Painting Stompas from Games Workshop

Epic Warhammer 40,000 holds a special place in my heart.  The models are fantastic and the scale allows you to play truly "epic" battles.

With the new release of Adeptus Titanicus from Games Workshop, I decided I need to dust off some of my old models and paint a few things up.  The new edition uses a different scale and currently only has Imperial forces (loyal and traitor), but I figure I can use my old models and make some adjustments to use Orks and Eldar as well.  I will probably just use the rules as written and substitute some appropriate Ork (or Eldar) models for the battle.

First up in this project were a few Stompas that could serve as knights in Adeptus Titanicus.  These can also just be used as themselves in my existing Ork army that I can use for Epic 40k, LaserStorm, Future War Commander, Horizon Wars, or any other game I decided to use them with.

Army Showcase - Epic 40K Space Marines

I've always been a fan of Epic Warhammer 40,000.  The models are great and you can play massive games in this scale without losing the ability to maneuver.

I've got a fair amount of models painted for my Space Marine army and after watching an army showcase video on a fellow YouTuber's channel, I thought I would show off my army.

Here you can see my painted Space Marines.  I need to paint more for sure, but this is still a nice looking force (if I do say so myself).

Predators 

 Dreadnoughts

 Razorbacks

 Devastator Squads

 Land Raider and Terminators

 Bikes and Attack Bike

 Assault Squads

 Tactical Squads

 Land Speeder

 Hunter

 Rhino

 Vindicator

 Whirlwind

 Commander

Sub-Commander

I will do another army showcase soon showing off my Epic 40K Orks.

Tale of an Epic Gamer December 2015 - Utterly Failed the Goal

The month of December has come and gone and I failed to paint any thing toward the Tale of an Epic Gamer project.  Those that read my blog will know this is because of a recent house purchase, but I still kind of felt like I blew my goal.  However, after sitting down and pulling out my Orks (the army that would have been on my paint table in December) to take some photos of all the models, I decided that I still put together a reasonable force.

I ended up with a painted force with lots of models that wouldn't really make a legal army for NetEpic Gold.  However, with some additions to my ranks of infantry, I will be able to use more of the vehicles.  This is a good sized army for NetEA, though.

Below are a few shots of the models that I painted up for this army during the year.  I like the look of the Bad Moons, but need to add in units from other clans per the NetEpic Gold army lists.

NetEpic Gold

**Note: This is not a legal army, but a detail of the points of the models I have painted.
Bad Moon Clan - 15 boyz and 4 nobz - 600 points
Bad Moon Clan - 15 boyz and 4 nobz - 600 points (not legal to have 2 of the same clan)
Gretchin Mob - 4 gretchin - Free
Gretchin Mob - 4 gretchin - Free
Stompa Mob - 3 Stompas - 250 points
Stompa Mob - 3 Stompas - 250 points
Gibletgrinda - 1 Battle Fortress - 100 points
Killa Kan Mob - 4 dreadnoughts - 100 points
Killa Kan Mob - 4 dreadnoughts - 100 points
Killa Kan Mob - 4 dreadnoughts - 100 points
Bonebreaka Squadron - 3 tanks - 150 points
Bonebreaka Squadron - 3 tanks - 150 points
Bonebreaka Squadron - 3 tanks - 150 points
Bonebreaka Squadron - 3 tanks - 150 points
Bonebreaka Squadron - 3 tanks - 150 points
Bonebreaka Squadron - 3 tanks - 150 points
Goff Gutrippa Squadron - 3 tanks - 100 points
Goff Gutrippa Squadron - 3 tanks - 100 points
Goff Gutrippa Squadron - 3 tanks - 100 points
Goff Gutrippa Squadron - 3 tanks - 100 points
Goff Gutrippa Squadron - 3 tanks - 100 points
Battlewagon Squadron - 3 tanks - 100 points
Battlewagon Squadron - 3 tanks - 100 points
Battlewagon Squadron - 3 tanks - 100 points
Battlewagon Squadron - 3 tanks - 100 points
Battlewagon Squadron - 3 tanks - 100 points
Battlewagon Squadron - 3 tanks - 100 points
Battlewagon Squadron - 3 tanks - 100 points
Battlewagon Squadron - 3 tanks - 100 points
Battlewagon Squadron - 3 tanks - 100 points
Battlewagon Squadron - 3 tanks - 100 points

