The Big House

New Rule of the Day

2011-09-02T08:27:00.000-05:00

I'm baaa-aacck.

Up on the Magnificent Bastards!

Welcome, The Magnificent Bastards

2011-09-01T22:53:00.005-05:00

The song has been sung. The call has been heard.

My blog is moving. I've joined forces with 6 other like minds from the midwest hobby pool to bring you a super blog! (*Or, we're a bunch of lazy{efficient!} bastards and the few of us that do post will carry{inspire!} the others with them!!!)

The Magnificent Bastards is the name chosen, and it was our team name chosen back for the last Hillbilly (named the Battle on Beale) in Memphis, in TN in 2008.

"The Rodge" of pointhammered fame is the brain child of it all and one of the bastards.

Click here to learn more.

Come on over, we are enthusiastic and should have LOTS of content - in a few days I will redirect this blog automatically over there.

Thanks for following me and my ramblings. I will bring more and more in the future!

Cheers!
Domus

Brave New World - Firebelly

2011-08-24T16:16:00.003-05:00

I was trying to understand what was going on in the mask and had the pic zoomed in big time and was laughing pretty hard when I saw it.

Cropping the image just so of the new GW Firebelly produces this result.

LOL

Blood in the Sun Battle Report

2011-07-14T11:21:00.001-05:00

Finally making some time to do a write up. Details are gonna be sketchy at best but here's my best shot.

One of the neat things about the tourney is that you got 4 re-roll tokens if you paid / list in on time. You could use these, one per game, in any game except game 5.

My list
Slann - General / BSB
Cupped Hands
Divine Plaque of Protection
Becalming / Mystery / Focused
Lore of Light

Scar Vet - LA / Shield
Burning blade of Chotec / Glyph Necklace

Scar Vet - LA / Shield / Cold One
Dragonhelm / Dawnstone / Venom of the Firefly Frog

28 Saurus - FC
25 Saurus - FC
10 Skinks /w Blowpipes
6 Chameleons
6 Chameleons
5 Terradons
1 Ancient Stegadon
2 Sallies with Extra Handlers
2 Sallies with Extra Handlers

Game 1 - Steve Haver - Beasts - from MI

Great guy. Just started playing in tournaments this past year and having a blast. Since the organizers said they wanted fun lists, he brought a real fun list. Since there were not any rules to enforce this desire this was just a pipe dream so I brought a list that could compete.

His list
Beastlord
4 x Lvl 1's with Herdstone
Doombull on Flying Carpet
Big Block of Gor
Medium Block of Gor
Big Block of Bestigor
2 units of skirmishing Ungor
Unit of Harpies
1 x Razorgor
2 x Razorgor

I shot his razordons early and used the salamanders to thin the big blocks until I just couldn't avoid them anymore and the saurus, buffed by light magic, made quick work of them. He killed a unit of chameleon skinks. Sadly, our lists were not anywhere near the same caliber but he smiled and had a fun game through the pounding. Nice guy, would love to play him again with lists on a little more even footing.

And thus ends my pictures. Not sure why but I just quit taking them.

Game 2 Dan Ruud - Demons - Table 3
Thirster - Re-Rolls, 3+ AS, Spellbreaker
BSB Herald On Jugger
Herald on Foot
Lvl 2 Tzeentch Mage - master of sorc - Heavens
2 big blocks of letters in Horde form
6 Hounds
4 Juggernauts with Banner

I didn't like the looks of this list from the get go. Having played Toms Khorne demons a zillion times I always have fits with the thirster. It didn't help that we were playing a modified Blood & Glory scenario (dropping below Break point didn't end the game but you could getting bonus points for dropping the enemy). I knew I had to take my time getting into combat and use magic / shooting to wither his units down to something I could handle. Straight up combats with Demons is not a great idea.

He deployed right on the line the full 18" in which made me smile like a fiend. I deployed on the backline to give my shooting / magic some time to do its work. Chameleons deployed in the backfield with their eyes on the Tz. caster who had not learned "How Not to be seen". Turn 1 to Lizards.

Chameleons take out the Tzeentch caster and put some wounds on a unit of letters. Big spell of this game was Banishment. Turns out, Banishment punishes Bloodletters. I was killing 7-10 per round with that spell. Forcing them to re-roll ward saves is huge. My slann did miscast on Banishment and rolled a 10 on the chart which could have been bad. I used my re-roll here to turn it into a 7 and just lost some PD and took a wound. Much better than losing levels and banishment.

On his turn 1 he advanced up the thirster to threaten the lone slann and on my right flank advanced up his other unit of letters and parked the dogs in front of it. Juggernauts slowly advanced around my left flank (after failing LD test to march).

Lizard turn 2 - I took this opportunity to block up the right flank by charging out my Scar Vet on Cold One at the Dogs. I didn't expect to win but did expect not to break. This would keep both the dogs & the big horde formation tied up for hopefully a few turns while I shot it up. My slann hid behind the other unit of saurus which had advanced but only a bit. I made sure to put the thirster so he would have to charge the front of the slann but left him no where to land. Scar Vet did a wound to dogs and they easily passed their test. Combat held. Peppered the big unit of letters down more with magic & shooting.

Demon turn 2 - He wanted to charge the slann and when he couldn't he asked me to put his Thirster in a spot. I hate having to do this so I was very careful and made sure he was very exact in where he wanted him and his facing. He was wanting to get a Slann charge so positioning here was huge. Dan also took his BSB out of the unit that was getting shot to death and move him into the big unit that was blocked up behind the dogs / scar vet combat. Dog / Scar Vet combat draws off again. Juggers charge a sallie unit who flees and gets away.

Lizard turn 3 - Everything moves up except the slann who pops back a bit to be in 12" range of the saurus (should they see combat) yet out of LoS of the Thirster. Shooting / Magic finishes off the 1 Letter unit and starts to focus on the other. Hound / Scar Vet combat stalemate - this is working beautifully and continues to lock up his right flank.

Demons 3 - Dan finally charges a unit of saurus (on my right flank) in the rear with the thirster. His BSB also charges out at my lone hero holding up his dogs. Thirster does quite a few wounds, saurus hold on Steadfast with Slann nearby and reform to put him in the front. This could go poorly if my lone hero is killed as then I will have dogs / letters in the rear of that unit. Scar Vet challenges and puts a wound on the BSB. BSB no wounds - stalemate combat still.

Rest of the game - I continue the assault with shooting / magic on his other bloodletter unit until I wipe it out. The thirster is locked in combat with saurus for the rest of the game which he failed to completely kill. I only managed to put 2 wounds on it. I killed everything except for the thister and juggernaut unit (which played chase the sallies far too long to ever see combat). Massacre Victory for me.

Game 3 - Johnny Hastings - Beastmen - Table 2
I'd been hoping to meet Johnny in battle as it had been a long time since we last played.

His list (roughly)
Lvl 4 Shadow
2 x Lvl 1s - Scroll / herdstone
Beastlord
BSB
Big unit of Gor in Horde form
Big unit of ungors
Big unit of Bestigor
6 Minos - FC
Harpies
2 Chariots

Johnny deployed in a straight line and denied me anyplace good to place my chameleons. I decided simply to use them as bait to get stuff out in the open.

High points of the game
Minos charge a unit of sallies and the sallies kill 3 minos. Minos whiff and get sent running. I spent the rest of the game chasing these guys, they never made it off the board and 1 was left alive (though now that I type this he should only have insanely rallied....) and managed to rally denying me those points. Horde of Gor hurts. I used a big unit + steg to kill it but lost a ton of models in the process. This paniced the ungor unit which was hiding all of the mages. It also ran alot but got to the board edge and rallied.

I spent the game shooting up the Bestigor but never got them killed.

Turn 4 I had him on the ropes and was up roughly 500-600 points he knew it and wasn't overly happy about it. This too, soon would change.. I got greedy going for the big win and paid for it. Johnny finally realized he should be trying to cast pit of shades on my slann. He got it off, I failed my Init. test but used the re-roll which kept the slann on the table. I could have gotten out of range on my turn but was still being greedy. Slann / Steg stayed near the bestigor trying to finish them off for points.

Turn 5 Johnny pitted the Slann and Turn 6 he pitted the steg. 500 point win for Johnny - 7 - 13. Second tourney in a row where getting greedy and NOT getting out of uber spell range cost me the slann. Someday I'll learn???

Game 4 - I was supposed to play Johnny again on Table 2. Obviously this could not happen so I got swapped to Table 3 (I was amazed my loss did not move me very much in the standings) to play one of my favorite opponents Miel Vermulen from Milwaukee, WI. Miel is no slouch and always gives me one of the hardest fought games - I love this challenge.

Scenario was wonky. Diagonal deployment. IF only on the doubles based on round. Round 1 = IF on Double 1's. Round 2 = IF on Double 2's, etc... Miscast still only on Double 6's. This meant my becalming wasn't that great as it saved his Vamp from miscasting ever. I needed to suck the 6's though to keep my dispel opportunity alive.

His List
Vamp - Lvl 3 - Full Lore of Death - 4+ WS
Necro - Van Hels / invocation / Bound item (cant recall)
BSB - Drakenhoff
40 Ghouls horde form
20 Skellies - FC Vamp here
15 Skellies -FC Necro Here
5 Wolves
3 Bats
34 Grave Guard - FC - BSB here
5 Wraiths
Black Coach

Deployment - I deployed so as to completely ignore the ghouls. I thought I had won the deployment phase but my salamanders were a little to close to the black coach and couldn't flee without fear of going off the board.

Turn 1 to Miel. Coach charges a sallie unit. Wraiths charge the other sallie unit which flees (It had lots of room to get away). Coach kills a sallie and does 2 wounds. Sallies hold with Slann within 12. GG advance up. Ghouls make a big vs. charge terradons (I made a STUPID move with vanguard) and make it. (he was also within 6" of an idol of gork which would have let him re-roll). Terradons hold though!

Lizard turn 1 - Cold one Scar Vet charges coach. Saurus unit with Burning Blade hero charges coach in the flank. Coach dies - Saurus unit reforms so as not to get flanked by grave guard. Slann miscasts and rolls an 11 which is passed to the necromancer who loses both spells and is now a Level 0 wizard. Shooting commences with the chameleons whittling away at the generals unit. Steg gets into position to charge the generals unit turn 2.

VC turn 2 - Miel charges the saurus unit that just popped his coach. He needs a 9 and what do you know, that lucky son of a gun rolls it. With no combat buffs up the GG eat that unit alive and overrun into the sallie / Scar vet still sitting there. His vamp lord moves to the smaller unit so as not to be in combat with the Stegadon.

Liz turn 2 - Steg charges Skellies. Saurus unit positions itself to get GG charged. Shooting peppers his VC lord unit down further. Steg wins combat but is locked in combat with that unit for a while. Speed of Light & Pha's go off on the saurus unit. This enables them to tie up the GG unit for quite a few turns.

VC turn 3 - Lord heals his unit back up. GG / Saurus stalemate with light magic buffs up. Skellie - Steg combats sees the steg kill more skellies, chippin away.

Liz turn 3 - Slann comes out to see the Vamp unit. Shooting / Magic kills the unit off and puts 2 wounds on his vampire. Buffs attempted but only got Pha's off after failing to cast and ending the phase. Saurus hold though but take a beating.

VC turn 4 - Stuff. More skellies die. More Saurus die. Combats stalemate. My chameleons have been peppering the ghouls the whole game but finally got charged after failing a march test. They got away. Vamp cast Doom & Darkness on the slann.

Liz turn 4 - More of the same stuff except that the GG get freed up.

VC turn 5 - Vamp charges the slann since his unit is dead and all of the other units he could hide in are locked in combat. Grave gaurd whoop up on the saurus who still hold with the slann in 12" Skellie unit finally beaten by the stegadon who reforms from victory to rear charge the vampire in combat with slann. Vamp puts a wound on the slann and wins by 1. He thought he might have me with D&D still up but the slann holds. GG charge a salamander unit who gets away.

Liz turn 5 - Rear charge the vamp with the steg. Salamanders rally and are in a position to burn up the GG unit which will then get peppered by 2 skink units bowfire. I was really hoping Miel would not challenge my slann and he did not. Halfway through resolving the combat he starts banging his head on the table as he realized his folly. We had quite a crowd at this point and I started giggling uncontrollably while the onlookers were looking at us perplexed. Vamp died due to the steg charge. This forces crumbling which ends up killing the wraiths (who I never would have got), the bats, also never would have got and turns what was going to be quite the loss into a minor win for me (100+ points). 11-9. Another hard fought and fun game from Miel. I only won because he forgot to challenge. I'll take it (especially after my previous loss due to a mistake).

Game 5 - Nick Loaf - Warriors of Chaos

Watchtower scenario, also slightly wonky. The only units that could ever occupy the Watchtower were units that were 20 or less models. This was really the only fault I found with the tourney. A change this big to a std scenario should have been advertised.

his list
Lvl 4 on Disc with puppet
Lvl 2 on Foot with eye of Tzeentch (Spell stealer thingy)
BSB
Big block of khorne marauders with flails
2 Big warrior blocks - 1 Tz / 1 Khorne - both had halberds and the Tz unit had the banner of rage
1 5 man marauder horse unit
2 Hellcannons

I don't recall a lot of the details here except that I got my 10 skink unit in the building (which only had 3 models left). He never charged the building. I used shooting / magic to thin down CW units before fighting them and then used Light buffs to keep my units in the alive. He used the item 1 time to cast pha's protection on one of his units and I proceeded to keep my Slann out of LoS for the rest of the game. 13-7 win for Lizards.

