Checked shirts for the masses...

By the center!
I may actually have discovered a career. I'd never envisioned myself anywhere but in the Army, patiently slogging my way through mud and muck with a few qualifications under my figurative arm as an assault pioneer - on leaving the Army, I'd be a veritable jack of all trades, able to do any odd jobs and make fairly decent money under my own power. However, moving to England, put something of a damper on that, since I can't ever envision myself fighting for a country which isn't my own. To hell with the War on Terror; my fight is elsewhere - my mood isn't really helped on discovering that I actually have to pay to apply to stay in the UK for longer than the two years my first visa covers (£150 to stay? What the fuck? I paid to come here in the first place! That's my trip to Canada fund in ruins. ;_; FUCKING GOVERNMENT.). I hadn't thought of McDonald's as career material, however, I may have inadvertantly found myself just what I'd always dreamed of, but never really considered as possible. Games Workshop, yes, and then some.

It was suggested to me by my manager Rob Redman, who used to work at the studio itself, that I apply for a job at the Games Development Workshop. This is the man who smiled knowingly when I mentioned I needed a job that wasn't McD's and said, "Apply for a job here!" So... at this point, I don't have too much trouble believing there's something good at the end of the figurative rainbow. See, I voiced a question which has been asked by many a seasoned gamer in the GW sphere: "Why is there no 40K equivalent of Blood Bowl?" The answer is usually that it's insane - it'd be too much like Blood Bowl, to begin with, and you may as well play that. Ice hockey was brought up, but quickly shot down as too impractical. However, rather than most, I actually came up with a solution. What combines all the characterful elements of the 41st millenium, the dark and forbidding future that GW paints for us, with fast-paced fun and action that people can readily identify with? I came to the answer, and it is petrol-scented. So far, the 'Octanus Racing League' has taken GW Gloucester by storm, with sporadic reports of it being played by those in GW Gloucester and Bath - which is really something, considering the rules aren't finished and there's nothing more than basic one-off race stuff. People are keen, excited, enthused, and having a load of fun converting bikes to enter into the first 'edition' of Octanus (which really needs a better name).

I'm still working on more rules and expansion stuff - full leagues, experienced riders, skills and dirty tricks to upgrade your bike with - as well as a set of rules to allow a similar league using buggies, trucks and assorted light vehicles. Rob peered intently at the very first, ugly, hard-and-fast set of rules on just three pages of A4 and said, "Hey, that's neat." Then came the kicker about working in GDW. Dude. Seriously. I'm going to hit up Jenn and Stormi, see if they want a piece of the action in the form of 'artistic directors' or somesuch. I'll work on producing a nice, one-off rulebook once everything is complete and playtested, then send it off to development with my CV and a little note saying, "Imperial Guard rule!"

Y'never know.

Current Mood: chipper
Current Music: 'I Can't Get Behind That', William Shatner and Henry Rollins

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