Shock Troopers WIP #1, Tournament Musings

Preparing to take some objectives.

This month's Paint the Target is for a unit and while it's tempting to run with a thrown-away line Gdaybloke dropped on the post and do my second Mortar team, instead I'll take this opportunity to finally paint up some Shock Troopers.  I've been wanting to paint these models for a while, but always managed to talk myself out of it.  This time around it's no different, as the Shock Troopers have featured prominently in my list building of late, but I'm not letting that stop me.  I can always proxy them for the next week or two and I could (if things go well) get them done by Thursday and not miss any table time, but even at the worst I'll have them done by the 19th.  Why the 19th?  More on that in a minute.  Today I was focused on getting base coats and the preliminary wash done.  I managed that feat, though it was far more painful than anticipated.  Turns out painting a full unit of medium bases takes a lot longer than doing a single small based model.  Everything that needed a wash got that far, which is everything except what will end up black.  Next time I'll be satisfied if I get the green done, and after that it will be another session or two to finish.  It'll take some work, but I think I can get them done next week.

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:

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.

Tournament Mode: the Debut

Tournament time.

A cluster of eager combatants. Pedestrian tables turned into exact playing surfaces with themed terrain. Handouts: a sheet for game results and army lists, another for event feedback. Packets of rules and scenarios. The gentle rumble of conversation and laughter. Trays of (somewhat) painted minis. The appraising looks drawn by the assembled armies. The atmosphere when I arrived to my first Warmahordes tournament was everything I thought it would be.

As I alluded to in my last post, I went in a new direction with my lists the night before the tournament.  I had settled into a single jack, infantry heavy, Iron Flesh caster approach, but following a successful game with Strakhov on Thursday night I went with a list very similar to the one I used that night:

New Caster Throwdown: Strakhov vs eCaine

Wrong game, right feel.

Over the past couple weeks my collection, at least the part ready for the table, has expanded and there are lots of pieces that have yet to see the table.  While some of these (Shock Troopers) are relatively new and require some jockeying to find space in my case, there is one piece in particular that has been on the shelf for what feels like an eternity: Strakhov.  I got Strakhov when I went down to Fredericksburg for an Uncharted Seas tournament more than a year ago.  Poor guy sat in the blister for most of that time until I got him painted for a recent Paint the Target.  That was more than a month ago.  I've been hesitant to play Strakhov because I didn't have the pieces to play the kind of fast assassination game Strakhov seems made for, namely Great Bears and a Spriggan/Beast 09.  Fast-forward to now and I've just finished priming the Great Bears, Torch who lacks reach but is Strakhov's jack, eEiryss, and Aiyana & Holt (with Valachev).  If these pieces can't combine to make an assassination list then I have a problem in a logic bank.  With that in mind I got to bodging a list together last night.  At first I made a list that was full of everything I haven't played yet, but I just couldn't get Shock Troopers to play right with Strakhov in my head, plus I came up a bit short on 35 points, so I took out the Shock Troopers and put in some other stuff to come up with the following list: 

I should really put a title on this post

The madness begins to take shape.

Productivity was up in all sectors today, hobby progress included.  I kicked things off by getting a start on the Doomies.  Nothing much yet, just roughing in colors as has become my habit of late.  For the first time in a long while, possibly ever, I took a single look at these models and knew what colors would go where.  Is it possible I'm just getting more comfortable with my scheme for the army?  Is it possible that these particular models are better suited to my scheme than others that I've painted?  Is it really possible that I'm dipping a third time into a reference that no one is likely to get?  Whatever the cause, knowing what I'm going to do before I do it (in a painting context) is such a pleasant experience that I'll have to do it again.  Ordinarily I'd describe what it is I plan to do, but with any luck I'll have the Doomies to a point that the scheme is evident via pictures in the near future.

Painting progress?!

Behold my progress.

Yesterday saw me pick up a brush for the first time in what felt like forever.  I got the greens done and "finished" the flesh, though I may go back for another round.  Before my long gaming hiatus painting was akin to throwing darts: sometimes I hit my target, sometimes I hit my foot.  In the past year and a half, during my triumphant return to wargaming, I've felt more comfortable with the brush.  The results I get may not be exactly what I wanted at the beginning, but I feel in control during the process.  Yesterday was more akin to the random results of old, especially in the faces.  By the end of the session I was more or less back to the new normal, but that first half hour or so was what I imagine walking a tightrope feels like.  Hopefully the cobwebs are shaken out now.

