My 40K New Years Resolution

Well 2009 is coming to a close and I am looking back on what hobby related resolutions I made last year and deciding what to do for this New Year.

Well for my resolution last year I had 2 that were 40K related. The first was to make a 40K dedicated blog. It took a little longer than I had originally wanted but if you are reading this you can see I accomplished that resolution.

My 2nd resolution was to finish off 4 of my partially painted armies, Black Templars, Tzeentch Chaos Marines, Necrons and Sisters of Battle. Unfortunately I only managed to complete the Necrons and the Black Templars, but I have made substantial progress on my Chaos Marines and Sisters of Battle.

Well this year I have 3 resolutions that I am going to shoot for. The first is to finish the Sisters of Battle as well as the Chaos Marines. The 2nd will be to finish converting and then painting my Imperial Fists with the hopeful goal of having the my version of the entire 3rd Company with some auxiliary units from the 1st and 10th companies. Lastly I am making it my goal to play many more games this year as what is the point in painting and modeling all these armies if I never use them for what they were intended.

Well there you have my review of last year's resolutions as well as my new goals for 2010. Let's hear how well you all did with your 2009 resolutions and what you are planning for 2010.

-BJ

Product Review: High Elf Lord on Dragon

My mother-in-law got me the High Elf Lord on a Dragon for Christmas (I love having in-laws who don't mind my hobby). So naturally once I helped the kids put all of their new gifts together I sat down and began work on assembling this all plastic kit.

One of the very first things I loved about this model is that the mold lines are hidden very well and I had very little to clean up once I clipped everything off of the sprue.

The 2nd thing I loved is that you get enough pieces to assemble two riders, Not only that but there are many options for both a Lord or a Mage. I decided to assemble a Lord with lance, sword and shield, and a Dragon Mage holding a tome in one hand and a staff in the other.

The final reason that I loved this model was how easily it was assembled. All of the pieces fit perfectly together. There was no need to go back and fill in any gaps. The pieces stuck together easy which meant the glue adheared faster and assembly time was cut down.

In my opinion the is easily one of the best large models that GW makes and I hope the quality continues as they convert more monster type creatures to plastic. I am rating this model as a 5 star top quality product. Now I just need to collect a High Elf army to go with it!

-BJ

Merry Christmas!

I just wanted to wish all my gaming friends who celebrate a Merry Christmas. I hope Santa brought you all the cool new toys you were looking for.

Santa didn't bring me anything for my hobby this year but my mother-in-law got me my first High Elf mini, the plastic elf lord on a dragon. Looks like I will be starting a new army in 2010.

Merry Christmas!

I just wanted to wish everyoine who celebrates a Merry Christmas, I hope Santa brought you all the new models you were hoping for!

-BJ

Side Project: Ulthwe Eldar

A few posts back I posted pics of my new Vyper Jetbikes for my Ulthwe. I had a request to post some larger pics so I thought I would just go ahead and post all of my painted Ulthwe. You should be able to click on the images for much larger ones.

I paint my Eldar when I need a break from painting whatever current army I am working on. I have been painting Sisters of Battle and Tomb Kings for a couple weeks now, so I needed a small break and painted up my Vyper jetbikes.

I just recently finished converting and painting these Jetbikes after reading an article by Fritz on Way of Saim-Hann. The article talked about different load outs for the Vypers. I really liked the idea of using a Multi-Laser mount with an upgraded Shuriken Cannon underneath. This gives them the versatility I am looking for from this unit.

Lucky for me I had some of the new Eldar vehicle weapon sprues lying around so I pulled the original weapons off the Vypers and added the Multi-laser to the turrent. Then I clipped off the twin-linked Shuriken Catapults and fixed the Shuriken Cannons in their place.

Next up is my Guardian Defender Squad armed with a Star Cannon Support platform. I like the idea of the completely black armor of the Ulthwe so painting it was extremely simple. I primed the model black and then added suttle codex grey and then stone grey highlights. I then used bleached bone with an ink wash to pick out detials like the gun and other gear on the model.

For my support platform I used the same choice of colors that I used on the unit. I used a drill and a paper-clip to make the platform float above the ground. I also used an extra crew
from a heavy weapons platform.






For my HQ I knew I had to have a Seer Council. I again stuck to the main colors of the army but since they were my HQ I added Eldar symbols to thier robes in bleached bone.

Finally for higher point games I had to add Eldrad Ulthran, for who else is suitable to lead a large group of Ulthwe Eldar? I used a few more colors because he is a special character. I also added several more eldar runes to his robes and cape.

Well there you have it, my completed Ulthwe thus far. I have no clue when this army will ever be finished but I am very happy with what I have done so far.

