Something Wrong with the New Models...?

Namely the Hive Tyrant.
First of all, I'm SUPER-psyched for the new 'Nids releases. I want, like, 3 of those Tervigon/Tyrannofex kits--1 more tervigon and 2 tyrannofexen.

But I would like everyone to take a look at this model. Tell me if you see anything wrong.

Take your time.

See it?

It's not a legal model.
The wings go in the upper arm slots. This means you can only use one pair of weapons with the wings, while all Hive Tyrants have two weapon sets.

This means the model cannot be WYSIWYG.

Granted, this is a preliminary picture, and I sincerely hope I'm wrong about this. Because that would really just be a slap in the face to make a kit that can't even be used under your own rules for Tyranids players. Granted, this isn't one of the kits that we've been slavering for, but still.

Srsly?

Maybe once I see the sprue this will be cleared up. I really do hope so, because it looks like it could be a great kit.

EDIT: It looks like the feet MIGHT count as scything talons. Perhaps the leg joint will be able to house weapons? Here's to hoping...

Different Sorts of Projects

So, I'm plotting out two new projects right now--they're working titles are Empire Unyielding and Burn The Skies. A webcomic and a "video blog," neither of which I know how to do. Also, I'm terrible at drawing, so the comic might take a while to get off the ground.

Both are in the planning stage, but BTS is much closer to fruition at this point. We'll see how that goes, eh?

Killing Draigo

For Christmas, I received, thanks to the generosity of friends and family, a full Draigo-wing army at 2000 points. Consisting of 20 paladins, Draigo, a vindicare, and an Ordo Xenos Inquisitor, I do not think of it as a “good” list. My friends don’t generally enjoy playing competitively, and I’m perfectly content not min-maxing things.

Draigo and his homies. Source

Now, I’ve played just a couple games with this list, and I have been shocked not to lose any! Granted, I haven’t played a LOT of games, but I was surprised to table my friend’s Space Wolves, whom he has been playing for a long time, in my first game! Honestly, I never expected to win much with this list, so I’ve been baffled by my own success.

I think I’ve figured out the problem, though.

When playing against Draigo, you have to hit hard. Any unit of 5-10 Paladins will outpoint any of your squads, except for a few notable deathstar-exceptions. My Space Puppy friend attempted to feel me out, soften me up with some long-range firepower while keeping most of his men hidden. That’s the mistake.

Space Wolves actually explode if you hit them hard enough. True story. 

Paladin squads have to be hit hard by whole chunks of your army at a time. The second game I played was against BA jumpers. He wiped out my flanking psycannon-based combat squads (poorly deployed on my part) with about half his army each. However, because he split his forces to defeat my flanks in detail, my core 10-man Pally unit was able to charge first once flank, then the other, and defeat him in detail.

Rather, if he had instead brought his entire army to bear on one flank, he could have annihilated one of my shooty-squads, pulled back, melta’d my 10-man squad into vapor (probably followed by a multi-assault from his whole army to mop up any stragglers), and then defeated the other combat squad at his leisure. My deployment mistakes would have negated nearly a quarter of my army’s shooting if he positioned himself on the far side of the board from them. My army has very little support—this is one reason why it’s bad, objectively speaking. The number of army types I can’t handle at 2000 points is astronomical.

So the moral of my stories is…?

If you are playing a “pure” Draigo-wing, be merciless in your exploitation of any units left unprotected. Remember, those units will be able to take any of yours one-on-one, so bring down a hammer-blow of firepower on your enemy, one squad at a time. One of the main weaknesses of Draigo-wing is its lack of mobility. If it can be out-maneuvered by the majority of your army, you can win.

And if you’re playing a Draigo-wing, and you’re not bringing some of the nifty support options available *coughpsyfledreadscough* then make sure that none of your units are left hanging in the wind.

Back on the Blogosphere

Hey y'all. I haven't been blogging much. Winter break was really hectic for me, bouncing from crisis to personal crisis, and then school started. Now I think I want to get back into the swing of things.

So I have an article on Draigo-wing going up tomorrow, then I hope to get some thoughts out on Role-Playing this weekend, between internship applications and essay-writing.

I also have some ideas for a long-term project, but I need to do some more thinking before I decide to commit to something of the magnitude I'm considering.

Archetypes in 40k--Choosing an Army

I've discovered that I'm a bit of a "theme" player. I build my armies around an idea, and enjoy playing out that idea on the table-top.

When I started my Tyranid force, I was just learning how to play. I spent some time on The Hive Mind forum, read Loate's unit tactica (which I post to every thread I ever read for new Tyranid players) and bought a force. As I've expanded that force, it's grown around an organically occurring theme--that of a Hive Fleet falling upon an enemy position in wave after wave of bodies. I have a fast flying wave (Gargoyles and a Flyrant), a fast ground wave (Hormagaunts, a trygon, and my favorite: Raveners) and a slow advance (Hive Guard, a walking Tyrant, tervigon and accompanying termagant screen--Tyrannofexen when the model is released). In a perfect battle for me, this army crashes upon an enemy like an advancing tide.

