Holiday painting.

      Well, as you can imagine, there has been none.... Sorry. But I did want to wish anybody that is out there and reading this a happy holiday from me. I think there is not enough Christmas cheer to be had, sometimes. Today, I share mine. I hope that the elves brought you something you can enjoy for a long time to come. My blessing came from the innocence of youth. Introducing my children into making crafts (including painting little men) and giving gifts that they made, is what inspires me to do what I do. Just seeing the pride they had knowing they made someone smile with something they made. There is no greater pleasure to me that enriching the next generation. Thanks to everyone that takes to follow or at least read my blog. There will be plenty more next year.

Progress from the Webway

      Hi guys. I just wanted to put a bit of progress that i have been doing on the Eldar. My Fire Dragons are done and got some headway on the Howling Banshees. I also made considerable forward motion on an autarch that would go great with the fire dragons, but he is not part of the list. You may have noticed I have a habit of straying straying from the path a bit. Unfortunately, the pictures did not come out well enough to post. And remember, no bases until the end of the project. I hope you enjoy these. There are more to come.  Don't forget to keep an eye out for something coming soon.

Battle Report: Come the Plague

Death Guard

Saim Hann Eldar

                  Plague Marines


                          vs.



                Saim Hann Eldar



        For the first time in months, I got a game of 40k in this week end. What a glorious time had by all!!! Well, by both of us. My friend brought over his plague marine army to play. His army in basic was a lord with the burning brand in terminator armor, a sorcerer, 2 squads of plague marines, a chosen squad, terminator squad, and havocs with autocannons. I brought out my Eldar. I just haven't had enough games since the codex came out, sadly enough. I brought a farseer, fire dragons in a falcon, 2 squads of dire avengers in wave serpents, warp spiders, jet bikes, dark reapers, and a squad of guardians on foot for scoring.

      I felt really good about my chances by seeing the lists and the table setup. Then came my greatest downfall. We rolled dawn of war.(no problem) Then the mission was rolled......... Purge the Alien!(Ugh!)
Now what do I do? He has a total of 7 kill points. I have almost twice as many. He goes first. Big help for me. I have range and mobility. I just need to get rid of those havocs. I set up mostly out of sight. All the shot he got off were havocs which were insufficient and my shooting was a bit lack luster. If I remember correctly, I killed 2 plague marines. Then turn 2 came. His terminators all dropped in with the lord. He barbecued my warp spiders and dark reapers. Let's just say at the end of turn 2, he was beating me 3 to nothing. It took until turn four for me to even get a kill point. Damn toughness 5 and feel no pain. When the game ended, I had lost 7 to 2. I performed well in my opinion, but I just couldn't kill off the last guy in each squad. Neither warlord died. I did get line breaker. So, off to the next one.

         Keep your eye here for something special coming soon.

Back from black

      Once the Thanksgiving is over and most of the leftovers are eaten. The craziness of black Friday shopping began. (oh, the deals!)  Even as that insanity ended, Small Business Saturday began. This is the day that is most dear to me. I hope everyone out there supported their local hobby center or game store. If you haven't gone out this shopping season. Please, support your local game store. Without them, most of us would not be in a miniature wargaming hobby.

The future has been foreseen.

        Ok. Ok. So this is a little late. This week my house has been hit by all manner of catastrophes. From plagues and floods to power outages. Well, I am exaggerating a bit. (It all happened!) Then there has been the Thanksgiving preparations. Let's just say it has been a bit busy. No excuses, I know. On the bright side, I got my bastion assembled and painted. I just have yet to paint the quad gun, comms relay and lascannon. Though, I have four of the bases painted. Not quite sure why I painted so many, but we have options.


    Next, to the business at hand. The list to paint for my next project. The voting was close. The Eldar won out by one vote. I thank those who left comments. This is, again, an addition to my existing Eldar collection. I think the list would be fun as is. I would probably drop some points (howling banshees, most likely) to get another wave serpent or two in to be more tournament competitive. Here it is:

