PROJECT: Torrent of Cheese*

*: Cheese being defined as stuff people have been screaming about being 'so broken'.

One main complaint I have noticed over teh internetz is that various elements of the SW army is 'so broken'. Thunderwolves, JotWW, Rune Priests, cheap Troops, and so on. So, in search of this mythical cheese, I will be building up a large force over the next few months to test out the lengths that this hypothetical cheese actually goes to. In accordance with my strict 'plastic only' policy on SW, I will be converting as much of the stuff as possible from molten cheese... I mean, plastic.

HQ Choices
Space Wolves have 1-4 HQ choices, so for these I thought - hmm, what would fit into a Cheese based dairy army? My answer - Wolf Lord on Thunderwolf, Canis Wolfborn, and two Rune Priests on Foot.
For the purposes of Canis, I intend on using one of the various Mordheim options - either The Caller's rat thing, or the Watcher rat thing. Both are metal models, but they are damned better than the actual metal model! I will GS the fur and everything.
For the Rune Priests... a bit more simple. I will be basing the models upon my Njal in Rune Armour, and using various options available to me to help with this.

Troop Choices
Canis makes all Fenrisian Wolves into Troop Choices, so that means I have three to pick from. I will use 20 Wolves with 2 Cyberwolves as my two mandatories for now. For these wolves, I will use the direct plastics, to save time.
After I noticed I was a bit underpointed, I added two razorbacks with 10 Grey Hunters between them, as well as a Plasma Gun or two, to deal with some... new things (cough nids cough).

Fast Attack Choices
Apparently where the main regions of cheese lie. I will be purchasing 10 Thunderwolf Cavalry to serve as retinues to my two wolven HQs, and each will have a Storm Shield for added protection from damage.
I will be converting these from Sabretusks or something like that, methinks, unless I find something better to use.

The List - 1750pts
This is the list I intend on using at the moment:
HQ- Wolf Lord on Thunderwolf Mount, with Power Weapon and Bolt Pistol. Bears the Saga of the Beastslayer, a Wolf Tooth Necklace, and a Belt of Russ = 200
HQ- Canis Wolfborn, joined by two pet Fenrisian Wolves = 205
HQ- Rune Priest (Jaws of the World Wolf, Living Lightning) = 100
HQ- Rune Priest (Jaws of the World Wolf, Murderous Hurricane) = 100
Troops- 10 Fenrisian Wolves with 1 Cyberwolf = 88
Troops- 10 Fenrisian Wolves with 1 Cyberwolf = 88
Troops- 5 Grey Hunters with Plasma Gun and Razorback (Twin Linked Assault Cannon, Extra Armour) = 175
Troops- 5 Grey Hunters with Plasma Gun and Razorback (Twin Linked Assault Cannon, Extra Armour) = 175
Fast- 5 Thunderwolf Cavalry with 1 Storm Shield and Power Sword, as well as 1 Mark of the Wulfen = 300
Fast- 5 Thunderwolf Cavalry with 1 Storm Shield and Power Sword, as well as 1 Mark of the Wulfen = 300

The army is split into two flanks, if you will. Each flank is filled with the same units - 6 Thunderwolves, 10 Fenrisians, 5 Hunters, and 1 Rune Priest. Priests give Psychic protection, and their retinues give a bit of durability. That's it, really.

Now to begin building it... :P

ARMIES: The WIP Skyrar's Dark Wolves

A long time ago, back in June when Space Wolves was rumoured, I decided... I want a Dark Wolves army. Doesn't have to be a big one... just an army! It was then that I was hooked.

When I was at GD-UK 2009, I chose to bring a bunch of cash both for my Nurgle Sorcerer at FW and a load of those bloody Space Wolves which were released. A box of Terminators and three boxes of Space Wolf Packs. I pledged from then to get as close as possible to a full plastic army... This force would show the versatility of the kit, as well as allow for conversions.

This force is approximately 1/5 of the way to completion. The aim is to have every single character in the book shown in Plastic and Green Stuff, within the next 2 years. At the moment... i've got Njal (Power Armour) and Ragnar either WIP or 'complete' (as far as I like to call it). I've also pledged not to ruin this force by repainting a single model - if it goes wrong, I have to replace it fully, not just respray it.

So... the Wolves.

Army shots, of the current whole force.

Ragnar the Blackmaned, work in progress.

Njal the Stormcaller in Runic Armour, work in progress shot. The Back-banner was injured in action when a gale blew too hard :P

The Wolf Guard Power Armour family. I love how many options are in the kit!!!

The next notch I will be doing is the Thunderwolf Cavalry - using the only metal pieces in my force, from Fantasy battle - alongside Lord Skyrar the Grim (Logan) and Arjac the Rockfisted.

Design Studio: Tau Empire redux pt.1

Recently i've begun a new project - Tau. I will be rebuilding the list for 5th edition

The current version of this project can be found here...
The Codex: http://www.2shared.com/file/8718603/...gions-_v1.html
Weapon Summary: http://www.2shared.com/file/10055954/17a5f67a/Tau_Weapon_Summary.html

ARMIES: The WIP Emperor's Children

Alongside my Death Guard, i'm currently building out one of the more abusive builds in C: CSM... Lash Build. In this, I intend on having 6 Sorcerers of Slaanesh decked with large units of Terminators and etc to abuse both the charging and shooting opportunities this power gives a player. Alongside this will be large amounts of both Bikers and Possessed - who MAY need the help, y'know.

The idea of my Children are simply to kick the sh*t out of something. It doesn't matter whether the unit dies, as long as they kill at least 1 or 2 enemy units in the process. To this end, all of them are Enhanced Warriors with Marks of Slaanesh - this means they can take the punishment, and cost as much as regular Noise Marines for something FAR harder. While the force is WIP, it can still be played due to the legality of some of the units.

My Children could be classed both as being built to deal with Assault Wolves and Tyranids - Synapse is lashed out into the open, and units such as Blood Claws lose the charge and ultimately their lives against my Terminators and such. Sorcerers are no wussies when it comes to combat - they have Terminator Armour, so they take the punishment.

Note: Yes, the Space Wolf Terminator over there is just temporary. I just needed someone to replace my presently broken other terminator... Also, yes, those are Vanguard Veterans, since most of the time I CAN use Codex: Space Marines with these guys.

ARMIES: The WIP 'Nurgle'

Yesterday I took a few images of my Nurgle because I felt like actually having some pictures on this blog. Well, i'm a fairly bad painter (except when tired for some reason), and to put it simply... I paint to play with units. I like having new stuff to do and all, but conversions and nurglifying it up is my true passion if anything. These guys were the first d00ds to go through this process, after a disastrous attempt to build an effective Battle Company for Crimson Fists at 2000pts (note to self: need tanks)

In the game, this is literally just pure Death Guard. When playing with Codex: Chaos Legions, it's a nightmare for the opponent to try and beat this force with the amount of Feel No Pain and High Toughness they have, added to Blight Grenades. In a standard game, it's far more manageable to be perfectly honest.

Other guys who are being built and are not shown here are my Typhus (well, Second Typhus. The previous one died after 2 years of repainting and reposing him), approximately 49 Lesser Daemons of Nurgle made from Ghouls (soon to form the base of my Chaos Daemons force), and the Daemon Princes i'm building.

Woo! Camera!

You know, the blog has been open for a year and only now we've got a Camera...

Says something about the quality of this establishment, doesn't it?

Ode to the Tyranid Horde

Oh Tyranids, your claws of scythe.
To rend and render all to shite.
From Kraken to Leviathan, fair.
An ode to you, adapt us you might.

Tyranids are coming in January, it was announced, and I welcome their coming. The new codex is surely a breath of fresh air in this bland current universe, which needs to be consumed and remade into a stronger bio weapon. The rules are dated and overpowered, and will certainly be Codex Seeped into a more balanced version.

But it isn't just the rules! I'm pleased that the model range is being expanded. While the Raveners are overpriced (£3 less than the Trygon for just 2 more models), the Gargoyles and Trygon are welcomed additions to the range. Add a big old Plastic Tyrant which is still in the works, and everything seems to be good for our favorite Creepers from Beyond!

So, here's to Tyranids - though you may be gribbly and mean, you certainly do force whole races to adapt to a changing universe! May the Great Devourer continue to eat everyone!

Herald's Highlight: Realm of Battle Gameboard

As the Christmas season reaches it's peak, i'm beginning to look at the options of a terrain nature. It's fairly hard for someone to plan up a few games if there's no board to actually play it on, I guess.

While the Games Workshop website includes classics such as the Realm of Battle board (and new extension) and large scale terrain pieces such as the damned Fortress of Retribution... do they seem a bit too expensive? I don't like the idea of spending a Baneblade for something I can really only use for Planetstrike.

Likewise, I don't like focussing on the Fantasy or small terrain side of things too much. It's far better to have a bunch of bland hills and temples than to get the manor and struggle to have it classed as a Bastion I guess...

But anyway, i've got a budget of approx. £500 to spend, and i'd love to somehow get an incredibly awesome Nurgle-based board filled with pus and slimy goodness. I'm thinking about small 'UK School League' sized clubs for the sake of a club i'm currently joined with - so that's 4x4' boards. That would open up a load of advantageous tactical options for us all, I bet.

Any thoughts? Please, i'd like to discuss this sort of stuff.

Secret Plans begin...

BFC is currently embarking on a venture which should prove rather... profitable..

You'll have to wait, though. #

Design Studio: Chaos Legions preview

Over the previous weeks, we've been pondering which army to do next in Design Studio. It's become obvious which one deserves it...

Chaos Space Marines.

With the re-addition of Space Wolves to the metagame, Chaos seem to have gone downhill. It's not that they're weak, it's just that other armies are Strong. Chaos can hold their own, but at the same time they're vulnerable.

Enter Codex Chaos Legions.

This is a fully all consuming list for Chaos, which allows each of the 9 legions to feel useful again. Utilise your cheap troops to accomplish great things, and expect there to be blood.

Here's a few of the Psychic Powers which will make Tzeentch feared for its Sorcery again:
Iridescent Blaze of Tzeentch Enemy Movement
Declare at the end of your turn that you are using this power – it begins to take effect for your opponent’s next player turn. Select a single enemy unit – this unit may not move, and immediately takes d6 Strength 5 AP – hits, which cause Pinning. The unit may move as normal in further phases.

