Lonewolf GT = No go…

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Sigh… so after much deliberation and brainstorming it appears that the much anticipated Lonewolf GT will not be in my plans for this year. I have spent the last few months prepping for this tournament and have been there the last 2 years in a row and was very much looking forward to a 3rd year. But alas, it was not meant to be. Although the reasoning is a good one (I accepted a permanent position and my official start date is April 8th, the same day the GT begins…) it is still somewhat of a downer because I was looking forward to competing with my newly painted / updated army and seeing some old faces again. Even though I got to play against my old gaming buddies last week it’s never the same when you know you have to leave and get back to the grind. So, I had to call up the tournament organizers of the Lonewolf and let them know that I won’t be attending. I’ll have to look forward to seeing Horned Rat Rob’s and Khorne53′s reports of how the weekend goes.

In the meantime, it hasn’t gotten me down from getting some more painting done and I was even able to squeeze in a game against the Orcs & Goblins, where I was able to pull out a win. Hard fought game and very enjoyable. The General of the O&G’s is a guy I’ve gotten to know over the last few weeks who is slowly converting over to WHFB… he’s been playing WH40K for a long time and he’s liking the change so far. This is the same guy that used the Nasty Skulkers to kill my Oldblood a few weeks ago… Read my rant about that here… Needless to say, I didn’t charge anything in for those guys to munch on this time. Anyways, he’s a real cool opponent and we have had a few good games so far. With the army I took, nearly all of it was complete with the exception of one movement tray. Once that’s done… there won’t be much left.

So right now I’m trying to get motivated to finishing off my Lizardmen. I only have a few models left and then a unit of 20 Temple Guard to touch up. I try to keep telling myself to finish them now because if I switch armies it’ll be a long time before I come back to them. I’m very anxious to start working on my Deathwing (40k…. I know, I know…) and my Orcs & Goblins… However, I feel like I MUST finish off the Lizardmen before I can have some peace with them and start on newer projects. There’s just a little bit left… Somebody get me motivated!

I’ll be posting pics of the progress of what needs to be done. Just wanted to put something out since it’s been a few weeks since I’ve done so. Make sure and check back, I feel a finished unit coming up soon. Peace!

Today’s the Day! Army Lists due! Current Army List, v7.0 (Lonewolf GT List!).

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Ok all… Today was the deadline… March 15th… The Ides of March… (I’m sure they did that on purpose…) Oh well, today was the day to have your final army lists turned into the guys at the Lonewolf GT. After much debate and counsel from my fellow gaming buddies (and brother) Horned Rat Rob and Khorne53 I finally arrived on a list. I will admit that I switched it up at the last minute because (and I HATE to admit this) I have recently lost some motivation to finish up what needs to be done and feel like it won’t be done in time. There’s a lot going on right now… and I’m really excited to get to head back to Kansas and visit with old friends and family. I dunno, maybe that is getting in the way right now… I haven’t painted in about 5 days and I don’t see myself picking up a brush between now and Friday (when I fly out!). Also, March Madness is underway this Thursday and it’s also St. Patty’s Day! Not to mention that I gave up meat (all meat) for Lent so maybe my strength is just not there… LOL! Anyways, because of all of this, here is my final list, altered slightly from what I ultimately wanted, but still effective nonetheless. I only have 6 more models to paint between now and April 6th (that’s my cutoff date). And I’d still like to finish up a display board so I feel like I can surely churn that stuff out between now and the tournament. Once it’s all complete, I plan on taking pics of the tournament ready army along with the display board and showing it here. That will hopefully be sooner rather than later. Anyways, here’s the Tournament-ready list:

Lord:

Olblood “Bot’l Roq-it” w/Halberd, Carnosaur Pendant, Dawnstone, Armour of Destiny, and Carnosaur.

Pretty much my standard build for my OB since I started playing 8th edition again. I switched up a few things like the Carnosaur Pendant, which gives him Frenzy (and thus an extra attack!). The addition of the Dawnstone will hopefully help out when I inevitably fail that 1+ Armour Save. He’s tough as nails and dishes out some damage. The main goal is to have him flank one of the Saurus units and charge at the same time as them, giving a good chance that they can run down whoever they face.

