I'm still a gamer!

Yay!  I'm back!  And I had a GREAT weekend of gaming.  So great, in fact, that I have to blog about it.  You see, I got to play three games in one day.  THREE!  I haven't played a total of three games in two months.  This was a very nice bit of luck.

Back when I was just a lowly gamer, too young to really know about real life, I used to play three games a day, sometimes twice a week.  Every Saturday, I wake up and me and my buddy/roommate would load up and go occupy the LGS.  Show up an 10, sit around until noon, play a game against each other, then another game against someone else around 3 or 4, then another game against another gamer at around 7 or 8.  And sometimes, if we were good and everything fell into place, we'd stay after the store was closed and play an Apocalypse game (before there was such a thing as Apocalypse).  Those were glorious times.

These days, my work schedule has me screwed four days a week, and then I have a family day and a 'busy-day', leaving only my game group gig at the comic store.  I'm more interested in talking about products and helping the guys (and gal) learn the game than I am in actually playing myself.  And I'm usually too exhausted from a long work-week anyway.  So no games for Jay.

Not so this week.  I got a game in on Monday and three more on Saturday.  That makes me a little happy.  Can't you tell?

So what did I play this week?

It all started on Monday.  My buddy, Aaron, has been trying to get in a game with me for a few weeks, but our work schedules didn't coincide well.  He wanted to give his Iron Warriors another run and show off some new toys.  I played my Eldar and we threw down with 1500 points.  My army was experimental.  I brought all Jetbikes, Vipers, Wave Serpents, and Falcons.  It was fast.  It was tons of pew-pew.  His army was the typical Cultists and Marines and Warpsmith.  Oh, and the Daemon Prince of Khorne rocking wings and a Black Mace.  Worse yet, there was also a Land Raider and some Terminators.  That's right- a Land Raider and Terminators!  I didn't feel confident in victory for that one.  But some great Rending shots and many vehicular targets meant total victory for the Eldar.  I had killed every model except the cursed Land Raider.  Now Aaron is out for revenge and he's running out of time...

Saturday morning saw me make it to work right on time, set up a Fantasy table, and begin the process of rolling Warhammer out to my 40k crowd.  My buddy, Taylor, had acquired a massive collection of Dwarfs recently and wanted to learn the game.  I grabbed my Empire army and made a half-legal 1000 pt army to battle him with.  I had the typical General, Wizard of Metal, 2 units of Handgunners, a unit of Greatwords, a Cannon and a Helblaster.  He brought Quarellers, two units of Warriors, an Organ Gun and a Cannon, and all backed up by a Runesmith.  My Wizard and unit of Handgunners fled from the table early on, so I didn't get a chance to teach too much magic (not that it would have worked against Dwarfs), but my firepower was decimating the enemy.  Everything was fine until my Helblaster malfunctioned, and then the Dwarfs made contact and my Empire ran.  And they ran fast.  It was a good experience, and is officially the first game of the 'Fantasy era'.

Come at me, brah!

Saturday afternoon saw Taylor and me play a 1500  point game of 40k.  I brought the same list I used on Monday for my Eldar, and he brought his Black Templars.  His army consisted of two units of Marines, a unit of Assault Marines led by a Chaplain, and wait for it...  a High Marshall in Termie armor leading a squad of Storm-shield Terminators, all riding in a Land Raider Crusader!  Another Land Raider and unit Teminators!  Dammit!  It was a great game.  The best part was that his High Marshall (with Lightning Claw and Storm Shield) had rolled 'Legendary Fighter' as his Warlord Trait and came into two situations to use it.  First, he charged and Challenged a Warlock in a Guardian squad.  Hitting and wounding a gazillion times, my Warlock made all the saves (only a 4+, mind you).  Then, in the next turn, my Warlock attempted to cast his blessing on the unit, rolled a Perils of the Warp, and failed his save- dead!  I denied the Legendary Fighter VP to him by suicide!  After killing the unit off, the High Marshall then charged and Challenged my Warlord- the Farseer.  It was the last turn of the game.  He hit and wounded me a gazillion more times.  This time, I failed one wound.  But I had cast Fortune.  Reroll became success.  Again, denied!  The game ended quickly at the end of turn 5, and it turned out to be a draw.  Awesome!!!  Of course the Land Raider still survived, just like the first game.  This army may need some adjusting.

