In today's gaming news...

Good morning fellow wargamers and welcome to another set of Ramblings.  Here today I wanted to put in my 2 cents about one of the more recent news events that has been released in wargaming: the announcement of Mk III for Warmahordes by Privateer Press!  Ooooooooooooooooh snaps!  It also is getting released in June...of this year! Say whaaaaaaat?  Craziness I know, so let's talk about it!

The soon-to-be-previous edition of Warmachine was originally released early in 2010 and since then the game has grown quite large.  Since then each year has brought out a new book furthering the story, releasing new models, and adding new unit types to the game.  Since 2010 we now have Battle Engines, Colossals, Gargantuans, a new faction, a relatively poorly reviewed video game (sorry PP :( ), new warnoun types like a warnoun unit, and continued support from Privateer Press. 

Ah yes Warmahordes!

As a game it has evolved over time to being considered by many to be a solid choice to get into and has been growing in many different avenues.  From the hyper-competitive tournament scene to the local slow-grow metas, Warmahordes has filled out that spot in many player's hearts for a game that was just clear on the rules, quick, fun, and brutal.  As a veteran player of wargames my personal interest started as Gee Dubs made it clear that they did not care about the hobby but the profits.  While I do understand that these guys need to make money to keep going and ultimately they are all businesses, I at least want to have the illusion that the company is interested in keeping the hobby alive and well.  That and Gee Dubs kicked their prices to the point where I would need to sell an organ to start an army these days.

So now here we are at the cusp of Mk III.  Already PP has released some information about changes we can expect as far as rules go in a recent podcast of theirs as well as from the forum.  Point costs are being changed to help reflect accurate point values for smaller models, the focus is coming back to the Jacks/Beasts, pre-measuring, and more!  With that in mind here are my top three wishes for Mk III:

Re-vamping the Warnouns

Pug3 on Cavalry option

I agree with PP on their site that the Warnouns serve as a central part of your army and whichever one you choose is going to reflect a different play-style/personality/etc.  The thing that bugs me is that despite best efforts there has been a power creep in the Warnouns to where some are just not really viable choices for use.  There's something to be said if you brought the Testament of Menoth versus Butcher3.  Could you win hypothetically?  Sure.  Will you have a good probability of winning?  Probably not.  Ignoring the effect of matchups I think ultimately what I want is having a relatively equal playing field for all of the faction's Warnouns so that I don't feel like I have screwed myself over by taking someone versus the obviously viable choice.  I think every faction has the community choice of who is the worst and who is the best and honestly I'd like to see more diversity from a re-vamp.

 

Keep the options open

One appeal many players have for this game is the steam-powered robots or giant monsters that smash everything around them.  While I appreciate PP doing what they need to in order to bring the focus back on the battlegroup I also hope that they do not try to pigeonhole or punish players who might want to try running small battlegroups.  Currently some casters are considered the "infantry" specialists and I would like that to remain if possible.  It's too early to tell if they are going to make infantry/units so costly that you can only take 1-2 but I would like it to remain around 3-4 personally.  I think it's what makes this game great is that the different casters bring their own playstyle and I just hope that the ones who love their troops more than the jacks/beasts don't lose out during the effort to bring back the jack. 

 

Don't let older units "die out"

Dinopugs are still viable solos

 

The best way I can explain what I mean by this is my anecdotal example.  The unit that got me into Warmachine and my first faction of choice were the humble Deliverers of the PoM.  I got excited about the idea that these civilians used rockets to rain death down in the name of their god.  If I remember right it was the first infantry unit I purchased also.  Then I found out through time, gaming, and research that they were just...meh at best.  I heard the phrase "yeah you can take that but X or Y does it better so why take A?"  I've heard, read, and even said that phrase about more than the PoM's units, and I'm sure that mains of other factions have their own story like this.  I'm not saying every "old unit" is useless (have you seen the Exemplar Errants lol?) but I guess what I'd like to see in Mk III is that every unit has a chance of belonging somewhere in their faction lists.  PP made the unit for a reason, I'd like that reason to stand the test of time.