1850 Points - Codex: Eldar Roster - Eldar hobby goal

   1 Autarch - TL Shuriken Catapults; Shuriken Pistol; Haywire Grenades; Plasma Grenades; Forceshield; Banshee Mask; Laser Lance; Reaper Launcher (Starswarm); Eldar Jetbike
   1 Farseer - TL Shuriken Catapults; Rune Armor; Shuriken Pistol; Ghosthelm; Eldar Jetbike; Singing Spear
20 Dire Avengers
   9 Dire Avengers - Avenger Shuriken Catapult; Plasma Grenades
   1 Dire Avenger Exarch - TL Avenger Shuriken Catapult
   9 Dire Avengers - Avenger Shuriken Catapult; Plasma Grenades
   1 Dire Avenger Exarch - Power Sword; Shimmershield
6 Fire Dragons
   5 Fire Dragons - Fusion Gun
   1 Fire Dragon Exarch - Fire pike
1 Fire Prism
   1 Fire Prism - Prism Cannon; TL Shuriken Catapults
20 Guardian Defenders
   20 Guardian Defenders - Shuriken Catapult; Plasma Grenades
7 Howling Banshees
   6 Howling Banshees - Shuriken Pistol; Power Sword; Banshee Mask
   1 Howling Banshee Exarch - Shuriken Pistol; Executioner
3 Warlock
   2 Warlock - Rune Armour; Shuriken Pistol; Witchblade
   1 Warlock - Rune Armour; Shuriken Pistol; Singing Spear
10 Warp Spiders
   9 Warp Spiders - Death Spinner; Warp Jump Generators
   1 Warp Spider Exarch - TL Death Spinner; Powerblades
1 Wave Serpent
   1 Wave Serpent - TL Scatter Lasers; TL Shuriken Catapults; Ghostwalk Matrix
3 Windrider Jetbike Squad
   2 Windrider Jetbike Squad - TL Shuriken Catapults; Eldar Jetbike
   1 Windrider Jetbike Squad - Shuriken Cannon; Eldar Jetbike
5 Wraithguard
   5 Wraithguard - Wraithcannon
Total Roster Cost: 1848

Dead Heat.

      Here we are. Two day later. I have an even tie for what army to work on next. I was sure when I  put the last post up that I certainly would not have a three way tie between Imperial Guard, Eldar, and Tyranids. (sigh). Well, I'm going to explain my armies a bit. First off, Chris is quite capable of painting his own bugs, but I will help him as the need arises. Though there is some strange irony in painting bugs before my IG. I'm sure the will be some compensation involved.(hint, hint). Next, my Eldar of Saim-Hann. I already own an allotment of jetbikes at my disposal. What I plan on painting is farseers, warlocks, guardians, dire avengers and a few grav tanks for filler. The IG army I collected is fully intended to fight tyranids. My brainstorm was to be an air cavalry army. Unfortunately, 6th edition put an end to that. Besides, the reality of that many Valkyries just doesn't work. So, I shorted the air support and added Leman Russ tanks. So, again I ask. Which army should I work on next? I am leaving this up to you. One comment can change my life for the next 6 months or so.

I need help!

     I have been having a lot of trouble actually deciding what I want to work on next. So, I am leaving up to you. Please help me make the decision of whether I should paint my Imperial guard or Eldar. I don't care if you are a gamer or not. To help those who are not, the Eldar are elves in space. The  Imperial Guard are the normal rank & file human soldiers. Please! I am looking for your input. I plan on doing update on the project just as I did with my Dark Angels. The final count will be done on Sunday evening. I will have a list up for either on Monday. Thanks.

Lesson one: Mark your magnets!

         Today, I just want to start with a moment of silence for the passing of finecast....... Ok. I was going to put a picture up showing how much I appreciated finecast models. But, fortunately or unfortunately, I never bought a single one. So much for that.

       This week has not been good for finishing units. Although, I did quite a bit of progress done. First step was to magnetize my wraith knight. All arms are interchangeable for every weapon choice. It wasn't that bad of a project until my 3 year old came over and messed up my magnets on me and I glued the one arm in backwards. Uggghhh! I took me about 20 minutes to get the magnet back out and put it in the right way. Thus are the perils of working while kids are awake. Lesson learned and move on . So that sparked my interest in painting some eldar. Not yet at a point of commitment of a list to play. I just pulled some models out. So I put some paint on a squad of Fire Dragons, some Howling Banshees and an Autarch. I got the base coats and some dry brushing done.


  I did get a bunch of little projects done.  My Aegis defense line, some curved sand bag barriers, ammo stows, and a few other pieces all hit and left my hobby desk. Here are a few pictures. I hope you all had a productive week as well.

"Run for your lives!"

   

 

 

   "I felt a great disturbance in the Force, as if millions of voices suddenly cried out in terror and were suddenly silenced. I fear something terrible has happened." Or was it in the warp? No. This time it is not the Death Star destroying Alderaan. It is a planet being destroyed, but not in one final blast from the greatest station in the galaxy. More like dropped on and eaten one citizen at a time.  I believe these are the voices of Guardsman, Eldar, and Space marines. All being consumed to feed the hive mind.  This was the exact moment when I heard the Tyranid codex was being released in only a few short weeks. I feel the great devourer will certainly "bring balance to the Force." 

