Seems the right time for a comeback

Hello my friends how are you doing!
No I haven't been snubbing you, I've just been busy being lazy.
No I didn't forget about you, your starting to sound paranoid.
can I get a word in edgeways here!

thank-you

Well it has been a fiendishly long time since my last post, and ohhhhhhhh so much has changed in the world. i guess i need to get the elephant in the room out of the way first, and i think we allll know what that is....

I MOVED TO HAMILTON!
oh, and the company we love to hate discontinued a game I highly enjoy

I have heard many grumblings and much nerd rage spewing forth from the deepest depths of the internet (otherwise known as fan forums) and have been disappointed by the reaction overall. Though it was not unforeseen (it almost didn't beat the rage leading from warhammer 7th to the "kiddy's version" known as 8th edition) i have a secret for many of my fellow players out there.
Are you listening carefully, good.

you can still play 8th edition

no one is stopping you. many claim that it was the most balanced a warhammer game has ever been. I myself am going to continue to play it as it is a very good game. the difference is I also enjoy Age of Sigmar.

It doesn't seem to be a popular stance, but after a few games I concede that it is a fun game. It has received a huge amount of flak for 'replacing' warhammer but i feel it needs to be impartially rated without the side by side comparisons (which are getting old). So that's what i will do, after a game Vs Tim and Brad at the local Immortals club  i feel i can chat about it at last.

First up, and the biggest problem most have with the new game, choosing the army. The lack of a points system is a problem for many, fearing that without the sound logic of math total anarchy will ensue. As many of the loudest nay sayers are approaching from the tournament perspective i can completely understand. however, a quick glance at the rules quickly divulged that it is a game for the fluff gamers more than the 'competitive' crowd. it seems Games Workshop believes a smidgeon of logic is to be found in its player base which; upon reading the rage, it appears there is not.
however, myself and Tim do seem to posses this luxury in droves, and after discussing a possible wound cap settled on 7 warscrolls. this was not difficult. In the end the teams were...

'For the Empire!'

• Lord on pegasus
• heavens wizard
• Priest on Alter
• 4 Demigryph's
• 16 Handgunners
• 40 Halbardiers
• Hellblaster with 3 crew

'Orcs orcs orcs'

• Warboss on wyvern
• Night goblin shaman
• 12 Savage orcs with shivs
• 10 Savage orcs with shields
• 30 Goblin archers
• 6 river trolls
• giant

Set-up from the booklette was a breeze. a good balance between terrain and open space. we rolled for sides and pressed on

First things first we liked the randomized start. borrowing heavily from Lord of the Rings, it added a level of tension during the game that can only be applauded.

The new Command phase was interesting, and lent a tactical level that I didn't fully appreciate till late in the game. It turns out bravery is very, VERY important in this game, and being able to stop one unit a turn from losing men is paramount. The option of two abilities but only one choice per turn is something to be contemplated, giving you the option of going big or sticking it out. After nutting out the magic (we had a small misunderstanding in the first two rounds that may have swung the game a bit) we found that it was a good balance of not to strong yet not too weak. Goldilocks would be happy.

Movement still had some tactical potential. More akin to WarmaHordes and Mordheim than most entering the game are used to. Terrain, though dumbed down, was crucial (the re-rolls for the magic forest and the -1 to hit for ranged did factor into both sides strategies). I had no problem with it.

Shooting was obviously the first intro to the new weapon mechanics, and in all honesty I don't mind. Heck it made it a whole lot easier and faster than having to nut out every last variable under the sun which I am seeing all too much at the moment (while trying to write my own deep strategy skirmish game I hit the wall many times trying to make a system that favours neither attacker nor defender too much whilst not being too dense with needless rules). For this reason I appreciate the hit, wound, save, and damage stats. its simple to follow and easy to implement, making it far easier for newer players. It was a bold step, but I think it may pay off in the long run.

