The Nerd Store

THQ Delivers!!! Just doesn't ship very well.

2011-03-04T08:00:00.001-08:00

Just got my copy of Dawn of War II: Retribution last night. It was a little frustrating having to wait an extra 3 days to play when I could of downloaded on steam at launch, especially since I am such a fan that I paid extra for the collectors edition. If you are going to offer a digital download and a boxed collectors edition, IMO you had better make sure that your die-hard fans get their copy first. Of course RC had a different opinion:

"Screwing die-hard fans should be part of their business model. What are you going to do, quit? No your not, that's what makes you a die-hard fan."

Guess I gotta give you that one.

Games great. Campaign mode really shines through. For people who were ho-hum because of the beta, try out the single-player. It is really a lot of fun. One thing of note, I am a little concerned about the implications this game has for the 40k MMO. They seem to have separated the characters from the squads, which was something I really enjoyed about the last two iterations of DoW. I really want the 40k MMO to be truly squad based and not a character with some pets.

The last two games in my mind were the model for what the character selection for an awesome squad based RPG should be. You can have one kick ass character (chapter master, librarian, etc.) or a squad of marines (a tac, devastator, assault, or command squad). Then for squads, abilities are based on how you kit out the squad members. In my head here is how a 40k MMO should play:

You select a marine squad and you get your main SGT and 4 other dudes.
You then have a chance to select your specialization.
If you pick a tactical specialization you get one heavy weapon, one assault weapon, and a wide range of SGT wargear
If you pick a devastator specialization you get 4 heavy weapons but limited SGT wargear and you move slower (or something)
If you pick an assault specialization you get jump packs, an assault weapon, and some assault focused SGT wargear.
If you pick a command squad specialization you get an apothecary (healer), a banner bearer (buff/debuff), and some SGT wargear

It offers so many possibilities. But the biggest is that you truly play as a squad. Instead of having a character with a bunch of abilities and some pets shooting at things every once in a while you get a full squad. Your spell bar (a la wow) is the tasks your whole squad can do. So if your a dev squad, button 1 might be Brother Barius firing his lascannon, and button 2 is Brother Gothor firing his missile launcher...so on and so forth. Also imagine that individuality in your squad for aesthetics. Imagine a chaos squad (working the same way) where you can give each squad member unique grisly trophies.

Anyway, rant off I guess.

The new DoW is great.

Rix

Shoutouts and scolding

2011-02-22T12:33:00.000-08:00

Check out my response from 3++ is the New Black on my email submission. I was curious to see what Kirby thought about my troop choices. He and Chumbalaya got together and called me an idiot....

Not really, they make good sound tactical advise. It is a reminder though of how much I resist conforming a list to the tides of the internets. I find that I am always make lists that buck the meta. I don't really like making excuses for it except that I am a underdog whore, or better yet a gaming hipster. In the end, if I take my army to a tournament I'll probably do exactly what they say.

Rix

Skirting around the perimeter of a hobby

2011-02-15T08:56:00.000-08:00

It's not very typical that I get bored at home. Not because of the normal reasons: kids, chores, family obligations. No, it's because I'm a man of many hobbies. I switch between like a (insert funny analogy). I just normally have a game that I am crazy addicted to and a list of reserve games that I really want to get to. I'm in a weird lull right now.

I have Dawn of War 2: Retribution coming out in the next couple of weeks. Flop the Riviatzee I'm all in. I have been playing the beta, but that's just the multi-player, which to me is the least fun portion of the game (I almost didn't play the original Dawn of War 2 because of the multi-player beta, before I realized that it has very little to do with the real game mode).

I am pretty much done with my Imperial Fists for a while. I made a Master of the Forge, since a bunch of my lists use him. I have a spare Vindicator around that I will probably throw some yellow on. The problem is that I don't play enough to get my list settled down.

Other than that I don't know what to occupy myself with. I have thought about undertaking some serious expansions on the Imperial Fists (going for the full company) or reworking my other armies.... Meh. I need more inspiration before I do that. There isn't any pc or ps3 games that have me excited.

So here I sit..bored.....bored.....BORED.

Rix

Banners

2011-01-27T10:16:00.001-08:00

Just to kill some time, I decided to photoshop a banner for my imperial fist army.

Added bonus: I can post them here to in order to use them as Avatars on forums.

Rix

something, something, something....Complete

2011-01-26T19:00:00.001-08:00

Apparently all it takes is calling myself out on my own blog. I present to you, my completed Imperial Fist Army.

Rix

ONE MODEL!!! (or how I learned to stop worrying and snipe noobs)

2011-01-21T11:56:00.000-08:00

I am one model.....ONE MODEL! from finishing up my Imperial Fists. Do I buckle down and complete it...no. Instead I take the crack that is COD Black Ops and proceed to get all kinds of addicted. I don't even really like the game, seriously I like Modern Warfare 2 better!

So I get to max level, because I like leveling things. I guess its the recovering WOW addict in me. Do I turn my attention back to my yellow army men? Meh, I'll find wager matches, or go hunt some zombies.

One droppod! It's almost completely painted!

Rix

OK to be honest I do want to also add a Techmarine and two Vindicators, but I would still be content if I stopped painting once I finished the droppod.