 

      All my hopes and fears for the future hang in the balance of this codex. I hope that this codex will prove to the community that assault is not dead, not that I believed that for a second. I have been run over by more thunder wolves and chaos marines than I would like to admit to. I also hope to see a return of genestealers. (and possibly genestealer cults.) My first fear is that there will be yet another psycher more powerful than Eldrad. Then, of course, I will be wishing I could use more than one standard of devastation in my command squads. Also  The swarm is always the way I am defeated. I never have enough bullets. But time will tell. what lies ahead. Hopefully, the swarm can be slowed before it lands at my doorstep, but I doubt it. Maybe I need to return to the Guard. They are the rival of these stinking bugs. Hopefully, they come out with a Leman Russ Ortho, or maybe replace Marbo with the Orkin man.

Question everything

    Apparently, I have been living under a rock. Either that or they are just keeping secrets from me. I just finally realized that in 3 days we will be able to pre-order Codex: Inquisition. This intrigues me greatly. When I started my Imp. Guard army, the original idea was to have a force led by a Xenos or heretic inquisitor. Then as my collection started the Grey knight codex came out.... and it was everywhere. So I dropped the idea. I didn't  want to be the next cheese player around. Besides, the grey knights are not my cup of tea. The best of the best of the best. Not exactly what I was looking for as I was building my status quo Imperial Guard army.

    Of course, sixth edition came out. Dark Angels codex came out. Eldar came out. I have been quite busy updating my armies that I already had so that they were playable. So now, I wait. Next week I will be able to see if I can go back to my original theme or just work on my Eldar until a new I.G. codex comes out. For now, I will continue with my battlefield.

From the army to the field

Not every table should be desolate.

   Since finishing my challenge, I have been putting some thought into what's next for me. Well...... I haven't quite decided yet. I'm going to give it a few days to consider. So, I have been wondering if fortifications are still worth the points. I haven't really played with one yet. My group of friends aren't really using fliers, maybe one or two. I think I have more fliers myself than everyone else combined. So, I just haven't seen the reason to add one to my force. On the other hand, I love the aesthetics of the bastion, defense lines, or even the Fortress of Redemption. Nothing stands out more on a battlefield than a nicely painted bastion or landing pad, or even some other large piece of scenery. I really enjoy that you could buy a structure for your army to hide behind or to "defend against all odds."

     My short term plan is get my fortifications painted up. As well, I have a bin full of debris that needs painting. Well, I should say, A bastion and all the weapons that come with the bastion and Aegis line. This way all my players will have availability to what ever weapon or fortification options so they can shoot down my fliers or hide or defend. This should be a great way to build the stories on my tables.  And should give me time to come up with a game plan for my next army project.

     I just wanted to add for anyone reading this to please look for and like this on face book. I have been putting more pictures and comments up there. Thanks.

Work in Progress, Fortress Defense Force Completed

Defense Force Redemption, 5th Company

Renegade Extermination Team

Fallen Requisition Team, Uriel

     This is the final pictures for my Hobby Progress Challenge. What an exciting moment to finalize this kind of project. As the painting & development of this project progressed. the list evolved. But I decided to stick to what I started with. I am going to use the Master in the list for a stand in Azreal. I just need to do the detail work as I have owned  the models for probably 10 years now, but I feel the Azreal model is a little dated at this time. The other thing I have added to my collection is a Ravenwing command squad and a librarian on a bike to open them up. Obviously, not for this list.



   I am incredibly interested if this army would work on the table. I plan on trying it the first chance I get. I think it will work great at local club and actually looks like a fun army to play.
I would start with the Devastators and a Tactical Squad with the librarian  deployed in the fortress. Veterans set as a counter assault force to anyone trying to assault the base. The other Tactical squad would be deployed for taking objectives. The Ravenwing would most likely be reserved to be brought in at the right time or as needed.

   So, that is it for now. The next project is right around the corner. The big question for me is should I get my Eldar up to snuff or start prepping my Imperial Guard for the possibility of a new codex. I think that might be a topic for next time. Off to the next one.....






White is the new Black!

