Dusk settled across the expanse of the great city, shadows darkening as the air chilled over the streets below. Watching from atop the vast walls, all seemed in bliss, as marketeers closed, mothers rushed children into the warm of their hearth, and dogs barked at imaginary life in the shadows. All seemed to be well, all seemed at peace.
But it's in the quiet, that all stories stir....
Miss me?
It has been yet again a long time since I have found the time to attend my blog, and now I wonder if my followers may have found better writers and are too busy pouring over their words written to the screen, to notice the stirring. The stirring that represets the return of An Empire Fallen.
As I have mentioned prior, this year has to this point been an extremely full on one, and coupled with hobby burnout, I have well avoided the tables, both for dice rolling and paint splattering. Hobby updates have been left unnoticed, and my presence has been absent from tournaments (which I am sure everyone was happy not to see the Blood Hunt on the tables!).
But this vacation from the reality of my second love (with coffee being my first) has come to an end, and I intend to return.
So firstly, what is hitting my painting table? Well, amongst the boxes and mess that is my unpacked office/studio, I have managed to find space to set out my Empire of Sonnstahl models. After a lot of repair work on many of the miniatures, I have finally started making work on giving them some much required painting. As the only army that I own that I have not finished painting a single model for (even though it is probably my second largest collection) I decided that it was time.
This collection will be adorn in the colours of Altdorf, a city-state from the history of another tabletop game. This red and blue painted force will not however be led by an Emperor, but by a Queen, and I am sure will open my mind to many more tales to be written.
I am starting off by painting a unit of Handgunners, a unit of Demigryphs (or whatever they are called now), an OOP volley gun and a Wizard of Pyromancy. The reasoning behind these choices will become apparent latter.
Alongside this, I am starting work to compete in the diorama section of the T9A NZ Autumn Paint comp. Although I will not share my creation plans until it is complete, I can tell you that it is also set in a Empire city-state, and I would not like to be the guy on the other end of the barrel so to speak.
As for events, well, things are well underway in the planning of Warbanner IV, which I host in Napier every October. Dates are yet to be confirmed, but the playerpack is underway, and as we aim each year, should be more interesting then ever!
My close friend and tournament travel partner (whose name shall be, Annoymous) has taken it upon himself to run his first event. He has opted for a local slow grow campaign, with simple criteria, designed to teach new players how to play and get them interested. Starting at 1000pts, this campaign will run for 3 months, with the points level increasing by 1000pts at the end of each moon.
It is for this campaign that I have chosen to paint the models I have, and as my intention is to only paint models I will later need in my tournament list, I am expecting to end up playing some very strange and unorthodox lists will getting my Empire painted.
Directly following this campaign, I shall host the Hawkes Bay Regional Championships in its third year, and second year using the T9A rules. Although we have had a decent coverage of players previously, this year I am hoping to see an increase, and the slow grow will definitely aid in this.
Finally, I have just confirmed that Panzershriek 2017 will be my first tournament back. This will be my third year in attendance at this longstanding Palmerston North event, and as with each year, I cannot wait to get back to its tables! Although originally this was to be my second tournament this year, I have unfortunately had to cancel NiCon shortly after deciding I was going, due to, well, let's say the gods demanded more payment.
So if you have successfully managed to read through this jumble of words we call sentences, and haven't been distracted by either unicorns or your knew favourite blogger/storyteller/shittalker, I thank you.
For you may not have missed me, but I have missed you.
And my Blood Hunt, well, they have missed the taste of your blood and flesh as they tear it away from your trembling bones.....
Tuesday, 25 April 2017
Saturday, 11 February 2017
February 2017: An Empire Rising
Hello, it's me
I've been wondering if after all these........
Yeah yeah yeah, I know. Hey guess what, shock horror.....I'm back!
Well, not really, but I am, but I am not...
As you all know, I have taken the past few months away from the hobby. In truth, I had mentally stepped away from it back in September of last year. As promised, here is why..
The past few months has been a rollercoaster ride for me. As some of you are now aware, I separated from my wife back in late September, and the moved in with my best friend and his family early November.
We then had Invitationals (which all things considered, I am content with where I placed, even though I know I could have placed far better). Following that was Christmas, New Years, my birthday etc etc.
Oh, and did I mention, I finally set up my business! In contradiction to my blogger tag, the Empire Rose, with Empire Coffee Roasters "officially" going into operation. This has been a long term dream for me, and it has finally come into fruition. But with anything, it is only the start, with several more businesses in the works to begin over the next 3 years.
All of these things contributed to a massive hobby burnout. This also included the sheer amount of gaming that I had done, the pressure I had put on myself in regards to tournaments (I have a very competitive streak) and the high volume of painting that I had completed in small amounts of time. This cost me my interest and my heart in the game and the hobby, and I knew that if I didn't step away when I did, I would end up hating it, and throwing it all in the bag completely.
So last night, I finally sat down with my friend and we decided to have a game. To add icing to the cake of my tag, I took Empire of Sonnstahl into my first game of 2017, throwing together a list that looked the way I would like to play them. Faced off against Ogres in a similar list to what as seen in tournaments last year by this player, I was quite impressed with the synergies and the way my army worked, and we had an absolute blast! It was great to throw dice again and some rowdy banter, and enjoy the game.
Does this mean that I am going to be seen at every tournament for the rest of the year, or that I am going to completely paint another 5 armies this year? Absolutely fucking not!
