Paul came over for a game. Easy to summarise - I had him on the ropes for 4 turns then a Storm Vermin rampage combined with a failed Look Out, Sir! killed off:
- both big units of Goblins
- my BSB
- a L1 Shaman
- my General
- quickly led to the Rock Lobber getting smashed and the Doom Diver failing a Panic check
After staring down the barrel of a big win I stole defeat from the jaws of victory and lost by around 300VPs (probs a 12-8 loss). Honestly - a bit miffed about the turnaround. Highlights/lowlights:
- Doomwheel falls an inch short of charging a Pump Wagon bottom of turn one. Str4 shooting from Doomwheel lightning - only one wound from the 3 hits (each doing D6 wounds!). Lucky LUCKY Pump Wagon!
- Squig Hoppers vs Doomwheel (on full wounds). Drew combat in the first round (Squigs charging), Squigs killed it off in the second with the Boss and 2 survivors remaining. Extremely close run thing (coming down to 6s to wound from Goblins and 4s to save on Wheel)! Squigs retreated to the back my zone and ran out the clock.
- PCBs took a Pump Wagon to the face, Pump Wagon smashed in return, one PCB survived (curses!). He retreated to the back of Paul's zone and ran out the clock despite my best efforts to kill the little bastard. 100+VPs going wanting thanks to a consistently (and wildly) inaccurate Doom Diver and my magic missile being shut down in the magic phase (or failing to cast).
- Plague Priest (on Furnace) cast Vermintide. IF/miscast. Spell killed off two Fanatics and a bunch of Gobbos from two different blocks. Miscast result killed off 15 Plaguemonks! Carnage. Tried and tried and TRIED to kill off the rest of the Monks - 2 left at the end of the game with an immobile Furnace (not enough rats to push it around). Curses!!! Two models away from over 200VPs!!!
- Epic fail from the Gutter Runners trying to kill the Manglers. One Mangler fires through some Runners (deletes them) and Monks (didn't kill enough - poor rolls - we played that it didn't hit the Furnace too or randomise hits onto it - weren't sure about how this worked - any thoughts?), randomly moves back through Stormvermin and Slaves (kills a few), rides out the game. Other one falls short of a move against other Slaves (who have been charged by both Pump Wagons). Decides to wander back to hit A-Bomb. Rolls short but fortuitously blocks a charge from a big Clanrat unit (with Grey Seer) into a Gobbo unit. Clanrats charge anyway. Swathes of Clanrats pulped by Mangler (crica 12 dead rats?). Seer Skitterleaps out of the combat because he sees what's coming - Clanrats beaten but escape and rally.
- Abomb wanders around waiting for Manglers to die. Sucks down 3 wounds from Fireball ring and some more from shooting and running through a Fanatic (which should have killed him but I rolled suckage). Wades into combat with one wound left against General/BSBs unit. One impact hit. Rolls up result to direct 12 attacks at BSB (who only has a 5+ armour save!). Only gets through ONE wound (God bless those Nets!). BSB kills off the Abomb with a swift riposte. Paul's face nearly falls off. Massive disrespect for the ABomb. Massive props for weedy Goblin BSB.
- Warbanner Stormvermin against General's unit. IF Death Frenzy goes off. 10 Gobbos die. Epic fail on return attacks although my general does kills the Rat BSB with a mighty 4 hits/4 wounds. Down by big numbers. Fail to hold and already lost my BSB to a Scorch (and aforementioned failed Look Out, Sir! taking his second wounds after he survived the Abomination). Break. Centre demolished. Spirit crushed. Game over.
Devastated at the end after some sterling play in the 1st half and a very sorry 2nd half/late game. Consistently having problems with the end-game turns. Unlucky scatters for most of the game when the shots needed to count (cleaning out Monks/surviving PCB, chasing down fleeing Clanrats) and couldn't clean up the stragglers. Paul dialled up 3 magic phase where he had 10-11 power dice and I maybe channelled 3 dispel dice/power dice in the whole game and only had one big magic phase (the same one where I'd lost my L4 to a poor Animosity roll - nice). Struggling with the concept of managing to play 4 games in one day at NiCon (day 1 - 8.30am start, circa 7.30pm finish?). Fingers-crossed I see a heap of WoC armies (lol) but a rematch against Paul would be pretty cool now that he knows the power of the mighty Pump Wagons!
Paul played well and generally did the right thing but there were so many threats that when something didn't do it's job (WLC misfire, Gutter Runners with poison slings needing 7s to hit Manglers so couldn't double-tap for Poison goodness, Abomb taking more wounds than anticipated from IF Fireball Ring then epic failing to kill Gobbo BSB, Doomwheel fail against Pump Wagon) he was on the back foot. I think his magic was brilliant and definitely won him the game with that big casting of Death Frenzy and the obliteration of my centre as well as Scorches and Crack's Call against Trolls and blocks. Damn that Death Frenzy!
