Crazy Red Praetorians

Adepticon: Here We Come!

2011-12-23T10:18:00.000-08:00

Hey guys and gals, I am fired up about Adepticon 2012! Last night my teammates CrusherJoe, TheGirl, BigRed and I were bouncing ideas back and forth for the Team Tournament. This is going to be SO MUCH FUN! I'm signed up for the championship tournament, as well. I think I am bringing Space Wolves as they will be easier to transport. No lag wagon this year to carry armies...DAMMIT! The IG army is just too bulky to transport on the plane.

My 13 year old son is playing in the Young Bloods Tournament. He is really excited about this event and wants to get his Necrons perfected for the tournament. Back to Christmas shopping!

Now Go Roll Some Dice!!!
CRP

Down to the Wire.......Again.

2011-12-03T23:29:00.000-08:00

Well, it's 130am and I have just completed models for tomorrow's Team Tournament. Why do I do this every damn tournament? I am playing 1500 pts of Space Wolf goodness and Crusher Joe is Bringing GKs. It should be fun. I've got to get some sleep.....really.

Go Roll Some Dice!!!

CRP

Necron Monolith.....New Ability. Deadlier Than Ever?

2011-10-29T11:13:00.000-07:00

I was just looking through the info on GWs website on the first wave of Necron releases. My son plays Necrons and we are planning some purchases to update his army. Anyway, I noticed this tidbit of info that I haven't seen any mention of before. The last sentence inparticular is what I'm referring to.

The Monolith has long been a much-feared opponent, and now it's deadlier than ever. Whilst it's tempting to deploy the Monolith at the start of the game, it's almost always wiser to keep it in reserve - that way you can Deep Strike it onto an enemy-held objective. Once the Monolith has scoured the foe from the immediate area (try and eliminate melta weapons first - they can be a real problem) you can then use its eternity gate to teleport in a suitable scoring unit and take the objective for yourself. When the enemy counter attacks, simply switch the eternity gate into its portal of exile mode, and suck the primitives to their doom!

This could be interesting...

Go Roll Some Dice!!!
CRP

Killeen 1750pt Hobby Tournament. "Hobby" Done Right!

2011-07-19T17:22:00.000-07:00

Last month was a full month. The first weekend was the tournament at Dragon's Lair, finished 6th with a Space Wolf foot list(only one Long Fang Squad). I played Stoney Chavez's RazorBurn list and missed a draw by two inches. Stoney ended up winning the Overall. However, I did get Best Appearance and I was pretty stoked about that.

We went to The Raihead Rumble at A-Kon in Dallas, it was put on by the Heroic28s. It was a fun event and was a people watching experience. It was fun but my results weren't, I went 1-3 day one and 1-1-1 day two. I had hoped to do better, my list was just not prepared for the mass firepower that I encountered....and my dice didn't help. It was comical, really. But, a good time was had and I plan on attending next year.

We had a BBQ/WarGamesTerrain Day at Darkwynn's and built a bunch of hills and did a lot of dry brushing. Some of the guys got a game in but I was busy painting. It was a fun productive day and I had fun calling Goatboy(he hates it. So, if you see him call him Darkwynn,) Darkwynn all day.

Finally, we went to Battlefield Games in Killeen for a 1750pt Hobby Tournament. Thay had a cool "comp" system that eliminated a lot of BS. Sure, there were some loop holes but it is the best system I have seen recently. The above video was shot on our trip home. Please, forgive my spotty dialogue, I was too tired to talk....Really. If y'all are ever in Killeen stop into Battlefield and say Hi to Will and Dee, the owner. They are really good people and run a great store. Below is a copy of the Comp Guidelines.

Remember these will only effect your comp score, NOT make your list illegal.

Armies begin with 30 points. Deduct points as explained (round all percentages up).

Troops – At least 35% of the army must be composed of units taken as troops. For every 2% less than 35%, deduct 1 point.

Non-Troops – No more than 25% in any single category other than troops. For every 1% more than 25%, deduct 1 point.

Pricey Bits – No single model more than 12%, no units more than 23%. For every unit in violation, deduct 3 points. Tyranids receive 1 exemption.

Duplication – No more than 2 of any single choice in HQ, Elite, Fast, or Heavy. No more than 3 of any single choice in Troops. Necrons and Sisters of Battle ignore this rule with their current codices. For each violation, deduct 3 points.

Special Characters – No more than one special character. For each violation deduct 30 points.

Army List – Army list must list each units war gear/upgrades along with costs (separated from total unit cost), number of units per selection, total number of models, and a breakdown of points and choices by selection as well as choices and points spent per category. Five copies of the army list are needed for the tournament – 1 for the judges, 3 for your opponents, and one for yourself. Players that ask for copies to be printed at the store prior to the tournament will receive -5 points.

Model Count – Divide the tournament points by 15. Any army that exceeds this value will receive -1 point per every 10 models (round up).

What do y'all think?
Thanks for reading!
Now Go Roll Some Dice!!!
CRP

June Is A Busy Month For Tournaments

2011-05-31T17:07:00.000-07:00

This month is going to be crazy. This weekend is the monthly tournament at Dragon's Lair, a 2000pts no holds barred Austin cheese fest. The competition is bound to be fierce. The following weekend is an all weekend roadtrip to Dallas for the Rail Head Rumble at A-Con. I'm really looking forward to this event and it promises to be a knockdown drag out. There will definitely be some hard as nails lists there and a bunch of us from Austin are attending. The third weekend is a WarGamesCon terrain prep party. And then the 4th weekend of the month a few of the Austin crew are headed to Killeen to BattleField Games to play in their 1750pt Hobby event. It should be a lot of fun.

Then in July we have another DL event followed by the Texas event of the year WARGAMESCON! Oh yeah! Now back to the painting table to finish my first "Finecast" mini....more on that soon.

Now Go Roll Some Dice!!!
CRP

Akamo 40K GT and local Team Event

2011-05-21T08:37:00.000-07:00

Two weeks ago, I played in a team tournament with my pal CrusherJoe. We teamed 1500 pts of IG with 1500 pts of Grey Knights. We didn't win but we had a great time with three great games. We went 1-1-1 for the day. CrusherJoe and I are also teaming up for BoLScon....I mean WarGamesCon this year. I am really looking forward to that event. I do love me some team events!

Last weekend, I made the trip south to San Antonio with StoneyChavez(Thanks for driving, man), Splug, Caldera02, and Cheeseburger. We left Friday so that we could get registered early and get some sleep before the tournament. The Alamo 40K GT was a blast! There was a great turn out with over 60 participants and BEER!

Game One, I played Brad with his Eldar and ended up taking a loss right out of the gate. Brad has a great looking Eldar force and I just could not damage his skimmers...and when I would, he made his saving throws.

Game Two was against John and his Dark Eldar. I went first, and John failed to steal the initiative, my dice were hot and a lot of vehicles went down. The drinking started and I got the win.

Game Three was against Kevin and his Necron Destroyer list. He deployed in one corner and shot me the first turn, turn two all of my reserves came in outflanking and with help from the Astropath they all came in on the right side. The Necrons took a lot of losses in turn two and from there it was pretty much just a count down to phase out. Kevin fought a good fight and tried to stay in the fight but the odds were against him .

End of day one: I had three great games with equally great opponents. 2-1

Game Four, against JWolf's IG. Crap! I made some deployment errors and when you play the Wolf mistakes will not be tolerated...He smoked me. Although, until the end I had a slim chance to make it draw. Rolling ones on terrain tests is a BAD thing.

Game Five was against another Austin player Bushido Red Panda. He was playing his Deathwing list and it is hard as nails. We had a great game but in the end I just could not kill enough termies.

End of day two: I had two more great games. I made it through a GT without running into "that guy". The Alamo 40K GT was a ton of fun and I plan on returning next year. 2-3

I did get to witness the drama on table one. I am staying out that discussion. However, I will say that the Raiders as Venoms was complete bullshit. Eveyone that I play against that has Venoms in their army has expended great time, expense, and effort to convert their venoms to something approximating the description in the DE codex. You would think a veteran GT player would do the same.

Y'all take care!

Go Roll Some Dice!!!
CRP

The Henchmen Build Continues

2011-04-25T16:09:00.000-07:00

Thanks to Real Genius for the photo.

