Thoughts on Unbound

 

 

Everyone seems to have their own two cents to put in on the latest edition of the 40k rule set and with the confirmation of one aspect of it I decided it was safe enough to take a stab at providing some perspective on the matter.

 

To be clear, this is not a rant nor is it a speculative piece I am simply providing some observations based on what we know (which is still very little) about the new ‘unbound’ lists option. There has been a lot of talk about percentages and side boards, but nothing has actually surfaced to confirm either of those rumors, so I will only focus on unbound for the moment.

Apocalypse now?

Yes and at less than 2000 points, on demand whenever you please. The initial heming and hawing about the prospect of your opponent being able to field impossibly brutal lists was tempered by the fact that not everyone is going to play unbound all day every day. Much like apocalypse, this is just another aspect of the game that could allow for a greater range of freedom when making a list, I have been using this example a lot lately but as you may be aware I am the owner of a 26 sentinel strong army that has no practical or competitive purpose other than to feed my varied and eccentric tastes in this hobby. Previously there was no way in hell I could feasibly squeeze more than six into a 1750 list, with 7^th I could actually field a decent and possibly balanced mobile infantry force (in theory anyways) I have seen quite a bit of negativity towards this aspect of the new rule set, but really this won’t change much day to day play, unbound is just another way to work more models, or use the models you have in a game without having to invest much or worry about making to perfect list. In that regard I think that unbound also targets new and younger players who are not quite used to the math hammer side of the game, or just want to play a game with “cool” models.

Unbound also solved another mystery that I had been pondering on regarding supplements. For awhile a lot of people were wondering why there has been such a deluge of extra army books as of late, my theory is that this all falls in line with GW’s plans for 7^th and the new list building structure. Want to take an allied force? Double down on your profits by releasing two books under one codex, Demons and CSM or CRS, IG and MT + INQ and so on. Again this is just me postulating on why this may have been structured as it is, I know GW is a publicly traded company, but not every aspect of the rules is geared towards sales so there’s still a fair amount of grey area with my theory.

Is this going to be a WAAC paradise, I don’t think so. Echoing what a lot of the older community has been trying to drive home for the last 20 years, it’s about talking to the guy/gal across the table and deciding what and how you are going to play, I have walked away from plenty of games because they just didn’t sound like fun and I don’t see why this would be an issue everywhere else. At tournaments, at least for the first year anyways I can see this as being doubly true, it sounds like GW has also introduced a check and balance system to even things out, but with no further details I really don’t care to delve too much into that area.

All in all I think its shapeing up to be a fun edition, hopefully GW got over their Vista moment with 6^th (sorry it was fun but there were issues) and are back on track with 7^th, are people going to complain, yes, are people going to leave, yes. That’s fine if you don’t enjoy the game anymore you certainly should find something else to play that you do, but please don’t read a bunch of speculative articles on the internet and declare that you’ll never play again before actually getting a few games in, it makes us all look quite silly.

 

Cheers

-Scott

BH Senior Funksmith

Army Stolen: Please read

On Friday May 2nd one of our players and long time friend of the shop Bill had his car broken into and his Battlefoam bag with his army stolen. Its always a terrible thing when it happens, all I can do is ask is for the community keep an eye out on ebay or Craigslist. As you can see below its a very visually unique army. This happened in the San Jose/Cupertino area.

 

 

If you see or find anything you can contact us at bayhammer@gmail.com or post to the Legends Facebook group https://www.facebook.com/groups/Legends40k/ We are all pulling for Bill over at the shop and hopefully something will turn up, all we can do at this point though is put more eyeballs on the situation.


Thank You.

Scott

Hobby Progress/KR Review

I preach the word of Carl.

 

This week has been quite the toasty one, despite my workspace having an identical atmosphere to an easy bake oven I did manage to get some hobby time in this week. As you can see by my highly advanced project tracking system I finished all of D’s guard commissions for the month. With that out of the way I have had more time to work on my sentinels I decided the best way to go on this project was to break everything down into squads of three. Not counting basing I have managed to clear six of them since Monday, after getting my jungle funge layering system down its gotten a lot easier to crank these guys out, basing is still going to be a bit of a chore, but as a whole they have been coming out pretty consistently painted.

My army grows.

One of the first ones I did up out of the set.

 

I heard you like sentinels...

Aaannndddd more sentinels.

 

Random sniper, why not.

