Not much updates this time round. Been real busy at work, but managed to get some painting done. Behold, 2nd platoon is now ready for action, and so is the company's machine-gun platoon. I'm very pleased with myself for keeping to the paint schedule. Was going to post pics, but my camera phone just don't cut it. I was tempted to break out the Ravenwing models I bought, but resisted the temptation and will be working on the M-10s next.
One thing I did not update last week was that I got to watch the tail-end of some league games. Pretty cool. The fights were fierce, but quite fair, and mostly loads of fun. I did notice that some people were not too clear on the rules. Sometimes I bother correcting them, sometimes I don't - depends on whether they are having fun or just plain competing. But all in all, yet another interesting example of watching different play styles and different ways of playing the armies. There was this IG army that had a couple of sniper squads. Not only do they look good, they are pretty effective too. And I saw how spamming Khorne Berzerkers in Rhinos can get pretty scary for the opponent. I'm sure our very own Lord Akkarrin can relate.
On another note, I've been slightly distracted with the HBO mini-series Generation Kill. Is it running back home? Real excellent stuff. Go catch it if you can.
This weekend I'll be deciding whether I should get the Imperial Sector building box set or not. Let me think it over.
Thursday, July 31, 2008
Monday, July 21, 2008
Hobby in Plano, TX - Part 3
Dropped by GW Grapevine today, which is about a half hour drive away. The intent was to check it out and then go back to the hotel to finish about 5 hours worth of homework. Problem is, I parked on the opposite side of the mall and had to walk past several other interesting stores before I actually got there - which lengthened my trip somewhat (Rock Band for Wii is tempting, if only I can figure out how to lug it home).
It's quite a typical store. 3 demo tables up front, 3 gaming tables to the side. Terrain was ok, and there was a nice-looking village, complete with barn and bell-tower (which in a game I was watching, housed a Devastator squad, and counted as AV11). My intent was to pick up some Cadians and some WFB cavalry, but I kinda forgot.
Watched a couple of games. One was this cool Ork army wiv lotsa boyz doing some serious Marine-pounding. The Ork objective was surrounded by 26 boyz, and behind a building manned by Lootas and guarded by a looted vehicle ... that would be a challenge to grab. The Marine player did not have enough troops choices, and the Orks literally strolled to victory (well, it was actually bloodier than that - slugfests between Chaplain, Assault Squad, Nobz, Boyz and all ... it was quite messy).
Another game going on was a 1850pt Dark Eldar vs Marines. We all know what happens when Marines even think about fighting DE :) Anyways, the Marine army had a tad too many points-sinks - a Land Raider, Land Raider Crusader, 2 termie squads, dreadnought, 2 tactical squads. The DE army is very different from what we are used to. For one, the guy actually used a webway portal - haven't seen that in ages. The army had a full Incubi retinue for his Archon, 2 Wyche squads, 2 Talos, grotesques and only 2 Raider squads. The Wyches were equipped with haywires, and they easily blew up both Land Raiders. At the end of the game, both DE and Marines (all 2 surviving battle brothers) only held 1 objective each - tactical draw (though I don't think the Marine player felt it was).
Anyways, the store was running a paint workshop, and I had stayed too long as it was. Now I've got to steel myself for the homework, or at least get started.
It's quite a typical store. 3 demo tables up front, 3 gaming tables to the side. Terrain was ok, and there was a nice-looking village, complete with barn and bell-tower (which in a game I was watching, housed a Devastator squad, and counted as AV11). My intent was to pick up some Cadians and some WFB cavalry, but I kinda forgot.
Watched a couple of games. One was this cool Ork army wiv lotsa boyz doing some serious Marine-pounding. The Ork objective was surrounded by 26 boyz, and behind a building manned by Lootas and guarded by a looted vehicle ... that would be a challenge to grab. The Marine player did not have enough troops choices, and the Orks literally strolled to victory (well, it was actually bloodier than that - slugfests between Chaplain, Assault Squad, Nobz, Boyz and all ... it was quite messy).
