Bloooood on the Oil...

So the Tor Meggido campaign has got started with a whole ton of gun fire and bad dice rolls as is always part of the course isn't it?

My Champion Murdoch looking pretty cool next to a BIG TRUCK.

The Thing makes a break for the centre.

Well...that didn't work.

My wily enemy using autoguns to pin down the Stash Gangers.

Oh god run!

The firefight was a fun one with the advantage switching hands a couple of times between us. Eventually I was the victor although I had taken as many casualties.  The Thing actually died out on the battlefield but I had enough creds to replace him.

On Tor Megiddo life is cheap & The Docs are expensive!

The Stash Riders

Tor Megiddo - Oil & Blood

Along with Warboos Kurgan, Godfather Viktor and another pair of ash waste nomads the Tor Meggido: Oil & Blood campaign will be kicking off next week proper.

I have put together a gang of miscreants whose name and motives are pretty much lifted wholesale from the classic Cyberpunk book, Jeff Noon's Vurt.  Basically, they rag it around the wastes of Tor Megiddo with their Stash Wagon, trying to find as many stimms and other interesting drugs as they can find in the desert wreckage.

Maybe one day they will make it to Burning Man?

The Riders and the Wagon

Waiting for their man.

Warm innit?

Sneaking up on the Slipgibbets...

Kill Team

Nothing like a release of a brand new rule set to get miniatures back on the table and ready to go! I played my first games of Kill Team last night, nice simple Open Play games at 55pts with my recently-returned-to-the-hobby friend.

We knocked through 2 close games in the space of the evening which is pretty good going considering we were learning as we went as well!

My Tech Gangers, more from these lads to come soon. #OilAndBloodTorMegiddo

Awakened Dire Avengers.

Death from above! (He missed)

Stalking each other through the landscape.

Uh-oh!

Up close and personal fighting.

We both loved really enjoyed these games and the little touches that have been added to Kill Team certainly elevate it as a rule set over 40K.  To be honest, I can see it totally replacing 40K now for my 42nd Millennium kick!

No blogging but plenty of gaming!

The last few months have been a bit of a gaming marathon for me, playing weekly games of Age of Sigmar Skirmish for the Malign Portents global campaign:

All pics from the most excellent Warboss Kurgan

The odd Matched Play game of Age of Sigmar:

Legion of Nagash in action!

To a fully packed Salute weekend of games:

Star Wars Legion

 8th edition 40k

Advanced Song of Blade & Heroes

Mutants & Death Ray Guns

Basically, I have been very busy getting the stuff I have painted actually on to the table.  My visit to Salute was a pretty cheap one considering and I only returned with two boxes of figures, neither for any game system I play...dammit.

Harbingers, Portents & HDR

Managed to purchase, assemble and paint the Harbinger of Death: Knight of Shrouds for Malign Portents this week to fit in with the rest of my Death forces.

At this point the focus is still very much Nighthaunts (and he provides an excellent General) for this, but now I am looking to expand into some more "generic" Death units.  Ghost Hounds have always had some appeal.

My latest photograph really emphasises that I need to go over the red eyes of my ghosts with purple (sorry, amethyst) to tie into the latest vogue.

Also, did you know phone cameras have an HDR setting? Because I didn't...

Ghouls & Ghosts

A game from the past!

Well, last year anyway. I am so bad at reporting the games I played.

Managed to catch up with Curis over the Christmas holiday and played an Age of Sigmar Skirmish game against him.  Like the previous game versus Tears we played the Treasure Hunt scenario (a favourite!) and once again I was beaten. Curses!

The ghosts ride again.

 Curis's absolutely beautiful Chaos warband. Check his blog for more!

 Riders head out to cause early damage.

Both warbands get stuck in. The Objectives turn out to be fairly spread across the board.  My Cairn Wraith does NOTHING.

 Attempt One to kill the pesky wizard.

 

 Attempt Two.

 

The wizard is triumphant and holds the central Treasure Horde until the end of the game.

All quiet in the Underhive

It can be a lonely place down here...bring a friend.

A hectic work life at the moment means my hobby is taking a bit of a kicking but I planned for this and actually, a 3 week gap means I am really keen to get down with the paints and glue as soon as I can. 

 In the meantime here is a shot from a Necromunda game I played earlier in the year, seems to be the season of the Underhive at the moment so thought I should join in!

Clash at the Guerac Throne

So, the skirmish game!