My Imperial Fist List: Aggressive Shooting

2010-12-20T10:49:00.001-08:00

For the past year+ I have been focused mostly on painting my Imperial Fists. I play whenever I get a chance, but to be honest I have made more changes to my list than I have played games. Recently I think I have found a sweet spot. I have spent a lot of hours investigated how to improve on my current list, and right now I think it is pretty much pitch perfect. So I present to you my Aggressive Shooting Imperial Fist list:

Captain Marcus Decius Regulus (Lysander) 200

Command Squad w/ 210

4x Plasma Gun

Drop Pod

Ironclad Dreadnought 180

Seismic Hammer/Dread CC Weapon

Drop Pod w/Locator Beacon

Dreadnought 165

Multi-melta/Dread CC Weapon

Extra Armor

Drop Pod w/ Locator Beacon

Terminator Assault Squad 200

5xTH/SS

2nd Squad (Tactical) (10 Man) 250

Meltagun/Missle Launcher

Power Fist

Teleport Homer

Rhino
6th Squad (Tactical) (10 Man) 285

Lascannon/Plasmagun

Power Weapon/Meltabomb

Razorback w/ TL Las

Scout Squad (5 Man) 115

2xCombat Blade/1xSniper

Camo Cloaks
Combi-melta/Meltabomb

Land Speeder Typhoon 90

Land Speeder Storm 65

Total = 1850

[Interesting Note: Do you know how freaking hard it is to get text to line up after publishing a post.......damn you blogspot]

Generally the dreads get the aggro. They get in my opponents face with scary melta weapons and depending on the squad can engage and wreck some shop. Then I can focus on killing transports with the Typhoons, Tacticals, and the Razorback. The Terminators and Command Squad come in to lend their support in the middle of the field. The command squad can decimate an armored squad with the rapid firring plasma and the terminators wade into the battle to take out a squad or two. At this point I can focus on objective taking with the Tacticals and Scouts or if in a kill point game then focus on the easy kills (errant transports are a good one)

I'm still working on refining some of the ways I play the army. A good example was that I always deployed my Lysander with the terminators but I noticed my command squad was getting stalked and dying in CC. I now am experimenting with keeping my Lysander with the command squad to deter assaults or at the very least lock an assaulting unit for a while.

It is really hard to resist the urge to tweek and swap out units, but I think I need to really focusing on how to deploy, maneuver, and ultimately win battles.

Rix

Welcome to Stalingrad!

2010-12-17T14:33:00.000-08:00

Today, I wanted to provide a sneak peak at one of my many works in progress that has until recently been woefully overlooked, scenery. Since I have taken on numerous different army projects in the recent past, I figured that it was time to make improvements to the window dressing that is my gaming table.

My primary (and currently only) gaming table features an urban sprawl where buildings form the landscape rather than trees and hills. This means that the board needs a lot more scenery to clutter everything up in order to give that sense of realistically being in those steel canyons.

In the past year or so, I've been getting more and more ashamed at the shabby state of affairs that is my gaming table. Too often Rix and I have played on boards with wide open fields of fire, where armor had free reign. But in our most recent game, Rix happened to clutter up a quarter of the board with a disproportionate amount of buildings. Admittedly, this left the rest of the board with sparse cover but the little mini-game that happened in that one quarter of the field really felt "right". In this quarter, lines of fire were limited and my armor felt awfully claustrophobic with an enemy squad of melta-armed scouts lurking in the area.

In the end, I realized that no matter how many armies I created or how well I modeled and painted them that my games would never feel "epic" without fantastic scenery. That is what I hope this project achieves, because you can only beat your friend to a pulp (not naming names, here) so many times before you start needing to dress up the ground on which so many atrocities are committed.

Terminator Squad

2010-12-16T18:59:00.000-08:00

"Give me a hundred Space Marines. Or failing that give me a thousand other troops."

+++Rogal Dorn, Primarch of the Imperial Fists+++

The Scourge of The Vengeful Spirit

Led by Sergeant Volero Octavia Canus

Try as I might I couldn't escape the efficient killing power of the Thunder Hammer/Storm Shield Terminator Assault squad. There are few squads that can match its killing power and survivability and none at the super cheap 200 point cost. I'm still learning how to use them best. Generally they deep strike in, find something and kill it, but rarely move on to anything else. That is probably mostly because my sparring partner favors lots of cheap troop choices over deathstar units.

The are modeled with the Chapterhouse Studio's salamander shield that I have used before and the forge world shoulder pads. No big changes to the way that I painted them, but my one piece of advise is to keep the shield arm off till the last second. It masks the spray paint and forces some odd angles on the brushes.

I tried to individualize my model with a pseudo heraldry shield an crotch plate. Figured I would add some color.

Rix

Drop Pods and Objective Markers

2010-12-14T11:36:00.001-08:00

Just a couple of quick pics. Here are my drop pods. I still have one more to paint up, but this is the basic scheme.

If I ever get around to adding weathering to my army these will be the first to get it. I guess regardless of how new the battle is if your drop pods are on the ground then they will be scorched.

Additionally, a pic of my objective markers. I always liked the marine casualties models. they were my first attempt to paint the white shoulder pads of the 1st company, good practice before my sternguard squad (which was painted later).

