So a whacked as that last post was, the video itself had a commenter pointing out something that was the exact opposite of that video, pure awesome.
Swat-Kats Kickstarter
Back a number of years ago, to the days when Pay-TV had a channel called Boomerang and it actually showed good cartoons, in the early hours of the morning I was channel flicking and discovered a show called Swat-Kats, and it was amazing.
The simple premis is the story of two anthropomorphic cats who work as mechanics in a junkyard, but a secretly heroes who battle villains with various gadgets, but mostly in an awesome fighter jet. Yeah, it sound silly and it was, but somehow (though it's art style or it's story writting) this show really worked and was enjoyable to watch.
Thursday 30 July 2015
Oh God, forgot this still exists.
Every fandom has this, but my god, this is just weird. Their basically horses and possess no human physical structure, I don't get this. I've create characters and stories with animal anthropomorphics, some with romances and couples, but porn was never a part of it.
If you think this is screwed up, you have yet to see what the Internet is capable of. I once did research for a planned article I wanted to write about understanding fandoms. Needless to say, I never got round to doing it and it was more so for the fact that I cannot unseen what was seen. Will this stop me from enjoying being a fan? No, but thanks to that little experience I've become far more wary of what one can find on the Internet. I believe this one was picked out due to it's fandom still being out there, but this type of thing is in all fandoms, so don't pin hate on Bronies just cause this shit exists. Seriously, there are worse problems in the Sonic fandom then MLP has at the moment. Perhaps this is why I get into being a fan and then stay on the outskirts of the fandom, trying to avoid the hate and madness that exsists deep within.
And don't ask what it was I saw back then as I spent many months trying to forget and I will not try to remember for you.
Malifaux GenCon Order
So Wyrd's webstore is finally up with all those lovely GenCon miniatures. Sadly, the AU dollar is still bad against the US dollar, so I was limited to what I could order (sorry Colette). Did grab a few things I wanted:
- The Bushwhackers (Mah Tuckets crew)
- A Gremlins Tshirt (Cause hell yeah)
- Lucky Effigy (For my Gremlins)
- Hodgepodge Effigy (For my Outcasts)
- Shadow Effigy (For my brothers Ten Thunders, hope we can get that up soon)
- Arcane Effigy (was at $98, so got this to bring it up to that $100US mark for...)
- Miss Anne Thorpe (Counts as a Wastel) Grabbed this cause it's a limited collectors release and cause I do plan on doing a McCabe force in the future.
Still most likely wont recieve this for at least a minimum of 3 weeks (couldn't afford the good shipping), so now it's just a waiting game. Still, this does give me a time limit to finish my current Gremlins and work on my Outcasts.
- The Bushwhackers (Mah Tuckets crew)
- A Gremlins Tshirt (Cause hell yeah)
- Lucky Effigy (For my Gremlins)
- Hodgepodge Effigy (For my Outcasts)
- Shadow Effigy (For my brothers Ten Thunders, hope we can get that up soon)
- Arcane Effigy (was at $98, so got this to bring it up to that $100US mark for...)
- Miss Anne Thorpe (Counts as a Wastel) Grabbed this cause it's a limited collectors release and cause I do plan on doing a McCabe force in the future.
Still most likely wont recieve this for at least a minimum of 3 weeks (couldn't afford the good shipping), so now it's just a waiting game. Still, this does give me a time limit to finish my current Gremlins and work on my Outcasts.
Tuesday 28 July 2015
The future of my miniatures and projects
Since the coming of the Age of Sigmar, it seems all that was old Warhammer is going. The stores are trying to get rid of the old stock for the new waves to come. One might also point out that I've been rather focused on Malifaux lately and that I'm turning away from GW. Another factor has been my health, which hasn't been the best of late. As of writing this, things aren't going very well and as such, this hobby is one of the few things helping me to keep it together.
As for the future, here's the low down of it:
Warhammer/Age of Sigmar:
I will be continuing to do paint/convert miniatures from this line. I still have a number of Old World miniatures left to paint and while my brother has long abandoned the painting challenge, I still have a number of them to still finish off. I've also got an Ikit Claw model ordered cause Skith Warpclaw 2.0 can now commence since the Skaven Warscrolls have Ikit's rules. Better still, my original plans had a warpstone claw and now that Ikit has a claw attack, I can proceed with this joyful project once more.
Also remember that Skaven still exist and no doubt I'll be looking forward to seeing what the new Skaven and Tzeentch models look like. This will be the key to seeing if I'm willing to stay on in this part of my hobby.
Warhammer 40K:
As long as there is creativity, there will be the Inquisition. This band will continue soon as I have both planned Inquisitors converted, they just need painting to be finished. That said, this isn't a major priority on my list of things, though that may change depending on future releases as GW as of late seems to be digging up almost anything and releasing it, so perhaps something cool will get me excited.
Mouslings:
Sadly, there aren't easy to obtain and all I have left are the barman and barmaid, along with the Indiana Jones and Lara Croft variants. Hoping to find more, but given that Reaper hasn't done much in a while, I'm not keeping my hopes up.
Malifaux:
Blasted GenCon, so many cool miniatures, never enough money. It's safe to say that given my constant plans to start new forces, this game makes it so much easier. If anything, the only faction I'm not looking at playing is Ten Thunders, which is fine since my brother has taken a keen interest in the aesthetics of that faction. That said, I'm also interested in the Crossroads 7, though that may have to wait like many of the rest. Personally, my goals are like this:
The Guild - Lady Justice (though only cause I love the look of the Judge), The Ortegas (cause Wild West) and Lucas McCabe (for a mixed bag).
The Ressurectionists - Nicodem (mostly cause of that whole Goon Show thing) and I love that Rogue Necromancy.
Arcanists - Colette (cause that crew seems much harder to play and I'd love a challenge later on.....plus they look cool).
Neverborn - Zoraida (Cause swamp and tree creatures), Jacob Lynch (not sure, but does seem very Cthulhu about it), The Dreamer (another one I'm not too sure about, but we'll see).
Outcasts - Von Schill (seems more of my style with range), Tara (mostly cause I like the monsters).
Gremlins - Mah Tucket (partly cause she's a melee monster and partly cause Trixiebelle is great as a stratagy character...yeah, that's it..I like her...strategies..nothing else...), Wong (cause I want Macha Roja, wrestling awesomeness).
Ten Thunders - Yeah, so Lucas McCabe will be acting for guild mostly, so I most likely will never focus on this group beyond his starter.
So yeah, that's my plans for up till the end of this year, perhaps into next year. We'll see how things pan out over the next few months. I'm hoping my brother can join me for a few battles and who knows, perhaps I'll record a battle rep or two and see what people think. Having found a place that does play Malifaux, I will hopefully learn how to play the game.
As for the future, here's the low down of it:
Warhammer/Age of Sigmar:
I will be continuing to do paint/convert miniatures from this line. I still have a number of Old World miniatures left to paint and while my brother has long abandoned the painting challenge, I still have a number of them to still finish off. I've also got an Ikit Claw model ordered cause Skith Warpclaw 2.0 can now commence since the Skaven Warscrolls have Ikit's rules. Better still, my original plans had a warpstone claw and now that Ikit has a claw attack, I can proceed with this joyful project once more.