Combat was were some real deep strategy came in to play, and where we found some of the most tactical enjoyment fell. Many have complained on the interwebs that the game just turns into a massive brawl, but the fact that you fight one unit at a time is another difference to many mainstream games. Heres how it works
I have the turn, so I get to pick one unit/warscroll to activate. I now can move any troops in closer that might be able to reach the opponent, and fight and resolve the damage from those models. now, instead of those models engaged by them fighting (which was the norm) the opposition may pick ANY of their units engaged in combat to do the same with, continuing between us till everyone has fought. We were soon Oooing and Ahhing  about which unit was best for us to activate first each turn, and it proved crucial to two of the first three combats (my giant attacked first against Tims Demigryphs even though they had charged and completely brutalized them, all because he thought it would be smarter to start with the Halbardiers in the centre). This I love love LOVE about the new game, even though there is a sense of fun detachment there are still points that can engage me on a strategic level.

Last of all is, in my opinion, the most brutal part of the game, Battleshock. strategies from the start of the turn can pay off in spades here as bravery decimated both sides, making the choice of command abilities (and the units special abilities) crucial. The fact that I had not grasped this aspect as quickly as Tim meant that I suffered some heavy early losses, which ended up losing me the game.

so far I quite like the game, but i should address the few problems that could arise with the system

• lack of unit sizes

there is some real potential to abuse this fact alot, however the fact that only those in a (generally) pretty limited range get to attack does neuter death stars to a degree as they will suffer just as much potential wounds from the battleshock phase as those they attacked.

• lack of unit cap

Again, there is potential for people to abuse the rules as written. Since it is designed for the casual rather than tournament market i can understand the approach, and feel that if your opponent cant apply some common sense then they soon will not have anyone to play against.

• shooting into/ from combat

its definitely different, but since most shooting units are dire in combat compared to the dedicated melee troops I didn't mind in the slightest. It didn't break the game, so don't actually feel a ruling needs to be made on it.

• mixed bases

I have heard alot about the 'measure from the model' rule and how it can be abused. They fail to note the fact that it says to measure from the centre of the base to the centre of the opponents. This can be just as easily made to 'measure to the base' as we were playing during the game as it was what we were used to. Again (and im feeling like a broken record here), its a common sense approach needed.

• interactive special rules

There a bit of fun, get over it.


I am not throwing away my toys at this stage. I quite liked the rules as viewed in a vacum, and will continue to play it alongside Warhammer as I have continued to do with Mordheim in the past. I can see the potential for scaling up and would be interested to see if they come out with a more kings of war rule set to appease people wishing to do colossal battles. we can only wait and see...

Updates, What has been happening and play-testing Inepticon

Howdy everybody. It is getting to the crux of the year for me, so in order to procrastinate for as long as possible I have a pretty long update for you all. just touching on what I have been up to for the past 3 months or so gaming wise and to formally announce the Inepticon updates.

In gaming news, I have been pretty booked up over the past three months with two main distractions. The first was a role play that I was running for some of the club members every fortnight using the Warhammer Role-play 2nd edition rules (much better than the third edition in my own opinion) set between  the events of the storm (as the 2nd edition focus's on the aftermath) and the End Times that have been recently turning heads. The upshot of the story means you shouldn't go camping in Ostermark any time soon, too many chaosy stragglers and undead machinations.

the whole force, all painted in the last 6 weeks

The second was a new Warmachine/Hordes escalation league that was run by Chris Otton to try to encourage more players in the wider Wellington region. I had tried to get involved in the last one but other events got in the way. This round timing was perfect as a colleague of my mother knew I was a wargamer (having spotted my spray table at a Christmas lunch last year) and sold me his left over miniatures for my faction (Circle Orboros) for dirt cheap. the majority of my painting time was taken up getting these guys looking good, as I have found im not great at synergising in game and so needed all the painting scores I could get.