Oh yeah, did I mention I finally broke down and bought some soft blue foam, and if I didn’t upgrade my kit soon I would have keep running with my old set up (battle damaged army sabol bag filled with packing peanuts, old large GW figure case) add to that I have been doing hobby demos and taking pictures for the Escalation league over at Legends, I basically looked like a Sherpa every time I went to the shop. So I decided I try there auto fill app for my guard stuff and picked up a single case with no bag. Let me start by saying there are plenty of reviews for KR floating around out there that go into great detail about their product, this will not be one of those, as a matter of fact “just plain awesome” pretty much sums up my experience with KR so far, everything about this product is plain and functional with little extra ornamentation or frill and I mean that in the most positive manner. I have seen other more expensive options that simply add nothing more than extra flair and decide its worth double the price, KR on the other hand doesn’t bother with overly specialized options, they make a simple highly modular product that is designed to fit your needs and there has yet to be an issue with my purchase that really stands out as a negative, I do kind of wish they had a tray that was half troop half heavy weapons squad ( as you can see above I found a work around) but other than that everything seems well designed and optimized. You can cram a lot into a single case and not just troops (though I hear you can cram over 200 into a single hard case) I managed to get two troop choices (about 60 pieces of infantry) plus armor and HQ’s into one case, and there was no wiggle and no loose minis jangling around during transit.

I cut plugs in half so I could put more infantry in the empty slots.

For comparison here’s a few shots of the cores for my other bags (SABOL and GW) GW’s foam comes closest, but it’s still a far cry from the quality and softness of KR’s trays, GW’s trays are soft but much more dense and springy, with a little give, KR by comparison is quite soft and malleable almost plush to the touch with enough density to keep everything in place, but also has enough give to make sure that piece that’s just a little too wide can be made to fit without fear of damage.

 

Sabol sad to say represents the old school, pick n pluck was the norm 7-8 years ago, but now feels quite dated (KR does offer pick n pluck style trays, which do still have their uses) Compared with the more modern purpose cut foam trays from companies like KR and Battlefoam this stuff just doesn’t stack up. The foam itself has very little give and does not feel that far removed from those little bits you used to get in the GW metal single packs. Still though I use it for over flow and I will never get rid of my army carrier bag (It has far too much character to throw out, and it doubles as a cooler) So sadly I can no longer recommend them, or most of their product line, they do still make a quality and consistant product, but there are better evenly priced options out there now.

That’s it, for now anyways, I plan to get another batch of sentinels done up tonight and maybe another sniper or medic, but for the most part that’s all my hobby progress for this week. Before I sign off though, a quick shout out for the stuff of legends podcast. This Sunday we will be recording episode 13, we’ll be going over escalation news, some of the 6.1ed stuff that’s been bubbling up lately, and I review my first issue of WD visions. You can check out all the previous episodes of TSoL here.

Cheers

-Scott

BH Senior Adjunct Sommelier  

New hobby video up

I woke up Sunday morning and decided that I was going to start doing a video series on the basics of getting into 40k in a no nonsense format. The end result was me hastily zip tying a video rig together and trying to get movie maker to sync properly to my camera (it didn't) But I managed to get the above video out, I do plan to re do this once I have had more time to sort out the kinks in my presenter/recording seat up, so I apologize in advance for the quality.

This video is meant more for newbie than long time hobbyists, so if you know what your doing there wont be any surprises in here.

Feedback is greatly appreciated, as I mentioned I plan to do more of these in the future, so if you have any experience doing this sort of thing, or just have a few suggestions hit me up in the comments, or shoot me an email at bayhammer@gmail.com

Cheers

Scott
-BH Senior Funk Master.

Astra Militarum: Magis et minus,

 

When I was talking about the lore section on the show, I found it difficult to articulate exactly what it was about this codex that felt different from its predecessors. After I had a bit more leisure time to sit down and really go through both books I think I have been able to formulate a more accurate response to my original thoughts on the background and lore section. The biggest difference between the new Astra Militarum codex and the previous IG book is that the formers composition and tone seems to focus more on the here and the now and the future of the universe, rather than weigh the reader down with the details of the past. True, there are a fair number of articles in the new book that are taken from the last codex (there’s entries in the 5^th dex that go all the way back to 3^rd) but they compose and preface it in such a manner that it tends to drive the narrative forward, rather than just let the details hang in the middle surrounded by the inevitable grim dark future of emptiness and death that awaits humanity.

