Busy Day/Live Blogging/Ramona A. Stone

Well, there's a couple things I've been falling behind on, mostly due to work - so I'd really like to clear at least a few of them out today, get myself back down to a reasonable workload.

As a result, sadly, this means the post will undoubtedly be scatty and somewhat unfocused.  On the bright side, you should kinda expect that by now. :p

Obviously, Live Blogging is MUCH more fun with other participants, so I'm going to begin in approximately 90 minutes - that gives me time to finish the last mission of Kill Team (Xbox, ofc, not the shitty table-top version) and grab a quick bite to eat, as well as to collect my thoughts and try to make this as efficient as possible.

See you then?

Necron List Deux...

I don't think Necron Troops are ANY good.  At all.  They Just Plain Suck.

Literally, the only way to make them good is to use your catch-all answer to everything Superman tries to do - Kryptonite.  Er...I mean, Crypteks.

So, initial Necron Scare-Cav list...

As usual, I'm going to go for a 2k list here, and try to write something that doesn't make me bemoan the obvious deficiencies of the Necron Troops section.  Wuzzat? Wolf Guard make them viable? Yeah...maybe.  We'll see.  Anyway, I start with Troops, cos I figure this is where I get the 'numbers' with the guns coming in later.

Necrons...

So, I've read the Necron Codex, although I'd much rather read it through again and begin to play about trying to write some lists before I make any sort of verdict.

There's plenty of scary-ass stuff, and certainly some things I feel I will have to adapt for...but that depends on whether or not lists with them in are truly viable.

Triarch Stalkers, for once, are something I think GW should have had a model ready for, even if a prototype was photographed in the Codex colour section, just to help protect their IP.

Playing Blood Angels now does look like a little bit of a pain, if all these perma-Night Fighting things turn out to be worthwhile...but with Fast vehicles I can get close enough to largely make up for Searchlights I suppose.

Warriors and Immortals being laid out the way they are is fantastic, having a base cost and then extra for more guys is just more elegant than the alternative in the Kelly-Dexes.

Oh, and I just want to claim the credit for naming the all Night Scythe-mounted list.  It should be called Scare-Cav.  Cos it's Air-Cav, and scary, cos they're the mechanical visage of death.  No?  Silence, I have decreed it. :p

Not sure it'll be much more Competitive, but I'm going to give it a shot, list-wise, see what I can come up with.
If only I knew anyone with enough mixed Flyers to proxy, nevermind that of course no-one I know owns whatever number of the real thing I can squeeze into 2k...(Nobody I know owns ANY of course, but still...)

Excelsior!

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Thoughts on the Necrons, stand-out units or combinations etc as always very welcome.  Just finding out how many of my readers have been tempted by the Deathless Ones would be great to know, we Children of the Stars apparently have sketchy and oft-contradictory records on your approximate numbers and force disposition...;-)

Yes, I am blatantly cashing in on the fact that Necron pictures have been leaked!

Huh? What?  That's correct, a plethora of pictures have been leaked today by the good lads over at http://www.beastsofwar.com/ and clicking that link will reveal all that they have to you, as it did to me, assuming you haven't already seen them.

Open it in another browser though, cos I'm not done talking.

Fire Warriors/The Gauss Rule - Interlude of an Interlude.

I'm right in the middle of typing another article, and suddenly, i'm thinking about Fire Warriors, and sometihng Kirby and I discussed last night, the prospect of making them Relentless.

Now, I hadn't actually thought of this, and the idea intriuiged me, so I didn't express much consternation - in the cold light of day, however, this seems like less of a good idea.

Firstly, they have a 30" range.  That makes it entirely possible to walk away, trying to keep 30" between them and the foe - not something I really like the idea of.  While I am as firm an advocate of Mechanised forces for 40k as anyone (the idea of fighting in the 41st Millennium on foot with swords is largely ridiculous, kthnxbai) I don't want to shit on Foot Armies that hard - having S5 that they will never get to reach before T4, that then moves forward and Double Taps them with 60+ S5 shots?  In addition to all the Heavy weaponry they dumped on you in preceding turns?  Ugh.

