I finished the first round of our 3 round summer league.
I played next against Leigh's Drop Pod Space Wolves.
Leigh, in an epic feat of poor rolling, dropped everything down and was able to kill about 3 Chaos Space Marines. (including firing 5 multi-meltas, hitting twice, wounding once, but I 5+ saved) He conceded after the counter-attack.
I then faced the BA list played by Aaron. Due to some odd deep strikes, I was unable to kill Mephiston early with plasma guns. He did die, but not before taking out a Chaos Space Marine squad. The game ended on Turn 5 by a score of 5-6 I think. It was sad because I had terminators in combat with non-power weapon units...
I then finally played against Pete and his Imperial Guard. I deployed first to spread out, Pete did an almost-refused-flank. I deep struck the termies in and went to work on hitting the Chimeras to get easy(er) kill points. I was able to get up in KP's and hide with the majority of my Infantry.
At the end of the first season I end up 3-2-0 but with the most Victory Points Achieved!
Stay tuned for an update of the 1850 round.
-Mike
Tuesday, July 19, 2011
Monday, July 18, 2011
Throne of Skulls Recap: Part 4
The Good, the Bad, and the Drunk.
Okay, so there is a small amount of hoopla around Throne of Skulls. Most of this deals with lack of prize support (The army winners received a framed paper and an invite back to next year, overall winners got trophies)
The Good: The place was awesome. They reserved a huge ballroom inside of the recently renovated Tropicana resort on the Las Vegas strip (That likely was NOT cheap).
There was catered food on the two tournament days, which was EXCELLENT. This was great because food in Vegas is by no means cheap.
The atmosphere was incredible. I was lucky enough to have ~8 friends also going to ToS. That coupled with the laid back resort nature of the place made for an excellent time. I can't really describe it effectively to someone who was not there. It was an awesome time.
The Bad: Pairings and scoring. On the first day, it was possible to get paired against someone you already played. This was corrected on the second day, but in reality it should never have happened. The sportsmanship scoring was kind of bullshit. You could get up to 5 points off of sportsmanship. This could effectively net you an extra win and two draws worth of points. This is how some people won their army despite having a worse record than their peers. The lack of prize support has been spoken about to death so I will not cover it here. I will add that GW put in some serious cash to even get that place.
Terrain: A bastion and two ruins on a Realm of Battle Table? You need more fucking terrain. Why do you think I had a field day with guard? Making hills 6+ area doesn't count.
The Drunk: Having a bar with 2 for 1 cocktails (cheap ones too) was an excellent way to bond and energize the gaming floor. There were no disruptions or anything of that kind during the tournament. I thought this was an excellent addition to an already fun tournament.
-Mike
Okay, so there is a small amount of hoopla around Throne of Skulls. Most of this deals with lack of prize support (The army winners received a framed paper and an invite back to next year, overall winners got trophies)
The Good: The place was awesome. They reserved a huge ballroom inside of the recently renovated Tropicana resort on the Las Vegas strip (That likely was NOT cheap).
There was catered food on the two tournament days, which was EXCELLENT. This was great because food in Vegas is by no means cheap.
The atmosphere was incredible. I was lucky enough to have ~8 friends also going to ToS. That coupled with the laid back resort nature of the place made for an excellent time. I can't really describe it effectively to someone who was not there. It was an awesome time.
The Bad: Pairings and scoring. On the first day, it was possible to get paired against someone you already played. This was corrected on the second day, but in reality it should never have happened. The sportsmanship scoring was kind of bullshit. You could get up to 5 points off of sportsmanship. This could effectively net you an extra win and two draws worth of points. This is how some people won their army despite having a worse record than their peers. The lack of prize support has been spoken about to death so I will not cover it here. I will add that GW put in some serious cash to even get that place.
Terrain: A bastion and two ruins on a Realm of Battle Table? You need more fucking terrain. Why do you think I had a field day with guard? Making hills 6+ area doesn't count.
The Drunk: Having a bar with 2 for 1 cocktails (cheap ones too) was an excellent way to bond and energize the gaming floor. There were no disruptions or anything of that kind during the tournament. I thought this was an excellent addition to an already fun tournament.
-Mike
Kill Team
So, I downloaded this over xbox live (AFAIK the only media where it is available) and was surprised by how low the cost was (only around $10) and how much fun the game is.
I like how you have your choice of marine types, weapon and perk options, and the different chapters that you can choose from.
The game itself is pretty fun, it is a generic scrolling button masher kind of game. The only downside is that there is no option for co-op play over xbox live. (co-op can still be done on a local machine)
I only finished the first level, but all in all, for $10 I feel like I got a great value. I recommend this game
-Mike
Thursday, June 30, 2011
Throne of Skulls Recap: Part 3
Looks like this is going to be a 4 or 5 part review because I just got an e-mail from GW containing the tournament spreadsheet. Now for some data mining.
