A degree of Clarity

I figured that, given my last few posts, I needed to clarify how the traitor guard are shaping up. With the rough riders built, and some new guys added to the army,It's only right I let you lot in on what I have and what plans I have for the future of the army.

The idea really is to build up a massive force with all sorts of different troops and vehicles/ weapons. The army at first was quite restrictive, and sat at a mere 1500 points.

1500pts? I hear you cry! That's about right for a game!

However, the 1500 points was restrictive. By having a massive army at my disposal, I can better pick and choose depending upon my opponent and the scenario plus, if I EVER decided to play a stoopid apocalypse game again I could field pretty much a guard regiment!

The army currently sits at just under 1900 points, no mere paltry force either!
The troops I have also carry a variety of special and heavy weaponry, as well as a few junior and senior officers with nice kit.

Here's a quick lowdown:

HQ
Command squad with advisors (namely ordnance guy and pilot guy with a couple of bodyguards)
Priests (coutns as HQ, but does not take up a slot in the organisation chart)
Psyker

Elites
Ogryn
Beastmen (stormtroopers)

Troops
Infantry platoon - command squad, 3 infantry squads with heavy and special weapons, heavy weapons squad, conscripts
Veterans- grenadiers with multiple special weapons, chimera

Fast Attack
Rough Riders

Heavy Support
Leman Russ

As you can see, in terms of manpower the army is vast, but cheap on points ( oh the pitiful value of human life!)


The MASTER PLAN
Well, I have been musing about it for a while now, and the army needs more of everything!
The ultimate plan is to include the following options and squads to "complete" the army:

HQ
Techpriest enginseer
Astropath for command squad and chimera
Commissar Lord (chaos equivalent)

Elites
Psyker battle squad
Complete ogryn squad up to 10 models

Troops
Max out infantry platoon with: 2 infantry squads, 4 heavy weapon squads, 3special weapon squads and 6 chaos equivalent commisars
3 more veteran squads in chimeras
penal legion (chaos equivalent) squad

Fast attack
Max out rough riders
Sentinel squadron
Hellhound squadron

Heavy support
2 more leman russ
3 ordnance battery tanks
hydra flak tank battery
(with this last one, the plan is to have maybe one of eac or something to start with, and build it up later)

Of course, in terms of time and expense, this army will take about a decade and a remortgage to build(!), but I have been thinking about "short cuts" along the way to help save me dosh. Here's a couple of em...

1. Rob the loyalists!- that's right, steal the tanks and vehicles, plus whatever else I can use from the necromundan guard. Very sad day for them, but the chaos legions require more for the cauldron of war! I do wat to do soething with the tallarn models though, so they may well find themselves chaosed up too- I haven't decided yet. I figure that if I dont use them anyway, I may as well focus everything on one guard army!
2. Raid the warhammer boxes again- raiding the boxes I may find models suitable for use as chaos commissars,or penal legion troopers, plus that elusive psyker battle squad. I have already had a bit of success there with the rough riders, so I figure anothe raid may prove fruitful!
3. Minimise on metal models- kit bash the effing hell out if it. I am finding that converting via plastic kits is quite easy and inexpensive if it goes "the way of the pear."
4. Know when to stop!! This is probably the most critical thing. I got caught out when I was but a young whipper snapper playing warhammer, and collected somewhere in the region of a 15000 point orc and goblin army in the space of 8 weeks! All that beer money gone! If the army looks like it is stretching into the realms of silliness, then I will stop and focus on scenery instead. Remind me of this if I get carried away again later! That said, my orc army is the envy of everyone that sees the 8 boxes its stored in...

On top of all this though, there is still the hanging question about including daemons in the army. I reckon that as long as the other player agrees, I'll simply include from the appropriate codex and chuck them in!

Well, that's it for now. I was gonna throw in pics, but couldn't be arsed. I will chuck in the odd one or two once I have painted some more units up ans showcase the guard as they stand. I may even set them up on a battlefield and let you all gawp at it that way....

Be cool y'all, and check out the last couple of posts to make sure you at least have some vague idea about what I am wittering on about...

