Epic Caine

Gun Mages are pretty damn awesome. Probably the most iconic Cygnar unit and certainly a major point of difference between Cygnar and other armies.

They also look distinct, nice renaissance looking jackets, peaked hats and glowing pistols. Very much "Three musketeers meets the wild west with magic bullets".

I really like the epic Caine model, hes just all kinds of awesome with his dramatic pose and custom base.

I didn't really try anything too complex on the paint scheme. I probably should go back an do some more work on the Cygnus on the rock, it looks pretty bad photographed and makes me think its incomplete.

Really happy with how the magic bullets turned out though, that's mostly just dry brushing progressive layers of lighter and lighter blue. I also used the citadel drybrushing blue and white on that effect.

The yellow on the coat i'm also not 100% sure about, it's striking and easy to see, but a little on the naff side for a guy who is meant to be a complete baddass.

In game Caine is a nightmare, possibly the caster that helps his army out the least. The dude really couldn't care less about buffing his jacks and infantry. What he does do is shoot shoot shoot. As far as i'm aware he is the only model with a ranged attack rate of infinity. As long as he has focus enough to buy additional shots, he can keep on firing. Add in reinholdt and a squire and Caine can shoot 10 times a turn.

PEW PEW PEW

Later this week ill load up the pictures of the gun mage units I painted at the same time.

Storm Nouns!

So finally my home town has turned on a stunning day during the weekend and I've remembered I need to take photos of things.

Seriously though, fantastic day outside here, trying to remember why I'm inside typing... OH YEAH ITS BECAUSE I SAID I WOULD MONTHS AGO!

Behold the Storm dudes in all their glory

First up I would like to mention that I deliberately set out to make these models distinct from the rest of my army. I want the Storm noun guys to have their own character and be an elite force within Cygnar. (Kind of like the SAS in the NZ Army or a Veteran Squad in a Space Marine force)

I selected a much darker blue for the Storm Nouns and decided to paint lightning marks on them free hand. Free hand is something I've been working on a fair bit lately and I'm really pleased the results. I decided not to do too many highlights on the blue and just the lightning provide character and definition.

The freehand lines are done using a pale blue first and then thinner lines mixing the blue with white until you are almost using only white. I used three to four layers on each line.

The final touch on the Storm Nouns is the new citadel blue glaze. It really makes the models shine, subdues the highlighting and freehand work so its not over the top and just finishes off the look I was after.

Another thing to note is the freehand Cygnus on the banner. This took a few attempts to get right but I think it looks pretty good. I've actually been following the instructions in the Cygnar book on how to blend the Cygnus colours, starting from brown, through orange and up to yellow. I'm quite stoked with how it all looks.

In game

In game, these guys have been very solid. the Stormclad is one of the best warjacks in the game, its reasonably fast, gets a bonus focus from Storm Knights, hits like a brick and has electro blast effects.

The Knights are a good solid multi-role infantry unit. Fully kitted (with unit attachment and weapon attachment) they are a tool box with high damage melee weapons, some AOE blasting, a little accurate long range firepower and the ability to fire when they charge. Great unit and will be the core of many forces I run in the future.

IMPORTANT NOTE

Last week, I asked "What should I do?"

I've decided to finish off the Cygnar models I currently have before starting another project. It will give me a sense of completion and give me a bunch more options when I start playing Warmachine again. People should be very afraid that eHaley and eNemo are next up to paint.

Next up, photos of the gun mages

What should I do next?

Well, I have a bunch of ideas for projects to do, so many in fact i may be suffering from bucket syndrome (So many things to do that i cant figure it out, its best just to put a bucket on my head to calm down).

I have a lot to paint/customise with my boardgames. If you haven't checked out my Descent, War of the ring, Chaos in the old world or Axisand Allies custom games please do.... i think they are neato :)

Here are the options, in alphabetical order. Interested in your feedback

Arkham Horror 

This wont require much effort, in fact next to no effort. All it requires is cash moneys (A lot of it) and some minor time and effort

What I want to do is pimp out my game and make it a bit more special. I've already bought a custom monster cup and made elder sign symbols.

To take it to the next level I want to buy the fully painted Arkham Investigator models ($200... ouch), get a little Cthulhu statue for a first player marker, and make some custom inlays and storage solutions for the game.

Not an epic job, but does require me making my lunches for a month so I can afford it.

Battlestar Gallactica

I started this project a long time back, and quite frankly it does the job. The models are reasonably well painted and look 100% on the table than unpainted plastic.

However, there are two things I would like to do to finish this off. One is to paint the extra fighters that came with the Exodus expansion. The second is to base the fighters and basestars on stands.

This isn't a big job and is currently a front runner for something to do that's easy to deliver and will make me feel good for doing so.

Chaos in the Old World

I love Chaos in the Old World, it's one of my many games I wish I could play more often. This is especially true as I have a fully painted set.... until now.

I just got the Horned rat expansion. And I can't bring myself to play the game with the Horned Rat if his models are unpainted.

