#39: The Destroyers of Everything!

Hi, boys and girls. 

I have been absent but not idle. And I'm going to jam in a quick blog post this afternoon to specifically address three topics! 

The first of which, with a decidedly pink flavour, are my necrons! There is not much more satisfying than deploying a powerful and not-often-seen formation on the gaming table, especially if it is painted. But I have attained the goal! I present to you, my Necron Destroyer Cult!

Now, the keen eye will spot a few heavy destroyers in there (converted with the heavy guess blaster from the Triarch Stalker Kit), and these are easily my favourite elements of the formation. Each normal destroyer squad can upgrade one of their number to be 'Heavy' for a measly 10 points, essentially handing him a Guass Lascannon. 

This formation is arguably one of the most powerful in the book. Not only do all these Jet Pack Infantry gain Move Through Cover, an often ignored rule that makes the jump-shoot-jump an effortless affair, but the whole formation gains re-rolls To Hit, To Wound and Armour Penentration. The whole formation. The efficiency of this military force is beyond compare! Taking into account the fact that every gun in the formation can hurt any model in the game, as well as the huge number of Heavy Destroyers you can jam into the restricted unit options!

Currently, my lord is accompanied by three units of four destroyers (one heavy in each), and I'm currently putting the final touches on the last unit available in the formation; a unit of three heavy destroyers. These guys form my strongest and most reliable anti-armour, and I am very confident in their ability to draw some sweat on more than a few Imperial Knights!

The second topic I want to tackle is Tau! Despite my general fear and disgust at the all-welcoming aliens, they look like they are going to get some serious love!if you've been on the Internet in the last few weeks, you will have undoubtably seen images of some new battle suits that tower over riptides, a new "super stealth suit", potentially new Fire Warriors, and of course the Forgeworld Gargantuan creature, the fearsome Supremacy Armour! The rules for this beast have been leaked online, and all I can say is "wow". 

I have fallen into the habit of comparing every gargantuan creature and super heavy unit against the Ork Stompa. A lot of units shine in this comparison, and the Supremacy Suit is no different. However, when thrown into the mix against such units as Warhound Titans and some of the bigger Eldar units, I don't think they throw out the current balance too much!

As for the inevitable new Codex, the one thing I think is a sure thing is the following of trends when it comes to those Decurion/Gladius Strike Force-esque detachment of formations. I don't quite know how this will look yet, but I already fear it!

Last, but definitely not least, and the focus of (ironically) a huge amount of anger in the community at the current time, is Skarbrand. 

For those of you who don't know, this beast of a Bloodthirster was once the champion of Khorne until he got a bit too big for his boots and threw down against his boss, who in turn threw him down out of the Brass Citadel, shattering his wings and leaving him very battered. Cool fluff. So, why the hate?

Well, the big guy got his own model this week for preorder, and his hefty price tag caused a lot of drama. Costing some $80 more than the regular (and very impressive) Bloodthirster, this cool, calm and collected fellow has just taken the top spot as most expensive plastic kit Games Workshop makes by a respectable $60, beating out the super-heavy range of Baneblades, Lords of Skulls and Stompas. 

The fury of the community was only exacerbated at the discovery that Skarbrand only containes a single new sprue, the rest of the model being drawn from the existing Bloodthirster kit. 

So, why such a huge price jump on what is essentially an upgrade sprue? Short answer; I don't know. To me, it doesn't make a lot of sense. If it was indeed marketed as an upgrade sprue, I don't think there would be an issue, but as it stands, I think the wider community feels as though someone is trying to pull the wool over their eyes. The only answer I can really give is that perhaps this is primarily a product aimed at collectors. 

I am largely unaffected by this as a general rule, having no connections to Khorne and all his underlings, but I am mildly concerned that this will become a trend. 

What are your thoughts on Skarbrand?

I know that was a bit of a depressing topic to end on, but I would be remiss if I did not address this current drama, and I'm not about to spin untruths about how I feel. Tough day. 

As always, thank you for reading and Tor patronage on my humble blog!

Thanks, 

Gabriel 

#38: Terrainasaurus Wrecks

This week has been a bit of a "works in progress" week. A lot of hobby progress has been made, but nothing finished off. 

First on my table has been the new AOS Battle Standard Bearer for my Magnificent Host. 

He's only about half done, but the detail on this model is off chops. I ended up plonking his ass on a 40mm round base due solely to the size of his banner. I'm enjoying the diversity in modelling that Age of Sigmar offers, and I've been enjoying just picking the base that looks coolest for the model. It's a simple shift in focus, but it allows a lot of customisation from model to model. 

Next up is a 10-man Tankbusta squad that I'm painting for a narrative campaign. These guys are a really powerful unit within the Ork codex, and having used them once, I won't be leaving home without them! A whole squad with Tank Hunting Rokkit Launchas AND what are essentially melta bombs just spell death for armour of any description. And don't even get me started on Bomb Squigs!

Lastly, I've been pouring a fair amount of time and energy into terrain. 

This blastscape is one of my favourite pieces of terrain, and is definitely a good one to start with. The shattered shell of a Rhino has naturally recieved a Crimson Fist paint job, and while this piece still needs a lot of work, it's definitely coming together!

