Monday, November 25, 2013
Turkey Week!
It's an American tradition to do as little as possible before Thanksgiving! So that's what I'm doing now. Enjoy the week folks, pics of halfway built Eldar coming next week!
Monday, November 18, 2013
A Helping Hand
So now that I'm back up to a level of health that I can devote some time to the hobby, I'm looking forward to a couple of different items coming up.
First, I've thrown my hat into the ring to help with a local charity fundraiser, where a group of us 40k players have decided to build and sell an Eldar army to raise money for cancer research. Having a very apparent lack of painting skills, I've joined the build team, and over the next few weeks, I will be building a Wraithlord, a unit of Wraithguard, and a Wave Serpent. I've never built any Eldar before, so this should be a fun project. I'll be posting pics as I go.
Second, I've decided to challenge myself by learning how to sculpt with Greenstuff, and at the same time, learn how to paint better than I can now. So I'm doing a new army called "The Damned Army", a Space Marine list themed after the Legion of the Damned. The biggest difference is that ALL of the models will be featuring sculpted flame. Shoulder pads, feat, essentially the same as the iconography of the current Legion models, except with real flame instead of just symbols. Also, because I hate painting Marine Heads in detail, each of the Marines will have a skull suspended in flames. I have none of the models in my collection yet, and the list is very spendy, so I'm shooting for having this army finished in time for The Harvester in October 2014. I'll be posting pics as this project continues.
Lastly, I had another 1850 battle on Sunday night against my buddy D and his Tau army. His dice were hot, and even with a modified list of SM Bikers and allied Sisters, he kicked my butt thoroughly. We actually ended the game at the top of turn 2 due to time contraints, but with two full turns from me, I only managed to kill 2 of his units, but his one full turn removed 3 whole bike squads from the table. Not a good night, but still fun.
First, I've thrown my hat into the ring to help with a local charity fundraiser, where a group of us 40k players have decided to build and sell an Eldar army to raise money for cancer research. Having a very apparent lack of painting skills, I've joined the build team, and over the next few weeks, I will be building a Wraithlord, a unit of Wraithguard, and a Wave Serpent. I've never built any Eldar before, so this should be a fun project. I'll be posting pics as I go.
Second, I've decided to challenge myself by learning how to sculpt with Greenstuff, and at the same time, learn how to paint better than I can now. So I'm doing a new army called "The Damned Army", a Space Marine list themed after the Legion of the Damned. The biggest difference is that ALL of the models will be featuring sculpted flame. Shoulder pads, feat, essentially the same as the iconography of the current Legion models, except with real flame instead of just symbols. Also, because I hate painting Marine Heads in detail, each of the Marines will have a skull suspended in flames. I have none of the models in my collection yet, and the list is very spendy, so I'm shooting for having this army finished in time for The Harvester in October 2014. I'll be posting pics as this project continues.
Lastly, I had another 1850 battle on Sunday night against my buddy D and his Tau army. His dice were hot, and even with a modified list of SM Bikers and allied Sisters, he kicked my butt thoroughly. We actually ended the game at the top of turn 2 due to time contraints, but with two full turns from me, I only managed to kill 2 of his units, but his one full turn removed 3 whole bike squads from the table. Not a good night, but still fun.
Monday, November 11, 2013
Out for now
Sorry for the lack of posts these past couple weeks, I was in the hospital with pancreatitis. I'm slowly getting back on my feet, and have lots to tell you about when I do! Stay tuned!
Friday, November 1, 2013
The Harvester Results for Khuster's Cav
I am awake now, but still tired and sore from the Harvester GT. I walked away without any awards or random prizes this time, but I still feel good about my army. I can't give a full battle report with pics and turn-by-turn movements because I was busy playing. :P So here's how it went:
My Army:
HQ - Chapter Master Khuster - Space Marine Bike, Artificer Armor, Melta Bombs, The Primarch's Wrath
TR - (5) Bike Squads with 6 bikers, two Meltaguns, Attack bike with Multimelta, Melta Bombs
TR - Scout Squad with 10 scouts, 9 Sniper rifles, Melta bombs, Missile Launcher with Flakk
FS - Landspeeder Squadron with three speeders, each with Multimelta and Typhoon Missile Launcher
HV - Predator with Heavy Bolter side sponsons
FT - Aegis Defence Line with Quad Gun
And how it looked:
First up I faced Don, with his Orks and Imperial Guard (goblin) allies. We were playing on an ice board with special rules for winds that can effect Jink saves. They never really played into the game though. Still, the game was tough, and I was tabled in turn 4. He took out my anti-flyer weapons before his flyers came in, so I had an uphill battle on my hands.