First thing is that I missed the "Skulltaker" award by 154 Victory Points, which is bittersweet because I "pulled some punches" in my later games. (that is to say, I did not try for a full tabling)
But the guy that won (Matt Cassidy) was a cool dude so I didn't feel bad about the prize going to him. He definitely worked for it and earned it.
I counted the number of players for each army and broke down the W-L-D records.
Black Templars - 1 Player: (0-3-2) Despite having zero wins, this guy wins "Best Templar player"!
Blood Angels - 6 Players: (14-15-1)
Chaos Space Marines - 7 Players: (14-16-5)
Chaos Daemons - 3 Players: (5-9-1)
Dark Angels - 4 Players: (9-7-4)
Dark Eldar - 5 Players: (14-7-4)
Eldar - 10 Players: (23-23-3)
Grey Knights - 4 Players: (12-6-1)
Imperial Guard - 11 Players: (22-21-12)
Necrons - 4 Players: (4-12-4)
Orks - 5 Players: (17-5-3)
Space Marines - 10 Players: (20-22-6)
Space Wolves - 10 Players: (20-22-7)
Tau - 4 Players: (7-9-4)
Tyranids - 4 Players: (7-9-4)
Witch Hunters - 4 Players: (8-9-3)
As you can see, most of the armies tended to average out to an equal win-loss ratio. There are, of course, some notable exceptions. Necrons really got their asses handed to them, which is to be expected of the current "worst codex in 40k". Grey Knights and orks especially showed resounding strength in the ability to kick ass!
I will post the top 10 or so placing players in anther update.
-Mike
First thing is that I missed the "Skulltaker" award by 154 Victory Points, which is bittersweet because I "pulled some punches" in my later games. (that is to say, I did not try for a full tabling)
But the guy that won (Matt Cassidy) was a cool dude so I didn't feel bad about the prize going to him. He definitely worked for it and earned it.
I counted the number of players for each army and broke down the W-L-D records.
Black Templars - 1 Player: (0-3-2) Despite having zero wins, this guy wins "Best Templar player"!
Blood Angels - 6 Players: (14-15-1)
Chaos Space Marines - 7 Players: (14-16-5)
Chaos Daemons - 3 Players: (5-9-1)
Dark Angels - 4 Players: (9-7-4)
Dark Eldar - 5 Players: (14-7-4)
Eldar - 10 Players: (23-23-3)
Grey Knights - 4 Players: (12-6-1)
Imperial Guard - 11 Players: (22-21-12)
Necrons - 4 Players: (4-12-4)
Orks - 5 Players: (17-5-3)
Space Marines - 10 Players: (20-22-6)
Space Wolves - 10 Players: (20-22-7)
Tau - 4 Players: (7-9-4)
Tyranids - 4 Players: (7-9-4)
Witch Hunters - 4 Players: (8-9-3)
As you can see, most of the armies tended to average out to an equal win-loss ratio. There are, of course, some notable exceptions. Necrons really got their asses handed to them, which is to be expected of the current "worst codex in 40k". Grey Knights and orks especially showed resounding strength in the ability to kick ass!
I will post the top 10 or so placing players in anther update.
-Mike
Wednesday, June 29, 2011
Mechanized Eldar
While I was at the Throne of Skulls tournament, I saw a surprising amount of Eldar players.
I also saw a surprising amount of Eldar lists that looked rather awful.
There was Foot Eldar (FootDar), Mechanized Eldar (MechDar), and hybrids of the two.
It is no secret that the Eldar codex is on the low side of the codex power curve.
While I think they can still compete against any balanced list, they will have trouble against lists with a lot of redundancy. (Hordes, Vehicles spam)
So, anyways, it got me to thinking about how competitive I can make a MechDar list (I have been playing Eldar on and off since 3rd Edition.)
Here is what I came up with (and why) to use at 2000 points.
Autarch w/Fusion Gun, Scorpion Chainsword, Mandiblaster
-The Autarch gives this list 4 things. He allows for more reliable reserve rolls, he provides a much needed anti-tank shot (and can even be a sacrificial unit), he gives a leadership boost to whatever squad he joins (usually the Storm guardians or tarpit Dire Avengers), and finally he can put out 5 S4 attacks at high initiative (useful for getting the last couple kills on a 5 man MEQ squad).
Farseer w/Runes of Warding, Fortune
-The Farseer is the absolute best in force multiplication/psychic defense for his cost. Runes of warding is not just a psychic defense, it can actually be a deterrent to the use of psychic powers. I can use fortune in conjunction with the 10-man Dire Avenger squad to make quite a formidable tarpit.
