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Peeling back the curtain just a bit

May 16, 2014, 2:03 pm
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This weeks White Dwarf has good deal on the new edition of 40K. So much for it being just a clean up of 6th. Well, no more than 5th was a revised 4th and all. Call me a overly optimistic fanboy but I am actually really looking forward to 7th edition, starting with the throwbacks to second edition, the three book rules set and the Psychic phase.
I love all the fluff and pretty pictures in the rule books, but the phonebook sized 6th was so heavy and unwieldy when trying to using in a real game. Just having the rules in a mere 208 page book will be so much nicer. Or on my tablet, choices, choices. At any rate, the three hardcovers in a slipcase is a great idea.

We will have to wait and see exactly how the new psychic phase works, but it sounds solid and something that will add to the game without putting much drag on the turn structure. Daemonology sounds fun and a real boost to the fans of the ruinous powers.

The new missions set seems very dynamic and should be entertaining. The other huge change is of course, the Unbound army selection. Sounds like a lot of fun, providing you don't play with total smegheads. And even then it should be good for a laugh. Used responsibly it will allow for interesting battlegroups that exist in the fluff but cannot be made using the existing FOC. Like my all assault squad army that is coming to to a table soon, or a "proper" Ork kult of speed. Oh, the possibilities.

I want to wait until next week when I have the rules in hand before I yap about the rules tweaks.

The Emperor Protects
We'll see how well he listened to our pleas

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Nemesis Expansion Quick Look

May 21, 2014, 10:56 am
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The expansion for the Relic boardgame has arrived and it looks good. Produced to the high standards we have come to expect from Fantasy Flight Games it adds lots of new stuff to an already strong game. The main focus is the "Enemies of the Imperium" game mode where one player (or two in a five or six player game) takes the role of a Nemesis and works against the other players and has different victory conditions.

Giving the rules a read through this seems very straight forward and interesting. The Nemesis player gets four character choices: Khorne Berzerker, Slaaneshi Damemonete, Genestealer Broodlord, or Eldar Dire Avenger Exarch. Each has their own Nemesis deck of fun things and encounter Imperium forces on the main game board. And of course they may fight the other players.

Actually, any players may now fight each other if they have become an Apostate. This happens if/when your character takes one of the new Apostate asset or relic cards. Fun and powerful, but just a bit on the evil side.

As the man said, "What's in the box?" Let's look.
All manner of new goodness. The four Nemesis and all their cards and boards. A slew of new cards: four scenarios, 7 relics, 24 wargear, and 9 threats. Two Imperial characters (Eversor Assassin and Storm Trooper Sergeant) plus the boards and tokens to expand to a six player game.
If you enjoy Relic this is very close to a must-have expansion. Even if PvP is not your thing it adds a lot to the base game to be worthwhile.  Hopefully we will get it on the table next week and see how it plays.

The Emperor Protects
In all forms 

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Panzers of Armageddon

May 23, 2014, 11:10 am
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Slitherine Ltd had their annual press conference a few days ago to discuss and show upcoming projects. Finally the veil has been removed from Warhammer 40,000 Armageddon, the turn based wargame that we have all been waiting for. It is similar to the great Panzer Corps game but at a smaller scale. All the units have been rendered in 3D, so they will have six facings as opposed to Panzer Corps units only facing left or right.  
The designers have put a of lot of care in "getting it right" and GW has signed off on each 3D model. 
The game will ship with a 30+ mission branching campaign, a scenario editor, and will support PBEM. Several expansions are already planned.
 Currently due for release in 3rd Quarter on PC and iPad, with other formats to follow. This looks like the successor to Final Liberation/Rites of War that we have been waiting for. Hopefully this will be the launch of a strategy franchise. I'll be following this game closely and will post any new developments. 