    I've had some time to digest the Space Marine codex. I have read the internet reviews and built some army lists together. I came up with a conclusion. White is the new black. Well, maybe. White Scars got awesome special rules. And add Kahn into the mix only adds more to the force. No doubt! The builds that come up with the ability to ally other marine chapters gives you the flexibility to have any unit or character from this book. But, if you are going to add that to White Scars awesomeness, you should realize that. Dark Angels are also battle brothers with the space marine codex. So they too can ally in Tigurius, except that they already have divination librarians.

 

      The next thing to compare is the riders themselves. The bikes & riders are pretty much the same. They both have hit & run, combat squads, and They shall know no fear!. So now the differences. White Scars get +1 strength to their hammer of wrath attacks. Admittedly cool. And they automatically pass dangerous terrain tests. Useful, but you need to fail the test and an armor save. Not really that likely to fail anyway. Their maximum squad is 8 bikers and an attack bike. Now, Ravenwing. They only get grim resolve, which is better, in my opinion, because it is coupled with hit & run. By itself, grim resolve is better or worse depending on the situation. Ravenwing squad is 6 bikers, an attack bike and a land speeder. I love that land speeder in my units because it is separated off from the bike squad. You could possibly have 4 scoring units from 1 choice. That is a great bonus in objective missions.

 

     After that is gear. White Scars can take the grav guns in their squads. Ok, slight rant here! Why is that every space marine chapter in the galaxy has figure out this grav gun technology except for Dark Angels, Blood Angels and Space Wolves. I still feel bad for the Space Wolves. They haven't figured out how to fly yet. And why haven't Chaos marines figured out how to put a heavy weapon on a rhino! Ugghh! It just grates me! Ok. With that aside, the Scars get grav guns. Awesome! Ravenwing have the only imperial jet bike, the dark shroud (which confers stealth within 6"), black talons (twin linked plasma guns), and the Dark Angels standards.

 

     So, in my honest opinion, it really depends on what you want from your bike army. If you want to smash into the face of your enemies, the White Scars are for you. If you want to shoot the enemy and avoid damage, The Ravenwing is for you. The best thing about this really is the fact that you could ally them together and get everything you want. So, have fun and ride hard!

Work in Progress, Part 3

Tactical squad # 5

      Here I am, feverishly working on my Dark Angels. Another Tactical squad done. I am officially down to 18 more models for my hobby progress challenge (a light at the end of a very dark green tunnel). The last DA tactical squad I ever plan on painting. Unless, of course, someone decides to buy me the entire chapter deal that GW decided to sell. Somehow, I seriously doubt that's going to happen. And I could easily find better uses for $11,000. OK. Enough of that tangent. Before them is my veteran squad, minus one that I already painted, and a land speeder. My plans are to be finished by the end of October. We shall soon see if that hold true.

   In case you haven't noticed, I placed my models on a convenient piece of terrain that I happened to have finished. I cut the foam for it over three years. It was intended to be a spawning pool themed for my lizard man army. Unfortunately, I have more terrain pieces done for that army than I have models completely painted. So, I just removed some of the iconography from the stone work and painted and based it more generically. Looking at it now, I feel that it needs a tree or some larger plant growth to break it up just a little. Otherwise, I am very pleased with it. This weekend will possibly include some work on our cityscape table and hopefully work out my list for my next army project: Eldar.

    The last thing I wanted to add tonight was a recommendation. Check out this site and add your support for  http://thelordinquisitor.com/. These guys are doing a wonderful job bringing the Warhammer 40k universe to light. Watch the trailer. You won't be sorry.

   I'm off for tonight. I need to actually update my progress on the independent characters forums. I don't think I've update my progress in 2 months there. Oops!. Well, at least the painting is getting done. That is the actual goal. See you soon.

Space Marines released!

The 1st and only

        Well, if you follow this hobby at all, you know that the new Space Marine codex is out and, hopefully, 6th edition will never be the same. I, as of this post, haven't even laid eyes on the book. I will catch up during the week. But, this week has cursed me with little sleep and less time for painting and modeling. My work on the Space Marines that matter to me has been affected, but ongoing. I got a tactical squad base coated,  washed and moved onto detail work. That leaves only 1 more tactical squad, a veteran squad and a land speeder. If all goes well, I am hoping to finish them up by the end of October. I really thought I would be farther along at this point. Unfortunately, life interrupts most of my free time.

  Enough about the armies of the imperium, the Xenos got some love this week. I finished basic assembly on my wraith knight. What an interesting model! The pictures don't really do it justice. The model is huge. You need to see one in person to appreciate the size of it. Now I need to purchase a revenant for a size comparison. I'm not sure my wife would authorize that purchase, though. But, I got it assembled and primed, as well as a wave serpent and fire prism and some jet bikes. I plan to be dedicated to my elder by November 1st. We shall see......