Another game going on was a 1850pt Dark Eldar vs Marines. We all know what happens when Marines even think about fighting DE :) Anyways, the Marine army had a tad too many points-sinks - a Land Raider, Land Raider Crusader, 2 termie squads, dreadnought, 2 tactical squads. The DE army is very different from what we are used to. For one, the guy actually used a webway portal - haven't seen that in ages. The army had a full Incubi retinue for his Archon, 2 Wyche squads, 2 Talos, grotesques and only 2 Raider squads. The Wyches were equipped with haywires, and they easily blew up both Land Raiders. At the end of the game, both DE and Marines (all 2 surviving battle brothers) only held 1 objective each - tactical draw (though I don't think the Marine player felt it was).
Anyways, the store was running a paint workshop, and I had stayed too long as it was. Now I've got to steel myself for the homework, or at least get started.
Friday, July 18, 2008
Iron Painter Rescheduled- Date TBD
Hola folks!
Amongst a few other things discussed at this month's meeting was the decision to push forward the Iron Painter to another date. Unfortunately it looks like a lot of folks are pretty busy during this time, and we also haven't gotten the word out as much as we could have. Better planning, and we WILL run this uber painting event- count on it!
Don't forget Legio member shirts are in and waiting for all Legionnaires. Keep hobbyin', and I hope to see you all next week! Well, maybe not Azlan... ;)
Amongst a few other things discussed at this month's meeting was the decision to push forward the Iron Painter to another date. Unfortunately it looks like a lot of folks are pretty busy during this time, and we also haven't gotten the word out as much as we could have. Better planning, and we WILL run this uber painting event- count on it!
Don't forget Legio member shirts are in and waiting for all Legionnaires. Keep hobbyin', and I hope to see you all next week! Well, maybe not Azlan... ;)
Thursday, July 17, 2008
At last, member shirts have arrived...
That's right, we finally got these delivered today, just in time for tomorrow's hobby night AND Legion Meeting. So, all members have TWO killer reasons for showing up tomorrow night...
I'll be building my 2nd SS Flames of War army for Iron Painter. What are the rest of you hobby nutters doing?
Hobby in Plano, TX - Part 2
Went back to Hobbytown after work. Wednesday nights is like Games Night and there were about 14-15 guys and a gal there. There were a lot of 500pt 40k action going on. Quite interesting to watch totally different styles of play.
I watched a tiny BA army take on an equally tiny EC army. The BA got shredded to pieces by Slaaneshi firepower. By turn 3, only 3 DC and an attack bike were all that's left of the army. Another interesting game was IG vs Orks ... needless to say it was the largest game of the night. They rolled Annihilation, and the Orks won quite easily (ok, their losses were horrendous, but hey, they can't be beat). Btw, the Ork player showed me his WIP Looted Vehicle - an enslaved Carnifex, chained and reined and herded by little Grots, all on nicely modeled MDF base.
There were also some other gaming action going on. I saw a 1,500pt Death Guard vs Chaos Daemons game, which was quite brutal. The Daemons fielded 2 packs of flamers, and they were just eating up the Death Guard with their 3 templates per turn. The flamers were eventually butchered but they are deadly. There was also a 2-a-side game, with some nice Eldar. And one table had some Warmachine action.
Since I didn't have my army with me, I just grabbed another Attack Bike.
I watched a tiny BA army take on an equally tiny EC army. The BA got shredded to pieces by Slaaneshi firepower. By turn 3, only 3 DC and an attack bike were all that's left of the army. Another interesting game was IG vs Orks ... needless to say it was the largest game of the night. They rolled Annihilation, and the Orks won quite easily (ok, their losses were horrendous, but hey, they can't be beat). Btw, the Ork player showed me his WIP Looted Vehicle - an enslaved Carnifex, chained and reined and herded by little Grots, all on nicely modeled MDF base.
There were also some other gaming action going on. I saw a 1,500pt Death Guard vs Chaos Daemons game, which was quite brutal. The Daemons fielded 2 packs of flamers, and they were just eating up the Death Guard with their 3 templates per turn. The flamers were eventually butchered but they are deadly. There was also a 2-a-side game, with some nice Eldar. And one table had some Warmachine action.
Since I didn't have my army with me, I just grabbed another Attack Bike.
Monday, July 14, 2008
Hobby in Plano, TX - Part 1
Just got back from the Plano branch of Hobbytown USA. Not bad at all (especially considering that I arrived less than 10 hours ago in the middle of the night). Hobbytown stocks all kinds of miniature stuff - railways, military model kits, Warmachine, Fantasy, 40k, all kinds of RC (cars, aircraft, boats) and a great selection of tools and materials.
