After 2 or 3 games I have abandoned the summoning deamon list. I am of the opinion that to get it to work you need to go all or nothing. So I have switched back to my previous list, but with a single change. I will be giving the Great Unclean One a balesword. Even without getting Iron arm the instant death rule will make him devastating in combat. This does make my deamons one of my weakest armies, but they are also the most rewarding to get a win with.
I am considering making an Armies on Parade board for the Deamons. As they are Nurgle Eldar I though having them in a portion of Nurgles Garden would be very characterful. I have even thought of some objective markers I could make to have them stand out. Once I have more on this I'll post it up.
And because I obviously have far to much on my hobby plate at the moment I thought it was time to change my Marine list. As much as I loved the Assault Terminator/Redeemer combo, I thought a bit of a shake up was in order. So dropping both units I will take a Storm Raven loaded with a 3 man Centurian Assault squad and Terminator Librarian. First go at using this unit proved less than successful, but I will persevere. I have high hopes they can help my Dreadnought tie up a large swathe of troops and demolish any vehicle foolish enough to get close to them.
But at almost £140 including a Thunderfire cannon, I need to make sure I like this choice before shelling out all that money. I think a few weeks of painting are in order to try and get this Deamon army complete before I can hopefully start building up my Dwarfs in the new year.
And finally, Merry Christmas to everyone! Hope you get all the toys you want.
Wednesday 17 December 2014
Tuesday 4 November 2014
Shiney new captain!
I decided to take a small break from my deamons to paint the limited edition web released Space Marine Captain I got earlier in the year. He does not have the greatest combination of kit, but I love the model and the pose, so I thought he could be the start of my new marine build (when I work out what I want in it).
Not the greatest of pictures, but here is the completed model. I used way more gold than I normally do to emphasis his 'artificer' armour. I have found that red works well with the plate colour so used this predominantly in the trim. This matches up with codex 3rd company, hence the III in the banner.
I have just bought a W&N Series 7 size 00 brush and I will use this at the weekend to put some text on the banner and purity seals. The base is a forge world creation I inherited from Smith the younger. It fits with the broken stone I have for my other marines and just requires a few additions to complete (grass clump and leaves).
On another subject I have come to a realisation that my deamon army is lacking something in the gaming front. Being Nurgle it is very slow (with the exception of my beasts) and I find I am pinned back in my deployment zone for much of the game. So far I have avoided making any of my Psykers use the Deamonolgy powers as a crutch for my army. After a dozen games it seems I may need a summoner to add something to an army that can be out manoeuvred and easily out gunned. I will probably use my level 1 psyker for this and keep my other Herald and Great Unclean One with biomancy powers. The only downside is I will now need to paint another 40 or 50 models to make sure I have enough reserves to summon every turn. I will have to give this a test run I think with an opponent who will let me bring some 'substitutes' to test out my theory.
Not the greatest of pictures, but here is the completed model. I used way more gold than I normally do to emphasis his 'artificer' armour. I have found that red works well with the plate colour so used this predominantly in the trim. This matches up with codex 3rd company, hence the III in the banner.
I have just bought a W&N Series 7 size 00 brush and I will use this at the weekend to put some text on the banner and purity seals. The base is a forge world creation I inherited from Smith the younger. It fits with the broken stone I have for my other marines and just requires a few additions to complete (grass clump and leaves).
On another subject I have come to a realisation that my deamon army is lacking something in the gaming front. Being Nurgle it is very slow (with the exception of my beasts) and I find I am pinned back in my deployment zone for much of the game. So far I have avoided making any of my Psykers use the Deamonolgy powers as a crutch for my army. After a dozen games it seems I may need a summoner to add something to an army that can be out manoeuvred and easily out gunned. I will probably use my level 1 psyker for this and keep my other Herald and Great Unclean One with biomancy powers. The only downside is I will now need to paint another 40 or 50 models to make sure I have enough reserves to summon every turn. I will have to give this a test run I think with an opponent who will let me bring some 'substitutes' to test out my theory.
Thursday 16 October 2014
A new project! 3D Space Hulk Scenery
Things have been a bit hectic in the Smith household as of late. What with a house to sell, and Smith the Younger starting college, things have been up in the air. Hence my absence from making any new blog posts.
