Another year older

With my recent birthday I officially tilted over the hill as it were. It got me thinking, what legacy do I leave to my sons, what advice do I give them? Have I learnt anything in my 41 years on this earth?
So, here is a wargamers advice to his sons. Some may be a little tongue in cheek...

1. Craft knives are sharp, if it is being used to cut metal, it's going to make a horrible mess of your fingers at some point. Blunt knives are worse though because they jump about all over the place, replace blades regularly.
2. If you are going to use a Dremel to drill out the the rivets of a Hot Wheels car to convert for Gaslands, wear the damn safety goggles.
3. Always undercoat. There is no such thing as speed painting, apart from once a year at Salute.
4. If you are going to paint anything smaller than 20mm, do it while you are young and you can still see it.
5. Historical gamers may look down on sci-fi/fantasy gamers and they may look down on RPGers, but everybody looks down on LARPers.
6. If you are going to pour your own lead into moulds in the kitchen, it will put holes in the kitchen counter (Well, your Grandfather learnt that one, but it is still a valuable lesson.)
7. When making a spectacular crater filled gaming table, consider how the dice will fall when rolling them. They like to roll flat.
8. You can never have enough dice, buy more dice.
9. You will never paint all your models, just admit it, you will sleep better.
10. You could spend hours researching the perfect detail on a historical uniform, or you could, if asked, claim alternative history.
11. If you are going to spend a fortune on toy soldiers, spend a bit more on suitable storage. Don't let it get ruined by keeping it in a cardboard box that is going to collapse with damp in the garage.
12. Never wait for your friends to finish an army in the period you want to play. You will have to paint both sides if you ever want a game.
13.  There will always be shinier and prettier models and rulebooks.
14. Always undercoat in black so that if you miss a bit it just looks like a dark shadow on the model, unless you want the colours to pop, and then undercoat in white.
15. Scale creep is a phenomenon that we are just going to have to accept will happen. Measure creep, is on the other hand, just cheating and not acceptable.
16. There are loaded dice out there and people do try it. They should be made to swallow them.
17. Lose graciously, it's just a game. Just enjoy yourself, be a good sport.
18. Wargame the story, not the system, recreate a tale.
19. Don't be a metagamer. Nobody likes it.
20. Rulebooks aren't legally binding. If you want to come up with some house rules and you agree on them they go for it.
21. Better still, write your own.
22. Buy and paint a model because you think it looks cool and you think you'll enjoy painting it, you'll find a use for it later.
23. Don't make your hobby a chore. Remember you are not beholden to it.
24. Share your joy, in whatever way suits you, don't be embarrassed of your hobby.
25. Get out there and talk to other gamers. Unless they are LARPers, avoid the LARPers.
26. Wargaming will teach you many transferable skills. One of the most useful, how to find storage solutions.
27. If you are GMing a role-playing session, the longer you spend planning, the less likely your players will decide to follow the route you want them to.
28. You can paint kilts if you really put your mind to it.
29. You can also paint eyes if you really put your mind to it. Unless you are painting 8mm. Don't be a moron. You aren't that bloke that paints Mona Lisa on rice grains.
30. Be willing to try someone's else's game.
31. Always finish the base of your model. A flocked base makes a model look infinitely better.
32. Drilling and pinning is worth it.
33. You will superglue your fingers together at some point. Don't panic, just peel apart.
34. You definitely can never have enough dice.
35. There is no greater smell than the fresh smell of a newly opened board game or wargame.
36. Closely followed by laser cut MDF.
37. Be adventurous, scratch build, convert, surprise yourself.
38. Don't compare yourself to the painting competition winners, they are the exceptions to the rules. Paint to your own standard. You will improve with time, even if you never get to that unobtainable standard.
39. Invest in some good brushes, you'll be surprised at the difference it makes.
40. You will put your brush in your tea on the odd occasion, don't worry, it won't do you any harm, just don't drink the paint water.
41. Find an understanding partner. One that when shopping for a dining room table, considers the width as well as the length to ensure it makes a good gaming table, without even consulting you.