World Eaters Rampagers from Forge World, Abbadons & Contemptor

Here is a picture of the new Rampager sprues I just received from Forge World...

I am not that keen on the heads so I will probably use some other bits in place of those.

I have decided to bring World Eaters to WarGamesCon for the Heresy campaign instead of Sons of Horus as it will take me less time to complete this army. I'll post my list soon.

Here are a couple pictures comparing my Heresy versus Chaos Abbadon...

They are roughly the same size... albeit the Chaos version of Abbadon has a lot more bling! Still not sure if I will use the top knot for the Heresy version yet... he looks pretty good without it in my opinion.

Finally a couple photos of my new World Eaters Contemptor dreadnaught... the first photo is the Chaos version with a heavy conversion beamer and power fist (built in plasma blaster)... the second photo is a weapons swap for the Kheres pattern assault cannon (Heresy version)...

Enjoy !

Your armor is your faith

So far into 6th edition it seems to me that the meta has finally been debunked and will just be more so as each new codex is released. I have a good number of friends who have quit playing 40k because it's not working for them right now. As one close friend told me this edition is very unforgiving. It seems like there is a big trend towards balance and shooting over everything else. A lot of the so called experts are stumped. It was tough for me but I was willing to make some change.

Think about 6th edition compared to fifth edition... Do you remember the big three Imperial armies - Imperial Guard, Space Wolves and Grey Knights? Imperial Guard has made out the best so far but even they aren't nearly as strong as they used to be. To a certain degree IG has been relegated to an allied choice if you've fully embraced sixth edition - apparently you can't go wrong with Manticores and Vendettas... Right? I will be very interested to see how they make out in when their next codex is released.

On that note double FOC is not nearly as evil as some people have made it out to be but then again many of the major events scheduled for this year have eclipsed it by electing to go with 1850 points or less for whatever reason. When I spend my time and money to travel I like to bring my favorite toys. To me there is no really good reason why 1850 points or less is superior to 2000+ points when playing this game. It's all about your toys.

In my opinion Necrons were the only non Imperial army in fifth edition to receive a truly competitive codex plus their sixth edition FAQ was a huge boost. Of these four armies mentioned I play two - Grey Knights and Necrons. They both just feel like old school now. I'm not complaining in the slightest though. I just don't want to keep playing the same army all the time. To each their own.

My favorite codex so far for sixth edition is Chaos Space Marines (CSM) and I am liking daemons as an ally. I think that some of the older veteran CSM players have unfairly labeled CSM as a non competitive army but to me they sure seem very popular right now... they still want a codex like the fourth edition version.

In the midst of all the balance we see now in this new direction from GW I think CSM are very strong. On the other hand Dark Angels I think got their best codex ever but they don't seem very popular. I do not know why I don't see more new Dark Angels armies... Maybe it is because in the 40k grimdark universe the bad guys are far more interesting. This is one of the reasons why I think we need a strong new Space Marine codex with a lot of character and some really good new ideas.

Anyways like I said this is an unforgiving edition of the game. If you been playing say since fourth edition I think you need to be willing to make some fundamental changes to your playing style if you want to maintain your competitive edge. I have seen some very strong army lists you never see on the Internet and in the best interests of my friends I won't divulge them here. I think you really need to step outside the box to stay on top.

Space Hulk images for the new game

Tau Codex Cover & Commander En Exo

Heresy Abbadon from Forge World

Here is the Heresy kit that came from Forge World with the bits for Abbadon along with a couple pictures of the very evil beast assembled...

The kit can either be assembled on a large diorama or individually like I did. Abbadon was very easy to assemble and took less than an hour... very little flash or trim.

There is an awesome quad barreled combi bolter that comes with his bits... I didn't use it obviously but I think it'll look great on one of Justrearin bodyguard. Not sure yet what I'll do with Captain Loken but I'm sure I'll find good use from him as well.

You might noticed there is one minor conversion on Abbadon's power claw... One of the claws must have broken off during shipment but it was quick and simple to fix with a plastic bit. Also I have not attached his top knot yet... I am planning to do so after I finish painting him.

BeakyCon3 • 40k Indy GT • 2250 points • Clearwater, FL

BeakyCon3 will be held the month of October so you've got plenty of time to start play testing and build an awesome army. We are one of the few national events this year to allow armies over 1850 points. Last year we had a 2000 point cap for the very first year of sixth edition and our schedule ran right on time. We like to start early so you have time to relax and hang out with friends during the evenings. One of my favorite things about participating in Grand Tournaments is trading epic war stories with your friends.

Expansion
The first year we had over 32 players attend. Last year we had 64 players with a waiting list. This year we are expanding up to 96 players. We believe in slow and steady growth to ensure the best continuity. If this year we are successful again then there is the possibility we may expand to well over 100 players.