When Dark Eldar came out last year, I gleefully jumped the bandwagon. This time, I chose a theme deliberately--that of a lightning fast mech force, focusing almost entirely on shooting, with the exception of my Archon and her Incubi retinue. I consciously tailored my force to play completely differently than my tyranids. I wanted a change of pace, after all, so beasts and monstrous creatures really weren't worth it to me--I have more fun ones in my tyranid collection, after all! In time, I plan to expand the Coven of my force beyond the generous gift of a Talos and some Scourges one of my friends was kind enough to give to me, but not for a while, I think. My resources must be husbanded carefully, after all!

This leads me to why I'm writing this in the first place. The other day, I posted about whether I wanted to start Grey Knights or Necrons. This got me thinking about what kind of army I wanted to play next. And I can't seem to figure out what sort of army the Necrons are. That's why I'm having difficulty getting as excited about the Necrons as I had originally. Because the models are GREAT, and I want them, but I don't know how they synthesize into an idealistic whole. A Grey Knight Paladin force with a slight inquisitorial element (two models, despoiling my purity...) has a theme I can sink my teeth into. It's a rock, pure and simple, and you just let the guy across the table deal with it while you go to town.

Would it be hard to beat? Hell no. My Dark Eldar would be laughing their butts off all the way to Commoragh with Draigo's head on a pike after a game with my putative list*. But it would be fun to play, cool to model, and it would look pretty good, I hope. And it would be significantly different from what I already play (Super-fast shooting and swarms with big bugs).

I can't figure out a pull for the Necrons. They have a range of great models which I want to possess, but I'm just not sure how to synthesize them at this stage. Maybe once the Codex comes out, the clouds will open and all will be made clear. But right now, I'm just a wee bit confused.

*For those interested, it consists of Draigo, two units of 10 paladins, an Inquisitor, and a Vindicare. Just over $250 at GW's retail price for a 2000 point list.

Armies Looking Forward

So, with the new Necrons coming out, I've been considering hopping on the bandwagon for Christmas. This whole thing has got me thinking about where I'm going with 40k, and what armies I want to collect.

There's still stuff I want for the ol' Kabal and the Hive Fleet, but I can't help but look at some of the other armies.

The Necrons look very cool, but they're missing a few things. Primarily, I'm looking forward to the release of the Stalker. I'll probably decide whether I want to start a Necron army after I see their wave two of models. Moreover, I want a look at the codex, to see whether the rules and fluff are cool enough to justify a collection. I think the models will be, after seeing these guys:

One-eyed Snipers. Don't question the Necrons.

I've been thinking of a lot of list concepts, based on the models. Annihilation barges, destroyer lords, command barges, immortals (with those one-eyed heads). I want to know more details on fast attack--destroyers and Tomb Blades, mainly. I think 3x1 Heavy Destroyers will be a good choice for those of us who aren't feeling the whole Scarab thing, but I'd like to see the next wave of models.

Overall, I need a look at the codex.

Another thing that's looked cool to me since before their codex came out was a paladin-wing Grey Knights army. Draigo, twenty paladins, a vindicare, and an inquisitor grenade carrier.

Come at me, bro!

The last is largely because this is one of my favorite models in the range, and I want an excuse to own him.

I've been interested in Draigo-wing ever since I saw the grey knight paladin models, and it turns out they're rules are actually pretty good as well! I'd buy a few assault cannons to round out my psy-cannon count, and go to town. My list isn't really min-maxed, mainly because the guys I play aren't into that sort of thing, and enjoying a game of 40k means everyone should be aiming for the same level of competition. And 3 units at 2000 points isn't exactly competitive, but it would be a good 2k for my future imperial force.

And that's the other thing I'm thinking about. As much as I'm interested in other xenos, Tau and Eldar aren't what I want right now, mainly due to their age. I think the 6th edition books will be great improvements, and the models should get a nice reboot. And I don't find the Orks all that exciting.

I've got a paint and basing scheme worked out for my Space Marine chapter, and I've yet to buy a single model. It's going to be a massive and most likely costly endeavor, but it's sort of my "Somewhere over the rainbow" project. It'll happen.

Someday.

Till we see that day, however, I'm faced with some choices. Begin Necrons, Grey Knights, or Space Marines? Or just build up the armies I already have?

Decisions, decisions.

Scrapping Posts

So, I've had a few posts planned. Even a few partially written.

I couldn't bring myself to do a book review of Ludlum's The Holcroft Covenant. It was pretty bland, and it took me way too long just to slog through the mother. And I think it was less than 500 pages. Not at all what I was expecting from him.

My posts on my D&D campaign are stillborn when I try to write them. I just need to figure out HOW I want to present them, and then have time to do that. Because I would like to post that at some point.

I wrote up an article last night about the competitive/non-competitive debate. Essentially, the gist was that the non-competitive crowd is losing because they are too disrespectful of their fellow hobbyists. Only, I took a look at that today, and I come across as a whiny brat.

Sigh.

Everything is in a state of flux right now. So I'm sort of just powering through and seeing where I am once things calm down. Is this what being an adult feels like? Blugh.

On the bright side, the new Necrons look awesome! I'm tempted to put a 'cron army on my Christmas list.