As always thank you for visiting the blog and all comments are welcome.

-BJ

My Dwarfs upgraded to 2500 points

There are a few tournaments coming up in early 2010 and all of them so far are going to be using 2500 point lists so I am in the process of adjusting my two painted armies up to 2500.

First up are my Dwarfs, for the additional 250 points I was able to add another Thane and a group of Thunderers. I was considering dropping the canon and taking a group of Slayers instead I am just not sure which I would get the better performance out of.

Anyway the list is below please look it over and feel free to give me any feedback you may have on it.

-BJ

Dwarf Lord @ 245 Pts
- General; Hand Weapon; Gromril Armor; Shieldbearers
1 Runic Weapon
- Master Rune of Swiftness; Rune of Fury (x1); Rune of Might

14 Hammerers @ 235 Pts
- Musician Mus; Standard Bearer Std; Hand Weapon; Great Weapon; Heavy Armour; Stubborn
1 Gate Keeper
-Hand Weapon; Great Weapon; Heavy Armour
1 Runic Standard
- Rune of Stoicism

Thane (Battle Standard Bearer) @ 145 Pts
- Hand Weapon; Gromril Armor; Battle Standard Bearer
1 Runic Weapon
- Rune of Cleaving (x1); Rune of Fury (x1); Rune of Speed (x1)
1 Runic Armor
- Rune of Stone

18 Longbeards @ 253 Pts
- Upgrade to Longbeards; Musician Mus; Standard Bearer Std; Hand Weapon; Heavy Armour; Shield
1 Veteran
- Hand Weapon; Heavy Armour; Shield

Runesmith @ 124 Pts
- Hand Weapon; Great Weapon; Gromril Armor
1 Runic Talisman
- Spelleater Rune (x1)

18 Dwarf Warriors @ 196 Pts
- Musician Mus; Standard Bearer Std; Hand Weapon; Heavy Armour; Shield
1 Veteran
- Hand Weapon; Heavy Armour; Shield

1 Thane @ 140 Pts
- Hand Weapon; Gromril Armor
1 Runic Weapon
- Master Rune of Alaric the Mad; Rune of Fury (x1)

18 Dwarf Warriors @ 196 Pts
- Musician Mus; Standard Bearer Std; Hand Weapon; Heavy Armour; Shield
1 Veteran
- Hand Weapon; Heavy Armour; Shield

10 Thunderers @ 140 Pts
- Hand Weapon; Dwarf Handgun; Light Armour

19 Ironbreakers @ 340 Pts
- Musician Mus; Standard Bearer Std; Hand Weapon; Gromril Armor; Shield
1 Ironbeard
- Hand Weapon; Gromril Armor; Shield
1 Runic Standard
- Rune of Slowness (x1)

1 Cannon @ 105 Pts
3 Crew
- Hand Weapon; Light Armour
1 Engineer
- Hand Weapon; Light Armour

1 Bolt Thrower @ 60 Pts
3 Crew
- Hand Weapon; Light Armour
1 Engineer
- Hand Weapon; Light Armour

1 Bolt Thrower @ 60 Pts
3 Crew
- Hand Weapon; Light Armour
1 Engineer
- Hand Weapon; Light Armour

1 Organ Gun @ 120 Pts
3 Crew
- Hand Weapon; Light Armour

1 Gyrocopter @ 140 Pts

Total Roster Cost: 2499

Busy Holiday Season!

I just wanted to give an quick update to the blog. The Holidays are crazy this year for me so I apologize for neglecting the blog. Things are starting to calm down now so I am hoping to get back to more regular posting soon.

I have been working on 40K as well as the Holidays just not as much as I wish I could. I have done a few conversion with my Sisters of Battle. The first was adding an Eviscerator to my Seraphim Veteran Sister Superior. I carefully removed one from an extra Sisters Repentia and did a pretty nice swap with the Seraphim's sword.

I also converted one of my Seraphim with duel hand-flamers into one wielding dual Inferno Pistols. I should have these and a few other Sisters completely painted by the end of the weekend and will post pics at that time.

I hope the Holidays are going well for everyone and I will post more now as time permits.



-BJ

Is 2500 points going to be the new North American Tournament Standard for Fantasy Battles?

A friend of mine wanted to know if I would be willing to play in the North American Warhammer Tournament Round 1. So I Went to read up on the rules for playing and to my surprise the points limit is 2500 points. Then another friend called me today and told me he was playing in a fantasy battles tournament in January and the points limit for it is also 2500.

So I was just wondering if you anyone knows is this going to be the new Tournament standard for Fantasy Battles. I have been looking on the web but have not found any info as to if this will be the new standard.

