Lucky loft find update....

It has been a while since i last blogged but i have an update on my 'Lucky loft find'.
I have decided to use some of my old 40K miniatures with the 3rd Ed rules i found in the loft and play 40K in 40minutes type games.
The force lists so far are as follows:

40K in 40 minutes 400pts Army Lists													(Based on 3rd Edition Rules & Army books)
Army Name:	SpaceMarines - Scythes of Azrael									Total Points:		395
										Model Count:		17
Army special rules:
And they Shall Know no Fear: Automatically regroup as they fall back, even if reduced to less than 50%.
Unit Name	Formation Type	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld	Save	Unit Size	Pts	Equipment & Special Rules
Chaplin	HQ	5	5	4	4	2	5	3	9	3+	1	70	Bolt pistol, Crozius arcanum, Rosarius(4+ Invulnerable save)
Tactical Squad Marine	Troop	4	4	4	4	1	4	1	8	3+	5	85	Bolters, Meltagun
Tactical Squad Veteran		4	4	4	4	1	4	2	9	3+		30	Power weapon
Tactical Squad Marine	Troop	4	4	4	4	1	4	1	8	3+	5	80	Bolters, Heavy bolter
Scout Squad	Troop	4	4	4	4	1	4	1	8	4+	5	80	Bolters, Heavy bolter
Rhino	Troop	-	4	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	50	FA=11; SA=11; RA=10. Capacity 10 marines, no Terminators
Army Name:	Imperial Guard - 273rd Kathur Defence Force									Total Points:		385
										Model Count:		33
	"The Lucky Blacks" - By fire, by flame, purge the enemies of the Emperor!
Army special rules:
Unit Name	Formation Type	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld	Save	Unit Size	Pts	Equipment & Special Rules
Commissar Guius Blackheart	HQ	5	5	4	4	2	5	3	9	3+	1	58	Bolt pistol, Power fist, CC weapon
Hardened Veteran	Elite	3	4	3	3	1	3	1	8	5+	6	50	Lasgun and Frag grenades
Veteran Sergeant		3	4	3	3	1	3	2	8	5+		20	Las pistol and CC weapon
Inf. Pl. Command Squad	Troop	3	3	3	3	1	3	2	8	5+	5	44	Las pistol, Sword,
HQ Guardsmen		3	3	3	3	1	3	1	7	5+			Grenade launcher
Infantry Squad		3	3	3	3	1	3	1	7	5+	10	83	Lasgun, Las pistol, CC weapon, Meltagun, Auto cannon
Armoured Fist Squad	Troop	3	3	3	3	1	3	1	7	5+	10	130	Lasgun, Las pistol, CC weapon,
Chimera		-	3	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1		FA=12; SA=10; RA=10.
Army Name:	Imperial Guard - Catachan XXIX									Total Points:		390
										Model Count:		27
	Captain Hodgson XXIX Catachan Death World Veteran's -  "The Spooks"
Army special rules:
Unit Name	Formation Type	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld	Save	Unit Size	Pts	Equipment & Special Rules
Captain Hodgson	HQ	5	4	3	3	2	3	3	8	5+	1	50	Bolt pistol, Scanner, Power weapon
Inf. Pl. Command Squad	Troop	4	3	3	3	1	3	2	8	5+	1	20	Las pistol, Sword
Deathworld Veteran Squad 1		4	3	3	3	1	3	1	7	5+	6	74	Lasguns, Missile launcher, Comm-link
Deathworld Veteran Squad 2		4	3	3	3	1	3	1	7	5+	6	62	Lasguns, Plasma gun
Deathworld Veteran Squad 3		4	3	3	3	1	3	1	7	5+	6	62	Lasguns, Flamer
Deathworld Veteran snipers	Elite	4	3	3	3	1	3	1	7	5+	3	60	Sniper rifles
Deathworld Veterans Patrol	Fast Attack	4	3	3	3	1	3	1	7	5+	4	52	Lasguns, Meltagun, Frag Grenades
Veteran Sergeant		4	3	3	3	1	3	2	8	5+		10
Army Name:	Space Ork Raiders									Total Points:		381
	ere we go, 'ere we go. 'ere we go!									Model Count:		28
Army special rules:
Unit Name	Formation Type	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld	Save	Unit Size	Pts	Equipment & Special Rules
Thrugg Bullneck - Big Boss	HQ	4	2	4	4	2	3	3	8	6+	1	36	Kustom Shoota-More dakka, Shootier, Choppa, Big Horns
Shoota Boyz 1	Troop	4	2	3	4	1	2	2	7	6+	12	115	Shoota, Big Shoota, Rokkit luncha, Burna
		4	2	4	4	2	3	3	7	6+	1	12
Shoota Boyz 2	Troop	4	2	3	4	1	2	2	7	6+	12	116	Shoota, Big Shoota, Burna x 2
		4	2	4	4	2	3	3	7	6+	1	12
Dreadnought	Heavy Support	4	2	5(10)			2	2(3)			1	90	Power Claws, Mega Blasta, Skorcha