Work in progress, part 2

Ravenwing assault squad

        For some unknown reason, I decided to inventory my Dark Angels army. So, I  made 2 list on army builder to see what my painted & unpainted lists would contain. I only included completely painted models in my finished inventory and I did not include unseen war gear or special banners or versions of a weapon. The total came out to be 4587points. I was fairly impressed with this number. the progress I have been making in the last year has been exciting for me. It has rekindle my love for the hobby side of things as well as sparked my interesting in playing games tenfold from where I was 2 years ago. So, as I'm sitting here going through my inventory, I realized how close I am to a personal goal I had put out so many years ago. I only need to paint 2 tactical squads and an assault squad to be able to field a whole battle company. And the best part about that is ....... The tactical squads are both in my hobby progress challenge. The next thing on my desk is one of these. So I need to gather up the pieces to assemble the assault squad and I have it.

    While speaking of the hobby progress, I only have 4 more units to paint. The two tactical squads I just mentioned, a land speeder typhoon, and a veteran squad. Not too bad from my point of view. So, that means since last update, I painted: Ravenwing assault squad, librarian and company master. I also got a chance to assemble a Ravenwing command squad and a librarian on a bike to go with them. They are not part of the challenge, so they will wait to get painted. Along with that, I have started assembly on a wraith guard unit. There is something therapeutic about assembling models when I am stressed out. So now, I am off to get to those Tactical marines finished.



  

The Light Side of 40k

       What makes the lore of 40k so alluring? Is it the epic battles? Is it the Exterminatus of a planet? Is it the titan battles? No. I think it is the characters. Everyone loves the hero. From the Emperor of Mankind to the lowliest guardsman. Whether it is the unlikeliest of heroes from the most unlikeliest of place to the ultimate fighter cutting swathes through the enemies of all that is good, the hero is the one that inspires us to be a better person. The archetype of the hero doesn't matter, he just needs to defeat his enemies. The need to see the hero defeat all the odds to succeed even if it costs him everything. His life, or even his soul, may be on the line. The universe allows for all types of heroes to overcome their odds or just die trying sometimes. Even the armies of chaos or orks can have that archetype hero. The narrative allows for the ork warlord that is trying to save his clan against the tyranid scourge. But usually, it is easier to connect with a human, or genetically altered human, than some strange alien race that is a bit racially profiled like the orks.

        For today, I would like to talk of the heroes of Mankind. They are the ones that are easier to connect with, in most cases. The Imperial Guard are the bread & butter of the universe. They are the infinite hoard of lasgun toting soldiers that fight for the existence of mankind. In almost any story, you can find a guardsman. They are the army, navy and planetary soldier that defend their home lands every day. They have a strict, I mean STRICT, military organization. If things go bad for you in the guard, you don't get court marshaled. You get executed on the spot. Which brings me to the first character I would like to talk about. The Commissar. What would be cooler than to be the guy in the trench coat that everyone is afraid of? Break formation and Sergeant Tom gets a bolter shell to his forehead. How better to prove what a good and noble cause fighting for the Emperor is? This guy is arguably cooler than any other position in the imperial army. Especially considering the highest field rank is Colonel.


       Then, there is the spiritual leader of the Space Marines. What is more grim dark than a 8 foot tall black armor-clad, skull helmeted, power weapon wielding hero? The chaplain is the spiritual leader of the chapters. They drive (or maybe scare) the space marines forward to destroy their foes for the "good" of mankind. "In the name of the Emperor and in the name of .... (insert primarch  or chapter master name)!" Hopefully, they scare the bejeebies  out of whoever they are charging at.  It would work on me, for sure.

     The only thing that scares me more than that is the whole adeptus sororitas. Because there is something not right about form fitting power armor.

Sticking to my Path.

        I must say that the last time I wrote I was elated that the new Eldar codex was out. Time has changed my opinion. I am beyond jump up and down excited. I got my first trial down. I must say, neither of us brought point hammered lists and we only played 1000 points. Let's just say things did not go well for the forces of the dark gods.  I did not play with a fully painted army, which has been a personal goal for me, but I did play with units I haven't fielded in a long time. Guardian defenders did great. I stuck them with a scatter laser  and a warlock with conceal. Because they were guardians, they did not attract attention until they shot. Then there were three....   The Scatter laser is a terrific support weapon. Strength six and the laser lock ability is a very cool in combination with bright lances. This worked very well on the war walker. Swooping hawks did as expected. They dropped in, threw a haywire grenade, did nothing & got shot. My Wave Serpent was shot down before I could shoot the Serpent shield. Three glances from a Forge fiend took care of that.