What's interesting is that for a generic hobby place, the 40k scene is not bad at all at this store. They opened late on Friday so that they can do Midnight Madness - selling 40k 5th Ed at 12:01 a.m. They kicked off the 40k release with an Escalating League. Pretty cool league - 1st week 500pts, 2nd & 3rd week 500-1000pts, etc. Painting nights. Objective and terrain building nights, and all the stuff you'd expect from a games community.
Apparently I missed out on some good gaming yesterday, about 15 gamers (they have 4 tables). Gaming is usually on Saturdays, Sunday afternoons and Wednesday evenings. We'll see what happens this Wednesday.
They also gave me their Gaming and Event Schedule, which goes out to end-August. Other than the stuff I mentioned above, there's going to be a Mega Battle on 9th August, and a Fantasy league which kicks off on 30th August.
I like the place, and is definitely worth saving on my GPS for much future return visits. I originally went to the place for some paints and the Apocalypse Reloaded book. The book's release has been pushed to Friday, but I got my paints AND a nice big Ravenwing squadron box set :)
Stay tuned, there are a few more stores to visit over the next few weeks, including GW Gainseville.
Thursday, July 3, 2008
Iron Painter advice from a vet who's been there...
Howdy folks! As the title suggests, I’ve run and competed in several Iron Painters during my time with GW. Iron Painter evolved a bit over time, mostly because we learned from some early mistakes and assumptions. Each iteration got better and better as we learned more. From this experience, as well as experienced gained from competing in them, allow me to share my experience and impart to you a few suggestions. For Legio Malaysia’s first Iron Painter, I won’t be competing for the Purity Seal despite the fact I plan to paint something anyway. I’ll be judging the entries at the end to determine a winner (if any! One Iron Painter I ran had an appalling drop out/failure rate, and no one won!). In the future if we get high attendance, we’ll let Iron Painters vote for their favorite army as the winner. However, this time I’m suspecting that our first one might not get a huge turnout. Feel free to ask me questions/seek advice during the competition if you like.
First, let’s start with the army you’ll be painting. The most common problem with past competitors is that they didn’t bring a LEGAL army. A big part of the idea behind Iron Painter is to get something done that you can use on the tabletop by itself. So, if you decided to compete with a Warhammer army, you better make sure you’re painting an army general and two core choices from your chosen army. If you don’t have those three things, your army isn’t legal! Remember that you need to have at least 30 models, and that the models must be worth at least 1000 points. Do up an army list for yourself and for the judge (me), and make it easy to prove that you meet the mark.
Now, let’s get on to the practical side of painting. Use the time you have before the Iron Painter wisely. Clean all the flash and mold lines off your models, and assemble them nicely. If you plan to glue sand on the bases, do so before you spray prime them. When you prime them, make sure you get every crack and crevice of EVERY model. Set yourself up to be as successful as possible- SAVE TIME AND ENERGY.
When the bell rings at 12:00 noon Saturday, be sure to get crackin’ and keep crackin’. Know how you’re going to paint your army- don’t wait until that day to figure out a color scheme. While you’re painting, be thinking of the next step so you waste as little time as possible. Get up every few hours and take a short break. Walk around a little bit. Check out the competition. Get some fresh air. Then, get back to work!
I strongly recommend that you paint your General, Command HQ, or HQ choice first if you want it to look good. Your mind will still be fresh. Your best painting is only going to last the first 6 to 10 hours or so unless you have inhuman mental endurance. Take advantage of that “good time” and paint the difficult stuff right off the bat. Save the block painting for when your mind turns to mush at 5:00 AM Sunday.
Finally, I have a list of things that experienced Iron Painters tended to bring with them in the past. Read through this and make sure you bring what you’re going to need (other than your army and standard hobby supplies!).
