So, the haul is in, and the haul is...
Vyros
Kaelyssa
10 Houseguard Halberdiers + UA
Narn
Nayl
Skeryth Issyen
2 Hydras
Yeah, it's exactly what I wrote a few entries ago in Meet Mohrys, but it's nice to have confirmation! This brings the total up to...
Garryth, Rahn, Ravyn, Kaelyssa and Vyros
2 Phoenixes (Concordia and Harmonia)
2 Hydras (Malaclypse and Aneris)
6 Battle Mages
10 Houseguard Riflemen + UA (Officer = Alyn)
10 Houseguard Halberdiers + UA (Officer = Jyym)
2 Arcanists (Mohrys and Roi)
3 Magisters (Dayvyd, Tyym and Fyntsh)
Mage Hunter Assassin (Dorn)
Fane Knight Skeryth Issyen
Nayl
Narn (both as the actual mini and with a converted Lelith Hesperax as, well, "Narnia" until I come up with a better name :P)
Lady Aiyana and Master Holt (Lady Joyana and her bodyguard, Bois)
Madeline Corbeau (Priestess Shyen, as played by the old Everqueen mini)
I have the bits to make Discordia on order and all the bits to get the limited edition Eiryss, so with a Mage Hunter Strike Force and UA, that should get me a 100 point Garryth and Rahn force! Hooray!
Next time on Preventive Measures... Tears of blood and pain as I try to stick together Mage Hunters! The same tears of me trying to keep Skeryth on horseback together now!
Saturday, 25 December 2010
Thursday, 9 December 2010
I still hate the Invictors...
It seems like only yesterday, I was saying how much I hated the Dawnguard models in all their infinite stupid tiny shinguardiness. Then the Sentinels grew on me, and now, today... These guys. These are the sexiest cavalry in the game. These are nicer than the Tharn Wolf Riders. These are nicer than watching Garryth carve up Basic Stryker on his Feat turn.
I will own them. I will get a unit and I shall hold them tight and use their awesome to keep me warm, saving a fortune on heating bills.
Anyway, I haven't been on for a while, and I wanted to give an update! The group I play with has expanded, from the two I had at the start of this blog (including me), to a healthy 6. In the new year, we're all starting a new faction but, rather than just buying craptons of stuff at once, we're limiting ourselves to £30 ($50 US) a month to buy new toys! I'll try to keep up to date here as well as on a new blog - I'm playing Circle Orboros, so I figure Preventive Measures makes sense still :p
Thursday, 11 November 2010
Meet Mohrys!
This is Mohrys.
Well, this isn't Mohrys, but, like this particular model, Mohrys is an Arcanist, a simple, 1 point, Repairing, Power Boosting, Concentrated Powering Arcanist. He is also the bane of my Meta. Over his last three games, he has personally killed off Deneghra and Captain Rengrave, held up a Berserker in melee combat for three rounds AND still found time to ensure that nearby Phoenixes are fully repaired.
He is, in short, badass. His mate is Roi, who took an full unit of charging Bane Thralls to bring down. Equally badass.
This is the lesson of the day, Arcanists are badass.
In other news, my Christmas order has been made! Incoming soon are...
Vyros
Kaelyssa
10 Houseguard Halberdiers + UA
Narn
Nayl
Skeryth Issyen
2 Hydras
Should give some fun times!
He is, in short, badass. His mate is Roi, who took an full unit of charging Bane Thralls to bring down. Equally badass.
This is the lesson of the day, Arcanists are badass.
In other news, my Christmas order has been made! Incoming soon are...
Vyros
Kaelyssa
10 Houseguard Halberdiers + UA
Narn
Nayl
Skeryth Issyen
2 Hydras
Should give some fun times!
Sunday, 24 October 2010
Quick! Get them before their parents notice!
This is actually an account of the events of last Friday, but events have conspired to make this the first chance I've really had to write it. Last Friday was meant to be a Shadowrun game, but our GM is hilariously unreliable so two of us ended up playing Warmachine. Even though we'd sent a text message as early as we could, our last player turned up anyway so we did the only logical thing we could think of - we got her playing Warmachine.
In what can only be described as a trial by fire, we had just set up a 25pt Rahn list across from a Madrak list, and all that really happened was she switched seats with me and played with me helping out occasionally. We had the following minor issues that we had to overcome;
So we fucked it up, we got stuff wrong, we ended up calling Fury "Angry Points" to aid differentiation between Focus and Fury, the Magisters became the "Teapot guys", and she ended up lining up her Battle Mages AND Magisters in near base to base conga line with a Troll Impaler. We also had fun. Loads and loads of fun. With neither side playing to win, the Dire Troll two-handed threw stuff, the Phoenix combusted repeatedly on the Fennblades and... Everything else. She also became the first person in our store to bring down the Mauler after it totalled a Phoenix, pouring the Battle Mages, Magisters and Rahn's spells into it.
It hammered home to me one of the best parts of this game for me, and it's not winning, it's not even playing - it's being present in the electric feeling of two people just kicking back having loads of fun. While it's great to have a combo click for you, it's just as good to see someone else's face light up as they realise some new and hilarious way of bringing the pain on one of your mates, or to realise you have a shot at assassinating by throwing a Heavy into a Warcaster. It isn't the crushing of enemies, the seeing of them driven before you or even hearing the lamentations of the women - a good, fun game is what is best in life.
Oh, and by the way, she and two other people are thinking of picking up Legion. Our meta is currently three people - it will DOUBLE with Nyss, and there still won't be a single player using humans currently among us. Still, may be time to pick up Lanyssa Ryssyl and the Nyss Rangers...
