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Blood Vow

Happiness is success... (Buddha)

Wednesday, July 31, 2013

BeakyCon3 Missions


A lot of work has gone into designing seven sample missions so players can prepare for the GT. We will have two prep tournaments in August (Dundedin & Tampa) so players get the best opportunity to see how the overall system works. There are still some spots open and I highly recommend attending one if you are registered for the GT. We might feature a new mission or two at the prep tournies... You never know.

Monday, July 29, 2013

Plaguewing at the ATC


Well it's less than two weeks now until the ATC. I have assembled a strong team and am looking forward to the event. Many have said it is the best event in the US and that is coming from some very good veteran players. It's looking like this year there will be the most teams ever with some coming from far away as far as the west coast (jy2 will be there... Woooh). I've been told that for the most part the competition is quite stiff and good sportsmanship is the norm. : )

So basically your team is composed of five team mates and you split off in one on one matches each round versus various teams. Whichever team racks up the most overall battle points wins the event. I think it'd be quite ironic if my team should face off versus the reigning champions consisting of fellow 40k Wrecking Crew members and the ever illustrious Goatboy from BoLS fame and notoriety. They are very good and have won the event two years in a row including the first year of the ATC. I say it would be ironic since I was supposed to play on their team this year but that fell through for whatever reason. ; ) No hard feelings though on my part, none whatsoever... They know what I can bring to the table... Heh ! I have Jwolf on my team along with other top players such Remy Colin.

ATC stands for the American Team Championship which is patterned after the European ETC. The event is held just outside of Nashville and will take place the coming weekend of August 10-11.

It's all about the match ups. Top teams tend to bring one player who is their Tank - the Tank continually squares off versus the hardest army from the opposing team each year and it's looking like I shall hold that mantle. I am up for it too.

I'll be bringing my fast and hard hitting Plaguewing army which has been considerably overhauled since I posted my last batrep. I'm going to keep the list classified for now. I'll disclose it once the ATC is over and you can expect to see some batreps featuring some of my more challenging games.

I had a test game versus my local arch nemesis (great guy and always a very intense game) this past weekend. The revamped list looks quite promising and has performed well

That's all for now. Maybe if I'm very lucky I'll get to kiss a skull... Heh !!

Sunday, July 21, 2013

The Art of the Challenge


This article provides an in depth discussion as to why the assault phase is no longer popular and then demonstrates how to mitigate new rules introduced in sixth edition that have debuffed melee. Finally some tips are provided how to make the best use of issuing and accepting challenges in the assault phase.

Introduction
Here is a list of the most common reasons why we don't see a lot of dedicated melee units anymore with the possible exception of Daemons and Tyranids.

Transports
A unit that is forced to disembark from a wrecked or destroyed transport cannot launch an assault the following turn with the exception of the Land Raider. Also an embarked unit cannot launch an assault after disembarking from a close topped transport that did not move the same turn.

Reserves
With the exception of Vanguard Veterans and Yrmgal genestealers any unit that arrives from reserve cannot launch an assault the same turn. This is a major nerf to outflanking melee units such as Wolf Scouts and genestealers.

Disordered Charges
Any unit that launches a multi assault engaging more than one enemy unit does not benefit from most any of the special rules for charging such as +1 attack, Rage, Furious Charge, Rampage, etc.

Overwatch
This one at first didn't seem all that bad since the enemy target unit(s) can only snap fire but then along came the new Tau with Fire Support and their improved markerlights. Also consider a squad of Khorne Berzerkers charging a huge blob of Imperial guardsmen lead by a Commissar armed to the teeth with power axes and flamers (Wall of Death)... It's not a pretty sight to say the least.

The general perception here is that these new rules have greatly curtailed opportunities to effectively reach an assault and it's very much so true. When we consider all these disadvantages introduced in sixth edition it's easy to just say screw it... lets just pick up another lasgun or pulse rifle and join the ever constantly growing gun club. However we should always take a moment to look on both sides of the proverbial fence before drawing any final conclusions. It's important to remember that one key multi assault can be a game changer or even better yet a game winner.