It feels like GW has turned back the clock from two minutes to five, the 13^th black crusade is just now happening, and while the overall theme is still an empire in decline, they have given themselves a little more wiggle room when it comes to future editions, and the expanded universe, some aspects of which they have subtly woven into this new edition. The first couple of pages reads like the extended version of the back cover of a Black Library novel, there’s a much heavier focus on narrative in this codex than in 5^th and it shows, in 5^th it was more “yeah you command a lot of guys and tanks, so use a lot of guys and tanks if you want, it’s cool” Whereas this time round they have such gems as “Squads of desperate men battle impossible odds , with nothing but faith and courage driving them to hold the line” and prefacing that section with a paragraph that focuses heavily on the grandiose dehumanizing scale on which the organization operates. They pulled the campaign map from this edition as well, effectively removing most of those events that were not noted elsewhere from the record, this was an odd move, while it did allude to battles of other non Cadian regiments, it did not really detract much from the main story, it did however show dates that went beyond the new timeline, so rather than re write it they just scrubbed it all together. The real shame in this is that new players will loose that quick and easy glance at the universe that most of us older players have grown accustomed to (I think it is still in the rule book though)

Other than that though, the fluff area is pretty much a copy paste affair from the last two books, with a few subtle entries removed, or re shuffled out of the first twenty pages or so. Over all I think GW did a good job with the codex, there could have been a bit more don to update the background, and yet again I see the same art work that I have been seeing for the last ten plus years (now in color!) I think in this edition you are getting a lot less to build on, a few pictures, no camo scheme guides (in the print edition anyways) and the same model photos we got from 5^th. After all that though, I can still say I was pleased with this edition and even though it was very subtle I do like the new emphasis on narrative that the new codices seem to be leaning towards, and now with the supplements that are supposedly in the works, we might get to see some of the gaps in this codex filled in later by future mini dex releases. I do hope that this is the case, and GW will release some more flavor back into the army, but I’ll reserve my thoughts on that matter until I get the product in hand, for more thorough review before lambasting any perceived money grab by GW.

 

Cheers

 

-Scott

BH Senior Jam Master

Hobby Progress: More IG

Another week cleared, another batch of minis done. Yet again I found myself painting D's imperial guard (117th, The Inheritors) So I did up a few special weapons teams, and another previously enjoyed lick. I have to say I really enjoyed working on some of the older independent characters/stand in models from this project, there's just something about the older mini's that's really fun to work with, even if they don't have rules anymore, a lot of these guys make great counts as models. Enough with words, time for the fancy stimulating imagery with our snazzy new logo.

 

Straken was a blast to paint up (buns of steel that model has) I was also very pleased with how the Vostroyan officer (he was supposed to be Chenkov) turned out, I think the reds pair well with the basing. On the Cadian officer I used GW's skin technique for the first time, super simple and done in three layers. Finally, who doesn't lover Schaffer.

 

Again I found myself trying a new GW endorsed method of painting. Rather than go with my traditional moo cow splotches, I tried their tiger streak approach, much cleaner.

 

Old school medics, so much fine detail on that model, used the new GW blood and gore technical on the transfusion packs, old RT guardsmen is featured because why not.

 

My own little slice of paradise.

 

This week is all about storm troopers (the old ones) so keep an eye out for my follow up post on those guys, oh I also finally broke down and bought an airbrush last weekend, so I expect to regale you all with tales of misfortune and great reward in the area as well in the near future. That's about it for me, oh don't forget to tune in to The Stuff of Legends next Monday, the next episode (I think) is all about hobby progress and how to get more into the hobby side of the game.

 

 

Cheers

 

-Scott

 

BH Senior Pit Master



 

 

 

Astra Militarum: Part 1

 

THE LOST & THE CANNED

Astra Militarum: Extended review Part 1

A quick forward before we get to the good stuff. Originally this article was meant to be published as one long overview of the new Astra Militarum Codex (imperial guard) I soon realized that I did not have the time to sit and pour over every detail in one sitting, and as stated below, this is not a codex review. This is more of a collection of my personal observations and musings on the new book, which I will put out as a series of articles focusing on the individual parts of the book that I was not able (read not fully prepped) to go over on the podcast. Part one is about the units that were removed in this release.

This article is the follow up to my last appearance on the Stuff of Legends podcast where we went over the new Astra Militarum and Tempestus books. Unfortunately, we did not get to cover everything we wanted to due to the time constraints, so I wanted to do an extended version to cover some of the items we skipped during the show.

This is not going to be an in depth codex overview, there are plenty of other people covering that, and honestly I am not really that much into the meta aspect of the game, rather this article will focus mostly on a few key details about some of the unit changes/removals and changes to the background fluff. This is all basic stuff with my own personal spin on a few areas of interest.

Starting off, let have a brief moment of silence for those units who are no longer with us:

-Sly Marbo.

-Lukas Bastonne.

-Mogul Kaimr.

-Kubrik Chenkov.

-Al'rahem.

