Two Armies Near Completion

That's right, it's just a matter of time. I've nearly completed two armies, and it just feels so good!

Note the "Coming Attractions" sidebar. It's gotten quite a bit smaller. At least until I get that SSU stuff, any way. I'm getting closer and closer to the finish line as far as my Dark Eldar and Space Wolves are concerned. Now I'm at the mercy of the weather as far as matte varnishing the minis is concerned. Monday will see me cracking down and putting the brush back to that last eyesore Raider. You see it there. The one that's still mostly primer. The one I kind of highlighted there. It's driving me nuts, all sitting there in my display case mocking me. It will be put in its place! I will make it pretty!

...Then there's the matter of the Splinter Cannon armed Trueborn. Those three jokers aren't even primed yet. No, I must focus on one effort at a time!

The above army was fielded against Demitra on Tuesday. While it still has the Blaster armed Trueborn, I did drop the Splinterborn, a unit of Kabalite Warriors, and a Venom from the list in order to accommodate an Archon and her Incubus bodyguard. They performed somewhat under par, charging a Blood Angel Tactical Squad and getting wiped out (well, except the Archon- she failed her first Shadowfield save and then annihilated the unit) to a man. All in all this proved to be the most entertaining game Demitra and I played with me using my Dark Eldar.

As far as actual painting progress is concerned, Behold! Today was dedicated to painting up my Land Raider Crusader. It started the day basecoated and washed, and hopefully it'll be dullcoted soon enough.

I also painted up my Wolf Priest, two Lone Wolves, and got a touch further on my Grey Hunters. You'll have to wait to see them though, as I have company coming over soonish.

Now, back to sweeping...

Hooray.

Njal & Co.

They need some love.

Well, I know some of my readership just isn't fond of army lists, so feel free to skip this post.

My Space Wolves have sat in their box for too long! In particular these fellows, who have been painted but never fielded. This is because the interwebz say Wolf Guard Terminators are just way too expensive. I threw together an army list, and boy am I inclined to agree. I'll show you in a few minutes, but first my thinking.

Demitra and I have been attempting to "break the mold" of "internet wisdom". This is to say we've been re-tweaking our army lists and putting stuff in them we just plain want to field, rather than what we "should" field. I've had a squad of Space Wolf Terminators sitting in my figure case for who knows how long, and they need to come out and play. As I'm without any real "need to paint" minis, I'll whip out my Land Raider Crusader that's been sitting half-finished in my gaming closet ever since I bought this army. Should I finish that, my Wolf Priest and even my last Grey Hunter squad will feel the sweet caress of the paintbrush soon too. I'm going to try to un-burn-out myself on these fellows, since it's really a shame to leave them half finished in my case.

Any way, here's what I'm thinking:

HQ

Njal Stormcaller w/ Terminator Armor- 270 pts.

Wolf Priest w/ Meltabombs, Wolftooth Necklace- 115 pts.

ELITE

Wolf Guard Pack;

-4x w/ Terminator Armor, Thunder Hammer, Storm Shield- 252 pts. (OUCH!)

-1 w/ Terminator Armor, Chainfist, Heavy Flamer- 53 pts. (OUCH AGAIN!)

-Land Raider Crusader w/ Multi-Melta- 260 pts. (TRIPLE OUCH!!!)

TROOPS

9x Grey Hunters w/ Meltagun, Mark of the Wulfen; Rhino- 200 pts.

5x Grey Hunters w/ Meltagun; Razorback w/ Lascannon & twin-linked Plasmagun- 155 pts.

5x Grey Hunters w/ Meltagun; Razorback w/ Lascannon & twin-linked Plasmagun- 155 pts.

5x Grey Hunters w/ Meltagun; Razorback w/ twin-linked Lascannon- 155 pts.

5x Grey Hunters w/ Meltagun; Razorback w/ twin-linked Lascannon- 155 pts.

HEAVY SUPPORT

Long Fangs;

-Pack Leader

-4x Long Fangs w/ Missile Launcher

115 pts.

Long Fangs;

-Pack Leader

-4x Long Fangs w/ Missile Launcher

115 pts.

