26 December, 2010

Review: Flames of War Figure Case

Well for my xmas gift to myself, I shelled out the $100 for a Flames of War case.






I play US for flames of war, specifically a tank company, and the start of a paratrooper army.

My first impression was WOW! The things is really well made, and is durable. There is a lot of room for models inside of all kinds (infantry, tanks, command teams, artillery, armoured infantry and vehicles, etc).

The only issue I have, is that the foam included is generic, so any army can use it. Now for any of the infantry or artillery, basically anything on a base this is no problem, as the bases sizes are standard and fit nice and snugly.

The problem is in the tank and vehicle areas. I play with shermans, stuarts, M10s and halftracks, and unfortunately, the US versions of these are smaller than other armies, which leads to lost turrets in general jumbling around if i am rough with the case (as I was on purpose to test it).

Now, I am in the process of magnetizing all my turrets so that should solves the problem mostly. And Battlefoam does make army specific trays, which I will likely invest in, in the new year, but for now, the bog standard case is what I have.

Final Analysis (or the TL;DR section): The case is very well made and seems ideally suited for German armour. All models on bases will be great in this case. Various factions tanks and armoured vehicles may see a bit of shuffling, though if you don't bang your case around they'll be steller.

Value: 7/10 - Good quality cases cost money, but this is even a bit pricier (on par with Battlefoams stuff)
Quality: 9/10 - Well made, durable, good construction.
Appearance: 10/10 - Looks great and with an army specific patch and a nameplate it would DY-NO-MITE!


Would I buy one again? Yes I would, but I would immediately shell out the cash for the army specific trays and sell some of the standard ones to friends/ebay.

:thumbsup:

22 December, 2010

Ultramarines: The Movie - The Sober Gamer Review

(After reading several reviews of the Ultramarines movie created by Codex Pictures, I found that there are myriad viewpoints on the movie from the perspective of a Warhammer gamer, but none that I could find which reviewed the movie as what it is: a movie. My attempt here is to write something that any theater-goer can read - gamer or no - and get a sense of what they're about to watch.)


Before you know anything else about this movie, you need at least a cursory awareness of a table-top game called Warhammer 40,000. Created approximately three decades ago by Games Workshop, the fictional universe in which the game is played forms the basis of the Ultramarines movie. Since its inception, it's become an internationally-loved game and hobby in which fans build sci fi miniatures, paint them, and then play against each other in a table-top war-game involving dice and measuring tape. The most popular army to play in Warhammer 40,000 is the Ultramarines… and it's they who have inspired this film.


Ultramarines is the story of a small band of futuristic Marines, bound in thick armor and armed with powerful, oversized repeat-rocket launchers called Bolters… not to mention swords on their hips which are loaded with chainsaw blades. They are the elite and first-to-fight in the legions of the Emperor; an ancient and revered ruler who sits at the head of an interplanetary totalitarian imperium. Rule is absolute, paranoia is the underlying principle of law, and offenders are guilty until proven innocent.


This rag-tag detachment of steadfast Ultramarines investigate a distress beacon from a distant planet called Mithron, expecting to find brethren Marines there, holding the line. When they arrive, they find that things are amiss and the presence of demonic forces are seeking to rob the Imperium of sacred artifacts. Their military order is a religious one, where they refer to one another as "Brother" and carry aloft the standard of the Emperor, whom they revere as a Christ-like deity.



The first few minutes of Ultramarines set my mind at edge about what sort of direction this movie was going to take. I was afraid that the Dudley-Do-Right Ultramarine ethos would over-emphasize the Arnold Schwarzeneggerish action-hero element. Instead, the tone is quite dark from the outset. It's hard to pry the machismo out of the Ultramarine mythos, but this movie, its tone, its visual character and music achieve a deft balancing act of conveying the power and muscle of the genetically enhanced super soldiers while, at the same time, skirting the cliches which could have crippled this tale from the outset. Failing to achieve that balance would have ruined this picture for all except the most devoted fans.


I was pleased that Ultramarines is a movie first and a Warhammer wank-fest second. It's for fans, but there's care taken to allow the uninitiated access to the story. Though this isn't exactly Fried Green Tomatoes, there is generous attention to character development and plot advancement. The characters have names, personalities, strengths and weaknesses. It underlines my earlier point about the balancing act; a real movie is more than just pauses between action scenes. Again, Ultramarines will not win (nor does it deserve) any Academy awards, but there's care and artistry in its story that makes it quite watchable.


