Tzeentch Flamer: Blue Fire and Earthy Body

Not my best work, but rather an exploration of contrasting colours. Here, I've painted the torso of the flamer in very earthy colours such as browns and oranges, with subtle highlights toward bright orange and yellow on the back's ridges.

The contrast colour to this is the blues found in the flame sprouts at the bottom skirt of the flamer and the flamer arms. Additionally, there are blue heads on this flamer as well (somewhat akin to my pink horrors painting schemes that have blue-in-pink ideas coming across). I think the photo doesn't show this aspect well, but in real life, it is reasonable!

Some of the finer detail included yellow-white flames coming from a couple of the "mouths" of the flamer's "face" and white needle-teeth and eyes scattered about the place.

Overall, it's not a great paint scheme to be fair (in my opinion), but okay. I am pleased with the vibrancy of the blue juxtaposed to the muted brown colours. If I were doing this again (and had more time!), I would probably pay more attention to the blues and have them "reflect" off the lower body of the flamer in a more fancy manner.

Imperial Ruins Project - I. Straight Sprues

CNC Workshop Miniature Scenery is an Australian company that produce a range of scenery for use with 25 to 28mm games such as Warhammer 40,000, WFB and Lord of the Rings. On a whim, I bought some of their product and am setting about assembling it. I will call this new project my "Imperial Ruins Project" and will update my blog with progress as I get further along.

In this, the first part of the series, I wanted to briefly post the pictures of the particular product that I purchased and am in the process of assembling. It is called Imperial Ruins and it is sold in several different varieties (straights, corners, entry points, and access points). The picture below is of a "straight" segment of the ruins.
As can be seen, the product comes unpainted with detailed assembly instructions and in the form of a thick cardboard sheet. The pieces are held in to place by small tabs on the sprues. Below are pictures the two sprues that come with the straight:
There is much assembly work required here. After cutting the bits from the sprues, it is necessary to ensure that any remaining sprue is cleanly got rid of from the bits. This can be done by either cutting the offending tabs away further, or using sandpaper. Sandpaper seems to work very well on these bits and I'd recommend gentle use of it for most of the parts. More on this project at a later date...

Winner: Feb 2010 Army List Challenge

With one of the tightest votes in recent history on the Warpstone Flux Army List challenge, the winner of the Feb 2010 challenge is: SandWyrm!!! Congratulations mate, you pulled 36 per cent of the overall vote, just slightly edging out Suneokun. Your name has also been recorded in the hall of fame.

I enjoyed all the lists entered -- of course, I have a soft spot for the Slaanesh themed ones myself (being a chaos player), hence I reckon I've picked up a thing or two here as well :)
Thanks to all the competitors who entered this month's contest. Another one will begin early next month - look out for it!

Battle Summary: Mixed Daemons vs. Ultramarines (2000 points)

It's rare that I play at more than 1500 points in something that isn't an apocalypse game. But it does happen from time to time. Here's an abbreviated battle report from such a (friendly) game. It features one of my extended Mixed Daemons list against space marines which were ran by two seperate people.

My Mixed Daemons:

HQ:
Great Unclean One with cloud of flies and aura of decay (185 points)
Skulltaker (140 points)
Herald of Khorne with Juggernaut and unholy might (120 points)

Troops:
10 bloodletters (160 points)
11 bloodletters (176 points)
10 plaguebearers with icon and instrument of chaos (180 points)
10 plaguebearers with icon and instrument of chaos (180 points)
10 plaguebearers with icon and instrument of chaos (180 points)
10 daemonettes with transfixing gaze (145 points)

Fast Attack:
6 screamers with unholy might (101 points)

Heavy Support:
Daemon prince with daemonic gaze and iron hide (130 points)
Daemon prince with daemonic gaze and iron hide (130 points)
Daemon prince with daemonic flight and iron hide (170 points)

Opponent's Ultramarines:

HQ:
Chaplain with jump-pack (115 points)
Chaplain with jump-pack (115 points)

Elites:
Dreadnought with lascannons and missile launcher (145 points)

