Welcome!

Oh, I'm so going to have to change that...

Continue for the scribblings of a slightly (many will beg to differ) mad Englishman with an overactive imagination and nothing to lose (well, not much).

If you get stuck in the quicksand that is the insides of my head, good! Stay there and bask in the euphoria of my insanity.

(Yeesh, sorry, that sounds a bit flat, doesn't it?) Anyway, I hope some of you will be able to immerse yourself in the rubbish that I post.

Bye for now,

Bubi

Monday 22 December 2014

Arachnophobia...

So, mini report incoming. Kae vs. Master Necrotech Mortenebra

Mortenebra & Deryliss (Infernal Machines Tier 4)
Slayer x 4
Reaper x 2
Corrupter
Seether

Warwitch Siren x 2
Scrap Thrall x 9

Scenario was Outflank and Nigel (my Cryxian opponent of the day at Tanelorn WGC) won the roll off and chose to go first, from deployment:






Deployment was OK for me, had a building to anchor one flank and I started off on the right thought, keeping everyone nicely compact as the Cryx force brought few AOE's.

Unsurprisingly, Nigel raced everything he had forwards. With an extended deployment zone and AD'ing Scrap Thralls they were already more than half way across the board as the elves advanced. The Invictors picked off six Thralls and the myrmidons smacked another two and little could be done against the helljacks owing to having Stealth during the first round. Big mistake number one: Eiryss activated after the Halberdiers after a great deal of um-ing and ah-ing over whether or not to plink Spectral Steel off one of the Reapers (pro-tip... should've!). Kae feated forcing the Cryxians to back off a little, and they did so, while still maintaining a presence in both control zones, while one raced forward to tie up the Phoenix.

Managed to Backlash the running Slayer mid-combat and was left with four damage after the Phoenix, Artificer and a few of the Halberdiers smacked it, while the rest of the Halberdiers charged another Slayer and the second Reaper. Their reform move, though, was big mistake number two. They're not Sentinels (clearly!) and gain little from being base to base. Punishment duly followed when they were trampled next turn leaving only a small handful left alive, no thanks to Terminal Velocity. Mortenebra's battlegroup continued a leisurely advance, tying up the Invictors who, even with their Flank bonus barely managed to wreck the already damaged Corrupter. The less said about the Stormfall Archers' performance the better... :|

A sorry state indeed:


And that was basically it... Nigel won comfortably on scenario, but gaining only 19VP (all the Halberdiers, even if the Standard Bearer was still alive(!), the Artificer, half the Archers, Eiryss and the Thane) while I won 28 (I think... from two Slayers, one Corrupter and all the Thralls). My battlegroup was untouched though the Invictors were about to get swiped if the game continued further into Nigel's fourth turn, even if another trio of his helljacks were scraped and moderately beaten.

In fairness to myself, had I won the first turn, the integrity of my battleline would not have been so easily disrupted and with his Scrap Thralls a minimum of 3" away, and in prime position to be picked off by the Invictors, Myrmidons and even the Archers, setting up feat turn nicely. But, dreaming isn't always a good idea.

Anyway, once again, AD'ing seems to cause me more headaches than it should as Eiryss did little and achieved less. In general, attrition seems to be what I'm alright with, but boosting key-rolls passes me by (the Banshee missed both its shots on 6's to hit, rather infuriatingly). As for those that can't be boosted, well, here we go:

Kaelyssa, Night's Whisper... and Stormfall Archers:


While most factions have a dedicated light artillery weapon team unit (or something equivalent), Retribution's Heavy Rifle Team is on the bad side of "meh" in terms of quality, and the prevailing consensus is that they have a home in a total of zero caster's lists (with the improbable exception of Ossyan, and even he includes them with great reluctance), thus, Retribution's real go-to artillery piece is the Stormfall Archer unit. Toting compound bows with superb range, they bring ranged flexibility to the table. If you know anything about Ravyn, then you don't need me to tell you this... so why did I take Stormfalls with Kae yesterday?