All of that got me a 5th place overall finish. More importantly I got the same sports score as the guy who won best sportsman. I was really tickled with that especially since I had a really hard list and brought my A game to all of my opponents. I'm really more proud of that score than my overall placement.

Bretonnians (Mike Gerold) won Overall
Johnny Hastings went on to win Best General
Dennis Gunia won Best Painted
Jake Murphy won Best Sports
Joe Rogers won Players Choice
"The Legend" of HPB fame won a best Comp award as well

As usual, the HPB's cleaned up! Congrats to them!

I had an amazing weekend. It really reinforced my decision again to come back to the game. I had 5 great games with 5 great opponents.

I really was sad I'm not playing with an army converted / painted to my current skill level to be able to compete for appearance / Players Choice. This is something I HAVE to rectify. Met lots of great new folks outside of my games as well and got to put faces to a lot of guys I know from the internet. Got to spend time with some great friends I had not seen in quite a long time now.

I'll wrap up with some random pics (I really failed at picture taking here). I will have to work on it some more.

Back from Blood in the Sun

2011-07-11T14:38:00.003-05:00

I just spent up the weekend at the Blood in the Sun tournament. I had a blast, spent a lot of time with old friends and made quite a few new friends. I also got to finally meet Grant Fetter and all the Garage Hammer & Ohio Hammer guys as well as the gamers from the Twisted Troop in Iowa(ish).

I traveled up there with my great friend Jeff Tupper and Rob Phaneuf. Rob drove up to my house from Memphis, TN and we then made the trek up to Chicago land.

Quick note on my games (More Extensive bat rep later) - only 1 game vs. a guy I didn't know but that didn't make my games any less awesome.

Game 1 - Steve Haver - Beasts (MI) - 20-0 Big Win
Game 2 -Dan Ruud - Demons (WI or IL) - 15-5 Major Win
Game 3 - Johnny Hastings - Beasts (WI) - 8 - 12 Minor Loss (*I got greedy & John punished me for it)
Game 4 - Miel Vermulen - VC (WI) - 11 - 9 Minor Win (Just squeaked this out)
Game 5 - Nick Loef - WoC (IL) - 13-7 Minor Win

Very pleased with my finish and that + really high sports (& really low comp) and moderate paint - netted me 5th place overall. Very tickled!

Full Results are here!

I was glad I got to meet Brad Schwandt (Rhellion) but was gladder I got to dodge his list. His double seers is a big answer to my lizard list and would bring the pain. If we both make it to Core Comp I'm gonna have to bite the bullet and challenge him round 1.

Cheers for now,
Domus

PS - see I'm not dead. Just been sick. Should get back to blogging semi-regularly now. :-)

Blog Suggestion: Lead n Paint

2011-06-27T08:59:00.001-05:00

My good friend Caius just started a blog up. His focus is collecting and painting really old miniatures. The pre-slotta kind and beyond. Bit of a nut for that kind of thing but there are some really fun figures to look at in his collection.

Lead N Paint

Head on over and check it out. Only 2 posts so far but some interesting antiquities to look at.

Cheers,
Domus

Fighting off a cold!

2011-06-21T14:57:00.000-05:00

Came down with a cold over the weekend and I've spent the last couple of days taking it easy and fighting it off. I spent the bulk of yesterday working on my fathers day present!

I got it to work on with my son but he went and spent the day in a pool at his friends. We agreed to each build 1 tower. So I built 3/4 of mine and now have to wait for him to catch up so we can build the walks across the tops and join both towers together to move on.

Fun stuff and a great fun project. Sorting out those 4300 pieces was quite the chore though.

Cheers,
Domus

Short Vacation and early Happy Fathers Day!

2011-06-17T00:19:00.002-05:00

Here's hoping all you gaming dads out there have an AWESOME Fathers Day this Sunday. Here's a pic from my new favorite website to get your weekend mood set!

I'll be off for a few days on a short vacation (not that I post everyday regularly yet anyways...).

I expect to be back in full force on Monday.

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Basic Versus Advanced

2011-06-14T16:08:00.000-05:00

Rule of the Day 06/14/2011

Basic Versus Advanced - pg 11
Where rules apply to a specific model, they always override any contradicting basic rules. For example, the basic rules state that a model must take Panic test under certain situations. If, however, that model has a rule that makes it immune to Panic, then it does not test for Panic - the advanced rule takes precedence.

The end of the basic rules can be found in a little "blurb box" in the bottom right hand corner of page 63 labeled THE FOUNDATION IS COMPLETE!

Basic Rules Pages 1 - 63
Advanced Rules Pages 64+

There was recently some discussion which prompted this on The Warhammer Forum about reforming a unit from victory, which was still in combat on 1 side, and turning a unit to face an impending flank charge - thus giving the current enemy a flank. The question was "I had thought it wouldn't work because you can't move a model out of contact with the enemy, so if the command models are in contact they have to stay there and can't form the new front."

The command groups rules which force command models to always be in the front are on pg 92.

Combat Reform rules are on pg 55.

Combat reform would happen and the command would move to the front under the Advanced > Basic principle.

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Ambushers

2011-06-10T14:33:00.001-05:00

Rule of the Day - 06/10/2011

*Lewis - the Original Nerd Ambusher

Indirectly suggested by my good friend Jim Emerick, TO for the Midwest Rampage.

Ambushers - pg 79
A unit with the Ambushers rule does not deploy at the start of the battle. Instead, from Turn 2 onwards, the controlling player rolls a dice at the start of the turn for each unit of his Ambushers that have yet to arrive. On a 1 or 2, the Ambushers have been delayed - but you'll be able to roll for them again next turn. On a 3 or more, the unit of Ambushers arrives, and will enter the board during the Remaining Moves sub-phase. If the Ambushers do not turn up for the entire game, they are assumed to have got lost, and are treated as having fled the battle for the purposes of determing the victor.

Arriving Ambushers enter the battlefield from any point on any battlefield edge, and move on using the rules for reinforcements (see page 27).

*Note - Beastmen have their own special version of ambush in their book

This will apply though to any of the TK models with the "Entombed Beneath the Sands" special rule.

The big change for them from the previous book is that Ambushing is no longer optional.

Cheers!
Domus

Rule of the Day - Sequencing

2011-06-09T10:30:00.001-05:00

Rule of the Day - 06/09/2011

*The Fibonacci Sequence at work!

Sequencing - pg 10
Whilst every effort has been made to make sure that the sequencing of rules is utterly clear, occasionally you'll find that two or more rules are to be resolved at the same time - normally 'at the start of the Movement phase' or similar. When this happens, and the wording is not explicit as to which rule is resolved first, then the player whose turn it is chooses the order.

There are numerous situations which can trigger these types of conflicts which would invoke sequencing. My buddy Joe, of Pointhammered fame, recently asked me a question on this and a few other items.

Joe writes;
Hey Domus, I see your latest Rule of the Day is about challenges.

Our situation was Johnny's Gor Horde w/ Beastlord vs Treeman Ancient w/ Annoyance. Fear, Primal Fury, and Challenges always happen at the start of combat and we were dicing each turn whether the challenge happened first or the other two rolls, since it could make a difference if he could not use the General's Ld.

Now that I think about it, I think when the order is not clear the player's whose turn it is decides the order so on my turn his general slinks to the back then takes the unit Ld checks, on his turn he does the Ld checks and then slinks the general. Do you agree? Or do you think there is a strict hierarchy to the order?

If the General is in the back, I would argue that no units can use his Inspiring Presence for the rest of the turn according to the wording of the Refusal paragraph in the Challenges section. What do you think?

(This would be a good way to bust skavenslave blocks or other shit units that rely on the General's Ld)

My reply

Challenges, Fear, Primal Fury all happen at the start of the combat means "Sequencing" kicks in.

So on Johnnys turn, he would do all tests first (as that benefits him) and then refuse.
On joes turn - challenge first and put the dude in the back.

Pg 102 says his Ld. may not be used for ANY leadership tests that turn if he gets dropped in the back rank. (*though don't Skaven have 'lead from the rear' or was that the previous book only)

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Monsters and Handlers

2011-06-08T14:14:00.000-05:00

Rule of the Day - 06/08/2011

Maybe not that kind of monster that needs handling... :-)

These rules are a bit unlcear, so I'm hoping to peel the onion a bit.

Monsters and Handlers - pg 73

The handlers aren't really a combat unit per se, so we ignore them for most gaming purposes, treating the monster itself as the extent of the unit. {*this is THE MOST important sentence, and one I'll come back to}. When a monster suffers an unsaved wound, roll a D6. On a roll of 1-4 the monster suffers the wound as normal, but on a roll of 5-6 a handler model is removed instead. Once all the handlers have been removed, the monster must take a Monster Reaction test just like a ridden monster that loses its rider.

In close combat, the handlers can direct their attacks against any enemy in base contact with their monster. The handlers are otherwise assumed to have their hands too full controlling the monster to carry out any actions like shooting, or casting spells, etc. In addition the handlers cannot be charged, attacked or otherwise affected separately from their monster - if they are found to be blocking movement or line of sight, the controlling player simply alters their position, just as you would for any other battlefield marker or counter. If the monster is removed, so are its handlers.

Summation
Any wound is potentially transferred to a handler on a 5+. {*only shooting wounds transferred in 7th}

Handlers are mostly ignored, they are not in the following cases
     -Close Combat. They can't be attack but they can ALL attack.
     -When the monster is wounded, remove a handler instead on a 5+

This leaves quite a few scenarios where handlers would otherwise affect the game but that first sentence will prevent them from having any effect on the following.
     -Panic Tests
     -Template Hits
     -Characteristic Tests - Excepting Leadership tests {*explicitly stated in the FAQ-which contradicts itself a bit}
     -Charges / Being charged
     -Line of Sight

Cheers,
Domus

Finecast Myth 1 Debunked!

2011-06-08T13:12:00.000-05:00

So I checked on the Mandrake Torso & Weapon I left on my porch (but not in the sun) last night before bed (roughly 11:50 - A little over 12 hours later).

The thermometer on the porch read 90F yesterday around 6:00 PM.

Amazingly enough, I did NOT find pools of melted miniatures.

Even the bendy weapon seemed to be in the same exact state (that of a bendy weapon).

How can this be?

I'm leaving em out now all day today (still not in the sun) for the next test - temps are supposed to reach 90F-95F today here in central Illinois.

Cheers,
Domus

A Positive, yet Honest, Finecast Experience

2011-06-07T13:06:00.003-05:00

So, I got sick to death of hearing all of the finecast hysteria and decided to place an order.

I've been looking forward to finecast mainly because I like conversions, lots of which involve cutting models in half. Finecast models will make this chore so much easier on my life. Based on the gravitational pull towards the negative that has spun about the internet, I also knew somewhat what to expect.

Note that these models are intended for a high end army but I'm not a golden demon level painter. I'm looking for different things from my models.

Price with GW is ALWAYS an issue so I'm not really going to talk about that. It costs what it costs. We don't have to like it. Nuff said.

I placed an order for a box of Dark Eldar Mandrakes. 40k! What? No, no, no. I'm not switching to the dark side. I just simply have a conversion in mind for my dark elves that these torsos will be perfect for (much better than the Gor Torso's I was going to initially use). When I got home yesterday, I found the box from GW sitting on my porch.

I immediately popped it open to start checking out this 'space-age polymer'.

Upon opening the box, I found it contained 3 sprues within the typical GW plastic components boxes they've long used for metals. I did a lot of quick inspection looking for the 'bubble holes' in bad places. They were all over the skirts! I kid. The skirts have holes in em and I don't have the metals to compare to so all of the 'holes' in the skirts looked like they belonged. I was also doing a lot of pulling / twisting, etc on the models just to gauge their durability. Later that night, when I went to take the picture, I noticed that one models' foot had been separated from his skirt. Not sure if this was due to my actions of twisting em or if it came like that. (*See the circled red portion) Either way it wasn't a huge deal as a) I wasn't using the lower portion anyway and b) It could have been very easily repaired. It IS worth noting this is a VERY thin joint.

There is alot of flash that needs cleaned off. However, this cleans right off with a pass of the knife. In fact, be very gentle or you may cut / scratch your model.

I also noticed one other slight problem with only one of the models. The chin didn't come down to the point that the other model (in the same pose) did. It looks like a miscast. Hard to tell from the pic but the chin has no point - it is the hair you see sticking out past the chin. Clicking on it to see the bigger pic will also help.