Also remember that Skaven still exist and no doubt I'll be looking forward to seeing what the new Skaven and Tzeentch models look like. This will be the key to seeing if I'm willing to stay on in this part of my hobby.
Warhammer 40K:
As long as there is creativity, there will be the Inquisition. This band will continue soon as I have both planned Inquisitors converted, they just need painting to be finished. That said, this isn't a major priority on my list of things, though that may change depending on future releases as GW as of late seems to be digging up almost anything and releasing it, so perhaps something cool will get me excited.
Mouslings:
Sadly, there aren't easy to obtain and all I have left are the barman and barmaid, along with the Indiana Jones and Lara Croft variants. Hoping to find more, but given that Reaper hasn't done much in a while, I'm not keeping my hopes up.
Malifaux:
Blasted GenCon, so many cool miniatures, never enough money. It's safe to say that given my constant plans to start new forces, this game makes it so much easier. If anything, the only faction I'm not looking at playing is Ten Thunders, which is fine since my brother has taken a keen interest in the aesthetics of that faction. That said, I'm also interested in the Crossroads 7, though that may have to wait like many of the rest. Personally, my goals are like this:
The Guild - Lady Justice (though only cause I love the look of the Judge), The Ortegas (cause Wild West) and Lucas McCabe (for a mixed bag).
The Ressurectionists - Nicodem (mostly cause of that whole Goon Show thing) and I love that Rogue Necromancy.
Arcanists - Colette (cause that crew seems much harder to play and I'd love a challenge later on.....plus they look cool).
Neverborn - Zoraida (Cause swamp and tree creatures), Jacob Lynch (not sure, but does seem very Cthulhu about it), The Dreamer (another one I'm not too sure about, but we'll see).
Outcasts - Von Schill (seems more of my style with range), Tara (mostly cause I like the monsters).
Gremlins - Mah Tucket (partly cause she's a melee monster and partly cause Trixiebelle is great as a stratagy character...yeah, that's it..I like her...strategies..nothing else...), Wong (cause I want Macha Roja, wrestling awesomeness).
Ten Thunders - Yeah, so Lucas McCabe will be acting for guild mostly, so I most likely will never focus on this group beyond his starter.
So yeah, that's my plans for up till the end of this year, perhaps into next year. We'll see how things pan out over the next few months. I'm hoping my brother can join me for a few battles and who knows, perhaps I'll record a battle rep or two and see what people think. Having found a place that does play Malifaux, I will hopefully learn how to play the game.
Saturday 25 July 2015
Of Miniature Wargaming Rage and Hate
I love this hobby, but recently I've begun viewing it in a new light and gained a different point of view. This hobby has become very toxic is a short amount of time. I admit, I'm not a fan of Games Workshop as a business and have pointed out on several occasions their range of poor business decisions, but I've still stuck to the hobby and have recently expanded into new areas of it. However, it seems that where I have begun to calm down and found new ways to keep myself going, others seem insistent that their opinions be heard and that you must agree or else hate or some crap like that. The amount of hate spewing rage is astounding and I've grown tired of it all.
I understand peoples poor response to the lack of tournament competitiveness that Age of Sigmar currently has and that it happening around the time of some big tournaments ment that people are confused what to do, but that's about it. Personally, I felt 8th was unbalanced and that the only reason it was used in tournaments was because those organisers had their own rules added to make it more competitive. Give a few months and I'm sure some will figure out how to do it with Age of Sigmar too. As for the Warscrolls, what did you expect? GW is there to sell NEW miniatures and the only reason we got anything was to say we could try out the rules and still use our old models, but that the new stuff is better. In fact, that was what the usual thing was with each new armybook/codex release. Every new one would introduce a new powerful unit/character and people would rush out to grab them cause that made their armies more powerful (or at least until the next armybook/codex release). It's what they do.
As I've already said I'm not a fan of the Sigmarines and that the current aesthetic style is not too my liking, but I've learned to accept the game as it is. 8th Edition is gone, the Old World is gone and we need to accept that and move on. If you are unhappy and don't want to play it, that's fine. There are other games out there and many of them are good, but in their own style. There's no need to go overboard with hate and rage and begin burning your armies (mostly cause that's stupid. Put them up on Ebay or something and get some money out of them at least).
Yes, that last part actually happened. More so, people are now raging on other miniature company games simply because they are not the lost 8th Edition either. At one point someone tried comparing 8th Edition to Malifaux, a comparison that was not only ridiculous due to these games being completely different, but was also unnecessary. Like I said, I can understand peoples frustrations, but in the last few weeks all I seem to see is angry articles or rage filled videos with little constructive arguments and more like 'I'm angry and you should be too. I hate this. Rage Quit 2015'. After seeing all this, I can't help but feel like we should get rid of all miniature wargames and thus, remove so much anger from the world.
That's stupid of course, as there are some who actually sat down, took a few breaths and decided to accept and move on. There are a few videos where people have tried to make the best of things and have pointed out many positives. I agree with some of these points too and while in regards to GW I'm not a fan of the business, that fact that I can use cannons in Age of Sigmar without constantly consulting the rules and spending ages trying to determine many calculations is a big benefit to myself (and my opponents as they were certainly annoyed by this every time I wanted to fire a cannon). I also agree that these rules speed up games and the ever releasing scenarios make for some interesting games (meaning rules like Sudden Death are not in it and therefore can't be abused).
I've also discovered new games and new miniatures to paint and convert during these times. If anything, I've begun to have 'fun' again. I think that people have forgotten what the term 'games' mean, being something you do to have fun and to stop boredom. I want people who feel wronged to tell everyone that and then move on to something else. Look around and find something that grabs your fancy. Sure the communities are smaller, but if everyone does it, they will grow in size. There are plenty or tournaments for things like Warmachine, Malifaux .etc, as they are in the same likeness as Warhammer has tournaments (since Games Workshop stopped supporting them years ago), so if you are looking for that competition, then it's still there.
It's time to move on. The Old World was good to us, but times have changed. We must accept and move on, that's just life for you. Sad as it is, there are still bright futures ahead, so go find that certain something that re-ignites that bright spark inside you and learn to have fun again. Trust me, so much better then stewing on rage.
I understand peoples poor response to the lack of tournament competitiveness that Age of Sigmar currently has and that it happening around the time of some big tournaments ment that people are confused what to do, but that's about it. Personally, I felt 8th was unbalanced and that the only reason it was used in tournaments was because those organisers had their own rules added to make it more competitive. Give a few months and I'm sure some will figure out how to do it with Age of Sigmar too. As for the Warscrolls, what did you expect? GW is there to sell NEW miniatures and the only reason we got anything was to say we could try out the rules and still use our old models, but that the new stuff is better. In fact, that was what the usual thing was with each new armybook/codex release. Every new one would introduce a new powerful unit/character and people would rush out to grab them cause that made their armies more powerful (or at least until the next armybook/codex release). It's what they do.
As I've already said I'm not a fan of the Sigmarines and that the current aesthetic style is not too my liking, but I've learned to accept the game as it is. 8th Edition is gone, the Old World is gone and we need to accept that and move on. If you are unhappy and don't want to play it, that's fine. There are other games out there and many of them are good, but in their own style. There's no need to go overboard with hate and rage and begin burning your armies (mostly cause that's stupid. Put them up on Ebay or something and get some money out of them at least).
