One of my favorite things to attend each year is the Renaissance Festival. For me, it marks the transition from summer into fall and it's always a good time! We ended up making it out yesterday for the first time this season; we'll hopefully get out there again but things are starting to get down to the wire with the birth of our first born fast approaching :)
Here's some pictures from the faire and quick shot of the new bike models at the end:
The weather was perfect.
Good people.
Good food.
Good beer.
Cool weapons.
Good sport. And of course...
Jousting!
And for a quick gaming related update, here's a WIP shot of my new counts-as Khan model and one of the new command squad vets w/ dual lightning claws:
We're one week away from the Battle at Blob's Park tournament, and I can't wait! For starters, I absolutely love the fall; it's by far my favorite season. Crisp clean air, hoodies, most of the annoying bugs (mosquitos) die, the Renaissance Festival, good beer... the list goes on! Anyway, I'm hoping for some great weather next saturday at the event that features some tasty bbq, several kegs, and 100 of the top local gamers around, and that's just for the 40k event. The competition around here is quite high as this area, up until recently, was the main headquarters for GW in the US. Many in the local gaming club have repeatedly claimed the top prize at some of the biggest GTs in the country, so I'm expecting some really tough but awesome matches next week.
Even though many are some of the top competitive players, they are a really great group of people who haven't lost sight of the other ways in which people enjoy the hobby, and are extremely friendly and helpful to play with. I especially appreciate this as I've been out of the gaming side of things for quite awhile now; Nova was my first big step back into playing, and it was a great one! It's unfortunate to read some of the bigger blogs out there where the super competitive just come off like douchebags who think they are god's gift to gaming. It's sad to see some push this agenda / narrow view that everything in the hobby must be reduced to some formulaic, copy/paste, net-list BS in order to be taken seriously or avoid public ridicule. It's cool if this is how you choose to play the game, just understand, like most things in life, there's more than one way to approach it.
I just registered for my next tournament, the Battle at Blob's Park, which takes place in just 2 weeks. I'm making some changes to my 2000 pt list based on my games at Nova. My next box of bikes arrived today and my Thunderfire Cannon should get here on Monday. In my next few games, I'd like to try out a few new units I've never used before and see how they perform with the rest of the army on bikes. I needed a few more to reach 2 full sized bike squads and I also wanted a few to try different weapon load outs in the command squad, so it's back to building more bikes. Haven't decided exactly on how to equip the new command squad, but with Khan leading them, I'm leaning towards lightning claws and storm shields. Luckily, I remembered to check the Nova swag bag and found a sample of magnets that will be perfect to incorporate into these next models in case I need to change things up down the road.
I also picked up some supplies this week to start on a display board for my Raven Guard. I'll definitely take some shots of this project along the way -- not sure it'll be finished in the next two weeks as I've already got a healthy list of to-do's, but we'll see what I can get done in that time
Closing out my thoughts on last weekend's event, I can't emphasize enough how great of an experience the NOVA Open was. You'll see a lot of different views and opinions on the Internet but just keep in mind that people tend to complain more about the things they weren't expecting or didn't like over acknowledging the aspects of the event that were done really well. This is the biggest thing I've noticed on the web over the past week. To all the NOVA staff who volunteered their time and effort to make the tournament a huge success, you did a phenomenal job. Everyone who was actually in attendance can attest that the event as a whole was a positive experience and the good far outweighed the bad.
No event of this size with so many people is going to go off without some hiccups in the schedule. 8 games is a lot to fit in with only 2 days for the main event. It would be great if it could be held over 3 days but I'm afraid that might make it harder for that many people to attend due to work schedules and real life. My only other suggestion for future events is to select a more reasonable hotel/venue -- the Hyatt was expensive for what you got in my opinion, and they lacked any affordable food options that could be utilized in the short amount of time between rounds.
The only other thing that caught me off guard and that I hope is changed/clarified for next time is the ruling on combat squadding from reserves. This isn't so much NOVA's fault as it is GW's poorly worded FAQ and their lack of defining "deployment" in the rules. The NOVA FAQ disallowed any combat squadding from reserves (unless from a drop pod) by citing the GW FAQ. There's a couple things I'd like to point out in regards to this decision.
GW's FAQ is answering a specific question about a 10-man squad that selects a drop pod as its dedicated transport.
Q: Can you take a Drop Pod with a 10-man squad and
then put a combat squad in it, deploying the other
combat squad on the table, or leave it in reserve but
not in the Drop Pod? (p69)
A: No, because squads that are placed in reserve may
not break down into combat squads.
