The Unholy Union

Team Jacward.

Alright guys, I think I got something going here with 2 of my marine armies.  So as you guys know, I have Space Wolves and Blood Angels.  I took a look at the Allies chart today and noticed both to be Blood Brothers.  Why?  I have no fucking clue.  I guess the whole thing about Werewolves and Vampires hating on eachother isn't true in the 40K universe.  They are, after all, Battle Brothers until death!

Anyways, here's the list I'm thinking about trying for 1750:

1749
14 VP

HQ:
Rune Priest (RA, WTT) = 125
Librarian* (JP) = 125

TROOP:
9x Grey Hunters (Rhino, WG/PF/CbM, Plasma Gun, MotW, WS) = 243
9x Grey Hunters (Rhino, WG/PF/CbM, Plasma Gun, MotW, WS) = 243
8x Grey Hunters (Rhino, WG/PF/CbM, Plasma Gun, MotW, WS) = 228
10x ASM* (PF/Infernus, 2x Meltaguns) = 250

ELITE:
Wolf Guard
Sanguinary Priest* (JP, MB) = 80

HEAVY:
Vindicator (DB) = 120
Vindicator (DB) = 120
Stormraven* (EA, TLLC, TLMM) = 215

The idea behind this list is pretty simple.  You take your generic 3x Grey Hunter squads and you put them in the list along side your Rune Priest who always takes Divination.  The great thing about the Rune Priest is that his Runic Weapon remains unchanged in the new edition.  If a psychic power succeeds anywhere within 24" of you, you have the ability to nullify it on a 4+.  This gives you an insane amount of psychic protection in an addition where everyone and their mother loves psychic abilities.  On top of this, I'm giving my Rune Priest Runic Armor now every chance I get.  The 2+ armor save and the innate psychic defenses that it sports is just too good not to take for the points.

Let's go over some psychic powers really quick.  Divination, is in my opinion, the best psychic lore in 40K.  If you have armies that can take this lore, you pretty much want to take this lore.  The free spell that they have, Prescience, is basically a pumped-up version of Guide that extends out to 12", and lasts until your next phase.  I don't know what to say except for that's amazing.  Next, you have Misfortune and Forewarning, both extremely strong spells that can be used against the enemy.  Ideally, if you have two psykers who have Divination (which SW and BA can), you can cast Prescience on your unit and Misfortune on the target unit and basically ram it into the ground.  Re-rolling ALL saves is no joke, it's basically a better version of Doom due to the number of raw causalities you can inflict on the enemy.  The best part about this is that it lasts until your next turn as well, so stacking these two abilities is batshit crazy.

This brings up something really clever:  Since BA and SW can both take Divination, why not take both right?  While powerful, we shouldn't discount some of the other psychic powers that the two armies can mix up.  BA have access to Telepathy, something that SW does not.. so with that, you gain Psychic Shriek, Puppet Master, Invisibility and Hallulncination.  The unfortunate thing about Telepathy is that its most powerful powers require you to be a ML2 Psyker.  That's 50 extra points for Epistolary that I simply do not have.  That means you have to look at the cheaper lores; Divination already being a fantastic buy, Biomancy for the chance to get Enfeeble, but most importantly, the BA book lore.  The main things that stand out here is Unleash Rage for the squad the Libby is in, Sanguine Sword to make you S10, Blood Lance so you can throw it at fliers (yes, it auto-hits), and Shield of Sanguinius that gives your Libby and "any unit" within 6" a 5+ cover save.  With a good amount of vehicles in my list, and a Flyer, I can cast Shield to give the Sons of Russ and the Stormraven a happy go lucky 5+ cover.

Now let's think about something really quick.  We all know Divination is good, but I think a mix between Divination and Blood (just calling it this from now on) is the sweet spot.  I can only take 2 skills though, so I think for my first trial, it'll be Sanguine Sword and Blood Lance.  Unleash Rage is not needed with the Rune Priest to cast Prescience, but the S10 and auto-hitting S8 AP1 Lance is always good.  Shield of Sanguinius is incredibly strong if you're running your dudes behind or near the Grey Hunter wall, but I think I'll be placing my Libby, SP and 10x ASM squad in reserve along side the Stormraven.  I want my forces to hit the enemy lines around the same time and with the fury of an angry god.  This first list you see here, will be all about offense (the way I like to play).