Mitigating the Anti Assault Rules
So let's now look to see how we can lessen the impact to some degree these new anti assault rules.

Transports
First off if you play some form of Space Marine army there is always the Land Raider. It has an assault ramp and is still incredibly resilient now for several reasons such as the current preference for plasma over melta. I'm willing to bet that the Land Raider will stir some fear in the heart of the new eldar, even with all those nasty Wraithcannons and long range lance weapons. The Land Raider is the easiest means of ensuring an assault but it is also the most expensive option. Cheaper transports such as the Rhino greatly benefit from the new ability to move flat out now, thus it's possible to move the bulk of your army into midfield the first turn assuming you put some thought into how you deploy so they don't all get slagged hard by an enemy alpha strike. Also consider the new and vastly improved eldar Wave Serpent... While most see them as a means to quickly get their short reaching guns into range it's speed and survivability could easily be used to create a protracted opportunity to launch effective assaults later in the game. Finally on this note remember that when a squad disembarks from a transport they can move up to six inches... That's really great for the Land Raider since squads cannot disembark now if the transport has moved more than six inches.

Transports will typically die eventually now due to hull points but with the exception of AP1-2 they are only destroyed on a 1d6 roll of 6. I love to push my rhinos straight at a big cluster of Fire Warriors baiting them to shoot it with their mighty pulse rifles. Chances are they will only wreck it... You now suddenly have a piece of line of sight blocking terrain to hide the Marines and they have successfully encroached into enemy territory ! Make sure to turn the transport sideways facing the enemy with the rear in back. It's little things like this that can make transports still be viable.


Reserves
Sure not being able to charge the same turn your hard nosed melee unit arrives via an outflanking maneuver really sucks but on the other hand this is still yet another means to get a combat unit that much closer to the enemy line and apply the pressure... Watch those battle suits run away! Again some cover can go a long way towards helping them survive long enough to get the job done.

It used to be that it was fairly easy to launch one or more assaults as early as the second turn and in some special cases even the first turn. It takes more thought now to make the assault phase work again and often the earliest an assault can occur is the third turn. It's all about being the patient hunter now while you slowly corral in the enemy.

Disordered Charges
I think the multi assault to a degree has become somewhat of a lost art and this is the one debuff that I don't have a problem with since often you are looking across the table at Fire Warriors, Guardsmen or Guardians... It doesn't really matter - if you can engage them with a dedicated melee unit you will more than likely crush them. As I said above one key multi assault can be a game changer or even a game winner. A multi assault can also lead to the situation where one enemy unit does not break for whatever reason and as a result your tooled assault unit is tucked away safe in melee and doesn't have to bare the brunt of the enemy guns their following turn. You then break them in their turn leaving your combat unit ready to launch a fresh assault into another enemy unit your next turn.


Overwatch
Coming back to the Land Raider again remember that Chaos Space Marines have access to the Dirge Caster which prevents enemy units from firing on Overwatch (6" area of effect from the vehicle hull)... That can be another game winner, especially versus Tau. As I said above it requires more thought now to successfully launch an assault but there are tactics which can help us to overcome these new hurdles. A powerful tactic versus Overwatch is to launch two assaults simultaneously. The first unit takes it on the chin and forces your opponent to shoot them as otherwise they'll get no Overwatch at all. Versus Tau it's often better to assault them from the far side of other friendly enemy units if possible to limit the number of unengaged Tau units that can lend their Fire Support. Again the Land Raider is your best friend as you can tank shock those shooty xenos into a tighter formation to get right up into their grill and block off other supporting units.

Once you have engaged the enemy in close combat this can drastically impact the flow of the game for your opponent. This puts pressure on them as this is the last thing they want. They must react accordingly and are more prone to make mistakes or poor tactical decisions.