Warpborn Skinwalkers with Alpha, pretty terrifying i found

Tharn Ravagers with a Shaman. i still have 4 of these guys and a chieftain to paint

Wolves of Orboros with captain and banner, they did well, but always died in droves

Druids, the Swiss army knife of the circle. man these guys annoyed people

My solos (minus a tree). A Reave Hunter and his Puppy's

The beasties, Argi, griffon and a Feral Warpwolf

I have 4 casters and Una, but only Kaya and Grayle are painted

However, during the league I encountered Scott...

And I must have caught something off of him, as not two weeks into the league did a disturbing growth start to creep up on me where I wouldn't be able to see it...

OH GOD! WHAT IS THAT!!!!

His offer of a whole DWARF ARMY was too tempting to pass up (since I was in the process of selling my Vampire Counts) and so the army of Karak Kadrin is almost all together, and are just looking for a paint update.

The horde of Characters, led by my work in progress Slayer King

What are Dwarves without arty? There are two of each, but i couldnt be bothered grabbing the other organ gun or bolt thrower

I hear these guys are good. recent play-testing confirms this

Classic hand-gunners. i got a butt tonne of these guys

YARRR. Long Drong be har

Bugman with his rangers

Hammerers. i need more of these guys

a small number of slayers. I NEED MORE!

Back when any Lord could Throne up. and ride along Runelord

Now with recent changes to the games workshop FAQ's, we have decided that the 50% lords and heroes will be implemented at Inepticon as we have the veto system in place to stop any extreme cases of rule-bending. In other Inepticon news we are currently trialling the Secret Mission cards on club nights. last week I squared off with my pal Rex to A) help him prepare for skitterleap and B) see if the missions are viable. I got smashed by his Woodies, but both sides managed to achieve there missions. I drew VANTAGE POINT (hold the highest ground) and Rex had DEPARTMENT OF CONSERVATION (do not loose a rare unit).

It was a long winded update, but we are at the end. There are Plenty of spots left for anyone wanting to take part in Inepticon and James Millington has kindly offered to take people heading up from Wellington, he does have limited seats though so get in quick.

INEPTICON '14

Are you going to miss out on the masters this year? prefer to have a bit of a laugh than purely competitive Warhammer? INEPTICON might be the tournament for you!

The Kapiti Wargames Club is hosting its inaugural tournament on the weekend of December 6th/7th for those who do not expect to get invites to the masters this year. Designed to be more of a fun time rather than a Math-Hammer slugfest, INEPTICON will boast a few custom scenarios, secret missions, and a BBQ lunch on the second day during the beauty contest.

 If your interested in joining us for this weekend romp on the coast, you can find the player pack for the event HERE. Send me an email at jebsonic@gmail.com  if you'd like a spot booked for you, though get in quick as there is a maximum  of 18 spots available. Hope to hear from you all soon. 

Apologies again...

Once more dear reader, wherever in the world you might hail from, I must apologise for the lack of transmissions. Regular programming will resume shortly, with a breakdown of my standing in the Call To Arms tournament, painting table updates and general grumblings and ejaculations (which is a legit use of the word, look it up before getting offended).

As it was before, so it shall be

Today's discussion (so far between Me, my friend I, and an acquaintance called Myself) was sparked while contemplating the interesting turn of events set in motion by the Goliath, Games Workshop. Nagash has burst onto the wargaming scene as if from nowhere (since the rumour mill seemed to be in the dark till a mere two weeks prior) and with it comes the start of the end times campaign, with literature and plastic models galore. When my friend David and I were discussing one said piece of literature (The return of Nagash) he quite simply stated "just like the first time Archeon invaded". This perplexed me. Yes, in the good old days Games Workshop used to create global campaigns. The storm of chaos that roiled around the northern hemisphere 10 years ago was, for a time, written into warhammer lore (especially as there was controversy as to whether they skewed the results to stop chaos from winning). early in 8th edition we got the Ork and Goblin army book, and were perplexed to find that the lore was changing. Everything had been reset to a cusp of the event horizon. Grimgor no longer fought Archaon, Middenheim was under siege and Kislev was no more.