After getting all of my pictures taken and models inspected I was itching to get to work so I sat down to cut all the models in half right at the top of the skirt. Previously, I tended to use a dremmel tool for this kind of work as it made the chore quicker than using a jewelers saw but it resulted in less than a perfect cut which almost always rendered the unused portion unusable. I simply put a new blade in the exacto knife and set out to cut a model. A little pressure and done. WOW! Less than a minute taken to cut a model in half. This is exactly what I was hoping for. I got all 5 models cut in half in roughly 5 minutes. All of the cuts are very clean and the lower halves of the models are very usable for another project. This, to me, is everything I was looking for from finecast.

The next step for me was then to do a test fit with one of my Drider bodies I had sculpted previously. It did require a bit of work to remove the Gor torso and scrape off the Green Stuff work I had previously completed but it was well worth the effort. Here is the rough test fit - I am using pins in some of the torso's - not for strength but simply to allow me more positioning opportunities. I also really like that weapon and it will be the only weapon I don't replace with handmade spears. Stay tuned for more on these guys in the coming weeks, I'm totally inspired and VERY pleased with the way he looks now.

Also - the model bonded very well with just superglue. I fully believe you won't be required to pin and superglue alone will be sufficient.

In the end, I had an overall positive experience with Finecast. I know there are some bad experiences out there and I have no doubt more will crop up. It is upsetting that a company the size of GW didn't do more research / implement harsher QC checks, etc.. to prevent some of the stuff from getting out. In the end I know they weren't experts when they started casting in metal but got great at it. I expect the same from finecast. Combine that with the conversion opportunities and the sculpting opportunities for NEW models I'm a bit excited to see what the future holds.

I'm not rushing out to buy a bunch of finecast but I won't be deterred to buy what I need in finecast after this experience.

I've taken a torso and a weapon (which was already 'flimsy' to begin with) that I cut off and put them on my porch, out of direct sunlight. It was 85 deg. Farenheit at 11:30 AM today when I put them out there. I will check on them in roughly 12 hours and see how they have held up.

To Summarize;
Pro's
Easy to Clean Flash / Mold Lines
Easier for Conversions (*especially big conversions)
Pinning not required (*but very easy to drill if you do)
Future Opportunity for even more detailed Models

Con's
GW Quality Issues - Miscasts - Bubbles (*I'm hoping these go away)
Small Weapons (like the ones on these guys) are a bit too bendy - May need a tweak to the formula. *NOTE - the spindly little arms were fine only the weapons were bendy.
Really weak joints very susceptible to breakage

One last note. Something to think about - They are casting models in 'resin' that were designed to be cast in metal. I'm interested to see what models designed for finecast look like and how they come out at the end. Not sure if it is a factor or not but I can't help but wonder.

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Flame Template (20mm / 40mm)

2011-06-02T13:04:00.002-05:00

Rule of the Day 06/02/2011

A follow up to a previous post. I have already created Gaming Aids for use with the 3" & 5 " templates. See this previous blog entry.

I've long been meaning to finish up this flame template entry and finally made time last night.

I have tested these using the flame template I got from the Island of Blood plus a sheet from a GW customizable movement tray (20mm on 1 side, 25mm on the other). They are 99.5% accurate using that sheet as a 'template' under the template (if that makes any sense at all). There are a couple of close calls on the which are indicated with a range. I would probably default to the lower value to be safe.

Cheers,
Domus

A Gigantic Classic

2011-06-02T08:57:00.001-05:00

I've been working off and on on getting this guy ready for paint over the last week. I've always loved this model, this Marauder Giant. One of the classics - so few of which I actually enjoy.

I've wanted to paint him and always saw him as a great fit in my Sigmar Ogre army. I've decided not to convert him at all and leave this classic beast as a classic.

I started painting last night, while chatting with some friends over teamspeak. I managed to get the skin basecoated, washed, tidied up and then 2 layers applied. Slowly but surely I will get this beast done! I love painting and I am glad to be back painting anything but this model definitely is a favorite.

I will update with more pics (& hopefully much better pics - these are all from the iPhone) as I progress.

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Refusing a Challenge

2011-06-01T14:12:00.000-05:00

Rule of the Day - 06/01/2011

Bravely bold Sir Robin
Rode forth from Camelot.
He was not afraid to die,
Oh brave Sir Robin.
He was not at all afraid
To be killed in nasty ways.
Brave, brave, brave, brave Sir Robin.

Refusing a Challenge (BOO! HISS!) - pg 102

If no enemy character steps forward to meet the challenge, one of them must retire in ignominy. This character is nominated by the challenger - though he may not nominate a character that could not have accepted the challenge, or a unit champion - champions can accept challenges, they do not have to. The retiring character slinks off to the back ranks and is not allowed to attack that round - move the model into a rank where he's not in base contact with the enemy. Another model will step up and fight in his place, just as if he'd been slain. Furthermore, the model's Leadership cannot be used for any Leadership tests that take place that turn.

Once a challenge has been refused, the issuer can fight normally in that round of combat.

Nowhere to Run, Nowhere to Hide
A character cannot refuse a challenge if his model cannot be placed so that he is not in base contact with an enemy model - he can't evade his opponent and so must fight for his life. This most commonly happens if a lone character is the subject of challenge, or if his unit is small and engaged on all fronts, so that every model in the unit is in base contact with an enemy.

Note - There is a huge change from 7th edition buried up above. Champions can never be forced into the back ranks for declining a challenge. Nice to keep that typical extra champion attack in the combat.

Cheers!
Domus

Rule of the Day Challenge # 1 Winner

2011-05-31T09:04:00.003-05:00

Firstly, let me thank everyone who sent in emails. I did receive quite a few emails and was very pleased with the overall turnout.

I will endeavor to do a challenge related to every tournament I attend and potentially more often.

The first challenge can be found here.

Turns out, the specific question was ultimately invalid as Salamanders are NOT an infantry unit. DE Assassins can only be hidden in infantry units. This was something I knew and didn't think about at the time.

I did receive a bunch of answers that "he couldn't be hidden there" but they then failed to provide guidance as to the next step. I also received a few answers which actually dealt with the situation as if an assassin could have legally been in that unit.

In the end, I ended up with 2 answers that I really liked. 1 which handled the situation from the illegality standpoint and another which handles what to do in such an awkward situation (assuming it was legal). I've decided to send both emailers a pack of cards.

Answer 1 - Tarjei Aasen
Shadowblade cannot join Salamanders as they are not infantry or war
machines (they are war beasts). If a player at a tournament I ran had
written down that Shadowblade was hiding in a unit he couldn't join,
I'd rule that he would not show up for that battle, but would award no
VPs to the opponent.

Answer 2 - Joe Rogers
I would just rule he could not reveal himself. The reason being that if I allow him to be revealed, then I have to follow it up with an arbitrary decision since this for sure isn't covered anywhere in the rules.

So no reveal = I don't have to make up my own rules.

Allow him to reveal = I have to make up my own rules.

So I'm taking the KISS approach.

If you want more ammo for the ruling, you could say since they didn't cover this pretty common situation in his unit entry, that they didn't intend for it to be possible.

Fluffwise you could say he is swept away with the unit, but you could justify any garbage answer you want fluffwise.

--------------------------------
I loved answer 1 from Tarjei as it is ultimately the correct way to handle the situation.

I also loved answer 2, from the "Rodge", as it is a great approach to handling rules debates for situations not covered by the rulebook. Simple yet brilliant approach IMHO.

Congrats to both winners.

Thanks again for all the entries.

I look forward to the next contest.

Cheers!
Domus

And now for something completely different...

2011-05-27T23:11:00.000-05:00

My wife & I recently painted our 3 season porch and put in new carpet. Hopefully, we will be listing our house soon in hopes of moving.

I found this beauty as I was cleaning out my armoire I store my gaming stuff in. My friend brought this to me about 6-7 years ago after finding it looking for books for his kid.

I have the unique distinction of looking just like the pirate in the middle with the big red beard and roundish glasses.

Comparison pic below for those who don't know what I look like.

My son Sean & I had so much fun this day playing out in the snow.

This book is always good for a laugh from me when I find it and I won't ever let it get away from me.

Have a great holiday weekend all!

Don't forget the Rule of the Day Challenge is on until Monday!

Cheers!

Domus

Rule of the Day - Plague Furnace

2011-05-27T00:13:00.001-05:00

Rule of the Day - 05/27/2011

Inspired by Chris Walker from IWFB, I have decided to start occasionally including Army Specific rules. Chris had given me a tip right before ArdBoyz which made a huge difference in my game. The furnace only 'swings' on the skaven turn.

This Buds for you Chris!

The Skaven Plague Furnace - pg 48/49

Treated as a mount for the Plague Priest

Frenzy / Impact Hits (D6) / MR(2)

Furnace & Monks pushing it are unbreakable as long as Furnace still has 1 wound remaining

Treats Terrain in the same manner as chariots (FAQ)

Unit the furnace is joined to marches, charges and pursues normally as long as the unit has 10 models. For every model the unit drops below 10, thhe unit deducts 1" from the move. If the unit is reduced to 5 or leass models it cannot move.

Billowing Death - Skaven Shooting Phase Only

Can't make this attack if in Close Combat

Flame template that touches furnace base and in furnace front arc

Toughness Test or 1 Wound no Armor save (just like plague censer)

Enshrouded by Fog

At the start of any close combat, any unit touching the furnace suffers D6 automatic hits. Toughness test for each hit or 1 wound no armor save.

Wrecker Attack - Controlling Skaven Combat turn only

Always Strikes Last (updated in latest FAQ)

Artillery Dice worth of Strength 5 hits distributed as shooting with an enemy in base to base and in the front arc of the furnace.

Misfire rolls on Plague Furnace misfire chart

Happy Furnace Hunting!

Cheers,
Domus

Midwest Rampage 6 Final Scores

2011-05-26T15:58:00.004-05:00

13th place overall for me! I'm very happy for my first 2 day 8th edition tournament.

Without my mistakes I could have broken the top 5 but I've learned invaluable lessons.

I'm really happy with my painting score also, with a dipped army with no extra highlighting that seems above average. I chalk it up to the contrast the bases provide.

Cheers,
Domus

Upcoming Blog Layout Update

2011-05-26T11:13:00.002-05:00

I am finding my blog very bland to look at.

A layout update is totally in order.

I'm gonna have to do some playing while I make changes but feel free to send in any suggestions.

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Dispel Dice & Broken Concentration (Dispel)

2011-05-25T16:17:00.005-05:00

Rule of the Day 05/25/2011

This one came up a couple of times in game at the Midwest Rampage 6 and I think I, and a few of my opponents, played it incorrectly.

Dispel - pg 35

Choose Number of Dispel Dice - pg 35
When dispelling, a Wizard can use any number of dispel dice. Unlike casting, there is no upper limit on the number of dice that can be used in a dispel attempt - though you must use at least one dice from the pool if you wish to attempt a dispel.

Dispel Value - pg 35
...skip to last pararagraph...

If the result on the dispel dice is less than the spell's casting result, the dispel attempt has failed. Furthermore, the Wizard is so preoccupied by his collapsing dispel that he is unable to attempt another later in the phase. Just as when casting a spell, a total natural dice score of 1 or 2 is always considered to be a failure, despite any modifiers. This is true regardless of bonuses, from any source. Note the army can always attempt to dispel, regardless of previous failures.

I'm sure I failed a dispel with my slann, as I think on it more, and dispelled again using his +4. Bad Domus...

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day Challenge

2011-05-24T09:29:00.005-05:00

I'd like to introduce the Rule of the Day Challenge. This will be a monthly (or more often) rules based contest. I will pose a question(s) and whoever answers using the rules justification I like the best will win a prize.

I pick, no whining please.

Rule of the Day Challenge # 1

After attending the Midwest Rampage this past weekend, I had my eyes open for rules I had to look up regularly or just plain weird stuff.

One of the weirdest things that happened was directly tied to Shadowblade, a special character from the DE book.

He was in a unit of salamanders that had fled a charge. On the DE turn, my opponent revealed him inside of that fleeing unit.

This opened up a few questions;
1. Does he count as charging so would the sallies auto-flee?
2. Would Shadowblade then get to pursue?

We had the TO rule both questions for our game.

So the challenge is;
How would you rule both questions and why? The best answer will receive 1 pack of magic cards, either the TK or O&G set.

Please send answers to ginger_buddha@yahoo.com.

Don't leave your answers as comments, they will be ignored.

**EDIT** - This contest will run until midnight on May 30th 2011 (GMT -6 or U.S. CST).

GL!

Cheers,
Domus

MWR 6 Wrap Up

2011-05-23T22:17:00.021-05:00

Midwest Rampage 6

Fifth Midwest Rampage under my belt and definitely one of my favorites. It's a hometime tourney run by a longtime friend Jim Emerick. Anyone who knows Jim & I knows we tend to bicker at times like an old married couple but I look forward to this event every year. I only missed the year my mom passed.

Fun filled weekend with friends, old & new, and 5 intense games of Warhammer. This was my first 8th edition two day tournament.

Friday Night
Got to the venue Friday night to help setup. Helped get tables & chairs that were rented unloaded and all set up for the weekend.