Friday, May 27, 2011
Sunday, May 15, 2011
NiCon Goblins and thoughts...
2400pts
141 - Goblin Warboss - Armour of Silvered Steel, Dawnstone, Great Weapon
Built to (hopefully) survive and primarily to dole out Ld9 with the BSB. He is able to hope to a unit that needs some choppy help if necessary, but ideally he's cheering from the back row. No ward save means he's a hot target for Killing Blow.
250 - Goblin Great Shaman - Level 4 upgrade, Talisman of Preservation, Earthing Rod
NOT a Night Goblin Shaman (1 in 6 chance of Mushroom induced spell failure!). I'm having a hit-and-miss time getting the most out of the Little Waagh! spell lore but by and large it's a quality deck.
79 - Goblin Big Boss - Battle Standard (Standard of Discipline), Light Armour, Shield
The magical standard is great but I tend to have to worry about him getting into trouble (he's a very soft target). Having said that, in one game he not only survived 12 attacks from a Hellpit Abomination but went on to take its last wound (Nets being awsomely synergistic in this case!).
80 - Night Goblin Big Boss - Spear, Light Armour, Charmed Shield, Giant Cave Squig
This guy is awesome fun and really effective (and would be more effective if I remembered his Stomp attack!). Obvious synergy with the Squig Hoppers but I need to investigate how the rules work if I want to charge him out of his unit.
75 - Night Goblin Shaman - Dispel Scroll
Ususally gets the default spell or the number 6 spell (suicide casting!) and good for a Channelling roll.
90 - Night Goblin Shaman - Staff of Channelling, Ruby Ring of Ruin
The Ring is wicked handy, the Staff is often useful.
265 - 50 Night Goblins - Standard, Musician, Netters, 2 Fanatics
232 - 39 Night Goblins - Standard, Musician, Netters, 2 Fanatics
124 - 23 Night Goblins - Champion, Standard, Musician, 1 Fanatic
85 - 20 Night Goblins - Bows, 1 Fanatic
85 - 20 Night Goblins - Bows, 1 Fanatic
An array of Gobbo blocks with the ever random Fanatics. The crazy little ball-swingers are a bit better now (especially if you have a knack for rolling averages) and combined with Netters can result in some nasty surprises for my opponents. Of course, they're still just Goblins, and without a decent hammer I've often found I can happily pin a unit against a massive Steadfast block but sit there for the whole game getting steadily butchered without any useful rebuttal.
70 - 5 Spider Riders - Bows
70 - 5 Spider Riders - Bows
I'm only persevering with these guys (over the superior - and cheaper! - Wolf Riders) because I have the models available (and don't have Wolf Riders). They can be useful though and I'm just waiting for a Spider-driven bowshot to take the last wound from something big and nasty :)
210 - 6 Trolls
Net-research indicates Trolls are best used either 4-strong running in 2x2 formation or going all out with 8-10 Trolls in one big feck off unit. I only have 6 :)
120 - 10 Squig Hoppers
Consistently inconsistent performers - combined with magic hexes and buffs they can be all sorts of awesome but I've still yet to sync a magic phase just right to get the combinations I'm looking for. Don't suffer from Animosity now though and can't be Stomped - current kills include a Steg and a Doomwheel. Hoping they will be underestimated.
80 - Doom Diver
85 - Rock Lobber
A couple of classics with an improved correcting move from the mad Diver.
60 - Pump Wagon - Spiky Roller
60 - Pump Wagon - Spiky Roller
Pure awesome with str5 impact hits and no charge reactions allowed thanks to Random Movement. Now being able to roll 3D6 for boosted movement they are very useful.
65 - Mangler Squig
65 - Mangler Squig
Runners-up for the most awesome/most useless unit in the army. Die like that (imagine me clicking my fingers) to most shooting (soft cover rule helps a bit but not enough) - an extra wound would have helped a lot (given they are two Giant Squigs chained together 3 wounds is a little disappointing). Opponents have to do something about them though and even if it means throwing Dogs or Wolves or Harpies at them they are almost earning their points back + taking a unit out of the game.
15 deployments (including warmachines and characters)
Fortitude of SIX
Lords - 16%
Heroes - 14%
Core - 39%
Special - 14%
Rare - 17%
141 - Goblin Warboss - Armour of Silvered Steel, Dawnstone, Great Weapon
Built to (hopefully) survive and primarily to dole out Ld9 with the BSB. He is able to hope to a unit that needs some choppy help if necessary, but ideally he's cheering from the back row. No ward save means he's a hot target for Killing Blow.