From the painting side, I need to find myself a house as I am currently still living in other people's spare rooms. I need a quiet space to set up, and slowly work my way back into painting. I will be putting all other projects on hold, and starting back slowly painting up my Empire.
As for the tournament scene (which I miss heaps!) I will not be reentering until probably NiCon or Panzer. This comes down to the youth of my business, as this needs to be my main focus at the moment, along with the added financial burden of the travelling.
I am going to leave it at that. Please do not fear, I will return!
Or maybe, that is reason to fear..........
I've been wondering if after all these........
Yeah yeah yeah, I know. Hey guess what, shock horror.....I'm back!
Well, not really, but I am, but I am not...
As you all know, I have taken the past few months away from the hobby. In truth, I had mentally stepped away from it back in September of last year. As promised, here is why..
The past few months has been a rollercoaster ride for me. As some of you are now aware, I separated from my wife back in late September, and the moved in with my best friend and his family early November.
We then had Invitationals (which all things considered, I am content with where I placed, even though I know I could have placed far better). Following that was Christmas, New Years, my birthday etc etc.
Oh, and did I mention, I finally set up my business! In contradiction to my blogger tag, the Empire Rose, with Empire Coffee Roasters "officially" going into operation. This has been a long term dream for me, and it has finally come into fruition. But with anything, it is only the start, with several more businesses in the works to begin over the next 3 years.
All of these things contributed to a massive hobby burnout. This also included the sheer amount of gaming that I had done, the pressure I had put on myself in regards to tournaments (I have a very competitive streak) and the high volume of painting that I had completed in small amounts of time. This cost me my interest and my heart in the game and the hobby, and I knew that if I didn't step away when I did, I would end up hating it, and throwing it all in the bag completely.
So last night, I finally sat down with my friend and we decided to have a game. To add icing to the cake of my tag, I took Empire of Sonnstahl into my first game of 2017, throwing together a list that looked the way I would like to play them. Faced off against Ogres in a similar list to what as seen in tournaments last year by this player, I was quite impressed with the synergies and the way my army worked, and we had an absolute blast! It was great to throw dice again and some rowdy banter, and enjoy the game.
Does this mean that I am going to be seen at every tournament for the rest of the year, or that I am going to completely paint another 5 armies this year? Absolutely fucking not!
From the painting side, I need to find myself a house as I am currently still living in other people's spare rooms. I need a quiet space to set up, and slowly work my way back into painting. I will be putting all other projects on hold, and starting back slowly painting up my Empire.
As for the tournament scene (which I miss heaps!) I will not be reentering until probably NiCon or Panzer. This comes down to the youth of my business, as this needs to be my main focus at the moment, along with the added financial burden of the travelling.
I am going to leave it at that. Please do not fear, I will return!
Or maybe, that is reason to fear..........
Sunday, 20 November 2016
Hobby Update November: Towards a New Year
With the excitement from a great weekend away at Invitationals still running through my veins (along with some much needed caffeine and nicotine!), I thought it was a great time to talk about what is next.
The tournament scene has now come to an end for me for the year, and I am expecting to come back to the tables in February for Over the Top in Hamilton.
However, my Beast Herds will not be making it to the tables for this event, as I have my sight on a new project...
Well, actually three.
Firstly, as I have mentioned before, I am creating Cthulu themed Dread Elves collection, and I am slowly getting together all of the items and units I need to convert and paint the first list I plan to run with them. However, this army is a long term plan, and I have no intention to rush it. It also took a hit this weekend, as yet again 50% of players bought out Elves, and I really don't wish to join an already high statistic on the tournament scene.
Secondly, I am heading into more Elves. My best friend and I created a brutal Highborn Elves list the other day, and were talking about it on the way to Auckland on Friday. We have decided that this will be a joint project between us, with him sourcing the miniatures and I taking them from the dulls of plastic grey into a warstricken and ragtagged elven host. This project will also be a slow to work project, however, certain aspects of it will need to be table-top ready come OTT in Feb.
Finally, I am after another Icon. I currently hold the Beast Herds Icon, with no intention of letting that go, but am out to grab the Empire of Sonnstahl icon as well. OTT will see my first opportunity to put my Empire onto the table, and so I need to get them table-top ready as well. It shouldn't take long to do so, as there is minimal conversion work in the army, and the colours are easy ones to work with. The time consuming aspect for them will without a doubt be the display board, which alongside the basing on the miniatures, is what I expect will make this army pop the most.
With all of this said and done, I haven't left my Beast Herds to the dust. After returning home last night I made a few changes to my list.
Firstly, I dropped my Centaur chieftain. I like this guy and I love the idea of what he does and can do. He just doesn't do it enough. And although he poses a threat that people do not like, he is generally taken off the board very early game. My list also has enough other more durable threats, so he is taking the cut.
I have also take out my giants. These guys are some of my favourite in my army lists, give me a little bit of fluffy randomness. The only reason I am dropping them, is I need the points to make the changes I want.
Replacing my giants, we shall see a second Gortach. These monsters are brutal and scare the living daylights out of my opponents, just with the sheer volume of attacks at high strength, with the ability to do multiple wounds and heal himself in the process. One is great, two is devestating.
I am also bringing out a second razortusk as chaff. The one thing I noticed is I didn't have enough drops to make me happy, but playing the one razortusk I had, he worked really well, as both chaff and anti chaff. I am looking to see where I can shave points for a third.
