A Tale of Some Gamers - The 750 Point Army lists

Afternoon Folks,


Well its time for the first update of the new and improved TOTG, first up as you can see the TOTG has now been renamed, from now on it will be the Tale of Some Gamers (TOSG). The reasoning behind this is that some members of the group cant always commit to expansions and this way it allows people to jump in and catch up as an when.

With that in mind the 750 point expansion is starting with two members, Myself and Dan and today I am posting up the recently submitted Army Lists, this is in preperation for starting on the 1st, though I bet Dan has started already, the 250 expansion is due to run til early December where we then hope to have a new challenge.

So sit back and enjoy the lists ready for fluff and pics some time next week:

Dan's 750 Point Army List

Millest's 750 Point Army List

 

Any feedback on the Lists would be great and thoughts as to how to improve them would be great. More fun and games coming soon folks.

Path of the Seer - Book Review

Path of the Seer by Gav Thorpe
The ancient eldar are a mysterious race and each devotes their life to a chosen path that will guide their actions and decide their fate. Thirianna abandons her simple existence to embark upon the mysterious Path of the Seer. She will tread a dark and dangerous road that leads her to the other realm of the warp, where daemons are made flesh and nightmares are manifest, for only there can she realise her psychic abilities. After unleashing her powers in battle and communing with the spirits of her craft world, Thirianna turns her skills to discerning the future amidst the myriad strands of fate. Her visions reveal a great threat descending on Alaitoc, and both the living and the dead will march to war to defend it.

The ancient eldar are a mysterious race. Their lives must be in constant motion, moving from one Path to the next, developing their senses of self and the universe. On their craftworld, Alaitoc, Thirianna reaches the end of her journey on the Path of the Warrior. As one of the Dire Avengers, she has sated her anger enough for multiple lifetimes. Thirianna moves on to the Path of the Poet, upon which she fills several crystals with her poetry. One of her two closest friends is Korlandril the Sculptor. The Path of the Artist and of the Poet is similar and the two have much to talk about.


The day finally arrives for Thirianna's second close friend to return to Alaitoc. Aradryan is happy to see Korlandril again, but it is Thirianna that holds his attention. When Aradryan expresses his deep feelings for Thirianna, she is unable to return them. Aradryan quickly abandons Alaitoc, choosing to return to space and become in Outcast. Very shortly afterward, Korlandril expresses his own feelings for her. Again Thirianna gently confesses that she is unable to return those feelings. Korlandril's reaction is much worse than Aradryan's had been. Instead of disappointment, Korlandril's anger ignites and he begins walking upon the Path of the Warrior.

Thirianna begins her journey upon the Path of the Seer. Farseer Kelamith is her guide. He teaches her much about connecting with the skein, a webway to help search possible futures. Thirianna must learn when to nudge events in the best directions and when to not interfere, even if it means the death of someone she cares for.

Thirianna develops her psychic abilities. After unleashing her powers in battle and communing with the spirits of her craftworld, she briefly spies a disturbing, possible future of humans attacking Alaitoc. The Sons of Orar, lauded and feared Space Marines of the Emperor, were about to bring destruction to her world, and both the living and the dead will march to war to defend it.

Thorpe continues to bring the mysterious eldar race out of the shadows and into the light so that W40K fans are able to see and understand them more clearly. In June, 2010, the first title of this series (Path of the Warrior) was released. It followed the character of Korlandril. However, this time Thirianna is followed. As I read, I found it very interesting to see Thirianna interact with her two male friends, Korlandril and Aradryan. Through her eyes, I saw Korlandril's character in a slightly different way. I also saw Aradryan in all his selfish glory. Consider yourself warned that this story has a cliff-hanger ending. Aradryan will continue the battle in the third title, Path of the Outcast.

For me the interweaving of the three books has made this something different to normal Balck Library work and whilst the action is good and well paced it would only warrent three stars. The fact Thorpe has gone that extra mile to link everything together has for me made this a solid four stars out of five.