Due to the detailed, very specific source material, no review of Ultramarines is complete without mention of its faithfulness to the Warhammer canon. All fans of Games Workshop's lore will be happy to know Ultramarines is meticulously, uncompromisingly, even lovingly faithful to canon and crafts a story in which its universe is treated as scripture. From the precise formation of Marine squads, the religious relationship to their weapons and armor, the role that each Marine plays within the squad, the rules of the larger universe in which various Marine chapters interact with one another down to the blessing of ammunition itself… those who love the Adeptus Astartes are going to get a very special, geeky thrill from Ultramarines's devotion to it. This is no doubt due to Games Workshop's unflinching restrictions on licensing their IP and how they aggressively retain creative control. Hollywood could learn from Ultramarine's example and apply this level of respect for source material in movies based on popular comic books, video games, etc.


Though hardcore fans will be squeaking with glee over Ultramarine's "future of war" story, an uninitiated non-fan will probably blanch somewhat at the thick, unapologetic Judeo-Christian imagery that echoes the darkest chapters in real religious history. It's a pervasive influence on the Warhammer mythos that parrots an era of prejudice and persecution, despite how odious that reference can be. It's a strange context in which to frame "the good guys" of the tale, but devoted Warhammer fans have long since accepted it as part of the cosmology. To put it bluntly: Don't expect Ultramarines to make a fan out of those who have a distaste for what the Crusades meant to religious history. "The Emperor Protects" rings with the kind of fanaticism that modern thinkers find ugly… even as fiction.


Ultramarines is rendered completely in CGI, which is not only a cost-efficient way to bring fantasy and sci-fi movies to the screen, but makes a lot of sense for a movie like this one: The environments, effects, sets, etc. for Ultramarines would have been prohibitively expensive and difficult to do properly. It's interesting, however, how the movie is so visually inconsistent. There are magnificent scenes and effects which are so lifelike that you can almost feel the metal under your fingers or smell the smoke in your nostrils. Certain panoramas or sets are simply breath-taking and truly bring the gritty fantasy world to dim, dismal life (in particular, I was just stunned by Chaplain Carnak's armor, especially his ornate helmet). Sometimes, it's little more than a third-rate Shrek. At its worst? The motion and expressions are lifeless, wooden and utterly impossible to believe. In fact, some of the animation was so poor that I'm at a loss to explain how it came to be included in the final print. There's one scene in particular which I won't describe (so as to avoid spoilers), but it could have been a low-rent re-enactment of Buzz Lightyear having a fist-fight with another Buzz Lightyear. It was more disappointing than funny.



One of the glowing gems of this film - an aspect that too often goes overlooked - is its sound design. At every turn, the audio was utterly perfect, and the mood of the movie was greatly bolstered by it. During scenes when great battles were taking place, the crack of Bolter shells firing and armor clanking against melee weapons was flawlessly executed. In quieter scenes, footfalls and the whisper of voices were treated with deft expertise with clever attention to reverb and occlusion. It helps, of course, to have such a gifted cast lending their voices. Terrance Stamp and John Hurt, in particular, have distinct and characterful voices that resist all temptation to over-act or reduce the material by adding humorous subtext. In fact, many of the ideas and dialogue that Ultramarines serves up would probably fall flat if not for the capable cast.


A movie with plot and characters lives and dies by its story, and Ultramarines tells a tale which isn't likely to challenge or inspire many people… but it's a solid tale all the same. It's about heroism and brotherhood and honor and all that good stuff that warriors are supposed to stand for. Though there is brutal violence throughout, the violence is not the point of the tale. As the small band of warriors find their way across Mithron and discover its secrets, its tested by stress from within and attacks from without. It sounds truly epic, but this movie resolves its deepest human issues very predictably; nobody ever really believes that the honor of the Ultramarines will ever be sullied or that true marines could ever betray one another. Though an earnest attempt is made to put the question in the audience's head, there's no tension there. We know they'll never fail.


This is not to say there are no twists or curve-balls in the Ultramarines tale, but it's not a mind-bender. Most of your time will be spent watching plot developments you already knew were coming play out. And that's okay; few movies on the market these days will hit you with anything unexpected. Instead, let yourself luxuriate in the gratuitous machismo and violence for which the stage has been set. Getting the most out of Ultramarines is about the guilty pleasure of watching good claiming an exaggerated triumph over evil and thumping the living sh** out of it in the process. It's clearly inspired by (but doesn't steal from) great tales of war between the holy and the profane. You'll see echoes of 300 or Lord of the Rings at certain times. Ultramarines can take you there, and does. That, above all else, is what this movie is good for.