Rix

Sternguard Squad

2010-12-14T11:34:00.000-08:00

"The deeds of one bold warrior can alter the course of a battle. I have four such men under my command, and our every deed changes the shape of the galaxy."

+++Sergeant Daegon Incursa, the Invaders 1st Company+++

Roma Irae (Rome's Wrath)

Led by Veteran Sergeant Minius Octavia Galeo

Simply stated: I fell in love with the MK III armor kit from forgeworld. What a great way to single out a squad as something special. I bought the kit almost immediately. At the time I was working with adding a sternguard squad to my list so it seemed like a natural fit. With such cheap combi-weapon options I figured I would use one of them, but I was not sure which. To keep my options open I went with Chapterhouse studios magnetizable combi-weapon kit.

It works pretty well, but be warned, the pieces are a tight fit. After painting they become even tougher to fit together. I also used the new Imperial Fists chapter shoulder bit, I had been using the older kit previously so this made them stand out even more. One thing that may be obvious to you is the chapter icon on the wrong shoulder. I had initially assembled them with the chapter icon on the left shoulder and the bulkier MK III shoulder on the right shoulder....it just didn't seem right. Just from the way they stand when aiming down their weapons the left shoulder needs to look bulkier or it just seems off. I swapped the shoulders with the thought that like the terminators the veteran squads would wear the chapter symbol on the other arm. OK not by the codex but whatever it still looks better.

I play them a couple of different ways. First as a sternguard squad I usually equip them with combi-meltas. They become a pretty typical firring line, able to lay down some effective fire with the special ammo. Usually Kraken for ranged and Vengance for some close in fighting. If placed correctly they become a threat to passing vehicles with a melta salvo. The Sgt has a bolter (so he can still use the special ammo) and a lightning claw. The claw is a little cheaper than a power fist, but for the point cost and the one-handed nature, better than a power weapon.

With my current list, though, I drop the Sgt and use them as a command squad. I had dropped my sternguard from my primary list for Terminators and was sad to not field the models. At the same time I started playing with a gunline style command squad. It seemed a natural fit. I equip them with plasma rifles, the combi-plasma becomes a counts-as but since they are not used anywhere else it works. The synergy with the apothecary is nice as he greatly increasing the survivability of rapid firring plasma rifles. They have a drop pod and they typically come in against high armor infantry. It works very well against recently deep struck terminators or a deathstar unit moving in to assault.

Getting close to being done with Imperial Fists!!!!

Rix

Land Speeder Storm Project Log

2010-11-16T19:41:00.000-08:00

My Land Speeder Storm was added as a transport for my scouts. I like the vehicle because I find that it is very versatile:

-Cheap, fast moving multi-melta

-Fastest way to move a troop unit across the board

-Can outflank, with our without scouts

-Can deliver scouts fro an "Alpha Strike"

I particularly like the "Alpha Strike". If going first, you use you scout move to bring a scout squad within 12 inches of a scary vehicle. On first turn you disembark 2", Move 6", and then assault 6" to the vehicle. Since the vehicle hasn't moved, the attacks auto hit. Combined with a meltabomb or powerfist Sgt, and you have the capability of burning a land raider before the game really starts.

I decided to magnetize the models in the back, so when the troops disembark it shows on the model. While I was at it I decided to magnetize the weapon also. As with the other scouts they were all converted to have helmeted heads since I HATE the look of the bare headed scouts. All put together:

At this point let me say that this is one of my favorite models GW produces. It looks like a cross between a sports car and a pickup truck. Overall I just really like the lines, and they way the passengers look inside. Continuing on, without the passengers:

As you can see magnets were added in the passenger compartment. Magnets were added to the passengers as well:

All of the models were given a coat of Adeptus Battlegrey from the GW spray gun:

At this point I went to work on the passengers. Fortress Grey drybrush on all of the clothing (excluding the helmet), Iyanden Darksun basecoat on the shoulders. Chaos Black on the guns and boots:

Then the details on the models. 2-3 coats of Golden Yellow on the shoulder followed by a highlight of Sunburst Yellow. Shadow Grey for the Camo Splotches, then two dots of Chaos scattered around. Boltgun on the metal parts. A mix of 50/50 Red Gore/Codex Grey for the muted red visors. Viola:

I repeated the process on the two vehicle crew. I then went to work on the speeder. I with how to do the camo, pattern. In the end I looked at old woodland HMMWVs compared to the woodland camo patterns that troops wore. What I found was that vehicle patters tended to be larger, and less splotchy and more sweeps of color that wrapped around the vehicle. With that I went for broke and just started putting on color till I thought it was right. Shadow Grey and Fortress Grey was all that I used. I added a wash of Badab Black, a couple of muted red details, and the results are:

Like I said before, this is one of my favorite models in the GW line. I was very happy with the paint job as well. I find that if I put bother the scouts or the vehicle in some ruin terrain, it does the perfect job of blending right in.

Rix

Scouts

2010-11-15T20:26:00.000-08:00

Forget all your preconceptions of war, of battle-lines clashing in the churned ground. Your mission is to attack before the foe even realizes that the war has begun, to strike hard at those vital weaknesses that all armies possess, but that no commander will admit to.