 

I'm sure I can come up with other wishes and hopes but with it being so close to release time in June I'm just excited.  My friend Josh had found some info that they knew about this edition for 3 years! Well with that length of time studying, tweaking, twerking, making dank memes, and doing their best I think this will be a fine change.  Still there's always the chance that things get dicked up, so here's hoping PP that the new edition is solid like we all hope for and here's to more years of not being THAT guy in terms of companies!

 

Cheers.







I think I'm addicted...

To miniature gaming! Haaaaaa...haa...hmph.  Good morning fellow war-gamers it's too early in the morning for me and I hope you all have a cup of coffee as well. It's been a bit since the last post and since then it's been hectic (was in a car accident with a totaled car but at least I'm here!) so let's get started.

This is also true, but games as well!

As you all might now I have invested into several different games from prior posts.  I'm sure we all have at some point been like this.  A warhammer army here...a warmachine force there...oh look Infinity...etc.  I think for some of us it's a continual cycle of interest, investment, and commitment.  That's not to say we lost complete interest in the games before, heavens no!  I'll still throw down a game of 40k if asked even though it's not the game I am most into right now as an example.

So where does this lead us today folks?  Well I wanted to talk a bit about some games that I've been wanting to get into but haven't reached the investment part yet.  Right now we are still in the interest phase of things and these are games I do not have forces/models for.  So let's have it, in order of current addiction!

Dark Age

An example of some of the updated models

Ah yes Dark Age, the post-apocalyptic grimdark skirmish game from Cool Mini or Not (CMoN) or at least they own the rights.  I'm not sure what the story is from what someone was once telling me about it, but either way they have the game now.  Takes place on a planet that was otherwise forgotten about by the bulk of civilization and subsequently technology and life have suffered from it.  Currently there are about 6 main factions with some have multiple subfactions that have certain model choice/playstyles.  I actually have made an attempt to get into this game once before a couple of years ago.  The model quality back then was very lacking in terms of being easy to assemble and so out of frustration I gave up, as well as my group.  Flash forward a couple years and I'm looking back into it, albeit with more caution than I did before.  I've been assured that the quality has improved and I can tell that there have been some updates model-wise.  Rule wise it's easy to get into and the core rules are not too complicated, CMoN seems to put the depth of the game with the model special rules than core game mechanics. 

 

Wrath of Kings

I believe this represents some of the 5 factions

Another CMoN, I've heard a lot of good things about this game and its growing popularity.  I'm also sure CMoN's game philosophy is to make the rules easy to pick up but the complexity is placed with the models.  Currently the gameplay is quick, easy, and brutal.  Game sizes are (from my understanding) open ended to be as large or as small as you'd like.  The game aesthetics are varied and with the current 5 factions it is likely that there is a force that someone would be drawn to.  I don't want to say it's your typical fantasy game because I don't feel like it is.  The factions have some uniqueness to them that I am having a hard time placing their influence from (I'm sure it's out there) but nevertheless is refreshing.

Malifaux

I love the models I have to say

 

I like Malifaux.  It's not something I've easily come to grips since the first time someone explained the game to me.  "It's a skirmish game...with caaaaards!"  Well I was not impressed.  After a few demo games I have to say the car mechanic has grown on me.  The models have also gone through an improvement and now that the rules are in their second edition Malifaux has been growing as a game.  The models look great unless you are not into the whole Victorian-era gothic stuff but they are well done and from my understanding have generally migrated to plastic making assembly and conversion work easy-peasy.  I also love the way you setup a game.  You start off by generating your scenario and scheme, reveal your faction of choice, and then come up with your list.  It encourages building a list for what you need to accomplish while trying to guess what the other player will be bringing, and that is a good thing I would say.  The only thing keeping me from getting into this game has been the uncertainty that the local scene is active enough to warrant it.  Maybe I'll figure that out in the future.

 

Firestorm Planetfall/Armada

Firestorm Planetfall Directorate I believe?