10 Storm Guardians w/2 Flamers, Warlock, Destructor
-These guys will usually be joined by the Autarch or Farseer for a boost to their Leadership. Their job is to jump out, flame units, and then assault (if the outcome seems favorable).
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Eldar Missile Launcher
-One of the best transports in the game. I recently began using the Eldar Missile Launcher as a cheaper alternative to the Bright Lance. The Missile Launcher also provides some anti-infantry duality if I need it. I will also tank shock the crap out of any vulnerable Infantry units.
10 Dire Avengers w/Exarch, Power Weapon & Shimmershield, Defend
-These guys provide the bulk of my anti-infantry firepower. When combined with the Farseer and fortune, these guys can make an Epic Tarpit thanks to Defend and the Shimmershield.
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Eldar Missile Launcher
-See previous Entry
5 Dire Avengers
5 Dire Avengers
5 Dire Avengers
-These guys hang out in the Falcons, making them scoring units. They only disembark when absolutely necessary, as 5 T3 models tend not to last long when they can be shot or assaulted.
5 Fire Dragons
-The only reliable anti-tank/anti-Heavy Infantry/anti-Monstrous Creature unit in the codex. You absolutely need to spam these. They get out of their ride and things die. Then, usually so do the Fire Dragons.
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Scatter Lasers
-Primary goal: Deliver Fire Dragons. Secondary goal: provide suppressing fire (to vehicles) or kill infantry (by shooting or tank shock)
5 Fire Dragons
-See above
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Scatter Lasers
-See above
5 Fire Dragons
-See above
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Scatter Lasers
-See above
Falcon w/Eldar Missile Launcher, Holo-Fields
-This guys job is to be a pain in the ass the entire game. He fires 3 S8 shots (albeit at BS3...) and is statistically likely to take a serious pounding before being destroyed. And no, I am not above ramming other vehicles at full speed, in the side armor.
Falcon w/Eldar Missile Launcher, Holo-Fields
-See above
Falcon w/Eldar Missile Launcher, Holo-Fields
-See above
So, when you build a list I find it very helpful (almost mandatory) to discuss its strengths and weaknesses, both as a whole and on an army-by-army basis.
Strengths: Mobility. Unless horribly out-ranged, Mechdar decide where the fight happens. We are FAST. We can descend upon an enemy army quickly.
Weaknesses: Overpriced units put us on the low end of the firepower/efficacy scale. Eldar can easily be overwhelmed by mass of units in an opposing army. Facing 3 6-man Long Fang squads will usually put a hurting on Mechdar. We are fragile. Not as fragile as non-FNP Dark Eldar, but when our transports blow up, we take casualties. Unless we have Fire Dragons, we are not great at blowing up vehicles.
Wow: a lot of weaknesses, which is expected of an older codex. (If you haven't noticed units get cheaper with each codex, so you can include more model$ in your armie$.) We need to make up for this with a good game plan.
Game plan time. There are basically two types of missions in 40k, killing more of your opponents units (through VP's or KP's) or trying to get scoring units somewhere, while keeping your opponents scoring units out of those places. (Objectives, Table Quarters, etc...)
Killing: The first rule of winning games with Eldar is "sometimes, you need to hide like coward". Whether you have exposed infantry hiding out of LoS or you have your entire army hiding in reserve, do not fight fire with fire. If you are out-gunned, stay away from the guns. If a powerhouse unit is barrelling towards you, run. As the Imperial Guard (and Crystals) say (a do) run, run, run. Kill things that are east to kill, rely on your Energy Shields/Holo-Fields and turbo boosting to keep you safe.
Objectives: Decide how many you need to win, take that many. If your opponent is light on troops, take them out, forcing your opponent to play for a draw. If he is heavy on troops, focus on contesting at the end of the game. (even use the "triangle shuffle" if you so desire) (I need to remind myself to make a post about the triangle shuffle) Remember, a short game can be to your advantage, a non-random game length, also to your advantage. I recommend practicing with tank shock, it pays to do it right.
MechDar are clearly a challenging army to play in 5th edition. In every game, you are the underdog. Remember, practice pays off.
-Mike
I also saw a surprising amount of Eldar lists that looked rather awful.
There was Foot Eldar (FootDar), Mechanized Eldar (MechDar), and hybrids of the two.
It is no secret that the Eldar codex is on the low side of the codex power curve.
While I think they can still compete against any balanced list, they will have trouble against lists with a lot of redundancy. (Hordes, Vehicles spam)
So, anyways, it got me to thinking about how competitive I can make a MechDar list (I have been playing Eldar on and off since 3rd Edition.)
Here is what I came up with (and why) to use at 2000 points.