Location
The first two years we held the event over in Tampa. This year I'm very excited about hosting BeakyCon3 across the bay in Clearwater, Florida. Of all the places I have run across Clearwater is truly one of the most beautiful ever. We have powder white beaches, palm trees and even some pelicans. It's a tropical environment here. Clearwater is a great place to bring your family for a vacation and we are less than two hours from Disney World, Sea World and other fantastic parks over in the Orlando area. There are lots of great places to hang out here in Clearwater and Tampa such as the famous Cigar City Brewery and Busch Gardens.

Keys to Success
I think one of our biggest keys to success is we only run the 40k tournament so we can focus all our time and energy on the one event. Any event is only truly a big success if the vast majority of the players have a great time and feel like their time and money were well spent. This is more important to us than anything else. We want everyone who comes with a good attitude to have a wonderful time and bring home some fantastic memories.

Truly Sixth Edition
This year we will again allow double FOC, allies and now some Forge World (that is units with the 40k Chapter Approved stamp from Imperial Armor 2nd Edition Apocalypse and Imperial Armor Aeronautica). Note that if a new Imperial Armor book is released by June this year we might also allow units from it as well. BeakyCon3 will be a true sixth edition event and you can bring lots of your favorite toys.

If Forge World is well received this year we will allow the use of even more in 2014. I recently played in another GT here in Florida that allowed Forge World - to the best of my knowledge there were no major issues so I know it can work.

Constant Improvement
We listen to all the feedback we get after each event to constantly improve. For example this year we will provide the dice. Every table will have 48 dice - use them during each round and leave them there. This is also the main reason why we will allow the use of the double FOC and Forge World this year - a lot of people tell me this is what they want to play. We want you to be able bring what you want and more importantly we want everyone to have a great time.

Overall System
The overall system will use the Win-Loss format again with the accumulation of battle points to break any draws as well as Swiss pairings. I think this is the most fair and competitive format based upon my overall experience. Each mission will have a primary and secondary objective along with some bonus points.

Fantastic Prize Support
Last year we gave away a 2500+ point professionally painted dark eldar army with two Sabol army cases to the best general. This year again we have even more great prize support for our winners as well as some nice swag for everyone and door prizes.

Upcoming Announcements
This April we will announce the dates for the event along with the location (i.e., hotel). Registration will open towards the end of April. So keep an eye for announcements. This will be our biggest event yet and we want everyone who attends to have a fantastic time that will be well remembered.

New Tau Pix

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

BeakyCon3 Playtest Mission Format

If you want to start practicing now for BeakyCon3 here is how we are planning to run the missions.

[1] BRB sequence (e.g., deployment, etc.).

[2] Randomly roll for two BRB main objectives (e.g., The Relic, Big Guns Never Tire, etc.) - each objective marker you hold (uncontested) is worth 3 battle points. Any scoring unit is also a denial unit. If you roll Purge the Alien it is worth 6 battle points (no points for draws). Note that the primary objectives won't be randomly determined during the GT. Everyone will play the same mission each round with the same objectives.

[3] BRB deployment (e.g., Hammer and Anvil).

[4] 1 battle point each for Slay the Warlord & Line Breaker (no First Blood).

[5] No Mystery Terrain or Mystery Objectives rules.


Build your armies as per the following guidelines:

• 2250 points
• Double FOC
• Allies
• You can field Forge World units with the 40k Approved stamp of approval from the following two books:

- Imperial Armor 2 Apocalypse
- Imperial Armor Aeronautica

• Bran Redmaw (Forge World) can be taken as an HQ slot for Space Wolves.

Note that you must follow the guidelines from Forge World.

Finding beauty in negative spaces

Making the Adjustments for Competitive 40k in 6ED

5ed I think was the start of the need to field a good chunk of the points in your army for troop choices since scoring units became much more restricted and this has carried through to 6ed. 4ed for me was a relatively easy transition from 3ed with 3.5ed as a nice little stepping stone. I still remember in 3ed when the Blood Angels Death Company was a zero victory point scoring unit - it was pretty crazy.

I struggled in the beginning of 5ed and 6ed due to the major changes in the game. I'm not going to say I have mastered 6ed yet but I can certainly say I'm doing a lot better now than six months ago. One major change for me in how I play now was to accept some fundamental changes how I field my troop choices. There was a time not too long ago that I felt for whatever reason that my troop choices must be relatively costly rock hard units - this meant that I was paying a lot of points towards my scoring units for a relatively small number of units in my army... For example in the past I would have never fielded a five man squad of Necron Warriors.