• MP3 player with headphones
• Charger/batteries for your MP3/music source
• Portable lamp that clamps on to any table
• Your favorite snacks and energy drinks
• Seat cushion (if you have a hard time sitting for extended periods)
• Pillow to catch a cat nap on the floor
I wasn’t kidding in the initial post when I said finishing an Iron Painter is like finishing a marathon. Make no mistake- this is not an easy thing to do. Fatigue will smite you without a doubt. The average Iron Painter contest I ran in the past had a whopping 75% dropout/failure to complete rate. Grind it out. Keep putting forward effort no matter what. The feeling you get by finishing something that hard is well worth the lack of sleep. Remember, you’ve got the rest of Sunday to fall into a painting induced coma!
First, let’s start with the army you’ll be painting. The most common problem with past competitors is that they didn’t bring a LEGAL army. A big part of the idea behind Iron Painter is to get something done that you can use on the tabletop by itself. So, if you decided to compete with a Warhammer army, you better make sure you’re painting an army general and two core choices from your chosen army. If you don’t have those three things, your army isn’t legal! Remember that you need to have at least 30 models, and that the models must be worth at least 1000 points. Do up an army list for yourself and for the judge (me), and make it easy to prove that you meet the mark.
Now, let’s get on to the practical side of painting. Use the time you have before the Iron Painter wisely. Clean all the flash and mold lines off your models, and assemble them nicely. If you plan to glue sand on the bases, do so before you spray prime them. When you prime them, make sure you get every crack and crevice of EVERY model. Set yourself up to be as successful as possible- SAVE TIME AND ENERGY.
When the bell rings at 12:00 noon Saturday, be sure to get crackin’ and keep crackin’. Know how you’re going to paint your army- don’t wait until that day to figure out a color scheme. While you’re painting, be thinking of the next step so you waste as little time as possible. Get up every few hours and take a short break. Walk around a little bit. Check out the competition. Get some fresh air. Then, get back to work!
I strongly recommend that you paint your General, Command HQ, or HQ choice first if you want it to look good. Your mind will still be fresh. Your best painting is only going to last the first 6 to 10 hours or so unless you have inhuman mental endurance. Take advantage of that “good time” and paint the difficult stuff right off the bat. Save the block painting for when your mind turns to mush at 5:00 AM Sunday.
Finally, I have a list of things that experienced Iron Painters tended to bring with them in the past. Read through this and make sure you bring what you’re going to need (other than your army and standard hobby supplies!).
• MP3 player with headphones
• Charger/batteries for your MP3/music source
• Portable lamp that clamps on to any table
• Your favorite snacks and energy drinks
• Seat cushion (if you have a hard time sitting for extended periods)
• Pillow to catch a cat nap on the floor
I wasn’t kidding in the initial post when I said finishing an Iron Painter is like finishing a marathon. Make no mistake- this is not an easy thing to do. Fatigue will smite you without a doubt. The average Iron Painter contest I ran in the past had a whopping 75% dropout/failure to complete rate. Grind it out. Keep putting forward effort no matter what. The feeling you get by finishing something that hard is well worth the lack of sleep. Remember, you’ve got the rest of Sunday to fall into a painting induced coma!
Wednesday, July 2, 2008
IRON PAINTER!
Paint an entire army in 24 hours!
The ultimate army painting challenge - you have from noon Saturday to noon Sunday to paint a 1000 point, 30 model/stand minimum Flames of War, Warhammer, or Warhammer 40,000 standard legal army.
You may show up with your army assembled and primed. RM25 fee (RM20 for Legio members) includes attendance, pizza dinner, and coffee throughout the night. Even though there can be only one winner, EVERYONE who successfully completes the Iron Painter will be getting something special.
Iron Painter is like running a marathon- finishing is a feat unto itself! Sign up during Hobby Night, or click the email link on the top-right to register. Space is limited!
Do YOU have what it takes?
When: Sat, Jul 26, 12pm – Sun, Jul 27, 12pm
Where: Battlefront Miniatures Malaysia
"Houston, we have blue foam."
That's right folks, we finally managed to get a decent quantity of blue foam together for a table or two. Our first project is to produce a test table for the 40K RTT on November 1st. Hobby Team members, please keep your eyes peeled to the events calendar for our terrain session dates and times.
Also, this coming Friday we'll hold a meeting with the RTT Hobby Team members, and discuss where we're at now, and what needs to be done. Please attend if at all possible.
Thanks!
Also, this coming Friday we'll hold a meeting with the RTT Hobby Team members, and discuss where we're at now, and what needs to be done. Please attend if at all possible.
Thanks!