Autarch w/Fusion Gun, Scorpion Chainsword, Mandiblaster
-The Autarch gives this list 4 things. He allows for more reliable reserve rolls, he provides a much needed anti-tank shot (and can even be a sacrificial unit), he gives a leadership boost to whatever squad he joins (usually the Storm guardians or tarpit Dire Avengers), and finally he can put out 5 S4 attacks at high initiative (useful for getting the last couple kills on a 5 man MEQ squad).
Farseer w/Runes of Warding, Fortune
-The Farseer is the absolute best in force multiplication/psychic defense for his cost. Runes of warding is not just a psychic defense, it can actually be a deterrent to the use of psychic powers. I can use fortune in conjunction with the 10-man Dire Avenger squad to make quite a formidable tarpit.
10 Storm Guardians w/2 Flamers, Warlock, Destructor
-These guys will usually be joined by the Autarch or Farseer for a boost to their Leadership. Their job is to jump out, flame units, and then assault (if the outcome seems favorable).
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Eldar Missile Launcher
-One of the best transports in the game. I recently began using the Eldar Missile Launcher as a cheaper alternative to the Bright Lance. The Missile Launcher also provides some anti-infantry duality if I need it. I will also tank shock the crap out of any vulnerable Infantry units.
10 Dire Avengers w/Exarch, Power Weapon & Shimmershield, Defend
-These guys provide the bulk of my anti-infantry firepower. When combined with the Farseer and fortune, these guys can make an Epic Tarpit thanks to Defend and the Shimmershield.
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Eldar Missile Launcher
-See previous Entry
5 Dire Avengers
5 Dire Avengers
5 Dire Avengers
-These guys hang out in the Falcons, making them scoring units. They only disembark when absolutely necessary, as 5 T3 models tend not to last long when they can be shot or assaulted.
5 Fire Dragons
-The only reliable anti-tank/anti-Heavy Infantry/anti-Monstrous Creature unit in the codex. You absolutely need to spam these. They get out of their ride and things die. Then, usually so do the Fire Dragons.
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Scatter Lasers
-Primary goal: Deliver Fire Dragons. Secondary goal: provide suppressing fire (to vehicles) or kill infantry (by shooting or tank shock)
5 Fire Dragons
-See above
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Scatter Lasers
-See above
5 Fire Dragons
-See above
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Scatter Lasers
-See above
Falcon w/Eldar Missile Launcher, Holo-Fields
-This guys job is to be a pain in the ass the entire game. He fires 3 S8 shots (albeit at BS3...) and is statistically likely to take a serious pounding before being destroyed. And no, I am not above ramming other vehicles at full speed, in the side armor.
Falcon w/Eldar Missile Launcher, Holo-Fields
-See above
Falcon w/Eldar Missile Launcher, Holo-Fields
-See above
So, when you build a list I find it very helpful (almost mandatory) to discuss its strengths and weaknesses, both as a whole and on an army-by-army basis.
Strengths: Mobility. Unless horribly out-ranged, Mechdar decide where the fight happens. We are FAST. We can descend upon an enemy army quickly.
Weaknesses: Overpriced units put us on the low end of the firepower/efficacy scale. Eldar can easily be overwhelmed by mass of units in an opposing army. Facing 3 6-man Long Fang squads will usually put a hurting on Mechdar. We are fragile. Not as fragile as non-FNP Dark Eldar, but when our transports blow up, we take casualties. Unless we have Fire Dragons, we are not great at blowing up vehicles.
Wow: a lot of weaknesses, which is expected of an older codex. (If you haven't noticed units get cheaper with each codex, so you can include more model$ in your armie$.) We need to make up for this with a good game plan.
Game plan time. There are basically two types of missions in 40k, killing more of your opponents units (through VP's or KP's) or trying to get scoring units somewhere, while keeping your opponents scoring units out of those places. (Objectives, Table Quarters, etc...)
Killing: The first rule of winning games with Eldar is "sometimes, you need to hide like coward". Whether you have exposed infantry hiding out of LoS or you have your entire army hiding in reserve, do not fight fire with fire. If you are out-gunned, stay away from the guns. If a powerhouse unit is barrelling towards you, run. As the Imperial Guard (and Crystals) say (a do) run, run, run. Kill things that are east to kill, rely on your Energy Shields/Holo-Fields and turbo boosting to keep you safe.
Objectives: Decide how many you need to win, take that many. If your opponent is light on troops, take them out, forcing your opponent to play for a draw. If he is heavy on troops, focus on contesting at the end of the game. (even use the "triangle shuffle" if you so desire) (I need to remind myself to make a post about the triangle shuffle) Remember, a short game can be to your advantage, a non-random game length, also to your advantage. I recommend practicing with tank shock, it pays to do it right.