The board:
His army:
So I now sit 0-1. It's a Swiss pairing event, so I'm in the bottom half, but still have a chance to come back!
Game 2 I only have a pic of the board. I was up against Rachel and her nids, and the deployment and board did not favor my bikes. She also had a Doom of Malan'tai, which I had never faced before. I ended up jammed up in each movement phase, not able to my move bikes how I needed, and was tables in turn 5. One turn more than the last game, so that was something to take away from this game. I learned that Vanguard deployment is going to be super dangerous for me, especially with lots of buildings. This board was against me, and Rachel was a very tactical opponent. Khuster leaves game 2 at 0-2. 3 more games to go.
The board:
The mission was fun, it was objective based, but the objectives were supplies dropped in on the second turn, and they scattered double distance from the center. However, the deployment was my worst enemy in this game, and I got bottled up in the far corner (thanks Vanguard deployment) and couldn't get my bikes out, they were just jammed up against each other. I was tabled in turn 5, and experienced the power that comes from the Doom of Malan'tai. Fun game, but a disappointing loss, and I now officially hate Vanguard deployment with bikes.
Game 3 I also only have a pic of the board, but it was against Shon, the same opponent I had earlier in the year at The Storm of Silence tourney. And what do you know? We brought the same lists to the tables (with a couple minor changes). I just kicked back and had fun, as did Shon. He's probably one of the nicest guys to play against, and his Chaos army looked very nice this year!
The board:
This mission was called "Iron Circle" and was probably the most fun mission I have ever played. The table was divided into quadrants, and we deployed in opposite corners (not a standard deployment at all!) Points were given for each quadrant, each heavy unit destroyed, and for having your warlord on top of the circle at the end of the game.
Shon had 3 heavy units, I only had one (the Predator), and I knew he was running double Heldrakes. So I parked my tank inside the Aegis defense line, and stuffed both into my own corner, so that if his flyers attacked it, they would go off the board. It was a smart move, as it kept my heavy unit safe the whole game. So I focused on the Heavy units, and figured that if I killed them, I'd have a chance to win.
As all plans do, it went to crap really fast. Despite packing 30 weapons that are S8 or better, he managed to stop me from popping his Land Raider until turn 4, and by then, it was a total slaughter. I did not get tabled this time, as both Khuster and the Predator lasted through the end of turn 6. Khuster held out against an entire squad for two turns of assault goodness, and only took a single wound. It was a fun way to end the first day of the tourney, and I love playing against Shon.
Sunday came quicker than I thought, and not all of the sore or tired was gone. I would point out to my wife later on that if I observe my usual Chinese food run at the end of tourney day 1, I feel better in day 2.
So now I'm sitting 0-3, and feeling like I might get a win today. With two coffees in my system, I'm getting more focused now.
Game 4 was intimidating, and yet probably one of my best played games ever. I was up against Travis, and a Chaos with Imperial Guard ally list that actually belonged to the store owner. (Travis had his entire army stolen just before the tourney started, so the owner let him borrow his own, fresh from the Feast of Blades) This was going to be a tough army. HQ was Abaddon in a squad of termies, all tucked into a Land Raider, with a Heldrake, a Vendetta, and a Manticore. By far, probably the best list to tear me apart in 3 turns or less.
The army:
The board:
This board was my bread and butter! Lots of open terrain means lots of movement. It was even Dawn of War deployment! I had to calm down a bit before we started. The mission was called "Page Five" and was a joke mission based on another minis game (Warmachine i believe) where the goal was to kill "the caster" or the enemies HQ. That was worth 5 points if you could do that and keep your own HQ alive for the game. There were also 6 objectives (the blue and gold spire things) worth one point each, and a two point objective (the cannon thingy). Now the pic above was taken right after set up, but by game 4, the terrain had moved a little. So during deployment, Travis was able to hold two of the spires on his side, and I couldn't deploy close enough to hold the two on my side. Drat.