I have to admit, I have been bitten by the "New Codex" bug. Lately, all of my hobby efforts have been going into the Grey Knightless army. I have just had a ton of fun with these models. I'm working on a second DK, stormbolter equipped "Praetorians"(Cadians w/ Secret Weapon heads sculpted by the one and only Col. Gravis.) Also, I have went the "counts-as" route for Death Cult Assassins, I'm using slightly modified Wyches and I am converting Arco Flagellants using Ghouls. Saturday, I got a little distracted from the Henchmen when I started what I hope will be a cool conversion for my Tech Marine.

On the tournament front, I have a team event to play in the first weekend of the month and the Alamo GT is next month as well....and possibly another tourney as well. So, May looks like a busy month. Y'all take care!

Go Roll Some Dice!!!

CRP

WIP Praetorian (Dread) Knight For my Grey Knight(less) Army

2011-04-09T22:34:00.000-07:00

I went with a super shooty build on this Praetorian Knight. The next one will have the Incinerator.

Well, I just about finished with my Praetorian (Dread) Knight. I still need to do some work on the black, apply another wash and highlight and I will be done with the first one. I plan on doing atleast one more.

Still a WIP but getting close.

I can't wait to get my Grey Knight(less) army on the table top.

I'm really excited about the new GK codex. This is my first "new" army in 5 years and I am enjoying the prospect of a new army to play with. When I looked at the preview codex, I started thinking about an all henchman build but, I wanted to use the DK model. The it hit me....use a sentinel with a Praetorian driver! This really is a ton of FUN! Thanks to Frank for taking the pics!

Go Roll Some Dice!!!
CRP

Grey Knight Termies and Other Hobby Tidbits

2011-04-05T21:46:00.000-07:00

Hey everyone, just a quick hobby update. Lately, I have been working on conversions for my Grey Knight(less) army. I also painted the termies pictured here. They were out of the Black Box and were done for display. I didn't do any basing because they were to be given away after the Codex was released. I liked the kits a lot. However, I am proceeding with my planned Henchman build. The Praetorian Knight is about 70% finished. I hope to finish it tomorrow and get some pics taken Thursday night.

I played in a local 1500pt RTT this weekend. It was a brutal day for my dice. I had 3 great games, 2 I had the worst dice on the planet and 1 game got ALL the dice love. But all 3 games were a blast. Pictured below is the army that I played Saturday.

2 Wolf Lords on TWMs
15 Fenrisian Wolves
3 TWC, TH/SS, SS, nada
8x GHs with plasma, banner, MoTW, power weapon in a rhino
7x GHs with melta, banner, MoTW, in a rhino
5x GHs with melta
6x Long Fangs with 5 missle launchers

I've got to get some sleep
Go Roll Some Dice!!!
CRP

Hobby Update and March Mosh Pit RTT Results

2011-03-27T10:03:00.000-07:00

Well since my last post I have done quite a bit. Last week, I did some fine tuning on my display board, modeled and painted a long fang, and did a weapon swap on my Wolf Lord on TWM. Of course this was all done Friday night prior to a tournament. So, I was up until 2:30AM and then got a few hours sleep before getting up @6:00AM to make the tournament. This week, I have been painting up the display Grey Knight Terminators for Dragon's Lair. I really like the models. They have some nice detail and were fun to paint. Unfortunately, I don't have pics....yet. I went with the standard Bolt Gun base coat, lots of Shining Gold and Mithril Silver bling and some Blood Red and Skull White touches for shoulder pads etc. I followed this up with a liberal Baddab Black wash (AKA Talent In A Jar). I think the BB muted the Bolt Gun nicely and I am happy with the results. I hope to get some pics next week. Today, I am cleaning up and assembling some DE Wyches to be used as Death Cult Assassins. I need to find or convert some heads and weapons for them, as well. Also, I need to get two more blogs written today.

On to the March Mosh Pit, with very little sleep Caldera02, Real Genius and I all made the hour + drive to Killeen to play in Battlefield Games' 2000pt Hobby tournament. They had a new comp system that was an improvement over the old one. It wasn't perfect but did prohibit some nasty combos. It did let a few in such as my Creed list. However, I did not bring it as that would not be in keeping with the spirit of the event. So, I took my all foot(with the exception of one Drop Pod) Space Wolves. My first opponent was a a great sport playing Ravenwing. He is a fairly new player and I have played against him before. I ended up with a Massacre. My opponent was very gracious and was a joy to play. It always fun to play against an opponent that has fun win or lose. He was my vote for Best Sportsman.

My second game was also against some one that I had played before. He was running a newly painted Chaos force that looked really nice. We met in the middle and bashed each over the head. I thought I was going to lose but we were using Victory Points and it turned out to be a draw, thanks to my Blood Claws.

Game 3 was against a Blood Angel player. We met in the middle and bashed each other over the head, as well. But, my opponent's dice hated him and I ended up with another Massacre.

Real Genius ended up getting Best Sportsman, Caldera02 got Best General, and I brought home the Overall. As always, it was well worth the trip to Killeen. The folks at Battlefield put on a great event. Now, I need to get ready for this Saturday's 1500pt tournament at DL. Most of the Austin crew will be at Adepticon and the Killeen boys are coming to Austin for revenge. I'm looking forward to it!

Y'all take care and...

Go Roll Some Dice!!!

CRP

Jumping On The Band Wagon: Grey Knights

2011-03-13T15:51:00.000-07:00

Hi guys, this week I actually got more hobby time than planned. I didn't have to work as much as I thought I would. Hobby-wise, I cleaned up some Eldar for the Memorial Army for The Girl, played a few games, put togehter some Black Box Grey Knight Terminators and attended a local tournament. The tournament was at Wonko's. They have a lot of new players at Wonko's and the atmosphere is a lot more laid back back than the competitive scene that I'm used to. Unfortunately, I arrived too late to play. But, was asked to help a few new players through their games. It was fun and a nice change of pace. While I was there, Goatboy, Mrs. Goatboy and Darkwynn stopped by to pick up on some old Grey Knight models. We talked about the Black Box models a bit and the new GK codex in general. A lot of people in the area are starting or going back to GK armies. It should be interesting.

I've been extremely lucky the last couple of years. I played IG and SWs before and their new codexes have been killer. Now, I am wanting to do a new army and the GKs are calling. I'm thinking about doing a non-GK army(AKA Henchman build) that will incorporate the Praetorian theme. The conversion potential is enormous and I think this will be a fun army to build and paint. I need to spend some more time with the codex. Some units I am considering are Death Cult Assassins, Crusaders, Warriors, and Banishers mixed for assault and a mix of Psykers, Servitors, Joekero, and Warriors for shooting. I also love the Dread Knight but, am thinking of kitbashing it with a sentinel to give it a Praetorian driver. These are just initial thoughts and I plan on spending some time this week going over the codex to get a better idea of exactly what build I want to start with. Overall, I am excited with the idea of building a new army.

How many of you are planning a GK build? What build are you going to use?

Y'all take care,...and

Go Roll Some Dice!!!

CRP

Dragon's Lair RTT, New Banners, and Game Night

2011-03-08T21:50:00.000-08:00

Well, I'm finally doing an update to the ol' blog. I've been sick the last few weeks. So, not a lot has been going on. I played in an 1850pt RTT Saturday. I went 1-1-1 and ended up in 5th overall. My first game was a 13-14 loss against a DoA list. He had about 9 kill points in 4 units but, I couldn't get him tabled and that's what I needed for the win.

My second game was against Frank and his Chaos list. It was a bloody blood for the Blood God game. I managed to get the win on the last shot of the game. As always it was a pleasure playing Frank. He took the 2 pics above.

My third game was against Little Will and his BA biker list. We ended up drawing on the primary. It's always a pleasure to play LW. He cracks me up.

On the hobby front, I've finished 15 Blood Claws, put these nifty new banners(made by my buddy Crusher Joe)on the Praetorians, and started some Howling Banshees for The Girl's Memorial Eldar Army. I hope to have some pics of them next week. The above photo was shot by Real Genius last week during a game with Caldera02 and the shot below was taken during an epic game between Jwolf and I.

I'm probably not going to get many games in this week due to work. But next Saturday, I am playing in an RTT in Killeen. It's a "hobby" event with a different comp system. We'll see how it works. Y'all take care!

Go Roll Some Dice
CRP

Hobby Is Dead...Again.

2011-02-13T16:43:00.000-08:00

   Yesterday, I played in a 2500pt "hobby" tournament. Sadly, the hobby aspect of it was missed by quite a few. There were several there that brought their normal tournament lists with stuff added. Yep, that's a nice change. It was just another heavy tournament in disguise. What kind of "hobby" tournament discards the appearance scores that are already in place for the "heavy" tournament.Maybe I'm confused here but, how does that add to the "hobby" aspect of the game? It was just an exercise in clubbing baby seals and nerfed lists. To be honest it was not much fun.