You have to respect a movie that knows what it is. It doesn't pretend to be anything but a fleshed-out exposition of a sci fi mythos that is normally brought to life on the table-top with painted miniatures and dice. There's no love story. There's no 11th hour morality tale. No Picard-esque sermons. It's just a very capably-crafted tale about sci-fi combat. There's an honesty about Ultramarines that hooked me not as a fan of the game, but as a fan of sci fi film. This is probably why I'm willing to forget (though not ignore) Ultramarines' many shortcomings and moments of abject "cheapness" to the production. The fact it isn't a movie for everyone really doesn't bear mentioning, but Ultramarines is no mere cash-in on a popular IP. There are limits to where you can go with the subject matter, but it's as honest as a movie as this sort can get.


21 December, 2010

Saturday Is Alright For Fighting - FoW

1500 pts - CA$H's German Panzers vs J-O's US Tank Co. - FoW
Scenario - Encounter
Saturday, Dec 18th

Deployment. Left - US. Right - Germans. Germans get first turn.


Turn 1: Germans move forwards aggressively on their left flank.


US push forward. StuGs hang out with God.


Turn 2: US move up towards German left flank after Panzers bail a Sherman.


US move up the middle towards the StuGs.


Turn 3: US and Germans slug it out over left flank objective. After German reinforcements show. Both Co. Commanders are down.


Turn 4: Germans reposition to face Shermans on left flank.


German halftracks come from reserves and race to US side.


US bail or pop remaining Panzers. Germans down 2 platoons of 4.


Armoured platoon reinforcements force bail out on Gepanzerte Panzergrenadiers.



Turn 5: End Game.
German Co. morale test is auto failed as Co. commander is dead.



19 December, 2010

Cork

So Dennis came over one day to do some painting and modeling and, when he did, he had a bunch of cork in a bag that he was using for some Flames of War scenery. I've heard of people using cork in scenery and bases, but had never tried it myself. Like far too many things, I just assumed there was some arcane black magic to making it look good. Dennis, who had brought lots of cork along (pulled from one of those cheap-o bulletin boards you get at a stationary/office supply store) left a chunk behind and encouraged me to give it a try.

Very simple:
- Broke off some cork chunks and glued them on (with a mind towards putting models on them later, so I did space and size them appropriately)
- Glued a little sand around them and on them to give them texture
- Painted Chaos Black
- Overbrushed Graveyard Earth
- Drybrushed Desert Yellow
- Drybrushed Bleached Bone
- Glued a tiny bit of static grass on for realism and contrast

It's almost too easy.

13 December, 2010

StuG III G Platoon

Flames of War keeps burning strong with me, I can't stop thinking/painting/planing!! I just finished my small platoon of StuG III G:





I modeled the paint scheme after some examples I found of ambushing StuGs at Kursk in 1943. They were a blast to paint, and I think will look awesome on the table. I would love any feedback or comments on how I can improve. I plan to paint my 1iC and 2iC Panzer IV Hs and they will have a slightly different scheme.

Once those HQ panzers are complete, I will have 1500 points painted and ready for Game Summit. I will them be focusing on some terrain, roads, etc for our tables.  

Before I forget, here are some pics of a small 1000 point game Lothlann and I played last Saturday, testing out some units. We learned a lot about the rules, and just played to roll some dice and get more familiar with the rules. We fought over a small town consisting of some dollar store houses Joyous_Oblivion picked up, that we play to strip and paint up for an Eastern Front table. The roads are bare black at the present, but will be painted and I have over 40' of them to play with! Watch this space for more!

Here are the pics:

Turn 1 - The Russians advance on the town, T-34 tanks moving up his left flank, with anti-tank guns on the hill with awesome fields of fire.

My Panzers sneak up the road, using trees to screen their movements as best they can.

My PanzerGrendediers disembark into the town, taking the left two buildings. We now wait for the oncoming Reds!

Turn 2 view from the Russian side. Lothlann decided to try the tank mounted infantry. 

He quickly learned that infantry mounted on tanks......

..........die very quickly to incoming Panzer fire!

T-34s advance on the village, popping a half-track with ease......the rest hide behind the houses.

I keep pouring fire into the T-34s, destroying the platoon leader and bailing two more. Notice the severe lack of infantry riding on them now.

We called the game at turn 4, once the T-34s were broken and beaten. I called it a tie as Lothlann did manage to get a unit into the town (notice them behind the central church). 

It was fun, and like I said, we got to try some interesting units and tactics - can't wait to play again ASAP!


CA$H out.

11 December, 2010

Flames of War Battle Reports


Tristan worked his tail off to paint these PanzerGrenadiers this week


Alright, so FoW is picking up steam, and we have Pripyat (Brett) over and Marty to add to the usual crew tonite. I don't have my models yet from Drew so I played with a unit or two. FYI we are all total Noobs to this, which is part of the appeal. I've been playing WFB /40k for more than 10 years and it s refreshing to be see a new system with wide eyes again.

