40K REVIEW: Mechanicum

Mechanicum: Graham McNeill

You guys know me. I LOVE the Horus Heresy. I Love it so much I created a ridiculous sized Pre-Heresy Death Guard army, bought every fluff book I could find, wrote a Heresy campaign book, and rush out like an excited school girl every time Black Library knocks out another novel.

You also know that I am picky. The Heresy is one of the most pivotal and cherished events in the entire 40k universe and I firmly believe it is to be entrusted to seasoned hands. When I first heard that Graham Mcneill was doing an entire book devoted to the Mechanicus civil war during the Heresy, I was filled with anxious excitement. False Gods and Fulgrim were both decent pieces of material, but the jury was still out in the minds of many.

I opened the pages and began to read. The red Martian Plateau spread out before me, filled with a series of interconnected mysteries, unlikely heroes, sinister villians, and a "big picture reveal" that shakes some of the very foundations of what we know about the Imperium.

I won't go into any details regarding the plot (YOU NEED TO GO BUY THIS BOOK RIGHT NOW), but I'll say that Graham has knocked it out of the park. This is his best work so far in the Heresy series and is right up there with Abnett's Horus Rising. This book isn't good, its GREAT.

A note however; much of this book's charm is the subtle interconnections it makes with events occuring in various other novels in the series, so it really pays to be current on the Heresy series. This book offers a totally unique insight into the Heresy, and sheds light on that deepest of mysteries, the origins of the Dark Mechanicus.

Did I mention, there is more titan and knight action than you can shake a stick at, and we are granted more personal insight into the Emperor in the tradition of Horus Rising and Legion. He is turning out to be quite the "interesting" figure, and not what he is popularly viewed as.

In short, McNeill, could have taken the safe way out, and made a battle book with Space Marines that takes place on Mars. He didn't do that, took a big gamble and it paid off in spades... for YOU the readers.

5 stars (out of 5)

~For those that have access to it, take the time to check out the unofficial introduction to this novel in the Kaban Machine short story found in the Black Library hardback Horus Heresy: Collected Visions.

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Ork Aeronautica AAA

After playing Aeronautica a few times, I was eager to add some Flak batteries to the Ork airfield. I hoped on eBay and did a search for Flak under the warhammer categories. As expected, nothing returned. So I broadened my search to the Toys and Games category and got some results. For those not in the know, Axis & Allies makes a miniatures game. They are not the best models and do not have a consist ant scale, but they are not terrible either. I saw a German Flak 38 for 99 cents with free shipping. For 99 cents I am willing to take the risk and see if I could convert it up to look orky.

When it arrived, I was impressed. Pre-painted and flocked on a base. Obviously the green paint job would have to go. Apparently the Germans were not a fan of bright red with checks and dags on their military equipment.
I did a quick conversion to raise the angle of the gun and spend about 15 minutes on paint and it was done. A great find.
And after the game with BigRed and Aventine, I picked up 6 more for about $5.

At this scale, they are generic enough to stand in for IG Hvy Flak Guns as well. Sorry Eldar and Tau players, the Germans never made a Sky Ray equivalent in the 40's.

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40K SNEAK PEEK: Stompa Pics Incoming

Pics brought to the community by Warseer and The Waaagh

Did someone say they wanted more 40k stuff? Here are some Stompa pics from Warhammer World.









~I'll be the first to say that some of these closeups (especially the back and gun arm details) have me more impressed than before. Now we just need to get our hands on some sprue pics to get an idea of how the hull and underside are put together.

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BATTLE REPORT: Memphis Belle Edition

Hi guys,

I promised you a battle report in my last Aeronautica post, and here it is. Aventine, Bulwark and myself each hauled our squadrons down to our FLGS and had a giant throwdown. With me bringing my massive Harbinger heavy bomber, it was decided that the Eldar would be coming to the aid of the Orks in this battle to stop me from bombing their airfield into the dust. Appently a Farseer somewhere had decided that something in this greenskin airfield needed to survive.


Turn 1
The Orks started on the ground and scrambled from their hangers to meet the oncoming Chaos contrails on the horizon. The Chaos squadron was broken into two wings. On the far right, the Harbinger and a light escort of three Hellblades swept in at medium altitude(4) towards the airfield. High above at max altitude (9) a large force of 8 Helltalons and Hellblades screamed forwards to provide cover. From the left of the table, a large force of 6 Nightwings ecsorted a dreaded Vampire Destroyer swept in at medium altitide (4) and headed straight for the Harbinger.

The Chaos top cover squadron went into a power dive, and managed to exchange some long range fire with the Eldar to no effect.





