The Craftworld Open At UCON: The Missions

As promised I have the missions for the upcoming “Craftworld Open” which will be taking place on October 28^th at Ucon. Registration is still open and can be done at the conventions website www.Ucon-gaming.org. I am keeping it simple. I have decided to go with missions from the man rule book. They are decent and are multi tiered in terms of ways to score victory points. So here we go.

Mission 1

Deployment: Dawn of War ( 12 inch deployment zone along the long table edge)

Mission: Purge The alien

1 VP is scored for each unit destroyed. Units in retreat or not on the board are counted as destroyed at the end of the game.

Slay the warlord, First Blood and Line breaker are in effect. Night fighting and reserves are also used.

Mission 2

Deployment: Classic table Quarters( table divided into quarters with a 12 inch diameter no mans land in the center)

Mission: The Relic

3 VP's are scored for possession of the Relic at the end of the game. Slay the Warlord, First Blood are in effect. Night fighting and reserves are also in effect.

Mission 3

Deployment: Hammer and Anvil

Mission: Big Guns Never tire

set up d3+2 objectives. Each held objective is worth 3 VP's at the end of the game. 1 VP is earned for each heavy support choice destroyed.

Heavy support units count as scoring units.

Night fight and reserves rules are in effect.

So there you have it. I will of course have a complete mission pack for the tournament. I like posting missions as this allows you to prepare your lists accordingly. If there are any rules questions feel free to contact me via the blog email Seerkarandras@gmail.com.

Next time I will be going over the changes I made to the footdar list. I got in a game with CVinton and his 13^th company space wolves. He ran a rather familiar list just to try it out. Grey Hunters, Blob Squads and Long Fangs oh my! The results of the game were surprising and gave me a big boost of hope for the Eldar in the months leading up to a new codex.

Until next time.................

Blood Runs, Anger Rises, Death Wakes War Calls!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

The Craftworld Open At Ucon

Well I have been asked to run an event at UCON this year. For those of you not familiar with UCON, it is a Game convention that is based in the Ypsilanti Ann Arbor area of Michigan. The convention has been going on for quite a few years. It covers the width and breadth of games. Role playing, board games, card games and of course war games.

I will be running a Tournament at UCON this year on Sunday October 28^th. The “Craftworld Open” as I am calling it, will be an 1850 tournament using the standard force organization. Allies and Fortifications will be allowed. I am encouraging players to bring painted armies, but it is not a necessity. Models must be fully built though and WYSIWYG. If the tournament does well I may require painted armies in the future.

The cost to participate is $15.00. A day pass to the Convention is $10 dollars and $5 dollars to register for the tournament once you have your convention pass. Registration information can be found at www.Ucon-gaming.org. The convention is being held at the Marriott Ann Arbor/ Ypsilanti at Eaglecrest. It starts Friday, so if you are a gamer in general I would check out the events they are having over the weekend. There is a special deal on rooms for $79 a night with the promo code UCOUCOA. I will be down for the weekend hanging out with my Ypsi Seer Council.

I will be posting Missions next week and giving more details on prizes as well as pimping our sponsors. This should be a fun time. I have heard many say they wish there was a nice Game convention in Michigan. Its the gamers like you that make those events possible. So come out and support a local convention and play some games. I hope to see you there.

Well next time I will be discussing the continuing evolution of my Footdar.  I would like to get my win record up a bit.  I have added some more long range fire power to the list to make it more effective.  I fealt the long range punch was lacking versus foot units.   Also the time of Chaos is nigh. I have a feeling, judging from the pictures, that we are all going to have our hands full as the first official 6^th edition codex drops. The legions are stirring and the Eye Of Terror is opening to spill its foulness into the galaxy. OST is getting 2 codexs in a row........its not fair.

Until next time....................

Blood Runs, Anger Rises, Death Wakes, War Calls!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

If Ya Can't Beat Them...........Start An Army

Well I have partaken of the Kool Aide. I started a Necron army. I am still of course playing my Eldar and Dark Eldar, but after one game using a rather hodge podge list I decided to start up an army. Being on the receiving end of successive beatings by the forces of the Tomb Worlds got me thinking. What better way to beat my foe than to join them. Play the army and come to understand its weaknesses and strengths, then exploit the weakness with my other armies.