This also led me to thinking "But, Rick, you advocate the Necrons becoming Relentless.  How is this THAT different?"

Well, internal voice, it's like this.  The Necron Warriors would have Assault 1 18" guns, so they would be encouraged to...no...wait...that kinda works, and it's nice that Necrons would try desperately to stay out of combat...but it doesn't fit with the implacable advance they are supposed  to be making at you.

What if...

What if, the Gauss rule received a radical rewrite.

What if being Gauss carried a value, for instance, Gauss Rifles were [24" range] Gauss 5, and Heavy Gauss Cannons were Gauss 3 (Gauss Cannons being Gauss 4, Particle Whip could be Gauss 2)

This would then be broken down thusly - the Gauss Value would equate to the AP value of the weapon, but it would decrease for every 6" closer to the enemy.  This would mean Gauss Rifles at 24" would be the stated value, AP5, and at 12", when Tapping, it would be 12" closer, which is a value of 2 away from 5 = AP3 at 12" range.  Butchers Sisters of Battle, which is good, no?  Even better, if a Squad of Terminators was somehow 6" away and not in combat? (And didn't have Storm Shields...) Well, Double-Tapping with AP2 weapons = win, no Gets Hot to deal with.  Awesome.

This rule gives a CLEAR benefit and incentive for Necrons to advance upon the foe, which I love...the only question is - do they need to go down from 24" range anyway? Being able to reach out across the board for 3 turns as stuff advances is potentially 'urk'.

I'm not entirely sure how to use this rule to make them able to kill tanks with basic infantry though.  Considering something Vibro Cannon-esque, where a unit of Necron Warriors firing at a vehicle, the weapon's S become the number of models that hit.  Thoughts on either?

TKE’s What You’re Doing Wrong There

Being a Rant of Sorts, and a Treatise on how you

can improve your game, in several easy steps.

Dark Eldar Players:

‘Uber’ - Retinues. Drazhar costs like 3 Incubi. He has 3 Attacks. THREE, For Fuck’s Sake.

‘Ablative Wound’ Warriors. 8 ponits. No fucking way that is not shit. Shitty stats, shitty gun, inability to do anything in CC…yeah, shit. Srsly, L2P. If a unit costs 300+ points - It better be fucking AwesomeSauce. Archon + Filler is NOT that good.

Night Shields - You are made of PAPER. Most common Anti-Tank in 4th? Assault Cannon/Plasma Gun/Lascannon. You negate two of these at 18” away. 18 measly inches away, and you’re safe. In 5th - Meltagun/Multi-Melta/Autocannon. Again you neuter two of these options. HOW CAN YOU NOT LEARN?!!!!!

Raider Squads - OMFG, put them in their fucking Raider, you spas.

SM Players:

Yes, Devastators will kill most things they shoot. However, MOST enemy armies will be able to SHOOT BACK. T4, 3+ Save =/= Invincible, or even tough. Paying 200+ points for a one-shot weapon with ZERo mobility, unable to Score, taking a Dakka Pred/Vindicator/LRC slot? Not good.

Bike Captains in Bike Squads. Bike Squads are stand-off units, using a combination of mobility (to avoid retribution) and T5 (to shrug off Lasguns etc) - flying into the teeth of the enemy army when one, ONE model can stand up in CC = Stoopid.

Drop Podding SAM Terminators. Really? Lern2Readz.

Committing a squad alone - YES, you are genetically engineered Super-soldiers. BUT, as anyone with any Tactical nous, a basic understanding of mathematics, or any experience with Halo on Legendary difficulty, will tell you, 1unit, however good =/= enemy army. You need back-up in a straight-out fight, simple as that. This is ESPECIALLY true of Assault Squads.

Don’t Outflank with a Storm. Srsly. L2P.

Space Wolf Players:

Lone Wolves aren’t invincible, idiot. Don’t be so goddamn cocky.

Rune Priest + no Invul Save + no unit to take wounds + enemy Vindicator = idiotic move. Being better than the opponent is no excuse for failing at Model Placement re Threat Observation 101.