TOTAL

2,000 pts.

Okay, Njal goes with the Wolf Guard Terminators and the Wolf Priest goes in with the big pack of Grey Hunters. These are my hammer units. The other four Grey Hunter packs are there to grab objectives and lend close-in fire support.

That Wolf Guard Terminator pack had better hit like a ton of bricks, because if not that's 835 points just standing there picking its nose (or worse, getting massacred by Death Company). That, my friends, is why the Internet says that the unit is too expensive. I guess I'll see on Tuesday, huh?

Long Fangs Are Long

Well, I have ten Long Fangs with Missile Launchers. A special thanks goes out to my buddy A. K. as he provided me with four of the sorely needed weapons. You may notice that three of the Missile Launchers aren't the stock standard weapons. This is because they were converted out of left over Hunter-Killer Missiles from the Razorback kits I had laying around. You may also notice that the minis are a touch shiny. This is because I have temporally run out of Dullcote. I'll get some more soon, and that will take off the shine imparted by the Krylon "Matte Varnish" I use as a primary protectant for my minis. Having finished these two squads, my attention now turns to the final ten Grey Hunters I need. I'll be picking up ten of the old minis on Friday, along with their Rhino (again, thanks A. K.). Pictures of those minis should be up soon, and after that a picture or two of the whole army in action. It will be a rematch of the last game I played at G. W., so wish me luck (that I will not make the stupid moves I made last time).

That's all from the ol' E. V. front for now. I'll have those Grey Hunters up ASAP.

Space Puppies Deep Thoughts

Well, the Dreadnoughts' performance in my last game was, shall we say, less than stellar. I was impressed with the volume and accuracy of their Autocannon fire, and wounding on twos was great fun, but they're AP 4. This is a big problem against Marine Equivalent (MEQ) armies. Their 3+ armor save just shrugs off these otherwise impressive hits.

Now, I know that these Dreadnoughts are for light tank hunting, not anti-infantry duty, but when faced with a wall of infantry they just don't cut the proverbial mustard. Get them tied up in close combat and they're done for the game. When I look at the 250 points the two of them combined suck out of my force I just can't rationalize leaving them in the army. The only possible reason to keep them is to add two more armored targets to my army, and I find that to be a somewhat questionable argument. I can add other armored threats to the army for an equal or lesser amount.

As for hunting enemy armor, I have plenty of Lascannons, Missile Launchers, and Meltaguns to take up the slack.

I also learned a bit about Thunderwolf Cavalry in my last two games. They're very good at being funneled into very narrow lanes and being tied up in close combat, if not being beaten outright. They are very good at what they do (butchering light to medium infantry) but when faced with any substantial threat (Plague Marines or Terminators) it's best to leave the heavy lifting to the Wolf Lord. He's still a pimp, even if he does have to steer clear of Librarians and their ilk.

My Rune Priest does not disappoint. Having toned him down from Njal Stormcaller to Bob the generic Rune Priest has saved me a ton of points, which can be more usefully invested elsewhere. I've decided that Murderous Hurricane and Living Lightning are the way to go, given that their range is good and they have utilitarian uses. Living Lightning is the ultimate "reach out and touch someone" ability as it's Assault D6 and has an unlimited range. It's Strength of 7 allows it to crack open tanks as well as insta-gib Toughness 3 characters. Then there's Murderous Hurricane. The attack power may not be impressive against anything tougher than Imperial Guard, but the fact that it hits 3d6 times helps make up for its mediocre strength. The main purpose behind this power though is its after-effect. The unit struck by the power treats all terrain, even open ground, as both difficult and dangerous. That's sure to cramp the style of anything trying to close on me, especially big swarms of troops.

Mobility, or lack thereof has been an issue for me. I've been too afraid to move forward and attack my foe. Not only does this go against the whole "Space Wolves feel", it's counter productive in objective based games. Sitting there blasting away is fine in the early game, but in later turns it just means you're not securing the key points on the battlefield.

This is not okay.

