The South Island’s annual gaming convention brought Warhammer 40,000 and other table top war-game players to the Edgar Centre in Dunedin for an expanded SouthCon 2022 on Saturday and Sunday.
St Kevin’s College science teacher Adrian Haig, of Oamaru, took along an army of pirate Orks to wage war on other players.
Haig, who has been playing Warhammer 40,000 for 33 years, said learning the game’s rules and "tricks", knowing how to capitalise on advantages, and remaining aware of what an opponent was doing, were among his keys to success.
In the game, opponents play out battles using miniature models of warriors and fighting machines, and every army had its own "flavour", Haig said.
For many players, a large part of the appeal is building an army, because the miniatures players use do not come ready-to-play.
Instead, players collect parts and are expected to assemble and paint their armies themselves.
Over the three decades he has played, Haig said he averaged painting miniatures one hour every night.
It was his favourite part of the game, he said.
The army he brought to Dunedin, he had been developing for 10 years.
"It’s huge," Haig said.
"I’ve got way more than I need and it takes up an enormous amount of space at home.
"It’s fun though."
Otago Miniature Tacticians Society president Kelly Gragg said the two-day tournament attracted 85 players to Dunedin from Christchurch to Invercargill.
It was the first time the SouthCon had been held at the Edgar Centre and was hosted there after it outgrew its previous venue at Age Concern last year.
As tournament organiser, Gragg developed the "mission packs" for the Warhammer 40,000 games competitors played.
And while it was the most popular, it was only one of eight systems being played at the convention,
Alongside Warhammer 40,000, dice and miniatures were being used in battles of Warhammer Age of Sigmar, Lord of the Rings, World War 2-based games and Napoleonic-era clashes, Gragg said.