Now, with new branding and models, we are to erase the storm of chaos from our memory, as we are about to re-fight it. The End Times are here, with greater stakes on the line for every race in the warhammer world.  with the Vampires awakening the god of un-death himself, Sigmer re-born as Valten (the first time no longer happened remember), the return of the king of chivalry, the death of an ancestor god, the appearance of the Horned Rat, and communion with the Elven gods, risks have been taken in writing an epic of a worlds ending. this brings me (somehow) round to the second part of my musings. 9th Edition.

The whisper on the wind is that this is now right around the corner, with Bretonia's shiny new book coming on its coat tails. I am excited to see where they place the time-frame of the book, if it ends part way through The End Times or just before. Without plying serious spoiler warnings (though lets face it, it is the internet) I wish to see which characters make it into the book and what lores are made available to the Damsels. Some serious shit gets thrown down in the early stages of Nagash's début, and I wish to know how it will change the outlook of there army book. Technically this also applies to the Empire and High Elves, but that is a different story entirely.

For now I must wait to see whether the Goliath will indeed forge ahead with the story, or will it grind to a halt once more and require an entirely new reboot, possibly involving the death of more main characters (anyone would think the George R.R.Martin had a hand in it). In any case I sit here with bated breath, hoping against hope that they don't miss a great opportunity here.

Call To Arms incoming

Shar-Vear is clapping his hands with glee this morning after having a good read through the lists that will be gracing the field at Call To Arms. There are fewer cannons than I bargained for, and some pretty juicy monsters out there for me to haul back to Clar Karond. I don't believe in the slightest that I will be gracing the podium for the first time, but here is my list of those with a very definite chance to do so.

Number V

Alix Barclay

Everyone knows that green-skins are my favourite army, but bias's aside I truly believe he has put together something stronger than the sum of its parts. with over 170 goblins gracing the field and every sneaky scheme under the sun, including masses of diverters and plenty of fanatics and nets, I feel that with even some moderate pairings Alix is going to really shine. Big props to the man for fielding Squig Hoppers too, it takes some kahuna's to pull that off.

Number IV

Alan Hughes

Skaven might have an old book, but it is for just that reason that the ratties are still a prominent threat on the battlefield. I may be placing him here just because I have never faired well against them, but with two Lightening Cannons, the Hellpit Abomination, lots of cheap warlocks and a bell seer its going to be a hard list to take meaningful points out of. Unfortunately there was nothing new and unforeseen in his list, so he wont be gaining Fun Points from me.

Number III

Jeff Kent

As much as he has tried to gloss over his army by naming the characters after Diva's, those same Diva's are going to tear enemies apart. 4 Pegasus mounted characters are going to be a massive pain to clear from a field, and their dance of death will cut a swathe through the opposition. Jeff's one concern is the Empire, Daemons and Ogres, who all seem to have raided the Old Worlds gunpowder stocks to bring all their fire-power to bear. Again there has been no concession to "Fun Points" so his ruthless attitude will see him place well

Number II

John Murrie

John, John, John. You must have been dancing with joy when you saw the final line-up. twin Ironblasters, twin Mournfangs, Hell Heart, Ironguts, the lot really. Usually Gnoblers would be a cause for me to smile and exclaim that the ogres are softening off, but as death-fodder I just feel sad for them. Conventional wisdom says that this list should do extremely well, so I guess its now up to John to deliver. No pressure

Number I

Joel Van De Ven-Long

WOW. There is no concession to fun in this list. It has been constructed for a single purpose, to destroy the world of FUN. 11 Beasts of Nurgle! 11! backed up by 4 Plague Drones and 2 Skill Cannons, and a core full of tzeentch daemons makes his list a real knuckle buster to get any meaningful points out of while he just moves forward, slowly drowning you under slime. No amount of water can clean up this filth, and if he doesn't podium I will be mighty surprised.

Practise time. Wargamming on a deadline

I decided I needed to get my hand back in the game before I rock up to the tables on the 16th. So last night I decided to put the pressure on and play three games in six hours. However, I also wanted to help out mates with their tournament preparations, which meant that the three games would all be different game systems. in the end I managed my major goal, fitting all three games in in a 5 hour window (though the last game came to a close early as Sam had to be home before curfew). Here were the results...