I then proceeded to get a practice game in vs. Scott Kline – my lizards vs. his O&G. Scott’s a great guy and an old friend I hadn’t had the opportunity to play in forever. He is always one of the most enjoyable guys to play on the table. I learned the power of mangler squigs as they wrecked havok on the saurus units. Sadly, nothing else in his army performed even close to those and the slann got up the double bubble (Boosted Speed of Light / Boosted Time Warp). Not much can stand up to double augmented Saurus units (re-rolls to hit? Yes please!).

Spent Friday night at the bar & drinking at the hotel with Tom McClure and new guy Rob Phaneuf. Rob turned out to be a great guy and we spent the weekend hanging out together. His blog can be found here. :-)

On to the games & stuff.

Because I brought a table of terrain for the Terrain contest, I started on Table 3. Turns out I was supposed to play 4 of my 5 games there. My 1 lower table game was because he reversed the tables for game 3 so the top table was the highest number working backwards.

My List
Slann – BSB
Cupped Hands / Std. Of Discipline / Divine Plaque of Protection
Focus of Mystery / Higher State / Becalming / Focused Rumination
Lore of Light
Doesn’t get much more “Super” than that

Skink Priest – Lvl 2
Cube of Darkness

Scar Vet – Lt Armor / Shield
Burning Blade / Glyph Necklace

Scar Vet – Great Weapon
Armor of Destiny

30 Saurus – FC
30 Saurus – FC
30 Saurus – FC / Spears

6 Chameleon Skinks
6 Chameleon Skinks
6 Chameleon Skinks

4 Terradons

1 Ancient Steg

2 Salamanders with 8 Handlers
2 Salamanders with 7 Handlers

3000 pts exactly

Game 1 – Scott Tipsword O&G
Orc Warboss - General
Armor of Fortune / Crown of Command

Night Goblin Great Shaman – Lvl 4
Staff of Sorc / Talisman of Endurance / Ironcurse Icon

Black Orc Big Boss – BSB
Talisman of Preservation

Orc Shaman – Lvl 2
Dispel scroll

40 Orc Boyz – FC
36 Savage Orc Boyz – FC
25 Black Orcs – FC / Banner of Eternal Flame
35 Night Goblins – FC / Nets / 3 Fanatics
34 Night Goblins – FC / Nets / 3 Fanatics
2 Goblin Wolf Chariots
2 Goblin Wolf chariots
1 Goblin Wolf Chariot
1 Orc Boar Chariot
5 Wolf Riders – Muso
1 Pump wagon
1 Giant

Scott is running the nicest list ever and I gave him my only +2 comp adjustment. We are playing the Dawn Attack scenario. Random deployment really messed him up as his general & bsb ended up on his right flank far away from the rest of his army.

My combat units were in my center / left flank and my salamanders were on my right flank and hoping to panic some units out of BSB / General range.

Fortunately for Scott, fate decided we needed a more even playing field as my Slann got sucked into the warp on turn 2. (I played cupped hands with a 24” range all weekend – DOH).

Lots of pics from this game but very few details. I used salamanders in combat to take out the pump wagon after panicing a goblin unit off the board. Getting the flank on his generals unit and ignoring the Black Orc / Savage Orc units ultimately gave me the win.

Game 2 – Steve Grunwald Empire
Gen. Of Empire – General
Sword of Sigismund
Dawn Armor

Arch Lector - GW
Speculum / Armor of Silvered steel
Luckstone

Lvl 4 Light Wizard
Scroll / Holy Relic

Captain – BSB
Armor of Meteoric Iron
Dawn Stone

Lvl 2 Wizard – Heavens
Seal of Destruction

Warrior Priest- GW
Ench. Shield
Biting Blade
Ironcurse Icon

Engineer – Pigeon Bombs
Engineer – Pigeon Bombs
Engineer

3 x Mortar
1 x Great Cannon
1 x Hellblaster

20 Crossbows – FC / Banner of Eternal Flame
20 Handgunners – FC
38 Halberdiers – FC
37 Greatswords – FC
30 Flagellents - Prophet

Solid empire list, sure to bring the pain and shut down my magic.

His anti-magic kept my magic phase shut down the entire game. I think I cast one spell. I rolled at least 1-2 6 dice spells every phase and just could not get the IF (hoping to then pass it on to his level 2 in the building). Not having speed of light on saurus really hurts em.

Meeting Engagement with Diagonal deployment. Steve castled up his warmachines in the corner and his 2 big shooty units in buildings. Flagellants + cannon come in reserves. My terradons were my only unit to come in reserve.

My saurus units were setup with 2 in the center and 1 on my far right end of my DZ to provide a distraction.

I got the first turn & marched the Stegadon right out in front – hoping to bait him into charging with his GS unit and hoping he would come up short (he needed a 9 or something big). Salamanders started flaming units in buildings but none would panic.

Steve charged the steg, made the charge and then proceeded to kill it in one round of combat (which wasn’t what I expected at all). He formed his horde formation GS unit into a 5 wide 40 man unit.

I was able to charge in with Saurus & Slann to the front and a saurus unit in the flank. His flagellents were on the board and headed for the rear of my spear unit. This combat lasted multiple turns. After I had killed down enough of the greatsword unit he managed to get his big halberd unit in the front of my spearus unit.

I had the opportunity to block his flagellants with my remaining uninvolved saurus unit and really should have taken it. The flagellants later hit my saurus in the rear and did 17 wounds on the charge. The real problem here was that the GS unit was still alive with 1 model & an arch-lector (who was locked in a challenge with the Slann he couldn’t hurt). Over 3 rounds of combat I was able to put 3 attacks on his GS per turn. I wounded only once each time and he managed to make his 5+ armor save every time. This saved his halberd unit.

I eventually got my other unit of saurus in the rear of his flagellants where I managed to do a boat load of wounds and after 2 rounds of combat managed to break the halberd unit. Sadly, everyone was in combat with someone else so I couldn’t pursue. I got freed up on turn 5 but couldn’t get to any of his units in turn 6.

Win to the Empire.

Game 3 – Sean Rogerson DE

Supreme Sorc – Lvl 4 / General
Darkstar Cloak / Black Dragon Egg / Seal of Ghrond
Dark Magic

Shadowblade

Master – BSB
Pendant / Biting Blade

50 Corsairs – FC / Sea Serpent std
2 x 10 Crossbows

20 Executioners – FC
20 Black Guard – FC / Banner of Murder
20 Black Guard – FC / Whip of Agony

2 x Hydra
2 x RBT

I was really tired for this game – it was the Watchtower scenario. I ended up having to look up too many rules issues and I think it hurt my opponents enjoyment of the game. My apologies Sean if you are reading.

He won the tower and deployed a unit of 10 xbowmen in it. This enabled me to assault the building, punt them out and take it over with a 30 strong saurus unit with a hero in it. I kept the slann nearby and kept speed of light up the whole game and managed to bounce 2 Frenzied Corsair horde assaults, and 2 Black Guard assaults.

Shadowblade was in a Sallie unit which fled a charge. He revealed shadowblade while my unit was fleeing. We weren’t sure what to do. The TO ruled that my unit would flee but he couldn’t pursue. Unfortunately, he was sitting right next to a unit of chameleons.

Win for the Lizards.
Pic Fail. :-(

Game 4 – John Hartigan – Lizards
Slann – BSB
Mystery / Focused / Becalming
Lore of Shadow
Std of Discipline / Cupped Hands / Ironcourse Icon

Skink Chief on ancient Steg
Warspear

Skink Priest – Lvl 1
Scroll

Scar Vet on Cold One – Lt Armor / Shield
Dawn Stone / Venom of Firefly Frog

24 Saurus – FC
20 Saurus – FC
16 Skinks / 2 krox – FC
10 Skinks
10 Skirm. Skinks
10 Skirm. Skinks

16 Temple Guard – FC / Banner of Eternal Flame
Stegadon
5 Chameleons
4 Terradons

2 Sallies
1 Sallie

Back on my terrain table again (3rd game on this table now).

John & I had the best game. We both knew what the other could do and played a back forth positioning game for a few turns. I was going to focus on his left flank which was out of the 12” slann bubble (Saurus, Skrox, Ancient Steg with Chief) and take those points. My game plan completely changed when his Slann miscast and killed all but 5 of his TG. I charged in and managed to ultimately get the TG dead and 4 wounds on the slann.

My steg managed to kill his ancient with Chief (& he got the charge but I was timewarped & later had speed of light). My salamanders proceeded to then wither a saurus unit down and I then charged in with saurus in the front and sallies in the flank.

John played a great game. He used the lore of shadow and was debuffing my units like mad (even with Becalming). I just got lucky in the end and had enough points for the win (I was up by like 200 VP I think).

Game 5 – Marty Gaska – Lizards
Slann – General / BSB
Cupped Hnds / Ironcurse
Mystery / Becalming / Focused

Chakax

Scar Vet – Lt Armor Shield
Sword of swift slaying / Venom of Firefly Frog

Skink Priest – Lvl 2
Scroll

Skink priest – Lvl 2
Channeling Staff / Cloak of Feathers

2 x 30 Skinks / 1 Krox – FC
25 Saurus – FC

2 x Steg
24 Temple Guard – FC - Sword of the Hornet on Champ

2 x 1 Salamander

Blood & Glory – Back on my table again but asked to swap and got the nod.

My plan was to kill Marty’s 2 Skrox units, 2 salamander units and 1 saurus unit to win the game.

I deployed a saurus unit on my left flank to get a skrox unit, one in the center to tie up his TG (with my steg also) and the other saurus on my right flank to get after his other skrox unit. Both sally units were on my far left flanks to burn Skrox / Saurus units.

Marty won the first turn and took it. His salamanders were largely ineffective and his slann didn’t get much off without 6’s.

My first turn saw my salamanders panic the saurus unit off the board (thx to the building behind them). I put a couple of wounds on his baby steg with my chameleons (I should have focus fired the skrox though in hindsight).

His turn 2 had him moving up again (no charges yet though he could have). His magic & shooting didn’t get a lot done. My turn 2 was pretty amazing. I charged his steg in the middle with my steg and my saurus unit (which was split so got a flank charge unfortunately). I charged his sallie on my left flank with saurus and both sally units opened up on the skrox unit over there reducing it to 5 models (but no panic). I made short work of that sally and overran into the 5 man skrox unit. I charged the skrox unit on my right flank with saurus and won combat but the unit held. I also moved my slann out to support both units with LD / BSB and stay within range to steal the enemy slann’s 6’s.

What a great turn. I knew I had it in the bag. This knowledge ultimately cost me the game.

Marty turn 3 – He charged my spearus unit in the center in the flank with his TG. Charged his steg at my slann but failed the charge (oh how I wish he had made it). Magic phase. I had like 6 dispel dice to his 8-9 power dice.

Throne of vines was cast – I used the Cube of Darkness and got a 3 so I failed to end the magic phase.
Flesh to stone was cast on the skrox unit on my right flank. Clearly I could not fight T6 skinks (yes I had it wrong in my head as I’ve always got the Throne version off) so I used 4 dice to dispel it. He then cast dwellers on my slann. I failed my dispel attempt and then rolled a 4 for my Str. Test.  Marty wins as my Slann was 3 of my 6 fortitude.

I never once thought that if he could take out my slann he would win. A mistake I shall never make again.

Great game. My overconfidence, dice, and the mistakes (not saving for dwellers and/or trying to stay out of the 18” range). It stung a little to lose to 1 spell, I will admit, but I bow down to Marty’s genius move at the end. I learned a lesson (one I knew) about 8th edition I will keep with me throughout the entire edition.

I ended up with 3 wins and 2 losses for the weekend and was very pleased ultimately with that record. I got to spend the weekend with some great people in our hobby.

The venue was a little cramped and the Best General scoring was a little difficult to decipher. That was resolved after turn 2 with a distributed scoring sheet which helped a ton. Some of the terrain was a little our of hand. Emerick has heard all of this from me and seems to be listening and already planning improvements for next year. When you think about Jim setting this all up from Portland, Oregon, it really was a well run show.

The weekend only proved to me that my decision to come back to the game after leaving early in 8th was justified. The people make the game great and they are 100% of the reason I came back.

Midwest Rampage Wrap up Soon

2011-05-23T15:20:00.003-05:00

Wiped out today.

Went 3-2 over the weekend and I was really pleased with my first 2 day 8th edition tournament.

Great people, great games, great mistakes (by me) all led to a wild & wacky weekend.

Full report coming soon.

Cheers!
Domus

Midwest Rampage

2011-05-20T11:28:00.002-05:00

The rampage is tomorrow! WOOT

More info on the Rampage can be found below.
http://midwest-rampage.jimemerick.com/

I head to the event this afternoon to help with the setup and then to get in a practice game(s). My lizards and I leave in 4 hours.

Dice roll in 21.5 hours.

I will be tweeting from the Rampage all weekend. Follow me there
@ginger_buddha

Cheers!
Domus

Rule of the Day - Moving Backwards / Sideways

2011-05-11T15:49:00.000-05:00

Rule of the Day 05/11/2011

More rules I've personally been having a tough time remembering.

pg 26
Moving Backwards
Units can not only move forward, they can also move backwards. To represent this, a unit that moves backwards at half rate, i.e. it counts the distance moved as being double what it actually is.