Total:  4,500 points

NetEA

'Uge Blitz Brigade - 12 gunwagons - 350 points
'Uge Blitz Brigade - 12 gunwagons - 350 points

'Uge Blitz Brigade - 12 gunwagons - 350 points

'Uge Blitz Brigade - 12 gunwagons - 350 points

'Uge Blitz Brigade - 12 gunwagons - 350 points

   +3 gunwagons, 1 gun fortress - 230 points

'Uge Warband - 6 nobz, 18 boyz, 6 grots - 500 points

Big Warband - 4 nobz, 12 boyz, 4 grots - 350 points

Big Mekboy Stompamob - 6 stompas - 400 points
    + 12 Dreadnoughts - 420 points

Total:  3,650 points

Tale of an Epic Gamer - November 2015 Goal Completed

I know this is a little late, but the purchase of a new house and the ensuing renovation has killed my painting time.

However, before I got started on the house projects, I did finish my November goal, I just never got around to taking pictures of the completed models.

Well, I finally found some time and set up the models for a photo shoot.

Imperial Guard were the subject of my work in November and below you can see my handy work.

I painted a full Abhuman Company... in this case Beastmen.

I also painted a full company of Leman Russ Tanks.

Finally, I painted up 2 squadrons of Sentinels.

Not a bad collection to add to what I had previously painted.

NetEpic Gold

Tactical Infantry Company - 33 infantry stands - 600 points
Abhuman Company - 33 infantry stands - 600 points
Leman Russ Company - 10 tanks - 550 points
Leman Russ Squadron - 3 tanks - 200 points
Sentinel Squadron - 5 walkers - 150 points
Sentinel Squadron - 5 walkers - 150 points
Sentinel Squadron - 5 walkers - 150 points

Total - 2,400 points

NetEA

Infantry Company - 13 infantry stands - 250 points
Infantry Company - 13 infantry stands - 250 points
Infantry Company - 13 infantry stands - 250 points
Infantry Company - 13 infantry stands - 250 points
Infantry Company - 13 infantry stands - 250 points
Tank Company - 10 tanks - 650 points
Tank Squadron - 3 tanks - 175 points
Sentinel Squadron - 4 walkers - 100 points
Sentinel Squadron - 4 walkers - 100 points

Sentinel Squadron - 4 walkers - 100 points

Total - 2,375 points

The Imperial Guard are my smallest Epic force (points wise) that I painted this year.  I like the look of the army and look forward to adding more tanks and some artillery units.  There will also be more infantry added including some of the various specialist infantry options.

Tale of an Epic Gamer - November 2015

My goal for November is to finish my Imperial Guard.

My goal for this army this month is to paint an Abhuman Company, finish off the Leman Russ Company that I previously started, and 2 squadrons of Sentinels.

I've already made good progress toward the goal this month and I'm confident that I can complete it.  I might even be able to get a few other items done if I make good use of my time.

LaserStorm - Army lists for my Epic 40K armies - Part 2

I have played a few games with my Eldar and Space Marine lists and found a couple of things that needed to be updated.

I also have been working on building lists for a few of the other races in the 40K universe.

I have created new PDFs for these army's and have posted them on Google Docs for anyone that is interested.  The links for the PDFs are below.

Eldar Army List updated 11-4-15

Space Marine Army List updated 11-4-15

Imperial Guard Army List updated 11-4-15

Tyranid Army List updated 11-4-15

These are just my thoughts and ideas on these armies.  I would love to hear your thoughts on these lists.

Also, if you find any errors in my calculations of points, please let me know and I will make corrections.

The next army that I plan to build stats for will be the Orks.