Finally, the biggest change of them all. I am dropping my unit of minotaurs from eight to six, but am bringing out a second unit the same. My minotaurs are my powerhouse unit, and eight works really well when I have another solid infantry killing unit on the board. But without one, they get targetted out too easily. Taking them in two units of six I feel will be more beneficial.
Yes, the changes have turned my list into a Frenzy Fiasco, but I like frenzy, and Beasts often get bored with their prey and wander off anyways....
Anyways, time to move house. Until next time,
Peace!
The tournament scene has now come to an end for me for the year, and I am expecting to come back to the tables in February for Over the Top in Hamilton.
However, my Beast Herds will not be making it to the tables for this event, as I have my sight on a new project...
Well, actually three.
Firstly, as I have mentioned before, I am creating Cthulu themed Dread Elves collection, and I am slowly getting together all of the items and units I need to convert and paint the first list I plan to run with them. However, this army is a long term plan, and I have no intention to rush it. It also took a hit this weekend, as yet again 50% of players bought out Elves, and I really don't wish to join an already high statistic on the tournament scene.
Secondly, I am heading into more Elves. My best friend and I created a brutal Highborn Elves list the other day, and were talking about it on the way to Auckland on Friday. We have decided that this will be a joint project between us, with him sourcing the miniatures and I taking them from the dulls of plastic grey into a warstricken and ragtagged elven host. This project will also be a slow to work project, however, certain aspects of it will need to be table-top ready come OTT in Feb.
Finally, I am after another Icon. I currently hold the Beast Herds Icon, with no intention of letting that go, but am out to grab the Empire of Sonnstahl icon as well. OTT will see my first opportunity to put my Empire onto the table, and so I need to get them table-top ready as well. It shouldn't take long to do so, as there is minimal conversion work in the army, and the colours are easy ones to work with. The time consuming aspect for them will without a doubt be the display board, which alongside the basing on the miniatures, is what I expect will make this army pop the most.
With all of this said and done, I haven't left my Beast Herds to the dust. After returning home last night I made a few changes to my list.
Firstly, I dropped my Centaur chieftain. I like this guy and I love the idea of what he does and can do. He just doesn't do it enough. And although he poses a threat that people do not like, he is generally taken off the board very early game. My list also has enough other more durable threats, so he is taking the cut.
I have also take out my giants. These guys are some of my favourite in my army lists, give me a little bit of fluffy randomness. The only reason I am dropping them, is I need the points to make the changes I want.
Replacing my giants, we shall see a second Gortach. These monsters are brutal and scare the living daylights out of my opponents, just with the sheer volume of attacks at high strength, with the ability to do multiple wounds and heal himself in the process. One is great, two is devestating.
I am also bringing out a second razortusk as chaff. The one thing I noticed is I didn't have enough drops to make me happy, but playing the one razortusk I had, he worked really well, as both chaff and anti chaff. I am looking to see where I can shave points for a third.
Finally, the biggest change of them all. I am dropping my unit of minotaurs from eight to six, but am bringing out a second unit the same. My minotaurs are my powerhouse unit, and eight works really well when I have another solid infantry killing unit on the board. But without one, they get targetted out too easily. Taking them in two units of six I feel will be more beneficial.
Yes, the changes have turned my list into a Frenzy Fiasco, but I like frenzy, and Beasts often get bored with their prey and wander off anyways....
Anyways, time to move house. Until next time,
Peace!
Invitationals: Enthusiasm, Disappointment & Goats
Home is an amazing place to come back to after a great weekend. Except when its half packed with boxes, and instead of packing the rest of the boxes, you decide to blog. Procrastination is the key to life....
Anyways, what a weekend. After the long drive home from Invitationals 2016, the tournament that has ended the T9A competitive year, I have already written my new Beast Herds list. I find this rather funny, as I have every intention of shelving this army for a while after playing it competitively all year. But who knows.
So, here is a brief breakdown of the games:
Game One (Dread Elves - Failed from the Get Go):
Game One saw me face off against a local guy and his Dread Elves. This gent was actually the person I had faced just days before in my final practice game, and I didn't have high hopes of a victory. My expectations were met.
I misdeployed my army, and opted to keep my Wildhorns on the table instead of ambushing them. As you know, major deployment failures are often a game breaking mistake. Although I didn't expect to win the game, I had planned to try and keep the loss as minimal. However, as I watched MSU witch elves tear my army apart, my hopes were dashed.
It was a 14/6 loss before objectives, a loss I could have been happy with, but with some lucky last turn shooting from him killing my only scoring unit left, and some unlucky failed charges from me, leaving his 2 man scoring unit left on the board, objectives went in his favour, ending the game on a 17/3 victory to my opponent.
Game Two (Saurian Ancients - Hunger has its Price):
Game Two saw me face off against one of the Umpires, a guy who I had played just two months ago at GuardCon. In that match I took a major victory against him, and he was out for revenge.
Due to the terrain, I was able to force my opponent to split his army, making his infantry go to one side and his monsters to the other. I countered with most of my power stacking the flank of his infantry, and leaving a few units to hold up his monsters.
It didn't take long for me to clear the infantry flank, and by turn 4, I was sitting in a prime position.
This is where I made my biggest mistake of the tournament. This mistake cost me a 17/3 or better victory.