So I have picked up a command Barge aka “The Douche Canoe” a squad of 10 Immortals, 5 Death Marks and Nemesor Zahndrekh with his trusty bodyguard Vargard Obyron. I have them assembled and I plan on actually making an effort to get them painted before I buy more. Although if I can find legs and chest pieces from the many bits merchants on Ebay and such I will be building more Immortals and Death Marks from the bits leftover from my current built units.

BigMek SkrapKlaw and I got a game in with my “Codex Tour” army list so I could try out some of the units and get a feel for the army. As it stands it is a very powerful codex and actually has lots of leeway when it comes to tactical errors and the loss of units effect on the whole army. There are also many dirty little tricks that are fully supported by the FAQ.

So why Nemesor Zahndrekh? Well The character appeals to me. Also I didn’t want to step on The Stormlords toes and take his namesake. I figured it would be ok just being a General in the undying armies of the Necrotyr. I am also planning on playing with Trazyn The Infinite as I find this character highly entertaining. Of course I will also run just dual overlords as having just one command barge kind of leaves it open to lots and lots of fire.

I did have a though about the Command barge though. The main strength of the Command Barge is that it is a very effective harassment unit. Its effective against vehicles, very effective, and it can thin units out a bit all using its sweep attack. Zahndrekh is a nice HQ because of his ability to strip units of their universal special rules and to let units deep strike on your opponents turn. Granted your units must be able to deep strike to begin with to take advantage of this rule.

So I have been mulling it around a bit and the way I am reading it, the rule states you can Deep strike any number of your units that can deep strike. So it sounds like I can deep strike all of my units if just one enemy unit deep strikes. It also sounds as if I don’t need to make a reserve roll. Unless this is implied, and should be actually stated, that for a unit to deep strike it must make a reserve roll. So I can drop all my deep striking units on my opponents turn. This really would mess with an opponent. All of a sudden their plan of attack has to alter, maybe radically, to deal with your entire army on the board after they only have one unit come in. I am exploring this ability and seeing what I can do and what use it is. I like the idea of dropping a monolith on the opposing force, especially when I can use it to deploy reserve troops in the enemy deployment zone enmasse on my actual turn.

It also occurs to me that Night Scythes and Doom Scythes also can deep strike. Flayed ones can as well. I definitely must explore this ability more it seems untapped and left behind in the wake of Tesla spam and Colombian Death Squads.

I am also taking hard looks at Immortals and Warriors as my Troop Choices. Immortals are better. They have better weapon options and have a bit more survivability. The more I read the more I lean towards the Immortals. Now Warriors did take a hit on armor, but the rapid fire rules changing did make the Gauss Flayer better. As long as you use squads of warriors in conjunction with Ghost Arcs you get an increase in survivability. The Ghost Arcs are also very robust, despite being open topped. You can add warriors every turn and really gives the Necron army that undying feeling.

Well I have a lot of studying to do before I buy any more models. This army must be planned as there are lots of different options and possibilities. There are great units that all fit into an army because of good distribution in the force organization chart.

Lots of research, studying and playing indeed. It will be a good filler until the Eldar Codex comes out. Then the real fun can begin.

I will be making an announcement this weekend as well. I have been asked to run a 40K tournament this year at Ucon. I will have details Saturday both here and on Dark Future Games. This is a game convention in the Ann Arbor area that has been running for years. I am glad to be part of a local convention. Look for details Saturday.

Until next time.........................

Blood Runs, Anger Rises, Death Wakes, War Calls!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Footdar: The New Black

Well I have a couple games in with the new Footdar list. I am in at one win and a very close Tie. As in my opponent had to really work to get a tie. With all the changes in 6^th I have to say that I think The Footdar are the way to go now when running Craftworld Eldar on the table, at least in my opinion.

Space Marines got tougher. Well I should say that things with a 2+ armor save got tougher. There is a lack of sufficient AP 2 in many armies to deal with the hordes of Terminators people seem to be keen on fielding now. Granted the real key to winning games in 6^th edition is going troop heavy and I mean trying your damnedest to max out your troop slots and trying to gain more scoring units in another slot.

