Merry Christmas, and Post 108!

Merry Christmas everyone! Also I have reached that most auspicious of numbers, 108. I didn't notice when I hit 100 so I figured I'd go for some Chinese numerology.

Anyway, coming soon I will put up a Ravenwing tutorial, and how to magnetize Carnifexes. I'm sure that people will be needing that one come January.

Edit: Also, R.I.P. Brimstone. I always looked forward to his posts. He was a great asset to our community. My thoughts go out to his family especially during this time of year.

If you aren't sure who Brimstone was, he was a moderator on Warseer and a very valuable contributor to the Warhammer community. He was one of the most credible rumor sources, and always provided a level-headed opinion of things even despite all the madness that can go on in a Warhammer forum.

Ravenwing WIP

Here's what I've got going on right now:
Notice the bluing on the gun.

The exhaust stains and the heat bluing were both obtained by using Tamiya Weathering Powders.

When I first started the Ravenwing, I used some warm grays to highlight, and was bored with the results. It just didn't look good. I then switched to a cool gray and now am much more pleased with it. My client likes it too. I'm approaching the halfway point on the bikes, I have been slacking recently and I kind of squandered my Thanksgiving break with videogames. Well, now there's Christmas break starting tomorrow, for three weeks! I love being an educator.

Capture and Control Variant Mission

Here's a new twist on the classic objective mission. The other day we were using the Planetstrike guns as objectives, and I thought, "What if the guns were active?"

We tested it, and it makes the game different, as instead of making a last turn grab for objectives, it becomes advantageous to hold them as it increases your firepower. We played this game with the Solifugid campaign rules, with each gun guarding a tunnel entrance (which was the actual objective). The winner gets to reroll reserves in the next tunnel battle, since they control more access points.

The mission is played exactly as capture and control, but with the following exceptions.

Setup: After placing terrain, place 5 gun turrets on the battle field. These weapons have the same stats as the Planetstrike guns (quad gun and lascannon, minus the automated weapon and interceptor status). One should be placed in the center, and the rest in each table quarter 24" away from the center gun.

Firing the Guns: A squad within 2" of a gun may fire it during their shooting phase. The model firing the gun may fire at a separate target than the rest of the squad.

Shooting at the Guns: The gun has an AV of 10. Any glancing or penetrating hit will destroy it. The gun is treated as an extra squad member for the purpose of allocating hits (I chose this instead of standard artillery rules because it makes more sense in this situation). If the gun is destroyed, it still counts as an objective (as the objective is actually the tunnel entrance).

It's really just a simple twist on the old mission. I have found with homebrew rules that the best way to go is to keep it simple.

Final Game With 4th Edition Tyranids This Tuesday

This Tuesday will be my final game with the 4th edition codex. After reading the very latest round of rumors, I am realizing that I need to play my Eldar as much as I can before the new codex hits, because it's going to take many, many games to try out all the new options.

I just assembled a 2nd Edition Screamer-Killer that I got off Ebay for cheap that I want to use as a CC carnifex before I convert it into some new monstrosity.

I'm not going to bother repeating all the new rumors, you know how to find them, Warpshadow or Warseer should have all the latest confirmations. But here's some choice tidbits that have me the most excited:

The Tyrannofex: Basically, a heavily armed monstrous creature. There's no model for it yet, but I am really looking forward to creating my own. It's going to have a TON of weapons (including a 20 shot one), and basically be awesome.

Can't remember what it's called: A flying monstrous creature that bombs spore mines on people.

Tervigon: An HQ unit that generates Termagants every turn.

People are saying that there's only 4 new units in the book...that's not true. There's a ton more. Only 4 of them are getting models. January is shaping up to be a rough month on my pocketbook.

Tyranid Confirmations and Thoughts

I got the Advance Order email in my box today, and the new Tyranids are finally up. They gave away some clues in the email, and here's what I figure:

Trygon/Mawloc: Looks great. The Mawloc is a bit weird but still pretty cool. I don't have enough information about it, I wish I knew if it was a 0-1.

Pyrovore: Appears to be a close combat monster, and an Elites choice. Sure seems that the Tyranid Elites are filling up. And, we'll finally get to use the flame template. Furthermore, it looks almost like a Tyrant Guard, so it may have similar toughness. It will need that if it is indeed a front line creature.

Venomthrope: Wounds on a 2+, always. From other rumors, it generates a 5+ cover save for anything within 6". I doubt it has psychic powers, since nothing was mentioned. Here's my idea. If Lash Whips work as rumored, being able to target a specific model, put one of these near a group of Carnifexes and they'll get cover, plus the Lash Whips can keep those powerfists out of the action.

Hive Guard: They shoot out two S8 shots per turn, and don't require LOS. For these guys, AP will be VERY important. I hope it's at least a 3, and since it doesn't require LOS perhaps it ignores cover. If they get a template, that would be nice too but from the sound of it (Impaler Cannon, sounds like a single target weapon) probably not. It seems Tyranids will still be lacking ranged heavy vehicle killing power, though we have yet to see what will come of the Venom Cannon.

The new Raveners (small rant here but guys, it's not ravenor. Ravenor is the inquisitor. Ravener is the Tyranid.) look nicer than I originally thought with those blurry cell phone pictures. Check out the sprues, you can see what the weapon biomorph thoraxes look like. Plus, there appears to be an armored thorax...could Raveners be allowed to take Extended Carapace? That would be nice.

The Gargoyles also look better than I thought on my first impression.

Genestealers are still in the Troops section, along with the Broodlord. It appears that he will be a squad upgrade. Another small rant here, but guys, Genestealers were never "going back to" elites. They have always been troops. Genestealer cults don't count. You internet kids can get off my lawn.

Zoanthropes have been moved to Elites as well. Now it seems like I'll actually have to make a choice in my elites section!

There's also a note in the email that Hormagaunts cost half what they cost now. That would make them 5 points. Not too shabby!

Spore Mines appear to have been removed from the Fast Attack section.

Well, the rumors will probably slow to a crawl now. Hopefully we'll get a bit more info so I can start planning out my next purchases.

Putting Together The Fortress of Redemption

I'm in the process of putting together this behemoth...seriously, it's huge. It's not a difficult build, but I noticed some creativity on GW's part. The missile silo is two sided, one side has the missiles and the other has the platform for the lascannon (which pivots and rotates with a full range, I couldn't help but make gun noises while moving it around). I thought it was a rather clever way to put the sprues together.

I'm not looking forward to painting it, as I said this thing is massive.

Based on the size of this kit, I think it it totally possible for Games Workshop to do a plastic Thunderhawk. Sure, it's mostly a joke by now (like Duke Nukem Forever) but you never know. GW is getting way better with their sprues, fitting tons more options in creative ways. Think back to the Space Hulk Terminators. The way everything was positioned, the figures with their rich detail, all in such a way that mold lines were minimized.

Working projects this week: Finish putting together the Fortress, and work on the Ravenwing. I may throw up a Ravenwing tutorial later, as I spent a long time figuring out how to paint them and keep it interesting.