I got hungry, and over stretched. Had I planted my still at full force Minotaurs onto the objective, and moved everything else of mine away from his last three units (being 2 monsters, and a unit of 4 remaining warriors), I would have been fine. But I over extended. I didn't get my minotaurs where I needed them. I threw my BSB at his general with high expectations of killing it, and flubbed my rolls, and then watched his general destroy a unit of wildhorns that were contesting the Saurus warriors on the objective (2 rounds of throwing weapons and a round of close combat attacks from the Wildhorns failed to even bring the general down the single wound I needed to get half points for him).
With the additional points he gained, plus claiming the objective, my opponent took a 13/7 win over me. At this point, I was pretty down, and really f&%ked off with myself to say the least.
Game Three (Highborn Elves - The Beasts Favourite)
After a very very short break between to sort myself out, I was matched up against Highborn Elves. This match up with prime for me, because I build lists always thinking of how to kill elves, as majority of competitive players bring elves (50% at Invitationals). And I especially, have a knack for killing Highborn Elves.
My opponent bunkered down in a corner, with the intention to maximise his very shooty army. This was in my favour, as with so much hard and fast hitting units, I was able to get many multi-charges off into the right places, which meant his units were unsupported. The momentum was in my favour come the beginning of turn 2, and by the start of turn 4, it was all over for the Highborn, with only one unit left on the board. I spent the next two turns running all of my very chicken-filled beasts away from that unit, as I knew I already had max points, and wasn't in a position to ensure I could knock the whole unit out in a Round 6 combat.
Game Four (Highborn Elves - More Chicken)
Gleefully, my Beasts were matched up against another HE player at the start of day two. This list was a much more combat focused list, with a very killy lord in a unit of Ryma knights, anda brick of White Lions. But I was confident.
And I was sloppy.
I made one mistake which cost me my minotaurs early on, where I believed I had chaffed my opponent's White Lions in a way they couldnt get the charge against them at the same time as the knights (I had set up an easy charge for the knights purposefully, as I wanted them to charge and I knew my minotaurs could weather it). But, even though I had the movement spare, I put my chaff just milimetres in out from ensuring my opponent couldn't make that charge. Bye bye minos.
However, my sloppyness didn't carry out on the rest of my plan, as I had encircled the combat area with 3 monsters and 4 chariots, and after my opponent made a poor overrun, everything went in. One round of combat saw both of his killing units destroyed, and his characters dead.
At this point it was just clean up, and ensuring that I held the objective. I walked a way with an 18/2 Victory, which was fantastic. Had I not been sloppy, I feel it could have been a 20/0 easily, however, it is hard to say and I am very happy with the result.
Game Five (Dread Elves - Shattered Dreams)
Game Five was the most devastating game in a long time. As the points stood, I was lined up to face yet another Highborn Elves list, a list that although the player is one of the best HE players in NZ, I knew I could take out. Winning that game well, could have landed me in 3rd place. I was hopeful.
However, by this stage, all of the top table players had faced each other, so a rejig had to occur, which saw me instead face off against one of the most brutal lists I have seen on the table in a long time.
There isn't much to say about this game, it was a complete and utter whitewash, with me conceding to the 20/0 loss by top of turn 3. My opponent, the guy who out of all my great opponents, I gave my sports vote to, was extremely humble in his victory. He is a great guy and a fantastic player, and his placing second only went to prove how solid his list was.
It is hard to say that I was the most gracious in this defeat, as it took away any chances of seeing a podium, or even top 5. In saying that, I don't think I have ever had more fun while watching my army melt away to the quick slashes of corsair blades......
Over all, I took 7th place. A mid-pack standing at my first masters level tournament isn't something to be unhappy with. But me being me, and seeing the costly mistakes I made, I know it could have been better, and that I didn't deserve to place as I did after all was said and done. Although most of the time there was little moves I could fault, the mistakes I made cost me too much, and were stupid mistakes.
The guys who ran the event did a fantastic job, and although it was the highest level tournament in the year, in my opinion it was also the most relaxed one I have attended.
I am going to leave it there. I planned on writing about the changes to my list, and what army I plan to bring to the table for my first tournament next year, but its midnight, and I have bee up since 6, played two games, then endured the drive home. And I move tomorrow. So maybe it is time for some shuteye.
I will try and get another post up in a few days, and talk about the things above, along with the year as a whole and some hobby things.
To all the guys at Invitationals, you guys are all amazing and all did a great job. It was a fun weekend, and what made it fun was the awesome calibre of players, both on the gaming table and around the table of beers. Thanks for a blast!
With that,
Peace!
Anyways, what a weekend. After the long drive home from Invitationals 2016, the tournament that has ended the T9A competitive year, I have already written my new Beast Herds list. I find this rather funny, as I have every intention of shelving this army for a while after playing it competitively all year. But who knows.
So, here is a brief breakdown of the games:
Game One (Dread Elves - Failed from the Get Go):
Game One saw me face off against a local guy and his Dread Elves. This gent was actually the person I had faced just days before in my final practice game, and I didn't have high hopes of a victory. My expectations were met.
I misdeployed my army, and opted to keep my Wildhorns on the table instead of ambushing them. As you know, major deployment failures are often a game breaking mistake. Although I didn't expect to win the game, I had planned to try and keep the loss as minimal. However, as I watched MSU witch elves tear my army apart, my hopes were dashed.