Heroes:

Skink Chief “Bro-qin Bot’l” w/Stegadon War-Spear and Ancient Stegadon.

This is really my biggest change. I swapped him out for the Skink Priest on EOTG because I wanted to gain more offensive power. As you know, I enjoy the big dino list so this guy was a no-brainer. I’ve heard it from both sides about the War Spear… What if he doesn’t charge? Well, that’s a chance I’m going to take. When the Chief gets a charge off, he rolls 2D6+1 for Impact Hits instead of the normal D6+1. In addition, it’s a lance so “Bro-qin Bot’l” is dishin’ out 3 Strength 6 attacks on the charge at WS4. The thundershop will come last… I think he is very effective and I am lookin’ forward to seein’ how he does for me.

Scar-veteran “Tee-Recks” as the BSB, w/Extra Hand Weapon, Armour of Fortune, and Luckstone.

I took him off of the Cold One, which sucks, but I needed the points. I opted for the extra hand weapon to give him 5 attacks. He still has a respectable 3+ Armour Save and a 5+ Ward Save thanks to the Amour of Fortune. The Luckstone will help when I fail his first Armour Save.

Skink Priest “I-gwanna Hur’chu” w/ Dispel Scroll.

Here purely for the magic defense. If  he manages to get a decent roll on the Lore of the Heavens and then can cast it without blowing his head up… it’s a win in my book.

Core Units:

30 Saurus Warriors w/Hand Weapons & Shields and Full Command.

30 Saurus Warriors w/Spears & Shields and Full Command.

10 Skink Skirmishers.

10 Skink Skirmishers.

The BSB will go in the HW/Shield unit and will help with a little bit of damage output. The spears will be on the flank (admittedly, I put this unit in my list because it is both my favorite unit and best painted unit). The skirmishers will pepper with poison darts, what they do best.

Special Units:

8 Chameleon Skinks w/Stalker upgrade.

Rare Units:

Ancient Stegadon.

Salamander.

Salamander.

Altogether, it comes to 2,499 points. Not much left to paint and I hope to take it back with me this week so I can play test it in a few games. I’ll have a pic of the fully painted army and display board when it’s fully complete. Let me know what you guys think. Thanks!

Skink Skirmisher Movement Trays – Start to Finish!

The cardboard I used as the "filler".

I have had a little bit of time on my hands lately since my wife has been outta town… so I’ve tried to get in as much painting / converting as possible. After putting together my final list (hopefully!) I started to work on what’s left to paint in order to have that list completely painted for the upcoming Lonewolf GT and Throne of Skulls Tournament. First up was the skinks (both Chameleon and regular). In this newest edition, skirmishers need to maintain a 1″ gap between each other to represent their loose formation. I have, in the past, just kept this guys with no movement tray and have moved them one by one. I figured that since the rest of my army is on movement trays this would be a good opportunity to make these guys some movement trays as well, however, the difference between my skirmishers and my regular infantry units is the overall coverage of flock on the bases/movement trays. Since there is supposed to be that 1″ gap I went to work on filling it in so that it’s not so noticeable on the battlefield. I found a thick piece of cardboard(ish) stuff laying around and figured it would work.

So, at first, I made the movement trays out of plywood and used some sheet metal for the magnet portion. I then took a skink base and started marking where each of these guys would be on the movement tray. So I set to work on marking it up and getting it where I wanted it. I then cut squares about the perfect size of a small base into the cardboard and glued it into place, placing washers and magnets in those cut out squares.

Makin' sure they fit.

