Hobby Table VIII

Well met noble readers, and welcome back to the Hobby Table.  Today's article was inspired by a somewhat spur of the moment decision on my part, and really features something I love about the hobby; the ability to use the models and the rules as jumping off points for your own ideas.  While I was meandering through the halls at work today I found myself returning again and again to a movie I watched last night, and couldn't help but draw ideas on how to re-create the feeling I got from the film on the tabletop.  So if you fancy a look at some of the ideas I've had so far, then read on as I try to capture the feeling of the film.

Podcast #9: Tyranid Codex Review

Hey there folks, Godfrey here bringing you something a little different.  Because of personal reasons, Corvus and Heretic have opted out of the topic, which I will honor without fault.  However, I have quite a bit, both good and bad to speak on in terms of what this codex really is, and it's uses... even if they be few in number to most.

Hopefully this podcast will promote some thoughts on how to look at this book past the first impression of WTF GDUBS!?!  It's a long talk, but I hope it's something you guys can enjoy.

Cheers!

Space Hulk Review

Cheers!

Honor the Codex: Pt. 10 Let's be Friends!

Well, now we're in quite the pickle. I have two styles of writing and two article series colliding in this same single piece. That's right, we're examining allies for the big blue book. So, what's an author to do? Should I tackle this as I have every other LBF? Do I treat it as part of HtC? The title suggests that I have chosen the latter over the former, but is this truly the case? Read on and find out!

Heresy in the Library - Malodrax

Hello there, good people. Trooper here coming to you with a review of the latest Space Marine Battles book, Malodrax. A tale of Darnath Lysander's capture, escape, and subsequent return to the warp tainted world of Malodrax where he proceeds to do what any rational space marine would do against the forces who are both his eternal enemy and his captors...he conquers the world and salts what is left.

So sit back, drink some amasec, and enjoy my review of Malodrax.

Reports from the Chili Waaagh!

 

So a big shout out to all the guys who made it to the Chili Waaagh! this past Saturday.  I can't remember ever having a more pleasant experience with 40k, and I didn't even bring that much (model wise).

For those of you unfortunate enough to have not been there, this was a themed Apocalypse event, forming and following a narrative of a massive Ork Waaagh that slammed into an Imperial planet.  With the Guard forces utterly crushed or routed, several Space Marine chapters, and a Legion Invigilata Warlord Titan responded to the Distress Beacon.  The Orks had crafted not only several Stompas, including a Shock Attack Stompa, but had created a foul titanic monstrosity classified as a Gargant.

The Facebook page leading up to the event was amazing.  Several in-character responses and discussions from both factions' commanders, and showing up to the event and seeing most everything painted was amazing.  I loved the table, the scenario and the people.  A great time was had by all.  Special thanks to Johnny McGinnis for hosting the event.  I look forward to coming down for the next Waaagh!

Below are a ton of pictures taken from the event.

Rites of Battle Podcast Update

Hey all, Corvus here with a quick update about our podcast stuffs. We've gotten a few emails (love you guys!) about our podcast'd content. Some of you have been wondering where our content can be found. First things first, I'm really really new to this podcast thing, so our files are hosted for free, via Archive.org. You can download our content through them by visiting their site by way of the embedded widget that the podcast plays through on our site. I chose this option because I was familiar with it, because it was free, and because it came with a little bit of copyright protection with it. If any of our listeners also cast, I'd love tips from you as to how/where you host your content, so that we might be able to better offer content to more users. Hopefully that clears some things up and answers some questions for you. Hope to see more of you tuning in to our next podcast! Oh, and here's a handy dandy link to all the stuff our account uploads. Thanks for tuning in!

P.S. Stay tuned for another podcast soon! Something buggy this way comes...

Honor the Codex: Pt. 9 Extras

Hello again readers, and welcome to the expansion pack, DLC, part of the review where we cover the stuff "new to 6th edition." This covers the two new FoC slots, the Lord of War and the Fortifications, as well as Forgeworld models which have been stamped for regular 40k play. In the interests of time and space, I'll only be covering the exceptional selections. So, strap in and away we'll go!

Rethinking the Universal Rules of 40k.

Hey folks.  So Tyranids have dropped, and whether you love it, hate it, or are just plain indifferent on it, it's the reality of the codex as it is now.  And while I do plan to discuss my thoughts on it at some point (more than likely over a podcast review of the book), right now I thought I'd touch on my thoughts on another popular topic of today's 40k chats.

There has been a rumor or two floating about that 7th edition may be coming quite soon on the heels of some of the releases later this year.  For those of us who bought into the collector's edition of 6th edition, it's a little disconcerting to think it'll be outdated in less than two years time.  My personal thoughts on what this "7th edition" rumoring revolves around less of a new edition, and more of a culmination of all the new information we've seen drop over the blitzkrieg of units, rules, codexes, dataslates, supplements, expansions and more.  Basically think of a re-release of the current rules, but with all of the new information added into it.  That is at least my hopes on it with regards to an edition shift.

However, there is a chance for Games Workshop to make some balance changes to some of the game's mechanics as it moves forward.  Whether or not they choose to with this new edition we hear talk of is another story, but they could make some nice tweaks in the form of potent erratas.  A few rules came up in my mind of places where the game could make changes that really improve the ability and increase tactical options presented to the players.  You can disagree with the power level of a specific unit or codex all you want, but at the end of the day it pays to remember that all of these issues are made possible by existing in the context of the game's rules.  So let's look at some of these possible alterations to some of the game's existing rules to see how we could change the scheme or alter the mood of 40k.

Critique Corner: The Emepror's Finest

Greetings everyone.  Another List has manifested from the warp, and so I thought it's time to get to work on what I had promised and offer up my thoughts on it.  Corvus has offered an idea of trying to weigh in on it with his own thoughts, creating a sort of "article-cast" where we both discuss our thoughts on the list.  Each of us will weigh in on the list so that our thoughts on each aspect of the list are clear.

Obviously, there is no way for me to be able to guarantee anything, since often times a play area, personal preference, or plain old bad dice can make or break a list.  But I'll do my best to offer my outlook and suggestions for the lists I receive on a macro and micro scale, so that you can get my insights as I look into the overall balance of a list, and at each unit in it.

Today's list comes from John Lay.  He is running a 1,500 point list out of Codex: Space Marines, but has not specified a Chapter Tactic

A Full Docket

Hello everyone.  There isn't much in the way of content here, but I wanted to let everyone know that with the new year has come several major events in the area.  Several tournaments and Narrative themed Apocalypse events have been scheduled.  To help you guys plan for the events, we've updated the Event Calendar here on Rites to give you the best idea of what all is going on and when.

Check out the Rites of Battle Event Calender and start painting your models.  The new year is certainly starting out with a bang!

Cheers!