Turn 2
In a scene out of World War 1, all squadrons mixed it up in a huge swirling dogfight. The Harbinger continued towards it target, releasing its escorts to give it cover. The Orks had climbed into weapons range at altitude 4, and the Eldar had also arrived at mid-table in weapons range. The top cover Chaos elements finally dove in behind the Eldar and every pilot in the area wiped sweat from their brow and focussed on their targeting arrays.

As the firing phase passed back and forth between teams, they pummeled each other relentlessly. The Eldar suffered the brunt of the fire, and half of their Nightwings exploded in wraithbone fragments. Even their holofields could not protect them from the fusilade of autocannon fire. The return fire was devastating, Ork heavy stubbas and elegant Eldar Shuriken cannon opened up and blew nearly all the Hellblades from the skies. Two medium sized Helltalons were destroyed by the Pulsar fire from the Vampire, and the wall of fire from the Blasta Bomma.





Turn 3
Things were looking grim for the Chaos squadron. The mighty Harbinger trundled on, undamaged and opened its bomb bay doors. Next turn the airbase would be in range. The half-dozen remaining escorts were scattered by the dogfight, and pulled high-g turns to try to surround the rear arc of the Harbinger and blast anything that pulled in to close. Every Eldar and Ork aircraft that could pulled in close behind the gigantic beast and blazed away.

In the firing phase, the Harbinger was blasted time after time. We all watched as the Vampire and Blasta Bomber punched huge holes in its airframe, while the remaining Fightas and Nightwings added their own fire. A handful of Ork Fightas fell to sporadic Chaos fire, but not enough. We all counted down the damage to discover the Harbinger had survived, with only a single damage point remaining.

As blood came back into the Chaos commander's face, Bulwark remembered the lone tiny Ork AAA platform defending the airbase. The boyz climbed in, cranked the rusty gun into position and oped fire. Two sixes later, the Harbinger was a flaming wreck, and Bulwark was telling me about the great deal he got on ebay for the AAA gun ~More on that later.

~I hope you enjoyed this report. Aeronautica is a really fun game that makes a great side show to 40k. Its scale and speed of play is perfect to help you fit some grander narratives into your campaigns, and it may one of the most portable GW games out there. All my stuff fits into a tiny little mini case. Comments are welcome.

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NEWS: Stompa, Deffrolla, Apocalypse and More.

Here are a few tidbits of news on a variety of GW related topics many of you may find helpful.

- There's been much speculation about the upcoming release windows for new GW product in 2009. An article about the new Shadowsword kit on page 10 of White Dwarf issue #348 (US) clearly states that March is the release month for a "swathe of Apocalypse releases".

- White Dwarf issue #348 (US) states on page 25 that there will be a Direct-only frame available soon which will have a deffrolla and killcannon upgrade for the new Ork Battlewagon. If you're building a Battlewagon right now or are about to start on one you may want to hold off on gluing the included ram to the front if you're thinking about upgrading to a deffrolla. No word yet on the cost or when this Direct-only sprue will be available.

- If you're lucky enough to live near a GW store or perhaps certain independent retailers, the Ork Stompa is now making its way onto public display. Customers were able to check out this model quite closely at my own local Battle Bunker starting yesterday. There is also apparently a Stompa on display at Warhammer World in the UK. Large pictures of the Ork Stompa can be found in this new teaser on the GW website here. Pictures taken by a customer at Warhammer World can be found here.

- The plastic Stormboyz, plastic Gretchin and Ork Boss Zagstruk set will be released on January 17. These items are currently available for order on the Games Workshop Advance Order page of their online store.

- As I continue to hear about people searching for help building Brass Scorpions ever since the conversion guides on the old GW US website were removed I thought I'd offer this potentially helpful bit of information. Anyone in need of a conversion guide for building a Brass Scorpion or a Tower of Skulls is welcome to request a copy of my own guides by writing via email to GW US Customer Service at custserv@game-workshop.com. Be sure to specify which guide you'd like to have and they will email you a copy. Note that part of the article formerly on the GW US website was based on my guide for building a Brass Scorpion using two Defiler kits, so converters should hopefully find this guide relatively helpful.

- Tabletop Gaming News has an interesting year-in-review editorial for 2008 and Games Workshop is of course, prominently featured along with several other game companies. Keep in mind when reading this article that it is an editorial and the personal opinion of the writer rather than hard fact. Nevertheless, I thought it was an interesting read.