We know that the squad can split into combat squads after they disembark from the pod, per pg. 51 in C:SM. On the same page under Combat Squads, it states that this decision "must be made when the unit is deployed". This brings us back to the lack of definition on what it means for a unit to be "deployed". Can a unit be deployed into reserves? Or are they only considered "deployed" after they are on the table? My thinking is the latter scenario, which seems to follow GW's logic in the codex as well as the question posed in the FAQ. The squad can't be split into combat squads while in reserves because they are not yet deployed on the table. Once deployed on the table, they are allowed to do so.
I didn't want to tangent into a rules dispute, so let me bring it back to why this lack of clarity affects my army. I have a full sized bike squad that is allowed to be split into combat squads. Say I want to combat squad them but also leave my bikes in reserves; do I have to split them somehow before they are technically placed in reserves and thus become 2 separate rolls from reserves? It's confusing because the ruling above seems to say that squads can't be split while in reserves, only when they deploy or arrive on the table. I would think that my bike squad could be split into combat squads when it deploys on the board / arrives from reserves. Until GW clears this up, I can't make use of combat squads if I reserve or outflank if I take Khan without running into rules issues, which really takes away from the effectiveness of my bike squads and limits their options.
Aside from this deployment confusion, I really enjoyed how my bikes performed on the table. They gave me flexibility in reacting to my opponents' moves, allowed me to be aggressive when I needed to be, and double tapping twin-linked bolters is the most fun you'll ever have with the standard issued Space Marine weapon. Unlike some outspoken bloggers, you wont see me complaining about the Terrain at NOVA, even with the majority of my army treating all difficult as dangerous terrain. In my experience most places don't have enough terrain on their boards, so it was nice to see NOVA abiding by the established rules of at least 25% and some LOS blocking terrain on the board. It's called generalship people; some situations/missions call for taking risks, especially when you don't plan for all scenarios and all-comers lists...exactly the environment a tournament aims to provide. I paid for siege shield upgrades on my Vindicators, and you better believe it was worth every point! I'm tired of reading about people whining that they lost because the terrain wasn't best suited for their army or that they would have won if their dice rolls would have been better. Give me a break! Anyone and everyone could make these statements (read: excuses) but thankfully not everyone is a moron.
This post isn't intended to be a bitch-fest. So let me say it again, I truly had an awesome time at the NOVA Open! I met some great people, saw some fantastic armies, and learned more about my army and 40k in a weekend than I have in the last couple of years combined. Thanks again to MVB and staff for organizing this thing. I can't wait till next year's Open!
**Note to self: Never use the digital zoom on the flip cam. I also need to remember to bring a tripod to reduce the shakiness; I apologize if watching this video causes any seizures. You've been warned!
***Also, I just realized I uploaded the wrong video; I'm in the process of uploading the correct one now and will post it as soon as it's ready (it's much longer so it's taking awhile). In the mean time, check out the Skaven Dark Eldar army and display at the end of this video; probably the most impressive thing I saw the entire weekend!
By Sunday, I think everyone was feeling exhausted. Of course staying up till 3am the night before playing Malifaux wasn't helping my sleep index, but there's no better time to go all out than when you have 300+ gamers hold up in a hotel in the middle of a hurricane. Anyway, on to the last 4 games of the Open:
Game 5 - Space Marines Another Vulcan led army but I wouldn't call them Salamanders since they were mostly purple... He also had a Land Raider w/ Assault terminators, 3 Predators, 3 Speeders, and a handful of Razorbacks. He won the roll off and opted to go first. The primary objective was Table Quarters followed by Kill Points then Objectives. Based on the amount of KP's his army had vs mine, I was feeling pretty good about this match. Nevertheless, he had a lot of long range guns and I couldn't risk getting my bikes whittled down too early. He deployed aggressively leaving very little space for me to hide my bikes from first turn shooting. I decided to reserve my command squad but this time I split the Chaplain off to go with my smaller 6 man bike squad to ensure that they wouldn't flee off the table before my reinforcements showed up. This turned out to be a really good decision.
On to the summary of games beginning Saturday. I’ll briefly touch on the big stuff in my opponent’s lists but I wont be posting full army lists as those belong to the authors and it’s up to them if they would like to post them (you can view my list here).
Game 1 - Salamanders
Vulcan; 2x Land Raiders each transporting a squad of assault terminators.