Tale of an Epic Gamer - October 2015 Goal Completed

Another month of painting is in the books.

I finished off my Tyranids for the year.  I would have liked to get a few more models finished, but I'm still happy with what I did get done.

I added 3 units of Tyranid Warriors, 3 units of Genestealers, and a Dominatrix.

Here is what I have painted this year on this project.

NetEpic Gold

  -Synapse Creatures-

Dominatrix - 1 model - 500 points

Hive Tyrant Brood - 3 models - 200 points
Tyranid Warrior Brood - 5 stands - 200 points

Tyranid Warrior Brood - 5 stands - 200 points

Tyranid Warrior Brood - 5 stands - 200 points

Tyranid Warrior Brood - 5 stands - 200 points

Tyranid Warrior Brood - 5 stands - 200 points

  -Slave Broods-

Termagant Brood - 10 stands - 150 points

Termagant Brood - 10 stands - 150 points
Termagant Brood - 10 stands - 150 points
Termagant Brood - 10 stands - 150 points
Hormogaunt Brood - 5 stands - 100 points

Hormogaunt Brood - 5 stands - 100 points

Hormogaunt Brood - 5 stands - 100 points

Hormogaunt Brood - 5 stands - 100 points

Hormogaunt Brood - 5 stands - 100 points

Genestealers Brood - 5 stands - 150 points

Genestealers Brood - 5 stands - 150 points

Genestealers Brood - 5 stands - 150 points

Genestealers Brood - 5 stands - 150 points

Genestealers Brood - 5 stands - 150 points

Genestealers Brood - 5 stands - 150 points

Genestealers Brood - 5 stands - 150 points

Carnifex Brood - 3 models - 100 points

Exocrine Brood - 3 models - 250 points

Biovore Brood - 3 models - 200 points

Biovore Brood - 3 models - 200 points

Total - 4,600 points

NetEA (Hive Fleet Onachus List)

Nexus Swarm - 1 Dominatrix, 3 Carnifex - 500 points
Tryanid Swarm - 1 Hive Tyrant, 6 Hormogaunts - 200 points
Tryanid Swarm - 1 Hive Tyrant, 6 Hormogaunts - 200 points

Tryanid Swarm - 1 Hive Tyrant, 6 Hormogaunts - 200 points

Tryanid Swarm - 3 Tryanid Warrors, 6 Hormogaunts - 250 points

Tryanid Swarm - 3 Tryanid Warrors, 6 Termagants - 250 points

Tryanid Swarm - 3 Tryanid Warrors, 6 Termagants - 250 points

Tryanid Swarm - 3 Tryanid Warrors, 6 Termagants - 250 points

Tryanid Swarm - 3 Tryanid Warrors, 6 Termagants - 250 points

Tryanid Swarm - 3 Tryanid Warrors, 6 Termagants - 250 points

Tryanid Swarm - 3 Tryanid Warrors, 6 Termagants - 250 points

Biovore Swarm - 5 models - 150 points

Exocrine Swarm - 3 models - 175 points

Genestealer Swarm - 6 stands - 150 points

Genestealer Swarm - 6 stands - 150 points

Genestealer Swarm - 6 stands - 150 points

Genestealer Swarm - 6 stands - 150 points

Genestealer Swarm - 6 stands - 150 points

Genestealer Swarm - 6 stands - 150 points

Total - 4,075 points

*Note:  These lists aren't optimal builds, just and idea of the size of force I can field given the models I have painted.

While not as many points as my Eldar force, This is a pretty decent sized force given that I only spent 3 months painting it.

I will be back to this army in the future and have plans to add lots more to the swarm.  More monstrous creatures are the current need, but more infantry will be added as well.

Overall, I think the army looks great and look forward to seeing these on a battlefield.

LaserStorm - AAR 10/4/15

It has taken me a little bit to get this AAR report put together, but I guess it is better late than never.

I played another game of LaserStorm.  This time I used the Eldar and Space Marine stats that I put together using the unit creation rules.

