It's Been A While....

Oh do I fucking hate that song!

So yea, I apparently haven't posted anything since August, after Gencon, lol. Talk about a hiatus.... So what have I been up to since then? I'll give you the Cliff notes version.

So I started a 5th Edition D&D campaign that lasted all of one day. 5th Ed is awesome and I love it, but between being stuck on midnights and the holiday season being a living hell, I had absolutely no motivation to DM. I fell into WoW, again, because of that new expansion that came out. That lasted all of one month, fuck that game. Same shit over and over again but now with more Farmville thrown in! I got into the World of Warships beta and that's been a lot of fun. For the most part I've been doing a lot of PC gaming and pretty much zero tabletop gaming.

So Adepticon was last weekend, and I didn't go for the first time in 5 years. Since I haven't touched a tabletop in quite some time I didn't feel like burning all the vacation time to go (was scheduled to work that weekend). I also got sick on Saturday so that really screwed things up. Looking back I do regret not going, even if it was just for a few hours. I missed out on seeing all the people I normally hang out with at Adepticon, like Carl from the IC's, Phil from Firebase Delta (the Podfather), and Big Jim was even there! That's the part that sucked the most, missing out on meeting Big Jim :(

For some reason my interest in 40K and even Warhammer Fantasy slightly came back. Thinking about Adepticon made me go back to reading the Guant's Ghosts books that I still haven't finished. Those new Adeptius Mechanicus models looking freaking amazing, so I'm sure that had something to do with it as well.

The other thing that got me slightly back into GW are the rumors I read about Fantasy. One word in particular, SKIRMISH! Please be true, please be true! GW desperately needs to go in that direction. Their fanbase is just getting older, kids are not getting into WH as much as they thought and us older gamers don't have the time to paint 200 models or play 3 hour long games. So as you can see I really hope this pans out.

So I'll try to post here and there, depends on my gaming habits I guess.

40K Eternal Crusade or is it Eternal Cash Grab?

Anyone remember the first attempt at a 40K MMO? It was called Dark Millennium and was being developed by THQ. Well, long story short THQ went under, but Dark Millennium was getting the axe before that happened. There was barely any video of game footage released and it just ended up being vaporware.

Warhammer Age of Reckoning utterly failed as a MMO, mostly thanks to EA. Sucks because I bought into that game early and beta tested it quite a bit. What a crock of shit.

Stepping away from MMOs for a second, Dawn of War 1 was pretty good, Dawn of War 2, not so much. I understand DoW 2 was a reskinning of Company of Heroes but it just didn't work well. Bloodbowl was actually pretty good, they didn't try to do anything crazy with it, they just translated the board game to the PC, turns and all included. This pretty much ends the list of good games.

Other games using the GW IP have been pretty horrid. Remember Space Marine? That game was nothing but subliminal advertising to get you to buy more Space Marines. I swear the most times I heard the words Space Marine said in a minute in that game was 37. "Get the Space Marine!" "Looks it's a Space Marine!" and on and on. Fucking hell that got old quick. That game was nothing but bolter porn, and that's being nice.

Want to really laugh? Here's a list of all video games released that used GW's IP:
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_Games_Workshop_video_games

Wow, there's some real classics in there, Battle March? I poop socked while playing that game! Glory in Death? I still play it to this day! Storm of Vengeance? Screw Heroes of the Storm, this is the super elite pro MOBA!

As you can clearly see, video games based on GW's IP have had a piss poor record. The majority of them are flops and some were canceled because even the designers realized they sucked.

So now a company called Behavior Interactive is developing 40k: Eternal Crusade, which is a MMO. Yea, a real note worthy studio, everyone's heard of them! They've worked on absolute masterpiece games like Doritos Crash Course, High School Musical: Making the Cut!, The Awesome Kimpossible Series, SpongeBob SquarePants: Plankton's Robotic Revenge and last but not least Doritos Crash Course 2! So as you can see the game is in great hands.....

Now they've launched a Founders Program, which can been seen here:
https://www.eternalcrusade.com/founder-store

The model for the game is apparently buy to play (you buy the game and don't have to pay monthly fees) with a free to play option, but you only get to play as an Ork Boy. Founder's Packs start at $40, which is decent, but they top off at $450! What does $450 get you? I have no clue! It looks like in game money that can be used in a different cash shop for items. So it appears you get to unlock a different store to spend money in after you run out of the founder's pack money, wow!

Look, I understand MMO pay models, the company has to make money somehow, but some of this just doesn't sit right. You can pay $35 to gain access to a different weapon in the Rouge Trader shop, like a limited edition bolter. But it's only for access to that item, you don't even get it for that price!

I don't think I'm going out on a limb here, but stay clear of this future train wreck for the time being. Putting out these expensive ass founder's packs and promising early access to something we haven't seen too much video of this early into development is throwing up flags left and right. I'm pretty sure this game will continue the GW video game tradition of being canceled or just plain sucking.

I would have more faith in this if Brad McQuaid was in charge........ lol

Audio Book Review: Templar

There is only duty.

Anyone that knows me finds it to be no surprise that I purchased this audio book as soon as it came out, lol.

I really don't want to spoil things for anyone but if you are a fan of the Black Templars or Imperial Fists I highly recommend buying it and giving it a listen. It's a little over an hour long but it gives great insight on Sigismund, the man who became the first Emperor's Champion and then Chapter Master of the Black Templars. There are also a few other extremely noteworthy characters in the story that have excellent interactions with Sigismund. I now have even more respect for Sigismund after listening to this. I really hope Black Library expands upon the story of Sigismund, especially his heroics during the Siege of Terra. This audio book definitely cements the Black Templars as MY chapter!

I wish it went more in depth but there's only so much ground you can cover in an hour on an audio book. The production quality is top notch. I have always been impressed by Black Library's audio books and this one continues the legacy of top notch voice actors and sound effects.

4.5/5 Stars from a rabid Black Templars fan boy!