- In the Warhammer Fantasy Orc range, the new Animosity Orcs model is really imaginative and cool. Check it out here. It's so cool, I'll bet some 40K Ork collectors will also be finding a way to incorporate this model into their collection.

I hope everyone's new year is off to a good start. Keep building and painting those models!

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++DELETED+ and ++DELETED++ sighted

One of our lucky readers scored this video of the ++DELETED BY THE INQUISITION++being assembled at GW HQ. And, if you look closely in the background, you can see a ++DELETED BY THE INQUISITION++ still on the sprues. You can tell its the ++DELETED BY THE INQUISITION++

enjoy!

UPDATE: We apologise for the fault in link. Apparently the evil Mantis Warriors have gotten into the system again.

++INQISITORIAL UPDATE: WARGAMING IS NO PLACE FOR LAUGHING. MOVE ALONG CITIZEN++

~ You guys better watch out on April 1st :)

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NEWS: 2nd Wave Orks are Here!

Sometimes when we talk about the upcoming minis for so long, we forget to get excited when they actually show up on the shelves and we can add them our collections:

The Green Machine rolls on with these new additions to Ork lineup, ready for your paintbrush RIGHT NOW!

Ork Battlewagon
Ork Nobz
Kaptin Badrukk
Boss Snikrot

Go get em boys... I need more things for my Vindicators to fire at :) Grots, Plastic Stormboyz, and Zagstruck are just around the corner...

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Goatboy's 40k Thoughts for the Week: You Must Concentrate

The biggest thing I see with most army lists, is a lack of concentration and overall focus. Units are placed within the list, without any kind of backup, or redundancy to ensure that they get their job done. An example is playing one dreadnought, with your only real heavy weapon, and hoping that he just gets the job done versus the 3 Land Raiders you see across the table. If you need something to work reliably for you, and the rest of your army depends on it, take more then one if you can.

A good example of this is the chaos power “Lash of Submission”. There are so many factors that the power relies on to work. Dice roll to see if it goes off, a dice roll to see how far you move it. Those two factors can really hurt you, especially when you need at least one a turn to go off to help push your army into the win. When you are running a lash list, you need to run two to guarantee one going off per turn, in order to make sure the odds roll in your favor.

There are other examples from different armies too. Let’s say you need to at least get three shots off of your Defiler versus that Ork nobz army you always see at the top table. If you are just bringing one to the game, then you are just waiting for that to get shot up to pieces by the lootas sitting in the back. If you are bringing 3, then you know you can most likely survive enough to get 3 shots in the game, plus if you go first, you can concentrate one on the lootas to get rid of their annoying shooting. This is also the same with vindicators, melta guns (only taking 1 in an army is just a disaster versus all the mechanized lists you see running around), and other units that need to create a distinct advantage for your army quickly, in order to be effective.

This is especially evident when you are dealing with a unit that can be very fragile (IE vehicles). Any unit that can be destroyed with one shot needs to have more backup to be effective. Yes I know one shot from the battle cannon can turn the game, but you need to make sure you get a chance to make that shot. Vehicles are the greatest example of this, but other multiple model units can also have the same effect. Anything that has a high damage potential, will get a ton of attention from your opponent. The only way to counter this attention is to either have more then he can shoot out in a turn, or have an army built of things that pull his attention away.

There are only a few units in the game, that are ok to use singly. Nob bikerz are an extremely survivable unit that can also generate a large advantage, as well as get its points back pretty quickly. It is also the same with Thunder Hammer Terminators. They have a low invulnerable save, mixed in with large damage potential really help make up the extra points they cost over other units. These units can survive multiple turns of opponent attention and thus can be a great addition to one’s army lists.

So enough theory-hammer, what about some lists to look at? I have a gmail account set up that anyone can send army lists too and I can review them and give my own thoughts on it. (Put in email here) I had one reader ask me to create a Death Guard lists that would be competitive in the current environment. Here is the list I came up with. I tried to stay all Nurgle,
with the options for some cool conversions with the plastic miniatures out there.

Death Guard A Go GO!!!