Well, I don't think I have anything else here to cover.  The Vindicators are there because I like them, the Grey Hunters are the staple, and the Libby + ASM provides a nice little wild card.  The inclusion of the Stormraven gives me a solid AA platform, and if worst comes to worst, I can throw a Blood Lance at enemy fliers and skewer them out of the sky.

My 6th Ed. DE army list

Challenge anyone?

Alright fellas, I got enough 6th Ed. jammed down my throat that it's officially time to revise and update my army list for Dark Eldar.

Needless to say, I kept things very straight forward and maybe even a little boring.  The metagame around me actually looks kinda funny.  There's a couple of CSM players, 3 Necron players (FML), maybe Tyranid player once in a while, another DE player who doesn't really play, a BA/GK player, a few Ork players and some SW players.  There is a single Guard player and a CSM player who's thinking about including traitor IG in his Allies list, but there aren't any serious talks of beard or cheese.

I'm the type of DE player who barely took Blasterborn last edition and even less Venoms.  I love myself some Trueborn, but I was never a fan of Venomspam and thus didn't bother building any!  OK, that's a lie because I actually built one, but I have 2 more NIB that I haven't touched yet.  In fact, I only proxy'd and Vassal'd with the Flyers last edition and didn't really find them enjoyable or worth their points compared to the Ravager.  With this edition, things might change because I can definitely see the use of a Flyer; both as a counter-flyer and as a straight up damage tool that can apply damage without fear of retaliation.

Another thing about me as a player is that I love Kabal Dark Eldar.  I don't like the fluff, mechanics and playstyle of the Haemonculi and thus, I keep all of my units Kabal-themed.  In a way, most of my units are not the typical MSU Venom heavy lists that you'll find elsewhere.  My lists are designed to be specialized over target saturation, built for quality and not for quantity.  This caters to my playstyle and I must say, it's been working out quite well for me.  Most of my wins with Dark Eldar depends on precision tactics where I use terrain to my advantage as I pick off high priority targets.  I place my models in a way that LoS is difficult and retaliation is even harder without a handsome cover save.  I'm a Dark Lance heavy player and I view precision and firepower as the hallmark of my playstyle.

More squeeky rat stuff

So after my friend kindly gifted me 4 Skaven IoB sets, I decided to place the order for the rest of the stuff.  Looks like I'll be quiet for the next couple of weeks or so since I'll be busy building all my rats.  I figured I'll do rats first and then Ogres.

Anyways, here's the army now.  I dropped the Stormvermin and took Plague Monks instead.  I like Clan Pestilens stuff more anyways.  The Doomwheels because I think they're funny and double Warp Lightning Cannons because I can.  I have no idea why I took the Bell other than it looks really cool, but I have no idea how they're going to preform on the battlefield.

Anyone know where to get cheap rats for Giant Rat bases?  There's no way I'm going to buy those ridiculous GW ones.  Here's the list:

2498
12 drops

LORDS:
Lv.4 Grey Seer (Condenser) = 260
Lore of Ruin
+Screaming Bell = 200

HEROES:
Chieftain (BSB, Shield) = 72
Warlock Engineer (Brass Orb) = 65
Warlock Engineer (Doomrocket) = 45
Lv.1 Plague Priest (Flail, Scroll) = 129
+Plague Furnace = 150

CORE:
40x Clanrats (FC) = 200
+Poison Wind Mortar = 65
36x Clanrats (FC) = 182
+Poison Wind Mortar = 65
50x Skavenslaves (Musician) = 102
50x Skavenslaves (Musician) = 102
6x Giant Rats (Handler) = 23
6x Giant Rats (Handler) = 23

SPECIAL:
40x Plague Monks (FC, Plague Banner) = 335

RARE:
Doomwheel = 150
Doomwheel = 150
Warp Lightning Cannon = 90
Warp Lightning Cannon = 90

What the hell! Skaven!