First Thoughts On 7th!

Only if I knew how to Photoshop, because 6 and 7 would have displayed a down trend on the assault cycle. But it's a pretty good display of the strength of assault in 40k. 3rd ed was crazy with Rhino Rush and all that so this chart is pretty fitting.

Before I start let me warn everyone that I have not played a game of 7th Edition, or 6th for that matter... lol. This will be an outsiders view of 7th edition. I borrowed the book from a friend and I read the rules and here are my thoughts.

Let me start by saying that I even though I don't buy into rumors until I actually get to read the rules, I kind of gave in and got extremely excited when I saw a rumor stating that consolidating into another unit after a successful assault like it was back in just like, at least in my opinion, the glory days of 3rd and 4th edition. And then I read the rule book and searched and searched and searched. Read and reread the whole damn thing and my heart was crushed! NOOOOOOooooooooOOOOOOOOO! How could they?! 5th Ed got rid of consolidating into another unit, which hurt, 6th kept that status quo and added in random assault range and overwatch/snapfire along with terrain you can buy to slow down assaults even more, and 7th did the same, more or less.

The lack of consolidating into another unit after a successful assault really hampers assault armies IMO. You get penalized for smearing a unit in assault because you just open yourself up to gun lines, rapid fire weapons, etc on your opponent's turn. Smart players set up their army with bubble wrap. They're like "go ahead, kill that sacrificial unit, I'll just pump you full of bolters and las the next turn".

The game still feels like it is designed around shooty armies. I understand that some people might prefer it that way but I think assault needs more teeth. Assault armies used to be feared, as they should be. If I was a guardsmen I could handle being in a fortified position taking fire, but if someone is crazy or blood thirsty enough to charge my position and do it well, I might start to get a little scared. Assault is designed to wreak havoc on your opponents positioning. It makes the battlefield more fluid and less static. I think that in 7th there are plenty of things in the rules that already help gun lines deal with assault whether it be fortifications you can bring, overwatch/snapfire, random charge range, wounds being taken on the closest models, etc. IF consolidating into another unit was indeed brought back I think that it would still strike fear into people who play the static style, but they will still have enough tools to deal with it. If you roll well on overwatch/snapfire and can eliminate a good amount of the models that are at the front of the unit then their charge can fail, which opens them up to more incoming fire. That fortification you brought can stop a charge dead in their tracks as well. Shooty armies still have the upper hand in this edition and assault armies are still at a big disadvantage.

I know some will say "but you can still charge multiple units at once." Yes, I know that, but with all of the advantages shooty armies already have compared to assault armies, it makes it even more difficult to have charge range on multiple units. Also, most people these days set up their armies with multiple assaults in mind and try to space them out or stagger them out a bit.

Moving on, I like the mission cards. I'm not a competitive 40K player at all, as lame as it sounds, I'm all about the narrative. 40K is meant to be a fun game and the randomness can make some of the stupidest things happen, but that what makes it fun IMO. The mission cards (whatever faux latin name they gave them escapes me) just adds to this.

There's also the Psyker phase. I'm actually kind of glad they put Psychic Powers into their own phase, it makes it more like the Magic phase in Fantasy. I'm not too familiar with the new Phase so I can't comment on it too much but from what I've heard things can be a little broken at times. The summoning of demons thing is actually pretty cool in my opinion. I didn't really see anything new in the fluff but it seems a bit odd that Space Marine Librarians would be summoning demons. I internally rationalize this by thinking "shit, things but have gotten pretty desperate in the land of 40K that Space Marines are summoning demons." After all, the Golden Throne is supposed to be failing and our good old friend Abbadon is launching his 13th Black Crusade (for the 4th time already?). I understand that the Forging a Narrative section somewhat explains this, but it didn't explain enough. As I've always said, I would love it if they moved the narrative forward, even by an inch, and I would be frothing at the mouth, lol. I've read reports of people summoning in almost 1000 points of demons during a game. That's a little too much. I also don't quite understand how armies with no Psykers, such as my beloved Black Templars, deal with the Psychic Phase besides the +1 to Deny the Witch they get from Adamantium Will. No idea if that's any good or not. I do like the Perils of the Warp Table, adds a nice, fluffy touch.

There also the Battle Forged vs Unbound debate. My take on it, being the causal fluff guy that I am, is sure, why not. It's a tool that lets you make an incredibly fluffy themed list that might not have fit under the old Force Org. I also like how you get a bonus if you do use the Force Org, but I think they should  have gone a step further. Why not take a page from Warmachine/Hordes and do something like their Tier lists? The Tier lists limit you on what models you can take in a list, but they all fit a specific theme that follows the fluff, and there are nice bonuses for taking a Tier list as well, but they're not overpowered. I understand how people are concerned that all the WAAC offs will abuse the living hell out of Unbound lists, but I don't play against WAAC offs and I advise you do the same. As for the tournament scene, I don't care, I don't play competitively and 40K is just not a competitive game.

So overall, even though I have not played a game of 7th, I don't think it's too bad. I'm still pist off about the lack of buffs to assault, but hopefully if I ever get a game in I could possible house rule it in. If I am able to house rule it in I think it would make an outstanding article reporting on how it changed the game, for better or worse. I like the mission cards, Unbound is awesome for fluffy lists and the Psychic Phase seems ok as well, as long as you don't summon in 1000 points of demons, lol. I can see myself playing a few games of 7th just for shits and giggles. And that says quite a bit considering I never played 6th.

Thinking About The Good Ole Days....

This pic is of the now closed GW Battle Bunker in Downers Grove, IL. More specifically it's a pic of how it was when I first started going there. Some of you might be asking why the hell are you posting about that place, I thought you hated it?! Well I did after a while but looking back I really miss the place.