What do you think of a 2500 point standard for tournaments?
If this is going to be the new standard what changes if any do you plan on doing for any of your lists?
Is this really going to effect your army that much?

For my Dwarfs I just added a th hero and a unit of Thunderers to meet the points. I haven't really looked at what to do for my Tomb Kings yet.

Anyway I just wanted to know if any one out there knows if this is the new standard and if it is get your thoughts on it.

-BJ

Happy Thanksgiving!

I just wanted to wish all my fellow Americans and anyone else who wants to celebrate a Happy Thanksgiving Day. I hope you are enjoying a day with family and friends and most important of all GREAT FOOD!

Happy Thanksgiving!

I just wanted to wish all my fellow Americans and anyone else who wants to celebrate a Happy Thanksgiving Day. I hope you are enjoying a day with family and friends and most important of all GREAT FOOD!

Friday Projects Update: Tomb King

I don't have much to show for this week as I got to play a few games and I am getting ready for Thanksgiving Vacation.

What I did finish was my 2nd Tomb King. This one is on foot and I usually run him as a Tomb Prince in a unit of Skeletons. I painted him similar to my Tomb King in a Chariot, but different enough that it can be used as another character.

I did manage to play a game with one of my daughters this week. Out of no where my 17 year old asked if I would teach her how to play. She picked my Vampire Counts as her army and I played with the Dwarfs. We did a 2250 point pitched battle. She was a quick learner and began to recognize how the Vampires played and managed to hold me to just a minor victory.

She had a good time and it looks like I may have another gamer in my family. She already wants to play again when we get back from our Thanksgiving trip.

-BJ

Friday Projects Update: Sister of Battle/Eldar

I didn't get a whole lot of painting this week as I played a few games and have been getting ready to go on Thanksgiving Vacation starting this weekend.

I did manage to finish off two more Sisters of Battle. These two are armed with Heavy Bolters and get me a little closer to having all my sisters finished.

The other 40K project I finished this week was my Eldar Vyper Jetbikes. After reading an  Tactica article Fritz, of Way of Saim-Hann, Posted on BOLS. Fritz talked about way to use Vypers and some loadouts he used. When I read about using Multi-Laser mount with an upgraded Shuriken Cannon underneath, I knew this was exactly what my Ulthwe themed army needed. So I got to converting some Shuriken Cannons and then painted up the squadron below.

These little guys give my Ulthwe some much needed firepower. I get 12 36" Str 6 AP 6 shots as well as 9 24" Str 6 AP 5 shots. This will be enough to help widdle down just about any unit.

That's all I got this week. I am not sure how much posting I will be doing as I visit the family next week, but I will be back as soon as vacation is over.

-BJ

When did the 40K hobby become a competitive sport?

I have been wanting to write the post since early last week, but I decided to not post while I was irritated. I have had some time to contemplate what exactly I wanted to say, so I decided to go for it and post today. Before I go into my rant I just wanted to say this is not directed at anyone in particular and it is just me being frustrated with some of the things I see happening in 40K.

As my title suggests I am trying to figure out when 40K became so competitive. When I first got into playing 40K I was already a Fantasy Battle player. I started 40K because I honestly loved the back story and since I was already into the Hobby with fantasy it was easy to cross over to 40K. I am a D&D player at heart so I enjoy the story of the game as much as playing it. Last week I got very frustrated while reading some posts on other blogs and forums. There are a few trends I have seen in posts that have just gotten under my skin.

This is a Hobby not a competitive sport: Over and over I keep seeing people argue about 40K tournaments and why there shouldn't be soft scores in tournaments. I am not debating this as there are some valid reasons out there that I completely understand. What irritates me is all the people that use competitive sports as a comparison to make their points. First this is a Hobby War-game, not a competitive sport. The comparison makes no sense to me as you often have 2 different armies which have different rule sets to follow. In competitive sports you have two teams that must follow the same set of rules. Even people who compare 40K to chess are not making valid arguments as in chess both players have identical "armies" with identical rules and rely on their skill to play. 40K has different rules for different armies and relies on players skill as well as unpredictable dice rolls. So no matter what you think GW should do you will never have the same type of competition as you see in sports or chess for that matter.

Is the internet to blame: I love the internet, I spend too much of my free time on it. Does it have an impact on power gaming in 40K, hell yes! I blogged earlier about my issues with what I call "Cookie Cutter" armies. Pretty soon every Ork list has Nob Bikers, Every Eldar list has a Jetbike Seer Council. The list goes on and on. Then someone will post an alternative list and the power gamers jump on them... "This list sux, you got no Nob Bikers... noob! I love going through the book and reading about each unit and deciding how I can make them work together, but it seems this is a dying art as players just wait for the power gamers to post their killer list then they copy them.

