NWG 3 - Enter the Phoenix

Last time I posted I talked about the Irish 40k Masters. Well as it turns out not playing 40k for a long time does in fact make you shit all over again, and I only managed to obtain 12th place, after a weekend of overly cautious play and horrible dice; I forget sometimes that Grey Knights in 5th edition are kind of like a whole army of little Liam Neeson's. Of course Liam Neeson didn't roll 1's and 2's for damage after ounching the shit out of those wolves.

Anyway, that's all in the past now and 6th edition is the hot topic on everyone's minds. This post isn't about 6th edition in general however, but about my next tournament endeavour which just happens to be my first 6th edition tournament; NWG 3 (cue free plugs from Paul 'Mandragoran' Quigley). It's an interesting tournament pack, with 1999pts a side (to keep double FOC at bay) but with all other rules in play (including 40k FW). Altered scenarios are in (not sure why the rulebook ones don't suffice for this one), and a NOVA style paint scoring system, with a massive 50 painting points available. This is the first thing I will talk about.

As many might have seen on this blog in the past, cramming painting deadlines for tournaments is familiar to me; meeting them is not. However, here is a tournament where in order to do well you have to play some decent games and have put in a decent amount of effort into painting your army. Things like having 5 colours, some snazzy conversions, and consistent scenic bases are some of the main attractions, but that ride nobody wants to touch is the 10 points going for having a display board. Now while this is common elsewhere, this is new for Irish tournaments, and so for me, it is a must do, despite the logistical issues it raises travelling on a train at 5 in the morning with two army cases and terrain (despite rumours, I do only have two arms). HowI am going to achieve this is beyond me at this moment, but for now I know I have to paint, and paint fast; 26 models in 30 days is painful to my mind, and will present a challenge, especially with those 20+ force weapons I have to get right.

That is ahead of me, and of course playing the games is far ahead of me, but the one thing I can do now is make a list. After playing some games of 6th and watching many others many things have become apparent; 2+ saves are boss, flyers are awesome, high toughness is tough, the old vehicles are crap unless they have a purpose of necessity. I've ran a few lists so far, and unforunately it seems my Razorbacks and Dreadnoughts will be spending plenty of time on the shelf for now. Their replacements; Paladins, Storm Ravens, and Dreadknights. The latter in particular has impressed me n the games I've played so far. They can be fast with a Grand Master giving them outflank, they can counter your regular cover hugging pains-in-the-ass, they can smash almost anything in combat, and msot importantly they scare the shit out of people. Now the interwebs is still telling me Dreadnoughts are the way to go, but so far all they've done is die without getting any points back. They can't take down flyers reliably, there are very few light vehicles on the scene anymore, and they can't deal with heavy vehicles. Yet they are still better than Dreadknights apparently; we'll see. Haters gonna hate.

Ravens have been equally impressive, usually taking out quite a few units on thier own as well as drawing shit tonnes of firepower. I haven't lost one yet, and so far they are winning the dogfights. However one thing that has become apparent; timing is everything. If they come on too early they are dead, if they come on too late everything else is dead. MM and AC combo seems to be best at the moment, giving it viable options for all enemy flyers as well as ground troops. It's gonna take some practice to make proper use of them tough, especially given their limited movement.

And then there's Paladins. Anyone who has played 6th edition doesn't need it explained to them; 2+ saves, 2 wounds, Look Out Sir, profit. Add in a Libby with some Divination goodness and you are set. I also have a Grand Master for Grand Strategy and general 2+ save-ness. Anyway, I'm kind of sick of typing at the point so I reckon I'm going to just post the list and leave it at that. More updates to come over the coming month.

Grand Master
Rad Grenades, Psychotroke Grenades

Librarian


5x Paladins
1x Halberd, 1x Sword, 1x Stave, 2x Hammer and MC Psycannon


10x Strikes
Justicar with Halberd, 1x Hammer, 2x Psycannons, 6x Swords, PsyAmmo

10x Strikes
Justicar with Halberd, 1x Hammer, 2x Psycannons, 6x Swords, PsyAmmo


Storm Raven
TL MM, TL AC, Searchlight

Storm Raven
TL MM, TL AC, Searchlight


Dreadknight
Heavy Incinerator, Greatsword

Dreadknight
Heavy Incinerator, Greatsword