MechDar are clearly a challenging army to play in 5th edition. In every game, you are the underdog. Remember, practice pays off.
-Mike
Tuesday, June 28, 2011
Throne of Skulls Recap: Part 2
Throne of Skulls Part 2: The Photo Journey
I did not take as many pictures as I wanted to in Vegas. (In my defense, Vegas can be kind of distracting) Below are all the armies I took pictures of, I will attach names if I know them.
Enjoy!
Al Edel's Imperial Guard
John Hermann's Grey Knights (won Best Grey Knight Player)
Marshall Reeves' Imperial Guard (Best Painted, you can see better shots at GW's website)
Ultramarines!
Praetorians (There were a LOT of guard at ToS)
Eldar! (Is that a Night Spinner?!? And, yes those are all ForgeWorld Wave Serpents)
Moar Guard!
Wood Elves
Dark Elves
The Army List the accompanies the above Dark Elf army. (Very Cool!)
A very well done Lizardmen Army.
A Nurgle Themed Chaos Space Marine Army
Bretonnians (the glare is kind of obscuring the "Lady of the Lake")
More Lizardmen
Ultramarines masquerading as Deathwing.
White Scars
A nicely painted Eldar Army.
Jump Pack Blood Angels.
Stay tuned for Part 3, where I outline the Pros and Cons of this event.
-Mike
I did not take as many pictures as I wanted to in Vegas. (In my defense, Vegas can be kind of distracting) Below are all the armies I took pictures of, I will attach names if I know them.
Enjoy!
Al Edel's Imperial Guard
John Hermann's Grey Knights (won Best Grey Knight Player)
Marshall Reeves' Imperial Guard (Best Painted, you can see better shots at GW's website)
Ultramarines!
Praetorians (There were a LOT of guard at ToS)
Eldar! (Is that a Night Spinner?!? And, yes those are all ForgeWorld Wave Serpents)
Moar Guard!
Wood Elves
Dark Elves
The Army List the accompanies the above Dark Elf army. (Very Cool!)
A very well done Lizardmen Army.
A Nurgle Themed Chaos Space Marine Army
Bretonnians (the glare is kind of obscuring the "Lady of the Lake")
More Lizardmen
Ultramarines masquerading as Deathwing.
White Scars
A nicely painted Eldar Army.
Jump Pack Blood Angels.Stay tuned for Part 3, where I outline the Pros and Cons of this event.
-Mike
Friday, June 24, 2011
Throne of Skulls Recap: Part 1
I plan on doing a Throne of Skulls update in 3 parts:
Part 1: The Tournament
Part 2: The Photo-journey
part 3: General feelings about the Tournament.
Without further ado, here is a brief recap of the 5 games I played during the Throne of Skulls 2011 tournament, held in the Tropicana in Las Vegas, Nevada.
First, a reprint of my Imperial Guard
Company Command w/3 Plasma Guns
Chimera w/Hull Heavy Flamer
10 Veterans w/3 Meltaguns
Chimera w/Hull Heavy Flamer
Platoon Command w/3 Flamers
Chimera w/Hull Heavy Flamer
Infantry Squad w/Flamer, Autocannon
Chimera
Infantry Squad w/Flamer, Autocannon
Chimera
Special Weapons Squad w/3 Meltaguns
20 Conscripts
Valkyrie w/Multiple Rocket Pods
Vendetta
Vendetta
Manticore
Manticore
Game 1: Annihilation, Pitched Battle
Opponent: Adam Gati (His Blog http://yriel.blogspot.com/)
(I didn't realize this at first, but in this picture you can see my army in the background)
The Twilight Host (1495)
Autarch w/Jetbike, Banshee Mask, Power Weapon, Fusion Gun
Farseer w/Jetbike, Fortune, Eldritch Storm, Spirit Stones, Runes of Warding, Runes of Witnessing
5 Fire Dragons
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Shuriken Cannon, Spirit Stones
6 Jetbikes w/2 Shuriken Cannons
5 Dire Avengers
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Shuriken Cannon, Spirit Stones
5 Dire Avengers
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Shuriken Cannon, Spirit Stones
2 Vypers w/Scatter Laser and Shuriken Cannon
2 Vypers w/Scatter Laser and Shuriken Cannon
Fire Prism
Fire Prism
I won the roll-off to go first and deployed, Adam kept everything in reserves. Sadly, his rolls were all over the place and his army came in piecemeal. His first Fire Prism shot did manage to destroy the Storm Eagle Rocket Launcher (or whatever it is called) off of one of my Manticores.
Adam also used Eldritch Storm to semi-good effect, spinning my vehicles so that he could get rear armor shots on them. Sadly, he was massively outgunned by my Guard, and since his army arrived piecemeal, he could not mount an effective counterattack. A win for the guard.