HQ: DP, Wings, Nurgle, Warptime PTS: 175
HQ: DP, Wings, Nurgle, Warptime PTS: 175
Troops: Plague Marines (9), Meltagun (2), Asp Champ, Pwr Fst, Rhino PTS: 302
Troops: Plague Marines (9), Meltagun (2), Asp Champ, Pwr Fst, Rhino PTS: 302
Troops: Plague Marines (9), Meltagun (2), Asp Champ, Pwr Fst, Rhino PTS: 302
Troops: Plague Marines (10), Meltagun (2), Asp Champ, Pwr Fst, PTS: 290
Heavy: Defiler, extra Combat PTS: 150
Heavy: Defiler, extra Combat PTS: 150
Heavy: Defiler, extra Combat PTS: 150

PTS: 1996 KP: 12 Scoring: 4

I know, 4 troop squads but with Chaos Cult Troops being better then a normal troop (More attacks, more saves, better weapons, etc) they are pretty strong to take. I have 8 melta guns to help deal with any heavy vehicles that might punch in and get close. I also have multiple power fists to deal with MC in close combat. The 3 defilers are there to put a scare in orks as you throw down templates on them. If you are playing versus Nob bikerz, throw it on them, if it’s just an Ork horde, kill the lootas.

You use the Rhinos to build walls to make your opponent have to go through them to get to you, thus denying them a round of shooting. If they are an assault army, you will make the assault units get piled up, since they can’t make a consolidation move after blowing up the rhino. After that, you can rapid fire into them. The great thing about plague marines is that you can get charged, and they don’t get an extra attack, thus making the option of rapid firing into them not nearly as bad.

The two DP are just wound tarpits that you can use to help put a concentrated MC creature beatdown. Toughness 6 is a pain in the butt to deal with. I would normally run them together.

The other great thing with this list, is that it can be completely plastic with lots of options for conversions. The new DP model coming out will also be a great benefit for this, as well as give the modeler a nice way to create a cool and cohesive force.

The plan for future articles is to always have a list that helps represent the strategy or concepts I am trying to get across for the week. The marine lists I will be working on, are still in the works. I need to put together some models to start testing, and as I’m currently painting up a commissioned Daemon army, my time is a bit limited. I am also testing some fantasy stuff to prepare for LoneWolf GT in Dallas in March. I plan on bringing Chaos Mortals and have the army pretty much painted up. The next thing is a Hellcannon. Will see if they work out alright.

I changed up my commissioned work site. I have a better breakdown on painted miniature prices on there, so if you are interested shoot me an email atGoatboyBOLS@gmail.com

If you have any questions about the list or want to know more, shoot me an email. And again, the link below takes you to my art and miniature commission site.

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PROJECT: Scratchbuilt Thunderhawk

I love a crazy project, don't you? We get tons of cool stuff in the BoLS inbox, but every now and then we get a real whopper. Are you guys ready for a top-notch scratchbuilt Thunderhawk? I thought so...

Jason Brubacher has been playing 40K for over 15 years, and dabbles in Chaos and Loyalist Marines. He also has a knack for the art of scratchbuilding apparently. Take it away Jason:

"Here is a project that I have been working on for some time. I could never justify spending the kind of money Forgeworld wants for their kit so I decided to try my own. I love scratch building and converting for my armies. After over populating my game boards with scenery this seemed the next logical step. This model is made from various thicknesses of card stock, foam core, metal and plastic tubing, electrical insulators, etc. I find that working with card is easy and quick but the finished model can be a bit fragile. My solution to this problem has become several thinned coats of sealer (matte varnish) brushed over the entire model. This literally plasticizes the card stock due to its ability to soak in the varnish. I have not noticed any swelling of the materials or warpage of the model. I have spent over 30 hours to get to this point."






~Now for you who have not handled the Forgeworld T-hawk kit, it is HUGE! I've got to give Jason a hand for not only taking on so large a project but getting it to this level of quality and detail. Its very difficult to start to fill in surface detail on models of this size (I know, thanks to the Capitol Imperialis). I'm sure he will be back with updates as he finished off the detail work and throws some paint on his baby. Comments are welcome, and if you guys and gals have any amazing stuff that you think the BoLS community would love to check out, by all means drop us an email.

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REVIEW: Ice Guard

Timo is back with our latest Black Library review

Ice Guard – Steve Lyons

Ice Guard is Steve Lions’ second novel within the Imperial Guard Novel series, the first being Death World. The latter was kind of like a poorly produced action film (I’m tempted to say "b-movie") so I was curious as to whether or not he would be able to up the ante. I figured the Valhallans would raise the level, since the first book involved the 80s Rambo-esque Catachans. Let’s have a look.

There are 48 hours left until the death of the world Cressida by the hands of an Exterminatus when Colonel Stanislav Steele receives a special order.

A plane with a confessor on board has crashed in the middle of enemy territory and the confessor’s death must either be confirmed or he must be rescued by all means necessary, since he may not fall into the hands of Chaos alive. This world has been taken over by Chaos, so Colonel Steele needs to jump right into a kamikaze type mission. Given the premise that this world will be dead in 48 hours and a panicky evacuation is to take place, this is like a double feature of "24".