Army Name:	Eldar									Total Points:		387
										Model Count:		17
Army special rules:
Fleet of foot; Can run instead of shoot in the shoot phase, roll D6 add to models move
Unit Name	Formation Type	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld	Save	Unit Size	Pts	Equipment & Special Rules
Warlock	HQ	4	4	3	3	1	4	1	8	4+	1	42	Shuriken pistol & Witch blade, Enhance
Dire Avengers	Troop	4	4	3	3	1	5	1	9	4+	5	60	Shuriken Catapult
Exarch		5	5	3	3	1	6	2	9	3+	1	24	Shuriken pistol & Power weapon
Guardian Defender Squad	Troop	3	3	3	3	1	4	1	8	5+	5	80	Shuriken Catapult, Scatter Laser
Wraithguard	Elite	4	4	5	5	1	4	1	10	3+	2	70	Wraithcannon, Fearless, Wraithsight
Dark Reapers	Heavy Support	4	4	3	3	1	5	1	9	4+	3	111	Reaper launcher
Army Name:	Harlequins									Total Points:		390
										Model Count:		12
Army special rules:
Holo suit: Always counts as in cover with a 4+ save. Any model fighting in CC halves their weapon skill rounding up.
Flip Belts: Treats difficult terrain as open ground. Advance roll 3D6, can attack enemy within 2" with full attacks
Mask of Fear: Any enemy unit fighting in an assault reduces their LD by -1.
Fleet of foot; Can run instead of shoot in the shoot phase, roll D6 add to models move
Dispersed Formation: Unit coherency 4".
Unit Name	Formation Type	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld	Save	Unit Size	Pts	Equipment & Special Rules
Shadowseer	HQ	6	5	3	3	2	7	3	10	-	1	86	Shuriken pistol, Riveblades, Misdirection, Veil of Tears, Psychic powers
Harlequin Troupe	Troop	5	3	3	3	1	6	2	9	-	4	100	Shuriken pistol & CC weapon
Troupe Leader		6	4	3	3	1	6	2	9	-	1	12
Death Jester	Elite	6	4	3	3	1	4	2	9	-	1	47	Shrieker cannon, power blades
Harlequin Troupe	Troop	5	3	3	3	1	6	2	9	-	4	100	Shuriken pistol & CC weapon
Venom	Heavy Support	-	3	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	45	FA=10;SA=10;RA=10; Fast, skimmer, open-topped, twin shuriken catapults, transport 6+1
Army Name:	Tau - Hunter Cadre									Total Points:		400
										Model Count:		30
Army special rules:
Unit Name	Formation Type	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld	Save	Unit Size	Pts	Equipment & Special Rules
XV8 Shas'vre	Elite	3	3	5	4	2	3	2	8	3+	1	60	xv8 battle suit, Burst Cannon, Fusion Blaster, Multi tracker
Shas'la - Fire warriors	Troop	2	3	3	3	3	2	1	7	4+	12	120	Pulse Rifle
		2	3	3	3	1	2	2	8	4+		10
Kroot	Troop	4	3	4	3	1	3	1	7	-	10	70	Kroot rifle, Field Craft, Infiltrate
Shas'la - Fire warriors	Troop	2	3	3	3	3	2	1	7	4+	6	60	Pulse Carbine
Devilfish	Troop	-	3	-	-	-	-	-	-	-	1	80	FA=12; SA=11; RA=10. Capacity 12,
Army Name:	SpaceMarines - Space Wolves									Total Points:		400
										Model Count:		16
Army special rules:
And they Shall Know no Fear: Automatically regroup as they fall back, even if reduced to less than 50%.
Acute senses
Counter-attack
Unit Name	Formation Type	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld	Save	Unit Size	Pts	Equipment & Special Rules
Sven Thunderfist Wolf Guard	HQ	5	5	4	4	2	5	3	9	3+	1	70	Bolt pistol, CC Weapon, Frag & Krak grenades
Grey Hunter	Troop	4	4	4	4	1	4	1	8	3+	5	80	Bolters, Meltagun
Long Fangs	Heavy Support	4	4	4	4	1	4	1	9	3+	5	120	2 x Heavy bolter, Lascannon, Missile Launcher
Skyclaw	Fast Attack	4	4	4	4	1	4	1	8	3+	5	130	Plasma pistol, Power fist
Army Name:	Necron									Total Points:		392
										Model Count:		17
Army special rules:
Necron
Unit Name	Formation Type	WS	BS	S	T	W	I	A	Ld	Save	Unit Size	Pts	Equipment & Special Rules
Immortals	Elite	4	4	4	5	1	2	1	10	3+	5	150	Gauss blaster, Disruption fields
Warriors	Troop	4	4	4	4	1	2	1	10	3+	10	180	Gauss flayer
Destroyers	Fast Attack	4	4	4	5	1	2	1	10	3+	1	50	2 x Heavy bolter, Lascannon, Missile Launcher
Scarab Swarm	Fast Attack	2	0	3	3	3	2	3	10	5+	1	12

