22,000 points...and counting

So I decided ahead of the new Tau book to tally up all my models in an excel spreadsheet so I know what I've got and can write lists a bit easier

Tau is going to be interesting for me, as its the first time an army I've played that is being updated. It'll happen a 2nd time in a few months for Eldar's release.

After measuring up the Tau I kept going ....onto my Chaos. Then my Eldar. Then my Dark Eldar. The last two I managed to do from memory.

Tau - 2048
Chaos - 3239
Eldar - 10,578
Dark Eldar - 3968
Total - 19,833

All of these are as modelled details and include no options, like Runes, Powers, Marks, vehicle upgrades....(Physic Powers and Runes on my Eldar Seer Council are 700 points alone)

With a few sensible options on top and a few random models for Orks, Deamons and Loyalist Space Marines, I've probably totalled 22,000 in my armies.

Just in time to see my Tau army lose a few points in value (cos stuff will get cheaper) and add another 1000 points of shiny new to it :P.

Currently planning on getting a Riptide, another Hammerhead, Pathfinders and some more Crisis Suits, maybe including Farsight if his rules are good

Tomb Raider - A videogame review

Its been a while since I’ve done one of these, but reading some old posts yesterday got me in the mood. Video Game review time! This entry is on one of the most refreshing reboots I’ve played in a long time – Tomb Raider

Lara Croft is back. And she’s better than ever. Gone is the overly sexualised dual wielding pistol woman who smashes 10,000 year old ruins apart to get a single trinket and fights off T-Rexes for fun. Now shes a barely out of University archaeologist who’s probably never fired a gun before. On a boat searching for a lost civilisation, the shit hits the fan and she and her friends are stranded on a deserted island with an army of psychopathic pirates.

The game starts incredibly. You are surviving, sneaking round, armed with nothing except for a salvaged bow and arrow. The tension is palpable and you find yourself holding your breath a lot. After killing your first deer to survive Lara is overcome, and can barely stomach the situation. On killing her first human, in self defence she is devastated and inconsolable. It’s brilliantly immersing. The gameplay is amazing and the story writing (by Ms Pratchett of Diskworld fame) is equally matching.

And then the game progression kicks in. Before long the inexperienced woman is replaced by Arnie in a strappy top. The execution moves later on…Lara pins enemies down and shoves a shotgun under their chin before pulling the trigger. She’s grabbing them from behind and dragging her climbing axe across their neck. The game sacrifices the intense immersion and great story telling for its gameplay. The afore mentioned scene where Lara kills her first human. She’s broken up about it. She’s crying and in a bad way. She’s on the radio to her mentor (who is an amazing character BTW) who tells her to firm up and get out of dodge. In escaping the village…you kill at least another 5-10 people with your new pistol and bow. One second in experienced school girl. The next Rambo, with smaller boobs. The flow and immersion are just sacrificed for the game curve

Don’t get me wrong. It’s an incredible game. Simply astoundingly good. I’m going to give it a while and play it again. And I don’t do that very much. I just feel the survival aspect could have been expanded. More stealth, less run and gun would have worked well.

The other aspect that lets it down is the name. Tomb Raider. It is the character…and there are Tombs. But they’re optional, and insanely easy. I think there’s about 5 or 6 in the game. In total I can’t have spent more than 10 minutes total in them.  The puzzles are solvable by a 4 year old (it is an 18 rated game, but I think that’s because of the brutally realistic death sequences in the game) and it feels like they are an after thought. The weapons upgrade you find in them can be found in the world just by looting random enemies.

And that is my last criticism. The salvage upgrade system. I have no problem with its execution. It’s a good idea. But my the end of the game you’ve turned your WW2 shotgun or wooden bow into a SPAS12 that shoots flaming ammo or a Olympic Competition Bow that can shoot grenades, using only scrap salvage and upgrade components found on dead guys and in 5000 year old tombs. It’s a bit silly.

And I’m not going to comment on the Multiplayer. Haven’t played any, don’t want to. People need to stop crowbarring multiplayer into games just to sell some DLC map packs. It ain’t good.

Overall this game is incredible. Gorgeous, well written but with a few criticisms here and there. But I think everyone needs to play this game. Its got suprising length to it as well, especially if you go for full 100% collection - around 15 hours. Thank you Crystal Dynamics. Now go forth and make me a game as well written that features actual tombs and some raiding but with the same intense characterisation and you’ll win my favour forever.

Final Docs Rating. 9 out of 10.

Another Day, Another List with a Twist

So another comp has swung around. Taking place in March, its another 1 day 4 game affair.

But with a twist. You must field a 1250 and a 1750 point list. The 1750 must include the 1250 list completly unchanged. Theres also slightly tigher FoC restrictions on the small list (0-2 for Hvy,Elite and Fast etc).