Completely Balanced
I am not advocating assault oriented armies as the most competitive or even top tier. That said I am very much a hard core proponent of building completely balanced armies and that means you must have some dedicated melee units, if nothing more than to provide a counter assault element to help deal with specific armies such as Daemons and Tyranids. Otherwise you run the risk of a raging Daemon Prince or some other nasty Flying Monstrous Creature laying waste to your backfield. So yes even armies that are dedicated primarily to shooting can benefit from fielding one solid dedicated melee unit which is very easy to do with allies for armies such as Imperial Guard and Tau.

Don't let anyone fool you either. I have read and watched many batreps on the Internet where some new army won by a massacre then later noted the same army lost in the third or fourth round at a major event... These armies are Rock Paper Scissors. Completely balanced armies excel in all three phases - movement (highly mobile), shooting (close-in, midrange and long range) and melee. I think the best armies have highly mobile assault units - they can quickly reach out and hurt the enemy. Your army should have a solid foundation based upon all three of these central tenets.

Shooting is the king but it has its downside as well such as the highly generous and ever ubiquitous cover save. It's possible to mitigate cover to some degree in the shooting phase but on the other hand it is completely ignored when exchanging hard blows back and forth in brutally quick melee.


The Challenge
I seldom if ever see any tactics discussed about issuing or accepting challenges so I want to discuss it now in detail. If you decide to invest a significant amount of points towards melee then you must understand how to best take advantage of the challenge... It can definitely make or break you in a tight game.

There are a lot of rules concerning the challenge and I see people make mistakes quite often... For example a character engaged in a challenge cannot use Look Out Sir to mitigate wounds. If you're not careful an army that's not dedicated to melee can get the best of you and leave you hanging in the wind. Chaos Space Marines with the exception of their Daemon Princes must always issue or accept challenges, most all other armies' units have the option to decline with the Skulltaker being one of the exceptions.

Solo
Charging solo into an enemy unit can be risky and is often better to avoid unless the chance of return is high - for example if a hard solo character charges into a soft unit it must accept the challenge and will more than likely win. Versus units such as Fire Warriors there is a good chance they will break only suffering one wound and then regroup the next turn while your champion must then must suffer the brunt of the enemy shooting phase. If you can catch them close to the board edge they'll most likely break and flee off the table which could be a late game winning move... Otherwise it's often better to wait and engage the enemy with a higher concentration of models. This is one of the major aspects of sixth edition that shows there is definitely a strong bias against melee, however we can still make it work to our advantage. It's always better to assault with a high concentration of models and this helps to greatly reduce the nerf to multi assaults. For example I can say based upon repeated experience that Kharn and Abbadon leading two simultaneous assaults into the heart of the enemy will crack most any enemy battle line as it should. The more soft units you can engage in the same assault phase the better.


- Moral Support
Another disadvantage of charging solo is if you issue a challenge and its accepted the enemy character gains moral support (Get 'Im Boss!) from its squad by way of re-rolling to hit and wound or a failed armor save. There is one reroll for every five unengaged supporting models.

- Overwatch
Finally a model charging in solo must bare the full brunt of enemy Overwatch... That can be disastrous if your model is down to just one or two wounds.

Double Dragon
If you play a melee-centric army then it's wise to run at least one of your main combat units with two characters... A lesser character can accept or issue the challenge while your more powerful character is free to wreck havoc. What I have found is that if you don't then it's quite possible an assault could actually end up benefiting the weaker army. The last thing you want to happen is for an enemy unit to break off and leave your combat unit stranded. You must have the power on hand to charge in and destroy an enemy unit when necessary.

Issuing a challenge with a lesser character attached to your combat unit can potentially buy your unit more time even if only one more assault phase if needed. This might be the more prudent choice and hold up an enemy unit long enough to marshal the rest of your forces while waiting for your proverbial calvary to arrive. Another good example is suppose your close combat monster is down to its last wound, must charge through cover and does not have assault grenades (e.g., terminator armor). Issue or accept the challenge with the lesser character to help ensure your melee beast survives... The next round of assault your close combat monster can swing at full initiative again and tear through the following challenge or enemy rank and file.