Going into the local GT (the awesome Crucible 2) here in Orlando last weekend I was not happy with my army (Necrons-Grey Knights) and spent two whole evenings re-analyzing my list to decide what changes were necessary to be more competitve. Even with the popularity of the Heldrake I decided to focus on more infantry. I felt I needed a much more balanced army. I didn't face any armies with Heldrakes at the GT but then again I think the Necron Annilihation Barge is one of the best anti flyer units in the game.

Chaos Space Marines can field low cost cultist-zombie units for troops and I think this is one of the keys to the overall success of the codex up to this point in time. We have seen some hot lists for sure that take advantage of cultists-zombies. One of the problems with this type of list in a tournament is Typhus versus a Necron Overlord with Mindshackle scarabs... It sucks when he insta gibs himself. :'(

Now that the new daemon codex has been released I'd rather put the bulk of my points for my scoring units towards daemons. One of the great things about the new CSM codex is there are lots of options of your scoring units... I think fielding Abbadon so your Chosen score is really awesome.

Anyways those are some of my thoughts towards building a competitive list now for 40k. I'd like to see your opinions as well. : )

Amazing Dozer Blades

Good Tau Pix

 

 

 

 

 

 

Even more Tau rumors

From Larry Vela over at BoLS...

Tau
Broadsides
- Slow and Purposeful
- 2+ armor save, and T4
- Twin linked Railguns (S8 AP1)
- Options for plasma or missiles
- upgrade for Skyfire but no Inceptor
- Splitfire

Rail Weapons
Rail Rifle: S6 AP3
Railgun: S8 AP1
Rail Cannon: S10 AP1

Back to Khorne again

Well the Crucible 2 GT is over now so I can start back to work on my Khorne project. I've got some new units from Forge World such as a Heresy World Eaters Contemptor dreadnaught (heavy conversion beamer, Kheres pattern assault cannon and missile launcher), a Storm Eagle and Abbadon. I should also have a fully assembled Dreadclaw as well within the next three weeks. For now I'm going to focus on building a Chaos Space Marine army lead by Abbadon and Kharn with daemonic allies. The army shall be very fast and should be able to assault on turn 2 easy.

I have had some time now to review the new daemon codex... Obviously there's lot of big changes. My philosophy is to focus on the good things rather than be sour about the nerfs. For instance Bloodletters only have one base attack now. You can boost them with a Herald but I want to field a Bloodthirster for my one HQ. So I'm strongly considering running a big pack of daemonettes for my one daemonic troop choice. Sure it's not fluffy but I have these really cool models that look like really evil mutants painted by a Golden Daemon winner that will look good in the army. I also want to run a Khorne daemon prince with flight. One of the good things about running your daemons as allies is they don't have to roll on the silly Warp Storm table.

I'll be using a lot of units from this army for the Heresy narrative campaign at WarGamesCon in a few months. It will be a World Eaters army with allied Sons of Horus... Should be a lot of fun and hit like a brick.

More Tau rumors

April release

*Aun'shi is rumoured to be returning

*Two new characters are said to be included:

- One character is a tank commander (presumably a vehicle upgrade) like Pask from the IG Codex. He is supposedly in a Hammerhead and allows it to overwatch
- The other character allows Fire Warriors to consolidate after Overwatch

*Flyer dual kit (fighter and bomber)

*New Battlesuit and Broadside models

*Plastic Pathfinders

*A new Fire Warrior HQ (not sure if the special character mentioned above or a generic one)

*Ethereals buff units that they join with a selection of effects. One such effect gives an extra shot. This combined with a piece of wargear that adds 6" max range to the squad means that it's possible to rapid fire 3 shots at 18". Apparently this can potentially be 4 if the Fire Warrior special character is also attached.

*The large suit thats been rumoured for a while is supposedly called the Riptide. It is a Jump Monstrous Creature armed with Ion Cannon and standard Battlesuit support weapons. The Ion Cannon can reportedly use two fire modes, Heavy 3 (possibly 4) and single shot Large Blast. Riptide is rumoured to be around 165 base but only start with twin-linked Plasma. The Ion Accelerator is apparently an upgrade:

Three S7 AP3 shots or one S8 AP2 Large Blast

There's supposedly a special rule on the Riptide called Nova Accelerator which can do 4 things:

- Buff weaponry
- Double the shots of support weapons
- Increase invulnerable save to 3++
- Boost a stat

Third batrep from Crucible 2 • Necron vs Necron

So I have decided to post another batrep. This was the first game of the second day versus none other than Teddy Woody. He brought a list very similar to what he fielded at BeakyCon last year... Lots of five man Warrior squads in Night Scythes, lots of Canoptek Scarabs, some Canoptek Spyders, lots of Canoptek Wraiths plus Immotekh with a large squad of Warriors and a Chronotek. He doesn't really have a lot of shooting other than his Night Scythes and Immotekh's lightning - I know I have to take advantage of this mismatch plus luckily for me Coteaz gets the Divination power Misfortune which is a malediction that forces an enemy unit to reroll all successful saves. I am counting on my Tesla and psycannons to insta-gib his Scarabs and clear them out. There is a big piece of area terrain in the middle of the table that was a key to the win.