Anyone in the Wilthsire area of the UK is free (well not free...there is a cost!) to come along and have some fun. And meeting me is always a bonus.

http://www.warseer.com/forums/showthread.php?363680-A-Small-Matter-of-Honour-TICKETS-ON-SALE-NOW

So i've looked at the 1250 i took to the last competition and did reasonably well with. Only problem is i had 3 FA. So it needs tweaking

So I drop the bikers. Use the points to buy a 3rd Obliterator and bulk up the cultists a bit. If my Maths is correct...this is my new 1250 list

HQ 1250 points
Dark Apostle -105pts
Troops
14 Cultists, 1 Heavy Stubber – 71pts
14 Cultists – 66pts
10 Chaos Space Marines, with Lascannon and Melta Gun – 170pts
Rhino – 35pts
Fast Attack
Heldrake, Baleflamer - 170pts
5 Spawn, Mark of Nurgle – 180pts
Heavy Support
3 Obliterators, Mark of Nurgle – 228pts
Maulerfiend – 125pts
Fortifications
Defence Line, Quad Gun – 100pts

The 1750 list then opens up to normal FoC, but must contain the above list in full. So additions (500pts exactly);
5 Havocs, 4 Autocannons - 115pts
4 Bikers, 2 Melta Guns and the MoN - 134
5 Terminators, Power Fist, Chain Fist, Combi Melta, Reaper Autocannon, MoT, VotLW, Gift of Mutation - 251pts

Hovocs provide Fire Power. An extra bikers increases survivability of the melta guns. The Terminators can increase my punching power, and do it well

5th! Not bad out of 40 people!

Yeah. 5th. Well joint 4th....but lost out on VP's (i have issues with the VP system - playing 2 killpoint games, and both of them for me against small armies really limited me. Especially since I tabled 3/4 of my opponents)

1250 points, 4 games. I won 3 out of my 4.

I was using;

Dark Apostle
11 Cultists
10 Cultists
10 Marines, Lascannon and Melta
5 Spawn, MoN
Dragonboy, Flamer
3 Bikers, 2 Melta
2 Oblits, MoN
Maulerfiend
Defence Line Quad Gun

So a pretty balanced list, especially compared to some that were fielded (like my game 4)

Game 1 - Chaos Marines. Flying DP with Black Mace, Dragon, 2 x2 Oblits, 2 Rhinos full of CCw Marines, unit of cultists
O boy. The dice were not on my opponents side. His Dp took 2 wounds from the Quad Gun, landed assaulted my unit of cultists. Round 1 of combat....Deamon Weapon rolled a 1. Took a wound. Killed 2 cultists  I lost NONE to the mace. Round 2....rolled another 1. Deamon prince killed himself for the sum of 2 cultists. Woot. His CCW marines all got out their rhinos and stood in nice tight groups to shoot my spawn....just before my dragon turned up. Between the flamer and subsequent vector strike he killed all 8 in one squad, 4 in the other. His dragon turns up late, fails to Vector strike my dragon then gets intercepted by the quad gun. And blown up. Immediately. I win with a tabling

Game 2 - Loyalist Marines. 2 Contemptors, 3 tac squads, attack bike, Loth and Honour Guard
My Loss. I had my opponents bad luck here. The Maulerfiend failed a 6" charge (with his fleet!). The Spawn failed a 4" charge....again with fleet. When the Maulerfiend hit home against the Contemptor...out of 7 total attacks, plus 3 melta attacks I got 2 pens. Both of which his 6++ saved. As it was 1 objective each and i lost First Blood, i lost. (Incidentally this was my friend, who i've only ever beaten once in 5 years...he came 16th overall after drawing the overall winner in his 3rd game - gunline marines do not like massed Flamers and Screamers)

Game 3. Eldar. Got seized on. His Warwalkers butchered a lot of spawn before i even moved. Maulerfiend made a 11" charge and smashed them apart in return, followed by a Wave Serpent before meeting the Fire Dragons. Obliterator with plasma rifles, rolled double 6 to pen a Prism, only to have a double six rolled for cover saves. Came down to last possible dice, with dragon burning his last 2 dire avengers out of existence  giving me a narrow win. Was an unpleasant close game, but as i got seized on and didn't have my choice of table ends....i consider it a win

Game 4. Chaos. The list i had wanted to avoid playing. 3 Dragons, 2 DP's and 2 units of cultists. Eeep. Started with just DPs on board (was Kill Points). My luck returned to me here. The Maulerfiend butchered one DP (ID for the Win), the spawn held the other for a long time (he made 17 out of 19 3+ saves...) before dying off, but he immediately caught the lascannon and rapid fire plasma guns of the marines and oblits. The cultists came on in the same place, at the same time, got burned by the dragon, failed both Ld tests and ran straight back off. His dragons....Lorgar was smiling on me! Came in one at a time, and one after another intercepted by the Quad gun and killed before doing anything. So I won, with a tabling but it could have gone very different and i felt a bit dirty by the end.