-Solar Macharius.

-Every piece of artillery except the basilisk.

 

A quick breakdown for why I believe some of these characters are absent from the latest iteration of the codex starting from the top.

Sly Marbo:

This one actually seems kinda obvious, first off he was a pretty OP character, now that’s not to Say that there are not plenty of those still hanging about in other books (elder cough cough) but he was less a man and more of a strength 8 blast with unlimited range. But I don’t think that’s the reason he got pulled. The word of the day in 6^th edition is ‘supplement’ as in there is a good chance Marbo will be returning to us in one of them. It has long been rumored that Catachans will be getting their own book/data sheet after the release of the main guard codex and I still believe this to be the case, so keep an eye out in the near future as I am sure he will be popping back up at some point.

Side note: His model is still available for purchase on the new GW site, so either selling off the remaining stock, or waiting for an update.

 

 

Bastonne:

This guy never really saw a lot of play as an HQ in 5^th ed, sure he had some interesting fluff but for the most part he was just another upgrade with a few special perks that were not really worth the points, he also suffers from ‘lack of model” syndrome, so yeah poof!

Mogul Kamir:

Real shame about this one, I can’t say for sure why he’s gone, I mean you could technically gussiy up any odd rough rider and call him Kamir, and I will have to check, but I do believe he had a model at one point. Rough riders are still in the main book so a supplement seems unlikely (maybe a data sheet with expanded rules) as far as I can tell though he was just one of those units that fell out of favor, I was actually surprised to see rough riders at all in this edition, but they do still have that unique flavor about them, and allow all kinds of fun kitbashes with bikes, so yeah, not sure where he’s gotten off to.

Chenkov:

I was really bummed he got the axe, though like Marbo I have a sneaking suspicion he may be coming back in a future supplement and in a plastic/finecast kit (he was metal and not called Chenkov on the site prior to the great metal purge) With the new points drop on conscripts he would still be a solid choice regardless of what faction you were playing, he was a tad broken, and may have been even more so in 6^th, but I also did not see him on the table that often, so maybe he was shelved due to lack of demand. While I’ll miss being able to flood the table with an endless tide of bodies, its not much harder to accomplish the same task with regular conscripts in any 750+ game.

Al'rahem:

The legend is gone, but the rules live on. Old model, old rules. The new order (order here) essentially gives any unit a similar ability to his “like the wind” perk. After handing off that ability to move troops around quickly to any random command squad/HQ choice there was not much reason  to keep him in the main codex. Still though, there’s hope for a supplement, or possibly a new sculpt/model (fingers crossed)

Solar Macharius:

He was dead and gone by 5^th, so he only makes the list on a technicality but still he got a whole page (no stats just a big piece of fluffly filler) He had a model and rules prior to 5^th though, but I am guessing he got the rough customer treatment like all the other old fluffy HQs (sans Yarrick and Strayken) Macharius seems like he would be the one least likely to see a datasheet/re-release though just based on his recent exclusion from two consecutive codex’s, who knows, maybe FW will step in on this one.

Update: He does have page in the Astra book, they just decided to hide it under a heavy dose of dark printing and pseudo latin that I didn’t catch of the first read through.

 

Artillery:

Let’s make this section quick.

Medusa:

Short range, ok damage, Forgeworld model only.

Griffon:

Replaced by the Wyvern which is arguably better than its predecessor/cheaper.

Colossus:

Forgeworld only, small load considering the cost, just take a nova cannon costly.

There is one thing I want to get out of the way before wrapping up, all these models are still produced by Forgeworld, and still have current rules to support their use and inclusion in regular 40k lists. Imperial Armor has been doing a good job of filling the gaps left by GW’s clumsy economizing over the years. Overall not a total loss as it is an expensive alternative. There’s a lot of FW friendly rulings/gamebooks being put out by GW lately, so it would not be to hard to keep your old models in regular play despite not having an entry in the main book. 

Closing thoughts on the old and the lost, it happens with every release/update, GW phases out the older less popular specific characters and units in favor of whatever the new hotness is that go round I think we’ll see some of these guys back on the table in the not so distant future, and while a little disheartening to see some old favorites disappear into the warp, there will always be new hero’s to captivate the next generation of war gamers who are just coming into the hobby and will never know the loss of squats, or look longingly at beastmen regiments in back issues of white dwarf. This is the new school, and we are all now custodians of the lore prior to this release, so remember to share some of that wisdom with our newer players whenever possible, you just might be the one who inspires the next Dave Taylor, or (insert famous mini painter here)

 

Cheers

-Scott

BH Senior Taste Maker