This leads me to my current dilemma. Terrain variety. I'm a huge fan of the Games Workshop terrain. I really, truly am. However, I'm a little conflicted at the moment, because for 40k, their terrain range can be put into two distinct categories. "Cities of Death" with the ruined buildings and shattered walls, and "Wall of Martyrs" representing the imperial defence networks. Outside of those two categories, I feel like there is not a great deal. Now, to be fair, my desert table that I'm working on at the moment leans heavily upon Wall of Martyrs as an arid, active war zone as well as utilising a few older pieces such as the one above.

But for my next table, which probably won't be too far away, it's going to be pretty heavily converted anyway. Its going to be an Ork settlement table worthy of my sizeable Greenskin horde! But I get ahead of myself... 

So yeah, I sincerely hope that there are some great terrain pieces in the pipelines, but if not, that's ok. I'll just have to brush up on my arts and craft skills!

I'd love to hear what you guys are working on! Don't be afraid to sneak me some work-in-progress pics.

Thanks for reading,

Gabriel 

#37: Packing some serious heat...

How quickly a month goes! It felt like just last week that I painted my HQ choice, Brother-captain Santiago. With work taking up a fair bit of my time and tackling a lot of half-finished projects that have made their way onto and off my desk in quick succession, I managed to come within a handful of points of that ever elusive 500pt deadline! 

Backing up Santiago is my first tactical squad, mounted in a Razorback and wielding plasma weapons. A Devastator squad has joined my force, giving me some focused long-ranged anti-tank hitting power! Four missile launchers seemed adequate for the task, given my tight points budget, with Tank Hunter assisting them in their role thanks to the Chapter Trait. 

I was pretty happy with how my first vehicle turned out. I was a bit concerned that the predominantly blue vehicle would have a certain "ultramarine" appearance, but the flashes of deep red on the turret and primary hatch put my fears to rest, giving me great satisfaction that the infantry colour scheme transferred effectively onto vehicles. 

Other participants are keeping pace, too! Let's take a quick look. 

Jamie: Squats

Backing up the Chapter Master, Jamie has spent a lot of time and attention creating a Librarian Squat Conclave by blending the Dwarf Ironbreaker and Grey Knight Strike Squad kits in a genius fusion of bearded, psychic might! He has also started work on an Aegis Defence Line, utilising the Dwarf fence from the Battle for Skull Pass kit. He has spared no expense to embellish the most delicate of details on this heavily converted army. 

Matthew: Dark Eldar

In this round, Matt has added some speed to his Dark Eldar force in the form of a pair of Venoms. These crafty skimmers can be a real thorn in the side of your opponents if used correctly and Matt has the right idea, packing them full of Trueborn Kabalites!

Tim: Ultramarines

Ever the bane of all heavily armoured shock troops, Centurions spell trouble no matter who they are facing. With Grav weaponry currently being the dominant force when it comes to the Imperium, "Grav-cents" are a common sight on the board of serious marine players! I know for one, that I intend to add a squad to my Crimson Fists eventually, but with no small blame to be placed on the juicy Tank Hunter rule on Devastator Cents in a Fists' army, I'm actually inclined to veer away from the shiny Grav cannons in favour of the ever reliable Lascannons and Missile Launchers. I know a lot of people swear by Grav, but it's hard to argue with my weapon load out when considering every weapon has Tank Hunter...

Ryan: Inquisition

Ryan may be seen as a late comer to the race, but this is not so. In fact, I am probably (read definitely) to blame that it has taken so long for Ryan's models to grace this page. As the start of what I can only anticipate to be a heavily converted Inquisitorial Warband, he has put forth an Inquisitorial Rhino and four Death Cult Assassins, made from Dark Elf Witches and Tempestus Scions. In writing, that conversion sounds bizarre and a little out of place, but have a look at the models! They just work so effortlessly, and really portray these blood-hungry women in all their murderous glory! 

Jarrod: Daemons

On the complete opposite end of the spectrum comes Jarrod with his furious Khornate cavalry! These three brass bulldogs make a solid and fast moving addition to his already aggressive force, and will no doubt be reaping skulls with enthusiasm before the day is out!

Now, I'm going to close this post out with something that I don't really like talking about, but it seems to be necessary, given the circumstances. With Facebook's algorithms being what they are, this Facebook page will be phased out of your newsfeed unless you actively are involved with it. This is a practical, if at times frustrating, function. My point is, basically, if you enjoy reading this blog, and wish to see posts made by the Rune Axe Facebook page, be sure to "Like" said posts if you enjoyed them! That way, when the next post comes along, Facebook knows to show you. 

I don't like to bring it up and I'm certainly not trying to 'click bait' anyone. Just working towards building a healthy, positive and ever-expanding hobby community. And I sincerely hope you join me for the journey!

And lastly, I have just arrived home from my first game with the Orks in a narrative campaign, and I can say that I got a convincing win over some filthy Renegades, despite my warlord getting gunned down by two las-guns in the dying moments of the game. I didn't have time to put together a battle report but I will be sure to do so for my next game, so that you can share in the fun and laugh at the lack of discipline display by my rowdy greenskins!

Thank you so very much for reading!

Gabriel