This must be some crazy shit, but I just involved in Skaven too!

My friend gave me a whole bunch of unassembled Skaven stuff and that's enough for me to really get started on the army.  A few bucks here and there and I should have a huge army.  That's pretty good considering I didn't spend anything on the Ogres.  My only problem is.. I have limited amounts of experience with and against the rats.  I've been developing a list lately and it looks something like this.

Keep in mind that I have rules!

• The first rule is that I wanna take Queek Headtaker because I like his fluff and his rules.
• I will not be using the Hell Pit Abomination.  I hate the model, hate the rules and I don't want to hear people bitch.
• Out of all the clans, I think I like Clan Pestilens the most.  Hence why I have some of the Poison Wind stuff.

Here's the list:

2500
14 drops

LORDS:
Queek Headtaker = 215
Lv.4 Grey Seer (Scroll) = 265
Lore of Ruin

HEROES:
Chieftain (BSB, Shield) = 72
Warlock Engineer (Brass Orb) = 65
Warlock Engineer (Doomrocket) = 45
Lv.1 Warlock Engineer (Condenser) = 85
Lore of Ruin

CORE:
35x Super Stormvermin (FC, Razor Standard) = 455
35x Clanrats (FC) = 242.5
+Poison Wind Mortar
35x Clanrats (FC) = 242.5
+Poison Wind Mortar
40x Skavenslaves (Musician) = 82
40x Skavenslaves (Musician) = 82
6x Giant Rats (Handler) = 23
6x Giant Rats (Handler) = 23
6x Giant Rats (Handler) = 23

RARE:
Doomwheel = 150
Doomwheel = 150
Warp Lightning Cannon = 90
Warp Lightning Cannon = 90
Plagueclaw Catapult = 100

My biggest problem is that I don't know what's acceptable as core and what formation the units will be in.  I know how to do elite and expensive armies, but an entire made of random fodder is new to me.  I mean, look at how many models this is!  It's insane..

The Super Stormvermin is upgraded with Queek's benefits.  WS5, S5 with Halberds and Razor Standard is pretty insane for damage.  Right now, I'm thinking about putting them in 7x5 formation.  Does this work?  Or should I spend the points to get a bigger unit in general and put them in Horde formation?

What about the rest of the core?  Clanrats should be 5x7 deep and Skavenslaves is 5x8.  How does that look?  The Rat Darts are there for deployment reasons and the rare slot is filled with all kinds of crazy contraptions.  Doomwheels do good amounts of damage once they start blasting into combat and I've seen Warp Lightning Cannons do crazy stuff.  The Plagueclaw is there to drop Large Templates (great vs. Warriors of Chaos!) with no armor saves and the rest of stuff is pretty self-explanatory.

Thoughts?  It looks pretty solid to me but I'd like to know your opinions.

PS - I must be crazy to take this army with so many projects already.. but the price was just too good to pass up on.

More VC army construction

UPDATED: 1-19-12

I'm still working on the finer points of designing a solid VC army and I'd like to take you guys on a guided tour on how I reach certain decisions.  Hopefully, this short article will help you guys in your army building stages as well.

First, I'll talk about my lord choices:

Vampire Lord = 433
Lore of Vampires
Red Fury, Quickblood
Knight, Ogre Blade, Dragonhelm, 4+ Ward, PoFool

Lv.3 Master Necro (Book of Arkhan) = 190
Lore of Vampires

This here is what I had at first.  I wanted to do this for the following reasons:  Keeping the VL at Lv.1 makes him a mere support caster.  It gives him focus, as he's now a primary melee attacker.  Bigger spells are not really used by him, thus limiting the amount of PD thrown (which in turn lowers the chance to miscast).  This also allows me to fill in a Master Necro at Lv.3 and Book of Arkhan.  It gives him a dedicated role and allows him to cast elsewhere (2 casters vs. 1) while maintaining a good magic item.