I was focused enough to realize the advantage my army had over his, and with some basic guessing of distances, I realized that he had foot troops, and would not be able to contest or hold the two objectives on my side of the field. So at most, he could take and hold 4 of them. He had also deployed a single squad of troops on the hill near the cannon, so he was planning on taking that as well. Basic math will tell you that if I take out his HQ, keep mine alive, and hold just 2 objectives, I will win this one. But there are a few issues to deal with first.
In order of priority, his HQ must go down, which means I have to off a Land Raider, a squad of termies, and Abaddon. I also have to get rid of that Manticore or it's barrages are going to thin me out too much. In addition to that, his Heldrake will most likely come in on turn 2 (thanks to his Aegis with Comms Relay) so I have to take that out too, or my bikes will be off the table before I can kill his HQ. After those three things are done, I have to keep enough Troops alive to hold those two objectives, and keep Khuster out of range of everything.
So I stick the Scouts and Aegis within a single move of one of the objectives, and hope I have at least one bike left to hold the other. Khuster gets to take the Quad Gun, as I will need his BS 5 to down that Heldrake. I know that if Travis figures out what my plan is, he will hit me hard, and the fight could be over within a turn or two. So I deploy one unit of bikes in position to take the cannon, and spread the others out to look like I'm making a run at his defence line. I put the speeders in reserve, knowing they will just die if I don't bring them on later. Then, Travis makes his first mistake, he doesn't attempt to seize the initiative.
I stick to my plan, and in turn 1, Khuster's Orbital Bombardment immobilizes the Land Raider, so Abaddon and his squad jump out. That's his second mistake. Turn 2 my speeders come on, and fire everything at the manticore. A lucky shot penetrates, and destroys the launcher. In his turn 2, the Heldrake comes on, and Khuster penetrates the armor twice, but with snake eyes on the results table. It comes down to Khuster on the Quad Gun in turn 3. Abaddon goes off the table in turn 4 to over watch from a bolter on one of my bikes. Turn 5, Travis finally realizes I'm up to something, and rereads the rules. He realizes that if my HQ lives, he'll lose, as he's only seized 3 objectives, and we're contesting the 2 point objective. His vendetta moves over my defence line, and shoots at Khuster. Not enough to kill him though, thanks to his 4 wounds. Game ends, and I win, with less than half my forces on the table. Close, but enough. First victory of the tourney, and it tastes so sweet!
Game 5, and I'm up against an opponent that I've wanted to face for a while now, Bug Boy Joe, and his awesome army of Tyranids.
The mission is called "Battle on the Ridge". Yes, I appreciate the irony, and I know the TO set up the last game for me due to the army theme I have. I even got to deploy on the ridge.
The board:
The game went okay, I was not bogged down in Vanguard deployment, thanks to my earlier experience, but the turning point was when the Doom of Malan'tai killed one and a half whole bike squads in the first turn after arriving. It became a historical re-enactment after that, with Khuster dying to his swarm lord.
The end:
Tabled in turn 6. Not a bad ending, actually pretty fun! So what did I take away from this tourney?
1) Vanguard deployment is a hassle with bikes. I have to really think and plan, and it shows my hand to my opponent if I get it right. Not fun, but might be necessary to practice this deployment more until I feel more confident with it or figure it out for the future.
2) I have enough firepower to take out several targets during a game, but with the current list, I do not have the tools to table an opponent. Objective games where I can move, or specific target kill point games seem to be where I excel.
3) I'm probably asking for it by playing an army based off of one of the biggest cavalry blunders in history, but I don't care, this army is fun to play, win or lose!
As an after note, I was pleasantly surprised with my appearance score. I was not able to collect points for my display board, as it was built by Johnny McGinnis of Back to Work Studios, but even with my n00b skills at painting and modelling, I ended up with 50 of 65 possible points. That's a lot higher than what I scored my own army as prior to the judging, which was 38 of 65.
I took away no awards or random prizes, but a great sense of pride in my army, and lessons to be learned for the next army I play...