The primary objective was the Relic.

The first two turns Teddy farms his Scarabs moving forward while the Wraiths advance as well. I hold back my two Necron Lords and let the enemy advance. My guns start to blaze dropping lots of Scarabs and a few Wraiths. Teddy rolled poorly for Immotekh's lightning throughout the game. I have one brood of my own Scarabs and I move them up, spreading them out to bubble wrap my infantry. I place the Scarabs so that the enemy Wraiths can't jump over them. My Scarabs absorb the first charge then I shoot some more finishing off most of Teddy's Scarabs and drop some more Wraiths... One squad of Wraiths is downed to a single model. Teddy's Spyders are moving in as well entering the central piece of terrain. My Destroyer Lord charges the large squad of Wraiths and ties them up for the rest of the game.

The next turn the Spyders charge through terrain so they swing last. My daemonhammers counter assault then I activate their Force to finish off all the Spyders. Immotekh and his squad run up to grab the Relic and run back away. My Overlord in his douche cannon charges them to contest the Relic. The game comes down to secondary and tertiary objectives plus the bonuses. I end up winning 5-4. It was one epic battle. Misfortune really helped a lot to thin out the enemy ranks. We both drop a bit in the overall rankings but we both still have a chance to win it all with the last game.

Second of two batreps from Crucible 2 GT • Tau w. allied Space Wolves

So this is my second batrep and it was the third round of the GT. I drew versus Imperial Guard the first round, winning the primary objective so it was a moral victory for me. The second round was versus Black Templars with allied Grey Knights... Very low count army and I massacred that game boosting back up to the top bracket.

My third game was versus Tau with Space Wolf allies run by none other than Josef Abel... Another very cool young gamer from the Miami area. We never had any issues and it was a very bloody game indeed. This army had some Forge World but I was prepared. I think my army is very balanced... Lots of shooty with some strong melee. I would need both of these elements to win. This game I didn't make any big mistakes... I couldn't really afford to either. My opponent on the other hand totally relied upon his shooting and didn't protect his troops. There were four objectives that were air dropped so my plan was to kill his scoring units and win the primary. My opponent didn't have any real melee so I knew that was a big advantage for me.

Again I held as many units as possible in reserve to minimize the damage from the enemy alpha strike. My opponent had a couple of cool Tau Forge World Tetras and I got very lucky destroying one from a Tesla arc. I had my share of bad luck this game as well but didn't let it get me down. My two Necron Lords were gods of war wrecking a lot of units over the course of the game.

My opponent came in 2nd place overall and I had a clear win this game on battle points. In my opinion close combat is still very powerful and the Necron Lords proved that to be true. My Grey Knights were only able to shoot this game - the Grey Knight Strike squad deep struck onto the table laying waste to a squad of Tau Fire Warriors thus earning their keep and the Justicar stuck around to claim one of the objectives. One turn an enemy unit of Tau Broadsides rolled snakes versus the Overlord's douche cannon which allowed him to engage the enemy in melee.

This game was very similar to the first round versus Imperial Guard and I used the same tactics. Like I said my melee was very strong and my opponent didn't really have an answer to it. I believe that the best armies are very balanced... They are mobile, can shoot the lights out and can brawl. Necrons and Grey Knights still have the best of both worlds plus Necrons are very mobile.

Gun Emplacements vs Flyers • Mathammer

Here is some quick math for both weapons.

Assumptions
- BS4 & BS5
- Rounding up for everything (1st order effect)
- 5++ jink or invulnerable save for the flyers

I will only consider AV11 and AV12 because we want to know which gun is the best choice versus typical flyers.

Quad gun (twin linked) vs AV11 (BS4)
4 shots - 4 hits
50% chance to glance each hit, 33.3% chance to penetrate each hit
After saves are rolled:
Glancing = 4*0.5*0.67 -> 1+ glance
Penetrating = 4*0.33*0.67 -> 90% chance to penetrate (15% chance to assplodes)

Quad gun vs AV12 (BS4)
4 shots - 4 hits
33% chance to glance each hit, 17% chance to penetrate each hit
After saves are rolled:
Glancing = 4*0.33*0.67 -> 67% chance to glance
Penetrating = 4*0.17*0.67 -> 50% odds to inflict one penetrating hit (8% chance to assplodes)

I also assumed all shots hit, either due to twin linked or BS5 (another 1st order effect). This keeps the mathematics more simple with minimal effects to the final outcomes.