The Emperor Protects
Even against virtual Orks


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Carnage Asada '14

May 29, 2014, 2:38 pm
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On Monday we had our annual Kill-fest and BBQ. We played the largest sized Apocalypse battle we have ever done with 10,000 points per side. Three Tyranid players vs. a Guard and a Space Wolf player. The sight of all those well painted figures on the table at one time was truly amazing. The down side was it took a very long time per turn, and the mission I had picked turned into the exact opposite of what I intended. 

I had wanted a more dynamic mission that would not expose as much of the current handicaps the Tyranids have versus a shooting heavy army, such as an Imperial Guard army with three "D" weapons on the table. It quickly turned into "line-up-and-shoot-the-hell-out-of-the-Tyranids" kind of game. It was still fun, but frustrating for the Tyranid players. So I take full blame for that, and thank Pete, Matt, and Mrs. Blackheart for being great sports and gallantly charging in regardless. 

This was our last game under the Sixth Edition rules, and since Seventh did not really help the 'Nids out much we are looking at a few house rule changes. Notably the ability for Fleet units to run and assault. More on that in the next few weeks. Now for some pictures!











As usual, I was having too much fun and rum to remember to take enough photos, or to make sure the "awesome" shots I was taking were in something approaching focus. Which most weren't. I will try to appease the Machine Spirit better next time.

Overall, it was a very good time; socializing, rolling dice, eating great Cane Asada, and  hanging out with my friends. Which to me, is the point of holidays. So thanks to all the Atomic Warlords for a excellent day.

The Emperor Protects
And Invented BBQ

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Gork and Mork-anauts

May 31, 2014, 9:11 am
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The Orks are officially upon us and leading the way is a new heavy dread creation. I was put off at first by the yellow paint job, but I like it. It is blocky and brutal looking, right on the line between comical and intimidating. Of course I already have a good size Dread Mob so it will fit right in.

For the points of a Land Raider what do you get? Armor 13, 5 HP, and a lot of dakka. It has a transport ability of six which may be good for getting your warboss/Big Mek closer to the action in style. The way the two different versions pay homage to their different Gods is a nice touch. The Gorkanaut is a bit more brutal and of course the Morkanaut is a little more Kunning with it's weapons load out and the ability to get a kustom force field.

Hopefully this a good portent for the upcoming Ork releases. It does seem to follow the recent release pattern: One big new kit, and re-do a few old ones and repackage the rest. We will have to see which of the rumors ore correct. I am hoping for new buggies and Mega-nobs.

Beware the Hand of Gork
Mork too.

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The Future is here (Again)

June 3, 2014, 10:36 am
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Just short of two years and Sixth Edition has been replaced. Getting a new versions of rules is always an exciting time. Will the changes be drastic like going from 2nd the 3rd? Or more of a rules set refinement? Will the new rules completely change how I play? In the case of 7th, the answer is yes.

To be fair, the drastic change is not that huge. The resurrection and re-implementation of the Psychic Phase is smooth, but does put a lot of focus on Psykers. We need to get more games in before we can have a definitive opinion, but for now I think it adds to the game and removes a lot of the clumsiness that Psychic powers had in their timing and execution.

The big dissapointment was no love given to the assault phase. We are working on that for our house rules. The new tweaks that have come up in our first few games of 7th so far work out well. Jink gives you a choice between having to take snap fire shots next turn and having a better chance of being around next turn. The -2" to charge distance into/through difficult terrain just makes things faster. Vehicles are now just a little harder to kill, and that is a good thing.

One of the changes we like the best is the Tactical Objectives. This adds so much to the way you handle your turn and makes you deal with changes on the fly . Some have complained that it is too "gamey". Last time I checked, 40K is a game and does benefit from having choices in scoring systems. The cards (or the D66 table) are random, and I can see how that would upset some people. A bad run of cards can cost you the game, but there seems to be a wide enough variety to make that unlikely. It will still happen though, most likely at the worst possible time. Gaining Victory Points every turn really drives focus and can make for a much more dynamic and exciting game.  

I'm sure I will have yet more musings as we get some more games in. Go roll some dice.

