Reminder - Saturday is Warhammer Day at Warlords

Just a reminder that there will be a group of us at Warlords this weekend playing Warhammer. Bring along a 1200 or 2400 point army and we'll make sure you get a game.

KPC Hall, Ganges Road, Khandallah - 10am to 5pm

Major Hobby Fail - Grrrr!

Over the past week I have basecoated my Deathshroud Terminators for my Heresy Death Guard Legion.

Once I finished the basecoat I sprayed them with Gloss Varnish ready for their oil wash. I started on the first one and noticed that the wash was affecting the base coat (ostensibly below the varnish) and as I removed the wash I was also removing paint.

Thinking it was a poor varnish I then brushcoated the remaining four with Gloss Varnish (three coats) and once dry tried the oil wash again. I got the same result though the extra varnish seemed to muffle the effect somewhat.

All five are now in Simple Green as I strip them back to bare resin.

I didn't have this when I did my Tactical Squad. All I can put it down to is preparation. The Terminators must have had more/stronger release agent on them. I did wash them though it appears not well enough.

Very frustrating.

The von Trapps at the NZ Team Championships - Day Two

So as noted in the previous post, we were sitting in second place, ten points behind the NZHammered team going into Day 2. Certainly we didn't think that this gap was insurmountable.

Round 5 Shaken Not Stirred

Jack (DE) 14-6 Mike Stewart (O&G) [Prediction: 10-10]
Tom (DoC) 3-17 Tim Joss (Chaos Dwarfs) [10-10]
Pete (OK) 15-5 Damon Quaid (Lizards) [10-10]
Joe (WoC) 17-3 Alan Redmond (Empire) [13-7]

This was the round where Tom got thrown under the bus. We realised that the Chaos Dwarfs were a likely winner over the Daemons (rather than our initial thoughts of a draw) but felt we had the opportunity to push for big wins in our other games. As it turned out, our predicted 43 points grew to 49.

I had my third Lizard in a row and was confident I could push for a good win. As it turned out in pushing for the win I left myself exposed and Damon got a 9" charge with a Saurus block into the flank of my big Mournfang unit. I was lucky to hold the initial charge, turned and then over time worked my way through the block. In the last turn, my Maneaters (in flank) and Ironguts (front) hit the other Saurus - containing Slaan and Old Blood - and I ended up getting those points.

This left us on 231 points going into the last round. This was the same as the Nerdymen and one behind the Grumpy Old Men. NZHammered had been beaten 51-29 by the Nerdymen and were now 10 points behind us.

In the last round the Grumpy Old Men drew the Nerdymen (as they had played us) and we drew the Krushers (having played 4th through 7th). NZHammered drew Team OMEN.

Round 6 Kapiti Krushers

Jack (DE) 10-10 Hermann van Kradenberg (DE) [7-13]
Tom (DoC) 18-2 Nicholas Jebson (O&G) [17-3]
Pete (OKs) 17-3 Sam Campbell (DoC) [13-7]
Joe (WoC) 12-8 Hamish Gordon (WoC) [7-13]

The potential scores we had assigned the Krushers marked them as having the strongest suite of lists at the event so it was important to get our matchups right. We also knew that we had the edge in experience so we might be able to squeeze more out of the matches.

Sam had 90 Bloodletters plus supporting chaff. I knew that it was madness to move into a position whereby I didn't get the charge and/or I had to engage all three blocks. To this end I worked to reduce the battle frontage so that only two BL blocks would be able to engage at once. In tandem I went about removing as much of his chaff as possible. My front line move back over Turns 2-4 narrowing the BL's available frontage. Eventually the General's block charged my small Ogre unit (fled) and then Gnobblers (fled and caught). This allowed me the opportunity to focus shooting and magic on this block reducing it to 12 before a next turn charge wiped it out.

We managed a big win this round and knew that unless either the Grumpies or the Nerds had done the same then we were in the box seat.

Awards

NZHammered

The League of Extraordinary Nerdymen

The von Trapp Family

Wrap Up

We finished on 288 points, five points clear of the Nerdymen. NZHammered was two further points behind on 281 points.

Our score was exactly 12 points per game - which was far lower than I thought would be necessary to win the event. However I clearly underestimated the effect of a bad matchup.

In terms of our team scores:

• Joe - 79
• Pete - 77
• Tom - 76
• Jack - 56

Given that Joe's last tournament was October and Jack's was in March, I thought that they did incredibly well. Our scores were far more even than most teams - where generally there was a large spread between the players. In part I put this down to the matchup process we employed where at some point everyone took an undesirable matchup.

When I look at the results for the other teams, it wasn't a surprise that for 5 teams their captain (and controller of the matchup process) was the highest scorer. I think it is only human nature that the captain isn't entirely neutral in engineering favourable matchups for themselves. However I'm not sure consistently throwing your team mates under the bus is the best strategy for team harmony. 

The other major talking point for me was the fact that 1st and 2nd Place didn't end up playing each other over the six rounds. Given that the field only had ten teams, you don't expect this to happen. 