Under my tutelage you will learn how to seek out such fragilities and smite them with every weapon at your disposal. Master these duties and I will have nothing more to teach, and you will truly be a Space Marine.

+++Sergeant Torias Telion+++

The 14th Induction Squad (Attached)

Lead by Sergeant Appius Salvia Seneca

This was my first deviation from the standard color scheme. I love the yellow of Imperial Fists, in my mind they walk into battle like knights, daring foes to strike against them. Scouts on the other hand, most definitely do not. I kept the shoulder pads yellow with the idea that they could be covered with the camo cloaks. This became a little problematic with the models that don't have the cloak, but either way I still like it.

The model is base coated with Adeptus Battlegrey, I actually got to use my GW spray gun. The model is then heavily drybrushed with fortress grey, it gives it a gritty, dirty feel. For the camo pattern I then paint my splotches with Shadow Grey and then give it the dots with Chaos Black. I don't know why but the two dots together just work. I picked it up from a GW article and I really liked it.

Tactically this is my cheap objective holder squad. The camo cloaks combined with a bolstered defense ruin (a la Lysander) means they have a 2+ invulnerable. They can assist with some shooting downrange, although I don't expect much out of the sniper rifles. The only problem that I have hound is they are pretty worthless stuck on their own, if they get charged they are done. I try and keep a counter charge unit around them to make sure they don't get wiped.

Next time a special treat, my WIP log of my Land Speeder Storm.

Rix

Transports

2010-11-15T20:10:00.000-08:00

As you are a knight in service of the Emperor, so is the Rhino your steed. Honor it, respect it, see that its needs are met, and it shall serve you well through all the battles you must face

+++ Roboute Guilliman, quoted in the Apocrypha of Skaros +++

As would befit a full strength codex company, my squads all have Rhino transports. I went with the exposed vehicle commanders mostly because I like the look. It reminds me of the times I have interacted with US Army armor commanders.

I freehanded on the squad markings, well sorta. In order to get a the lines strait I used my India ink pen and a ruler.

Lastly, my drop pods. I still need a third to be dropping two on the first turn of the game. And of all the models in the GW line, this is by far the most annoying to paint. I like how detailed it is (especially for the price), but it is just a monster trying to get access to all the edges.

Rix

Captain Marcus Decius Regulus

2010-11-06T15:58:00.000-07:00

A Captain leads from the front. By his example shall his men know what it is to be of the Adeptus Astartes, and from his teachings shall they learn the trade of battle in the Emperor's name.

No ordinary man can a Captain be, for many are the paths to victory and he must be master of them all. His every being shall be an extension of the Emperor's work. With every strike of his sword, with every

word of his speech, does he reaffirm the ideals of our honoured master. He will vanquish darkness and heresy with every thought, word, and deed. So shall his coming be a sign of deliverance to the dutiful, and a herald of dismay to all traitors. No living man shall stay his wrath.

+++ Roboute Guilliman, quoted in the Apocrypha of Skaros +++

(Space Marine Codex, 5th edition)

Captain Decius leads from the front...period. He is a Lysander counts-as. I spent a fair amount of time drilling out the bare head (since all of my marines wear their damn helmets). I liked him with my command squad, but I will most likely be letting him lead a group of assault terminators when I get up enough scratch to put that unit together. He is my favorite HQ option, I have put some librarians together, but I just have a tough time fielding the Fists without stubborn.

That finishes off my half company. I have some attachments and vehicles left to show, but I'll save those for the next couple of posts.

Rix

Dreadnought and Command Squad

2010-11-06T14:01:00.001-07:00

Raise the flag high. Let those degenerates know who comes to claim their lives this day!

+++ Sgt Adar Geronan, Imperial Fists 4th Company +++

(Space Marine Codex, 5th edition)

Ironclad Dreadnought

Honored Brother Gaius Decius Avitus

I have had a love hate relationship with my dreadnought. First I tried to outfit him with two close combat weapons and do the slow walk across the field...he typically died. Then I tried to give him some shooting weapons and let him hang out backfield.....he was typically ignored. I tried benching him and found I really could have used him for some counter assault punch. After trial and error the basics that I have found is that he scares units away from a week flank, he is scary when he is unexpectedly close to you, but he will always be outmaneuvered. Currently he is part of a drop podding force I am working with. The double close combat weapons works well because there is an under-slung meltagun to use after dropping, but he still has two close combat weapons in case one gets blown off.

Modeling wise, this was my first magnetized model. I was very happy with the results. It allows me to switch out weapon kits at will, drop off arms based on damage results and also gives me the options to give him some interesting poses:

Command Squad

Praetors

Another unit I have had a tough time with. Fundamentally, I love a command squad. The large weapon options are great and allow them to be anything: a hard hitting assault unit, a scary shooting force, or like mine a take all comers survivability force. Initially my command squad was a terror on the field. Wherever they were was just a dead zone, and if you got caught in CC with them you were just stuck. Unfortunately, they were the victim of a very easy solution... bolters. It didn't take long for my opponents (read: RC) to figure out that a 3+ invulnerable is still susceptible to massed fire. Currently, I have been switching them out for a drop podding plasma gun firing line. The apothecary its a big help on those rapid firing gets hot rolls.