The Emperor Protects
It's the only thing that doesn't change

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Pictures of War

June 1, 2014, 11:36 pm
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Matt's Stormraven
It's that time again! I have some good-ish shots left over that didn't make it into a post, but I still want to put up. Enjoy!
Pete's Plague Zombie Horde
Where's Marbo?
Haruspex 3D!!!
Steel Legion vs the Walking Dead

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Three Shades of Red

June 20, 2014, 12:38 pm
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Blood Angels and Eldar vs. World Eaters, an all red army fight! I brought 3000 points of my favorite decapitation enthusiasts up against 1500 points of Mrs. Blackheart's Eldar and 1500 points of Matt's Blood Angels. My list was battle Forged and included the Lord of Skulls, The non-chaos side of the table both tried Unbound lists for the first time.

I wanted to give daemon summoning a try, but as we all well know Khorne has a thing against psykers.  I took a level 3 psyker with only Daemonology-Malefic powers. My fluffy tap dance was that the World Eaters had captured a Psyker and had brought him around to their way of looking at things. Now they use him just as a way to bring forth their friends from the Warp. And that he did. Big time.

Lots of heavies in this battle with a very low infantry count on both sides. Of course I had almost 1/3 of my points tied up in a single model.
I did a fair job of killing things for the first two turns, but theTactic cards did not favor me, but the Psychic phase sure did. I summoned Bloodletters on turn one and pack of Bloodcrushers on turn two. Fun times with the Warp. Sadly I missed the bright red Furioso hiding in the ruins who popped out and slaughtered the entire pack of ten Bloodletters with the magic of Blood Talons. That's okay, plenty more where they came from!
My newly painted Heldrake arrived in spectacular fashion. Killed a Vyper with a vector strike attack and then flamed five Dire Avengers and the Farseer. The Blood crushers charged and wiped out a unit of Guardians. Things were looking great for the slightly-darker red guys.
It wouldn't last. I charged the badly damaged Wraithknight with my Defiler hoping to finish it off and keep my momentum going. It didn't work out like that. The Wraithknight put the beat down upon the Defiler. Then came The Blood Angels and Eldar's turn.

With a shot for the ages, the last Vyper took its snapshot and hit my Heldrake with a bright lance. Then Mrs. Blackheart promptly rolled another six to put it down. Arrgh.

For an encore, the five Dire Avengers dropped the Blood Crushers in a hail of Shuriken fire. After Matt's attacks from a pair of Land Raiders, a Predator, and a fire support Dreadnought all I had left on the right flank was the badly damaged Lord of Skulls. Next turn the Lord of Skulls killed the Wraithknight and chopped up a Land Raider but it was not enough. The Lord of Skulls fell to a mass of firepower, leaving only a smoking crater.
I had rallied a bit in VPs, but still was behind at the end. Victory to the non-Chaos Reds. Now they will have to fight it out to see whose red is supreme!

A good game. We are enjoying the more open style that is 7th edition. We did come up with a house rule regarding Tactics cards. If you get a card that is impossible to achieve you get to discard and draw a new one. By Impossible we mean never possible, as in your opponent did not bring any fliers, or you had no Psykers to start the game with.

The Emperor Protects
And looks good in red.

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The Martians Arrive

June 25, 2014, 2:13 pm
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All Quiet on the Martian Front was just released by the nice folk over at Alien Dungeon. It is a 15mm scale tactical game of the Martian invasion early 20th century. The "current" game year is 1914 and the Martians control a large part of the globe. I backed it on Kickstarter just over a year ago and finally the big box arrived containing about 2/3 of the initial releases.

The main rule book is a nice 176 page full color hardcover. Good art and lots of pictures. The only minor complaints I have is that the pictures of the models are all of the prototypes and not of the much nicer plastic production run. The other complaint is lack of all the tables gathered together at the back of the book. That is less of a worry as I'm sure they will be released as PDFs.

