Gearing up for a tournament, Part 2

I made a couple changes to the intended tournament list, and built the models I needed based on the excellent suggestions I've received. In the Troops choices, I removed the standard bearer from the platoon squad and replaced him with a basic guardsman with a lasgun. I pulled the bolt pistols from all the Sergeants and went with the basic laspistol instead. I then added a Commissar to the 1st squad, so that in missions where I may wish to combine squads, all 30 of them will benefit from his leadership and Stubborn-ness. I also removed the Chimera from the Veterans squad with an eye towards mounting them in a Valkyrie armed with Multiple Rocket Pods and Heavy Bolters (which is about 90% built at the moment). In order to made up the points I removed the Griffon (figuring the Valkyrie will be better at anti-horde anyway) and went with a non-sponson-armed Russ.

It ends up being bang on 1050 points (the extra 50 allowed by virtue of having a psyker (or 7) in the army - a particular of this tourney's rules).

It means that I have a fair bit to paint now - 3 Sergeants, 5 Veterans, both Command Squads, 2 Psykers and the Valkyrie. Should be some fun stuff to paint though, they are all very character-ful miniatures!

Mordian 777th "Meatgrinder" Regiment, V2.0

HQ

Command Squad - 185

• Commander w/ Plasma Pistol
• Voxcaster
• Regimental Standard
• 2 Meltagun
• Officer of the fleet
• Chimera (Multilaser, Heavy Bolter)

Psyker Battle Squad - 145

• 7 Psykers
• 1 Overseer
• Chimera (Multilaser, Heavy Bolter)

TROOPS

Platoon HQ Squad - 65

• Lieutenant w/ Plasma Pistol
• Voxcaster
• 2 Meltaguns

1st Infantry Squad - 105

• Sergeant w/ Laspistol & Chainsword
• Commissar w/ Bolt Pistol
  
• Voxcaster
• Grenade Launcher
• Autocannon

2nd Infantry Squad - 70

• Sergeant w/ Laspistol & Chainsword
• Voxcaster
• Grenade Launcher
• Autocannon

3rd Infantry Squad - 70

• Sergeant w/ Laspistol & Chainsword
• Voxcaster
• Grenade Launcher
• Autocannon

Veterans Squad - 105

• Sergeant w/ Bolt Pistol & Chainsword
• Voxcaster
• 3 Meltaguns

FAST ATTACK

Valkyrie Assault Transport - 140

• Multi Laser
• Multiple Rocket Pods
• Heavy Bolters

HEAVY SUPPORT

Leman Russ - 165

• Lascannon

Total: 1050pts

I'll be facing off against Marines and Tyranids next weekend to see how the list fares. I'm going to try to get it all painted by then, but failing that it will all have to be painted prior to the convention in mid August!

Gearing up for a tournament...

I am primarily a casual gamer - I have a smallish group of friends with whom I play 40k and Necromunda with some regularity, and I haven't taken part in a tournament in over ten years. However, I am considering participating in a small tourney being held at GenCon Indy in August, and I've been working on coming up with an appropriate list.

The event description is as follows: "1000 point Rogue Trader Tournament. This is a standard four round - 2 hours a round - tournament using the swiss draw system. Prizes will be awarded for theme, painting, best general, overall winner and sports-person. Only Codex Armies are allowed, Blood Angels are legal. Armies including a psycher[sic] get 50 bonus points."

I've sent the organizer an email regarding the use of Forge World kits (as my Chimeras are all armed with Autocannons or twin-linked Heavy Bolters), but in the short term I'm assuming the answer is no, and plan to make some multilaser turrets for my Chimeras.

Here's my tentative list:

Mordian 777th "Meatgrinder" Regiment

HQ

Command Squad - 185

• Commander w/ Plasma Pistol
• Voxcaster
• Regimental Standard
• 2 Meltagun
• Officer of the fleet
• Chimera (Multilaser, Heavy Bolter)

Psyker Battle Squad - 135

• 7 Psykers
• 1 Overseer
• Chimera (Multilaser, Heavy Bolter)

TROOPS

Platoon HQ Squad - 220

• Lieutenant w/ Plasma Pistol
• Commissar w/ Power Fist
• Vox
• Standard Bearer
• 2 Meltaguns

1st Infantry Squad - 72

• Sergeant w/ Bolt Pistol & Chainsword
• Voxcaster
• Grenade Launcher
• Autocannon

2nd Infantry Squad - 72

• Sergeant w/ Bolt Pistol & Chainsword
• Voxcaster
• Grenade Launcher
• Autocannon

3rd Infantry Squad - 72

• Sergeant w/ Bolt Pistol & Chainsword
• Voxcaster
• Grenade Launcher
• Autocannon