Available from:

http://www.blacklibrary.com/
Gav Thorpe
softback • ISBN 9781849700801

Blog News and Shamless Ebay Plug

Hi Folks
just a quick note that over the next few days there will be some changes to the tabs at the top and their content, I'm looking to consolodate some of the options and shrink down their content (think subpages). I will also be adding some new Labels to posts, so please keep an eye out.
Once everything is live it would be great if you could let me know what you think of the changes. Also please let me know if there are any changes I havent made that you might like.

Secondly, please keep an eye out from some more TOFG news and information coming soon.

Finally to help fun my hobbies and plastic habit I've decided to have a small clear out, theres Figures, FW, DVDs and Lego. Odd collection I know!
Many items have gone via Buy It Now already but there are some nice bits left, so please check them out here:
http://myworld.ebay.co.uk/the-inqusitor

Thanks and enjoy!

Forge World Newsletter #286 - Old Style Landraider, Relic Contemptor & new guns!

As always the important bits reproduced below:

===============================================

Hi there, In this week’s newsletter we’re excited to announce that the Land Raider Proteus, first unveiled at Games Day UK, is now available to order. As well as this, the Relic Contemptor Dreadnought and two additional weapon options are now available to order as well, plus we have a reminder about our sales stand at the IPMS Scale ModelWorld event in Telford, UK, on 12th and 13th November for those who are going to the show.
           
Land Raider Proteus
The Land Raider is perhaps the most iconic of all Imperial armoured vehicles. Its distinctive silhouette is recognisable to foe and ally alike, announcing the indomitable presence of the Adeptus Astartes, the heroic and super-human Space Marines. Many patterns and designs of this honoured and ancient war machine exist across the myriad worlds of the Imperium, yet few hold the mystery of the ‘Proteus’ patterns; which are valued highly by those Space Marine Chapters who possess them.

Mechanicus tech-savants use the term Land Raider Proteus to refer to a number of different configurations, believed to be the oldest of their kind. These are fitted with numerous sophisticated augury systems and cogitator engines, in addition to the Land Raider’s principal features of being a highly durable, environmentally sealed and well-armed battle tank. Ancient and forgotten data-looms describe the Proteus as a vehicle commonly fielded in Explorator missions during the dawning days of Mankind’s fledgling galactic empire, and perhaps, therefore, the progenitor for more commonplace variants.

This full resin kit, designed by Phil Stutcinskas, is packed with some amazing details and two different hull-mounted weapon options to supplement its twin-linked sponson-mounted lascannons. The Land Raider Proteus is available to order now for immediate despatch. Experimental rules to allow this ancient armoured vehicle to take to the field of battle are available to download from the Forge World website.

Relic Contemptor Dreadnought Body and new Contemptor Weapons
It is not uncommon for those Chapters blessed enough to count the ancient and revered Contemptor Pattern Dreadnought amongst their arsenal to embellish their armoured sarcophagus with scripture, honour scrolls and additional details to commemorate the heroism and indomitable valour of the Ancient enshrined within. The Relic Contemptor Dreadnought Body, designed by Simon Egan and Will Hayes, provides the perfect painting project and will make for a fantastic centrepiece to any Space Marine force.

Released this week alongside the Dreadnought Body are two additional weapons, both designed by Will Hayes. The Contemptor Pattern Multi-melta allows this most revered Dreadnought to be armed with potent anti-tank weaponry. The Contemptor Pattern Assault Claw, a variant and more savage close combat weapon, contains parts to arm the Contemptor with either a powerful Graviton Gun or a compact and deadly Plasma Blaster.

Both the Relic Contemptor Dreadnought, Multi-melta and Assault Claw are fully compatible with both our existing range of Contemptor weapons and the Contemptor Dreadnought. All three of these new kits are available to order now for immediate despatch.