Glorious Intervention
After the first round of close combat another engaged character can trade places with your boss if they pass an initiative test. This can really work to advantage of melee-centric armies. For example you must charge an enemy unit for whatever reason, maybe to simply avoid being shot the following turn. If your champion manages to survive versus a tougher enemy character then if another combat unit can join the fight your following turn you can swap in a more killy character to finish off the enemy boss.

Avoiding the Challenge
Sometimes it's possible to assault an enemy unit from one side keeping their character unengaged at the beginning of melee to prevent them from being able to accept a challenge. This keeps your close combat monster free to shred through the rank and file - this is fairly easy to do with highly mobile units such as Flying Monstrous Creatures.



Conclusion
I have discussed new rules that are anti-assault and demonstrated some methods how to mitigate them along with general advice on how to optimize your assaults. I also discussed how to best utilize the challenge to your advantage.

Friday, July 19, 2013

CONFIRMED FARSIGHT ENCLAVE RULES (More Updates)





Special Characters:

Bravestorm (199)

Brightsword (200)

Ob'Lotai (128)

Arra'kon (168)

Sha'vastos (174) (has the PENchip)

Torchstar (154)

O'Vesa (305) (Riptide)

Sons of Horus on the rise


By GMM Studios.

Thursday, July 18, 2013

Japan to restart nuclear power plants



Now, with the pronuclear Liberal Democratic Party expected to consolidate its hold on the government in parliamentary elections next week, Japan seems poised to embrace nuclear power once again.

Tuesday, July 16, 2013

Let's lend a helping hand to the Bolter and Chainsword


The Bolter & Chainsword is currently Offline.

On Friday 12th the Bolter & Chainsword appeared to suffer a hard drive failure, replacement drives were purchased but failed to remirror correctly when added to the server. Eventually after much testing it was discovered the server hardware was causing the problem and it appears we will need to purchase a new server. Given the age of the server (10yrs - it was installed in 2003) this was expected to some degree and they have some funds from previous donation drives saved for this.

However the timing for this event is not good, Brother Argos who pays for the B&C and is also the technical admin has for the last 6-9 months been fighting severe proliferative diabetic retinopathy, had numerous operations on his eyes and unfortunately has lost a significant amount of his sight. We had hoped he would be recovered enough after his last operation to help us move to the planned new server, however given the timing of the current scenario this will not happen.

They have found a technical resource, who can rebuild and move the B&C to a new home, however this will be chargable. As it currently stands the Bolter & Chainsword needs to raise around $800 - $1000 in addition to the funds we currently have put by to make this happen.

Brother Argos has funded the B&C to the tune of $18,000 dollars over the last 10 years, so that we could all enjoy our community, he is not in a position given his illness to rescue us now.

It is your community, if you wish it to survive they need to raise around a $1000, if we raise more it will all help get a better server for our new home.

You can use PayPal, send your donation to donations@bolterandchainsword.com.

Monday, July 15, 2013

NEW FARSIGHT RUMORS


1) FOC Changes:

- If Farsight is included in your primary detachment, he must be your Warlord

- Crisis Suits are Troops choices (duh)

- Cannot take any Ethereals including special characters or Shadowsun

- Fireblades are Elite choices and can be taken 1-3 per slot


2) Special Issue Wargear (can choose from this list or the original Tau list, but not both):

- Seismic Fibrillator Node -- One use only. Reduces target unit's moving, running/flat out moves, assault moves, and jet pack/jet bike moves in the assault phase by 3".

- Fusion Blades -- User's close combat attacks become S8 AP1 Melta, Unwieldy

- Advanced Jump Accelerator -- Replace Battlesuit's Jetpack, granting it a 9" move in movement phase and 3D6" in the assault phase.