Number Crunching On The New Tyranid Battleforce

The new Tyranid Battleforce is up for order now. Here's the contents:

3 Warriors
8 Genestealers
16 Hormagaunts
16 Termagants
3 Ripper Swarms

That's 46 models total. At a price of $105, that's $2.28 per model. Let's break it down more specifically.

3 Warriors are $35
8 Stealers are $30
16 Hormagaunts are $33.27 (new packaging with 12 for $24.95)
16 Termagants are $33.27
Rippers are free, practically.

The grand total separate is $131.54. You save 25%. Now let's compare it to the old Battleforce.

3 Warriors $35
8 Stealers $30
8 Hormagaunts and 8 Gaunts $35
1 Carnifex $45
2 Rippers

Separate, the total is $145. It used to retail for $90, at an average of $4.09 per model. You saved 61%.

(edit: For some reason that number looks wrong. I have triple checked my numbers and I still get the same result. I am very bad at math, so any math people that could help me out would be appreciated.)

Now I'm wishing I got the old Battleforce when I could. Oh well. The new one is still a deal, especially if you get it at the Warstore or somewhere, and especially if you need lots of gaunts it is a better deal in that regard. But the old Battleforce was nice because it was a very cheap way to get a Carnifex.

Now I'm really wishing that I had got that Tyranid Assault Brood back in the day...

Games Workshop, You Read My Mind

For the past two weeks, I have been complaining to my gaming group that I'm kind of bored of the missions in the rulebook (though Planetstrike is still fun) and that I was going to take the missions in the 3rd and 4th edition rulebooks and adapt them for 5th edition. This morning, I got an email from Games Workshop about how they are releasing a Battle Missions book with all kinds of raids, assaults, etc in it (30 something missions, too!). It is supposed to be coming out in March.

I was going to sit down and adapt a few missions later today. Seriously. Well, now it seems I won't have to. Perhaps instead of adapting those old missions I'll write up my tunnel fight scenarios and have some fun with those. I'm almost as excited for this release as I am for the new Tyranids. I hope they release some race-specific missions as well.

The Solifugid Campaign, Radiation Rules

This week saw the aggressors remain on the offensive, with the Dark Angels recovering from a rough start to a victory, while the Imperial Guard turned tail and ran at the sight of the Eldar host! Seeking to keep their momentum, both armies planned some daring attacks on their foes...

Well, my opponent never showed up so I guess I win by default. Here are the rules for how we work the daytime radiation of Solifugid.

I was inspired by the story of Tallarn, and I wanted vehicles to be safe, and I also wanted Terminator armor to be pretty safe as well (it's designed for working in a vacuum), and for power armor to be meaningful, as marines are resistant to radiation while unprotected hordes will suffer. To reflect this, at the beginning of every game turn for turns 1 and 2, all models take a S1 hit with no cover save allowed. On turns 3 and 4, the strength is increased to 2 as the sun gets higher. For turns 5+ the strength is 3. Since Daemons, Necrons, and Tyranids have no options for transport vehicles to protect themselves they receive Feel No Pain against this hit to represent their otherworldly constitutions.

I considered making it just a dangerous terrain test, but that makes elite, well armored armies suffer more than horde armies. I also considered make it a straight 4+ wound, but then monstrous creatures suffer disproportionately.

I am considering making the hits stronger. In our test games, it's caused a casualty or two (late game it causes a lot more, however) but I really want to strike fear into the generals, to get everyone into bunkers or transport vehicles. Perhaps every turn the strength increases by one, to a max of 4, or I should keep it the way it is and have the hits occur every player turn.

Next I'll go over some mission types, and some expanded bunker rules we're working on.

New Tyranid Pictures Finally Up!

In case you haven't seen them, here they are. Here's what I think of them.

Ravener: Not a huge fan, but at least they'll blend in perfectly with the old metal ones. I'm not a big fan of the Warrior head, I hope there's more options.

Gargoyles: I'm glad they're finally plastic, and I like everything but the wings. They look a little too...undead. I'll still buy bucketloads of them, however.

Venomthrope: Ok, wow. This looks so much better in the Kraken color scheme. It brings the detail out better than the Leviathan scheme. I love the tangle of tentacles.

Hive Guard: The picture really isn't clear on this one. I'm not sure if I like it...is this a quadruped Tyranid? I like the upper body, but I'm not sold on the lower. Also, I thought this model was supposed to be very top-heavy? Doesn't look so.

We still have yet to see the Trygon or the Pyrovore, let's hope those come out soon!

The Solifugid Campaign, Intro

Solifugid is a planet in Segmentum Obscuris that is extremely rich in adamantium, promethium and various other minerals. It is full of vibrant and exotic flora, many of which produce medicines and other useful commodities. The one problem with this planet is that it receives an inordinate amount of radiation from its sun, a neutron star. The plant life has adapted to this (which is why the products they produce are so useful) but during the day the surface is bombarded with many forms of radiation, excessive neutrinos, as well as dangerous heat. The Imperials have developed specialized bunkers in which to hide their workers during the day. Tunnels dug under the surface provide protection as well, though some of these are laced with promethium veins which is a danger in itself.

For unknown reasons, the Eldar have attacked this planet. In their wake came a small Tyranid hive fleet. The local PDF general could not determine why the two seemed to be acting in tandem. Later reports indicated that the Eldar were now avoiding the Tyranids. The general put out a call for help to the nearest Marine chapter, with the Emperor's Dragons responding.

Later, another chapter responded and the PDF commander's hopes soared. To his dismay, the green armored Marines were not the Dark Angels, but the Fallen themselves, led by Lord Cypher, chasing their own unknown goals.

Finally, the Imperial Guard arrived with a regiment of Cadians. A lengthy breakdown of communications saw the Imperial guard attack the Emperor's Dragons as though they were traitors. Stunned, the Marines were forced to fight for their survival, while trying to unravel the mystery of the communication failure.

Each faction vies for control of the planet's bunkers, for they hold the key to life on the planet. During the day, tanks and armor reign supreme while at night raids and ambushes keep the foes from sleeping. Underneath the planet's crust, forces clash in cramped, deadly firefights. During the confusing, the Tyranid Hive Fleet seems to have vanished, though auspex scans reveal unusually large fauna masses where none should be able to survive.


Ok, so the fluff isn't the best but this is the campaign my group is starting. I'll post rules on how we represent various things later, but this should serve as an introduction.

The Most Fun You've Had In A Game

What's the most fun you've had in a Warhammer game?

Most of my games have been fun, but there's those moments that really stand out, that create memories. For me, I can think of three games that really stand out in my mind. The first, I wasn't even playing but was a spectator. It was back when I was in high school. My brother was playing Tyranids, and my friend Orks. They were playing the old Meatgrinder mission, with Orks defending.