   My first game WAS fun, we had a challenging fun game that came down to me losing by 1 objective due to a re rolled moral check. You can't ask for better than that. My second game my opponent shot the bejeezus out of me as I ran across the board on difficult terrain. The whole board was difficult terrain. I was playing a foot/cavalry SW list and he was playing Las/Plas spam w/ Calgar. He shot me up for 4 turns. I finally reached his lines with a much diminished army and he conceded after one round of combat....I got full points but didn't get a full game. The last game was an exercise in rolling dice and arguing. I'm not sure how it was scored because I packed up and left during the final argument. Again, not the way I wanted to spend my day.

   Later, I met some of the guys at the chicken store for a meal and we discussed the tournament AKA had a bitch and beer session. We all agreed a better tournament could be ran but differed on opinions on how to enforce the rules on the "Hobby" crowd. I favored just turning them away/giving their opponent full points if their lists were abusive. The other more popular way was special missions that hurt certain builds. The problem with that is that system can be "gamed". Is hobby dead?...Maybe.

Go Roll Some Dice
CRP

Sometimes Plan B Isn't A Good Plan

2011-02-08T11:32:00.000-08:00

Before the start of the tournament.

Well, Saturday was another tournament at Dragon's Lair. It was 1850pts. I almost brought the IG. But, I had been working on some new SW units and a new display board. So I went with the SWs, even though I didn't get the units finished that I really wanted to bring and that was where plan B went awry. I took the units that I had painted, some not 100%. It was a mess of a list as far as competitive play goes but, it was FUN! I went 1-2 for the day and but for a bit of bad luck I would have done better.

Land Raider Redeemer and Wolf Guard, yes they need shoulder pads.

Game 1 was a against a Tau player named Matt. It was a fun game and Matt's Tau gave the SWs a bloody nose but could not stop them. I ended up with 40 of 44 points.

New Wolf Lord on Thunder Wolf by Mythicast

Game 2 was against Stoney Chavez and his CSM. He runs Lash, DG, Oblits, etc. I immobilized my LRR on turn 1, the scouts came in on the only side that I DIDN'T want them. Like I said luck was not with me.....and I forgot to move/assault with my LoneWolf that turn and he was then killed by the Oblits. Definitely not my best game. But it did come down to the wire. Stoney managed to pull me off two objecives into assault, one that I didn't quite kill enough in and also killed my squad contesting another objective. This gave him 3 to 0 and a score of 33-10

New display board with skulls!

Game 3 I played a new player that was playing BA. They were really nicely painted and he was a nice young man. Once again I immobilized the LRR on first turn. This game was a knock down drag out with not much left at the end of the game. He ended up with 1 objective to my 0 and the game scored 22-17. It was a great game with a new player and was a lot of fun. Thanks to Frank for taking pics of the event!

Once again, Dragon's Lair put on a great tournament. There were 26 players and I think 2 were turned away. So a great turn out. There is another tournament this weekend at DL with a push towards hobby(although, I seriously doubt there will be many hobby armies there.) They are limiting Heavy Support to 2 with an advantage(1 re roll per turn) to those that don't use Heavies at all, even as dedicated transports and 4 slots for Fast Attack. It should be interesting. I've got to get back to painting....

Go Roll Some Dice!!!
CRP

New Models and Victory At A Local Tourney

2011-02-02T22:59:00.000-08:00

Hi everyone, last week I finished up a Vendetta and did some crunch time modeling Friday. Friday, I attained one of the new Hellhound kits, it's a sweet kit. I wanted to use it Saturday at the 2000 pt tourney in Killeen. So, I was modeling until 3am....again. We had to leave early to make the drive. I met up with the Caldera02, Cheeseburger Josh, and StoneyChavez at 7:30 am, I was there at 7am. We made the drive with no problems, getting there early enough for a trip to Jack in the Box for breakfast.

When we arrived, I saw Will the owner of Battlefield Games in Killeen, TX. Will just rotated back from deployment and it was great to see him back. The tourney maxed out at 20 and started promptly as always. My first opponent was Joe G with his vanilla SM Razorspam army. Now, Joe and I had a game that wasn't the most pleasant last month. But, we had a great game and I managed to get a major victory.

When we returned from lunch, I had to play Cheeseburger Josh and his 6 dread/Meph/razorspam list. The mission was a little wonky giving 100VP per turn to each player for holding an objective. Josh got 800pts for objectives to my 100pts. However, he only had 4 or 5 models on the table at the end of the game. So, we ended up with a draw but I got max bonus points and CBJ got none.

The last round I played Robert Z and his Salamanders. We have played quite a few times and we always have good games. I went first and got a serious alpha strike. RZ never really recovered but he was a great sport about it and played hard to the last marine. I got max points for that game.

Battlefield Games does things a little different and gives out trophies instead of plastic, it's a nice change of pace. I ended up getting Best Overall(BPs/Paint/Sportsmanship), Caldera02 got best general getting 7 more BPs than me, and a Necron player named Chris got Best Sportsman. The Tourney was a lot of fun and was really well run. Sorry for the lack of pics, I forgot my camera...again!

This weekend I am playing in an 1850 pt tourney at Dragon's Lair here in Austin. I expect fierce competition and we should have 26 or so players. I'm trying to get my SWs ready but if not I will break out the Praetorians again.

Go Roll Some Dice!!!
CRP

Playing Goatboy Tomorrow, What Should I Bring

2011-01-26T23:05:00.000-08:00

Tomorrow, I am playing Goatboy and I am trying to decide what to bring. I know I'm bring IG. I was thinking about an Ogryn list. But, it is GB and his spamtastic self. Should I make him cry or just die? It's for a BoLS BATREP. So, suggestions anyone? We're playing 1850pts. And remember....

This Saturday, I am going to Killeen for another tournament. Cheezeburger, Stoney Chavez, and Hogleg are going, too. I'm running a variation of my Creed list, it's pretty hard hitting. This one is 2000pts Destruction format. It should be fun. I'll have a report next week.

Now Go Roll Some Dice!!!

CRP

Getting Things Painted

2011-01-18T16:37:00.000-08:00

Sometimes it is tough to get things painted. Life gets in the way, motivation is tough to come by, and if you're lucky, you're gaming too much. Lately for me, it has been a little of all three. Well, I started a LRC for my SWs last week and it is 90% finished......AND I have a Vendetta about half finished. I paint as I assemble. So, it is slow going.

I plan on having the Vendetta ready for a tourney next weekend. I also have some custom flags done for my flag bearers for each squad of Praetorians. I think the flags will be a nice touch. I'll try to get some new pics for next time. Gotta go paint!!!

Go Roll Some Dice!!!
CRP

Recent Tournament Results and Hobby Doings.

2011-01-11T23:19:00.000-08:00

Well, it's been a while since my last update. My results using my Creed/Kell list have been less than stellar, lately. I've been getting into the top 10, I just can't seem to get back up to the top 3. In December, I played at Dragon's Lair, the tournament had 24 players. I lost the first game, massacred my second opponent, and played the super Ninja Master Jwolf in the final on table 4. The last game was hard fought with Jwolf getting the victory placing him in 4th. Prize support was given out to the top 6.

I finished in the top 10, in Killeen. I played one of the guys that I rode up there with for the first game. He was playing Loganwing and got he win. Next I played a full Mech IG player and got the win. The third round I played a Space Marine player and got a massacre.

Two weeks ago, I played at DL again. My worst showing in a while with 2 minor losses and a massacre. Thanks to DL's paint scoring I managed to break into the top 10.

I know the list works, and works well.....most of the time. I think my laid back play style is really hurting my results. I know it did at the last tournament.

I recently, got a deal on a pair of Basilisks and plan to convert them into Medusas. I also have a Vendetta and a pair of Chimeras to assemble and paint and...and troops more troops....and then there are the Space Wolves that need finishing....and I just emailed a guy about 4 more Rhinos. The insanity never stops...I might have to stop hanging out with Goatboy. The bastard makes me want to start new armies.

I also, have a set of 28mm Celts to do a report on and I am currently reading a Black Library release for BoLS...It has something very cool in it.....and then there is the Island of Misfit Toys Campaign. That should be fun. How's the hobby treating you?

Go Roll Some Dice!!!

CRP

What Gamers Do...Cheeseburger Josh Gets Tased For Christmas.