It was a 14/6 loss before objectives, a loss I could have been happy with, but with some lucky last turn shooting from him killing my only scoring unit left, and some unlucky failed charges from me, leaving his 2 man scoring unit left on the board, objectives went in his favour, ending the game on a 17/3 victory to my opponent.
Game Two (Saurian Ancients - Hunger has its Price):
Game Two saw me face off against one of the Umpires, a guy who I had played just two months ago at GuardCon. In that match I took a major victory against him, and he was out for revenge.
Due to the terrain, I was able to force my opponent to split his army, making his infantry go to one side and his monsters to the other. I countered with most of my power stacking the flank of his infantry, and leaving a few units to hold up his monsters.
It didn't take long for me to clear the infantry flank, and by turn 4, I was sitting in a prime position.
This is where I made my biggest mistake of the tournament. This mistake cost me a 17/3 or better victory.
I got hungry, and over stretched. Had I planted my still at full force Minotaurs onto the objective, and moved everything else of mine away from his last three units (being 2 monsters, and a unit of 4 remaining warriors), I would have been fine. But I over extended. I didn't get my minotaurs where I needed them. I threw my BSB at his general with high expectations of killing it, and flubbed my rolls, and then watched his general destroy a unit of wildhorns that were contesting the Saurus warriors on the objective (2 rounds of throwing weapons and a round of close combat attacks from the Wildhorns failed to even bring the general down the single wound I needed to get half points for him).
With the additional points he gained, plus claiming the objective, my opponent took a 13/7 win over me. At this point, I was pretty down, and really f&%ked off with myself to say the least.
Game Three (Highborn Elves - The Beasts Favourite)
After a very very short break between to sort myself out, I was matched up against Highborn Elves. This match up with prime for me, because I build lists always thinking of how to kill elves, as majority of competitive players bring elves (50% at Invitationals). And I especially, have a knack for killing Highborn Elves.
My opponent bunkered down in a corner, with the intention to maximise his very shooty army. This was in my favour, as with so much hard and fast hitting units, I was able to get many multi-charges off into the right places, which meant his units were unsupported. The momentum was in my favour come the beginning of turn 2, and by the start of turn 4, it was all over for the Highborn, with only one unit left on the board. I spent the next two turns running all of my very chicken-filled beasts away from that unit, as I knew I already had max points, and wasn't in a position to ensure I could knock the whole unit out in a Round 6 combat.
Game Four (Highborn Elves - More Chicken)
Gleefully, my Beasts were matched up against another HE player at the start of day two. This list was a much more combat focused list, with a very killy lord in a unit of Ryma knights, anda brick of White Lions. But I was confident.
And I was sloppy.
I made one mistake which cost me my minotaurs early on, where I believed I had chaffed my opponent's White Lions in a way they couldnt get the charge against them at the same time as the knights (I had set up an easy charge for the knights purposefully, as I wanted them to charge and I knew my minotaurs could weather it). But, even though I had the movement spare, I put my chaff just milimetres in out from ensuring my opponent couldn't make that charge. Bye bye minos.
However, my sloppyness didn't carry out on the rest of my plan, as I had encircled the combat area with 3 monsters and 4 chariots, and after my opponent made a poor overrun, everything went in. One round of combat saw both of his killing units destroyed, and his characters dead.
At this point it was just clean up, and ensuring that I held the objective. I walked a way with an 18/2 Victory, which was fantastic. Had I not been sloppy, I feel it could have been a 20/0 easily, however, it is hard to say and I am very happy with the result.
Game Five (Dread Elves - Shattered Dreams)
Game Five was the most devastating game in a long time. As the points stood, I was lined up to face yet another Highborn Elves list, a list that although the player is one of the best HE players in NZ, I knew I could take out. Winning that game well, could have landed me in 3rd place. I was hopeful.
However, by this stage, all of the top table players had faced each other, so a rejig had to occur, which saw me instead face off against one of the most brutal lists I have seen on the table in a long time.
There isn't much to say about this game, it was a complete and utter whitewash, with me conceding to the 20/0 loss by top of turn 3. My opponent, the guy who out of all my great opponents, I gave my sports vote to, was extremely humble in his victory. He is a great guy and a fantastic player, and his placing second only went to prove how solid his list was.
It is hard to say that I was the most gracious in this defeat, as it took away any chances of seeing a podium, or even top 5. In saying that, I don't think I have ever had more fun while watching my army melt away to the quick slashes of corsair blades......
Over all, I took 7th place. A mid-pack standing at my first masters level tournament isn't something to be unhappy with. But me being me, and seeing the costly mistakes I made, I know it could have been better, and that I didn't deserve to place as I did after all was said and done. Although most of the time there was little moves I could fault, the mistakes I made cost me too much, and were stupid mistakes.
The guys who ran the event did a fantastic job, and although it was the highest level tournament in the year, in my opinion it was also the most relaxed one I have attended.
I am going to leave it there. I planned on writing about the changes to my list, and what army I plan to bring to the table for my first tournament next year, but its midnight, and I have bee up since 6, played two games, then endured the drive home. And I move tomorrow. So maybe it is time for some shuteye.
I will try and get another post up in a few days, and talk about the things above, along with the year as a whole and some hobby things.
To all the guys at Invitationals, you guys are all amazing and all did a great job. It was a fun weekend, and what made it fun was the awesome calibre of players, both on the gaming table and around the table of beers. Thanks for a blast!