Its not got any quieter, but I am sparing a little time for some more musings. Firstly I would like to say the Maelstrom of War missions in 7th edition 40k are brilliant. I was not sure at first as I was told you could win the game in turn 1 if you got the right objectives. But after playing several missions I have found it a great challenge. The fluidity of objectives means you have really think about what your doing with each unit. I have had several games where the person killing the most of the enemy is not the winner. Admittedly it can come down to how luck you are with your objectives, but as this is a game played with dice, this is just another random element that makes the game fun.
Onto another subject. Space hulk! I love this game, although I don't tend to play at all, due to the time needed to set up the missions. But I have always wanted to create a 3D board. Maybe this would facilitate playing more games with Smith the Younger! I also would like to have some 'Ship boarding action' style games of 40k so this scenery would be ideal.
So onto my new project, to build a Space Hulk board. After much investigation the best option is to use Hirst Arts moulds. I was reluctant to use these as they are £25 a mould and I would need 4 moulds to be able to get all the parts for the basic and advanced sets. An £100 outlay seems a bit more than I wanted to spend. But to get a really good looking hulk this appears to be the best option. I have now purchased the first of these and will start some test casts before I get the appropriate dental plaster.
The other reason for me for purchasing the moulds is that I can use them to build other 40k scenery. I do love GW's buildings but I think I can make things cheaper and more individual using the hirst moulds.
I have made progress on the Eldar Deamon army and will post up some images next time. Still another 29 models to paint, so only just half way through the project. I hope to be finished by the time we move house.
Its not got any quieter, but I am sparing a little time for some more musings. Firstly I would like to say the Maelstrom of War missions in 7th edition 40k are brilliant. I was not sure at first as I was told you could win the game in turn 1 if you got the right objectives. But after playing several missions I have found it a great challenge. The fluidity of objectives means you have really think about what your doing with each unit. I have had several games where the person killing the most of the enemy is not the winner. Admittedly it can come down to how luck you are with your objectives, but as this is a game played with dice, this is just another random element that makes the game fun.
Onto another subject. Space hulk! I love this game, although I don't tend to play at all, due to the time needed to set up the missions. But I have always wanted to create a 3D board. Maybe this would facilitate playing more games with Smith the Younger! I also would like to have some 'Ship boarding action' style games of 40k so this scenery would be ideal.
So onto my new project, to build a Space Hulk board. After much investigation the best option is to use Hirst Arts moulds. I was reluctant to use these as they are £25 a mould and I would need 4 moulds to be able to get all the parts for the basic and advanced sets. An £100 outlay seems a bit more than I wanted to spend. But to get a really good looking hulk this appears to be the best option. I have now purchased the first of these and will start some test casts before I get the appropriate dental plaster.
The other reason for me for purchasing the moulds is that I can use them to build other 40k scenery. I do love GW's buildings but I think I can make things cheaper and more individual using the hirst moulds.
I have made progress on the Eldar Deamon army and will post up some images next time. Still another 29 models to paint, so only just half way through the project. I hope to be finished by the time we move house.
Friday 15 August 2014
Warriors of the Fang are here!
So a new release of Codex Space Wolves is upon us. My household was awash with talk of these Viking Space marines last week, and my lad is going to be collecting them. Not sure how he fits so many armies into his wanted list with any hope of collecting them all.
I have seen a lot of talk online about the new Space Wolf sledge. Apparently he will be delivering Christmas presents this year. So not very many fans of this newly released model. I'm not 100% convinced about it, but will wait and see what it looks like up close and personal.
The new Space Flyers on the other hand, I love! They shout 'I am as aerodynamic as a brick!' as load as possible, but it doesn't matter in a game about toy soldiers. The idea of the monolithic slab sided vehicle using sheer brute force to keep aloft says everything about Space Wolf philosophy. Why look sleek and fast when you can look like a battering ram and act in exactly the same way.
I will probably not collect any wolves though. I have too many ideas for other armies and would not use them as much as I would want. But I look forward to facing them and can't wait for the lad to get his up and running.
The new Space Flyers on the other hand, I love! They shout 'I am as aerodynamic as a brick!' as load as possible, but it doesn't matter in a game about toy soldiers. The idea of the monolithic slab sided vehicle using sheer brute force to keep aloft says everything about Space Wolf philosophy. Why look sleek and fast when you can look like a battering ram and act in exactly the same way.