Icarus lascannon vs AV11 (BS4)
1 shots - 1 hit
83% chance to glance, 50% chance to penetrate
After saves are rolled:
Glancing = 0.83*0.67 -> 60% chance to glance
Penetrating = 0.50*0.67 -> 33% odds to penetrate (11% odds to assplodes)

Icarus lascannon vs AV12 (BS4)
1 shot - 1 hit
50% to glance, 33% to penetrate
After saves are rolled:
Glancing = 0.5*0.67 -> 33% chance to glance
Penetrating = 0.33*0.67 -> 22% odds to penetrate (7% odds to assplodes)

Conclusion
So neither is really all that great based upon the quick calculations presented above. I would say overall the quad gun is the better choice on straight odds. The Icarus lascannon has a better chance to get lucky though for the penetration due to its AP2 characteristic. I'd rather go with the straight odds.

If my math is correct then GW probably knew all along that neither gun emplacement is all that but they sell quite well because it's one of your better options and you gain the advantages of a fortification.

Ork Rumors

NEW HQs
 
Grot Boss
Grot with a stateline of a Ork Boy, but higher BS. Equipped with a nice kustom-mega-shoota as an option. Can also get a Buggy or take a Killa-kan as a transport/upgrade
Da Crew
An HQ unit of even bigger Nobs. They have odd LoS modifications, One Nob must be nominated as "Da Boss", and if Da Boss is killed, one of Da Crew is promoted.  This interacts in some new way with "Kill the Warlord" victory conditions, and is effectively an entire "warlord unit".



NEW UNITS
 
Grot Whirlybird
Rotored transport: Capacity 20 Grots. They get dumped on the battlefield roughly from the Whirlybird taking a mandatory DT test, and cause mayhem if they fall atop another unit.
Grots Buggies
Similar to Nob Bikers, but are buggies with Grots on the back and Orks behind the wheel! Drive-by attacks. Highly likely this will be an "alternate unit" for a buggy combo-unit box.

Forge World Necrons Madness

First of two Crucible 2 batreps • Imperial Guard

Okay so here is the first of my two batreps. I will tell you up front the outcome because I already posted them earlier this past weekend. My first game was versus pure Imperial Guard played by Eric Issac, a very chill young dude from the Miami area. Those are some crazy cats... They play lots of 40k and have a good game... They will keep getting better if they are dedicated to the game. We tied on overall battle points but I won the primary so for me it was a moral victory. Eric ended up taking third place overall so congrats to him! He was very cool and I really enjoyed the game. Note there were only three Imperial Guard armies so this was a tough first round draw.

Deployment was Hammer and Anvil... So I know IG will rank up behind the safety of their Aegis wall. I need to use this to my advantage. The primary win condition was four objective markers placed by the players... I made sure to place mine far away from the enemy because Imperial Guard has some problems taking objectives outside their deployment zone. If I can contest one objective and hold my two I should take the primary - it is just that simple. I respect the power of Imperial Guard and totally focus on winning the primary.

I was very lucky and get the Warlord trait that allows my Warlord to outflank - my Overlord in his douche cannon goes right into reserve with the bulk of my army to minimize damage from the IG alpha strike.

There is always some good luck and bad luck... You have to run with your good luck and put it to work.

I've got lots of units that will come in deep within my deployment zone to minimize IG shooting. My opponent doesn't have anything to negate cover saves so I'll hug the ground as much as possible whenever necessary. Also I want to box him in and try to force him to focus on shooting rather than moving forward.

I made one big mistake which was holding my Canoptek Scarabs in reserve... I should have attached them to my a Destroyer Lord.

Everybody is going to make at least one mistake every game - play on and don't let it get you down.

 The first two turns my Destroyer Lord shrugs off lots of shooting including two rounds of First Rank Second Rank twice in a row... T6 with the 2+ save can be quite nice.

The Overlord in the douche cannon comes in on the second turn moving flat out right into the face of the Guard. Somehow I'm able to pop both the Leman Russ and Leman Russ Destroyer early on thanks to my Doom Sycthe and a well timed Sweep attack... Death Ray and douche cannon FTW.

Finally both Necron Lords make it into melee. The Destroyer Lord hits the blob, tarpiting them for the rest of the game. My Anni Barges keep moving 12" each turn while snap firing to pop some Chimeras. The Overlord hits the command squad to shut down the Master of Ordnance. So I've neutralized all the long range threats and need to keep boxing them in.