I did so before, in a rather strange 40pt game against, Iain, another journeyman level player at Tanelorn, and they performed admirably... taking down one Bonejack and knocking out a few Thralls here and there. But during the game against Mortenebra, with Kae... getting the Stormfalls to hit isn't that much of a problem, there are four of them and with a threat range of 21", at least a couple will hit what you point them at, but hitting reliably and when you really want/need them to is a problem. Kae does little, if anything for the Stormfall Archers, and my original idea of having them soften targets up for the other units to charge into became flawed as Nigel's game developed (hardly mine, for all I was involved in it). Or rather, it was flawed from the start. Granted, taking it against a helljack heavy list isn't the brightest idea, but carpet-bombing an area of low-ARM units makes them a great unit. Still, with a decidedly mediocre RAT, and no way of boosting it, their inclusion in a Kae list was problematic from the start as reliably hitting is necessary.

With Ravyn, they have feat to be completely and utterly devastating as Firestorm mitigates their inability to hit particularly well and four Brutal shots at most things has them bleeding from the ears. Rahn can use Force Hammer or Telekinesis to make life a little easier for them. Ossyan's Gravity Well makes their damage output close to obscene (even AOE damage under this feat can make heavy infantry worried) while Quicken lets them race into a prime firing position early on and aim the entire time. Issyria buffs them with feat as well, letting them Starstrike Stealth'd high-DEF units and smell the barbecue later, and even away from feat turn, Blinding Light makes things easier too. Even Garryth, who has little affinity for the Archers, could give them Apparition to increase their threat range and aiming potential. Both incarnations of Vyros are too much of a pair of elitists (Dawnguard or get lost!) to favour the Stormfalls. And that leaves Kae. Her spells can protect them from... well, other spells, and feat still leaves them vulnerable to straying blast damage, owing to their mediocre ARM. So in general, there's little there to help, except one combination: Arcantrik Bolt & Brutal'ing the stationary 'jack. But this is very situational. Strangely, I didn't use Arcantrik Bolt at all against Nigel, given how many juicy targets there were, but he successfully presented me with too many threats to deal with at the same time, I ended up following a familiar path (piecemeal commitment), and besides... Jump Start. Alternatively, in that game: Banshee's Momentum & more Brutal'ing. But the need to effectively deal with multiple threats is too great to have fifteen points (with another three in the Artificer, for support) absorbed in dealing with six or seven points.

Thus, I return to a basic 42(+7)pts (basically my list minus the Stormfall Archers and the House Shyeel Artificer). The balance of ranged & melee combat is fine, I think, as the units now have the right role and the battlegroup is dominated by two utility pieces.

For the remaining 8pts, the ideal would be elements that have high hitting power without the need for support. Though Kae is a support caster, making things easy (whether through spells or otherwise) is quite situational, so at the moment, I'm looking at high MAT/RAT stuff... Within the 42pts are elements that can either boost their own hitting reliability/damage output or it's already relatively good anyway. Everything is 6+ on the stat that counts and those with less than 8 can Combine, boost or get another bonus (i.e. Flank). As much as I'd like to bring the Mage Hunter Strike Force back, they can take advantage of Backlash but little else (yes, I know I'm wrong, and why I'm wrong is the reason I'm still a comparative noob at the game). So 8pts... the Destor Thane is tempting, but its utility might be a bit of a trap given its average stat weapon. My initial thoughts were Fane Knight Skeryth Issyen & Narn, Mage Hunter of Ios as hard-hitters for the alpha strike, but another gun wouldn't go amiss...

But for all this... I learn. Lesson to be taught: how to sell an element dearly in battle. That and learning how to use Eiryss, Angel of Retribution properly.

Or, alternatively... I could pack in this whole game and continue learning Godslayer! -__-





Woohoo! -.-

Bubi

Thursday 18 December 2014

Our girl Kae...

Random thoughts commencing...

So, I've been playing WarMachine for about six months with varying levels of success with my primary faction being the emo-racist-terrorist elves of Ios, militaristically given form within the Iron Kingdoms universe in the Retribution of Scyrah.


A relatively small faction, they have seven casters, one with an epic form, four light jacks (called myrmidons, a strange term given that it means 'ant-person', but it adds a certain alien character, and I find it delightfully quaint), six heavy jacks, three character heavy jacks, one colossal jack, one battle engine, ten units, one weapon attachment, five dedicated unit attachments, one character unit attachment, eight solos, four faction only character solos and two faction friendly mercenary solos (one of them also possessing both an epic and legendary version). And not forgetting the smallest roster of possible Mercenaries & Minions outside of the Convergence of Cyriss. Yeah, so... not much! *ahem*



Anyway, as with many Retribution, I started with Kaelyssa, Night's Whisper as my first caster... she was in the battlebox after all. Swept away by the fluff (my first purchase was the Forces of WarMachine book, oddly... or perhaps not) and her theme list, I had a difficult time adjusting to how Kae played. Yes, she is considered very fondly among the Retribution players' community, with many gamers ribbing each other declaring that "No! She is my girl, Kae!!" and indeed, I say the same.

