GAMES-KNIGHT 2013 REVIEW

Hello gamers! Apologies for the absence the last few weeks, been caught up in Xmas preparations and the like. For my final post of 2013 I thought I would have a little look back at what has transpired gaming wise the past year and put it into a little review.

The start of the year saw me playing a hell of a lot of 40k and my first play in a organised tournament with the Sutton Immortals. My Grey Knights project has been an enjoyable one and one I am still trying to finish off! All my Grey Knights are done but its the Inquisitorial Warbands that take the time to do simply because they capture my imagination and I keep kit-bashing henchmen. The second half of 2013 saw my interest in 40k cool somewhat which was down to two main factors. The first being that I have tried lots of different game systems this year and have taken up 2 new main hobbies in Dropzone Commander and the X-Wing miniatures game. The second reason is a combination of not enjoying playing 40k due to the majority of 40k players seemingly being only interested in 'win-listing' and GW's marketing tactics only encouraging this in the majority of their customers. Now let me make something clear here, I am still going to be playing 40k and there will be plenty of 40k coverage on Games-Knight in the future. I am massive fan of the 40k universe and I still fully intend to bring a massive 40k campaign to the blog in the future. The trick to 40k these days is to find the right people to play with. 40k for me has always been about playing with the miniature you want in your collection and fighting out exciting. narrative driven battles and campaigns. I find that there are very few 40k players of this mind set left in the hobby and have been replaced by players who are only interested in putting an army list together that takes away a level playing field before a single dice has been rolled.

Despite the disappointment with 40k this year I have had lots of great things to enjoy about my hobby. For one my painting has improved. I am more confident and don't balk at painting anything these days, not even 10mm miniatures! I have played a lot of different game systems this year and lots of different board games which I have enjoyed thoroughly. Board games have made a huge come back in 2013 and this is a trend I am sure will continue in 2014. Discovering Star Wars The Card Games LCG was another highlight for me and remains one of my favourite games. LCG's have also grown in popularity and again I am sure this is another trend that will continue into 2014.

My discovery of Dropzone Commander was without a doubt my favourite hobby moment this year. The 2 player starter set really got me excited as did delving into a new game system and universe to play in. There will be plenty more Dropzone Commander content in the coming months here at Games-Knight picking up where we left off. I will be showcasing painted UCM and Scourge armies and sharing a campaign systems idea which you can play purely with the contents of the 2 player starter set.

Along with Dropzone Commander I have also become a massive fan of the X-Wing Miniatures game from Fantasy Flight. I am a little late to the party with this game but I will be sharing my journey into this game system with you all here on Games-Knight in the months to come. If you are an older gamer like myself and don't have time for painting miniatures or complex game mechanics then make sure you check out the X-Wing  Miniatures content as this game will certainly appeal to you!

So that is my year in gaming but what of the gaming year in general? Well its safe to say there is lot more diversity in the gaming industry now and GW are not having it all there own way. Mantic Games go from strength to strength as the release of their latest game system 'Deadzone' reached fever pitch proportions at the start of December. For me personally Dropzone Commander was game of the year but in the eyes of the industry I think Deadzone has stolen the show and will be big game in 2014. Games like War Machine and Malifaux also grow in popularity along with Dust Tactics, Infinity, Flames of War and Mercs.

2014 promises to be a very exciting year hobby wise. A new edition of Warhammer Fantasy Battles is due which should see a new box set released. The X-Wing Miniatures game will be introducing capital ships in its wave 5 releases. Dropzone Commander will have a new faction out next year in the form of the human resistance fighters along with new rules enabling you to ally them with an existing UCM army. Kickstarter will be bringing us the AVP board game which is something I am looking forward too immensely, I am also hoping the legal issue Game Zone are encountering with there revamp of HeroQuest are resolved and we see the 25th anniversary project come to fruition.

So what can you look forward to seeing on Games-Knight in 2014? Plenty! There will be content on 40k, DZC, X-Wing Miniatures, Top Trumps and lots of miniature showcases, kit bashing ideas, campaign ideas and the usual game reviews.

So with that I wish you all a Merry Xmas and a very happy new year. Have  agreta holiday peeps and I will see all next year. Ciaran.

     

SPANISH BOARD GAME INQUISITION 2014?

No one ever expected the Spanish Inquisition and I don't think any one in the gaming community was expecting 2 knock out board game releases set for 2014 from 2 Spanish gaming companies.

First up is the Alien vs. Predator : The Hunt Begins board game that is building up momentum on Kickstarter right now by Prodos Games the creators of Mutant Chronicles. I think this is a dream come true for a lot of gamers and is for me being a massive fan of the AVP movies. The Boxed Game AvP – The Hunt Begins is a self-contained gaming experience, a fusion of mission and narrative driven Board Game and Table Top War Game. A family game where 1 (yes you can play on your own) or more players can sit down and play through their own narrative and develop their own characters and objectives over many inter-linked games. Or players can sit down and play a ‘free for all’ with games like ‘Survival’, ‘Last human/Alien/Predator standing’, ‘capture the objective’ etc. filling an hour or two of your evening or raining Sunday afternoon. Their is also an idea of linking this board game to a wider table top AVP game where players can control armies of Colonial Marines against whole nests of Aliens!


The miniatures are stunning which is the normal standard Prodos have set for their miniatures and fit the feel and vibe of the AVP cannon very well. This project has smashed through most of its stretch goals already and is no doubt all set for a very popular release date of 2014. Rest assured this one that will entering collection next year and as always I will be sharing my journey into this game with you all here on games-knight, providing the Weyland Corp. don't get to me first.....

For our 2nd Spanish export we move from the world of high octane Sci-fi board games to classic fantasy adventure! This news has only hit the gaming community over the last week and has unsurprisingly had a favourable reaction from gamers of my age in particular. From the minds of Gamezone Miniatures comes the 25th anniversary edition of HeroQuest. This is huge! I cant hide my excitement of this news so I am not even going to try! The original MB release in 1989 was my fist taste of gaming action and what hooked me into gaming so I have a lot if sentiment for this game and still play it today. If you had asked me if I would ever wanted this game revamped by anyone else other then GW / MB then I would have said no, but now its happened I am not worried at all and really looking forward to seeing how this project pans out. The official news on the Gamezone Miniatures website is that this is to be a 'crowd funded' project which to me means Kickstarter.