I started going to the Bunker back in 2008 where I would meet up with Dan, Jon (Tau Jon, not The Baron) and Rich. I've know them since 2000 or so, maybe even earlier. We used to all play AD&D 2nd Edition (with Skills and Powers!) back in the day and one day I got a call from them asking me to meet up with them at the Bunker, so I did. I've always had an interest in 40K from years prior and I finally had a job that gave me the means to afford to get serious with the game. That one meeting at the Bunker turned into a weekly ritual. We would do mini campaigns, start rivalries between our armies and just shoot the shit about the hobby or anything in general. We would always wait for everyone to get there then do lunch at either Portillo's (which is a Chicago staple) or Burger King (which always gave me bad gas).

I was also introduced to Mack and became friends with him as well. Mack was a good addition to the crew because he was Mr Tournament player and none of us really were. He really made our group well rounded because all of us had different ways of playing and it really made things interesting.

This was also when I was invited to sit in on a recording session of Dice Like Thunder and I had a blast sitting in on it and eventually I was asked to become a part of the show. I had been listening to podcasts since 2004 or so, mostly listening to Video Game podcasts such as 1UP Yours and GFW Radio so the concept was not new to me at all. So every Friday after gaming at the Bunker we would record, which was great because we got to talk about our misadventures at the Bunker while it was still fresh in our heads. I was shocked that people actually listened to what we were talking about and actually wanted to hear more. It was very humbling, especially when going to Adepticon for the first time and have people talk to me saying they love the show. It was a very weird experience because I would just freeze in shock and just say the truth, we only do it because it's fun and I'm glad our little group can entertain you with our idiotic podcast, lol.

Then people started coming out to the Bunker on Fridays to meet up with us and play with us. The Bunker's location was perfect because it was centrally located and right off of a major highway. We met a ton of cool people and our regular Friday gaming group just grew because of it. This is how I met Joe, Chaos Dave, Roy, Fletch and the rest of the Screaming Heretic Podcast crew. We also met Dave and The Baron through regular Friday night gaming at the Bunker! We then started doing full blown campaigns and doing Apocalypse games here and there. My wife (that I was dating at the time) even started to come out every Friday! Our small group turned into a full blown gaming club but it was still small enough where we all would meet up and still do lunch all the time and bullshit about anything and everything. We would even hang out with each other away from the Bunker and we all became really good friends. The Dice Like Thunder Crew which would eventually turn into the Eternal Warriors crew would still record every Friday night after gaming at the Bunker. Everything was still the way it used to be, just on a grander scale.

I believe things started to change when we all started getting to other gaming systems, which we could not play at the Bunker. Price increases, people losing interest in 40K and other things made the ritual Friday meet ups less frequent. Regardless of why that happened, it was still a blast when he did it and I look back fondly at those days realizing that it might not ever be like that again. Life happens, people get married, have kids, move, work gets in the way and etc....

But if it wasn't for the Bunker I would not be writing this blog post right now and I would not have befriended a bunch of amazing people that I am still friends with to this day. Now, if we could only get TEW to record at least once a month, that would be great.... lol

The More Things Change....

The more they stay the same?

Recently there has either been announcements or rumors about new rules editions for various table top games. Warhammer Fantasy Battle is moving on to 9th Edition. 40K is rumored to be coming out with 7th Edition this year. Infinity is coming out with 3rd Edition (I didn't even know they were on second...). Firestorm Armada came out with 2nd Edition last year. So did Malifaux.

Do these new editions really change the game all that much? I can't speak about Infinity because I really don't much much about the game or FSA because I haven't played it in ages, but I can speak about the others, to some extent.

WFB 9th edition. The only new thing I've really heard is that they're moving the story line ahead, which is a great idea. I love how Privateer Press does this with Warmachine/Hordes. Every new rule book that they release moves the story line along. I'm still waiting to see what the hell is going to happen with Karchev! Other then that, what will really change?

40K and 7th Ed, or 6.5, or 6.1 or whatever the hell people are going to call it is odd. It's been 2 years since 6th Ed came out. GW did go a bit overboard with the additional rules and supplements and what not so I can see the need to try to reel all that back in with a new edition. I will be honestly shocked if they move ahead the story line, because it's been stagnant for years upon years.

Malifaux 2nd Ed was advertised as being a streamlining of the rules set. While it did this it also changed things around quite a bit in my opinion. The whole list building mechanic that was added to the game kind of took away from the charm Malifaux had in 1st edition. Everyone knew what each character did but now in 2nd you can build out your characters differently. Considering Malifaux is a character driven game it just took that charm away because now my Perdita could be totally different from your Perdita.

Now looking at WFB and 40K, my opinion is GW's new editions just rearrange thing around. No matter what they do you will still be rolling on the same table for ballistic still, weapon skill, strength against toughness etc.... The same system that's been used for almost 20 years, and I think it's really starting to show its age.

I believe that other systems out there are much better than the old GW roll on a table system. Warmachine/Hordes has you roll 2 dice (or more if you boost, weapon master etc...) and you add a score to it and compare it to a score an opponent has. Malifaux is very similar but you use cards instead of dice. Dreadball and Deadzone only has you roll against your own ability scores, so you don't even need to know your opponents ability scores to play the game.

The other issue with new editions is how they impact supplemental books, such as codices, army books, stuff like Planetstrike, etc... We all know GW is not on their game with keeping all of their armies up to date. Malifaux took months to get all of their masters and crews updated to 2nd edition. Companies need to keep this in mind when they decide to move on to a new rules edition.

So the point I'm trying to make is, do new rules editions fundamentally change the game or is it just lipstick on a pig? Is it change just for change sake? Is it a way just to make more money?

I find it to be a case by case basis and I know first hand how an edition change can just turn someone off from a game. GW edition changes fall under the lipstick on a pig and more money categories. Malifaux seemed to be change just for change sake.

This just makes we wonder how long will games like Warmachine/Hordes, Deadzone and Dreadball will go before a new edition. And when they do, just don't do it for the sake of change or for a quick buck.