As it stands the Footdar list is clocking in at 5 troop units. I have two standard guardian squads, a Storm Guardian squad, a Guardian Jet Bike squad and a Squad of Dire Avengers. Although the Guardians are not as resilient as other troop choices they make up for the fact in numbers. As always you bolster them with a Farseer and the close proximity of an Avatar of Khaine.

The only real issue I have been having is close combat. If a dedicated close combat unit of size hits the guardian unit it gets shredded very fast. The Avatar is the only thing keeping the unit in combat if there are any survivors. This issue is really made worse by terminators and things with a 2+ save.

Of course my solution to this issue is to run the Fire Prisms. I have 2 in the list thus far. They have proven to be very valuable so far. In the past I have been weary for some reason about using them. They have been targeted and eliminated quickly in the past.

Massed fire has also been pretty good in dealing with those hard targets. I have an 8 man Warp Spider unit jumping around the battlefield supporting the Guardians. These guys have been pretty effective so far. Deep Striking behind my opponents army seems to be stalling forward progress. The only real issue is that stalling the opposing force limits what I can do to them at range.

This my friends is the only real big issue I am having with my Footdar list. Range. This was really evident with the short table edge deployment. Night fight aside all I had to handle the parking lot of Razorbacks was 2 Fire Prisms and a Night Spinner. Although the Prisms are adept at killing armor its hard slowing down a mechanized force with only 2 of them.

The Warp Spiders helped mitigate the range issue a bit and kept the army occupied but I couldn't bring enough fire to bear and wipe out units before they reached my lines. So I am looking at options. The Night Spinner may be removed and swapped out for something with a good amount of ranged fire. I am considering War Walkers or possibly a unit of Dark Reapers. This of course means reallocating points and shifting some points around.

So progress with the Eldar is slow but I am relearning the army in this new edition. I know once I get in the groove the new codex will drop and the process will start all over again. I do have a side project started though, besides the Dark Eldar that is. I will have more on that later though. One Elder race at a time.

Until next time...........

Blood Runs, Anger Rises, Death Wakes, War Calls!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I Need An Air Brush and Tournaments This Saturday!

Well I have started to paint the Dark Eldar. I finally found a blue that is dark enough for my taste. Only trouble is its an old foundation paint, Necron Abyssal. So now I will begin the hunt to find pots of paint at local and not so local shops to make sure I can get enough. This also means I need to finally suck it up and buy an air brush. I made the mistake of assembling most of my vehicles a little to much. So as much as I like free handing everything, trying to get paint into the nooks and crannies of a Raider is really not feasible with a brush. This is especially true if I want the Raiders to look presentable. I would also like to add that I am lazy when it comes to painting so I need an express method of base coating.

That said I need an air brush. I have it narrowed down to two different brands of air brush. Iwata and Badger. I have seen the Badger airbrushes demonstrated at Adepticon and thought they were pretty nice. I have used a couple different Iwata brushes. The most recent one I have used is an Iwata Eclipse hp cs. Sadly this belongs to Samsquatch Monster and He is not keen on letting me borrow it to base an entire army. I have been looking through the Badger 100 series airbrushes.

So I am looking online and offline for starter kits from both companies and trying to find a good deal. So I ask you, my readers for advice and suggestions. I am trying to keep my cost down as I have limited funds at the moment.

I am also going to be picking up some Dust Warfare stuff hopefully this weekend. The Rulebook is a certain thing. The Dust Tactics Core set, Which includes a bunch of models, seems to be out of stock.  Fantasy Flight is doing a revised Core set that costs less but does not include as many models.  The counters and such are usable in Dust Warfare so I want to pick it up.  IF I find the first core set just sitting somewhere for a good price I may snag that.

 I have a 2000 point tournament to prepare for at Evolution games this Saturday. Its a dual force org with Forgeworld 40k approved units allowed. I will be rolling out the Eldar for this tourney. I may have to make some list changes though. It depends on if I can get the Storm Guardians built. This is dependent on the mount of close combat weapons I have floating around in the bits box.  

So for those interested in the Tournament,  its at Evolution Games in Lansing.  The dice roll at 12 and registration starts at 11.  Its $10 to play and Farseer Re-Rolls will be selling raffle tickets for a dollar for some prizes.  You get one for entering the tournament.  You also get to use them as a re-roll during the tournament.