Lets take a look at what the game would offer -

-1 BOARD – ALFA Model

      Reversible, with two usable sides, Side A is with a Classic Dungeon simulation, while side B brings into play ruins and exterior scenes. The squares on the board are slightly larger than the original to provide more comfortable figure movement and scenery/element placement

- 1 MENTOR SCREEN

      The game screen is for dual use. The Mentor Side (inside) displays the tools that the Game Master will need to direct the game, creature stats, game symbol keys codes, weapon characteristics, etc.. On the Player Side (outside) there will be an illustration of a temple on which the essential rules for the adventures will be written into stone like reliefs. This way any novice player at a glance will have all the necessary information they need without having to badger the Director with continual basic questions.

-8 DICE

      The 25th model dice will have squares representing boxes instead of round dots. The 25th model battle dice will have the already known symbols but appear more consistent with the actual skills or the characters / current technology available.

-1 RULE BOOK

      Rule book, highly illustrated, to explain every rule that needs it with a corresponding clarifying   image.

- ADVENTURE VOLUME I “No Threat Unanswered”

      In this Book you will find the missions that Mentor will entrust to the adventurers. Formatted as standard stand alone adventures or missions that will continue as if chapters in a series. Others will be set up in an independent campaign structure that will evolve in parallel within a common storyline. The total overall quantity of adventures will be around 50.

-8 Adventurer Cards

      The Adventurer Cards will have the values ??and the different characteristics between the male characters and their female counterparts. Life and mind/will points are shown in wheel-cut windows in which the corresponding number is displayed and can be changed by rotating disks, added to the rear or the cards. This way you will not be writing the values ??of each character on a separate sheet, you can modify them directly in the windows that each character card offers.

-86 Cards

      Every spell element in the cards is written in Latin and the symbols used have their origins in classical antiquity

      The Chaos spells are a recourse that will only be utilized by the Evil Wizard player.

-46 PLASTIC RESIN FIGURES

      The figures will have the standard Gamezone® miniature size of 28mm/30mm. This way is a sure way that they will also be compatible with other popular miniature games.

      Plastic Resin is a high quality material with and extraordinarily high degree of detail, making for a clear and clean finished product. The presence of bubbles, common in all resins to a larger or smaller effect, has been practically eliminated through the modeling process. The final weight of the miniatures is lighter.

      The bases are round and transparent; being round helps with easier figure movement across the board and the transparency of the base allows players to effectively see the floor of the map their characters are standing on. The figures will be different colours the same as the miniatures in the original box set.

-48 Resin SCENE ELEMENTS

   These elements will also be made of resin as this allows us to create pieces with greater details. Some elements will come separate and will need a simple assembly.

- The wardrobe pieces are interchangeable making verity a real possibility in the 25th.

- The doors will be able to be open or closed as the door frame will have hinges.

- The treasure chests will have open able lids to see what is inside. The interior will be empty and ready to have a treasure inserted in the form of a token that will represent a bag of coins, a pile of coins, or an empty bottom with a singular coin. The interior chest tokens are also interchangeable with other elements .

- The gargoyle pedestal has a space for a treasure token when the figure is removed

- The Cell door can open or close depending on the mission guidelines

- The sarcophagus also has an area to add treasure tokens if you wish to show different contents

-35 Resin Marker Tokens

All with volume to represent scenery and not the cardboard tokens of old.

All very impressive I am sure you will agree and I will be backing this project via Kickstarter for sure.

So what do you guys think about these 2 projects? Excited? Not impressed? All opinions are welcome at Games-Knight so please get in touch - contactgamesknight@gmail.com.

Ciaran

THE WALKING DEAD HALLOWEEN SPECIAL

Greetings gamers and a Happy Halloween to you all! With the Halloween theme being present at the moment I thought I would share a board game I discovered last year that deserves some lime light and where better to show it off than right here on Games-Knight. The board game in question is The Walking Dead Board Game from Cryptozoic Entertainment which is based on the popular TV series The Walking Dead. I am a fan of the TV series so this appealed to me straight away when I discovered the game but there are points to it that would appeal if not a franchise I am a fan of which I will share with you. This game was released during the period of the 1^st and 2^nd series so you will see characters from those series who – spoiler alert! – may no longer be part of the living.

UNBOXING THE WALKING DEAD BOARD GAME

As you open the box you will instantly find that the game is very self-contained and has minimal components required to play the game, which is not a bad thing. There are no miniatures in this game just cards and tokens. The rule book is a mere 5 pages long, including a FAQ, and is explained in a very simple, no fuss manner. And my favourite touch about the layout and presentation of the game is the roll-out playing mat instead of a traditional cardboard gaming board. This is a unique touch that gives the game a real charm about it and also makes it a game you can play pretty much anywhere as it is very easy to transport. Ideal for if you like to take your board games down to your local hobby / gaming club. Presentation wise I like the look and feel to it and the minimal aspect to it is quite refreshing as some games can be a bit over powering when you have tonnes of components to use.

THE WALKING DEAD BOARD GAME RULES

There are 2 scenarios you can play with The Walking Dead board game, Survival Mode and Team Game. Both scenarios are for 2-4 players.

In survival mode each player selects a character card and its matching game piece. Players star the game at camp. Then with the corresponding game cards make an Ally pool and a Scrounge deck and place each location tile next its matching corner. The object of the game is that the first player who collects all 4 of the location tiles and returns to base camp is the winner. Of course there will be lots of flesh eating walkers to try to prevent you from doing this and subsequently mean that most players will star the games as survivors but end it as walkers! Any player who doesn’t survive becomes a walker and plays out the rest of the game as a zombie, turning on his friends and family i.e. the other survivor players. I like this as it means no one has to sit out the rest of the game when that player dies, they can come back as a walker and still be involved in the game.

A survivor turn sequence is resolved in 4 steps –

1.       Movement – roll a die and move that many spaces.

2.       Resolve the space you land on if any encounters.

3.       Resolve any encounter cards you are asked to draw.

4.       End your turn.

 

When players die they come back as walkers and the game then turns to a team zombie vs. team survivor affair. A walker’s turn sequence plays out as follows –

1.       Roll a die and move up to that many spaces.

2.       Play a walker card.

3.       End you turn in which you can discard a walker card form your hand if you wish and also draw walker cards until you have a hand of 4.