Overall I loved the event and I hope that it will become a staple on the Warhammer calendar.

EDIT: I grabbed the photos from Hermann's Border Princes blog because I'm useless and always forget to take photos

The von Trapps at the NZ Team Championships - Day One

A fortnight ago the inaugural NZTC was held here in Wellington. The championships were sponsored by this blog with the intention that they would become a regular fixture on the NZ Warhammer calendar.

The Spoils of War

The initial von Trapp Family was Jack, Tom and myself, along with Hagen Kerr. We wrote a really filthy Lizard list for Hagen which he started using at Skitterleap. Hagen's wife, Joy, is pregnant with their third child and unfortunately she was ill during Skitterleap, causing Hagen to withdraw. With her due date only three weeks after the NZTC, Hagen decided it was a little too close for familial harmony.

Enter Mal Patel. Mal is NZ's dirtiest Lizard player and was honoured to be called up for the von Trapp cause. So honoured, that he promptly forgot about it and went and booked a holiday for the same weekend. Softcock!

Well his loss was Joe Dixon's gain. Joe has been a regular guest at Chez Dunn when he and his brother Harry travelled from Nelson for Wellington tournaments. Now resident in Wellington, Joe indicated that it was the fulfilment of his life's dream to be part of the von Trapp Family with three Dunns.

Originally our intention was to run Daemons, Skaven, Lizards and one other. With Joe keen to run his Warriors and Jack having just finished painting 30 Corsairs those plans had to be amended. Tom kept his Daemons and I took one for the team agreeing to play Ogres.

Prior to the event we individually reviewed all the opposing lists and assigned a game result to them. This varied from 17 through 13, 10,7 down to 3 - representing the points we thought we could get. Based on these forecasts we approached the matchup process. In this we were helped with Jack developing an Android App that looked to maximise our round score based on these forecasts. It indicated who we should put up first etc in each particular round and then reacted to the other team's action. Where this was good is that it took all the emotion out of the process with the sole goal of maximising the team's round score.

For a runthrough I'll provide the team's scores and mention any points from my games that I remember.

Round One - Over The Hill

Jack (DE) 13 - 7 Dave Appleby (Skaven) - [Predition: 10-10]
Tom (DoC) 20 - 0 Simon Switzer (Dwarfs) [17-3]
Pete (OK) 9 -11 James Millington (WoC) [17-3]
Joe (WoC) 15 -5 Peter Williamson (HE) [17-3]

The rest of the team did really well in this round. I was cruising to a 13/14 point win having not lost any points until the bottom of Turn 5 when James had a comet land with an 11" radius. This took out 700 points and forced it back to a small loss. In retrospect I was probably a bit complacent about the effect the comet could have and should have paid it (and James) more respect.

We predicted a 60 point win and achieved 57 points - the deficit solely due to me.

Round Two - NZHammered

Jack (DE) 2 -18 James Brown (OK) [10-10]
Tom (DoC) 11-9 Glen Tibbles (WoC) [13-7]
Pete (OK) 15-5 John Wilenbruch (Lizards) [10-10]
Joe (WoC) 2-18 Antony Kitson (Brets) [13-7]

We predicted a small win here with some very tight games. Ideally we wanted Joe into the Lizards but his next best match was forecast as the Brets. In the end Jack had a little bad luck while, in retrospect, the prediction of Woc v Brets was wrong.

In my game, John had net list Skinks and played the "don't engage, blast with Banishment" strategy. It was very cagey the first few turns and John was unlucky not to take out my Maneaters. However he then got parts of his army isolated and I was able to pick up points while preserving my own.

Our prediction of a small win proved wrong and we took our only loss of the weekend.

Round Three - Team OMEN

Jack (DE) 10-10 Joel van de Ven-Long (Empire) [13-7]
Tom (DoC) 14-6 James Milner (HE) [13-7]
Pete (OK) 11-9 Sam Whitt (DE) [10-10]
Joe (WoC) 18-2 Glen Burfield [13-7]

Joe was the star here, picking up a major win. In my game versus Sam I was determined that if I engaged his three character bus of COKs then it would be with multiple units. I picked up his chaff and Hydra but lost both my Firebelly and BSB to Spirit Leech.

We scored slightly better than predicted and continued to stay in the running.

Round Four - Grumpy Old Men

Jack (DE) 7-13 Raymond Dick (DE) [10-10]
Tom (DoC) 11-9 Tane Woodley (Dwarfs) [17-3]
Pete (OK) 10-10 Mike King (Lizards) [13-7]
Joe (WoC) 15-5 Reid Pittams (DoC) [3-17]

Our matchups predicted a small win and in the end that's what we achieved. The plan was to get Tom into the Dwarfs but Tane played a very strong defensive game and blunted our main weapon. The shock was Joe getting up over Reid where we thought he would struggle. His efforts were instrumental in us getting the small win.