Traitor Guard Work- Update

The Opening Gambit part...

Well, I know I've been musing alot about the traitor guard regiment I am building lately. Last weekend I took a great big stride forward and added to units. I've got pics (the models are unpainted at present) to show too, so you guys can see how they have been made and the simple conversion work that I have done to really make them part of the them!


Elitist

Well, I did actually buy two units. A heavy weapons squad and a regiment of warhammer ogre kingdoms leadbelchers. I obviously planned to used them as ogryn, and being plastic kits, I figured I could convert and kitbash a little to get the reults I wanted.
Using the warhammer kit also sparked off another idea, but I'll get back to that in a minute or two...



This pic shows the finished unit of 4 ogryn, complete with an icon and ripper guns. I am well chuffed with the results here, and can't wait to paint them up!
I did of course make up a complete heavy weapons squad for the infantry company, along with a couple of additional heavy weapons teams for the platoon squads.
I will feature them later, but this is all about the why's and wherefors of the ogryns!


This is the bone 'ead (unit leader) and a close look at his ripper gun. All the rippers were made from autocannons, cut down and pieced back together. As he was the boss, his ripper has a gargoyle head and some spikiness. Note on his back the beer barrel, the pony tail and the large stone mallet, all from the 'belchers kit. This guy also has a spare ammo drum on his belt. Simple, yet well cool!



Unit Icon bearer, carrying the spare Khorne bloodletters' banner. Note the chopped down autocannon for a ripper gun. The plan is simply to use him as an ogryn, and include the rules for icons if the other player agrees and I can be bothered to field daemons.


Another closer look at my version of the ripper gun. DAKKA!!!!


And finally...

WTF?
Well, as the above heading suggests, I thought about what stuff I have stashed away that can be cut up revamped and used for the twisted purposes of 40k as a chaos player with a guard army.
The force currently has no fast attack options. Any fool can field tanks (and I will, rest assured), but the one thing that I notice always seems to be missing from guard armies is horse riding grunts!

A work in progress, I think you will agree there! Imagine if you will catachan bodies and heads, armed with lances and assault weapons. Guns strapped to the barding of the horses. Getting there yet? A sergeant with a cheesey weapon to top them off and we have CHAOS ROUGH RIDERS!!!!

I noticed that the main reason noone has any is because they only seem to be for sale on line and the shops only ever sell the Mongolian looking Attillans, which dont fit in with the feel of Cadian or Catachan armies. Why? Its only plastic kits people! Sort it!

The image in my head is of such awesome looking soliders that I may dispense with fast attack tanks altogether and just buy more imperial cavalry and catachans!
There's a mighty fine image for you: big game, 30 horsemen armed with hunting lances and assault weapons charging the lines! (movement phase takes two hours, just for the guard!)
The hunting lance is a fine piece of instrumentation too, counting as I5 S5 in assault, AND counting as a power weapon. STICKY!
So why don't more guard armies feature them?

And why wouldn't a Commissar ride to war with the men? (oooh! Summary execution on horseback...)

Come to think of it, why not have a preacher on horseback too?

Saliva glands overload at that!!!!!
Steady though, back to the plan...

Finally

I also thought about the commissariat option some more, and I do have ideas forming about their chaos equivalents. It's just finding the right models to use. Perhaps using warhammer chaos warriors or something...
Additional thoughts for expansion besides the downright crazy are mainly about adding more troops units to the infantry platoon, and the possible inclusion of a chaos techpriest with daemonic servitors (heheheheheheh), oh and tanks- LOTS of tanks...(at least 2 or 3 more)

I figure that my time as a chaos space marine player is over, though I will doubtlessly field them from time to time. I have entered a new phase as a guard player. But this will be on my terms as a traitor, so screw the emperor and pass the ammo!

Well that's that! I'm off to find my medication and straightjacket now. Hope you liked the post, comments please! FEED ME YOUR THOUGHTS MORTALS!

Finally!!! Another army showcase!

YARP!