The shields are a chapterhouse studios special. They are meant to look like dragon scales, and even had a dragon head near the viewing cutout (they were always Salamanders fans). I filed off the dragon head and painted the shield face black. I then used the scale lines as guides to give it a lightning pattern. I was pretty happy with it, and felt it matched my pattern for my power weapons.

Of all my models I am most prod of my company banner. While not golden daemon worthy, it is one of my best hand painting jobs.

For next time, the big guy.

Rix

Assault and Devastator Squads

2010-10-28T10:50:00.001-07:00

And of the Assault Marine so do I decree: He shall descend upon the perfidious foe as an Angel of Judgment from on high. Let the jump pack be his wings, and the roar of its engines a hymn of retribution. Let the chainsword be his sceptre of decree, its harsh voice singing joyfully with each and every blow. With it shall the Assault Marine bring bloody retribution to the heretic, the traitor, and all alien aggressors who trespass on the Emperor's domain.

So will the Assault Marine be the hunter of warlords and the slayer of kings. His armour shall run slick with the life-blood of the vanquished, and all shall honour his name.

+++ Roboute Guilliman, quoted in the Apocrypha of Skaros +++

(Stolen from Lexianum)

7th Squad

Led By Sergeant Gnaeus Decius Corvinus

7th Squad is a ten man Assault Squad in jump packs armed with two flamers. The Sgt has a set of lightning claws. To be honest I have never fielded this unit well. When I deep strike they keep getting rocked before I can make up my points, when they walk on the board they don't seem to have the stopping power. I still have hope for them, but right now they are riding the pine till I see a need for them. They are equipped to handle horde armies and I rarely play against them, so that is probably a big factor.

A Devastator's reach shall be without limit and his touch without mercy. Fire shall roar from his fingertips, but it shall consume him not. Thunder will roar when he calls, yet it will swallow him not. Let the Devastator squad be thy blazing wrath, bringing the light of the Emperor's justice to the darkest corners of the battlefield. Wherever he stands, that shall be his fortress of righteousness. He shall hold in his gift the fate of all who pass before his unblinking gaze.

All shall fear him, and he shall fear no one.

+++ Roboute Guilliman, quoted in the Apocrypha of Skaros +++

(Stolen from Lexianum)

10th Squad

Led by Sergeant Lucius Decius Malleolus

10th Squad is a 10 man devastator squad armed with two lascannons and two missile launchers. The Sgt comes as is with a bolt pistol and a chainsword. At full strength the ten man squad can combat squad down and split fire. Unfortunately they are just way to expensive for that. Honestly I think this is a hideously overcosted unit, and I think GW costed them out of a decent list. They are a survivable firebase, but there are so many more efficient choices. I use them when I NEED supporting fire in an army and my elite slots are full. In the end, they are part of my half company soooo I'm glad I have them, but I don't plan on using them to often.

Rix

Tactical Squads

2010-10-28T10:22:00.001-07:00

Of the Tactical Space Marine, bedrock of his Chapter and paragon to his brothers, I shall tell thee. He shall be steeped in the lore of battle and schooled in all manner of weapon and strategy. With combat blade, boltgun and grenade he shall assail the foe. But these are mere tools: a Tactical Marine's true weapons are his courage, his wits, and his dedication to his brothers.

He will bring his foe to battle in a manner and time of his choosing, never himself caught unready or ill-repared for the task at hand. In defence he shall be stalwart as the mountain, a bulwark stood firm against the enemies of Man. In attack he shall strike with the wrath of the Immortal Emperor, felling the foe without mercy, remorse, or fear.

+++ Roboute Guilliman, quoted in the Apocrypha of Skaros +++

(stolen from Lexicanum)

Tactical squads are my main troop choice. As part of my half company I have created three squads: the 1st, 2nd, and 6th squads.

1st Squad

Led by Sergeant Quintus Decius Natta

1st Squad is a ten man tactical squad with a meltagun and a multi-melta. The Sgt is armed with a power weapon, a pistol, and meltabombs. They are my run and gun squad, meant to take the fight to the enemy. I designed them specifically to not combat squad, so I didn't want my heavy weapon choice to weigh down the rest of the squad. As such, I took the cheapest close range option. I like them in close combat, but facing a big heavy vehicle I have no problem planting them and unleashing some multi-melta terror. This is my most aggressive tactical squad.

2nd Squad

Led by Sergeant Titus Decius Calidus

2nd Squad is a ten man tactical squad with a melta-gun and a missile launcher. The Sgt has a power fist and a bolt pistol. This is my mid range tactical squad. The missile launcher is a great option to keep back in a combat squad and direct firepower toward a transport. The power fist meltagun combat squad is a great hunter killer team. I use them as a do everything squad, as they have no problem pushing toward the enemy or staying back and shooting.

You may notice a slightly muted hue of yellow compared to the 1st squad. This was one of my origianl two squads and my basecoating technique changed.

6th Squad

Led by Sergeant Aulus Decius Severus.

6th Squad is a ten man tactical squad with a plasma gun and a lascannon. The Sgt is armed with a power weapon, bolt pistol, and meltabombs. This is my fire support tactical squad. They are typically combat squadded, with the weapons held back. I honestly don'e like the power weapon on the Sgt, but I was trying to save points as this is my most expensive of my three tactical squads. This is my most defensive squad.