One of the big goals of the Kickstarter campaign was to raise enough capital to make the Tripods and tanks out plastic. That was passed, and thank goodness it was. The plastic Assault and Scout Tripods are very easy to work with and go together in a flash, I've put together six of each in no time at all. The US tanks are also plastic and easy to assemble, with parts to make several different versions.

I built a few Tripods, and then settled in to assembling the US Army forces.

The infantry are single piece figures that go five to a base. It did take a small amount of effort to clean the flash off them but they went on the bases just fine as did the Heavy Machine Gun teams.

There is a fun unit called "Rough Riders" that are assault troops riding Harleys. No other model gave such frustration in assembly. They are only two parts, the Bike/rider and the handlebars. The handlebar part is very small and difficult to get into position. I managed making two units (six stands) of them without hurling them across the room, and they do look cool.

The tanks were fun to assemble, the only sticking point was what variants to make. I did a unit or two of the major ones and a have a few left unbuilt. A PDF is coming soon to fully address the different variants that are now possible with the plastic kit.
The artillery units, and the large super tanks will be arriving in the next shipment, hopefully before the end of the year.

Next up, the Martians!

Go Roll Some Dice
And Free Earth!

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Shiny

June 30, 2014, 3:08 pm
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We picked up Firefly: The Game a couple of weeks ago. Yes, I know, welcome to eight months ago. I enjoyed the show and felt it was canceled prematurely, but I am not a Browncoat. So I waited on the game until I got some positive feedback on how it was as a game, not just fan service.

Luckily, it does both! The game's art is well done and just oozes Firefly atmosphere. It may try a bit too hard in some aspects, but it is not overbearing for players not real familiar with the show. The big question is how does it play?

Firefly: The Game is a 1-4 player game were the player is a captain of a Firefly-class ship trying to make their way across the 'verse. This is accomplished by hiring crew, buying gear and getting jobs. You can stay on the right side of the law, but the jobs don't pay nearly as well. Things can get very dangerous outside of Alliance space, but that is where the real money is made. A player wins by completing the goals on the Story card. Goals vary by the different Story cards, so replay value is very good. That and the random nature of  drawing from many different decks for contacts, jobs, gear, and travelling.
Player interaction for the base game is low, (the second expansion adds some) but that is not really a minus in this type of game. The game flows quickly, and has a short learning curve. Gale Force Nine has done a good job with this license. Even though it is aimed squarely at fans of the show, it is a good game that benefits from it's setting rather than being handicapped by it like so many games based on a TV show or movie are.

 I have picked up the first mini-expansion, a deck of extra cards that add nicely to the game without adding any new rules. The second expansion adds two new ships, bounty hunting, and new story cards. A third expansion has been announced, so it looks like there will be support for his game for while. I just hope they don't go totally overboard with the expansions and make the game an unwieldy mess.

We recommend Firefly: The Game if you liked the show and enjoy a good sci-fi trader/smuggler game.

Go Roll Some Dice
 He's not the first psycho to hire us, nor the last. 
You think that's a commentary on us?


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The Ladz are back

July 10, 2014, 10:56 am
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The Ork Codex has been set loose into the wild. It is up to the current standard of 40K codices, hardcover, glossy, full color. However, the format inside has changed. The unit descriptions are now with the point costs in the back half of the book. With the wargear & weapons section is after it. All the gaming info in the same section, I do like it. There is a lot more photos of models and less artwork, which is a minor gripe.

Lots of changes in the rules, as could be expected. One trend I don't like is the simplifying of unit choices. The Ork Boys lost their burnas last codex and they didn't get them back this time either. Why not? It's not like they have a strict tactical doctrine. The orks need more choices in options for their staple unit, not less.

The same goes for the Big Mek, and the welcome addition,  Mekboy. They have fewer weapon and gear choices than last codex. I have a kustomized big Mek with a burna I built years back. Which is now not an option in the new book. Good thing Orks don't give a toss about the Man's rules.