I will probably not collect any wolves though. I have too many ideas for other armies and would not use them as much as I would want. But I look forward to facing them and can't wait for the lad to get his up and running.
Thursday 7 August 2014
Master Classes at Warhammer World
After getting a Realm of Battle a few years ago, I was determined to give this expensive piece of plastic a top notch paint job. Well as is normal for me it remained the grey plastic up until March. I then got some W&N acrylic paint with the intention of painting it a desert colour. I made a complete mess of this. After priming the effect I was left with was streaky yellow paint which looked terrible.
At this point I had given up on doing a decent job, but then spotted an up coming event at GW's Warhammer World. A Realm of Battle Master Class. You could either attend this and get a board or bring your own board for painting. You could even bring along a friend for an extra tenner. So after cleaning up the first board I painted with Fairy power spray, all the boards were primed and off we went to Games Workshop land, or Nottingham as everybody else calls it.
As a regular visitor to this paradise of gaming I was not sure how the day would progress or if this £80 or so trip was worth the cost. Well I can say without a shadow of doubt, this was money well spent. After setting up the board pieces on the table provided, we donned aprons and were given 18, yes 18 pots of GW paint. Along with a little paint roller tray we were advised to paint the whole board this colour with the 2" brushes. As we progressed through the day, the 2 'Masters' from the Warhammer world event team we brilliant in helping to get the best from the board and also how to fix mistakes. Lunch was great as normal, and special consideration for my sons quite particular vegetarian tastes were accommodated by the kitchen.
We finished sooner than most of the attendees as we had no flock to apply to the board (Red planet is barren apparently). Although we didn't need to flock our board I was impressed with the amount of flock that was provided to the people who did. More or less a whole box of the GW basing material per 2' panel. We even left with 2 pots of wash to apple to the skulls once we got home. This was because the wash would not be dry by the time we left and would ruin the work we had done.
Here a few pictures of the board once we got home and completed some of the skull 'pits'.
The skulls a bit closer up.
Some close up action.
I am really pleased with these boards and it was certainly worth the money. After my indecision about the base colour for my deamons, I am going with the red planet theme which should look striking and match the board. Next up will be to do the craters we have and also the forge world piece I have to match.
I asked if there would be a Ultima Quadrant Realm of Master Class, and the response was that it is being looked into. Well if they decide to do it, I will definitely attend. Besides loving the new board and wanting to get one beautifully painted, it is great to learn new skills from people who are masters of their craft.
Now, I best get back to that Dark Eldar squad.
Friday 1 August 2014
Wraith Beasts of Nurgle.
I decided to try a helm that was ripping open with a load of puss coming through. I also have a load of tentacle like growths sprouting out from the arm joints. All very simple, but effective.
here I wanted something bursting forth from the chest. I decided to go with suckered tentacles. There are some barnacle like growths on the arm. The tentacles required a metal pin to hold the shape but I really enjoyed creating them.
Just more tentacles and eye on this beast. There is also a pussy growth on the leg with a nurgling bursting out of the other leg.
An eye stalk on the shoulder plus a hoof like leg make up the fourth conversion. I am not happy with the eye and will be replacing this with something more spindly in a few days.
Here is the entire squad together.
The entire squad has taken some time to build, but I have been really pleased with the results. I have already prepared some bases for them so once I get started on the apint job they should come together quite well.
Next time I will be showing some painted items. A squad of corrupted Dark Eldar Witches! I'll leave you with a picture of the test figure.
Tuesday 22 July 2014
The new direction of Games Workshop
I am back from a wonderful break with the family up in Scarborough. A refreshing holiday finished off with a visit to Warhammer World where I attended the Warhammer 40,000k open day with my lad. This was a great day and besides buying a Horus Heresy mug, the new ork codex and some paint I had some interesting discussions with all manner of Games Workshop employees.
2 things came across in these chats. The first is the new release schedules for miniatures, which I shall come to in a moment. The second is the type of game they are trying to create. This has been discussed on the web for a while, but to hear it from somebody at GW confirms what a lot of people thought.