GAME ONE: WARHAMMER FANTASY

OPPONENT: REX FOOTE

POINTS LIMIT: 2400

SCENARIO: BLOOD AND GLORY

a great laughing point in the game, as the  lone Waywatcher oh so nearly killed the Kharibdyss in close combat, what a battler

Game one pitted my Beastmaster list against an annoying as hell Wood Elf list, consisting of a High mage, Beast mage, more archers than I could shake a stick at, a medium sized block of Eternal Guard with a Shadowdancer and BSB and a treeman. Both of us had a total of 5 break points, but Rex's problem in this game was the shortening of the gap between the two armies. I deployed as far forward as possible in a hard pincer, with the Chariots, Hydras, Kharibdyss and light mage with bodyguard on the left and the corsairs, BSB and chaff on the right. I managed to get first deployment on my scouts as well as first turn, so the tree huggers found themselves about 5" away from my army turn one, as well as a dead Treeman being dragged as a prize behind Shar-Vear's chariot. I lost 90% of my chaff in Rex's first hail of hell, but after turn two it was practically a Dark Elf mop up as two Hydras showed why forest's don't like fire, vaporizing 16 of the 20 Eternal Guard where they stood with their templates.

A very empty movement tray. Due to a lack of built Hydras (i will be borrowing my good friend Hermans for the event) a few spare bases had to make do.

The game ended a lot closer than it at first appeared, as it came down to one turns difference, who would be broken first. unfortunately for Rex his archers could not pin down or flee the corsairs, who romped home to deliver the victory for the dark side. I believe that Rex will soon have a more in depth and rather less biased account on his blog here if you want to read more

RESULT: DASTARDLY VICTORY!

GAME TWO: FLAMES OF WAR
OPPONENT: JAYDEN HOWELL
POINTS LIMIT: 1450 EARLY WAR
SCENARIO: HOLD THE LINE

Jayden is popping his competitive cherry and jumping into the early war tournament at Call To Arms, taking the Imperial Japanese infantry division that he commissioned me to paint for him. Unfortunately my Finnish infantry division is no where near completed, let alone fully painted, so a good friend loaned me his Germans to fill out bases. the sides where...

Japanese 7th Hohei Division (fearless/veteran)
HQ with division banner
2 Hohei infantry platoons with  3 squads, 3 light mortars and banners
1 Hohei machine-gun platoon with 4 machine-guns
1 Hohei battalion gun platoon with 2 type 92 70mm guns and no spotter
1 Medium sensha platoon with 5 Chi-Ro medium tanks and 2 type 94 tankettes

My sexy ass anti-tank platoon, who ran after being thoroughly shot up

Finish Jalkaväkikompanie (confident/veteran)
HQ
2 Jalkaväki platoons with 4 squads and a close defence command squad
1 Jalkaväki machine-gun platoon with 4 machine-guns
1 Jalkaväki mortar platoon with 4 tampala mortars
1 Jääkäri scout platoon with 3 squads and a close defence command squad (fearless/veteran)
1 Jalkaväki tank hunter platoon with 2 boys anti-tank rifles, two close defence rifle teams and a close defence command squad
1 Jalkaväki anti-tank platoon with 2 45 PsTK/37 guns
1 Anti-aircraft platoon with 2 40ItK/38 guns
1 Artillery platoon with 4 76 K/02 guns
Fokker CX sporadic air support

Oh dear, that is alot of infantry facing the thin white line

This game ended fast. As the defender I had delayed reserves so only started with one Jalkaväki platoon (with combat attached machine guns), the Jääkäri scouts, the Anti-air guns and the Artillery on the field. Having to deploy first, and since he won if he could hold one of the two objectives, meant I had to scatter my forces. In the end he piled everything in the corner and threw them forward in one great wave, crashing over the hill in the pre-dawn assault. I was allowed to ambush two units, but foolishly only held the Anti-tank squads back, wanting to see where he would place the tanks. in the end the man of the match for me was the AA guns, that brutalised his tanks as they crested the ridge behind the objective, but it was not enough. The Japanese juggernaut smashed it's way over both the Jalkaväki squad and the objective, holding it against a counter attack by the Jääkäri. dawn broke on the very last turn, turn 4. I had not received any reserves.