 

The Team game sis exactly the same only at the start players pick sided if they are to start as survivors or walkers. Team zombie only have to kill both survivor players to win! You will find with this game that it is nearly impossible to win as a survivor! This isn’t a bad thing as it makes for a very challenging game, which given its simple set up and game mechanics is very impressive.

 

GAMES-KNIGHT SURVIVOR CAMP

This really is a super little game which combine simplicity and fun to bring a great board game to the table. Avid gamers or family after some light-hearted fun will not be disappointed with this product and I thoroughly recommend it. Here at Games-Knight I will award The Walking Dead board game 4 brains out of 5, come on! It’s Halloween!

 

OTHER GREAT ZOMBIE GAMES FOR HALLOWEEN

Alongside this game also check out Last Night on earth from Flying Frog productions. I had the chance to play this a few weeks back and it plays really well and is very, very challenging! Put it this way, I killed 14 zombies and still didn’t win! Lots of different scenarios to play and some cool little miniatures to play with make this another fun game for a night’s gaming making it another 4 brains out of 5.There is also Zombies!!! By twilight Creations and the very popular Zombicide.

That’s your lot for this week, hope you have enjoyed this week’s post and have a great Halloween. Next week it is back to my coverage of Dropzone Commander as I show off my painted UCM faction. Till then have fun and be safe. Ciaran-contactgamesknight@gmail.com

 

    

 

 

 

DROPZONE COMMANDER : RULES OF ENGAGEMENT

Hello and welcome to the 2^nd week of my coverage of Dropzone Commander by Hawk Wargames. In this week’s post we look at the rules and some of the game mechanics that I feel make this game very appealing.

THE TURN SEQUENCE

The game turn is broken down into 4 phases –

·         Phase 1 : Initiation

·         Phase 2 : Activation

·         Phase 3 : Actions

·         Phase 4: Roundup

 

Every game turn always start with the initiation phase which plays as follows –

 

ROLL FOR INITIATIVE – Each player rolls a 1D6 and adds the command value of their highest ranking commander present on the table. Please note to add you command value to you 1DR roll you need the command deck of cards which you do not get with the 2 player starter set. This is not an essential you must have and can easily just roll 1D6 and go with the highest roll, dicing off if there is a tie. The winner of the initiative roll may elect to reduce his initiative score to 1 making his opponent go first which sometimes can be a good tactical play.

 

DISCARD CARDS – If command cards are being used then you may discard any unwanted command cards at this time.

 

DRAW CARDS – Again, if command cards are being used then this is an opportunity for players to replenish their command cards.

 

CLEANUP – Any special effects form special rules may now be addressed.

 

ROLL FOR RESERVES – Each player, in order of initiative, may roll 1D6 for each battlegroup they have in reserve to see if their much needed reserves can be called upon this turn.

 

We now progress in phase 2 of the turn sequence: ACTIVATION. The player with the highest initiative activates battlegroup. Activating a battlegroup means that player can now perform the action phase. Once the first player has completed his actions with his battlegroup then the 2^nd player with the 2^nd highest initiative may activate a battlegroup and so on. Phase 2 continues in this fashion until all battlegroups have been activated and completed their action phase.

 

In the action phase battlegroups can move, shoot, engage in close quarter battle, embark and disembark troops and APC’s via dropship carrier. Note that players can shoot then move or vice versa. This is a mechanic I like as it give players more offensive or defensive as the case may be, capabilities.

 

Once all actions have been completed by each battlegroup in the player’s force it is onto the roundup phase. Any special rules and effects which occur in the roundup phase now take place by order of initiative. Players should check the victory conditions of the scenario they are playing. If the conditions are met or the number of stated turns has elapsed then the game is over. If not, the turn is over.

 

AIRCRAFT IN DROPZONE COMMANDER

This is a game mechanic I really like in this game so I want to share it with you guys out there. Just like the command cards, you do not get any aircraft fighters in the starter set so this isn’t a must have section but if you anything like me you will add some aerial support to you battle groups.

 Aircrafts in Dropzone Commander always start in readiness or reserve so you have to see if air support is available to be called upon at that time. This is done by rolling 1D6, on a roll of 2-6 air support may be called in to perform an attack run or make an interception. On a roll of a 1 however, the aircraft remains in readiness/reserve. I really like this as it reflects the realistic logistical side of calling in an air strike and that it cannot always be relied upon.  If the roll was successful, a fighter aircraft can enter the game from any table edge and then follows a pre-designated attack flight path laying down fire upon any enemy unit along that flight path. Your opponent has the chance to use his anti-air units to try gun you down whilst making this attack run, or even call in air support of his own on an intercept course with the attacking aircraft. Likewise, an aircraft called in to perform an interception will have to dodge the anti-air units of the opponent in question. It almost breaks down into a mini game in the game! I do not think this is a bad thing though and I think the rules for the aircraft in Dropzone Commander have been well thought out and add another level of excitement to the game.

 

THE GAMES-KNIGHT COMMAND BUNKER

I really like the rulebook you get for this game; it is one of the nicest rule books I have read for a long time. All the rules are explained in simple terms and have diagrams with them depicting in game play to help give you a good mental image on how this will look in action. I am massive fan of the rules for aircraft in this game. It gives them an important role to play in terms of the game but doesn’t lend itself to aircraft being a overpowered solution for players to dominate the game which is what has spoilt 40k 6^th edition in my opinion. Other rules I liked that I will quickly mention was the LZ rules for dropships, including ‘LZ is hot!’ special rule, and 'exceptional ground' which grants tanks and APC’s 2+ inches to their normal movement value if moving on exceptional ground i.e. road.

I am itching to start playing this game! I am still painting my UCM and will start assembling the scourge army alongside this and start painting them once my UCM army is complete.  Once I have the 2 forces from the starter set completed I will be getting some game sin and reporting back to you here on Games-Knight my gaming experience with Dropzone Commander. I have a feeling it is going to be a very, very good experience at that.

That’s going to do it for this week, we take a little break from Dropzone Commander next week as I bring you a Halloween themed post next week looking at zombie board games and in particular The Walking Dead board game. Please join me for that next week and in the meantime feel free to contact me regarding this week’s post on Dropzone Commander or anything else hobby related at – contactgamesknight@gmail.com. Till next week take care. Ciaran.