Yes, that last part actually happened. More so, people are now raging on other miniature company games simply because they are not the lost 8th Edition either. At one point someone tried comparing 8th Edition to Malifaux, a comparison that was not only ridiculous due to these games being completely different, but was also unnecessary. Like I said, I can understand peoples frustrations, but in the last few weeks all I seem to see is angry articles or rage filled videos with little constructive arguments and more like 'I'm angry and you should be too. I hate this. Rage Quit 2015'. After seeing all this, I can't help but feel like we should get rid of all miniature wargames and thus, remove so much anger from the world.
That's stupid of course, as there are some who actually sat down, took a few breaths and decided to accept and move on. There are a few videos where people have tried to make the best of things and have pointed out many positives. I agree with some of these points too and while in regards to GW I'm not a fan of the business, that fact that I can use cannons in Age of Sigmar without constantly consulting the rules and spending ages trying to determine many calculations is a big benefit to myself (and my opponents as they were certainly annoyed by this every time I wanted to fire a cannon). I also agree that these rules speed up games and the ever releasing scenarios make for some interesting games (meaning rules like Sudden Death are not in it and therefore can't be abused).
I've also discovered new games and new miniatures to paint and convert during these times. If anything, I've begun to have 'fun' again. I think that people have forgotten what the term 'games' mean, being something you do to have fun and to stop boredom. I want people who feel wronged to tell everyone that and then move on to something else. Look around and find something that grabs your fancy. Sure the communities are smaller, but if everyone does it, they will grow in size. There are plenty or tournaments for things like Warmachine, Malifaux .etc, as they are in the same likeness as Warhammer has tournaments (since Games Workshop stopped supporting them years ago), so if you are looking for that competition, then it's still there.
It's time to move on. The Old World was good to us, but times have changed. We must accept and move on, that's just life for you. Sad as it is, there are still bright futures ahead, so go find that certain something that re-ignites that bright spark inside you and learn to have fun again. Trust me, so much better then stewing on rage.
Delayed Updates
So I should have had some updates on the bases and should have had a couple of models done. Unfortunately, we've had some pretty cold and wet weather here at the moment which has ment that it's taking days for the layers to dry, slowing the whole process right down. As such, I've ordered some resin bases for my Outcasts as I just don't feel like trying to craft their bases from scratch. As for the Outcasts, I have the Viktorias, Taelor, a Student of Conflict, three Ronin, Vanessa and today I got two Convict Gunslingers when I was out getting some Physio (not well at the moment). Hopefully I'll have some stuff up soon, depending on the bases drying and the delivery of the other bases.
I did learn that apparently there is a place in Brisbane where Malifaux is played on Wednesday nights, though it is in a suburb called Annerley, so it means trying to find good public transport there and back. Still, if I can get a few games in and learn enough to confidently play, then that will be worth it.
I did learn that apparently there is a place in Brisbane where Malifaux is played on Wednesday nights, though it is in a suburb called Annerley, so it means trying to find good public transport there and back. Still, if I can get a few games in and learn enough to confidently play, then that will be worth it.
Saturday 18 July 2015
Base rage madness
This is the second day I've spent working on my Gremlin bases and my tolerance for irritation is reaching it's limits. The cutting and shaping of sticks into wood planks took most of yesterday and today I've been working on getting the painting and the gluing of water grass and planks into place. That should be done by tonight, but this also leaves the problem of the water effects, that problem being getting enough plastic strips of the right size for the holding. Seems getting enough for a 2mm height and still be straight when cutting is proving a lot harder then I thought and my tool options are limited. Am trying a variety of plastics, but so far no real luck.
Thursday 16 July 2015
More Miniatures
So one of my deliveries arrived today. This time I got a Schemes and Stratagies deck, a box of 2 gremlin Slop Haulers, a box of 4 Bayou Gremlins and a box containing Vanessa, Treasure Hunter. I am planning to do a Viktoria crew (which reminds me Australia Post, why do I pay for express delivery when it's only going to arrive the same day as normal delivery. Get it together) and from there I may go to a Von Schill crew, though that all depends on the release dates for those great models being shown at GenCon.
Perhaps I'll just focus on the ones I've ordered first, then take a break and work on finishing other projects until the next batch of releases.
Perhaps I'll just focus on the ones I've ordered first, then take a break and work on finishing other projects until the next batch of releases.
Tuesday 14 July 2015
Water effects testing (2nd Attempt)
Day 1: Set up a base, with green stuff, sand and some toothpicks. Painted and let dry. Used a thing plastic covering, but the sticky tape wouldn't stick, so used Blu-tac instead. Mixed ingredients using a paddlepop stick and added a drop or two of green wash to give it a slight green colour (though it isn't really noticeable. Tried heading a stick and move it over the top to see if it worked, but at one point got too close and it touched. I didn't notice any bubbles rising so tried both the breath and straw options, but didn't notice any difference. The bubbles at the top I did try to pop with a pin, but I'm sure it didn't work. That said, I really didn't see many bubbles when using a strong light source over it. Going to let it dry overnight and will see what the effect will be.
Day 2: So either I put one too many drops of green wash in (it didn't look dark) or the base wash of brown wasn't dry like I thought as the water colour dried a dark colour. The surface was a bit foggy, but that may have been a direct result of the accidental burning. After taking some photos I did notice in them that there are, what look like bubbles, but can't be sure as the colour is too dark to see if they are bubbles or something else like dust. I felt the surface didn't have that 'water' feel, so a layered on some GW Water Effects just to give it that shine.
Oh, important fact. The Blu-tac did indeed stop it from leaking, but I moved the epoxy into the corners a bit, which in turn, got it into contact with the Blu-tac on the edge, which stuck to it when it dried. I guess this isn't a problem as it can be avoided in the future and if not, it can be covered up with some flock.
I spent most of today to try and find some polish paste, but no one sells it (a common theme I'm getting from shops in Brisbane) and only one place (a local non-franchise hardware store) chose to help me try and find an alternative. Sadly, even with their help, it seems any altering has to be the whole thing to fix it (so if the sides are too high, you have to cut/sand the top to even point and then try with no guarantee it'll be clear). I'll continue to test with that larger base from the 1st wave I did.
Day 3: It's dry and the water looks more shiny. Again, the darkness of the water means I'm not sure what to make of it. As it stands though, I do plan to use this style for my Bayou bases as it seems to look the best. Hopefully a bigger batch mixed with a drop or two less of green or blue ink will mean a lighter, but still coloured water.
(pictures coming soon)
Day 2: So either I put one too many drops of green wash in (it didn't look dark) or the base wash of brown wasn't dry like I thought as the water colour dried a dark colour. The surface was a bit foggy, but that may have been a direct result of the accidental burning. After taking some photos I did notice in them that there are, what look like bubbles, but can't be sure as the colour is too dark to see if they are bubbles or something else like dust. I felt the surface didn't have that 'water' feel, so a layered on some GW Water Effects just to give it that shine.
Oh, important fact. The Blu-tac did indeed stop it from leaking, but I moved the epoxy into the corners a bit, which in turn, got it into contact with the Blu-tac on the edge, which stuck to it when it dried. I guess this isn't a problem as it can be avoided in the future and if not, it can be covered up with some flock.