Is the Hobby aspect of 40K dying: I sure hope not as I feel if it does then 40K itself will die. I worry when I read post that want every hobby aspect of tournament scoring removed. I understand some of the points on removing soft scores, but this is a hobby and some of us players enjoy building a fluffy list, as well as painting our miniatures and for me comp scores and painting scores help support the whole hobby. I can see a problem with the Sportsmanship score, but I also feel that power gamers brought this problem about. The idea that you do whatever you need to do to increase your chance of winning fostered the idea of screwing your opponent with a bad score. Do I think it should be removed? Most definitely because it is just another tool for power gamers to abuse.

Another issue I have seen creeping up is requests for GW to make pre-painted models. I understand that players can be apprehensive about painting but it is part of the hobby. I sucked at painting when I first started but I took the time to learn and practice. I am no Eavy Metal class painter but I am proud of what I paint and it helps make my army mine. I love playing other armies that are painted and converted, it makes the game more fun and immersive. I understand that not everyone is great at this aspect but it only takes asking for advice from the community to get you started.

The last thing I want to gripe about is the attitude that 40K can't be fun unless you are trying to win. I have actually been called a liar on forums when I say I have had just as much fun losing games as I do winning them. I don't know if it is because I got into gaming through RPGs like D&D, but the idea of playing a hobby game like 40K is first for fun, then for the narrative, and lastly hanging out with and making friends. I like to win but in the end it doesn't matter to me as long as I am having fun.

I often do moves in games that might not make the best tactical sense but it is how I feel my army would play in a situation. Recently I was playing a tough Guard list with my Black Templars. He was blowing up my Rhinos like nothing and most of my army was on foot by the end of turn 2. I had my Emperor's Champion lead his squad through insane fire in an attempt to get into the guards line. In the end I lost the game but seeing my Champion (the lone survivor of a 15 man squad) make it to the guard line and wreak havoc made the game both exciting and fun. I played my army fluffy, I lost, but I had fun and have a good story to tell when my buddies and I are talking about gaming.

I am going to bring this to a close as the post is starting to get long winded. I am just voicing some frustrations I have with trends I see in 40K. I by no means think my opinion is correct but I do want to open this up for discussion to see what you all think. I hope no one is offended, and by all means take this opportunity to voice your opinions on the matter, I would love to read them.

-BJ

The Beastmen are coming!

Well I know I am late on posting this so I am sure you already know that Beastmen have been confirmed for a February release. Well let me just say I am very excited about this news. I have a "Beasts of Chaos" army that I purchased many years ago when the army first released. I shelved it after playing a few games and then my interest fading to 40K for some time. Needless to say I have a full army already and will just need to look at what new monsters will be in this new book.

One of the things I am most curious about is what their new magic lore is going to be like. It is going to be full of damaging spells or will it fill more of a support role for the army. One of the biggest things I will have to change may be my list as I was running a Tzeentch heavy list and I am not sure if that will be an option in this new version.

Well as we anxiously await more information on this new release I am just curious of what changes you would like to see? What do you think the new Magic Lore will be like? What should Beastmen keep from the old book?

Snow-Tex: Add good looking snow to your models!

Well with Space Wolves just being released and fresh in everyone's minds I thought I would review the product I use to add snow to my miniatures. The product is DecoArt's Snow-Tex. This stuff is easily found in most hobby/craft stores this time of year, but can also be easily ordered off the web all year long.

When I first purchased my Beastmen army for Fantasy I wanted to give them snow bases. I bought some of the GW snow flock and personally I couldn't stand it. It doesn't look right to me no matter how I mix it. I then bought another company's (I forget the name) snow product and while it did look cool at first, after clear coating and a few days had passed the snow began to get a yellow tone to it. I was not happy with the effect and decided to shelf my beastmen army until a later time.

Then, 2 years ago, my buddy Brandon asked me to paint his Space Wolves. He wanted snow bases and I cringed, but I was determined that I could make this work. It was the Christmas season and my wife wanted to go to Hobby Lobby to look for some decorations, while she was looking I decided to check out their paints. I was looking through the stuff when I noticed a bottle labeled Snow-Tex, the Jar was under $5.00 so I decided to buy it and give it a try.

Not only was I pleasantly surprised, but I was blown away. The stuff was already textured and had a very white appearance to it. I starting applying it to a few of the Space Wolf miniatures and the outcome was amazing. I still had my reservations, though because I had luck with the product that turned yellow, so I sprayed on a clear coat and then set the models aside for a few days. When I came back to look at them the snow was just as white as the day I painted them.

Here we are two years later when Brandon asked me to paint him some more Space Wolves in anticipation of the new codex. I asked him to send me a few that I had painted so I could make them match up. When the models got here the snow was still just as white as the day applied it to the models.