 

I've included both games as my last potential addiction because I think they both serve to curb that itch of large scale combat in small scale minis.  Spartan Games did a pretty decent job of picking up where Games Workshop left when they dropped Battlefleet Gothic and Epic 40k from their focus (I've heard of their impending return though) but I believe that the major issue with these two has been their lack of impetus in the North American scene.  Don't get me wrong I am sure there are many out there who play but here in my local area it's almost unheard of.  Still I love the idea of commanding a fleet of vessels and firing broadsides into the enemy ships.  Simultaneously I love the idea of commanding squadrons of vehicles and infantry blocks to secure objectives on a planet.  From my novice observations it appears that Planetfall has the stronger sense of diversity in terms of faction playstyles, but as a novice I could be wrong in that presumption.  Still I admire Spartan Games for their efforts and would be interested in seeing how they progress in the future with these IPs.

 

So that about covers my current level of interest in other games.  As you all know I am fully invested in some other games with the community being active to varying degrees.  I am sure that in the near future I will be getting into Dark Age and Wrath of Kings since there is a meta in the area.  As for Malifaux and Firestorm well until I feel like I can get some games in occasionally they will continue to sit at the interest phase.  What about you all, what games are you interested in and where do you feel like they are at?  Until then have a safe one gamers and happy gaming!



Time Management

Hello friends, family, fellow war-gamers, and welcome to another musing day at Wargamer Ramblings.  I've had some time over this past weekend to consider things about the hobby and I wanted to share my thoughts with you.

It's about Time Management.

Gone are my days when I could spend hours upon hours doing hobby related things.  With marriage and my current employment I don't have as much perceived free time to do what I used to do.  Of course I can't (and won't) give up the hobby as it is too important for me.  Yet if I don't do something related to it, I get antsy/depressed/angry.  It's my source of stress relief.  Cathartic in a way if you will.  These days I get a bit annoyed if I can't do my daily painting, and that happens sometimes.

How I feel most new dads react on a daily basis

So what's a man to do?  Well like many before me and many after me you just have to find the time if you want to keep engaged in the hobby.  Now I'm not saying that you need to dedicate hours and hours because let's be real, that isn't going to happen.  Sure you might find a weekend day where you don't have anything planned, your wife doesn't want to do anything, and you've got that time then yeah you can take advantage of it.  Day to day though life just gets in the way and you've got to find the time whenever you can.

I've seen many people sell off models, "quit the game," or other similar things because the demands of life temporarily get too intense.  Makes sense, I've seen a lot of new dads do this.  New kid, lots of change, huge responsibilities, and that must mean you have to sell that Ork/Space Marine/Khador/etc army.  I disagree.  One selling point for most of this hobby is that our models generally, with some exceptions, will last a long time.  It's an investment really, spend X amount here and you will likely be able to play in Y years with the same models.  Ultimately the stress of life makes it seem like you have no time and cannot do the hobby at all, but that doesn't mean it won't change and you will have that "time back."

The face of a man who sold his army only to find out he now has more time to play

That's what I'm discovering for myself.  Sure I might not be able to paint for 6-8 hours/day like I used to as a single bloke.  What I do now is paint for the 1-2 hours I can before the wife comes home and dinner is ready.  Do I get whole 10+ man units done in 3 days time?  Nope.  What I do have is some release from the pressures of my job and reality while making some kind of progress in the hobby, which is better than no progress at all.  Also as a side note I think it has made my painting skills improve as I am taking more time than I would before.

I am getting all mah skills improved, aww yeah

I think it's just the worse for a fellow wargamer to feel as though they can't do the thing they love anymore because of time, and it's worse when they rid themselves of all the work they've done assembling/converting/painting/etc only for time to pass and within a year they are accustomed to whatever it was and miss the void they have created.  I want to encourage you reader if you are in that boat to hang on, maybe assemble one model if that's all you can, do a layer of paint, whatever it is, but hold on to the thing you love!  Time marches on and eventually you will find yourself in a new situation, with more time maybe to do more of what you love.  Even if all you can do is paint a layer of iron on one model while rocking a newborn to sleep, eventually you can do two layers/models.

