Monday, December 20, 2010

I'm back

Well I thought I should post again before Christmas.

Some of you may know that I recently returned from a very nice Month in the UK.
One of the highlights of the trip was the weekend of Pre-heresy gaming at Warhammer World with the rest of the guys from The Great Crusade.

It was the culmination of the worldwide pre-heresy Ullanor Campaign.
After much catching up, eating and sampling of Bugman's Brew.
We decided that our first game would be an Apocalypse game against a very large force of Orks.
Now unfortunately for us, the battle didn't really follow the script.
The Emperor had a teleporting problem, at least 3 Primarch's fell to the Green Tide, Horus included.
Still it was great to see everyone's armies in person instead of online.
Which brings me to the GW Mini Hall of Fame/Museum, it was great to get to see some of the great pint jobs & models that I have seen in my numerous issues of White Dwarf.
All I can say is that regardless of how good the camera/photography is, nothing beats seeing them up close in person.

The second day was just a couple of 1500 pt games, which I can happily say, saw my Luna Wolves victorious. By 1 Kill point vs Dark Angels & by 2 objectives vs Imperial Fists.

While I was there I also had a look through the new IA Vol. 9, The Badab War.
It's a very nice book, lots of detail on the different chapters involved.
Some nice new rules for some of the main characters & an army list for the Astral Claws.
It did give me a nice idea towards a nice new Pre-Heresy project, that will run alongside my Luna Wolves.
This time however I will be doing my Marines Truescale.....I hope my GS-Fu is up to the task.

Anyway I'll finish by saying that if you have never been to Warhammer World, it is well worth the trip.
I'm quite looking forward to going back there, the next time I travel to the UK & Europe.

I hope that everyone has a very Merry Christmas, a Happy New year &
may the Gaming Gods be kind and deliver that prized boxed set or Mini that you are waiting for.

Wednesday, October 27, 2010

Another tale from the Great Crusade

Well it's that time of year again, when over at The Great Crusade we run our annual Short fiction contest.
I figure that the more who know about it the better, so I'm here to spread the word.

Well I know that I have posted one of my entries on here before, and figured that I should do it again.
Letting you all have an advance sneak peek at what I'm going to submit this year.
I haven't formally submitted this yet so any feedback or errors that you point out, can be remedied.
Which also turns you all into proof readers, Ha ha!

So be sure let me know what you think.
Anyway enough rambling, I now present to you:

Adopted by Wolves 
A Tale of the Great Crusade by Yvraith (aka. Chris Barton)




I remember looking out over the lush green pastures, hills covered with trees, trimmed back just enough to give us room to cultivate our crops and raise livestock. I was only ten summers old. As the first of our twin suns dawned that day, who could have known that mere moments later, our utopian vista would be torn asunder, rent with smoking craters, crops ablaze and the stench of burning flesh filling the once clean air.

It was shortly after everything in my life had been obliterated, that I first saw them. At first I thought them machines; seven feet tall, bulky armoured forms, carrying devices that spat fire and death. I was one of the lucky ones, though I did not know it at the time. I was not the focus of their ire.

Unbeknown to me, our planetary governor had refused to join our planet to what was being tentatively dubbed “The Imperium of Man” and had hidden the bulk of our local military might in a compound in the depths of the neighbouring forest.
These “Gods of War” had been deployed to neutralise the potential threat, with a precision strike. Unfortunately our farm was the designated drop zone.

Obsidian seed shaped pods now dotted the once lush terrain and hundreds of the white armoured giants, swiftly deployed and engaged targets that only they could identify. The dull thud of muffled explosions and piercing screams of pain proved how efficient they were.

I cowered in a crater, in a puddle of my own urine, crying and cringing as the snap of projectiles sounded overhead. Our military responded, but their efforts were futile. It seemed like the conflict had gone on for days, yet as the sound of battle slowly quietened and then ceased, I looked at my chronometer; it had only lasted a little over an hour. I wiped my now snotty nose with the back of my hand and fiercely blinked away tears.

I gathered my courage and cautiously stood to survey what an hour of hell had done to my family’s once serene homestead. The house and barn were a clustered pile of broken stone and smouldering timbers. I cast my gaze across our once lush pastures and not a single animal from our numerous herds remained standing. What was left of their carcasses was already being squabbled over by crows.
What do I do now? I thought.

