Alongside our space at the fair in Macerata there was this open wooden suitcase with a gladiator arena modelled inside. All in 20mm scale. Look at the terraces and the fences. A fine work of art.

I’m thinking to the next Lucca Comics & Games. Yes, it is for the 1st of November but I have to prepare something to show to the audience. I haven’t got Zen Garden boxes anymore because I stopped their production. Maybe a new release in cardboard? Well, I wish newer things to old ones so I don’t think to give new life to the garden. This year I must complete my gladiatorial rules, so I haven’t so much time to develop another set of rules. Neither a fill-in. I have a great idea and I have started to work on this new project, but now it’s not the right moment. I hope my long awaited Ferrum et Gloria will be ready for November. Yeah, I know that I’m saying this thing year after year… So what to do? A playable and simplified demo? Playing with bigger figures? Propose a larger table with special effects? However I and Andrea have to think to what will be ready at that date for Ganesha Games so we can focus our efforts on some presentation. In the meantime the old Lucca C&G 2013 strike back. I found this official video on our Miniature Island. Sad thing: I and my table is not on it! However you have a general view of our space and Andrea is on it. Enjoy.

The last post on Lucca Comics & Games 2013. Always in the Miniature Island but regarding only our space as Ganesha Games.

We had some new realisations: BattleSworn, Samurai Robots Battle Royale, Of Gods And Mortals, Non Andare Nel Bosco D’Inverno. Song of Shadows and Dust was still only in digital format.

Andrea presented his last games with a double scenario, so he could play with monsters and robots or with gods or gambling warriors.

This is my table. On the left the debut of my small arena for Ferrum et Gloria. On the right the demonstration game with Zen Garden in its best and last White Edition.

At the end I sold all the copies. Here the empty space after the last box was sold. I’m happy of what I obtain with this game. I met a lot of people and some of them now is playing with my game. I must start to think on something new to bring at convention. Maybe I will develop an easy version of Ferrum et Gloria for casual players.

An official photo of the presentation of Of Gods And Mortals by Osprey in the conference hall of the Games pavilion.

Andrea after he was awarded with the prize called Premio Conan for the 2013. It stand out the best Italian personality for wargame world.

With this photo you can note the differences between my camera (the bottom photo) and a professional one (the upper photo). Add the unstable hand of Andrea and you can obtain a blurred photo of me at the end after 4 days of fair. Ready for another Lucca in 2014!

I reported only something of what happened in the days of Lucca C&G. Too much things to do and to see. And now more than two months are distant from this event. However I hope I showed you what this huge fair means. So you could be here for the 2014 edition. Now it is time to concentrate on our specific area of interests: wargame.

We were inside the Games pavilion, in an area called Miniature Island. Around us there were some miniature related stands, than demonstration tables (where I was), and in the inside the painters area.

This a horse & musket wargame by our room mate in the hotel. I give him a couple of precious earplugs to survive to Andrea snoring.

A simple Napoleonic game by Narciso, now in the Clan Conan, veterans of demonstration games in Lucca.

Their huge playable scenario: Iwo Jima! Inside the Suribachi some tunnels are dug. To simulate the terrain they used huge amounts of coffee grounds! And all was assembled in the small living room of Narciso. That smelled of coffee, indeed.

Unofficial Games Workshop Warhammer 40000 demonstration battle. A nice group of alcoholic chaps ran these trenches and 4 days of fighting.

The magnificent trio: Sartori, Torriani, Sfiligoi. Presently they are the pillars of Italy regarding wargame rules. Their work is recognised outside our national and linguistic borders.

Losi, the martyr of last year Andrea snoring. This year he slept in another hotel. Co-author of the modern version of the Torriani’s wargame engine. In the fair he dressed as a Taleban or a private contractor. No, he is not totally mad. : )

The action in the streets of Iraq.

I feel the need of some concrete walls like these ones for my games…

A complete view of the set.

The new wargame by Torriani’s team is setted in Western period.

The painters area. He is Nano Nefasto (ill-omened dwarf), a professional painter from Brescia. On the left the Ludica team.

Luciano at work, illustrating how to paint miniatures.

Some of the pieces in the painting contest called Trofeo Grog.

Private collection by one of the painters.

The Blood Bowl gladiator squad by Auricchio grow convention after convention, year after year…

Always miniature sculpted by Auricchio: a 15mm Hastings range. Yes, 15mm, not 28mm!!!

Sculpting contest, always for Trofeo Grog: some gladiators.

My left thumb and a WWII US marine by Seven Samurai sculpting team.

1-48 Combat is back as 1-48 Tactic. This is a miniature for the game with his twin in a smaller scale.

We were a very large team in that mess. Some faces were the same of the previous years, some are new. Every evening we took a dinner together in various restaurants, the only moment when we could chat. We are part of a community, we are wargame players.