On the plus side, Tankbustas, Burnaboys, Lootas, and Flash Gitz can all now take a Trukk as a transport. Bikerz, Killa Kans, and  Warbuggies all got their squad sized increased. The killsaw is a great weapon for Mega-Nobs and Big-Meks for chopping up tanks.

The new Ork Horde FOC is kinda cool. They have one more HQ slot and three more troop slots, and a chance to get Hammer of Wrath. The Warlord traits are mostly good and you can re-roll for them if you are using a Ork Horde detachment FOC.

The Mob Rule has been changed to a table which has some nice Orkiness to it, Most Orks get 'Ere We Go which allows you to re-roll one die when charging. The Warboss still can call the Waaagh once a game, allowing the Orks to run and charge.

Orks are one of those armies the Unbound army list was made for. It was very hard or impossible to fully field a true Kult of Speed or Dread Mob before. No longer.  We have only had one game with the new book so far, I took a Kult of Speed that had 1 HQ, 1 Elite, 4 troop, 3 heavy, and 5 fast attack choices. Nothing totally cheesy or out of character but a lot of fun. I'm putting the finishing touches on a Gorkanaut and then it is Dread Mob time!

 Stomp some 'ummies!
And 'ery one else

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Mean Green Kumpin' Machines

July 29, 2014, 12:59 pm
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Dread Mob. Such a fun army to use, and truly overwhelms your opponents. In this new, wide open world of 7th edition, this has (so far) been my favorite Unbound list to use: 

Cog Gutz's Dread Mob 
1999 points, Unbound
Big Mek                 
5x Burna Boyz                       
12x Tankbustas                      
Boyz x30                                 
Boyz x25                                 
Boyz x25                                 
Deff Dread “Tuska”                                                          
  2x Rokkits
Deff Dread “Hugga”                                                        
  +2 Power Klaws                      
Deff Dread “Klanger”                                                      
  1 Big shoota
  1 Rokkit,                                                         
Deff Dread ‘Klampa”                                                       
  1 Big Shoota
  1 Skorcher    
3x Killa Kans                         
  2x Big Shoota
  1x Rokkit
Mega Dread “Buzz Gunz”    
  Grot Riggas                 
Gorkanaut “Da Krushinator”           
  Grot Riggas                                         

Matt made sure I kept up the fine tradition of having my newly painted model (The Gorkanaut in this case) blown off the table as soon as it arrives. Stupid Dreadnought with stupid Lascannons. The rest of the battle was all kumpin' all the time and ended in a Ork win.  
One of the great things about the Orks is that the older models fit right in alongside the new stuff. 
If I only still had this guy:

Next I will take this list against Mrs. Blackheart's Eldar. That will be interesting.
                                                           
Krush 'em for Gork!
                 Mork is good too, if that is your thing.                                     
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End of Month Musings

July 31, 2014, 2:42 pm
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Well. July was a busy month. Let's start with GW's Sanctus Reach Campaign. I really like it! This is the kind of thing they need to do more often, a solid campaign supported by novels, some new figures, and new Codexes. The main book, The Red Waaagh! is a very well done supplement. Great new artwork, a good narrative of the battles and characters, and 11 missions. Plus a few formations and new rules for Planetstrike for good measure. 

I will be putting up mini-reviews of the novel and five short stories soon. Having so much source material adds a lot to the immersion of the campaign. We have decided to play though the entire thing, so I have to get going painting some Knights. 

The only strange miss-step of this whole event was the Stormclaw box set. It was a great value for the money, but what was it supposed to be? A starter set or a campaign expansion? It came with a full color mini-rulebook which is great, but no templates or dice, so not quite a starter set. The 32 background and mission book has three missions that only use the forces in the box, kinda like a starter set. The point is ultimately moot, because they badly underestimated demand and it sold out in 36 hours.  
The Space Wolves Sanctus Reach intervention will be covered in much greater detail with the next hardcover supplement, Hour of the Wolf.   