However, my list progressed to something like this:

2500pt VC army brainstorm

Alright guys, gloves off.  I have enough models to make it happen, so now it's time to proxy a few games and see how I do.  However, there's some stuff I want to go over first.

2246

LORDS:
Vampire Lord = 433
Lore of Vampires
Red Fury, Quickblood
Knight, Ogre Blade, Dragonhelm, 4+ Ward, PoFool

Lv.3 Master Necro (Book of Arkhan) = 190
Lore of Vampires

HEROES:
Vampire = 210
Lore of Shadow
Aura of Dark Majesty, Fear Incarnate
Knight, Enchanted Shield, Scroll

CORE:
60x Skeletons (FC, Spears) = 330
29x Ghouls (Ghast) = 300

SPECIAL:
40x Grave Guard (FC, Banner of Barrows) = 520
8x Black Knights (FC, Screaming Banner) = 263

My 2500pt Ogre army!

Looks something like this..

2471

LORDS:
Lv.4 Slaughtermaster (IF, Hellheart, AoD) = 388
Gut Magic

HEROES:
Bruiser (BSB, GW, 2+, Ironcurse) = 191
Lv.1 Firebelly (GW, Scroll) = 154

CORE:
9x Ogres (FC, IF) = 323
6x Ironguts (FC, Discipline) = 308

SPECIAL:
4x Mournfang (FC, HA/IF, Dragonhide) = 360
4x Leadbelchers = 172
4x Leadbelchers = 172
Sabretusk = 21
Sabretusk = 21
Sabretusk = 21

RARE:
Ironblaster = 170
Ironblaster = 170

The Lv.4 SM has 4+ armor, 6+ parry and 4+ ward.  He also carries the Hellheart to mess with enemy wizards.  I guess it goes without saying that he's been officially approved to carry armor because the designers failed to catch it.  That's perfectly fine with me!  I just wish all Ogres could parry with Ironfists regardless of what weapon they're carrying.  Visually, that would make more sense to me because of the way Ironfists look.  Anywho, the rest of the heroes look pretty standard.  BSB enjoys a 2+ save and carries a Great Weapon, the Firebelly carries a scroll and Great Weapon himself.  All 3 of those heroes will sit comfortably in the 6 Irongut unit for a total of 2x 3x3 blocks to make up the main belly force.

The Special slots are also pretty standard:  3x Sabretuks as better Eagles, 4x Mournfangs with all the bells and whistles, and 2 units of 4x Leadbelchers so I can shoot things to death.  I was thinking maybe cutting the squad down to 6x Leadbelchers and then buffing up either the Ironguts or Bulls, what do you guys think?

Lastly, I'm taking 2x Ironblasters because I think shooting big ass S10 cannons is ridiculous.  Plus, they're not bad in combat and they're really tough to kill!

Other things I might do is as follows:
SM takes Glittering Scales and Fencer Blades to make him almost unhittable in combat.
I find room for another Bruiser with 4+ ward for another beatstick.
I drop some Leadbelchers and maybe a Ironblaster for more Core units.

Is it me or is this army really small?  I normally deploy 100+ elf models to the table and this is looking quite sad!  I guess I should be counting wounds and not actual models?  It just looks really funny to me lol.

My ALEPH army lists

Let's go over 2 army lists really quick.  One of which is 200pts and the other one is 300pts.  I figured that's what the guys around here is playing since everyone's just starting out.  From looking around the forums, I'm seeing the 300pts is the standard for most lists.  That's cool, I'll probably start at 200pts for my first couple of games.  Hmm.. I wonder if I can take 2 Lieutenants in a single list if I have the option?  I can't seem to find anything in the main rulebook.  Getting pumped for this game.

Here's the short notation of my army lists:

200pts
8 orders
3.5 SWC

Asura LT w/ MULTI Rifle
Myrmidon w/ Spitfire
DEVA Hacker w/ Combi Rifle
2x Dakini w/ HMG
3x Netrod

300pts
10 orders
5.5 SWC

Achilles LT w/ Spitfire
Asura w/ MULTI Rifle
DEVA Hacker w/ Combi Rifle
2x Myridon w/ Spitfire
Dakini w/ HMG
Dakini w/ Combi Rifle
3x Netrod

Below, you'll see the full notation using the Devil Team army builder.