Forge World Events News
IPMS Scale ModelWorld: The International Centre, Telford, 12th – 13th November 2011 Forge World will soon be trekking to Telford’s International Centre for the IPMS Scale ModelWorld 2011 event. We’ll be bringing you more news about our presence at this show in the coming weeks, but can announce that we are now accepting reservation orders for this event.

As with our other UK shows this year, we’ll be taking payment in advance for reservation orders so that it’s much quicker and easier for you to collect them at the sales stand at your leisure, at any point throughout the weekend.

A reservation order is the best way of ensuring that we have exactly what you want, including our Show Only figures, so please call the Forge World Customer Service team on 0115 900 4995 to place your reservation. We’ll need your name and a contact e-mail address, and you’ll need your credit or debit card to hand as well. The cut-off date for IPMS Scale ModelWorld reservation orders is 7th November – after this we can’t guarantee that we’ll have everything available for you.

Thanks,
Ead Brown
Customer Service Manager

===============================================

ooooooooooooooooooooooooooohh!! Relic Contemptor = me want! nuff said really :D

The Emperor's Will - Book Review

The Emperor's Will compiled by John Blanche
Inquisitors, assassins, astropaths, navigators – these and many other agents of the Imperium are celebrated in this glorious full-colour art book.
Packed with previously unseen illustrations from John Blanche and David Gallagher as well as a host of classic images, The Emperor’s Will provides an unparalleled glimpse into the inner workings of the Imperium of man.

Well folk's all I can say is I was pleasently suprised to have this book turn up nearly a month before it was due and in celebration of snagging my copy of Aurelian I thought I would share a little review of the book with you.
The book as you most likely know is not your standard Black Library book, this time it is a rather intriguing art compilation of new works, old works and of course some previously unseen works from both ages. Shown below are a selection of images from the Black Library site showing the types of work included:

As you can probably tell from the images shown on the site the work of John Blanche feature heavily, and as he is considered the father of GW art (and the guy compiling the book) that is understandable. There is also work from some other similar artists from the early period of GW art, but in addition to that as you will see in the following images the new artists have not been forgotten.

The book in my mind is pretty unique for not only a GW or BL book in general but also as a 40k art book for one simple reason, there are no Space Marines. That's right not a one! The book concentrates mainly on the extreme characters of the 41st millennium, with a strong leaning to the inquisition, and develops them. There are a number of familiar faces that pop up but for the most part the art work is of new individuals.

There is some artwork from the cover of the Black Library novels, the covers of the Shira Culpurnia novels for example, as well some work from the Inquistional codicies. There is a smattering of artwork showing characters from Forgeworld and other rule books (such as the Inquisitor book and the Deathwatch book) and all these differing styles and ideas really bring the book together with a nice feel that the 40k universe is as varied as the way in which it is presented.

So here are some more pics, I apologies for the quality but as they are only meant as sneak peeks and I'm recommending the book to you to buy I think its excusable:

As you can see there is certainly a wide range of differing styles and subject matter, but as I said there are one or two familiar faces:

I'm sure you'll agree though these two rogues definitely look better behind glass and on my wall of art:

So back to the matter in hand, the book! Would I recommend this to anyone? The answer to that is a resounding yes, the book is great for all 40k-ers, the artwork really does bring to life the rest of the universe and gives some awesome ideas for sculpts and conversions of the characters within, and I am in no doubt that we will see some from the more skilled sculptors soon. For me personally any 40k art book is a joy and this book doesn't disappoint, my only gripe is that none of the pictures are titled or explain what or who it is your looking at (or even who its by) and for me that is a big let down. The book could also have done with more words in general other then the brief introduction there are no meaningful pieces of text in the book. Unfortunately for me that stops this book getting the full five stars but it does warrant a respectable 4 out of 5 and a recommendation for you to pick up a copy if you like 40k art.