PS - the title comes across as a bit dodgy, but I bet it'll get hits! It's ACTUALLY a reference to getting Soulless Iosans just after they've been born. Honest. And now I've put that, you can't get mad and you'll look really stupid if you leave a comment bitching about it. I win, ha.
In what can only be described as a trial by fire, we had just set up a 25pt Rahn list across from a Madrak list, and all that really happened was she switched seats with me and played with me helping out occasionally. We had the following minor issues that we had to overcome;
- I'm still in MkI mode. It's just a few things, but I sometimes use MkI rulings instead of MkII.
- The other guy had been playing for two weeks at most, and is the only Hordes player in the store.
- The girl we were helping has excellent English, but is not a Native-level speaker.
- Due to having other things to do, my Tier 3 Rahn list has one model painted, which is fine because most of us can tell the difference between a Mage and a Magister...
- I couldn't explain drinking if I had an unlimited supply of water to demonstrate with.
So we fucked it up, we got stuff wrong, we ended up calling Fury "Angry Points" to aid differentiation between Focus and Fury, the Magisters became the "Teapot guys", and she ended up lining up her Battle Mages AND Magisters in near base to base conga line with a Troll Impaler. We also had fun. Loads and loads of fun. With neither side playing to win, the Dire Troll two-handed threw stuff, the Phoenix combusted repeatedly on the Fennblades and... Everything else. She also became the first person in our store to bring down the Mauler after it totalled a Phoenix, pouring the Battle Mages, Magisters and Rahn's spells into it.
It hammered home to me one of the best parts of this game for me, and it's not winning, it's not even playing - it's being present in the electric feeling of two people just kicking back having loads of fun. While it's great to have a combo click for you, it's just as good to see someone else's face light up as they realise some new and hilarious way of bringing the pain on one of your mates, or to realise you have a shot at assassinating by throwing a Heavy into a Warcaster. It isn't the crushing of enemies, the seeing of them driven before you or even hearing the lamentations of the women - a good, fun game is what is best in life.
Oh, and by the way, she and two other people are thinking of picking up Legion. Our meta is currently three people - it will DOUBLE with Nyss, and there still won't be a single player using humans currently among us. Still, may be time to pick up Lanyssa Ryssyl and the Nyss Rangers...
PS - the title comes across as a bit dodgy, but I bet it'll get hits! It's ACTUALLY a reference to getting Soulless Iosans just after they've been born. Honest. And now I've put that, you can't get mad and you'll look really stupid if you leave a comment bitching about it. I win, ha.
Thursday, 14 October 2010
My first VASSAL-aided battle report! 15pts, Madrak Vs Rahn Vs Skarre
OK, firstly, I have to make two apologies - first up, this is my first time using VASSAL to make a battle report, and the ranges are all weird - sometimes things will look like they're in range, but in reality they weren't, and sometimes things will look like they're nowhere near when, in reality, they were almost base to base. Secondly, I'm currently suffering from a terminal case of man flu, and I popped enough cough sweets (the ones that have "may cause drowsiness" on the side and taste of happy) last night that I nearly fell asleep by the end of the game, so this is gonna get more and more vague as the batrep goes on. Enjoy!
Deployment
OK, the armies were as follows (in turn order...)
Madrak Ironhide, a Dire Troll Mauler, a Pyre Troll, a Rune Bearer and 6 Fenblades
Adeptis Rahn, 2 Phoenixes, 2 Arcanists
Skarre Ravenmane, a Defiler, 10 Revenant Crew, Captain Rengrave, a Revenant Cannon, a Necrotech and a Scrap Thrall
The woods in the middle was actually a large area of overgrowth which we counted as Difficult Terrain and Concealment.
Turn 1
The Trolls move forward. The Runebearer casts Veil of Mists (or whatever it's called, the one that gives Concealment) on the Fenblades.
The two Arcanists move forward and use Power Booster on their assigned Phoenix, who then ran forward towards the Revenant Crew. Rahn walked up behind them and cast Force Field on himself and Polarity Shield on the Phoenix nearest to the Cryx lines.
The Defiler moves up and Skarre, moving away from the Phoenixes, casts Backlash on the Phoenix with Polarity Shield. Rengrave moves up and takes a shot, doing a single point of damage and injuring Rahn. The Revenant Crew with Line of Sight try the same, but don't do nearly as well. Lastly, the Revenant Cannon fires at the Backlashed Phoenix, but is massively out of range, bouncing off Rahn's force field and hitting Rengrave and a Revenant, causing some impressive damage to both (NOTE - next turn we realised that it had moved and fired, but meh, the damage was done).
Turn 2
Again, the Trollbloods move up, again the Rune Bearer casts the Concealment thing on the Fenblades. Again Madrak doesn't cast a damn thing.
Rahn upkeeps Force Field and drops Polarity Shield, allocating three Focus to the Backlashed Phoenix who, after a quick burst of Concentrated Power from her Arcanist, walks up to Rengrave, Combusts and then hits the Defiler a few times with the Thermal Blade, killing Rengrave, a Revenant and totalling the Defiler. The other Phoenix moves up to secure the middle of the table with Rahn and her Arcanist moving up behind.
Skarre upkeeps Backlash on the Phoenix as the Revenants swarm it and, with some piss-poor rolling, do very little. The few hits they do get do some damage to Rahn, who is slowly but surely beginning to feel the hurt. The cannon and the Necrotech move up, and Skarre moves slightly further away.
Turn 3
The Trolls start moving through the undergrowth. And very little else happens.
Rahn upkeeps Force Field and gives two points of focus to the Phoenix in the middle of the table, who moves up and uses it's Halo Cannon to kill the Necrotech and it's Scrap Thrall. The other Phoenix Combusts, killing every Revenant except the Quartermaster, who is less than half an inch out of range. The Cryx player's gloating is shut up with a quick Force Blast that hurls the Quatermaster into a tree, killing him, too. Rahn moves up.
