What do YOU want from YOUR game?

I have been thinking recently that something is missing from my games...I don't know what it is, and I'm sure you might have a few ideas. See, I have been thinking about all the different ways to play 40k and wondering to myself what is missing from the current "scene" I am playing in.

I get to paint new units for my army.

I get to model new stuff for my army.

I get to show said new stuff on the table top while pounding my opponents head in. (or getting beaten myself)

I get to theory out new lists and try different combos out.

I even get to go to the occasional tournament too.

So what am I missing? I dunno. Burnout has become a defining factor in my gaming. I even caught myself ranting about a scenario right after ranting about some douche bags throwing a final game in tournament just to hold scores. (Gawd I hate that). So I have become "that guy" in some fashion or another.

You know them, "those guys" who want to bitch and complain all the time to justify their own failings. I have to say that I hope to never fully become "that guy". With all that said I think we all have some of that in us and we need to let it go. In the end we are all getting together to hang out with our friends, and using the toys as an excuse to do it. What ever excuse I might use, general ass-hattery is never an option and I fell victim to the temptation this past weekend. So on that note , I formally apologize to my opponent, Mike and all who had to listen to me Bitch and make a fool of myself.

I guess what I am missing is relaxation. I have let it all get to me, so I need some relaxation. I'm takin' a vacation soon that should help burn some of this stress away. Now to add gas to the fire I get back to my original question.....what do YOU want to see? Drew (the other Kommando at the FLGS) and I would love to hear your ideas for 40k and WHFB events so we can begin work on the next series of events. You tell us want you want and we will do our best to deliver it.

Follow this blog, and watch the message boards at www.armourygames.com for upcoming event details. While space is limited, the fun is not!

ya lose some and you lose some.....oh and mebbe swing a win here and there...

Well I had a spectacularly bad day at my league yesterday. I lost to Count Fluff and his bugs for the second time in a row, mostly due to my own mistakes....again. Then I challenged Mike and his Necrons, full of confidence that I could take him apart in close combat....only to get totally screwed by the scenario/terrain, and then make a HUGE mistake in the last two turns that tilted it over into a second loss for me....Drew, man I really thought the terrain rules were a bit too harsh. That said, live and learn, and I apologize for getting all heated about it. It's just a game, I say that all the time. So I guess that makes me a hypocrite. I'm sorry man, I'll take my lumps and like it! lol.

So I owed Craig a game and thought, cool, I can relax and have a good game with a great friend mebbe even scratch a draw...(I never hope to beat Craig he basically taught me the game by kicking my ass over and over). I should have known better. My army was completely incapacitated by the end of turn two...so now its about 5 pm and i'm down 0-3 on the day.....ugh.

Well around that time Nick came in and needed to get his game in, so I thought "well, what the worst that can happen?", I should have seen it coming. Nick plays Dark Angels. While his codex is older he has a VERY solid list that can handle most opponents. I managed to get Nick to separate his devastator squads, then jumped him. By the end of turn 7 he had a rhino and his lone drop pod left. I feel dirty, as it went all pear shaped for him from the word go. NIick if you read this man, I'm sorry. You happened to have the ideal army for me to exploit, and after three trouncings in a row I was in a MOOD for blood.

Ultraforge Greater War Demon review

Well, I wne t and bought another of Ultraforge miniatures excellent line of resin models. This time I plunked down the cash for the "greater war demon". While this beast is clean, and I mean clean...only one mold line on the whole model, it has other issues. I like the sculpt, but the wings almost seem like an afterthought. If you were to repose this model standing up, it would illustrate this better, but after looking at it for a while I realized the wings are only about half of the size they would need to be to let this thing fly. Also, his arm has a cavity sculpted out of it so it will fit over the leg due to it's almost curled up, crouched pose. Also, the kit comes with magnets to magnetize the wings for transport. While this seems like a good idea, in reality the magnets provided are not strong enough. Also, the pose has the daemon holding his sword up high enough that if you take the wings off, you leave the sword sticking up and exposed even more than if you just glue the wings on.

And that's it for the negatives...no really, that's all. The molds are as well designed as the Vrock I did a while back, if not better. There is only a single place I needed a small amount of putty to cover a break on the edge of the leg where it joined the body. I am certain this was broken in shipping due to the extremely thin resin along the leg joint. All in all this is another nice model from Ultraforge. Is the price correct on this one? No, I don't think it is. I think this one should be a bit lower, closer to the price of the Vrock. I understand those magnets are an additional expense, but if the whole reason for having them is voided by the scuplt leaving the sword exposed to the same breakage....no thanks, I'll order a larger tray for him with the money I save from a lower model cost instead.

"Can I get a moment of silence up in here?"

Ladies and Gentlemen, one of the founding fathers of metal has left the building....

Ronnie James Dio died Sunday at 67. He lost the war with stomach cancer.

He will be missed....

Hmmmm....

Well, I'm still here. Work and family life have taken a HUGE chunk of my hobby time for the last week. My next project should come in at the FLGS tomorrow. I ordered the ultraforge Greater War Daemon to represent my buffed Bloodthirster in the 40k campaign I am in there....review and WIP as I get started this weekend.