2010-12-24T21:17:00.000-08:00

Hey gang, Crazyredpraetorian here, with some inside scoop on the crazy things gamers do when not gaming. Some play WOW, some are into other hobbies and others do even whackier things...like getting tased.

This week a bunch of us got together for a 40K Christmas party at Cheeseburger Josh's house. We sometimes play at his house instead of the local FLGS. So that we can cuss and be ourselves without being "warned" for using language that they even use on Sesame Street these days. Anyway, we had a full house, CBJ's brother splnes was there along with Josiah, Caldera02, Ferro, and Newkirby.

I got paired up against Caldera's Dark Eldar army. It was my third game against the new codex. The first game Caldera clobbered my Space Wolves, the second was against Darkwynn's DE using my IG, that was a closer battle but Cheaty Nick stole the victory from me. I ended up winning this game and Caldera has a new hatred for the Psychic Battle Squad.

Inbetween games, splnes shows CBJ the taser that he bought for their sister. CBJ said that it wasn't strong enough and that he could prove it. If you haven't watched the video yet, now is a good time. We had a great laugh and CBJ wasn't harmed during the filming of this video.....atleast not much....LOL.

What crazy antics do you and your gaming buddies do when you get together....keep it clean guys, no stripper, pimp, or shootout stories......I've been warned.

Now Go Roll Some Dice!!!
CRP

Area 51 RTT

2010-11-19T01:00:00.000-08:00

Well, the bad news is I didn't win. I felt good going into the tournament. Game one I played a real cool Space Marine player. He was a great sport and we had a great game. I got max points. Game two did not go so well for me. I was up against Big Red's Death Guard. He used a Lysander list and capitalized on two rounds of bad shooting by me and took full points. It was one of those "What the hell just happened?" games. It was a fun game nonetheless. Game three was the low point of the tournament for me. I was up against a leaf blower cut and paste list. My opponent and I started to disagree on firing angles on turn one and it really was just not a fun game. Add to that some really lousy dice rolls and....you get the picture. It ended 2-0 in favor of my opponent. The last game was against Real Genuis and was a fun game. Once again my dice started real cold but got warmer as the game went on. I got the win and had a great opponent. So over all 3 great games out of 4, not bad. I'd have liked better results but it was fun.

A problem I had with the scoring system; They had 4 victory conditions and used 3 per game, changing up the order. I found this to be less than ideal. It just seemed like I was playing the same mission every game. I hope the TOs go to a different system for the next tournament as it could have been more fun with different missions. Overall, they did a good job, terrain was great, the schedule worked pretty smooth, and prize support looked good.

This weekend I am going to Killeen for an 1850pt tournament there. I'm bringing the Praetorians again with a few minor tweaks......Do you smell what Crazy Red Praetorian is cooking????!!!!

Go Roll Some Dice!!!|
CRP

ROADTRIP!!!!

2010-11-12T22:33:00.000-08:00

In a few hours a bunch of us will be leaving for Grapevine Tx for a tournament there. There are 50 spots and it is full with alternates in place. There are about 15 of us from Austin signed up. It should be a great time. I'm bringing the IG and will have some Battle Reps when I get back. Well, I have to get some sleep, I'm meeting up with Bushido, Big Red, Aventine, Real Genius and Mark at 5 am.......It's 12:30 now.....SHIT!!!

Go Roll Some Dice!!!
CRP

Is the Imperial Guard Really a Push Button Win Army?

2010-11-07T05:56:00.000-08:00

I finally got to play a tournament and won 1st place! It was my first tournament since May. I haven't used the Praetorians in a tournament in while, as I have been using Space Wolves. I haven't shot that much in quite a long time. The list I brought isn't a heavy mech list. It's more of a hybrid list specializing in breaking mech.

All three games went extremely well for me and managed 3 massacres. I seized intiative twice and one opponent elected to give me first turn. My dice were hot and my opponents were having average die rolls at best. I faced a Space Wolf Footwing army, An Abbaddon/Lash army, and a BA Dread/Lasplas army.

I'm really stoked to be able to get some tournament play in. Winning yesterday was just great way to come back to the local tournament scene. Next week, a bunch of us(about 15-20) are migrating north to Grapevine Tx for a 50 man tournament. Hopefully, my luck will hold or atleast the IG win button will still function.

Some one said, in a not so sportsman like way "It's so easy a cave man could do it." Are IG really that OP? Is it really a push button instant win army? What do you think?

Go Roll Some Dice!!!

CRP

I FEEL GOOD!!! IT'S TOURNAMENT TIME!!!

2010-10-29T00:03:00.000-07:00

I can finally play tournaments again! My work schedule has changed and I am ready to throw down some good ol' IG ass stompin'. Having said that watch me get tabled.....lol. I have 3 tournaments in the next 4 weeks. I have a hand full of models to paint to get my new list ready. So, the Praetorians will be seeing some time on the painting table....finally. But, first I have to finish some 28mm Germans for an article on BoLS.

Yesterday, I got three games in. 1500 pts of Space Puppies was the first one. I played against a Black Templar player. He was actually using the BT codex and I brought a wolf heavy list. The next game I played an Eldar list with the Praetorians. I used an 1850 list that I have been working on and my opponent brought 2000pts of space elves. The last game was a pretty epic team game. Caldera02 and I teamed up against the Eldar player and Paul the treadhead. Paul was using his IA armor company list. Corey and Paul each played 2000pts each and Caldera02 and I each brought our 1850pt lists. After the last game we all went out for breakfast and some good old fashion smack talk. We also came up with a few tweaks for my 1850 list.

Well, the tournament schedule is looking like I'll be playing here in Austin on the 6th, in the Dallas area the 13th, and then going to Killeen on the 20th. November is looking like fun already....along with overtime.....It will be a busy month.

Go Roll Some Dice!!!

CRP

Finally Some Praetorian Love

2010-10-20T23:10:00.000-07:00

I finally got to play some good old Praetorians tonight. It was a blast. I played a team game against Fluff Bunny Paul with his IA armored company. His partner was a new player that is playing Elysians and had a Vulture on the field. My partner was also a new player that was using Eldar. It was a lot of fun and a nice break from playing harder lists.

WHAT'S THAT SMELL? GAMER FUNK, MYTH, LEGEND, OR MENACE?

2010-10-10T16:06:00.000-07:00

Recently on BoLS, The Girl wrote an article on hygiene among gamers. I was amazed at the amount of flaming that took place in the comment section. People did everything from cry stereotype to bitch about the article being worthless. There definitely is a stereotype out there of the stinky gamer. I hate to break this to you lads and lasses, the stereotype exists because it's true and there are a lot of smelly gamers out there. As to the article being worthless, I found it amusing and I hope some learn from it. Worthless? Hardly!

The Girl and I both are qualified to comment on this subject. We have both logged many hours cleaning up after smelly gamers. The Girl worked in a game store for quite a while and I owned game stores for a number of years. You would think that if gamers left that much of a mess at home that their parents would force them to live in the basement........OHHH, that's how that stereotype got started. Amazing how that works isn't it?

The next time you go to the game store take a shower, use soap and shampoo, apply deodorant, and pick up your 16 candy bar wrappers, 6 soda bottles, and numerous chip bags and throw them away in that can that the employees use for trash. Do this and see if people treat you better. You might be surprised.

Get clean, smell good, and go roll some dice!

CRP

Tragedy and the Birth of a Man Cave

2010-08-19T21:29:00.000-07:00

The Austin gaming community suffered a terrible loss this month. Our local hardcore gaming store has closed, leaving many in the Austin gaming community with a hard choice.....Where do we play? Luckily, there are other stores in the area that have game space and are trying to accomodate the community. However, these stores are diverse in their product and so attract a different crowd. No cussing.......now that is annoying. Hobby over Heavy.......can't we have both? This also leaves us with less tournaments per month. We will miss you Battle Forge Games......R.I.P.

Yesterday, I went to my teammate Cheeseburger Josh's house for a day of shit talking, ballbusting, and terrain building. It was a manly day of epic proportions. Josh banished his wife and kids to the bedrooms so that we could have the kitchen for a day of terrain construction. We talked 40K, drank gallons of Mountain Dew Throwback(with real sugar!!!) and ate a couple of tons of Taco Bell....Oh, and talked a bunch of shit at each other. It's amazing how brutal the insults can get with 5 guys in the same room.