Available from:
http://www.blacklibrary.com/
The Emperor's Will compiled by John Blanche
Hardback • ISBN 9781849701136

Mondays Mirthful Meandering - 17.10.11

After a break it returns :)

Projects Update - Whats on my desk 14.11.10

Hi folks,
unfortunately this week I have been laid up after two small ops, however this time has given the opportunity to think about the blog. Once I got over the shock and interest when copy of Emperor's Will arrived mid week I though it was about time I got more hobby back in the blog. So rather then you lot thinking that now the 500pt challenge is (finally) finished that I'm just sitting on my laurels I intend to do a semi-regular article to let you know what I'm currently working on.

The article will let you know a little rundown on what I'm working on outside of the Guard (as these guys are waiting for the 750 expansion) and it might even give you chance to see some of the upcoming reviews.

With that in mind the current project of note on my desk is the Imperial Strong point box set. I bought this intending to use it as a some spare terrain but its fricking massive! I'm loving the model and everything goes together really well. I'm hoping to get some paint on it this next week but before then I need some Liquid Green stuff to try out and to fill the gaps in the towers - not being mobile I don't know how I'll get some though. Other then that though i am very happy with the day or so progress I have been able to make:

apologies for the phone pic but the camera is in a place I cant access at the moment :( Still this coming week more work on this and hopefully some more reviews and articles for the blog.
Thanks for reading

Forge World Newsletter #285 - Dark Eldar Tantalus & Imperial Emplacement Released

As always the important bits reproduced below:

===============================================

Hi there, We have two new exciting releases to announce, the mighty Dark Eldar Tantalus and the Imperial Emplacement hollow resin terrain piece.

Dark Eldar Tantalus
First crafted, so it is said, for the Archon Surasis Grief of the Kabal of the Dark Mirror, the Tantalus is an assault skimmer, somewhat larger and more complex in design than the Raider, and accordingly better armed. Its distinctive twin-hulled design houses powerful engine-reactors slaved to enhanced drives and its unique scythevane armament.

One of the largest Dark Eldar vehicles yet encountered by the Imperial war machine, the cruel reavers who crew this sleek engine of destruction take delight in mounting high-speed attacks, slicing through the hulls of enemy vehicles and rending infantry into crimson shreds, heralded by the screech of the molecular dissonance fields of its scythevanes and the rapid fire of its pulse-disintegrator armament.
The Dark Eldar Tantalus, designed by Daren Parrwood, is a detailed full resin kit that includes a set of etched brass deck panels. Measuring nearly 11” from prow to stern, this twin-hulled vehicle is a great addition to any Dark Eldar army. With its full rules contained Imperial Armour Apocalypse Second Edition, the Tantalus is available now for immediate release.

Imperial Emplacement
Adding to our new range of hollow resin scenery is the Imperial Emplacement, designed by Blake Spence.

This detailed free-standing terrain piece has been designed as a dug-in position for almost any size of Warhammer 40,000 vehicle, from Chimeras and Leman Russ to Macharius and Malcador-based super heavy tanks. The Imperial Emplacement features a wealth of detail such as ammunition stowage, unexploded munitions, a targeting cogitator and an observer’s position. The base of the Imperial Emplacement has been reinforced with trench plates to act as duckboards, and the scenery piece also features plenty of space for crew models as well as vehicles.
Ideal for use as both a gaming piece to fight battles over or the basis of a detailed diorama, the Imperial Emplacement is available to order now for immediate despatch.

===============================================

Like the tantalus and the emplacement, pleasantly suprised the emplacement is only £22, may well consider one depending on how my own conversions of something similar turn out.

MOD Woodbridge Open Day Gallery and Videos

After yesterdays galleries from the summer here are some pics, only a small number, and a couple of videos from the recent Open Day at MOD (formerly RAF) Woodbridge in Suffolk, home of the 23 Engineer Regiment (Air Assault), part of the 16th Air Assualt Brigade.

The pics show some of the toys on show and the videos show a fire and manoevre demo they carried out as well as a fly by from an RAF Sea King from Wattisham.