This is only the start of forces to be created, however i have been thinking of adding an additional rule to army selection and that is allowing smaller squads. This would benefit 'horde' type armies like Imperial guard and Orks by allowing the following minimum model choices:
Elite & Heavy- minimun models 3 (unless this is already less)
Troop & Fast attack - 5 (unless this is already less)


More updates, including photos, of painted units to follow......

Have a great Easter break.

VTI

Lucky Loft Find!

well over the weekend whilst tidying up the loft, i came across a box, which at first glance looked insignificant. Upon closer inspection this box yielded some old 40K rules and codex books, all 3rd edition but perfectly usable. Imperial Guard, Eldar, Tyranids, City Fight, Jungle Fighters, Orks,Chaos Marines & Codex Assassins where all in the box as well.
So i have an out of date rule book and additional rule resources but i don't think it will put me off having a few games with the boys and it will save a fortune as a pick up game now and again. It will also give a new lease of life to my massive hoard of old GW stuff, which for some reason they never seem to fit right with any other rules?!?!?

I have also dug out a very old copy of 40K in 40minutes which is going to be the bases of using my recently found 40K gold mine.

SDS (short) AAR - Skirmish at the river

This skirmish takes place at a river somewhere in Portugal. Both the French and the British need to control the bridge to allow vital supplies to flow to the front lines and a quick exit route if needed.
Each side has dispatched a small scouting force to take and hold the bridge until reinforcements arrive. Little do each side know but they both have the same idea on the same day.
The British arrive from the South West, lead by the renowned Major Blunt. The French arrive from the West with no knowledge of Major Blunts Rifles.......

Major Blunt and his men.....

The French move forward....

Two French troopers open up on the exposed British on the road....

The bugler is KIA, and another rifle man is knocked to the ground.

First blood to the Emperor!