I used a variant on the Introductory scenario.  The forces were not identical and I used 3 objectives instead of 2.  The first force to reach 6 victory points would be declared the winner.

I was in command of both forces, but promise to play each side to the best of my ability.

The Space Marine Forces (1935 points).

Tactical Squads with Rhino Transports x 3
Heavy Weapon Squad
Terminator Squad
Land Speeder Squad
Dreadnought Squad
Predator Squad
Vindicator Squad
Land Raider
Infantry Commanders x 3

The Eldar Forces (1905 points)

Guardian Squad with Falcon Transports x 3
Guardian Squad x 2
Wraithguard Squad
Weapon Platform Squad x 2
Wraithlord Squad
Fire Prism Squad
Firestorm Squad
Infantry Commanders x 3

Both sides set up in spread across the table.

Turn 1

The Marines got a snap action right away and the Predators opened fire on a group of Falcons and scored 3 hits.  All three were destroyed.

The Eldar on the City flank advanced.  Firestorms fired on the Land Speeders but failed to hit.  Fire Prism fire on the Land Raider and destroy it.

The Eldar Fire Prisms snap fire on the Vindicators and miss.

The Marines on the City flank advance.  The Rhinos move forward and the Tactical Squad disembarks while taking shots on the Guardians; killing 2 stands.  The Dreadnoughts fire on the Firestorms destroying 1.  They fail moral and are removed from the battlefield.  The Land Speeders fire on the Heavy Weapon platforms and kill 2.

Tactical Marines in the hills advance and disembark.  The Vindicators move forward and open fire on the Fire Prisms killing all 3.  The Terminators attempt to double and fail their moral and are put in reserve.

Marines in the Center also advance.  The Predators move forward and fire on the Wraithlords killing 2.  Rhinos advance behind the Predators.  Heavy Weapon Squad doubles forward.

Falcons in the hills advance and the guardians deploy.  Falcons fire on the Rhinos and kill all 3.  Guardians fire on Tactical Marines and only hit 1 that saves.  Firestorms are regrouped and they fire on the Heavy Weapon Squad and kill 3 stands.

Both Guardian units in the center advance and fire on the Marine Heavy Weapons Squad, but fail to kill anyone.  Weapons Platforms fire on the Predators score 1 kill.  Wraithlord opens fire on the Predators but miss.

End of Turn 1;  Marines - 2  Eldar - 0

Turn 2

The Wraithguard move further into the city and fire on the Land Speeders, but they make all their saves.  The Guardians move up and also fail to kill any of their targets.  The Heavy Weapons Platforms fire on the Predators, but fail to score any hits as well.

The Guardians in the hills snap fire on the Tactical Squad and kill 1 stand.

The Tactical Squad advances on the Guardians and returns fire killing 4 stands.  The Vindicators fire on the Guardians, but fail to score any hits.

One Guardian squad and Falcons launch an assault on the Tactical Squad holding the objective in the hills and kill of the Marines, but suffer 2 losses.

The other Guardian unit moves forward to get into position to assault the Marine tanks on their next activation.  The Firestorms fired on the Tactical Squad in the city and killed 3 stands.

The Vindicators snap fire on the Firestorms and kill both and 2 Guardian stands.  The remaining Guardians fail their moral test and are removed.

The Heavy Weapon Platforms fire on the Vindicators, but miss with all shots.  The Guardians assault the Vindicators, but the tanks repel the attack, killing all the Guardians.  The Guardians did kill 1 Vindicator in the assault.  The Predators and Vindicators failed moral and were removed from the table.

The Marine forces in the center try to regroup the Terminators, but through some mis-communication the Terminators lose another stand and still aren't able to regroup.  The Tactical Squad claims the objective and opens fire on the Heavy Weapons Platform killing 3.  The Heavy Weapons Squad fires on the Wraithlord and misses.

Wraithguard snap fire on the Land Speeders, but miss with all shots.

The Land Speeders and Rhinos move return fire on the Wraithguard and wipe the unit out.  The Tactical Squad and Dreadnoughts combine fire and kill the remaining Guardians in the City.