For those of you that don't remember, Meatgrinder basically gave the attacking team unlimited respawns. For the defender to win, they simply had to have one model alive at the end of the game. During the course of the game, my brother wiped out the entire Ork army, except for Makari, Ghazghul's (too lazy to look up the spelling) standard bearer. Makari had a 2+ invulnerable save. It was the last turn of the game, and Makari was surrounded in close combat by Gargoyles. He had been passing huge numbers of saves in past turns, and only had one left. I remember we were all gathered around, waiting for this last dice roll. In the end, Makari died on the last possible dice roll of the game. Even though I wasn't playing it was lots of fun to watch.

The second was a few years ago, in 4th edition. I took a D-Cannon just for the fun of it. I had deployed in quarters and had the first turn. My friend's Landraider was in range of my D-Cannon, so I figured I'd take a shot. I penetrated and exploded it, and the explosion killed a bunch of Marines and several Terminators. The rest of the game went downhill for him, but that opening shot stands out in my mind.

The third was more recently. A new player came to the game store, and to incorporate him we held a three-way game (in the back of the rulebook they present such a scenario). I had taken my newly painted Barbed Hierodule just for the fun of it. The game was a blast! The Hierodule struck fear into the hearts of my opponents, and caused tons of destruction. In the end he was taken out by TH/SS Terminators, and I ended up losing the game. Despite my loss, I ended the game with a big smile on my face. That game was much more fun than many of the past wins I'd had.

So what's the most fun you've had?

A Week's Worth of Painting

Ron of From The Warp had a post a bit ago about his accomplishments in one week with his family away. I have the whole week of Thanksgiving off, so I thought I'd see how far I could get in this time. Unfortunately one day of my painting will be spent painting our bedroom (no escaping that one, the missus demands it) but I should get a bunch done.

I don't have a huge variety of projects on the table, simply one big one: the Ravenwing. I currently have 5 half-finished bikes and then about 17 more. I then have ten landspeeders. All the bikes are repaired (as best I could, several were put together with way too much glue), primed and ready to go but the speeders are another story. Most of them are heavily damaged.

My goal is to have all the bikes done. They seem to paint pretty fast. However, my family is around so I will have lots of distractions. Wish me luck!

Trygon Information and Other Rumors

I know I said I wasn't going to traffic in rumors anymore, but I got some delicious tidbits from Brimstone, an Interwebs Warhammer Celebrity. His word is generally correct, so that's why I'm sharing it and not the whole new crop of rumors that's sprouted up.

Basically, the Trygon will have several head options and several tail options. One of the head options is a distended jaws, for swallowing. He said it would be called a "Mawloch" though the spelling on that is unsure (it also has not been seen yet in any Trygon photos). He mentioned a tail option as like a rattlesnake. It supposedly looks awesome.

There were some gameplay rumors for it, but they were not from Brimstone, so take everything here with a bit of NaCl. It will not function like the Apocalypse Trygon, so it can't deepstrike into close combat. It supposedly will have its own mishap table. Raveners can enter from behind it, and assault the turn they arrive. Both Trygons and Raveners will be able to burrow and re-appear via deepstrike.

Non-Trygon stuff from Brimstone: Gargoyles are indeed plastic and will come 10 to a sprue. They will use flying bases, but because they are plastic are much more stable.

Raveners are plastic as well, and come three to a sprue, and supposedly six to a box.

That takes care of our three new plastic kits. The three metal ones are a Venomthrope, Hive Guard and a Pyrovore as we have price listings for them.

Well, we are less than two months away and the only pictures we have are a Venomthrope and the cover. The new battleforce ships in 14 days supposedly, and we have no idea what's in it. Let's hope some of those new models are in it!

Cypher, the Fallen Angel

Here's what I painted for a friend. It wasn't terribly hard to paint.
I was going to paint a red spiral on the back of his cloak, because in the Descent of Angels novel (painfully unenjoyable) they're constantly talking about the spiral, and part of Cypher's duty was to walk initiates through the spiral. Furthermore, his sightings are taking a spiral course centering on Terra. I tried it and it looked terrible, so I just went with the red border.
I also used Devlan Mud on the cloak, normally I use Gryphonne Sepia. I wanted him to look dirtier and worn down.

Now to find some proper rules for him. I saw some on a website a while back, I should have my friend playtest them. I didn't like everything about those rules, but until they make something official we can tweak them for my group.

Looking At Starting Fantasy Again

So during today's game, we talked about starting Warhammer Fantasy. A couple of the guys in our group have armies, but they haven't played in a while. I played ages ago, during the days of Herohammer and it left a bad taste in my mouth. I hear most of those problems have been fixed, and I'm considering starting again. I used to play Wood Elves and Lizardmen, and I think I'm going to go back to the Lizardmen (I traded away my old models).

Rumor has it that there's going to be a new Fantasy edition come summertime. If I start up now, will the Lizardman book be invalidated by the new edition, or is it going to be like 40k where some things are outdated but most of it still works?

Also, what would be a good starting point for Lizardmen, besides the army book?

Tyranid Battleforce on Advance Order?

So I'm already breaking my promise (though this technically isn't a rumor, so I'm not really breaking anything), but I was looking at the Warstore today, and on their advanced orders page they have the Tyranid Battleforce listed at $105 MSRP with a release date of December 5th. I checked the GW site, and it is not listed there yet, so I have no idea on the contents yet.

This is a bit confusing, because isn't the codex supposed to be out in January? I thought that the battleforce would release around the same time. If this is the case, will new models be released in the battleforce? History suggests that they will, GW loves to show of their shiny new things in the updated battleforce.

Edit: Miniwargaming has it listed as well, with the same release date. I wonder if GW is getting in on the Christmas rush?

Most likely, this means that no new creatures will be found in the battleforce (I doubt they'd release a model without rules), but I'd guarantee that new plastic versions of metal models will be in the box. Methinks plastic Raveners?

Gargoyles Get Rending?

So the latest round of rumors suggest that Gargoyles get rending, and they're going to be 6 points. Does this seem odd to anyone? Giving them rending is just weird. It's like Swooping Hawks having Haywire grenades, but even weirder than that. First off, Gargoyles are basically flying Termagants, with Bio-Plasma. How they are going to re-work bio-plasma in this new codex is beyond me, but I really hope it's not a CC upgrade like it is now.

Perhaps he meant to say scything talons? Are all Tyranids running around with Rending now? If they have rending, then what is the role of Genestealers? I guess the stealers will be more durable and have a better WS/I, but then there's the factor of points cost.

While I used to just love hearing the latest rumors, now I'm starting to get frustrated with them. Some of them contradict each other, others are just ridiculous, and some are just plain wishlisting. I used to follow several rumors threads on various fora, but I have sworn them off. I'm just going to wait for the inevitable leak, and the in-store copies to hit before I post anything else about rumors.

Currently on the repair table: 10 Ravenwing Landspeeders. Guys, do me two favors. First off, don't buy broken down models off ebay. Secondly, invest in proper carrying cases.

Master of the Ravenwing Landspeeder, WIP

Edit from the future: See the finished product here.