Basically 40k as a competitive system is dead. Anything that resembles game balance for any unit is likely to be more luck than judgement on GW's part. They have published a rule set designed for people to have fun with and less about which armies are more or less powerful for any given points costs. Looking back this was probably inevitable. With such a complex game system that has so many factions it was increasingly difficult to avoid codex creep or the must have unit in any particle codex. With the advent of supplements and data slates the task was impossible.
I see this as a good thing, and I go to a fair amount of tournaments. I have never played Apocalypse, mainly due to not having the time to spend 8 or 9 hours playing a game. Plus I only have relatively small collections of any one particular army. But the opening up of Lords of War and also the potential that unbound armies gives means I can play with virtually anything made for Apoc in my normal 40k games. I can still play tournament style games and I can see organizers banning unbound lists and restricting lord of war selections. It also means I can bring a full army of storm boyz to a game if I wanted, with my opponents consent of course.
This last bit is important, and should be remembered. This is a game of 2 people and you both need to agree your rules of engagement before hand. I would never dream of turning up with a Stompa unannounced to my opponent at either of the gaming clubs I attend. It would be impolite to expect somebody to cope with such a mammoth vehicle with no warning. As it happens I am using Big Brian, as the Stompa is known is my house, next week against an Eldar army, which should be immense fun, although I expect him to get cratered early on by the Wraith knight on the other side of the table.
Now onto the first point in this blog entry, the release schedules. I would say that we will be seeing many more releases of both new miniatures and rules. The sculpters have been given a much free hand in what they design apparently. Once a miniature is into design, the games developers write rules. Previously this would all be done as a codex release. This is no longer the case and we can expect White Dwarf rule updates for individual models (I suspect these will also be available as data slate and formation rules) as they are released.
The one downside to this is we may be expecting less regular releases of codexes (This wasn't confirmed but was hinted at as a possibility). But if all armies are getting regular releases of new models, new dexes are less important.
So GW has changes the way it works and how they envisage 40k to be played. Only time will tell if they have got it right, but I do hope they have as I really love this new ethos and I am very excited about what will be produced over the next year.
Next time its back to the Nurgledar army and some pictures of my Wraith Beasts.
2 things came across in these chats. The first is the new release schedules for miniatures, which I shall come to in a moment. The second is the type of game they are trying to create. This has been discussed on the web for a while, but to hear it from somebody at GW confirms what a lot of people thought.
Basically 40k as a competitive system is dead. Anything that resembles game balance for any unit is likely to be more luck than judgement on GW's part. They have published a rule set designed for people to have fun with and less about which armies are more or less powerful for any given points costs. Looking back this was probably inevitable. With such a complex game system that has so many factions it was increasingly difficult to avoid codex creep or the must have unit in any particle codex. With the advent of supplements and data slates the task was impossible.
I see this as a good thing, and I go to a fair amount of tournaments. I have never played Apocalypse, mainly due to not having the time to spend 8 or 9 hours playing a game. Plus I only have relatively small collections of any one particular army. But the opening up of Lords of War and also the potential that unbound armies gives means I can play with virtually anything made for Apoc in my normal 40k games. I can still play tournament style games and I can see organizers banning unbound lists and restricting lord of war selections. It also means I can bring a full army of storm boyz to a game if I wanted, with my opponents consent of course.
This last bit is important, and should be remembered. This is a game of 2 people and you both need to agree your rules of engagement before hand. I would never dream of turning up with a Stompa unannounced to my opponent at either of the gaming clubs I attend. It would be impolite to expect somebody to cope with such a mammoth vehicle with no warning. As it happens I am using Big Brian, as the Stompa is known is my house, next week against an Eldar army, which should be immense fun, although I expect him to get cratered early on by the Wraith knight on the other side of the table.
Now onto the first point in this blog entry, the release schedules. I would say that we will be seeing many more releases of both new miniatures and rules. The sculpters have been given a much free hand in what they design apparently. Once a miniature is into design, the games developers write rules. Previously this would all be done as a codex release. This is no longer the case and we can expect White Dwarf rule updates for individual models (I suspect these will also be available as data slate and formation rules) as they are released.
The one downside to this is we may be expecting less regular releases of codexes (This wasn't confirmed but was hinted at as a possibility). But if all armies are getting regular releases of new models, new dexes are less important.
