The Life and Times of Julius T. Smyrk

I suspect that my interest in old school gaming comes from a bit of a different route than many of its other proponents on the net.

My introduction to the world of Games Workshop and its various mythos came in 1991 when I convinced my parents to buy me a copy of White Dwarf that I had more or less randomly picked up off the shelf in the news agents. This was issue 140 (I still have it along with many other classic issues). I remember being fascinated by the weird and wonderfully creatures and machines on display in its Golden Demon round-up.

From this simple beginning I continued on to the common entry route of Heroquest and Space Crusade. However although I own the original Rogue Trader rulebook (now somewhat battered) my primary interests within Games Workshop have been around the periphery firstly playing Epic scale with the second Space Marine box set (and later Titan Legions) before moving on to Necromunda.

As such I didn't really play either of the core games during this period and eventually other life pressures and general disillusionment with the direction of GWs games meant that I left the hobby.

I still kept one eye on the goings on despite not playing or collecting anymore, but increasingly the modern take on the 40K universe inspires me less than the less refined but more open Rogue Trader era.

Now my move back into this era of gaming has been very much inspired by the wave of 'Oldhammer' and Retro gaming blogs and threads I have encountered across the net in the last few years.

So its more a case of buying things that I wish I'd bought at the time but never did rather than seeking out figures I once owned and subsequently disposed of. Consequently I don't have an existing collection of figures from this era so have started essentially from scratch.

Hopefully I might actually have physical to show next time.

Cap'n Smyrk


So it was in the beginning; so ever it shall be. - Credo of the Iron Hands