Veterans Squad - 160

• Sergeant w/ Bolt Pistol & Chainsword
• Voxcaster
• 3 Meltaguns
• Chimera (Multilaser, Heavy Bolter, Dozer Blade)

HEAVY SUPPORT

Leman Russ - 185

• Lascannon
• Heavy Bolter Sponsons

Griffon Heavy Mortar - 75

Total: 1046, 4pts left to spend

So, for 1050 points, I'll be laying down 59 infantry models, 3 Chimeras, 1 Griffon and 1 Leman Russ. The list is signifiacantly less 'fluffy' than what I usually play and geared more towards being a multi-role force. I removed the medics from the command squads and replaced them with a second melta-gunner (FnP is great, but at 1000 points, those 30 points each are better spent elsewhere), though I kept the standard bearers.

I pulled out the models that I'd intended to use for this force, and came to the realization that there are certain models that will need to be built for this list - several of my current infantry squad sergeants are armed with weapons no longer allowed in the 5th ed Codex, and as such I'll need to build a couple new sergeants armed with bolt pistols and chainswords. Similarly, I only have one veteran meltagun trooper built for the squad at the moment, so two more need to be built, as well as a couple more basic lasrifle-armed veterans to fill in for the heavy weapons team the squad usually contains, but I passed on to save points in this list.

I'll hopefully be testing the list against a couple different armies over the upcoming 4th of July weekend, we'll see how it fares.

I'm definitely interested in comments and suggestions on the list - as I'd said I've not participated in a tourney in a long, loooong time, so I'm unsure what I should be preparing for. I tried to make the list capable of handling both heavy infantry and hordes, though things like Land Raiders may give me trouble if I can't bring the meltaguns to bear...

Charon Pattern Leman Russ, Part 2

Following the father's day festivities, I managed to finish off the alternate Leman Russ this afternoon:

I also took a quick shot of the Charon alongside a standard Leman Russ. It's a little shorter in height but the overall hull is a bit more bulky than the regular version.

Finally I pulled out all the proxy/custom tanks and did a group shot. I'm planning on doing up another pair of the Griffons as well as at least another two of the Wyvern pattern Chimeras.

Overall, another fun little project!

Charon Pattern Leman Russ, Part 1

I'm working on a tournament list for GenCon, and it came to my attention that the tourney rules state any conversions must be made primarily from GW parts. As such, my King Russ pattern tanks are disallowed, being resincast models. While I do have a single standard Leman Russ, I thought it would be fun to make up an alternate version to better match the theme of the Wyvern-pattern Chimeras, the Griffon and other proxy/counts-as vehicles I've made. I ran across a neat combination of Chimera and Leman Russ kits a while back, and thought I'd try my hand at something similar. I opened up the Closet Of Doom and pulled out the vehicle bits box to see what I could come up with...

I started off with the undercarriage from the leman russ kit, and added on the snall bulkhead piece that is usually used in making a Basilisk to make an offset similar to the Macharius. I glued on the leman russ top hull, and filled in the bottom gap with a piece of plasticard (not pictured).

For the sides, I built up the standard Chimera left and right track sections (after significant searching through the bits boxes to find the appropriate parts), and used my Dremel to sand off the interior hull guides and the hatch combings on the exterior. I cut down the side armor plates a bit with the intention of using them to butt up against the side sponsons.

Once everything was sanded down, I glued the hull to the track units. The Leman Russ hull sits a little higher than the track units in the middle, but I intended to cover the gap with some track guards.

I assembled the tracks and track guards, which managed to cover the gap nicely. I also replaced the standard hull-mounted lascannon with one from the guard heavy weapons teams sprues.

I had a pair of assembled heavy bolter sponsons left over from an older project, which fit on the sides over the sanded-down hatch covers nicely. In the short term I'm planning on using the turret from the standard Leman Russ I have assembled and painted, though I'm thinking I'll eventually pick up a Ryza pattern turret from Forge World (or eBay if I can find one), as it's a little more streamlined and I think it may better suit the model. All in all it was a bit more work sanding and fitting than the recent Griffon proxy tank, but it ended up looking pretty decent. It stands a little shorter in profile than a standard Russ, but it is also a little wider, so I think it balances out in the end. I settled on calling it the Charon pattern, but I'm not 100% sold on the name. I'll have to dig out the Big Book of Mythological Creatures and see if I can find a better name that hasn't already been used...

Crimson Fists, Part 2

I managed to get a quick game of 40k in over the past weekend, and decided to give one of my 'boutique' armies a try for a change. I'd built a smallish (1625 point) Crimson Fists assault-themed army as an allied force for the Mordian 7th, with the intent that they would supply a rapid-response force capable of engaging and succeeding in close combat - as opposed to the guard who engage and are subsequently horribly killed in close combat!

