On the 4th Day of Xmas: Gaming & Events in 2024

Hi everyone,

After an amazing year of events in 2023 let’s take a look forward to what’s going on with shows, organised play, and other cool things for the year ahead.

We can really feel the excitement levels building for Kings of War again, and the tournament scene seems to be growing faster than ever before!

We’re not just talking about the phenomenal UK Clash of Kings tournament with 145 people, but also events across the US, some hosting 100+ players.

We keep on hearing about brilliant events going on around the world. The scene in Australia also continues to grow, and there are many events in Spain with 40+ attendees. I later discovered 150 players in Argentina too!

And it’s not even just Kings of War, we’re seeing a growing number of Firefight and Deadzone events as well. What a time to be part of the community!

Put Your Gaming On The Map

You can find the events calendars for each gaming system right here on the Mantic Companion. Even now, there are already some 2024 tournaments springing up on this page, and we expect this calendar to just keep on filling out in the new year.

If your event isn’t on the list yet – make sure to let us know about it here! It not only helps attract local players to your event, but shows potential new players how active the competitive scene is in their area.

We now also have the Club Directory to help new players find their local club. There’s a few on here already, but we know for a fact that there’s LOADS more of you out there. Make sure to add YOUR club to the map!

Introducing Tobias

On top of all that gaming goodness, we’re also attending shows like Salute, UK Games Expo, Adepticon, GENCON, and more! Oh, then of course there’s the Mantic Open Days. And maybe some launch events. And how about fully re-opening our on-site store*, AND bringing back the Mantic HQ tours, AND giving the Pathfinder programme a real boost, AND…

Phew – just thinking about all of that it’s clear that we needed some help for Pat! So, I am pleased to announce that a new team member, Tobias, is joining Team Mantic in January 2024!

He joins us with massive hobby and event experience, and he will take our face-to-face interactions to the next level. Tobias is joining us to welcome you when coming to tour Mantic HQ, heading out to meet you at shows and events, sorting out organised play, and recruiting/co-ordinating awesome Pathfinders who will help us introduce our games to new players the world over.

Not much then – we’ll have to go and think something else up to keep him busy! 😉

*Yes, you read that right – we will be fully reopening our on-site store in 2024. Keep an eye out soon for more info on booking HQ tours and updated opening times!

A Song of Bards & Rum

One of the additions to the organised play kit will of course be the star of the show – the new, unique and super special Ronnie the Bard’stard! This is a lovely hand-cast resin model that will be given away FREE to anyone who takes a Mantic Army to an event.

I asked the rules committee to write some ‘appropriate’ rules for this model…and they didn’t disappoint! All to be used at TO’s discretion, of course. 😉

We kicked this idea off at Clash of Kings, where we had over 75% of the attending armies fully Mantic! This was a really beautiful display of effort and commitment from the attendees, and it was great to be able to reward that with something special.

There were a number of (seriously) stunning armies. The very best are coming up to our HQ for a day in early 2024 so we can professionally photograph the armies and share the images with you all – (and also give them some well-deserved bottles of Goblin Blaster Rum). In addition to the winners there was a terrific amount of really solid, gaming armies, with great basing and innovative paint schemes, and you could see all the love and care spent making them.

A few weekends later Blake at the Michigan GT and the crew also got their exclusive event minis, given out to anyone who’d got their Mantic army battlefield ready….and some Dwarfen rum (or a non-alcoholic version for those who do not drink) will be following for the best painted Mantic armies once I know how to legally ‘smuggle’ rum into the USA!

Wait, dwarfen rum, you say? And from a mighty fine vintage too…

A Very Cunning Plan!

Obviously these are (very) thinly-veiled attempts to get you playing Mantic Games with…*gasp*…Mantic Miniatures.

Now, I know a few of you may cry foul and call me a bard’stard for what seems such an obvious thing – so please let me explain and clarify Mantic’s, or rather my, position on this…and then you can cry foul if you must! Let’s use Kings of War as the obvious example. In a nutshell…

I would like you to play Kings of War with our minis, rather than someone else’s. It means that we’re making great games and miniatures for our community. That’s absolutely my goal – always has been, and always will be.

BUT we have always known that it takes time and money to collect a new army. We’re all hobbyists here, so we know it takes time and effort to get an army painted – never mind get one finished early enough for a tournament, and ensure you’ve had time to play, and be competitive with it!

So, we welcomed everyone from the beginning – ‘dig out your old armies and learn to play Kings of War’ – so everyone could find out how great it is! We even wrote the Uncharted Empires book to help players from other game systems come and start playing in our own fantasy world.

This is because I would still rather you play Kings of War with other minis than NOT play it at all!

So if that means you have to wheel out a metal hobby project from 1983 in order to get started – well heck – you’re still playing the best rank and flank fantasy wargame in the world! So let’s cut you a little slack – we’re delighted that you’ve on the journey with us.

Special Minis & Mantic Points

This is why we are now offering the cool collectors models. Show up to a tournament with a Mantic army, and you’ll get the ‘impossible to buy’ mini. Maybe your Mantic army will even win the Painting Prize, such as dwarfen rum, or another in-world artifact…

This way there is no punishment for playing with your old minis – but we will think up fun ways to reward you when you play with ours!

Each year we plan to release a special new ‘Events Mini’. In 2024, by popular demand, we will have ‘Kyle the God of (Kings of )War’ – who will be unveiled at the UK’s Clash of Kings 2024. Bring a Mantic army (just not the same one as last time), and get the new model!

Oh, and I know many people don’t play competitively – so you will be able to get these limited edition models for Mantic points too – more on that in the new year – but suffice to say we’ve been working on a proper refresh. You asked, and we will are doing it (at last)!

Wrapping Up

So, please join me in welcoming Tobias, and I really do hope I’ll also get to see you at an event in 2024.

Finally, a HUGE thank you to all the event organisers who have made playing games – competitive or otherwise, such fun for all of us in 2023, and I am looking forward to many, many more great gaming activities and events in 2024 and beyond.

Keep rolling 6s!

Ronnie