Its only about 15 odd very small models. they are pretty mediocre quality and made of pretty ordinary plastic however. It's another short job but one that could be really rewarding when complete.

I'd also like to get some custom dice for this game with the relevant chaos symbols on them.

Descent?

No seriously... I have an unpainted Descent model.

Only ONE of them

Nara the fang was a bonus model that came in my copy of Sea of Blood. It's only one model to do, but after that epic Descent campaign I dont want to go near the game for a while.

Competing interests here, my sense of completionism versus my complete burn out on Descent. Its a tricky one to resolve!

Horus Heresy

Love the setting, but probably wont get to play this head-to-head game anytime soon. 

That being said, it looks HORRIBLE unpainted. The game screams "HEY PAINT ME, I'M A BLOOD ANGEL I SHOULD BE RED NOT GREY"

I've had a go at this and painted a bit of it but there is still so much to do.

Rex- Final days of an Empire

This one is tempting, but I feel I have some time up my sleeve to get it done. It's one model (well, 5 i suppose) and it does look very very cool.

I will certainly have to paint this before it hits the table, which i hope is in a month or two.

Shadows over Camelot

This is a dark horse and quite likely to get to the back of the line.

It's not the hardest game to paint up as it has only 31 models (and most of those are little catapults)

It would also benefit immensely from being painted and the models aren't the worst on the market by any means.

I do like the game, unfortunately I do like Battlestar a lot more.

Still undecided on this, I would love to own a painted copy of this however

Space Hulk

I have half painted my set, those models I have finished I am exceedingly proud of. As far as i'm concerned they are the best paint jobs I have ever done.... period.

However, they take roughly the same time to do as Uranium 238 takes to become non radioactive.

It's another classic conflict, my desire to have AWESOME SPACE HULK vs the effort required to get the models up to this standard.

Torn on this one as well

ARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGHHH

  

Twilight Imperium

  

One of the grandest boardgames ever made and the biggest unpainted eye-sore in my collection.

Hundreds of space ships, all raw plastic. I've not even looked at this as a painting mission.

If I did, it would be on a similiar scale to my epic Axis and Allies paint job.

Big commitment with a massive pay off, another hard call

Oh, I also want to get perspex fleet movement markers.

Warmachine

I still have some painting to do for my Cygnar army, even if I dont buy another model in the foreseeable future.

The annoying this is its a really small amount to do.

2 casters, 2 solos, some basing and detail work on a unit or two and some wreck markers. It's just enough to take some effort as well.

Conclusion

So any advice, anything anyone really want to see from this list?

Courier delivery of awesomeness (100th post)

Wow, 100 posts.... that seems like a lot really.

Blogging is a funny thing, it seems no one reads some posts (30 odd views) while others have insane levels of readership (4500 views). About half my traffic comes from the "A Noobs guide to Warmachine" posts and they are still getting a number of views a day.


Courier deliver of awesomeness

I've just got my stubby webbed hands on a few new boardgames in the last few days thanks to an Amazon voucher I recieved as a Civil Union gift. (My significant other got her hands on a bunch of cookbooks with her half)

Blood Bowl Team Manager

Blood Bowl team manager looks like it could be a load of fun. Its a card driven, fast paced game of brutal fantasy football.

As a Blood Bowl fan this was a "must buy" and set me back only about $30 from Amazon.

Components are good, standard FFG quality with glossy cards and pointlessly over the top scoring dials. Looking forward to giving this a go with the lads in the near future.






Rex: Fall of an Empire


Rex is a remake of the classic Dune boardgame with a different theme pasted on top. This is due to a certain Mr Herbert being a tool about the Dune franchise and not letting them republish the game.


He owns Dune, but FFG owns the mechanics of the game.

Solution, set the game in their own setting and tell Mr Herbert to get bent.

Rex is a multi-player strategy game where all 6 sides are very different, have different win conditions and paths to victory.


This game has one of the best special rules ever. The Xc'Xha player (The Bene Geserit in the original) can win by writing down what other player will win and on what turn at the start of the game. If that happens, they win regardless. How annoyed would you be once you realised the Xc'Xha player had positioned you to win on a certain turn.

Rex also wins the award for "most over the top game component that could probably have been a cardboard marker" award for the Dreanought fleet (shown right).

Seriously, to represent a game mechanic of "this area is under attack by a random force... dont go there" they give you a massive plastic stand with 5 bloody ships on it. Its so over the top you can't help but fall in love with it.


Chaos in the Old World - Horned Rat

Chaos in the Old World is an amazing game, if you haven't played it track it down. Games Workshop have some pretty cool background materials and some pretty shitty games. This takes the cool features of the Warhammer world and turns it into an amazing board game.

I picked up Horned Rat for completions sake and to try it out with a 5th player.


I may even do some more detailed reviews of these boardgames in the near future.

The Home Shopping Network

UPDATED 15 August 2012

Well, considering that Wargames supply is no more, and the only place to shop for modelling stuff in town is the local games workshop, I thought I would revisit this article.

Where to buy stuff for NZ gamers?

