List Building: 1,000 Point Raven Guard Army

Now, I will couch this post by admitting that I have never actually played a space marine force. I've wanted to in the past, but something about power armor just keeps me from ever collecting too many. Anyway, with all the excitement over the new Space Marine Codex, I thought I would try my hand at throwing together a completely theoretical 1k list.

Why Won't You Use Me? Units: Space Wolves

Every army has units that for one reason or another will never see the light of day (or night fighting) on the Battlefield.  Recently I purchased off of Ebay a Rhino and Whirlwind/Rhino/Razorback in the same pack.  I had planned on just using the Whirlwind as either a Rhino or Razorback for a handy troop carrier or Mobile Gun platform.  With our epic Three Player Game approaching I started thinking about the Whirlwind more; it has an Ordnance Weapon, 48" range, Barrage, and the ability to fire two sets of missiles: why the hell should I not use him against either the Tau or Eldar?  Since that game I have found my Whirlwind being extremely effective with getting first blood/first kill and causing hell on opponents lines.

That's when I decided to go back through the Space Wolves Codex and think about units, characters, HQ choices, and vehicles and ask the question:  why not use them?

Space Marine Codex Review

A fairly unsurprising release, from a first read through, it seems like there aren't any big surprises in the book. That said, I think the minor changes are what make this book successful in both balancing the previous weaknesses and strengths and bringing it alive. Some of the changes were the ones obviously needed to update the book to 6th edition, like adding Warlord traits and including the flyers, as well as new AA options. The other change that really helps expand the feel of the book beyond Ultramarines, and that is the Chapter Tactics section.

Flight of the Eisenstein (Horus Heresy Book 4) Review

As has been my habit with these, after finishing Book 3, I quickly moved on to Book 4. While Galaxy in Flames tied up the Loken trilogy, it also hinted at the importance of the divergent story arc surrounding Nathaniel Garro. Just in case you want to read back, previous reviews for Book 1 and Book 2 are linked. As before, I will try to largely avoid spoilers, but we all know generally how things will go.

NOVA Wrap Up - Day 3 and Final Thoughts

As detailed in previous posts, Day 1 saw me go 1-2, progressively getting better after being tabled in Game 1 while on Day 2 I went undefeated, setting me up to play the semi-finals of my bracket on Sunday morning.

NOVA Wrap Up - Day 2

Day 2 of NOVA began with me driving to the hotel and then checking out the Vendors' tables while I waited for Todd and Sean to return from breakfast so I could grab my stuff. There was one more game before seeding, though we would have to wait on the pairings to be posted. (Post on day 1 is here)

Nova Wrap Up - Day 1

I have returned home from NOVA. I essentially slept all day on Monday, blessedly having Labor Day off, and I still feel a bit tired. It was absolutely exhausting. I can't wait to go next year.

My army and display board set up before game 1.

 I felt I had to end that first paragraph on a positive because while it was an exhausting experience, I had a great time, and fully intend on going next year, armed with my lessons learned, first of which is to get a room in the hotel. I didn't this year because I have family less than 30 minutes away and it seemed like a waste of money, but it would have made things so much easier.