MOD Woodbridge - Rock Barracks open day 2011 Gallery

Assorted videos from the MOD Woodbridge Open Day 2011

Hope theres something there that interests you all.

Thanks for looking.

IWM Duxford Pictures & Southend Airshow 2011 Galleries



Image copy right of Andrew Dunn - Gallery page

Hello folks, After the comments and interest in some of my military and history themed days out that I have posted previously I have decided once again to put together a couple of albums of some of the interesting pics from the summer.

First up we have one containing an assortment of pictures from the Imperial War Museum at Duxford and one, once again, from the 2011 Southend Airshow. I hope their enjoyable to you and as always any questions or comments please don't hesitate to drop me a line.

 Imperial War Museum Duxford Gallery

Southend Airshow 2011 Gallery

Enjoy folks, any problems with the links or galleries let me know. Also any other picture requests or questions please don't hesitate to get in touch.

Blog News - Product Reviews and Help with criteria

Hi folks,
As previously mentioned a number of new reviews have gone up recently and have been added to the Book reviews tab. In the coming weeks I'm hoping to have some reviews on some products and sellers but the only problem is I'm struggling to come up with criteria as to how to review sellers and products. So far i have the following:

#################################

Layout for Seller Reviews:

Product Name:(This one's fairly obvious)

Production Company:(GW, FW etc)

General Summary:(A basic description of what the product is and does etc)

Review
Purchasing & Customer Communications:
(Rated out of 10- was it a smooth order process, did it come quick, was it well packed?) – out of ten

Packaging & Delivery:
(Write about the way the models were packed and does it show them odd to the buyer) – out of ten

Accutacy of Descriptions:
(Write about the way the models actually appear) – out of ten

Value for money:
(This should be fairly obvious) – out of ten

Overall Rating and Final Thoughts
(Rated out of 10)

#################################

Layout for Product Reviews:

Product Name:(This one's fairly obvious)

Production Company:(GW, FW etc)

General Summary:(A basic description of what the product is and does etc)

Review
Purchasing & Delivery:
(Rated out of 10- was it a smooth order process, did it come quick, was it well packed?) – out of ten

Packaging & Presentation:
(Write about the way the models were packed and does it show them odd to the buyer) – out of ten

Quality of Materials & Manufacture:
(How was the quality of casting or sculpting on the recived models?) – out of ten

Ease of use & Scale:
(This should be fairly simple and include any info on clean up needed and how it fits with the chosen models etc?) – out of ten

Value for money:
(This should be fairly obvious) – out of ten

Overall Rating and Final Thoughts
(Rated out of 10)

#################################

These seem pretty comprehensive to me but could they be improved? Are there things you guys would like to see covered, are there areas I'm missing?
Any thoughts, ideas or comments would be really useful please folks.
Cheers

The Fort - Book Review

The Fort By Bernard Cornwell
‘Captivate, kill or destroy the whole force of the enemy’ was the order given to the American soldiers.

Summer 1779.
Seven hundred and fifty British soldiers and three small ships of the Royal Navy. Their orders: to build a fort above a harbour to create a base from which to control the New England seaboard.
Forty-one American ships and over nine hundred men. Their orders: to expel the British.
The battle that followed was a classic example of how the best-laid plans can be disrupted by personality and politics, and of how warfare can bring out both the best and worst in men. It is a timeless tale of men at war, written by a master storyteller.

This is a meticulously researched and highly entertaining novelised account of a largely forgotten campaign from the American War of Independence which is usually known today as "The Penobscot Expedition". If you don't already know the outcome of the campaign, I would advise against looking it up until after you have finished the book: it was a very close-run thing which could easily have gone either way, and the tension of now knowing how it ends does enhance the book's first reading.