- High Yield Shield Generator -- Grants user a 3++ invulnerable save

- Advanced Markerlight Pod -- Battlesuit gear that, if it hits, grants two markerlight hits (these can be used by the Battlesuit and his unit, like a networked markerlght)

- Advanced Railrifle -- Solid Shot: S8 AP1 Rapid Fire, 60" or Submunition: S4 AP4 Large Blast, 60"

- Integrated Defense Matrix Node -- One use only. All friendly Codex: Tau Empire units within 18" of the user may overwatch at full BS for a single turn


3) Special Rules:

- All units with the option to take Bonding Knife Ritual get the upgrade for free

- Unconventional Doctrine -- All Crisis Battlesuits, Tau Commanders, Crisis Bodyguard, and Farsight himself exchange the Supporting Fire special rule with the Rage and Furious Charge USRs (hurrr hurr)

Sunday, July 14, 2013

Plaguewing vs. Tau batrep (2000 points) • Part Two


1st Turn - Nurgle
Psykers successfully cast all relevant psychic powers.

All three rhinos move up as planned, two to the right of the line of sight (LOS) blocking terrain, third to the left. Biker HQ move up behind the transports. Daemon Prince swoops up to a piece of terrain just to the left side of the enemy Aegis Defense Line (ADL).

No shooting this turn due to limited range from Night Fight.

1st Turn - Tau
Shadowsun and her posse move up a bit to pop some shots at my rhinos. All other Tau units hold their ground.

Shooting then commences... As predicted the Fire Warrior squad behind the ADL to my right targets one of my two rhinos to the right of the LOS building and wrecks it - First Blood to Tau. Shadowsun and her retinue target the other rhino beside the wrecked one and wreck it as well... Now I had the cover I needed. Sure I gave up First Blood but those rhinos did exactly what I wanted them to do. It was well worth the sacrifice in my opinion.


The rest of the Tau shooting phase was all concentrated on my Daemon Prince whom fails his first grounding test from one lucky markerlight that got through... Daemon Prince crashes to the ground and takes a wound. What good luck for the Tau ! :'(( My opponent finally managed to strip his last wound with the very LAST shot which came from the Icarus lascannon - note that the Fireblade used his Split Fire rule.

Looking back it would have been much wiser to have held back the Daemon Prince hiding behind some cover and used him as another counter assault element... Of course hind sight is always 20/20... That's why we play these games - to learn these painful lessons. Even with the loss of such a powerhouse so early I felt I still had the upper hand due to the position of the objective markers - sooner or later the Tau would have to come out and make a run for another objective marker beyond their gun line... This is one of the major weaknesses of Tau and you kshould exploit it as much as possible.

Plaguewing vs. Tau batrep (2000 points) • Part One


I played in an RTT yesterday over at Coliseum of Comics in Kissimmee, Florida. Double FOC, allies and Forge World 40k approved units were all in effect. My first two games were both versus Tau and the last game was versus an Iyanden eldar army. This battle report covers the first game.

Here is my army list (1999 points total)

Death GuardPrimary Detachment

-HQ-
Chaos Lord (190) (Warlord, Trait: Black Crusader)
-Mark of Nurgle
-Blight Grenades
-Power Axe
-Sigil of Corruption
-Chaos Bike
-The Black Mace

Sorcerer (215)
-Mark of Nurgle
-Psyker (Mastery Level 3)
-Force Axe
-Burning Brand of Skalathrax
-Sigil of Corruption
-Spell Familiar
-Chaos Bike

-Heavy Support-
3x Obliterator (228)
-Mark of Nurgle

-Troops-
4x Plague Marine (187)
-Flamer
-Meltagun
Plague Champion
Chaos Rhino
-Dozer Blades
-Havoc Launcher

4x Plague Marine (187)
-Flamer
-Meltagun
Plague Champion
Chaos Rhino
-Dozer Blades
-Havoc Launcher

4x Plague Marines (202)
-Meltagun x2
Plague Champion
-Combi-Plasmagun
Chaos Rhino
-Dozer Blades
-Havoc Launcher

