Skip's Astra Militarum Armoured Company- Beginnings of a Tournament Army Part I

I am always attempting to complete different hobby projects with 40k, but unfortunately while this has led me to complete different neat projects- it does not usually leave me with fully completed armies. Which is a problem when I want to attend local events, play in campaigns and participate tournaments with a completed army. To start off this year, I figured that I would focus on my ongoing Imperial Guard tank army, as it has been something I have been having a lot of fun with lately (converting and painting the command tank).

1850 point- Friendly Event List Headquarters- Company Command Leman Russ Vanquisher Tank- with Co-Ax heavy stubber/ Beast-slayer shells/ artificer armor Troops- 2x Armoured Fist Squadrons- 2x Chimeras with Heavy Bolter & Autocannon/ 2x Infantry squads with 2x Autocannons Battle Tank Squadron- 2x Leman Russ Battle Tanks with Heavy Bolters Siege Tank Squadron- 2x Thunder Tanks with Dozer Blades Fast Attack- Imperial Navy Support- Vulture Gunship with Heavy Bolter & Punisher Gatling Cannons Scout Sentinel with an Autocannon Heavy Support- Imperial Navy Support- Avenger Strike Fighter with Avenger Bolt Cannon & 2x Lascannons Imperial Knight Household detachment- Cerastus Knight- Atrapos 1850/1850 However, we will see how well I do with succeeding with this project this year, when this is about how much work/ grading I have to get done every weekend:

Tournaments & List Building: This will be my friendly tournament lists that I intend to go to events with a well painted and extensively converted army that many players are simply not used to playing against in the modern Warhammer 40,000 game. The list will perform incredibly poorly against the majority of armies out there- especially the ever present Death Star armies. As far as competitively goes- the list is a lower tier army, that will catch a few players off guard. I know in my test games, it was durable against our resident Eldar player- only because he lacked enough dedicated anti-tank and had to wait for his spiders and other units to deep strike in and finish me off. In my second game against a Khorne Demonkin player- I was able to do well only because he had no dedicated anti-tank and my Knight was able to hold up his big close combat units. Goals: My big goal with this army is simply to do well with the soft scores at the the moment. I want to have the army fully painted to a high quality, to hopefully win and keep winning the best painted awards at the different events that I attend. This is why I have the Knight Atrapos in the second larger list- (yes it does very well against super heavies)- but it is a huge striking looking model. When painted to match the rest of the force, it'll be a striking center piece to the army (one that people are not used to seeing and will have fun playing against). This will hopefully help me with dominating sportsmanship and painting scores, versus the battle points. However, I was personally thinking of maybe taking a Lancer instead- as I like the model just as much as the Atrapos and I feel that it may even fit with the army's theme better. However, when I playtested the model a few weeks ago, it was brought to my attention that the lance it holds is a dual profile weapon. Thus, meaning that I can only ever fire and then not use it in CC, or use it in CC and not fire. That seems to somewhat mitigate the entire strength of the concussive shots and the ability of the Knight to successfully take down other Knights and Wraith Knights without getting itself blown up... if anyone has information that counters this- I am all ears lol Strategy: My current aim is to complete the Avenger Strike Fighter first, then work on the two Russ tanks as I build up my display board. As I make the conversions on the Thunderers and the Vulture gunship I'll order the Knight Titan and hopefully have a finished friendly army done around the time the summer break kicks off. Once this is all done, maybe just focus on a few more guard units for the narrative games locally (?) or I'll start to work on my Mechanicus (or maybe Orks?). Current Projects:

I wanted to post a few pictures of my Command Vanquisher that I had finished, as this will give you an idea where the rest of the army is headed concerning paint scheme/ detail work:

I named the tank "Ol' Warhorse II" after a A Sherman Tank that I saw at the Yuma Proving Grounds tank museum- and I tried to add additional details and uparmored the sides and other little details that I had seen from various Allied tanks from books and images. I am really proud of how this model came out and I know that I will doing two more Leman Russ tanks along the same lines/ style as this one- and two Tank Destroyers (based on Chimera bodies). I have a quick shot of what I'm looking to do with my Display board as well:

Below are two pictures from the campaign game that I had played with Jholt & Loopy from last weekend:

As always, thank you for your time and I will have some additional pictures of the undercoated Russ tanks and Avenger once I get an opportunity to use my airbrush. -Skip

The Road to Adepticon, Part II

The Road to Adepticon, Part II

Greetings travelers! Cieged here with Part II of my ongoing series detailing my preparation and experience for Adepticon 2016.