I would also like to plug the Tournament on the same day at AFK Games in  South Lansing / Holt.  It is an 1850 point tournament with no fortifications allowed.  There will be 3 rounds and entry is $15.  Space is limited to 16 players.  Registration starts at 10 am and dice roll at 11.  So you have your choice of tournament this Saturday in Lansing.  Prepare 2 lists so if you choose AFK you can still make Evo's tournament if it fills up.  I will be at Evo running Dual Seers and an Avatar.......Giggity!

I will have more later in the week. The week has been quite hectic and I have been writing some more on Eldar tactics in 6^th edition. I need more games though to really get a handle on what has been going through my mind.

Until next time................

Blood Runs, Anger Rises, Death Wakes, War Calls!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

That Fine Ass Dust: Seerk Tries Out Dust Warfare

Last night I was late getting to the FLGS thanks to that thing called a job. CVinton was at the shop playing one of the newbs when I arrived. The Store has been closing earlier than it normally does thanks to the guy they have working that day. Although I was not going to get a game of 40K in I knew I was going to try out something new to the area.

CVinton and Old School Terminator have been delving into the realm of Dust Warfare by Fantasy Flight Games. I am a fan of Fantasy Flights products and you may be familiar with them if you play the 40K RPGs Rogue Trader, Dark Heresy, Death Watch and Black Crusade. I am always intrigued by other war games, especially when they are done by ex GW game designers. In this case the lead designer on Dust Warfare is none other than Andy Chambers.

For those of you unfamiliar with Dust Warfare it is a War Game much the same as Warhammer 40K. It is derived from Dust Tactics which is a board game after a fashion. It is played on tiles that make up the game board. Dust Warfare is played on a table top like 40K. That is where the similarities end. The system is very easy to learn and has a lot of depth to it. There is no weird language and rules that are open to interpretation. This is a major thing that has plagued 40k for years. It would also seem that Fantasy Flight is much more in tune with its customers and is working to make the game easier to play and get into. The best example is that there are some characters for Dust Tactics, that you can use in Dust Warfare, that are currently only available in $60 expansion boxes that are meant for use with Dust Tactics. They are planing on releasing these characters in blisters for Warfare players. Can you see GW doing that with any of their products?

I digress though. The Game itself is set in the Historical era of World War 2. The key differences is that the German killed Hitler and there was a discovery of a strange alien power source. This lead to the development of new weapons, many outstripping our current technology, and Walkers. Having started my war gaming hobby in Battle Tech I was intrigued by the walkers. In the game you have currently 3 factions. The Allies, The Russians and of course The Germans.

After playing like 3 small introductory games with CVinton I am hooked. There is a lot of depth in tactics and rules that are very clear. The models are nice and come for the most part pre assembled and even pre primed and ready to paint. They can also be about a 1/3 the cost of GW models.

This gets em to how the products are sold. Squads are sold whole. As in you get a whole squad with nothing else to buy. CVinton gave the example of a command squad that had an alternate option to it and the 5 man squad came with a 6^th guy that was equipped with the alternate option. It also didn't cost any more. The walkers and vehicles come with all the weapon options available to them. I would also point out that they actually have models out that don’t have rules. This is of course the opposite of what GW does. The book expansions, the Russian one to be exact, also has Allied and German units in it. Oh did I mention there are no codexes and all the rules for the Factions, with the exception of the Russians which is the first expansion for the game, is contained in the main rulebook which costs $30 bucks less than the 6^th edition Rulebook. In fact I am pretty sure you can get Dust Tactics, which contains 2 legit and playable armies which are balanced, and the rule book for just slightly more than the 6^th edition rulebook. If you split the tactics box with a friend you can have the rulebook and an Army to go with it for about the cost of just the Warhammer 40,000 6^th edition rulebook.

As I am looking into this game and the products more it is blowing my mind. I have been abused by GW and their haphazard way of releasing products and so use to the abusive relationship they have with their customers that this all seems to good to be true. So look for some Dust articles as I progress with the game. I see some Germans in my future.

I have also gotten in one game with the new Footdar. The outcome was very promising. The Judges Grey Knights cried uncle after 4 turns. Very promising indeed. I am going to be testing them against CVintons Space Wolves soon. We will see if I can get a new streak going.