 

 

 

DROPZONE COMMANDER

Welcome to the world of Dropzone Commander by Hawk WarGames. Dropzone Commander is a sci-fi 10mm war game set in the future of the 27^th century where mankind battle to reconquer the galaxy they have been driven from by the vile alien entity known as the Scourge. Whilst these two factions battle each other, they will also fight alongside or against the Post Human Republic (PHR) and the alien tribes of the Shaltari. Armies preform rapid deployments of tanks and troops via dropships whilst fighter jets battle for air superiority and strafe their opponents with devastating attack runs.  Battles take place across terrains of all types and are often pitched in urban areas where key objectives and intel are fought over in bloody, room to room close combat inside buildings. If the buildings cannot be garrisoned, a commander will often turn the destructive fire power of his forces to destroy the building and turn it to rubble. Sound like fun? Then keep reading as I delve further into Dropzone Commander.

2 PLAYER STARTER SET UNBOXING

My journey into this new gaming system begins with the starter set for Dropzone Commander. This has to be the best start set ever released in the war games industry as far as I am concerned. For £60 you will get two 500point armies for the UCM and the Scourge in quality white plastic, road maps to make a 3 x 4 play area to fight over, 10 quick and easy to assemble cardboard buildings, all tokens and templates needed to play the game, the latest revised 1.1 rulebook, dice and if all that wasn’t enough your very own Hawk Wargames, key-ring tape measure. Real value for money in any gamer’s books I am sure you will agree.

 The rule book is one of the nicest rule books I have read in a very long time. The thing I really liked about the rule book is that all the fluff was right at the start of the rule book and after reading the 11 pages of the back story to the universe of Dropzone Commander I was raring to have a game! The rules are broken down in easy to read text and diagrams and make for fast, tactical play and the onus is very much on the player to do the work as special rules are at a minimum and invulnerable saves even rarer. Armies are very balanced with strengths and weaknesses for all the factions in the game lending itself to very tactical ‘chess like’ games.

 The plastic sprues are good quality and the detail spent on the 10mm miniatures is amazing. I have assembled the UCM sprues and it took no time at all and was pretty straight forward to put together with only the Condor dropship proving to be the fiddliest but after you put 1 together the other 2 were quicker to do. I have never played 10mm before so this is a totally new experience for me as will painting 10mm scale. I have started painting my UCM army and the dropships and APC’s are coming on well with dry brushing techniques and ink washes working very well and producing quick results.  Painting 10mm scale infantry could be a challenge for me but I have based the 6 squads of Colonial Legionnaires using GW textured paints. The Scourge sprues are equally as good and I am looking forward to painting the Scourge and using some washes to cerates some very alien effects.

The quality and amount of terrain you get in this box set is impressive to say the least. A readymade 3x4 play area and 10 buildings of varying sizes gives you plenty to game with the size of armies you get in the box set. It also gives you a good basis to expand upon if you wish to increase the size of your battles and gaming area. Terrain is a very important part of Dropzone Commander and adds a real level of tactical play to the game that gives players plenty to think about as they deploy and re-deploy their forces across the battle ground. Cover is essential to your ground troops and squads caught out in the open are often heavily punished so using the terrain to cover your troops and tank units is a strong point to the game and often determines the victor.

Overall I repeat what I said at the start of this article and that is that this is the best starter set released in the war gaming industry to date. Hats off to David J. Lewis at Hawk Wargames who has put all of his soul into this product and this is just the start! I am very glad I have discovered the hobby that is Dropzone Commander and please join me next week as I continue my journey into the world of Dropzone Commander by looking into the rules in depth and how the game plays.

Has Dropship Commander peaked your interest? Do you already play Dropzone Commander? Please get in touch and let me know your thoughts – contactgamesknight@gmail.com.

 

 

GAMES-KNIGHT ANNOUCEMENT

Hello all and thank you for taking the time to read this post. For the last 4 weeks I have been working hard to bring you Games-Knight TV on You Tube. This has always been a aim of mine to enable me to bring you guys at home great video content. It is with a great amount of frustration and sadness I have to out this particular project on hold. My partner in crime Gravius has decided to part ways with the blog. First of all may I take this opportunity to thank Gravius for his great posts here on the blog and his support in setting up the blog. This very much leaves me as a legion of one and just simply cannot film, edit, produce and run Games-Knight TV on my own. It still is a aim of mine to one day bring Games-Knight TV to you loyal viewers all over the world but sadly it has to take a back seat for the time being. However, I would like to stress that the blog will very much be continuing in the mean time and I have plenty of content to bring you over the next few months.

BRAND NEW CONTENT STARTING FROM 19.10.2013

This weekend  I will delve into the world of Dropzone Commander by Hawk WarGames. This is my new hobby at present and I cant wait to share it with you guys out there. There will be plenty more Star wars Content coming to Games-Knight as we feel the full power of the force in the shape of X-Wing Miniatures and Star Wars LCG. We have products from TopTrumps to show off, board game reviews and much, much more.


GAMES-KNIGHT NEEDS YOU!


Games-Knight needs your support more than ever. The first way you can support the blog is to keep reading. I am very proud of the number of hits I get on this blog each week and very proud of the high number of overseas readers I have. Thank you so much for your support and please keep reading. There is another way you can support Games-Knight and this is an opportunity I am putting out to you. If you are local to the Cannock area, a keen hobbyist and passionate about sharing your hobby interests with the gaming community, then Games-Knight could be the place for you! I am looking for 3 gamers to join me here at Games-Knight to form a solid team and give the blog the platform to expand. If you think this is something you can do then please contact me - contactgamesknight@gmail.com. Genuine applicants only please.

Again thank you for taking the time to read this and apologies for the delay in bringing you Games-Knight TV. No one is more frustrated about this than I am. In the mean time please join me this weekend as we look into the world of Dropzone Commander. Take care and keep gaming. Ciaran.




  

TIME OF ENDING?

Hello again gamer’s and welcome to another post here on the hallowed pages of Games-Knight. We continue the Space Marine coverage with a battle report where I used the new Space Marine Codex for the first time. I wanted to try a little experiment with this, I fielded a Space Marine army I would use in 5^th edition and wanted to see if it benefited from the 6^th edition Codex.