Ahriman’s Gift of Tzeentch Enemy Turn
This power may be used whenever a Sorcerer of Tzeentch is within Line of Sight to a Psyker who has successfully used a Psychic Power. Each player rolls a d6. If the Tzeentch player beats the opposing player’s roll, then the Sorcerer who used the power will become a Chaos Spawn under your Opponent’s control.

Creeping Pestilence of Nurgle Assault
Use this at the beginning of your Assault Phase. All Nurgle units within 12 inches of the Sorcerer will charge 6+d6 inches this turn. In the next player turn, all enemy units within 12 inches of where this Psychic Power was used will charge 6-d6 inches next turn, and may not Run.

Absolute Justice of Slaanesh Shooting
Select a single unit within 18 inches of the Sorcerer using this psychic power. It immediately moves 18-2d6 inches straight towards the Sorcerer, and gains the Rage special rule. Then the unit must make a Pinning and Dangerous Terrain test at the end of this player turn.

Diabolic Grace Movement
The character – and any unit they may be attached to – gains the Fleet of Foot special rule for this turn. In addition, they will ignore any Difficult Terrain (and similar effects) for this Movement Phase – though Dangerous Terrain will still hurt on a 1.

One Step Back to One Step Forward (Warptime) Assault
Use this power at the beginning of any Assault Phase. For that phase, all un-successful rolls to hit or wound which that Sorcerer makes may be re-rolled.

Hurricane: Space Wolves

I sit now with a copy of the new Space Wolves codex and a crate filled with Pepsi. General Storm is grinning as he imagines the sort of bet i'm going to make. Guess what I say?
"I'll drink a single Pepsi... for each part of the list you've made that I CAN'T defeat with my Chaos list"

The grinning stopped.

Face it people, Space Wolves are perfectly balanced, and i'll tell you how I learned this: my local store has this cost efficent Wolf army, which has so far defeated everyone who has tried to destroy it. Amongst the kill count at the moment is a large Ork army, a Leman Russ horde list, and a Marine list.

I brought a tiny Slaaneshi (i'll be piling on the bile soon enough to wash myself of this sin, Papa) CSM army... and won. Lash + Term Champs with Twin LC? Priceless.

Space Wolves are annoying when compared to Space Marines of any type which have come before them, but one thing which needs to be noted is the fact that they are an ELITE FORCE. Cheap squads deployed to take squads out of the game are better when you play against them - try using Combined Squads to force Wolf Guard to stay still in order to wipe out the horde. Maybe you should also look at some things to draw units away - Lash of Submission on a Blood Claw Pack is fairly effective, no?

Your goal is to keep them at arms reach - if they hit your lines, they'll likely wipe out your squads. Stay elusive and stay in the game, as they say in Dodgeball.

This means that Mech armies, Eldar Bikes, and Blood Angels are ALL fairly awesome choices when battling Space Wolves.

It also means... Black Templars, Orks (outside of Biker horde), MEq, and static armies will die horribly to the Sons of Fenris.

Remember this... and remember the metagame: Horde < Mech < Elite < Horde. Guess what? SPACE WOLVES ARE ELITE. Bring enough bodies and they will fall. Expect loads of Blood Claw lists as well.

Hurricane dismissed...

ARMY LIST: Warriors of the Storm

Space Wolves Advance Orders are now UP on the Games Workshop website, so I have decided to make up a list in order to test out the list.

When I first looked at the codex, it looked exactly like how everyone else felt it was - Broken beyond Belief. However, then I noticed that actually the codex is only broken INDIVIDUALLY - it requires lots of points to make it effective. Therefore, this is my list.

HQ
Space Wolves can take a maximum of 4 HQ choices - this is from Wolf Lords, Wolf Guard Battle Leaders (which are OLD Captains - 2 wounds etc), Rune Priests (meh. not too bad), and Wolf Priests (THESE are awful.)
I have chosen:
- Njal Stormcaller with Runic Terminator Armour - 270
- Wolf Lord with Saga of the Warrior Born, Terminator Armour, and Two Wolf Claws - 195

Elites
Space Wolves have a lot of options here. Wolf Guard, Dreadnoughts, Venerable Dreadnoughts, Lone Wolves, and Wolf Guard Terminators (as part of WG.) This makes it fairly difficult to pick them - you may want to choose 2 units of Wolf Guard, one for Sergeants and one for actual unit. Logan Grimnir is ungodly for WG - they become Troops only.
- 10 Wolf Guard with 4 Power Weapon/Bolt Pistol, 2 Thunder Hammer/Storm Shield, 2 Power Fist/Bolt Pistol, 2 Twin Wolf Claws, and 1 Terminator Armour - 385
- 5 Wolf Guard Terminators with 1 Thunder Hammer/Storm Shield, 1 Frost Blade/Storm Bolter, 1 Assault Cannon/Power Fist, 1 Power Weapon/Storm Bolter, and 1 Twin Wolf Claws - 250

Troops
These are just basic choices. No sergeants are innately possible. However, I can detach Wolf Guard (any type) and add them to any unit! W00t! Therefore, the Blood Claws will have a Wolf Guard with Twin Wolf Claws, and the Grey Hunters will have a Thunder Hammer/Storm Shield attached.
- 15 Blood Claws with 2 Flamers, and 1 Power Weapon - 240
- 15 Blood Claws with 2 Flamers, and 1 Power Weapon - 240
- 10 Grey Hunters with 1 Plasma Gun, 1 Flamer, 1 Wolf Standard, 1 Power Weapon, and 1 Mark of the Wulfen - 200

Fast Attack
This is simple - Blood Claws with Packs, Blood Claws with Bikes, Land Speeders, Attack Bikes, Wolves, or WOLF CAVALRY. WOLF CAVALRY. I mean, what the hell?
- 5 Skyclaws (Blood Claw Packs) with 1 Mark of the Wulfen and 1 Power Weapon - 120
- 10 Fenrisian Wolves - 80
- 10 Fenrisian Wolves - 80

Heavy Support
This is quite obvious. THERE IS NO SPECIAL LAND RAIDER. You get all the tanks of Codex Space Marines (yes. Redeemers...) as well as Long Fangs...
- 6 Long Fangs including Pack Leader, with 3 Heavy Bolters and 2 Plasma Cannons. Pack Leader has Power Fist - 155

TOTAL POINTS: 2205
TOTAL MODELS: 88
OBJ UNITS: 3 Scoring, 6 Contest, 2 Nothing (Wolves never score/contest)
KILL POINTS: 11

WE ARE THE WARRIORS

We are the fighters, fighting the war

(We are the fighters, fighting the war)

Fear our strength and fear our power

(We are the fighters, fighting the war)

Never give up, never surrender

(Fear our strength and fear our power)

Never look back, not a single step

(Never give up, never surrender)

We are the warriors, fighting the fight

(Never look back, not a single step)

We're back onto a temporary hiatus - Battlefleet Chaotic will be returning with regular content at the beginning of October. We're gearing up a few Design Studios and Herald Highlights to fill the void - sorry till then.

Tactica: Space Hulk Survival Guide

This is the indefinite guide to how you may succeed at Space Hulk, based upon personal experience...

Play the Factors in Your Head
When playing a game of Space Hulk, there are many factors which must be considered. These are either:
- Blip Factor: What is on that blip will change your strategy, and thus you must learn to fear the blip.
- Marine Factor: A reasonable mission becomes difficult with a lack of marines, and a difficult mission becomes reasonable with a large amount of marines.
- Stealer Factor: While the Blips are one thing, Stealers are another thing entirely. Knowing your enemy means that you know far more what you need to do to overcome them. THAT'S why this is a factor
- Mission Factor: Whether it's blowing up all of the blips or destroying corrupted data in a couple of rooms, the mission will change your plans, and your plans may change the mission!

Play the Opponent, Not the Board
Let's put it simply, marines, you are here to accomplish a mission and you are here to beat your opponent. DON'T let the board play with you, and remember that open doors are usually more useful than closed ones. If you can wreck a door, wreck it. If you can kill something, kill it! You don't want to leave your opponent a single moment to regroup, so unfortunately the board has to take a load of hits to make sure of that!
Genestealer players, this is the same really. Take advantage of your board layout - for example, if you have a spawn point right next to the opponent, then you take advantage of that spawn. But if you have a spawn point next to the objective... you take advantage of that one instead. There's a hierarchy in Space Hulk - the spawns that are useful now, and the spawns which are useful later.

Play the Worst Case Scenario
In all cases, you play as if the worst case will occur. For example, play as if each blip is 3, and play as if the Space Marines will be able to destroy you at any time. In other words, never play a game halfhearted - it gets you nowhere! You need to make everything count!

Cheating is Good on the Last Turn
Remember how using more command points than you have is a bad thing that will mean you automatically lose at the end of the Genestealer next turn? Well, this is overturned if you win the game in the turn that the points are overused. This means of course that you can use unlimited amounts in a 'Last Stand' or 'Do and Die' scenario - remember and use! This may be a dirty tactic, but these are the Angels... of Death.

Tactical Manoeuvre
Use your resources wisely. For example, Stealer players, you could use those Blips of '1' to make your opponent leave somewhere guarded (for a pincer movement, I guess). You could use Blips of '3' when you know that large hordes are required. Think ahead, think about the greater campaign.
If a Storm Shield guy goes near a full hive, he's doing his job. If an Chainfist guy is going through the Blocked Door area, he's doing his job. If the Lightning Claws are not going to the opponents heart... he's not doing his job.

Life is ONLY cheap if you're a Stealer
Unlike normal games, Space Marine Terminators are not a commodity. For example, you cannot rely on unlimited ammo, especially for the Assault Cannon. You cannot rely on your opponent's hordes running out (unless the mission says so)
Then, remember that tip above... Think ahead, think about the greater campaign. That guy might not be that awesome, but if his presence would stop a Spawn Point from being activated, then he's doing his job! The sacrfice of one might be necessary, but if he saves many then his sacrfice is all well and good!

