This "Week" in the Gnarls League, Part 5

Not this Death Race (thank Jebus).

As entertaining as the Gnarls league was, by the end of last week I was feeling a little crisp around the edges after all that gaming.  What better way to cap that off than with a tournament?  The format was simple: 25 points, single list, all rounds use the Overrun scenario.  Apparently this is a "Death Race" format.  Looking back on the tournament, the name is fitting.  With 27 minute death clocks (54 minutes total for the game at most) and a scenario that forces you to the center, things got hot and heavy with a quickness.  It was an entertaining setup.

Coming up with a 25 point list was more challenging than I expected.  After getting used to playing at 50 points, cutting my list in half required some tough compromises.  While I could manage to run a tier list at 25 points the resulting list (Typhon, Seraph, 3 Shredders, 2 Shepherds, 2 Forsaken) was too heavy on support pieces (which I count the Shredders as) and too light on heavy hitters.  (I think of Typhon as heavy support instead of a heavy hitter, so the list is all support and no hammer.)  My second try was a little better (2 Carnis, 3 Shredders, 2 Forsaken), but there were two big problems: first I had one Carnivean too many, second I had no Seraph (and therefore no Slipstream).  Slipstream is too versatile to leave behind, so I went back to the drawing board.  Leaving behind the tier list I've come to love so much, my third attempt was much better: 2 Scytheans, a Seraph, a Shredder, and a Forsaken.  With both Slipstream and Tenacity I felt better about this list, but finally decided to trade in the Shredder to upgrade a Scythean to a Carnivean.  My final list was thus:

Objectification

Three patches down, one to go.

Sometimes the spirit just doesn't move you, as has been the case around here of late.  Perhaps you've noticed a longer-than-usual lapse between posts, an unmistakeable sign of this kind of malaise.  Fortunately I have mustered up the motivation to get a post done today, a post about the motivation I mustered yesterday in the form of painting objective markers.  The idea behind the markers is that they're from battles past when the Motherland had to sacrifice some (jack) limbs for victory and hasn't yet had to opportunity to recollect said limbs.  Her enemies are no doubt eager to lay hands (or claws or whatever) on these bits of fine, sturdy Khadoran machinery, hence the opportunity to contest the areas where these pieces reside.  I painted the markers in a more standard Khadoran scheme for two reasons: to give myself a break from painting the 5th Border Legion scheme, and to help underline the difference between these objective markers and the wreck markers I have.  Thankfully the deluge that assaulted the DMV yesterday relented today, so I was able to get a coat of varnish on the markers to protect them during the trip to the FLGS tonight.  Some snow will appear between now and the final coats of varnish, because it just isn't Khadoran without snow.

On the horizon, a package should be arriving tomorrow.  If it does, and if I can manage to slap together a pair of Legion heavy kits (hopefully with magnets, but with blu-tac if necessary) then I might be debuting a brand new list for the Gnarls league tournament on Saturday.  There are a couple big "ifs" in there, but should I manage the feat then I'll feel a lot better (theoretically) about the 25 pointer I'll be fielding.  In other league news the scoreboard has been updated and I'm tied for the lead, which isn't a great sign for my chances of victory considering that the guy I'm tied with (Danny, who pushed Skarre up for Aby to eat) is on the warpath for big games tonight while I'm trying to line up smaller team games.  We'll see how it turns out, but I'm already prepping my "I had a good time and that's what counts" interior monologue.

This Week in the Gnarls League, Part 3

vs Danny, part one.

Last week I was in a three-way tie for first in league, and on Monday I got in the first game of this week against one of the people I was tied with: Danny and his Cryx.  My first few trips to the FLGS for Thursday night Warmahordes I played against new or inexperienced players (which seems to apply to 50-60% of the regulars), including what was one of the first handful of games Danny played.  A nice guy who's eager to learn, I've kept an eye on Danny since then to see how he develops.  This game was the first since that initial game months ago and was a good opportunity to see first-hand how Danny has progressed (after a trip to Templecon no less).  We played at 50 points and I fielded the same Aby list I played last week (Typhon, Carni, Seraph, Angelius, Raek, 4 Shredders, 2 Forsakens, and a Shepherd).  I was concerned about facing 50 points worth of Cryx infantry, but fortunately the reality was slightly different as Danny fielded eSkarre with the Deathjack, Defiler, max Bane Thralls with UA and Tartarus, max Satyxis with UA and their solo, Darragh Wrathe, two Pistol Wraiths, and Saxon Orrik.  Our scenario was Whirling Gauntlet, which proved to be interesting.

Kovnik Joe Ready, Objectives WIP #2

Inspiration is available again.

I hadn't planned on painting today, but when I took a look at Joe to see how much was left to do I found the list wasn't that long.  After a brief bit of detail work and a wash, Joe is finished and no doubt eager to be back on the field.  Unfortunately it's raining, with occasional deluges, here in the DMV today, so Joe will have to wait a bit for the first pass of varnish.  Once that pass goes through my opponents will once again have the opportunity to experience the firepower of a fully armed and operational (and painted!) Death Star battle station.

When I sit down to make fully painted lists, I often run into the problem of having the WGI done, but not Joe.  This has less to do with it being hard to make a list that doesn't feature the full Death Star (really not that hard, Khador has plenty of other options), but rather that the WGI are the only "core" infantry unit that I have painted.  (I define "core" Khadoran infantry as Winter Guard Infantry, Kayazy Assassins, and Iron Fang Pikemen.  I have the Kayazy but they aren't painted, and I have no IFP yet.)  I've gone on before about how Khador, and Warmachine in general, doesn't support multiple jacks very well, so this lack of infantry is a large problem.  While Joe isn't absolutely required for the WGI, it's as close as possible.  He just does so much for his two points that it's all but impossible to leave him in the bag if there's any sort of Winter Guard on the table, much less the WGI.  He puts the "super" in "super solo."

This Week in the Gnarls League, Part 2

Against Jason.

Week two of the Gnarls league wraps up today, but for me it finished yesterday with my third game.  Let's start at the beginning.  The first game was Thursday against Jason, a regular Menoth player who I had not yet faced off against.  I ran a newish Absylonia list with Typhon, a Carnivean, a Seraph, four Shredders, and a pair of both Shepherds and Forsaken.  Jason used Amon with a horde of light jacks, 8 in all, with a pair of min choirs and some wracks.  The scenario was Hold the Line, one that I enjoy for its straight-forwardness.  As usual when facing a new caster/army, I read the cards and took note of abilities, then promptly forgot or underestimated them.  Synergy caught me with my pants not down, but off and in another room.  I lost Typhon and the Carni, both undamaged, on the same turn and that was about it.  I almost shot down Amon with the Seraph, then couldn't quite manage to get Aby in charge range of him.  This game was a fairly ugly case of learning by taking it in the face for me, but that knowledge would come in handy in the next game.

This Week in the Gnarls League, Part 1

Not these Gnarls.

The Gnarls League started this week and despite some scheduling difficulties (read: hockey on Thursday night) I managed to get my three games in for the week.  These seasonal leagues have intrigued me since I first heard about them.  The idea that some models are taken out and replaced with variations on them is a novel one.  This year's leagues take the novelty a step further by allying two factions (Legion pairs up with Mercs for the Gnarls)  and allowing them to field each others' seasonal model.  The Merc's model (grape shot cannon) doesn't do much for me, and a lot of the pairings are odd, but it's a good way to add in some variety without actually adding new pieces to the game which astute readers will remember is a plus for me.  Looks like I've finally encased my first picture in text, so on to the mini battle reports.