More shelf cleaning...

As I mentioned before, I'm selling off my Cryx collection... which is a TON of painted stuff with a few non-painted units in the mix as well. The ebay auction can be found here! Just as with the last one, everything is being handled by the LGS, the posting, shipping, the whole bit! (So any questions or concerns regarding the auctions need to go to him through ebay)

That said, thanks to all those that placed bids on the previous auctions. All those proceeds helped me get a decent start on my Gator army! With the store credit I get from the Cryx stuff I plan to turn around and start either an all Steelhead Magnus/Damiano merc army or possibly a Menoth army as Feora as well as the new warcaster and character jack has kind of caught my eye.

Hopefully in the coming weeks I can get enough of my Gator models completed and some pics shot!

-EBC-

Ebay time! Clearing off my shelves...

I've decided to put up a bunch of my models on Ebay through my LGS. It's pretty nice as the shop owner does all the work as far as putting the items, shipping, etc, and I get store credit equal to whatever the items sell for! Anyway, CLICK HERE to head over the store's current ebay auctions and help me feed my gaming addiction!

Just a note of what I have up there:
- Malifaux Neverborn stuff. All painted except the "Dreamer" box set.
- Firestorm Armada painted Relthoza fleet.
- Legion and Retribution stuff for WM/Hordes.

Also, as soon as the current league I am in ends I will also be posting up my Circle stuff as well as my fully painted Cryx army!

Thanks for checking out my stuff!
-EBC-

From a Goldfish to a Shark: Helping new Warmachine & Hordes players get started!

As with any game, new players are often the lifeblood of Warmachine & Hordes, but the sheer number of models and options can be overwhelming. Which honestly is the reason I have not started FoW… there is so much stuff that I don’t know where to start!

My plan for this post is to go through what I typically go through when new players ask me where to begin. Keep in mind, as with everything, these are just my thoughts on the subject. It is by no means completely comprehensive, and you may not completely agree with in some spots. Either way, this is some of what I have been telling some of my local players, and I’m putting this out there in the hopes it may help some other people out there as well.

Pix of Cryx: Warcasters

In the coming weeks, I plan on systematically taking some pics of my Cryx collection. I’m choosing to kick things off with the models that set the overall pace and tone for any given army, the Warcasters.



Coreshade the Cursed, or eGoreshade was one of the 1st Cryx models I picked up as I just loved the model! Despite Goreshade being one of my favorite Cryx characters both model wise and fluff wise, I have actually never used him in a game. Maybe as soon as I get my units of Bane Thralls finished I can give him some time on the tabletop.



It is no secret, Terminus is my homeboy! While I picked eGoreshade up for the model/fluff, Terminus was the Warcaster I have been playing from the start! My 35 pt tourney list for this guy remains undefeated, and much hated by the rest of the guys at LGS. The original Terminus model came with a set of huge mechanical/ruined wings that I really struggled with during assembly. I couldn’t find a suitable way to really pin or stabilize the wings to a point that I was comfortable that they wouldn’t break off. My solution was the wings you see on him now, taken from an old D&D mini, which has the added bonus of making his overall profile a little bit smaller for transporting.



Skarre, Queen of the Broken Coast, or eSkarre. I have never been a fan of the Satyxis horns, so I left them off, which gives her a kind of “Dark Elf” look. She has been mainly my caster for smaller games, (and MM/T&C) where her feat can be abused… err most useful. My armies for her tend to build around feedback & backlash, so they are very ani-warmachine in that case.




Finally, Iron Lich Asphyxious… better known as Gaspy! I’ve been playing him the most lately, and I think I’m starting to get a bit of a feel for him. I recently developed a list fro I posted on here, which seems pretty interesting, but I need to get in more games vs different casters to see what it is capable of.

So, those are my 4 casters I currently have painted up. I recently picked up the regular Goreshade model, but I’m just not a big fan of it. Maybe I will get lucky and there will be an alternate sculpt done for him in the future. I also wouldn’t mind picking up Mortenebra, but her numerous thin arms scare me from a modeling standpoint. I also wouldn’t mind picking up Venethrax, which would give me an interesting counter to my eSkarre list. It could be interesting to go to a tourney with an anti-WM list with eSkarre, countered with an anti-Hordes list from venethrax… not to mention, the model is pretty sweet too! But, there you have it, those are my current warcasters! Next time I do a “Pix of Cryx” post it will be of the Warjacks in my collection.