A few final tips
- Never engage a Broodlord in combat - your number one method, if forced to, is either an Assault Cannon or a Librarian IN COMBAT. Usually, your strategy is STALL, NOT ENGAGE
- Everything on a chart is vital. Memorise it to make your turn last less time
- Everything on a command chart is vital. Use Psi-Points sparingly, and use Command Points when totally necessary
- Command Points may be used in the Stealer turn, to un-jam guns or stop bad rolls, so TAKE ADVANTAGE
- Statuses are perfect. Guard makes a combat guy even harder. Overwatch makes that strongpoint even harder
- 3 Minutes is often too long for a team of more than one. Therefore, use a stopwatch! For each additional person, the timer lasts for half the duration... or 1:30 for 2, 0:45 for 3, and 0:22 for 4 or more...

~ That's a Space Hulk tactica! Soon enough there'll be some Design Studio rules for some additional races in the game, increasing the awesomeness!

Design Studio: Quick Play Empires

The long awaited Quick Play 'Spinners End' pack is now out. This is a reference sheet for the larger 'Spinners End' ruleset, which includes the upgrade costs as well as a fast Campaign Turn. It also has some other additional content

LINK: http://www.2shared.com/file/7598726/a83c0bb6/campaign_summary_sheet.html

Pages: X
Contents:
- Upgrade Costs for the Spinners End campaign
- A quick campaign turn
- More rules for extra tiles or defences
- Sneak preview of some... later editions

Remember that the Spinners End scenario is a full ruleset to be used in conjunction with the Planetary Empires boxset!

Enjoy yourselves! =)

Herald Highlight: Design Studio Progress

This highlight, there is someone different talking to all of y'all. This guest article is being written by someone different... Aun'Byr.

Hi, i'm Aun'Byr. You may remember me from back in the old days when I was the guy running the good old store. This is still the case, however, i'm also the Chaotic Crewbie who pioneered the latest releases of the Design Studio, and also the guy who'll be bringing a few of our near additions such as the BattleBar or Battlefleet Shirts.

Over the next few months, and just in time for christmas, I will be making the inventory. For example:

1. The Site is set to have a revamp on it's first birthday, in November
2. We'll be adding a set of innovations such as MOAR TWEETING, and things such as the pre mentioned BattleBar...
3. We have some CafePress items such as shirts, Flips, and caps! Vote the top 3 things you'd want in this very topic!

Essentially, we plan to give Chaotic a money flow to make it viable. Fun for me, fun for you. Regularly there will be some offers run through with Herald Highlights, so regulars will get some benefits...

That was Aun'Byr, everyone! Wait for some signs of his work in our Twitter pages!

Design Studio: Lost and the Damned

This is it! After so much time and so many promises, the Lost and the Damned book is now out! This is the first draft of our final copy, that happens to be fairly awesome

This copy is a massive collaboration, and thus a large amount of praise must be given to Chaosgerbil from the Bell of Lost Souls Lounge - without him, the format would be drastically different!

So, this is the first draft!

LINK: http://www.2shared.com/file/7435547/f9635b11/codex-latd-10.html

Pages: 12
Contents:
- A majorly large, almost fully filled, Lost and the Damned army list
- Really, that's it. This is being updated constantly and will be finished soon enough.

Duel Off: Building a Better Guard

Take two Imperial Guard players. Add a challenge - who can build the better list? Then season with an onsite poll. What do you get? Our first Duel Off, where Herald of Nurgle and General Storm battle each other to see who can make the better list...

It's so big that we've even given it a new tag - Duel Off, and Herald vs Storm.
General Storm - For the Honour of Cadia!
For my list, I chose to take a classic Cadian list. AKA: it's a list that should be able to hold it's own against whatever list my opponent throws at me. The point of a Cadian list is to be balanced, so goddamn it i'll balance it out!
Obviously a must have is a Company Command Squad for Cadia, so mine will have Ursaker Creed and his old friend Jarran Kell. This means i've got some major order presence. I'm then adding a pair of Bodyguards...

Company Command Squad - Ursarker Creed and Jarran Kell. 2 Bodyguards, and Master of the Fleet
Veterans - Vox Caster, Heavy Weapon Team (Heavy Bolter)
Primaris Psyker - No Additional Upgrades

Infantry Platoon.
Command Squad - Standard, Vox Caster, and Grenade Launcher
Infantry Squad with Vox Caster, Grenade Launcher
Infantry Squad with Vox Caster, Grenade Launcher
Infantry Squad with Vox Caster, Grenade Launcher
Heavy Weapon Team with 3 Heavy Bolters
Heavy Weapon Team with 3 Missile Launchers
Infantry Platoon.
Command Squad - Standard, Vox Caster, and Grenade Launcher
Infantry Squad with Vox Caster, Grenade Launcher
Infantry Squad with Vox Caster, Grenade Launcher
Infantry Squad with Vox Caster, Grenade Launcher
Heavy Weapon Team with 3 Lascannons
Heavy Weapon Team with 3 Heavy Bolters
Infantry Platoon.
Command Squad - Standard, Vox Caster, and Grenade Launcher
Infantry Squad with Vox Caster, Grenade Launcher
Infantry Squad with Vox Caster, Grenade Launcher
Infantry Squad with Vox Caster, Grenade Launcher
Heavy Weapon Team with 3 Heavy Bolters
Heavy Weapon Team with 3 Missile Launchers
Infantry Platoon.
Command Squad - Standard, Vox Caster, and Grenade Launcher
Infantry Squad with Vox Caster, Grenade Launcher
Infantry Squad with Vox Caster, Grenade Launcher
Infantry Squad with Vox Caster, Grenade Launcher
Heavy Weapon Team with 3 Lascannons
Heavy Weapon Team with 3 Heavy Bolters

Hellhound with Heavy Bolter
Hellhound with Heavy Bolter

Leman Russ Exterminator with Heavy Bolter
Leman Russ Battle Tank with Heavy Bolter
Leman Russ Punisher with Lascannon

Literally, this list is filled with Anti Horde and Anti Everything else. It doesn't use many elite units, but does use tanks where appropriate...

Duel Off: Building a Better Guard

Take two Imperial Guard players. Add a challenge - who can build the better list? Then season with an onsite poll. What do you get? Our first Duel Off, where Herald of Nurgle and General Storm battle each other to see who can make the better list...

It's so big that we've even given it a new tag - Duel Off, and Herald vs Storm.

Herald of Nurgle - Like the Wind, Comrade!
I already know Storm is taking a 'Balanced' list he tells me. That means that i've got to think about something to deal with that... i'm going to take a mixed list with the main intention of charging them. Also known as the Strakenwind of Russilla... I mean Valhalla.
Company Command Squad - Colonel Iron Hand Straken, Astropath
Veterans - Heavy Flamer, Company Standard, Grenade Launcher
Lord Commissar with Carapace Armour and Power Weapon

Infantry Platoon.
Command Squad with Commander Chenkov, Standard, and Vox
Infantry Squad with Grenade Launcher, Vox, and Sergeant (Bolt Pistol)
Infantry Squad with Grenade Launcher, Vox, and Sergeant (Bolt Pistol)
20 Conscripts with 'Send in the Next Wave'
Heavy Weapon Team with 3 Heavy Bolters
Heavy Weapon Team with 3 Heavy Bolters
Infantry Platoon.
Command Squad with Captain Al'Rahem, Standard, and Vox
Infantry Squad with Grenade Launcher, Vox, and Sergeant (Power Weapon)
Infantry Squad with Grenade Launcher, Vox, and Sergeant (Power Weapon)
Infantry Squad with Grenade Launcher, Vox, and Sergeant (Power Weapon)
Special Weapon Team with 3 Flamers
Special Weapon Team with 3 Flamers
20 Conscripts with 'Send in the Next Wave'
Veteran Squad with Sergeant (Power Fist), 2 Flamers, 2 Grenade Launcher, and Vox. Has the Grenadier doctrine
Veteran Squad with Stone Tooth Harker and 2 Flamers.

Devildog with Heavy Bolter
Devildog with Heavy Bolter
Banewolf with Heavy Flamer

Leman Russ Demolisher with Lascannon
Leman Russ Punisher with Plasma Cannon

This is basically a mixed force - I have loads of models, loads of tanks, and loads of fun!

Design Studio: Ring of Terrors

Another gem from the past, Ring of Terrors is a system that allows you to commit to Character Bashes with some additional awesome features such as Veteran Skills and a new turn sequence!

This is actually one of our more successful drafts...

LINK: http://www.2shared.com/file/7355299/3c7fdbc6/Rings.html

Pages: 8
Contents:
- Fully fledged ruleset, perfect for your character bashes!
- 5 Planets (all with different rules) as well as 5 different Scenarios as well! These are able to be used in any combination
- Full campaign route, including Rings upgrades and some veteran upgrades!
Developed by:
- Battlefleet Chaotic

This is near the end of our mini Design Studio updates... the next will be our actual spectacle. Guess who?

Review: Space Hulk

Let's summarise the post already: SPACE HULK IS AWESOME!