So GW has changes the way it works and how they envisage 40k to be played. Only time will tell if they have got it right, but I do hope they have as I really love this new ethos and I am very excited about what will be produced over the next year.
Next time its back to the Nurgledar army and some pictures of my Wraith Beasts.
Monday 7 July 2014
Planning the next step of Deamonhood
I was actually wrong last week about my Deamons. They can actually win. An entire round of shooting from a very shooty Dark Eldar army resulted in a lost Beast of Nurgle. The Grimoir of True Names and Endurance make for a very resilient squad when applied to Beasts.
My Nurgle Wraith Knight had its first outing since its build was completed. It did fairly well but once again the overly powerful haywire grenades did him in. It was a close Relic game and my superior survivability saw me through to the end. Surrounding the objective with Plague bearers in 4+ area terrain with 5+ feel no pain was enough to keep them in the game. I will be hard pressed to beat anything with a flyer but thats for another day.
Now as far as figures go. I have no pictures to show. Its been a bit hectic with one thing or another, but I have managed to make some great progress on my beasts. There are a number of bits to finish off but I hope to have them built by the end of the week. I have also put together quite quickly a squad of 10 plague bearers. This is mainly so I do no have to use so many proxies in my games. The quicker I can get them built the better (only 20 more to convert).
The plan is to build and convert 10 guardians to complete a 20 deamon unit, get 10 further Dark Eldar Kabalite warriors to make the wyches another full 20 deamon strong unit. They are the next on my to do list. The final pieces are 3 Heralds of Nurgle (1 spare in case of the super possession from the warp storm table) and a Great Unclean One converted from a wraith lord.
The final piece to the army will probably be another squad of 10 plagues bearers in case of a 12 on the warp storm table. So in all I need to build or buy another 34 models including spares or 23 not including spares. My aim for a completed army by November may actually be possible.
My Nurgle Wraith Knight had its first outing since its build was completed. It did fairly well but once again the overly powerful haywire grenades did him in. It was a close Relic game and my superior survivability saw me through to the end. Surrounding the objective with Plague bearers in 4+ area terrain with 5+ feel no pain was enough to keep them in the game. I will be hard pressed to beat anything with a flyer but thats for another day.
Now as far as figures go. I have no pictures to show. Its been a bit hectic with one thing or another, but I have managed to make some great progress on my beasts. There are a number of bits to finish off but I hope to have them built by the end of the week. I have also put together quite quickly a squad of 10 plague bearers. This is mainly so I do no have to use so many proxies in my games. The quicker I can get them built the better (only 20 more to convert).
The plan is to build and convert 10 guardians to complete a 20 deamon unit, get 10 further Dark Eldar Kabalite warriors to make the wyches another full 20 deamon strong unit. They are the next on my to do list. The final pieces are 3 Heralds of Nurgle (1 spare in case of the super possession from the warp storm table) and a Great Unclean One converted from a wraith lord.
The final piece to the army will probably be another squad of 10 plagues bearers in case of a 12 on the warp storm table. So in all I need to build or buy another 34 models including spares or 23 not including spares. My aim for a completed army by November may actually be possible.
Monday 30 June 2014
A nurgle Knight is born!
So after a weekend of finishing off my Knight of Nurgle is complete. I need to get some better pictures together but I have actually made a short video to try and show it off. I'm not sure how well it works but I'll link to it anyway.
Generally I am not sure how well the Deamon army I am building is actually going to do in games. Its slow nature and low ranged damage potential means it just gets hammered before it can get over the board. The Soul grinder is the number one priority for all anti tank weapons. Zero anti air cover outside of the soul grinder means that's once its gone I am very exposed.
For all the chat deamon psychics breaking the game in 7th edition, I have not fund this. Even with 3 of them in my army I can very rarely get more than 2 or 3 powers off a turn, and I have periled so many times in the few games I have played.
Over time I will improve my ability with the army but I think mono builds are unworkable and should be only attempted if you don't mind having very hard fought battles that you are likely to loose. It should be noted I have only played Eternal War scenarios so far. I may try Maelstrom of War at some point but I have heard bad things about it so I shall wait and see.
