Some sacrifices have to be made in the name of progress. This year, thanks to the eternal battle for table space at Victorious on 15 August at Box Hill Town Hall, my magnificent giant dinosaurs have been evicted.

Yes, evicted.

For years they thundered across the table on glorious 100 mm hexes, terrifying explorers, flattening expeditions, and generally reminding everyone why humans should never have invented time travel.

Now? They’ve been replaced by their much smaller cousins on 25 mm hexes.

The down-sized dinosaurs based for painting.

The dinosaurs are not impressed. There have been complaints. I suspect a union meeting. There are also rumours they have hired a consultant to investigate unfair resizing practices.

The change has meant making an entirely new table, building fresh terrain, painting an alarming number of tiny plastic dinosaurs, and discovering that painting eyes on something smaller than your thumbnail is an excellent test of patience and eyesight.

Hills ready for painting and flocking

Of course, the experts tell me this is not downsizing. It is “optimising table efficiency.” That sounds suspiciously like the sort of thing the managers at Jurassic Park would have said just before everything escaped.

Tree hexes well on the way

If you are coming to Victorious, come and see whether the smaller dinosaurs are any less dangerous. Personally, I think they are simply better at sneaking up on unsuspecting explorers. After all, nobody ever said prehistoric predators had to be large to ruin your day.

Volcano ready for painting

Apparently even dinosaurs are not immune to shrinkflation. They may have lost three quarters of their table space, but they still have exactly the same attitude. Also never fear the Dinosaur rulebook is still the same size and at a great show discount as well!

David and Charles, who were the inspiration for the rules, will be on hand to guide you through your own Jurassic/Cretaceous adventure.