Today, my local GW opened up their copy of the game, and let me tell you that it is easily worth it. There's a single red sprue - containing ALL of the Space Marine Terminators. That might sound like they're not detailled, but this contains 11 Terminators (including a captain and librarian). These are obviously all uniquely modelled, and even get named at the end of the Mission book

The other 3 sprues (I think) contain the Genestealers. The Objectives (the mech thing, the dead marine, and artefact) are all on one of the sprues, along with the Broodlord and some awesomely posed 'stealers. The other 2 sprues are identical, so you get a pair of genestealers bursting through the floor, for example

The mission book contains a fairly large amount of missions - these start small with small amounts of blips per turn, and then increase in awesome 'till you have to take down a Broodlord and loads more Genies

But the game? The store began by demonstrating Mission 9 - aka: get across a labyrinth of tunnels to escape. All of the marines bar the Captain (aka: Power Sword + Bolter) and 1 other terminator are involved. These are split into 3 waves, and a wave comes in each turn on a 4+ (command points may modify this). This means that the Marien player has a load of guys moving on fairly close to eachother if lucky. Game obviously ends immediately if all the marines are removed

There are 2 blips placed per turn

In my game, I was playing Tyranids with 1 other partner - who left early on, but was fairly successful with Blips thankfully =P. I was playing initially 2 people, and then they were joined by 3 more. This meant both teams didn't need much time per turn. Each controlled a wave, plus me and my Nid buddy happened to half the board (for control) and take a Blip each. I focussed on filling the lower area of the board with Stealers for the first few turns, and moving them to block off any corridors. My buddy swarmed too - aiming to rip apart the upper corridors while the Mariens were still entering. Both of us had little success at first, but the thing is that Space Hulk is a battle of time... and time is always on the Tyranid's side

Anyway, here's some highlights:
- The Thunder Hammer/Storm Shield guy was DEADLY! Literally he tore through more stealers than actually come in the box (always in groups of 10, of course) and took advantage of the Guard order and his shield (though for the first few turns of combat we did forget that the Shield only works at the front and possibly side - this meant nothing as we still failed!)
- I rolled a Triple 6 in combat against the Librarian, and he needed to use his last 4 Psi-Points to guard it. I still had an attack left over... I then promptly rolled low, and well died.
- Literally 2 dozen blips in the lower levels, all of either 2 or 3. Dammit that the marines never got there in the end!
- I guess the last one was the Assault Cannon termie. Turn 1, he has Overwatch on the guy. There's 3 blips nearby. He's facing in the right direction. Space Marine Turn 2, he turns in the other direction (expecting me to move the 3 stealers up there, instead of the blips.) I promptly use one of the blips (only 1 Stealer) to rip him apart. THE ASSAULT CANNON NEVER FIRES IN THE WHOLE GAME!!!
- The Thunder Hammer/Storm Shield guy above dying in the end to about 20 stealers going all the way to his position. He dies right next to the Dead Space Marine places there for climactic-ness.

Well, Space Hulk Review?
FIVE OUT OF FIVE AND THEN SOME!

Herald Highlight: Building the Perfect Guard

When I heard about Storm's Imperial Guard codex coming a week early, I immediately requested a read of it. After this, I chose to create a wish list on the GW website. Enough of that though, it's time to build the perfect guard
All Guard players will have a different approach. This can be exemplified by the various forces available to them:

The Cadian Way

Cadia is pretty much the jack of all trades -

shown by the characters that are available. Pask gives you a Tank presence, Bastonne shows off your hardcore veterans, and the Lovable Creed (and or Kell) shows your command presence

ADD: A good mix of troops and tanks - they are designed to work TOGETHER

LOSE: Stuff which will use up your orders. They will serve you the best in the Cadian army

The Tallarn Way

The Imperial Guard codex is perfectly clear on what the two focuses of Tallarn Desert Raiders are... you need to have Al'Rahem outflanking with a fully buffed up platoon, and a load of Tanks supporting them

ADD: Al'Rahem with an Armoured Company, with full Leman Russ support. Add Sentinels for more scouting support

LOSE: Anything which costs too much points, you need to focus your strategy dude!

The Catachan Way

Catachan enjoys the art of the charge and the sabotage, shown off by their three characters - Harker will make your Veterans deadly, Marbo is the best single model alive, and Straken turns your docile guard force into the Hidden BEAST!

ADD: Veterans and Assault Specialised Units

LOSE: Slow units of any sort - you need to be fast in order to advance with Straken's 'Furious-Counter Aura'

The Russian I mean Valhallan Way

Let's put it simply - Chenkov shows that the way of Valhalla is the reckless horde. Nuff Said

ADD: LOADS of Cheap Infantry Platoons and other hordes

LOSE: Expensive tanks or useless elites - they're used in the mission AFTER, of course

Well, this covers the ways of each of the various mainstream forces that are readily available in both stores and codexes. So... how do I build my army?

I chose to follow my usual Valhallan approach. To do this, I build a solid core of about 3 infantry platoons - 1 is an Armoured Company containing Chenkov, and the other two are heavily built Conscript squads (50 man ones)

The HQ is of course a Company Command Squad - a pair of them - which both have a Fleet Officer and Master of Ordnance. I have some Hellhounds (and variants) as Fast Attacks, and some Artillery in Heavy Support to cover the fire. That works rather well...

~ As you were! This is another post on the route to our 100th!

Design Studio: Meka-Thunda-Runna

An ancient ruleset from a time long gone (January pre-5th Ed), Meka Thunda Runa is a game of racing, where you can take a set of figures from literally anywhere and take part in either a preset campaign or your own stuff
To put it simply... racey fast fast.

The link is here: http://www.2shared.com/file/7355291/32a453f4/Meka_Thunda_Runna.html

Pages: 5
Content:
- Full ruleset for the game!
- A Practice Campaign of 5 pieces - which may either be used or adapted for your needs
- Small set of additional scenarios
- Additional content to customize YOR RUNNA!


Developed By:
- Battlefleet Chaotic

Battlefleet Chaotic 100th Post - countdown!!!

Since it's start on Herald of Nurgle's kitchen table, Battlefleet chaotic has expanded and now reaches it's 100th post!

This is 94, by the way... ooh! It's so awesome!

I can't wait for the 100th update!

~ Really should be Herald who posts this, but i've not updated for a while...

Herald Highlight: I Have to Apologise.

I've not been able to post that much recently, and I have to apologise. Soon enough, I will have a new trove of content to post about.

A feature that will be replacing this Herald Highlight of ours will be the Design Studio, which is where we will regularly add some new drafts of codexes and mini rulesets. You've seen the trial through Spinner's End: A Planetary Empires redux that is actually in the middle of usage now. I might even find a camera to post some pics of it...

Soon we'll also have two additional rulesets being added into it!
- Rings of Terror: Remember those Character Bashes? This is an unofficial awesome set for it!
- Meka-Thunda-Runna: Want to race multiple vehicle types? This is another set for it....

So! Sorry but we're trying...

Planetary Empires redux: Initial Testing

The campaign that my campaign ruleset (see Design Studio: Planetary Empires) was created for has begun, and already some errors have been noted. If any readers could add some comments to said topic, that would be appreciated - I need to have them now rather than later.

A few shortcomings have been realised though - firstly the campaign trail, and empire points for various things. These will be published in a Quick Play FAQ soon enough (next Saturday at the latest.)

In addition, a few quick campaign rules will be added to the site alongside this Quick Play FAQ. For example, a mission set and some Generic Merits (for Empire Point bonuses!)

A final thing though - I've got a pair of WIP Rulesets that are being entered into the Heresy Online competition with Wayland Games =). These will be previewed next week

~ If you've found @BFCNurgle on Twitter, you'll find some tips on our "Lost and the Damned" release which is sooner than you'd think. We've also got some Necrons too - not until LatD though

Tactica: Outdated Armies

I've noticed recently that there are large amounts of people who complain about their armies - often in strange ways that make little sense to me. This tactica is going out to address that complaining

You've all seen it. That it being the new player, who has just purchased an army (perhaps Dark Angels or Necrons) and happens to have lost many games. They complain, and they rant, and then they look at Space Marines.

Are they incorrect to do so? Surely it is an evolution of the game that the weaker players are removed from the armies, leaving only those worthy to do Khaines/the Emperors/the Gods/the Greater Goods work? Or is that just unwanted - aside from those people who want cheap armies on E Bay!

All armies have their bonuses and all armies have their failures. That is something a player realises early on - and what is usually identified as the parable of the Best Army by others. However, what could the advantages of an army which has not been updated for edition(s) be? There are three ones which have to be noticed:

1. Power Creep/Power Seep: These codexes have not been altered to fit into the current game. For example, Necrons in 4th edition were the bane of so many armies that it wasn't even funny, and since they were not PSed, they remained a good army. Chaos Space Marines on the other hand WERE updated from pretty much the same position, and PSed down a notch or four. However, then there is the example of Dark Eldar who are in great need of a PC.
2. Old Dog, New Tricks: These codexes still technically utilise old rules, and some can be deadly. For example, is it Mandrakes who have the old version of Feel No Pain? Then there is Space Wolves - using the old True Grit rules with their bolters still.
3. Bufftastic: This is one which will be erased soon enough. Imperial Guard used to have this - the Bufftastic advantage means that the force has many MANY addons. For example, Doctrines allowed for a min-max or optimised list, but this was taken away. Nuff Said

Then again, people usually focus on the bad points of an old codex, which again I have noticed three main points of:

1. Golden Oldie: The old codex will have been built for a different metagame and a different system. For example, Necrons had those Gauss weapons because they needed some Anti Tank support (due to lack of Meltas), and now that even THAT advantage has been taken they are screwed!
2. Support: Again, this feels rather obvious. The older the codex is, the less likely they are to be played. The less likely they are to be played, the less chance that GW will release some models for them. It's a cycle, I tells ya! Heck, the older a codex is will also play upon the chance of being updated - paradox, eh?
3. Point Costs: As time has gone on, GW has gone from giving higher costs than necessary to lower ones - this is due to their new corporate goals. The lower the cost, the more models sold. The More Models sold, the more likely they are to be played. The more likely they are to be played, the greater chance that GW will release some models/rules for them. It's another insane paradox!

So hold your heads high. Persuade your friends to buy some of those old Warriors - even if only to be converted into standard Eldar. If a market forms, then GW WILL release them. Remember that they are a company, and a company builds on their profits!

Design Studio: Planetary Empires

Over the last few weeks, BFC has been working to bring forth the first draft of our personal Campaign ruleset which is based around Planetary Empires. This is the fruit of that labour

LINK: http://www.2shared.com/file/7229672/18d3711/Campaign_Rules.html

This is obviously a first edition, so it's unfinished and will be updated. It starts in the vein of a campaign maker - much like the GW version - but then goes into a bit more detail with custom missions and the like

Pages: 41
Content:
- 15 Custom Missions, from Planetstrike and Apocalypse, as well as a new edition of Cities of Death
- 3 Sets of Unique stratagems, for each race in the 41st millenium
- Set of example new tiles for your Planetary Empires campaign
- Racial traits for each force - including new rules for each important character in the system!
- Special Events for your campaign - ranging from the Counter Event to Mass Sanguination!
Developed By:
- Battlefleet Chaotic
- A Few Playtesters and Assistants (kthx)

~ Well, we promised you a set of rules... but we didn't think that they'd be for Planetary Empires! Look out for the Necrons and Lost and the Damned in the next Design Studio topics

Space Hulk is Coming!