The skinks fit perfectly in it and it would help with moving around on the battlefield. I also did a smaller one for the Chameleon Skinks that only holds 6 models. I will use these guys in my 2K list so I wanted to get them primed and ready to go. I went about the same way on constructing their movement tray. And below is how they turned out…

After assembling the movement trays and ensuring that the skinks would fit into them came the flocking / painting stage. Again, because of the 1″ gap, I wanted to put more flock into those open areas so that it would fit in with the overall theme that I have with my army. I also (for whatever reason) wanted to have more water show on the skirmishers bases so I did about a half and half look on the trays. Here’s what we got so far…

So the trays are flocked and I’ve allowed them to sit and dry for a minute so then next came the priming / painting stage. As you may know, I have a water theme going on with my army. Every base in my army has some type of water on it and these movement trays would be no exception. I really like the idea of the half and half theme on these trays. I’m not sure but it just feels like the “scouts” of the army would use a sneaky tactic like submerging in water to get close to the enemy for surveillance. That’s what I was thinking when I decided to paint it these ways. Kinda makes sense…. So anyways, I set to painting them up, got them where I wanted and then bam! Done! I put the skinks on their newly modeled / painted movement trays and I think they turned out well. Also, since I have a metal case I put a few strips of magnet on the bottom of the trays so that they stay in place and, therefore, are not that susceptible to being broken during transit. Here’s the final results. Enjoy and thanks for checking it out!

Ok, ok… Back to Reality… Current Army List, v6.0.

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Ok, ok… so if you’ve seen my most recent post… you’ll know that I made a recent switch to the “Toad” as opposed to the Oldblood / Carnosaur list… I tried it out on a few games and, even though it’s an effective army list, it’s really not my style. Like my buddy Khorne53 says, “I’m all for being competetive, but I’m also all for originality.” In addition to the bright colors that you can use on the Lizardmen army as a whole, and the ability to literally go “wild” on the painting scheme… one of the other things that has always lured me to the Lizardmen is the army list capabilities. I really like playing a “dinosaur” army! I think the overall look of the army, especially when you have big dinosaurs like Carnosaurs, Stegadons, Salamanders, is an awesome sight to behold when you look across the battlefield. Plus, I have always been the kind of gamer that goes against the grain… and nowadays in the 8th edition, you can find a Lizardmen player with the “Life Slann” in just about every tournament you go to. That’s not me. That’s not what I’m about. (Note: I’m not knocking players that go this route… like I said, it’s a very effective list…) So I went back to my roots and changed around some of my core units and have chosen to go with a big block of Saurus Warriors, flanked by some big time Dino’s! Your thoughts/feedback/criticism is appreciated. Thanks!

(Of final note… this, again, is a 2,000 point army list that I’m using to prep for the Throne of Skulls Tournament that will be held in Las Vegas in June.)

Lord:

Oldblood Qett’l-Korn with the Armour of Destiny, Halberd, Venom of the Firefly Frog, and Potion of Speed. Mounted on a Carnosaur.

So this has been my basic setup on my OB for the last several games. I like the fact that he’s striking with 5 Strength 6 Magical attacks. He gains an additional attack once the Carnosaur becomes Frenzy as well… The Thunderstomp given by the Carnosaur is not bad either. Overall, this guy dishes out some damage and my main goal is to get him and at least one of the Stegadons charging at the same time. Pretty good damage output.

Heroes:

Scar-Veteran Bro’qin Bot’l as the BSB. Has a shield, Light Armour, Burning Blade of Chotec, Glyph Necklace and mounted on a Cold One.

My main reason for this guy is to offer Fear in the unit of 40 Saurus Warriors that he will be joining. Equipped with the Burning Blade of Chotec, he does a total of -4 to your armour save and has flaming attacks. So if he gets a wound off on some Regeneration units… it will negate their regeneration roll… and the Saurus can go to town.

Skink Priest Ho-qus Po’qus with a Level 2 Upgrade and Dispel Scroll.

Magic defense. Level 2 upgrade means he can cast some pretty decent spells if I roll enough on the winds of magic. I’ll have him flying solo, which means he can be picked out so my plan is to keep him close to the unit of Saurus Warriors to benefit from the Look Out, Sir! roll. If an empty building is nearby… even better.

Core:

39 Saurus Warriors with hand weapon & Shield and Full Command.

Easy to see that this is the chunk of my army. 39 Saurus Warriors with a Scar-Vet mounted on a Cold One (and so cause Fear) that are Strength 4 and Toughness 4… throw in a buff or two from the Skink Priest and this unit can be tough to fight. I plan to have 3 big dino’s flanking either side of this unit, with hopes that at least 2 of the 4 can make it into combat on the same turn.