First game was Russians (Brett and Chris) vs Germans (Tristan and Marty/Me when Marty had to leave) 1500 points.

Here is Video plus some pics below:









And right after, we played a Russia vs Russia game, this time with the armor on both sides in Reserves, to force us to see those rules. In the End we get to see how an assault works, though due to my Camera's wonky showing of full battery bars in the morning then half when I get to Tristan's, I run out of Battery and we miss turn 2. Though it was just advance towards the objectives, get shot at :)

Here is second Video (Very Short)and a few more piccies of Brett's terrain:





08 December, 2010

Every Painful Detail 24 and 25

The Mistake.


A little trick.

Flames of War terrain







Well, for the Winter Game Summit Flames of War gaming, I picked up some TT scale rail model buildings.. they are PERFECT and were cheap as hell. Also pictured for scale , are teh old GW small trees, which I got from Bayshore, not pictured: all their hedges.

Also, priest thrown in to show scale.

Ill assemble my Priests tomorrow, so I have SOMETHIGN to use on Friday night when I show up after work...

06 December, 2010

Every Painful Detail, pt 23: Heavy Gear

As Game Summit gets closer, work on the last of the Arena tables now begins.

This is kind of a reboot for the Every Painful Detail series. I'll be making more entries up until the last table is done.

05 December, 2010

And so it progresses..

Flames of War has bitten my pretty hard, and I ordered some much needed 15mm terrain for our upcoming gaming this Friday. Here is some quick picks of it prior to being painted:




It is all from "JR Miniatures" ordered from the Warstore. Very cost effective at about $5 per piece ($7 for the bridge). Matt Varnish has mentioned a desire to start painting it this Friday while we get some games of FoW in. I will be posting WIP pics of my German PanzerKompanie tomorrow - Stay Tuned!

CA$H out.

30 November, 2010

Inspiration

This is for Joyous Oblivion, who is working on his Mid War America force for Flames of War.

Check out the gorgeous models being turned out by this South African on his blog

Crac des Chevaliers


Awesome stuff.

Ca$h out.

29 November, 2010

Shoot, forgot to post 2 Bat Reps

Here we go, these were from last week. Enjoy





Apparently Ive been using the Narthecium wrong, I can't use it if the model with it is in combat. However, he can be in any squad, so I might put the Narth in a squad that would hang back behind my command squad.

Also, no video for it, but I played Deathwing again vs Dark Eldar Wrack, Wych Raider Ravager spam. And won somehow. Wyches have been massively toned down since previous book.. I got triple charged and lived.

26 November, 2010

Flames of War!

Hey all,

Just dropping a quick note to let you all know that we are starting into Flames of War and coverage will begin on the site in the next week or two. So stay tuned for battle reports, modeling, lists etc.

We are also ramping up for the 40k Tournament at Game Summit 2011. As a feeder tournament for Las Vegas, a lot is one the line and our armies are going to be built up to 1850pts. More info about Game Summit can be found here:

Game Summit 2011 
* For clarification, I do not represent Game Summit, this is just a link to the event.

13 November, 2010

200th Post, 2 VIDEOS!!!!

Well I had a truly EPIC game of 40k over at Orbital's on Thursday. Tried out my Deathwing at 1850 for February's Game Summit Tournament, and he was using his tried and true dual foot council list (Video Battle Report 10 I think vs my Nids)

Enough Jibber Jabber, watch it.. Its in two parts because this game was so Epic.



10 November, 2010

Lurking Sucks...

Ok so I am about to stop lurking on my own blog and begin posting. I've very recently purchased a new home with my fiance and we move in this week!

Yes I have my own hobby room, it will be soon upgraded with a couple desks and a lot of shelves :)

Pics of the new fangled hobby room will come next week, and some pics of my recently completed valkyries!

For now though I'll sit back and see what new goodies my compatriots mare working on...



JO

09 November, 2010

Night Lords 1st Company







So, for Game Summit 2011 I am planning on taking Deathwing.. Pre Heresy Night Lords Deathwing.. with my all RTB01 termies no less. But the biggest thing stopping me was figuring out how to make Pre heresy shoulder pads. Ive seen plenty of tutorials on how to make them.. for the new plastic termies, loyal and chaos.. but nothing for models that have their shoulder pads already on... So today I hit up Hobby House and found some tubing and thin plastic stripping. Here is how they look.. keep in mind, the models are getting repainted, most of them are second hand, but the company standard is staying, its from my old command squad. Still need to rivet the shoulders, but Ill do them in batches of 10 models using the white glue drop method.

A "small" diversion...

 BATTLTECH! This was my first miniature game. As I mentioned in my last post, Battletech holds a dear place in my hobby heart. I remember do...