You'll get more time, in time, so it's all good

I hope that encourages you out there fellow war-gamer if you are stressed out about time and life, and all you want to do is hobby stuff.  Get creative, dedicate that time, and you'll come to appreciate it.  I know I have.  Have a good one everyone.

Paint-update

Good morning folks and welcome to another update here at Wargamer Ramblings.  It's been a bit since I've been able to regularly post.  I blame real-life and work, why can't they leave me alone to do these hobby things?  Ah well.



The almighty Lord Exhumator Scaverous!

I'll be honest with you dear reader.  I've not been doing well keeping up with my painting in terms of taking pictures and making sure I go over every step like I wanted to.  I wanted to detail what I did when I painted my models in case you liked any of my ideas.  Unfortunately when I start painting I have a tendency of zoning out quickly and I 99% of the time forget to take pictures at all.  Then I remember that I wanted to after the fact, and I'm left sitting with models in various stages of completion.

So instead I will talk a bit about what I've done/learned/tried out.  We'll see how that works

I'm more pleased with the brown in this manner than earlier

I've found that my original basecoat combination didn't work as well as I wanted it to.  It was nice but I didn't quite get that shade I was looking for.  So now I've found that if I do a layer of a really dark brown, followed with a Vermin Brown (I think XV-88), a couple washes of Agrax Earthshade, finally a drybrush of this concrete-beige that I cannot remember the name of.  The end result is that I am really pleased.

I've also changed some of my techniques for the blue glow in that I have started using Minitaire Plasma Glow for the wash.  Since it's a Ghost Tint (candy) it has a different texture and effect but after trying it out on a couple of jacks/glows I've got to say I really like it.  I've also used it as a way to get some of my cloaks done in a quick and easy fashion. 

Stage 1

Stages 2 + 3

What I've done is that I've followed this video's guiding principles here, and I started airbrushing the areas I wanted to use the Ghost Tint on.  So I started with Minitaire's Raven Black, followed with a  45 degree angle of Coal, and then hit up the spots I wanted to be bright with Skull White.  Then a nice layer of Plasma Glow and boom!  A gradient shaded cloak with a nice color I'm pleased with.


Stage 4 and I like this shade of blue

Finally I've been utilizing some of the GW technical paints and weathering powders from Secret Weapon.  I've used them before in the past but it's the weathering pigments I always found to be tricky.  I've primarily stuck with using the blood and oxide technical paints and I've not have any major issues.  Even if you're not a fan of Citadel paints, these two are definitely solid choices to get that extra bit of detail in easily.  The weathering powders well...we'll see if they end up being used right or not.

I used a lot of weathering powder

So that's about what's been going on paint-wise.  Over the past couple of weeks I've managed to finish off Scavvy, 5 of the chicken jacks, Erebus, and I've started working on the Skarlock, Pistol Wraiths, and Withershadow Combine.  Hopefully I'll be able to finish those soon and share with you my results.  Until then happy gaming everyone!

Warhammer 30k? Is it something worth getting into?

Good afternoon wargamer friends and welcome back to another set of musings.  Today I wanted to open up my thoughts to you all about my subconscious desire to start a 30k Legion force.  I'd like to hear your thoughts about the matter but here's what has been going on.

Since GW made it relatively easy (and cheap by their standards) to start a 30k force with the Betrayal at Calth game, you see a lot more people are willing to start looking at 30k with more serious intent.  I've seen many a established Youtube channel post up about their forces they are starting (Guerilla Miniature Games, MiniWargaming, etc).  Combined with the Horus Heresy novels and the full support of Forge World there are many ways to get a solid 30k force on the table now.

What you get for 150USD painted up as Word Bearers

I mean let's be real for about 150USD in the BAC game you get 30 Tactical Marines, 5 Terminators, 1 Praetor, 1 Chaplain, and 1 Contemptor Dread.  Wow.  I've not seen a deal like that since...well...I can't remember to be honest.  Considering that a 10 man Tactical Squad is 40USD and you get 3 of them, why you've already made up the comparative cost.  Not to mention that Terminators are 50, the 2 character equivalents are about another 40, and the Contemptor Dread is I think 70~ estimate you are saving about 130USD.  Once again, wow.