After many months of predicting and rumours, GW has finally confirmed the release of Space Hulk.

In addition, rumours have started about March 2010 being Blood Angels.

Finally, next year apparently has September 2010 being Tyranids.

Reviewing Planetary Empires

Today I was surprised to find a copy of Planetary Empires waiting for me in a storage room, after I had obviously forgotten to collect it or something. Main part of that surprise was how I had cancelled my order for it anyway - seeing as I had found somewhere that had it stocked 10 days earlier than usual.

Planetary Empires is the revamped version of Mighty Empires for Warhammer 40k. It is a long hinted at product, supposedly ready for release far earlier than 2009 (apparently it was ready for the original PS spot in 2008). People already suspected there to be this kit due to GW's practice of reusing ideas and sprues - added to the fact that a hex based mold is easily reproduced anyway.

The kit contains the following items:
- Planetary Empires rulebook: This may look like a big one that's good value and filled with rules, but it's actually just 9 versions of the same one. AKA: we couldn't be bothered to produce more than one version. See later on for a small summary of the small ruleset.
- 48 hexagonal tiles: This is where the pricetag comes from. The set is 6 sprues of these tiles, which also happen to be fully compatible with the previously released Mighty Empires... minus the part where the tiles can come out again. Prepare to see your previous ME tiles, which were so perfect, mutilated in the name of the other Hammers...
- Accessories: Also known as? The Manufactorums, Power Generators, and Command Bastions. These apparently confer additional rules in whatever campaign games you take part in, however you should look at the summary... awfully done by GW.
- 96 Banners!: Hoorah! More badly made snappy snappies.

Ruleset Summary
Also known as the most important section of any review. What does this campaign ruleset give the common player? Nothing much.

The set contains more a list of guidelines than a full ruleset - something to be changed soon enough - and should not be used as the basis for your entire campaign. More as guidelines... guide lines. GW may have released an incredibly awesome and well made (for once) product, but the rules for the product are rather suckish

The fate of the campaign is judged by the value of the upgrades controlled by a player - these are unique for each race. There's one problem though.
If a Space Marine and Ork player both have a single one of each upgrade, the Marine is winning
Each race gains different values... and thus each race has a different maximum point total if they have the same amount of each. This is why i'm scrapping that system for Spinner's End.

Final Rating
If you want the tiles, get it. If you want the campaign, don't.

GW has done a nice set of tiles - i'm considering a third box to the two I already have for this purpose - but the rules leave a lot to be desired. I rate this as a 4/5 for that exact reason.

The Importance of Being Idle: How I Love the Credit Crunch

Never give up. Never surrender. Never have too much to do

Those are the three ideals of the standard gamer. The Three Ns if you will. It's important to never have too much to do, on a hobby and game perspective, and it's also important to never surrender, again from both a hobby and game perspective

Case point: My Eldar army. Back in April 2008, I purchased 3 Falcons, 20 Dire Avengers, a Farseer, and 6 Fire Dragons. That wasn't a problem for me to paint up, and dammit I knew! That was, until I realised that I had a Battle Company to get on with as well, and only had the cash at that point to buy one type of spray paint

I chose the WHITE one. And then I was careless... the ENTIRITY of both projects were botched up and suddenly I have a problem on my hands. Need to think about how to patch it up. That's another story though - the point is, you budget and you scheme and you think from every angle. Happily enough, I chose to take some time (a year later) to finish the force, and that made up for the mistakes.

Oh well... we'll see

White Dwarf Archive!

Games Workshop has snapped!

See the WD Archive here!!!

http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/content/blogPost.jsp?aId=2300001a

EDIT: I'm just adding the GW feed now, lol

Herald Highlight: Dice is Life

Words are Ours. Warhammer is Ours. Dice is Life... is it?

Math-hammer is a core component of the game for many people, indeed I use it sometimes myself. For example, you're in the Ork Codex and you want Zogwort. What is the chance you'll get the power? What is the chance that Zogwort's Curse will go off? What is the tactical uses for each of the powers? Who would you be using it on?

It's a question of tactical chance...the chance to do something advantageous, or the chance to damage you. Everything needs to be weighed out, tactics need to be chosen before the game even begins, you need control of the game, you need control of the field. Another example, Wood Elf Dryad armies. Too much Treesinging, expensive troops... incredible amounts of options. That is, until you reach a board that isn't based around trees... then you find the tactical options limited to that single set of trees you get free at the beginning of the game

How do you adapt? Can't precisely ask your opponent if you can add 20 sets of trees at the beginning of the game... but you can't ask for a few of them to be removed either? Difficult. Stop praying for your dice gods, and start praying for an all-rounder list. Pick a race that won't crumble in Khorne's heat. Pick Warriors of Chaos - everyone knows they're a Cold list (see BoLS), which doesn't need good rolling to win. That's the sad effect of Mathammer - you pick the list that won't need calculation, or have to pick a list that relies upon such calculations. How does that work out for the hobby? Answer - not well. Not well at all.

So end it. End the mass calculations. Now

My Sons Shall Destroy You All...

Over the past 2 years, I have amassed a small Nurgle Force. This force is nearing it's end... or at least, the end to the Infantry. Now begins the task of adding the mechanised support, and Apocalypticizing it...

The key points of my army are obviously all Sacred Number based. For example, my plague marines total to 49 models. My Terminators focus force against the seven most important targets. My tanks must be prepared to fight seven at once. That sort of thing, really. Then there is the doctrine of the Death Guard - namely, the lack of Heavy weaponry, and the fact that they are a trench force. That is why my army is hard... and slow. Your assault units don't have any reason to come to me, and I have no reason to come to your assault units

But the army itself? I don't do images (yet) but I do enjoy making lists. This is the list of my models:

• Typhus the Traveller, Herald of Nurgle
• Chaos Sorcerer of Nurgle (FW model)
• 13 Terminator Champions of Nurgle (squads of 7)
• 7 Chosen of Nurgle (Melta support)
• 14 Possessed of Nurgle (Pray for FNP)
• 49 Plague Marines (including options for 5 Meltaguns, 5 Flamers, and 1 Plasma Gun)
• 4 Champions (1 PW/PP, 2 PF/PP, 1 PW/BP)
• 4 Bikers of Nurgle
• 10 Chaos Spawn
• 21 Havocs (That's 9 Missile Launchers, 2 Lascannons, 1 Heavy Bolter)
• 3 Possessed Vindicators (2 new, 1 old. Old one is Command Tank)

That's the stuff. I think it translates to at least a fair few points (lol). Should be interesting to field

Nurgle Progress

Well. I've finally returned to the Death Guard... and I didn't need to buy a single damned model

Over the years i've been in the hobby, i've picked up a fair few models that I don't like. Whether it's a bad model or a bad paint job (or both :O), I will keep it

And this is when it pays off

I use them as Plague Marines. Bit of green stuff, modelled with whatever is handy (I used a knife with a small bit taken off, to allow for easier sculpting). Out of the 49 that i'm making, i've done 14 so far

But this wasn't all

I've finally used my Vindicator, from about a year ago. Large GS on it, to show Nurgle 'tri skull' symbols. Might post that eventually, lool

But hey. Thats 7 left until i've got 49 GS Plague Marines

Herald Highlight: And I looked down upon my new dominion... and I thought it good

Temptation strikes from all frontiers, being the single unseen enemy of all hobbyists. One cannot deny this, being such an overwhelmingly obvious fact. Therefore, it stands to reason that this must be crushed - inevitablility must crumble, under the stern gaze of the hearts of good, strong, men!

Out of the long words (aww!) now. That's the key fact of the hobby, which will be covered in this highlight of the hobby. The first key fact to be covered in Hobby Academy Summer 2009. A new section on the site, I believe

It's the first thing we need to overcome each and every day that we take part in the hobby. That creeping feeling at the back of our heads... calling. Planetstrike looks pretty nice. Space Marines get reinforcements - you like that, remember! Don't give in!

Thats the point of every project, work in progress, plan, or army you will do. If you fail to gain any control over your hobby... then the hobby will have the chance to gain control over you. Believe me, we've all purchased something we didn't want... some more than others... and no-one wants to go back on that road!

So look for the signs. Listen for the pains. Consult your doctor for possible side effects. Remember to take the pills. This is one enemy you must defeat, by all costs!

The Shadow Dancers: Chaos Army

In order to gear up for Planetstrike, each blogger had to restart an old army, and make it so that the force could work for both Attackers and Defenders

Therefore, I decided to look back at my Daemons army... and I wept

HQ:
Fateweaver
Herald of Khorne
Herald of Khorne

Troops:
10 Bloodletters
10 Bloodletters
10 Bloodletters
10 Plaguebearers
10 Plaguebearers

Fast Attack:
5 Flesh Hounds
5 Flesh Hounds

Elites:
9 Flamers
9 Flamers
6 Fiends

Heavy Support:
Soulgrinder
Soulgrinder
Soulgrinder


This is the basic force, before anything is added...

Getting Started with Planetstrike

Games Workshop has recently released the article 'Getting Started with Planetstrike', but there are some things it doesn't tell you about...

How do you form effective armies? How do you play a game awesomely?

All of these need to be answered. But how? You can't particularly say everything necessary on the internet without GW ripping the blog apart... so we have to sit in silence until PS gets the same amount of article time as everything else

Check out our Planetstrike tag for information

Planetstrike: Power of the Eldar

Dark Eldar

Eldar

Chaos Daemons


All of these armies benefit from this new expansion. But how, you ask. Well then, it's time we look at the abilities you can get

The Dark Eldar have the BIGGEST bonus of all the races from the expansion - the ability of Hellish Cacophany. This allows you to deduct one from your opponent (defenders) leadership each turn - sure, Fearless and Stubborn people have no problem, and you need Three Objectives in order to purchase it, but it is well worth it against any non-Tyranid or Crimson Fist force!

Eldar gain the next biggest advantage. Sure, you need to have a deep strike heavy army... but Webway Assault is far better than Hellish Cacophany when it comes to deployment. Rerolling the scatter dice for ANY deep strike, as well as being able to roll for reserves all at once, and then allocating them yourself, is brilliant! I can't wait to test this out...