Skarre upkeeps Backlash and moves up. The cannon takes a potshot at the Fenblades and misses.
Turn 4
The Pyre and Dire Trolls break cover into my part of the board. The Pyre puts it's animus on the Fenblades and the Runebearer keeps casting Veil of Mists.
Rahn upkeeps Force Field. The Phoenix in the middle moves up to the Fenblades and then I get distracted. I come back, and move the other Phoenix up past the pool. Rahn moves up and, seeing how far out the Fullblood Trolls are, uses Telekinesis on the Pyre Troll to make them both stand facing each other before throwing a Force Hammer through the unengaged Phoenix that hits Skarre and does a bit of damage. The Arcanists move up to protect their boss.
Skarre shakes off being knocked down and charges the Phoneix, knocking it down and laying into it with Life Traded, boosted damage rolls. At the end of the storm, the battered Myrmidon is left with a single point each on the Cortex and Thermal blade...
Turn 5
The Pyre troll passes it's Frenzy check. It proves to be less lucky when the Dire Troll fails and punches the Pyre troll in the face, causing quite a large amount of damage. The Fenblades do a decent amount of damage to the Phoenix in the middle and the Runebearer walks up. No idea what he cast. Let's go with... Veil of Mists, 'cos it wasn't Hero's Lament.
Rahn gives the Phoenix in combat with Skarre three focus, the one in combat with the Fenblades 1 Focus, and upkeeps Force Field. The Phoenix in combat with Skarre goes to town, leaving a vaguely Satyxis-shaped bloodstain on the ground. The Phoenix in combat with the Fenblades Combusts, killing two and knocking down another with a Tough check. He then uses his focus to stab the downed one, finishing him off. Rahn camps on his focus.
The Revenant Cannon misses the combat in the middle, and does nothing of value.
Turn 6
The Fenblades use their vengeance move to hit the Phoenix, closely followed by trashing the thing in their own turn. Madrak moves up and the Fullbloods kill an Arcanist each.
The remaining Phoenix limps up and Rahn runs off.
The cannon hits thin air and kills it.
Turn 7
All the Trollbloods move up to pin Rahn in.
Rahn gives the Phoenix 3 Focus and uses Telekinesis on it and the Mauler to move them almost next to each other. The Phoenix moves up and swings wildly at the Mauler, doing some damage, but not much.
The cannon kills some Fenblades. And noone cares.
Turn 8
The Mauler, unsurprisingly, totals the Phoenix as Madrak comes up behind and the Pyre Troll moves round the forest to block off escape routes. The Fenblade and Runebearer move up to the Cannon.
Rahn moves away, missing the Mauler with his Force Hammers.
Turn 9
The Mauler moves up, finishing just out of range of Rahn.
Rahn pops his Feat and hits the Mauler twice with fully boosted Force Blasts, almost killing it...
Turn 10
The Mauler regenerates, uses it's Animus and charges Rahn. The first hit takes Rahn down to one health. The next hit finishes him off.
Final Thoughts
I should get over my hatred of all-infantry Warmachine armies. Me ignoring the Trolls, combined with the Cryx player's ongoing rivalry with me (he's my regular opponent - just defected from Menoth), allowed the Trollbloods to walk up more or less unscathed.
I've also come to the conclusion that, at 15 points, my list is awesome. It managed to near wipe out the Cryx infantry spam on it's own before going on to hold up the Trollbloods and almost taking out their infantry too. Vengeance is brutal, and if I was facing Kriel Warriors, I'd have been fine. We've got a rematch tomorrow at 25 points, and I'm basically taking the same list with some Battle Mages and Magisters, because the list is just so solid.
Deployment
Madrak Ironhide, a Dire Troll Mauler, a Pyre Troll, a Rune Bearer and 6 Fenblades
Adeptis Rahn, 2 Phoenixes, 2 Arcanists
Skarre Ravenmane, a Defiler, 10 Revenant Crew, Captain Rengrave, a Revenant Cannon, a Necrotech and a Scrap Thrall
The woods in the middle was actually a large area of overgrowth which we counted as Difficult Terrain and Concealment.
Turn 1
The two Arcanists move forward and use Power Booster on their assigned Phoenix, who then ran forward towards the Revenant Crew. Rahn walked up behind them and cast Force Field on himself and Polarity Shield on the Phoenix nearest to the Cryx lines.
The Defiler moves up and Skarre, moving away from the Phoenixes, casts Backlash on the Phoenix with Polarity Shield. Rengrave moves up and takes a shot, doing a single point of damage and injuring Rahn. The Revenant Crew with Line of Sight try the same, but don't do nearly as well. Lastly, the Revenant Cannon fires at the Backlashed Phoenix, but is massively out of range, bouncing off Rahn's force field and hitting Rengrave and a Revenant, causing some impressive damage to both (NOTE - next turn we realised that it had moved and fired, but meh, the damage was done).
Turn 2
Rahn upkeeps Force Field and drops Polarity Shield, allocating three Focus to the Backlashed Phoenix who, after a quick burst of Concentrated Power from her Arcanist, walks up to Rengrave, Combusts and then hits the Defiler a few times with the Thermal Blade, killing Rengrave, a Revenant and totalling the Defiler. The other Phoenix moves up to secure the middle of the table with Rahn and her Arcanist moving up behind.
Skarre upkeeps Backlash on the Phoenix as the Revenants swarm it and, with some piss-poor rolling, do very little. The few hits they do get do some damage to Rahn, who is slowly but surely beginning to feel the hurt. The cannon and the Necrotech move up, and Skarre moves slightly further away.