The reason for the terrain building day was Josh now has his own man cave! It is not attached to the house and has room for two 4x6 tables. We did get in one 2000pt game and the setup worked really well. We have decided to play at his place a few nights a month. That way we can cuss and trash talk as much as we want without offending the soccer moms, D&D players and dirty card flippers....and we will still make appearances at the local shops to get fresh opponents and play tournaments.

I'll get some pictures of the terrain next week....and maybe even a battle report.

Go roll Some Dice.

CRP

BOLSCO..WARGAMESCON!!! WHERE WAS I?

2010-08-02T08:31:00.000-07:00

I didn't get to roll a single damn die at WarGamesCon. My plan to be there for open gaming fell through due to a schedule change at work. I did get to stop by on Sunday to meet a few people, including Brent from Strictly Average and Tasty Taste from Blood of Kittens. I also ran into some opponents from last year, it was good to see them again. I really wish I could have competed but it just wasn't in the cards.

A couple of my teamates and regular opponents did pretty well, coming up just a tad short.

Finishing just short of the prizes is quite a disappointment, I know it happened to me last year. You'll get the win next time guys.

WarGamesCon appeared to be an even bigger success than last year and I am looking forward to being there ALL weekend next year. Congratulations Jwolf and crew, y'all did an awesome job.

I've got to get ready for work.....crap!!!

Go Roll Some Dice!!!

CRP

Tournament Pics From 5-15 or Man Am I Behind

2010-07-14T18:56:00.001-07:00

Here are some pics from the hobby tournament at BattleForge Games back in May. The first round I played Adam's Chaos army. Adam is always alot of fun to play win or lose. Fortunately, the SWs pulled the win here.

2nd round I pulled one of my regular opponents and occasional teammate, Chris. His Nids are always tough and he got the win....this time. *flips Chris off*

The last round I played Kingsley's great looking Mantis Warriors. We ended up in a draw, thanks to some smart play by Kingsley.

As always the BFG Hobby Tournament was a lot of fun. Turnout was a little light with only about 22 players. Good times, though!

Go Roll Some Dice

CRP

Bol...errr WarGameCon 2010

2010-07-13T20:54:00.000-07:00

Well, I am looking forward to the biggest weekend of wargaming in Austin. Unfortunately, I will not be able to participate in the Team Tournament or the 2 day Tournament due to work. However, I do plan on being there Friday evening and all day Saturday for some open gaming and heavy beer swilling. I will have the III Praetorian Rifles on hand as well as my Space Wolves. My goal is to get as many games in as I can and drink as much beer as is humanly possible. So, if you're planning on being at WarGameCon and have time for a game, shoot me an email and let's get a game in or grab a beer or six.

I know this year is going to be even better than last year and I really wish I was going to be able to compete this year. So, I really envy all of you that can participate. I know you are in for the most fun and toughest tournament of the year. Y'all have fun and if you spot me at the Con be sure and come by and introduce yourself.

I've got to get back to painting.

Go Roll Some Dice

CRP

SO HEAVY IT'S HOBBY SPACE WOLF LIST

2010-04-28T16:40:00.000-07:00

Well, I finally won a tournament this year. It was last Sunday @ BFG for the 1250pt Super Hobby Sunday(Will of Chaos). I brought a "Logan Wing" build minus Logan. It consisted of a Wolf Priest, a Rune Priest, 5 Scouts, 3 PA Wolf Guard, 4 Wolf Guard in TDA(Hvy Flamer/PW, Combi-melta/PF, WCs, & TH/SS) in a DP, 5 man Wolf Guard squad (2x Combi-flamer/pw, pw/bp, 2x stormbolter) in a rhino, 2 5 man Grey Hunter(1 plasma, 1 melta) squads in Rhinos, and 5 Long Fangs with Missle Launchers. Not many troops, so the army was hard hitting but fragile.

Game 1 I played BAs, I ended up with a massacre, game 2 was against SMs and I also got a massacre, Game 3 was the toughest game of the day against Splug's foot Eldar. I managed to take out his Avatar in the first round of shooting the game was hard fought but Splug ended up conceding on turn 5. So I ended up with a 3-0 for the day and had my first victory at BFG.

I am playing in another Team tournament this Saturday, a Heavy tournament @ BFG, and Ard Boyz this month. Unfortunately, I will miss the last Will of Chaos Hobby Tournament due to work.

On the hobby front, I have some Sky Claws with Green stuffed mullethawks on the paint table and an Iron Priest/Canis conversion WIP. I am also working on some Nid drop pods......and I have started another Praetorian platoon.......oh and another Hydra turret and another Manticore turret.

Go Roll Some Dice!!!
CRP

CHAPTERHOUSE STUDIOS MAKES DOING PREHERESY EASY

2010-03-25T17:45:00.000-07:00

First of all, I have not used this kit....yet. However, after seeing DeSnifter's conversion on BoLS, I really wanted to do some preheresy Rhinos to go with my preheresy Space Wolves. I really hate plasticard...and it hates me. So, this conversion was not going to work for me. I went ahead and did some Mk II's with wolf pelts and thought I was done. Until I saw this conversion kit by Chapter House Studios (chapterhousestudios.com) . The kit appears to be very straight forward and judging from other Chapter House products that I have seen, the quality should be great. I am now determined to have some MkIs for the Wolves. At a cost of $16.50, it will save plenty of cussin' and blood.

On a related note, Chapter House also makes some cool MkI shoulder pads. The also have some new preheresy jump packs that are cooler than hell. Go check them out chapterhousestudios.com

What do you think about these products? Would you like to see more Preheresy bits and kits?
Now go roll some dice!

CRP

ADEPTICON OR BUST!

2010-03-21T13:21:00.000-07:00

My plan was to go to Adepticon this year. However, life does happen. Last week, I was hired to work at Dell computers. So, my dreams of conquest at Adepticon will have to be postponed while I pursue finacial security. I was really looking forward to the trip as there are atleast 20 locals going to the event. I'd like to wish my teammates and all the other Minions/BoLS players much good fortune in all the events. I hope y'all kick ass and have fun.

Even though, I won't be able to attend, I will be there in spirit and 2 of my armies will be there, as well. The III Praetorian Rifles and my Space Wolf armies will both be used in the team tournament. So, if you're at Adepticon and happen to see my armies and have any questions or comments about conversions, feel free to leave a comment here on my blog.
I have played quite a few tournaments lately. That is partly to blame for me not writing a blog for a while. One tournament in particular was a real downer due to some flat out cheating. It really left a bad taste in my mouth. In my world 22 is always more than 18 but, I will write more on this later. Despite the one bad tournament I have been involved in a some really good tournaments, lately.

We had a 2500pt Hobby tournament that was fun, I was able to use 2 squads of Ogryn, a 1250pt Super Hobby tournament that was an absolute blast, A 2500pt Hobby Team tournament, my partner and I went to table 1 for the last game and got beat by Jwolf and Goatboy, and a 2000pt Heavy tournament that was pretty intense. I got to table 3 in that one but, pulled a draw against Colby Anger(BoLScon 2009 best general) and got knocked out of placing. The turnouts at BFG have been really outstanding lately(30+) and one tournament they actually had to turn a player away. Also, I have been playing in an escalation league. We are up to 1250pt, so far. The Space Wolves are coming along and I look forward to getting the whole army done.

If you're going to Adepticon, have fun. If not, are you planning to be at any other GT level event? Hopefully, I'll see you at BoLScon 2010!

Now, get out there and roll some dice!

CRP

UNDER PRESSURE: WORKING ON DEADLINES PART: 2

2010-01-15T10:21:00.000-08:00

Well, since my last blog, I have played in three tournaments. For those of you wondering, I did make my deadline for the tournament in Killeen. I am extremely happy with my display board. It is light and a compact enough not to cause problems in cramped quarters, a major problem with my last display board. I'll get some pics up soon. Unfortunately, I am under another deadline. How the hell does this keep happening?

Tomorrow, there is a Heavy tournament at Battle Forge Games, the local hot spot for 40K. The best in Austin will be bringing there hardest lists to fight it out for the plastic. I have decided to run a different list and I have to assemble and paint a Chimera, it's still on the sprue...and yes, ANOTHER Chimera! I also, need to get three gun servitors painted and possibly three special weapons troopers. I'm still not sure about the last three. I have about twenty-one hours to get this done....if I don't sleep....and I'm writing this blog....AWESOME!