(I should mention that Adam won Best Eldar player, so after his initial loss to me, he rallied and won most, if not all, of his remaining games. Great job Adam!)
Game 2: Seize Ground (5 Objectives), Spearhead
Opponent: Alex Yuen
Eldar - 1499
Prince Yriel
Farseer w/Doom, Runes of Warding
5 Fire Dragons
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Shuriken Cannons, Shuriken Cannon
8 Howling Banshees w/Exarch, Executioner
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Shuriken Cannons, Shuriken Cannon
10 Dire Avengers w/Exarch, Bladestorm, Defend, Power Weapon & Shimmershield
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Shuriken Cannons, Shuriken Cannon
10 Dire Avengers w/Exarch, Dual Catapults, Bladestorm
10 Guardians w/Scatter Laser
5 Rangers
5 Warp Spiders
War Walker w/2 Scatter Lasers
I again won the roll-off, tactically placed objectives and then deployed my units in my board quarter. (For the second game in a row, my conscripts hid inside a Bastion) Alex deployed everything on the board except his Warp Spiders. Everything was behind a Skyshield Landing Pad in his quarter. I scouted my Valkyrie and Vendettas forward and worked on picking off scoring units. My Manticores hammered his Wave Serpents from afar, eventually destroying all but the banshee Serpent (that I kind of ignored, as I am Meched up) With the exception of Yriel, who killed a Chimera, Alex was not able to do much to my Vehicles with S6 weapons. He conceded during turn 4 or 5 when I had wiped out most of his units.
Game 3: Capture and Control (Capture the Draw), Dawn of War
Opponent: Tony Grippando
(Sadly, I did not get a picture of Tony's army)
1500 Orks
Ghazghkull
Big Mek w/Kustom Force Field
8 Lootas
8 Lootas
30 Boys w/Nob, Power Claw, Bosspole
30 Boys w/Nob, Power Claw, Bosspole
30 Boys w/Nob, Power Claw, Bosspole
29 Boys w/Nob, Power Claw, Bosspole
10 Boys w/Nob, Bosspole
Tony was a very orky dude. His models were in bags instead of a case and his army list was a 2x8.5 strip of paper. I put him down as favorite opponent. We basically both realized that this would be a draw and each of us played "not to lose". We got a good number of Victory points from each other, but in the end, the game ended in a 1-1 draw. At this point, thanks to the in-room bar, we were both a little "saucy".
At the end of Day 1, I am 2-0-1. Awesome! I can't possibly have a losing weekend, so needless to say, I am pretty psyched for day two.
Game 4: Annihilation, Spearhead
Opponent: Patrick Kendall
Patrick is a Vegas local and a pastry chef. He is my second ork opponent this tournament.
1500 Orks
Big Mek w/Kustom Force Field, Bosspole, Eavy Armor
30 Shoota Boys w/3 Big Shootas, Nob, Powerclaw, Bosspole, Eavy Armor
30 Shoota Boys w/3 Big Shootas, Nob, Powerclaw, Bosspole, Eavy Armor
20 Slugga Boys w/Nob, Powerclaw, Bosspole, Eavy Armor
10 Grots w/Runt Herder
15 Lootas
15 Lootas
Battlewagon w/Deff Rolla, Armor Plates, Red Paint Job, Big Shoota, Grot Riggers
Battlewagon w/Deff Rolla, Armor Plates, Red Paint Job, Big Shoota, Grot Riggers
I rolled a "2" for my roll to go first, sadly, Patrick rolled a "1"...
I deployed everything in my board quarter (which left Patrick with a rather barren Deployment Zone). Patrick deployed only his lootas, keeping everything else in reserve. In my first turn, I pinned a squad of lootas and the other one ran of the board. In turn 2, I killed the rest of the lootas. It was downhill from there for Patrick. He came on piecemeal, and had no ranged firepower to deal with my shooting. I was also able to "tactically withdraw" (run away) to avoid his foot rush. Another victory for the guard.