Needless to say I am sold on this product. It can be applied by brush, sponge or palette knife. It dries to a hard finish with little (if any) shrinkage from how you originally place it on the model. It can be thinned with water and can be tinted using other acrylics, so those of you who want a bluish tint for icy snow, it can easily be achieved.

This product has many other uses than just snow, you can tint the color and make it look like stucco for building walls, or it really makes a great mud when tinted or painted up with browns. I have used it to give bases some texture or small mounds and it is much cheaper than using green stuff to accomplish this.

Throught this article you can see some of the ways I used Snow-Tex on Brandon's Wolves, and below you can see how I used it to make textured rolling ground for some objective markers. I hope you find this review useful and if you decide to give Snow-Tex a try feel free to post here and let me know what you thought.

Friday Projects Update: Dwarf Thunderers

Not much to post this week as I spent most of my painting setting up the this new blog. The only fantasy minis I finished were the Command Group for my Dwarf Thunderers. The good news is this bring the Thunderers to completion.

With this unit finished I am down to 20 Quarrellers, 20 Rangers and a few characters till this army is finished. I have even less to finish on my Tomb Kings which means I am about to have 2 fully painted Fantasy armies. Not only that, but these are the two armies I have had for a few years, so it feels good to finally be able to play Fantasy with fully painted minis again. Now I just need to not sell them as I have usually done in the past.

After I finish those two Armies then it will be a matter of deciding which to paint next, Vampire Counts, Warriors of Chaos or Beasts of Chaos. I am leaning towards the Vampire Counts at this time, but we shall see how I feel in a few weeks.

Friday Projects Update - Sisters of Battle

Well it was a slow week on the painting table for me this week. I have a few other miniatures almost done but they won't make the blog post this week.

I did manage to finish off the last of my Sisters with bolters. This gets me ever so closer to having my Witch Hunters/Sisters of Battle completely painted. I am down to about 27 figures and 5 vehicles. I should be able to have the army completed by the end of November. My goal is to have 4/5 of my partially painted armies complete by the end of the year. Right now I am 1/5 (Black Templars) but very close on 3 other armies.

Well I am keeping this one short tonight so that I may get back to painting. As always any comments are welcome.

-BJ

Casket of Souls - Is it worth taking?

I am getting ever closer to having my entire Tomb King army painted, and as I get closer I have started looking at models I have never or rarely ever fielded. The top of that list is my Casket of Souls. So I started to ask myself why I never use the Casket. Well in the past my answer has been simple, it costs 165 points, it can't move and it uses up a rare slot on my roster. Those 3 reasons alone have kept me from using one for many years now.

Well now that I am getting close to painting the model I started to look into ways that I could make the Casket more useful to me. Then I started reading the rules to the Casket more closely. First thing I noticed is that it can be taken as an upgrade for a regular Liche Priest. I have no idea why but ever since I started playing the army I thought it had to be taken by a Liche High Priest, which I never use. This really got me interested in taking one, but how will it help my army?

Well first off the whole unit (casket, liche priest and guards) count as a war machine and crew. This means added protection from shooting as the hits must be randomized against the war machine and crew. This manes on a D6 roll the crew are only taking a hit on a 5/6. Then this gets further randomized between the crew and the liche priest. Furthermore unlike regular war machines the Casket itself ignores any hits against it.

Ok so protection from enemy fire is pretty good but what about from a charge. Well first and foremost the casket and crew cause Terror, so any wanna-be charges will need to pass a leadership test first. Then the crew themselves are basically Tomb Guards, only they have 2 attacks instead of 1 and come complete with Tomb Blades (killing blow).

The casket power, called The Light of Death, is just full of potential. If you take your time and place your Casket effectively you will be able to effect the majority, if not every unit in the enemies army. The power works on every enemy unit that has line of sight to the casket. This means that you have the potential to cause wounds with no armor save to every unit in their army every turn. The casket even have some anti-magic use for as long as it is on the table enemy wizards take a negative to their casting.

All of that is pretty great as it is, but the biggest advantage I realized is that most players will not just ignore the casket and will save some dispel dice to deal with it. This means that my Lich Priests and Tomb king will have more of their magic getting through to better supplement the army. I think this was the final selling point for me.

I know that my latest Tomb King list now has a Casket of Souls in it. I hope I have made some good points for other generals who are debating on fielding one. I would love to hear any feedback on the use of a casket in a Tomb Kings arrmy.

-BJ

Sisters of Battle Army List Revamp #1

With all the psychers being fielded lately I thought I would make some adjustments to my Sisters of Battle list to give me a little more psychic defense.