Roughly a week ago our local group attended a tournament at The Portal in Manchester CT. The setting was 1850 in an official ITC event, drawing in a grand total of 37 people. Roughly a two hour drive from Albany, I was absolutely thrilled to see this kind of a turn out for a local(ish) event. The store was very well organized and timely, their tables were appropriately sized and spaced leaving room for only the mayhem of 40k.

As this event runs many similarities to the GT at Adepticon, I intended to use it as a primer in gathering as much information as I could to improve upon my tactics and list. I brought the following;

Combined Arms Detachment – Craftworld Eldar
HQ – Skyrunner Farseer (Warlord), Spiritstone of Anath’lan
Troop – Windrider Jetbike x5, Scatter Laser x5
Troop – Windrider Jetbike x5, Scatter Laser x5
Troop – Windrider Jetbike x3, Scatter Laser x3
Troop – Windrider Jetbike x3, Scatter Laser x3
Fast Attack – Hemlock Wraithfighter
Fast Attack – Hemlock Wraithfighter
Lord of War – Wraithknight, Ghostglaive/Shimmershield

Seer Council Formation – Craftworld Eldar
HQ – Skyrunner Farseer, Shard of Anaris
HQ – Skyrunner Farseer
HQ – Warlock Conclave, Skyrunner Warlock x7

I have been on a die-hard quest to make my beloved cheddar Seer Council a functional army list in a high-competition environment. In my local Meta, I have been souring the pot with my Psychic Shenanigans and as a result have seen a dramatic increase in the number of Culexus Assassins riding in their best bros’ Drop Pods. This tournament promised to be a new Meta for me to infiltrate, and as such I was hoping to grab three players by surprise and steal away victories using my Turbo-boosting nonsense. That being said my success rate with the Council has been quite good, however the variability/unreliability of Psychics combining their hard-counters (looking at you, War Convocation) has thrown more than a few sticks into my spokes.

I’ve taken quite a few pictures (and with a few extras of the event thanks to my friend Pete!) which are loosely attached to Battle Reports found here:

http://imgur.com/a/l5564

Back already? Good. What I’ve left out of these reports are my own thoughts and path forward which is what I’m aiming to address here. So without further ado;

How did the list do?!

Three victories is no scoffing matter. I’m beyond ecstatic to have walked away from a competitive event undefeated. That being said, I can’t help but feel I flew under the radar on these games. Having only minor victories and no majors meant that I was assigned opponents of similar standing through Swiss pairing. Not once did I have to come up against multi-tournament winner aficionado X, Y, or Z. Nor did I face any hard counters which were most definitely present. In that I do feel I cheated the system by circumstance, I’m not sure what I would have done against the Blood Cult (?) (FW formation with a Brass Scorpion and co.) or the Drone Recycling Program (Piranha formation). Despite walking away with phat cash, I’m disappointed that I didn’t get to brush shoulders with these types of lists.

In the games I did play, I was happy with the Council’s performance. Their durability is positively legendary, however my ability to score simplified Maelstrom Objectives was somewhat limited. Most games I struggled if not outright lost this portion of the two mission format. This is distressing, Windriders are incredibly powerful point-per-damage, but if you place them in a state of vulnerability by scoring an objective their lives are completely forfeit. They much prefer dancing behind terrain and pot-shooting ideal targets. This leaves room for improvement.

My reserves gambit in my first game was unacceptable. I feel it was the right decision at the time, but the amount of danger that put me could have lost me the game. As a result, I would much prefer to pick up some form of defense for the Council that lasts before my first Psychic Phase, or even more preferably doesn’t care about a darned Culexus Assassin.

Where do you go from here?!