Finally the game comes to an end... I score the primary as planned plus Line Breaker. It was a very tough match for the first round and I'm very happy to slightly do better than break even. It was all about playing for the objectives rather than focus on crushing enemy units. The inherent resiliency of my army was a big boon and I was able to keep most of my scoring units out of harm's way.

Some Tau Rumors

HQ

- New Fire Warrior leader - can give certain squads special abilities
- Ethereal have auras - apparently they are ok, nothing to write home about
- no honor guard
- New tank commander special character - has preferred enemy imperial guard (?), use on a hammerhead apparently (best tank to use)
- no HQ alters FOC

Elites

- Crisis suits no new sprue, getting repackaged into 3. This seems to contradict people hearing about a new recut - apparently commanders sprue (special issue weapons) will sneak in here?
- no stealth on stealth suits, will have something to make them harder to shoot still (maybe?)

Troops

- Fire Warriors 9 points - no idea about new upgrades etc
- Kroot lose one point of strength

Fast Attack

- Pathfinders don't take devilfish anymore
- Piranhas are cheaper, but not much different
- fFyers go here - apparently one is anti air. Not really much news, but apparently dual kit but neither version amazing (more like a dark angels rather than necron flyer kit)

Heavy Support

- Submunition purchased for Hammerheads
- Broadsides have strength 8 railguns -_- BUT can buy skyfire (expensive) but cannot buy A.S.S
- Giant new walker here - pretty tough to kill, apparently his weapons are interesting. I wanted more details, couldn't get them

New Abilities
- Single squad gets charged - every unit within 6" can overwatch into the charging squad
- Squad ability from commander (can't remember which one). If unit does not move AT ALL (no relentless, S&P tricks) every model gets extra shot. I got the impression that you can't use jet pack move with this either
- Two marker light hits = NO cover at all (not a marker light hit per -1 cover). Usual BS upgrade
- Seeker missiles can skyfire
- Multi-trackers come standard on Crisis Suits

Paladins vs Purifiers for Necrons with allied Grey Knights

So I have been having some good success with my army... Very balanced for the current state of 6th edition. For my allied choices I run Inquisitor Coteaz, one full Grey Knight Strike squad and one full squad of Purifiers. The Strike squad is there to score, shoot and lay down Warp Quake. The Purifier squad looks like this:

Keeper of the Flame - Nemesis Warding Stave
2x psycannon
Incinerator
2x Nemesis Force Halberd
2x Daemonhammer
2x Nemesis Force Sword
- Psybolt ammo

I am thinking about switching out the Purfiers for a five man Paladin squad... Something like this:

Brotherhood banner & psycannon
Nemesis Daemonhammer & psycannon
Nemesis Daemonhammer
Nemesis Warding Stave
Pair of Nemesis Force Falchions

By the way these units are both geared towards my 1850 point list. I'd probably upgrade one of the Paladins to an Apothecary at 2000 points.

Psybolt ammo isn't worth it for just three stormbolters and those points can go a long way towards the warding stave. Overall not quite as much shooting and a few less attacks in melee but there are plenty of advantages...

•More resilient:
- 2+/5++ save
- just as many wounds
- better investment for the warding stave
•Automatic activation of force weapons
•WS5 versus WS4
•Can always fire eight psycannon shots at full BS
•Look Out Sir! works better for Coteaz
•Option to attach Coteaz to Grey Knights if I want to deep strike the Paladins (better investment in the Strike squad and more versatile overall)

Here are the number of melee attacks that ignore 2+/3+ armor saves for each unit:

Purifiers
AP2 - 4
AP3 - 10
(total = 14)

Paladins
AP2 - 6
AP3 - 6
(total = 12)

I think the two less attacks overall are offset by WS5 versus WS4.

Finally there is the question - which is the better psychic power, Cleansing Flame or Holocaust? To me it's a complete toss up and they both have their advantages. My current army list has lots and lots of shooting so Cleansing Flame is not so important as a factor.

So which unit do you think is the better choice?

Here is an 1850 point list I put together:

Destroyer Lord
- Sempiternal Weave
- Mindshackle Scarabs

Overlord
- Warscythe
- Mindshackle Scarabs
- Catacomb Command Barge

5x Immortal
- Night Scythe

5x Warrior
5x Warrior

Doom Scythe

Annihilation Barge
Annihilation Barge

8x Canoptek Scarabs

Inquisitor Coteaz

Grey Knight Strike Squad (Psybolt Ammunition)
- Justicar, Master-craft Nemesis Weapon
- 2x Psycannon
- 7x Grey Knight

Paladin Squad
-Nemesis Warding Stave
-Nemesis Daemonhammer + Psycannon
-Brotherhood Banner 25 + Psycannon
-Nemesis Daemonhammer
-Nemesis Force Sword

Crucible 2 Review

Here is my review of the 40k GT and 6th edition so far in a large tournament environment. Keep in mind it was their first year running 40k... This is an expansion from Warmahordes. The first thing I noticed is PP really supports tournaments a lot more than GW... to many that's quite obvious. PP has lots of really cool stuff like awesome pins for the winners... We all love the swag. I think at one time GW did a good job supporting tournaments but for whatever reason they have moved on. I think GW is really missing out on this element. Sticking your head in the sand is not a solution. As far as the rules go I think 6th edition has been around long enough that dedicated tournament players should know them thoroughly by now.