Forces of the Imperium.

Primary Detachment –

HQ Slot 1 - Captain Lysander, nominated Warlord and had the Champion of Humanity Warlord Trait.

HQ Slot 2 - Space Marine Captain (Deathwatch captain proxy) Plasma pistol and lightning claw.

Troop Slot 1 - Tactical Squad, Sgt upgraded to a Veteran Sgt with a grav pistol and teleport homer.

Troop Slot 2 - Tactical Squad, Sgt upgraded to a Veteran Sgt with a teleport homer.

Fast Attack - Bike Squad, Sgt upgraded to a Veteran Sgt with a power sword. 1 Space Marine with a melta gun the other with a plasma gun.

Heavy Support – Vindicator with a siege shield.

Elite Slot 1 – Dreadnought with multi-melta and power fist.

Elite Slot 2 – Sternguard squad (Fielded as a Deathwatch Kill Team)

Allied Detachment –

HQ Slot 1 – Coteaz

Troop Slot 1 – Inquisitorial Warband.

My Imperial Fist / Ordos Xenos themed army was pitted against a Chaos War band known as The Warp Wyrms led my Gravius (yes he is still alive!). The mission was The Scouring where no less than 6 objectives were placed on the table to fight over. All Secondary objectives, Slay the Warlord, First Blood & Linebreaker, also applied. Gravius deployed a very strong Chaos list featuring Raptors, Heldrake and a Maulerfiend. My game plan was a gamble but one a thought was worth taking. I would leave Lysander in reserve and teleport him in once Gravius Warlord was in a good position then I would defeat him in a challenge and gain the D3 extra victory points the Champion of Humanity Warlord traits offers.  Once these victory points were secured I would dig in and go on the defensive……

Epic Fail.

I say this is a battle report but in truth the game was over by turn 3 and cut a long story short a combination of bad dice rolls by myself, Chaos being ridiculously overpowered in my opinion and good tactics by Gravius saw me off in good time. I have included some photos of what little of the game was played so you can see the excellent painted models by Gravius.

 

THE MAULERFIEND BATTERS THE VINDICATOR ASIDE....

AND THEN SMASHES THE DREADNOUGHT IN A TITANTIC DISPALY OF STRENGTH.
 

So what do I take away from this game? Well apart from needing some new dice a pretty sour taste was left in my mouth I have to be honest. I have a serious issue with Heldrakes, they are stupidly overpowered for the point’s value they are! For me they are an Apocalypse only model just like a Baneblade is Apocalypse only, especially when uber cheese Chaos players are fielding 2 of them at a time. Chaos seems to get more and more powerful every edition of 40k we progress and It is something I tire of along with the over saturation of Ultramarines in Space Marine Codex’s.  I think it is time Tyranid's became the prime threat in the 41^st Millennium on and off the table or even the Tau but, for me, Chaos being the main threat is a little old hat now.  As for my experiment it is clear that for the new space Marine Codex to work you need the new units to feel the benefits (well played GW accountants). A Hunter Rhino variant will take care of any aerial threats and kitting Tactical and Sternguard squads out with Grav weapons will be crunching special characters and hull points alike.

Games-Knight Verdict.

So after this 3 week focus on the new Space Marine Codex what do I think? I think I am happy to concentrate on playing 40k with my Grey Knights in the main but I am going to put together a new Space Marine army based on the Death Spectres Chapter. In this new army I will be including a Hunter tank and some Centurion Devastators, Heldrakes you have been warned! In a whole I think Space Marines are just a cash camel for GW now which is why they are becoming less and less useful on the gaming table unless you fork out in excess of £100 to get what I a call ‘win-listing units’. This also means Space Marine players are forced to buy and field certain unit types just to be competitive on the gaming table as opposed to building and fielding the models they want and that for me is very sad.

I am hoping that my comments and opinions have stirred some of your own and I would welcome you to share them with me by either posting a comment below or email me direct – contactgamesknight@gmail.com, till next week take care, Ciaran.

  

 

  

 

 

  

 

KNOW NO FEAR

Welcome to this week’s post here on Games-Knight where I review the new Space Marine Codex from GW. In last week’s post I previewed the new Codex and the miniatures that have been released alongside with it, this week I will solely concentrate on the Codex itself.  But with a quick mention to the new models I was lucky enough yesterday to unbox the new tactical and Sternguard squads and have a look at the sprues. I was very impressed with how many different options and variants each kit offered, which will give any Space Marine player the chance to really put his own stamp on how his Space Marines looks and feels. I will concentrate on the new models in more detail at later date but for now let us delve into the tome that is Codex: Space Marines.

CODEX THROUGH THE AGES
I review this new codex as a Space Marine player so I will base my views on past Space Marine Codex’s I have used in the past and compare them with the new Codex.

Let me start then with the first Space Marine Codex I used with was for 40k 4^th edition. At only 80 pages long it is a very slim Codex with no coloured artwork and focused more on equipment and rules, which wasn’t necessarily a bad thing but if you are anything like me you want a lot of fluff with your codex. Rules wise it made space marines a very balanced army and would prove tough to beat due to the benefits of power armour and the weaponry at their disposal. Where the 4^th edition Codex failed for me was there was no ‘soul’ to it. It lacked any fluff to Space Marines except for a 2 page history of the Ultramarines chapter which was a sign of things to come with GW’s push on anything Space Marine related revolving around the Ultramarines. Let me make something very clear here, I do not hate Ultramarines but I am bored of Ultramarines which is purely due to the over saturation of their chapter by GW.  Things I did like about the 4^th edition Codex was Command Squads could comprise of a Sergeant and 4-9 Space Marines and you had rules for Librarians to use Familiar’s. Also I felt the Chapter Traits section was a very good addition and allowed players to give their chosen Space Marine chapter a flavour and a personality of its own on the gaming table. All in all for me the 4^th Edition Codex was very average but it got the job done.