Having my hands on the new Doom of Mymeara book, I’ve found what might be a fantastic solution to both of my problems. I plan on play testing this thoroughly, but my theory crafting has led me to this modification of my list:

Combined Arms Detachment – Craftworld Eldar
HQ – Skyrunner Farseer (Warlord), Spiritstone of Anath’lan
Troop – Windrider Jetbike x3, Scatter Laser x3
Troop – Windrider Jetbike x3, Scatter Laser x3
Troop – Windrider Jetbike x3, Scatter Laser x3
Fast Attack – Hemlock Wraithfighter
Lord of War – Wraithknight, Ghostglaive/Shimmershield

Seer Council Formation – Craftworld Eldar
HQ – Skyrunner Farseer, Shard of Anaris
HQ – Skyrunner Farseer
HQ – Warlock Conclave, Skyrunner Warlock x5

Allied Detachment – Corsairs (Doom of Mymaera)
HQ – Void Dreamer, Corsair Jetpack, Level 3 Psyker, Shadowfield
Troop – Cloud Dancer x3 – Scatter Laser x3
Troop – Cloud Dancer x3 – Scatter Laser x3
Heavy Support – Warp Hunter, Void Burner, Corsair Holofield

What has changed here is a drop of the Hemlock and two Warlocks in favor of an allied detachment for corsairs focusing on the Void Dreamer and Warp Hunter. If you’re not familiar, the Dreamer has access to the new table of Aethermancy which is potentially quite powerful, but alternatively can delve into Divination which is definitely tried and true. The Dreamer unfortunately can not ride a Jetbike, but does come with a Jetpack and more importantly the dreaded Shadowfield. If you don’t have waking nightmares of the Baron lists of old, a Shadowfield is a 2+ invulnerable save that persists until a save is failed on the bearer. This is especially relevant as Adepticon does not nerf 2+ rerollable saves (why hello Fortune). Therefore shoving this lovely caster out front to receive all turn 1 bullets and Grav could save the entire Council and prevent me from shoving them precariously into reserves. If you would like a primer on Aethermancy, check out this article and specifically ability #6 (WARNING, BoLS):

http://www.belloflostsouls.net/2016/01/40k-new-eldar-psychic-discipline-aethermancy.html

The other major change here is the presence of a Warp Hunter. This is a bogus little vehicle that is stock Eldar defense, AV 12/12/10 with 3HP and is a Fast Skimmer. His gun however is a 36” D3+1 barrage Strength D small blast weapon. Holy smokes, that’s a Thunderfire Cannon on crack. This model is somewhat vulnerable whilst on the table, however I have given him Void Burners which is a Deep Strike ability in tandem with a 4+ invulnerable re-rollable save for his first turn on the table post-deepstrike and a 5+ invulnerable thereafter. This model should land me a solid fight against super heavies in the same way the Hemlock did, and isn’t particularly endangered by Tau interceptor fire, but most importantly will allow me to have an additional scoring vehicular body which the Hemlock could never do. I suspect this aggressive trade off will assist my struggles, but I’m very curious to hear what others think. If you have a suggestion that could improve upon my problems – don’t hesitate to speak up!

Thanks for reading as always, my next report will include a few new experiments to help me narrow in on a final list. I’m also looking for any players to play test games with as I would like to ram heads against the toughest lists others have to offer – the more prepared I am, the better!

The Road to Adepticon, Part I

Hello all! Ciege here with a fresh post detailing my early stage journey to a grand tournament.

 

The Plan:

To attend Adepticon 2016 for the first time in my toy-soldier career, scoring above the player mean in the Singles Tournament with a fully painted Eldar list. This will be complete with display board, general theme, and small fluff write-up whilst letting slip the resin dogs of pretend war.

My Current Standing:

In my local scene - humble though it is - I have run a few terrorizing Eldar lists. I've been extremely proud of the successes I've had which has encouraged me to step up to another level and attempt a swing at a big boy tournament. The most success I've had is wielding the dreaded Seer Council and I aim to continue with what I know, especially given the tournaments lax standing on Invisibility and Save rerolls! The largest event I've previously attended was perhaps 40 players overall and I perform well in regular local competitions ranging from 10-20, so this is a step into the unknown. As of this write-up I'm 71st on the ITC ranking overall. I freely admit I have absolutely no idea if this is a good standing or not, but I love having a frame of reference to compare my 2016 efforts with.