Until next time.........

Blood Runs, Anger Rises, Death Wakes, War Calls!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Changing Gears With The Craftworlders

6^th Edition has been rough for me so far. The Dark Eldar are getting some wins, much needed wins as I am feeling pretty down trodden in the 40K arena. I am trying to salvage what I can when it comes to the Eldar. I am up to my eyes in Necrons, Imperial Guard and Space Marines. I find it funny that 6^th edition was toted in many circles as being the Xenos edition. It is in part as the Necrons have probably the most powerful and adaptive codex currently followed by those tank junkies the Imperial Guard. The Tau are seeing improvement as the game has really turned into a shooting game. The speed of many armies has also increased, which has taken away some advantage the Eldar and especially the Dark Eldar have enjoyed. The tone is being set with 6^th early with the starter set being composed of Dark Angels and The forces of Chaos. I don't say Chaos Marines because it would appear cultists make up a part of the army and with the allies rules in place you can run a proper Chaos army. True Daemons, Traitor Legions and frothing Cultists all in one force. Truly a sight to behold and one that has not been seen on the table in literally decades. I hear the call of the Great Enemy once again. Fulgrims sons will be gracing my hobby table very soon me thinks. Its been a while since I had the forces of Chaos in my hands. Its been 3 years since I sold off the last of my Legion. A legion I have had since 1996.

I digress though. The Eldar are fighting even harder to survive. I have been experimenting like crazy with different lists and unit combinations. So much so I think I have lost focus. I have been looking for a new combination or new tactic to give the Craftworlders an edge. The way units function has changed and as I am relearning them I am starting to realize it may be time to brush off some old tactics.

That said I have been running Footdar with a vengeance. I am going back to my themed Ulthwe lists and as fate would have it they are functioning better than my wonky and gimmicky new lists. Guardians supported by Aspect Warriors. Farseers and The Avatar of Khaine leading the forces of Ulthwe into battle. I have left the Warlocks on the bench. The points they suck up are better spent on keeping the list balanced. Building a list to take on the book missions is essential. If you ask any successful tournament player they will tell you building a list around the missions is how you win. This is the true take all comers list. Building a list to dominate the missions you are playing. Keeping the list balanced to maximize your ability to take objectives and deprive your opponent of the objectives, be it an actual objective or strait victory points, should be your only goal.

It seems like common sense. The concept is so basic that most people just roll their eyes and utter “dur I know!” The real issue is that most people don't get it. Look at the codexes that currently are really at the top of the game right now. Necrons and Imperial Guard. I will argue Grey Knights being in the top three despite what the internet is clinging to. Both of these codexes are built to be flexible. Although the Necron codex is obviously purpose built for 6^th edition, it was still powerful in 5^th. You have stout Troop choices with a variety of very effective, albeit kinda short ranged, fire power and real resiliency. You have support units that enhance the troops. Ghost Arks replenish Warrior squads. Lords on command barges sweep through the enemies ranks causing massive damage as its soulless legions march forward. Doom Scythes fly into he fray delivering Colombian like death squads into the enemies midst. You can bring the fight to your opponent while still being able to hold objectives.

The same is true for the Imperial Guard. You have hordes of scoring infantry squads with the fire power to fend off just about any opponent. There is overwhelming force and ability to play to the missions. Flexibility.

This is what I am doing with the Eldar. A minimum of 4 troop choices in every list is where I am starting. The Eldar have a decent amount of variety when it comes to Troop choices. I am going heavy on Guardians with Dire Avenger and Pathfinder support. Loading up on troops gets you objectives and it also meets the minimum requirements of using 2 force organization charts at 2000 points and above. If you have this built into your default list you can build on a firm base. Balance. Balance is the key to the game now.

I am going to role out the 1850 and 2000 point versions of my list this week sometime. There is a 2000 point tournament at Evolution games on September 1^st. There is also a tournament at AFK games on the same day that is 1850 points. Decisions decisions. Regardless I am going to try and get back in the groove and rack up some wins with the Craftworlders. More on that as it happens.

Until next time..............

Blood Runs, Anger Rises, Death Wakes, War Calls!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!