Battlefoam makes foam for ALL your gaming needs!

I think that Battlefoam has just won the foam wars.

A friend of mine from the Freebootaz, Brother Grimm, has ordered this particular gaming accessory from Romeo and his company, who make custom foam inserts to your specifications. This is in addition to their expansive line of trays for their own bags, and their foam trays available for Sabol and GW style cases.

And no, they're not compensating me in any way.

Building an Ard Boyz list, an excercise in theory...

Since this Saturday isn't the real Ard Boyz for me (playing in the "consolation" tournament here.) I though I would theory out a list in public to show how I rationalize a list, and look for any comments towards my method.

Basically, I look for three elements in a list:

1) Good anti-tank
2) Good Long Range Shooting
3) A decent assault element or two (or three)

After playtesting Saturday, I settled on a "core" of my list:

10-man Tactical Squad w/ Meltagun, Lascannon, Powerweapon in Assault Cannon Razorback = 290
10-man Tactical Squad w/ Meltagun, Lascannon, Powerweapon in Assault Cannon Razorback = 290
Predator w/ Autocannon, Lascannon Sponsons, Dozerblade = 140
Predator w/ Autocannon, Lascannon Sponsons, Dozerblade = 140
Stormraven w/ Twin-linked Lascannon, Twin-linked Multimelta, Hurricane Bolters, Extra Armor = 245

The troops are a little pricey, but there is something to be said with having 7 Lascannons on the table. I found that Blood Angels really need decent anti-tank at range, to help disrupt the enemy enough to fight on their terms. People may disagree but Lascannons are important still...

So, that starts me off at 1105 with no HQs just yet.

I am a little light on anti-infantry, and I have two Heavy Flamer Razorbacks dieing to be used. Assault Marines are a great way to get two more Razorbacks (and two more scoring units) on the table. Since I get a discount, and I am already paying a premium for the Tactical Squads Razorbacks, I think it is time for a split.

So now my scoring "core" is:

10-man Tactical Squad w/ Meltagun, Lascannon, Powerweapon in Heavy Flamer Razorback = 255
10-man Tactical Squad w/ Meltagun, Lascannon, Powerweapon in Heavy Flamer Razorback = 255
5-man Assault Squad w/ Flamer, Powerweapon in Assault Cannon Razorback = 175
5-man Assault Squad w/ Flamer, Powerweapon in Assault Cannon Razorback = 175

That is only 860 in a 2500 point list, and a potential of 6 scoring units.

Now I am at 1385 for all the troops, and the heavy support section.

Still no HQ though. My list is tracking shooty, so I think it's time to add some assault elements. Most of the Blood Angel Characters are assault characters, save regular Tycho (which would be my choice is a shooty from hell list). I am not a big fan of Mephiston, though he is a beast, I get screwed against Eldar and Space Wolves. The Sanguinor is a favorite of mine, but he doesn't really "gel" with the core of this list, most of my sergeants are going to be in transports most of the game, so his blessing will be lost.

No, I think we need Dante. If I include Powers in my list, I can limit some of the other armies defense, and some "hidden" characters suffer from his rule.

So if I include Dante, what support do I give him? I think his best support is squad with Jump Packs to capitalize on his special ability. I have plenty of scoring units, so I don't need troops sanguinary guard (and Death Company may need a place...) so I am going with Honor Guard, mainly for their "free" sanguinary priest that can't be targeted.

So my typical build for Honor Guard have been refined to this:

5 Honor Guard w/ Jump Packs, Sanguinary Novitiate, 2 Lightning Claw/ Storm Shield, 2 Meltaguns = 235

To further add to the "fun", I like to include a second HQ in a Jump Pack Librarian, as far as powers go, how about "Unleash Rage" to boast Dante and the Honor Guard, and "Blood Lance" to further the tank firepower.

Protip: Blood Lance doesn't have a target so you can draw a line in another direction then what the unit actually fires at.

So this combo costs a mighty 585. A little much, but worth it.

That puts us at 1970. A little close to our "ceiling".

I feel like another assault element is needed, plus I need something in that Stormraven.