It's the turn of the Chaos Daemons. Cos the method of putting the pics up is, well HAPHAZARD to say the least, I have thrown them in in no particualr order.

Alot of these models featured in older army showcases ( ie the nurgle Daemons) but they have since decided that the the relative codex is pants and banded together (nuff said on the nerfed out CSM Codex.)

So, in no particular order I give you the hordes of the fickle powers!

MMMMM Daemon Prince of Slaanesh.
SWEEET model, converted more and repainted to match the other Slaaneshi daemons in the army. This guy is actually a HEAVY SUPPORT option. Go figure...

Classic Bloodletters. Rebased from the old Black legion army to fit in with the daemon army. Sweet! One of the 5 troops choices in the army, and assault specialists!

Good ole Plaguebearers. Bit slow, but hard as coffin nails and difficult to get rid of. Even with Bleach...

Army general and centre piece is my great unclean one. Mr Smelly himself, and a close personal friend of the tramp that never EVER removes clothing for any reason at all, including the toilet (sniff sniff...)

In the elites slot I have 2 fiends of slaanesh. Fiendishly tricky to put together, but painte din gaudy colours they really leap out at you. Fast and deadly!

More troops! Daemonettes no less. Fast moving, agile and beguiling, these girlies are not to be underestimated. They are well killy!

New look bloodletters. Nice and red! Their hellblades I painted in brazen brass- favored metal of the blood god.

For firepower in the army I got me some horrors of tzeentch. NIGHTMARE TO BUILD. NIGHTMARE TO PAINT. Games workshop dont do pink, apparently. My tentacle pink had dried up, so when I reached for the trusted model shop, I was let down. Still, like any decent painter type bloke, I mixed my own and raised a stubby middle digit to the workshop in triumph!!! LMAO.

The army is as it is, and it aint likely I'll add more to it. I didn't like painting the models much (apart from the Unclean one) and there aint much scope for conversion here either, which is unusual for chaos.

In game terms they are unpredictable due to the summoning and only half the army turn up etc. which I find infuriating.

Traitor Guard- Musings on the New look list

New look list?
What?
Yep, that's right, I've been looking at the list and trying to figure out ways to represent specific unit types and models in the army, without losing the "guard factor"
Here's some of my thoughts, plop in some remarks and gimme the lowdown on your take of them...


HQ

Company Commmand squad- as per codex, complete with regimental advisors (after all, chaos fleets will bombard, they will have some sort of warp tainted astropath and traitor regiments would surely have access to some sort of ordnance support)

Lord Commissar- NAH! Replace that with a Chaos Space Marine Character. Maybe a deamon prince or a sorceror.
Failing that, Model to represent some sort of oratory maniac with same rules as the commissariat models.

Primaris Psyker- Yep, as per codex, but obviously all chaosed up and bonkers!

Ministorum Priests - Cult Fanatics, same rules and weapons

Techpriest Enginseer- YEP, as per codex, but all chaosed up!



ELITES

Chaos Ogryns- Heheheheh!

Psyker battle squad - as per codex, but chaosed up

Storm trooper squads - Nope. Replaced by chaos beastmen. Same rules as codex, just beastmen instead. Strength 4 and bizarre warp weapons (same effect as hotshot weapons). Will NOT respond to orders from command units.



TROOPS

Infantry Platoon - as per codex, but instead of commissars, using chaos space marines. Same rules as commissars and same weapon options, just a chaos space marine instead.
It just made sense to me that the guardsmen would do as they were told out of a mix of fear, promise of rewards (that never come) and the sheer size and brutality of a chaos space marine.

Conscripts - replaced with the plague zombies. Same points and stats, only slow and purposeful, fearless and feel no pain rules.

Veterans - as per codex

Penal legion- done away with. It just aint likely that the lost and the damned have a penal system (huhuhuh said penal...), rather more of a bang your dead, sacrifice, slavery sort of system...



FAST ATTACK

Sentinels - yep

Rough riders - yep, only on chaos beasties

Hellhounds- yep

Flyers- NOPE. Too hitech, and not enough techies in the traitor legions to maintain. Flyers captured are stripped for weapons, ammo and intel, as well as the odd sacrificial pilot or 2...