Like 2nd Squad, this has a muted yellow hue that I improved later (this actually was my first Imperial Fist squad ever).

Tactics

I typically run with two tactical squads in a 1500-1850 army. They allow me to have at a minimum 2-4 troop choices for objective games. Depending on my army list I use them to shore up where I think the rest of my army is weak. In one army list I have deep striking terminators and drop podding dreadnoughts, so I use 2nd squad and 6th squad to provide covering fire. In one list I use devastator and sternguard in a firing line so I use 1st and 2nd squads as a light counter-charge unit.

For Dorn, For Glory..... Again!!!!

2010-10-28T09:29:00.000-07:00

It's been almost a year since I have posted. but fear not all of my (imaginary) readers, I have not been idle. I have finished my Imperial Fist half-company. In doing so realized Guilliman doesn't know how to organize companies for shit, so I have expanded out to get a more workable army list. I have even taken the time to put together some decent pictures. I'll be posting my army over the next couple of days.

Rix

Be careful what you wish for....

2009-12-18T10:17:00.000-08:00

After the release of Battle for the Abyss, I was thoroughly disgusted with Black Library. Some of the Horus Heresy books that had been produced just seemed sacrilege. Somewhere Dan Abnett and I understand each other because none of those authors made return trips to the 30th milena.

Now I am kicking myself. I am still happy with the decision mind you, but I am just pining for some more 40k books. It's going to be 7 months between Fallen Angels and Prospero Burns, I'm starting to DT..........

Rix

Bad Assery 101

2009-12-04T10:22:00.001-08:00

www.redknuckle.com

So over Thanksgiving I was having a conversation with RC about Lysander. RC raved about how powerful he was and how he was really at the pinnacle of his power. His assertions were: Eternal Warrior and four wounds is unheard of, thunder hammer and storm shield are undercosted in SM codex and they tear shit up, and he works awesome with one of the strongest units around: assault terminator squads. I decided to give him some more thought for my Fist army.

My first concern was that I didn't want to break my fluff goals with the army. The army was made to be a half-company, and would not include any attachments. So I was not going to be adding a terminator squad. The only model I could see having some terminator armor was the Captain. Well the good news is that Lysander counts as a captain, so I can even keep my command squad.

So, I started to weigh the benefits of Lysander compared to the added cost. First off we know he is a bad ass stat wise, but being in a squad it gets watered down a lot. Compared to another commander the biggest difference is the strength 10 thunder hammer. Bolter Drill will be useful since my command squad all have bolt pistols. Bolster Defenses is another surprising good one with this army as I always have one squad in cover in the backfield (devastators or at least a combat squad). Lastly I was very interested in using Chapter Tactics, since I was relatively underwhelmed with Combat Tactics (at least for my style of play).

He seemed like a winner so I wrote up my list. I had to change out my command squad razorback because of Lysanders terminator armor, so I went with a drop pod. I also had to lose the devastators rhino to make up some points. No real bother as they are usually stationary anyway.

So after one game I was floored with how much of an improvement it was. The first thing that was apparent was how much better the drop pod was than the razorback. My command squad is meant to be very survivable (storm shields and an apothecary) but they weren't as big of an impact after my razorback got immobilized at half field. Now, turn one they are a factor. As survivable as they are I was not scared to unload in front of some pretty heavy firepower. The enemy was forced to deal with them. My rhinos zipped across the field at record speed. There was a lot of synergy going on there (yes I work a desk job). I will venture to say that I like the drop podding command squad more than I would like a deep striking assault terminator squad. The drop pod comes in first turn and doesn't have to worry so much about mishaps. So I don't need so much stand off distance.

The other big takeaway from the battle is how much more I like Stubborn than Combat Tactics. I know Combat Tactics can be very useful. Woe be the player who shoots at a combat squad before assaulting. I am just not the kind of player who dances around a board like that. I find that I am much more likely to go where I want to go and plant my squads. Seems like it falls in line with a certain chapter I know about. Every time I got into combat and had to roll leadership I was reminded how much more I like Stubborn. My army definitely feels more like Sons of Dorn.

And with that one game, I shelved my space wolves and started getting back to painting my Fists. I am actually in pretty good shape with my to-do list:

Since I am not tweaking my space wolves anymore, I don't have anything on them to do (I'll chalk that one up as a painting win, since the codex came out a month ago)
I only need to paint a drop pod, Lysander, and finish my assault marines to finish the 1500 points
I only need to paint up one more tactical squad, their rhino, and five bolter wielding devastators to finish off the half-company

I think I will be set for a Jan tyranid release :D

Rix

Meh

2009-12-04T08:54:00.000-08:00

So after a month of living, breathing, tweaking, and playing my space wolves I am officially bored with them. I have struggled to figure out why. Here are my best reasons:

I always thought I loved Assault lists (my first love), but after playing all different types of armies I finally figured out that assault armies are pretty one dimensional.
I settled very quickly into what I believe is the best list possible (given my already painted units)
Allocating ICs and Wolf Guard between a mech list is confusing and annoying
Lysander drop podded into my heart

More on the last later. But overall I have been very pleased with the way my wolves performed, very content with the viability of my list, and very bored playing it. I used to love setting up my Space Wolves for battle, they sat on my side of the table mocking my opponents "Do what you want, but my wolves are coming across to whop your ass!!" Now when I set up I feel like I am on the losing side of a battle of wits. My opponent has all kinds of tools at his disposal (reserve forces, combat squading, deep striking) and I am just looking to meet him in the middle without losing to many transports.