Warhammer 40k 5^th edition then rolled around and for me was a vast improvement from 4^th edition and the same can be said about the Space marine 5^th edition Codex. This is by far the best Codex Matthew Ward has put together in my opinion and at 144 pages long Space Marine players had a lot to look at. Fluff wise, despite again being very Ultramarine heavy, we got background information on various other Codex Chapters and a history of battles fought by other Chapters other than the guys in cobalt blue. We also had the biological breakdown of all the extra organs Space Marines have implanted as they become trans-humans in the making of a Space Maine section.  The layout of the Codex was very user friendly and was broken down well for players to assimilate the rules. 5^th edition also saw combat squads introduced allowing Space Marine players the choice of breaking down their 10man squads into 2 separate 5man squads. Vanguard and Sternguard units were added to the space Marine forces and allowed for many players to field Deathwatch kill teams in their games of 40k. This for me was my favourite addition for 5^th edition along with Captain Lysander being an absolute badass! For me the 5^th Edition Codex was amazing to read and easy to use and was universally acknowledged in the gaming community as the best Space Marine Codex ever produced. Could it ever be improved on?

So we come to it at last, the 6^th edition Space Marine Codex. The first noticeable difference is the switch from soft back to hard back, a change all 6^th edition Codex’s have made.  Whilst the hard cover certainly does no harm to the look of the Codex and has a stunning front cover, I am sure most games could have lived with a soft back Codex had it kept it in the £20-25 price range as opposed to the £35 you will have paid if purchased direct from GW. The artwork is all in colour with new and old images alike featured throughout the 179 page long publication, making it the largest Codex GW have ever made. The fluff is pretty much a copy and paste job from the 5^th edition Codex although additional background information has been added as well and the making of a Space Marine section is better presented in this Codex. As you have probably deduced for yourselves my main grievance with past Codex releases was the over saturation of the Ultramarine chapter. I am very pleased to say this isn’t the case with the 6^th edition release. The Ultramarines get a section of their own as do the White Scars, Imperial Fists, Salamanders, Raven Guard and Iron Hands chapters which then also included successor founding chapters. Black Templars have been merged into a Codex Chapter too which may or may not go down well with Black Templar players, only time will tell on that score.  The Chapter tactics section is probably the 2^nd highlight of the Codex giving the Marine Space Marine Chapters specific rules. For example, Imperial Fist players (like me) get the Bolter Drill Chapter Tactic which allows all rolls to hit of 1 to be re-rolled. I think this is a good touch which draws from the unique back ground of each Space Marine Chapter. Don’t worry if you play with your own Space Marine Chapter or one of the lesser known Chapters (Death Spectres for example) you still get to benefit from Chapter tactics by simply picking one of the existing ones that you feel is best suited for your Chapter. There is an all new Warlord chart to roll on in addition to the ones in the main 40k rule book.  A few things I am not so keen on, combat shields now only infer a 6+ invulnerable save as opposed to 4+ making a Company Champion very average when he should stand out slightly more. Command Squads are still limited to a 5man squad make-up and despite the new Librarian model being cast with a cyber-cherub we still don’t have rules for Familiars. Also I was hoping that there may have been a breakdown on the Sternguard rules allowing you to field them as Sternguard or a Deathwatch Kill Team and maybe some variation on rules dependent on what unit you fielded.  

GAMES-KNIGHT VERDICT

Overall the 6^th edition Codex does steal the show but the 5^th edition Codex still remains a favourite of mine and remains the best Codex for the lay out of the rules and army list section. Presentation wise the 6^th edition Codex blows all previous entries out the water but for the £35 GW are asking you to part with it should be visually stunning.

Next week on Games-Knight, see how my Imperial Fists got on against the Chaos War band known as the Warp Wyrms using the 6^th edition Codex rules.

In the meantime I want to hear what you guys think of the new Space Marine Codex, drop a comment below or email – contactgamesknight@gmail.com, till next time. Ciaran.

 

SPACE MARINES CODEX AND MINIATURES PREVIEW

Hello gamers and welcome to this week’s posting where I preview the new Space Marine Codex and the new releases the Adeptus Astartes will be reinforced with this month from Games Workshop. Being a Space Marine player I am excited about getting a new Codex for 6^th edition and I have to admit the new miniatures being released have got me salivating a little!

 

SPACE MARINE 6^th EDITION CODEX.

At 179 pages long, it is the largest Codex GW has ever produced which is only fitting for their iconic Space Marine product. Lots of art work and miniature show cases fill the codex as expected and has the usual anatomy that previous Space Marine Codex’s have had in the past. The making of a Space Marine remains as per the last 2 Codex’s but is done in a grittier manner from what images I’ve seen so far. Each of the First Founding Codex Chapters gets a whole section to itself detailing the back story of the Chapter and a time line of important battles in the Chapters history. Each Chapter gets rules that are unique to them and pull from their makeup and back story which I am very happy about.  I will delve into the Codex in more detail next week when I get my own copy and share it with you all right here on Games-Knight.

NEW SPACE MARINE MODELS AND NEW UNIT TYPES.

It comes as no surprise that GW release a wave of new models alongside a new Codex release and the Space Marines are no exception to that rule. The humble Space Marine tactical squad gets a revamp and I have to say for the better. The miniatures have a more ‘gourmet’ look and feel about them and with 180 separate components on the frames player will have the chance to customise their chosen battle brothers as they deem fit. Combi-weapons and the all new grav-gun are included in the box set along with the trusted bolters, plasma guns and flamers.

The devastator company boasts new units in the Centurion Devastator squad and the Centurion Assault squad. Warriors in each unit are clad in a Centurion warsuit, a bulk of thick ablative armour with an array of heavy weapons or assault weapons. I can see a Centurion Assault squad fitting in with my Imperial Fist army very nicely!

There are updated Sternguard/Vanguard veteran squads which are mouth wateringly good with crisp detail and lavish heraldry sculpted onto the armour. Some great ‘bare head’ options in these kits with bearded, grizzled veterans to stoic, stern faced paragons of the Imperium. I think the parts in these kits lend a lot of options to kit-bashing with the rest of any gamer’s spare bits box to create some awe inspiring miniatures.

The humble Rhino APC gets a twist with new Stalker and Hunter variants both offering great ant-air support.  I am very happy to see this as Flyers are such a big part of 6^th edition and it gives a Space Marine army an answer to the overly powerful Chaos Heldrake.  Looks wise out of the 2 I prefer the Hunter variant but rules wise the Stalker tips it with being able to split its fire at targets.  