And now for something completely different:
I saw this in my inbox and had to share. Yes, the 1983 not-quite-classic is coming soon to Blu ray! I was in Junior High School and still in my AD&D phase, but branching out to Traveller and Gamma World, so this movie seemed like a perfect must see. And it mostly was. Very ambitious story, fantastic production values, just a bit heavy on the cheese. I can't wait to see what extras are on the blu ray.

Relive the days of feathered hair heroes versus evil space aliens. (Shameless plug goes here) Get Krull  here for a mere $9.98!

Next up: A huge Star Trek Attack Wing bash.

Go Roll Some Dice
And watch "Classic" Sci-Fi


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Showdown at DS9

August 8, 2014, 3:47 pm
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On the night before Comic Con what should you do? Check the schedule? Wait in line for hall "H"?

No! It's time to drink rum and play games! Fellow Warlord Pete was in town for the con and hanging out at Fortress Blackheart, so we decided to play a epic 250 point Star Trek Attack Wing battle.

Destroy the station was the mission, and to give us more maneuver room we played on a 4'x 6' battlefield.
250 points is getting close to the upper limit of an Attack Wing game, purely due to large number of cards and tokens to keep track of. Actual game time did not increase by that much, a testament to the cleanness of the FlightPath system.

Pete took five solid ships chock full of upgrades, and a well equipped DS9.
I didn't take two Jem'Hadar battleships, but I did really think about it. My fleet consisted of the Jem'hadar Battlecruiser, 4 attack ships, a Keldon, a Galor, the Hediki fighters, and a Breen Cruiser to round out the Dominion multicultural Battle Fleet of Doom. It took two turns to get into phaser range, but the fireworks was worth it.
The battle raged hot for two more turns, but Pete's ship were unable to support each other well and couldn't finish off cripples. The end result was all my ship took a good amount of damage, but I only lost three. Four out five Federation ships were destroyed. The end came swiftly for DS9 as the Dominion fleet closed in around it.
The the sole surviving Federation ship, Defiant, took out the Breen Cruiser, but it wasn't enough to save DS9 from a torrent of fire.

It was a very enjoyable game and went smoothly. The only complaint that both of us had was DS9 was not tough enough. It needs some additional special rules to give it some more bite. One thing we are going to try out is having DS9 be able to always fire its primary weapon in addition to any torpedoes it fires, at the same or a different target.  

Go Roll Some Dice
For the Founders!
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Star Wars Armada

August 8, 2014, 6:00 pm
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I was wondering what Fantasy Flight Games was going to do after they had released all the fighters and ships they could for X-Wing. Now I know. They will just keep printing money.
Not due until 2015, the possibilities are very exciting. I'm liking the relative scale of the minis. This will allow for a much wider range of figures. Somebody say Executor vs. Mon Calamari cruisers?
Check out FFG's news on it  here.

Go Roll Some Dice
And start saving your credits.

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On the Bench

August 22, 2014, 12:33 pm
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Our planned start of the Sanctus Reach Campaign has been pushed back due to work schedules. A funny thing about The Atomic Warlords, we all work in the entertainment industry, or are software developers (or whatever the term is this week). This makes finding time for the toy soldiers a bit challenging most days.

The upside of this delay is I am working away at painting models for the campaign. I finished up Grukk Face-Rippa and a trio of mega-nobs with killsaws, and I am about to embark on painting three Knights and twenty five stormtroopers. I have always said, events are a great way to gain some project focus. For an encore, I am going to paint my Cadians, who have been languishing in a primed state for years.

The (current) plan is to start on September 6th, and run a mission every week. I've no doubt life will intervene some, but we will adapt. This means it will be three months before the Space Wolves get involved. I'm sure Jeff, our Space Wolf player, will use the time to paint up all his shiny new models.


The Emperor Protects
When he has the time
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Arena of Death Pregame show

August 26, 2014, 1:33 pm
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Monday. Monday! MONDAY!!! Prepare for skull crushing action!
It's time for the 40K ARENA OF DEAAATH!!!