Turn 3
Rahn upkeeps Force Field and gives two points of focus to the Phoenix in the middle of the table, who moves up and uses it's Halo Cannon to kill the Necrotech and it's Scrap Thrall. The other Phoenix Combusts, killing every Revenant except the Quartermaster, who is less than half an inch out of range. The Cryx player's gloating is shut up with a quick Force Blast that hurls the Quatermaster into a tree, killing him, too. Rahn moves up.
Skarre upkeeps Backlash and moves up. The cannon takes a potshot at the Fenblades and misses.
Turn 4
Rahn upkeeps Force Field. The Phoenix in the middle moves up to the Fenblades and then I get distracted. I come back, and move the other Phoenix up past the pool. Rahn moves up and, seeing how far out the Fullblood Trolls are, uses Telekinesis on the Pyre Troll to make them both stand facing each other before throwing a Force Hammer through the unengaged Phoenix that hits Skarre and does a bit of damage. The Arcanists move up to protect their boss.
Skarre shakes off being knocked down and charges the Phoneix, knocking it down and laying into it with Life Traded, boosted damage rolls. At the end of the storm, the battered Myrmidon is left with a single point each on the Cortex and Thermal blade...
Turn 5
Rahn gives the Phoenix in combat with Skarre three focus, the one in combat with the Fenblades 1 Focus, and upkeeps Force Field. The Phoenix in combat with Skarre goes to town, leaving a vaguely Satyxis-shaped bloodstain on the ground. The Phoenix in combat with the Fenblades Combusts, killing two and knocking down another with a Tough check. He then uses his focus to stab the downed one, finishing him off. Rahn camps on his focus.
The Revenant Cannon misses the combat in the middle, and does nothing of value.
Turn 6
The remaining Phoenix limps up and Rahn runs off.
The cannon hits thin air and kills it.
Turn 7
Rahn gives the Phoenix 3 Focus and uses Telekinesis on it and the Mauler to move them almost next to each other. The Phoenix moves up and swings wildly at the Mauler, doing some damage, but not much.
The cannon kills some Fenblades. And noone cares.
Turn 8
Rahn moves away, missing the Mauler with his Force Hammers.
Turn 9
The Mauler moves up, finishing just out of range of Rahn.
Rahn pops his Feat and hits the Mauler twice with fully boosted Force Blasts, almost killing it...
Turn 10
The Mauler regenerates, uses it's Animus and charges Rahn. The first hit takes Rahn down to one health. The next hit finishes him off.
Final Thoughts
I should get over my hatred of all-infantry Warmachine armies. Me ignoring the Trolls, combined with the Cryx player's ongoing rivalry with me (he's my regular opponent - just defected from Menoth), allowed the Trollbloods to walk up more or less unscathed.
I've also come to the conclusion that, at 15 points, my list is awesome. It managed to near wipe out the Cryx infantry spam on it's own before going on to hold up the Trollbloods and almost taking out their infantry too. Vengeance is brutal, and if I was facing Kriel Warriors, I'd have been fine. We've got a rematch tomorrow at 25 points, and I'm basically taking the same list with some Battle Mages and Magisters, because the list is just so solid.
Tuesday, 12 October 2010
The force is assembled!
I started this blog on the 29th of August, 2010. I ordered my stuff a few days before I started this and, today, at just after 2pm, I got a text message - my stuff has finally arrived! Expect this blog to actually kick off now I have stuff, as I'll be frantically painting them over the next few days, hell, I stuck 'em all together as soon as I got home!
So now, my army is officially...
Rahn
Ravyn
Garryth
2 Phoenixes (Concordia and Harmonia)
6 Battle Mages
10 Riflemen + UA (Officer = Alyn)
Mage Hunter Assassin (Dorn)
2 Arcanists (Mohrys and Roi)
3 Magisters (Dayvyd, Tyym and Fyntsh)
Lady Aiyana and Master Holt (Lady Joyana and her bodyguard, Bois)
Madeline Corbeau (Priestess Shyen, played by the old GW High Elf Everqueen)
HOPEFULLY, pictures will come soon!
EDIT - changed a bunch of the names. Because these ones are better.
So now, my army is officially...
Rahn
Ravyn
Garryth
2 Phoenixes (Concordia and Harmonia)
6 Battle Mages
10 Riflemen + UA (Officer = Alyn)
Mage Hunter Assassin (Dorn)
2 Arcanists (Mohrys and Roi)
3 Magisters (Dayvyd, Tyym and Fyntsh)
Lady Aiyana and Master Holt (Lady Joyana and her bodyguard, Bois)
Madeline Corbeau (Priestess Shyen, played by the old GW High Elf Everqueen)
HOPEFULLY, pictures will come soon!
EDIT - changed a bunch of the names. Because these ones are better.
Tuesday, 5 October 2010
Rumours of my demise...
...Have been greatly exaggerated...
OK, they may as well not have been, I still don't have my Retribution (GAH!), I've been forced to proxy for 15 point games (GAAH!) and I have a kickass 28mm Predator mini (Cool, but not the Retribution I wanted, so GAAAH!). Now, again, I SHOULD have my stuff sometime next week, but that doesn't help now. And is probably a lie...
So really, this was all a post just to let everyone know I haven't let the side down and ran off to join, like, the Druids, or Urban War.
Also, to do ANYTHING Retribution-based, I've started up a bit of fiction. It's been a while since I've written anything, so please, tear it apart :)
See you soon (hopefully with minis!!)
OK, they may as well not have been, I still don't have my Retribution (GAH!), I've been forced to proxy for 15 point games (GAAH!) and I have a kickass 28mm Predator mini (Cool, but not the Retribution I wanted, so GAAAH!). Now, again, I SHOULD have my stuff sometime next week, but that doesn't help now. And is probably a lie...