I spent most of today to try and find some polish paste, but no one sells it (a common theme I'm getting from shops in Brisbane) and only one place (a local non-franchise hardware store) chose to help me try and find an alternative. Sadly, even with their help, it seems any altering has to be the whole thing to fix it (so if the sides are too high, you have to cut/sand the top to even point and then try with no guarantee it'll be clear). I'll continue to test with that larger base from the 1st wave I did.
Day 3: It's dry and the water looks more shiny. Again, the darkness of the water means I'm not sure what to make of it. As it stands though, I do plan to use this style for my Bayou bases as it seems to look the best. Hopefully a bigger batch mixed with a drop or two less of green or blue ink will mean a lighter, but still coloured water.
(pictures coming soon)
Upcoming Malifaux Releases
News Page Link
So a bunch of new miniatures will be released in the next few months and I'm getting very excited about it. As a now converted Gremlins supporter, these guys will get a bunch of packs. I'm looking forward to the Lucky Effigy, The Bushwhackers (Mah Tucker is a melee beast) and Explosive Solutions (mostly for Mancha Roja).
I'll also be looking at getting the Crossroads 7 due to the theme of the seven deadly sins, that and the idea of a bad ass band is always a plus. Since my brother may be going with an Arcanist Ramos themed force, Envy would be an excellent addition to the look of it.
So a bunch of new miniatures will be released in the next few months and I'm getting very excited about it. As a now converted Gremlins supporter, these guys will get a bunch of packs. I'm looking forward to the Lucky Effigy, The Bushwhackers (Mah Tucker is a melee beast) and Explosive Solutions (mostly for Mancha Roja).
I'll also be looking at getting the Crossroads 7 due to the theme of the seven deadly sins, that and the idea of a bad ass band is always a plus. Since my brother may be going with an Arcanist Ramos themed force, Envy would be an excellent addition to the look of it.
Sunday 12 July 2015
Water effects results (1st Attempt)
So two bases were done, one set at level and one raised. These were done with a 2-part epoxy and may have been not have been measured exactly (still trying to get a measuring cup, so was done with spoons and best guessing).
The level base (the second base in the shot) has only one problem and that if you paint the bottom of it in a dark colour, you really can't see into it and that anything that you placed in it is also difficult to see unless you view it from a particular angle. The resin didn't dry flat but rather raised and considering the raised version had a slight dip, I think I may have done something to it during the bubble removal phase to shape it, but what that was I still don't know.
The raised one had a different set of problems to go with it. Firstly, trying to produce a circular container to surround the base and then trying to ensure it wouldn't leak. Unfortunately, some of it did and trying to remove it from the base is rather difficult. The substance is sort of rubbery (though whether this is because I mixed it wrong I don't know) and so removing it was a bit of a hassle. This is only more complicated by the removal of the casing and seeing it dip in the center and that the outside edges need to be removed to even it out. I'm trying to find ways to do that cause as it stands, removing just with a knife is not only difficult (rubber effect from earlier), but that it also damages the product. I have heard that you may need to sand it down in various layers, going from coarse to fine and follow it up by a polishing with a polishing paste. Will look into that.
Lighting in photography makes a difference
The level base (the second base in the shot) has only one problem and that if you paint the bottom of it in a dark colour, you really can't see into it and that anything that you placed in it is also difficult to see unless you view it from a particular angle. The resin didn't dry flat but rather raised and considering the raised version had a slight dip, I think I may have done something to it during the bubble removal phase to shape it, but what that was I still don't know.
The raised one had a different set of problems to go with it. Firstly, trying to produce a circular container to surround the base and then trying to ensure it wouldn't leak. Unfortunately, some of it did and trying to remove it from the base is rather difficult. The substance is sort of rubbery (though whether this is because I mixed it wrong I don't know) and so removing it was a bit of a hassle. This is only more complicated by the removal of the casing and seeing it dip in the center and that the outside edges need to be removed to even it out. I'm trying to find ways to do that cause as it stands, removing just with a knife is not only difficult (rubber effect from earlier), but that it also damages the product. I have heard that you may need to sand it down in various layers, going from coarse to fine and follow it up by a polishing with a polishing paste. Will look into that.
Another big problem is the bubbles. See with the leveled one I just ran an flame from a lighter over it to drag the bubbles to the surface and used a pin to remove those that didn't pop. However, the casing was made of a thin plastic, so when I ran the flame over that it started to melt the casing and nearly damaged it's holding. As such, I was unable to remove the bubbles from this one and as you can see, that's a problem and the melting would be the first issue as I plan for wood to be used and that would burn too. I've seen a few new ways to remove it, but I'll have to do some more test bases before I start working on actual ones and I'll do that once I've gotten a better casing set up, some sand paper (or perhaps some finer filing tools) and measuring cups.
Update: After some thinking, I've come up with a few ideas. The first is that raised does look better and to do it well I would need a short casing so the epoxy reached the top and thus remove the dipping problem. I've been informed that using things like paddle pop sticks and fold instead of stir in the mixing process helps reduce bubbles. I also have some wooded skewers and I want to see if lighting one, blow it out and then use the heated stick, moving it over quickly and seeing if the heat from it will bring the bubbles up or even try using an iron's steam option from a distance (though that last one may be clutching at straws as an option). Will test these out on a second batch, cause I really want to get to work on these models and the bases need to be done first for me to continue.
Update: After some thinking, I've come up with a few ideas. The first is that raised does look better and to do it well I would need a short casing so the epoxy reached the top and thus remove the dipping problem. I've been informed that using things like paddle pop sticks and fold instead of stir in the mixing process helps reduce bubbles. I also have some wooded skewers and I want to see if lighting one, blow it out and then use the heated stick, moving it over quickly and seeing if the heat from it will bring the bubbles up or even try using an iron's steam option from a distance (though that last one may be clutching at straws as an option). Will test these out on a second batch, cause I really want to get to work on these models and the bases need to be done first for me to continue.
Thursday 9 July 2015
Water effects testing
So it's very hard to find local sources to get the products for testing, but I did manage to find on special a product in an art supply shop from a brand called Smart Craft. Called Liquid Gloss, it's a 2-part epoxy that claims to give a 'clear glass-like pour-on finish', so hopefully I'll be able to create a test base or two by this afternoon and pour it in so it can dry overnight (cause it gives no indication how long it takes to dry). Given the current cold temperature where having at the moment, I may have to leave it till the weekend since I feel it may not dry as fast.
Regardless, I'm hoping that this will give the effect I desire and I can start making my bases.
Regardless, I'm hoping that this will give the effect I desire and I can start making my bases.
The AoS Slaanesh Problem
So, some of these new leaked images have a number of people in the community in a spin and it's mostly related to this picture:
Notice something? That's right, three of the known Chaos gods symbols are there, but the fourth (Slaanesh) is replaced by a different symbol. So now the question running around is: Is GW getting rid of Slaanesh? I highly doubt that as he's one of GW few controlled names and considering just how protective they are, it would be completely insane to do so. There is mention of a Sigmar group heading off to capture Slaanesh while he was glutting on souls, so perhaps it's more a plot point to introduce stuff later on.