Chaos Daemons don't even need a unique bonus... their special rules are simply boosted here. Thats right... the whole army has Deep Strike. This means that, while you can technically use the Drop Zone (making the deployment more constant,) you could also use the Deep Strike and then CHARGE. Khorne Wept...

Anyway, that's a brief overview of benefits... and thats before you look at the normal stuff

Herald Highlight: So this is Planetstrike... and what have we done?

So this is Planetstrike? I guess we should look back to a month or so ago

I made so many predictions of what would be involved - the assault of Deep Striking specialists, the idea of tunnel systems.... and I have to admit that I think i've got it right. Planetstrike DOES allow units with the Deep Strike special rule to assault on the turn they arrive - giving Raptors an actual use - but it doesn't technically allow Drop Pod marines to do so as well

There ARE tunnel routes, but these are Strategms - Escape Hatch is awesome, by the way

But this isn't the point of this article. This article is about how i'm looking at starting a new army, just for Planetstrike! I am, of course, talking about Dark Eldar

BUT WHY??? You exclaim. Dark Eldar suck, don't they? True - in a normal game, they'll be ripped apart 1 2 3... but in Planetstrike, they finally gain a purpose. You see, Dark Eldar always have to be an Attacker in all missions they take part in (this is an ancient rule that was lost in the 4th-5th change over), and this means that they don't have to think about the mediocre Defender strategies that can be put into place. Also, they have the living terror that is the Lance Army - which is perfect for taking out the objectives

But this isn't it, mind you! You see, i've always admired Dark Eldar really - well, in 4th Ed I did. The fact that they could only have Troops as scoring in 5th, and man are their troops mediocre, it meant that I didn't see the point to them anymore. It wouldn't work!!! So with the whole fact that EVERYTHING scores, it really makes up for it

But what army can someone do with this sort of stuff?

Well, i'd start with HQs. I feel like someone who can kick ass from the word go - so i'll use Lelith. Deadly

Next, we have the Fast Attack. I choose Hellions - jetbikes, or something, so they can Deep Strike. Add some Raiders for DS warriors!

Etc etc... it works... good

Herald Highlight: Where have all the days gone

Tomorrow, we will officially be half way through the year. Yes - thats 26 weeks pretty much down the drain. It's pretty depressing



But what achievements have we as a community accomplished? I can name mine on 1 hand:

- Kicked a few exams out of the way

- Introduced my father to the Hobby (on his 50th birthday. Aww)

- Started 2 new armies - Dark Elves and Isengard

- Spent over £3000 on the hobby... and not in a good way

- Begun a saving scheme for my models



Pretty awful. HOW CAN WE KEEP TRACK OF DAYS?

Herald's Twittering Again...

Added the Twitter updates to the site... Well, my one for now

I'll be using it to update on projects and stuff...

Tactica: Building an Army

Two months ago, I began the process of building an Isengard army for War of the Ring. While I haven't got a load of images, heck I never take pictures, I do have the process...

How the heck do you start an army?

Few things I look at for any army are the obvious ones - Army Play, Army Content, and Army Possibilities. You can't play any army that doesn't focus on these things, however soulless you are. That is, unless you're an android, or a guy with a grudge

But actually, there's 3 other factors people don't take into account - for example, a person I know began a Dark Elf army simply because of bad experiences with High Elves and bearing a big grudge. Sure, he likes the Army Play, Army Content, and the Army Possibilities, but he still absolutely loathes High Elves! It's the same with me - i'm starting a Wood Elf army soon in order to deal with my deep aggressive urges against a certain other Wood Elf player I know


But then, there's the other two factors. Those are the Public Opinion - which while not as important, you don't want to play an army that people turn their noses up at - and Painting Possibilities - since you don't want to do a really boring army, do you???

How the heck do you plan an army?

This is the stage that far more people already know firm images are needed at the start of any project... and in this case (my Isengard army) I chose to do the good old Phalanx army. My aim is to have 160 Uruks in my army at the end - just basic box sets, too. I've got 60 at the moment. These guys will form up blocks, Pikes in the main units, and sword-shield Uruks on the flanks. Obvious flanking force, but since it's a deathwish to even think about charging them it works. Then there's the Shaman conversions i'm doing - the metal ones are either too expensive or they're too inappropriate (think about it, you've got a naked guy, and there's a guy on a rock... awful)

I've also got a set of Trolls for the approach - Trolls are a cert in any evil army anyway, right? So there's going to be 4 in the army - 1 per Phalanx. Added to this is a final force of many Crossbows and Berserkers. For the coolness factor, thats all


Finally, the Epic Heroes? I suppose Lurtz should be used... But I don't like him anyway. So it's only Saruman and Grima for me (seeing as Thrysdan, the other guy, is the stupidest guy ever)

Anyway, thats an update and a badly made 'Tactica' in one. Sweet!

Vengeance... With a Side of Pie

Herald likes Warriors of Chaos. Aun'Byr (remember him? Off the Blog, but still) likes Dark Elves. But what do I like?

I liek Mudkips

Not really, it's more like 'I Liek Daemons' specifically. Khorne specifically. Nuff Said

Herald Highlight: 10th Anniversairy Part 1 (10a)

We've hit 10a, people. Time for a poll

What article do you want as 10b?

Post in topic. We'll continue on regardless

Herald Highlight: The End Times are Coming!

No, that isn't the Storm of Chaos campaign comign back. Time for the good guys of middle earth to take back the Battlefleet

A month or two ago, I did a Highlight on something called http://battlefleetchaotic.blogspot.com/2009/04/herald-highlight-darkness-of-war.html. This article was quite decent, but I have one eeny question... How hard is it for the Free Peoples to defeat the darkness of Sauron and the rings?

The forces of evil are numerous, and well equipped for the era, but at the same time they are ALL (yes, I mean ALL) Horde Armies. The endless tide of common troops (i.e: Easterlings, Orc Warriors, Uruk-Hai, Giant Spiders, Goblins, Haradrim...) is a BIG archetype in the Evil army, mostly due to the fact that if you're going to need a load of cheap core... then why not have hordes of cheap core? Face it, that 15 point unit of Moria Goblins will allow you to have One Balrog of Morgoth... so why not use the whole box on it, and have either 1 unit of 3 companies, or 3 units of 1 company? Remembering that infantry trump ALL in Objective Games, it not only allows you to get a dead killy unit (the Balrog, or even a Cave Drake for cheapiness) but you get a unit that WILL have a chance of surviving the onslaught between it and the objective (instead of 4 casualties to finish it, you need 20 casualties. Even with Goblins, thats a lot)

But how does that affect the Good army. You are the opposite. You have 3 horde choices. Yes, just 3. That means that you need to look away from the idea of completely decimating your foe under a mountain of bodies... especially since two of those horde choices are HOBBIT ARMIES. Hobbits will not build a good foundation for the horde, however you look at it, but they do have the options you need for the dead hard Shoobit Army (Hobbits... So many Hobbit Bowmen...)

You do enjoy a vastly superior selection of troops, such as the basic Minas Tirith Warrior or the Galadrim Warrior... Sure, a company of Minas Tirith is 35 points, but it has better armour, better weaponry, better courage, better choices of hero to lead... and they are more per box! Unlike a box of Orkies, you come with 8 Sword/Shield, 8 Spears, and 8 Bows (the Orcs will come with 8 Sword/Shield, 8 Spear, 4 2H Sword, and 4 Bows). This means that the Minas Tirith is not only a good starter set, but it's also a brilliant solid choice anyway... think of them as the Space Marine of WotR

But moving on... what is Good's other advantage? We're not cheap, but we have the best set of Legendary Formations ever. We outnumber them COMPLETELY in legendaries, although these are mainly in the major pointed areas, and most heroes cross between them all. Saruman, the White Wizard and not the White Hand, is in the Council of Wizardry (500pts), the White Council (500pts), and his own Epic Hero version (200pts). Then, you have Gandalf the Grey who is in The Fellowship of the Ring (500pts), Council of Wizardry (500pts), the White Council (500pts), and his Epic Hero form (175pts), as well as the Gandalf the White upgrade Epic Hero (225pts). Overlapping is the only disadvantage for this, as they will kick the s**t out of any formation that isn't The Nine Abroad (damn scary those guys) or The Dark Lord Sauron (see previous brackets)

But anyway, the topic is getting a bit too large, so i'll begin the summary. First, the best standard Core Choices for each army (i've got 5 here. FIVE):

1. Gondor and Arnor: Stick with the Minas Tirith Warrior, or a variant. Want an all rounder? Warrior of Minas Tirith, with good courage, orc Fight Value, and good defence. Want a Armoured Fighter? Warrior of Arnor, with bad courage, good Fight Value, and good defence. Want a Steadfast Fighter? Warrior of Numenor, with good courage, good Fight Value, and bad armour. ALL of these are 35pts per company, and then there's the variant Bowmen (in the pre-mentioned modes, who only lose the Shields for a Bow)
2. Elven Kingdoms: This is the more difficult choice, being that the choice is based entirely upon box sets rather than box value. High Elves are hampered by the Warriors of the Last Alliance box set (which is the only set they come in - 8 Warriors of Numenor, 8 Sword/Shield Elves, 8 Elf Bows), while the Wood Elves are only good as a flanking force. However, I believe it's obvious who wins - the Galadrim not only have a brilliant box set, but they also happen to be so good at their job, that there is NO shifting them!
3. Dwarven Holds: This is another difficult choice, since Dwarves are pathetic againse Elves. I'm going to go with a bit of a dead cert - Dwarven Rangers will rip many other Ranger forces to shreds. Decent defence, decent options (2h weapons, bows, or sword/shield) which means that they are a firm favorite with me. They also happen to be an example of a Core unit that can be made into a Legendary with just one model - thats not very common with the Good armies
4. Kingdom of Rohan: Awful. So many choices in Rohan are Core, that it becomes hard to select a winner. Royal Knights, Riders Eored, Outriders, and Sons of Eorl... ALL are beautiful cavalry units. Then there are the Oathsworn, though, and these are what Rohan should be about. Rohan does Cavalry, but can you afford to get an army full of them? I don't think so - Oathsworn are cheap, in points and models, and a good 'Hold the Line' force. If you want Cavalry, then go and get the Cavalry
5. Forgotten Kingdoms: Kingdoms cannot have an independent list, but they contain ALL of the Legendary Formations that mean anything (e.g: Fellowship of the Ring). However, there are 3 cores that are brilliant - Hobbit Militia, Hobbit Bowmen, and Ents. Ents are hard, and one of the only Monsters the Good Army can get. Hobbits are 10 (15 for Bowmen) per company, for a Shoot Value rivalling elves. They are pathetic though - the Ent gets my vote, for being a cheap versatile model