First up is Mark One comics and games (http://www.mk1.co.nz/). Hamilton's local gaming store, I've spoken about them before and they were the store I grew up going to. I still shop there on occasion because they have good retail prices on comic books (And I buy a lot of 2000AD) and they have competitive Warmachine prices as well. Free delivery within NZ is a plus, the website doesn't have a basket so you will need to email your requests. They may not have what you want at the time, but if they do its the quickest way to get something at a good price. They also do orders. Mention the blog when you email them, Chris is always looking for new customers and may do you a first time shoppers deal.

The new comer to the list is Jambo Games. You may notice the shop is called Jambo Hobbies, well they are transitioning from one thing to the other and currently have two stores. Don't worry, the link to the store will work.

For Warmachine, these guys are the stockist in New Zealand. A great selection of product in store and they are supplied really well (They even had T-Shirts and Wreck Markers). A little light on board games and other stuff that Mark One would stock, but a very good place for Warmachine.

Prices are very competitive and delivery is free (or very cheap, I got it free at least). Also, the store is doing a lot to support the local hobby and that gets a big plus from me. If you are going to ahve gaming in store, do it properly.

Trade me is NZ ebay. I think we are one of the few places where eBay doesn't have a strangle hold on online sales. A lot of stuff pops up on trademe, mostly second hand, but a lot of people buy models (and entire armies in some cases) and never paint them, so you can get a deal if you have patience.

It's also worth noting that there are a number of people who are importing Games Workshop product from the US or the UK and reselling it online. They are selling unopened boxes for about 20% less than retail. A good business model for them, and a nice easy way for you to get your purchases for less without having to resort to international shipping.

The book depository isn't an obvious one to go to. I have to thank my friend Andy for pointing this one out. They sell gaming books and boardgames, the entire fantasy flight games range is available through book depository for a lot cheaper than I can get it in store at my local games store. Free delivery within NZ is another bonus. You have to know what you are looking for on the site, and sometimes they seem to have completely wrong images for books. I've had positive experiences ordering from here before, so I recommend it (never got games from here before, but that may chagne shortly)

Warstore is an American games reseller,  and where i got my big bulk online order from. Pretty speedy delivery and very good pricing. The range of models and books they carry is impressive as well. Everything I ordered was shipped right away and arrived in NZ about 1 week later, very well packed and no damage in the slightest. My major concern with these guys is the cost of shipping from the states, meaning you have to do a very big order for the cost of delivery to negate the savings.

If you want GW products you can't order via the basket,  you have to download an excel sheet and send them an email. GW is making it difficult for others to resell their product to OZ/NZ and this is just one of the tactics being employed to keep our market isolated and prices artificially inflated.


The issue I have heard is that if they list an item as out of stock it can take an age for them to get it back into stock. I'm wondering if this is specific to Warmachine considering the supply issues Privateer Press have had the last year or so keeping people supplied due to the massive upswing in demand. My order from these guys did take awhile, but it was well priced .

Miniature Market is very similar to Warstore. Both US companies, both good pricing but you pay through the nose for shipping. I got a big order from them and it turned up in good condition. Honestly, just do a price check between Warstore and Miniature market and pick the cheapest one after shipping.

Sweet supernatural horror!

Prologue!

I've decided to take a break from Warmachine for a while. This is largely due to painting burn out.... I still need to take some damm photos of the models I finished for A Call to Arms.

I'm a finicky bugger and I think I need some time away from painting to recharge my batteries. (I aim to play in the next local tournament though). I paint in bursts and when my painting muse is gone I can look at a model for days without feeling any desire to paint the damm thing, and when I force myself to I just get grumpy.

Also, after my last post about the tournament I have got hitched (A civil union in fact... its like a marriage without the religious/patriarchal overtones). I've spent the last few weeks doing that and having a good time with the significant other. While we were on leave we played a fair amount of one of my favorite games of all time.... Arkham Horror

Fighting Cthulhu! FOR GREAT JUSTICE

This is madness.....  THIS IS ARKHAM!!!!!!!!

Arkham horror is a cooperative boardgame where a team of characters from the 1930's take on certain death and destruction in the form of the monsters from the Cthulhu Mythos. This isn't a review of the game at all, im just gonna say how much fun I've been having playing it.

You see, Arkham is a cooperative puzzle.

My pet Thulli will be keeping dead investigators company

While I look a good competitive head-to-head game, I also enjoy cooperative games. Ones where team work and coordination are the deciding factor between success and failure.

Arkham can be exceedingly brutal and that's the charm of it. No matter how comfortable you think the game is going, it can just bite you on the ass.

I love the team play, risk management and resource management required to succeed. If you are looking for a good game to play that requires team work, look this one up.

Currently I am playing 2 campaigns of Arkham (one with my partner, and one with the lads).

I'm trialing out rules that allow you to keep characters between games, however if a character dies in the campaign they are gone for good. See the pic above, poor Finn heroically sacrificed himself to seal an extra-dimensional gate to another world. Arkham, being the bastard of a game it is, conspired to have that seal removed only two turns later.... Finn died for nothing.... bastard game!