The only other reason could be a complete re-design, though why is the big question. Some suggest that it's because Slaanesh is too sexual and it needs to be more kid friendly, though the guts and gore of Khorne and Nurgle would be a good argument against this theory. Certainly Slaanesh represents excess and as one person pointed out, the corruption of spirit. He certainly represents a selection from the seven deadly sins and is ment to lure the hearts of man to his side by offering them their hearts desires, offering the pleasures of life until that no longer satisfies and that's when his trap is complete. No longer satisfied with the simple things, they then need to go to even more extremes to achieve the same feelings of euphoria and thus, becoming a slave to Slaanesh's will.
Again, this is what happens when you limit release information and one simple leak turns the community into rumoured chaos with little resolution until release and by that point the damage may be too ingrained to fix. Personally, I just like talking about this because others can produce an excellent point of view about what a power like Slaanesh truly represents. Besides, it'll be months before enough lore is release to give us a full picture anyway so why bother speculating.
The only other reason could be a complete re-design, though why is the big question. Some suggest that it's because Slaanesh is too sexual and it needs to be more kid friendly, though the guts and gore of Khorne and Nurgle would be a good argument against this theory. Certainly Slaanesh represents excess and as one person pointed out, the corruption of spirit. He certainly represents a selection from the seven deadly sins and is ment to lure the hearts of man to his side by offering them their hearts desires, offering the pleasures of life until that no longer satisfies and that's when his trap is complete. No longer satisfied with the simple things, they then need to go to even more extremes to achieve the same feelings of euphoria and thus, becoming a slave to Slaanesh's will.
Again, this is what happens when you limit release information and one simple leak turns the community into rumoured chaos with little resolution until release and by that point the damage may be too ingrained to fix. Personally, I just like talking about this because others can produce an excellent point of view about what a power like Slaanesh truly represents. Besides, it'll be months before enough lore is release to give us a full picture anyway so why bother speculating.
Sunday 5 July 2015
Age of Sigmar Starters Set
I had planned to do an article on it, but have chosen not to and it's mostly for two reasons. The first is that I'm probably going to complain how the new 'good' force just looks like Space Marines and lacks any creativity compared to actual Space Marines, but I'll save that for the future article when more miniatures are released. Beside, Chaos still looks like Chaos and the Khorne part still looks Khorne (still wishing they'd give Tzeentch and Slaanesh some love).
My second problem is it's price. See, I don't know how pricing works for other countries or if people there feel it's fair, but most know of GW's 2013 policy to stop people from selling products to Australia and New Zealand and since then prices just keep going up. As such, I feel that it's $200 price tag is a joke, especially when you compare it to the previous Blood Island box at $165. Before anyone begins to whine about another price complaint, my one has a simple reason to it:
It's an introduction box set to introduce new players to the game.
It's this statement that is my reason. At $200, this box set is a pricey one and parents are going to be put off by it (remember, GW is now focusing on the younger market, that's why we have a new Space Marine look, cause Space Marines sell). One of the big complaints was that Fantasy wasn't selling, but if you want to get new customers in, you should produce a more wallet friendly game to start off. Once you've hooked those customers in, your going to have more people buying all those new box sets you have planned. This cost may put off those potential customers who will avoid this product and thus, possibly avoid future sales. It's clear from the rules and lore that the focus is on new customers, so why not produce a 2-player game that is an affordable starting point at work from there?
I don't know, I've given up trying to understand the bizarre business practices of this company. I'll wait and see what the future releases will entail before I do an article on this.
My second problem is it's price. See, I don't know how pricing works for other countries or if people there feel it's fair, but most know of GW's 2013 policy to stop people from selling products to Australia and New Zealand and since then prices just keep going up. As such, I feel that it's $200 price tag is a joke, especially when you compare it to the previous Blood Island box at $165. Before anyone begins to whine about another price complaint, my one has a simple reason to it:
It's an introduction box set to introduce new players to the game.
It's this statement that is my reason. At $200, this box set is a pricey one and parents are going to be put off by it (remember, GW is now focusing on the younger market, that's why we have a new Space Marine look, cause Space Marines sell). One of the big complaints was that Fantasy wasn't selling, but if you want to get new customers in, you should produce a more wallet friendly game to start off. Once you've hooked those customers in, your going to have more people buying all those new box sets you have planned. This cost may put off those potential customers who will avoid this product and thus, possibly avoid future sales. It's clear from the rules and lore that the focus is on new customers, so why not produce a 2-player game that is an affordable starting point at work from there?
I don't know, I've given up trying to understand the bizarre business practices of this company. I'll wait and see what the future releases will entail before I do an article on this.
Saturday 4 July 2015
My Thoughts on Age of Sigmar - Warscrolls and my armies
So, while I was at work I was thinking over the various things in the Warscrolls and a few things have come to mind that where interesting to me. I have two main forces that I've got, my main Skaven force and the second being those miniatures I'm painting as part of my army painting challenge (although that challenge sort of ended when my brother gave up on his Daemons of Khorne). So let's start with the easier of the two.
The Empire
First of the bat are the Wizards. There are no longer Hero and Lord versions anymore, just Battle Wizard, but more importantly is that each wizard type only gets one spell based on their Lore of Magic. Yep, instead of a bunch of spells you can roll for, once your wizard picks his Lore he gets one extra spell based on that lore. This bugs me greatly cause when I think of Fantasy, I think Magic and Monsters, so for this magic to be so limited just feels disappointing. Speaking of disappointment, I also noticed that wizards can have horse mounts, but no other. The last section states that if you want to use your wizard on a Pegasus (which I have the parts and was going to convert a Celestial wizard lord on a Pegasus), you have to use the Balthasar Gelt rules. Sort of takes the feeling away when your Celestial wizard is based on the lore of metal.
On the other hand, the Celestial Hurricanum is still great, with some minor tweak to the rules so it only effects certain allies. The Storm of Shamtek is a shooting attack and you roll to see just what kind of damage is done. More interesting is if a Wizard is mounted on it. Apart from counting as a hero (and points no longer matter), he counts as a normal wizard (can cast one spell, unbind one spell), but he knows the spell Comet of Casandora (a normal Celestial wizard has Chain Lightning). Though the spell isn't as deadly as in 8th edition, it is guaranteed to do damage that turn. Which brings me to an important point, why would you not add a Wizard too it? I mean, there doesn't appear to be any restrictions on Heroes, so why would you leave it out? If so, should I alter mine to have one?
Troops seem to be fine, but then I get to the Cannons. With this new game, war machines done have a section, just there own rules. I admit, I was never good remembering rules for how war machines worked, so I'm not too torn up by these changes. Instead, it's a normal roll to hit, but this time the number of cannon crew actually counts, with two/three enableing the cannon to shoot two cannonballs (which do D6 wounds at -2 save) where as having just one lets you shoot just one and no crew means no shots. A lot more simpler and probably more fun in my opinion.
The Witch Hunter and Master Engineer seem good and the few other planned units seem fine enough. No real hard hitters compared to some forces (or those new units), but still seems a good force.
The Skaven
Any changes to this group was what really effect my opinion on this game and there are a few problems, but most of my army is still usable, so let's have a look.
Skaven Warlords are the main combat Hero with the Chieftain limited to just holding the Battle Standard. The Warlord gets three weapon options and a shield option, though I'm confused if no matter what option you pick, can you still add the shield? He is also no longer mountable. If he had a warlitter, then he counts as a normal Warlord. If he was on a Rat Ogre Backbreaker, then he counts as a normal Rat Ogre, so poor Skrag has been left behind on guard duty instead of the battlefield.