Then a heavy gauntlet fell on my shoulder, the weight of it nearly pushing me onto my knees. I twisted in an attempt to break free of its firm grip.

“Settle down, lad. I’ll not hurt you,” a slightly metallic male voice said, distorted by his helmet's vox system.

I stopped struggling, knowing that if he wanted me dead, I would have been already.
I turned to look upon my captor.

He raised his hands to his helmet, flicked the release catches and twisted the helmet free. To my surprise, he was human, but how large his features were. By taking off his helmet, his presence seemed to grow, projecting an aura of greatness which was not apparent before. My shock must have been obvious and he laughed. Beyond him, I could see others moving toward us, alerted to his discovery. I blushed with the shame of them knowing that I had pissed myself in terror.

“What are you doing out here lad?” My captor asked in a proud voice.

At first I struggled to find my voice, so intimidating was his aura. He smiled down at me encouragingly.

“This is... Was, my home,” I answered slowly.
“I apologise for the destruction of your home, but we needed to prepare the ground for our drop and could not take the risk that your farm was an ambush site.”

I nodded dumbly in response, wishing fervently that I was somewhere else, that he would just let me go. To where I didn’t know, any place other than here.

“What have you got there, Commander?” one of the other War Gods asked.
“A battle orphan. It seems we destroyed his home and family with our preliminary bombardment,” my captor replied.

It was then that I realised my captor wore slightly different armour to the others. He was bigger too; head and shoulders taller than the War God who came to stand at his side. The new arrival’s armour was a glossy black, with a golden trim on the shoulder pads. A symbol that I couldn’t discern due to my childish stature, adorned his left pad. My captor’s armour was pearly white, trimmed in white gold. A great red eye stared at me from his breastplate.

“The perimeter is secure. Torgaddon’s Company is mopping up what’s left of their forces.” the new comer stated.
“Good. Continue on as planned, Ezekyle. I’ll be with you shortly.”
Ezekyle nodded and moved away.

My captor turned to regard me once more.
“What are we going to do with you?” my captor mused.
“You could let me go, Sir.” I stammered.
“Indeed. But I think I have another plan for you, little one. Would you like to be one of us?”
“I don’t think that I could be Sir.” I hung my head in shame. “I was frightened when the battle occurred.”
“If you join us, you need never be scared again. You can travel the stars at our side,” my captor assured me with a smile.

My mind whirled with the possibilities. I was certain a nearby farmstead would take me in. But did I wish to stay here, digging in the dirt for the rest of my life? Maybe one day get married, raise a family and have my children continue to follow in my footsteps? How depressing.  A sense of adventure bloomed in my chest; the lure of travelling the stars was intoxicating. I had reached my decision.

“I accept, Sir.”
“Good. What is your name, lad?”
“Sejanus, Hastur Sejanus.”

Wednesday, September 29, 2010

Some WIP Justaerin Terminators

I'm currently in the process of trying to get my Army sorted out for the conclusion of the Ullanor Worldwide campaign, being run by the rest of the gang at The Great Crusade.
Conveniently I'm holidaying in the UK and the guys were kind enough to organise to hold a Gaming Weekend whilst I'm there, giving my a chance to meet some of the board members face to face and have a couple of days of Pre-heresy gaming.

So here are some WIP shots of my Justaerin Terminators,
I'm getting them prepared to take down some Ork scum.
They are only at the basecoat stage so far, with some highlights/shading and details to come.

The shoulder pad trim I'm planning on making a shining Gold to make them look a little different to 40k Black Legion Colours, I've modelled the Auto-cannon because I subscribe that Assault Cannons weren't used/developed yet.
However for simplicity they count as an Assault Cannon in game, as I use Codex: Space Marines for gaming purposes.

There should be more updates in the next few weeks as I get my arse into gear and get stuff painted.
Until next time, "Keep your Bolter Firing!"

Y.

Sunday, August 22, 2010

Path of the Warrior - A Book Review

It's hard to comprehend that I've not posted anything at all for months. Sorry to everyone for being a lazy git.
But work and an addiction to online Blood Bowl have provided quite a large distraction.
So it's back to business now, I can't promise regular updates, but I will try to post more often.

