The Times They Are A Changin...

Is this the new face of 40k?

Sorry for the long delay, but now we are back on track. I finally got some games in, and actually have some 40k stuff to talk about. Anyway, on to the good stuff!


Over the last couple of days, and the last few games, The Grizz may have come to a realization. There may have been a fundamental change in the game of Warhammer 40,000. Maybe its the new area, new lists, new players, or maybe its just a shift in the overall meta game, I don't know. Something, however, is different. 

Go Me

What is different, you ask? Lists that work. I played in a tournament Saturday and brought my usual Blood Angel tournament list. Out of the 8 people that participated, Yours Truly came in dead last. Thats right, dead effin last. First round I played against a 3 long fang/razor-heavy Space Wolf list. Second was a rhino heavy hestan list. Finally I played against Wiley the Nord's 5 venom flyer heavy Dark Eldar army.


In all of these games, my DoA army had shooting issues. Now, I am very aware that my Blood Angel army is not the shootiest army in existence, but I have always had just enough, and have been able to rely on my assault abilities. With all the transports, all the shooting, is it possible to play a foot based list any more? With the release of Dark Eldar and Grey Knights, can you run a list with minimal transports and still win consistently? I am starting to think you can't. Armies like Tyranids don't have a chance. If I take my Nid army to a tournament and face one, just one Grey Knight player with a half a brain, I may as well just go ahead and put a check in the L column. 

Typed Venom Spam into Google,
This was the first result.

Without transports, there is no way to hide from the poisoned shots and the S5 storm bolter shots. And with my specific DoA list, if 1 or 2 shots miss, then I have serious issues, as then I am having to pop transports in assault, leaving me open to my opponents' shooting phase. I don't know what they are makin rhinos out of these days, but they aren't as easy to bust as they used to be, and there is a whole lot more of them. The weirdest thing is, is that for me at least, it happened overnight. I feel like my competitive list went from good to uncompetitive in less than a month.


Like I said before, maybe its due to the change in the meta game from where I used to play to where I play now, though it feels like something more fundamental, something deeper. Now I am not saying this is a bad thing, and maybe everyone else is already aware of this and I am just behind the ball on this deal, I dunno. I do know, however, that in order to compete, My lists, my game, my style will have to change.


So, is The Grizz  off base? Is he late to the party? Or has there been a shift recently in the overall way that the game was played?

Back On Track

Ok guys, thanks for bearing with me, Finals are over, College is in the books, and I am now just another unemployed graduate lookin for work! over the course of Finals week, I was able to get in a couple games of 40k with Pariah.Stevo of Tainted By Xenos fame. He brought his Grey Knights and Dark Eldar and I brought the Nids. The first game was Capt. And Control, vs GK. 

What Stevo Opened up on me with his GK's

I basically watched a Grand Master w/ rad grenades and a purifier squad walk through 2 Trygons and storm bolter fire annihilate all my gaunts, with my Tyrant/guard/Prime never getting into assault. Sad day for Hive Fleet Cerberus. So I changed up my list a lil bit for the next game, Kill points vs. Dark Eldar. I ran;


2 Tervigons
3x 16 strong Hormagants
2x 3 strong Hive Guard
2x Trygon Primes
3x Venomthropes


Game was a close one, coming down to 12-10 kps, Stevo pullin it out. Hormagants w/ Feel No Pain via the  tervigons are nigh unkillable, and Trygons pumpin out 12 St. 5 shots a piece were downin skimmers left and right. I think that i am hangin up the Tyrant Deathstar unit for a while, a crap ton of points for very little gain thus far. 2 Tervigons = awesomesauce. I fell in love with this list, as there are more hooves on the ground and it is overall more effective. 3 units of Toxin Sac/Adrenal Gland Hormagants are a bear to take out, especially when they have FnP. 

Playing against two extremely shooty armies made me realize something. None of my armies are balanced. All of them are killer assaulty, with minimal firepower. It would be nice to have an army that can shoot as well as it assaults. I then started gettin the new army itch (again) and started lookin for my balanced answer. As I was cleaning up my hobby room, I began to find all of my Space Marine stuff that I don't use that I have had since before my BA, all the stuff that was gonna be Salamanders. Well, no offense to anyone, but I hate the SM codex. It is a very viable dex, i just don't care for any of the builds out of it. Then my eyes fell on the Space Wolves.

Codex: Space Wolves is like the perfect blend of what I was looking for. Great Troop Choices, like my Chaos, without the heavy price tag points wise, yet good in assault, like my BA. And they cant shoot the lights out. Then I realized that with all the SM crap I have, i am only about 40 Grey Hunters away from a new army. So, I get a new army, more balanced, for next to nothing comparatively? Yes Please! 