State of my 40K

Well for starters I would like to thank the International House of Paincakes for accepting me into their blog network, I really appreciate it guys!

So.. 40K. For old readers or listeners of mine you kind of already know my stance on 40K. You can skip to the next paragraph if you want. For new readers let me give you a brief history of me and 40K. I first heard of 40K way back in 3rd edition. I had friends of mine who would play in between days that we were not playing AD&D (Skills and Powers FTW!) and I would always watch over their shoulders. I would pick up a codex they weren't using at the time and read and I ended up getting hooked on the story line. I didn't actually start playing 40K until 4th edition when I picked up Black Templars as my first army. I always liked their color scheme since they first came out in the Armageddon Codex and seeing that they got their own codex made it a win win. I had such a blast with my Templars back in 4th and had many memorable moments with them on the table top. Then work got in the way so I had to take a year or two off from the game. When things settled down with work I got back into 40K and this was after 5th came out. I was in for quite a surprise when I learned that I could no longer consolidate into another unit after a successful assault. I felt that it pretty much broke my army because that was their main strength in 4th Ed, being able to assault someone on their turn. I then started an Eldar army because they were the other army I really go into when I first got into 40K. They did pretty well for an outdated codex but it sucked seeing all the new shinies the new codex armies got while my two armies were left in the dust. This on top of non stop price increases and a lack of new codexes (mainly mine) began to disenfranchise me from the game. Long story short I ranted about it almost non stop on Dice Like Thunder and The Eternal Warriors and by the time 6th edition came out I was pretty much done.

Now that you're up to speed on my history of 40K (or you just skipped ahead), let me tell you about the State of my 40K. For started I still haven't played a game since 6th edition came out. The rules just seem to be blah, too many of them. It's almost like they took a few pages out of 2nd edition, but the army sizes are still just as big is not bigger then they were in 5th. Allies are a joke in my opinion but it was nice to see GW come out with more codexes, until they got to the Space Marines. It was pretty insulting to a long time Black Templar player to see your army get their own book taken away from them. I would have even settled for one of those mini dexes they seem to throw around these days but I didn't even get that. The sheer amount of mini dexes and supplement GW has been releasing has, in my opinion, made things even more confusing because there's too much out there.

The game hasn't gotten any cheaper to get into, prices are still going up like they're going out of style. I have moved on to games like Dreadball, Deadzone and Warmachine/Hordes. I tend to prefer lower model count games. I recently tried to sell my Black Templars but I just couldn't do it. When I went to take inventory of what I had I realized how long I had owned these dudes and how much time, effort and money I put into them. I actually got really sentimental and told my wife "Honey, I just can't do it" lol. So they will remain in their foam trays for the time being.

Will I ever play 40K again? I don't think I can say yes or no. I recently had a conversation with Chaos Dave and the rest of the Screaming Heretics and Dave was telling us about the wargaming clubs in England. Just being responsible for a unit or two in a big team game sounds like a lot of fun. If something like this ever came up I could see bringing my Templars out and giving it a go. I've always had a blast in team games, they were always more fun then 1 on 1.

Do I still despise GW? Yea, I'm pretty sure I still do but I don't let it get to me as much as it has in the past. I still thing the company is in serious risk of either going under or being bought out if things don't change. I'll still make fun of them or call them out on their stupidity but I don't dwell on it.  I have other games and things to do now. The one thing GW does have going for them still is their fluff. As much as I've hated GW I've always been a huge fan of Black Library. I'll admit some books aren't my cup of tea and I'll refer to those books as bolter porn because they just glorify how amazing and awesome Space Marines are. Once you get passed that BL puts out some amazing story lines. I am currently going back and starting the Gaunts Ghosts series that I never finished. I only have the first omnibus in paperback. Now if I can only find my Nook that suddenly went missing......

The Eternal Warriors

So we recorded our first episode last night and it felt really good to finally get it done. It's been quite the roller coaster ride since DLT ended. Between picking a new name, getting a website and Libsyn account going and all that, it's been a pretty hectic few weeks. 

Episode 1 should be out sometime on Sunday. It will be on iTunes, of course.

Just steer your browsers over to http://theeternalwarriors.com/?feed=rss2 and feel free to add it to you RSS feed.

Not only will the episodes be on the RSS feed but we will also be posting new blog posts on a regular basis. My day is Thursdays and the rest of the guys (along with a few guest writers) will be posting stuff up on a regular basis as well. You can expect a new post almost every day.

Don't worry though, I will still have blog posts that will be specific to my personal blog. 

So check it out, I'm sure you'll enjoy it!

I want this for my Birthday sooooo bad

Thought I was going to bring Warmachine up again huh? Well while I also want a Khador Plastic Starter Box, I really want one of these Caestus Assault Rams as well. Look at the thing, IT'S DISGUSTING!!!

Rules for this bad boy are right here

Now imagine this, 10 Black Templar Sword Brethren Assault Terminators with Twin Lightening Claws and Furious Charge assaulting out of this bad boy. Look at the top of my blog to see my thoughts about that.. LOL. I really can't think of any units that can live up to 40 Str 5 Init 5 reroll to hit and wound power weapon attacks. Now give them Thunder Hammers have them assault the row of Chimeras that Mech Guard like to showcase.... The ideas of things my Templars could do with this thing are almost limitless. I'm not even going to touch how badass ramming with this thing is, ask anyone who has played against my Eldar, I ram A LOT!

As for the critics that say this thing is ugly, keep it mind it's a Space Marine vehicle, they are built with function over form. A vehicle meant to ram other vehicle's isn't going to look pretty. I have a feeling that if I get one I'm going to have to put the Waste Management logo on it somewhere, LOL.

Forgeworld, you are the shit. Just 1 vehicle has renewed my interest in 40k, specifically with my Templars. Now I just hope I can get some good games in with this thing before my codex gets updated.

So She-Swizzy, if you're reading this, I don't think I could have dropped a bigger hint, LOL.