Game face on, but little I could do about those gorgeous little buckets

RESULT: CRUSHING DEFEAT!

GAME THREE: WARMACHINE/HORDES
OPPONENT: SAM CAMPBELL
POINTS LIMIT: 35
SCENARIO: INCURSION

Chris Otton is hosting a second escalation league at the Kapiti Wargames Club, so both me and Sam decided to crank out some miniatures and have a go (I had just made a very good purchase of older miniatures from a colleague of my Mother, so was looking to blood them). The sides were...

Sam: Trollbloods
Madrak Ironhide
1 Troll Axer
2 Troll Impaler's
5 Trollkin Champions
10 Trollkin Fenblades
Krielstone Bearer and scribes
Fell Caller solo

Nick: Circle Orboros
Grayle Farstrider
1 Feral Warpwolf
1 Razorwing Griffon
1 Argus
10 Wolves of Orboros with command group
5 Tharn Ravagers with a Tharn Chieftain
Reeve's of Orboros solo
2 Gallows grove's

end of Sams first turn, just before my first moves. for those who want to know the far objective was the one that disappeared

This game had to be called early, but to be honest at that point it was anyone's game, he had turtled heavily around his big old stone, and the Wolves and Tharn were making great dents in his troops (thanks to the gallows groves removing his tough ability). However just before we had to call it his Axer had made a long charge and Bisected (quite literally) half of the Tharn unit, including the Chieftain. both of us were gearing up to pop our feats in the next turn so it would have been an extremely interesting turn, where one or the other of us would have come out on top. Oh well.

RESULT: INDETERMINATE

So at the end of five hours back to back games with little break, I was 1-1 with 1 draw. Pretty much my usual fare in this situation but with room for improvement.

Too Long

When your a full time university student it is hard to find time between work (since the boss never hired someone to fill important gaps) and my long distance relationship with my dear Ashleigh to actually get out and play. Looking back I haven't been to a tournament this year since heading up Beauty And The Beast's at the NZTC. However I have put my foot down and have been let loose for a weekend to once more stalk the battlefields of Wellington. Call To Arms HERE I COME!

However, this means I have two weeks to finish painting my list. It is Dark Elves. before the groans echo around the hills of Te Whanganui-A-Tara (woo, cultural) you may be interested to know that I plan to attempt a goodish position (not top place, too many dwarves for that) with NO Bolt Throwers, NO Executioners and NO Warlocks. Some think im mad, I prefer kooky. Here is the list.

Shar-Vear, High Beastmaster on Scourgerunner Chariot with the charmed shield. (305)

Niastra, Supreme Sorceress (lvl 4, light) on a Dark Steed with the iron-curse icon (245)

Calathan, Master Battle Standard Bearer on a Pegasus, with a lance, 1+ armour, 4+ ward and potion of foolhardiness (218)

5 Dark Riders with crossbows, shields and a musician (110)

5 Dark Riders with crossbows, shields and a musician (110)

5 Dark Riders with crossbows, shields and a musician and banner (120)

20 Black Ark Corsairs with additional hand weapons, full command and the flaming banner (260)

5 Shades with additional hand weapons (90)

5 shades with additional hand weapons (90)

Scourgerunner Chariot (150)

Hydra with flaming breath (180)

Hydra with flaming breath (180)

Hydra with flaming breath (180)

Kharibdyss (160)

2398

Fun, themed and a little insane. I will also be keeping a tally of how many monsters and large targets I can bring down with the list, a sort of moral victory points to offset some of the huge losses I will take from cannonballs to the face.

Can't wait to see you all there