A Grumpy Old Man

In my game versus Mike - one we play every second week - I made a critical error when I accepted a challenge I shouldn't have - let's put it down to the fourth game on a long day. This held me up for two turns and meant I lost my big Mournfang unit and critically left Mike's ethereal Slaan on a single wound.

We achieved a small win which left ust in second place going into Day Two, nine points behind NZHammered.

The Wood Elf Lords Conundrum

I was looking at my Wood Elves the other day and thought "You know it's a long time since I gave them a run on the tabletop....they are meant to be crap, let's see if they are?"

"Right Woody, let's f#@k this shit up"

Sat down in front of Army Builder last night and immediately ran into a problem.

Basically I want to run:

• 40-50 archers
• Dryads
• 2+ Treemen
• Lore of Life

The problem I encountered was when I went to build the list. If I want to run an Eagle, it means I have to run a Treeman Ancient. At 325 points this severely curtails my ability to build a meaningful Lord Level Spellweaver (read needs a scroll or the Wand).

So how do experienced Wood Elf players solve this conundrum - apart from playing at the ETC where they give you extra points?

It appears to me there are three routes:

• Treeman Ancient + Eagles: This means sub-par Level 4
• Level 3 - Sub-par Lore of Life choices possible
• 2x Rare Teerman and good Level 4 - means no 50 point redirectors

What is the accumulated wisdom at 2400 points?

Warhammer at Warlords Saturday

This Saturday there is an open invitation to local Warhammer players to come along to the Warlords to play some games of Warhammer Fantasy.

I'll be there from just after 10am and will make sure that any that turn up during the day (the Club is open until 5pm) get a game.

Just bring along either a 2400 point army or a 1200 point army. Beginners, Advanced, Swimming Pool Sharks all are welcome.

You can even have me arrange some games in advance if you drop me a line on pete@thefieldsofblood.com and tell me what time you are turning up.

Blogs vs. Forums

Are blogs taking over from forums?

I've asked this question before on here before but Ben Curry on his Bad Dice Daily got me thinking about it with his comment on the bile on TWF for the new Daemons of Chaos.

I used to be a regular contributor on WargamerAu but in the past two years have pretty much avoided it. I also was a financial supporter of Dakka but now I just check the News & Rumours section and the old Dakka Discussion thread. I do go to TWF but this is most likely to ask a specific rules question.

Why the change?

The last five years have seen the rise of the Internet Warriors on the forums.

These guys have always been there but the last few years has seen them multiple at an astonishing rate. They typically show themselves as trolls, adding little or nothing to a discussion but being incredibly argumentative to no positive end. A variant is the one that has quit playing the game but hangs around to dish out huge dollops of negativity be it about rules, figures or the game/hobby in general.

I just got tired of them.

And it seems others have to, if the rise of blogging is any indication. Sure, you still get trolls and internet warriors on blogs but generally the blog seems to have more of a community feel about it - like the forums a decade ago, I guess.

Why? Well most of the contributors know each other and self-moderate their views. It's a lot harder to be an arsehole if you know you are going to be across the table from your target at a tournament or club.That is part of the reason why I ask commentators to identify themselves here on FOB.

RUNEFANG VI Warhammer Fantasy Tournament

I am pleased to announce my next event as RUNEFANG VI, a two day Warhammer Tournament to be played here in Wellington on 27/28 April.

The event will be umpired by Peter Williamson and will comprise five games over the two days. The Players Pack can be downloaded here. This includes all the details including scoring, missions and composition restrictions.

Early registration cutoff is 16th March.

UPDATE: The numbers are looking really strong. Just on 20 since the announcement yesterday. Expecting 30+ for the event and we may hit capacity at 36

New Daemons of Chaos Rules

Tim has posted some rules on his blog:

Bloodletters of Khorne are now strength 4, with special rules MR1, Scaly skin 6+, Daemonic and Daemon of Khorne. They have the daemonic gift Hellblade.... 14 points

I cant see any reference to killing blow but that dosnt mean they loose it as the sword may grant it.

Pink Horrors stats stay the same, special rules are Daemonic, Daemon of Tzeentch, Blue horrors of Tzeentch, and a unit counts as a level 1 caster.... 13 points

Yay Blue horrors of Tzeentch. No idea how it works but yay!

Plaugebearers are strength 4 Toughness 4, have the Daemonic gift plaguesword, and are Daemons of Nurgle, and Daemonic.... 13 points

Daemonettes get 2 attacks, and become Daemons of Slannesh + Daemonic for 11 points

Bloodcrushers are now special, 3+ a unit, the jugger mounts get toughness 4 and 3 wounds like the WOC ones, and are 65 points. With the scaly skin rules Daemons now have a 3+ 5++ save monstrous cav option!

Flamers appear to have the same stats as the WD rules, and are 40 points. Special rules flames of Tzeentch, Daemons of Tzeentch, Warpflame, Daemonic and skirmishers.