This is my latest project. I'm painting up the Ravenwing as a commission, and I figured I'd start with the Master's Landspeeder. I want it to be ornate, but not ridiculously so.



This is the first time I've used greenstuff for anything other than filling in gaps. I should have made the corner of the robe square, I'm going to see if I can cut it right but I'm afraid to mess it up. There are a few more folds and wrinkles in the cloth than shown because of the lighting, but I could have probably done more.

I'm probably going to fix up the other things and then come back to it, I don't want to add too much more but I feel that the gunner's side in the middle area needs something else.

Ran the 40k Zombie Adventure Last Night...

*Edit:  I have updated the rules, you can find them here.*

...and I can say it really needs some work! It was fun, but suffered from some of the same problems that 2nd edition did. There's just too much stuff to keep track of. I am going to simplify the power ups and simplify the zombies. I also think the game would be better off if there were a player controlling the zombies, but if I simplify it enough that may not be necessary. I'm thinking next time of reducing all power levels, and having the players be little more than Guardsmen, or some kind of rank-and-file trooper but with shotguns, so it comes down to skill and a bit of luck instead of who has the best character options in their codex.

Here's the field. We started in the graveyard, and worked our way forward.

Here's the escape vehicle with the trophy nearby.

Also! Wolf Lords are overpowered in this scenario. He was just mowing through zombies getting ridiculous numbers of attacks. Even after dying, the Wolf Lord still made it back into the lead simply through wiping out inordinate amounts of zombies, and then consolidating.

My group went all out and we had great terrain, great models and a lot of fun. One group member even made a trophy out of an old Necromunda figure. In the end, we ran out of time and decided to give the trophy to the Wolf Lord player as he had killed at least 50 zombies, was the furthest ahead even after dying. No one had reached the escape vehicle, but since he was the closest and also owned the zombie models (which were a mix of Fantasy zombies, skeletons, Skaven, and D&D miscellanea) we decided he should get it.

These are the three characters I chose. I only used the Autarch, but I should have ran the Broodlord. Close combat was way better than shooting.

A group photo of all the characters prepared. We had ten players, and some brought more than one character.

The Space Marine Captain getting eaten by Zombies. He died.

Halloween Zombie 40k Night!

**Double Edit:  I have updated the rules.  Here is the new version.**

*Edit: I have tested the scenario and it is fun but kind of broken! Here is the post in which I review how it went.*

I read about something like this a while back, and figured I'd write up my own version of this adventure. Here is the PDF. I have not playtested it yet. We were supposed to play it tonight, but Nurgle has seen fit to strike me down with some kind of nasty flu. So my group will either play without me or reschedule to Thursday night, when hopefully I'll be better.

If you haven't downloaded it yet, here's the intro:

++On a distant planet in the Imperium, war was raging. Like most planets in the Imperium, this one happened to be a Necron Tomb World, house important Chaos artifacts, be part of a Tau expansion, in the path of a Tyranid Hive-Fleet, and in the path of an Ork Waaaagh! Furthermore, the Eldar decided to join battle for reasons unknown. During the course of the fighting, Nurgle let slip his latest creation, Imperial Designated H1Z1, or the Plague Zombie Flu. This outbreak ground the fighting to a halt as the plague affected all combatants, xenos, machine, and human alike. Even Nurgle himself lost control of his own plague zombies. The leaders of each faction called a temporary uneasy truce. How this was managed is unknown but our plot demands it, thus it is so. The plague became so bad that the survivors became desperate to escape the planet before Exterminatus is declared.++

The objective is to reach the escape vehicle. Your character is any Independent Character from your codex. There is no points limit, but the character must be on foot.

There are character upgrades to balance out those characters with fewer options.

There are also 4 different kinds of zombies. When attacking a zombie with shooting or close combat, you have the rending ability which represents the chance of getting a headshot.

Zombies respawn, as do exploding barrels.

There are power up boxes scattered across the field, and when you get a headshot zombies will drop a box as well. Here's a sample power up:

Shotgun: Despite all the technological advancement of the galaxy, there is no better zombie-killing tool than a good ole’ pump action shotgun. The shotgun has the following profile:
Range 12” S: 4 (see special) AP: 6 (see special) Assault 1
If fired at a zombie within 6” you do not need to roll to hit, and that zombie suffers an automatic wound with no save possible. It may also be fired once at any time during the Shamble Phase. The Shotgun has 6 shots. Further pickups of this item will add D3+3 shots to your inventory. Once all ammo is gone it is discarded.

There is also an item called "The Hat Of Chuck Norris." Needless to say it's pretty potent.

Please note that it is not really intended to be balanced, but to be a fun zombie-killing night. But who cares about balance when there's zombies to kill? So what are you waiting for? Download it and let me know what you think! Run it with your groups and give me feedback so I can improve it for next time.

Barbed Hierodule Completed!

Here he is! Look at all his majesty.





The arms are magnetic for storage purposes. This didn't take as long as I thought it would. The Citadel Medium Drybrush is amazing. Thanks to it, I discovered how to get my carapace effect much faster.

Painting a large model has its own set of rules! I tried using my normal claw highlighting techniques but they didn't work so I had to develop some new tricks. I also should have put the magnets in before painting...but I didn't think of it until I was almost finished.

Using Forgeworld in Regular Games

I used my completed Hierodule (pics forthcoming) in our weekly game Tuesday night. It was quite the interesting experience. For one, we had a new player come so we did a three sided game following the rules in the back of the rulebook. Secondly, I had a 700 point unit in my army.

In the end, I don't think it is overpowered. It's not something I would do every game, but it is fun once and a while. It caused a lot of damage, but in the end was brought down by TH/SS terminators and a missile launcher. I can see how people say it is overpowered as it took out a lot of stuff, but I don't think it even earned its points back. I actually lost the game.

I also took my Malanthrope. While it is not overpowered, the more I use it the more I realize its rules are all wrong. All lookers on said they were surprised that it was more nasty in CC than with psychic powers. If they do put it in the 'nid codex, I hope they fix those rules.

The three sided game rules are interesting. I think I'd give them another try, with a bit of adaptation. For one, make sure the home bases are equidistant. If one is too far away, the other two players will weaken each other and the third can mop up. But such is the nature of cutthroat.

Anyway, I'm going to be coming up with some new scenarios for 40k. I am working on a Halloween themed one right now. I'll post it after I get it out of the rough draft phase.

New Tyranid Mystery Creature

Image totally copyright Gamesworkshop

Well here's our first view of one of the new creatures from the codex. It looks like it's got Lash Whips, Feeder Tendrils and extreme Toxic Miasma. It also looks to be part Ravener. The size is unclear, however. Is it January yet?

All I can say though is that it's going to be a pain to pin that tail if this is a metal kit.

I dont' know if this is a psychic creature, the head isn't big enough.

The only thing I don't like about it is the way the tendrils are sculpted, but then again that may have something to do with the color.