Moving Sideways
To get a body of warriors to move to either flank is no small challenge, especially if you want to maintain a viable fighting formation (as you do). To represent this, a unit that moves sideways moves at half rate, i.e. it counts the distance moved as being double what it actually is.

Units MAY NOT mix forward, backward and/or sideways movement as part of the same move. Remember that units can only wheel when moving forwards.

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Dividing to Conquer

2011-05-10T10:33:00.003-05:00

Rule of the Day 05/10/2011

Been skimping lately on the Rules of the Day so I'm getting back to it now folks. One of the nice things added in 8th edition is a consistent way to deal with fractions.

Dividing to Conquer - pg 7
Sometimes you'll be called upon to dived the result of a dice roll, a characteristic or some other value. Where this happens, any fractions should always be rounded up.

Nice, neat and tidy rule telling us always how to deal with fractions. I'm a fan of consistent rules.

Cheers,
Domus

Warmachine - A dabbling

2011-05-09T23:15:00.004-05:00

First dabble into Warmachine. I've yet to play the game.

First figure I've painted in ages and it felt really good. I tried to stay simple and neat but add a unique factor in the form of the "water drops" on the jacks body (primarily the shoulders). There is lots more that could be done but as this is a secondary game system for me, at least at the moment, this is as far as I'm willing to take it.

Cheers!
Domus

GW updated the WHFB FAQ's

2011-05-09T10:41:00.003-05:00

The updated FAQ's can be found on the GW website.

Updated FAQs
Warhammer BRB
Beastmen
Demons of Chaos
Dwarfs
Dark Elves
Orcs & Goblins FAQ added
Ogre Kingdoms
Vampire Counts
Warriors of Chaos

Big Changes I noticed
Inspiring Presence is now optional
Okkam's Mindrazor now using the unit's LD
1+ doesn't auto-fail to wound (*you need magical help to wound on a 1+ though)
Characters must move to Front Rank if able (No more scaredy-cats in the 2nd rank)

Cheers,
Domus

Twitter and Gaming

2011-05-05T15:44:00.003-05:00

Inspired by Rhellion's Tabletop I too will call for more gamers to head to twitter to build a better Twitter wargamer community.

When I first heard of Twitter I thought it was crazy and who in their right mind would do such things. It's kind of neat though to chat with gamers worldwide if you have a question about a unit, rule, lingo, etc... Most of the popular podcasters are regulars there as well.

I know I post the Rules of the Day there, any mini progress I happen to make, random smart-ass comments and other general musings. I do follow a few of my favorite celebrities as well (Tosh.0 is hilarious) for the humor aspect.

Here is a list of my favorite Twitter posters you should definitely follow:
@ginger_buddha - This is me! My buddy Joe Rogers from Pointhammered coined this nickname for me after 20 years of being Domus. Nicknames are fun!

@Rhellion - A very active hardcore gamer. This guy is a huge part of the reason I stuck with Twitter as his posts from Adepticon were just flat awesome. Helped me feel like I was there.

@Heelanhammer - Dan Heelan, major Twitter poster from the Heelanhammer podcast
@Baddice_podcast - Ben Curry and Ben Johnson of Bad Dice
@Garagehammer - The Garage Hammer podcast
@Voxcaster - Games Workshop on Twitter
@FBroundup - Fantasy Battle Roundup, great blog and regular Twitter poster
@bluntforcegamer - another great Twitter poster, blogger, and podcaster
@Brohammer_Cast - Erik Lindley from Brohammer Cast (Tom McClure posts here sometimes also)
@tom_mcclure - a great friend and gamer
@the_xenite - Another good friend and a guy now providing sculpting tips via Twitter

If you sign up just look to see who I am following and you will get an endless stream of gamer goodness!

Cheers,
Domus

May the 4th Be with You!

2011-05-04T15:57:00.003-05:00

Happy Star Wars Day!

Someday my son will be really upset with me for blasting his pics all over the internet. Until then, it's fair game.

Cheers!
Domus

Rule of the Day - Reforming

2011-05-03T16:59:00.008-05:00

Rule of the Day 05/03/2011

There are a number of times when units can reform. Some require LD tests, some apply break test modifiers, some require musicians, etc... It's a bit crazy to try and keep all straight. Here is what I see as a definitive list on reforming.

Reforming
Keeping the Centre point of the unit the same, arrange the unit into a new formation of as many ranks as you wish. Remember that none of the models in the unit can move more than twice their Movement rate.

**NOTE - The current BRB FAQ does not require the centre point of the unit to remain the same when making a combat reform. - edited 05/04/2011**

Normal Reform - pg 14
Sacrifice All Movement & Shooting

Swift Reform - pg 95
Musician Required
Leadership test required to reform
Happens during Remaining Moves
Unit Can't March but can shoot (-1 applies)
*unless it has a move or fire weapon obviously

Charged a Fleeing Enemy - pg 23
Must complete a charge against a fleeing enemy
Move into contact with the fleeing enemy and stop
Leadership test required to reform

Rallying a Fleeing Unit - pg 24
When Fleeing unit srally they immediately reform

WIPEOUT - pg 53
If your side completely wipes out the other you automatically restrain pursuit and may reform
*note certain situations may require you to overrun (Frenzy for example) which may negate this

Combat Reform
Reforming From Victory - pg 55
Your Unit Wins or Draws Combat but the enemy did not flee
It cannot be used to get a model out of base contact with the enemy
Can not be engaged on more than 1 facing

Reforming Amid Defeat - pg 55
Your Unit lost combat but did not flee
Leadership test required to reform - this is subject to any modifiers unless your unit is Steadfast/Stubborn/Unbreakable
Can not be engaged on more than 1 facing

Restrain Pursuit - pg 56
Enemy lost the break test & fled
Your unit passed test to restrain
*note certain situations may require you to pursue (Frenzy for example) which may negate this

Unit Types
Fast Cav - pg 68
Skirmishers - pg 77
Both types of units are allowed to reform as many times as it wishes during its move, even if it marches, provided that no model ends up moving a numbe rof inches higher than double its Movement rate.

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Read the FAQS

2011-04-28T15:43:00.004-05:00

04/28/2011

Simple Rule of the day for the moment, I'm drafting a list for the next one about reforming. May hit the shelves later today still.

Before answering any rules questions, or 'knowing' the rules answer - Read the latest GW FAQ or wear your face-egg proudly!

I personally got recently 'bitten' by this where I made a devils advocate argument against a ruling. A quick read of the FAQ (mentioned by another person) immediately squashed my 'jukey' argument.

If you are playing in a tourney, have them on hand if you are going to argue that position.

Cheers!
Domus

Rule of the Day - Buildings (Garrison & Assault)

2011-04-25T15:09:00.004-05:00

Rule of the Day 04/25/2011
Hi all - hope everyone enjoyed the holiday. I ate lots and enjoyed a rainy weekend at home.

All of the detailed rules about who can Garrison or Assault buildings though are found elsewhere in the book. Sadly, these weren't gathered in any singular place in the BRB so my hope is to gather them all here to help give us a fighting chance. This was suggested by Aussie over @ IWFB.

Garrisoning Buildings (pg 126 to start)
The following unit types can garrison buildings;
Note - Only 1 unit can ever garrison a single building at a time.
Infantry
Monstrous Infantry
War Beasts
Monstrous Beasts
Swarms
War Machines can also be deployed in buildings but they can never move except to pivot on the spot. (pg 109)

Assaulting Buildings
Notes - only a single unit may assault a building.
I'm finding it very interesting that it never states which units can, or can't assault a building in the building rules. The rules simply state "The only way to take an occupied building is by the bloody tactic of storming in with one of your units.". (other rules further qualify some units as being able to assault {or not assault} buildings.)

The following units may assault buildings but will only drive a unit out, they can never occupy the building themselves.
Cavalry -(pg. 83)
Monstrous Cavalry -(pg 83) *they follow the same rules as cav
Monsters - (pg 85)

It's worth noting then that the only units who may not assault buildings are Chariots.

Unique units aren't covered here at all as I don't have each of the books handy to go through, this would be a good one for a later date.

Hope this helps you get your building on!

Cheers,
Domus

Off til Monday

2011-04-23T13:28:00.001-05:00

Due to traveling, Easter Egg Hunts, Family time and general laziness I am gonna take a bit of a break.

No worries - I will be back on Monday and hope to tackle some seriously meaty rule issues.

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Inspiring Presence

2011-04-21T22:10:00.003-05:00

04/21/2011

Another crazy busy day.. This rule of the day comes to you from a random opening of the book and was the first rule I saw.

pg 107
Providing that the General is not fleeing, all friendly units within 12" use his Leadership instead of their own. Remember that a General with the Large Target rule (or who is riding a Large Target) has his Inspiring Presence range increased to 18".

Nice trade-off for having a cannon target all over your back. :-)

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Ranking Skirmishers

2011-04-20T12:31:00.005-05:00

Rule of the day 04/20/2011

Today's rule of the day comes from @amysrevenge via Twitter!

pg 77
If skirmishers declare a charge (or a charge reaction that does not involve fleeing) they immediately tighten their loose formation into a 'normal' formation before the charge distance is rolled. This happens 'for free' at the moment the unit declares the charge or is called upon to make a charge reaction. The unit immediately forms up in base contact around the center-most model in the front rank - if the front rank has an even number of models, and therefore two center-most models, the Skirmishers' controlling player can choose which of the two models the unit will form up around.

Big change from 6th / 7th edition. Skirmishers 'rank up' the second they Declare a charge or React (except flee) from a charge.

The only real tactical use I can see is that having an even number of models in the front rank gives you roughly the ability to shift favorably 1/2" to the left or right. Might be enough to cause / avoid a favorable overrun.

Note - Skirmishers NEVER get a rank bonus or can be steadfast. (pg 77)
Skirmishers ARE stubborn if the MAJORITY of its models are in a forest. (pg 119)

Note from @amysrevenge - Because they rank up before distances are rolled, the act of a skirmishing unit ranking up could potentially result in you failing a charge. Be mindful of how skirmishers will 'condense' before declaring that charge.

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Bound Spells

2011-04-19T12:58:00.004-05:00

Rule of the Day 04/19/2011

This rule of the day comes from none other than THE PAUL VINTON of finer central IL.

pg. 37

Casting Bound Spells
A bound spell is cast just like an ordinary spell using dice from the power pool (the model may do so even if it is not a wizard). The required casting value is equal to the bond spell's power level. Note that bound spells never benefit from any casting modifiers that the user might have (Wizard Level, magic items, etc..). On the other hand, failing to cast a bound spell does not break a wizard's concentration, as using an item that contains a bound spell normally would not require anything more complex than uttering a single word of activation. (Anal'nathrak)

Other points of note from the rulebook (pg 37 still)
- Bound spells are always an unboosted version (if applicable)
- Bound spells can be dispelled like any other spells
- Bound Spells can be cast with Irresistible Force but never miscast.
*If the Bound Spell is contained with a magic item of some kind, the item crumbles to dust and cannot be used again during the game. Do not roll on the miscast table.
*If the bound spell is an innate ability - then the model simply cannot cast further bound spells during this phase. Do not roll on the miscast table.

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Command Group Removal

2011-04-18T14:08:00.004-05:00

This rule of the day comes from Erik Lindley over at the Brohammer Podcast.

Rule of the Day - 04/18/2011

In previous editions you could remove command models as you saw fit. 8th edition spells it out explicitly.

pg 93
Unless a champion is slain by a direct attack, then he must be the last rank and file model to be removed as a casualty.

pg 94 - under Last Stand
The only time a standard bearer can be removed as a casualty before the musician and other rank-and-file models is if the unit breaks from combat.

So there you have it, if your unit is down to only the 3 command models you must remove
1 - Musician
2 - Standard Bearer
3 - Champion

In that explicit order.

This is rarely an ideal removal order as you could keep the muso if you thought you might still tie or the Standard Bearer for that +1 CR. But we must play by the rules.

Cheers,
Domus

Rules of the Day - Template Hits

2011-04-17T17:42:00.007-05:00

First off - Sorry I missed yesterday folks. I was at the Ardboyz Round 1 tourney in Springfield, IL which ran most of the day for me and when I got him I was just exhausted.

I did manage to win all 3 of my games and come in first and bring home a box of corsairs and flagellants both for the DE army I will be building next.

Rule of the Day 04/17/2011 - Template Hits

This one isn't a rule so much but some diagrams I worked up re: Template hits.

# of Hits
20mm Unit - 5 x 5 - 21 models
40mm Unit - 3 x 3 - 9 models
20mm Unit - 5x5 - with 25x50 Char - 18 20mm + Char.

25mm unit - 5 x 5 - 15 Models
25 x 50mm Unit - 7 x 2 - 8 Models

# of Hits
20mm Unit - 7 x 7 - 45 models
40mm Unit - 4 x 4 - 15 models
20mm Unit - 7 x 7 - with 25x50 Char - 38-39 20mm + Char.

25mm unit - 6 x 6 - 30 Models
25 x 50mm Unit - 6 x 3 - 18 Models

I have tested these using the 3 templates I got from the Island of Blood plus a sheet from a GW customizable movement tray (20mm on 1 side, 25mm on the other). They are 99.5% accurate using that sheet as a 'template' under the template (if that makes any sense at all). There are a couple of close calls on the 20mm which might result in 1 less and I would be fine to default to 1 less on those personally.