"The Fort" is based so closely on real historical events that it is better described as a novelised history rather than historical fiction. Not only does Cornwall take very few liberties with the real course of events, he includes an 18-page historical note which explains the ones he did take, as well as a "heroic myths" essay which compares the legends which have grown up about the two most famous participants in the campaign and the historical reality as he sees it.

In 1779, the British sent a small force of regular but not particularly experienced troops with orders to build a fort at the location which is now called Castine but was then known as Majabigwaduce. Their short term aim was to deny the excellent harbour at that spot to the rebels and enable it to be used as a base from which the Royal Navy could limit the depredations of rebel privateers: the long-term aim, had the British won the war, would have been to establish a new loyalist colony called New Ireland.

Within a few weeks of the arrival of the British, the Americans sent a force to expel them which had rather more soldiers, significantly more and heavier artillery, and a much larger naval force. And they arrived while the fort was only half completed, with walls which were still low enough that a man could jump over them. The British had only one significant advantage: their army commander, Brigadier-General Francis McLean, and the senior captain of the three RN ships supporting him, Captain Mowett, worked together as a team. The American army and navy commanders did not.

The future Lieutenant-General Sir John Moore, one of the most brilliant and humane generals ever to serve in the British army or any other, saw action for the first time as an eighteen-year-old lieutenant in this campaign and is one of the major characters in the book. So is Colonel Paul Revere, who was in command of the rebel artillery. Like almost everyone else who has ever studied him, Cornwall presents John Moore in a favourable light. Nobody could possibly have been as good as Moore's legend suggests, but most of those who have examined the matter concluded that he was pretty close to it.

On the other side of this coin, both in terms of allegiance and feelings, Cornwall is not a fan of Paul Revere, who does not come well out of this story. At the conclusion of the historical note at the end of this book, Cornwall point out perhaps the most extreme irony of the Penobscot expedition: Paul Revere was accused of disobeying an order from the second-in-command of the American forces, General Wadsworth, who threatened to have him arrested. Yet ironically Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, who eighty years later was to write the poem which immortalised Revere, was the grandson of the same General Wadsworth! (At the start of this book, there is a scene in Wadsworth's home town in which his wife holds their one-year-old daughter Zilpha in her arms. Longfellow was Zilpha's son.)

To summarise, this is a well written and enjoyable book, laced with some of Bernard Cornwell's own opinions but giving both sides of the story on both British and American sides. Not all fans of the "Richard Sharpe" books will enjoy this, as the events of the campaign were not quite as dramatic or heroic as stories such as Sharpe's Eagle, but personally I found "The Fort" even more fun to read that the Sharpe books and can recommend it. For me it’s a solid four and a half stars and has tempted me to pick up more Cornwall for my ever increasing collection!

Available from:

http://www.play.com/
The Fort By Bernard Cornwell

Softback • ISBN 9780007331741

Forgeworld Sneak Peeks - Imperial Armour 2nd Ed New Imperial Guard Tanks

Hi Folks,
I'll keep this short as I'm sure you are pretty curious as to what I've found! Basically my IA:A 2nd Ed arrived on Saturday and thumbing threw the pages i came across two new tanks for the guard that are coming up. Below are some pics and hints and if you have any questions please don't hesitate to drop me a line. Suffice to say in IA:A 2nd Ed there isn't much new other then some chapter specific variations of the Contemptor for BA and SW, everything else is pretty much replacing old stuff but if you want to know anything just let me know.

The first we have all see is the Macharius Omega, the pic from the book is here:

But as everyone knows this has already featured on the blog so here is a picture of the model we have seen for this:

Next up we have the Crassus Dominus, this is an awesome bit of kit as show by the outline below:

this thing is Hench!!!! it combines one of these:

with three! yes that's right three of these:

Oh yeah and did i mention it can move and fire everything? I think shy of the semi-confirmed Plastic Hydra (my local store manager basically said its on its way and hes not been wrong so far with releases) this has to now be my most wanted tank :)

any thoughts or questions chaps and chapesses?