New Rumors! Thoughts!

Summarized, here's the new Tyranid rumors to come out of Gamesday Italy:

Plastic Trygon (no confirmation on whether it's Apoc or not)

None of the current plastics are being redone (I heard this one a few months ago).

Some metals will be made plastic (My guesses are Gargoyles first, Tyrant second).

I was personally hoping for more, but it seems GW is running a tight ship these days. Of all the things, I am really hoping for the plastic Trygon. People are saying that they won't ever put an Apocalypse unit into a regular codex; but what of the Valkyrie? They simply modified some rules and it works perfectly in-game. Also, a Trygon is hardly Apocalypse material. It is overpriced and very vulnerable. You can make a Carnifex just as tough, with a better save and for half the cost.

Some people say that they won't put a Trygon in the codex because it's too big. However, it's only about the size of a drop pod. I of course would be a very happy hive node if the Trygon made it into the codex. Even if it was a 0-1 restriction I would still buy three.

Of course none of this is fact yet. Just because someone higher up said it at Gamesday and said quote made it on the interwebs, doesn't mean it's true. All we can do is wait for the inevitable leak, or until GW decides to impart their knowledge unto us.

Update: Gaunt boxes have been pulled from the GW store. Does this mean they'll be splitting the contents? Rumors suggest the base box size will go up to 10 models, but they'd have to re-do the sprue if that was the case.

Fact vs. Rumor

I have been closely following the rumors thread on Warpshadow, and have been thinking about the nature of rumors with GW's latest policy. In past days we would already have the full listings, now it seems like we have to wait until stores get their copies. A couple of choice tidbits seem to make their way through, but a lot of those become fan speculation. Fan speculation becomes rumor and rumor becomes truth.

Here are the facts about the new Tyranids:

It was written by Robin Cruddace.

It will be released in January of 2010.

3 plastic models and 3 metal models will be released simultaneously.

The codex will have never-before-seen creatures.

There is a much circulated quote from Phil Kelly that says that there will be 4 new creatures. Since I have seen no official word on it other than a rumors thread over on BoLS I'm not counting it as truth.

That is all we know. The rest is rumor, hearsay and speculation. Some of the rumors may be truth. For example, it seems practically a given that there will be a plastic Trygon. However, there has been no official confirmation and even those who are in the know say that they don't know if it will actually be in the codex or if it will be an Apocalypse side-release. Other rumors of cheap gaunts seem very plausible, while others of 8 point Genestealers seem very far-fetched.

Finally, the last few pages of the Warpshadow rumors thread discuss what that big thing is in the background of the new codex cover. Many people think that whatever it is, it must be in the codex be it an Exocrine or some other monstrosity. Whatever it is, I must point out that Phantom Titans are depicted on the cover of the 4th edition Eldar codex, and yet that model is not found in the codex. I have tried twice now to register on the Warpshadow forums to point this out, but they haven't activated my account yet so I'm posting it here. To me, that giant spikey thing in the background isn't supposed to be anything other than a suggestion of a monstrous Tyranid horror.

The Econo-Box: A Review

I am desperate for a new carrying case. Currently, I carry my models in an ancient leather doctor's bag which I have no idea how old it is or how it even came to be in my possession. I don't even know if it was a doctor's bag, but it looks just like the ones doctors would carry in the early 20th century while making house calls. It is made of very firm, wire reinforced leather. I place my models in, and use towels to separate the layers. Let me assure you, I am well versed in the benefits of a good matte sealant.

While I am saving up for a nice one, I figured I'd give the "Fuzz Box" from the Warstore a try. The price is only $12.99, even if it was terrible at least the price isn't too bad. It's a good thing I didn't throw down for more than one as I was sadly disappointed.

Don't get me wrong, I love the Warstore. I pretty much order exclusively from them. I was disappointed in this product because I couldn't fit anything in it. But fear not! There's good news too. I'll cover that more later, but for now I'll give a good description.

The box is about 15"x11"x2". It comes with three foam sheets; a top, middle and bottom one. You have to punch out the holes in the middle one leaving you with 66 foam blocks. The cardboard is- well, cardboard. When I got home from work I found my daughter standing on it. Why was she standing on it when there's plenty of other places to stand? The world may never know. She's about 20 lbs and she only put a slight bend into the lid, so that's a plus. I hadn't punched out the squares yet so it was a little firmer inside so I'm not sure if that's a good test.

Here's where the box failed for me: it doesn't fit any of the armies that I play. I have both Eldar and Tyranids. The only Eldar unit that fit inside were Fire Dragons and Guardians. Dark Reapers kind of fit, but the Exarch wouldn't fit. Warp Spiders kind of fit, but the gun really sticks out. The only Tyranid units that fit were my Termagants and Spore Mines. The Spinegaunts (I only have 2) kind of fit. Here is some photographic evidence.

As you can see not much really fits. Click on the picture to get a better idea of how everything fits (or doesn't).

This is what I'm using the box for. I have 34 gaunts, and they fit well enough. If the rumors are true and Termagants are going to be 4 points and get Without Number for free...well I'm going to need a lot more and this box will be great for storing them.

I considered cutting the squares to fit my guys better, but the amount I'd need to cut wouldn't be worth it as I'd be basically combining two squares. That trick might work for the 60mm Guard Heavy Weapons teams, however.

Now for the good news. At my big game on Monday, I tested several different armies. Space Marines fit perfectly. Assault Marines maybe not (I didn't test them) but Tactical Marines fit great. Slugga Boyz fit perfectly (I did not test the Choppa Boyz but I'm pretty sure they'll fit, especially the AoBR guys). Imperial Guard fit perfectly. I'm sure Necrons will fit great, as well as Tau. So if you play one of those armies, go for it! The Fuzz Box would be a great buy for you. But if you play Eldar, Tyranids or any other army that uses small bases but with tons of gribbly bits, cresting plumes, dynamic poses or what have you, you might want to reconsider.

Rating: 3 out of 5 stars

Painting Challenge Failed! Also, The Curse of Painted Models

Args! I failed to complete my Hierodule in time for the game. All I had left was to highlight the black and the blue. Of course, if I didn't have a family I totally would have got it done.

Anyway, we played a 6,000 pt apoc game today. Here is a brief batrep: It was me and Dark Angels versus Wolves, Guard, and Orks. Two of the most underwhelming codices versus three of the best. The first unit of mine to die was the Hierodule. He was in cover. Out of 7 missile launcher and lascannon shots that wounded him, I only passed one cover save. So the dice struck me down on the first turn. The second model of mine to die was my Malanthrope. So my two Forgeworld goodies were the first gone. Then a few Genestealers died, an the next guy to go was my Broodlord! Why do all the painted guys go first?

The Ork guy told me that in the first game he used his completed Stompa it got wasted on the first turn. Has anyone else had this curse?

Oh yeah, we ended up losing the battle by 100 points. The central objective was contested and when we totaled up the points we were found wanting.

