Random Stuff

Hey there Chaos worshipers of all shapes and sizes! Old Man Chaos has just returned from the Eye of Terror (in actuality I finished moving, unpacking, and setting up my new place- whew!). I have a few things I thought I'd update you guys on, if you are interested:

Dark Eldar

I had my first two games with Dark Eldar about a week ago against Iron Hands with Grey Knights allies. My friend Pete can smile now (see that game HERE)- my Dark Eldar got their asses handed to them- not once but twice. In the first game I held a lot in reserve, which enabled my opponent to table me by the start of turn 2. Yikes. We then played a rematch where I held less in reserve- and I was pretty much undone by the end of turn 2 again, so I gave up.

It was just brutal. My rolling wasn't even that bad- but my opponent had plenty of tanks and guns- my Dark Eldar just couldn't catch a break at all. I was absolutely despondent at the end of the games. I barely put up a fight at all. I don't mind losing- I get upset when it wasn't even a contest, like why did I even bother putting my minis down? I no sooner put them down and I had to scoop them all up. My opponent was gracious both times to be sure. Still- I was shamed, to say the least.

So what happens now? No, I will not put the DE back on the shelf for another edition. I will find a way to make the army work. I just think in this edition of overwatch and Imperial Knights that the new DE book as it is now just isn't enough (they took Haywire Grenades from Wyches- WTF?). The supplement (Covens) is hardly much better (though a couple of the formations are interesting). I am at a loss on what to do here. And you know I love my Dark Eldar army...

Campaign for Trovana Prime Update

 I played another battle against my friend Brian in our campaign last week. As you may be aware, I have been running a few articles about the Judgement of Trovana Prime (look HERE and THERE for the most recent posts). I have been enjoying the campaign, but I haven't won a game yet, which is odd for me. Not that the games haven't been competitive (some have been blowouts, most have been really close). The best "victory" I got was that I destroyed his Imperial Knight (meaning he can't use it again for the rest of the campaign).

So this week we played a Maelstrom of War mission (Cloak and Shadows). This mission has the deployment at the short edges- a long way to trek to get to the other side. I played very well, plenty of killing on both sides. However, the tactical objective cards just wouldn't come to me- I kept getting cards for objectives that were on my opponents side; while he kept getting cards for objectives that were ON his side. As a result, the final score was 10 to 1... BUT in terms of kills and objectives held it was much much closer.

Brian remarked that while he loves the card missions for variety, he also feels that it may be too random- he acknowledged that the game was much, much closer than the lopsided victory points would suggest. Nevertheless, he repelled my advance into his territory, and the campaign goes on.

I did learn a few things though-

1) Plague Marines should use plasma- I had always equipped them with Meltas, but I have since discovered that it is tough to get them close enough for Meltas to make the difference. Plasma Guns have the better range and are still S 7 AP 2, which still gives you a chance to explode a vehicle.

2) Obliterators- I have always been reluctant about using them- they are a bit pricey compared to havocs, but their versatility is key. They got in some great shots until Brian's Centurions grav gunned 'em down like bitches (did I mention how much I hate these guys?).

3) Daemon Princes- they are a bit funky, especially with grounding tests, and they can't charge ground units if they were in the air the previous turn, which is annoying. However, I used the Prince to harass the ground troops with Smite, and he did charge and destroy a Storm Talon. Not too shabby.

4) Plague Drones- they are great, bringing some speed to Nurgle. However, they don't work well against Terminators, let's put it that way. Next time I'll try to have them go after regular marines or vehicles instead.

Well, that's all I have for now. I am slowly but surely painting stuff, which I'll be sure to post when it is all finished. Until next time...

Campaigning in 40K Part 4- The Progress So Far

Hey there Chaos followers one and all! Old Man Chaos is back from a trip to the seventh circle of the Eye of Terror, so to speak. I recently moved, which was a "slight" ordeal. It has been a couple of weeks since I put paintbrush to model (nor have I been able to post), which is disappointing; but life goes on! I should be back to painting in no time at all, once I get my new digs set up.