With that,
Peace!
Sunday, 13 November 2016
Invitationals 2016: 5 Days to Go and the Earth is Shaking
Good morning!
It is 1am, the ground has just been shaking with 6.6 magnitude earthquakes and I am writing a blogpost. It must be a ground breaking phenomenal post!
Well, probably not really....
Anyways, we are now just a handful of days out from the first ever New Zealand Invitational tournament. This event will become the most prestigious tournament in the year, and is hosting an open 40k tournament alongside the masters-style 9th Age tournament, with the top 12 players from across the year alongside 2 additional wildcard players, receiving invites.
As was the consensus, we are competing under the new updated V1.2 rules for 9th Age, and are using the new recommended points limit of 4500.
All of the lists are in and being reviewed as we speak, but I decided I wanted to jump the gun and throw my list out there myself (even though knowing my luck it will be sent back tomorrow to say I need to fix things...). After all, its my list, my Blood Hunt, my "PRESSSSSSSIOUSSSSS".....
So here it is:
The Blood Hunt
-Beast Lord (Razortusk Chariot, Lucky Shield, Blessed Sword, ToSS, Heavy Armour, Crown of Horns)
-Beast Chieftain (Hunting Chariot, BSB, Heavy Armour, Dusk Stone, Shield, Beast Axe)
-Centaur "Philly" Chieftain (The Impaler, Heavy Armour, Hardened Shield)
-10 Raiders (Scout/Ambush)
-10 Raiders (Scout/Ambush)
-20 Wildhorns (Banner, Musician, Paired Weapons, Throwing Weapons, Ambush)
-20 Wildhorns (Musician, Paired Weapons, Throwing Weapons, Ambush)
It is 1am, the ground has just been shaking with 6.6 magnitude earthquakes and I am writing a blogpost. It must be a ground breaking phenomenal post!
Well, probably not really....
Anyways, we are now just a handful of days out from the first ever New Zealand Invitational tournament. This event will become the most prestigious tournament in the year, and is hosting an open 40k tournament alongside the masters-style 9th Age tournament, with the top 12 players from across the year alongside 2 additional wildcard players, receiving invites.
As was the consensus, we are competing under the new updated V1.2 rules for 9th Age, and are using the new recommended points limit of 4500.
All of the lists are in and being reviewed as we speak, but I decided I wanted to jump the gun and throw my list out there myself (even though knowing my luck it will be sent back tomorrow to say I need to fix things...). After all, its my list, my Blood Hunt, my "PRESSSSSSSIOUSSSSS".....
So here it is:
The Blood Hunt
-Beast Lord (Razortusk Chariot, Lucky Shield, Blessed Sword, ToSS, Heavy Armour, Crown of Horns)
-Beast Chieftain (Hunting Chariot, BSB, Heavy Armour, Dusk Stone, Shield, Beast Axe)
-Centaur "Philly" Chieftain (The Impaler, Heavy Armour, Hardened Shield)
-10 Raiders (Scout/Ambush)
-10 Raiders (Scout/Ambush)
-20 Wildhorns (Banner, Musician, Paired Weapons, Throwing Weapons, Ambush)
-20 Wildhorns (Musician, Paired Weapons, Throwing Weapons, Ambush)
-8 Minotaurs (Banner, Musician, Paired Weapons)
-1 Raiding Chariot
-1 Raiding Chariot
-1 Razortusk
-5 Gargoyles (Scout)
-1 Gortach
-1 Beast Giant
-1 Beast Giant
4500pts
Although I shall refrain from talking about the playstyle and method of using this list until after my competitors have to face it on the tables, I will note that as you can see, there is no magic in this list whatsoever! I have even left my very beloved Totems at home. To top that off, two of my favourite Magic Items are staying at home, with Dark Rain and The Pillager Icon not making the list.
The list looks impressive on the table and has been for the most part enjoyable to play with. However, I need to paint! I am currently short a handful of Wildhorns, the Razortusk, and a BSB on Chariot conversion. I am currently re-converting my Razortusk Chariot to become my Lord's chariot, as I am still waiting on my other OOP Chaos Chariot that I use to make Razortusk Chariots to arrive in the mail!
It may not seem like a lot to paint, but I am madly attempting to pack my house between crazy work hours, as the day after Invitationals, I move! That coupled with the fact I haven't painted in 2 months and so feel out of wack, has lead to serious lack of motivation and major procrastination! Let us hope that I can pull this off!
I am really looking forward to the event, and a weekend away. To top it off, I will be doing video 'interviews' with some of the key contenders for the Cup, along with a few hobby and T9A team interviews. Once compiled, I will have these available on my YouTube channel and on the Facebook page.
Anyways, time for a few hours shuteye before the madness begins again.
Peace!
Monday, 31 October 2016
Invitationals & My Dilemma
It is currently 6.30am as I start writing this, with my first hot brew of the day in hand. Why so early you may ask? Well that is a mystery even I want answered after a sleepless night!
In just under four weeks, the physical journey begins again for the final time this year, as we make the drive to Auckland for the first ever New Zealand Invitationals tournament. And with such a long drive, I am glad I have great travel company to go with me!