Necron Players:

Buy more Immortals. Deploy in staggered Rows. Don’t forget Phase Out total. That’s all. You have it hard enough. ;)

Eldar Players:

DON’T ALWAYS BE AGGRESSIVE!! If you outrange the foe, then move back. If you can’t go back, go sideways. If you can get cover, go that way. Just because you CAN move and shoot doesn’t mean a thing. If you can’t get to the target, go around. Don’t fly into his face when you haven’t enough left when it all goes tits up. If you can’t get the kill, then don’t try - do something else. NEVER go Flat Out, ‘just because’.

Nid Players:

If Gaunts have WoN, they can be bunched up safely. It’ll save you time next Dex, when you’re paying 40 points for ten of them…at least until you get those 120 of your 10 point WoN Hormagaunts painted.

IG Players:

Haven’t seen enough of you being stoopid to really criticise like SM, DE etc. That said, Don’t use Missile Launchers! Don’t use Ogyrns! Don’t use Rough Riders! Vendettas ARE your best anti-Tank! Sentinels aren’t even close to worth it!

SM Players 2:

Sniper Scouts are SHIT. Really, really, awful. Take Telion, or don’t bother. Fluff is never an excuse, and, anyway - he goes out on loan every Xmas, like some sort of 41st Millennium David Beckham. Anyway, you think NO OTHER CHAPTER has an EXPERIENCED Scout Sergeant? You thin they’re all chumps? Lern2Imagination.

Okay, I feel better now.

FYI, so you don’t think I’m being unfairly critical here - the arrogant Wolf Lord? That one was me. Even if 5 Devastators actually killing a Lone Wolf before he gets to strike is unlucky enough to Double Facepalm.

TKE's TMWFI

Hi, this is TKE's Take My Word For It, the place I reveal upcoming info/unsubstantiated rumours. Why are they unsubstantiated? Because I never reveal my sources, dumbass! ;)

Suffice it to say, you'll just have to TMWFI - but as far as I know, everything I 'release' in these posts is truth, and is what I'm taking into consideration with regards to future advice etc.

The Dark Eldar Codex was finished, sent out to playtesters, and Regional Managers, and rejected, as simply not being powerful enough. I'd have been of the opinion the whole army using a super-Ambush method of Deployment, and having the capacity to squeeze 3 Agonisors and 3 Flamer-type weapons (Destructors?) per 12-man squad would've been plenty. Especially given even befroe the in-progress revamp JetLock armies had "literally no chance" against them...ho-hum. A DEldar list that auto-rapes Eldar? Nasty. Especially since the source also rates Eldar as the highest of the existing Codicies. In fairness, I don't quite agree with that assessment - and the guy ceratinly agrees with my FoC Saturation theory regarding Phil Kelly's writing. ;)

Next, Tyranids in March? New Gaunts box that reduces them to 10-per? Swarm armies stupidly over-powered, just like NidZilla was last time? Tyranids to actually get a reasonable answer to Mech lists? Well, I've been telling you for months that NidZilla is dead, and when the more detailed info for this Codex starts trickling into your brainboxes, you'll agree.

If you don't agree...L2P. Seriously. ;)

Necrons: Everyone's favourite Terminator look-alikes. Well, the Dex was pretty much done, but they were a bit overpriced. 23 points a Necron Warrior? No way. Fortunately, this has been corrected to most people's satisfaction. Dex pretty much in final stages/already done. I have some more detailed info, but it's a lot more fun for me to wait for the rumour threads to start popping up, and then to debunk things I know aren't true. Suffice it to say, given the relative amount I like Heresy compared to other sites, they'll get stuff first, and more. Anyone who copy/pastes my info, please accredit it accordingly.

To summarise then:

Oder release then: Space Wolves, Tyranids, Necrons, then Dark Eldar who have to wait until 2011, BUT they WILL be out. :)

Look out for the next one in this series, in which I discuss changes to the basic rules mechanics being playtested in the Studio, and pick holes. ;)