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Characteristics & You

2011-04-15T10:21:00.003-05:00

Rule of the day 04/15/2011

Because I NEVER remember the rule on Characteristics tests I thought it was time it became a rule of the day.

pg. 10

To make a characteristic test, roll a D6 and compare the score to the relevant characteristic in the model's profile. If the score is equal to or less than the number in the profile, the test is passed with no ill effect. If the score is greater than the number in the model's profile, the test has been failed, and something nasty will occur, as detailed in the rule that called for the test. (*no kidding*)

When a model (or a unit) has more than one value for the same characteristic, as is the case with cavalry, for example, a characteristic test is always taken against the highest of the values.

6 on a D6 = Auto Fail
1 on aD6 = Auto Pass

Characteristic = 0 then Auto Fail

Hopefully this will help me remember, if not, I'll just get McClure to take a life wizard and start casting Dwellers on me more often.

Less than or equal to, to pass a Characteristic test.

Another important rule to remember is that characteristics go from 0 - 10. Never higher, never lower. pg 3 (I've had this come up with Time warp, extra attacks, etc...)

Happy Gaming!

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - 1" Apart

2011-04-14T12:13:00.005-05:00

Rule of the Day 04/14/2011

Hello everyone!

Today's RotD comes from Jake Murhpy from IWFB
and also an indirect nod to Erik Lindley & Tom McClure from Brohammer as they discussed it in an Episode of Brohammer (Episode 1 I believe).

pg 13

Whilst moving, a unit is not allowed to approach closer than 1" to another unit, friend or foe, or impassible terrain.

You'll notice that this rule does not apply to the charge moves discussed later. This is quite sensible, as the whole point of charging is to get a unit into base contact with an enemy. Occasionally, a unit will have approached within 1" of a unit it did not charge as the result of moving into contact with a unit it did charge. This is perfectly acceptable, although players may wish to nudge the units further apart to maintain a suitable degree of clarity.

Applications
1. Friendly units have to stay 1" apart. This rule is probably broken (unintentionally) more than any other rule in the game of Warhammer. Even if you put your units 1" apart, if they are parallel to each other, the minute you wheel one of those units you have an issue (unless of course you moved forward FIRST, getting more than 1" away). Lots of folks don't hold their opponents to these rules. I choose to hold myself to them and will encourage others to do the same.

2. This rule is disregarded when charging.

3. You have to stay 1" away from Impassible Terrain (which includes buildings). Assaulting or Garrisoning a building being exceptions to this rule also.

Hope this helps you get your game on!

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Standard Bearers

2011-04-13T14:28:00.009-05:00

Rule of the Day 04/13/2011

Apologies for being so late today delivering the RotD! Busy Day!

Lots to talk about here, so some paraphrasing is in order. (*and the assumption made that readers understand a standard has to actually be in combat to give the bonuses)

B.S.B. = Battle Standard Bearer

Standard Bearers
pg. 95
If your unit includes a Standard bearer it receives +1 Combat Result, (pg. 54 also)
(this is limited to a maximum bonus of +1 per combat - pg 94)

The standard bearer cannot normally be removed as a casualty unless only he and the champion (if there is one) remain in the unit. ....... Another rank and file warrior is still assumed to pick up the banner. If the only other remaining model in the unit is the champion, the standard bearer must be removed as a casualty before him.

** Your unit standard can neither be killed, nor removed unless the only other model is a champ. If that is the case the standard HAS to be removed.

Last Stand
If a unit breaks from combat, the standard bearer is slain immediately - remove the model. His place must be taken by a rank-and-file model from the rear rank of the unit, if there is one available.

**Standards die when units break! This is an exception to the above statements. No need to worry about 'capturing' standards now unless a non-standard scenario calls for it. VP are awarded for standards being killed by the book. (Seized Standards pg 143)

pg. 107 (BSB)
A B.S.B. gives +1 to a Combat Result which DOES Stack with a normal standard (pg 54)

To represent the battle standard's steadying presence, friendly models within 12" to re-roll failed Leadership tests of any kind, including Panic tests, Break tests, Fear tests, Rally tests and so on.

As with other standard bearers, the battle standard bearer is automatically killed if he flees from combat - he dies on his feet, defending the precious standard to his last breath.

** If you can't kill his BSB break the unit which will kill the BSB anyways!

The moral of the story here - put Standards in your units! They are also great for the Blood & Glory scenario (though standards in week units can work against you)

Hope this helps! Game on!

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Rally

2011-04-12T12:12:00.005-05:00

Rule of the Day 04/12/2011

Another rule that was highlighted as a big change in my Friday night learning game with McClure & Caius.

pg 24
Rally Fleeing Troops is now in the Compulsory Moves phase instead of in the middle of the charge / declare / move chargers phase like it was in 7th.

Compulsory Phase Rundown
1. Rally Fleeing Troops
2. Move Fleeing Troops (that didn't rally)
3. Other Compulsory Moves

Feel free to email suggestions to ginger_buddha@yahoo.com.

Cheers!
Domus

Rule of the Day - Ranks for Steadfast

2011-04-11T12:51:00.004-05:00

Rule of the Day 04/11/2011

Suggested by Sandals @ The Ogre Stronghold
and Jim Emerick - T.O. for The Midwest Rampage

pg 54 + Current BRB FAQ
If a defeated unit has more ranks than its enemy, it takes its Break test without applying the difference in the combat result scores.

Simply put, a unit is considered to be steadfast if it has more ranks than its enemy. As with calculating extra ranks for the purposes of combat resolution, the ranks have to be five or more models wide for the unit to be treated as being steadfast.

*skipping flavor text*

It should be noted that a unit does not lose its steadfast status for being disrupted. A flank charge might be able to disrupt a unit, but it can't prevent the warriors in that unit realising they outnumber the foe.

Important notes
Unlike calculating extra ranks, there is no exception stated for ranks after the fighting rank. (pg 52)
In game terms this means - A unit of 15 archers deployed in a line is charged in the front by a dragonrider. The dragonrider causes 7 wounds, the archers none. The unit is now 8 models vs. the dragonrider. Because there is 1 rank (the fighting rank IS still a rank and there is NO exception for steadfast) the unit will be steadfast vs. the dragonrider.

Disrupted Units still count ranks for Steadfast.
Big tarpit units can take flank / rear charges and still be steadfast allowing you to get units into the flank / rear of that enemy.

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Scout Deployment

2011-04-10T13:00:00.004-05:00

Rule of the Day 04/10/2011

First off, apologies re: the previous rule of the day. There were quite a few errors made but this is what I get for posting after a long day at 2:30 AM. Just as with any rule, we all get things wrong occasionally.

Suggested by Wildcard from The Ogre Stronghold

pg 79

Scouts are set up after all other non-Scout units from both armies have been deployed. They can be set up either in their controlling player's deployment zone, or anywhere on the battlefield more than 12" away from the enemy. If deployed in this second way, Scout cannot declare a charge in the first turn if their side goes first.

If both players' armies contain Scouts, players should roll off. The players then alternate deploying their scouting units one at a time, starting with the player who won the roll-off.

Wildcard also pointed out a neat tactic with this rule - When you deploy scouts in your deployment zone, there is no 12" away restriction. This is important if both sides have scouts. Your enemy puts his scouts in your Deployment Zone and then you can counter-deploy and be 1" away. The enemy also CAN'T charge you turn 1 if he goes first after deploying this way further increasing your scouts survivability.

Cheers!
Domus

Rule of the Day - Non Pivoting Chariots

2011-04-09T02:33:00.005-05:00

Rule of the Day 04/09/2011

Tom McClure & I were teaching our great friend Caius the ins & outs of 8th edition tonight. Back in 6th edition, Caius played this mean goblin wolfrider army with lots of chariots. The new book/rules are making that very real to field again so he wanted to take some units and the new rules for a test drive.

I was very interested to notice a missing rule (from previous editions) and new it to be the next Rule of the Day.

pg 86 - There is no longer a special movement rule under the unit type Chariots to allow them to pivot instead of wheeling.

I expect it will become even more prevalent with goblin chariots now being able to take units of 1-3 and even more so once the Tomb Kings army book lands.

**EDIT - I did some more digging and found it - pg 27 allows a LONE chariot to pivot, just not a unit of chariots.

pg 27 - The one exception is that a single model can pivot on the spot as many times as it wishes over the course of its move.

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Frenzied Units & Buildings

2011-04-08T09:07:00.002-05:00

Rule of the Day 04/08/2011

pg 126 - under Abandoning Buildings

A unit that is Frenzied, or is otherwise forced to charge, still cannot do so if it is in a building - it must instead exit the building as close as possible to the enemy instead of charging.

Bait a frenzied unit in a building to get em the Frak out. Great for late turns in a Watchtower Scenario.

Suggested by Tipsword from IWFB.com.

Cheers,
Domus

Rule of the Day - Accepting a Challenge

2011-04-07T13:15:00.005-05:00

Rule of the Day 04/07/2011

pg 102
If your opponent has issued a challenge, you can now accept it with one of your characters or champions whose unit is in base contact with the unit containing the issuer of the challenge. Note that a character does not have to be in base contact with an enemy to accept or issue a challenge, just part of a unit that is. The two models will now fight, as described in Fighting a Challenge, below.

Related FAQ
Q: After accepting a challenge must the challenged model always
move into base contact with the enemy model that issued the
challenge? (p102)
A: If the challenged model is on his own then he must move
into base contact. If the challenged model is in a unit he must
move as long as it does not require leaving his unit. Where it is
not possible for base contact to be made then leave the models
where they are and simply assume that the two models are in
base contact.

Two big changes from 7th edition
1 - You don't have to be in a fighting rank to accept (or issue) challenges any longer. Anyone can accept.
2 - The accepter has to move, not the issuer (as long as he doesn't have to leave his unit)

Ultimately I just intended this to be about the change to who can accept as it a big change from 6th / 7th.

But the accepter moving has to be discussed.

Per the letter of the FAQ - the accepter has to move into B2B if he is on his own. So a dragonrider charges the rear of a ranked unit. If the dragonrider issues, the champ moves to him. If the dragonrider Fails to issue a challenge and the champ does then the dragonrider moves to the champ. Bye Bye Rear Charge Bonus. Be prepared for this in your games.

Lots of "Spirit of the Game" issues here but that is the current literal reading of the rules.

Cheers!
Domus

Rule of the Day - Chars. on Flying Beasts in Units

2011-04-06T08:44:00.010-05:00

Rule of the Day 04/06/2011

This is not directly a written rule but rather a change from 7th edition, though I think it is an important one.

pg. 70 - Fly
Pg. 83 - Monstrous Cavalry
Pg. 85 - Monstrous Beasts
pg. 97 - Characters

The above pages contain all of the rules needed to understand this change.

In 7th edition, there was a rule that characters could never join units while mounted on a flying creature.

There are lots of rules now dictating what units a character can & can't join, but being on a flying monstrous beast is no longer one of them.
Can't Join Monsters
Can't join Flying Units
Can't Join Chariot Units
Can't join Swarms
Can't Join War Machines
Can't Join units when riding a monster or if he is a monster

Who benefit from this? Elves that can ride great eagles and Dark Pegasi. Humans can ride pegasi so could also benefit. Lizards that can ride terradons.

I think that covers it. Full Credit where credit is due here - I didn't realize this change until I read a battle report on TheWarhammerForum by Ben Curry from the Bad Dice Podcast where he used this tactic.

He put the unkillable DE Lord on a Dark Peg in a unit of Spears, also with the crown of command. This guy was able to charge out and basically lock down any unit with Stubborn 10 (likely re-rollable) or kill mages / war machines, etc... Lots of utility here. He doesn't get a Look out Sir, but you actually would prefer enemies shoot him instead of the unit (given his un-killablyness).

This is probably the single best of this unit as the magic items available make the elf hard (if not impossible) to kill. But don't let that stop you from trying it!

Just another tool to consider when building your list.

Cheers!
Domus

Rule of the Day - Flaming + Magic Weapons

2011-04-05T10:42:00.003-05:00

Rule of the Day 04/05/2011

pg 69 BRB - Flaming Attacks

Unless otherwise stated, a model with this special rule has both Flaming shooting and close combat attacks (though any spells cast by the model are unaffected, as are any attacks made with magic weapons they might be wielding).

In short, the only way that attacks from magical weapons will be flaming is if the weapon has the Flaming rule itself.

That character with the Fencers Blades in a unit with the Banner of Eternal Flame will not count as having Flaming Attacks.

Tactical Uses - Only a few I can think of though there are likely others...
Put a Char. in a unit with the Flaming Banner across from Dragon Princes. Dragon Princes charge think they can't be hurt and the character proceeds to whoop up on them. This also works vs. Characters with the Dragonhelm or Dragonbane gem.

Cheers!
Domus

Rule of the Day - Flaming Attacks & Regen

2011-04-04T16:00:00.008-05:00

As I'm working my way through understanding 8th edition I am going to start a new post series - Rule of the Day.