This army was beautiful! (see the image above) I’m sure anyone who attended saw this army on display and drooled over it like I did, haha. Robert, who painted this masterpiece of an army, was an excellent opponent and an awesome guy in general. He was already a winner before our game even started as it was him and his team who won the DC Bar Crawl the night/early morning before. Anyway, 2 LR’s are scary and hard as hell to get rid of! It took a lot of shots, but I was finally able to crack one of them with a demolisher shell. This game felt like an uphill battle from the get go with the raiders and termies keeping the pressure on. I managed to get some VP’s but I just couldn’t overcome this army. Loss.
Going into the second game, I knew I needed to stay focused on the primary mission for the round, something I didn’t do so well with the 1st game. I also knew I needed to neutralize those Typhoons and Cyclone ML terminators, something I learned from my practice games with John leading up to NOVA. The primary goal for this round was Table Quarters, followed by Objectives then Kill Points. My vindicators scored some devastating hits this match and my IC dread tied up his left flank for most of the game, which freed up my bikes to get to where they needed to. My opponent Bob, aka Marshal Laeroth from around the Internet, is a great guy and we had a really fun game! We grabbed some lunch after the match and discussed lists/tactics as hurricane Irene was bearing down on the area. We wanted to get a second game in as the first one was close and our armies seemed to match up well (we were drawn on the first two mission goals and had to go to KPs where my army does well as it doesn’t offer many). Unfortunately the schedule for the weekend was already rigorous and there just wasn’t any extra time to fit an additional game in. Bob was a pleasure to play against and I look forward to rolling dice with him again the next time our paths cross! Win.
Game 3 – Black Templars
EC; Marshal; Assault terminators in a Land Raider, 4 Crusader squads, 2 Rhinos, 2 Predators, and a beefy Assault squad.
This was a very different game from the one before. For starters, this Templar list was much more close-combat oriented (the 1st one was gunline) and the deployment was Dawn of War. I’ll admit, I haven’t played a single night-fighting match in 5th, which clearly showed as I forgot about my searchlights and Telion’s Acute Sense rule. Woops! But no better way to learn than in a game like this. Erik was a great opponent and really helpful in explaining how his army worked and things that I should think about with mine. He was a much better general than me and was flawless in his tactics and execution with his army. I made some mistakes and got too close with my bikes. This match really showed me that I need to tighten up my game and give some serious thought to when I should hold units in reserve and when it’s ok for my squads to charge in for the kill. Loss.
Game 4 – Grey Knights
Inquisitor w/ rad grenades; lots of grey knights and purifiers; 3 Razorbacks, 3 Rhinos, and the dreaded 3 psyflemen dreadnoughts.
In a word to sum up this match: ouch! I was worried about facing Grey Knights before the tournament as I’ve heard all the horror stories and have seen some of the mathhammer they can achieve. But then I thought, I’ve got enough plasma and 2 demolishers to deal with their Paladins/terminators… only this list didn’t have any :-/
Sooo many psycannons and psybolts that anything I had in LOS of his guns was forced to make handful after handful of saves (even a good cover save isn’t safe against that much dice). I really didn’t know what to do against this army. My opponent, Rick, was really cool about it and gave me a lot of things to think about when facing GKs. Then we ended up talking about Malifaux the rest of the time, which I’m just getting into. Major loss.
That's it for the first day of the GT. Day two and the last 4 games will be up tomorrow.
Here’s the first part from my summary of experiences from last weekend at the NOVA Open 2011. I arrived Thursday evening since I work near DC and wanted to catch some of the Whiskey Challenge games that started at 6. After walking around a little I asked about Open gaming and when that would start – I figured I would try to get a game in later that evening for more practice since I had only managed to play a handful of games in the 2 weeks leading up to NOVA.
A few minutes later I get approached by some really nice staff asking me if I could fill a vacant slot in the Whiskey Challenge due to a no-show. The initial prospect of this made my stomach turn as I tried to make it clear that I am no 40k heavyweight (or middleweight even) and I thought the Challenge was for all the best tournament players or big names in 40k to duke it out amongst a smaller/elite pool of players. I didn’t want to be the baby seal giving someone an easy win and fudging the results, lol. But by that logic, having an odd number of players would achieve just that, forcing a by for the player without an opponent. After confirming that there was no one else who could fill the spot (and making sure I wasn’t going up against Stelek, haha), I agree and head up to my room to retrieve my army. Still nervous as I approach the game hall with my gear, I notice someone else rushing along with a huge army transport case behind them. I stop them and ask if they are there for the Whiskey Challenge and sure enough they were, just running late. Crisis averted! And by crisis, I mean avoiding getting demoralized in the first hour of my first game at the NOVA ;)
.png)
.JPG)