The heroes of the chapter come to the fore with new Captain, Librarian and Chaplain models. Whilst not impressed with the new Chaplain model and do like the new Captain model with his crested plume and I think the new Librarian model is the pick of the bunch. The Librarians face is intense with expression, fixed in a grimace of pure concentration under his psychic hood. The cyber-cherub adds a diorama feel to the miniature and is a very nice touch and nod to the dark future of the 41^st millennium. Will we see rules for familiar’s return I wonder?

Rumours have been rife on the internet for months now as to what special rules will be in the new Space Marine Codex and I will share them with you right here on Games-Knight next week as I review the new Codex here on Games-Knight. Make sure you join me for that! Until then happy gaming and don’t forget you can always share your thoughts with me via posting a comment or emailing me direct – contactgamesknight@gmail.com. Ciaran.

 

 

 

 

 

TOP TRUMPS

 
Hello gamers welcome to another post here on Games Knight with me Ciaran. Want to share something totally different with you all this week and look at the DC Universe Top Trump set. Top trumps is a card based game system that has been around since the 1970's and has always had high popularity with comic book fans and school boys passing their break time (Where I discovered Top Trumps). Top Trumps have decks for a multitude of themes ranging from cars, military hardware to comic book heroes.


HOW TO PLAY TOP TRUMPS.

The instant appeal to Top Trumps is that it is very simple to play and thus quicker to get into. Any number of people can play which makes this a great party game or a light hearted addition to regular gaming nights. First, as with any game involving a deck of cards, shuffle and deal all the cards face down. Each player holds their cards so that they can see the top card only. The player from the dealer's left starts by reading out a stat from the top card (e.g Height 180). The other players then read out the same stat. The player with the highest stat wins and places all the top cards including their own to bottom of their pile. It is then the winning players turn to choose a stat from the next card.

If 2 of more cards share the top value then all the cards are placed in the middle and the same player chooses again from the next card. The winner of the hand takes the cards in the middle as well. The player with all the cards at the end of the game is the winner.

DC UNIVERSE: HEROES AND VILLAINS SET.
 
This set contains 30 playing cards depicting various heroes and villains form the DC comics universe-

• SUPERMAN
• BATMAN
• WONDER WOMAN
• GREEN LANTERN
• THE FLASH
• MARTIAN MANHUNTER
• ROBIN
• BATGIRL
• CATWOMAN
• BRUCE WAYNE
• NIGHTWING
• COMMISSIONER GORDON
• ALFRED PENNYWORTH
• CLARK KENT
• SUPERGIRL
• LOIS LANE
• GREEN ARROW
• HAWKMAN
• PLASTIC MAN
• THE JOKER
• TWO-FACE
• POISON IVY
• MR. FREEZE
• THE RIDDLER
• THE PENGUIN
• BANE
• RA'S AL GHUL
• SCARECROW
• HARLEY QUINN
• LEX LUTHOR

Some classic characters with a mix of some of the lesser known characters makes for a well balanced set although I would have perhaps ditched Lois Lane for Aqua Man to get the full Justice league line up in.

The cards are superbly illustrated with great artwork and the characters back story alongside his card stats. Card stats include -

• HEIGHT
• INTELLIGENCE
• STRENGTH
• SPEED
• AGILITY
• FIGHTING SKILLS

GAMES KNIGHT: THE GAMING CRUSADER.

I have a lot of sentimental reasons for liking Top Trumps. Top Trumps was the very first collectible card game I got into as a kid and I was the scourge of the play ground with my Marvel Top Trump deck. As a mature gamer now I still find Top trumps very appealing and a pleasant, easy going distraction from my other hobby interests such as 40k. Cost wise it is a very inexpensive game to buy with a deck of Top Trumps costing roughly £4 and easy to carry around in its plastic case making it a game you can play on the go. The biggest reason to like this game is the simplicity of the rules which makes playing it quick and also getting new people into Top Trumps very easy. The simplicity of the rules also means it is a game that will appeal to people who aren't normally into gaming. The other week I found myself playing Top Trumps with my Fiancee (Who has become my regular opponent and rival) and my future mother-in-law. So in conclusion, its cheap, portable, simple and fun. You cant ask for much more than that can you?

That's going to do it for this weeks post, next week will be the 2nd instalment of Parchment where I will be reviewing 'Angel Exterminatus' by Graham McNeil. Until then happy gaming.

APOCALYPSE NOW

Hello gamers and welcome to this week’s post where I review the Warhammer 40k Apocalypse rule book. For those unfamiliar with what the Apocalypse expansion is all about here is a brief overview. Apocalypse is about gamers having the opportunity to field their entire collection without being restricted by the force organisation chart in the core rules. The Apocalypse rules also allow for huge battles to take place with specialised ‘formations’ that can be put together which have bonus rules that apply. Or another way of putting it, and the way I like to look at it, Apocalypse lets you do what you want and gives 40k fans the tools to fight the battles and campaigns they have also wanted too with the models they want too.

 

RULES

Some very narrative driven rules get introduced for games of Apocalypse as well as rules that add another layer of tactical texture to a game of 40k -

• Divine Intervention
• Finest Hour 
• Sons of The Primarch
• Strategic Assets
• Strategic Reserves
• Unnatural Disasters

Divine Intervention – Drawing from the superstitious elements of each faction in the 40k cannon, each army gets its own special rule from the Divine Intervention chart. For example, any Imperium based army can call upon the entity of The God-Emperor of Mankind if at least half the units in its army have been removed as casualties. As soon as that criteria is met all units left gain the Furious Charge and Fearless special rules. ‘The Emperor Protects’ after all.

Finest Hour – This rule represents one of your Warlords, or you’re Warmaster, having a defining moment in the battle and forging his or her own legend. Players can declare when their warlord will have their Finest Hour at any point in the game and the effects last a whole game turn. The Warlord in question receives a host of special rules for that turn, one of them being a 3+ invulnerable save, and gets to roll on 1 of 3 Exemplar tables.

Sons of The Primarch – Instead of rolling on the Exemplar tables, Space Marine and Chaos Space Marine characters can opt to draw from the Sons of The Primarch chart. For example, a World Eaters Warlord would gain the ‘Lord of Wrath’ special rule.