For me, the best way to learn the new ruleset (& I mean really learn it - enough to be a competent rules judge for a tourney) is to ;
a) Play lots of games
b) Answer Rules questions online using the BRB
*typing out the answers really helps them stick for me

The plan is for these to typically be more obscure rules but I truly expect all kinds. Most of these will likely come up from either games or online rules questions.

Rule of the Day 04/04/2011
pg 74 BRB
Wounds caused by Flaming Attacks cannot be regenerated, and if a unit is wounded by a Flaming Attack it loses the Regeneration rule for the remainder of the phase (it can be used later in the turn, though - it just takes a short time for Regeneration to overcome the flames).

Tactical Use - Always use Flaming attacks first vs. Regenerating units when applicable. (Thank you Mr. Obvious)

With Lizards this gives me 2 main tactics.
1) Sallie Fire on a Hydra / Abom / Trolls / etc. followed up by Chameleon Skinks. Removal of Regen lets the Cham. Skinks poison work its magic.

2) Saurus hero with Burning Blade in a unit of Saurus. Saurus hero goes first (due to I) and the remaining saurus unit attacks also ignore Regen. NICE!

Cheers!
Domus

Chessboard

2010-08-05T13:32:00.004-05:00

And now for something completely different...

2010-07-30T09:42:00.002-05:00

I'm on a bit of a hiatus from Warhammer. I'm going to play some games using Lizardmen but I find myself not very excited about 8th edition.

So, I've been playing a ton of Descent:Journeys in the Dark recently. This is a great board game using miniatures made by Fantasy Flight Games.

I've also decided to order some castle molds from Hirst Arts and I am going to start a new project with my 7 year old son. We are going to cast, build and paint our own chess set. I will then teach him how to play chess. I'm not worried about him catching on because we already play games like Settlers of Catan and Ticket to Ride. He doesn't quite understand the tactics and strategies of those games yet but he understands the rules and the how to play.

I created a rough 3d concept of the board I want to build based on a similar project I found on the Hirst Arts Message Boards.

It was important to me to incorporate the Cavern Floor Mold as I ordered that so I could create Descent dungeons in 3D. I also ordered special casting plaster that is 3x more durable than plaster of paris yet still mixes thin and pours easy into the molds. Everything should arrive next week and we will begin casting.

Cheers,
Domus

Unseen Lerker 3 Now available

2010-06-01T15:03:00.005-05:00

Shameless plug for Unseen Lerker! I typically write the hobby corner for this mag but upgraded to event coverage of Adepticon for this issue.

Get Unseen Lerker Here

Momentum

2010-05-28T14:18:00.002-05:00

I lose it, I gain it, I lose it, I gain it.

Seems to be a never ending cycle.

I was re-energized in the hobby after Adepticon. Started buying and planning for yet another new army (Ogre Kingdoms). Somewhere along the way, I lost my juice and got re-involved in Computer games.

MWR 5 was just last weekend. Despite some personal feelings re; the weekend, I had a great time I am currently very enthused about the hobby. 8th edition on the horizon has me a bit nervous now though.

GW is gonna shake things up. The game, as I know it, is changing pretty drastically it seems. Only time will tell if this change is for better or worse. For now, I am just going to try and start converting and painting again. Let's see where I get.

DE Wips

2009-10-21T23:56:00.010-05:00

Lot of WiP pics here...

First off with the Spearmen

There are 2 different units and each unit is comprised of different components. Unit A is comprised of Grave Guard legs + DE torsos and Unit B is comprised of Corsair Bodies + Spears. Both units will get shields. Neither unit is glued to the base (just pinned atm) so some of the models are a touch out of position. Both units still need some GS work / unit filler work.

Next is a WiP shot of the bases I will be using for my first unit of Dark Riders. The plan is to have the Driders hanging onto the Stalagmites and crawling on, over and around them.

Last, but not least, are the beginning WiPs of the work I am doing on the spiders. Just working on the lower body sections atm - adding a carapace type shell and rounding out what was a flat bottom. Any constructive criticism is welcome here as sculpting is still a weak link for me.

WIP RBT

2009-10-15T11:19:00.003-05:00

Small update for early October...

I will post more pics of assembled models soonish...

So I whipped out my RBT in a 3 color minimum. This model has a lot of paint work left to be done and is currently only flat colors. It does give me a chance to decide on my scheme and a chance to show off one of the basing materials I will be using for this project.

Assembly Started

2009-10-15T11:13:00.003-05:00

This assembly happened back in August but I'm just now getting around to updating my blog here. Nothing new to see if you are also watching my PLOG over on TWF.

Some Units Based & assembled. Still need to GS some gaps and I may remove the circles on the feet of the Cold One Knight Lizards (undecided atm). Every fig is simply pinned to the base and will be removed so the figs & bases can be painted separately.

The basing material is a stuff called Durhams Water Putty which costs about $8 a can US and I got it at Menards. Mix the stuff up with water and poured it in a cookie sheet. (**Use an old one or you might get smacked!) I waited 24 hours and the stuff was still moist in the middle so I put it in the garage and forgot it for a week. When I checked back later, the stuff was rock hard.

I have some snippers from Sears that will cut anything and I use those to cut it into roughly base sized shapes. I then hack at it with clippers, pliers and then exacto knives. The stuff glues well to plastic, but it does not glue well to itself. I had to insert a pin in the sorc base between the two layers to give the glue something to grab onto.

Silence

2009-08-05T12:30:00.001-05:00

But not for long...

Something Wicked this Way Comes

2009-05-20T13:48:00.005-05:00

I was going to build and work on my new army in super secret fashion. But I found after building the ogres I really enjoyed blogging about my army.

So, I will keep a blog here and update my progress as I go. It's not the most well traveled spot on the interwebs anywho. :-)

Dark Elves are my new army of choice. They offer, to me, the ultimate gaming experience in all of Warhammer. The ability to play in all three phases - well. On top of that, the army list can easily be scaled to a maximized list for playing in 0 comp tournies and scaled down for "softer tournaments".

My list starts as what I plan to run at the Core Competency tourney in November in Chicago. It's a 2 day tourney where soft scores + fluff gets you more points than anything. OH yeah, and 40% core is a requirement! This list will be great as it provides me a solid foundation for my Dark Elves and enough spearmen for almost any build. It will be very easy to add units to this army to scale it up in size / power.

The Army List
Lvl 3 DE Sorc
Web of Shadows (Themey but fail item - easily replacable for other tournies)
Focus Familiar
Dark Pegasus

20 Spearmen - Full Command
20 Spearmen - Full Command
20 Spearmen - Full Command

10 Crossbowmen with Shields
10 Crossbowmen with Shields

5 Dark Riders with Musicians and Crossbows

6 Dark Riders with Shields and Full Command
6 Dark Riders with Shields and Full Command

5 Harpies
5 Harpies

6 Cold One Knights with Banner and Musician
6 Shades with Great Weapons
14 Executioners with Full Command

1 Repeater Bolt Thrower

139 -ish models
224x points

As to the models

There will be heavy conversions. Each unit of spearmen will be created using different models with similar elements (spears, banners, etc...). The harpies will be converted around a piece of artwork directly linked to the theme. The crossbowmen will be converted based on some inspiration from German GD painter George Damm.

The big conversions that will set the theme of the army will be for the Dark Riders. I will be converting them all into Driders using Spider Rider Spiders, Beastmen and Dark Elf bits. Below is a very rough conversion test of my ideas just to see how well the bits worked together. I am really happy with the results but foresee a ton of cutting, pinning and sculpting in my future to make these a reality.

As to the Theme
My army will be based around my vision of the Drow that I have in my mind which was largely influenced by all of my AD&D gaming experiences in the 80's. I have never seen a well done entire Drow army and I think it's time.

As to the colors
Skin color for the drow is the most important choice. Lots of the text refers to them as having obisidian skin. R.A.Salvatore & the Drizzt books started depicting drow with a dark purple-gray colored skin.

My skin color will be based on the image from the Super module Queen of the Spiders which was published to contain all of my favorite D&D modules in one series.

See my first attempts at this rough color scheme.

I love the WE sculpts. She has been a ton of fun to paint on so far. So much so that I have decided to paint up a unit for the Chicago Golden Demons.

Basing
The basing of the army has been a bit of a challenge. I need to create cavern floor to represent the underdark. I was going to use cork as I could get nice textures with cork and it is both cheap and easy to work with... But I found that I'm not happy with 'pure' cork for a number of reasons, the big one simply being durability. On a suggestion from a friend, I have been messing around with Durhams Water Putty. I initially didn't like this stuff but later found I just hadn't allowed it enough time to thoroughly 'dry/cure' due to the thickness I was creating. This stuff may fit the bill nicely. It is also cheap and easy to work with. I am also playing with some Sculpy on a suggestion from Cathy Wappel. I really like working with this stuff and definitely see me using it a lot in all future projects.

The basing will feature numerous additional elements. Some will be sculpted and some will be generated using green stuff press-moulds. You'll have to tune in later to find out more.

TTFN

The Model Selection Process

2009-05-12T22:51:00.002-05:00

So, I have been thinking about various ways to pick models. I know I have to pick something I WANT to paint, or the effort just won't happen.

I've been toying with the idea of re-painting some models I have completed for other projects by attempting to add to them to bring them to the next level.

One model in particular sticks out in my mind for this attempt. My WE Horse. A new base, re-paint the armor, mane, hooves and a fidly bit here or there and I have a very nice looking horse. One I think would look nice under the right rider.

That would be this fellar right here.

I'm taking a close look at the ogres I recently completed as well to scour possibilities.

As for new models to start with, I am considering;
Heavily Converted Dark Riders (*A borderline unit as they exit the GW established universe)
Witch Elves
Converted Executioners
Shades
(*Anyone see a theme emerging here....)
An Assasin...

Lots of ideas in my head, I need to get some test painting going.

Raising the Bar

2009-05-11T12:50:00.003-05:00

This year has proved to be an interesting one hobby-wise for me on many levels. A solid return to the hobby after too-long spent playing online in the World of Warcraft has been lots of fun.

I spent the first part of the year creating my ogres with Caius for the Team Tournament. At Adepticon, I got to handle most of the Rogue Demon entries and was both blown away and inspired by the talent evidenced on those minis. During the day, I browse tons of websites / blogs and I am in general inspired by the depth of talent in our hobby.

I have been planning on attending the Chicago Games Day and entering my Wood Elf army into Armies on Parade. I don't expect them to be the best painted army in the competition but I do expect them to be very competitive thematically.

I now think it's time I created some entries for the Golden Demon painting contest. I have wanted to enter for quite some time now but I am always very doubtful of my abilities. I think the only way I will ever progress to the next level is to seriously try and compete. So, I begin the process of raising the bar I set for myself and creating at least one entry for the Golden Demons.

I have been scouring the web over the last few days, reading tutorials, reviewing demon winning models, and bookmarking as many preparation-sculpting-painting-basing articles as I can.

I have some ideas of models I would like to use and will begin the selection process shortly. I am both nervous and excited about the prospects of starting down this path and look forward to painting out of my comfort zone. I am going to be fairly transparent on my first attempts and reaching out to as many great painters as I can for advice throughout this process. I will detail my choices and progress here. All comments / advice will be welcomed.

Couple this with a couple of other ongoing hobby projects (Touching up my WE, a New Base for my WE and starting my DE army), and a ton of HoneyDo's around the house and my plate will be quite full.

Adeptcion 2009

2009-04-11T00:04:00.011-05:00

Adepticon 2009 is over and what a great weekend it was for me. I headed up there Thursday night with my pal Caius. We managed to arrive right around 10:00 PM and immediately headed to the hall where the WFB tables would be so that we could deliver and set up the terrain that we brought with us.

Friday saw me running the Warhammer Fantasy Escalation tournament. This turned out to be very easy as Marty had most everything accounted for ahead of time and I had a top notch staff scoring composition, painting, data entry and wandering for rules & such.

I met (or re-met as it were) Cathy Wappel and spent a significant time just hanging out with her and talking about painting (Cathy has one a golden demon or two in her day). I also saw some of her WIP's models and it was interesting to see her approach to finished minis..

Saturday was a 'loaf' day but in actuality I spent a good chunk of the day painting miniatures. I had bases to finish on the ogres and the occassional random detail. With the help of Caius, we managed to get it all completed. After that, we headed down to the game hall and played some board games with our buddies from Stevens Point the Rodge & the Bear.

Saturday night I was asked to and got to help judge the Rogue Demon entries. This was an excellent opportunity for me to handle and view up close some amazing miniatures. Very inspiring and I found myself wishing I hadn't been dissuaded from entering.

Sunday brought the Adepticon WFB Team Tourney, the event we had been working towards for the last 3-4 months.

We managed to win 2 of our games and lost 1. 3 Great Games were had although they were very rushed.

Got some pics of the Ogres I used in the Adepticon Team Tourney this year to share.