What is this? The French have reinforcements!

However the French officer doesn't have much luck with the dice, this is the second lot of turn overs rolled!

But wait, what is this? It's only Sergent McMurphy, he has flanked the French and their officer has kindly walked into his sights and has now entered the after life!

McMurphy has rattled the French and they leg-it for somewhere safer.... One of the Frogs does has a last ditch go at the British but he is wide of the mark.

This was a really fun game and only took 20mins to play! One of the reasons why I so love the Songs System.

I used the solo rules that are here on my blog and they work really well, I guess it was because each side had an objective that made it easier to play this game as a solo game.

The miniatures as AB, and are wonderful, if not a little big for 15mm, they are nearer 18mm if not 20mm. However my painting does not do them justice. Something that I am going to work on as I really enjoy Naps gaming.

I am really looking forward to my next game of SDS, I wonder what Major Blunt and Sergent McMurphy will be up to next time..... Who knows but one thing is for sure the French better watch out!

Some painted miniatures....

I friend suggested that I post some photos, which in all fairness is a great idea. I hope you enjoy them......


My old RT Spacemarines have finally after 20years of being sat in a box got a coat of paint, I have decided to paint them as Blood Angles. I have a squad of 10 marines 5 of which are finished and some Terminators which arent quiet finished just yet.

I picked up a bargin on eBay the other day, 34 Dixon ACW troopers in various posses. I am going to use these with SDS by Genashea games with a few rule tweaks to better suit the period.
I am really happy at how my ACW Union Troops have turned out, I need to finish the bases but I really wanted to show them off. Hopefully they aren't to unhistoric in colour selections :-)
 I am pretty poor at painting historicals, i just find them difficult for some reason, not sure why. However my close friend Gav gave me a copy of Foundary Miniatures Painting and Modelling Guide by Kevin Dallimore, which is a great read and has at least given me confidence to try and paint some historicals.... Really looking forward to painting the Rebels......

Skaven Assassin - "I know Kung-fu" has been used for what seems like ever in my skirmish games.... He always seem to strike fear in to the opposition, but then turns out that the dice gods are against me when i use him in melee. Oneday he will show the world his awesome powers....

Nice SOLO rules for Song of Blades Games

I found these rules on the Yahoo group for solo playing Ganesha Games Song of Blades games. They are not my work and i am not claiming that they are but they are too good not to share.

As always enjoy!

These rules for solo play have been taken from oMAD blog. A quick overview is as follows, but i do recommend you check the blog, link: http://dogui.wordpress.com/2010/10/21/solitaire-song-of-blades-and-heroes/

I must now give credit where it’s due. This system to randomize the activation roll was not created by me but by Mr. Timbo75 from Tim’s Wargaming Stuff and left in a comment on a post from the month of May 2010. It’s quite elegant and simple. You take 3 different colored dice and give them a priority rank. For example, I use green, blue and red and consider them in that order. Now you take a 3 sided die, which is usually a d6 with two 1s, two 2s and two 3s or you can simply use a regular d6 considering the following: 1-2, one, 3-4, two, 5-6, three. Roll them all together and the first thing to do is look at the fake d3. This die will tell you the amount of actions the figure is going for. Now check the rest of the dice to see which ones beat the Quality rating of the figure. Be mindful of the priority you gave them. An example will show this clearer.

I roll the dice and get 2 (d3), 4 (green), 1 (blue), 6 (red). Figure’s Quality is 3+. Since the d3 rolled a 2, that means we will only check the first two dice. Given our priority, we discard the red die. We keep the green and blue, giving us a success and a failure. We use the single action for the figure and go onto another from the same side.

This time I roll 3 (d3), 2 (green), 1 (blue), 5 (red) for a similar figure. I will get to use all three dice, and I’ve got two failures and one success. The figure will carry out its only action and since it has two failed rolls play passes to the other side.