250 - Goblin Great Shaman - Level 4 upgrade, Talisman of Preservation, Earthing Rod
NOT a Night Goblin Shaman (1 in 6 chance of Mushroom induced spell failure!). I'm having a hit-and-miss time getting the most out of the Little Waagh! spell lore but by and large it's a quality deck.
79 - Goblin Big Boss - Battle Standard (Standard of Discipline), Light Armour, Shield
The magical standard is great but I tend to have to worry about him getting into trouble (he's a very soft target). Having said that, in one game he not only survived 12 attacks from a Hellpit Abomination but went on to take its last wound (Nets being awsomely synergistic in this case!).
80 - Night Goblin Big Boss - Spear, Light Armour, Charmed Shield, Giant Cave Squig
This guy is awesome fun and really effective (and would be more effective if I remembered his Stomp attack!). Obvious synergy with the Squig Hoppers but I need to investigate how the rules work if I want to charge him out of his unit.
75 - Night Goblin Shaman - Dispel Scroll
Ususally gets the default spell or the number 6 spell (suicide casting!) and good for a Channelling roll.
90 - Night Goblin Shaman - Staff of Channelling, Ruby Ring of Ruin
The Ring is wicked handy, the Staff is often useful.
265 - 50 Night Goblins - Standard, Musician, Netters, 2 Fanatics
232 - 39 Night Goblins - Standard, Musician, Netters, 2 Fanatics
124 - 23 Night Goblins - Champion, Standard, Musician, 1 Fanatic
85 - 20 Night Goblins - Bows, 1 Fanatic
85 - 20 Night Goblins - Bows, 1 Fanatic
An array of Gobbo blocks with the ever random Fanatics. The crazy little ball-swingers are a bit better now (especially if you have a knack for rolling averages) and combined with Netters can result in some nasty surprises for my opponents. Of course, they're still just Goblins, and without a decent hammer I've often found I can happily pin a unit against a massive Steadfast block but sit there for the whole game getting steadily butchered without any useful rebuttal.
70 - 5 Spider Riders - Bows
70 - 5 Spider Riders - Bows
I'm only persevering with these guys (over the superior - and cheaper! - Wolf Riders) because I have the models available (and don't have Wolf Riders). They can be useful though and I'm just waiting for a Spider-driven bowshot to take the last wound from something big and nasty :)
210 - 6 Trolls
Net-research indicates Trolls are best used either 4-strong running in 2x2 formation or going all out with 8-10 Trolls in one big feck off unit. I only have 6 :)
120 - 10 Squig Hoppers
Consistently inconsistent performers - combined with magic hexes and buffs they can be all sorts of awesome but I've still yet to sync a magic phase just right to get the combinations I'm looking for. Don't suffer from Animosity now though and can't be Stomped - current kills include a Steg and a Doomwheel. Hoping they will be underestimated.
80 - Doom Diver
85 - Rock Lobber
A couple of classics with an improved correcting move from the mad Diver.
60 - Pump Wagon - Spiky Roller
60 - Pump Wagon - Spiky Roller
Pure awesome with str5 impact hits and no charge reactions allowed thanks to Random Movement. Now being able to roll 3D6 for boosted movement they are very useful.
65 - Mangler Squig
65 - Mangler Squig
Runners-up for the most awesome/most useless unit in the army. Die like that (imagine me clicking my fingers) to most shooting (soft cover rule helps a bit but not enough) - an extra wound would have helped a lot (given they are two Giant Squigs chained together 3 wounds is a little disappointing). Opponents have to do something about them though and even if it means throwing Dogs or Wolves or Harpies at them they are almost earning their points back + taking a unit out of the game.
15 deployments (including warmachines and characters)
Fortitude of SIX
Lords - 16%
Heroes - 14%
Core - 39%
Special - 14%
Rare - 17%
Saturday, May 14, 2011
Blog-o-mancy!!!
I'm going to cautiously resurrect this blog and see how I go. Been spending a lot (a LOT) of time blog-surfing and really enjoying the reading time and absorbing player perspectives on various interesting facets of Warhammer and for the sake of my own reflection I think it's time I tried this blog thing again. Like a freshly built Zombie it might very well crumble without achieving bugger all, but in the meantime a couple of people might find it amusing (if not a little apathetic and uneconomical).
So much has happened recently in Warhammer both the game system and army books and for me personally the game has shifted considerably. After various extreme and highly polarised reactions to the release of 8th edition Warhammer the general international community appears to have settled down considerably. I'm heartened by the response of the local community with fairly steady numbers and attendance at tournaments and nothing like the drastic drop-off in numbers experienced during 'The Sundering' in Australia.