On another positive note, I like my list. I have a healthy number troops and some real punch in close combat without having to spend 750 points in HQ choices. The units all fit into my great company scheme (one of these days I'll get around to finishing that). But that cut out one of my favorite parts of the game, critically thinking about the list and doing some hard core tweaking.

Lastly, I do really like the ability to attach wolf guard. It's a poor man's combat squad. But trying to figure out between 4 squads which 3 should get a leader, which of those should get the special weapons, and then try and figure out which should get ICs, oh and also some are in razorbacks and some are in rhinos.....it all gets pretty confusing. I always end up just throwing some units together and deploying them haphazardly, which in turn I feel like I am always screwing up deployment.

For all of these reasons, I am Meh on my puppies and have shelved them for now.

Rix

The Burning of Prospero

2009-11-02T13:43:00.000-08:00

Had my second round of matches with my Space Wolf force. This time I think my force was pretty close to final form. I am liking the direction it is heading.

My first two matches (a month or so ago) were strictly trial forces. I wanted to get the feel for the different units and characters. Both times I played against RC's Thousand Son force. The first was a two Land Raider army that hit you like a truck using The Great Wolf. I packed Blood Claws in one LR and Wolf Guard termies into the second. It was effective but very one dimensional and very light on the troops. My second was more of a medium infantry force with Grey Hunters in Razorbacks, some Blood Claw assaulters, and Njal. Best result from the game....making RC cry as Njal wtfpwnd Ahriman. While I learned I like the medium infantry army, I did admit that Njal is a little overpowered if he can beat Tzeentch's Champion so handedly.

I took the month to work on the list and update some of the painting on my older units. My list looked like this going into this weekend:

Rune Priest (Chooser of the Slain, Saga of the Beastslayer, Living Lightning, Wolf Spirits)
Wolf Guard Battle Leader (Wolf Claws, Saga of the hunter, wolves x2)
Wolf Guard x4 (Thunder Hammer x2, Combi-meltas x2, Power Weapons x2)
Lone Wolf (Melta bomb)
Wolf Scouts x5 (Meltgun, Plasma Pistol x2)
Blood Claws x10 (Power Fist, Flamer)
Grey Hunters x5 (Power Weapon, Meltagun, Mark of the Wulfen, Razorback w/ TL Las)
Grey Hunters x5 (Power Weapon, Flamer, Mark of the Wulfen, Razorback w/ TL Las)
Grey Hunters x5 (Power Weapon, Meltagun, Mark of the Wulfen, Rhino)
Land Raider Crusader (Meltagun)

First Game was an annihilation against the Thousand Sons. RC was attempting to move away from the heavy weapon prevalence in his army and add some more troops. We both felt that it did little to help him, as he had less capability to deal with transports and the massed troops was no match for the incoming of the Space Wolf fury. He called it after he had killed my Battle Leader, Scouts, Lone Wolf, a squad of Grey Hunters, and 3 vehicles. I had the advantage as I had killed most of his force and was wading around with about two turns to dish out some more punishment.

Lessons for the Game: Battle Leader with scouts moving behind enemy lines is cool, but you are not going to make up the points of losing your character after a turn or two. Also, the Lone Wolf seemed to suck.

Second Game was take and hold against a mech Dark Angel force. We rolled dawn of war. Night fighting came in handy....but I really sucked it up on my deployment. It was the first time in 10 years I didn't deploy my Space Wolves all together to charge the field. It threw off the rest of my game as I could never amass enough forces to push in his territory. I ended up fighting a tactically loosing battle as I couldn't even come close to his objective and he was all over mine. Good news was that my army was able to assault its way into re-securing my objective.

Lessons for the Game: My Lone Wolf sucks (and shall be removed). Living Lightning is an amazing vehicle killer. I could use a tinny bit more stand off firepower.

I am working on updating the list now. I am looking at dropping the Lone Wolf, Swapping the LR Crusader for a regular LR, somehow adding a three man Long Fang squad.

Cheers,

Rix

Pack Mentality

2009-10-29T11:38:00.000-07:00

Before I delved into my Space Wolves Army list I wanted to give a rundown of the different wolf packs and how I think they are best used. The following are the organization of the packs that most space wolves will spend their entire lives in.

Blood Claws

For those unfamiliar with the fluff, as soon as a group of initiates can wear power armor they are sent out with the main army as assault troops. The blood claw pack represents the marines they will be with until they die or individuals are selected for special assignments. Blood claws can have pack sizes up to 15 marines to represent the large size of initiate units before they start to take casualties.

I like to take one unit of blood claws as my main assault force. I figure no matter what I do with the rest of my army their is always going to be one unit who hits a line, even on defense. Yes they are easier to hit, yes they shoot like crap, but I am getting an extra 10 hits if I charge. I want to front load as much damage as possible.