So really, this was all a post just to let everyone know I haven't let the side down and ran off to join, like, the Druids, or Urban War.
Also, to do ANYTHING Retribution-based, I've started up a bit of fiction. It's been a while since I've written anything, so please, tear it apart :)
See you soon (hopefully with minis!!)
Thursday, 9 September 2010
First ever Retribution Battle! 25 points Rahn Vs Epic Kreoss
Alright, I had my first battle last night and seeing as I can barely remember what happened (psych outs and sowing confusion are common tactics in my meta) I'll just write down the important points;
First up, the lists...
I had Rahn, 2 Phoenixes, a unit of Battle Mages, three Magisters and an Arcanist, played in this game by Stryker, two Manglers, a unit of Trenchers, three Long Gunners and Rutger Shaw.
My honourable opponent (who hasn't won yet) had Epic Kreoss, a Crusader, a Redee... Reve... Repen... Rele... The one with the flame thrower, a Devout, ten Exemplar Errantss and five Cinerators.
The set up was massively cluttered, just the way we like it - a small village and a small station that looked like a Tatooine Water Farm were in the opposite corners with a load of crates, barrels and Menoth's Fury vats in the middle. Despite my belief they should, it was eventually ruled that the Menoth Fury wouldn't explode in a cataclysmic chain reaction, destroying everything on the table if they're hit with anything that has Damage Type : Fire. They just counted as cover and extra damage for the inevitable slams.
The armies set up almost directly opposite each other. The Menites set up in a huge turtle with the Crusader and Errants to the front, Cinerators to the rear and the light 'jacks just off to the side. I went on a slightly wider front with the Magisters and the Mages setting up to flank the majority of the Menite force. And now, for the highlights in a vaguely chronological order...
First shot of the game - Rahn arced a Force Hammer straight into the Crusader, killing three Errants, knocking down a Cinerator and stopping less than an inch away from Kreoss.
Rahn's Feat - the Mages and two Magisters obliterated the remaining Exemplars before they could fire a shot while Rahn himself used Telekinesis to move the Crusader next to a Phoenix and turning it directly away (I hereby christen this move "The Enema", and intend to use it as much as possible). Didn't destroy the damn thing with a full three Focus and Concentrated Power, but took it's Mace off and set it on fire, so I'm happy.
The charge of the Cinerators - the Cinerators, Kreoss and the Menite Light 'jacks run into the Mages' melee range. The Mages successfully do bugger all to the Menites (missing four attacks straight on the Devout at the height of the pointy-eared failure) before the Cinerators' next turn when they subsequently obliterated everything within half an inch of them.
The fuckup of the Phoenix - Kreoss, on a full seven Focus, is Enema'd (see? Told you I'd use it) by a Phoenix with three Focus. The Phoenix, needing five to hit, manages to roll a total of three on two dice, five times in a row. Fuck. Theorymachine. Odds.
Kreoss earns the name "beat stick" - To get the Telekinesis off, I had to move Rahn within eight inches, with a straight line of empty ground between him and Kreoss. Taking the Free Strike (that left him on three health...), Kreoss walked leisurely up to the Elf, found himself just in melee range, popped his feat and boosted all the damage rolls, leaving the entire area covered in Iosan Warcaster body parts.
I've learnt a few things from this game, mainly that the law of averages can suck my balls. On a more specific note, the Advance Move from Rahn's Tier list is spectacularly powerful, and the ability of the majority of my army to move the enemy around and knock them down is insane for breaking up charges and generally screwing with plans.
Also, I would pay a premium for a Battle Mage Unit Attachment that gave them Combo Strike, not even Smite, just Strike! It would be hilarious AND make my turn a lot shorter.
First up, the lists...
I had Rahn, 2 Phoenixes, a unit of Battle Mages, three Magisters and an Arcanist, played in this game by Stryker, two Manglers, a unit of Trenchers, three Long Gunners and Rutger Shaw.
My honourable opponent (who hasn't won yet) had Epic Kreoss, a Crusader, a Redee... Reve... Repen... Rele... The one with the flame thrower, a Devout, ten Exemplar Errantss and five Cinerators.
The set up was massively cluttered, just the way we like it - a small village and a small station that looked like a Tatooine Water Farm were in the opposite corners with a load of crates, barrels and Menoth's Fury vats in the middle. Despite my belief they should, it was eventually ruled that the Menoth Fury wouldn't explode in a cataclysmic chain reaction, destroying everything on the table if they're hit with anything that has Damage Type : Fire. They just counted as cover and extra damage for the inevitable slams.
The armies set up almost directly opposite each other. The Menites set up in a huge turtle with the Crusader and Errants to the front, Cinerators to the rear and the light 'jacks just off to the side. I went on a slightly wider front with the Magisters and the Mages setting up to flank the majority of the Menite force. And now, for the highlights in a vaguely chronological order...
First shot of the game - Rahn arced a Force Hammer straight into the Crusader, killing three Errants, knocking down a Cinerator and stopping less than an inch away from Kreoss.
Rahn's Feat - the Mages and two Magisters obliterated the remaining Exemplars before they could fire a shot while Rahn himself used Telekinesis to move the Crusader next to a Phoenix and turning it directly away (I hereby christen this move "The Enema", and intend to use it as much as possible). Didn't destroy the damn thing with a full three Focus and Concentrated Power, but took it's Mace off and set it on fire, so I'm happy.
The charge of the Cinerators - the Cinerators, Kreoss and the Menite Light 'jacks run into the Mages' melee range. The Mages successfully do bugger all to the Menites (missing four attacks straight on the Devout at the height of the pointy-eared failure) before the Cinerators' next turn when they subsequently obliterated everything within half an inch of them.