My Army:
HQ - Chapter Master Khuster - Space Marine Bike, Artificer Armor, Melta Bombs, The Primarch's Wrath
TR - (5) Bike Squads with 6 bikers, two Meltaguns, Attack bike with Multimelta, Melta Bombs
TR - Scout Squad with 10 scouts, 9 Sniper rifles, Melta bombs, Missile Launcher with Flakk
FS - Landspeeder Squadron with three speeders, each with Multimelta and Typhoon Missile Launcher
HV - Predator with Heavy Bolter side sponsons
FT - Aegis Defence Line with Quad Gun
And how it looked:
First up I faced Don, with his Orks and Imperial Guard (goblin) allies. We were playing on an ice board with special rules for winds that can effect Jink saves. They never really played into the game though. Still, the game was tough, and I was tabled in turn 4. He took out my anti-flyer weapons before his flyers came in, so I had an uphill battle on my hands.
The board:
His army:
Game 2 I only have a pic of the board. I was up against Rachel and her nids, and the deployment and board did not favor my bikes. She also had a Doom of Malan'tai, which I had never faced before. I ended up jammed up in each movement phase, not able to my move bikes how I needed, and was tables in turn 5. One turn more than the last game, so that was something to take away from this game. I learned that Vanguard deployment is going to be super dangerous for me, especially with lots of buildings. This board was against me, and Rachel was a very tactical opponent. Khuster leaves game 2 at 0-2. 3 more games to go.
The board:
The mission was fun, it was objective based, but the objectives were supplies dropped in on the second turn, and they scattered double distance from the center. However, the deployment was my worst enemy in this game, and I got bottled up in the far corner (thanks Vanguard deployment) and couldn't get my bikes out, they were just jammed up against each other. I was tabled in turn 5, and experienced the power that comes from the Doom of Malan'tai. Fun game, but a disappointing loss, and I now officially hate Vanguard deployment with bikes.
Game 3 I also only have a pic of the board, but it was against Shon, the same opponent I had earlier in the year at The Storm of Silence tourney. And what do you know? We brought the same lists to the tables (with a couple minor changes). I just kicked back and had fun, as did Shon. He's probably one of the nicest guys to play against, and his Chaos army looked very nice this year!
The board:
This mission was called "Iron Circle" and was probably the most fun mission I have ever played. The table was divided into quadrants, and we deployed in opposite corners (not a standard deployment at all!) Points were given for each quadrant, each heavy unit destroyed, and for having your warlord on top of the circle at the end of the game.
Shon had 3 heavy units, I only had one (the Predator), and I knew he was running double Heldrakes. So I parked my tank inside the Aegis defense line, and stuffed both into my own corner, so that if his flyers attacked it, they would go off the board. It was a smart move, as it kept my heavy unit safe the whole game. So I focused on the Heavy units, and figured that if I killed them, I'd have a chance to win.
As all plans do, it went to crap really fast. Despite packing 30 weapons that are S8 or better, he managed to stop me from popping his Land Raider until turn 4, and by then, it was a total slaughter. I did not get tabled this time, as both Khuster and the Predator lasted through the end of turn 6. Khuster held out against an entire squad for two turns of assault goodness, and only took a single wound. It was a fun way to end the first day of the tourney, and I love playing against Shon.
Sunday came quicker than I thought, and not all of the sore or tired was gone. I would point out to my wife later on that if I observe my usual Chinese food run at the end of tourney day 1, I feel better in day 2.
So now I'm sitting 0-3, and feeling like I might get a win today. With two coffees in my system, I'm getting more focused now.
Game 4 was intimidating, and yet probably one of my best played games ever. I was up against Travis, and a Chaos with Imperial Guard ally list that actually belonged to the store owner. (Travis had his entire army stolen just before the tourney started, so the owner let him borrow his own, fresh from the Feast of Blades) This was going to be a tough army. HQ was Abaddon in a squad of termies, all tucked into a Land Raider, with a Heldrake, a Vendetta, and a Manticore. By far, probably the best list to tear me apart in 3 turns or less.
The army:
The board:
This board was my bread and butter! Lots of open terrain means lots of movement. It was even Dawn of War deployment! I had to calm down a bit before we started. The mission was called "Page Five" and was a joke mission based on another minis game (Warmachine i believe) where the goal was to kill "the caster" or the enemies HQ. That was worth 5 points if you could do that and keep your own HQ alive for the game. There were also 6 objectives (the blue and gold spire things) worth one point each, and a two point objective (the cannon thingy). Now the pic above was taken right after set up, but by game 4, the terrain had moved a little. So during deployment, Travis was able to hold two of the spires on his side, and I couldn't deploy close enough to hold the two on my side. Drat.