In regards to Crucible the two main plusses were my opponents and the head TO for 40k. I had a lot of tight games with some very fun people. The games were competive and we worked together to solve the few issues. I think in the future I might skip the team tournament though... It took too long time and I would have rather slept more on the Friday night. Yah I'm getting old, it happens. Like I said the people were fantastic. I had so much fun. There were a good number of 40k players for their first GT and that is a good sign.

Each mission had three tiered objectives along with bonuses for First Blood, Slay the Warlord and Line Breaker. I really like the de-emphasis on First Blood and think it unbalances the game. These missions it was really not worth exposing your army to get First Blood. So basically it was battle points, not Win-Loss, which I think works a lot better currently for 6th edition since the meta is so loose now.

The prize support seemed pretty good. My one suggestion is to find ways to speed up the rounds. Time just seems to fly in 6th edition and I know it is more of an issue now. The start of a game takes longer to complete... There are actually 12 steps. It's more fair which is a really good thing for sure but it takes more time. I don't think cutting back on points and eliminating double FOC is the answer though. Things like mystery terrain and objectives have to go... It's really not worth it. I think of it this way - if you and your opponent play in a reasonably timely fashion then you'll have more time during the end game when it really counts. Holding objectives is what is required to win and this aspect can be a lot more tactical than blasting away one enemy unit after another.

Forge World was very open with no problems I'm aware of during either the team tournament or GT. It was a relatively small event compared to other GTs though and everybody that used it brought the actual Forge World models as far as am I'm aware except for one super amazing converted Vulture gunship. I had one game in the team tournament and one game in the GT versus armies with any Forge World. My opponents had the rules and always showed them up front for my two games against them. It added no extra time and was not a problem for me. Crucible proved that Forge World can work in a large tournament environment.

Finally thanks to my opponents for a fantastic weekend. I'll definitely attend again next year.

Day 2 Crucible Results

Beat Teddy's Necrons the fifth round then lost a really close game in the last round vs the only other Necron Grey Knight army... Ironic !

Day 1 results at Crucible 2

Game 1 vs. pure Imperial Guard
There are only two IG armies here and I have to pull one of them the first round with Hammer and Anvil deployment - that was really tough but my two Necron Lords come through very strong and I manage to draw and take the primary.

Game 2 vs. Black Templars with Grey Knights
I max out this game and shoot up in the rankings. Opponent only had one squad of Grey Knight terminators left.

Game 3 vs. Tau with Space Wolves
Another game taking lots of shots to the face. I am able to kill all my opponent's scoring units and win.

Game 4 vs. pure Tyranids
I ended the long day with a major win versus a pure Tyranid list... Grey Knights had to be the Necrons' bitches taking it on the chin and standing strong before finally getting consumed the last turn to hold off the horde.

So 3 W and 1D. I think I am in the top four with only two rounds left tomorrow.

A great day for the Scarab Lord and his secret super friends.  

Necron Grey Knight army pix for Crucible 2

Grey Knights

Destroyer Lord

Doom Scythe

Purifiers

Why the next Space Marine codex is so important for GW and our hobby

Hi everyone !

I have been very busy working on completing my army for a Grand Tournament this weekend so not much time for blogging. The hours so quickly pass by while painting and I like to play nice looking armies. I told myself though I need to dedicate some time to write a serious article about 40k. You might not believe it but I can easily spend eight hours or more writing what I consider to be a good article. I'm not really into bashing GW, the hobby or other people so I try hard to focus on subjects that I feel passionate about and want to spend the time to do it right.

I am playing in a GT this weekend and took the time to research every army that will be there. As is often typical the vast majority is some flavor of power armor and I am cool with that fact. If you stop to think about it in many ways Necrons are kind of an exotic power armor army... In the past that seemed to be common knowledge but probably not as much so now for whatever reason(s). There has been some huge changes to the game over say the past three years. Some of the veterans have left and to me it feels like there has been a huge influx of new players. New players and veterans are both the life blood of the hobby - it is what it is for whatever reasons.