A funny moment from the battle was a lone surviving Genestealer who charged some Long Fangs. In over three full game turns of combat, neither side inflicted any wounds on the other.

Finally, here's some pictures of my WIP Hierodule. It is past this stage now, but here's what I've got going on.

Space Hulk: Brother Claudio

Here it is, I'll just let the pictures speak for themselves. This was my entry for the Jawaballs painting contest. The hardest part was probably the heraldry.

The Ultimate Painting Challenge

Well, sort of. Monday we're playing a big Apoc game since for some reason I have Columbus Day off. I really want to play Tyranids and use my Barbed Hierodule, but it is currently in pieces. In order to assemble it, it needs to be painted. So, I have one weekend to finish. I want it to be the same standard as my Malanthrope. After all, with Forgeworld models why settle for a tabletop quality paint job? I figure if I pay that much I might as well make it awesome.

On another note, I think the Hierodule is a bit overpriced. He's really just a souped up Carnifex. Of course, most Forgeworld things are overpriced, but this one I think is overpriced on the order of about 200 pts. Especially when a 20 man ork squad with a power klaw can take him out quite easily.

What the Dark Angels Need

I was thinking about this the other day, and I thought of a few things that Dark Angels need to become a more characterful army. Their looks are second to none, but their rules don't exactly follow suit. Here's what I came up with:

Deathwing: The Deathwing are quite used to going up against insurmountable odds, it's what gave them their bone-white color scheme and that tradition still rings true. To reflect this, all Deathwing should be immune to the effects of the No Retreat! rule. They should also have to select an opponent's HQ at the beginning of the game, against that model and its unit they gain the Preferred Enemy USR as this HQ has information about the Fallen.

Ravenwing: All of them should have the Skilled Rider USR, and furthermore they should always get some kind of save, or have their normal save increased to reflect their skill at dodging incoming fire. Back in 3rd edition, they had a "jink" save that was always on a 6+.

Also, why bother giving Sammael a jetbike when no one else can take one? He should be able to take an Honor Guard, all of whom have jetbikes. The Dark Angels have access to many ancient pieces of equipment, why not more than one bike?

They should be able to take the Mortis Pattern Dreadnought.

They may not get a new codex for a while, maybe I should let my friend who plays Dark Angels to try out these rules and see if they are balanced.

The Correct Plural of Codex

I've seen it wrong too many times. Time for some prescriptive smackdown. People write codexes, codici, codi, and all manner of linguistic blasphemies. The correct plural of codex is codices. That is all.

Source: Merriam-Webster's dictionary.

*Post Edit*  Please don't recite the crazy Latin rules for plurals.  I am fully aware of them and if we were living in Imperial Rome you would be totally correct on the different declensions.  However, in this case codex is a loanword, and as a result when we're speaking English the correct plural is codices.  GW tends to say codexes which is technically wrong but I'll survive that misuse.

While we're on the subject, the correct plural of octopus is not octopi.  It is octopuses.  Octopus comes from Greek, and the -i ending is Latin.  If you want to get really technical the correct plural is octopodes but nobody uses it.

Another Successful Planetstrike Defense

Last night I defended against Dark Angels and Daemons. For this game we did the second Planetstrike mission. Instead of a Helm's Deep type defense, I put my bastions spread out, with one in the middle, and one on each table edge, slightly off-set so that each bastion could see all the way to the other table edge. I then put my cheapest troops (not easy with Eldar) inside the bastions because I knew they were going to take Flamers and just burn my troops inside.

Inside the bastions I had two units of 5 Rangers, two units of 10 Guardians, and in the center a Vibro-Cannon unit. Each unit is about 100 pts, which isn't too cheap but was the best I could do.

The rest of my army was in reserve. I had a Seer council, 6 bikes, a Falcon full of Fire Dragons, a Fire Prism, and 10 Dire Avengers in a Wave Serpent. For the game, I basically flew around turbo-boosting as needed and frying things as needed. This more mobile defense worked out great. Since I only had to claim one objective, I could distract them and pull them far away from the objective I intended to claim, and then turbo-boost into position at the end of the game. I killed very few things, I don't think I killed a single Dark Angel model. I took out as many flamers as I could since they're fast, and I killed a Soul Grinder with a lucky Bright Lance shot, but that was about it. This game was won through resilience and speed.

So for a mobile army like Eldar, try a spread out defense. You force your slower foes to commit, and then you can rapidly redeploy as you see fit. Remember though, in Planetstrike you have to totally clear the objectives. None of this last minute contesting if you are defender.

Thoughts on the New Tyranid Rumors

*This info is old! Here is the latest information!*

First off, check out the latest rumors from Warpshadow. Summary is in the first post.

All I have to say is:

yessssssssssss

On a less sibilant note, I'm really excited. I'm a bit concerned that everything is getting cheaper just to keep up with everyone else, but maybe I'll actually take Hormagaunts again.

Too bad they're coming at the end of my Christmas break, but I should have a bit of time to work on them. The one rumor that kind of bugs me is the Malanthrope one, but only because I bought the Forgeworld one and they'll come out with a cheaper plastic one. I guess that's how FW Valkyrie and Baneblade owners felt. But, perhaps the sculpt will be different...and I'll actually be able to use a FW model without opponent permission!

I really hope they fix the Malanthrope's stats if that's the case. Right now it's a souped up hive tyrant. Look at the current model- with those atrophied T-Rex arms attached to a bulbous body. He should be a slow, implacable, drifting psychic abomination consuming all in his path. It should be weak in CC but be an immensely powerful psyker.

It's a bit early to react too much to the rumors, but I'm liking the sound of them so far. As we get closer to January, things will start fleshing out and we can all start redoing our lists.

Edit: According to the official GW blog, there's going to be 3 new metal and 3 new plastic kits. The three new metal are obviously new creatures, but the plastic?

Edit again: Here's what I think. One plastic is a plastic Tyrant. One is the mysterious monster that's supposedly bigger than a Carnifex. The other plastic is Gargoyles. The three metal ones are brand new creatures. Since they are metal, it's doubtful that they're swarm or monstrous creatures. They're probably all middleweight Tyranids.

*If you still read this whole thing, for some reason this page has been viewed THOUSANDS of times, probably because (at the time of writing this) I come up as the first choice for Tyranid rumors on Google. I have no idea why this is the case, this post isn't that helpful but I'm flattered by all the attention.*

Tyranid Creature Names and Their Meanings

Tyranids have an interesting collection of names for their creatures. Here are some of their meanings. I have classified them in a couple of groupings. Italicized choices come from Epic, Forgeworld, or Armourcast.

The Female Ones

Termagant: Means a harsh-tempered or overbearing woman.

Harridan: One of my favorite words, it means a strict, bossy, or belligerent old woman.

Dominatrix: A dominating woman, it has other meanings but I'm sure you already know those.

The Greekish Ones

Biovore: Literally, life-eater. Methinks the technical Greek is Biophage, but the -vore is Latin, so it's one of those fused words.