HEAVY SUPPORT

Leman Russ - Standard, demolisher, exterminator, eradicator, punisher. The others are rare variants now and so it would stand that they are well protected by the loyalists and steps are taken to ensure purity of the machine and its crew as part of maintanence rituals.

Ordnance- Basilisk, Griffon. The other types are rare and well preserved by the loyalists, and the legions of chaos would tend to use their own warped and strange equivalents.

Hydra Battery - as per codex

END

Well, that about covers everything I guess- except for the ADDITIONAL EXTRAS!

Additional stuff:
Daemon Squads- summoned into play by standards, which are chaos icons. As per chaos daemons codex troops options. Counts as troops, but doesn't use force organisation slot.
Daemon squads will NOT respond to orders from command units.

Chaos Spawn- Counts as elites, as per codex chaos space marines.

Chaos icons- as per codex in terms of rules for ld tests etc, only can be used as focal point for summoning. ANY SQUAD may be issued with a chaos icon for 5pts. The icons may only be used for summoning and have no bearing on orders or ld test benefits.

Well, that's it!
Tell me what y'all reckon.

To Arms!! A rather short battle report!

Yup, that's right! I played a battle without having to traverse the county!

AGAIN No pics- Sorry!

Turns out my nephew is inching towards the hobby! He did say he liked the look of LOTR, but I offered him a chance to play 40k with one of my armies and see if he liked it. All GW games use a similar system when it comes to tabletop wargaming, which is why they work so well.
Anyway... YER goes:


Nephew picked Eldar for his army, based upon the generalisation that they are fairly quick with good basic troops, great leaders and some interesting specialist troops and vehicles. He was offered the option of CSM, guard or eldar and each one was generalised to him so his choice was (reasonably) informed.

As I am thinking along guard lines, I though it was a good opportunity to play the necromundan guard army.
I didn't want to overcomplicate his first ever 40k game with special rules for characters and wargear, so we both kept it nice and simple.
I said that 1000 pts was a good base to start from (though it later proved too much in terms of time frame) and so these are the forces we picked:


ELDAR

HQ- Avatar
Elites - 5 Howling Banshees
Troops 1- 8 Dire avengeres with exarch packing a diresword and shuriken pistol
Troops 2 - 15 Guardians (storm squad) with fusion gun and flamer
Fast Attack 1 - 6 Swooping Hawks
Fast Attack 2 - Vyper Jetbike with shuriken cannon
Heavy Support 1 - 3 Dark Reapers with exarch carrying shuriken cannon
Heavy Support 2 - Wraithlord with scatter laser
Heavy support 3 - Fire Prism Grav Tank

Now, for a first timer, and given the general hints and tips I was giving him, this army aint alf bad. He's got himself a cheesey leader with good special effects for the troops, some nasty firepower elements, a large assault squad and some good quality specialist troops. A healthy mix of speed and firepower. Nice!


GUARD

HQ- Company command squad with body guard for the officer
HQ- Ministorum Priest
Troops 1 - Infantry platoon with commisar, heavy weapons sqaud and 2 infantry squads
with heavy weapons and a platoon command squad
Troops 2 - Veteran squad (ratskins) with camo cloaks
Fast Attack - Armoured Sentinel
Heavy Support - Leman Russ Battle Tank

My Loyalist guard army is limited in its options at present, but I knew I had numbers on my side here, along with ole reliable, the leman russ!
After rolling on the various tables in the book, we were to play annihilation scenario, using spearhead deployment rules.

We only got to play 2 turns out of the 4, which was a shame, because as usual things were getting good when it was time to clear up!