- EBC -

WM/Hordes Tourney, 1-29-11 Olathe, KS

I've got a tourney just a few weeks away that I figured I would throw up on here...

January 29th, 2011
Registration @ 11 am-12pm
Games Start @ 12:30 pm

* Note * There will not be a break for lunch, feel free to go grab something to eat either before or after registering. There is also a 30 minute window between the end of registration and the start of the 1st round as well…

$5 Entry fee

Prizes include coins for 1st-3rd as well as store credit. There will also be a prize for "Best Painted Army" as well...

31st century Games & Hobbies
2113 East 151st Street
Olathe, KS 66062
(913) 397-7706
31stcenturygames.com



The “Headhunter” format is as follows:

- Single Warmachine or Hordes list
- “Kill Box” Scenario
- 4 Rounds. 60 min + random additional time each round
- Games will last 6 turns
- Turns will be 7 minutes + a single 3 min extension

- Players strive for the fastest caster/lock kill. The winning player scores points based on what round the game ended on. 1st round = 6 pts, 2nd Round = 5 pts, 3rd Round = 4 points, and so on. A loss = 0 points.
- 1st place, 2nd place, 3rd place will be determined by a player’s total score, with “strength of schedule” determining any final ties.


The idea behind the tournament is for each player to get the quickest win possible each game. Expect to see overly aggressive, assassination lists in ever game. Games are expected to be fast and brutal! One of the interesting aspect of this format is that a player doesn’t need to have a perfect record to achieve 1st place… a player with a 2-2 record that managed to get turn 2 assassinations in both those games will end up with 10 points total, while a player with a 4-0 record but only achieved turn 5 assassinations each game will only end up with 8 points.

If you have any questions or concerns regarding the format or anything else, please let me know!


Also, just a reminder, 31st Century has “Warmachine Wednesdays”, every Wednesday starting at 6:30 pm, which is the perfect time to get in some test games before the tournament. Brand new to the game? Wednesdays are the perfect time to get in a demo game or two to show you the ropes!

Maybe I'll see some you guys there!
- EBC -

Bane Thrall UA - Hot off the painting desk

Well, I recently picked up 2x Bane Thrall units and 2x UAs, mostly for a future Goreshade list, and while I'm still working on the unit itself, I did finish up the UA for the 1st unit. These guys served as my "Test minis" for the unit, and give a good idea of how the paint scheme will look for the whole unit. Overall, I'd say I'm pretty happy with their outcome!




... I also just realized that despite having 90% of my Cryx collection fully painted (only have the Banes & Bloodgorgers left) I do not have pics of them posted up. Guess I'm gonna have to fix that in the coming weeks!

- EBC -

Who needs a heavy? pGaspy sure doesn't!

The latest list I have been running with a bit of success is another pGaspy one. I think it is better than my previous one, but I need to get in some more games to determine just how competitive it may be. The list is as follows:



I should note that the scrap thralls are just filler for the final point and could easily be swapped for a necrotech or machine wraith. Another possibility would be dropping the 1 point filler and 1 bone jack to add in a rip jaw for the extra AP attack if you feel the need. You could even swap Gorman and the 1 point filler for a pistol wraith if need be. Needless to say, these are all tings I may be playing around with in the future.

The list is sneaky as it may seem weak on the table top at first due to its lack of a heavy, which may fool other players into rushing their heavies into your lines. However neither of the 2 main units are slouches in combat, and a heavy may quickly find themselves scrapped! The idea is to stack several effects like Scything Touch, ParasiteDark Shroud, Rust (vs WM), and gang on the bloodgorgers. I'll go through and explain, starting with the Bane Thralls.