I have a lot of things in my backlog, so I concentrate my efforts to show you the main wargame conventions of November. But even in December there were interesting things, like this couple of fairs: Più Libri Più Liberi (small book editors fair) and Arti & Mestieri (handcrafted foods and objects). I spent a lot of money in books and foods, obviously. Moreover as Ganesha Games we met a couple of times to play with games and to playtest some secret future Osprey releases, eating pizza, Greek street food and drinking mjed. As Ferrum et Gloria author I playtested in another two occasions some new things for Ferrum et Gloria part 2. In the last days I refurbished this blog with new colours and contents.
In the meantime we even had Christmas and New Year events, with a lot of correlated lunches and dinners. January and February are empty as conventions or tournaments so I will be more free to work on FeG, even if at the end of January there is the Nettunia landing anniversay. Next posts still with Lucca 2013 report: it was an huge fair.

Last but not least, the part dedicated to Ganesha Games of the Ludica Roma 2013 full report.

Space is not a big problem in the pavilions of Ludica. So we obtained lots of tables to show rules and games. A DBA in 1:72 scale was organised by Diego.

On your wargame tables in 2016! One of the first playtests of some new ideas for a game by Andrea.

The first public preview of A Fistful Of Kung-Fu. Out by Osprey Publishing in February…

A photo from the first day in the fair. Building modular walls for my arena.

And after the masonry work, a chocolate snack. The candies stand poisoned the air with a terrible stench of chocolate. You couldn’t resist it for long. So I bought my waffel stick!

And here my arena. A lot of people appreciated it.

Those days my father was painting more spectators. However these are just all very active.

Among reenactors there were some involved in gladiatorial fights. A nice chap illustrated to people the specific disciplines of arena. I took advantage of the situation to brandish weapons and touch helms. So I could have a direct experience of what I studied and applied in Ferrum et Gloria.

Do you recognise the different kinds of helms? In Ferrum et Gloria you can understand why these are made in every specific way.

Shields and greaves. Due to hits, you can see as these are used in real fights.

In front of you an arbelas, with its crescent blade.

Back to Ganesha Games space. On the right a preview of the second volume of my rules: gladiatorial fights with ships.

A more detailed view.

An OGAM tournament was held the Saturday. I was very nervous because I only play it in playtests with Andrea mastering. Moreover I didn’t know the final version and how to build a winning strategy. Indeed this is my year: another great result, the third place! A Ludica gold dice and a book from Osprey as prize.

Another preview. I’m planning another game after Ferrum et Gloria. With this photo I suggest the topic of it. We knew in Ludica a reenactor of this historical period that is even a wargamer. An interesting meet.

Now we are waiting for Ludica Rome 2014. And the organisers are waiting for an analysis of the fair that I have to write to them. And you are waiting for other fair reports that still I have to write. In the meantime: Merry Christmas!

Perugia is near Terni, and Terni is near Rome. So Ganesha Games staff were in full force. Here a nice photo of me with a classic preview of Ferrum et Gloria and the first demo of gladiatorial fight on ships.

Sergio was with us too. This is another playtest and demo session of his latest game.

As I said, Giorgia Cosplay, and a cosplay contest, were in the convention. Here she, as Black cat, is trying to steal a copy of OGAM!

More tomorrow…

This Fall I have a very busy season about conventions, tournament and fairs. I play in tournaments or I run some demonstration games. In 3 months a total of 14 full days of wargames. You must add the necessary days for preparation, journey, rest. And remember that I have two real life jobs too. Well, this is like a third job, but without monetary earnings. This is the calendar:
7-8 Sep – Narnia Fumetto
21 Sep – DBA Rome
13 Oct – DBA Arezzo
31 Oct / 3 Nov – Lucca C&G
10 Nov – DBA Terni
16-17 Nov – GiocaPerugia
29 Nov / 1 Dec – Ludica Roma

Some news about OGAM. Andrea sent to people the pre-ordered books, signed with his autograph and seal. He started a little promotional tour together with 2 tournaments. The first will be played the 16th of November in GiocaPerugia, the latter the 30th of November in Ludica Roma. I have ready lots of miniatures for Greek and Norse armies, but more armies are on arrival as Irish Celts and Egyptians, and I have plans for Sea People and Sumerian armies. At the moment we don’t know how the book is selling, but if we receive the green light from Osprey, new official armies will be developed. I’m thinking to a Roman army too, because there is a difference between Zeus and Iuppiter. However we will support the game. And now is available an official XLS spreadsheet for Of Gods and Mortals to build the armies that are in the book.

In the meantime, a work in progress image from the illustrations inside Ferrum et Gloria. Too many events these days and too much work. So I haven’t the right attention to examine the text after the first editing. I have to add some paragraphs too. I’m working on the second book yet. My father is involved with the building of a small arena and two vessels for gladiatorial naval fights. On these pages you will follow the development of these things.