The action summed up:

Nephew launched a strong flank attack with his Hawks and vyper, which my company command squad was getting hit hard, but (barely) holding the line. In the centre, things were faring a little better thanks to the infantry platoon and the vehicles pouring fire into the banshees, wraithlord and the avatar (who ran to the flank for cover after suffering 2 wounds from heavy weapons fire!) The banshees were wiped out before they could assault the line, but my leading infantry squad were battered by the wraithlords firepower and the Dark reapers.
On the opposite flank, things were porgressing much slower, with the veterans assisting with the centre's firing before pouring some shots onto the dire avengers.
The fire prism managed to vaporise the sentinel, and the commisar executed the cowardly lieutenant and held the line in a brutal attritional assault with the guardian storm squad.

At the end of the second turn, it was time to clear up. The winner was decided on "kill points" which were allocated per unit and per vehicle. Final score was 1:1, but it was such a shame that the game had to end there.

The assault in the centre was getting interesting as more units joined in from the guard lines, and the opposite flanks were starting to close in for inevitable hand to hand fighting over barricades and ruins.

Looking at it now, I think the eldar would eventually have overrun the guard, mainly due to their speed and better quality assault troops. That said however, the guard army firepower was potent enough to drive the Eldar's main offensive beastie back and give my nephew thoughts of how he could bring him back into play, and the centre was holding really well thanks to the commissar and the priest


Overall:
Great game! My nephew had fun playing, and is now torn between 40k and lotr. He really liked the eldar too, which I think is nice, because almost everyone goes for marines first!

The armies were too big for the time frame we had to play in. 4-500 points would have been quicker and easier, though we would have lost out in terms of tanks and hard stuff. Still, he got to see how lots of different weapons work in play, along with assaults and difficult terrain rules. He didn't make the most of the fleet rule, but then again it was his first game and he did really well.

We talked for a while later about warlocks and their abilities, as well as the benefits of jetbikes etc. And I gave the advice to "start small." The hobby has just got a little more expensive (check the website) and a 12 year old on pocket money needs to be shrewd about his purchases, as do we all now...

As for me, well, guard..... tanks.... stormtroopers.... sentinels.... traitors...chaos...daemons...

WOZON!?!?!?!

Well, back again!
Still no pics for all you folks gaggin' to see what the twisted mind of a chaos freak has concoct6ed (YET) I'm afraid...

News:
ON the news front, the daemon horde has grown a bit in size, and will probably stay as it is until the rumoured plastic plague bearers and horrors pop up.
It now includes a second unit of bloodletters and 2 fiends of slaanesh. Sweet! I'm in the process of painting them all up now, so watch this space for future pics.
The daemon army is just a sideline really. I'll add bits and bobs every now and then, but doubt it will ever swell to the size of some of my other armies!

I am toying with a chaos space marine army for slaanesh too. I like the sonic weapons and the initiative boosts. I just struggle with he pink...
Again, it'll just be a small army of the bare minimum stuff. 1HQ 2 troops, and 1 each of elites, fast attack and heavy support, with a few tanks chuicked in.

The biggest idea to explode into my skull from the warp lately has been expanding on my traitor guard army. I just love the idea of it. It needs more heavy weapons and vehicles really, as well as a beefy character to add that ouch! factor to the force.
I'm thinking along the lines of using the commissar lord rules to create some sort of heretical overlord/ orator for the army, which is nice...
There's also the topic of regimental advisors.
I plan to accomodate this using suitably converted models, but in game terms they will be as per the guard codex. NICE.
The army also lacks elites options, and yet again I have been considering this a little. My thoughts were to simply use chaos space marines at first, but the latest ideas of chaos ogryns, or even storm trooper equivalents and even a heretic techpriest with servitors have been buzzing about in the brain.
As for tanks and vehicles, more leman russ, ordnance batteries and sentinel squadrons all spring to mind, along with heavy weapons squads and special weapons squads to cause more problems.
Again watch this space (it'll probably be something else entirely next week...)

ON the home front - NEW CAR!
Its red (so naturally it goes faster) and shiny (for now at least) and I likes it a lot!

Note for my buddy bl0ke:
We need to pester the women for their weekender again. I will not allow momentum to be lost! We had our turn, now they must take theirs! (plus there's always the chance of some little games to be had! And beer!)

Adieu amigos!