Upon initial deployment only the dreadnought, the combat squad of sternguard veterans and the razorback (containing the command squad) are placed on the table. After the opponent sets up, the scouts (carrying a teleport homer) infiltrate. In turn one, the drop pod carries the tactical squad into battle, and in subsequent turns the assault squad deep strikes down near the locator beacon carried by the drop pod. Similarly, the terminators teleport in near the teleport homer carried by the scouts. During this time the razorback has raced forward and deployed the command squad within striking distance of the enemy.

Of course, using this army against my friend's similarly-assault-themed blood angels meant that the entire battle took place in a roughly 2'x2' section of the table, as everything both armies had teleported or deep striked into the fray. It was a brutal, close-fought battle, with massive casualties on both sides. The Blood Angels won the day through superior cheesemongering (though my opponent pretends to call it 'tactics'), but all in all it was a very entertaining battle.

I'll likely bounce back and forth between painting a unit of guard and a unit of Crimson Fists over the next month or so. I'm hoping to get these marines finished and sold before my trip out to GenCon this summer...

Hold the line! Part 2

I completely forgot to post the pictures of the Defense Line turrets I'd painted last week. Pretty simple overall, but I like the models. I'm thinking about ordering another trio, they'll certainly come in handy for the upcoming Planetstrike expansion!

I've been working on some objective markers for the Mordian 7th as well, though I only have one of them painted up thus far, a command holo-tank for use as an objective set up in my deployment zone. It's a little hard to tell what it is from the pictures, but there's a little Eldar weapons platform and gunner from the epic range showing in the tank.

I have a couple more objectives in the build stage, one with an injured messenger carrying a set of orders, and a supply dump. All of them are built on 60mm bases which gives me some room to make up fun little vignettes.

Rounds Inbound, Part 2

Took some time this afternoon to do some painting and knocked out the proxy Griffon. While I was at it I also painted up a Destroyer I'd built based on an old beat up Leman Russ chassis. Not my best conversion work by a long shot, but it's servicable I suppose.

I really should have done more with the barrel, I may end up replacing it with something more interesting looking in the future. It's been unusually cloudy for the last week or so, and the models come out looking a little more blue than they truly are - it's supposed to be rather nice tomorrow, hopefully I can get some better-lit shots...

Rounds Inbound, Part 1

I stopped by my FLGS this afternoon and picked up a slightly damaged Whirlwind for about half the usual retail price. The Rhino was badly warped, and will end up being terrain fodder, but the launcher was intact. I had been reading the Adeptus Arbites codex from BoLS, and the Black Maria caught my eye. I thought about making one, but I subsequently thought that it would be more useful to use the bits to make a proxy of some sort instead, as it would be easier to justify as part of my guard army. That being the case I decided to use the launcher to make a vehicle that I will use as a proxy Griffon.

By happy coincidence, the panel that the Whirlwind launcher ordinarily attaches to is exactly the same width as the main hull of the Chimera, once turned sideways. A small strip of plasticard was sufficient to cover the gap left over when slotted into the top of the Chimera, other than that the whole kit went together almost as if it was designed to do so!

On the back side I used a couple pieces from the standard Chimera kit which fit almost perfectly, all I had to do was trim off a couple protrusions. I added a rear hatch and a few bits of stowage here and there to cover up some of the open spaces.

In game, I plan on using the model as a proxy Griffon with the armored crew compartment upgrade. I chose the Griffon as the range, template size and damage were all roughly similar to that of the Whirlwind's Vengeance missile option, though the griffon does hit slightly harder (Strength 6 as opposed to Strength 5). I dry fit both missile pod options, and though technically the Vengeance missiles are the larger of the two missile options, I felt the smaller missiles in their racks looked better when mounted to the Chimera chassis.

A super simple conversion, I'll have to make another pair to fill out the squadron!

Adeptus Mechanicus Land Crawler, part 1

As I've mentioned in the past, I'm slooooowly working on putting together an Adeptus Mechanicus Explorator army based on the fine work over at the Tempus Fugitives site. One of the heavy support options in their Cult Mechanicus army list is the Genetor Biologis Land Crawler - "Based around the same STC that Arkhan Land used when developing the Land Raider, the Land Crawler is built as a mobile Genetor Biologis laboratory. Usually it collects samples from various subdued populations; however in time of open conflict its large manipulator claws are quite capable of collecting samples in multiple parts rather than wholly intact..." - Codex Cult Mechanicus, S. Mackaness

A friend of mine made a decent start of a Mechanicus army at one point, and had subsequently sold me a large chunk of the models. One of which was the beginnings of a Land Crawler, utilizing several Forge World wall panels and symbols.