Finally came the third game against my buddy, Daniel.  We have the Escalation campaign going and this was our third game.  This game moved us up to 1500 points.  I'm not going to go into any details here, other than to note that it was my Eldar (a different list from earlier) versus his Tau (always evolving).  The game was much like our first- bloody!  There were very models models alive at the end of this game and the whole battle was a treatise on strategery (that's right, I said strategery!).  More to come on that in a later blog. 

The moral of this whole rant is that I finally got to be a gamer for a moment.  Not the consummate hobbyist that I've lost to the time to be, but the gamer that I once was.  Many doods were pushed, many dice were rolled, and the big-ass rulebooks were opened once or twice.  It felt GOOOOOD!

How have your gaming-bugs been going?  Tell me about it.  And get some more dice rolling!

As always, Happy Gaming!

They say he talks to the dead...

Whew!  I'm back.  I know I've been gone for a few weeks.  My work schedule hates me and I've been otherwise occupied.  Sorry for the absence.  Without further ado:

This is a model that I dug up from my bitz box.  I know he's an ancient model and not wholly WYSIWYG for what I use him for, but I think he looks right.  Luckily, a Witchstaff is nothing more than a Witchblade with the Soul Blaze special rule.  So I don't feel too guilty...

Spiritseer

Simple and sweet.  Happy Hobbying!

Ode to Warp Spiders

Okay, here's the deal-

I hate Warp Spiders!

Or at least I kinda do.  I am on my third Eldar army.  And only now do I have Warp Spiders.  And it's funny how that happened.
First I painted up a small army of Ulthwe with Wraithey stuff.  This was back in 3rd edition and that army last one game.  I figured that since Warp Spiders were not common in Ulthwe, that wouldn't be a unit I have to include.
Then I traded and got a BEAUTIFULLY painted Saim Hann army, sorta.  The army had two Falcons, a Viper, 6 bikes, some Reapers, some Banshees, and TONS of Guardians.  It was 'codex'.  Again, no desire to add Warp Spiders to this force.  That was back in 4th edition.
Then I made my own army.  I got everything except War Walkers, Warp Spiders, Fire Prisms, and bikes.  And I mean EVERYTHING else.  Alot.  Sadly, as you see, my army didn't have any of the good stuff.  I liked the idea of 'codex' and I wanted only stuff that looked Eldar.  War Walkers, Warp Spiders, side-heavy Fire Prisms- they all just looked wrong (or were horribly-weighted models).  Nothing against them, I just wanted my army to appear a certain way.  

Then it happened.  It happened in a twist of fate that I never saw coming.
One of my customers/hobby buddies challenged me to a mano-e-mano paint contest  We were each to paint a unit of Fire Dragons and have the hobby community judge it in the shop.  Another buddy of mine then bet me that I wouldn't win, and we wagered that I would have to buy a unit that I absolutely HATE, and paint it up.  I took that wager because, well, I didn't lose at paint contests.  It's nice to be underestimated.

I lost, by one vote.  40-something people voted, and my first buddy had a much brighter squad of Fire Dragons.  Mine were 'technically' better, but that didn't mean better.  His were faded from orange to white in a very striking and convincing way.  One.  Vote.

Before I'd even fully registered that I lost the paint contest, by second buddy was holding the box of Warp Spiders at me.  Being a man of honour, I begrudgingly took the box to the till and bought it.  I wasn't happy. I wasn't upset because I lost the paint contest (I figured it was bound to happen sooner or later, and those Fire Dragons were striking!), I was upset completely because I now owned a unit that I would rather not.  Why, you ask?

The Eldar are a graceful, lithe race.  Their warriors are clad in very tight and efficient uniforms, plated sparingly in simple armour-plates.  They have ornamentation on their heads, and carry small, elegant weapons.  Then there's the Warp Spiders.  They're BIG, bulky, carrying oddly-shaped guns, have bald heads, and are posed dumb.  That's right, every reason I like the aesthetic of the Eldar is the reason I don't like the Warp Spiders.

I failed to get that unit painted for years after (still to this day, in fact).  I refused to even include them in my army.  But then I had to fight the new Daemons back in 5th edition.  A third customer suggested an army list out of my stuff to use, and this guy isn't bad at all.  Of course he included Warp Spiders.  I begrudgingly deployed them.  The game raged, my Guardians were problematic for my opponent, and the Warp Spiders single-handedly killed a Greater Unclean One.  I was blown away.  I was befuddled.  I was disappointed in my own underestimation of the unit.