As was in the previous article, I'm happy with the Warlock Engineers and Ikit Claw, though Ikit now has a nice claw attack, which is great as my Skith Warpclaw redesign was to include a claw made of Warpstone, so this will work out great. Likewise, most of Clan Skryres inventions have benefited from this Warscroll, with the number of side effects and misfires reduced or even removed. I admit that this has left me somewhat disappointed, as I enjoyed playing with an army which mostly self implode by turn 3 (more of my Skaven have died to misfires, butterfingers and slave breaking then actually being killed by the enemy). While there are still a variety of mishaps, you could easily play and avoid them, though to hell with that I'm going all out. Bring on the mayham.
Assassins can either use Fighting Claws (more attacks and can re-roll hits of 1, but only does 1 damage per wound hit) or Weeping Blades (less attacks the fighting claws, but does D3 damage per wound hit). Good against other heroes. Rat Ogres are alright, though you can add a Warpfire gun to each model for free. Clanrats are good, though musician is replaced by Bell Chimer (which is weird since one of the Blood Island musicians has a drum). Standards mean you can retreat and then charge in the same turn and they get bonuses to their 'to wound' rolls if you have the unit size of 20+ and 30+. Shields work differently too, with them granting +1 to save vs attacks that just do 1 damage (attacks who's damage stat says 2 or more ignore the shields bonus).
Skaven Slaves have where melee failure break changed. Instead, for each model that flees, roll a die. On a 6, the nearest unit within 6" (friend or foe) takes one mortal wound (mortal wounds ignore saves). This is means my slaves will last longer in combat and while less likely to kill my units, still can cause some mischif. Considering their bravery is three, perhaps I could be wrong about lasting longer. Meh, that's what slaves are for.
Weapon Teams have a unique change in that you no longer need to purchase a unit in order to feild them. Instead, you can now purchase each one as it's own unit, which is great for the most part. Interesting to note is that although a Warp Grinder is a seperate unit, it can still tunnel and have a second Skaven unit join them in tunneling.
Overall
I'm still annoyed about those few problems mentioned, but for the most part I'm just glad my forces are usable. If anything, I'm interested to see how allying the various forces will work. Given that Empire is part of Order, can I mix them with those few Dwarf heroes I've got? Can those Deamons and Chaos Warriors I have join my Skaven? Will this allience thing and lack of points be complete BS when people go to actually play games?
Probably, but it really depends on how you and you opponent want to play. Me, I'm just going in to have fun.
Also, if Grey Seer Scratchnsniff where to use the rules for a Grey Seer, then he'd technically have a command ability which would let friendly Skaven withing 26" who fail a battleshock test and flee to roll and on a 4+ to ignore it. Apparently the text says they would be more afraid of the Grey Seer then the enemy, though in my opinion it's more that they'd be embaressed having to deal with him then scared.
I heard that Man-thing. Soon we see who scares who.
~Grey Seer Skratchnsniff
The Empire
First of the bat are the Wizards. There are no longer Hero and Lord versions anymore, just Battle Wizard, but more importantly is that each wizard type only gets one spell based on their Lore of Magic. Yep, instead of a bunch of spells you can roll for, once your wizard picks his Lore he gets one extra spell based on that lore. This bugs me greatly cause when I think of Fantasy, I think Magic and Monsters, so for this magic to be so limited just feels disappointing. Speaking of disappointment, I also noticed that wizards can have horse mounts, but no other. The last section states that if you want to use your wizard on a Pegasus (which I have the parts and was going to convert a Celestial wizard lord on a Pegasus), you have to use the Balthasar Gelt rules. Sort of takes the feeling away when your Celestial wizard is based on the lore of metal.
On the other hand, the Celestial Hurricanum is still great, with some minor tweak to the rules so it only effects certain allies. The Storm of Shamtek is a shooting attack and you roll to see just what kind of damage is done. More interesting is if a Wizard is mounted on it. Apart from counting as a hero (and points no longer matter), he counts as a normal wizard (can cast one spell, unbind one spell), but he knows the spell Comet of Casandora (a normal Celestial wizard has Chain Lightning). Though the spell isn't as deadly as in 8th edition, it is guaranteed to do damage that turn. Which brings me to an important point, why would you not add a Wizard too it? I mean, there doesn't appear to be any restrictions on Heroes, so why would you leave it out? If so, should I alter mine to have one?
Troops seem to be fine, but then I get to the Cannons. With this new game, war machines done have a section, just there own rules. I admit, I was never good remembering rules for how war machines worked, so I'm not too torn up by these changes. Instead, it's a normal roll to hit, but this time the number of cannon crew actually counts, with two/three enableing the cannon to shoot two cannonballs (which do D6 wounds at -2 save) where as having just one lets you shoot just one and no crew means no shots. A lot more simpler and probably more fun in my opinion.
The Witch Hunter and Master Engineer seem good and the few other planned units seem fine enough. No real hard hitters compared to some forces (or those new units), but still seems a good force.
The Skaven
Any changes to this group was what really effect my opinion on this game and there are a few problems, but most of my army is still usable, so let's have a look.
Skaven Warlords are the main combat Hero with the Chieftain limited to just holding the Battle Standard. The Warlord gets three weapon options and a shield option, though I'm confused if no matter what option you pick, can you still add the shield? He is also no longer mountable. If he had a warlitter, then he counts as a normal Warlord. If he was on a Rat Ogre Backbreaker, then he counts as a normal Rat Ogre, so poor Skrag has been left behind on guard duty instead of the battlefield.
As was in the previous article, I'm happy with the Warlock Engineers and Ikit Claw, though Ikit now has a nice claw attack, which is great as my Skith Warpclaw redesign was to include a claw made of Warpstone, so this will work out great. Likewise, most of Clan Skryres inventions have benefited from this Warscroll, with the number of side effects and misfires reduced or even removed. I admit that this has left me somewhat disappointed, as I enjoyed playing with an army which mostly self implode by turn 3 (more of my Skaven have died to misfires, butterfingers and slave breaking then actually being killed by the enemy). While there are still a variety of mishaps, you could easily play and avoid them, though to hell with that I'm going all out. Bring on the mayham.
Assassins can either use Fighting Claws (more attacks and can re-roll hits of 1, but only does 1 damage per wound hit) or Weeping Blades (less attacks the fighting claws, but does D3 damage per wound hit). Good against other heroes. Rat Ogres are alright, though you can add a Warpfire gun to each model for free. Clanrats are good, though musician is replaced by Bell Chimer (which is weird since one of the Blood Island musicians has a drum). Standards mean you can retreat and then charge in the same turn and they get bonuses to their 'to wound' rolls if you have the unit size of 20+ and 30+. Shields work differently too, with them granting +1 to save vs attacks that just do 1 damage (attacks who's damage stat says 2 or more ignore the shields bonus).
Skaven Slaves have where melee failure break changed. Instead, for each model that flees, roll a die. On a 6, the nearest unit within 6" (friend or foe) takes one mortal wound (mortal wounds ignore saves). This is means my slaves will last longer in combat and while less likely to kill my units, still can cause some mischif. Considering their bravery is three, perhaps I could be wrong about lasting longer. Meh, that's what slaves are for.