Think I'm Burning Out

So I woke up today and reflected upon yesterdays recording session we did for the show and I think I'm burning out on 40K. Now don't get me wrong, I still had fun playing with my Eldar last night, but once again it was against Marines and Marines (even though they were both different flavors of marines). Maybe it's the fact that 60% of the armies in 40K are either some type of Marines or Imperial Guard. Things start to get a bit redundant when the majority of the armies are in one way or the other very similar.

Going on to recording, segment 2 was about the Assault phase. Once again a good chunk of the conversation was about Marines and Guard. How the fuck does Guard get brought up in Assault when they really don't have any assault units? People in the chat on Ustream were getting bored about hearing more Guard talk, especially when the topic is about something Guard sucks at and I felt the same way they did. I tried my best to divert the conversation away from Guard in order to keep things more interesting but it kept on being brought up again. I was shocked that Dan did not bring up Tyranids more because, well, they are an assault based army! Overall I was kind of ticked off which is partially why I was so adamant about saying that Assault Marines are not the best assault unit in the game (point for point).

I'm not trying to bitch about the show here, I love doing the show. It's just that over all I think I am burned out on 40K. I am so looking forward to our non 40K game night that is coming up in the next few weeks and am also looking forward to taking a week off from recording. I need a break....

1750 Eldar Seer Council List

This is what I'm bringing to the Bunker today. Since everyone is making 1750 lists, here's mine.

1750 Eldar Seer Council Tournament List

HQ
Jetbike Seer Council
Farseer = 55
Runes of Warding = 15
Spirit Stones = 20
Eldar Jetbike = 30
Doom = 25
Fortune = 30
TOTAL = 175

6 Warlocks on Jetbikes = 270
1 with Witchblade and Enchance = 15
1 with Witchblade and Destructor = 10
1 with Witchblade and Destructor = 10
1 with Singing Spear and Destructor = 13
1 with Singing Spear and Destructor = 13
1 with Singing Spear and Embolden = 9
TOTAL = 340
TOTAL = 515

TROOPS

5 Rangers = 95

10 Dire Avengers = 120
Exarch = 12
Bladestorm = 15
Wave Serpent = 90
TL Scatter Lasers = 25
Spirit Stones = 10
TOTAL = 272

10 Dire Avengers = 120
Exarch = 12
Bladestorm = 15
Wave Serpent = 90
TL Scatter Lasers = 25
Spirit Stones = 10
Shuriken Cannon = 10
TOTAL = 282

ELITES

6 Fire Dragons = 96

HEAVY SUPPORT

Falcon = 115
Holo Fields = 35
Spirit Stones = 10
Shuriken Cannon = 5
TOTAL = 165

Night Spinner = 115
Spirit Stones = 10
Star Engines = 15
TOTAL = 140

3 War Walkers = 90
Scatter Laser Scatter Laser = 30
Scatter Laser Scatter Laser = 30
Scatter Laser EML = 35
TOTAL = 185

So obviously the Fire Dragons go inside the falcon. The Rangers will infiltrate and be set up as bait, Night Spinner will sit back and slow down my opponent, everything else is fast enough to set the stage for the Seer Council to melt faces. Walkers will probably out flank in order to keep bring the heat from multiple directions. Also put Star Engines on the Night Spinner in order to get 36" to contest an objective at the end of the game. It might not look that great on paper, but if I plan my movements out well enough, I should be able to handle most anything.

 

What do you think?

Initial Night Spinner Tactica

Why is this an Initial Tactica? Because I've only used it once in a game. I know it's not a good idea to post a Tactica on a unit you've only used once, but hear me out. The game in where I used the Night Spinner was an epiphany, it really opened up my eyes. I feel that with GW just giving one new unit to the Eldar, they have been updated and have a better chance against the big boys (Guard, BAs, SWs). After using the Night Spinner, my mind has been working overtime thinking of new ways to use this awesomely versatile tank.

First off it's Barage, so you don't need LOS. It has a range of 12-72" and with this vehicle being a Fast Skimmer, you can reach out and touch who ever you want. Str 6 with Rending Large Blast is more powerful than you think. I know there's no AP on the weapon but so what. Most of the time you will be rolling 2s to wound infantry and the random Rend thrown in there is pretty sweet as well. I feel that the kicker to this weapon is against vehicles. Str 6 Rending on Side Armor is nothing to scoff at. This weapon will reliably pop open transports. If you're going up against an army with some vehicle squadrons (I'm looking at you Guard), even better because you only need an Immobilized in order to get a kill.

The Spinner Weapon's base stats on it's own is nice but the Monofilament Web is the real star of the show when it comes to the Night Spinner. Anything getting hit with the large template has to make a Difficult AND Dangerous terrain check next time they move for any reason. Re read that last sentence and let it sink in for a bit. Giving an ability that slows down your opponent to the fastest army in the game is such a huge advantage it's not even funny. This makes Eldar even faster then before because of the Difficult and Dangerous terrain checks your opponent needs to make. By being even faster than you opponent, you open up a brand new book of tactics involving setting up your opponent by out maneuvering him/her. Being able to slow down that 30 Boy Ork mob by just an inch could give you another round of uncontested shooting or a chance to get that Wave Serpent moved over to a flank.

Maneuvering is one advantage, but making your opponent make those Difficult and Dangerous terrain checks is huge. Your opponent might only fail one or two Dangerous Terrain checks for infantry units but think of it as a free kill. Your weapon is supposed to do the killing, anything else you get from the Web is a bonus when it comes to Infantry. Now even if that unit has to fall back they still have to make those Dangerous terrain checks, so if your opponent makes a really bad roll, you might get lucky and wipe that unit out.