Overall was a great competition. Winners were Deamons, Deamons + Crons (with 4 fliers in 1250...). Urgh.

My next comp is a superheavy tournie down in Brighton, but after that is a 1500 comp. I like my list as it stands and so am just adding to it. The extra 250 points gives me;
- A Third Oblit for the Squad
- Havoc Squad with 4 Autocannons (yes its netlisty, but i run Maulerfiends and Spawn! It balances out)
- Make the 3 bikers up to 5. Adds a little more punch into my attack and makes sure those melta guns reach their target alive.

Until next time. May the light of Chaos guide your way

Dark Heresy - A Techpriests Log

So i've recently been lucky enough to get to play some Dark Heresy with some friends. And so far we are off to a flying start! Its my first real role play experience, bar a session or two of DeathWatch (which is a bit boring IMO).

Novus Xanthis, a tech priest from a Forgeworld is forging (no pun intended) into the Calixus sector, in the company of 2 assassins, a scum, a pysker, a guardsmen and an Arbite. We did have an Adept but he got throughly deadified at the hands of the end boss of our campaign (16 on the critical table....yeah hes dead), so not sure what new character hes drawing up.

I won't post too many plot points as that could ruin the experience for anyone playing the same campaign in the future (it is from one of the books), but some high points so far involve;

- A Sniper who fails every fear test and has spent more time throwing up than shooting
- The big boss catching a double barrell of a shotgun in his face and getting blown through the stained glass window of a church
- A shootout in a crowded marketplace. A bad roll from the guardsman means his shotgun misses and kills 6 innocents. 6 corruption points in 2 seconds....
- An impossible room with a hard fear test. 2 players fail epicly and get 10 insanity points each in one roll
- Being assulted in our beds. And only 1 member out of 7 actually waking up for the first few turns of combat, and then the rest of us fumbling round in the dark to kit up.

Very much enjoying the campaign. Might even get paid soon and buy my first mechandrite.

Mauler Fiends & Spawn - Sleeper hits?

So having come fresh from a bunch of good games i've decided to shed some attention on a few underrated unit in the chaos book that i've been using

Chaos Spawn and the Maulerfiend

Both have a 12" move. Both can fleet and completly ignore cover. Had 4 good games yesterday and both these units were in combat turn 2 at the very latest, even on longways table deployment.

The Spawn get rage and random attacks. Meaning on the charge they get a minimum of 3 attacks each, up to a maximum of 8. Combine that with S5, the potential to count as poisoned, so re-rolling failed to wound, fearless and with the right marks T6 with 3 wounds these guys don't go away in a hurry. Marines need 6's to wound. These guys cn either tarpit the hell out of a unit (held up a 20 man Chaos Marine squad for 6 full turns, held up a Necron Destroyer Lord and 3 wraiths for 4 full turns) or smash in and crush them.  Nothing can ID them in shooting. They took fire from 2 Contemptors, a squad of long fangs AND 3 land speeders in a single round of shooting, with no cover and only lost 2. They then charged said land speeders and smashed 2 of them in one round. A unit of 5 with Mark of Nurgle is only 180 points. And thats 15 T6 wounds. With 15-40 attacks on the charge.

Backing up the fast movers is a Maulerfiend. I learnt - people are terrifyed of this thing. People were redeploying deepstrikers and everything, using all heavy weapons on them. And thanks to their 5+ save and my intense luck, he rarely got scratched. And when he hits....boy does he hit. 4 S10 AP2 attacks on the charge, with the potential for another 2 melta hits. I take the magma cutters over the whips because;

a) he needs a bunch of attacks to be effective and
b) the biggest threat is grenades. Where the enemy only gets 1 attack anyway.

Except in places where I whiffed on my dice (seriously...2 turns, 7 attacks in total, not 1 4+ to hit), this guy smashed his way through everything I put in front of him. If its a vehicle and it hasn't moved, it is dead. Regardless of armour values. For 120pts you can't go wrong.

Working together presents a threat to the enemy. They're so fast, they need to be targetted. Combine them with a unit of bikers moving fast and making a threat of itself and the enemy has to target them or be killed, giving you a shield to move up slower units in rhinos or one foot.

Definently 2 of my favourite units in the dex. The obvious things (the dragon, the Apostle) all do very well, but theres just something about these guys that stands out

If 2 are good, 4 must be better right?

4 Nurgle Spawn for my chaos army. 2 did pretty well, so i figured 4 would have to be better