Have you guys tried this army builder?
http://www.infinitycreator.com/

It allows you to make lists like this:
http://www.infinitycreator.com/users/1226/army_lists/print?id=13607

Pretty neat.  Oh!  I'm going to China for 8 days.  I'll be reading this awesome version of the rulebook multiple times while on the plane.

Can you build competitive and fluffy?

Before we go too deep into the lines of soul-searching, let's lay down some definitions first.  For me, the word competitive means to play your best.  This means improving on your generalship, optimizing your army list and designing an well-tuned army. I tagged an assload of articles I wrote previously and labeled them as "recommended".  These articles speak of list synergy, threat application and cost effectiveness.  This is the type of knowledge that I apply when playing competitively.

Now what about fluffy?  Or better yet, my definition of fluff:  You build your army how the army was designed to be played.  Space Wolves should be seeking a glorious death in combat and Blood Angels should be charging into the fray.  This is the element of fluff that I'm talking about and this is what I design most of my army lists around.  My recent article on BoLS called "Remembering Who We Are" covers my thoughts on this much more vividly.

As you guys have noticed, my blog's pretty much a competitive blog with a thematic twist.  You'll never see any Razorfang or RB spam lists here; instead you'll see well-tuned army lists trying to make my creations work.  I see army list construction a game in itself, and I take great pride in kicking ass with an army spewed from my own creativity.

DEcisions, decisions

First, my army list at 2K.

1998
20 kp

HQ:
Asdrubael Vect = 240

TROOP:
5x Warriors (Raider NS, Blaster) = 130
5x Warriors (Raider NS, Blaster) = 130
9x Wyches (Raider NS/FF, Hekatrix/Agnoizer/BP) = 215
10x Wyches (Raider NS/AS, Hekatrix/Agnoizer/BP) = 220
10x Wyches (Raider NS/AS, Hekatrix/Agnoizer/BP) = 220

ELITE:
3x Trueborn (Venom NS/SC, 3x Blaster) = 156
3x Trueborn (Venom NS/SC, 3x Blaster) = 156
3x Trueborn (Venom NS/SC, 3x Blaster) = 156

HEAVY:
Ravager (NS/FF) = 125
Ravager (NS/FF) = 125
Ravager (NS/FF) = 125

This list is really effective in all-comers list vs. all scenario based missions except for kill points.

However, I want that to change.  Even though the Warrior Raiders put down a lance shot from the back while providing a solid scoring option, I feel like there might be better options.  Here are some of them.

9x Reaver Jetbikes (Champion, 3x Heat Lances) = 244
10x Scourges (Solarite, 4x Splinter Cannons) = 260
2x 5x Warriors (Venom NS/CC, Blaster) = 135x2 = 270

The Reaver Jetbikes offer solid damage vs. any infantry unit they pass over as well as armor-threatening Heat Lances once they get to the back field.  Scourges, as fragile as they are being Jump Infantry who's often times exposed, provide a ridiculous amount of firepower from far away.  At full strength, they can jump 12" and shoot 18" with their Carbines/Splinter Cannons.  This adds up to 30 Splinter shots with a 30" threat on the move.  They can also stay in the back and offer a solid shooting solution with 24 shots from 36".  Next, we have the 2x Warriors in Venoms that sit in the back, score and shoot.  They're relatively safe because of the low profile of the Venom, the Night Shield and Flicker Fields.  The difference between these three units is that one shoots really well, one contests really well and one scores really well.

Which unit do you think fits better in the list?  I'm all ears.

Pure Grey Knights Tactica

Before you read this tactica, you have to understand one key thing:

This a tactica dedicated to playing with half of the Grey Knights army book.  You will not have access to any Inquisitors, Henchmen, Assassins or crazy space monkeys.  If you want to play with those units, please close out of this tactica immediately.