The fuckup of the Phoenix - Kreoss, on a full seven Focus, is Enema'd (see? Told you I'd use it) by a Phoenix with three Focus. The Phoenix, needing five to hit, manages to roll a total of three on two dice, five times in a row. Fuck. Theorymachine. Odds.
Kreoss earns the name "beat stick" - To get the Telekinesis off, I had to move Rahn within eight inches, with a straight line of empty ground between him and Kreoss. Taking the Free Strike (that left him on three health...), Kreoss walked leisurely up to the Elf, found himself just in melee range, popped his feat and boosted all the damage rolls, leaving the entire area covered in Iosan Warcaster body parts.
I've learnt a few things from this game, mainly that the law of averages can suck my balls. On a more specific note, the Advance Move from Rahn's Tier list is spectacularly powerful, and the ability of the majority of my army to move the enemy around and knock them down is insane for breaking up charges and generally screwing with plans.
Also, I would pay a premium for a Battle Mage Unit Attachment that gave them Combo Strike, not even Smite, just Strike! It would be hilarious AND make my turn a lot shorter.
Monday, 6 September 2010
Third hand information - the most reliable kind!
OK, I'm going to admit this right now - this may be the LEAST responsible thing I've ever done, and I'm not normally one for spreading rumours but there's talk on the Retribution Community forums about a new character Light Myrmidon. Now, I don't know if this is true (in fact, the idea of Rahn having TWO Warjacks with Affinities is a bit odd at this stage), but this is copied directly from this thread and, to be honest, I at least HOPE it's true.
Euryale
Retribution Character Gorgon Light Myrmidon
STATS
+1 MAT, +1 RAT. Same damage grid.
WEAPONS
Same weapons profile as a regular Gorgon, except each fist has +1 POW. Fists still have Combo Strike (*Attack) and Polarity Cannon still has Kinetic Grip.
COST
Equal to a regular Gorgon's cost +1.
ABILITIES
- Force Lock.
- Field Dependent.
- Affinity [Rahn]: While within Rahn's control area, Euryale has no back arc.
- Imprint: Enliven. (See Vassal of Menoth for Enliven, and Drago for how Imprints work if you don't know)
Now, I DO have my doubts, primarily because Rahn has Discordia, but this seems legit enough, maybe for it to be a typo? Ravyn would make sense... Also, Force Lock with 360 degree vision is brutal - it could easily shut down a whole unit if it can get in the middle of them. If it can get into a load of ranged specialists, there's very little they can do to stop it.
That's my thoughts anyway. Can anyone confirm this?
UPDATE - This is just for the Escalation League. Shame. :(
Euryale
Retribution Character Gorgon Light Myrmidon
STATS
+1 MAT, +1 RAT. Same damage grid.
WEAPONS
Same weapons profile as a regular Gorgon, except each fist has +1 POW. Fists still have Combo Strike (*Attack) and Polarity Cannon still has Kinetic Grip.
COST
Equal to a regular Gorgon's cost +1.
ABILITIES
- Force Lock.
- Field Dependent.
- Affinity [Rahn]: While within Rahn's control area, Euryale has no back arc.
- Imprint: Enliven. (See Vassal of Menoth for Enliven, and Drago for how Imprints work if you don't know)
Now, I DO have my doubts, primarily because Rahn has Discordia, but this seems legit enough, maybe for it to be a typo? Ravyn would make sense... Also, Force Lock with 360 degree vision is brutal - it could easily shut down a whole unit if it can get in the middle of them. If it can get into a load of ranged specialists, there's very little they can do to stop it.
That's my thoughts anyway. Can anyone confirm this?
UPDATE - This is just for the Escalation League. Shame. :(
Sunday, 5 September 2010
I'm not dead, honest!
OK, I haven't updated in a few days, so this is really just a courtesy call to say I'm still alive.
While I'm here, I figure I should still try to fill this in with some legitimate news... So, uhh... My banner is now officially on Iron Agenda! I'm legit! Now all I have to do is wait for my actual models to show up and I can start talking about them with some actual authority! It's gotta be any time now...
Also, on a slightly off-topic note, I finally got a chance to read through this week's 2000AD (#1700). It's got a great new series in it by the name of Age of the Wolf, featuring a cute redhead beating the shit out of werewolves in a London on the brink of apocalypse, and is my recommendation of the timespan.
While I'm here, I figure I should still try to fill this in with some legitimate news... So, uhh... My banner is now officially on Iron Agenda! I'm legit! Now all I have to do is wait for my actual models to show up and I can start talking about them with some actual authority! It's gotta be any time now...
Also, on a slightly off-topic note, I finally got a chance to read through this week's 2000AD (#1700). It's got a great new series in it by the name of Age of the Wolf, featuring a cute redhead beating the shit out of werewolves in a London on the brink of apocalypse, and is my recommendation of the timespan.
Thursday, 2 September 2010
There is... Another...
...Three, actually. After finding a post on the PP Forums, a bunch of us Retribution bloggers have decided to give each other a shout out (because unlike the humans, we can work together. Filthy, filthy humans...)! The blogs are, in no particular order...
Lyoss is Burning
Written by Haydn
The apocalyptically-titled Lyoss is burning is by far the most established of these Retribution Blogs, and I am fairly certain that Haydn may in fact be an agent of the Council of Nine. Still, if you're willing to risk offending a superior noble that has direct access to the leaders of a group of xenophobic religious nutjobs (you can do it just by looking at them! Look away! Avert your eyes and don't think of the Staypuft Marshmallow Man!), check it out - his reviews and tutorials are top notch.
House Shyeel MkII
Written by Keldain
Taking over the reins from HighSerraphim and Magnus' Right Hand Man, Keldain is the new high scribe of House Shyeel and is already promising to do the old authors' memories proud. He's promised us great things with his Rahn army so... Yeah, keep an eye out.