I've been an avid 40k player since I was a teenager. My father taught me the fundamentals of painting and as such the hobby portion of the game always drew me in more than anything else. This is one of the few games that has art, deep and long term planning, and in-game strategy all in one with a little fluff on the side. I'm thrilled to be part of the community and have been an avid supporter of the ITC; I'm even more motivated now that they're involved with Adepticon.

Currently I have ~3500 points of Eldar painted to Craftworld Lugganath; the mighty Orange and Black! I chose this particular group because their story positively meager leaving itself open to addition and modification. What little "sci-fi history" is available on the group is that they're nothing but half-pirate full-failures, constantly being bullied and beaten by the stronger powers of the 41st millennium. 

Of which there are many.

The Current List (1850, alpha build):

Combined Arms - Codex: Craftworld Eldar

HQ - Skyrunner Farseer - Spirit Stone of Anath'lan

Troop - Windrider x3 - Scatter Laser x3

Troop - Windrider x3 - Scatter Laser x3

Troop - Windrider x3 - Scatter Laser x3

Fast Attack - Hemlock Wraithfigher

Lord of War - Wraithknight - Ghostglaive, Shimmershield

Formation - Seer Council 

HQ - Skyrunner Farseer - Shard of Anaris

HQ - Skyrunner Farseer

HQ - Warlock Conclave - Skyrunner Warlock x5, Singing Spear x4

Allied Detachment - Supplement: Doom of Mymeara

HQ - Cloud Dancer Prince - Psyker(2), Shadowfield, Void Blade

Troop - Cloud Dancer x5 - Dissonance Cannon x5

Troop - Cloud Dancer x5 - Dissonance Cannon x5

[A recently completed Ranger of mine on display board!]

What Will be Posted:

Progression pictures, revised lists, and most importantly; picture Battle Reports! I've gone to a great deal of trouble building a 40k approved table to invite fun and strategically minded local opponents to their their most bogus, WAAC-beardy lists they can sum to combat the point ears. These reports will have awesome terrain and a matching fat mat. Most models will be painted and most models will not be proxies, but bear in mind this is for the benefit of learning and improving - new units are to be tried! 

Thanks for reading; my first project will be under way shortly. I'll aim for a post every to every other week and will finalize with my performance and thoughts on the largest tournament I've yet attended. Cheers!

Ciege

Tau Versus Blood Ravens Battle Report!

2k Points Tau Empire vs Blood Ravens (White Scars)

JHolt’s Blood Ravens (White Scars Chapter Tactics)

White Scars CAD

-Kor’sarro Khan (WARLORD) w/Moondrakken

-Librarian (ML1) w/Hunter’s Eye, Force Stave

-3xBikes w/Grav-gun, Plasma Gun

-Attack Bike w/Heavy Bolter

-5xScouts w/Sniper Rifles, Camo Cloaks

-3xWhirlwind

-Dev Centurion Squad: Omniscope, 3xGrav-amp, Grav-cannon, Hurricane Bolters

-5xTac Marines

-Drop Pod

Skyhammer Annihilation Force (White Scars)

-5xAssault Marines w/2Flamers

-5xAssault Marines w/2Flamers

-10xDev Marines w/4xHeavy Bolters

-10xDev Marines w/4xHeavy Bolters

Imperial Knights Detachment

-Knight Paladin

Plainshow’s Tau Empire

Tau Empire CAD

Commander Shadowsun w/2xMV52 Shield Drones, Command-Link Drone

4xSuits w/3xCounterfire Defense System

Shas’vre w/Drone Controller, Markerlight, Target Lock

            2xMarker Drones

Kroot: 10xKroot

Kroot: 10xKroot

2xTetras w/2xDisruption Pods

2xTetras w/2xDisruption Pods

Devilfish w/Disruption Pod, Sensor Spines

Ethereal Council

3xEthereals

Ranged Support Cadre

6xPathfinders

6xPathfinders

6xPathfinders

2xBroadsides w/TL High-Yield Missile Pods,TL Smart Missile Systems, Early Warning Override

2xBroadsides w/TL High-Yield Missile Pods,TL Smart Missile Systems, Early Warning Override