I was focused enough to realize the advantage my army had over his, and with some basic guessing of distances, I realized that he had foot troops, and would not be able to contest or hold the two objectives on my side of the field. So at most, he could take and hold 4 of them. He had also deployed a single squad of troops on the hill near the cannon, so he was planning on taking that as well. Basic math will tell you that if I take out his HQ, keep mine alive, and hold just 2 objectives, I will win this one. But there are a few issues to deal with first.
In order of priority, his HQ must go down, which means I have to off a Land Raider, a squad of termies, and Abaddon. I also have to get rid of that Manticore or it's barrages are going to thin me out too much. In addition to that, his Heldrake will most likely come in on turn 2 (thanks to his Aegis with Comms Relay) so I have to take that out too, or my bikes will be off the table before I can kill his HQ. After those three things are done, I have to keep enough Troops alive to hold those two objectives, and keep Khuster out of range of everything.
So I stick the Scouts and Aegis within a single move of one of the objectives, and hope I have at least one bike left to hold the other. Khuster gets to take the Quad Gun, as I will need his BS 5 to down that Heldrake. I know that if Travis figures out what my plan is, he will hit me hard, and the fight could be over within a turn or two. So I deploy one unit of bikes in position to take the cannon, and spread the others out to look like I'm making a run at his defence line. I put the speeders in reserve, knowing they will just die if I don't bring them on later. Then, Travis makes his first mistake, he doesn't attempt to seize the initiative.
I stick to my plan, and in turn 1, Khuster's Orbital Bombardment immobilizes the Land Raider, so Abaddon and his squad jump out. That's his second mistake. Turn 2 my speeders come on, and fire everything at the manticore. A lucky shot penetrates, and destroys the launcher. In his turn 2, the Heldrake comes on, and Khuster penetrates the armor twice, but with snake eyes on the results table. It comes down to Khuster on the Quad Gun in turn 3. Abaddon goes off the table in turn 4 to over watch from a bolter on one of my bikes. Turn 5, Travis finally realizes I'm up to something, and rereads the rules. He realizes that if my HQ lives, he'll lose, as he's only seized 3 objectives, and we're contesting the 2 point objective. His vendetta moves over my defence line, and shoots at Khuster. Not enough to kill him though, thanks to his 4 wounds. Game ends, and I win, with less than half my forces on the table. Close, but enough. First victory of the tourney, and it tastes so sweet!
Game 5, and I'm up against an opponent that I've wanted to face for a while now, Bug Boy Joe, and his awesome army of Tyranids.
The mission is called "Battle on the Ridge". Yes, I appreciate the irony, and I know the TO set up the last game for me due to the army theme I have. I even got to deploy on the ridge.
The board:
The game went okay, I was not bogged down in Vanguard deployment, thanks to my earlier experience, but the turning point was when the Doom of Malan'tai killed one and a half whole bike squads in the first turn after arriving. It became a historical re-enactment after that, with Khuster dying to his swarm lord.
The end:
Tabled in turn 6. Not a bad ending, actually pretty fun! So what did I take away from this tourney?
1) Vanguard deployment is a hassle with bikes. I have to really think and plan, and it shows my hand to my opponent if I get it right. Not fun, but might be necessary to practice this deployment more until I feel more confident with it or figure it out for the future.
2) I have enough firepower to take out several targets during a game, but with the current list, I do not have the tools to table an opponent. Objective games where I can move, or specific target kill point games seem to be where I excel.
3) I'm probably asking for it by playing an army based off of one of the biggest cavalry blunders in history, but I don't care, this army is fun to play, win or lose!
As an after note, I was pleasantly surprised with my appearance score. I was not able to collect points for my display board, as it was built by Johnny McGinnis of Back to Work Studios, but even with my n00b skills at painting and modelling, I ended up with 50 of 65 possible points. That's a lot higher than what I scored my own army as prior to the judging, which was 38 of 65.
I took away no awards or random prizes, but a great sense of pride in my army, and lessons to be learned for the next army I play...
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