Now I use them almost all the time.  The new 6th edition book gave them a little more love with the 'Monofilament' rule, and the speed and resilience of the squad (even at small size) is refreshing in the army.  I have seen them cause more damage as a 5-man squad than an entire Dire Avenger squad for every turn of a game, it seemed.  They are almost an 'auto-include' to me now.

Now let me be straight and specific here:

I hate the way Warp Spiders look!

but I do love THIS image- credit to the creator!

But that's just me.  The way that unit performs is outstanding!  They are a great unit, worth their points-cost (almost, anyway), and do things for my army that are needed (like be able to hurt big stuff more than once).  My enemies have found that unit surprisingly dangerous, and I've found myself pretty happily impressed with them so far.  So impressed, in fact, that I bought a second unit.

That's right, I bought another box of five.  For 140  points, why wouldn't I?  It's a deal.

Do you have any?  If not, why not?  Besides not playing Eldar, of course.  If so, on the other hand, how've they been for you?  Let me know.

Full Frontal

Back to the series where I compare multiple versions of similar pieces of wargear.  This time, it's going to be about Eldar, as I'm focused on them.  Let's get started...

The Imperial armies all have multiple versions of multiple tanks and therefore make this article nearly unending.  But the oldest of the races in the galaxy don't have that particular benefit.  In fact, it seems that the Xenos only have one or two vehicle platforms to take to war.  Of all the xenos, the Eldar come away the best.  Tau only have two versions of a single tank, Orks only have one tank at all, and the Necrons have one real tank period (and a couple of fake ones).  The Eldar, on the other hand, have three tanks to choose from.

I do have to note that I was hoping the Hornet would translate from Forgeworld to 40k.  But it wasn't meant to be.  Oh well, it is what it is.

Instead, the Eldar kept the Falcon and Fire Prism grav-tanks, and added the Night Spinner.  As if the Heavy Support slot wasn't already filled to the brim with legitimate options, now it's even more full.  Which makes this article almost necessary.  So what are the differences?  Which tank is better overall?  What vehicle should an Autarch include if he gets the choice?

Well, there's some similarities to start with:  All three tanks have an armour value range of Front 12, Side 12, and Rear 10.  All three are Fast, Skimmer, Tanks, meaning they can move up to 6" in the movement phase and fire all weapons at full Ballistic Skill.  Or they can move up to 12" and fire two weapons at full BS and the rest as 'Snap Shots'.  During movement, they can ignore all intervening terrain and even friendly and enemy troops.  Furthermore, they can move 'Flat Out' in the shooting phase up to 18", allowing them to cover ALOT of ground in a hurry if needed.

Upgrades can really make these monsters a beast, as well.  The Crystal Targeting Matrix allows the vehicles to fire a single weapon after moving Flat Out at full BS.  The Star Engines allow the vehicles to move Flat Out up to 24".  The Vectored Engines allow the vehicle to turn to a new facing after firing its weapons, thereby keeping less vulnerable to fire from the rear.  Add the cover save-boost by the Holo Fields and you can see how the upgrades really work to make the tanks more threatening.  Admittedly, these upgrades aren't cheap and will increase the cost of the tanks by quite a bit.

Now we can talk about each tank on its own:

Falcon
This is the go-to tank for the Eldar.  Long has it been the 'main' battle tank and supported the advance of the ancient race as they go to war.  Mounting a fearsome array of weapons and with tons of options, it can pretty much handle any situation.  Then, to make it that much more effective, it has a transport capacity!  Carrying a squad of up to six models, it can lay down a punishing amount of firepower and then drop off some very powerful specialists to deal with threats of any type.

The 'common' version of the Falcon mounts a Pulse Laser (two Str 8, AP 2 shots) to kill tanks, a Scatter Laser (4 Str 6 shots with Laser Lock), and a Shuriken Cannon (3 Str 6, AP 5, basically Rending shots).  This load-out allows the vehicle to engage any target- from the heavily armoured (Pulse Laser) to the horde infantry (Shuriken Cannon).  The advantage added from the Scatter Laser is that it twin-links all other weapons on the tank as long as it hits the intended target.  Against vehicles this can guarantee the Pulse Laser hits and has a chance of causing some damage, while against infantry this becomes four more shots to add to the now-twin-linked battery of five already.