I am also hip deep in the bombed out tank factory I am making for Origins. I originally wanted to have a multi-story structure with removable levels, but time and some play-testing have proved that to be a bad idea. The result is a (only slightly) lower, more squat structure that has some battle damage to it. Since the structure is under siege by Tyranids in the scenario it is to be used in, I have been working with ways to create acid damage. I am having some fun with it, and I really hope everyone likes it!

FLGS Campaign update

Well I have two game turns under my belt in our campaign at the FLGS. We are using the battle missions book, for missions in every game. The missions are determined by two players dicing off for their armies missions, then rolling for the specific mission.

The first round saw me play Kennedy's Tau in a Tau mission. All those guns are rough to deal with, but at round five I was sitting on a draw, one objective mine, and one to Kennedy. I was on the third sweeping him off when the game ended. DRAW

The second round was a Tyranid mission against Fluffy and his bugs. ALL area terrain was dangerous and difficult. Boy that really made things rough. This one ended in a loss due to losing a large unit of scoring bloodletters in a DS mishap, then having bad scatter on my two princes. This left them isolated. Then the Keeper hit a mishap and he was placed all the way at the other end of the board and swamped. So I lost 5 of 10 units due to bad DS...that's chaos for ya! LOSS

I am having SO much fun with this one. I'll keep you updated as the turns progress.

Wyrd MIniatures--Malifaux

I stumbled onto this new skirmish game through a couple of podcasts, D6 Generation, and (GASP) 40k radio. Everything I have heard about it is awesome, and the minis are INCREDIBLE! Check them out here: http://www.malifaux.com/

I picked up the book and read it this weekend, and I LOVE the story. It is truly original and true to the world they are depicting. This game world encompasses steam punk, Gothic horror, Victorian horror, fantasy, lovecraftian parallel universes and even cowboys! Sheesh, a little of everything.

The great thing about this game is that you can get a complete army/crew/gang, the rulebook and the fate deck for less than $100!!!!!!!!

Total outlay for the game at less than $100 is incredible, especially given the quality involved. The miniatures are some of the best in the industry, and really convey the character and feel of the creatures and people they are portraying. The detail is superb, though some of the joints are a bit fiddly, and clearly meant for a more advanced modeler. There is definitely a horror edge to the models and the art in general, some of it is really gritty in it's feel.

I suggest you give this game a shot, even if only a few games. the unique dice-less system really shines in it's originality.

I have to say 4.5 stars out of 5...

"POWWAH!!!"--Jeremy Clarkson reads my mind

OK, I have a chaos daemon army...I admit it. It is a guilty pleasure to see my opponent get all sweaty and start making mistakes when I set down 4 or 5 monstrous creatures......in deep-strike.....all at one time.....

I am playing in (not running for once, thanks Drew!) a 40k campaign at my FLGS. The first campaign turn took place this past Saturday, and even though I scored a draw (stupid variable game length...grrrr) I had more fun than I have had in a LONG time. There are quite a few reasons this is happening.

First, I am playing games with people I genuinely like to be around. Not just my opponent Kennedy (who is a super nice guy), but everyone there. I don't have the universal jerk syndrome right now at the Armoury....(Gawd I hope it stays that way)

Second is my army. I haven't played the daemons in a while. I kind of wanted to play my Necrons in the campaign, but when another player stepped up there, I decided to spread out the armies and go with daemons. Why you ask? Don't they suck? Aren't they really chancy?

Why yes they are....and I think part of my love of the army is those factors. They press me to be a better player, and reward my really aggressive nature on the table. So how did I arrive at the Jeremy Clarkson quote as a title? Simple. 4 monstrous creatures.

FYI go watch Jeremy and his pals on BBCAmerica.com the show is Top Gear. Even if you aren't a car guy these three are FUNNY!

The list is a quad power list using the strengths of every power....for now. I have a blood thirster and Keeper as my HQ, back by Tzeentch and Nurgle princes, then blood letters and plague bearers as troops. I currently have a large unit of blood crushers as a support/anvil unit as well.

I plan on making a few minor changes as the campaign goes on. First and foremost is to drop the keeper for a second Bloodthirster. Then I plan on losing the crushers to upgrade the Tzeentch prince to a Nurgle prince with noxious touch, and adding more numbers to my troops.

In the long run the list will drop the big guys as wave one and the troops in wave two (in a perfect world). That lets me get right in my opponents face and set them on the defensive while i drop my troops on the objectives.

So, I think I have a decent plan, we'll see how it plays out. Kennedy's Tau certainly didn't like the daemons, but Tim's Mechanized Eldar might not feel as bad about facing them.

I would say this confirms it....

as if we didn't already know....

So a little left field I know....

I heard something over the weekend at a parenting and motivational speech that really struck a chord in me....

"As Iron sharpens Iron, so a friend sharpens a friend" -- proverbs 27:17

Now, I am not a religious guy, but the truth of this statement really hit me. I have truly been shaped and challenged by my friends over the years. The people I care about outside of my family, Parker, Chris, Damon, Jeph, Craig, Pete....you have all helped me better myself and I hope you have been challenged by me as well. If we do not challenge and each other to be better people on a daily basis we get dull, and fall into patterns or "ruts" if you will. This can be applied to gaming as well as day to day "real life".

Now I'm not gonna get all weepy and start gushing, I just wanted to take a second, and say thanks guys, I am better for knowing you!