But the adventure to a tournament is never just the drive there and the weekend whilst away rolling dice and drinking more then planned, but it should be the weeks leading up to an event, as you play around with list ideas and play test your army and tweak the list whilst madly rushing around to finish painting that half a dozen miniatures you need in your list because of those tweaks.
My journey to Invitational almost came to an end before it had really began. With the release of Version 1.2 to the rule set last week, between the change in rules and points itself, along with Invitationals adopting the recommended points level of 4500pts, I was absolutely stumped.
Now, do not get me wrong, I am not complaining one moment about the new rules or recommended points system. I do agree with everything that has changed, but I do believe it is for the betterment of the game as it progresses and comes into its own.
Adopting a new rules system so close to the most prestigious event in the year was not a call I would have wanted to make, and I do not feel it was the right one either. In saying this, it was driven by the competitors for the event, and now as many are in the same boat I was in up until late last night, I think many are regretting that choice.
With the changes, I was finding it almost impossible to create a list that I could easily adapt to the play style, that I had the miniatures for without having to spend excess amounts of money, and the time to paint only a few handfuls of models. Even with the list I finally compiled and am happy with, there is more work to be done.
I argued with the decision to take my WDG (which was the easiest to flip my V1 list into something workable with V1.2), and finally decided against it, as I wasn't enjoying playing the list and it was hugely designed around the way a Path of Magic could influence the list, a Path which now in V1. no longer exists.
I also play tested my new Dread Elves list. I pulled off a major victory with this list, in my first time ever playing Elves, and enjoyed every moment of the game. The synergy of the list worked well, and with change in the Path of Magic used, I feel the list could easily become a standard style list I would take to tournaments. The issue was, I do not have the extra money to drop into getting all the models needed, nor the time to paint an entire army within 3.5 weeks.
The biggest struggle of them all, was a moral struggle. I have played my Beast Herds in every event I have been to since T9A hit the tournament scene, and I love them. But morally, how could I leave t home the army that helped me get to 9th place on the New Zealand rankings? That wouldn't be right!
So I tossed around a few lists, screwed up a lot of paper, and walked away from the list building to relax whist enjoying a cancerous habit. And as my alcohol infused brain was pretending I was being Smaug and blowing smoke, it hit me. And I started mentally drawing a list, watching the mechanics of the list, and seeing what it looked like on the table.
The list is written. My toys are ready.
The Beast Herds have heard the Call. The Blood Hunt is coming to Play.
Run and Hide, Run and Hide. For come the Break of Day,
Blood will run as we catch our Prey.....
In just under four weeks, the physical journey begins again for the final time this year, as we make the drive to Auckland for the first ever New Zealand Invitationals tournament. And with such a long drive, I am glad I have great travel company to go with me!
But the adventure to a tournament is never just the drive there and the weekend whilst away rolling dice and drinking more then planned, but it should be the weeks leading up to an event, as you play around with list ideas and play test your army and tweak the list whilst madly rushing around to finish painting that half a dozen miniatures you need in your list because of those tweaks.
My journey to Invitational almost came to an end before it had really began. With the release of Version 1.2 to the rule set last week, between the change in rules and points itself, along with Invitationals adopting the recommended points level of 4500pts, I was absolutely stumped.
Now, do not get me wrong, I am not complaining one moment about the new rules or recommended points system. I do agree with everything that has changed, but I do believe it is for the betterment of the game as it progresses and comes into its own.
Adopting a new rules system so close to the most prestigious event in the year was not a call I would have wanted to make, and I do not feel it was the right one either. In saying this, it was driven by the competitors for the event, and now as many are in the same boat I was in up until late last night, I think many are regretting that choice.
With the changes, I was finding it almost impossible to create a list that I could easily adapt to the play style, that I had the miniatures for without having to spend excess amounts of money, and the time to paint only a few handfuls of models. Even with the list I finally compiled and am happy with, there is more work to be done.
I argued with the decision to take my WDG (which was the easiest to flip my V1 list into something workable with V1.2), and finally decided against it, as I wasn't enjoying playing the list and it was hugely designed around the way a Path of Magic could influence the list, a Path which now in V1. no longer exists.
I also play tested my new Dread Elves list. I pulled off a major victory with this list, in my first time ever playing Elves, and enjoyed every moment of the game. The synergy of the list worked well, and with change in the Path of Magic used, I feel the list could easily become a standard style list I would take to tournaments. The issue was, I do not have the extra money to drop into getting all the models needed, nor the time to paint an entire army within 3.5 weeks.
The biggest struggle of them all, was a moral struggle. I have played my Beast Herds in every event I have been to since T9A hit the tournament scene, and I love them. But morally, how could I leave t home the army that helped me get to 9th place on the New Zealand rankings? That wouldn't be right!
So I tossed around a few lists, screwed up a lot of paper, and walked away from the list building to relax whist enjoying a cancerous habit. And as my alcohol infused brain was pretending I was being Smaug and blowing smoke, it hit me. And I started mentally drawing a list, watching the mechanics of the list, and seeing what it looked like on the table.
The list is written. My toys are ready.
The Beast Herds have heard the Call. The Blood Hunt is coming to Play.
Run and Hide, Run and Hide. For come the Break of Day,
Blood will run as we catch our Prey.....