I've cleaned it up a little bit, and I'm gathering bits to finish it off - I've built a pair of claws (though I'm still figuring out how and where I want to mount them), and I'm working on a dissection table to go in the rear area, using various servo-arm bits and greenstuff. Not super high on my priority list of things to work on of course, but as I was fiddling around with it a few days ago and was taking pictures of the guard models, I figured I'd start documenting the build process...

Get your motor runnin'... Part 2

Still working on building the proxy rough riders on Hornet motorcycles and I snapped a quick picture after primering the few I've managed to assemble. I decided to change up the hunting lances based on a post by John and Mike over at Santa Cruz Warhammer seeing as I had a number of rokkit bits left over from the Ork sprues.

At the moment I only have six of the ten models built for the first squad, as I ran out of the plastic rod I was using for the lances. The end result will be seven lancers, two meltaguns and the sergeant, and I intend to build a second squad once I have a chance to place an order with Ramshackle Games for another 10.

Lastly I'm planning on using a slightly modified version of one of the single-cast bikes with integral riders to create a proxy Mogul Kamir miniature that is better suited to the history of the Mordian 7th Regiment.The fellow that runs Ramshackle Games threw this miniature in with my order due to a slight delay in shipping, and with the addition of a helmet and removal of some of the more egregious 'evil' bits I think it'll work. I'm working on a suitable bit of fluff to explain his looks and equipment as they relate to the Mogul Kamir rules.

So far so good!

You got Rogue Trooper in my Rogue Trader!

I've never been too keen on the use of special characters in smaller games of 40k, defined to me as anything less than 4000 points. I will admit however that stems from years of playing 2nd edition a.k.a. Herohammer, wherein it seemed an entire army could be wiped from the table by virtue of a handful of characters (don't even get me started on the Fantasy rules from that era. There's a reason I don't play WFB anymore).

However, I will also admit that the recent trend of characters allowing certain tactics or alternate force organization charts for an army is, at its heart, an equitable way to allow players to inject a little uniqueness to their armies that is otherwise lacking in the 'vanilla' lists. That said, I personally see the characters as presented in the codex's to be mere 'examples' and I enjoy coming up with my own fluff to justify the game mechanics associated with a given character, rather than just telling my opponent "oh yeah, and Lord Castellan Creed, leader of the entire Cadian 8th decided to show up for our skirmish".

To that end, I intend to create a few of my own versions of the special characters in the Imperial Guard codex more suited to the fluff for the Mordian 7th Regiment. I decided to start with a relatively simple project first - everyone's favorite pseudo-Callidus action hero extraordinaire, Sly Marbo. Of course, I wanted to go in an entirely different direction style-wise, and I cast back to the old 2nd edition days for inspiration. I really had no choice in the matter though, there was only one solitary killer from days of old who would do...

The Rogue Trooper. A genetic soldier from the darker days of Nu-Earth, betrayed by the Traitor General, and sworn to revenge for his fallen comrades. Swift, silent, and deadly, the Rogue Trooper carried with him the memory chips of three of his dead squadmates, each capable of offering advice, warnings, and the occasional bit of comedy.

The model is predominantly Catachan bits and a Cadian head, though in retrospect he ended up being a bit more 'burly' than the Rogue Trooper is generally portrayed.

As there was just two models to paint (see below) I was able to bang them both out after work today. Fairly straightforward paintjob really - green fatigues, leather boots, pouches and helmet, and the trademark blue skin and yellow eyes. From a gameplay perspective he has all the special rules that Marbo does, I simply justify them differently - for example, he's not armed with a ripper pistol, but rather Gunnar his trusty rifle (bearing the chip of one of his old squadmates). However, in game it has the exact same statline.

Of course, if I'm going to make a Rogue Trooper, I'm more or less obligated to make the Traitor General. My intention is that any time I take the Rogue Trooper, my opponent would be given (at no additional points cost) a Company Commander (armed with a plasma pistol and powerfist, but without a supporting command squad) to represent the Traitor General. If the Rogue Trooper manages to kill him however, he counts as double the associated victory point/kill points/whatever we're using to keep score in a given game.

In order to keep things sporting, the Rogue Trooper may not deploy within 12" of the Traitor General when using his "He's behind you!" rule. The Rogue Trooper may enter play within 1" of any other enemy model as normal.

Now I realize that I'm mixing my universes here, but for a short period, GW was liscened to distribute a Rogue Trooper game, so it's ever-so-slightly canon! The other special characters I'm working on are much more true to the fluff of the Mordian 7th Regiment - but as Marbo is so over the top, I felt his proxy model needs a bit of 'flair' as well!