So that brings the army total to 4
---Chaos
---Blood Angels
---Tyranids
---Space Wolves


All very different armies, and all very flavorful. I have thrown a list together, an idea of kinda where I want to head.


Wolf Lord in Terminator Armor
---Storm Shield, Frost Weapon, Wolf tail Talisman, Saga of the Bear
2x Wolf Guard in Terminator Armor
---Storm Shield, Frost Weapon
2x Wolf Guard in Terminator Armor
---Storm shield, Thunder Hammer
Drop Pod

4x Wolf Guard in Power Armor
---Combi Meltas, PF's

4x Grey Hunters Packs
---9x Strong, 1x Flamer, Rhino

2x Long Fang Packs
---6x Strong, 2x LCs, 3x ML's
2x Rune Priests
---JotWW& Living Lightning
---Murderous Hurricane & Tempests Wrath

Vindicator

1999pts



Well, thats all I got for now, feels good to be back!


So, what do we think of The Grizz's new army decisions? Will he be able to juggle all four armies? How will he fare with his new Wolves?

Way Too Early, Completely Pointless Vs. Grey Knight Tactica

So as you all know, I played in a 2000pt tourney a couple weeks back, and went 2-1-0. My lone loss came to the brand new Grey Knights. Going into the game, all I had heard about was how nasty Purifiers are and how you don't want to get close to em.


Well the guy I played had 5 squads of em, all in Razorbacks, all with psy bolt ammo, and a GM/Termie squad in a Storm Raven to top it all off. This game was very enlightening, giving me a better understanding of what they are capable of and what they do. So naturally, I thought I would share with you my current revelations. Now, I have not read the codex, nor have I played multiple games against them, so all this is general stuff, not in depth 100% accurate tactica.


1. Keep Your Head Down!

Probably the first thing I noticed about the GK is dear God what firepower. within 24" I don't know if there is an army that can match them, and psy bolt ammo makes them ungodly. Cheap HB razorbacks suddenly become 36" S6 monsters, with every marine throwin 2 S5 shots all over the place. Psy bolt ammo may be one of the nastiest introductions to the game, with its typical low cost and its availability to almost anything in the army.

if you are looking at it from this angle, its too late

Imagine a storm raven that within 12" can throw 4 S7 rending shots, 3 S6 shots, 12 S5 shots, all twin linked, not counting the missiles. Pure nasty. So, when playin these shiny bastards, you will wanna make sure you don't find yourself caught in that dead zone for long, pick one side or the other and get there quick. Now this also has an advantage for you. GK lack a whole lotta punch outside that range, so it is not hard to outgun them as long as you arent playing within their range.


2. They use a lot of Psychic Powers

Can Save Your Tookus

This one is kind of obvious, but worth mentioning. Grey Knight players roll a lot of psychic tests, and my guess is you will see a lot of people building lists that will hinge on certain psychic abilities. A psychic hood or similar device can really give GK's a headache. Even just stopping a third of their powers can go a long way to helping you weather the storm. I am seriously considering throwing a libby into my BA tourney list. Problem is, they got all kinds of stuff that royally screws psykers, so you will have to be careful.


3. They may look prettier, but on the inside, they're just like you and me

If it Kills him, it'll kill them.

I was very surprised at the lack of survivability of the Grey Knights. I don't know what I was expecting them to do, but it was weird to see them drop so easily. Then it hit me - They're just marines. They may say a few more prayers, have cooler toys, and be a lil shinier, but deep down, they are just the same ol' marines we all know and love. Which means that the same things that have killed marines since the 80s will kill Grey Knights today. Lots of attacks, power weapons, power fists, plasma all this stuff is just as effective on them as it is on us. I have yet to try it, but I am thinkin death companies and Stormravens can give GK's quite the pain in the hindquarters.


The distinct lack of 3++'s was very noticeable as well. His termies packed a punch, but dropped pretty easily. They also don't have that many attacks. a 5 man squad of purifiers and a 7 man squad of Plague Marines were actually pretty even in assault, also surprising.


4. Don't Be Afraid!

Not an effective tactic

I lost the game because I was afraid of his Purifiers and tried to play the range game with him. Not a good decision on my part. Had I just thrown my army down the table, I might have had a better chance. Don't be afraid to get in there and play in the mud. If you play in fear of his nastiness, then you are letting your opponent force you to play reactionary, which is always in their favor. Now I am not saying just put your models on the board and be an idiot. All I am sayin is that don't let the interwebz' nerd rage freak you out to the point where it hurts your ability to make tactically sound decisions.