2xBroadsides w/TL High-Yield Missile Pods,TL Smart Missile Systems, Early Warning Override

Ghostkeel Wing

Ghostkeel w/Ion Raker, TL-Burst Cannon, Counterfire Defense System, Early Warning Override

Ghostkeel w/Ion Raker, TL-Burst Cannon, Counterfire Defense System, Early Warning Override

Ghostkeel w/Ion Raker, TL-Burst Cannon, Counterfire Defense System, Early Warning Override

 Mission: Martyr’s Charge (Kauyon Campaign Mission 1)

Deployment: Tau Empire player has an 18” circle in the center of the map to deploy.  Only half the Tau force may begin deployed on the table.  White Scars player can deploy within 12” of any table corner (but must use at least 2).  Tau place 5 objectives in their deployment zone and must deploy first.

Initiative: White Scars have 1^st turn unless Tau can Seize

Primary Objective:  At the end of the game, each Objective Marker is worth 3 Victory Points to the player that controls it. 

Secondary Objectives:  First Blood, Slay the Warlord.

Mission Special Rules: Night Fighting, Reserves.

Full Attack: Each time a Bike Squad, Attack Bike Squad, Scout Bike Squad or unit of Land Speeders is completely destroyed, place it into Ongoing Reserves, where it will be available to return to the battle at the start of the Space Marines player’s next turn. These units enter play from any point along a table edge that is within one of the Space Marines player’s deployment zones. 

Kauyon: The Tau Empire player’s Reserves enter play from either long table edge. 

Lines of Retreat: Any Space Marines units that Fall Back do so towards the nearest table edge. Any Tau Empire units that Fall Back must do so towards the center of the board, where they will remain until they Regroup.

Pregame notes:  We have both been looking forward to trying some of the new rules from the new Warzone campaign books (Kauyon and Mont’ka).  What a better way to do it than in the missions from the books!  First off this is a brutal list from JHolt.  His Blood Ravens steal everything they can get their hands on, including Chapter Tactics and Captains.  He’s been looking to add one more big threat to his list, and the Grav Cents with the Hunter’s Eye are just that.  Between them, the insane amount of pinning the Skyhammer throws out, an Imperial Knight allowed to start within 12” of my deployment zone, and a relentless barrage from those Whirlwinds, pressure will be turned up to 11 from turn one.  My list revolves around the Ghostkeel Wing granting Stealth to everyone within 12” of two of the Ghosts (Shrouded if they have Stealth already).  The Pathfinders gain Shrouded from their formation and should get a 2+ cover save most of the time.  All the Disruption Pods combined with the Ghosts let me Jink for a 2+ as well.  The Council’s 24” Ld 10 bubble should help keep the Tau from breaking and help against the 3d6 pinning tests from the Skyhammer.

Terrain:

 

Deployment:

Game On: Tau fail to seize!

White Scars Turn 1

Skyhammer Drop Pods, Assault Squads and the Grav Cents with Librarian all hit dead on! The Bikes and Knight all advance toward the packed-in Tau gunline.  The Ghosts and Broadsides all decide this may be their only chance to shoot, and unleash all the interceptor they can muster, wiping the 2 Assault Squads (First Blood), but leaving the rest of the marines salivating for a shoot-out. The Librarian Dominates a squad of Broadsides in the Psychic phase, then the Dev’s lay on the bolter fire and Skyhammer pins all the Broadsides and wounding a Ghost. Whirlwinds wound a Broadside and a Ghost and that’s when the new addition to JHolt’s list opens up!

Using Splitfire and the Hunter’s Eye the Cent’s make short work of three Broadsides and leave one wounded!  2+ Armor with a 3+ cover save (going to ground with Stealth form the Ghosts) meant nothing!

The remaining Broadside breaks, go figure (forgot he should have run toward the center).

Tau Turn 1

 Not looking good for the Greater Good!  The Broadside regroups and heads back toward his buddies.   

The Ghosts advance on the Cents for some desperate measures.  All the Pathfinders are out of range for Pulse Carbines and no one else can shoot due to Interceptor, so their Markerlights are useless.  Tau PASS in the shooting phase,

But make TWO charges in assault!  The Ghosts can’t let that Grav be on the table when the reserves show up or the game is already over.  They couldn’t even overwatch because of the Phantom Charge rule from the Wing formation!  The Centurions end down a man and with one wounded while the Ghosts are unharmed.  The Marines fail Morale, get caught, and then fail to Hit-and-Run, leaving us locked in combat.