The Killeen tournament didn't go too well for me, I got 2 minor wins and a draw and ended up in 6th. However, I did get the highest appearance scores and my buddies got 1st, best sportsman, and tied for best best sportman(tie breaker was victory points). The first week in January, I played in a team tournament at Dragon's Lair in Austin. It was a random pairs tournament, 1500pts per player. It turns out that there were 5 teams and 4 of those teams had newbies, newbie with Necrons and Tau. My newbie was a young man with a Necron list. We managed to get third place and took home some swag. It was alot fun. Last weekend, a buddy of mine and I went to San Antonio to play in a tournament there. The system for pairings was a little different. I'm still trying to figure out how the guy that won was able to pick his tables for the last two games and he played the guy in 8th place for the final game..........strange. Ah well, it was fun and I had three great games, finished just out of the prizes though.

I've got to go paint, paint, paint. Have fun and...

Go roll some dice!

CRP

UNDER PRESSURE: WORKING ON DEADLINES

2009-12-15T21:55:00.000-08:00

Well, I've done it again. I have procrastinated when I knew I had a tournament coming up and here I sit at midnight on Tuesday and I have alot of painting/modeling to do. I have a tournament Saturday morning, it is over an hour drive to get there. So, burning the midnight oil is going to be tough. The next three days are going to be tough. I have to assemble and paint a Chimera, a Sentinel, two sniper models, touch ups on the whole army and build a display base(the tournament I am attending gives +2 bonus points for display boards.)

All of this to do and here I am typing this blog..........yep, I'm procrastinating again. Am I the only one that does this?

Tournament Battle Report 12/05/09

2009-12-08T21:44:00.000-08:00

In Austin there are two stores to get your tournament fix. Both stores do one 40K event per month. When things work out well, they are not held on the same day. This past weekend there were two events on Saturday. Battle Forge Games was having their year end championship(Unfortunately, I didn't have enough points for the year for that one.) and Dragon's Lair had their monthly tournament. Dragon's Lair does different points levels and also does the occasional team tournament. This month it was 2000pts.

My first opponent Matt is a new player that has been pretty active since arriving on the scene, playing two or three days a week. He is taking part in our campaign and is always ready to throw some dice. Last month was his first tournament experience at BFG. Matt has a nicely painted Ultramarine army. Off of the top of my head his list is:

Sicarius w/ combat squad in a Rhino
combat squad w/ LC
Chaplain w/10 assault troops
5 scouts in a Storm
2x Sternguard in DPs
Tac squad in a DP
dreadnought
dreadnought in a DP
devastator squad HBs/PCs

Matt and I had a great game. Unfortunately, we ran out of time and he got the victory 2-1! So, a minor loss for me. I have to admit, I was a little put off. I had everything set up to clear some objectives on turn 5. So close....Ah well, my dreams of victory were fading. At lunch, I learned that all but one of the games were very close. So, maybe I was still in the running.

My next game was against another guy that I play against atleast one or two games a week. Josh is also fairly new to the game. However, he plays five to eight games a week. He keeps improving every week. This was not Josh's day, though. He was hungover and had lost his first game after a heated rules argument with another guy from our group. I stole the initiative and my dice went into alpha strike mode. At the end of turn two, He had two combat squads in rhinos left and one of them was imoblized. He called the game so, that he could take a nap.

Below is Josh taking his nap. Haaaaahahahahaha!
Josh's SM list

Lysander w/ 5 termies w/assault cannon DP

7 termies with TH/SS in a LRR

Vindicator

2x Thunderfire Cannons

10 Assault troopers

2 tac squads w/rhino

10 sniper scouts w/ Telion

I was feeling a little better about my chances going into round three. I drew Josh's brother Brian as my opponent. He has a pretty tough build.
5x Nob Bikers

10 Nobs Battle Wagon

5 MegNobs in a Battle Wagon

12 Boys in a truck

Warboss on a bike

Ard boyz in a truck

12 Boyz in a truck

We had a close battle. I was ripping him up and then the Nob Bikers hit. Luckily, I took out the pain boy and then hit them hard. I followed that up with weaken resolve and ran them off the board. Then his other Nobs and Mega Nobs hit. I managed to put some wouds on the Meganobs abd then slap them with the PBS. We ended turn four with him having two objectives and me having one and that was the game. I was a little frustrated at this point and I just knew that I was not even close to placing.

However, Dragon's Lair uses a comp score system. I had perfect comp and that nudged me up to 3rd place! I was shocked! I ended up taking home a Canis Wolfborn mini. It is assembled and 90% painted already.

Josh, Matt, and I stayed and played an 8000pt megabattle after the tournament. So, we played 13 hours of 40K on Saturday. It was a lot of fun, frustrating at times but fun. I need to work on my speed play(or stop bulshitting, so much) and I think I'm going to get a digital stop timer to keep a closer track of time.

I am a fan of the 2 hour round. However, this weekend really made me aware that I have to keep track of time( and stop blllshitting so much!). How much time do you prefer for tournament rounds?

Go Roll some Dice!!!

CRP

The Art of Smack Talking: How Much Is Too Much?

2009-12-02T17:41:00.000-08:00

Do you talk smack with your buddies or opponents when you are playing 40K? I play with a pretty competitive group and there is always some smack talk going. Lately, that smack talk has escalated to plain old fashioned shit talking. I mean, it is getting ove the top, mothers, fathers, girlfriends, cars, type of armies, anything is fair game,................. and it has been a blast!

Saturday night, we played an 8000pt 4 player game. It was a great, close game and the shit talking got a little LOUD. I didn't realize it at the time because I was caught up in the game and trying to out smack talk my opponents. After the game, we all went out for a burger.

When we were outside my game partner said " Man you were pretty pissed at Chris, huh?"
My reply was "Not at all, I was having fun."

Over dinner/breakfast(what do you call a burger at 1am?) we all talked about the game, the campaign we are all participating in, and finally denigrating into "One Time...." stories.

Later, I got to thinking when does smack talk go to far? We often have other gamers and bystanders think that we are serious. We always laugh it off.

On the flip side of this, I have had some opponents at tournaments that get a little too serious. I don't even think they are having a good time half the time. These are guys that will give you dirty look if you make a light hearted comment. When I get that look, I know I am in for a crappy game. However, this makes me try harder to beat them. I really like to table guys with no sense of humor.

How much smack taking goes on in your group? Do you enjoy smack talking or do you find it annoying? Does it detract or add to your gaming experience?

Later, I have mucho painting to do!

Go Roll Some Dice!

CRP

Tournament Addiction???

2009-11-08T21:27:00.000-08:00

In slightly less than a year, I have participated in more tournaments than I have in the previous 8 years combined. What brought this on? When and why did I become such a "tournament whore"? Well, I moved to Austin and started playing with an extremely hyperactive gaming community and I started(out of necessity) an army that I have been wanting to do for years. Last month, I played in 3 tournaments.....3 tournaments...in.....1.....month. Some would say that is a little excessive. But, I am having an AWESOME time!

Below are some pictures from a tournament in Kileen Tx that was at Battlefield Games. It is a great store and Will the owner runs great events, I would play there more often if it was closer than an hour and a half drive. Also, my condolences and prayers go out to all the victims of the tragic shootings at Fort Hood.

I ended up finishing second after a great game on table one(massacre, massacre, and a draw). We ended in a tie and the win came down to a difference of less than 200 victory points. Yes, they used Victory points in Kileen. They also used the 3rd Edition deployment rules. It was great.

Red IG vs. Purple Nids in the final.

7 Valkyries, I had to do a double take. 7, 7 Valkyries. Wow!

This Ork horde had some great looking models.

This players display board was titled "Deep Strike Mishap". Notice the 3 Chaos Terminators.

I played another tournament, yesterday. It was a lot of fun. However, I had terrible results (a draw, a minor loss and another draw). The dice gods hated me, it was fun though. There is a Heavy tournament later this month, too. Hmmmmmm........

Have fun and roll some dice!

CRP

Heavy Hobby?

2009-10-05T23:02:00.000-07:00

Lately, it seems that this hobby has been really eating up my time. I have been playing a lot. 30 games in the last month including 2 Apoc games. Thursday is the night most of the 40K crowd converges on Battle Forge Games. It was indeed a full day of gaming. I played 3 200opt games and at midnight we decided to start a 12000 pt Apoc game (SM/IG/SM VS Orks/ Iron Warriors/Orks). We finished up around 4am. I'm sure it will affect the marital status of some that were involved. Thanks for staying open late, Brandon! Saturday, I played in a tournament. I was sick and it affected my playing but, I still had fun.