-Elites- Forge World
Chaos Contemptor Dreadnought (285)
-Extra Armour
-Nurgle
-Heavy Conversion Beamer
-Havoc Launcher

Daemonic Allies

-HQ-
Daemon Prince (325)
-Daemonic Flight
-Warp-forged Armor
-Lesser Rewards x1
-Greater Rewards x1
-Psyker (Mastery Level 3)
-Daemon of Nurgle

-Troops-
10x Plaguebearers of Nurgle (90)
10x Plaguebearers of Nurgle (90)

Chaos Psychic Powers and Daemonic Rewards
Sorcerer - Gift of Contagion, Haemorraghe, Iron Arm
Daemon Prince - Bale Sword, Enfeeble, Life Leech, Warp Speed

I don't have a copy of my opponent's army list so I will have to go by memory (sorry)...

-HQ-
Shadowsun (Warlord, Trait: 3d6 jetpack assault move)
2x 3++ shield drone

3x Crisis Suit (retinue for Shadowsun)
3x 2x plasmagun + missile pod

Ethereal

Cadre Fireblade

-Troops-
12x Fire Warrior

12x Fire Warrior

6x Fire Warrior
Devilfish
-Disruption Pod

6x Fire Warrior
Devilfish
-Disruption Pod

6x Fire Warrior
Devilfish
-Disruption Pod

-???- Forge World
2x Sensor Tower (counts as artillery)
Once per turn per Sensor Tower a unit within 6" of a Remote Sensor Tower may re-roll all failed to hit rolls in its owning player’s Shooting phase and gains the Night Vision/Acute Senses special rule.

-Heavy Support-
Hammerhead
-Railgun
-Submunition Rounds
-Disruption Pod

Hammerhead
-Ion Cannon
-Disruption Pod

-Fast Attack-
6x Pathfinder

Piraña
-Burst Cannon

-Fortification-
Aegis Defense Line (ADL)
-Icarus Lascannon

Firestorm Redoubt


Here are the rules for the new Redoubt Firestorm which the release coincided with Apocalypse.


Do you think this is okay for regular 40k ?

Saturday, July 13, 2013

Nurghalwing by Kenny Boucher


I am quoting this direct from the 40kWC forums...

3skullz
Thinking of a more balanced approach that still incorporates 3 monstrous creatures

Total Roster Cost: 1849

HQ: Great Unclean One (1#, 240 pts)
1 Great Unclean One, 240 pts = (base cost 190 + DR: Lesser Rewards x1 10 + DR: Greater Rewards x2 40)

HQ: Herald of Nurgle (1#, 75 pts)
1 Herald of Nurgle, 75 pts = (base cost 45 + DR: Exalted Rewards 30)

Troops: Plaguebearers of Nurgle (10#, 90 pts)
10 Plaguebearers of Nurgle, 90 pts = 10 * 9

Troops: Plaguebearers of Nurgle (10#, 90 pts)
10 Plaguebearers of Nurgle, 90 pts = 10 * 9

Troops: Plaguebearers of Nurgle (10#, 90 pts)
10 Plaguebearers of Nurgle, 90 pts = 10 * 9

Fast Attack: Plague Drones of Nurgle (6#, 297 pts)
6 Plague Drones of Nurgle, 297 pts = 6 * 47 (base cost 42 + DGN: Rot Proboscis 5) + DG: Icon of Chaos 15

Fast Attack: Plague Drones of Nurgle (6#, 297 pts)
6 Plague Drones of Nurgle, 297 pts = 6 * 47 (base cost 42 + DGN: Rot Proboscis 5) + DG: Icon of Chaos 15

Heavy Support: Daemon Prince (1#, 335 pts)
1 Daemon Prince, 335 pts = (base cost 145 + DG: Daemonic Flight 40 + DG: Warp-forged Armour 20 + DR: Greater Rewards x2 40 + Psyker (Mastery Level 3) 75) + DA: Daemon of Nurgle 15