The Web rule against vehicles is the true strength of the Night Spinner. Immobilizing a vehicle can really put a damper on things. Keep in mind the rule states anything HIT with the Web has to make the terrain checks, you don't need to wound or glance or pen. I have been thinking of using this to my advantage against Mech Guard. They tend to clump up their tanks real close to one another so I would be able to get multiple tanks with one Night Spinner hit. It's also good for high AV tanks. For example you have a Land Raider that you know is going to be rammed down your throat. If you hit it with the Spinner and it fails it's Difficult Terrain, it's Immobilized, and we all know that a Immobilized LR is a huge blow to it's owner. Now if there's a squadron of vehicles (Killa Kans or Leman Russes), you will destroy a vehicle if any of them get Immobilized.

You get all of this versatility for only 115 points! I think GW has done an amazing job with adding this tank to the Eldar arsenal and I honestly feel that just adding one unit makes a huge difference to an army. Please GW, do this with other armies.

So what are your thoughts? Any tips or tricks you can think of? Are you one of people out there thinking this tank is overprice, or overpowered? Sound off and let us know!

Change: What GW Can Do to Improve

Change, something that Presidents Clinton and Obama have preached about. Change is also what you have in your pocket after purchasing something with cash. This post will be about both types of change and how one type of change will effect the other type of change for GW.

The first item on the docket for change is fluff. While GW's fluff is nice and all, it has become somewhat stale the past few years. I understand that the 41st millennium is grimdark and all that but there has to be some type of major event going on to shake things up just a bit. GW could introduce something as minor as a Global type campaign (ie Medusa V or Eye of Terror) or something major, lets say a schism between the various Space Marine chapters or a rogue Inquisitor losing it and virus bombing a major planet (let's say Ultramar or Cadia). How about an Eldar craftworld suddenly showing up in the Sol System or a Tyranid hive fleet doing the same? How about some fluff written by some Black Library authors? I honestly feel that introducing a story arc along these lines of this will greatly increase people's interest in the game. It will make things more exciting and give GW a chance to trickle in new campaign books and units that everyone will be interested in. Also, if these story arcs work their way into 6th Edition, people will be extremely excited, and a lot of old retired players might come running back.

The second item on the docket for change is their schedule for releasing new models. Currently you have to wait for the codex to come out, then wait half a year to get units that are in the book that do not yet have a model (The Stormraven is a prime example). Some of you might say "well it gives us a change to kit bash and make our own". I understand this and I 100% support people to make their own, but what if the size or base you are using are totally off? I think GW should either state in the codex what type of base all of their models are on or take a page for Warmachine and include the rules in the box when the model comes out. By this I mean only have rules for units you have models for in the codex and introduce new units later on with the rules in the box. Granted if GW did this, no one would currently know anything about the Stormraven but consider this. The BA codex is out for 6 months, sales for the codex and troops have slowed down, when all of a sudden BOOM, here comes the Stormraven with the rules inside the box. People would flip out and interest in BAs would shoot right back up. If GW were to do this, they could also give old armies a little band-aid in order to keep them fresh and competitive until their new codex comes out. What if the Necrons got another troop choice that didn't fold in assault or what if Demon Hunters got access to a cheap transport? A small simple addition of 1 unit could make a huge difference to an army. I personally think that the Night Spinner helps keep Eldar fresh and give them a nice little boost to hold them over till their new codex.

The third and final item on the docket is support. GWs customer service when it comes to sales is top notch. GW takes care of you when an item you bought is defective. The support I'm talking about is on the rules side of things. Not to sound like a broken record but take a page from Warmachine and have a way for players to have their rules questions answered. Whether it be a message forum, email or even old fashioned snail mail. You can even publish randoms rules questions and answers in White Dwarf. Another change that would be nice is attempt to do more play testing for new rule books or codexes. Maybe even involve a few gaming clubs in the play testing (after signing NDAs of course). Changes like this will make GW's customer base feel that GW cares about their customers (a feeling that has been lacking as of late).

Now you might ask how will these type of changes put more change in GWs pockets? Easy, almost every idea I put forth will increase sales for GW. New story arcs and fluff (with the possibility of a campaign) will boost sales for new books and new models introduced here and there. Also the possibility of bringing backsomeone who stopped playing will be huge. Packaging the rules with new models for either new armies or old will increase interest in all armies, not just the flavor of the month, which will increase sales across the board. Having a Q and A column in White Dwarf will increase subscriptions. Making your customers feel like they are appreciated will keep them happy and make them buy more of your product.

Sometimes you have a give a little to get a lot back. Risks have to be taken because you miss 100% of the shots you don't attempt. Doings things just because "that's how we've always done it" is not the way to keep your business afloat.

Any changes you think GW should make or is business as usual the way you think GW should continue to conduct business? Are my changes stupid ideas or do they actually make sense? Am I just wishing GW to be more like Privateer Press? Sound off and let us know!

Order of Operations, or How Do You Write Your List?

List writing, probably the most important part of 40K. Without a list you simply can not play a game of 40K. Now I'm not going to talk about min maxing vs themed fluffly lists, I wanna talk about how you make a list, not what type.

Where do you create your lists? Are you the type that sits down and uses the old school pen and paper or are you the type that uses Armybuilder? I am the type that uses the basic text editor on my Mac. I just sit back, put on some tunes, light up a cig and get to work. I have contemplated getting Armybuilder but it's not available for Mac and I don't want to have to use my netbook all the time to make lists. I also wouldn't be able to use Armybuilder with home brew codexes. 

Now that we have the setup out of the way, let's get to the main point of the article. In what order do you write your list? I mean specifically is there a specific order you write your list? For about 95% of my lists I always start out with my HQs. I think this might be a force of habit because I'm a Black Templar player and it's mandatory to have The Emperor's Champion in any list over 700 points. Even when I'm making an Eldar list I normally start with the HQ choice. I tend to use Eldrad a lot and when I do I center the whole list around him because he is such an effective HQ choice. Now if I go with an Autarch, I'll still put him in first because odds are if I'm running one, I'm playing the reserves game. If I'm running a Seer Council I'll put them in first because they are the primary focus of the list, everything else supports them. Even if I'm running multiple HQs, I still normally put them in first. I'll throw a Chaplain in a LRC with a squad of 10 Initiates and 5 Neophytes so that way the whole squad will be rerolling to hit on the charge (Neophytes don't benefit from the EC's preferred enemy vow). Depending on the situation, I'll split the Chaplain off from the squad when they disembark from the LRC in order to take something else out (Leman Russ Squadrons hate my Power Fist Chaplain). 