She is, perhaps, the most subtly versatile caster among the WarMachine factions with very few devastating tricks, but a great deal of tricks nonetheless. To Retribution players, she is everyone's friend (so long as you've got pointy ears), with very few genuinely bad match-ups, particularly against WarMachine, and against Hordes, even though a couple of her spells (Arcantrik Bolt & Backlash) lose their value, she still brings a bit of irritation.

And with No Quarter 54's release of the Force Wall tiered list, the potential grew even further bringing in a very restrictive list (at least at first sight) but one that played like no other in the game.


This tier, as earlier, I used for the Journeyman League. Seasoned WarMachine players will probably scream "WHY?!" because it is neither suited to beginners (though in my defence, I had a pretty good handle on the rules by then) nor is it a friendly list to play against, due to its roadblock nature. Tier 3 is quite a kick to the knee for many factions.

Moving on... my experience with Kae has been mixed, as with my whole WarMachine/Retribution experience, but I'll persevere as I was well aware of how steep a learning curve the game has, especially if one decides to dive in straight at 50pts (I didn't, thankfully, but my first few games at 50pts were eye-opening encounters). Having a regular sparring partner with Legion as his main faction hasn't helped, but having my arse handed to me on a plate more often than not has put certain aspects of the game into perspective.

Back on cases. Kae is a little tricky to use at first, not least because her feat is somewhat bewildering for new players, well, it was for me, since I learned in an environment of constant ASSASSINATION!! which Kae's feat is a little pointless for. Scenario play is where her feat shines as it facilitates the alpha strike or compels your opponent to run to engage. Trampling is possible but, with proper pre-feat placement, potentially a waste of initial attacks and severely limiting particularly for often FOC strapped WarMachine factions. Hordes, less so, though I can't say much more, since I haven't been on the receiving end of a trampling beast through my lines.

But given Kae's rather modest combat prowess (she needs regular boosts to hit pretty much every other caster in melee unlike both versions of Vyros and Garryth, and even Ravyn), she's a support caster in the main, but not a backline caster (such as Issyria) as her weapons bring some FOC/FURY manipulation shenanigans that can bring her close to the thick of battle. Nor is she mid-line like Rahn because she can get stuck in with a bit of support. Now... about those rather modest combat abilities, it explains why one of her best friends is the Banshee. Knockdown/slam? Thankee kindly. Send a medium-based model flying into the enemy caster, profit abound.

Obvious methods aside, I've found that Kae can work with almost (note: ALMOST) anything you field with her. Invictors with a Reach-weapon'd myrmidon is a great start. Anyone with a RNG 12"+ gun would be a good target for Phantom Hunter... or herself, for that matter, as it lets her ignore everything under the sun when choosing a target except elevation. And her feat allows her to deliver melee units, of which the Retribution's Houseguard Halberdiers and Dawnguard Sentinels are brilliant examples of, into combat brilliantly. The Thane's Desperate Pace and Vengeance mean that some bunch of unlucky bastards will get a lot of angry elven steel to the face pretty soon unless they think of something quick. A gunline isn't bad either, but better served by someone like Ossyan (his feat certainly promotes it) and Issyria (though she's good with melee oriented lists as well).

So, I've played Kae at the back, creeping forward as the games progress, feating in the second or third turn and letting her wade in shooting in support of her battlegroup and those units still alive from then. Combined arms seems to be her watch-phrase, a little more so than the other Retribution casters. There is a lot of anti-magic in her abilities and spell list, so a little shooty, a little fighty, some support and plenty of decisiveness is the way to go. She has plenty of synergies with much of what the faction has to offer, though unfortunately, she does little to outright strengthen anything. Her feat increases survivability (except against Legion, for the most part) and combinations with various elements make for very subtle tricks. A Gorgon, the Sentinels' Officer and her feat can spell the death of two heavies at the cost of the Gorgon, but at a potential benefit of four points to one, a good trade. A trio of Manticores and their Covering fire (an idea, if Elara decides to tag along, or just by Kae herself under Force Wall, given how Rahn is a massive FOC hog) with an Artificer or Battle Mages is pure battlefield control on a stick. Kae and Eiryss, Mage Hunter Commander (or 3iryss to many) bring enough FOC/FURY games between them to see a lot of cutting or frenzying happen.