Thats the Top 5 lists as well, by the way. Gondor and Arnor is a brilliant cheap list, followed by the bruising Elven Kingdoms, next of all being the Dwarven Holds which are a great Objective army, and then Rohan with the Cavalry horde... with Forgotten Kingdoms holding them all up, with their countless Legendary Formations

But there's one last question I ask... What are the Best Army Choices ever? Even more candidates for this one... for a future poll. There's 3 categories for this: Core, Rare, and Legend/Hero. These each take 2 options from each list in the Good Army

• Core, G/A: Minas Tirith Warriors
• Core, G/A: Rangers of Gondor
• Core, EK: Galadrim Warriors
• Core, EK: Wood Elf Warriors
• Core, DH: Dwarven Rangers
• Core, DH: Dwarven Warriors
• Core, KoR: Riders of Rohan Eored
• Core, KoR: Oathsworn Militia
• Core, FK: Ents
• Core, FK: Hobbit Militia
• Special, G/A: Knights of Minas Tirith
• Special, G/A: Knights of Dol Amroth
• Special, EK: Elven Cohort
• Special, EK: Galadrim Knights
• Special, DH: Vault Wardens
• Special, DH: IRON GUAAAARD!!!
• Special, KoR: Sons of Eorl
• Special, KoR: ???
• Special, FK: ???
• Special, FK: ???
• Legend/Hero, G/A: Boromir of Gondor
• Legend/Hero, G/A: Warden of the Keys
• Legend/Hero, EK: Galadriel (Either Form)
• Legend/Hero, EK: Rivendell Guard
• Legend/Hero, DH: Drar's Hunters
• Legend/Hero, DH: Gimli, Son of Gloin
• Legend/Hero, KoR: The King's Guard
• Legend/Hero, KoR: Theodred, Prince of Rohan
• Legend/Hero, FK: The Fellowship of the Ring
• Legend/Hero, FK: The Council of Wizardry

Well, that ends our look at War of the Ring in general. Time to actually get a themed article in...

Herald Highlight: With Great Cheese comes Great Responsibility

Welcome to Part 1 of the 'I Love the Monkey Head - Space Marines' tactica, within my Herald Highlight section. People often come to me exclaiming 'Mr Nurgle, why do your Chaos Hordes now suck' and I have to tell them things such as 'it's going to get better in time' or 'CHAOS LEGION WILL COME SOON. SEE WHERE YOU'LL BE THERE, HUMAN!!!'

Well, it's time for me to one-up you all, puny beardlings. The Hordes of Chaos shall swallow you all up, start chewing, note that you're disgusting, and then spit you into a big random portal into General Storm's bedroom

But on a more serious note, it's time to delve into the cheese fest that is... Marines. 5th Ed.

Overview
Marines enjoyed a massive buff in 5th Ed, compared to the Codex: CSM book having a massive downturn in it's awesome factor. They remain stalwart and steadfast, thanks to a vastly unchanged And They Shall Know No Fear, but they also have more allies - the Combat Squads rule from C: BA and C: DA means that they have more options than ever, and they also gain the Combat Tactics rule that will OWN anyone who thinks they have the choice on whether they break

They do, however, actually lose a big system that brokened the old book - Traits are gone, at last - so I don't have to worry about them. Huzzah! They did gain the 'Fluff Characters' such as Vulkan He'Stan (God in Man's Form, though thats a circular reference) which was a good thing - limits are good - but they gained MORE Ultramarines (boo!) which can only be a bad thing

Alpha Legion Tiem
Well, we can't have any of that, can we? Space Marines are TOO good now - and they must be exterminated! However, I can't really do that immediately, can I? I need to call in my secret ally, the Alpha Legion, to infiltrate the poxy army. They'll be using a few models i've been using till recently - stealing the army and stealing the armour for their own nefarious schemes

After a long period of retraining (i.e: Remembering to put the CCW back at home) the list was prepared! I always admired the White Scars, as well as the Salamanders, so I was thrilled to find a scheme perfect for me - I chose a sort of 'Knights of the Purple Flame' colour scheme. I'm already planning to add a 10 man Biker Squad with a captain in order to get the speed that these former Slaanesh ensigns have had, in order to continue on (and feed my Chaos army at the same time - huzzah!)

So, the list?

HQ Choices: I have chosen to take a plain, simple, Chapter Master for this. A small, basic sized, Honour Guard will accompany in order to give a large amount of protection, while an additional HQ (a Terminator Librarian, from my Slaanesh army) will be brought for more Tele-PORT! feature

Elite Choices: I have chosen to take a small Terminator Assault Squad with a magnetic mix of Lightning Claws and Thunder Hammer/Storm Shield in order to give me a Hitty Retinue for my Terminator Librarian. To this solid base, I add the Dreadnought - seeing as he's far more reliable than my Chaos variant!

Troop Choices: I've got 2 options for this, being the Tactical or Scout Squad. I've chosen to take a pair of big Tacticals (10 man) for the free weaponry, and a big Scout Squad for some Sniper support. I've also got a 5 man Scout Squad with Telion, for the authentic 'SNIPER' feeling

Fast Attack Choices: This one's the biggest choice in the list - Assault Squad, Vanguard Squad, Biker Squad, Attack Biker Squad, Land Speeder, Land Speeder Storm, or Foot Variants of the Assault/Vanguard Squad? I've chosen a good hitty unit - Vanguard Veterans - as well as a pair of faster Biker Squads for Mobile Fire Power

Heavy Support Choices: This is more obvious - I choose 2 Vindicators, not only to complete my Linebreaker (got 1 already) but also to give a two prong approach

Tactics: This is simple - Scouts are set up, or Tacticals if it's an Objective Game, with the Honour Guard in a central position. The Vindicators and Bikers are split, to give me a manoevring stroke across the sides of the force. Finally, Terminators and Vanguard Veterans use intervention to attack vulnerable important points, finishing the force

What next?
Part 2 of this tactica, where I will cover my mixed success with the incredibly cheesy, but still specialised, Space Marine army. Heck, there might even be an exact army list

The next part of 'I Love the Monkey Head' will be a basic Horde summary, followed by individual tacticas on Orks and Imperial Guard themselves. the HHHAHD will fall!!!

Herald Highlight: I love the Monkey Head

And not the Age of Empires cheat either - this is the monkey head that happens to be the monkeys at GW Central

How did I start to love the codex monkeys?

Simple, it's fairly easy to complain when you're on the other side of the spectrum - i'm the diehard Death Guard player who not only doesn't have that many troops, but doesn't have heavy weapons. I do enjoy benefits - say goodbye to the charge bonus, and my entire army can be used as a cheese substitute should I get hungry

However, what is this monkey head? I'm talking about the three codexes that are the absolute BANE for my life, the Codex: Orks, Codex: SM, and Codex: IG. AKA: The Unholy Trinity of Horde - Hard - Horde. And they happen to be the anatheme of eachother, the bane to all of 40k is also the bane of the UHToHHH (or HHHUHT)

Over the next 3 Herald Highlights I have to do in order to redeem myself for the hiatus, I will look at how to defeat the big HHHUHT. I'll start with Space Marines - the Hard - and then continue with the two horde armies in a sort of two-parter of themselves...

MY DEATH GUARD WILL SUUUURVIIIIVEEE!!!

How to Stop an Exploding Blog?

Sorry. MAJOR hiatus due to other commitments. Guess we owe you... 15 articles? Dang, that would get us to 88

No matter

We're back

Elven Kingdoms and Planetstrike

It's official - we now know the release schedule for June and July. And it ain't pretty

June
Empire 2nd Release: Greatswords, Steam Tank, Archers, Character Models
Elven Kingdoms: Galadrim, Rumil, Haldir

July
Planetstrike: Terrain: (Landing Pad, Bastion, Dark Angel piece, Aegis Defense Line)
Space Marine 2nd Release: Spear of Sicarius (SM set), Vulkan He'Stan, Kor'Sarro Khan, Land Speeder Storm, Ironclad Dreadnought
Tool Set Altered: Brushes re-released

This is alongside many bitz packs that should be quit interesting. Cool st00f!

Further Renovation

We are currently in the process of adding a 'Related Posts' option to the blog. We're just confused =/

331st Cadian Regiment - Beginning

Over the previous couple of weeks, i've been planning the things that i'll be purchasing for my new Imperial Guard army. This is the fruits - my army list (version 1) which will be brought over the next 2 months. In these two months I will have £300 to spend... and i'll be buying at 75% normal price (74 on the battleforces)

So. How do you plan a starting up Guard army? Games Workshop makes a good topic out of how to kitbash (http://www.games-workshop.com/gws/content/article.jsp?aId=13900003) but it isn't far enough! I need precise lists of what goes into each boxset - that is LACKING! So i've went on a hunt to see what is actually on the boxes:
-- Basic Box: 2 Sergeants, 2 Flamers, 2 Grenade Launchers, 2 Vox Casters
-- Command Squad: Power Weapon, Power Fist, Platoon Banner, Regiment Banner, Vox Caster, Flamer, Plasma Gun, Meltagun, Grenade Launcher, Bolt Pistol, and Sniper Rifle
-- Heavy Weapon Team: All Heavy options (no Plas Cannon?)
-- Small Guard Box: No extras, 5 Guardsmen

Thats the first step. Next I have to see what I need for a good base. It's obvious that I want to use Guard's main advantage - Orders. Each (basic) choice of an Infantry Platoon I take happens to give me 1 order. I want to have a fair amount of them in order to have any chance of getting the combos I want off. And then, there's the whole fact that if I choose Company Command Squads - brilliant, cheap basic choices - then I not only get 2 orders but the terrific advisors, which you can STACK the effects of. Advisors are brilliant, therefore I want more of them. Nuff said