No wonder people are starting 30k armies these days, the start-in cost compared with the 'traditional' method of the entire model set coming from FW it is ridiculously easy (and a hell of a lot more cheap).  One could easily get 2 box sets and scour eBay for a third Contemptor Dread and you have a great starting force.  If you didn't want 60 Tactical Marines then I am sure you can get a set of the upgrade/conversion kits from FW to get your chosen unit.  Will you be able to get away with buying nothing from FW?  Depends on the level of dedication and work you want to put into the models, but if you're like me then you will eventually get some FW stuff.

Horus himself.  If there's ever a reason to want to get into 30k: Primarchs.

I want to talk about some of the rules for a second as well.  I've not mentioned it on the blog, but I tend to really like FW rules.  I like them not because I think they are more balanced (though I tend to think they are better than base GW rules) but I like them because they tend to a) make more sense and b) are full of flavor.  I have read over the different Legion rules for a few days now and I've been enjoying it.  The rules appear to reflect the different nature of the Legions which just resonate.  Not only that but to help differentiate between the MEQ vs MEQ that is pretty much 30k, but each legion get their own special units and Rites of War (sort of like a formation in 7th ed. from my understanding).  Nice!

Is this the start of GW having some good ideas?  Maybe?

So is it worth getting into?  I can't really say one way or the other.  On one hand I can see the appeal and believe me the temptation is quite real.  On the other hand I think it will depend on the community to give it to longevity it needs to be a solid investment (though you could always take them for a 40k army I believe).  With the board game that came out I think it's safe to say that people will be taking a more serious look into it than the wistful daydreaming it has been when it was solely FW.  I know for me if I can find a way to make it affordable then who knows...maybe Iron Warriors...Space Wolves...Alpha Legion...one of them might end up being a new army. 

Happy gaming out there you all.

Lazy Saturday Game Time

Hey all folks, it's been a hectic week for me and I hope it's been good for you all!  Over the weekend pSam came down from Wise to get a couple games in so I took some pictures and figured I'd talk about how things went down!

He brought his Skorne up against my Scavvy battlebox.  I was facing up against Naaresh, a Bronzeback, and 2 Cyclops Savages.  I had played Sam and some Skorne before so I knew from the beginning I would have to do something about that Bronzeback.  We set up the table and I favored a deployment towards the center with a Ripjaw off to the side.  Sam deployed slightly to his right but kept everyone close together. 

First turn I made sure to move on up and put Death Ward on Scavvy, Sam moved up and started his upkeep of Lamentations making sure for the rest of the game I was keenly aware of its area of effect.  For my next turn I moved my Ripjaw on my right up some more in an effort to cause Sam to redirect a beast to it, or ignore it and let me arc spells through.  My other Ripjaw went up to the center obstacle and was in prime position to arc some stuff up.  I forgot to allocate focus to my Leviathan and so I was only able to get 1 shot off to a Savage, though the one shot did manage to cripple his body.  I arced Icy Grip onto his Bronzeback.  Sam charged my Leviathan with his Savage and he charged my Ripjaw with his Bronzeback.  The Savage barely plinked my jack but my poor Ripjaw was gone.

On my following turn I noticed that Sam had ran his beasts pretty hot, the Savage was full and the Bronzeback had 4 fury on it.  Naaresh could only leech 1 point off of his beast in his next turn...hmm...So I did a throw and tossed the Savage away and then I hit the now-not-in-melee Bronzeback with telekinesis to look straight at Naaresh.  Oh and moved him a couple inches closer. Muahahahaha! The Savage frenzied and being knocked down could only move towards the Bronzeback.  Then the Broneback...the beast I was counting on to fail...to frenzy and charge Naaresh...made his damn threshold check! Expletive language!  Ah well.

The rest of the game was a lot of cat and mouse mechanics and movements.  I was able to keep his Bronzeback from doing a lot with Icy Grip and my remaining Ripjaw made sure he couldn't move at all with Vice Lock.  My Leviathan was sort of stuck in that position where he needed to shoot but Sam kept him in melee (didn't help that he had a crippled melee arm either).  Eventually Sam went in for the assassination with Naaresh and even though he failed to kill me the charge turn, he did the second go around.  Scaverous couldn't deal enough damage on his own to counter-assassinate and therefore lost the game.

