In a very laborious
and roundabout way Harry Parkhill (of the Entmoot podcast, and Battle Games in
Middle Earth Youtube channel) discusses why you should join him at a tournament
when the Great British Hobbit League restarts later this year.
I always had this preconceived notion about
wargaming tournaments; that they were full of the kind of nerds you never like
to think of yourself as. You know the ones, they’re a little too into the game, they know just a
little too much about the profiles
and they’re perhaps a little bit more touchy about how long 6 inches is.
“That’s a long Six
inches”, they’d say.
I had this notion because it had been inherited from ‘groupthink’ at the gaming club in my hometown. When
I told them I was heading off to Warhammer World for a 40k school league event,
they said they hated tournaments. It was all “too competitive”; people were
unwelcoming and often downright rude they claimed. Even though that tournament
was great fun (we actually won!), I never made the effort to go to one again. I
guess I was young, I didn’t have
access to a car, and my mum has always been the first to laugh at my
‘nerdiness’ when I mention Warhammer so it’s fair to say I wasn’t keen on the
idea of convincing her for a lift to spend the weekend doing it.
So I didn’t.
That tournament was consigned to history. History became
Legend. Legend became myth. And for six-and-a-half years (roughly) that memory
passed out of all knowledge.
Then the unlikeliest thing happened. I
picked out one of my oldest and favourite plastic models (a Minas Tirith
Warrior) from the Middle Earth range and put paint and brush to it. The reason
was that in 2016 rumours had circulated that Games Workshop weren’t going to
renew their license to make Middle Earth models (don’t trust rumours). I was
horrified. This was my childhood; the reason I got into wargaming. I began
pouring through eBay (back when it had a Capital B in the middle – aah, those
were the days). I bought pretty much anything – but particularly the old metal
sculpts I assumed would be first to go. It was a furious and addictive spending
spree. My quizzical girlfriend was confused as to why I was buying so much and
painting so little, but what does she know of such necessities!? They’re mine,
I didn’t feel like parting with them, they came to me (in the post).
Then as luck would have it, I stumbled on
the unlikeliest of videos. Whilst searching for painting tutorials, I stumbled
across a battle report.
What’s this? A ring… of people still playing the game?
I had never really played the Lord of the
Rings Strategy Battle Game, I’d only played a bit on my own, and maybe with
some of my friends when I was at primary school. But it was never the ‘actual’
game, using the official rules, just some weird quasi-dice-rolling-army-man
game. Here were people actually doing it, and not all that long ago (I watched
it, according to my Youtube watch history, in April 2016 and it had been
released in November 2014).
From there I discovered the GBHL Facebook
page, and the league itself. “What must I do?” I thought. I couldn’t live
vicariously through these videos when the world was on my doorstep. So I
bundled my sleeping roll together, grabbed my walking staff and headed to a
tournament in Nottinghamshire. I met a few people who made a fantastic
impression (Dan Entwistle, as the welcoming organiser particularly stood out) They
helped shepherd me into a world which was simultaneously challenging and
exhilarating. It’s never easy making new friends, but I tried with gusto to
ingratiate myself into the groups of people who clearly knew one another
(hopefully I wasn’t “that guy” who was a bit too friendly). I was taught
valuable lessons about the game (mainly how to play it… but also about putting
heroes behind your troops so crossbows don’t cut them down) but I also found
there was passion and heart in the Middle Earth Scene.
These weren’t the finicky, unpleasant nerds
I’d worried about – these were warm-hearted people I shared a great passion
with. Not just the gaming and the models, but the worlds of Tolkien too. I was
joining an exciting adventure, a new phase in my life with friendships that
were no longer defined by school, university, work, or even where I lived, but
by a fierce passion. These people were willing to travel to Nottinghamshire
from around the country (and I’d been willing to travel on the gamble that I’d
enjoy it), we had been united by that cause.
This feeling of belonging is something
difficult to find in adult life – and is something which I think most of us
probably search for. We connect with people for a number of reasons, but common
interests are probably top of that lists.
So think about it; SBG tournaments combine
so many niche passions – reading, painting, modeling, the worlds of Tolkien,
the films of Peter Jackson, the pleasure of pulling together the puzzle pieces
in an army list, the delight of challenging someone to a game of wits, the
spirit of adventure that comes by travelling to another part of the country (or
world), and of course the social interaction that comes from spending time in
the company of strangers who share all these interests. That’s a long list, and
if you think any of those sounds like fun then you’d fit right in.
So why should you go to an MESBG
tournament? Ultimately, you’re already interested, because you’re reading this.
There’s already a box of tinder, and pyramid of wood waiting, all you need is
the spark which roars into all consuming fire that this hobby can be. You can
be the next companion in this Fellowship of tournament goers.
Great… When are we going?
Dan Slob: Thanks so much Harry! Check out the excellent Entmoot Podcast here!