I always put mine in a land raider so you can pretty much guarantee the charge. I like the power fist over the power weapon, I figure 3 str 8 hits on the charge are better than 4 str 4 hits. I also give one a flamer, mostly because its free, but its a good way to thin out infantry if I am against a horde army.

Grey Hunters

After a good amount of campaigns under their belt, and some character building casualties, the blood claws pack will graduate to be grey hunters. They are blessed with the holy bolter, and are the main maneuver force for the Wolf Lord. Usually they number 5-10 marines at this point

For my army they are my objective takers, fire support, and decent assault support. Without combat squads I rely on they to be the versatile part of my army. As such they are all essentially armed the same and any one squad can fulfill any number of roles.

I think a good commander needs at least 3 grey hunter squads. I like mine at 5 marines in a razorback, so I can add a wolf guard veteran. My standard load out is power weapon, melta gun, and mark of the wolfen. I do switch out the melta for a flamer every other grey hunter squad. I figure if I am holding objectives they are cheaper, but it can be invaluable against horde armies. I also usually upgrade to the twin-linked lascannon...its so expensive, but its usually the only long range firepower I have.

Long Fangs

As the pack grows older and more experienced, they are eventually entrusted with the company's heavy weapons. They understand the ebb and flow of battle and are expected to be resolute under all battle conditions. At this time the pack is usually down to 2-5 members.

I don't usually use long fangs, I think they are to static and my Space Wolves are based on mobility. If I did I would either go for the cheap 2-3 man tank killing squad (ML or LC), or the bulky 5 man split fire squad. Then I would probably mix lascannons and plasma cannons.

Lone Wolves

This is a new edition in the Space Wolf codex. The lone wolf represents the last man of a pack that was either whittled down by attrition or decimated by casualties. Since a pack never gets new recruits it is on the lone wolf to find a glorious end.

Most of the net traffic has lone wolves in terminator armour with thunder hammer and storm shields. From a fluff perspective I don't like the idea of a non-wolf guard taking terminator armor. I equip mine with nothing but a melta bomb, because it makes them cheap as hell. The idea is simple, he is going to wade into battle and force your opponent to direct some attention to them.

Rix

Space Wolf Review

2009-10-26T10:20:00.000-07:00

I will admit that I haven't played with my space wolves very much. The two games I played I won handedly, even prompted the ever elusive RC post. I will focus this post on fluff and what seems to be general playability.

Overall

I like the codex. I think it is a step in the right direction from the no fluff, bland codices of yesteryear. I know everyone is in the OMFG mode right now, but I think they will generally fit in line power wise with the last three codices.

Army Organization

I think they are a good trade off between the tactical flexibility of the codex marines and the strong assault forces you see in other codices. In my mind you trade:

Combat tactics for counter charge
Combat squads for either a close combat weapon or a +2 charge bonus
A heavy weapon for a power weapon

As I build my lists I kept on getting the feeling that I had to rely on assault to make my marks. Assault is a funny thing. If you do it well you can have great success...till you meet someone who does it better than you. Then you have a lot of points sitting in transports. Or worse, someone who is good at taking out vehicles. Then you have a lot of points sitting in the middle of the board trying to leg it to make up their points.

I don't think that they can go pound for pound in a shooting war. Granted I can make a Grey Hunter/Long Fangs/vehicle list that is arguably more cost effective than Codex Space Marines, but the lack of tactical heavy weapons really hurts. I miss being able to add a combat squad of marines to the list of shots from the backfield, while maneuvering a Sgt and 4 other marines under fire to snatch objectives.

Favorite Things from the Codex

Lone Wolf - I think it is a really cool idea, and fits the fluff nicely. I wish they didn't have terminator armour, I don't think it really fits the idea that they come from a non-wolf guard pack

Wolf Scouts - They were always a favorite, I like how they made it fit with the current scout rules.

Sagas/Oaths - Most people like the sagas and hate the oaths. I like having a player a player be somewhat accountable to the fluff without having it be a huge detriment to the game. Rules come and go, we play lots of games, but your damn strait I still make fun of RC for running his Khorne Bezerkers away from Ragnar 8 years ago.

Fenrisian Wolves - Purely from a play perspective I think a cheap outrider choice that can get into close combat is exactly what any space marine army needs.

Dislikes

Thunderwolf Cavalry - I think they are a cool idea, I like the fact that the fluff says they are mythical, but I dislike the fact that they are just a normal unit in the army. In fact, most of the Internet buzz I am hearing right now involves using them. I think they should have been a unique or 0-1 choice. I think they should have been a strong unit but maybe a little less tactical (e.g. less weapon options, headstrong, or maybe some sort of injure yourself roll that has to be passed).

Pack Fluff - There seems to be some inconsistencies on the way they describe the packs in the fluff. Sometimes they talk about packs staying together for life (the way it was in the old codex), sometimes they mention things like individuals getting promoted to Grey Hunter. Its a little annoying, but I am a fluff whore, I make no apologies for it.

No Wolves - There are no less than 6 unit choices that can have or are wolves. There is not one acceptable wolf model in the GW lineup right now. I guess I will have to look cooler because I actually still have two old school dire wolves.

Next post, my sample army list,

Rix