The rest of the week will consist of working on my Beasts of Nurgle. I hope to have the conversion work done on these by the next time I post here. I should also have a few pictures of the Nurgle Knight. Oh and if you have name suggestions for the the knight let me know. Currently refering to him as 'Knight of Nurgle' is a bit long winded.
Generally I am not sure how well the Deamon army I am building is actually going to do in games. Its slow nature and low ranged damage potential means it just gets hammered before it can get over the board. The Soul grinder is the number one priority for all anti tank weapons. Zero anti air cover outside of the soul grinder means that's once its gone I am very exposed.
For all the chat deamon psychics breaking the game in 7th edition, I have not fund this. Even with 3 of them in my army I can very rarely get more than 2 or 3 powers off a turn, and I have periled so many times in the few games I have played.
Over time I will improve my ability with the army but I think mono builds are unworkable and should be only attempted if you don't mind having very hard fought battles that you are likely to loose. It should be noted I have only played Eternal War scenarios so far. I may try Maelstrom of War at some point but I have heard bad things about it so I shall wait and see.
The rest of the week will consist of working on my Beasts of Nurgle. I hope to have the conversion work done on these by the next time I post here. I should also have a few pictures of the Nurgle Knight. Oh and if you have name suggestions for the the knight let me know. Currently refering to him as 'Knight of Nurgle' is a bit long winded.
Wednesday 25 June 2014
Time to revive the blog
It looks like I have been a little slack in posting here in the last couple of years, but its time to revive the blog. Maybe even attract some readers.
So a lot has happened since I last said anything on here. My ork army was completed and has competed in a couple of Throne of Skulls tournaments. I have got 'Prophet of the Waaagh' in 2 of these (best ork player for those who don't know). I also won Best Army at one of these. This is possible my greatest moment gaming wise and something I probably won't be able to surpass. I know I am not a Golden Deamon standard painter so winning this for my Mexian Waaagh Nids is something I am very proud of.
I have also moved jobs. I now have an hour or so commute each way every day. This gives me loads of time to ponder about stuff and I have a load to say about the hobby and modeling in general. But I will come to this in future blogs.
For now I have moved on from my very successful orks to a very tricky to use Deamon of Nurgle army. They are slow and cumbersome to use. I am enjoying playing them, but I think victories will be few and far between.
There is something else about this army that I should mention. I will be using Eldar models. They will be converted to be corrupted and I have already made a good start on this work. As normal for me, my favorite model is also turning out to be the worst on the table top. The soul grinder is a brilliant thing on paper. But as it is my only vehicle, it attracts so much fire power I have not seen it last past turn 3 in all but 1 game. But its looking pretty good from a converted model point of view. I have based it on the beautiful GW Eldar Wraith Knight that has been infected my nurglings. It is now decidedly less good looking. This is the work at a previous stage (I will take more once it is completed in the next week).
I'll post some updates a lot sooner I hope, and may even keep this up for more than a couple of weeks.
So a lot has happened since I last said anything on here. My ork army was completed and has competed in a couple of Throne of Skulls tournaments. I have got 'Prophet of the Waaagh' in 2 of these (best ork player for those who don't know). I also won Best Army at one of these. This is possible my greatest moment gaming wise and something I probably won't be able to surpass. I know I am not a Golden Deamon standard painter so winning this for my Mexian Waaagh Nids is something I am very proud of.
I have also moved jobs. I now have an hour or so commute each way every day. This gives me loads of time to ponder about stuff and I have a load to say about the hobby and modeling in general. But I will come to this in future blogs.
For now I have moved on from my very successful orks to a very tricky to use Deamon of Nurgle army. They are slow and cumbersome to use. I am enjoying playing them, but I think victories will be few and far between.
There is something else about this army that I should mention. I will be using Eldar models. They will be converted to be corrupted and I have already made a good start on this work. As normal for me, my favorite model is also turning out to be the worst on the table top. The soul grinder is a brilliant thing on paper. But as it is my only vehicle, it attracts so much fire power I have not seen it last past turn 3 in all but 1 game. But its looking pretty good from a converted model point of view. I have based it on the beautiful GW Eldar Wraith Knight that has been infected my nurglings. It is now decidedly less good looking. This is the work at a previous stage (I will take more once it is completed in the next week).
I'll post some updates a lot sooner I hope, and may even keep this up for more than a couple of weeks.
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