So here's the list:
HQ - Company Command Squad - Company Commander with Power Sword, Bolt Pistol, and Meltabombs, 4 Veterans with Medi Pack, Regimental Standard, Vox Caster, and 1 Grenade Launcher. Officer of the Fleet and Astropath attached
HQ - Company Command Squad - Company Commander with Power Sword, Bolt Pistol, and Meltabombs, 4 Veterans with Medi Pack, Regimental Standard, Vox Caster, and 1 Grenade Launcher. Officer of the Fleet and Astropath attached
TROOP - Platoon Command Squad - Platoon Commander with Power Fist, Bolt Pistol, and Meltabombs, 4 Guardsmen with Medi Pack, Regimental Standard, Vox Caster, and 1 Grenade Launcher. 2 Infantry Squads armed in Formation A. 6 Heavy Weapon Teams with Lascannons. 20 Conscripts
TROOP - Platoon Command Squad - Platoon Commander with Power Fist, Bolt Pistol, and Meltabombs, 4 Guardsmen with Medi Pack, Regimental Standard, Vox Caster, and 1 Grenade Launcher. 2 Infantry Squads armed in Formation B. 3 Heavy Weapon Teams with Heavy Bolters
TROOP - Platoon Command Squad - Platoon Commander with Power Fist, Bolt Pistol, and Meltabombs, 4 Guardsmen with Medi Pack, Regimental Standard, Vox Caster, and 1 Grenade Launcher. 2 Infantry Squads armed in Formation A. 6 Heavy Weapon Teams with Lascannons. 20 Conscripts
TROOP - Platoon Command Squad - Platoon Commander with Power Fist, Bolt Pistol, and Meltabombs, 4 Guardsmen with Medi Pack, Regimental Standard, Vox Caster, and 1 Grenade Launcher. 2 Infantry Squads armed in Formation B. 3 Heavy Weapon Teams with Heavy Bolters
FAST ATTACK - 2 Armoured Sentinels with Camo Netting, and Plasma Cannons
FAST ATTACK - 2 Armoured Sentinels with Camo Netting, and Plasma Cannons
FAST ATTACK - 2 Valkyries with Multi Lasers, and Multiple Rocket Pods

This is a basic list. It's formed out of 4 Battleforces (giving the base of 4 troops and 4 armoured sentinels) as well as 2 of the Heavy Weapon Squad boxes (for 6 more teams). I also add 2 Valkyries, as they're awesome models, and 2 Company Commands as well as 40 Conscripts (which are being used from some Praetorian-esqe British with their helmets etc) who WILL be dying in droves. All in all, no special characters and no pointy Russes... yet. Only meant to be a good starting list that I can build on later

Long Break/Long Poll

Well, we've been enjoying our May Day Weekend and not done anything. Don't worry - the blog is back

Imperial Guard are out, so there's a new thing to worry about on the block. We'll be removing the New Coverage section related to it in June - some more 'Aftermath' sections are being added, LOL

Of course, I have a question for all of you - how would you build an Imperial Guard army (as many points as possible, normal force organisation chart, mono-Guard, THEMED) with a budget of £300?

Penal Regiment continues

With the opening of Codex: Imperial Guard, we have begun to update the topic to get it more like the dex. Recent updates include:
- Order System (laid out)
- Mercenary Platoon
- Penal Command
- Warden's Household

We plan to have Troop Choices and the Orders finished off soon enough

Beginning of the End

And the Battlefleet Chaotic Guard Coverage (BFCGC) continues into the night...

So, look at the link and you'll see a topic on how The End Is Nigh for the common 5th Ed player - that of the player who adapted 4th Ed with 5th Ed changes. So, how will you deal with it?

Herald Highlight: Imperial Guard

It's a common thought that Imperial Guard are a pathetic excuse for an army. Indeed, while they've been able to field decent armies in 3rd-5th edition, they've always seemed fragile, and like they're... not built for it

No longer

Imperial Guard have gone from pathetic to the best army possible in the current 5th Edition climate. While many could argue that Space Marines were overpowered, you do not know overpowered until you read the Guard codex. Circa 5th Ed

But before one can read it, they need to check up upon the various guard variant lists that are available. You have Krieg, Armoured Company, 2 various Vraks Rebels, Lost and the Damned (you can still do 'em), and (to be honest) Inquisition. Each of these pales in comparison to the basic Guard list:
- In Armoured Company, you will never have any scoring units. You may have the ability to gain 17 tanks in your basic list (including, possibly, 30 infantry as well) but Basic Guard can have 18 tanks (Russes and Hellhounds etc) AS WELL AS a vast amount of scoringtank units (Infantry Platoons in Chimeras)
- In Krieg, you have something pretty similar to the Basic Guard and also - technically - have doctrines. Basic Guard will beat you simply by their versatility and point costing
- Vraks Rebels have the power of the horde and also the nify tricks that they get from just being chaos! However, Basic Guard WILL beat them due to their own tricks
- Lost and the Damned are out of date anyway, so Basic Guard willdefeat them soundly
- Inquisition cost too much

That is just the beginning of the Guard Rampage. You then need to actually look at THEIR list, and realise all of the tricks that they can get anyway. For example, they are THE army to defeat when it comes to Scoring Units - all lists in 5th Edition already needed great amounts of wiping and staying power, but this is taken to the extreme when you play Imperial Guard. Life is Cheap in the Guard, and so you will need to be able to wipe out 55 (approx, no likelihood of full choices) models which COULD BE STUBBORN, OUTFLANKING, WITHOUT NUMBER OR DEFENSIVE. That is before you encounter this: all of that is in a single choice

Of course, thankfully you will not have to face all of the Guard threats on a single field for one simple restriction (that also happens to be one of Guard's strengths) - The Force Organisation Chart

However, I have limited space so i've decided to summarise this important Highlight with the following Top 3 Fears that Guard will give you, and ways you'll need to adapt a list to destroy them:

1. Horde in the Jungle: There are many reasons to fear this strength. If you try to pick out targets, then Guard will pretty much ALWAYS have that 4+ Cover save. They have severe amounts of units and rules that can aid those units (Those units of 50 Conscripts just got even more annoying with Send In The Next Wave). So use weaponry that can lay down vast amounts of fire, and punish your foes in assault should they choose to Combine Squads (think about it, instead of 5 units of 10 you now have 1 unit of 50 - charge them!!!)


2. Led Zepplins: Tanks are the one resource that is not lackign compared to the previous book, and many people will be tempted to use the squadrons to take advantage of this. Be happy! Sure, there's more per choice but more means they're fragile. You see that unit of 10 Chosen? Infiltrate near the tanks, and focus all 5 of those Meltaguns upon the Russes and then Melta Bomb them. The hits may be divided equally, but it does mean that Glancing can destroy a Russ (6 = Immobilised. Squadron members die when immobilised)


3. Orders Out!: You might not have noticed, but an important mechanic for Guard are their leadership checks for Orders. Thus, Necrons have a unit perfect for negating it, and so do Dark Eldar. Use Leadership modifiers (for example, Pariahs and Horrorfexes) so that they will not get these off! If a vital order doesn't get through, then you will!

Warriors of Chaos: Update

It has been absolutely ages since i've posted about my warriors, so here's an update

Over the last 6 months (well, more than 6) I have been building up a vast chaos horde with which to (have some chance of) destroying my opponents. I have gained models, but unfortunately I have lost some models as well (Squiddy is no more =( )

However, here is the current list (of models):
Lord of Chaos upon Dragon
Exalted Hero upon Daemonic Steed
Exalted Hero of Khorne
Sorcerer of Nurgle
Sorcerer of Nurgle

14 Warriors of Nurgle
14 Warriors of Nurgle
10 Warriors of Khorne
10 Marauders
10 Marauders
10 Marauder Horsemen

10 Knights of Nurgle
10 Chosen of Khorne
6 Dragon Ogres

Warshrine of Khorne
Warshrine of Khorne

Imperial Guard Releases

(Link to GW Releases)

What are the ones that you are most likely to use? Here's some rulings and points:

• Valkyrie: Flying, Drop Insertion, Chimera with Lascannon, One Shot Kraks (basic), for 100pts each
• Sentinel: 2 variants - one 12 AV Front, one scouting move through cover. Both plastic
• Command Squad: 50/30pt squads. Contains too many options =P
• Ratlings - Grots with Stealth, Infiltrate, and +1 BS. 10pts each
• Primaris Psyker: cheap. Has a 5+ Armour and Invun save. Good powers, to be honest
• Battleforce: 1 Troop choice
• Lord Commissar: Stubborn with 3 Wounds, 3 attacks, and re-rolls? Nice!
• Advisors: -1 to opponent reserves, +1 to your reserves, and a moving battle cannon. VERY cheap

So, here's a small list i'll be using:

• Company Command Squad with Lord Castellan Creed, Astropath, Master of the Fleet, and 2 Bodyguards. Veterans have Grenade Launcher, Regimental Standard, Medi Pack, Vox Caster, and Carapace Armour 305
• Company Command Squad with Jarran Kell, Astropath, Master of the Fleet, and 2 Bodyguards. Veterans have Regimental Standard, Carapace Armour, and Medi Pack 290
• Infantry Platoon with Command Squad (Standard, Medi Pack, Al'Rahem, and Vox Caster), 3 Infantry Squads (Probably Combined. Sergeants with Power Weapons. Grenade Launcher in each), 20 Conscripts (no upgrades) 425
• Infantry Platoon with Command Squad (Standard, Medi Pack, Al'Rahem, and Vox Caster), 3 Infantry Squads (Probably Combined. Sergeants with Power Weapons. Grenade Launcher in each), 20 Conscripts (no upgrades) 425
• Infantry Platoon with Command Squad (Standard, Medi Pack, Vox Caster), 3 Infantry Squads (Probably Combined. No upgrades) 230
• Veterans with Vox Caster

Total Points: 1745. Total Models: 173. Total Kill Points: Combined (11), Uncombined (17)

This is a basic list, that attempts to take advantage of the amount of models guard can field. Sure, it doesn't contain any tricks, but it does contain the Endless Horde (TM) of Guardsmen! And anyway, even if I do scrap the list i'll still keep the models (which Guard lists need anyway)

Thats me out!