight!) but recently got sidetracked making some infra-red LED emitting bases for an idea for piece tracking with a Raspberry Pi night-time camera. So maybe I’ll finish those this week and tackle Scooby next weekend….
@limburger I actually forgot that I did spend a few years learning Mandarin. I got to the point where I was passable at reading, writing, and speaking it but needed to be far more immersed in order to improve. Then kids came along and I chose to stop investing my time into it.
Regardless, I can’t actually remember ever encountering a hobby game or video that wasn’t in English anyway. I guess the internet algorithms are clever enough to only ever show me English language content.
The last fifteen months have been pretty great for my hobby. But, by far, my biggest *hobby achievement* was giving away about 90% of my unpainted miniatures. It was so cathartic!
Absolutely @blinky465… although that Alice model was something really special.
Managed to pretty much finish this today. I’m not a fan of painting vehicles but this wasn’t the worst experience. Now to fight with the Mars base-ready mix from Geek Gaming. I swore it would never use it again but it needs to match the rest of the donated army and that’s what was used on them
@ninjilly – you like “rock” music? You like country? You’re going to love Me First and the Gimme Gimmes “Love their Country”
It’s quite likely you’ve heard it already but if not – and to anyone to whom this is a new album – the opening track is just great, their version of the Eagles’ Desperados is… different and (the Dixie Chicks’) Goodbye Earl is amazing (the video is pretty good too).
The rock/country cross-over is a great vein of music to mine – I’ve always had a soft spot for “americana” and my little sister pointed out that most of the Wildhearts songs I love so much are basically country tunes, but with loud guitars and chant-along-choruses. You can hear the “Jason and the Scorchers” influence on many of their tracks
(Ginger went on to record a couple of actual country albums too – but under the pseudonym Howlin’ Willy C*nt, it was more than a little tongue-in-cheek)
@sundancer You haven’t heard how bad my accent can get… 😛 We had a German exchange student at our uni for a semester and I was actually very proud of the fact that I never let my ‘Allo ‘Allo style German accent slip or ‘mention the war’ (as Basil Faulty would say). 😛 I will say that if I am ever in a situation where I am trying to speak someone else’s language I tend to find that they respect the attempt even if it is a little clumsy and communicating in English is easier for everyone present. 😛 I actually got complimented on my pronunciation while I was in Norway.
@ninjilly – when your post first appeared, the image wasn’t show. That weathering is pretty darned impressive. Nice work!
I still struggle to “dirty up” my minis – so they all look brand spanky new and cartoon-like. It’s not the effect I aim for, but I’ve learned to embrace it now – all of my tabletop games take place in a Roger Rabbit type universe!
@blinky465 thanks, I was pretty happy with how it turned out. I don’t normally do much of it myself but I feel that vehicles often need it, figures less so. Then I remembered none of the rest of the army it was being painted to match has been weathered ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ I haven’t heard of Me First and the Gimme Gimmes but they are on in the background as I do some work tonight.
sundancer 2 years, 9 months ago.