There appears to be an option to upgrade a unit of Plaguebearers to have regenerate, and another option that if you score any roll of 6 to hit with a  poisonattack, an additional strength 4 hit is made. Another option is upgrading poison to 5+

My thoughts on these, if they prove to be true:

• Bloodletters look right if Hellblade gives KB. Scaly Skin is a bit of a red herring. The drop in Str and 2 pt increase rebalance things.
• Don't understand Horror rules. Are Pink Horrors still caster? 
• Not sure why you wouldn't take Plaguebearers over Bloodletters -  1 pt increase for +1 Str - yes please
• The Bloodcrushers have worse rider than Skullcrushers, but are 13 pts cheaper and have 5+ Ward

New Daemons of Chaos March White Dwarf Pictures

So the pictures of the new Daemons of Chaos from March White Dwarf have hit the internet (Hat Tip: Little Timmy Joss at Plastic Krak).

First up is Khorne

A nice if unadventurous Herald

The first option of a two part kit

The alternative. Very Khorne Daemon Engine

Again nice if a little unadventurous

Now these are cool

With the Heralds, this being Ms. Slaanesh 2013, it is almost as though they were deliberately restrained.

First of two Tzeentch Chariots

Second Chariot, this one with Herald.

I particularly like the Tzeentch Herald on chariot and the Plague Drones. Most of the rest are okay, if uninspiring. A bit meh on the Skull Cannon.

NZ Team Championship Results

Here are the results for the NZTC played over the weekend. I have created a matrix which shows who played who and the game result. Where teams didn't play the box is blackened.

Full write up when I recover :-)

Silly Old Abaddon Goes For 0-14

Stupid Son of Horus!

Best Magic Item - Orcs & Goblins

One of the big changes with the 8th Edition books is that, recognising the expansion of Common Magic Items (all 81), the race-specific selections have shrunk.

As part of an occasional series, I'll be looking at the individual 8th Ed books and giving my pick on which is the best magic item for the race from their selection. I'll probably work through in order based on release.

The Orc & Goblin magic items are Shiny Stuff and can be found on Page 74 of their book. Shiny Stuff is limited to eight items spread over the four of the five magic slots (there is no Orc/Goblin Talisman strangely). The choice of most useful (and therefore also most commonly seen) goes to the Lucky Shrunken Head.

The Lucky Shrunken Head is an Arcane Item costing 50 points. It can only be taken by a Savage Orc Shaman or Great Shamam but it is a very rare day in the Badlands that you don't see an army with a Savage Orc unit walking around without a mage carrying this item.

The Shrunken Head increases the Savage Orcs' 6+ Warpaint Save to a 5+ effectively doubling their survivability. As most "Orc" armies have a horde of 30-40 Savage Orc Big Uns, the head gets a regular run.

The item is clearly very cost effective which increases with the size of the unit. Of course it has an entry barrier - 70 points (cost of SO Shaman) - but as most Orc armies want access to the Spells of da Big Waagh, they are taking an Orc Shaman anyway. What this item does is ensure any Shamans are Savage Orc in nature.

It is most commonly seen on a Level 4 (increasing the chance of both Foot and Hand of Gork) leaving him with a further 50 points of magic items. As the Head is Arcane, you'll likely find a Goblin/NG scroll caddy in the list.

Of the other items in the list, the only other one I have seen used is the Spider Banner. This is very expensive - 85 points - and gives Poisoned Attacks. If the unit already has Poisoned Attacks then these will wound on a 5+ rather than 6+. It can only be taken by a Goblin (not NG) BSB.

I have seen this used in a unit of 80 Night Goblin archers in conjunction with the Gift of the Spider-God spell (Little Waagh). One of our locals, Sam Whitt, was using the unit. If you stood off it and were lightly armoured it was brutal. I found the key was to multi charge it with units that could survive the initial onslaught.

Daemons Confirmed For March

Games Workshop have confirmed Daemons for March release. I'm presuming it will be dual 40k and Fantasy effort as per 2008.

Official pictures/details this Saturday.

Post-SCGT Comp - Modifications

Locally we have been using the 2012 SCGT Comp Pack for our events - including Masters and NZTC (the only variation being an exclusion of Special Characters). This had the benefits of being independent, easily understood/managed and largely permissive.

Since the pack was first written three books (Vampires, Empire, Warriors) and two updates (Warriors and Daemons) have been released. Also there have been clarifications in official GW FAQs that have impacted.

Local competitions have seen diversity in the races brought to tournaments (e.g. 11 races out of 12 participants at the Masters) and a diversity of races filling out Top 10 positions. So we have not been plagued by a lack of variety.

The pack in its current form is no longer being supported, having been replaced with a new pack based on a "pool" system.

Having previously canvassed locals, I know there is strong support for a system that is:

• Concise and easily understood
• Largely permissive so that they can bring their toys
• Aimed at restricting particularly egregious selection rather than balancing all choices.

As with any hard cap system, there is no reward for taking supposedly fluffy choices.

With this in mind, Jack, Tom and myself had a discussion as to what updates were required to continue to use the system if desired. We were mindful of the bullets above.

Here are our suggested tracked changes (either Strikethrough or in RED). Love to get people's thoughts on them and whether they are necessary and whether we have missed and that are required.