Next Sam and I tried our hand at 9th Age.   We were pretty excited to get this game in because we both had fantasy armies that were collecting dust otherwise.  We took to the field 2000 points and I brought my Dread Elves and he his Undying Dynasties (read: Dark Elves vs Tomb Kings).  I realized we didn't have access to decent fantasy terrain so we just used some Warmahorde zones as hills and forests.

Honestly I don't think I can give a play by play.  Sam ended up winning by 200 VP's but we learned a lot of things about our armies and the rule set.  For one terrain plays very differently than it did in WHFB 8th.  Also I found out that even though I am cognitively aware of tactics I am to do with the Dread Elves (i.e. flank with certain units, movement, etc), I found out that I am going to have to practice more.  I was too aggressive and my deployment a bit awkward so I ended up losing some serious units.  My Dread Knights with the attached Prince however?  Amaaaaaaziiiiiiiiing.  They alone made sure I didn't lose too hard.  Sam I think learned about the importance of kitting his characters with some magic items as well as the rules in general.



Overall it was a really fun day and it was good to get in a league game followed up with 9th Age.  I am going to have to really crack down on the rules for our next match up because in retrospect I would have done many things differently.  Ah well, I hope you all have had a good week and until next time happy gaming!

What I think of...Ripjaws

Hello and welcome again to another thought piece reviewing my initial thoughts regarding this little warjack.  Just like my last Cryxian analysis I have to toss out the disclaimer that I am in no way an expert on Cryx, or Warmahordes in general.  So take what you will with a grain of salt, these are just my newbie thoughts.

Cryx light jacks are quite synonymous as the chicken jacks due to their appearance and also their ability to be spammed (though not many casters I know of take more than 2-3 at most).  Most of them share the same state line as being high SPD, high DEF, low ARM, lower number of hit boxes, and slightly below average stats otherwise.  Not all Cryxian light jacks have it, but all the 'chicken' jacks do have Arc node and when combined with their cheap point cost it is not hard to see why you tend to see 2-3 in each list.

The Ripjaw is what I see as the most melee aggressive of the chickens.  It is armed with a Bone Saw with a meh P+S but I took these guys for the special attack/action.  For one they come with Armor Piercing meaning that against a Khador jack I would be hitting at straight dice damage, and since this rule is attached with the weapon it can be used on the charge (aww yiss). The second ability is interesting, Vice Lock, as it cannot advance as long as the model stays in my melee range and takes a -2 DEF.  

I took the Ripjaws as a means of being somewhat synergistic with Scaverous and his Telekinesis spell.  The idea is that if I had a target that I need to somewhat lock down for a turn I could hit them with my Telekinesis, turn them completely around, and then Vice Lock them in place.  In the subsequent turn they would not be able to turn around as they cannot advance, meaning they would have to expend some other method of extraction such as a counter-telekinesis or destroying the Ripjaw.  Either way it's been useful in a couple of my games so far.  Additionally a couple of Ripjaws could easily take down a medium-large based model as they both him with the Armor Piercing attack and do tons of damage.

The major flaw besides the inherent ones with being a chicken jack (low health with low ARM) is that once I put the Ripjaw into melee I then lose out on an arc node.  With some casters that might not be a major issue but with Scaverous I think it becomes an issue.  It's something I will have to judge when I need the arc node and when I need to try and lock or chew through a model.  

Perhaps if I choose to use them as a melee buzz saw I will have to a) choose my targets carefully and b) weaken them up a bit first so that I could feasibly kill the target thus freeing up my arc node as much as possible.  Otherwise I would run the risk of losing out on a potential source of damage and an arc node, which tends to not be a good thing for Cryx.

Well that about wraps up my thoughts about the Ripjaw, as I said it's not an extensive piece considering my few games with Cryx so far.  In the future my thoughts might change but until then happy gaming everyone!