It's also worth noting that Keldain is the guy that started all this off - if you have a Retribution Blog and, for some reason, are reading this, this dude is pretty much the strike coordinator for worldwide Retribution forces!
Retribution in the IK
Written by AJ the Ronin
Much like me, AJ the Ronin has moved from Cygnar to the Retribution recently, and like me, he's started a blog about it. This furthers my suspicion that the Iosan runes that PP have used have some kind of mind-controlling properties on Cygnar players. This could be an interesting experiment into the effects of two different metas from two different parts of the world on two players with similar backgrounds. It could also be a massive coincidence. Either way, I know I'll be checking on his posts!
Also, every time I see the title, I immediately get "Anarchy in the UK" in my head, which is awesome.
On a more personal note for all three blogs, I just have to say two things.
1 - Everyone uses Rahn, I might have to pick up Ravyn.
2 - I'm so glad I stuck with the white and green colour scheme. I was going to use black and blue too...
3 - I've put all the links on this thread AND in the sidebar, so you really have no excuse to read all three! So there!
Lyoss is Burning
Written by Haydn
The apocalyptically-titled Lyoss is burning is by far the most established of these Retribution Blogs, and I am fairly certain that Haydn may in fact be an agent of the Council of Nine. Still, if you're willing to risk offending a superior noble that has direct access to the leaders of a group of xenophobic religious nutjobs (you can do it just by looking at them! Look away! Avert your eyes and don't think of the Staypuft Marshmallow Man!), check it out - his reviews and tutorials are top notch.
House Shyeel MkII
Written by Keldain
Taking over the reins from HighSerraphim and Magnus' Right Hand Man, Keldain is the new high scribe of House Shyeel and is already promising to do the old authors' memories proud. He's promised us great things with his Rahn army so... Yeah, keep an eye out.
It's also worth noting that Keldain is the guy that started all this off - if you have a Retribution Blog and, for some reason, are reading this, this dude is pretty much the strike coordinator for worldwide Retribution forces!
Retribution in the IK
Written by AJ the Ronin
Much like me, AJ the Ronin has moved from Cygnar to the Retribution recently, and like me, he's started a blog about it. This furthers my suspicion that the Iosan runes that PP have used have some kind of mind-controlling properties on Cygnar players. This could be an interesting experiment into the effects of two different metas from two different parts of the world on two players with similar backgrounds. It could also be a massive coincidence. Either way, I know I'll be checking on his posts!
Also, every time I see the title, I immediately get "Anarchy in the UK" in my head, which is awesome.
On a more personal note for all three blogs, I just have to say two things.
1 - Everyone uses Rahn, I might have to pick up Ravyn.
2 - I'm so glad I stuck with the white and green colour scheme. I was going to use black and blue too...
3 - I've put all the links on this thread AND in the sidebar, so you really have no excuse to read all three! So there!
Wednesday, 1 September 2010
Preventive Measures is officially on the Iron Agenda!
Not really a huge amount of news today. I've just stopped by to put up a post saying I'm now on the Iron Agenda Network! Oh, the small, sad pangs of legitimacy I now feel!
Ooh, also, seeing as my Retribution stuff has been delayed, I picked myself up the alternate Mage Hunter Assassin. She's a lovely model, and I hope to get round to painting her soon. So... Pink or blue hair?
Ooh, also, seeing as my Retribution stuff has been delayed, I picked myself up the alternate Mage Hunter Assassin. She's a lovely model, and I hope to get round to painting her soon. So... Pink or blue hair?
Tuesday, 31 August 2010
Attack of Mechaduckzilla!
Also, this has officially named my two Phoenixes I'm getting soon (fingers crossed) - Discordia will be joined with Concordia and Harmonia. Other names for later 'jacks (Oh I do love hitting words into Wikipedia, Discordia gave a great result) include Malaclypse, Principia and Aneris.
December can't come fast enough...
Monday, 30 August 2010
With apologies to the sculptor...
OK, so it's not a Retribution post, but I love the model and needed the Photoshop practice. Much like the Mercenaries for Warmachine, the Minions in Hordes have got some of the nicest, most characterful pieces in the game, and the new Blackhide Wrassler is no exception. The insane bastard child of a Libre wrestler and an alligator, this baby hits the streets late October and promises to be an absolute joy to play.
Now, I must remember that I'm still an Elf player...
(Oh, and one last thing, the model is nowhere near as cartoony on the main site, I've brightened up the colours because... Dammit he looks like Bowser!)
Sunday, 29 August 2010
Badasses? But they're elves!
So here it is, the first in what will hopefully be a long line of blogs about my new and hopefully ever-expanding Retribution of Scyrah army, along with news and previews ripped straight from the main PP website! I figure it'll help if I start with a quick overview and plan for my particular Retribution forces, as well as how I see myself heading out from this point.
Firstly, my confession - I hate the Dawnguard models. The Sentinels are slowly growing on me, but the oversized thigh armour leading down to tiny shinguards make them look like their ankles are going to snap at the slightest provocation. I know a lot of people enjoy bitching that the Destors aren't released yet, but seeing as they're Dawnguard and therefore going to look so ridiculous I'd never use them the Retribution line is, as far as I'm concerned, entirely released for this year.
Secondly, the models I've ordered. Now, at the moment, they're only on order and I have to use my Cygnar, but when I get them, I'm looking at the following;
Adeptis Rahn
2 Heavy Myrmidons (Which are going to be made up as Phoenixes)
An Arcanist
A Box of Battle Mages
3 Magisters.
The idea is that this will make a 25 point list that also happens to be a Tier 3 Rahn list. As much as I love the models, I don't think I could get the 24 Battle Mages needed for Tier 4 without wanting to kill myself or, worse, hating the sculpts so much I'd never want to look at them again. I also, after I've got this little lot painted up, plan to get another few batches of models in no particular order;
All the character solos. Eiryss, Narn, Nayl and Fane Knight Skeryth Issyen. The reasons for this lot should be obvious...