To that end I have enlisted the help of one of my friends. I'm raiding his bits box to obtain random parts in order to turn the stuff I have into another Grey Hunter squad. This one will be ten strong, have two Meltaguns, and will be trucking around in a Rhino. This will give me a large, aggressive squad to go for the throat assisted by my fire support, Thunderwolves (for breaking up assaults), and the short range firepower of my other Grey Hunter packs and their Las-Plas Razorbacks. Unfortunately, while the ten man size of the Grey Hunter squad does give it access to a second (free) Meltagun, it prevents the squad from having a Wolf Guard model attached to it. Those Power Fist attacks will be sorely missed. To that end, this squad will be getting a Wolf Standard. Re-rolling every 1 in a single close combat phase (that's to hit, to wound, and armor saves!) once per game is pretty sweet.

Then there are the Long Fangs. I'm adding two squads of five, each with four missile launchers. These suckers are great for cracking light to medium armor, and they kill Space Marines (especially those with multiple wounds and / or Feel no Pain) dead. They're a real bargain at 10 points each, making for a paltry 115 point squad. It's unfortunate that they're only AP 3, as they're just not intimidating to Terminators. I guess I'll have to rely on volume of fire to down them. You can only pass those 2+ armor saves for so long...

In the end my army list is undergoing a change, and hopefully for the better. Having only four small scoring units out there was just a touch too nerve wracking. Here's the result:

HQ

Rune Priest w/ Runic Armor, Chooser of the Slain, Wolftooth Necklace, Living Lightning, Murderous Hurricane- 140 points

Wolf Lord w/ Belt of Russ, Runic Armor, Wolftooth Necklace, Thunderwolf Mount, Frost Weapon, Saga of the Warrior Born- 260 points

ELITES

Wolf Guard Pack
4 Wolf Guard in Power Armor with Power Fists- 152 points

5 Wolf Scouts w/ Mark of the Wulfen, Melta Bombs, Meltagun- 125 points

TROOPS

5 Grey Hunters w/ Meltagun; Razorback w/ Lascannon and Twin-Linked Plasma Gun- 155 points

5 Grey Hunters w/ Meltagun; Razorback w/ Lascannon and Twin-Linked Plasma Gun- 155 points

5 Grey Hunters w/ Meltagun; Razorback w/ Twin-Linked Lascannon- 155 points

5 Grey Hunters w/ Meltagun; Razorback w/ Twin-Linked Lascannon- 155 points

10 Grey Hunters w/ 2x Meltagun, Wolf Standard; Rhino- 200 points

FAST ATTACK

Thunderwolf Cavalry
1 w/ Storm Shield, Power Fist
1 w/ Storm Shield, Meltabombs
1 w/ Storm Shield- 270 points

HEAVY SUPPORT


Pack Leader
4 Long Fangs w/ Missile Launchers- 115 points

Long Fangs
Pack Leader
4 Long Fangs w/ Missile Launchers- 115 points

TOTAL- 1,997 points.

Yeah, it's a 2,000 point army when I usually write up 1,850 point armies, but it's what all the cool kids (read: gamers at my local GW) are doing.

The Wolf Guard would of course be split up to accompany squads- one with the Wolf Scouts, and one with each of three Grey Hunter packs (leaving one pack for the Rune Priest to join).

I'm looking at this army and wondering if the Rune Priest really needs Runic Armor (most stuff that swings at him will ignore his armor save any way) and do the Wolf Scouts really need Meltabombs? That's 45 more points I'd have laying around, but where to put it? A Lone Wolf? In order to be effective he needs to have quite a bit of gear, so he'd be too expensive. Fenrisian Wolves for my Wolf Lord? They'd be pretty good for absorbing dangerous wounds when he gets shot at. More Long Fangs? I'm short two Missile Launcher Marines. This will require some playtesting and tweaking for sure.

Pondering abounds for sure.

A Question of Dreads

Well, tomorrow I've got a game scheduled against a local player who's warming up for the NOVA Open. He wants me to take the hardest army I can field, and that brings up a question. Am I fielding the best army I can field, and if not how can I tighten it up?