It’s actually harder to explain than it is to execute. Now, how do I apply this to my games? There are two ways normally used in solo gaming. One is giving both sides to the “AI,” in this case using the aforementioned system for both forces. The other one is letting one side act randomly while the other is played normally. For this game I prefer to have one side under my complete control. I do however roll to see which force I will be “using” before play.

Now I have my randomized activation roll, but what to do with the figures? A popular approach is to have the automated warband be in a defensive stance, and the actual player’s force in the attack. Personally, if I were to do this, I would not even need a system for them, since most choices would be pretty obvious. I rather device a scenario with very clear objectives for both forces, preferably different goals. And if one of the sides is going to be mildly in the defensive I rather have it be the one I am playing. This way the automated enemy’s choices become more entertaining, making you make the most of what you’re given by the randomizing system.

SoBH lends itself perfectly for campaign play as well. The warband upgrades are fun things and if you keep them on your “real” warband, so to speak, they can grow and change from battle to battle. It’s a game that lets you pit your guys against a horde of goblins, then against a single dragon with its wizard master, and then maybe go underground for some ruins exploration with the weirdest enemies. It’s not a competition game and I believe it can create good narratives, specially playing solitaire, where you can focus on your characters alone and every battle is uncertain.

RAGE 2011 - how it started

I am slowly working on Rage 2011 and i thought it would be good to share some of the back ground information i have been working on recently.
 I will be posting some of the character stats on the Ganesha Games yahoo group, so it will be worth checking it out. I am thinking of doing this project in 20mm using the excent Elhiem miniatures that can be used for lots of paranormal gaming and card model railway buildings.

As always, enjoy!

VTI

It started on a rainy winters evening in early January, all the television channels stopped normal broadcasting and ‘breaking news’ reports started to come thick and fast. They are reported the same thing, a large explosions had happened in London, Paris, Lisbon, New York, Tokyo, Milan, Berlin, in fact all capital and densely packed cities around the world. This in its own right was concerning as everybody thought it was another 9-11, 7-7 terrorist attack, but it soon immerged this wasn’t the case. The so called world terrorist soon became brothers in arms.

The London explosion happened not too far from Covent Garden tube station, hundreds were reported injured, but not many had been killed. This apparent silver lining to this tragedy was soon to change. Looking back the ones that died in the initial explosion, where the lucky ones, the injured soon began to change in a way that no medical doctors or experts could explain. The changes to these survivors were what could only be described as the things that bad dreams are made from, hungry and savage. Even some of the most acclaimed horror films of the late 90’s and early ’00 couldn’t begin to imagine that horrors that the “blighted” brought to England.

Worse than the changes the survivors went through was the rate at which the infection began to spread. How it spread initially wasn’t fully explained, but how it spreads now is easily understood. You don’t let any of their blood come in to contact with your skin. Well if it does you do have a small window of opportunity to wash it off before the acid like blood burns through you skin. If on the other hand they bite you, forget it you are either dead or ‘zed in a few days’ time.

The “blighted” as the explosion survivor became know as in official circles, such as the remaining functional departments of the government and world organisations. To us normal people they were simply the living dead, or ‘zeds.

Living in the UK, had some advantages over our European neighbours, however there was some disadvantages, mainly we didn’t have a gun culture or land locked neighbouring countries that have had civil strife or lax gun laws. In our favour we all thought we could do DIY in the UK and hence had lots of DIY superstores, in Sheffield there was at least 7 such stores and hence we armed ourselves with heavy blunt instruments and chainsaws.  

Games Workshop - Island of Blood & War of the Ring mini reviews

The youngest son recieved Island of Blood for Christmas and i must admit it is full of lovely minatures and the new rules seem pretty good as well. It is worth a look if you are thinking about getting in to wargaming or adding to you exsiting High Elves or Skaven armies.

I recieved War of the Ring rule book and this is a mighty tomb indeed! It is everything you would expect from GW with the added bounus that the rules read pretty well and are suitable for other historical periods of wargaming up to late medieval battles. (IMO) It is expensive but i feel it is worth it as the army lists are included so no additional books to buy.