My original list was a strictly Sisters army, but now I have decided to add in some Inquisition units. I threw in 2 junior Inquisitors and gave both Hammer of the Witches psychic power. I then took 2 small units of Inquisitorial Storm Troopers. My thought is the Inquisitors can join the Storm Troopers and sit in the back guarding objectives and throwing out 2 Hammer of the Witches each turn to mess with the enemy psychics. I am hoping that this coupled with my sisters Shield of Faith can nullify much of the psychic powers being wielded lately.

I have also decided to take a priest so that I can field 2 Penitent Engines. I know a lot of people feel that the engines suck but I want to give them a try. I figure to run them straight at the enemy, this will hopefully draw fire away from my other units and if they make it into the enemy lines they can be very effective in HtH if my rolling is good for their amount of attacks.

The Order of the Valorous Heart

HQ:  1 Canoness (407 Pts)

- Book of St. Lucius; Rosarius; Melta Bombs; Inferno Pistol; Eviscerator

7 Celestian Retinue

- Bolter (x5); Flamer (x1); Heavy Flamer; Banner Bearer

1 Veteran Sister Superior

- Power Weapon; Combi-Flamer

1 Priest

- Melta Bombs; Bolt Pistol; CCW

1 Rhino

- Storm Bolter; Hunter Killer Missile; Smoke Launchers

Elite: Inquisitor (56 Pts)

- Hammer of the Witches; Close Combat Weapon; Plasma Pistol

Elite: Inquisitor (56 Pts)
- Hammer of the Witches; Close Combat Weapon; Inferno Pistol

Troops: 14 Battle Sisters Squad (196 Pts)
- Bolter (x13); Heavy Flamer
1 Veteran Sister Superior
- Book of St. Lucius; Bolt Pistol; CCW

Troops: 14 Battle Sisters Squad (196 Pts)
- Bolter (x13); Heavy Flamer
1 Veteran Sister Superior
- Book of St. Lucius; Bolt Pistol; CCW

Troops: 5 Inquisitorial Stormtroopers (65 Pts)
- Frag Grenades; Targeter; Hellgun (x3); Flamer (x1); Meltagun (x1)

Troops: 5 Inquisitorial Stormtroopers (70 Pts)
- Frag Grenades; Targeter; Hellgun (x3); Grenade Launcher (x1); Plasmagun (x1)

Fast Attack: 4 Dominion Squad (168 Pts)
- Bolter (x1); Meltagun (x3)
1 Sister Superior
- Bolter
1 Immolator
- Twin Linked Heavy Flamer; Smoke Launchers

Fast Attack: 4 Seraphim Squad (172 Pts)
- Frag Grenades; Jump Pack; Krak Grenades; Twin Bolt Pistols (x3); Melta Bombs; Twin Hand Flamers (x1)
1 Veteran Sister Superior
- Jump Pack; Simulacrum Imperialis; Frag Grenade; Krak Grenade; Melta Bombs ; Bolt Pistol; Eviscerator

Heavy Support: 2 Penitent Engine (160 Pts)
- Dreadnought CCW (x2); Dreadnought CCW (x2); Heavy Flamer (x2)

Heavy Support: 4 Retributor Squad (168 Pts)
- Bolter (x1); Heavy Bolter (x3)
1 Sister Superior
- Bolter
1 Immolator
- Twin Linked Heavy Flamer; Smoke Launchers

Heavy Support: 1 Exorcist (135 Pts)
- Exorcist Missile Launcher

Total Roster Cost: 1849
 
I wanted to know what anyone thinks. Is this list missing anything? I am considering taking an Inquisitor lord to get the Psychic Hood , do you think this would be a better route to go? Anyway feel free to throw out some suggestions as I am open to improving on the list.
 
-BJ

New Blog for Warhammer Fantasy Battles

When I first started Extremis Diabolus, I intended it to be a Warhammer 40K blog. Well after reading over a few of my last posts, I have noticed that I am letting Fantasy Battles creep into my posts more and more. I started to play around with the idea of starting a Warhammer Fantasy Blog, low and behold The Winds of Magic was born.

The Winds of Magic is going to be a sister site to Extremis Diabolus that caters to the fantasy side of the hobby. I will post about tactics, fluff, rumors, as well as pics of my miniatures as I finish them. I welcome anyone who follows Extremis Diabolus to come join me for some good Fantasy Battle discussion.

While working on the Winds of Magic I messed around with different free templates on the web. I really like how the blog turned out so that means I think this blog will be getting a face-lift in the near future if I can find a template that fits the blogs background.

As always thanks for stopping by my blog and I hope to see some of you venture of to The Winds of Magic.

