Know Your Foe: Exigence Warlock "Lightning" Round

We are fast approaching the release of the next Hordes book - Exigence - and as part of the wonderful model release schedule PP ascribes to we now have full stats for all of the warlocks in that book. With that information at hand (the cards are in War Room for anyone using that app, and they may show up in a forthcoming No Quarter,) it's probably a good idea to do a quick review of what each new warlock is capable of, what to expect, and how likely you may be to see them.

One warlock (Epic Borka/Borka2) has been out long enough to see some legitimate table experience, but most of the rest are only a few weeks old at this point. As such, these evaluations are based on early impressions and gut reactions. Things may change as players become more experienced with these 'locks and unlock (har har) more of their potential, and there are the additional x-factors of theme list and other Exigence releases that may shake them up as well.

With those caveats in mind, lets take a look at 2014's contributions to the Hordes warlock lineup.

Know Your Foe: Exulon Thexus

This post marks the beginning of what will probably become a series of posts that detail what to expect from certain 'casters/'locks or factions in Warmachine/Hordes. Since most of the existing threats out there have been very well documented and discussed (on various forums, including the PP forums) I will probably be focusing on new 'casters as they come along. New 'casters have a much higher chance of being a "gotcha," especially in the early stages when everyone is still trying to figure them out (both the player and their opponent.)

For this first breakdown, I'll be going over the most recent addition to the line up of Mercenary warcasters: Exulon Thexus.

Hands down the best "atrophied-body brain overlord" around

Irusk2 vs Thexus - Weapon Masters

This week allowed me the chance to get a game of Warmachine in, and I decided to keep Irusk2 a-rollin'. My friend has been continuing his Cephalyx contract adventures with a Thexus list, and I was unsure if Irusk2 would be able to handle that list (especially since so much of my stuff relies on specific placement and Shield Wall for survival.)

After debating it for awhile I decided that, although you'd ideally want to drop something similar to an anti-Cryx list against the Cephalyx contract, their inclusion in Mercs makes that a much trickier proposition. I feel like Thexus is likely to show up alongside one of their colossal 'casters (either Bart/Galleon or Ossrum/Earthbreaker.) Unless you feel confident about your anti-Cryx list fighting one of those monster colossal lists (and I don't,) I think that you end up with a bit of list chicken. In this case I decided that I wanted to see how well Irusk2 could do against the Cephalyx, to see if I'd absolutely need to try and guess correctly during list selection, or if he can play through it.

Will things work out for Irusk2? Will Thexus float onto victory? Will Shield Wall actually ever factor into this game? Answers to all that and more after the break!

The End of The Summer Release Drought

Every year, without fail, there is a massive hole in the release list for video games around the summer months. This used to drive me crazy when I was younger; why wouldn't companies release games during the time when kids wanted them the most!?

Now that I'm older, I understand the phenomenon more clearly. And a different phenomenon has become apparent (which is much more damaging to my wallet.) Also, for the record, all of this pertains to dedicated video game consoles. PC is a platform I'm much less familiar with, and so I can't say for sure if these patterns hold up.

Painting Log: Malakov

I am by no means a fantastic painter. On my good days, I'd say I paint to a "high tabletop" standard (i.e. a little nicer than just slapping 3 colors on the model and calling it done.) I enjoy having painted models, so I try to paint everything I use with any frequency, and over the years I've even painted up plenty of things that now make sure my case won't blow away in the wind.

Irusk2 vs. Damiano - Conquest, Meet Conquest

As previously mentioned I'm moving into testing Irusk2 lists, which is a fun change of pace after so many games with Harkevich. My most recent game was squaring off against a friend of mine using Damiano, a Merc warcaster with a similar toolkit/support approach.

Who will emerge victorious in the battle between Conquest (the feat) and Conquest (the colossal)? Find out after the break!

Nanu-Nanu

A quick break from the usual topics.

Returning to Supreme Kommandant Irusk

Now that I've finally decided to move on from Harkevich for awhile, it's time to pick a new direction for list building and dojo. The upside is that a number of new and interesting options have come along in the span of time I spent playing Harkevich near-compulsively. The downside is that I need to pick a direction before I can go anywhere in the dojo, which has been a little tricky. First world 'caster choice problems, right?

After debating lots of options, I decided that I wanted to return to a 'caster I was just getting into when Harkevich came along and distracted me: Supreme Kommandant Irusk (i.e. epic Irusk, Irusk2.) Irusk2 is one of the Khador 'casters that you don't hear about a lot, which makes him a little more interesting to work with than the tried-and-true 'casters. At the same time, he doesn't necessarily suffer from the jank factor that makes some of the less played Khador 'casters stay that way.

Join me as I take another look at the Irusk that time forgot. Or, more accurately: the Irusk that players kind of gloss over.

The Best Irusk2 Art

Relic Knights - First Game Impressions

After years of waiting and weeks of assembly (due to purchasing probably too many models,) I was finally able to get a legit (i.e. non-starter box game) of Relic Knights in last week!

As this was my first game, this recap will be less about tactics and strategy - I have zero feel for either in this system yet - and more about my impressions after finally trying out the game proper.