Hello, friend.
Hello there. My name is Lorenzo. Welcome to my blog where I write about tabletop wargames. In order to introduce myself, I should probably tell you how this is all came about. Let me tell you a story.
Miniature Painting
Software engineer by day, geek by night, I am passionate about miniature wargames. My love for the tabletop was born when I was about 7. I saw an ad for a Warhammer miniature. I was captivated by the details. It was just so cool. And so I began painting with a friend of mine.
Every week on Fridays, my dad would drop me off to the shop (this one!) where I would spend countless hours painting tiny figures with others. I remember fondly of that time. If it wasn’t for that, Badgeroid wouldn’t be here.
The story continues.. I never got to play Warhammer Fantasy. It was way too expensive for a kid. Eventually, I found my taste for wargaming. I started playing Warmachine and Hordes from Privateer Press. It was a magical time, seeing those tiny dudes moving along and punching my opponent’s to the ground. Or the other way round actually.
Tabletop RPGs
Then there was Dungeons and Dragons. That’s where the RPGs came in. I was mindblown about the idea that you can do anything with your character. Do you want to go kill the big bad? Check. Do you want to start farming radishes for the local tavern? Check. It was an absolute blast. Me and my friends had a campaign running for years, and we went on the craziest adventures together. All while sitting around a table. We shared together the highs and the lows, the drama, the fights, the laughs. It was absolutely fantastic.
Time passed, and life got in the way. Gone were the days where I could spend countless hours painting Warhammer miniatures or playing Dungeons and Dragons with friends. I didn’t have much time, or at least I was pretending I was too busy for it) to dedicate to this passion of mine so it fell on the sideways.
How it’s going
Boardgames
I moved to the UK in 2012, while I was trying to sort my life out. I was lucky enough to find an awesome job for a videogames company as an programmer intern. See? I guess games will always be part of my life in a way.
Some great colleagues of mine introduced me to the world of boardgames. I had always thought that boardgames were just Risk or Monopoly, and I’m glad that I was wrong. Crunchy euro? Got it. Silly party game? Done. Heavy coop? Got you.
It was so different from the lifestyle game that was Warmachine or Warhammer. A single experience self-contained within a box. I was immidiately captivated.
MOAR tabletop
I owe so much to this wargames and tabletop games. Through the tabletop I have forged many friendships and lasting memories. I have told stories, I created art, I teased my brain, I laughed, I screamed and I dreamed. I wouldn’t be who I am today without it.
And this brings us to today. I have a healthy boardgame collection. My wife would say a bit too healthy.
I have a few miniatures painted under my belt, and I play wargames when I can. I love every aspect of the hobby, and I want other people to enjoy it as well.
That’s where badgeroid.com comes in. This blog is a ode to the tabletop sphere, as a way to say thanks. But also a way to put my personal spin on it.
Over the years I have seen the community moving towards the “new shiny thing”. Games Workshops releases so many things all the time. Kickstarters are getting bigger, more expensive and filled with more and more plastic.
FOMO practices are everywhere. Sometimes is more important than the experience itself. And I want to talk about it.
I think it’s a shame that wargames are reduced simply to the next brand new thing. Games are more than that.