The community is now awaiting the release of the third new army book for 8th edition - O&Gs and Tomb Kings having now been released and the current Net-vibe indicating they are 'balanced' (don't get me started on the subjectivity of that word!), reasonably on-par with each other, and there has been some relief that the startling concept of drastically reducing magic items in army books (starting with O&Gs) has at least been followed-through by the TK release (albeit with a vast increase in the actual usefulness of the magic items in the TK book vs the O&G book).
On a personal level I am enjoying 8th edition immensely as a 'Friday night with mates, beer and pretzels' affair while having some difficulty with the game at a tournament level. This is not to say I'm not enjoying tournament games (I most certainly am!) but it still feels to me like a system that is best when played against like-minded peers who are willingly driving what is acceptable on the table as opposed to having restriction and caps forced upon them. Clearly the second option is the sensible and reasonable one as far as a generic tournament format goes, but the best and most exciting games so far for me have been the casual games against mates. Every game has a 'weird and wonderful moment' (and I don't mean 6-dice casting of Dwellers ending the game prematurely) and builds an exciting story and narrative. 7th edition is for me a very distant memory and I feel lucky to not have the weight of knowledge that participation in previous editions of Warhammer would influence and impact my expectations on where the game is at now. Is it less tactical? I'm really not sure - but I'm finding it more enjoyable and FUN.
I'm still toying with Vampire Counts but most recently an all-Goblin army has been consuming my painting time and imagination. This army was the result of two very fortunate conversations with gamers who were looking to off-load their respective Greenskin collections and I essentially ended up with a HUGE Goblin force (3000pts+) for easily less than $150. I'm now neck-deep in a repainting frenzy and, while I'm sure I'll eventually get sick of the colour green, am finding the little blighters an absolute joy to colour in. The battlefield successes and fortunes of the Blue Moon Night Goblins and their dubious allies Spider-riding Forest Goblin allies has to this point been somewhat circumspect but despite the fact that decent wins are a rare occurence they are enormous fun to play with (and lose with!). Hard to see how this has not had an effect on my adjusted attitude to tournament play...
I've probably had 7 games or so with the 8th edition (O&)Gs now and will post up my list for the next tournament on the calendar (NiCon) and some thoughts about how it's been going (and goes at the tournament).
So much has happened recently in Warhammer both the game system and army books and for me personally the game has shifted considerably. After various extreme and highly polarised reactions to the release of 8th edition Warhammer the general international community appears to have settled down considerably. I'm heartened by the response of the local community with fairly steady numbers and attendance at tournaments and nothing like the drastic drop-off in numbers experienced during 'The Sundering' in Australia.
The community is now awaiting the release of the third new army book for 8th edition - O&Gs and Tomb Kings having now been released and the current Net-vibe indicating they are 'balanced' (don't get me started on the subjectivity of that word!), reasonably on-par with each other, and there has been some relief that the startling concept of drastically reducing magic items in army books (starting with O&Gs) has at least been followed-through by the TK release (albeit with a vast increase in the actual usefulness of the magic items in the TK book vs the O&G book).
On a personal level I am enjoying 8th edition immensely as a 'Friday night with mates, beer and pretzels' affair while having some difficulty with the game at a tournament level. This is not to say I'm not enjoying tournament games (I most certainly am!) but it still feels to me like a system that is best when played against like-minded peers who are willingly driving what is acceptable on the table as opposed to having restriction and caps forced upon them. Clearly the second option is the sensible and reasonable one as far as a generic tournament format goes, but the best and most exciting games so far for me have been the casual games against mates. Every game has a 'weird and wonderful moment' (and I don't mean 6-dice casting of Dwellers ending the game prematurely) and builds an exciting story and narrative. 7th edition is for me a very distant memory and I feel lucky to not have the weight of knowledge that participation in previous editions of Warhammer would influence and impact my expectations on where the game is at now. Is it less tactical? I'm really not sure - but I'm finding it more enjoyable and FUN.
I'm still toying with Vampire Counts but most recently an all-Goblin army has been consuming my painting time and imagination. This army was the result of two very fortunate conversations with gamers who were looking to off-load their respective Greenskin collections and I essentially ended up with a HUGE Goblin force (3000pts+) for easily less than $150. I'm now neck-deep in a repainting frenzy and, while I'm sure I'll eventually get sick of the colour green, am finding the little blighters an absolute joy to colour in. The battlefield successes and fortunes of the Blue Moon Night Goblins and their dubious allies Spider-riding Forest Goblin allies has to this point been somewhat circumspect but despite the fact that decent wins are a rare occurence they are enormous fun to play with (and lose with!). Hard to see how this has not had an effect on my adjusted attitude to tournament play...
I've probably had 7 games or so with the 8th edition (O&)Gs now and will post up my list for the next tournament on the calendar (NiCon) and some thoughts about how it's been going (and goes at the tournament).
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