Game 5: Seize Ground (5 Objectives), Pitched Battle
Opponent: Russel Jacobson
(Sadly I have no picture)
1500 - Space Wolves
Rune Priest w/Chooser of the Slain, Wolf Tail Talisman, Jaws of the World Wolf, Living Lightning
8 Grey Hunters w/Wolf Standard, Meltagun, Power Weapon
Rhino
9 Grey Hunters w/Mark of the Wulfen, Wolf Standard, Power Weapon, Meltagun
Rhino
9 Grey Hunters w/Mark of the Wulfen, Wolf Standard, Power Weapon, Meltagun
Rhino
9 Grey Hunters w/Mark of the Wulfen, Wolf Standard, Power Weapon, Meltagun
Rhino
Land Speeder w/Typhoon Missile Launcher
Land Speeder w/Typhoon Missile Launcher
6 Long Fangs w/5 Missile Launchers
5 Wolf Guardw/Terminator Armor, Cyclone, 4 Powerfists, 4 Combi-Meltas
So, I rolled a "3", and Russell rolled a "2". Talk about bad luck for the wolves. I deployed everything except the conscripts on my side. Russell deployed everything. The rhinos were in a 4-square, the speeders hiding behind a ruin, and the long fangs were deployed in a crater. The wolf guard, of course, split up to join each squad. I executed a textbook Alpha Strike. (I was later asked what textbook I read, by some smartass. I may now be required to write a textbook on Alpha Striking so that I can use it as a reference) I rolled well and destroyed the speeders, all four Rhinos, one long fang plus the pack leader, and a couple of Grey Hunters. The game really ended here for Russell, I just spent the next 5 turns killing everything except the two Grey Hunters left at the end.
Between Russel and Patrick, I only gave up 130 Victory points, I wish there had been a prize for fewest VP given up, but there wasn't.
So, I end the tournament at 4-0-1. While not good enough for best overall, I did receive:
Next up, Part 2.
-mike
Part 1: The Tournament
Part 2: The Photo-journey
part 3: General feelings about the Tournament.
Without further ado, here is a brief recap of the 5 games I played during the Throne of Skulls 2011 tournament, held in the Tropicana in Las Vegas, Nevada.
First, a reprint of my Imperial Guard
Company Command w/3 Plasma Guns
Chimera w/Hull Heavy Flamer
10 Veterans w/3 Meltaguns
Chimera w/Hull Heavy Flamer
Platoon Command w/3 Flamers
Chimera w/Hull Heavy Flamer
Infantry Squad w/Flamer, Autocannon
Chimera
Infantry Squad w/Flamer, Autocannon
Chimera
Special Weapons Squad w/3 Meltaguns
20 Conscripts
Valkyrie w/Multiple Rocket Pods
Vendetta
Vendetta
Manticore
Manticore
Game 1: Annihilation, Pitched Battle
Opponent: Adam Gati (His Blog http://yriel.blogspot.com/)
(I didn't realize this at first, but in this picture you can see my army in the background)The Twilight Host (1495)
Autarch w/Jetbike, Banshee Mask, Power Weapon, Fusion Gun
Farseer w/Jetbike, Fortune, Eldritch Storm, Spirit Stones, Runes of Warding, Runes of Witnessing
5 Fire Dragons
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Shuriken Cannon, Spirit Stones
6 Jetbikes w/2 Shuriken Cannons
5 Dire Avengers
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Shuriken Cannon, Spirit Stones
5 Dire Avengers
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Shuriken Cannon, Spirit Stones
2 Vypers w/Scatter Laser and Shuriken Cannon
2 Vypers w/Scatter Laser and Shuriken Cannon
Fire Prism
Fire Prism
I won the roll-off to go first and deployed, Adam kept everything in reserves. Sadly, his rolls were all over the place and his army came in piecemeal. His first Fire Prism shot did manage to destroy the Storm Eagle Rocket Launcher (or whatever it is called) off of one of my Manticores.
Adam also used Eldritch Storm to semi-good effect, spinning my vehicles so that he could get rear armor shots on them. Sadly, he was massively outgunned by my Guard, and since his army arrived piecemeal, he could not mount an effective counterattack. A win for the guard.
(I should mention that Adam won Best Eldar player, so after his initial loss to me, he rallied and won most, if not all, of his remaining games. Great job Adam!)
Game 2: Seize Ground (5 Objectives), Spearhead
Opponent: Alex Yuen
Eldar - 1499Prince Yriel
Farseer w/Doom, Runes of Warding
5 Fire Dragons
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Shuriken Cannons, Shuriken Cannon
8 Howling Banshees w/Exarch, Executioner
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Shuriken Cannons, Shuriken Cannon
10 Dire Avengers w/Exarch, Bladestorm, Defend, Power Weapon & Shimmershield
Wave Serpent w/Twin-Linked Shuriken Cannons, Shuriken Cannon
10 Dire Avengers w/Exarch, Dual Catapults, Bladestorm
10 Guardians w/Scatter Laser
5 Rangers
5 Warp Spiders
War Walker w/2 Scatter Lasers
I again won the roll-off, tactically placed objectives and then deployed my units in my board quarter. (For the second game in a row, my conscripts hid inside a Bastion) Alex deployed everything on the board except his Warp Spiders. Everything was behind a Skyshield Landing Pad in his quarter. I scouted my Valkyrie and Vendettas forward and worked on picking off scoring units. My Manticores hammered his Wave Serpents from afar, eventually destroying all but the banshee Serpent (that I kind of ignored, as I am Meched up) With the exception of Yriel, who killed a Chimera, Alex was not able to do much to my Vehicles with S6 weapons. He conceded during turn 4 or 5 when I had wiped out most of his units.