If you are interested in the thought processes leading to our decisions and lots of WIP photos take a look at the articles we wrote to document our progress. http://www.adepticon.org/modules.php?na ... oAdepticon

We were very pleased when we were told that we swept all 3 Players Choice Categories (Theme, Display and Appearance) by a huge landslide. Something like 72 out of 86 teams voted for us in 1 category. Completely humbling. Thank you to all that voted - my teammate and I create our armies out of the enjoyment of the process. It was a bumpy road for us this year but we managed to get it done (I was painting bases on Saturday @ Adepticon - EEEKS),

There is still quite a bit more work to do to finish these guys up - but they're destined for the shelf for a while. I can always pull em out and do more to em later (Especially the gnoblars - they need some love) but I wanted to get some decent pics to share.

Bulls WiP

2009-02-26T10:11:00.005-06:00

Got some WIPS of my Bulls...

Skin got a little lighter and the pants got a little brighter and there are more stripes on the bull pants, the Irongut pants will get the bigger stripes...

Pants almost done... need the final layer on the yellow portion to make it more of a cream and touch up some 'bobbles'...

I included a comparison between the 'new' models and the test.

Ogre Paint Test

2009-02-17T00:17:00.003-06:00

Started Painting my test model and I'm very happy with the results. Sadly, the pics don't show the depths of the metals. I may go back and add some weathering as well.

Nurgler

2009-02-13T13:08:00.000-06:00

Finished the mini and got a Better Pic

And now for something Completely Different...

2009-02-09T22:33:00.002-06:00

Painted up a Nurgly Sorceror for an Online Mini Exchange I take regular part in. Pretty happy with him over all for not investing tons of time.

Nearly time for painting

2009-02-02T23:44:00.004-06:00

Time for a big update - just a very few minor details to work out now before I start painting...

Finished my Bruiser - Not alot of conversion work here. Added the horns and the back banner. I still have to add
rivets to the "bands" holding the banner to his back and GS where the pole meets his booty.

The finished Butcher (I may add a bit or two to the bangstick yet - but mostly finished)
In Hindsight I would do the chains on his back (notably the ones on the right side as you look at it) a bit differently. I may still go back and re-work but for now I need to push forward.

The final Irongut whose weapon I was still working out how to do right...

The finished Ogre Bulls with Hammers

And the mostly finished army

I need to finish the armor plates on the Irongut with the big hammer where I hacked the arm away. So far I have replaced a foundation of the arm with Greenstuff and will cover it all with plates rather than try to get the arm up to speed. I also have to "encase" the back of his Ironfist flipping the bird.

Ogre Bulls Done

2009-01-26T00:39:00.004-06:00

Last of my ogres assembled. A few more embellishments will be added to the hammers but I gotta
get some more bitz. I am also going to go back and add more details to the other ogres bases as I did
on these as I will be hand painting a cobblestone pattern on each base.

Putty work next and then on to painting.

Slow & Steady wins the Race

2009-01-22T00:21:00.004-06:00

Got some more work done tonight. I reposed the guy as I discussed with some folks and made him a new weapon as well (with a ton of advice from Dave Taylor - Thanks Dave!). Clearly I have alot of GS work to do now but I really am a lot more satisfied with both the new pose and the new weapon.

I also did some work on my bangstick butcher. The hands are just "tacked" on at the moment as I have to sculpt an apron for this chap before I glue em on.

Gorging

2009-01-19T12:20:00.004-06:00

Finished the gorger (putty work still required), though I will likely remove the barrel. I will have to do something in its place as its serving as a counter-balance since this guy is so front heavy.

Irongut WIPS

2009-01-09T22:59:00.004-06:00

Still got some more work I wanna do to these boys, but you get the idea...

After the gnoblars these Ironguts seem pathetic from a theme standpoint so I am least gonna give 2 of em Sigmar Hammer Heads and then make more changes from there.

The middle guy in the first group is gonna get a hammer repose - just not sure what yet.

Gnoblars Done!

2009-01-09T22:52:00.007-06:00

Outside of a Luck Gnoblar and any markers / game aids my gnoblars are done!!

First an update to one I've shown. I always planned for his sign to say Cave Gnoblar ("Beware the Gnoblar") but I was getting ready to remove the chain from his left fist (he comes attached to skrag) and thought how much
more fun it would be if he was chained to the sign.

The four new trappers. (Cager, Bear Trap Tripped, Flagello-Climber and Fisherman)

And a Group shot - I didn't want to use the metal models cus I'm just cheap and new I could get good results from the plastics. Instead of going out of my way to make my gnoblars busy "trapping" (I do have 1 guy "trapping a rat" and a "Fisherman") I tried to make more of them being "trapped". It just seemed more fun. Click the piccie for a bigger view.

Gnoblars Attack!

2009-01-09T01:29:00.005-06:00

I'm in the midst of assembling & converting 1000 pts. of Ogre Kingdoms models for the Adepticon Team Tourney. I will be chronicling most of this in "Road to Adepticon" articles but thought I would post a pic here as well (since nobody really looks here - I can use it to share with a few close friends).

20 Gnoblar Fighters - The "metal guy" in the center will be statue of a champion of Sigmar. My gnoblars also happen to be sigmar fanatics (Empire + OK for TT).

The first 4 of 8 Gnoblar Trappers. I am thinking I will add a few more bits to the sign and when done it should say something like Cave Gnoblar!

The sheer amount of time I've spent creating these insignifant (in game terms anyway) models is insane. Each gnoblar fighter has at least 1, if not 2 Empire Flagellant weapons added. Each weapon had to be pinned on and in some cases a 2 handed weapon had to be cut down and turned into a 1 handed weapon AND THEN pinned on. All that work paid off I think in the end and I'm glad I put the time in.

Cheers

2008 in Review

2009-01-08T10:08:00.001-06:00

My big points of 2008.

I painted 9 WE miniatures for WFB (for the Midwest Rampage), some pirates and a creepy pumpkin skeleton. Low hobby output this past year for me.

Lots of tournies and awards this past year - That was very nice!
Also lots of top finishes
Northstar Tourney - 2nd Overall
*I tied for first but got beat out by BP in the end - The TO says I lost cuz I had no standards which cost me 1 point in a scenario.

Midwest Rampage - 2nd Overall
Players Choice - Adepticon Championships (45th overall - uggh)
Best Overall - May 17 CCGS RTT
Best Appearance - The Hillbilly (3rd overall)
Best Appearance - Gaska Invitational (2nd Overall)
Best Appearance - Rockcon (2nd Overall)
Best Appearance - December CCGS RTT (2nd Overall)

I probably left something out but it escapes me.

I played very few non-tourney games this past year.

I only played WE this past year and won far more games than I lost (though I did lose a few - single digits though! and a couple of draws).

My WFB-related goals for 2009
Convert and paint 1k Ogres for Adepticon
Convert and paint 2250 Dark Elves for late 09 / 10
Focus some serious attention on a few single minis for painting
competitions (Acon & Golden Demons)
Play more & play more people
Add "whatever is necessary" to my existing lizzie forces to make a
fun list to work with while I build and paint DE.
Win Best Overall at a GT(*doubtful with anything but WE, but ya gots to have goals)
Play the WE less frequently - I'm ready for something new!

Cheers

Monochrome Mini

2009-01-07T10:44:00.006-06:00

This is a mini I painted for a monochrome painting challenge.

3 Paint Pots were used to create this mini;
VMC White + VMC Black + VMC Chocolate Brown

It was fun to paint and a great learning experience. I ended up sending this mini away as part of a miniature exchange.

Pirates!

2009-01-07T10:26:00.002-06:00

Painting up some Pirates for Legends of the High Seas to a decent standard. I have 2 mostly done and hope to put some new ones up soon.

Reaper Pumpkinhead

2009-01-07T10:19:00.006-06:00

I painted this mini to be used in 2 simultaneous online painting competitions. It won in the warhammer forums " Painting Challenge Geheimnisnacht".

It took second place in the Reaper Miniatures Halloween painting contest netting me a $50 gift certificate from reaper and my pic in their gallery!

It was my first adventure using any blood effects and I will be trying more soon!

Glade of Woe

2009-01-07T10:04:00.004-06:00

Thought I would add pics of my WE army.

Every pumpkin in the army is sculpted from Greenstuff. The trees are all purchased - Metal Woodland Scenics trees
for the dryads/BW and resin trees for the rest. 90% of the army has some greenstuff work with most of the figs modeled to be "Emerging" from a tree.

Happy Halloween!

2005-10-31T21:26:00.000-06:00

Ahhhhh, it is over. We had a great time!

Halloween Costumes - $80
An Evening in the Rain - Cold & Wet
Trick or Treating with my Son - Priceless
Enjoy!! :D

Sweating & Banging

2005-10-07T10:11:00.000-05:00

This may not be what you think based on the title. :-)

Felt the weight of my age again this week. Monday night I got a last minute ticket to go see Weezer & the Foo Fighters in Champaign on Tuesday night.

I went.

The show ROCKED! Dave Grohl (sp?) is an incredible performer.

Had a great time, sweated my butt off & danced/head banged like a fool.

Got home @ 2:00 AM. Back up the next day @ 6:45 and back to work ..

Uggghhh

My neck hurt and I have been off-kilter all week from the lack of sleep.

I did get to see Weezer play all of my favorite tunes (Even if They just stood there)
especially "Say it aint So", "Holiday", "Hashpipe"

Foo Fighters Did all of my favs of theirs as well
"Everlong", "This is a Call", "MonkeyWrench", "Best of You"

A very good show & I dont regret going at all.

I just wish I didnt have to ache like an old man for a week because of it.

Dom

Current Mini Project

2005-10-01T00:21:00.001-05:00

For some online painting competitions. :-)

The Sickness & Children vs. Age

2005-09-26T13:04:00.000-05:00

I am sick again, and spent the weekend being sick, which must be like the 10th time this year.

I never used to get sick (Maybe once a year tops!).

So, is my sickness induced by the fact that I have a child in a daycare with lots of other children. Sean is not sick as often as I am, but he could still be bringing the bug home.

Or, is it due to the fact that I am getting older.

Whatever it is, I am soooo ready to be done with this bulls*&%.

Amazing

2005-09-07T22:05:00.000-05:00

My 2 year old son is freaking amazing...

He counted to 14 on his own today... He started counting the spoons as I was putting them away. He made it all the way to 14...

I was so proud (AND shocked!!). I knew he counted ( he always counts with Dora), but to count to 14 on his own was just unbelievable...

Can't wait for more of lifes little moments like these!

This is Sean & Avery from the Petting zoo this weekend!!

Metallic Mini Contest

2005-09-07T22:03:00.001-05:00

New Entry for a Metallic painted miniature

Tyranid Warrior

2005-09-07T22:01:00.001-05:00

Newly painted miniature by me...

32

2005-07-18T21:37:00.000-05:00

I reached this number last Saturday. Whoop-ity-doo!

I used to get so excited for my birthdays, now I could care less. My birthday excitement is all spent on my son.

My wife asked what I wanted to do for my birthday, and all I wanted was for our family to enjoy a day at the house. What a great boring day it was. I loved it.

One of the highlights of my birthday was getting a piece of mail from one of my oldest friends. While the images sent in the mail were of no major consequence, the act itself meant the world to me.

Unfortunately, keeping up with this old friend has been very hard to do. He lives about 45 min. away now, and in the hustle-bustle of daily life, that seems like forever.

So, my birthday resolution to myself is for me to work harder to stay in touch with my old friends.

Here's to you Mr. Story!

Dom

My Pride & Joy

2005-07-13T22:25:00.000-05:00

Without a doubt, Sean is the greatest accomplishment of my lifetime to date.

Nothing can compare to the absolute joy this little boy brings to my life.

Whatever his passions are in life, I hope to fuel those and see them thrive.

I hope my brother and sister fuel his mind and imagination with their creative, abstract energies.

I hope my wife instills in him the great caring and compassion she has for others. He has definitely received her beauty and those eyes.

I feel a deep-seated need to protect him from harm. I worry about protecting him so much that he becomes sheltered, and lives a life not of his choosing.

I can't wait to spend the years watching him grow into a young boy and then a man.

Until then, I will enjoy the moments I can and grab all the "Smooches" that I can.

Serious Folk Need not apply

2005-07-12T23:06:00.000-05:00

Due to an over abundance of melodrama coursing through the veins of siblings mine, all deep thoughts will be best left to Jack Handy.

Thanks.

Management

D&D Poems

2005-07-12T23:02:00.000-05:00

The geek-E-ness of me can no longer be contained.

Balls of Bat Guano I use for my Castings
Down from the hall comes a lone fireball crashing
Burning inferno all around my head
In just 2 seconds I think I'll be dead.....

** It helps if you think of the Sound of Music,
specifically the tune *A few of my favorite things.....

---------------------------------------------------------

High on a hill lived a lonely Sorceror
Lay-Dee
Yoda-Lay-Dee
Yoda-Lay-He-Who
Maiden on the floor, ravaged from the horror
Lay-Dee
O-Dee-Lay-Dee
O-Dee-Loo
Pentagrams drawn, keep the sorceror warded
Lay-Dee
Yoda-Lay-Dee
Yoda-Lay-He-Who
Ritual Complete, Sacrifice Aborted
Lay-Dee
O-Dee-Lay-Dee
O-Dee-Loo

Bet u cant guess which tune this is set to???