I haven't touched the elites yet, and I also have Death Company as an option. Elites can go quickly, and I think at this point level, I need some Sanguinary Guard to buff the amount of probably 5 man squads my list has. Terminators seem fun, but I think I already have the "quality" assault unit in the Honor Guard.

Basically, it comes down to whether I want to include Corbulo. Corbulo and 2 cheap Sanguinary Guard puts me at 2175. A little tight to fit the Stormraven element (which I want to be an assault element and a Dreadnought).

To hell with it, they are in the list.

325 left...

Death Company would be nice, but I can't field them without a Chaplain, and that would burn the rest of my points.

But of course I feel the same way towards Terminators.

Since the Dreadnought is going to be a Blood Talons Dreadnought, it comes down to Furioso versus Death Company.

I think the Death Company Dreadnought is more important in this equation, namely for it's ability to fleet off the Stormraven. Being in the transport prevents rage from being a liability, and in this equation more reliable delivery matters.

Making that choice will put me over, as I don't feel comfortable fielding the Death Company outside of this configuration:

Chaplain = 100
8-man Death Company w/ Thunderhammer, 2 Power weapons, 5 Bolters = 220
Death Company Dreadnought w/ Blood Talons, Heavy Flamer = 135

Total = 455

which puts me over by 130. I think Corbulo is a luxury and should be dropped.

So that is 25 over. Hmmm....

There isn't anything I really want to drop. So making the sacrifice to make this list work is going to be a hard decision.

Let's add it up again for good measure:

Dante = 225
Librarian w/ Unleash Rage, Blood Lance, Jump Pack = 125
5 Honor Guard w/ Jump Packs, Sanguinary Novitiate, 2 Lightning Claw/ Storm Shield, 2 Meltaguns = 235
2 Sanguinary Priests = 100
Chaplain = 100
8-man Death Company w/ Thunderhammer, 2 Power weapons, 5 Bolters = 220
Death Company Dreadnought w/ Blood Talons, Heavy Flamer = 135
10-man Tactical Squad w/ Meltagun, Lascannon, Powerweapon in Heavy Flamer Razorback = 255
10-man Tactical Squad w/ Meltagun, Lascannon, Powerweapon in Heavy Flamer Razorback = 255
5-man Assault Squad w/ Flamer, Powerweapon in Assault Cannon Razorback = 175
5-man Assault Squad w/ Flamer, Powerweapon in Assault Cannon Razorback = 175
Predator w/ Autocannon, Lascannon Sponsons, Dozerblade = 140
Predator w/ Autocannon, Lascannon Sponsons, Dozerblade = 140
Stormraven w/ Twin-linked Lascannon, Twin-linked Multimelta, Hurricane Bolters, Extra Armor = 245

Total = 2525

Let's nickle and dime this a little.

What if we swap the Power Weapons on the Tactical Sergents to Combi-weapons. Puts basically another Melta in that squad and cuts 10 points.

Next up, lets drop the dozer blades from the Predators, I think that matter more on the Baals.

So 20 points saved. 5 points left to drop. I will drop a meltagun from the Honor Guard. Hurts, but between Dante's pistol and Blood Lance, it isn't absolutley necessary. Since I have plenty of shooty elements, I may need some searchlights for Dawn of War. 5 searchlights on 5 tanks puts me at exactly 2500.

So here is the final list:

-HQ-

Dante = 225

Librarian w/ Unleash Rage, Blood Lance, Jump Pack = 125

5 Honor Guard w/ Jump Packs, Sanguinary Novitiate, 2 Lightning Claw/ Storm Shield, Meltagun = 225

-Elites-

2 Sanguinary Priests = 100

Chaplain = 100

-Troops-

8-man Death Company w/ Thunderhammer, 2 Power weapons, 5 Bolters = 220

Death Company Dreadnought w/ Blood Talons, Heavy Flamer = 135

10-man Tactical Squad w/ Meltagun, Lascannon, Combi-melta in Heavy Flamer Razorback = 250

10-man Tactical Squad w/ Meltagun, Lascannon, Combi-melta in Heavy Flamer Razorback = 250

5-man Assault Squad w/ Flamer, Powerweapon in Assault Cannon Razorback, Searchlight = 176

5-man Assault Squad w/ Flamer, Powerweapon in Assault Cannon Razorback, Searchlight = 176

-Heavy Support-

Predator w/ Autocannon, Lascannon Sponsons, Searchlight= 136

Predator w/ Autocannon, Lascannon Sponsons, Searchlight= 136

Stormraven w/ Twin-linked Lascannon, Twin-linked Multimelta, Hurricane Bolters, Extra Armor, Searchlight = 246

Total = 2500

Let's see how it does. Thoughts?