Troops:
10 marines, missile launcher, melta gun, sergeant with powerfist, plus rhino (235 points)
10 marines, missile launcher, melta gun, sergeant with powerfist, plus rhino (235 points)
10 marines, missile launcher, melta gun, sergeant with powerfist, plus rhino (235 points)
10 marines, missile launcher, melta gun, sergeant with powerfist, plus rhino (235 points)
5 scouts, sergeant with power fist and combi-flamer (110 points)

Fast Attack:
10 Assault marines, 2 flamers, sergeant with power fist (225 points)
10 Assault marines, 2 flamers, sergeant with power fist (225 points)

Heavy Support:
Predator with autocannon and side sponson lascannons (120 points)
Predator with autocannon and side sponson lascannons (120 points)
Predator with autocannon and side sponson lascannons (120 points)


Okay, so neither list is typical tournament fare, but that wasn't the point.
The game is determined to be capture and control with a pitched battle set-up.
The terrain is completely un-remarkable: a 6 x 4 foot board in a desert style with only a very few scattered craters. Absolutely no other features!

My initial reaction and plan is to leave one squad of plaguebearers from my second wave to capture my own base (which I place in the centre of my board edge) and swoop in to contest my opponents (almost directly opposite). I'll assualt and tie up anything else to stop my plaguebearers to get shot up.

Early Turns.
My opponents wins the die roll and go first. That makes me happy. They carefully set up their tanks to have overlapping fire lanes through the craters (which they can see over anyway) and place a tactical squad right on top of their marker inside of a crater. My first choice wave arrives (Herald with bloodletters, two lots of plaguebearers, screamers and the flying deamon prince). One of my plaguebearer squads deepstrikes near to my home objective and then runs on top of it with a lucky 6 on the fleet roll. In an unfortunate turn of evens, my flying daemon prince scatters off the board by 1 inch. He is returned to my reserves pool by a lucky dice roll. The other plaguebearers land near the centre of my opponent's line, with the bloodletters not too far away from them. The screamers land near one of the corners and fleets toward the nearest predator. The only marines not on the board are the assault marines plus chaplains. I hope to capitalize before they show up.

In shooting, the marines whittle my screamers down to a single miniature. The plaguebearers are badly shot up as well -- 6 of them are downed by a rapid firing tactical squad that decides to leave the safety of their rhino. This is an area that I also feel I can capitalize on. They'll regret not finishing off the plaguebearers. Meanwhile, the bloodletters take several autocannon and missile launcher shots to the head without a scratch! However, 3 of them perish to the dreadnought and a further two from bolter fire.

In my turn 2, the Great Unclean One, and my two daemon princes without wings arrive. The Great Unclean One deep-strikes off my plaguebearer's icon whilst the two princes drop near to predators. Hopefully the princes will take some of the heat off my potentially more deadly bloodletters. In assault, the plaguebearers charge in to the tactical squad. Only one of them dies, but they cause two wounds in exchange. The marines stay put though. In an amazingly lucky roll, my single screamer causes one of the predators become wrecked. The bloodletters swarm over one of the rhinos and completely wreck that too. The marines inside lumber out.

Middle Turns.
One of the assualt squads arrives and lands near to my home objective that are being held by my (gone to ground) plaguebearers. Although the flamers are not in range, the bolt pistols kill 1 of my daemons. At the other end of the board, my single screamer is annihilated, along with 3 more bloodletters thanks to some rapid firing marines that hopped off their wrecked rhino. The Great Unclean One takes several las cannons and autocannons to the gut that cause 2 wounds.

A marine assault squad arrives at my side of the board (with chaplain) to stare down at my plaguebearers. Although shot up, none of them die thanks to the feel no pain special rule. Skulltaker decides to put in an appearance next to these plaguebearers. I'm hoping he'll be enough to finish the marine squad off in one round. Hmmmmmmm.

At my opponents end, my bloodletters destroy the marines who dared to get out of the wrecked rhino and they head toward another rhino. The Great Unclean One wrecks a predator and one of the daemon princes wrecks a second. The second daemon prince doesn't do anything other than get shot up (and subsequently dies horrendously next shooting turn).

Late Turns.
By turn 5, everything else has come on the board and things start to get ugly on both sides (along with my note taking). I think at this stage, its easier to list what is left surviving than give a blow by blow account.

Skulltaker and an intact squad of plaguebearers have seen off the assault squad and chaplain near my objective.