Heavy Support: Daemon Prince (1#, 335 pts)
1 Daemon Prince, 335 pts = (base cost 145 + DG: Daemonic Flight 40 + DG: Warp-forged Armour 20 + DR: Greater Rewards x2 40 + Psyker (Mastery Level 3) 75) + DA: Daemon of Nurgle 15

_____________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

The idea is to Deepstrike the GUO in off the icons on the drones in the back field with full gift compliment.

the drones will spread out and zoom up with and "jet pack move" up in cover and set up for a massive multi-charge (which is some thing that my FMC list lacks)
the 2 princes can take the flanks.....

not that the FMC list isnt amazing currently about 16-1 in tournament play.....just tossing this around.

Friday, July 12, 2013

Why Plaguewing works for me


If you have been following this series of articles you are aware I am playing purely Nurgle themed army with a heavy Death Guard contingent. The army is very balanced focusing on mobility, shooting and melee. One of the major strengths of Nurghal is resiliency which is an excellent counter versus new codices such as Tau and eldar. By building my list around mobility it is competitive versus the newer armies. I am still a firm believer that the Chaos Space Marine codex provides all the tools necessary to build a top tier army. The meta eschews the use of extreme force up close in hand to hand and this is where Chaos excels. You should build a list that does not rely upon random elements such as psychic powers to win. Psychic powers are very strong this edition but besides Primaris powers you never know what to expect.

I am currently working on gearing my Plaguewing army to have have more emphasis on bikes. Hopefully soon I will have a batrep to report that features the new build. Many of the same elements are still there. By building a robust army that uses many of the fundamental tenants it is very strong.

Tuesday, July 09, 2013

Plaguewing vs. Imperial Guard 2250 point batrep


I got in a good game over the holiday weekend versus one of my old fifth edition nemesis armies, Imperial Guard. We were using the fifth sample mission from BeakyCon3...

There are two main objectives:

Emperor's Will - Each player places an objective marker in their own deployment zone. If you control your own objective marker you score 2 battle points. If you control the objective marker in your opponent's deployment zone you score 10 battle points.
Kill Points - you score 1 battle point for each enemy unit you destroy. Note that enemy scoring units are worth 2 battle points each. The enemy warlord is worth 4 battle points.

Limited Psychic Powers
Starting at the top of the fourth turn you subtract the turn number from the model's leadership when casting a psychic power due to an approaching warp storm. For example during the fourth turn a psyker with leadership 10 would successfully cast on a roll of 9 (10 - 1) or less.

A scoring unit can only hold one objective marker.

Deployment - Hammer and Anvil

Bonus Points - One battle point each for First Blood and Line Breaker (no Slay the Warlord).


Sunday, July 07, 2013

A case for mechanization


So mech armies are kind of poo pooed on in sixth edition but I can see some really good reasons to bring it back again. Before I explain why I think mech can work I will cover the number one reason why I think people don't want to run mechanized list - First Blood. Okay if you are playing rulebook missions certainly First Blood can be a game winner... Especially with missions like Emperor's Will and The Relic. If you are playing at big events that feature multiple objectives it is not as as important though.

I think mech can work. I had one army in the beginning of sixth edition that had a couple of rhinos for my old Grey Knight Necron army. It didn't work for me and I came to the premature conclusion that mech is more of a hindrance. My next army was Khorne and I used three land raiders... It was really good at that point in time, especially with the dirge caster which cancels Overwatch and is a big FU to Tau. I then lost my Khorne army and started to play Nurgle again after almost a ten year hiatus.

If you follow my blog you know I am not a fan of Typhus and his big zombie blobs. So I thought to myself what are other scoring units available to Nurgle? I really like Death Guard and Plaguebearers. Deathguard are really expensive point wise but a five man squad in a rhino can get the job done and the points are reasonable at this size. So I began to realize if you play missions that feature multiple primary objectives mech can and does work.