Even More Progress

My vindicator now has a brother to attend battles with him.


Vindicator #2 has a green blood drop on him, indicating that it is from the 4th company's motor pool. According to the old background, the Flesh Tearers have only 4 companies left due to constant attrition, so this is from that last Company, as are all my Flesh Tearers. Of course, the green drop is the one for which GW doesn't make a transfer, so I have to hand paint all of mine. I wanted to weather the paint on both the Siege Shields, as I tend to make great use of them. These tanks get run through every stand of trees on the table, it seems. At some point, I'll have to weather the tanks as well.



Speaking of green blood drops, I've made a bit of progress on the Librarian Dread as well. I didn't like the highlights I did on him, so I glazed over them with some Red Ink mixed with a touch of Devlan Mud. It got me the right tone, but it left him too glossy for my liking. I'm hoping to find a decent matte sealer to tone him down.

Sanguinary Guard WIP

I'm going against the traditional* paint scheme to better match my Flesh Tearer painted Dante (who was my Seth before they had a Seth model/rules). They'll have black wings and shoulder pads, and golden death masks.

I don't know if I'll use the unit, but damn do these models look pretty**. This is my second layer of red over black. The total process is Mechrite->Scab Red->Red Gore->Blood Red->Baal Red.

The base on the model is one that I cast myself, and has a pin in it to give it the appearance of flying.



*Traditional, aka, invented by GW a few months ago.

**That's a compliment to the sculptors, not to my very much WIP paint job, mind you.

Hive of Activity (Works in Progress)

I've been getting things together for this week's Tournament @ Blob Park, and since it's a "paint optional" event, I don't have to get things together for it.

But it still feels better having a cohesive looking army on the board. To that end, I've been working on getting things painted if I can make the tourney.

You can click on any of the images, and it'll take you to the image's dakka page, where you can see it full sized, and even zoom in on things. Dakka's Gallery is free for members, and membership to Dakka is free. So, win.

These terminators are not fully highlighted, and are missing lens work on the two in the back. Plus, My Baal Red wash got all shiny. I'll have to dullcoat them at some point.



I need to work on the siege shield, the smoke stacks, and the cupola gun, but otherwise, we're done with this one. I still have to finish another one, though.



This is nowhere near done, paint job wise, but I like how the conversion came out.



All metal bodies + all plastic arms means I pinned each of them. There's nothing worse than hunting for missing body parts.



These High Priests are pretty much done, except for basing and a few touch ups.

Battle For Blob's Park

This weekend, the Battle For Blob's Park is happening in Jessup, MD.

For 40k, they're having a 2000 point 4 round tournament. This is all taking place in Blob's Park, which has a German Beer Garden attached to the park. Let me restate that: GERMAN BEER GARDEN. Players of all ages will be allowed, and those of an appropriate age will be wrist banded and allowed to have a frosty adult beverage on hand. There is a camp ground on site for those who wish to spend the night.

Pro-Tip: If you have any interest in going, now would be a good time to sign up. Sign up by visiting the above link.

The Schedule is as follows:

8:00AM-8:30 AM – Check In

9:00AM – 11:30PM Round 1

11:30AM – 12:15PM LUNCH ON SITE

12:30PM – 3:00PM Round 2

3:30PM – 6:00PM Round 3

6:00PM – 7:00PM DINNER ON SITE

7:00PM – 9:30PM Round 4

9:45-10:30 – Awards and PRIZES!!

11:00PM – Movie, Popcorn, BEVERAGES! (BYOB)

There is rumored to mucho grande swag, and I hope the Inner Circle does not disappoint.

FTW Games

There's a new sheriff in town! And by "sheriff", I mean store, and by "town", I mean Richmond, VA.

It looks like a nice store; I hope some of my more southerly friends check it out.