This boils down to a few questions. That of anti-armor. Do I have enough assets in my army to deal with enemy tanks and worse yet, Terminators and their ilk. Should I take Dreadnoughts to strip the enemy of their rides? Those twin-linked Autocannons sure make a mess of vehicles, and it's two more minis with an armor value out there. They're even good for tying things like Imperial Guard blobs down for most of the game by charging things that can't crack their armor in close combat.

...Or should I field my Wolf Scouts? With Behind Enemy Lines they're likely to show up right behind the enemy firebase and at least pin it down- if not destroy it entirely. I've decided to trade their Meltabombs for a model with the Mark of the Wulfen, and give my Wolf Lord a Wolftooth Necklace. With the Wulfen scout cranking out D6+1 attacks a turn (with rending) this squad is more likely to win combats against Devastators and Long Fangs, but what about things like Obliterators? Should I plan around them? Do I add a Wolf Guard Pack Leader with a Power Fist?

Without my Wolf Scouts I'm relying on things like my Grey Hunters to get rid of firepower squads that camp out in buildings, as despite how fast my Thunderwolves can move, they can't climb. Do I really want to risk one of my four (fairly small) Troops choices in order to get a Power Fist into assault?

See? Too much stuff is rattling around in my head right now. I don't want to tailor my list to fight his. I want to field what I would bring to a tournament. Unfortunately I can't lay hands on four Lascannons or Missile Launchers right now, otherwise I'd plunk down some Long Fangs in place of some Thunderwolves. It's a conundrum for sure. I'll probably decide by rolling a die tomorrow. I'll be sure to take some photos tomorrow so you can see how things go. Until then, I'll keep pondering Dreadnoughts and Wolf Scouts...

Space Wolves Salvo

Well, the Space Wolves are pretty much done (they have been for nearly a week) and it's time to post a whole lot of pictures. Let's start out at the top:

The last model I added is the first model to be displayed. We begin with Njal Stormcaller in power armor. This is a fairly old mini, and the age is starting to show. I picked him up in Finecast (in fact several of the minis in this army are resin) against my better judgement. This guy has to be mail ordered, and if he came out miscast (as so many Finecast models have) I'd have a pretty tough time returning him. Luckily the only flaw was a tiny air bubble on the underside of the little pouch on his staff.

Next up we have Njal in terminator armor. He's tougher this way, but he requires a Wolf Guard terminator bodyguard to be protected, and a Land Raider to ride around in, so he's pretty much shelved except for more whimsical games. He's another Finecast mini, and the wolf tail on his staff came broken off, but it wasn't too much of a hassle to bodge it into place.

Now we move on to the big guys, and the hero of my first game with this army. The Wolf Lord armed with a Frost Axe. His speed and hitting power (especially when he goes Super Saiyan with his Saga of the Warrior Born) make him a wrecking ball.

This guy is my big game hunter. Toting a Thunder Hammer, this guy is designed to hunt down big close combat threats. His Saga of the Beast Slayer combined with his Wolftooth Necklace ensures he hits everything that is a walker or monstrous creature on a 3+, re-rolling misses. Whacking things at strength 10 doesn't hurt either.

 Finally, there's my Rune Priest. I decided on a rat for his Chooser of the Slain as it's the only animal I had available.

From HQ we move on to Elites choices, and the first two minis I painted for the army. Toting a pair of twin-linked Autocannons each, these bad boys are threat to any APC they encounter. Gotta love Dreadnoughts.

...And here's a photo of Njal and his Terminator bodyguard. Thunder Hammers and Storm Shields all around, except for the fellow carrying the Heavy Flamer and Chainfist (not enough hammers and shields for everybody, I'm afraid). That's okay toough. The 2d6 armor penetration will really help out against walkers and tanks.

Continuing my Wolf Guard, here are my fellows with Power Fists. They're intended to be split up and added to my Grey Hunters as pack leaders.

Next up are my Wolf Scouts. They're pretty good at disrupting enemy firebases with their "Behind Enemy Lines" rule. They're there to pop something with a Meltagun and to deliver a Wolf Guard model with a Power Fist where he can cause the most havoc.

Here are my Troops choices, four packs of Grey Hunters with their Razorbacks. I'd like for them all to have the Lascannon/Plasma Gun loadout, but alas, not enough Plasma Gun muzzles. That's okay though, as the twin-linkedLlascannons will help make up for the lacking Long Fang fire support.