10 Skink Skirmishers.

10 Skink Skirmishers.

These guys are here to harass opponents and kill off the occasional Giant, war machine, or lone character. Granted, they’re not as good as the Chameleon Skinks but they can still be effective. I’m hoping they do the trick.

Special:

 

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Stegadon.

So I had to downgrade to get this guy in (and can’t take 2 Ancient Stegs in a 2,000 point game anyways) but I’m willing to give it a try for 2 main reasons… 1.) I love the big dinosaur list! This will give me 3 dinosaurs, which really serve as centerpieces of the army for appearance, which is the reason I play this game anyways. 2.) It’s still a Stegadon. Sure, he loses Strength and an Armour Save but he’s still bringing 4 Strength 5 attacks as well as impact hits. If the Giant Bow causes a few wounds every now and then I’m good… Plus this will give me an opportunity to finish up the Giant Bow portion of the howdah!

Rare:

Ancient Stegadon.

Bigger, better, meaner version of the regular Stegadon. Strength 6, Giant Blowpipes that do 2D6 shots with poison and the Thunderstomp. Like I said, if I can get at least 2 of my 4 units to charge at one time I feel like I can have a pretty good shot at killing off a unit. This guy will be on the flank of my main (and only) Saurus Unit. Getting across the field will be tough when I’m going against the Empire or Dwarfs… but I’ll be ok knowing that you’ll have to kill at least 3 big dino’s… and if they manage to do that then they deserve to win!

Salamander.

Salamander.

Another key piece to the “Big Dino” puzzle. I have 2 of the old Salamanders because I like those models much better. They are bigger and really fit into the theme that I’m going for. Plus, when they get to spout flames on a unit of elves, goblins, or anything with a small base… watch out! These guys can kill off an entire unit in one go with some well aimed flames!

Again, this is a 2,000 point list and in my 2,500 point list for the Lonewolf GT, I plan on adding another unit of Saurus Warriors and upgrading the Skink Priest to an EOTG… giving me 4 big dinos (Muahhahahahahaha!) It’ll all look fantastic on the table and once I’m finished with the display board… will hopefully be a sight to behold! I have to finish off just a few more things then I’ll be good to go for the tournament. Also, I plan on sticking with this list no matter what… I have to get some consistency with it so I can learn how to play with it. Lately, I’ll make a list, try it, then make more changes. That makes it difficult to get good with it so I played a “version” of this list this past weekend and enjoyed it. The only change that I’ll make is to either go with the Dispel Scroll on the Skink Priest or swap it for the Blood Statuette of Spite (Toughness test for any enemy character, if he fails then he loses 1 wound, continue till he passes or he dies). I’ll try a few games with ‘em both and then make a decision on what I want to keep.

Your comments / critiques / feedback is appreciated. I plan on getting in a game this weekend with the new list so I’ll make sure to post results. Also, I’m currently working on movement trays for my Skink Skirmishers (both units). I’ll post pics of the start-to-finish of those tonight when I get home. I really like the way they turned out. Holla!

Current Army List, v4.0.

Ok, so I’ve been messing around with my army list (again) and think I have decided on something. I have found that I’ve been going away from the type of player that I am and instead I’ve been trying to make lists based on a player that I’m not. I love the Lizardmen army. I love that you can go either hand-to-hand or magic heavy… or even a very balanced army of both. That said, I know that some people will not agree with some of the things in this list and that’s ok, those are the things that I want to know and also why I post it up here in the first place… However, I like this list as it goes straight for a hand-to-hand assault and gives me 3 big dino’s…. I also did away with certain magic items and gained more attacks and strength on my characters. All in all, a solid list but definitely has it’s weaknesses… It should be noted that I’m trying to be competitive with this list and know full well that there are some armies out there that I just can’t beat… and I refuse to go with the Life Slann (at least right now). I think that this list is tailored at beating some armies and will be tough to beat others… and that’s ok with me. I’m going to try this list at the Lonewolf GT in Dallas and I’m hoping for good results. Comments / critiques / suggestions please. Thanks!