Malanthrope: Another fused word, Mal- being the Latin for bad, and -anthrope being human being.

Hierophant: A priest who interprets sacred mysteries.

Hierodule: A slave in an ancient Greek temple.

Dactylis: Comes from the Greek meaning "fingers" if I recall.

Exocrine: Meaning an external secretion.

Zoanthrope: A portmanteau of zoo- meaning animal, and -anthrope meaning man. This term was coined by Gene Wolfe in his Torturer series (he also uses the terms Lictor and Carnifex heavily in that series, the books were an influence on GW).

Hormagaunt: I'm just guessing on this one, but horman is the Greek for "to set in motion" (it's where the word hormone comes from), so this would mean a gaunt that is set in motion. A good name for a fast moving creature.

The Latin Ones

Carnifex: Means butcher. For the plural, just use Carnifexes. If you really want to get all Latin, you can say Carnifices. However, there are several versions of Latin plurals and I don't want to recall my 4th grade Latin lessons so just use the -es ending. Similarly, the plural of codex is codices.

Edit: I stand corrected- The original sources I looked up said it meant butcher, and I assumed it to be correct because the roots would mean flesh-maker, but Elazar pointed out otherwise. I did some further research and he indeed is correct, a Carnifex is an executioner.

Malefactor: Means evil-doer.

Lictor: A lictor was a civil servant in ancient Rome, who acted as bodyguards of sorts. It means "one who binds." Interestingly enough, the bundle of rods carried by a Lictor was called fasces which is where the term "Fascism" originates.

Haruspex: A religious official who divined the future by looking at the entrails of animals.

This list isn't comprehensive. I figured I'd point out where the words for our more oddly named creatures come from.

Eldar Defense in Planetstrike, Part Two

In Part 1, I didn't really go in depth on the various choices to be made for defense. I simply talked about what I did and how I set up the board. Here I'm going to go over the various choices for Heavy Support and Troops, as those are what you'll be taking.

Support Platform: If you put a D-Cannon in a bastion, I guarantee you will get a 24" clearance around them. Every time I've taken them in regular games, my foes always give them a wide berth. Of course, they try to kill them as fast as possible, and they always do, but inside a Bastion they should be safer. If you take a Vibro-Cannon, you'll have to place them carefully. Don't take the other option. I don't even remember what it's called.

War Walker: In my opinion, not the best for defense. These guys are great for flank harassment and supporting fire, but if you take them for Planetstrike, they're probably best held in reserve to harry the flanks later.

Wraithlord: A great choice. Plop one of these guys in a Bastion and he's not going anywhere. It won't need to test for Wraithsight as long as the Bastion is intact, but once it plops make sure you've got a seer nearby. I give these guys Bright Lances and Wraithswords in case they get assaulted.

Dark Reapers: If you're playing against Marines, there is really no better choice. An Exarch with a Tempest Launcher and Crack Shot will do most of the killing for you all game. Place them in a protected, center bastion with a good line of sight.

Falcon: Great for bringing reinforcements onto the field, but it's not a very killy unit. A couple of them might be good for a hammer/anvil type defense.

Fire Prism: Same as the Falcon, but a little more killy and no transport option.

Wraithguard: A full unit of 10 makes for a great defense troops choice. They're tough and their guns can put fear into elite armies. Their short range and low rate of fire will cause horde armies to laugh at them, however.

Dire Avengers: A solid choice as usual. Hunkered down in a bastion they can provide great close-range defense with a well-timed Bladestorm. Keep a Farseer nearby so they can benefit from Doom.

Rangers/Pathfinders: These guys are better left out of a Bastion, finding cover on the board somewhere. Behind a defense line they should get a 2+ cover save. They aren't the most killy, but can take out a few things here and there. They'll mostly act as a speedbump.

Guardians: Ummm....put them in a Bastion? A full unit with psychic support could be a good close-range defense, and the support weapon can help bring some firepower to the table.

Jetbikes: I don't really see a point to these guys in Planetstrike. In the case of contesting, Attacker always wins so there's no turn 5 Turboboosting to claim objectives. They're not killy enough to be a good defender unit. I can see them being used as flank/rear armor distractions, but that's about it.

I'm going to play the Attacker on Tuesday, so I'll have a report on that later.

Space Hulk- Second Printing

I heard from my FLGS owner last night that there is going to be a second run of Space Hulk because the first went so well. He said that he had already ordered 4 copies. So if you missed out, now's your chance.

I ordered at 6:00 AM Monday morning, the day it was announced. I know some people will be upset because they ordered one now only because they thought it would be limited. But on the other hand, people who were short on cash or whatever will be able to get it. I really don't care, I have my copy and enjoy it.

I have submitted this to BOLS.

My Turn To Complain About The New Space Wolves

I have heavily debated even posting this, as I have often complained about the complainers, but I'm quite concerned about the new codex. I want to get my thoughts and concerns out. I've actually been totally fine with all the Wolf rumors I've heard, powerful characters, cheap Grey Hunters, insane Bloodclaws, etc, until I heard about their psychic powers. This is where things get ridiculous.

Eldar are supposed to be the most powerful psykers in the galaxy. Yet ever since Second Edition (with our extremely overpowered codex) we've only had mostly weak destructive psychic powers. Fortune is nice, and a guide/doom combo can be powerful, but those are powers that rely on the relative power of the unit they are cast on. I'm not saying that they're weak powers, they're the best we have, but the destructiveness depends on the unit. Mind War can pull the teeth out of a unit, but there's a lot of hoops to jump through before anything can happen, and it only inflicts one wound. Eldritch Storm is a joke. I have tried it, even with a Doom combo and it is ineffective. Destructor is our best "killy" psychic power, but it's just a heavy flamer. Our power is in synergy.

Now the Space Wolves have two of the most destructive psychic powers in the game, and furthermore can nullify any psychic power on a simple 4+! Njal can do it on a 3+. Everyone says that you can simply kill the guy with the power, but if he's in a unit it's going to take a lot of work. Especially if you can't get any valuable units within 24". Plus, the powers are carried by a 100 pt character, and 4 of them can be in the army.

What's worse about Jaws of the World Wolf is that there's not enough rolls! A simple psychic test on LD 10 and then bam, death to everything that can't roll under its initiative. No cover, armor, or inv saves. No wounds caused, simply removal. There goes your 200+ point character or MC, sniped right out a unit far more effectively than a Vindicaire assassin. At least he has to roll to hit and to wound, and you sometimes get a save against him. The only other ability I can think of that can simply remove models is the Teleport Barrage stratagem from Planetstrike, which is once again an extremely overpowered piece of schlock.

Eldar will likely not really be harmed by Jaws of the World Wolf. Almost every model will dodge it on anything but a 6, and they'll have to roll 3d6 to get their psychic powers off anyway. What I'm worried about is my Tyranids. Goodbye Carnifexes!