Bane Thralls naturally have a P+S 11 w/ weapon master, and their dark shroud lowers a target's armor by -2. Scything Touch add +2 to the damage roll, Parasite reduces armor by -3, and Gorman's Rust causes -2 armor to jacks. So, stacking all those benefits, plus charging will yield some nasty results... especially vs jacks. Vs Jacks it would look like P+S 11 + 2 dmg with 4 dice on the charge, and the target jack could potentially have -7 armor! (-2 Rust, -3 Parasite, -1 Shroud) Even vs a Warbeast, it would still have -5 armor. There are not a lot of things that could stand up to effectively what would be multiple P+S 18/20 attacks with 4 dice each.

The Bloodgorgers, while not as nasty as the above example, can still surprise people. You'll be stacking the same effects mentioned above, even dark shroud if you manage to get a Bane Thrall into the Target's range. The Bloodgorgers get +2 dmg when in melee with a model in Melee range of another bloodgorger. While they lack weapon master, they do have 2x attacks each at P+S 11. So, Combat with these guys would look like: P+S 11, +2 gang, +2 scything touch (P+S 15 in total) with same -7 armor provided its vs a jack and you can manage to get a Thrall in range... effectively P+S 22/20/18 depending on what debuffs you can stack, and on 3 dice for the initial charge attack.

With effective stats like that, do you even need a heavy? Not to mention, both units effectively have a "no-Knockdown-tough roll", and the ability to create new Bane Thralls.

Scything Touch and Parasite is key, and getting them to go off on the multiple targets in a single round is pretty easy and just requires a little set up to pull it off to its fullest extent. You will have Gaspy casting 1 spell, and your Skarlock casting the other... the plan is to abuse the upkeep of a spell on 1 target, activating that unit 1st, then activating Gaspy/Skarlock and recasting the same spell(s) on a different unit. For example: Gaspy activates turn 1 and casts Scything Touch on the Thralls and Parasite on the potential charge target. Turn 2, Gaspy upkeeps Scything touch on Thralls and Parasite on the Target, you Activate the Thralls 1st Charge in, and do their stuff. Next you activate Gaspy, cast Scything Touch on the Bloodgorgers (removing it from the Thralls) and the Skarlock casts Parasite on the Gorger's charge target before the Gorgers in turn activate and charge in. Thus 2 uses of Scy-Touch/Parasite in a single round... easy stuff!

Jack wise, it's all about the Arcnodes to make the above 2 key spells easier to cast while keeping Gaspy out of range/in 2 places at once. Honestly, the Cankerworm is in there just for fun, and could easily be swapped out for another arcnode. It should also be mentioned that Gaspy is no slouch in combat on his own, and often I find my Banes/Gorgers simply open up a hole for Gaspy to rush in and finish off the opposing Caster/Lock with relative ease!

So, there you have it! Like I said, I'm not sure this list has been fully optimized just yet, as I have a handful of minute options I would like to try swapping around. But hey, I think its off to a decent start!

-EBC-

Scenarios in Warmachine & Hordes...

After running a tournament a few weeks ago I had come to realize something... no one in my community is actually playing any of the WM/Hordes scenarios! I cannot tell you how many times scenarios played a pivotal role in determining the outcome of a game, even more so since very few players were actually taking into account the scenario itself. Players seemed to go for the assassination victory every single game, and were extremely frustrated when they lost a game despite the fact that they felt they were "dominating" the other guy all game. It all boils down to the fact that very few (if anyone) in this area are actually playing scenarios in regular games, and thus were unequipped to handle any of them in the tournament environment. I had been pushing for months to get the local playerbase to play scenarios in their games, but none of them were interested back then... I bet they regretted that fact at the tournament!

So if there was anything I learned from that tournament, it was this: "If you are not playing scenarios in every game, you are not fully playing Warmachine & Hordes", it may seem harsh, but its true. Assassinations are not the only way to win games, and likewise scenarios can easily lose you games if you are not careful! (As the local playerbase found out) Look at it this way, Casters/Locks typically fall into 1 of 3 categories: Assassination, Attrition, and Scenario in their description. If you only play "Assassination Victory" as the only means to victory in your games, you have effectively cut out 1/3 of the game's casters full potential in your games. How are you gonna know all the nasty tricks a Rahn player call pull out in scenarios if you never give him the chance? Do you really want a tournament game, when 1st place is on the line, to be the game that you discover what Rahn's all about? I doubt it.