Weapon Teams have a unique change in that you no longer need to purchase a unit in order to feild them. Instead, you can now purchase each one as it's own unit, which is great for the most part. Interesting to note is that although a Warp Grinder is a seperate unit, it can still tunnel and have a second Skaven unit join them in tunneling.
Overall
I'm still annoyed about those few problems mentioned, but for the most part I'm just glad my forces are usable. If anything, I'm interested to see how allying the various forces will work. Given that Empire is part of Order, can I mix them with those few Dwarf heroes I've got? Can those Deamons and Chaos Warriors I have join my Skaven? Will this allience thing and lack of points be complete BS when people go to actually play games?
Probably, but it really depends on how you and you opponent want to play. Me, I'm just going in to have fun.
Also, if Grey Seer Scratchnsniff where to use the rules for a Grey Seer, then he'd technically have a command ability which would let friendly Skaven withing 26" who fail a battleshock test and flee to roll and on a 4+ to ignore it. Apparently the text says they would be more afraid of the Grey Seer then the enemy, though in my opinion it's more that they'd be embaressed having to deal with him then scared.
I heard that Man-thing. Soon we see who scares who.
~Grey Seer Skratchnsniff
My Opionion: Age of Sigmar -The Rules and Skaven Warscroll
So, having read the rules and just now, the Skaven Warscroll, I've seen what has changed and how it will effect my group. One important thing to note is it looks like point lists are gone and so are many restrictions, meaning games will be very unbalanced. Stats have changed and initiative is gone. That said, let's take a brief look at the game rules (the Lore I'll look into in a future article as there isn't a lot of it so far for me to make a proper judgement on it yet).
The Rules:
The game turn is split into multiple phases:
1. Hero Phase: This is where heroes can activate Command abilities and Wizards cast spells. All wizards know the two basic spells (Arcane Bolt and Mystic Shield) with some knowing a third shown on their Warscroll. Each wizard may attempt to cast each spell once per turn, rolling a 2D6 to see if it equals or beats the casting roll of the spell. If the opponent has a wizard within 18" of the caster, then that wizard can attempt to unbind (dispel) it by beating that score with his own roll of 2D6. Limited spell choices, no pools and no miscast. Very simplified.
Edit: The wording in the rules state 'A wizard can cast each spell once per turn', yet this isn't entirely true. Wording in the profile of Wizard characters state that they may cast one spell per turn and unbind one per turn (two or more for some named heroes). Not sure if they ment each spell per army, though the wording suggests it's referring to each single wizard, which I'm now curious about.
2. Movement Phase: Unit's move based on their movement characteristic. Can't move within 3" of enemy models and if you start within that range, you can choose to retreat (enemy can't follow). Running and Flying are also part of this phase. Terrain movement might be similar to 40K, but there is no marching or rotating anymore.
3. Shooting Phase: Units that have a missile weapon (as long as they didn't retreat or run) can pick a target unit within it's ranged weapons range and shoot. The range weapon has it's own 'to hit' and 'to wound' stats, so no more charts. Also, no more markers too (flame or blast are gone).
4. Charge Phase: Units that did not run or retreat (or within 3" of an enemy) may attempt to charge an enemy unit within 12". Roll 2D6 and move one model up, if it reaches 1/2" of an enemy, it's successful and move the unit up. If not, it fails and the unit stays where it is.
Edit: Forgot to mention, there are no more charge reactions in the game anymore. The unit either charges successfully or it doesn't and the unit they charge just stands there.
5. Combat Phase: The player who's turn it is goes first with his melee attacks, and the opponent goes second. Melee weapons have attack stats, to hit, to wound, the number of wounds they cause and save modifiers (range weapons are the same). Each unit/model has it's own save modifier to save against attacks.
6. Battleshock Phase: The replacement to combat resolution. Each unit/model has a Bravery characteristic. In this phase, you roll a D6 and add the total number of models slain. Then compare the units bravery to that result, adding +1 to the bravery total per every 10 models in that unit. For each point above the bravery total, one model is removed from the unit and from the game, having fled the battlefield.
Turn ends.
There is slightly more to this, but as we can easily see just how simplified this game is compared to 8th Edition.Is this a bad thing? It's hard to say. I suspect that many will be angry about the simplification and lack of strategy that the previous editions had. After all, the old style of unit line ups and formations have gone for a more free flowing style. The moving to round bases was inevitable in this regard, but you can still use square with no penalty. Personally, I'm a little disappointed with the lack of magic, but then we have no death bombs, so that's a plus. The fact the rules a free is a big difference here and so is a good chance for most to test it out and see what happens.
Many of my complaints about the changes were lore and visual base (I'll discuss that in a future article), so really, I've got no major complaints with the rules. That said, don't expect fair play or tournament play from this game and that my cause problems in it's future.
Skaven Warscroll
Reading the rules and for the most part, very simplified. I'm glad my Warlock Engineers have Warp Lightning and that Ikit Claw is still around (I use his rules to represent my leader Skith Warpclaw), but there are one or two things that bug me. Firstly, options are very limited. You can pick one of three weapon options for a Warlord, but there is nothing else really. My next is that a Warlord riding a Rat Ogre Backbreaker now just counts as a normal Rat Ogre is a major blow. In fact, at least six or so unit/model options were redirected to a plain variant or substitute. Worse, backlash and misfire effects are gone, meaning the fun of watching my army collapse on itself is now gone.
Still, not all bad. Most of my units are still usable and the fact that Weapon Teams are now on their own (meaning I can have as many as I want) should be good for a laugh. As it stand, my army has grown in strength, though I feel it's flavour and character suffered as a result. I'll wait to see what future products Skaven get, but at least my army is still valid to a degree. I'll do a bit more indepth to this in a future article.
The Rules:
The game turn is split into multiple phases:
1. Hero Phase: This is where heroes can activate Command abilities and Wizards cast spells. All wizards know the two basic spells (Arcane Bolt and Mystic Shield) with some knowing a third shown on their Warscroll. Each wizard may attempt to cast each spell once per turn, rolling a 2D6 to see if it equals or beats the casting roll of the spell. If the opponent has a wizard within 18" of the caster, then that wizard can attempt to unbind (dispel) it by beating that score with his own roll of 2D6. Limited spell choices, no pools and no miscast. Very simplified.
Edit: The wording in the rules state 'A wizard can cast each spell once per turn', yet this isn't entirely true. Wording in the profile of Wizard characters state that they may cast one spell per turn and unbind one per turn (two or more for some named heroes). Not sure if they ment each spell per army, though the wording suggests it's referring to each single wizard, which I'm now curious about.
2. Movement Phase: Unit's move based on their movement characteristic. Can't move within 3" of enemy models and if you start within that range, you can choose to retreat (enemy can't follow). Running and Flying are also part of this phase. Terrain movement might be similar to 40K, but there is no marching or rotating anymore.
3. Shooting Phase: Units that have a missile weapon (as long as they didn't retreat or run) can pick a target unit within it's ranged weapons range and shoot. The range weapon has it's own 'to hit' and 'to wound' stats, so no more charts. Also, no more markers too (flame or blast are gone).
4. Charge Phase: Units that did not run or retreat (or within 3" of an enemy) may attempt to charge an enemy unit within 12". Roll 2D6 and move one model up, if it reaches 1/2" of an enemy, it's successful and move the unit up. If not, it fails and the unit stays where it is.