If you're still here, that means you're ready to play a real man's game.  You will play an army that's so elite that no other army can match you in the battlefield when played correctly.  Whether that proves to be correct or not depends entirely on you.  You will be handicapped and you will face bad match-ups time and time again.  To emerge victorious means nothing, for tomorrow you will face another enemy.  To suffer defeat also means nothing, for tomorrow you will walk onto the battlefield and try again.  You have given your life to the Chapter and you know no fear.  Be prepared to be taught the ways of pure Grey Knights.

Having fun with some fun lists

I've been playing a good amount of 40K over Vassal lately and I've having a good time.  The reason why is because the players aren't uber competitive and I'm getting a lot of play with fluffier and more casual armies.  I have no idea what this means.  Does this mean I'm losing my competitive edge?  Or does this mean I'm seeing 40K as more of a fun game than competitive one?  I don't think its neither because I still follow the same min-maxing mentality with every army I build.  Even though most (if not all) of my lists are min-maxed to all hell, they follow a theme.

Check out the lists I've been rolling with lately:

2000

12 kp

HQ:

Swarmlord = 280

+2x Tyrant Guard (Lashwhips) = 130

TROOP:

10x Genestealers (Toxin) = 160

15x Genestealers = 210

11x Termagaunts = 55

+Trevigon (Toxin, Catalyst) = 185

11x Termagaunts = 55

+Trevigon (Toxin, Catalyst) = 185

ELITE:

3x Hive Guard = 150

3x Hive Guard = 150

HEAVY:

Trygon Prime = 240

Trygon = 200

Revisiting Tyranids

So Tyranids have been out for a year now and people have got in a lot of games with them.  I've heard many things from many different people, but one thing's for sure:  A lot of players don't like the current book.  To make a long story short, they find the book stale, some thing's don't make sense, it's overcrowded and limited in competitive options.

This is not going to be another one of those posts complaining about Tyranids, but it'll be a post to talk about why I think Tyranids are actually fun.  Call me a loyalist bastard all you want (considering I have like 4 MEQ armies), but Tyranids is still pretty fun to play.  Let me rephrase; Tyranids is a blast to play in a semi-competitive to non-competitive environment.  At the top tier competitive levels, Tyranids just isn't there.  Now I know this depends from region to region, but there's a lot of competitive options from other books that causes a lot of issue for the options that Tyranids like to field competitively.  Big scary bugs are indeed pretty scary, but you can only get so many of them on the field before things get melta'd or plasma'd to death.  Compared to the Nidzilla of last edition, the combat effectiveness vs. cost just isn't there anymore.

I've been playing with my 2K Swarmlord list on Vassal lately and I have yet to lose a game.  Sure, I'm not playing against the most competitive lists vs. the most competitive people, but that's exactly what I'm talking about.  Tyranids might not be the best army competitively, but they're definitely not out of the game.  Check out my list:

My next 2K DE list

I know it's been a while guys and I apologize for my tardiness.  There's a lot of game systems that I play now and all of them need my attention!  Check out this army list that I came up with today.

1992
22 kp

HQ:
Asdrubael Vect = 240

TROOP:
9x Wyches (Raider NS, Hekatrix/Agnoizer/BP) = 205
5x Warrior (Raider NS, Blaster) = 130
5x Warrior (Raider NS, Blaster) = 130
5x Warrior (Raider NS, Blaster) = 130
5x Warrior (Raider NS, Blaster) = 130
5x Warrior (Raider NS, Blaster) = 130

ELITE:
4x Trueborn (Venom NS/SC, 4x Blaster) = 183
4x Trueborn (Venom NS/SC, 4x Blaster) = 183
3x Trueborn (Venom NS/SC, 3x Blaster) = 156

HEAVY:
Ravager (NS/FF) = 125
Ravager (NS/FF) = 125
Ravager (NS/FF) = 125

15 Opening volley lances with 48" threat
16 Blasters with 24" threat range, 1 Blast Pistol
32 Total Lance weapons
36 Splinter Cannon shots

Dark Eldar at 2000 pts

1998

20 kp

HQ:

Asdrubael Vect = 240

2x Haemonculi (VB, Liquidfier) = 130

TROOP:

9x Wyches (Raider NS, Hekatrix/Agonizer) = 190

9x Wyches (Raider NS, Hekatrix/Agonizer) = 190

9x Wracks (Raider NS, Acothyst/Agonizer) = 200

10x Wracks (Raider NS, Acothyst/VB, 2x Liquidfiers) = 205

ELITE:

3x Trueborn (Venom NS/2x SC, 3x Blaster) = 156

3x Trueborn (Venom NS/2x SC, 3x Blaster) = 156

3x Trueborn (Venom NS/2x SC, 3x Blaster) = 156

HEAVY:

Ravager (NS/FF) = 125

Ravager (NS/FF) = 125

Ravager (NS/FF) = 125

Make sure you guys check out my article about my recent Dark Eldar experiences here.  It pretty much sums up everything that have experienced with Dark Eldar so far.  In addition, my friend Nick also showcased a lot of his units and what kind of success he's been having with them.

Some more battle reps

Played 2 games today against Vanilla Marines.

I got two pictures with me today, one of the first game's end game and one of the second game's 1st turn (after I moved).  I bet you can tell which game worked out better for me:

First game had terrain that I can work with; play LoS games, use cover and use my superior speed as an advantage.

Second game had no such thing.  To make it worse, my opponent tailored slightly with a list that consisted of 3x Typhoon Speeders in separate FA slots, 2x TLAC Dreads, a AC/LC Predator and Hunter-Killer missiles on every single one of his vehicles.  I'll tell you right now this is the last time I'm playing on a map that looks like this.  It was a turkey shoot.

The tournament results are in!

First, the list:

1848
17 kp

HQ:
Asdrubael Vect = 240
Succubus (Agonizer, Haywire) = 90

TROOP:
9x Wyches (Raider FF, Hekatrix/Agnoizer/BP) = 205
9x Wyches (Raider FF, Hekatrix/Agnoizer/BP) = 205
10x Warriors (Raider NS, Blaster, SC) = 185
10x Warriors (Raider NS, Blaster, SC) = 185
10x Warriors (Raider NS, Blaster, SC) = 185

ELITE:
4x Trueborn (Raider NS, 4x Blaster) = 178

HEAVY:
Ravager (NS/FF) = 125
Ravager (NS/FF) = 125
Ravager (NS/FF) = 125

This is the list I eventually went with and I'm very satisfied with it.  Before I say anything else, let me outline the mission types that we played.

1st Round
Spearhead Deployment
Seize Ground 5 Objectives
At the beginning of turn 2 and 4, roll a scatter dice for 2d6 and replace the objectives (except for the middle one)
Nominate a HQ; killing that one gives you bonus points
You get bonus points if the HQ he nominates lives when the game is over

2nd Round
Pitched Battle
Annihilation
All HQ, MCs and Vehicles (including Dreads) are worth 3 points (Squadrons count as 1 choice)
All Troop choices (not including vehicles) are worth 2 points
All Elites, Heavies and Fast Attack are worth 1 point.
Killing double his kill points gives you a decisive victory.

3rd Round
Spearhead Deployment
Seize Ground (3 Objectives)
One objective is in the middle and each player places an objective in the quadrant to the left or right of him.
Capturing all the objectives gives you a decisive victory.

1850 Tournament this weekend

It's going to be quite sick.  I haven't played in a tournament for quite sometime because of this ridiculous OT.. but as of today, I'm done with that!  Not only is this going to be my first couple of games with Dark Eldar, but it's also going to be a tournament.  Hopefully my 4th Ed. Eldar-ish skills haven't worn out completely.