At the other objective, I've got my Great Unclean One (with 1 wound left), the daemonettes (who have just put in an appearance), the flying daemon prince and my third lot of plaguebearers. Facing them off are 2 squads of tactical marines (out of their rhinos), the scouts, the dreadnought and one predator.

In my opponents turn 5, the second assault squad arrives next to my home objective. Although my plaguebearers lose a few members, they're otherwise okay. I use skulltaker tactically to "pull" the marines further away from my home objective (I hope that they'll be tied up with him for the remainder of the game).
At the other end of the board, I'm getting whacked. The daemonettes get wiped out in one turn flat, the Great Unclean One finally dies to a predator's las cannon and the third lot of plaguebearers are being whittled down in combat with the dreadnought, scouts and one tactical squad.

Luckily (for me), the game goes to turn 6. Ignoring most other concerns, I fly my daemon prince close to the objective and charge the remaining tactical squad that is un-engaged. That move singularly keeps the prince alive whilst contesting the opposing objective. At the other end, Skulltaker gets reinforced by a fresh squad of bloodletters (who came in last turn) and slaughters the remaining assault marines.

At the end of turn 6, the game ends. I hold my home objective and my plan to use my winged daemon prince to swoop in to contest the other one has paid off. Game won by 1 objective to nil.

Concluding Thoughts.
Plaguebearers are the unsung heroes of the daemons army. But let's face it. They weren't as cool as Skulltaker was in slaughtering 2 full squads of marines and chaplains (with some help) and the winger daemon prince helping out at the other end as well.

On my opposite side, I think that the dreadnought and the predators were well utilized - particularly to finish off heavies such as my great unclean one, the daemonettes and a daemon prince.

Fate Dice

One scenario that I played in recently involved "fate dice" and I wanted to share this concept with you in case you've not come across it before.

Essentially, it boils down to each player being given a small number (say 3 or 4) of special d6's -- called fate die. They can be used to re-roll any other d6 roll in the game apart from die that have already been re-rolled.

Having played in one of these games, let me tell you that they can absolutely add a certain something to the game for both players. What turns out as a very bad roll for any chaplain's attacks, or an instant death against a tyranid suddenly turns in to something else entirely. But it only happens every so often given the finite number of these re-rolls. And even the fate die cannot save you sometimes from bad rolling!

It becomes a tactical challenge to decide when to use these fate die. Should you expend them on re-rolling a 2+ terminator save (yes probably!) or use the to re-roll your daemon prince's attack against a marine captain (a more interesting choice). Or perhaps a krak missile's roll to wound even (also an interesting choice, but probably a also "yes").

Whilst I'm not sure I'd want to use this idea in every game, it can make for a fresh change from the usual standard missions.

Poll Re-Opened for Feb 2010 Army List Challenge

Due to the vagueness of time zone differences, I'm re-opening the Feb 2010 Army List Challenge Poll due to an extra entry. The extra entry was entered in their own time zones before the deadline .... this is entirely my fault - I shall specify when the deadlines are in GMT or something in future!!

Extra entry as follows.

Lord:

Captain, Power Weapon, Bike=150

Command Squad, Bikes, Apothacary=205

4 Bikes, 2 Flamers, Attack Bike=165

4 Bikes, 2 Flamers, Attack Bike=165

4 Bikes, 2 Flamers, Attack Bike=165

10 Tactical Marines, Flamer, Multi-Melta, Drop Pod=205

5 Terminators, 3 TH/SS, 2LC/LC=200


When I read about unprepared eldar, and seizing objectives, I quickly decided on White Scars. Who else would have the speed to land on a planet, massacre cheap troops (Guardians), grab objectives and get out, within a short time frame, in a inhospitable country.

The plan would be to create an exit with the tac marines, guarding the ship, or thunderhawk, or whatever. The four bike squads together march towards the first objective, and a single bike squad peels off, to take it back to base after capturing it.
The Terminators are designed to be a rock that cannot be broken, as there is no avatar, or other heavy hitters. I drop them on the furthest objective, and force the enemy to deal with them while the rest of my army grabs objectives.
All of my troops are very fast, with the Drop Pod coming in T1, and the bikes using their fast speed to overwhelm defenses, and grab territory before the less well trained eldar even realize they are there. The terminators would simply be teleported down, to cause havok!