As the Warriors of Chaos book is further dissected and tabletop experience is gained (rather than the current Theoryhammer than changes may be necessary. Until then we believe they should be uncomped.

The Winds of Magic rules we are currently using remain in force e.g. 12 PD Max, 6 dice per spell, +2PD

LIST RESTRICTIONS

Non warmachine shooting is limited to 90 shots per army - count the number of shots, not models. So for example Dark Elf Warriors with repeater crossbows count as 2 shots.

Ranked (non-skirmisher) infantry with missile weapons with a range of 12" or less are excluded from this restriction.

An army may not include more than 2 warmachines of the same type and no more than 5 in an army.

No single non character unit in the army may be over 450 points

The magic item “Fozzrik’s Folding Fortress” may not be taken.

No SPECIAL CHARACTERS may be taken

Race Specific Restrictions:

Lizardmen

• Salamanders 0 – 3 models per army.
• Higher State of Consciousness and the Crown of Command may not be taken on the same model.
• Skink Cohorts are 0 – 3 units per army. Cohorts containing Kroxigor do not count towards the cap.
• Skink Skirmishers are 0-3 units per army.
• Only two of the following may be taken per army – Beclaming Cognitation, Cube of Darkness, Dispel Scroll, Cupped Hands.

 Vampire Counts

•  Max 3 units/characters with the Ethereal special rule

 Skaven

•  Hell Pit Abominations and Warp Lighting Cannons are 0-1 unit selection per army.
• A Screaming Bell or Plague Furnace may only be placed in a unit containing no more than 50 models.
• Gutter Runners units are 0 – 2 per army.
• Warlock Engineers are 0 – 3 models per army.
• Skaven Slaves units may only be a maximum of 50 models per unit.

 Dark Elves

• The Pendant of Kaleth and the Crown of Command may not be taken on the same model.
• Hydras 0 – 1 unit selections per army.
• Max 3 units with the ‘fly’ special rule

 Empire

•  Steam Tanks are 0 – 1 models per army
• No restrictions

 Daemons of Chaos

• Infantry units may only be a maximum of 400 points per unit
• Max 4 Khorne Heralds and/or Bloodletter units in the army
• Max 3 units with the ‘fly’ special rule

 Tomb Kings

• Only Skeleton Bowmen count towards the shot cap, all other “shots” in the army are excluded when calculating the army’s total “shots”
• Khalida is restricted to unit with 40 shots

High Elves

• High Elves may take units of up to 550 points, overriding the 450 point restriction given above
• High Elf armies may ignore the “same type” warmachine restriction
• Dragon Mage's additional dice do not count towards the '+2 cap' Winds of Magic dice restriction. They are effectively 'free'.
• Teclis may not be taken

Ogres

• A maximum of 2 out of the 3 following items may be taken in the army: Greedy Fist, Lore of Death and Hellheart
• If the Hellheart is taken then a Dispel Scroll may not be taken in the army
• Ironblasters are 0-1 choice
• If a second Ironblaster is taken, Mournfang Units become a 0-2 unit selection per army

 Orcs & Goblins

• Goblin Bolt Throwers do not count when working out your 5 maximum warmachine allowance

 Beastmen

•  Beastmen armies may take units of up to 550 points, overriding the 450 point restriction given above

Dwarfs

• Thorek may not be taken 

Chaos Dwarfs

• Magma Cannons are 0-1 choice

Bretonnians, Warriors of Chaos, Wood Elves

•  No restrictions

Unveiled - The Fields of Blood Cup

And here's what the teams will be playing for - The Fields of Blood Cup!

The Fields of Blood Cup will be a perpetual trophy for the New Zealand Teams Championship. Standing just on 12" high the cup will pass into the safekeeping of the winning team for the following twelve months. It will be engraved with the team name and the names of the four players as a permanent record of their achievement. It is awarded on the basis that the Team Captain is responsible for it during the period of their tenure and he will return it in time for the next NZTC event (hopefully bringing his team to defend it).

There are also medals for all members of the teams finishing 1st, 2nd and 3rd to keep as a permanent reminder of their success.

Mk IV Apothecaries - Any interest?

I'm looking to add a couple of Apothecaries to my Death Guard. Forgeworld sells them as a pair - one in Mk II armour and one in Mk IV. I'm only after the Mk II so I am looking to unload two of the later armour ( see pic below).

Likely to work out at $22 each. So Tale of X Gamers, any interest?

NZTC Player Change

Unfortunately Adam Gooley from the Capital Crushers can't make the trip.

Thankfully Stuart Robinson has stepped in at this very late stage to ensure that we have a full complement. Stuart will be bringing his Beastmen. A copy of his list will be forwarded to all captains (and uploaded here) once it is checked by Locky.

Thanks Stuart. Much Appreciated.

EDIT: Stuart's list can be found here

NZTC Approaches - Rapidly

So it looks like we have entered the phoney war before the event.....which is now less that 48 hours away.

