Historicon 2024 - Friday's Tables of Interest & Short Review

Another quick trip to Lancaster this week. It had been many months since I had been and Cold Wars was very much missed. 

There wasn't much hype going into Historicon this year in my usual channels and I was a little worried about that. And typically there seems to be more energy than there was on Friday mornings. I spent half the time in the dealer hall and didn't find much to compel the wallet out. It certainly wasn't very crowded and I hope things picked up. I may be getting old, or maybe there wasn't much new to be excited about. But then key stuff was missing. No Old Glory for the first time in, I think, decades, and there seemed to be others that weren't there this year too, like the folks who carry Wargames Accessories, Peter Pig USA (who've been gone for years), and others. No vendors carrying Pro-Acryl or other new exciting paint lines like AK Interactive or the new Vallejo paint lines. There were manufacturers there but a fair share of plain mobile hobby stores that had the same offerings as a booth down the way. There was new stuff - in Sci Fi and adventure gaming maybe, but my horse and musket, or colonials are no longer the main attraction.

The gaming areas however, seemed more energized. I noticed a lot more women and kids actually playing and of course many other women were quietly knitting to bide their time. 15mm ACW remains a solid staple which I'm always glad to see. Napoleonics in any scale, though present, much less so. Also I noted an awful lot of 54mm games of various sorts.

Though there were lots of folks enjoying games I did not see a ton of showcase boards. You know, the ones that make you go Wow! and stare in admiration. Many solid and competent looking tables but only a couple that knocked my socks off. I hope Saturday was better. Most were clearly having fun and in the end that's what makes it all possible yet I left on kind of a dour note, despite seeing old friends and talking to tons of great people. It's a good crowd, but maybe smaller than I'd seen it in awhile. Even Wally's Basement seemed lightly populated.

I've spent years- decades- rebutting those that say our hobby is dying. And though many more make a living in the gaming and miniatures industry, I did catch a regrettable whiff of decay on the historical end of things. The "Warhammer IS the hobby" crowd may be more right than ever at long last. NOVA Open, for example, positively hums with energy and excitement, but their historicals footprint doesn't exist at all.

In any event, on to the pics! That you'll see many games that you've seen before on this blog is more evidence of there being something just a little bit off. Again I look forward to seeing shots from the whole event - I really need and want to be wrong on my assessment.

This time I'm going to start with the best that I had seen - and that is the 54mm Pickett's Charge game. It had just begun as I rolled up and it really is a marvelous endeavor:

The board itself is simple enough with varying terrain mats laid out but what makes this special are the litttle mises en scène scattered around that really give it a lived in, real world feel.

Outside the vendor hall were some old favorites including a new D-Day diorama:

I love these

These are great pieces - I love this kind of thing.

Adjacent to the dealer hall is a large gaming space that also includes the tournament boards. At my arrival, there seemed to be much less than normal. I'll start with my favorite - this wonderful Alamo board:

I did learn who made these hedge rows ultimately - (from last year), but they are long out of business.

Gaming boards don't have to me hyper realistic to be awesome. These simple, clean boards are just great.

I like this basing - this is for a Crusader game - another shot below.

Then, within the boundaries of the dealer space were several play test tables - I did like the vibes of this Moonstone game especially:

Colorful and beautifully painted - but not my thing ultimately. The workmanship and invention demands appreciation however.

I'm not the only one who can raid a Michael's for terrain materials!

Lots of stuff needed for this Et sans résultat (ESR) Napoleonic game. Their campaign source books are really amazing - full uniform guides for all units provide a one stop shop for a lot of really useful information.

I've always loved these Gettysburg Soldiers' set ups. Great big units - looks awesome!

On the floor above are where the major gaming areas are run. At the top of an escalator I found a cool Sharpe Practice game in progress. I really wish Crescent Root Studios were still making and painting these excellent peninsula buildings:

More Napoleonics with a really impressive Austrian army on the assault!

I love the muted tones of this ACW battlefield; olive is where it's at.

A great Franco-Prussian game - Perry figs and GeoHex: magic!

At first glance this appears to be a Ridley Scott production!

This period is in want of a great and stirring epic movie to inspire the public.

Nice teddy bear mat here!

More olive and cd-rom tree bases - great pieces!

Neighbor Mark running a game. I look forward to seeing more of this on the YouTube.

More 15mm ACW action!

Lovely Arnhem game. I dream of having a place to store that bloody bridge model!

I'm not sure what this game was - it being so dense with players. Looks interesting!

Another Sharpe Practice game - but in the ACW.

I love these yards - great table!

Another angle on Arnhem.

Tennesseans moving up!

54mm WW1 game - the lighting was too bad to get more pics of this one.

Superb terrain pieces here.

Wiley Games! Had I more time I would have tried to get in on one of these.

Interesting pre-painted flats. I'm not ready to convert to this having decades vested in more mainstream processes but it's appeal is self evident.

I love this urban center - looks like a fun game.

The one Wars of Ozz table I saw on the date - a fraction of the real estate it had enjoyed last year at this time.

Terrible picture - this was based on the Mummy movies and the host was amiable and funny. I'm sure people enjoyed this one.

We shared a chuckle about the Legion duking it out under the pyramids.

I finally got my hands on my own Citadel Graveyard which I need to gussy up - but fun to see this rarity in play somewhere.

 Despite my misgivings, the above pictorial here really undercuts my position I led with in this essay. There are still quite a few folks putting on some terrific looking games. There was no shortage of laughter and camaraderie in my few hours there Friday. As I said, I hope I am quite wrong about my initial prognosis, and that Saturday was an extravaganza and that Historicon 2024 shattered attendance records and we are on an incredible post-Covid growth trajectory!

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