This played out really well for a "pick up" game.  We both had 44 Renown to play with and although Tear's force wasn't "strictly" legal, (you need one Hero figure to act as General so instead the Protector Prime was chosen), the game, and I am sorry if this sounds like a battle report in an issue of White Dwarf, came down to the last few dice rolls!

The scenario played was Treasure Hunt from the Skirmish book and we totally ignored all the Allegiance Abilities, Skirmish Abilities etc. as we mostly just forgot.  Bonus internet points to whoever gets the Guerac reference without heading to Google.

 

The Warbands Engage (bonus finger)

 

The First Clash, I quickly realised my Ghosts had no chance one to one.

 

We are really playing! My forces have scattered to take objectives.

 

Clash of the Generals!

 

The very last round and EVERY objective is contested! 

The game head to the finish with a threeway (stop sniggering Curis) tie over the objectives, the last blows struck took out my final Hexwraith leaving 2 objectives as contested and 1 objective held by the Stormtonnians giving them the win. The Guerac Throne had been liberated! Curses.

Warband glamour shots

I did play those games this weekend, honest. Just not blogged them yet.

For proof here are a pair of glamour shots for the warbands involved in the Age of Sigmar skirmish games.  These photos were both taken by my opponent and lovely person all round Tears of Envy

The Ordsall Host summoned once more!

Tear's incredible Stormtonnians ready for war.

Shyish is a big place...

Well summer has truly put a spanner into the regular gaming plans but they have once again picked up and so I can catch up on the campaign updates.  I did however, manage to get in a skirmish game recently with the most excellent Tears of Envy.

We both wanted to play an Arabian Night themed games and after looking through my collection I was able to piece together a brand new warband made up of a mysterious warlock, his assassin henchman and a gaggle of Ghouls.

The warband.

We played a pair of linked scenarios set around a cursed village, deep in the sandier regions of Shyish with a troupe of Trasure Hunters trying to locate as much loot as possible while my evil do'ers attempted the same thing.

 

Ghouls go a-hunting.

Sadly my luck did not hold out in these games and I was beaten twice!  My warlock tried to run for it in the last game but sadly, well, the dice say it all:

 

"You're nicked sunshine!"

Back from exile and to the Fields of Blood

I am back from my trip down to the Big Smoke in the Realm of Metal so can finally catch up on my blogging.

The last clash that the Ordeshal Host talk part in was a skirmish around the crash site of an airship, full of plunder and currently swarming with humans and orruks...familiar foes.

A Wylliam eye view of the field

The Ogresuns and the Gilded Hand clash in the centre of the field with Lyrd Radclyiffe and Squire Percy being held at the edge.

By the time they are freed most of the blood had already been spilt between the orruks and humans

The White Lady was noticible in her absence during this battle, only stalking forward near the climax to cast arcance majicks at any foes still bearing arms.  She was unable to stop Kalyustar of the Guilded Hand from retreiving his prize from the wreckage and escaping deep into the forest...

However, something could surely be done with all these tortured souls still freshly freed of their mortal husks...

(Much more detailed accounts of this clash can be found both here and here courtesy of my excellent opponents Viktor and Warboss Kurgan.)

When the dice play along...

A real benefit of playing in a narrative gaming mindset is how the smallest in-game event can spark a whole story line or progress one already in play.

I had already established the the mysterious White Lady is fleeing deep into the Harrowmark from Nagash.  Why? So far I haven't decided but the idea of being on the run from such a powerful being really appeals to me.

During the last skirmish with Admiral Kurgan's Ogresuns I had deployed the White Lady at the foot of a Realmgate so that she could survey the battlefield and prevent the pesky Orruks from trespassing any further into "her" domain.  As the Realmgate has been modelled with Spirit Hosts spilling out it is obviously a portal to another part of Shyish...perhaps a part under the sway of Nagash?

The Lady Awaits

Once the game began he first roll I made was for the Realmgates abilities (these change every turn due to their eldritch nature!) and promptly rolled a double on the two dice.  Game-wise this translates to anyone stood nearby taking a few Mortal Wounds but narrative wise this means a huge blast of energy had spilt out of the Gate and caught the White Lady in it. Immediately this sparked a story line idea; what if the White Lady had been at the gate to seal it from Nagash and his minions but at the very last moment the distraction caused by the arrival of the Orruk warband to the field had meant the binding ritual failed and Nagash had managed one last attempt to reach the White Lady before the gate closed for good.

Orruks on the horizon.

The battle itself was a short, sharp affair which is detailed here.  For the White Lady and her followers the consequences are clear however; The Great Necromancer now knows where she is...and no-one escapes Death...