More Malifaux Minis Manifest

Misaki's completion marks the end of me painting up my masters for the Ten Thunders- at least until I pick up Mei Feng and her constructs. Ototo was every bit the pain to paint that he was to assemble. I am finished now though, and that eases my pain- at least until it's varnish time. Yep, still no varnish as the last day I was able to seize was used to protect my now finished Greys (continues to pat self on back).

The next minis in my painting queue were the Torikage. Since they're basically ninjas I decided to forgo the green on all my other minis so that they wouldn't stand out too much. I know, the purple is pushing it, but look around this blog. It's my favorite color, so it made the cut. Yeah, the masks are gold too, but hey, they look cool so in the color went.

Last up (and only because this is the order I painted everything in) come the Thunder Archers. Those little arrows are still super fiddly, so a lot of care was taken painting them up. You may notice that the green on them is not as vivid as on the other minis that sport it. That's an oopsie. I forgot that I had been doing one further highlight with the base green and I washed them. I'll consider redoing the green bits, but now that they're "done" I'm ready to charge on to the Oiran.

...Or maybe the Ronin...

I think I'll paint them differently than the crew "proper" as the base will tie them together. Now to come up with a color scheme.

Almost Forgotten, But Not Quite

Yeah, I know- a picture of a tablet.

Woohoo.....

It's what's on the tablet that counts. Yep, I've upgraded. Since my FNSLGS (Friendly Not So Local Game Store) now has a 40k night, and since I have a freshly painted "Not Tau" army, I figure I need to get out and get my game on. In order to do that I will of course need the current rule set- 7th edition, so I broke down and dropped the $60 to get a digital copy of the rules. After finding that the Google book app doesn't read books not stored on the Google cloud, and the storage system won't accept a file larger than 100mb (the book is 130), I had to root around and find an app to read directly off the device. I downloaded a free one, and since Avast didn't go nuts after scanning it, I started my reading.

First up, the file itself. The thing should have been broken down into three files- three books just like the hardcover. Then I could have put it up on Google, and skip the first book which is a flagrant catalog and advertisement for the company. Look, guys- I just bought your book, obviously I'm interested in your toys. Well, except for my Greys... I also don't need the background of the game. I've been playing for 20 years. I think I know it by now. All I bought the book for was the rules, which start 259 pages in. I am honestly baffled as to who thought that this was a good idea.. *Sigh* Oh, GW...

To the rules themselves. Well, as you've probably read elsewhere the system is 6th edition with some tweaks- the Psychic Phase, new missions, slightly different special rules. I've read a lot of whining that this is a rip-off, but let's look back here. There has been no, and I mean NO serious rules overhaul since 3rd edition. Every edition past that has been building on and re-tweaking Andy Chambers' rules. No exception. I can and will side with those who say that this edition was released far too quickly after the last. Two years does not the lifespan of an edition of a game make.

Gameplay. Well, nobody in either of my home gaming groups is willing to get into this edition of the game, so I'll have to reserve judgement here. Hopefully in a couple of weeks (when my schedule clears up) I'll be able to go into this aspect. If you were to push me I'd say that my first-glance impression of the game is that it'll be tighter and brighter for your gaming pleasure.

So, what I'm saying is, despite the disdain toward "Unbound" armies I expressed on Three Geeks to the Wind (a statement I stand by), I hold out hope here. Now let's see how it functions once the rubber meets the road.

A Victorious Victory... Again!

1,850 point Grey Alien army done.

Really, that about sums it up for me. After a false start trying to make an Irken force, followed by insults directed toward the models and their paintjobs, I have completed this army.

Maybe.

Long-time readers may remember the above picture as my first foray into these minis. These fellas still sit in my gaming closet waiting for an opportunity to be fielded in the right skirmish game. Look behind them. See that big UFO? It is not in my Grey Alien army, and that should be rectified. I have already decided to run it as a Razorshark Strike Fighter. Since the model has four landing struts I can use them to mark arcs on a round model. I do run into the problem of possibly not having the appropriate weapons to "count as" the armament of the Razorshark, but with enough work I can probably figure something out.

So, all I need to do now is order a plane flight stand from GW and get another UFO (this time to model as flying). That will take me to exactly 2,000 points- just right for many tournaments in this area. I will post the exact composition of the army later, but be warned- unlike my Dark Eldar these lil' fellas aren't designed to be honed to a razor's edge. This is well and truly a labor of love.