-BJ

Welcome to The Winds of Magic

Where to begin? Well I have been running a 40K blog for about 4 months now and I have really been enjoying it. Recently I have been painting 2 of my Fantasy armies and was posting about them on my blog. This got me thinking about how few blogs I follow actually due articles on Fantasy Battles. So I toyed with the idea for a few days, then decided to start The Winds of Magic and dedicate it to Fantasy Battles.

I have been playing Fantasy Battles since 1998. My very first Army was Bretonnians which I played for a year before buying Orcs and Goblins. I played both armies for about 2 years before selling them and acquiring various other armies. Today my Armies tend to lean more to the evil side of Warhammer. My two main armies are Tomb Kings and Vampire Counts, but I also own Beast of Chaos, Warriors of Chaos and the Stalwart Dwarfs.

I am not a power gaming when it comes to Fantasy, I truly enjoy just playing the game. I love to play fluffy lists and I tend to treat it more like an RPG than just a miniature war game. I rarely field named characters and tend to make up my own characters and backgrounds for armies and units.

I will use this blog to follow the painting of my armies as well as post tactics, battle reports, and general discussion on everything that goes with playing Fantasy Battles. I welcome all feedback on the blog and any ideas on ways to improve or what to cover on here.

Thank you for taking the time to visit The Winds of Magic and I hope you will return again.

-BJ

Friday Project Update: 30 Oct 09

I only managed to get one model finished this week due to some minor family issues. This is my Tomb Kings bone giant. This model was a blast to paint and turned out much better than I originally thought it was going to.

With this model I am now about 90% finished with my Tomb Kings.

I have been working on Fantasy models for about 2 weeks now and it has got me thinking that I may just start another blog dedicated to Fantasy Battles. When I started this blog I wanted it to be about my experiences with 40K. Well, I enjoy doing this blog so much, I figured I could do the same for Fantasy Battles as well. I haven't made a final decision yet, but if I do I will post the info about it here.

So onto 40K, really this week has been a slow 40K week for me. I did make my FTW collaborative post, and I have worked on a few new lists for my Sisters of Battle. I am trying to work in 2 Witch Hunters to give me some better psychic protection. I plan on posting some ideas next week and getting some feedback so please watch for that post.

I have also been working on some adjustments to my Chaos Marines. I am looking for a way to work in a unit of Chosen. Speaking of Chaos, I am getting a Chaos Daemons army from a trade I did with my buddy Brandon (the guy I painted the Space Wolves for), so I have been reading up on the army and thinking about how I am going to build a my Herald of Tzeentch on a chariot, so I know that will be a future article for the blog.

Well that is it for this week. Thanks for taking the time to read my blog and as always all comments are welcome.

-BJ

My Must Have Unit: Sword Brethren

Ron over at From The Warp, has asked all of us members to take part in another collaborative post with the topic of our Must Have unit. In Ron's own words he is looking for " the one unit you always find a way to squeeze into your army, regardless of how well it does or how points effective it may or may not be".

This was an easy topic for me. I fell in love with the Black Templar Sword Brethren the day I bought my codex and first saw their models. I thought they were some of the most amazing Space Marine models GW had ever created and to this day I still do. I couldn't wait to get my own and start painting them.

Now as far as a unit goes I am sure some people will tell me I can do better, and I am sure I can, but I never play my Templars without these guys. They cost 19 points each and have the same stat line as the 16 point Templar Initiates, but where they really shine for me is the fact I can get two power weapons in the unit and have a choice of Furious Charge, Counter Attack or Infiltrate for free.

I run my unit as pictured above, an 8 man squad with 6 armed with BP/CCW, 1 BP/PW and 1 Pair of Lightning Claws. I give the unit Counter Attack and then mount them in either a Rhino or my Crusader depending on what list I am running. This unit has been very effective for me even though they seem far inferior to Codex Marine vets. When combined with my "Accept any Challenge, no matter the odds" vow this little unit can become quite a killing machine.

So there you have it, my must have unit is my Sword Brethren. They have become a permanent part of every Templar army I run. They may not be the most points efficient unit out there but I love the unit. The models are fantastic and their fluff is just how I would imagine Templar veterans.

-BJ

What is your life?

My honour is my life.

What is your fate?

My duty is my fate.

What is your fear?

My fear is to fail.

What is your reward?

My salvation is my reward.

What is your craft?

My craft is death.

What is your pledge?

My pledge is eternal service.

Friday Project Update: 23 Oct 09

Just a quick projects update. This week it has been all fantasy for me when I have had time to paint. I managed to finish off my Liche Priest that I will be using as my Heirophant. This is actually the model that came the the Casket of Souls. I think he is wicked looking so I use him as my Heirophant.