I think the only time I don't base a list around my HQ choice is when I'm running a LRC full of Furious Charge BT Terminators with Twin Lightening Claws. They are such an effective hammer unit I have to be able to use them to their full potential, so everything else in the list supports them. 

I don't think I have ever really made a list where I put down my troops first. I have heard of a lot of people doing so but I guess I'm just different in that regard. Maybe there is still a portion of 4th Edition inside of me that refuses to let go.

So share you thoughts or techniques with us. Do you write lists in the same manner as I do? Am I totally missing the boat by not starting out with troops? How do you get in the zone to write lists? Does anyone start out their list with Fast Attack or Heavy Support?

Enough is Enough!

/rant on

For those that don't know, Games Workshop has just jacked up their prices in the US and the rest of the world (again). I could not find a list of official prices but this is the best I could find http://cavgames.posterous.com/games-workshop-40k-price-increase-05-31-2010.

Now a few things stand out to me. $90 for Assault on Blackreach?! I understand that it is a very good deal and you get a lot for the price, but isn't this supposed to be the set that get people into the game? This is now a 50% price increase from the original price of $60.

Onto the next thing that stands out, the price increase for Codexes. Keep this in mind, when you purchase AoBR you still need to buy a Codex in order to get all of the rules you will need for either Space Marines or Orks. Keep in mind the Space Marines Codex is still $30, but now with the price increase the Orks Codex is $29. Last time I checked the Space Marines Codex is almost twice as big as the Orks Codex, so what's their rational behind this?

Moving on, now let's say that you did the smart thing and split AoBR with a friend and you are borrowing a Codex from a friend of yours that is already in the hobby. What's the next step? Upgrading your army. Well the costs of each unit on average has been increased by $3. Ok that's not too bad but let's say you want to get a Land Raider or Battlewagon. Well the price of both just increased to $62! That's insane! My GF (who is currently building up her Chaos Space Marines) has been eying a Land Raider for quite some time. Now with this price increase she's not so keen on the idea of buying one now. I guess her Chaos Space Marines are going to be using a stolen Black Templars Land Raider for the time being...

The point I'm trying to make is that I honestly feel that the new price increases are crippling. They are crippling for players who:

• want to get into the game for the very first time
• have just started and want to flesh out their first army
• would like to get a few odds and ends to complete their army
• were considering starting a new army

The new player looking to start for the very first time might consider this already expensive hobby to be too expensive for their budget, and I wouldn't blame them. I'm glad I started when I did. The player that just started might not be able to afford to expand their armies to the sizes they originally dreamed of. Now the player who just needs a few odds and ends might just cut their projects short. I wanted 2 more Land Raiders to complete my Black Templar fighting company but at $62 a pop I'm thinking otherwise. Finally the player who wanted to start a new army (which is boku bucks for GW) might price things together and be turned off by the higher prices.

Now I understand that times are tough for GW and they are looking to make a bit of profit by increasing prices, but I know a lot of players who are getting sick and tired of this. I believe that just the huge price increase of AoBR will end up hurting GW in the long run because I believe that the $90 price tag will turn off a lot of people. I also find it ironic but very GW-ish to introduce Spearhead (which specializes in tanks) and at the same time jack up the prices on tanks, especially the new ones.

Taking what I said in my FLGS post and what I've just ranted about, GW is starting to earn a top spot on my shit list. As I have predicted on an earlier episode of Dice Like Thunder, I honestly believe that GW has about 5 years left before they go under. They still haven't recovered from the blunder known as Lord of the Rings and now they're trying to plug that hole, much like BP.

Both companies are British, coincidence? Sadly, I think not...

The other thing GW needs to worry about is people going elsewhere to satisfy their plastic/metal model habit. Most will go to EBay (I know I have recently and have saved a shit load of money), some will go to online retailers (The Broken Forge, The War Store, FRP Games, shit even Amazon has some good prices) and a few might even jump ship to another gaming system. Personally, Warmachine is looking pretty interesting to me and I feel their prices are more reasonable (full color rule books that update all the armies at once? sweeeeet!).

All in all, I really think that enough is enough! What are your thoughts on this matter? Am I on crack? Is there something I'm not seeing? Do you think GW's price increase will fail like Top Kill? Are you planning on taking your business elsewhere? Do you also think that GW's future is GRIMDARK? Feel free to comment away.

/rant off

Support your local FLGS, but what if you really don't have one?

FLGS = Friendly Local Gaming Store. Most of us have a flgs that we frequent every week or so. Now I am a big supporter of small businesses so I avidly support the local flgs (in my case, Leisure Hours Hobby Shop). The problem is, Leisure Hours does not have any space at all for gaming. I've talked to the owner about it and he shot down the idea, which is kind of depressing. So instead I go out to the famed Chicago Battle Bunker with the rest of the DLT guys.

The Bunker is nice and all but I'm really starting to get tired of it. It has now become a spot where suburban parents think they can drop their kids of for a few hours (if not the whole day) while they go fool around with their personal trainers or Mailman or whatever. We were also told that we would have access to the annex of the Bunker because of our gaming club, which at time was was awesome. These days we are basically having to pull teeth in order to get to the annex we were promised access to. There has been times that we were told to play in the main room  because (paraphrased)your armies are painted and we would like new customers to see painted armies which would hopefully boost sales. Are we a marketing ploy for GW? No. Do we get a discount if you are using MY army to try to boost sales? No. All in all I am getting sick and tired of the Bunker.