Here's the list I plan on using:

1850
15 kp

HQ:
Asdrubael Vect = 240
Succubus (Agonizer) = 85

TROOP:
9x Wyches (Raider FF/AS, Hekatrix/Agnoizer/PGL) = 205
9x Wyches (Raider FF/AS, Hekatrix/Agnoizer) = 195
10x Warriors (Raider NS, Blaster, SC) = 185
10x Warriors (Raider NS, Blaster, SC) = 185

ELITE:
5x Trueborn (Raider NS, 4x Blaster) = 190
5x Trueborn (Raider NS, 4x Blaster) = 190

HEAVY:
Ravager (NS/FF) = 125
Ravager (NS/FF) = 125
Ravager (NS/FF) = 125

I will make another post Sunday or Monday night with the tournament results.  Tomorrow/Saturday night will consist of me putting together 3x Ravagers in preparation.  Go me!

PS - The picture has nothing to do with 40K, but the first person to tell me where that's from gets a cyber cookie.

My Swarmlord Tyranids list

Here's the list:

2000

HQ:
Swarmlord = 280
+2x Tyrant Guard w/ Lash Whips = 130
Warrior Prime (BS/LW) = 95

TROOPS:
10x Genestealers = 140
10x Genestealers = 140
14x Termagaunts = 70
14x Termagaunts = 70
+Trevigon (Catalyst, Onslaught) = 190

FA:
3x Raveners (Rending) = 105

ELITE:
2x Hive Guard = 100
2x Hive Guard = 100
2x Hive Guard = 100

HEAVY:
Trygon Prime = 240
Trygon Prime = 240

Strategy, deployment and game plan:

• Termagaunts form a wall of cover in 2 14x1 formations.
• They will cover the Hive Guard who will in turn, cover the Swarmlord & Co.
• The Warrior Prime will be moving from the Swarmlord's unit to absorb wounds with T5.
• Genestealers will deploy in reserve and will outflank with the help from the Swarmlord.
• A single Gene unit can also opt to deploy behind the Swarmlord and offer a strong counter-charge unit.
• Trevigon will be behind the Hive Guard ~around the Swarmlord and generate more cover.
• Catalyst will be cast on the Termagaunts giving the cover or be used on the Swarmlord's unit.
• Raveners will be a distraction/harassment unit that will apply pressure on any long range guns.
• Hive Guard will shoot at everything that needs to be shot and can-opened.
• Tyrgons will be in reserve and will come in to apply pressure on the opponent's flanks or rear.
• Hopefully things don't suck for me and I roll my opponents off the board.

Let me know what you guys think.

BR: 2K BA vs. Air Cav IG

I looked across the table in fear when Chris pulled out 2 Valks and 4 Vendettas...

2 objectives - one in mid, one on the far top left (from my side of the table)
Dawn of War - 1st round is night fighting.

My list:

Blood Angels Expeditionary Force
Mephiston = 250
10x ASM (PF/Infernus, 2x Meltaguns) = 250
10x ASM (PF/Infernus, 2x Meltaguns) = 250
10x ASM (PF/Infernus, 2x Meltaguns) = 250
2x Sanguinary Priest (JP, MB) = 160
Baal Predator (TLAC/HB) = 145
Baal Predator (TLAC/HB) = 145
Baal Predator (TLAC/HB) = 145
Predator (AC/LC) = 135
Predator (AC/LC) = 135
Predator (AC/LC) = 135

Thank you Chris for supplying your army list!

Steel Legion Air Drop
CCS, Astro, OotF, 4x Plasma in Chimera
Vets 3x Melta in Vendetta, Heavy Bolters
PCS 4x Plasma in Valkyrie, MRP, 2x HBs
Infantry Melta in Vendetta, Heavy Bolters
Infantry Melta in Vendetta, Heavy Bolters
HWT Autocannons
HWT Missile Launcher
SWS 2 Flamer, Demo in Valkyrie, MRP, 2x HBs
SWS 2 Flamer, Demo in Chimera
2x Leman Russ, 2x Lascannons, HB Sponson

I was a little fuzzy on my DoW deployment rules but my opponent was a champ and refreshed my memory.  Dawn of War deployment kind of sucks and there's no way in hell I'm going to reserve vs. an IG list with an Astropath and Officer of the Fleet.  I win the roll to go first but I let him take first turn.  He chooses to hold everything in reserve while I keep everything off the board so I can roll up from the board edge when the game starts.