Ravyn and a complete Houseguard Rifleman unit with UA. I was originally going to try for a Ravyn Tier list but a combination of Vortex of Destruction and War Tempered put paid to that. Plus the Rifleman Officer is one of the nicest models PP have ever made, so awesome that it's still not allowed in the gallery...
Kaelyssa and a complete Mage Hunter Strike Force with UA. This will get me on the start of Kaelyssa's Tier list, as well as give me a decent unit for if assassinations prove too hard with Rahn and his boys.
Garryth, two Mage Hunter Assassins and two Ghost Snipers. This'll get me two of each combat solo that isn't a Dawnguard. Garryth is also awesome, so having his lot just that bit cheaper makes it easier to justify buying him quickly!
A bunch of Myrmidons. My Primary goal is to get two of each Heavy and one set ready for the Discordia (oooh, the Discordia...). To be honest, I've been utterly underwhelmed by the Light Myrmidons, especially seeing as we have the ultimate in beauty - a Heavy with an Arc Node, but I may pick up some Griffons if I get some 'jack Marshals later on. At some point during my Heavy binge, I want to get a second Arcanist, because the Retribution's solos are amazing.
You'll notice that Vyros isn't on that list. He won't be on that list until I can decide what I want to do with him, because that model continues to piss me right off. See the Dawnguard rant above for details, and add in that stupid sword and bird for good measure.
As far as painting goes, I can honestly say that I hate the official Retribution scheme more than almost any other paint job I have ever seen. It's more sci-fi than most science fiction armies, and has more in common with Storm Troopers than fantasy soldiers, even ones that fight alongside robots powered by arcane energy. To this end, I'm going to do what most people seem to have done with their Retribution (and I thought I was being so original...) - use black instead of white. More specifically, inspired by Gdaybloke from the PP forums, I'm going for a dark, smoky grey armour and lighter blue-grey cloth. It'll look like SWAT team members, but it's still slightly closer to the time frame than far into the future (or long, long ago in a galaxy far, far away, depending on your point of view).
Anyway, I've rambled on long enough, and I've got to do... Anything else. Coming soon... When I actually get my first Retribution models, and hopefully their first game!
Firstly, my confession - I hate the Dawnguard models. The Sentinels are slowly growing on me, but the oversized thigh armour leading down to tiny shinguards make them look like their ankles are going to snap at the slightest provocation. I know a lot of people enjoy bitching that the Destors aren't released yet, but seeing as they're Dawnguard and therefore going to look so ridiculous I'd never use them the Retribution line is, as far as I'm concerned, entirely released for this year.
Secondly, the models I've ordered. Now, at the moment, they're only on order and I have to use my Cygnar, but when I get them, I'm looking at the following;
Adeptis Rahn
2 Heavy Myrmidons (Which are going to be made up as Phoenixes)
An Arcanist
A Box of Battle Mages
3 Magisters.
The idea is that this will make a 25 point list that also happens to be a Tier 3 Rahn list. As much as I love the models, I don't think I could get the 24 Battle Mages needed for Tier 4 without wanting to kill myself or, worse, hating the sculpts so much I'd never want to look at them again. I also, after I've got this little lot painted up, plan to get another few batches of models in no particular order;
All the character solos. Eiryss, Narn, Nayl and Fane Knight Skeryth Issyen. The reasons for this lot should be obvious...
Ravyn and a complete Houseguard Rifleman unit with UA. I was originally going to try for a Ravyn Tier list but a combination of Vortex of Destruction and War Tempered put paid to that. Plus the Rifleman Officer is one of the nicest models PP have ever made, so awesome that it's still not allowed in the gallery...
Kaelyssa and a complete Mage Hunter Strike Force with UA. This will get me on the start of Kaelyssa's Tier list, as well as give me a decent unit for if assassinations prove too hard with Rahn and his boys.
Garryth, two Mage Hunter Assassins and two Ghost Snipers. This'll get me two of each combat solo that isn't a Dawnguard. Garryth is also awesome, so having his lot just that bit cheaper makes it easier to justify buying him quickly!
A bunch of Myrmidons. My Primary goal is to get two of each Heavy and one set ready for the Discordia (oooh, the Discordia...). To be honest, I've been utterly underwhelmed by the Light Myrmidons, especially seeing as we have the ultimate in beauty - a Heavy with an Arc Node, but I may pick up some Griffons if I get some 'jack Marshals later on. At some point during my Heavy binge, I want to get a second Arcanist, because the Retribution's solos are amazing.
You'll notice that Vyros isn't on that list. He won't be on that list until I can decide what I want to do with him, because that model continues to piss me right off. See the Dawnguard rant above for details, and add in that stupid sword and bird for good measure.
As far as painting goes, I can honestly say that I hate the official Retribution scheme more than almost any other paint job I have ever seen. It's more sci-fi than most science fiction armies, and has more in common with Storm Troopers than fantasy soldiers, even ones that fight alongside robots powered by arcane energy. To this end, I'm going to do what most people seem to have done with their Retribution (and I thought I was being so original...) - use black instead of white. More specifically, inspired by Gdaybloke from the PP forums, I'm going for a dark, smoky grey armour and lighter blue-grey cloth. It'll look like SWAT team members, but it's still slightly closer to the time frame than far into the future (or long, long ago in a galaxy far, far away, depending on your point of view).
Anyway, I've rambled on long enough, and I've got to do... Anything else. Coming soon... When I actually get my first Retribution models, and hopefully their first game!
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