Another way to look at it is from the Assassination player's point of view. It is no secret to my playerbase that I am a HUGE Terminus (no pun intended) fan, and it is also no secret that my regular 35pt "Tournament Terminus" list has yet to lose a single game. Despite the fact that my Terminus list is a straight assassination list, I still always encourage people to play a scenario against it. Why? Because it gives the opponent a chance to win the game without going toe-to-toe with Terminus, AND forces me to keep an eye on the actual objective of the game and not just kill, kill, kill. In the end, it is a challenge to me that wouldn't otherwise be present in just an "assassination victory" style of game, it helps keep things interesting for me when I play Terminus, and forces to me to think outside my normal strategy.

Long story short, I encourage people to play a scenario in every game they play, whether it is from the SR2010 (or 2011) rules of just the rulebook itself so that you get to experience every facet of Warmachine & hordes and every facet of your Caster/Lock as well. Sure, a good chunk of your games will still end in an assassination, but the option for an alternate win is still present to BOTH players. In the long run, especially in the tournament scene, the person who is familiar with the scenarios will have a distinct advantage over the player without that experience.

-EBC-

OMG, Cryx is so OP!

I'm joking, I'm joking... but it definitely seems after last night's games that several of the guys up at the LGS are starting to think so! Below is my pGaspy list I was using last night...



The screenshot by the way, was taken from Forward Kommander.com, which is a perfect (and FREE!) site that lets you build your Warmachine & Hordes lists! As you can see, the list is FAR from an optimized "hard" list (imo), but it still managed to ruffle some feathers and give my opponents the fritz. The 1st game was against Menoth... a Reznik list with Errants, Bastions, an Avatar, and an Reckoner. My general strat was simple: cast "Scything Touch" on my Mechanithralls for +2 damage and crit corrosion, block LoS and Charges with "Breath of Corruption", then get into melee with Gaspy where I let sustained attack coupled with the focus replishing side of my feat to just beat face!

Basically, I went 1st and set up my mechanithralls and Pistol wraiths to the right side, and everything else mid to left. I ran the thralls up towards the errants and his jacks, cast "Scything touch" on them, and pretty much advanced with everything else. My opponent basically advanced with everything, took a few potshots at the mechanithralls with errants but only managed to kill 1 or 2.

My turn 2, saw me charging his errants with my mechanithralls, and killed all but 3 or 4. I also used 1 pistol wraith to "death chill" the incoming avatar, I used the 2nd one to "death chill" one of the errant-like solos. Nothing major happened on turn 2 for the menoth player. The Reckoner nailed my bonejack, but my opponent's dice whiffed on him and he was only able to take out another 1 or 2 mechanithralls.

My turn 3. I was now set up to have Gaspy charge Reznik, but 1st I had to get a lone errant out of the charge path. I moved my pistol wraith into range, my 1st kill shot got transfered/martyed/or whatnot to a different errant, but my 2nd one scored the kill and cleared the way for the charge. Gaspy charged, boosted to hit with his 1st attack to trigger sustained attack and the rest was history!

My 2nd game was against a Khador player using the old witch. I honestly didnt expect to win this one as I have had a lot of issues getting through the behemoth AND catching the old witch thanks to her teleporting ability. But, I went into it with the same gusto as my last game. same plan, same strategy.