The other problem with the initiative test is that there's no point in having an initiative higher than 5 (except for CC of course). An initiative test should be like shooting if your BS is over 5. If you miss and your initiative is higher than 5, you can roll again (an Init. 6 would have to roll a 1 on the second test, a 7 would roll a 2, an 8 a 3, and so on).

If I played Space Wolves, I could not in good conscience take this power against my opponent in a friendly game.

I really hope the 'nid codex has that power in mind when they write it. I hope that Zoanthropes project a psychic null-zone where no enemy psychic powers can take effect within 12" or something like that. That would make them useful again.

Ok, I got that out of my system. I won't complain about it again until I play against it, we'll see how it is then.

(Sidenote: In some crazy Apoc battle or something, one player with Lash and one player with JotWW...shudder.)

Planetstrike FAQ, Version 2 (Feedback Requested)

Here is my updated version of a FAQ for Planetstrike. I could use as much feedback as I can get.

Terrain:

Comms Relay: Counts as an artillery piece. Can be targeted separately unless it is part of an intact building, in which case a "Weapon Destroyed" result can take it out. Models don't have to be on the roof to use it.

Bastion Turret Weapons: Use a BS of 2 as normal, but if a occupying model is on the roof he may use his own BS instead (and may fire at a separate target).

Stratagems:

Crash and Burn: If a Hit is rolled, use the arrow to show what direction it scatters but it will only scatter half the number rolled on 3d6 (round up). This same rule applies to any stratagem that rolls 3d6 for scatter (I'm beginning to be not so sure about this one).

Laserburn: The affected area is treated as Dangerous terrain afterward. If one of the markers goes off the table edge, the strike will still hit, but measured from the point where it exited the table.

Teleport Barrage: Models on the roof are not affected.

Krak Attack: If used on a drop pod, it strikes the pod and not the unit inside.

Other: Chaos Daemons may use the Blasphemous Broadcast, Euclidean Mindphase and Hellish Cacophony stratagems.

Chaos Daemons: Follow the Planetstrike reserves chart instead of normal deployment (I'd like a Daemons player to chime in on this one).

Here's another question, should Automated Weapons still be allowed to shoot even if the building is shaken? They are machine spirits after all. Last game that's how we played it, I'll have to try some games both ways.

How To Make Razorwire

Ok, now it's time to put some razorwire on those sprue barricades we made in a previous post.

First off, cut yourself a length of very fine wire. For these I used 22 gauge wire that I got for cheap at Lowe's. There are plenty of ways to get free wire, but I wanted to be spared the hassle. Keep in mind that every foot of wire is going to equal slightly more than 1" of razorwire, so 6' of wire would be a bit more than 6" of wire. Since our sections are 6" long, 6' is a perfect length.

Bend the wire in half, and tie the loose ends around something stable like a chair.



Take the other end and put it into your drill. Make sure it is in there tight.



Now, run the drill until the wire is very tightly wound. Don't let the wire go slack, it will cause wrinkles and folds in the wire line. A few of those will add some character, but too many will ruin the line. Cut off the wire at both ends.

With the long section of wire, wrap it around something round like a larger paintbrush or your hobby knife. Obviously, you can control the diameter of the wire by using different objects. Find whatever looks best to you.



After it is wound up, I like to counter-wind it a bit with my hands. To do this I simply bend the wire gently in the opposite direction of how I just wound it. This loosens it up and makes it a bit more realistic.

Finally, wrap the wire around the 6" section that you had from the previous post. Now, lay it on top of the two barricades and glue it into position. Use superglue to fix the wire to the plastic, and make sure you superglue both ends of the wire. Finally, matte seal it to get rid of the plastic glue sheen.

The reason you want to fix the wire on the support before putting it on the barricade is because the tension in the wire will cause the barricade to buckle. Look at the first picture in this post; you can see that half the feet aren't even on the ground. After trying countless times to fix it, I finally ripped the 6" section off and wound the wire on that, then set it on the barricades and it worked beautifully.

You can of course mount the wire on whatever you want, this is simply the way I do it.

Eldar Defense in Planetstrike

I finally got around to playing my first Planetstrike game. It was a lot of fun. I really like the Attacker/Defender dynamic. Here's the defense I employed. Please ignore the bright, colorful blocks. My daughter loaned them to me for this game because I was one bastion short. I was very eager for it to be destroyed.


As you can see, I went with a Helm's Deep style defense. The idea is that if they attack the front, they're exposed to fire from all bastions. If they try and take the sides, they can only get the first two, and then they'll be slowed down. I filled the spaces between bastions with obstacles to mess up any deep strikers.

I deployed my Dark Reapers in the center bastion so they could get the best line of fire. I put a Wraithlord in each of the forward bastions, and a squad of Wraithguard in the right bastion, and some Dire Avengers in the left one. I had some Pathfinders out behind the Aegis Defense Line for extra firepower.

When playing Planetstrike, make sure you follow the order of events properly. I figured I knew them so I didn't and deployed too early. The order is there for a reason!

An imposing view for an attacker.

My opponent took to the flank. Fortunately, I was able to slow him down enough that he only had two objectives. At one point he had 3 but I was able to clear the attackers from it. If the game had ended on turn 5, it would have been a draw. However, the game ended on turn 7 and I won with three objectives to two.

I'm not sure who my star unit was. All my units did really well. The Wraithguard absorbed a huge amount of firepower and my opponent stayed away from them out of fear. While they have a short range, Wraithcannons are very nasty. I only had 3 of 10 survive the game, but that was all I needed. The reapers did well, and after spending 3 turns repositioning my Pathfinders, they actually managed to do some damage.


In all it was an enjoyable game. Next time I play defender, I am going to try a spread out defense and use my speed to take care of objectives as needed.

Making Terrain Out of Sprues

Here's a way to make barricades and other obstacles for cheap as free! I can't bear to throw anything away, and as my pile of empty sprues grew higher and higher I figured I had to do something to take care of them all. Finally, I discovered an easy way to make caltrops style tank barricades. I later topped them off with razorwire, but that's a post for another day.

The first step is to cut several straight segments of sprue. For each barricade, cut out three 1 1/2"-2" segments. If you plan on making razorwire-type barricades cut 6 of these smaller segments and a 6" segment as well. After they are cut, sharpen one end to a point on the small sections, and both ends on a 6" section. Whittle down the plastic to make it worn looking.



Sprues are in a somewhat trapezoidal shape. When you whittle them, try to take more off the thicker corners to make them more square.

After whittling them, glue two into an X shape. Give the glue a bit of extra time to dry as you aren't gluing preformed pieces into shape. After they dry stand it up and glue the third piece to form a tripod shape. At this point I use paint bottles on each corner to support the whole thing until it dries completely.





If you are simply going for tank traps, go ahead and stop here. I simply prime them black and give a very light drybrush of Boltgun Metal. You can mount them on a 6"x2" base if you wish, or just set them up on the table as they are. If you want to make the razorwire, check for my next installment on how to make your own wire and how to set it on the barricade without bending the whole thing out of shape (not as easy as it sounds).