Historically vanilla Space Marines (e.g., Ultramarines, White Scars, Raven Guard, Imperial Fists, Crimson Fists, etc.) have been one of the most popular armies. A lot of players have stuck with these armies over the years through each new edition. Not everyone wants to jump on the band wagon each time a new codex rolls out. The fourth edition Space Marine codex written by Graham McNeil was a very powerful codex and highly customizable much like the fourth edition Chaos Space Marine codex. There was a lot of backlash on the Internet back then as is always the case with any very powerful army that is released. If we jump forward in time the fifth edition Dark Angels codex was an attempt by certain parties within GW to fix Space Marines... It was an awfully horrid codex and only with the advent of the Dark Angels FAQ that allowed Deathwing to finally be able to take the 3++ stormshield did the army come back en vogue.

I know some people don't like Space Marines in general but on the other hand this codex is in many ways the life blood of the game. The money spent by consumers for Space Marines funds many other armies... It is the proverbial cash cow. To me that is something you don't want to screw around with either. Space Marines are intended to be an army that is easy for beginners to pick up, learn how to play, collect and paint. For many many years power armor was all I played and I was a very vocal advocate in favor of Space Marines. I still am for sure.

So now here we are in sixth edition. It seems to me that Chaos Space Marines are very popular again, more so than the new Dark Angels. So I ask myself as a hobbyist what are the good things we collectively as players can take from each of these two new codices. In my opinion they both have more flavor now and as a hobbyist that is what is most important to me. As a competitive gamer I want to avoid building new armies that have only one or two competitive builds. So there should be a balance. A codex should also pass the test of time... That is it should still be competitive when the next new edition is released. Orks pass this test while eldar fail. While some might hate on Grey Knights and Space Wolves they have both stood up well going into sixth edition so far.

There are obviously lots of new codices to be released for sixth edition and it's too early to clearly determine what is the new direction for the game. Sure we all know that flyers and the Aegis defense line are strong along with allies but that is in and of itself is not everything plus it's quite obvious as well. Generally speaking it seems like the overall power level has been toned down a few notches. That is fine but I wouldn't be willing to bet yet that will be the general trend... Like I said its still too early.

Getting back to the main topic of Space Marines in general - I would like to see a new codex that is like what I said above... It should be an army that is easy for new players to learn how to play, collect and paint. Somehow the developers should design it so that you can play a wide variety of different chapters that are all fun and interesting. If only say Salamanders are competitive then it will overall fail. The same can be said more specifically about the various choices for units and their new special rules. I think it's safe to say most of us don't want to see a handful of undercosted over powered units... You know what I am talking about in this specific regard. To me that could be quite a daunting task and it's very important it is done very well however the developers choose to go about meeting these goals.

That is all I have to say on this subject for now. I'd love to build a new Imperial Fists army and that would be a brand new venture for me. Excitement, passion and interest are what keep me in the hobby... That is not going to change.

Crucible 2 40k GT this weekend... w00t !!

Very very soon will be the GT. It is awesome to have one right in my backyard. I've been very very busy using all my free time to paint the past few weeks... Not much time at all for blogging or gaming.

I'm very happy with how my Purifiers and Inquistor Coteaz turned out. I painted the Purfiers using a light blue color scheme so they will match the color scheme for my Necrons. Coteaz and my Grey Knights I painted using the classic color schemes from GW. I will probably repaint my Necron flyers after the GT is over... Only so much time and I'm a slow painter.

I haven't posted my army list as yet... I want it to be a surprise as much as possible. Heh. We will see how it performs. I'm sure there will be plenty of other great armies there in Orlando this weekend.

Should be a great time.

The Eagle has Landed !!!

 

Just like magic... Built by Dave Boucher of No Turtles Allowed Inc. !

New daemons... Oh my !

Well I was able purchase a copy earlier today... Lots of big sweeping changes and more randomness overall. After skimming through the codex I like what I see. There were some nerfs and some boosts. Right now I'm focusing solely on the Khorne content. Skarbrand is a true beast. I'm in favor of the changes to Bloodletters and you can field lots more now. Skull cannon is also looking good too. I need more time to study the new codex in more depth. Some reviews to soon follow.

Crucible 40k Army ready to rock n roll

I finished finally painting all my Grey Knights... Only left now is two Necron flyers which should be easy. It's less than a week away now and I'm looking forward to it. I haven't had much free time other than painting so no games until the event. The good news is I'll be able to start on my World Eaters Heresy army again which is exciting.

I haven't had a chance yet to look at the new daemon codex but it sounds like dumb ass Robin Cruddance gave Blood Crushers the Tyranid Warrior treatment... What a total dumb ass !!! He fucks up everything he touches. I can't wait until the day he quits or they just fire his lame ass.