Well that is all for now, what have y'all learned in your games versus GW's newest army?

Post Tourney Recap

Well yesterday, Elthrai, The_Warsmith, and myself all loaded up in the Ford Explorer and made our way down to Dicehead Games in Cleveland, TN for the ATC Practice tournament. It was a 2000pt tournament showcasing the ATC specific mission, which is a blast.


 For those of you who arent familiar, the ATC mission is all of the basic missions smacked into one. there are 3 "Seize Ground" objectives, Capture and Control objectives, and killpoints, with ties decided by victory points. Each Mission also cycles between pitched battle, Dawn of War, and Spearhead deployments. It is a very interesting mission, to say the least. Unbroken made a pretty decent show, with The_Warsmith winning 3 games and coming in 2nd, only 12 vp's behind the winner, and Yours Truly coming in 4th, going 2-1-0, my only loss coming to the new and improved Grey Knights.

Fun was had by all, and the craziest thing ever has happened. Hell must've dropped a few degrees, cause I am playin xenos and..............Pariah.Stevo is rockin Power Armor!!!! The mightiest of the Xenos Filth is now protecting the Imperium from the Threat Without, The Bad Boys from Titan, the newest addition to the GW Lineup, The Grey Knights!!! I picked up his first boxes of Grey Knight glory yesterday while at the store. So, With my Nids, and his GK, there surely must be pigs flying somewhere. Well, that is all for now, we'll see y'all on the flip side. 

And Now Back to Your Regularly Scheduled Program

I know, I know, I haven't updated, and for that I apologize, some real life happened this week, and lots of stuff that I thought would never happen. It is official, The Grizz has been......Tainted By Xenos!!!! I know, please take a moment to pick your jaws off the floor and wipe away those tears of disbelief. It took me a little while to come to grips with it myself. 


After 13 years of wargaming and 40k, I have never owned a non power armored army save my IG, but that was still humans/imperium. I have never even thought about it till the last week or so. I sold all my stuff on eBay, bought what I needed for my Chaos/Blood Angels, and had a little extra left over. So I began lookin at the possibility of starting a new army and started goin down the list.


CSM - Already have
Chaos Daemons - too expensive, not consistent enough
Blood Angels - Already Have
Vanilla Marines - Already have
Grey Knights - Just sold them
Witch Hunters - Used to have and sold
Space Wolves - love rules, hate model range/fluff
Black Templar - too similar to BA/Vanilla
IG - too broke to do what i want to do - Death Korps of Krieg
Dark Angels - .......no.

Sounds like Dark Angels

I Then came to the realization that if I wanted to play a new army, it would have to be...dare I say it...Xenos. So then I broke down the Xenos Races. I wanted something completely different to the armies i currently play, yet at the same time having a familiar feel. I couldn't play Orks, as that is Pariah.Stevo's army, and I play against them too much to want to play them myself.

There can be only one...

 Necrons were marked off the list, with Eldar/DE/Tau never even making the list. Much like Highlander, at the end, there was only one - Tyranids. They were a horde, low armor, high tougness bugs, completely different to my current armies. Yet they felt strangely familiar, being assault based and short range. I began lookin at the model range and became as excited as a little boy who just discovered his first.....well, lets just say I was excited.


Every army I have ever owned I had some idea of how they worked. Oh ok that squad has bolters and power armor, lets put em in a transport and move em around. Not so with this new purchase. As I read through the codex, I became so lost, not knowing what any unit did or how to run them. I felt like I was starting 40k all over again. It scared the piss out of me, but at the same time, it excited me. I feel like I am looking at the game in a whole new way now. I received my first box of Gaunts yesterday, and got my first paint test done today. Tuesday, i should have sitting on my door step -


-2x Battleforces
-2x Trygons
-1x Carnifex


That gives me a pretty sizable chunk of stuff, and a lot to work on. So here comes the big question - Do you guys care about the Nids? I started this blog to talk about power armor, showcase my armies, and so on and so forth. Of course I never planned on havin a xenos army either. So, what I am asking you, the humble follower -

Do you want to see Tyranid Stuff on here, or keep it strictly SM/CSM stuff? Should I chronicle my rocky journey with this new army on IIWPA... or keep it straight Power Armor?