     That trial fight rekindled the spark for me to paint my Eldar. As I said, I'm trying to play only fully painted armies. But I'm drawn to my Eldar like Slaanesh itself with beer & pizza. Yet, I must stay the path that is before me. I must finish what came before. The first legion must be ready to be deployed. So, on the momentum of the fortress of redemption, I have finished the jet fighter. The colors came together nicely. It only took me three nights to finish. Approximately  4 to 6 hours, never uninterrupted. From there, I started on my 2 characters for this list. I got the base coat and first dry brush on the librarian and the same with some detail work on the company master. I will have finished pictures next time.

        I also finished reading Angels of Darkness by Gav Thorpe. I love & hate the dual story books. I really enjoy seeing the two stories come together at the end, but I always have a harder time following the story before that. I did enjoy this book. It just took longer to read because I kept going back to check what I read.
   
       Well, until next we meet, I am off to the next adventure.

The Past Two Weeks.....

       The past two weeks for me has been extremely busy. Normal life warranted a few open doors and opportunities. But that is not the focus of this blog. My hobby has also been very busy. First off, the Eldar codex came out. I, of course, ran out Saturday morning to pick it up, then came home to digest the contents. That took all of nap time for my boys and then some. There are a lot of new rules in that codex. A lot to learn from the last version. I'm still working on list, between what I want to run compared to what I have to run. Then, I need figure out my paint schedule. Before that comes the completion of the Dark Angels.

      That leads me to the completion of my Fortress of Redemption.
It took me much longer to complete than I thought, but the results were better than I expected. Here are a couple of pictures. I really like the way the brass and black came together. I threw some Devastators on the walks for anyone who hasn't seen one before. Then, off the momentum of that, I started painting my Nephillim jet fighter. I painted the pilot and enclosed the canopy in one sitting.  Pictures of that will be coming later.

And if that wasn't enough, I even got a  fight in. 2 on 1. Chaos/ Imperial Guard versus Space wolves. My Imperial Guard did a pretty good job feeding chaos marines to the Space Wolves. Unfortunately, we lost the game. Victory to the werewolf vikings in power armor.                                And off to the  next black crusade. 

Happy Memorial Day!

    Today is a day to remember all you have died so we could have the freedom that we have. So, enjoy your day. Have a moment of silence for those have fallen for our way of life. Even if it has to be between the hamburger & Cole slaw. Honor the heroics of the men that held the line so others could escape and those who took orders unsure if they would see home again.

    The games we play are war. I push models around a table hoping they live through every encounter. They usually don't, under my command. Even when I win fights, the death toll is higher than I expect. Whether it is a Deathwing Terminator, Striking Scorpion or lowly guardsman, each model represents a soldier, some one's son, or daughter, brother or sister. So today, all I ask is if you must put your armies to the field. Please. Save a life. For all life is precious.

Except for those damned termagants. Blast their freaking heads off.......

Happy Memorial Day!

Space elves for the win!

     For months now I have been focusing on the dark and mysterious space marines of the Dark Angels chapter. The rules & rigidity of the Imperium of man is a reliable way to destroy your foes. (at least that is how they see it. My luck is not so reliable). Everything in my hobby progress has been in the name of the emperor. Between the unforgiven Dark Angels and the standing militia of the Imperial Guard, my progress is slow and steady.

     But now, things have changed. The return of the Eldar is near. Or so I have read on the Internet. Shh! Don't tell anyone! The followers of Khaine were my first army in 40k. I am excited by this news. This the force that makes me play the game. They are my vision of a sci-fi army. The idea of jetbikes and hovering tanks blasting their enemies off of the field. Troopers running around supporting their airborne brethren and holding strategic points. A little iffy on the artists or masons firing the guns, but I can accept it from a dying race.

     So now I look forward to June. Until then, I will continue to paint green and hunt the fallen. May the Emperor protect.

Fear the Dark!

     This week was an interesting one. I finally got a solid fight in with my Dark Angels. 1500 point fight against a thousand sons themed  CSM force, which by game time got escalated 100 points right before we started playing. He wanted to add cultists at the last moment, so I provided him some guardsman to stand in. We rolled up the Scouring and vanguard deployment. And to make it worse, the best objectives were all on my side. So we pretty much had a gun fight across the table. He got a couple pot shots off early and I returned them back. That would have been most of the battle except he booned a champion into a demon prince and I dropped my Deathwing behind his entire army. That was enough to distract his army  & pull him off one of his objectives. We called it soon after that. I'm still looking for a little more punch to my force. Not quite sure where to find it yet. Maybe in the IG codex.