For me the primary purpose of mech in sixth edition is to move a large portion of my army to midfield... It's a lot like chess and many people in fifth edition cited this as one of the main reasons to run a mechanized army. We see lots of pictures and batreps on the Internet that feature heavy infantry based armies. Some people really want to imprint this image on our mind. Like I say though you should question everything !

Mech is also a powerful method to protect the embarked units. Transports are not a death trap... You must be a patient hunter and willing to think at least two turns ahead... Again this is similar to chess in that regard. I recently posted a batrep about my first game with Plaguewing versus the new eldar. I did not want to give up First Blood even though we were playing a multiple primary objective so I put my rhinos in reserve to protect them. I was staring down many many mobile eldar guns. In fact I had an Aegis Defense Line with a quad gun but the first two turns I didn't man it - that would have been suicide for whoever was pulling the trigger.

Like I said transports can protect your embarked units for a turn or two. If you can stand up to withering enemy fire power that long then trust me, you'll see some dividends. Armies like the new eldar and Tau can blaze you to death with their guns. It's nothing new - I am basically espousing old fifth edition tactics. Transports are also a major deterrent to the ever notorious and much hated Heldrake... that is a good thing too!

It's important to note that the meta (if there is truly one) is in a constant state of flux with each new codex that is released. I like to field an army with many units that are all synergistically designed to work together. Tau and eldar alike can only deny so much cover... Throw the hardest units you've got right into their grill forcing them to focus on those first thus denying them ability to concentrate on the rest of your army. It works just like a charm.

One of the big things that came about in sixth edition is most every vehicle can move flat out. This enables you to reach midfield with one move and it is huge. So I think that mech will slowly come back again. Heldrakes hate Tau and that's a good thing for most of us. Eldar can also punk out flyers with the use of Guide and Prescience. It's not win win for the bale flamer anymore. Only time will tell but I can say its already working for me. It can work for you too.

BeakyCon3 Prep Tourney (Anthem Games in Tampa)


There is a request from several local gamers to hold a BeakyCon3 prep tourney at Anthem Games in Tampa on August 3rd. Here's how it works...

2250 points
Allies
Double FOC
Up to one fortification

You can take Forge World units from two of their newer books:

• Imperial Armor Apocalypse 2nd Edition
• Aeronautica

These units must have the 40k Approved stamp. No Lucius pattern assault pods or Hades Breeching Drills. You must bring the actual Forge World models and their most up-to-date rules.

We will use some of the sample missions for BeakyCon3. You can find them here:



2.5 hours per round with three rounds total. It's a W-L format with tie breakers.

Sitting on the back edge is a big no no


I see this often and think its a mistake. Often players deploy a lot of their army right along their back table edge. The Internet gurus claim shooting is the king but its really not. Shooting is really good... It's always been and that's nothing new. Sixth edition from a competitive stand point is all about bringing the most balanced list possible. If you are playing in a big event with five or more rounds and bring a Rock Paper Scissors army eventually you will face off in a bad match up versus a good player... They will have a big advantage and you will suffer. Balance equates to the following:

1) Mobility
2) Shooting
3) Assault

I try to stress this as much as possible. For example those Sabre platforms and Thudd guns will only carry you so far... They are neither mobile and will be quickly swept in an assault. It's much better to diversify. Tau have provided the much needed anti flyer defense - the right Tau units that are properly equipped with Sky Fire are much better at tackling flyers plus they are mobile... They can move and shoot. Imperial Guard are obsolete now in terms of sixth edition.

A big mistake I often see are players who deploy the bulk of their units along the rear of their deployment zone hugging their table edge. If they should see an assault they are only a few inches from running off the table. Sixth edition is very generous to units take break in combat... There is a good chance they can fall back and regroup if they have enough room. There is nowhere for them to go except off the table. Therefore it's very important to move to midfield during the first two turns and play the game from there. People don't respect what assault brings to the game and underestimate this phase. Assault is the true king due to the meta... Assault can and does win games.