As I said earlier, I am a big supporter of small businesses. The GW Battle Bunker is not a small business. Now, I have heard stories of independently owned gaming stores that are as big as the Bunker, stock every gaming system (not just GW), have tons of tables to play on, give discounts to regular customers and are open till the wee hours of the morning. I honestly don't think a store like this exists in the Chicagoland area. I have heard of Games Plus and Black Sun games, but they're at least an hour drive from my house, if not longer. I am greatly disappointed that the third largest city in the US doesn't have big independently owned flgs's.

If such a store existed in my area, I would do all that I could to support it because I know a store owner would appreciate the support and he would return the favor. GW just wants my money, that's all they care about. Because of this, GW has lost a huge chunk of my business to Leisure Hours and The Broken Forge. I still buy the random product at the Bunker because I do believe in buying where you play, but no where near as much as I have in the past. Now let's say I want to give another gaming system a try, if it's not GW I can't play it at the Bunker. Fuck that.

So how is the flgs's in your area? Do you even have one or does GW have a monopoly in your market? Do you support your flgs? If you don't have one, which online site do you use? How can I remedy my problem, start my own store with the guys? Feel free to speak your mind.

A Change of Pace or How to rid your reliance on the +3 Save

So my buddy Rich (or Tricky Dick if you listen to DLT) has a problem. I think he finally realized that he is burnt out on Space Marines. I would be too if that's all I played since 3rd Edition (not counting his stint in the Navy). Granted he switches things up and plays Chaos Space Marines and Necrons but in my book they are all the same type of army. I kind of know where he's coming from because my main army is Black Templars and I get burnt out with them as well from time to time.

The thing that these armies have in common is the awesome +3 armor save. Marines and their equivalents (necrons and other MEQs) are all tough as nails because of toughness 4 and armor save of +3. They also have a high ballistic skill of 4. I know almost all of you already know this but when you compare those stats to other non MEQ armies, their stats are pretty damn good.

I feel that people who only play MEQs rely on those stats too much and it kind of becomes a crutch. When said person goes up against an army that is built around solely killing MEQs, they become lost and helpless in a way. Their safety net is taken away from them because a good MEQ killing list does whatever it can to strip away the +3 save.

This is why I am a huge supporter of having a second army. Not just any kind of second army (I'm sorry but Blood Angels or Space Wolves don't count if you are already playing Vanilla Marines) but a non MEQ army, preferably Xenos. This is what I did by going with Eldar as my second army. Something that is totally different from what you normally play. I had a hard (but fun) time learning how to play an army that was toughness 3 and did not have +3 armor saves. It's a fact that if you try to play Eldar in the same manner you place Space Marines you will get your ass handed to you. I eventually learned the tricks of playing Eldar and I loved it because it was so different from my Templars. I was no longer burnt out and when I eventually went back to playing with my Templars I honestly felt like I became a much better player. I knew first hand how it feels not to have power armor to rely upon so I had to make smart tactical decisions and learn how to deploy and move and use cover. The jumping back and forth between my two armies is what keeps me fresh and eager to always want to play 40K.

So if Rich or anyone that is in his predicament is reading this, give a second army a whirl. Be warned, there is a high learning curve when you switch from MEQs to Xenos, but it is greatly rewarding. It will make you a better player in the long run and will prevent you from being burning out. I also hear the new Tyranid Codex is just begging for someone to figure out the hidden gems that are inside so give that a shot! (I honestly believe it is not as underpowered as everyone makes it out to be, but that's another topic).

So what's your second army, or what do you plan on using as a second army? Were you in the same predicament as Rich? How did you get out of your slump? Share your thoughts :D

Prime Advice

Primers. Interesting topic amongst some people. Some people don't use primer, some people swear by certain types of primer. Some people are sheep and just use what GW throws in front of you (I was one of those sheep for a long time) and others swear by Army Painter. Some people airbrush, some people put it on with a brush.

Now I mentioned I used to be one of the GW sheep, I actually was for about 2 years. I elected to pay up to $15 a can for primer. Now don't get me wrong, GW's black spray primer is the shit! I had used a lot of it for my Black Templars. It was so good, the primer actually doubled as my primary color. Then I moved on to Eldar and experimented with their white primer. In my opinion, GW's white primer is crap. You need to shake the thing for what seems like an hour in order for it to come out of the can decently, and I still have problems with it being too dusty and flakey. I don't want to be paying $15 for a can of shitty primer.

So I did what any pissed off gamer does, hit up the internet. I read an article on Hogs of War (http://www.thehogsofwar.com/2010/03/cheap-and-effective-non-gw-white-primer.html) and decided to give this Rustoleum a shot.

 First off, the can nearly exploded when I did my first spray. Paint shot out the top of the can and caked my hand in white primer. I'm pasty white enough being Polish and all, so right away I got a bad feeling about it. I continued anyways hoping that maybe it was just a bad can. So I sprayed a spare fig I had lying around and gave it the standard 15 minutes I normaly give my figs to dry before flipping them over to prime the other side. I went to touch the fig and it was still wet and sticky. So I checked up on it every hour. It took 24 hours for it to dry to a point that I could work with it, AND IT WAS STILL STICKY! Sorry Hogs of War, but this primer is crap.

So I continued my search on the internet and found someone on some random board praising the Color Place spray paint you can get at Walmart for $.96. Yes that ninety six cents.

So I picked up a can and tried it out and a random Nob I had lying around (Erin just got a Blackreach set for the Marines to convert to Chaos). It dried in like 10 minutes and came out of the can perfectly. It's not dusty and flakey like the GW stuff. Here's a pic of what this Nob looks like:

As you can see it turned out pretty freaking nice. It takes paint really nicely too. Here's a pick of a nob that I also primed with the Color Place and did a quick speed painting job on (that's ground for a future article)

So, what do you use for primer?