Lords:

Oldblood w/Armour of Destiny, Halberd, Venom of the Firefly Frog, and Carnosaur.

This guy is my general. Pretty much the same build that I’ve been going with. 5 Strength 6 attacks that are poisonous with a 1+ Armour Save and a 4+ Ward Save. After the Carnosaur frenzies, it’s 6 Stength 6 Attacks from the OB and 5 Strength 7 Attacks with the Carnosaur, not to mention the Thunderstomp. I’ve always enjoyed the OB/Carnosaur build and I’m sticking with it.

Oldblood w/Sword of Strife, Enchanted Shield, and Light Armour.

This guy is a new addition to my army. He’s going to be in my horde unit and will help out with the offensive punch of that unit. He will be next to the BSB so they will both be delivering some pretty good blows. Since he’s an OB he’s WS 6 and S5 and T5… the Sword of Strife gives him 2 extra attacks so he’s bringing 7 Strength 5 attacks and Initiative 4. The downside to this guy is no Ward Save… I’m hoping is 1+ save carries him through…

Heroes:

Scar-Veteran as the BSB, Armour of Fortune, Extra hand weapon and the Ironcurse Icon.

Obviously, he’s my BSB. I’m not going the route of the “Banner of Eternal Flame”… I want more offensive effectiveness from this guy thus, the extra hand weapon. He will have 5 Strength 5 attacks and will be right next to the OB for  total of 12 attacks at Strength 5… The Armour gives him a 5+ Ward Save for some staying power and the Ironcurse Icon will hopefully help out with a 6+ Ward Save against war machine weapons, which they will surely see…

Skink Chief with Stegadon War Spear and Ancient Stegadon.

New addition to my list. The War-Spear gives him 2D6+1 Impact Hits on the charge (at Strength 6) and also +2 Strength since it’s a lance. So he has 3 Strength 6 attacks (at Initiative 6) when he charges…

Skink Priest with Dispel Scroll.

My anti-magic. I figure that this will give me one turn to negate magic and only leave me with one turn to get to HtH. By then, I should be out of harm’s way (Magic missiles and stuff like that). The only thing I’d have to worry about are hex and augment spells (Thanks… again… Khorne53). I plan on running him with the unit of Skink Cohorts in order to keep him from getting picked off if he was and independent character.

Core Units:

40 Saurus Warriors with hand weapon and shields and Full Command.

The “meat” of my army. Both the OB and BSB will be in this unit. They will be flanked by the Stegadons and the other unit of Saurus Warriors.  Horde formation will hopefully win me some combats and break through the opponent’s main army line.

25 Saurus Warriors with hand weapon and shields and full Command.

Another unit of Saurus that will be flanking my main unit. They will be 6 Saurus wide.

10 Skink Skirmishers.

Could be a redirecting unit if the Skink Priest moves out. Otherwise, find cover and keep the Skink Priest alive. Can still be effective with double-tapping the blowpipes and using Poison.

Special Units:

8 Chameleon Skinks.

Same thing as before. Excellent for operating behind enemy lines and killing off war machines lone characters. Better BS skill than normal skinks makes them a must-have.

Stegadon.

Giant Bow doesn’t suck. Even though it’s Strength 5 it has an extra attack and is still Toughness 6… and… it’s still a Stegadon.

Rare Units:

Salamander

I’ll use this guy on the flank and hopefully torch some units with his spout flames attack. Keeping him alive is the key so I have to get him in some flanks of the opponent.

This comes to just under 2,500 points. Like I said, I’m going for the Hand-to-Hand list and most of my characters and mounts dish out a ton of damage. Sure, there are some armies that can beat this army pretty easily but, as is true in this game… you still have to roll the dice. It only takes one dice roll for an opposing player to blow up his wizard’s head or turn tail and run. I’ll take my chances either way and will see how this list does for me. Now… onto finishing up what’s left:

- Stegadon Giant Bow Crew

- 12 Saurus Warriors

After that, I’ll be good to go. I’m currently working on the Ancient Stegadon. I went back and did something different with the scales. Pics to come on that tonight hopefully. Let me know what you think! Holla!