Finally I'll show my Fast Attack choices, Thunderwolf Cavalry. Equipped with a Power Fist per squad and all toting Storm Shields, these monstrosities strike wherever it's most dangerous. Rending along with Strength 10 backhands allow them to charge recklessly into very bad situations.

Here it is, the entire army together at once. As I said before, I still need to paint up my Land Raider Crusader, but I think what I have painted has come out nicely.

Logan's Company

This is the closest I could get to my company badge...

Brace yourselves. There is an upcoming deluge of Space Wolves pictures.

I said I'd wait a bit before I started this army, but oh, well. Tax returns make one do some kooky stuff, no?

I've decided to go with Logan Grimnar's great company. Not because he can field a ton of Terminators (they become Troops under him), and not because he's the chapter master. It's really simple. I like the company badge.

Of course, since Logan's company is so elite I've attached a Wolf Guard as a leader to each squad, and the fluff allows me to field a ton of Thunderwolf Cavalry. You see, they're Wolf Guard on big honkin' wolves.

This has the happy result of making my army an absolute nightmare in close combat. The cavalry's 12" charge is great for catching opponents off-guard, and their Strength 5, Toughness 5, Rending, and Storm Shields make them at least as good in assault as my Plague Marines. They'd better be at 80+ points a pop.

Now I'm thinking of adding the "Saga of the Warrior Born" to my Wolf Lord. This allows him to get more attacks based on how many models he killed in the previous round of close combat. He basically becomes more and more of a Cuisinart of Death the more models you try to drag him down with. Of course this upgrade costs (rightly) a fair few points.

Any way, I'm nearing a pretty big milestone with my puppies. Stay tuned!

Rolling Thunder (Or Lack Thereof)

Over a week ago I placed a special order at my FLGS for (you guessed it) three boxes of Thunderwolf Cavalry and a Thunderwolf Lord. As it stands right now, Games Workshop has not sent them their shipment almost a week after the release date for the minis, and I'm getting tired of waiting. What Space Wolf minis I do have are seven models away from being fully painted, and I'm running out of stuff. I also want to get this army painted ASAP as I'm sort of tired of not getting to game on Fridays.

This impatience has a fairly big downside to it, however. If I were to cancel my order with my FLGS they may get in the four boxes of stuff I ordered and not be able to move it. It's not their fault that G. W. hasn't sent them merchandise that was due to be released a week ago, and I don't want to leave them holding stuff they can't sell.

Of course, on the other hand, I want my stuff. I can't paint it until it arrives, and I try my hardest not to game with unpainted minis. This places a double barrier between me and my gaming. It's honestly driving me a touch batty. I had this week off from school, and I likely could have finished off a few Thunderwolves. I won't have an opportunity like this any time soon.

Oh, well. I'll just have to decide weather or not to cancel the order tomorrow (when I stop by the store).

The New Face of the New Wolves

Well, I know army lists just don't do it for most folks, but I've finalized my army list based around criticism from Demitra over at Khadoran Machine Never Breaks. He said (in a nutshell) that my army list was one dimensional and boring. Honestly, it was. To that end I have dropped the Dreadnoughts, a squad of Grey Hunters, and their Razorback in favor of a pack of Wolf Scouts, a second Thunderwolf Lord, and four Wolf Guard to sprinkle around my army. This should help break up the monotony of push my tanks forward, shoot, push my tanks forward, shoot...

This turns my army into an aggressive, leap straight for the throat force that should (hopefully) lead to much more action-packed games. The Wolf Guard will act as pack leaders in the Grey Hunters and the Wolf Scouts, and the Scouts will deliver a Meltagun, a Power Fist, and a good bit of close combat bite into my opponent's backfield (provided I can roll a 3+) The Thunderwolves will continue to do what Thunderwolves do- run into melee and kill stuff. This army suffers a bit against parking lot armies, but hopefully four Meltaguns and three Lascannons will cut the mustard as far as popping open metal bawkses.