Colonel Steele puts together a team of specialists and makes his way to the crash site in a drill tank. Why the need for a drill tank, you ask? Well, the invasion of Chaos has somehow caused massive amounts of ice to develop, which doesn’t seem to be of natural origin. There are several odd changes taking place on this planet in general, but the clock is ticking away relentlessly.

The novel’s main idea sounds interesting and it keeps you checking out the remaining time in each chapter but still it is impossible to cleanse your palate of that bitter taste of b-movie action. During the entire book it seems like you’ve seen this plot before, and you can basically visualize each and every scene. However, this does not mean that the book has such a great, pictographic style. The images are just trite and overused.

First, the individual characters in the war zone are introduced. They are acting individually and intelligently, not like any given soldier, since they are the select special warriors.

Then the mission is established, the individuals are slowly mingling and becoming a team. This is nothing new for us old 40k veterans; it’s how a story involving such a dangerous mission goes, no surprises here.

In conclusion I have to deduce that the strange b-movie feeling of Death World is not connected to Sly Marbo after all. It relates to Steve Lyons’ stereotypical writing style. Ice Guard could just as well have been a direct sequel to Death World, just set in a different climate. This book is a solid diversion for newbies and fans of the Imperial Guard, kind of like watching the movie "Mutant Chronicles" or other Sci-Fi b-productions on a rainy day just to pass the time. You get a bit of action, a couple of cool lines and hardly surprising ending, yet it is still entertaining somehow.

3 Stars (out of 5)

~Bigred here. As usual comments are welcome and expect to see more novel reviews from Timo in the days ahead.

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RUMORS: IG Murmurs Continue

Rumors brought to the community by Warseer's: Gropius and 75hastings69

Hi all, its pretty quiet today, but the following is reported regarding the upcoming IG codex.

-Return of the Griffon mortar carrier and other "old units"
-New weapon options for Sentinels and a sprue recut with the new options added.
-Sentinels are said to be split into 2 diffent FOC options based on weapon loadouts (basically heavier armed ones won't be able to scout)
-New Sanctioned Psykers
-New Ratling Snipers
-May 2nd release for the codex and other initial offering.

~Standard caveats on these guys. I will post more when I get it.

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Generic Astartes Banner Sheet

Did someone ask for generic Astartes banners?? You all asked (loudly) and you shall recieve.

Most of us have dreams of putting together that awesome marine Company one day. There is something cool about getting to organize your entire force into their correct squads, and dressing the infantry and transports up with the correct squad markings. Of course, there is the issue of those pesky Company Banners that few of us wants to paint. So here is a sheet of generic company banenrs that will cover all 9 of the companies in a marine chapter (the Scout Company doesn't have its own banner). These use the traditional company colors and symbols laid down in the Codex Astartes. I have provided three sets of them with the "chapter circle" in white, black, and grey based on what will look the best for you to apply your chapter logo into. I have also provided matching colored sets of smaller backpack banners for your use. Here is an example of models using both types of banners:



Here is the link to the PDF file for the logo sheet you can freely pull down and use:

Download Here

Hey guess what, this sheet isn't for decal paper. Just print these out on good quality paper with a color printer and cut them out. These will normally look a little better with seom minor weathering to "roughen them up" a bit. These banners are designed for the application of your chapter symbol or decal onto them so you may still want to access the decal tutorial:

Click here for a detailed Custom Decal Tutorial

This entire sheet is sized for standard Marine standardbearers and the smaller backpack mounted banner poles, but please make sure you run off a test sheet first on your printer to make sure.

In any case, enjoy and I wish you the best in using this set for your forces.

~Please feel free to leave comments if there is a special Chapter, Craftworld, or something else you would love to collect, but have no GW decal options, and I will see what I can do.

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Calling all Admirals...

You've seen our coverage of Epic, and in 2009 (HAPPY NEW YEAR FOLKS!) we will be moving into Battle Fleet Gothic to spice up our GW news coverage.

BoLS needs a talented BFG admiral to help a new generation of eager naval cadets (our readers) learn the ropes of deep space combat. The ideal candidate will possess:

a) Mastery of the BFG game (including the later supplements)
b) Access to a set of well painted fleets representing the major factions in the game
c) Photography skills
d) A flair for writing short form tutorials and tactical pieces
e) Endless enthusiasm about BFG and a desire to share you favorite deep space game with the masses.

~If you think you have what it takes Admiral, then put down that New Year's drink and email us. Fortune favors the bold!

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