I have 2 more tournaments to play in this month. BFG's "hobby" tournament is this Saturday. I still need to "detune" my army a little. Then on the 24th there is a tournament about 70 miles from Austin. I attended one of their tournaments in the past and had an absolute blast. The owner runs a great tournament and it's always fun to play a new group of players.

Most of my paint time has been spent on the Space Wolves, lately. I still need to buckle down and get some more Praetorians painted. ..........So, many minis and so little time.

Happy Gaming!!!

BoLScon 09!!! What A Blast!!!

2009-08-25T14:43:00.001-07:00

What can be said about the first BoLScon? It was definitely a success. It was a party. It was the best 40K event I have ever attended. The event ran smooth, the players were gracious, even the ones I had disagreements with. It just goes to show that a competitive event doesn't have to be all about WAAC.

The Friday night Lucky 13 game was a great time. It was a little fast paced for me(not by much just a tad). But, I did deploy across the board and ended up fighting 2 armies with less than 3/4 of my forces. I died horribly and it was an absolute epic good time.

I got to bed Saturday morning about 3:30 am, but was back at BolScon by 7:30 am. Saturday was an absolute blast and I had better results than I expected. I didn't bring a real "HARD" army. I was trying to stay away from the "Mech IG" list. I really wanted to bring a gun line but, I didn't get the models done in time. I played against a Space Wolves, SM, a beautiful
IG Vostyran army, and an IG Mech army. I managed to come out on top every game and was the top Austin player going into the second day. I was shocked to say the least.

Saturday was another late night, I sat around talking to some other players and wisely avoided getting drunk. I met John Schaeffer from GW. He was really nice and had a few painting tips. It was early in the morning before I got to bed Sunday morning. My alarm went off waaaaay too early and it was time for day 3. The tournament started early Sunday and I played against a Mech Eldar, Blood Angels, and Mech SM. I managed to win 2 of the 3 games and ended up in 13th place overall. I didn't get max points in a single game. However, with the exception of the loss I scored consistently in the 30s. On game 6, I only scored 3 pts. I will always remember that Corbulo is NOT Fearless lol. A critical mistake on my part.

Overall, it was the most fun I have had in a long time. I will definitely be there next year. I hope to see a lot of you there, too. I can't recommend this event enough. Yes, it was that great! Below is a copy of my list. What do you think?

Command- Bolter, LC, 2x Sniper Rifle

Primaris Psyker

TROOPS

Command-Bolter, LC, 2x Sniper Rifle

Squad 1- AC, Sniper Rifle

Squad 2- HB, Sniper Rifle

Squad 3- Melta

HWS 1- 3x LC

HWS 2- 3x LC

Penal Legion

Vet Squad 1- Sgt w/pw & plasma pistol, 2x plasma, melta, demo

Vet Squad 2- Harker 3x melta, demo, Chimera

ELITE

Ratlings x3

Ratlings x4

PBS x9, Chimera

FAST ATTACK

Valkyrie- Multi rocket pods

HEAVY

Demolisher- LC, 2x PC

LRBT- 3x HB

2 x Hydra

Praetorian Penal Legion and Vets

2009-08-02T20:37:00.000-07:00

As I promised last week, here are some pics of my latest Praetorian troops. The Vet Squad are the Black and Tans. They get a black jacket to signify their veteran status. Otherwise, they are painted just like my normal troops. They are equipped with extra ammo pouches and grenades. There are also quite a few minor conversions in the squad.

First of all, since GW never gave the Praetorians plasma, I had to make my own. I used the plasma pistol barrel bit from the old close combat accessory sprue that GW used to sell as a blister. It involved cutting up a flamer trooper and some filing. it's a retty straight forward conversion.

The basic vets all have shotguns. I converted their lasguns into double barreled under & overs. I used brass tubing for this. While it does look a bit clunky, I like the results. Also, one of the shotgunners has a demo charge. This was made out of a Catachan vox unit.

The Sgt. was given a plasma pistol from a Space Wolf Blood Claw sprue and a power ax from the above mentioned close combat accessory sprue.

The banner bearer is still waiting for a banner. I cut away the original banner pole and used brass rod in it's place, adding the original top piece to it.

The Penal Legion still need final detailing. I thought about using plastic models instead. But, now I'm glad I didn't. I like the orange uniforms with the black P on the back and no "bling". I have enjoyed fielding this unit. They have already done some epic missions and they have also failed completely. But, they are fun.

What are you using for Vets and Penal Legion?

HYDRA TURRET CONVERSION TUTORIAL: Part 2 PRAETORIAN

2009-07-28T17:12:00.000-07:00

All the major pieces got a primer coat. I primed the search light black because it wasn't getting any red surfaces. The guns normally would have gotten sprayed black. But, the sensor arrays have red covers. I hate painting red over black!

Everything after the first base coat. For red, I usually do 3-5 thinned coats of red.

Here the rough details are done. Now they get a thinned wash of black ink....Yes, I still use the old inks.

Another view before ink and details.

The finished turret.

Another view....one of these days I'm going to get a grown up camera.LOL

Finished and sitting on its' new home.

Side view.

I think I'm going to build 4 of these. I'm very tempted to run 2 squadrons. I normally don't run squadrons but.........I am thinking about it. It's a lot of fire power for very little points cost.

HYDRA TURRET CONVERSION TUTORIAL: Part 1

2009-07-28T12:35:00.000-07:00

Howdy! I wanted to add some Hydras to my army on occasion. However, I wanted to be able to field more Chimeras at times, as well. So, I decided to convert some Hydra turrets without chopping up my Chimeras. Some of my Chimeras will be doing double duty. Here is the result.

The above picture shows all the parts needed to assemble a Hydra turret. All parts came out of the Aegis Defense Line kit. The only additional parts needed are brass rod, and a bit of plasticard.

Assemble the armor sections as normal, except the top armor. It will be put on the bottom. Next cut a piece of Plasti-card out to fill the top section. I had to shave a little off the back tabs of the armor sections to get the platicard to fit flush.

Drill a hole in each of the side armor plates. I used the center point between the 2nd "bolts"near the back corner to make sure the holes lined up. Cut brass rod to size. Drill the auto cannons to accept the rod and assemble. The "top" armor is glued to the bottom and a strip of plasticard is needed to fill the gap. Next, add the bottom gun mount and drill it to accept some brass rod to allow the Hydra turret to fit in the stock turrets mounting hole.

Side view of assembled turret.

Here is the finished product. The guns elevate and the turret will be able to swivel as well.
Now, I just have to get it painted. Part 2 will go through the paint process and show what this turret looks like on the Chimera hull.

Please, let me know what you think about this project.

BACK TO WORK! MORE PRAETORIANS

2009-07-26T22:14:00.000-07:00

Well, I have been side tracked a bit, lately. I've played a few tournaments, Lucky 13s, Ard Boyz, built the pod racer, and most recently have been working on terrain for BoLScon 09. Do you have your place secured, yet? It is going to be a blast! But....I digress.

Having taken a break for awhile I am ready to get back into the swing of things. There is a hobby tournament coming up at Battleforge Games(battleforgegames.com 20% off all GW products! Give them a try!). I am thinking that I may run a good old fashioned gun line for this tournament....with a twist. Yes, I know it probably won't be competitive. But, it will be fun. I plan to get some more troops painted. Probably a 35 man platoon w/heavy weapons squads.....Also with BoLScon around the corner, I need to get the army in presentable shape. So, repairs, touch ups and some changes to my list require additional painting as well(maybe some more Chimeras and more Vets). I'm still not sure on that, though.

Even though, I have not posted any Praetorians lately, I have finished two squads. I did a Praetorian Penal Legion and a Praetorian Vet Squad w/ plasma guns, double barreled shotguns, a Sgt. w/ a power ax and plasma pistol and a demo charge trooper. I havent had a chance to take pictures but, I should have some pics up by the end of the week.

Who's coming to BoLScon? Let me know and maybe we can get a game in during open gaming.

GOOD LUCK AT 'ARD BOYZ!!!

2009-07-11T06:44:00.001-07:00

Good luck to everyone playing in 'Ard Boyz today! Have fun!

SPORTSMANSHIP.

2009-07-05T11:44:00.000-07:00

In the past few months, I have been playing a lot of 40K. Usually, I play 2 or 3 games every Thursday, 1 or 2 games on Friday, and I try to play 2 tournaments a month.....and I sometimes get pickup game during the week. Most of my experiences have been very enjoyable. However, every now and then there is a squabble over rules or I encounter some one that is just no fun to play against. Winning or losing has very little to do with this. Hell, some of my most enjoyable games were ones where I had my ass handed to me. I had one such game yesterday. In my book, nothing is as much of a buzzkill as a bad sport.