Cleanin House

Well, the Grizz has made it back from the beautiful Caribbean Islands safe and sound. While he was gone, the new Grey Knights stuff was posted. As the Grizz began to browse through all the new models and think of new tactics he would use, he began to think about his poor Blood Angels that would be sittin on the shelf, as well as his barely started Salamanders army that would never see the light of day. This, as well as a chat with ol' Pariah.Stevo, got him to thinkin - is starting a new army really what I want to do right now?


I am really just now hittin my stride with my beloved Sons of Sanguinius, and am not quite ready to put them up just yet. There are also new models that I still need to get in order to get them where I want them. So I made the tough but logical decision - The Grey Knights are gettin sold. I will miss them, but I don't look at this as a farewell, but merely a "until next time". I still have plenty to keep me occupied with my Salamanders army being completely custom, so I think I will manage. 


After I posted my GK's on good ol' eBay, i started lookin around at all the stuff I have and never use. That led to more and more on eBay. So, I thought I'd share with y'all all the stuff I am gettin rid of, maybe y'all can get some use out of what I don't need.


My eBay Auctions


Man, does it feel good to get back in the swing of things, and to be back in the Beautiful U.S. of A.! Hope y'all didn't miss me too much, and keep posted!

Dustin' Off the Grey Knights

Well, if you haven't heard, Codex: Grey Knights will be coming to us within the next 2 months. Also, for those of you living under a rock, they are going to be the epitome of elite armies. 20-30 models at 2000pts. Also, there has been a "leaked" codex, with speculation to its authenticity ranging from complete fraud to a cover art away from your nearest FLGS shelf, with the truth probably somewhere in between.

As I have glanced through the pdf and read the rumors, I must say that if the codex ends up with half of this stuff then it is going to be awesome. It will bring a whole new style of play to our beloved game. Never before have we had an army so elitist, so many psychic powers, a small army with the ability to take on the hordes. Grey Knights offer us all this, and more. 2++ saves, 2 wound terminators, 30" teleporters, I can't wait! 


This has prompted me to pull out my old Grey Knights force and survey the damage that 3 moves and a year in storage can cause. Surprisingly, they aren't that bad. What I have;


Brother Captain Stern
10 GK Termies
30 PAGK's - 3 Justicars, 5 psycannons, 6 Incinerators

Oh, yeah, well you just wait till April, then i'll really show you whats up!!

Not a bad lot, as I should have enough PAGK's to use, as well as enough psycannons/incinerators for the purgation squads. I will prolly buy a Stormraven, some dread kits, and a boox of the new plastic termies rumored to run as my paladin termies. I'll have to get a better look at the Dreadnight before I make my final decision to run him. 


I am just excited, as this is an army that I will be able to get up and running with very little added cost. Plannin on tryin to get them finished paint wise before the codex drops. Will update as I go along


So what do y'all think about the rumors? How excited are you about Codex: Grey Knights? Is GW headed in the right direction?

The New GW

Sorry for the slight delay in updates, had a busy weekend (by busy I mean Monster Truck Rally) So lets get into it, shall we?

This was the way we used to react to new codexes

Having played 40k since 1998, I have become very accustomed to the way that they do things. I remember getting the 2nd C:SM for 3rd Ed and just comparing it to the previous codex, the only difference being less models and more points per. The 4th Ed Guard Codex only had 3 heavy support choices. Then came the 4th Ed. Chaos Space Marine Codex......blech. GW's greatest blunder came in the form of a 2 part article in White Dwarf that they tried to pass off as a new Blood Angel Codex. The move to cookie cutter, boring, crappy codexes had finally reached its lowest. This was the GW that I knew, the one i was accustomed to. Then came the 4th Ed Orks codex, bringing with it a glimmer of hope, followed shortly by the great 5th. edition. 


If memory serves me correctly, next was our own dear C:SM, with new units, new models, and special characters that we can actually use! The nice thing was, this wasn't a passing fad, this was their new direction. They targeted the armies that need it most (excluding necrons) with the Blood Angels and Space Wolves, and now with the Grey Knights. Armies that were unusable and the butt of jokes are now on the top tables an the tourney scene. Armies are getting new codexes and complete new ranges (Dark Eldar anyone??). This is unheard of from the GW I knew. 

What has sparked this rambling you ask? I guess it must be the new Grey Knights coming out. From all the rumors over at BOLS, they are looking to be the epitome of elite, low model count forces. The new rules are looking different, flavorful, and most of all, fun. It's just nice to know that armies/codexes are being written with fun and theme in mind, and with sweet model ranges to match. As much as we moan about GW, in my opinion, they have come a long way from the boring vehicleless gunlines of 3rd/4th.


So, what do you think of the new Codexes that have come out, or about 5th in general?