Learning as I've gone, a potential list I'm taking against Mortenebra (oh, she of crazy-spider-ladiness) is the following:

Kaelyssa, Night's Whisper (+7)
Warcaster Attachment - Sylys Wyshnalyrr (2)
Heavy Myrmidon - Banshee (10)
Heavy Myrmidon - Phoenix (10)

Character Solo - Eiryss, Angel of Retribution (3)
Solo - Arcanist (1)
Solo - House Shyeel Artificer (3)
Solo - Houseguard Thane (2)

Unit Attachment - Invictor Officer & Standard (2)
Unit - Dawnguard Invictors (10)
Unit Attachment - Halberdier Officer & Standard (2)
Unit - Houseguard Halberdiers (7)
Unit - Stormfall Archers (5)

Still in progress and I'm sure it's sillier than I give it credence for, but because of their low ARM, the Stormfall Archers will have the Artificer keep the company during feat turn so that they'll be protected from deviating AOEs while everything else in the list that'll be close enough to the front lines will be tough enough to weather it. The Halberdiers and Invictors form the front line, Eiryss and the Thane provide support where needed (though it'll be pretty obvious where) while the battlegroup and archers back everything up and act as reserve.

This is, perhaps, the greatest mistake I've made while playing WarMachine. On too many occasions, I've deployed in too wide a line and spread out even further in the first turn and inevitably missed vital models out from exploiting or gaining the protection of my feat. Even cavalry/dragoon solos have seen reduced efficiency because I have a habit of just "moving shit" in my first turn. And unlike Warhammer 40K, WarMachine does not really promote linear tactics since ranges and prevalence of melee (if someone isn't swinging an axe/sword/claw at someone by turn 3, someone must demand where balls have gone!) means getting in more than one round of concentrated fire is difficult at the best of times and ranged based feats need to be very destructive to work. That and the fact that WarMachine is played on a 4x4 table which narrows the field even further. Of course, a list without a ranged game runs a great deal of risks as some of the best weapons in the game are ranged ones, and often stuck on big ponderous buggers that are hard to kill. Thus, to Vegetius we return, and decide that strong reserves are more important than frontage. In the instance of the above list, the frontage, I advise myself, should consist of the two twelve man units and the two heavy myrmidons of the battlegroup, with a couple gaps to let my solos flit about. On one flank, the Halberdiers will hold the enemy up and hopefully take a few things down with them, while on the other, the Invictors will point and fire at what's before them. The battlegroup will take down targets of opportunity to make things easier for the front line units. The Archers, I believe, will be the unknown quantities, since they'll be playing just off the Halberdiers, given that they're less killy than the Dawnguard Sentinels.

*shrug* Ah well, we'll see where this goes.

Bubi

New purpose...

Sort of...

My free time these days comprises one of two activities... WarMachine/Hordes (whether it's playing, list-building, visiting the Privateer Press community or painting, quantity of time spent on each in that order) or anime.

And since I need to sort my head out... eh... some thoughts about my dice-rolling activities and viewing material might be forthcoming.

Of course... as a racist elf (seems to be a theme in the games I play, as already noted... some months ago now...) the talk will be only of the pointy-eared of Immoren/Caen.

As for anime... watching some series now, but most aren't that good. Silliness of Gekkan Shoujo Nozaki-kun and Denki-gai no Honya-san there hasn't been that much on.

Random thoughts will abound... as ever... and be posted here. And maybe I'll actually get around to writing up more of Imperator: Iberia, particularly the chapter pre-ambles between Laelius & Polybius, which still need a fair bit of mulling over. And weirdly, having trouble resolving the affair between Berenecia and Laelius (shock horror... spoilers!), before, during and after, all OK... but its end... uh... huh... -_-

*shrugs*

I'll think of something... eventually... ¬_¬

Bubi