Not being terribly good at killing vehicles, it might be worth taking a Bright Lance (a single Str 8, AP 2, Lance shot) rather than the Scatter Laser.  But against infantry, the 'common' version is perfect.  Including the transport capacity, this vehicle may be considered one of the best 'all-around' vehicles in the game.  And the common version is only 145 points- not bad!  It's till a tad too expensive, but what in the Eldar army isn't?

Fire Prism
Long considered the 'ugly duckling' of the Eldar tanks, this one mounts a massive crystal weapon that can fire a beam of focused energy designed to slag enemy tanks.  In previous editions, this vehicle could either change the firing mode or combine fire with other Fire Prisms to create an even more powerful shot.  Unfortunately, this meant that owning only a single Fire Prism could really reduce the effectiveness.  Luckily, the new version of the tank brought back the differing fire modes and turned the vehicle into a singular threat again.

The Fire Prism weapon has three firing modes- a big boom (a Str 5, AP 3, large blast shot), a regular boom (a Str 7, AP 2, blast shot), or a surgical strike (a single Str 9, AP 1, Lance shot).  This allows the tank to engage mass infantry or heavy vehicles with ease.  Unfortunately, the Fire Prism only mounts a Fire Prism (see what I did there?) and could upgrade the twin-linked Shuriken Catapults to a Shuriken Cannon.  That's not alot of firepower.  However, it makes up for it with a single gun of epic destruction and mayhem.

This tank is very simply that- a tank!  It's not armed with a ton of weapons, nor does it have the ability to carry troops.  Upgraded with the Shuriken Cannon, this vehicle weighs in at 135 points, which isn't horrible considering what it can do.  However, it is also a prime target to the enemies of the Eldar, as it LOOKS threatening enough to warrant the attention.

Night Spinner
This is the newest edition to the order of battle for the Eldar warhosts.  It's not pretty either, but certainly better-looking than the original Forgeworld version.  The Night Spinner is easily overlooked as it's not the 'normal' thing that people are used to, but that may be a gross underestimation on the part of Autarchs everywhere.

This is the only artillery tank in the entire arsenal.  It mounts a fantastic weapon that enemies everywhere don't understand.  You see, it launches monofilament netting high into the air and allows it to drop on the mass of troops, slicing them apart with contempt.  And the tank need never be seen to do this!  If the Night Spinner is facing the enemy, then it can launch the monofilament right into their faces, ignoring cover and causing great mayhem overall.  It's gun has two modes-  the artillery (a Str 7, AP 6, barrage, large blast, Monofilament (basically Rending) shot) and the direct version (a Str 7, AP 6, template, Torrent, Monofilament (did I mention basically Rending?) shot).  Space Marine armour might be enough to stop the damage, but it's a risk the enemy doesn't want to take.  Better, this weapon can even kill tanks as easily as a Pulse Laser-wielding Falcon!

Having artillery is always a plus on the post-modern battlefields of the 41st milennium, and this tank fills that role all-too well.  Having a twin-linked Shuriken Catapult as the secondary weapon is irrelevant as, again, it's the main gun that counts.  Accounting for only 115 points, this tank is a bargain in the Eldar army.  It's even more of a bargain since the enemy will rarely be scared of it, but can often develop respect after gobs of troops die.

So what is my overall ranking?  Just as normal, I'll post my list below in order of best to worst.  Funny enough, this list is difficult to make as all three of these vehicles are valuable, and the points reduction in the new book makes a huge difference.  But I have to have my opinion nonetheless, so let's see:

Rankings
1.  Night Spinner- having nearly the killing power of the Fire Prism and the cheapness to beat all three, this tank certainly seems like the winner.  But it's arguable.
2.  Fire Prism- when it comes to having a tank, having a tank is actually the key.  There is no substitute for a gun that can be a Battle Cannon or a Bright Lance at a moment's whim.
3.  Falcon- this is more of a heavy transport than a true tank, but that doesn't mean it fails at its role.  In fact, this tank is still the obvious choice for the typical warhost of Eldar.  But it's more 'general' than 'specific', and that can really bring it down compared to the other two.

Do you agree with my estimation?  Let me know what you think.  As I said, it's difficult to rank these as all three tanks have their role to play and fulfill them perfectly.  All of them are still expensive (just as all Eldar are), but they aren't terrible.