8th Edition 40k Thoughts: So Far... So Damn Good

Valhallans defend their supply fields from infiltrating Chaos forces on Hammerfall V.  Captain Gloval personally leads the defense of the control tower while the mysterious Eversor assassin known only as The Ghoul of Hammerfall lurks nearby, waiting in the dark to punish the wicked, the alien and the abhorrent. 

This past weekend I had probably a too-huge game of 8th edition 40k with my buddy Jason at Headwound minis. He brought his immaculately converted and painted Nurgle forces upon which I would cut my teeth (ew,) as they properly ransacked my Imperial air base in a bold dawn-to-dusk raid. 1500 points and several hours later I was feeling pretty damn satisfied that my Valhallans were properly bloodied and performed to themes very well. Better, I felt like I had the hang of a game new enough to me that I bother to say it with feeling.

I will post up a batrep shortly (still sorting out the Photobucket debacle) but wanted to share some thoughts on how this game went, given I have been staring at 40K in recent years through the store window, despite owning a bunch of stuff and having played it previously for a very long time. Others have done a way better job at pro/con'ing this edition, like my pal Joe, so I leave it to them for the long form. On the below, my view comes mostly as a Guard player wading into the new rules.

Story: The game was full of dramatic story-inducing moments that came from play outcomes. YES. I think that correlates to the Indexes and how they are all unique in appreciable ways and also, the simplified ruleset. Universal Special Rules of last edition are gone, and while I get that their algebra helped organize features and functions of units well across lots of different play, like competitive to casual, especially through a TO's eyes, it seemed dull and bookish to me. I play great games like Bushido, Imperial Assault, Strange Aeons, Robotech... these games have story in their play and feel unique as you navigate through your game and it helps if they not so cumbersome. I didn't feel that in previous 40k editions, it felt like an Advanced Philosophy class trip, lost and plodding through an endless swamp and debating the whole time about Jungian Star Wars themes. The current indexes and rules have what seem like a lot of fun options that breathe some anima into the people, place and things involved. Isn't that the point? Reading Dan Abnett to replay those conflicts?  Give me the damn story and you can keep your the tourney complexity. More on the Index in a sec.

Army Building: Still cumbersome compared to other games. Was sorta hoping GW gets stats and costs on one page. Still perplexed why there is Battle Forged play and other mode, it isn't like they give you distinct Campaign and Skirmish modes like FFG's Imperial Assault, but a sit-down over a cup of tea gets it done. Costs were reportedly up this edition but my old 1500 point force came in about the same. What I noticed most coming back to the game was the wargear options are all gone from the index, so while I couldn't spend a last few points on Carapace armor or Master Crafted weapons, I was inherently avoiding the pitfall of previous editions: wargear splurges. All that aside as a positive, it did force me to drop heavy weapon options in squads if I wanted to squeeze in another Sentinal or what have you. Tough choices as usual but easier to get to the table and the Index has enough ability that comes with the basic costs, including commonly used squad-level gear like vox, standards, med kits, etc.

Index Staying Power: Remains to be seen but the counter-culture habits I live by are alive and singing Glee's cover of Born to Run when I consider that I could happily play out of the free ruleset along with Index Imperium 2 and Xenos Index 2, maybe forever. One of my best friends Pete at Not Snakes Gaming noted that 40k is no longer competitive and as I agree with that I also give thanks for it. I want games that feel right to characters and situation. As far as Astra Militarum, Chaos and Orks go, Indexes feel right to the character of the forces, situations and games I want. Codex releases may change things like complexity and dissonance with who you think your army is, but I am content playing these Indexes instead of a Codex, if I prefer one over the other in the end. Finally, a good value from GW with each book around US$25 and including what equals several codex to boot.

Terrain: Just weird, these terrain rules. The game now boils down to LOS and if you simply have it or not. Cover saves don't seem to be factoring unless you are talking Characters by themselves and I think that does speed up the game a bit. So terrain effects are dead? Yes! Wait, unless you use Fortification rules in Imperial Index 1, then it seems like a U turn in the face of easy. I love building terrain more than any other part of this hobby. I am a bit perturbed since I took pride in building terrain that reflects play. A few weeks ago Joe mentioned all of this terrain rule jazz to me and I joked it sounds like Privateer game's norm of flat mousepad terrain. Seeing GW releasing what equates to the same thing in their boxed forces makes sense now, given how terrain rules read. So be it. Building LOS blocking terrain can be fun too.