The Downside to this army is the lack of scoring units. This may or may not be a problem, as in games with more objectives my marines will get spread pretty thin. This leads me to the usual "late game objective rush" so maligned by many players, but hey, there's nothing to be done aside from totally gutting the army- and that's not going to happen

Any way, here's the new face of the army:

HQ
Wolf Lord w/ Belt of Russ, Runic Armor, Thunderwolf Mount, Frost Weapon- 215 pts.
Wolf Lord w/ Wolftooth Necklace, Thunderwolf Mount, Storm Shield, Thunder Hammer- 215 pts.

ELITES
4 Wolf Guard w/ Power Fists- 152 pts.
5 Wolf Scouts w/ Bolt Pistol & Close Combat Weapon, Meltagun- 110 pts.

TROOPS
5 Grey Hunters w/ Meltagun; Razorback w/ Lascannon & Twin-Linked Plasmaguns- 155 pts.
5 Grey Hunters w/ Meltagun; Razorback w/ Lascannon & Twin-Linked Plasmaguns- 155 pts.
5 Grey Hunters w/ Meltagun; Razorback w/ Twin-Linked Lascannon- 155 pts.

FAST ATTACK
4 Thunderwolf Cavalry w/ Storm Shields, Power Fist- 345 pts.
4 Thunderwolf Cavalry w/ Storm Shields, Power Fist- 345 pts.

Good thing those Thunderwolves haven't been assembled yet. I'd hate to have to pry their Thunder Hammer arms off to replace them with Power Fists. In the end they may not look as cool, but the points saved make up for the aesthetics.

But I Don't Wanna Start A New Army!



They more than tempt me, they command me.

Well, they're finally here, and my ADD has kicked in again. That's right, Thunderwolf Cavalry. Now, I know the first two things you're going to say. One, if you don't want to start a new army, just don't. Two, weren't you just going on about Grey Knights a little while ago?

The answers are thus:

1.) Painting armies is what keeps me sane. I need this to keep from getting overwhelmed by work and school pretty much every day. This is my outlet, and without it I'll go a bit nuts.

2.) Yeah, but I've had a few Space Wolves minis laying around my gaming closet for a while now, and it's about time they got some lovin'.

Now, this is not an immediate thing. I still have the items listed in my "Coming Attractions" section off to the right (two Venoms, a Raider, and three Kabalite Trueborn). These minis will also need a Battlefoam bag to keep them from getting smashed into 6,450, 862 individual tiny bits during transport. What this is is a plan for the future. I've intentionally kept my list limited to as few boxes of stuff as possible. This will keep me from having any left over dudes, and I'll minimize my spending as much as possible.

Here's the list:

HQ
Wolf Lord on Thunderwolf with Frost Weapon- 180 pts.

ELITES
Dreadnought w/ 2 twin-linked Autocannons- 125 pts.
Dreadnought w/ 2 twin-linked Autocannons- 125 pts.

TROOPS
5 Grey Hunters w/ Power Fist, Meltagun; Razorback w/ twin-linked Lascannon- 180 pts.
5 Grey Hunters w/ Power Fist, Meltagun; Razorback w/ twin-linked Lascannon- 180 pts.
5 Grey Hunters w/ Power Fist, Meltagun; Razorback w/ twin-linked Lascannon- 180 pts.
5 Grey Hunters w/ Power Fist, Meltagun; Razorback w/ twin-linked Lascannon- 180 pts.

FAST ATTACK
4 Thunderwolf Cavalry w/ Thunder Hammer, 4 Storm Shields- 350 pts.
4 Thunderwolf Cavalry w/ Thunder Hammer, 4 Storm Shields- 350 pts.

TOTAL
1,850 points

The list has plenty of Thunderwolves, but they come out to an even three boxes (since I'm going to be making my Wolf Lord out of plastic) and there are no wasted parts. I will, of course, have leftover Aegis Defense Line pieces, but all I have to do is glue them down to some hardboard and they're some more (always welcome) terrain. The list is a bit light on number of models (35), but all I can do is suck it up and blame my 350 point Thunderwolf squads.

This (next) project will probably start in a few months. Stay tuned folks!