Using the old charge plastic counters to show attacks on the map

So, for this article I'm going to summarize my Trovana Prime campaign as it went these past few months. If you have been following my series, you know that I have longed to do a big campaign. I have only ever done one (which was a lot of fun but collapsed under its own weight- the rules were a bit too much). After years of fiddling and streamlining, I came up with a new campaign ruleset- the Judgement of Trovana Prime.

My zombie list wrecked havoc- but the Imperials still won!

So, we began the campaign in earnest this summer- I kept it small- it was my brother, my friend (and newly converted 40K fanatic) Brian and myself. I set up the campaign narrative as such that all three factions- Space Marines, Imperial Guard, and Chaos could reasonably all fight each other. I was excited- it would be time to see if my new rules panned out as well as I hoped.

Brian learned to fear Defilers and Soul Grinders

Thankfully, I can report that the campaign rules have functioned much better than our last iteration. The map phase is cleaner, the environmental tables work well, and the "Plot Threads" have added some spice to the proceedings so far (more on that in a second).  The game has been fast paced with lots of battles happening.

However, it was not without hiccups. After a few battles, my brother said he was done with the campaign- he just didn't want to commit the time needed for such a lengthy game. That was quite frustrating- but I wrote it into the plot, saying law and order has almost broken down, and while some guard are active, the Adeptus Astartes are in charge now. It made narrative sense, thankfully.

The campaign has been a ride, that is for sure. Ironically, I have only won a few games, while newcomer Brian has used his Ultramarines/Grey Knights to wipe the floor with my Chaos forces. I am in no way sore about it- I just can't believe that after all this time of wanting a campaign I am performing so poorly! I suppose that war has its fortunes, good and bad. It has certainly pushed me to experiment with other lists/ideas...

If I'm using Noise Marines the situation MUST be desperate

Yet, all is not lost. At our most recent game, Brian decided to bring forth his Imperial Knight for the second time. If you recall from my "Plot Threads" posting, the Imperial Knight, Baneblade, and Lord of Skulls all count as Lords of War for their faction. If they are destroyed, they cannot be used for the rest of the campaign. Brian had previously used the Imperial Knight in one of our earlier games; the Knight was brutal; the Knight was simply vicious.I barely scratched him.

Veritas of House Dilabor marches against the forces of Chaos

So, Brian boasted that he was bringing the Knight in for our most recent battle. I decided, rather than go for victory, I would instead go for his Knight. I created a list of Traitor Guardsmen, using the Astra Millitarum book. Thus I had a ton of lascannons, tanks, and more. I took tons of shots at him in the first turn doing significant damage in the process (his ion shields blocked some, sadly). However, he was still alive and kicking.

This tank crew was assigned the task of destroying the Imperial Knight

 In his first turn, he retaliated, blowing up scores of guardsmen and stomping two tanks as if they were paper- I really thought my gambit was going to fail. But, at the start of the second turn, my remaining Traitor Guard lascannon teams whittled away the remaining  hull points, and the Knight was destroyed (and what a roll!). This is exactly the result I wanted- now he cannot use the damnable thing any more, giving me an opening in future games to use the Lord of Skulls with a bit more safety.

The Lascannon crew that destroyed Veritas

The game did go as expected afterwards- once I killed the Knight the Space Marines and Grey Knights sought revenge, and it was ugly. They just cut through my remaining guardsmen like a scythe, and there was little I could do to stop them. The Imperial Knight had done so much damage in a single turn that I could not regroup enough. I conceded the game, but Brian knew victory had cost him dearly. The loss of Veritas of House Dilabor could alter the entire campaign. I have never been so happy about losing a game!

The die roll that spelled the doom of Veritas, Knight of House Dilabor

We have not been able to play the campaign for the past few weeks due to my moving. Now that I am (kind of) settled, I intend to strike back ever harder at my worthy opponent. I will let you know the progress of the campaign, as well as the modelling I will be able to accomplish once I set up my new hobby area- did I hear someone say Voidraven Bomber? Lol

Until next time...