LOS: Sorta weird. Facing and fire arcs are gone (unless you are a Valkyrie pivoting to go Supersonic for some reason) and said Valkyrie was clipped by a Nurgle Vindicator who fired backwards at me without pivoting. Did not see that coming. Also, getting LOS on a pile of Plaguebearers by the Leman Russ tread  was weird as well. Just gotta get used to that.

Movement Phase: Fine.

Psychic Phase: Interesting, must explore more.

Shooting Phase: Easier. Sorry, I guess seasoned players may balk and say what difference is there really but I will tell you it is way easier for me to learn and also to teach to my son, so that means something. Statlines are verbatim now, good when you have to keep your short term memory filled with other bits of episodic and particular rules, etc.

Melee Phase: Finally a melee phase where I feel like I have some game in the options, even if it means choosing the order my Valhallans are slaughtered, since after all, their job is to die to slow things down, not win hand-to-hand. Players alternate choosing which side of their side of melee fights is cool. Having a say means I have some initiative in how things die on both sides. I like that, especially as a guard player.

Morale Phase: Again, good. I was never a fan of all the modifiers some games pile on, especially over large forces and games. This seems fair and leaves me options to get more shooting in after falling back. Good.

Game Speed: Lots of debate on this point. I believe my experienced brethren when they say the 8th changes do not really speed things up but I do think the play is cleaner and not as prone to operational mistakes that can change the outcomes. THAT is something I like a lot and something I attribute with speed. A short game filled with re-sets and backtracking from complicated play feels slow to me.

So overall, not bad at all. I give it an A-/B+ for how the state of the game stands and what seems like GW listening to at least some of the customer base on what they want. Looking forward to getting some more GW to the paint bench and more 40k in the books (be that Index or Codex.)

Batrep soon! Bye!

-Yeti

40K: Valhallan Governor/VIP

I had a request from my buddy Joe over at my gaming club PAGE, asking to borrow a model to represent a VIP objective like a Political Officer, Planetary Governor or some such, for the upcoming Sword Sworn 40K narrative event on May 13th. This is from the same guy who runs 40K narrative events at NOVA, so, plan on a good time if you are in the Philly area:

Sword Sworn: Long is the patience of the Emperor's enemies, waiting in the dark to strike at his most glorious heroes when the time is ripe. Now that moment has come for the vaunted Swords of Dorn, as one of their recruitment worlds is besieged and all their allies are called to its aid!

I have a few models that would work for a VIP already, sitting around moldering in my Valhallan collection, but I thought a dive into the bitz box would be fun and a fast aside from Bushido.

Original GW model. The cape made it onto my Valhallan Col.

Parts: The parts for this were a Solar Macharius body, slightly trimmed and cleaned, a right arm from the IG tank sprue (do they even make that anymore?) and a standard Astra Militarum left arm with a totally vintage 1980's Imperial Guard hand; almost all of these bitz are OLDER THAN MY 12 YEAR OLD SON. Weird.

After my club runs the Sword Sworn event and I get this guy back I will add a holstered bolt pistol to his right side, maybe counting him as a Senior Officer or even an Inquisitor.

The Build: I painted him up in matching colors for my Valhallans with base colors, what I call underpainting and then finished with my custom water-based stain for finishing. Check out the Valhallan tab to the left for more examples of painting with stain if that interest you, I have posts on that going back years.

Total time for this VIP was 2 hours from assembly to priming to paint and basing. Pretty dang fun. WIP pics:

Base colors down, ready for underpainting

Shading and highlights are really geared towards augmenting the toning and colors the stain produces

Just-stained

Dried stain, DulCote and basing

Warhammer 40k: Commissar Yarrick

Yet another addition to my Valhallens for 40K, none other than the man himself, Commissar Yarrick. Painted with an eye on the Apocalypse arc for my club's Burning Stars league, Yarrick vouched safe his formidable reputation during the utter chaos of our massive Apocalypse game this past January, Rebuffed at Barnes 595... but more on that in a minute (but go look at the Apoc pics, it is insane.)

I opted to re-sculpt where his sheathed sword originally was, back into the underlying sash, since I didn't have time to find the missing bit (and it wasn't a standout must-have looking at his stat-line.) He was a one-session paintjob in the face of the impending game, anyway. I also chose to lighten the tone of his traditional Commissariat coat since it looks better in the polar terrain.