Blood Ravens Turn 2

 

The Knight and Kahn’s bikers advance on the Ghosts and the rapidly empting center of the board.  The Librarian Perils from Force, taking a wound and losing Dominate.  The Whirlwinds take aim at the Pathfinders hiding in the ruins near them to let them know what they think of Shrouded in Ruins.

Presto, clean ruins! 6 dead Tau two times over from cover ignoring, shredding, pinning, large blasts.  The Knight and Scouts makes short work of all but one last Broadside while Khan’s bikes charge into the melee.

Ghosts get lucky when all Khan kills is a Stealth Drone, then the Librarian’s Instant Death attacks are all saved, the Centurions are finished off and the Battlesuits again remain unscathed!  The Librarian flees while Khan ties up both Ghosts.

Tau Turn 2

 Reserves pass for only one squad of Kroot and Tetras, not good.

Coming on from opposite board edges they surround the Librarian and he falls to the crossfire. 

The Ghosts again dish out a casualty in assault while remaining unharmed, Khan Hits-and-Runs to make way for the man who has a much bigger Mech than the Tau!

Blood Ravens Turn 3

The Tacticals arrive from Reserves to give the Kroot a bad day with help from the Skyhammer Devs, they go down bloody and fast!

The Knight gets up close and personal with a very doomed Ghost,

While Kahn cleans out the last Broadside.  That leaves the center in the Raven’s hands.

Tau Turn 3

Here comes Shadowsun, she will need to do some heavy lifting to make up for the momentum right now.

Kroot round 2 and the last Ghost make it as well.  They manage to get almost 2 combat squads from the Skyhammer.

While Shadowsun’s unit pops 2 Whirlwinds and shakes the last.

The other Ghost lines a charge up a multi-assault on Kahn’s unit and the Assault Bike.  Every one whiffs in combat, Khan Hit-and-Runs but the Attack Bike keeps the Ghost locked up for next turn.

Blood Ravens Turn 4

Guess who wants to make a challenge?  Khan loses his buddy and takes a wound to Counterfire Defense Systems, but makes the assault!  He single handedly wins combat and Sweeps the unit for Slay the Warlord.

You know where you don’t get a cover save?  Close combat. No Armor save either.

Slightly different weight classes in this matchup!

Skyhammer Devs work on the Kroot and they run off the table.

They also tag a Tetra.

Tau Turn 4

The last Ghost makes short work of the solo, wounded Kahn and the Ethereals show up with the last Tetra’s.  The last of the Pathfinders finish off the Attack bike, but that’s about all the Tau can muster this turn.

Blood Ravens Turn 5

  

The Bike Squad and Attack Bike return from Reserves, from the Full Attack Mission Rule, and move to shore up the objectives.

The Knight sees a juicy target, as each Ethereal gives up a VP from their Failure is Not an Option rule.  He only immobilizes the Devilfish despite a 3+ Jink.  The Pathfinders again finish off the Attack Bike, then the Tau make a desperate gamble.

The Ghost jet-packs forward to contest the Knight’s objective, and the Tetras all flat out 18” to grab two objectives.  There is no other option, if the game doesn’t end the Ravens will wipe out the last of the Tau anyway, so it’s all or nothing on a single die roll. . .

And it’s game over!

Tau win 8-4.

Post-game Wrap up:

MVP’s

Blood Ravens: Imperial Knight-This guy did solid heavy lifting all game.  Buzz sawing through Ghostkeel suits and pushing the Tau around with his presence all game.  He never was in any real danger thanks to the Skyhammer and had free reign to carve a swath in the battlefield.

Tau: Ghostkeel Wing-The one ability that should have mattered, the Stealth field, never did.  The large blasts on Interceptor and their ability to bring three Str6 AP2 attacks in close combat was priceless.  Without their defeat of the Grav Cents in assault this game would have been unwinnable.  They seem like a cheaper version of the Heavy Burst Cannon Riptide, but way more fun to play.