End of Turn 2:  Marines - 4  Eldar - 1

Turn 3

Knowing that they need to claim an objective the Guardians in the center make a reactionary move toward the center objective.

The Marines in the city kill the final Eldar forces in the city.

The Marines in the center again attempt to regroup the Terminators and this time they are successful.  They kill off the Guardian squad that was attempting to take the center objective.

A Tactical Squad snap fires on an Eldar Command stand and kill it while the Dreadnoughts move forward.

The Guardians hold their ground in the hills and kill a Marine command stand.  The Falcons move toward the center objective and kill 2 Rhinos and 2 Dreadnoughts.

The Wraithlords assaults the Tactical Squad on the center Objective, but loses the fight to the Marines and fail their save.

End of Turn 3:  Marines - 6  Eldar - 2

Summary

A good game, that was plagued with some bad rolls by the Eldar forces.  With a relatively low moral, I think I need to add additional Command Stands to the Eldar forces.  I also think I need to focus on staying out of lines of fire when possible.

The Marines made a steady advance forward and once they claimed the objectives, were able to hold onto them.  With good saves and moral, the Marines are a stalwart force to face off against.

LaserStorm - Starship Troopers AAR 10/24/15

I wanted to try out my new alien swarms out in a game so I decided a Starship Troopers themed game was in order.  I decided to go with a game that was in line with the book instead of the movie.

Excerpt from mission briefing

You have been chosen for a mission of utmost importance.  The engagement area has a number of bug holes that you must monitor.  If any bugs exit these bug holes you are to eliminate them.  Each of you will be equipped with the standard Morita Assault Rifle, but today you will also be equipped with a MK55 Tactical Nuclear Launcher.  

Teams will be entering a number of bug holes in search of some specific intel.  Once they have a acquired that intel, you will be notified to close the holes.  We expect you to use the nukes to close all the bug holes in your area.

We expect the bug resistance to be heavy, but we know that you are the best trained and best equipped soldiers in the universe.  We know that you will not fail to do your duty.

Good luck!

I used the LaserStorm rules with some slight variation for this game.  I used 15mm models for the Mobile infantry.  6 soldiers were assigned to this area of the engagement zone.  There were 6 bug holes in the area.

The bugs had 6 swarms of 6 models each.  The bugs are fierce in close combat, so the MI will do their best to stay out of melee and blast them to pieces with their assault rifles.  Once given the order to close the holes the MI will use their nukes to close the holes.

This was a test run for this kind of scenario, so I wasn't sure what to expect.

The first play through.

The bug holes where spread around the table fairly evenly.  The MI were deployed as teams of two, but each man was independent and could act on his own.  Then the bug swarms were deployed with one swarm at each hole.

The bugs had a +5 assault score in this play through as well as the Charge special ability.  Each time they charged they were able to get 3 bases (the max we allowed) into contact with the MI trooper.  This means that the bugs effectively had a +8 assualt vs the MI troopers +2 assault.  This amounted to the MI trooper losing every assault they were engaged in and then failing their save through each time as well.

While the troopers were able to shot a few bugs they just couldn't stay away from the bugs long enough to complete their mission.

The bugs took the advantage and made short work of the MI troopers.  They got most of the snap actions and were very lucky with armor save rolls.  At the end of the game all the MI troopers were dead with only 3 of the bug holes closed.

The second play through.

I made some adjustments to stats for this game and I think they were a bit too much.  Still a fun game, but...

The MI troopers did a much better job this time.  So much so that I feel like I over fixed the game after our first play-through.  At the end of this game, all the bugs were dead while only a single MI trooper had been lost.

I used this game to introduce Randy to the LaserStorm rules.  However, this scenario was a pretty big variant on the basic rules.  The games were fun, but I still have a little testing to do to find a nice balance.  In my experience, anytime you have a very small force of powerful troops versus a horde of less powerful troops, luck can play a big role and can cause problems in the game.

I plan to play some more Starship Trooper themed games in the future.