Here you can see Yarrick on the lower left, under the Valhallen Lightning, in the first of a few Apocalyse naps. He'd lose his last wound, crumple to the ground, then come right back next turn and he did it ALL DAMN GAME on that objective, including on the last turn where he stood up one last time to contest an objective.  Seriously though he did this 4 times in a row. He has minerals.

Warhammer 40K: Converted Enginseer and Servitors

Here are my "up armed" Servitors to go with my Enginseer, which is a Forge World Myrmidion. The changes are pretty obvious on the servitors. I added some more fairing/power plants and servo arms from the old Fabius Bile kit. Those additional bits hide the magnets to swap out the servo arms for Heavy Bolters or Plasma Cannon. These were actually done some time ago, to be deployed in my club's Burning Stars campaign and Apocalypse game. I'm lazy with updates sometimes.

The Enginseer has re positioned power axe arms that have a magnet mount and pin to make storage way easier and the pose more dramatic and crowd friendly.

Warhammer 40K: Holographic Tactical Display

Here is a kit bashed holographic tactical display for my Valhallan HQ. I don’t think this makes sense representing anything from the Astra Militarum codex but I suppose it could be an objective? 

Here is a before shot.

I used some Necromunda bulkheads cut and trimmed for the legs, a Mighty Empires 40K tile and a Forge World bomber cockpit control console from my buddy Lovell’s kit that his son accidentally set fire. I was able to saw the controls from the melted cockpit piece and trim it back into shape. The orderly is an old Basilisk crewman, I think.

Not a lot of work but it creates good atmosphere for the game and so, worth it!

Here are some other shots.

40K: Eversor Conversion

Here's an Eversor I painted last Saturday, for bringing to The Burning Stars league with my club, PAGE.

Not much to say really. Chopped the model in half, hunched him over more and resculpted the join. Garnished with pouches and grenades from various kits. Added a Warhammer Fantasy bit as the shoulder pad, I think, not sure the source. It married well with his chest rig/vox deal he has going on. The arms are from Catachan plastic kits and the open hand is a GW zombie hand. The Neuro Gauntlet is a paw from an old Necron Flayed one. I added a pommel/hilt for the sheathed sword too since the pack with the stowed gun I used here was for the Eversor model who has his sword in hand and had the stowed sword missing.

Painted it up for the Bio Meltdown and here is is, The Ghoul of Hammerfall, exploding in a league game near you (hopefully not while in my own lines.)

Hardened Valhallan Vets: Kitbash (and Forge World scanner and GW Objectives)

Here are some Hardened Vets I recently made for an event I couldn't attend. Awesome.

These guys are a kitbash of GW Cadian arms, lasguns and metal SM meltas plus some Maxmini torsos that I built backwards so they became what looks like chest rigs facing forward. I had to trim the collars off to make room for the Pig Iron Colony Militia heads and greenstuff neck/cloth.

All models needed neck sculpting to give the new head purchase and blend cosmetically

Of the chest pouches and weapons there was much trimming and filing where weapons met the chest as well filling voids with sculpted greentstuff. Torsos were positioned first and either pinned or just gap filled with greenstuff.  The legs are Maxmini Greatcoat legs as well.

The heavy flamer is part AM unit from sprue married to SM flamer with brass rods and a tank/rebreather on the side as a pump/primer. Most of the packs are Pig Iron, as are some pouches.

The Sgt. is an older GW tank commander with the head removed and replaced with a Pig Iron head. His left hand was removed and replaced with a gripped fist from the side of a flamer on the AM Cadian sprue. I fit a las pistol on there from the older IG tank sprue, I think.

Overall, I really like how they came out though the casts on the legs were probably the worst I've seen on models, maybe ever. Had I noticed that  I may have even chucked them but as it was I put in time and made them passable thanks to a round rasp and Led Zepp on Spotify. These vets scale well with my Valhallans though they trend the slightest bit smaller (hence the extra kit to bulk them up).

The auspex/master VOX or whatever is Forge World, thrown together at the last minute on a whim, thinking it's be an asset in the game, objective or just nice scenery.

Finally, I mounted the GW objective markers that hold dice onto bases and painted them up.  I boiled the programming outta these servo skulls to soften the plastic and re-bend them to actually grip dice.

That's all the 40k I got for now. Up next some Star Wars X Wing miniatures repaints and some Bushido Ito clan!