A better shot of my 1000 pt Dark Angels

 

    As far as hobby progress, I got my Devastators finished but the sealer. I also painted the tower part of the Fortress, and one of the three land speeders. Not a bad month. Could have been better.... but on to next month.... I think I am going to tackle my bike squadron and a land speeder or two. And my ever present progress on the Fortress of Redemption. I'm hoping the base takes less time than the tower. We'll soon see.



Berks Spring Assault 4

My Dark Angels for Berks Spring Assault 4
 

      Last week, I headed out to Berks Spring Assault 4. BSA4 was held in Reading, Pa, which is only about an hour drive for me. It was the first tournament experience for me in a very long time. I take my hat off to Mike and the Berks gaming team for running an exciting event. It was a four game 1000 points per event. That made the games quick and interesting. I got to meet a lot of interesting people. And the number of gaming groups from around the area. The size of the display boards were tremendous compared to the last tournament I participated in. Wow! There were also some beautifully painted armies. It is good to know there are gamers out there with the same story as I have. I had lunch with a guy that would repeat the same tale of hobbying that I was telling him. I would call my second round opponent, Dan, for a game any time. He absolutely pulled my army apart one squad at a time. But it  was a blast. I also got to talk to some local pod casters. The whole event was an experience for me. It certainly was less about the games and more about the community and camaraderie. Thanks again Mike. I look forward to the next time.

Time well spent...

Goblin Summer Camp.

        I just got to say fitting games into a busy schedule of work, home, and kids is incredibly hard sometimes. There is a local tournament to me next weekend. I am at this point on the edge of my seat whether I will get to go. My wife works all day Saturdays, which makes tournaments a difficult avenue to travel for me to attend. Multiple day events are completely out of the question. So, here I sit waiting for a return text from the only person that may be able to watch my little boys. Hopefully, things will work out. Then, I will have a far more interesting post next week. But enough about that.

       I am very excited for all the new codexes being released for Warhammer 40000. I can't possibly keep up with all the new rules. I've only got a single game in with my Dark Angels. We already have 2 more books and a rules expansion that I have yet to read. Thank god for the Internet keeping me up to date on all the new units and combinations. Podcasts, as well, are a great source of all the updates, FAQ's, and new builds. I just wanted put a couple of my favorite podcasts on here.

    First one I want to mention is The Independent Characters. I have mentioned them before on here. I am sure I will again. Carl and Jeff are so enthusiastic about the game. They just seem to draw you in to the world and their gaming group. Even though they are on the other side of the country, I want to go play with them.

     Second is the 11th Company.  They are the crew that I go to for strategies. Neil, Pat, and the others have a go/ no go gauge of units and armies. I feel, at this point, they should probably save a spot for the heldrake to voice its opinion. on the game. "Heldrake does as heldrake pleases..." The tactical terrain segment by Eric has been very inspirational to me.

    Next is one that I love for a number of reasons. The Turn 8 Podcast guys are friendly and excited about gaming. Not from my immediate area, they are close enough that we could sit down for a game sometime. Of course, I would like to call out Rich. We need to get you some games in. Their unique battle report always has me excited about their next episode. Hopefully, I will see some of you at Berks Spring Assault 4.


   Second Founding is a great podcast. I love these guys for their attitude toward the game. They will find models from whatever avenue they need to theme up their armies. I really enjoyed their Armies for noobs and alternative models segments they had. I hope they keep them up.

     And the last that I really want to mention is Noobhammer. Whether you are a "noob" or a veteran, you will learn something from these guys. I think the best thing about Jason & Nate is their dual coverage of 40k and Fantasy. They are my fantasy fix without devoting my time to a specific Warhammer Fantasy podcast. Though from some of the things they mention. I should really start updating my Orc & Goblins army.

    If you get a chance tune into all 5 of these guys. There are others I listen to from time to time. But these are the guys that fill my commute. I certainly hope none of these guys go away. If you get a chance, tune in to their podcasts. They are worth your time. They are available on their websites and Itunes. See you guys next week.

Fortress of Redemption project

Well, this week was busy. My weekend was overtaken by out of town family. So my painting progress suffered because of it. I did get a lot of work on my Fortress of redemption. I started with the tower. It was the portion that worried me the most. This is the part that is a centerpeice if the structure. If this section failed, the whole peice failed. Luckily, in my opinion, the wings came out clean looking, almost a marble sheen that doesn't really come out in the picture. All of the trim needs to be painted and dry brushing of the robes and the trim need work for it to be done.