Edit: Forgot to mention, there are no more charge reactions in the game anymore. The unit either charges successfully or it doesn't and the unit they charge just stands there.
5. Combat Phase: The player who's turn it is goes first with his melee attacks, and the opponent goes second. Melee weapons have attack stats, to hit, to wound, the number of wounds they cause and save modifiers (range weapons are the same). Each unit/model has it's own save modifier to save against attacks.
6. Battleshock Phase: The replacement to combat resolution. Each unit/model has a Bravery characteristic. In this phase, you roll a D6 and add the total number of models slain. Then compare the units bravery to that result, adding +1 to the bravery total per every 10 models in that unit. For each point above the bravery total, one model is removed from the unit and from the game, having fled the battlefield.
Turn ends.
There is slightly more to this, but as we can easily see just how simplified this game is compared to 8th Edition.Is this a bad thing? It's hard to say. I suspect that many will be angry about the simplification and lack of strategy that the previous editions had. After all, the old style of unit line ups and formations have gone for a more free flowing style. The moving to round bases was inevitable in this regard, but you can still use square with no penalty. Personally, I'm a little disappointed with the lack of magic, but then we have no death bombs, so that's a plus. The fact the rules a free is a big difference here and so is a good chance for most to test it out and see what happens.
Many of my complaints about the changes were lore and visual base (I'll discuss that in a future article), so really, I've got no major complaints with the rules. That said, don't expect fair play or tournament play from this game and that my cause problems in it's future.
Skaven Warscroll
Reading the rules and for the most part, very simplified. I'm glad my Warlock Engineers have Warp Lightning and that Ikit Claw is still around (I use his rules to represent my leader Skith Warpclaw), but there are one or two things that bug me. Firstly, options are very limited. You can pick one of three weapon options for a Warlord, but there is nothing else really. My next is that a Warlord riding a Rat Ogre Backbreaker now just counts as a normal Rat Ogre is a major blow. In fact, at least six or so unit/model options were redirected to a plain variant or substitute. Worse, backlash and misfire effects are gone, meaning the fun of watching my army collapse on itself is now gone.
Still, not all bad. Most of my units are still usable and the fact that Weapon Teams are now on their own (meaning I can have as many as I want) should be good for a laugh. As it stand, my army has grown in strength, though I feel it's flavour and character suffered as a result. I'll wait to see what future products Skaven get, but at least my army is still valid to a degree. I'll do a bit more indepth to this in a future article.
Friday 3 July 2015
Ophelia and Crew (Metal)
The metal crew is now done and can be found here. Finally glad to get that one done and have learned a number of things and seen a number of tutorals for future ideas thanks to this project.
One big problem I've just found is the quality of the photographs. Going to have to look into this one some more, but I can already tell that my lighting was too bright and too much was coming from one direction, which is obvious be looking at the first miniature in the picture. I'm hoping that a few tips from other people will improve not only my future basing ideas, but possible my photography too.
Yep, defenatly going to have to look into the photography part.
Yep, defenatly going to have to look into the photography part.
Wednesday 1 July 2015
N64 Version? Yes Please.
So ever since they announced the Rare Collection at E3, the big question I've been asking is 'what version of Conker will be on it?'. Single player wise, I don't really care, but it's the multiplayer that I'm interested in. While I liked both multiplayers, the N64 version had a good four-player split screen with many good games.
Well according to Gamespot, the Conker version will be the N64 version, which will probably be a good reason to get it. That said, I don't have an Xbox One, but the guy I board with has one, so I might see if he's willing to let me use it.
Well according to Gamespot, the Conker version will be the N64 version, which will probably be a good reason to get it. That said, I don't have an Xbox One, but the guy I board with has one, so I might see if he's willing to let me use it.
The problem with plastics
So the plastic mini's arrived today and I was quick to start them. Unfortunately, it seems that their designs are not best for removing. See, while trying to remove each piece from the spur, Rami's gun broke (I was removing the first of three when the second one just snapped). Then there was the problem with attaching the parts. Ophelia's head wouldn't fit in (actually, a few of there heads had trouble, but Ophelia's had consequences) and as a result, the face was damaged and I doubt it's salvageable. I even had purchased new tools to ensure problems like these wouldn't happen and sadly still did. Having double checked the instructions and spurs, I feel that this product was poorly designed and could have been better designed to be put together (I would have made Ophelia's hair as the attachment, not the face). I've put in a request to Wyrd about replacements, but I fear that since this is such a small company (especially when compared to Games-Workshop), that such an option is not available. What I'll do at that point, I simple don't know.
This is a real blow for me and I feel that it's knocked all the steam out, leaving me disappointed with the product.
Update: They responded and as predicted, they don't do replacements for this. Their solution is to go to their trade section of there forum, which is pointless for a problem such as this (no one is selling this sort of stuff). Ebay only has the box set (not separate stuff) and at that cost I'm better off re-purchasing the product from my current supplier, which sadly may be my only option in this regard. Let this be a lesson to those who wish to use these products, they are like paper so be very careful with them, cause Wyrd is incapable of giving a proper service to it's customers for this.
Update 2: Stupid me, was so stressed out about this I completely forgot I could dump it in Dettol and try to remove the glue. Did attempt it this afternoon, but only gave it a short amount of time. Seemed to get some of it off, but it still looks a bit damaged. Will try again tomorrow, but if nothing changes, I still have one back up plan left. The face didn't fit, which means I'll need to use some green stuff to fix it. With that in mind, I may attempt to add an extra wave line or two of hair over the upper head to cover the damage just above the eyes, giving an appearance that the hair is blowing just above/over the eyes. Not very good at sculpting, but at this point what have I too lose.
Update 3: So, tried to fix the gun and Ophelia's hair. Couldn't get any more extra glue off the damaged face, but then again it could be the colour that is ruining the look and may be fixed with paint. Still not the best with green stuff, but I hope that with some paint the GS will blend into the plastic hair. We'll see in the next week or so.
This is a real blow for me and I feel that it's knocked all the steam out, leaving me disappointed with the product.
Update: They responded and as predicted, they don't do replacements for this. Their solution is to go to their trade section of there forum, which is pointless for a problem such as this (no one is selling this sort of stuff). Ebay only has the box set (not separate stuff) and at that cost I'm better off re-purchasing the product from my current supplier, which sadly may be my only option in this regard. Let this be a lesson to those who wish to use these products, they are like paper so be very careful with them, cause Wyrd is incapable of giving a proper service to it's customers for this.
Update 2: Stupid me, was so stressed out about this I completely forgot I could dump it in Dettol and try to remove the glue. Did attempt it this afternoon, but only gave it a short amount of time. Seemed to get some of it off, but it still looks a bit damaged. Will try again tomorrow, but if nothing changes, I still have one back up plan left. The face didn't fit, which means I'll need to use some green stuff to fix it. With that in mind, I may attempt to add an extra wave line or two of hair over the upper head to cover the damage just above the eyes, giving an appearance that the hair is blowing just above/over the eyes. Not very good at sculpting, but at this point what have I too lose.
Update 3: So, tried to fix the gun and Ophelia's hair. Couldn't get any more extra glue off the damaged face, but then again it could be the colour that is ruining the look and may be fixed with paint. Still not the best with green stuff, but I hope that with some paint the GS will blend into the plastic hair. We'll see in the next week or so.
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