It has been a long time (about three editions) since we have done the Arena of Death, and we are criminally overdue, so this Labor Day Monday grab your favorite characters and meet us at the ARENA OF DEATH for carnage, carnage, and a bit more CARNAGE!

(To both of my overseas readers, the above makes more sense if you are familiar with the over-the-top commercials we have for Monster Truck events.)

To clarify things, we are playing the olde tyme Arena of Death as first put forth by the Citadel Journal, wayback when (mid-90's). Not any of the various newfangled overdone versions.

The rules are simple. Sixteen named independent characters are picked, then are randomly paired off and fight one on one in a 3'x 3' arena. Best 2 out of 3 winner advances to the next round. Repeat until there is only one.
No Characters who have an AV. Sorry Bjorn!

My shortlist for contestants:
Azreal
Swarmlord
Ghazghkull
Abaddon
Kharn
Yarrick
Deathleaper
Farsight
Dante
Mephiston
Ragnar
The Avatar
Maugan Ra
Jain Zar
Typhus
Plus other surprise guests!

Anyone you want to see?

The Emperor Protects
Now fight for our amusement
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The Slaughtering Sixteen

September 3, 2014, 2:48 pm
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Sixteen killer characters of the 40K universe converge in the Arena of Death to find out whose combat skills are supreme! After picking the participating characters the initial matches were randomly drawn. Then the fun began.

Deathleaper vs. Commander Farsight
Farsight danced around for a bit in his fancy battlesuit, but Deathleaper was able to close and charge. Deathleaper scored a bunch of hits and a few rends but Farsight's armor would not be breached, he did not fail a single save. Deathleaper was whittled away and fell on turn three.

Kharn vs. Ghazghkull Thraka
Two opponents not known for subtlety charged each other straight away. The Mighty Ghazghkull didn't get an attack in before being carved up by Kharn at the top of turn two.

Lord Dante vs. The Avatar 
Dante had trouble wounding the Eldar Demigod of War and that led to Dante's demise on turn three.

Lelith Hesperax vs. Anrakyr the Traveller
Anrakyr had a chance to end the match during the first shooting phase, but Lelith dodged the Tachyon Arrow. She danced into close combat with a impressive ten attacks, she only managed to score two wounds before suffering instant death from Anrakyr's Warscythe.

Abaddon vs.Commissar Yarrick. 
The Old Commissar was a bit outmatched by the Arch-Heretic and was killed in the first round of close combat. Then got back up. And was killed again. And again. And again. Yarrick seldom lived long enough to attack Abaddon, but he kept making his Iron Will roll to get back up. After eight rounds of combat we called the match in Abaddon's Favor. Abaddon scored twenty-five wounds to Yarrik's one.

The Swarmlord vs. Karandras 
Karandras charged the Swarmlord, and the two exchanged blows in a brutal well-matched slugfest. Ultimately it was the Swarmlord's invulnerable save and Karandras lack of one that was the difference, and the Phoenix Lord fell.  

Jain Zar vs. Grand Master Azrael.
Azrael started off very strong by scoring two wounds on Jain Zar with his plasmagun. Sadly for the Dark Angel Lord, the Sword of Secrets is only AP3. Jain made ten of her 2+ armor saves and wore down Azrael in four rounds.

Grukk Facerippa vs. Mephiston 
In the shortest battle (half a turn) Chief Librarian Mephiston used his psychic might and turned Grukk inside-out.

Eight exciting and fun matches in the first round. A few lopsided match-ups, and some awesome dice rolling, both good and bad.

Next up: the Arena of Death finals!

The Emperor Protects
But who will be his favorite? 

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Arena of Death Finals

September 8, 2014, 11:00 am
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Dante and Mephiston were needed elsewhere...
The Bloody Eight
Now things were getting really interesting. A few favorites had fallen early, and a few glaring defects revealed. Round two, fight!