Now before you all start, I know this is nothing to do with Luna Wolves or even Pre-Heresy, but as Eldar were my first 40k Army, (I now have about 7,000 - 8,000 pts worth.), and Striking Scorpions have always been my favourite Aspect Warriors. I just couldn't pass up reading this book.  I've also read Gav Thorpe's Warhammer Fantasy Time of Legends - High Elf books and really enjoyed them too.  So with this in mind I wanted to see if Gav could deliver the goods in 40k.

I must say that I really did enjoy this book.
Gav provided a very interesting insight into Eldar society, life, mindset and the way that they go about following and changing their paths.  It also reveals that the rest of Eldar society don't really appreciate the mindset of Eldar that are on the Path of the Warrior and tend to avoid them, until their journey on the path is complete and they rejoin "normal" society.

I won't get into details, as I hate spoiling the plot for others.
But the book follows the life of one Eldar, Korlandril, as events shape his life, forcing him into the Path of the Warrior. It then follows him through his training and first mission, finally culminating in the invasion of the Alaitoc Craftworld by Imperial forces.

What Gav does reveal, is the interplay between the differing points of view that different shrines, even of the same aspect, have on training and how to follow the path.  Even resorting to ritual combat to resolve disputes between shrines. There is also some minor hints about the relationship between Arhra & Karandas.

All in all, I think Gav has done a very good job, it can't of been easy to adjust your own mindset to write from the perspective of an Eldar character. It was also great to get a bit of insight into the Striking Scorpion Aspect, no doubt I will try to add some into my next foray on the table with my 'Pointy Ears'.

So if you have ever had an interest in Eldar at all or are curious if it's a good read, I can honestly say that I enjoyed reading the book and I would recommend it to anyone looking for something to read.

Y.

Monday, May 3, 2010

Luna Wolf Flexibility

One of the great things about fielding a Luna Wolves force, is the pure amount of modelling and painting diversity that it provides.  While other Space Marine Legions/Chapters have added splashes of colour within their own colour scheme, with maybe one or two exceptions. (I'm looking at you Iron Hands) 
From the modelling opportunities provided within the Pre-Heresy time frame, to making the elite units stand out, eg. Catulan Reavers & the Justaerin Terminators, with different modelling and their own differing armour colours.
You can also, due to the in depth coverage of the legion, model any number of "named" Characters within the legion to lead your own force, or go all out and model the entire Mournival.

But one of the other great things in terms of flexibility, throughout the Legions history they have fought next to just about every other legion and organisation of the Imperium, giving you the chance to model something different, and even add splashes of colour to what is normally a very Black & White Force.
You can field units of Custodian Guard, Sisters of Silence, Mechanicus robots and even the vast units of the Imperial Army, to add a little diversity.

With this in mind, and needing a break from painting white power armour. I first added units of Emperor's Children to represent my Sternguard Veteran squads, followed by my take on Ancient Rylanor for their direct support.  Having recently read Graham McNeill's "A Thousand Sons", and reading of how Magnus, sent members of his legion to other legions to start their Librarian Corps, it inspired me to add something that had been lacking from my legion organisation, due to fluff constraints at the time. A librarian.
So I present to you all, 
Brother "Anonymous", of the Pavoni Sect of the Thousand Sons Legion. 
- Currently attached to the Luna Wolves.


I hope you like him and think of ways to add diversity to your own forces, within the Fluff, instead of in spite of it.

Tuesday, March 30, 2010

Something stirs in the Deep.

It has been a while since I have posted an update, I have had a rather strange few months since my last post, the details of which I won't bore you with here.

I just finished reading A Thousand Sons, damn good read.
So good, once more I found myself thinking of adding a little diversity to my Luna Wolves and adding a second legion to support them.
I already have a small detachment of Emperor's Children including Lord Commanders Vespasian & Eidolon as well as "The Phoenician", Fulgrim, himself.

Now it struck me a strange that I had a model of the Primarch of a supporting Legion, but not one to represent Horus Lupercal himself.
So off I went, hunting for parts appropriate for the task.
I wanted him to be instantly recognisable on a glance, but also rules viable.
So I used the "Talon of Horus" from Abbaddon and combined that with the Chaos Marine Lord in Terminator plastic kit.
He's still in need of some minor detailing, like the Legion symbol & some gloss varnish on the "eyes" to make them "pop".  I also plan on adding a loin cloth to him but am not sure of what colour to paint it.

Here are some photos, which aren't great, but they'll give you an idea of how he's looking so far.
If you have any suggestions or comments, feel free to let me know.