I started off getting really lucky with my 1st "Breath of Corruptions" deviating onto some doom reavers. My 2nd turn saw more lucky deviations onto the reavers, and with them taken care of I started to focus on his man-o-wars, with my Deathjack circling around the right side, it started to seem like I had Old witch pinned down between my stuff in the middle and the deathjack on the flanks. It all started to fall apart for the khador player on his next turn. He attempted to hit the deatnhjack via the scrapjack with gallows, but despite only needing a 6 or a 7, he couldnt pull it off. In his frustration he cast it again, and failed again before porting off. Those 2 failed dice rolls, the loss of his reavers via deviating aoes, and handful of other failed attempts to hit a few of my other def 14 guys were enough to ruin the khador player's mood for the rest of the night! The Behemoth did manager to whittle down my Mechanithrall unit to 3 models, which were later that turn killed off so I couldn't bring them back with the necrosurgeon. My next turnsaw me trampling with the deathjack through some mechanics that the Khador put in the way to block my charge, ending me just outside of melee range of the old witch and right behind (but just out of melee range) of the behemoth. My pistol wraiths who had been shooting and "death chilling" the behemoth all game long, did so yet again. The remainder of my stuff advanced towards the old witch and behemoth. The Khador player did pull out somethiing interesting to kill off my deathjack. From Behemoth's rear arc, the old witch used "gallows" to send the behemoth into melee range of my death jack. The behemoth, then turned the deathjack to scrap despite missing once or twice. On my next turn I charged the witch with gaspy, easily shrugged off some free strikes, and 2 attacks later the old witch was no more. the Khador player was not too happy about that loss and proceeded to have a heated discussion about how he felt Khador has the worst casters in all of Warmachine and hordes. *rolls eyes*

Ran my 1st Warmachine/Hordes tournament...

I recently ran my 1st Warmachine/Hordes event at 31st century Games. I'm still waiting to hear back from Privateer Press in regards to my PG Status, so unfortunately it was an "unofficial event". We had 12 players, so not too shabby for my first event! More importantly, everyone seemed to have had a good time! Here's a brief rundown everything and the results:

15pt Mangled Metal/Tooth & Claw

Out of the 12 players, we had:
3x Mercs (all Gorten)
2x Khador
1x Skorne
2x Cryx
2x Cygnar
1x Legion
1x Trollbloods

1st - Brandon S. - Goreshade
2nd - Troy N. - Gorten
3rd - Brad - Strakov

... a close 4th was Matt K.'s Skorne. Best painted went to Matt's Skorne, which was another close call between them and Troy's Mercs.

Skorne Units & Solos

Paingiver Master Tormentor



Orin Midwinter



Karax



Paingiver Beast handlers



Swamp Gobbers



Cetrati



Paingiver Bloodrunners



The Agonizer

Skorne Warbeasts

Ahh, Warbeasts... the work-horses of any Hordes army!

Titan Gladiators...




Rhinodon...




Molik Karn...




Basilisk Krea...




Cyclops Savage...




Cyclops Brute...




Bronzeback Titan...

Skorne Warlocks...

IMO, the brains behind any Warmachine/Operation... the 1st choice made in any list, they easily dictate the other components in your army. Thus, they are often the first models I paint as well. I have 3 done thus far, and will be adding more in the future!





Xerxis, Epic Morghoul, and regular (prime) Morghoul...

I'm with Terminus!

So, the latest league has come and gone, so this post is a bit overdue. I ended up playing my Cryx in the Blasted Heath, and played Terminus exclusively to great success at 15 pt, 25 pt, and 35 pt levels. My standard 35 pt list was:

Lich Lord Terminus +4
Stalker -4

Mechanithralls (full)-5
3 Brute Thrall -3
Mechanithralls (full)-5
2 Brute Thrall -2
Necrosurgeon & Stitch Thralls -2
Necrosurgeon & Stitch Thralls -2
The Withershadow Combine -5
Madelyn Corbeau -2
Pistol Wraith -3
Pistol Wraith -3*
3 Scrap Thrall -1*
Warwitch Siren -2

* at 1st, I ran Darragh Wrathe but swapped him for another pistol wraith with the scrap thralls as filler due to the local jack/beast heavy meta.

I think for the most part the list just caught people unaware. It only took 1 game of having an infantry unit wiped out to give Terminus 30+ armor before people stopped bringing infantry all together, and only brought jacks/beasts! Don't get me wrong, there are tons of bad match ups for Terminus and the above list can surely be tweaked to an even greater level... I think part of the appeal for me is that he seemed to just threw a wrench into the gameplay typically seen at my LGS. Needless to say, thanks to all the success I had with him in the league, Terminus is now officially my homeboy! He is also probably the most hated Warcaster at my LGS now as well! *evil grin* If you have not already done so, give him a try!

-EBC-