Certainly a lot of our northern visitors have gone very quiet....their mouths have been writing cheques that their talent can't cash.

I'm looking at the various teams and I think that there is a clear division between what I perceive to be the top seven teams (including the von Trapps) and the other three. This is based on list construction and race selection.

Between those top seven I think the playing field is quite level. I certainly can see any of them on the podium. With that in mind I'm going to pick my top three in no particular order:

Grumpy Old Men - Wealth of experience and good mix of armies (and the only one of my top seven with a Dwarf to throw under the bus). I think Reid's GUO will scare the bejesus out of a lot of expensive lords. Mike's ability to pass miscasts and force miscast re-rolls will also scare those reliant on magic. Raymond is a wily old dog whose army will shred others if he gets the right matchups.

NZHammered - Another team with solid players in all slots. They have a good set of armies and are certainly not lacking in confidence. Apart from Antony, and to a lesser extent Glen, these guys have little experience with their armies. You can't help feeling they have been directed in their selection by listening to UK podcasts. The armies may be good but they need to marry that with solid gameplay. Questions have been raised by other teams as to their mental strength. Feel they will make the podium by jumping some on top tables in last round.

Nerdymen - Solid team with good army choices. Rory has been running his VC bus for the past six months and had some success. Thomas is an excellent player representing NZ at the ETC in 2012. I played Graeme's High Elves last year and though the list was different I remember a very hard fought game. Paul is driving Daemons and no-one will be lining up them by choice. I do feel they may be hostage to whether Rory and Thomas can get big wins but fully expect them to be there or thereabouts.

My unlucky team is Shaken Not Stirred representing the South Island's hopes. I rate Tim as one of the best players in the country and Chaos Dwarfs are a real top tier list (surprised the Omanis didn't take them). Damon has a very good Lizard list that will test anybody's ability to score big points. The reason I have listed them as unlucky is largely due to the missing Doom Divers in Mike's list. There are a lot of players with armour breathing easier.

In the end both Team Oman and the Kapiti Krushers will be there or thereabouts. I'd also not write the other three team off outright. However I think they may struggle to score consistent points.

So much is going to depend on matchups.

Hobby Update

None of my own hobby this week, I've been reduced to family dogsbody.

• Painting Bloodletters and Khorne Herald
• Bases for the same
• Bases for 30 Corsairs
• Movement trays for Black Guard and Corsairs

While all this goes on, my five Deathshroud Terminators lie forlornly half painted on my painting desk. Once this weekend is over they will move up the pecking order, followed by finishing off Vampire Counts before moving to WoC.

Mierce Miniatures Kickstarter

I have made a pledge for the Mierce Miniatures Kickstarter "Darklands - A World At War".

I am not too interested in the game they are selling but I do love the miniatures. As some of you will remember Mierce Miniatures were spun off from Maelstrom Games early last year. They were the Bane Legions product range. The ownership of Mierce is the same as that for Maelstrom and you have to get over that psychological and moral hurdle.

One thing that you can't deny though is how good the miniatures are.

Here is the pledge level I have committed to:

I am going for the Fomoraic Tarvax Monstrous Infantry set which gives me five Minotaurs plus four other character models (one a Doombull) and a Giant. That is costing me GBP87 (including postage) and is delivered in April.

I also earn the right to buy othermodels unlocked as part of the Stretch Goals - and from this I am getting Gorgon, Cyclops, Chimera. Manticore, Hierotitan plus other assorted characters at discounted price.

I purchased Flint-Fang (as my Hell Pit Abomination) and then Krull (as Bloodthirster) as Maelstrom went out of business. They are great models and I am very happy with the quality.

Details on the Kickstarter can be found here

It has three days to go and I expect further stretch goals to be unlocked as we approach the finish.

NZTC Timetable

Saturday

8.00am – Hall opens for registration

8.20am – Round 1 Draw

8.30 - 11.30am – Round 1

12.00 - 3.00pm – Round 2

3.30 – 6.30pm – Round 3

7.00 – 10.00pm – Round 4

Sunday

8.00am – Hall opens

8.30 - 11.30am – Round 5

12.00 – 3.00pm – Round 6

3.15pm - Awards

The hall is available on Friday evening from 7.00pm if you'd like to drop off armies and have pickup games.

I would really appreciate some help moving the necessary tables on both Friday evening and on Sunday afternoon. It is a quick job with many hands.

If you can help me on Friday please drop me an email I'll need people from 6.00pm in Khandallah. 

Another NZ Fantasy Blog

Another new New Zealand Warhammer Fantasy blog, this time from Jeffrey Kent.

It is called "The Little Waagh That Could" and you can find it here

Hopefully we'll see Jeffrey down at some of the Wellington events soon.

More Warriors Thoughts

The more I read the new Warriors book the more I think it is going to be absolutely top tier.

Particularly for the next few months before some hard cap restrictions come into play I think it is going to be face-tearingly brutal. I suspect if any of the top ranked players take the new book to Equinox and/or Runefang we will be hearing lots of groans post-events.