Game 3: Capture and Control (Capture the Draw), Dawn of War
Opponent: Tony Grippando
(Sadly, I did not get a picture of Tony's army)
1500 Orks
Ghazghkull
Big Mek w/Kustom Force Field
8 Lootas
8 Lootas
30 Boys w/Nob, Power Claw, Bosspole
30 Boys w/Nob, Power Claw, Bosspole
30 Boys w/Nob, Power Claw, Bosspole
29 Boys w/Nob, Power Claw, Bosspole
10 Boys w/Nob, Bosspole
Tony was a very orky dude. His models were in bags instead of a case and his army list was a 2x8.5 strip of paper. I put him down as favorite opponent. We basically both realized that this would be a draw and each of us played "not to lose". We got a good number of Victory points from each other, but in the end, the game ended in a 1-1 draw. At this point, thanks to the in-room bar, we were both a little "saucy".
At the end of Day 1, I am 2-0-1. Awesome! I can't possibly have a losing weekend, so needless to say, I am pretty psyched for day two.
Game 4: Annihilation, Spearhead
Opponent: Patrick Kendall
Patrick is a Vegas local and a pastry chef. He is my second ork opponent this tournament.1500 Orks
Big Mek w/Kustom Force Field, Bosspole, Eavy Armor
30 Shoota Boys w/3 Big Shootas, Nob, Powerclaw, Bosspole, Eavy Armor
30 Shoota Boys w/3 Big Shootas, Nob, Powerclaw, Bosspole, Eavy Armor
20 Slugga Boys w/Nob, Powerclaw, Bosspole, Eavy Armor
10 Grots w/Runt Herder
15 Lootas
15 Lootas
Battlewagon w/Deff Rolla, Armor Plates, Red Paint Job, Big Shoota, Grot Riggers
Battlewagon w/Deff Rolla, Armor Plates, Red Paint Job, Big Shoota, Grot Riggers
I rolled a "2" for my roll to go first, sadly, Patrick rolled a "1"...
I deployed everything in my board quarter (which left Patrick with a rather barren Deployment Zone). Patrick deployed only his lootas, keeping everything else in reserve. In my first turn, I pinned a squad of lootas and the other one ran of the board. In turn 2, I killed the rest of the lootas. It was downhill from there for Patrick. He came on piecemeal, and had no ranged firepower to deal with my shooting. I was also able to "tactically withdraw" (run away) to avoid his foot rush. Another victory for the guard.
Game 5: Seize Ground (5 Objectives), Pitched Battle
Opponent: Russel Jacobson
(Sadly I have no picture)
1500 - Space Wolves
Rune Priest w/Chooser of the Slain, Wolf Tail Talisman, Jaws of the World Wolf, Living Lightning
8 Grey Hunters w/Wolf Standard, Meltagun, Power Weapon
Rhino
9 Grey Hunters w/Mark of the Wulfen, Wolf Standard, Power Weapon, Meltagun
Rhino
9 Grey Hunters w/Mark of the Wulfen, Wolf Standard, Power Weapon, Meltagun
Rhino
9 Grey Hunters w/Mark of the Wulfen, Wolf Standard, Power Weapon, Meltagun
Rhino
Land Speeder w/Typhoon Missile Launcher
Land Speeder w/Typhoon Missile Launcher
6 Long Fangs w/5 Missile Launchers
5 Wolf Guardw/Terminator Armor, Cyclone, 4 Powerfists, 4 Combi-Meltas
So, I rolled a "3", and Russell rolled a "2". Talk about bad luck for the wolves. I deployed everything except the conscripts on my side. Russell deployed everything. The rhinos were in a 4-square, the speeders hiding behind a ruin, and the long fangs were deployed in a crater. The wolf guard, of course, split up to join each squad. I executed a textbook Alpha Strike. (I was later asked what textbook I read, by some smartass. I may now be required to write a textbook on Alpha Striking so that I can use it as a reference) I rolled well and destroyed the speeders, all four Rhinos, one long fang plus the pack leader, and a couple of Grey Hunters. The game really ended here for Russell, I just spent the next 5 turns killing everything except the two Grey Hunters left at the end.
Between Russel and Patrick, I only gave up 130 Victory points, I wish there had been a prize for fewest VP given up, but there wasn't.
So, I end the tournament at 4-0-1. While not good enough for best overall, I did receive:
Next up, Part 2.
-mike
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