Taking a different angle on painting, my painting queue is currently unmanageable and is about to become worse.  Off the top of my head I have eIrusk, the Old Witch, Black Ivan (who needs a body as he's just the upgrade kit), and a Trollblood starter box all sitting patiently in their original packaging.  That's just PP stuff too.  Then there's all the stuff that's been assembled but not primed, primed but not painted, painted but not based, so on and so forth.  I'm rapidly approaching the sort of saturation that contributed to my previous hiatus.  To make matters worse (and better of course, who doesn't love more toys?), I just put in an order for the two player box, Bombardiers, and Aiyana & Holt, which will dump even more things to be done into my already overwhelmed queue.  Drastic action is required to keep this gaming ship afloat.

As such, I'm putting an end to all model purchases until I hit some sort of big milestone.  What that goal is has yet to be finalized.  My first thought was having all my Khador stuff painted.  Fully painted, based, and sealed, not in limbo like poor Orsus who's still waiting to have his base finished and be swathed in varnish.  I'm leaning towards having a tier force fully painted, either 35 or 50 points.  What level tier and what caster is still up for debate.  It may turn out that I don't even have the parts to make any tier list, but I'm not too concerned about that.  I'm thinking about running a tier list this Thursday in fact, so I'll find out if my plan is feasible very soon.  The point is that purchasing has once again outstripped painting, so I'm putting the brakes on hard until I get caught up some.  Hopefully nothing comes out soon that I start drooling over...

New painting, old list

This pic was the best of the bunch...

Work continues on Orsus.  Today I got the armor done, green and red, and prepared the metal areas with a layer of black.  I had a harder time than usual getting a picture today, and of the four I took the somewhat washed-out on to the left was the best representation.  While I'm settled on the overall red and green scheme there was plenty of debate over what parts should be which colors.  Making sweeping changes would put me back an entire session, so I decided to plunge on ahead with the scheme as it stood.  Starting with the green base, Russian Uniform Green or somesuch, I re-established the base color after the Umber wash that ended the last session.  I mixed in increasing amounts of Bleached Bone, probably ending with about a 4:1 bone to green mix.  I didn't keep a close eye on what the ratios were as there was no need to match other models in a squad.  If the Butcher is a slightly different shade than the rest of the army it will just help him stand out more as an individual.  There wasn't as much highlighting to do as I was anticipating, thanks mostly to the arms-across-body pose that shades most of the gut, as well as the coat.  I broke from tradition a bit with the red.  Previously I would wash a base of Blood Red, then go back with the Blood Red and finish with a slight mix with Blazing Orange.  The base was different this time though, Vallejo's Heavy Red getting the wash instead of the usual Blood Red, so I took a different approach to painting it as well.  Red Gore formed the first post-wash layer, then a mix that I think I'll call Blood Red Gore established the base red.  After that I mixed Blazing Orange in for two sets of highlights.  The result was a darker, richer red than I usually produce, with more appreciable highlighting, all without turning out orange.  The only potential problem, aside from considering swapping how I do red, is that the final product is darker than I expected, which means that it will be more of a challenge to make a darker-still red for the coat.  That coat will be the next item I tackle, along with the metals and the big fur collar.  Though it seems like a stretch, it's possible that I'll be finished after the next time I hoist the brush.  That said I'm not at all happy with the pants, which are in limbo while I decide what, if anything, I want to do with them.  I'd have to introduce another color to make them stand out, though I suppose I could make them leather pants and keep my palette together.  I'll have a bit of time to consider before I have to decide.

Update? Who does that?

L-O-L-A Lola, Lolololo Lola.

I'm shamed by how long it's been since the last post.  I'd love to offer something of substance by way of apology, but that'll just have to wait until next time.  In the here and now I have some very modest hobby progress, plus something I've been meaning to do for a while and have just now finished.  Spurred on by EV's recent escalation of the Warmachine arms race I put together a man who needs no introduction, pictured right.  I had cleaned the model a while back, but I guess the arm assembly kept me from assembling it at the same time.  Everything went together nice and easy thanks mostly to the greenstuff + super glue combo.  How I was engaged in the hobby for better than a decade and never found out that the two play so well together is beyond me.  Regardless of our time apart, we're together now, and that's what counts.  (Unrelated: I spent a couple minutes working up a Warmachine-centric version of the Kink's classic "Lola," only to realize that the tiny caption space under the picture wouldn't contain all that awesome.  Instead you get a much smaller, rather less awesome version.  Blame Blogger and how their photo captioning works.)