Yes, it will require some new model purchases but  it is a seriously strong book - far better than ogres, and less susceptible to Skaven/Lizards than it was.

Get in early....it's going to be a juggernaut.

von Trapp Scouting Report

"Okay guys, first of all thanks for filling out the sheet rating the armies of our various opponents this week. It has thrown up some very interesting observations. Appreciate that it has been done purely on the strength of your own army vs. the opposing forces - but it would be unfair to include the impact of talent. There are some very good players coming. I know, I've read it on their blogs and on Twitter.

In fact all I can say is that we are lucky that this even is not being played on Twitter as NZHammered, in particular, could bank the trophy.

So here's our ranking of the lists based on the points you awarded them.

• #9 - Cut The Mustard
• #8 - Over The Hill
• #7 - Capital Crusaders
• #6 - NZHammered
• #5 - Oman
• #4 - Shaken Not Stirred
• #3 - Grumpy Old Men
• #2 - Nerdymen
• #1 - Kapiti Krushers

I was surprised how high some of the teams were, again in particular NZHammered and the Omani Team, but they may surprise and replicate our intelligence.

Whatever you do don't let this file fall into the wrong hands and don't let slip what only us and Locky "Khodda Nassar" Reid know - that this is only a five round event."

Warhammer Day - Warlords

From now on the first meeting of the month at the Wellington Warlords will be "Warhammer" Day.

This is aimed at the region's Warhammer Fantasy gamers and will give a point of focus to the local community. The aim is to have a designated monthly meeting where Fantasy gamers can come and be guaranteed to get a pickup game of Warhammer Fantasy.

Whether it is one-on-one games or multiplayer if you turn up on the designated day you will be sure of at least one game (with 2-3 for the real keen).

All you need to bring is either a 2400 point or 1200 point army. For those just venturing into the game there will be experienced players on hand to talk you through games, offer advice etc. For the grizzled veteran there will be the opportunity to play other "sharks".

The respective meetings for 2013 are:

• March 2nd
• April 6th
• May 4
• June 1
• July 6th
• September 7th
• October 5th
• November 2nd
• December 7th

So this is an opportunity for the region's gamers to get together and have some games. It is also an opportunity to introduce new blood to the game.

Call to Arms - Wellington Warlords Annual Convention

The Wellington Warlords' annual convention, Call to Arms is being held on the weekend of 3/4 August at St. Pat's College, Kilbirnie in Wellington.

It will be offering a full range of tournaments plus participation and demonstration games.

Currently, the Warlords are looking for people to umpire the Warhammer Fantasy and Warhammer 40k tournaments. The Warlords will be doing all the tournament organisation, we just require people prepared to umpire the event (on the Day responsibility plus design of tournament scoring and comp).

I have done the past two Call to Arms and I'm looking for a break this year. However happy to help with scoring software as well as providing the terrain for both events.

If you like to help out by umpiring either drop me a line here

Wellington Warlords Details

Here are the details for the Wellington Warlords.

The flyer gives times, dates and the location of meetings.

Should anyone want a game of Fantasy let me know and I'll organise one for you, either against myself or another club member.

Warriors Impressions

The more I read the new Warriors of Chaos, the more I think that the designer has done a good job.

Generally the two biggest complaints from army owners is the repricing of Marauders - especially the pay per model for Mark of Khorne - and the changes to Skullcrushers. In both cases I think the changes were warranted - 50+ units of Khorne Marauders with Flails were too cheap - and the Skullcrushers were the best Monstrous Cavalry in the game. The repointing of the Skullcrushers hasn't been all one way - the extra wound and changes to Jugger offset by the reduction in T fully justify the 78 point cost.

So what do I like about the book?

First and foremost, the variety. Only the Orc & Goblin book has more unit choices. This means that there is an incredible opportunity to build lists, look for different synergies etc.

Following on from this, there is now competition in all slots. For example the Lord slot has three contenders with the elevation of the Daemon Prince. The Troops slot has variety too. Now you can have vanguarding Dogs, Marauder spam, Core Chariots as well as the mainstay with infantry. Initially I though Chariots were the new black, now I'm leaning to a more combined arms approach. However what you take has to fit with the rest of your list. So I think this will mean more variety.

The Special slot again creates conundrums - Knights, Dragon Ogres, Chimeras, Chosen (with or without Warshrine). There are a lot of choices to make and opportunities (read builds) to explore. Even the Rare slot is busy. I like Hellcannons but can I fit them and Skullcrushers in? What about the Shaggoth - increase in stats and 50 point decrease?

Real real variety.

I haven't even begun to scratch the surface in regards to Lores but Nurgle in particular with its buffs and damage spells looks a good Lore and even if you mark your users you now have access to a battle college lore.

If I was a WoC general I wouldn't be moaning. Instead I'd be rejoicing at what a great and varied book GW have delivered. Yeah, sure it's different but all books are. Look at the longevity you have in comparison to say the variety in the Ogre book (ref NZTC lists). Here you have a multitude of viable alternatives rather than predominantly one single build.