Farsight vs. Kharn
Commander Farsight continued his upset streak. First by nailing Kharn for two wounds with his plasma rifle, then by making an improbable amount of invulnerable saves as Kharn rained blows upon him. The Dark gods failed to protect Kharn from the Dawn Blade and he was bested in two rounds of close combat. 

The Avatar of Khaine vs. Anrakyr the Traveller
Anrakyr landed the Tachyon Arrow and did a wound on the Avatar. It would be the only wound The Avatar would take this match. The Avatar crushed Anrakyr the Traveller in short order. He did not get back up.

Abaddon vs. The Swarmlord
A epic battle of initiative six monsters that did not disappoint. Five rounds of combat with lots of wounding and saving. On the last turn, Abbadon lost his last wound and scored four wounds on the Swarmlord, she made three saves and ended the battle with one wound left. 

Mephiston vs. Jain Zar
Jain Zar managed to avoid Grukk's quick end, but still took a wound from the psychic onslaught before she got into close combat. She had difficulty in wounding the Blood Angel and ran out wounds well before he did.

The Furious Four
Only three matches left! Who will reign supreme!

Commander Faright vs. The Avatar of Khaine 
All hot streaks come to an end. Farsight put on a good run and gun show, wounding the Avatar twice. Then came the Wailing Doom and instant death.

Mephiston vs. The Swarmlord
Mephiston took a wound before closing for hand to hand combat in the day's only psychic duel. In a very close battle the Swarmlord's  higher weapon skill and invulnerable save made the difference as Mephiston was bested.

There can be only one!
I can't say I'm terribly surprised by the final two combatants. Both are monstrous creatures with a lot of wounds. But which one shall emerge victorious?


The Avatar of Khaine vs. The Swarmlord
It's alway nice when you save the best for last. This was a titanic grudge match. No wounds where taken before they engaged in close combat. Both combatants lost a wound apiece for first three rounds of battle, then the Avatar pulled away with a savage flurry of four wounds inflicted, and only two parried. Down went the Swarmlord.


Arena of Death was a very good time, and a nice change of pace for a multi-player battle. Many thanks to my fellow Warlords for making the event a lot fun. I have some ideas to improve the selection process, and what other characters to add. We will do this again next year.



I walk again, a god among mere mortals.
-The Living Avatar of Kaela Mensha Khaine

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Zulu Dawn, Kaiju Style

September 30, 2014, 4:50 pm
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So much for my grand plans for September. We are (finally) kicking off the Sanctus Reach Campaign in a week or two now that some sanity has returned to all our schedules. So for today may I present the answer to a question: Can a Imperial Guard fortification hold off a Tyranid attack? The twist is the Guard get only fortifications and infantry with nothing in reserve.
The Tyranid players went for the Warriors and up army style. Lots of monstrous creatures with a few key support critters. That damn Venomthrope kept the Barbed Hierodule from taking any damage the first turn. I wasted a good portion of my firepower for no return. At this scale is does truly become target overload. There are so many units that you have to kill, if you are not careful, you will wind up not killing any of them. Like I did. Much to my detriment.
What I really should have done was kill off the Swarmlord right away. Because I didn't, ALL of the Tyranid reserves showed up on turn two. I knew I was frakked, but I fought on and hoped for some really hot dice.
And the hot dice showed up! Sadly it was the Tyranids who were rolling them and I lost two my bunkers and a whole lot of troops. I can't help but be amused when a game game goes so badly, so quickly. It just wasn't the Guards day, but it was still a grand spectacle.
My command squad put in a fine showing, almost wiping out a squad of Raveners. Almost does not quite cut it when dealing with the Red Terror and a friend. The command squad was quickly dispatched, and for the finale, Old One Eye disassembled the Macro cannon bunker. Top of turn three, game over.

A enjoyable bloodbath. The game went very quickly despite the large number of models on the table. I am already planning for the rematch. 


The Swarm Rolls On
Try not to be in its path.
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