Strategic Assets- Each side starts with a number of Strategic Assets equal to the number of players in the largest side. The book comes with 54 strategic asset cards for you to photocopy from the book and make you own Strategic Asset decks. These cards grant players special rules and abilities for their army to wield during the course of the game. Each card tells you when you can play the card and its effects.

Strategic Reserves – Unlike a normal game of 40k where reserves are only allowed to come in on certain turns and on a roll of a dice, Apocalypse gives players the role of ‘higher-level Generals’ and have full control over their forces on and off the table. So in short your reserves arrive exactly when you want them too.

Unnatural Disasters – This gives players the option of 6 tables to roll on with each table offering different disasters. These range from a Magma Storm to a Zombie Apocalypse (yes I just said Zombie Apocalypse)  

All the above special rules are all optional. Players now have the freedom to pick and choose what rules they want to apply to their games and which ones they don’t. And for me that is what makes this expansion a winner, it’s the flexibility and choice this gaming system offers 40k players. I want to get something off my chest here regarding GW. GW comes under a lot of criticism, some of it justified, for not giving players enough choice or freedom for their games of 40k. Those complaints really have to end now with the release of this book. Let me stress something to all 40k fans here, you do not have to have massive armies for this expansion to work. You could easily apply this to 2000 point games and 3000 point games and see a totally new element to playing 40k. I myself will be doing that and I am looking forward to throwing the force organisation chart out the window and fielding more than 2 HQ choices. I am looking forward to my Imperial Fists using the Son of Dorn special rule from the Sons of The Primarch table. And most of all I am looking forward to having fun with my hobby. Don’t get me wrong I am not saying GW are perfect they are not but credit where credit is due for this release please folks.

Formations

Also included in the book is a list of Data Sheets that detail specialised formations that players can field for their army. For example a Tau player can choose to field a Counterstrike Cadre formation consisting of 1 Pathfinder team and 2-4 Fire Warrior Teams with each unit in the formation taking a Devilfish. Each formation has special rules and these are detailed on the Data Sheets. Apocalypse also gives players the option of fielding Forgeworld products designed especially for larger or more custom-made games of 40k. Tyranid players can choose filed a Hierophant Bio-titan and likewise Imperium players can call upon the fire power of Battle Titans.

New Range of Models

In addition to the release of the rule book a host of new models and scenery have been released with an Apocalypse feel to them but can also be fielded in normal games of 40k too. I am impressed with all of them, my favourite being the Space Marine Lord Executioner model, with the exception of the Khorne Lord of Skulls which looks like a massive lawnmower.  

KHORNE LORD OF SKULLS - ARE YOU A FAN OF THIS MODEL?
 

So in conclusion I am very happy with this release and would urge 40k fans to embrace it. I think it opens up the 40k game system to a lot more freedom and interesting army projects. I am already debating over which Grey Knight formation to go for and I also want to start a new Space Marine army. I think the Red Hunters chapter would be the perfect allies for my Grey Knights, besides there is only so many times I can mind scrub my Imperial Fists.

So now is the bit where I want to hear from you. What do you think about Apocalypse? Has this article made you want to explore bigger games of 40k? Do you think this release is bad or good? Get in touch and tell us by either leaving a comment below or contact us directly at contactgamesknight@gmail.com. Till next time gamers, take care and happy gaming. Ciaran.

BACK FROM THE WARP.

Hello gamers, Ciaran here and its good to be back! You may have noticed it has been a while since there has been any posts on Games Knight from me or Gravius and I would like to address that issue.

Both myself and Gravius have started new secular jobs in the last month or so and that coupled with summer holidays has simply meant not so much hobby time. Gravius may be out of action a little longer but starting this Saturday I will be back with weekly posts. Please join me this Saturday as I review the new Apocalypse expansion  from GW in depth and give my reaction.

Moving forward there will be more book reviews via 'Parchment' and I will be sharing an old gaming flame of mine.... Top Trumps! Also news on a massive 40k campaign we will be running here on Games Knight and plenty of reviews are in the pipe line.

The future's bright, the future is Games Knight.

Ciaran

PARCHMENT 001 - 'REALITY 36' BY GUY HALEY

The Plot

Meet Richard and Klein – the Holmes and Watson of the 22^nd century. Except that Richards is a highly advanced artificial intelligence, and Klein his German ex-military cyborg partner. Their first case takes them into the renegade digital realm known as Reality 36 and through the Great Firewall of China, in search of a missing Artificial Intelligence Rights activist. What they will find there will threaten every reality.
 

 

The Author

An experienced science fiction journalist and critic, Guy Haley worked for SFX as a deputy editor, where he still free-lances, he edited GW gaming magazine White Dwarf between 2005 and 2007, and was the editor of Death Ray magazine.  He is now a freelance writer with his first Black Library novel ‘Baneblade’ is out now.

The Book

Set in the year 2129, the world Guy Haley has created is very believable which makes the reading far more enjoyable.  A future where global land makes have changed due to climate change and the aftermaths of devastating wars is not too hard to imagine. The AI element of society Haley introduces is very well done too. On the very first page with extracts from amended human rights declarations drawn up by the European Union shows that this is a time where AI’s are fully integrated into the world’s society.  The characters are very interesting as is their respective roles and backstories and they interact with one another very well. The tech jargon Haley uses is very impressive and fits in with the feel of the story and the world he has created for this book.  Although at times it made for hard reading with all the tech jargon, in the middle of the book especially, it was not out of place and fitted the story perfectly. For me the book really came to life at the end and the pace of story combined with the action was exciting and kept me hooked into the story.  The story pretty much implodes at the end and sets it up perfectly for the sequel book: ‘Omega Point’.

 

Scribes Verdict

Overall a good read. With the intelligent and exiting world the story is set in and the many original touches in the story (The Great Firewall of China being my personal favourite) it is hard not to like the book. The only negative I could find was the tech jargon slowed the story down sometimes and made for heavy reading but you cannot deny that it fit in well with the story Haley is telling. It gets a score of 3 out of 5 from me and I look forward to reading the sequel ‘Omega Point’.

That will do it for this edition of Parchment , if you have any comments on this post, ‘Reality 36’ or anything gaming or sci-fi related please get in touch – contactgamesknight@gmail.com. Till next time. Ciaran.