How do you handle playing a sore loser or worse a sore winner? Are you a sore loser or is some one you know a sore loser? Should sportsmanship scores be a higher percentage of overall points?

GETTING SMOKED

2009-07-03T13:23:00.001-07:00

Last night I went up to Battleforge Games(battleforgegames.com 20% off all GW products!!!) and played a few games. Talk about two totally different games. The first game I played a shooty IG list @ 1500pts. My opponent was a new player. He was playing SM. The game started and I tried to hold back but, it was one of those games where I was hitting everything and he was rolling the "bad dice from hell". The game ended in turn 4.

I backed this up with a practice game for Ard Boyz. Once again I played against SM. This was a totally different game. Drop pods with Lysander, CC Termies, and melta equiped SM, were in my lines on turn 1. It was pretty brutal. Turn 3 I called it. I could still do damage but, it was apparent that it was a losing battle, and it was close to closing time. I have no doubt that I would have been tabled. But, I learned a lesson about deployment and the level of the lists that will be on the tables at Ard Boyz. This should be fun.

How are you preparing for Ard Boyz?

BoLScon Pod Racing!!! Here's mine!!!

2009-06-29T14:32:00.000-07:00

I decided to take a very short break from the Praetorians. I have been working on them alot lately and just needed a change. Two weeks ago while at Battleforge Games(battleforgegames.com 20% off all GW products!) I was able to run my Valkyrie in a play test for the pod race rules. The game played fast and was a ton of fun.....annnnd I won! Yesterday, I dug through my bits box and came up with the parts to make my Ork Pod Racer. I apologize for the poor picture quality. But, I think you can get the general idea from the pictures. Are you going to participate? If so, what kind of racer are you going to run?

Switching Armies

2009-06-25T23:07:00.001-07:00

Saturday, I am playing in a 1500pt tournament at Battlefield Games in Kileen Tx. The twist is that in the first two rounds my opponents will play my army and I will be playing their armies. The third round everyone plays their own army as in any other tournament. This should be very interesting, as I have been out of the hobby for a few years. Trying to adapt to what could be two more entirely different armies will definitely be a challenge.

Here is the list I will be taking:

HQ

Command- Senior officer w/bolter, Lascannon, 2x sniper rifles and Master of Ordance.
Chimera

TROOPS

Command- Jr. officer w/bolter, Lascannon, 2x sniper rifles

Squad 1- Auto cannon, grenade launcher

Squad 2- Heavy bolter, plasma

Heavy weapon Squad- 3x Lascannon

Penal Squad

Veteran Squad- Sgt w/ power weapon and plasma pistol, 2x plasma, melta, demo charge, and shotguns

FAST ATTACK

Valkyrie- Multilaser and multi rocket pods

HEAVY SUPPORT

Leman Russ- 3x Heavy bolter

Demolisher- Lascannon, 2x plasma cannons

ELITE

Psyker Battle Squad- x 9
Chimera

Ratlings x 5

Ratlings x 5

I think this list is pretty solid with 6 scoring units and a possible 4 pie plates a turn. What do you think?

Have any of you ever done a tournament in this format before? If so, what was your experience like?

BAD DICE

2009-06-20T00:20:00.000-07:00

Have you ever just had a some really bad dice rolls? I mean, really bad dice. I have had quite a few games like that, lately. I'm not taking anything away from my opponents. I have played some truly top tier players in the last few weeks. But, 2000pts of IG shooting for 2 turns and killing 1 Killa Kan, 5 Boyz, and 6 Lootas. that is some horrific shooting. Try 2000pts of IG shooting at 2000pts of Dark Eldar.......one shaken Raider........ONE!!!

How do you personally deal with bad dice? Some people buy new dice, some change colors, and I even knew one guy that kept a small sledge hammer in his car. If he had bad dice, it was HAMMERTIME! My old gaming group always got a kick out of watching him smash 36 dice on the sidewalk in front of my old store. I especially liked it because I knew he'd be buying more dice. Please, post about your own personal way of dealing with BAD DICE.......

2000pt Tournament

2009-06-09T20:47:00.000-07:00

Well, I finally got 2000pts fully painted.....almost anyway. I still have to finish the Leman Russ, the Hull Heavy Bolter and surrounding armor section were lost in Hurricane Ike. I have acquired the parts and it will be completed for the next tournament.

My first game was against another IG player. The objective was to get the most kill points. It was as expected a very bloody close battle. The final score was 6 to 7, a minor victory for my opponent.

The second round was against Tyranids. My opponent used to work in a bronze factory and had recast all of his figures out of bronze. Talk about Eavy Metal. This round went well for me and was a major victory, even though Col. Straken was dragged down by 2 ripper swarms.

The third round I faced Orks. I was feeling pretty confident. 2 rounds of shooting and I killed a Killa Kan, 5 boyz, and 6 Lootas. Not good, the dice gods had deserted me, completely. My opponent brought his Kommandos in behind my lines and his Ard Boyz and Nobz hit me from the front. Thanks to the Valkyrie coming in on the last turn I was able to contest one objective. it was a major victory for my opponent. He won the overall and I ended up getting 3rd place.

I had a great time and learned quite a bit. 5th Ed. is a lot different from 4th and I am playing catch up. I look forward to the next Tournament. This one was definitely a good time.

2000pts painted at last.

Praetorian Valkyrie Update! Finished!

2009-05-28T15:45:00.000-07:00

Well, it's finished, just in time for Thursday Game Night @ Battle Forge Games. Speaking of......I gotta run!

Praetorian Valkyrie (WIP)

2009-05-27T14:34:00.000-07:00

Today, I am posting up some pics of a WIP Valkyrie. This was a prize that I got in a tournament a while back. It was a "black box" model. So, I have to make a stand for it. The model is just about finished except for the canopy(I need to get some vaporless glue) and the flying base. Please, excuse the poor picture quality. Hurricane Ike borrowed my camera and it is somewhere in the middle of the Gulf Of Mexico right now along with the rest of my townhouse.

2009-05-25T20:41:00.000-07:00

Well, today I had a 2000pt game against Tyranids. Things went pretty well, my opponent conceded at the top of turn 5. Here is the list that I used:

Col. Straken w/ 4x vets in carapace, 2x meltagun, 2x flamer, mounted in a Chimera(extra armor)

Lord Commisar w/ power fist
Ogyrn x 5 mounted in a Chimera(extra armor), Killed 10 genestealers and 3 warriors.

Leman Russ 3x heavy bolters (extra armor)

Demolisher lascannon, 2x plasma cannon, (extra armor)

Valkyrie hellfury rockets, multi-laser, heavy bolters
Veterans x10 meltagun, plasma rifle, grenade launcher, & demo charge. Sgt. w/ plasma pistol & power sword. I gave them Demo and Grenadier Doctines. Expensive squad that underperformed.

Platoon:
Command officer w/bolter, lascannon, 2x sniper rifles.

Squad 1 lascannon & grenade launcher.

Squad 2 missle launcher & plasma rifle.

Squad 3 autocannon & grenade launcher.

Heavy Weapons Squad 1 3x lascannon.

Heavy Weapon Squad 2 3x missle launcher.

Ratling Squad 1 5x ratlings

Ratling Squad 2 8x ratlings

Overall, I am happy with this list. However, I will be tweaking it further. The upside is there is a great deal of flexibility that no gunline has. The downside is that I miss the large gunline.

I did some painting today. Hopefully, I can get some pics taken tomorrow and get them posted.

Crazy Red Praetorians

2009-05-25T11:37:00.000-07:00

I thought I would start a blog to chronicle the building of my 40k Imperial Guard Army. I chose the OOP Praetorians. Why did I choose this particular army? Well, it started out as a joke. I had one squad of Praetorians in my first IG army. They were a big red target to most of my opponents. As a joke I started buying/trading for the hard to find Praetorians at every opportunity. This was years ago when most players didn't want metal models. Years later, all of my GW armies were stolen, except for the Praetorians that were in storage. I didn't play for 3 years.

Late last year(2008), my 10 year old son expressed a desire to play 40k. So, I broke out the old minis and started trying to get back into the swing of thing. I started painting and bought the 5th Ed. rule book. I was lucky enough to be in the 40k hot spot of Austin Tx. I have already played in a few tournaments....with partially painted minis.

I figured this blog would help motivate me to get some minis finished. I will post pics in the near future.