by Eric Hoerger – Eric is an experienced tournament player with a bunch of event wins under his belt. An American who’s been living and gaming in the UK for several years now, Eric is moving back to his native USA, and looking to get back into AOS at the same time. With the return to a 12-monthly GHB cycle, a lot of people are looking for an on-ramp back into this increasingly complex game, so we were delighted to host Eric’s reflections.

G’day mates, Eric here with a bit of an introspective look at why I hobby, with a particular look on how to get the most out of events-centric Age of Sigmar. When I reached out to Peter about working on this article, I was at (and am) at a time of profound shift in my own life. I’m in the process of an international move back to the U.S., and expecting our second child. I used to be quite involved in the U.S and U.K. competitive scene for AOS and 40k, but since COVID—and fatherhood—I haven’t been able to keep up with the game or events anywhere with anywhere near the consistency that I would have liked. As a result, I’ve struggled to find my hobby groove and to identify what exactly causes this irresistible draw to schedule and attend AOS events.

It’s different for everyone

With a little bit of encouragement, I brainstormed an initial list of what drew me to the hobby in general, and to event-centric hobby in particular:

• Escape
• Artistic expression
• Something you have a bit more control over in life
• Relaxation/unwinding
• Making new friends
• Meeting up with old friends
• Desire for status within a community
• Enjoy the thrill of list constructions and tinkering
• Having a goal to work towards

A key theme emerged from all this: why do we hobby is a personal question that can evolve over time, and is different for everyone. And that is ok! (And not something we should gatekeep).

In my own case

From there, I looked at gaming (in this case for me, events), and what are the potential rewards I could get out of them:

• Developing a (fake) nemesis (definitely the best part!!!!)
  • This is the one I feel the need to touch on a bit more. One of the most enjoyable parts of eventing over many years came in the form of a friendly rivalry with Markus Hinson on the 40k side, due to our frequent meetings at the top tables of events in the UK. After playing 3-4 times in the span of 6 months—and me getting super lucky each time to win when I had no right to—we knew that we were gunning for each other at each event we went to, and we developed friendly trash talk and our own personal mini-games for placing better than each other. Through this process, we became very close friends.
  • Developing a fake nemesis generally works best within your local or regional gaming scene, and is someone you get on with and are at similar skill levels. I find this both pushes you to continue to innovate, and fortifies strong social interactions. For best effect, formalize the challenge and create your own competitions within broader events. Costume contests, most ridiculous armies, or even write lists for each other and see who does best (or worst) with them. Don’t take it too seriously, and have lots of fun
• Friendship
• Accolades from peers for interesting list designs
• Accolades for your painting, whether in absolute terms or in improvement over time
• Stretching your comfort zone
• Personal satisfaction for completing a project
• Testing if (list or paint) theory plays out in practice
• Creating stories
• Fame and Fortune Miniature wargaming from an event-centric perspective remains a cost-negative effort in terms of payout for “winning” and that can leave a hollow feeling. No one remembers or cares who won 2^nd place seven years ago at an event, unless accompanied by a good story.

So what does this mean for my own hobby adventure? We’ve established that trying to “chase the meta” and be the best at any cost might be the right move for other people, but for me it doesn’t achieve any of the rewards above. Instead, trying to find what brings me joy and forces me to stretch my comfort zone on painting and playing is where the real value lies.

Also, I need to push out of my introverted shell to make friends who are as addicted to this weird and wonderful hobby as I am! Below are my hobby goals for the coming year; if you see me at an event in the States in the coming year, come say hi and let me know how I’m doing at them!

• Build and paint what makes me happy, not what the internet says is good or to conform to a rubric. It’s good to stretch my abilities, but focus on what brings joy
• Build interesting armies that are engaging, not embrace the skew (unless the skew is hilarious)
• Success in events is measured in friendships made or rekindled, not wins
• Its ok to want to do well, but it isn’t the main barometer of success
• Take more social risks in striking up conversations with people I don’t know—a tough proposition for an introvert!

Thanks to Eric for that reflective piece. Good luck with the big move my friend!

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