WoC Question

The #1 Spell in the Tzeentch deck is Treason.

It is a hex that says the target must use the lowest Leadership value in the unit.

Interested how this will be interpreted for cavalry and other mounted models.

I have a strong inkling what they probably intended but I know how RAW reads.

NZTC Lists

The lists for the NZTC can be found here

Here's the breakdown from the ten teams:

5 - Daemons, Dark Elves

4 - Ogres, Warriors 

3 - Empire, High Elves, Lizards, Vampires 

2 - Bretonnians, Orcs, Dwarfs

1 - Chaos Dwarf, Skaven, Tomb Kings, Wood Elves

0 - Beastmen 

Personally, very surprised by lack of Skaven. 

My ideal team would be DoC, Lizards, Skaven, Ogres as I think that would cover most bases.

Here is makeup of each team:

von Trapp Family - Daemons, Dark Elves, Ogres, Warriors

OMEN - Empire, High Elves, Vampires, Dark Elves

Kapiti Crushers - Warriors, Daemons, Dark Elves, Orcs

Capital Crushers - Empire, Tomb Kings, Dark Elves, Bretonnians

Grumpy Old Men - Daemons, Lizards, Dwarfs, Dark Elves

Nerdymen - Ogres, Daemons, High Elves, Vampires

NZHammered - Lizards, Ogres, Warriors, Bretonnians

Over The Hill - Dwarfs, High Elves, Skaven, Warriors

Cut The Mustard - Wood Elves, Vampires, Ogres, Daemons

Shaken Not Stirred - Chaos Dwarfs, Lizards, Empire, Orcs

Warlords - Back on the Chain Gang

My local club is the Wellington Warlords and I have been a member since 1998. In the early 00s I was on the Committee and in 2004 became President (as a result of an SGM that removed a dysfunctional Committee - you've gotta love wargaming politics).

I remained as President for 5 years and in that time membership grew to 120 members. In 2008 I stepped down and in the interests of fairness to the new Committee moved into the background. Over the past couple of years the Club has gone through hard times as membership fell and meeting attendance withered. From a weekly meeting - due to financial and attendance issues - the Club has reverted to its alternative Saturday meeting. There was a failed experiment with weeknight meetings but again these weren't sufficiently attended.

My own attendance has decreased to the point whereby I have only played one game at the Club in the past few years. The GW games, previously stalwarts of the Club, have dwindled and the inability to get a pickup game saw me turn my attentions elsewhere.

All clubs go through cycles as periods ebb and flow and people's real life circumstances change. I've found it very easy to organise games at home - with the benefit of better quality terrain and onsite espresso!

Yesterday the Club had its AGM. Membership has fallen to around 50 people and due to a number of factors the Club incurred a $1500 loss for the year. At the outset of the meeting I had no intention of getting more involved but as it proceeded I decided that I should make a renewed contribution. As a result I put myself forward for the Committee and was appointed.

So what am I going to focus on - the regrowth of the GW games at the Club. Ten years ago the interest in 40k at the Warlords - whether it was campaigns, multiplayer or tournaments - was unrivalled. Fantasy was a largely dormant period. Now both struggle at the Warlords. However Fantasy has a very vibrant scene here in Wellington with events regularly attracting 25+ participants. I'm going to see if I can grow the involvement at the Warlords leveraging off this.

Yesterday I sat and watched (advised) a couple of members playing a 1200 point game. One or two others showed interest and asked me about armies. Similarly there were 3-4 players having a game of 40k. Small acorns but I appreciate that time spent now will likely be rewarded with renewed interest in the period.

To encourage the regrowth subs were dropped to $40 for the year - about $1.50 per meeting - or about the cost of a Hero figure. I urge the local Fantasy players and 40k gamers to come along and try out the Warlords. If you want a game contact me here and I'll be happy to play you (or alternatively organise a game for you).

Really you haven't got a lot to lose - your first couple of meetings are free and then you can decide whether it is worth the $40 value for 12 months gaming.

Forgeworld Releases FAQ for Horus Heresy "Betrayal"

FW have released the first FAQ for their Horus Heresy sourcebooks.

You can download it from here

Heresy Sons of Horus

Here is my finished first unit of the Sons of Horus.

After much gnashing of teeth about how I would rather be painting the deathguard, I really am happy with the way these guys look as a unit and look forward to doing an army of them.

As it's after 2AM and I am way more interested in this Shark documentary, my editing of the pics has been a little sloppy, but it will have to do!

Keen to hear your thoughts/comments.
- Charlie

You'll probably want to click this to make it bigger. "That's what she said".

Heresy Death Guard

Here is my first unit for the Tale of X Gamers - Heresy Edition.

The thing that immediately struck me reading "Betrayal" was how battered, dirty and mashed up the Death Guard armour was. I've tried to re-create that with this squad.

The basing is as per the planet in  "False Gods" where the Warmaster is struck down by the Great Unclean One in the crashed ship.

Really happy with the battered look and now I am enthused to do my Deathshroud Terminators