I also managed to complete my Tomb King mounted in a chariot. I made my of Flail of Skulls for him but using a flail from the Chaos marauders along with some skulls from my Vampire Counts.

I was also working on my Bone Giant but did not get him finished in time for this post. Also i am sorry the pics are poor quality, my camera batteries died and I was stuck using my wife's camera which I suck at using.

Next up are some Dwarf Thunderers, and more than likely more Tomb Kings, as I try to finish off my Tomb Kings and Dwarf armies.

Space Wolves Display - Assault on Magnir's Crag

I am not sure how many of you check the GW site daily but I do and yesterday they had an amazing article showcasing a large cinematic Spacewolf Vs. Tyranids display made for Games Day UK. Not only was this large display amazing but the article shows tons of close up views of the display and even goes into how some of the dioramas on the display were made. I am very happy to see GW doing this sort of thing again and the article is definitely worth the read. I am linking to it as well as posting a pic on the display.

Assault on Magnir's Crag Display

My Battle Fleet Gothic Fleet

I was messing around with my DIY photo light box today and took some pictures of my Sisters of Battle Imperial Fleet for Battle Fleet Gothic. I know I still need to work on my lighting and all but for my first use of the box it worked out great.


The ship to the left is my Mars class Imperial Battle cruiser the "Caelestis Praetor". This is my flagship for my fleet until I get my Emperor class Imperial Battleship painted. I love launch bays and prow torpedoes and this little lady has them both!



This ship to the right is one of my favorite Imperial Cruisers, the Gothic class "Ancile". Armed with its prow torpedoes as well as port and starboard lance batteries make this ship a pretty destructive force in my fleet.






This next ship to the left is probably my favorite ship in my entire fleet. The Imperial Light cruiser, Dauntless class "Arma". Along with the Arma I have 3 other Dauntless light cruisers. Their speed and firepower make this smaller ship a force to be reckoned with.

Well that is all I am going to post here, if you are interested in seeing the rest of the painted portion of my fleet you can check out my Basic Training website where I am showcasing my armies as I get pictures taken of them.

As always thank you for stopping by my blog and all comments are welcome.

-BJ

Friday Project Update: 16 Oct 2009

Just a small update this week. First up I built and finished my Black Templar objective markers. The first and my favorite is the mortally wounded Templar leaning against the wall. The second is just an ammo dump, and the third is a ruined dreadnought hull. They were all fun to build and I think I will do custom markers for every army as I complete them.

Next up this week I finished 2 more test models for my Imperial Fists. I decided to go with my 3rd and final test model as the process I will be using to paint my Fists.

Next up on my plate is several miniatures from my Fantasy armies. For 40K I will be finishing up my Sisters of Battle. I will post more as I get things finished in the upcoming week.

-BJ

Imperial Fists: Test Model #3

Well here is my 3rd test model for my Imperial Fists. This model was primed with white and then had several thin layers of golden yellow applied over the entire model as a base coat. Next I proceeded to paint all of the other details continuing with the 3rd company theme.

Once the model was fully painted, I used badab black wash on the metal areas such as the bolter and pack vents. I finished by carefully going over all the yellow components with Gryphonne Sepia, being sure that the details got filled in and no heavy areas of wash were on flat surfaces of yellow.

This is easily my favorite of the 3 test models. This will be how I paint my Imperial Fists. The only change I will do is to add more highlights before the wash as I can see areas where more highlighting is needed.

I really like doing the test minis first as it allows me to see a few variations of the armor as well as paint schemes. Originally I was going to go with 5th company but I just did not like how the black looked so I decided on 3rd instead. I was able to do this way before I touched any models that were actually going to be in my army thanks to my test models.

Well that is all for now, I have a few projects in front of my Fists but I will be sure to post updates here as my Sons of Dorn come to fruition. As always comments are welcome and thank you for taking the time to read my blog.

-BJ

Imperial Fists: Test Model #2

Here is my 2nd test model for my Imperial Fists army. I only have two shots because I followed the same basic painting as my previous post Imperial Fists: Test Model #1. The only differences were that I used a white primer this time and I took the advice of Siph_Horridus and used less of the sunburst yellow and more of the Golden yellow.

In the finished model below I changed to 3rd company colors and added squad markings and fist logo. I am much happier with how this model looks. It still has a nice yellow color but also has the worn look that I am going for and I really love the red instead of the black on the shoulder pads. Of the two I have done so far this is by far my favorite.




My next test model will be primed white, I will be skipping Iyanden Darksun and just painting golden yellow as my base color. I am also going to be doing the wash towards the end of painting this time to see if I like that effect more.

Thanks for reading my blog and as always any feedback is welcome and greatly appreciated.

-BJ