Monday, 24 October 2016
Moving Forward: Changes & Times Ahead
As a small handle of you know, the past few months for me have been tough. There have been a lot of things occur, and a lot of life decisions being made. Along with this, my business is about 8 weeks out of production (well, it will be if the council doesn't give us too many more issues), and so spare time has been short. Hobby time has been minimal. I believe that these things, along with watching all of my favourite game slowly getting packed in boxes to move, have contributed to hobby burnout for me. On both the gaming table and the painting table.
However, the wheels of life continue to spin, and with it there are some important announcements that I have neglected to make, and now that I am getting my act together, I though it was time to make them, along with let you know of some new and awesome projects I have lined up!
PlagueBearers: The End of an Era
As many know, we set up PlagueBearers over three years ago. PB was a small team of us with the sole purpose of building and growing our local gaming community, and in turn, the national scene. Well, in a way, we were successful. Not only did we utilise Facebook to run our own platform for promotion, we were able to set up a strong War Gamer's Online Garage Sale group, and be the team behind the 9th Age NZ Facebook page, alongside Phil W (Auckland City Guard). We also set up Napier Executioners Club, a free wargames and boardgames club in Napier. We ran numerous events, competitions, campaigns and tournaments, all designed to draw in new players in our region, both casual and competitive. We were able to sponsor many other events also, such as the T9A tournament at NiCon, and the LotR/Hobbit event at GuardCon. It has been an exciting time for us, and we have enjoyed every aspect of it.
However, everything must come to an end, and it is time for PlagueBearers to disband. For the team, a lot of new things and challenges in life have come up, and time is not something spare. With this, I have ended up carrying the majority of what PlagueBearers was doing, and its an additional time constraint I do not have going forward either.
PB will be disbanded at the end of October 2016. The following things will continue to run, but under the An Empire Fallen instead:
-WarBanner Tournament
-Hawkes Bay Regional Championship
-Annual Campaign
-War Gamer's Online Garage Sale
-9th Age NZ Facebook
Other things that PB ran, have slowly been dissolved or bought to an end. Its a sad time, but at the end of the day, sometimes something has to give.
T9A & the first NZ Invitational Tournament
On a happier note, T9A is going through some massive changes! I am not going to delve into these, as I could easily ramble on and on, but they are all changes designed for the betterment of the game. As per usual, there will be rules and changes that as players we disagree with, and as a whole, I have no doubt that there will be some rants and some rage quitting from players, but change is good. The reason behind these changes are to talk a massive step further away from gaming systems we used to know, while solidifying T9A as a solid independent game system, along with creating an improved and balanced game system that we can all enjoy! Now I will be honest, with everything going on, I have been slack keeping up with these updates, and am now scrambling to get my head around all the releases before they launch in a few days, but I am very excited by what I have seen!
The challenge is, however, these changes will be adopted for the first NZ Invitational Tournament, which is only 4 weeks away! That doesn't give for a lot of time to really wrap my head around these changes, both in rules and army composition, and I am unsure on what my Beast Herds will look like on the table once the changes have occurred! The unknown is an exciting facet in life, but the idea of having to hurried paint up more miniatures whilst I am trying to pack them up, is a little daunting.
It will be a fantastic weekend away regardless, and a great way to end the tournament year. Now, if only I can walk away with this year's crown......
NZ Wargaming Awards
In one of my previous blog posts, I talked about a new initiative called the New Zealand Wargaming Awards. Now I am not going to go into detail as to what this is (you may look back if interested), however I spent time discussing this with a gentleman in the community who I call my 'Yoda'. With so many time constraints holding back my ability to execute this exactly as it deserves, alongside other things, he advised me that this is not the year. Next year, yes, but not this year. As boneheaded as I am, I disagreed, with every intention to make it happen this year. However, as time has gone by, I have seen reason in his advise.
NZWA will not be kicking off this year. It is an important project, one that I truely believe will have a important place in our community, but its execution and promotion is vital, and it is not ready.
The first NZWA will be held in 2017.
Cthulhu Raiders: A New Project
Now that I have bored you with the nitty gritty changes and disappointments, lets talk about something really really exciting! As most know, I started Beast Herds purely for T9A, and it has to honestly be one of the most enjoyable armies I have ever played on any gaming platform in my entire gaming career.....okay okay, yes most of you old farts have decades on me, but still!
However, now that I am content with its tabletop standard, and the fact that I have played it to the ground this year at tournaments, it is time for a new project. A big project. One that will take years to complete.....lol complete, it will never be finished. This will not be an army, but a collection.
So, what is it may you ask? Its Chicken.
Yep, I fell from grace, and may the Dark Omen shun the name of An Empire Fallen as I betray all I know and believe.
Huh? Oh, you don't know what it is I speak of (unless your name is Phil, in which case you know very well)
I have started a Dread Elves (Elves = Chicken) collection. I have felt a draw to both Sylvan Elves and Dread Elves for a while, like an unseen rope tugging at my inner conscious, but have resisted thus far. Well, I finally gave in. I chose DE over SE, based on play style and feel. As much as I love the fluff side to SE far more, the way it plays on the table is not for me. It isn't to my strength, whereas I feel DE suits it far more.
So I mentally started building this army with the concept of using Corsair parts across the whole lot, and creating a Black Ark theme. Well, then I tapped into the brain of another amazing painter, and that idea led into hours of concepts and designs. It led me, to a Cthulhu or Drowned God theme.
Just a little snippet on what is to hit my painting station, will keep you posted as progress starts
With that my friends, I do not feel that there is anymore that I need to share.
Peace!
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