So, I'm going to keep this week's post short & sweet. Hopefully, next week will warrant completion of this part. After that, I'm gonna switch to a squad before I do the main portion of the fortress. See you next week.

Work in prgress.

    My painting progress over the last couple weeks is a little sparse, but I did finish my Eldar Nightwing. I actually received this model more years ago than I want to admit to. When I started to assemble this model the top hull piece was about a 1/2 inch shorter than the bottom. I feared, for more time than it was worth, trying to repair this flaw. I never worked with putty (Green Stuff) before now. I really feel that the model came out beautifully. So, this is the final product. All that is left is the base. Unfortunately, I need to order one.

    Next is a brief look to the future. I need to organize myself  and set goals. I decided to use the hobby progress challenge from the The Independent Characters podcast.

     This is an add-on to my existing Dark Angels army. I will putting up more pictures of my existing models. Especially, comparative squad just to compare my older to current painting skills, that which they are. All of which need to be done by November.

My 1850 point list is:

 Company Master  with power sword, Lion's Roar, artificer armor, digital weapons, and melta bombs.                                             160 points

Librarian  with auspex and melta bombs and increase mastery level.                    110 points

Tactical Squad (10) with flamer and M. Launcher Melta bombs.                  165 points

Tactical Squad (10) with plasma gun and H. Bolter, Plasma pistol.                      185 points

Devastator Squad (10) with plasma cannon, 2 M. launchers, and Lascannon               205 points

Nephilim Jetfighter                         180 points

Ravenwing Attack Squadron (6) with flamer, power sword, and melta bombs. Attack bike with Mulimelta                                        251 points

Ravenwing Support Squadron (2) 1 typhoon with heavy flamer, 1 tornado with heavy bolter and assault cannon.                                155 points

Company Veterans (8) with 1 plasma pistol,
1 power sword, 1 lightning claw,
1 combat shield                              209 points

Fortress of Redemption with heavy bolters
                                                         230 points.

Yes, I did include a Fortress of Redemption. It is a beautiful building that I was terrified of messing up. This year is my year for confonting some of the things that I haven't tried yet. So, wish me luck.

A brand new toy

      The idea of starting a new game is scary at times. I'm not talking about Scrabble or the new God of War. A new miniature war game starts with a lot of choices. The first thing to consider is the game itself and what you need to play it. Basically, any game you want to play will require a rule book, miniatures (of course), a surface to play on, and most likely terrain of some sort. Hopefully, you have a friend or local gaming store to guide you with a table and terrain. Usually, someone is your gateway to this game. They should be able to teach you the rules or loan you the core rules. That leaves priority one on your shoulders. What army, faction or gang do you want to play?

      I think there are a few major factors, and an infinite number of minor ones, that will sway your decision. First one that comes to mind for is character archetype. What do you want your force to portray? Is it the devout followers of the god of light or the assassins that are sworn to destroy them? How about the fallen heroes or the police force of the region, whether they are good or bad? The army may be the mechanical constructs or alien life forms that eat everything in their path. Whatever your flavor, there is some army or character within the army for you.

       The next major factor is presentation. The way the models look is a huge factor when making a choice. I know, for me, if the minis don't click with me I am not going to spend money or time to assemble and paint them. There were many characters and squads that sat in my paint box just because I couldn't bring myself to paint them. The perfect example for me is the Lizard men Saurus  units. I painted all my skinks and Slann, but just can't finish the army because they just don't speak to me. The color scheme just never looked right. I googled snakes, alligators, monitors, & all kinds of reptiles to get a scheme that worked. I even consulted a friend of mine who is a reptile fanatic. I painted a dozen or more models, stripped & repainted them. All to no avail. So, I don't see they will ever get finished.

     The final decision for me is how they play on the table. An army needs to work. It can't be this kind of unit sitting next to a different type of unit and they don't work together. They need to perform the way you intend to use them. You can't expect Orc Arrer Boyz to run forward and beat down Chaos knights in close combat. It's not gonna happen!

   From there, you can decide on theme, paint schemes, armies that your friends play, your personal effects to the battlefield. These I consider minor, because you can paint a Space wolf army black and silver if that is what you really want. The conversions and objective markers and terrain features to go with your army are all defined after the force decision is made.

   I hope this helps anyone looking into starting a new force in a game you already own or getting into a new game altogether.