Blog Wars - After Action Review

 

(*Photos shamelessly stolen from various blogs without permission because me camera on my phone is terrible and these are better)

What can I say? The event was very well run, Alex did a fangtastic job of keeping things going even while playing himself. The venue is amazing and I have no excuse for not knowing that, it’s just over an hour away from me. the company was top notch, everyone seemed to be there in the right spirit and I personally saw no asshattery, and nothing too cheesy in the lists, although I do struggle with the new Grey Knight Codex in general, rather than any player I saw’s specific use of it. I think that’s where a really fun codex to play casually and with friends crosses over into a tournament context and starts throwing up issues. but I digress, and it’s a general issue, not one with any player I met, as I will expand on further down.

The three games I played on Sunday represent about 20% of my games in 5th. It’s made me realise I do enjoy playing almost as much as modelling and painting, and that I need to get out there and do it yet more. I may even have to look for a club in the local area.

Game one

My First opponent was a tau player, and initially i thought “okay, I’m used to Tau, I’ll be okay” as my friend runs them.

Not so.

This was plasma torrent tau (11 plasma/missile suits and 4 broadsides), run by Craig and effectively. the board had no LOS blocking cover, and he had the only high ground. Not ideal for Mech guard.

Most of my stuff either exploded in midfield or whiffed at his suits saves and shield drones and only ended in a draw because the game ended before he had time to shoot my ass off my objective.

Draw

Game two

Looking at the drawing before lunch revealed I’d drawn Guard, and Tim. This pleased both of us, seeing the only (i think) Valkyrie/Vendetta users at the tourney to face each other felt like karma. (although Andy had his lovely conversions now I think about it)

His army was a stunning looking IA Elysian list, and the dice gods were really not with him during our game. For me it was the almost exact role reversal from my first game. this time I was the guy who has brought more armour, and more gun and the results reflected it. I managed to pop a lot of his AV 12 flyers and that really hurts a list that relies on mobility, I know.

Tim was a great bloke and a gracious player and I did feel very bad as the dice continued to see his vehicles roll 5 and 6’s on pens while i managed to whiff 1’s and 2’s.

Exactly what he didn't need in an annihilation match.

Win

Game three

Grey knights.

Should I stop there?

Actually it was Steve and his list wasn't cheesy, outside the inherent cheesiness of the codex. It was actually quite fun, and with another game and no stupid mistakes I might have made his life much harder.

The stupid mistakes? a) forgetting to roll reserves on turn 4, when the sentinels did come on turn 5 they came on just where they needed to, and another turn of running would have seen them contest. 2) going off mission and chasing up the left of the board for a kill when those troops could have defended an objective and given me a capture. iii) not reserving my Elysian's for late game contestation and using them to whittle away troops when that wasn't really the way I was going to hold of the GK’s.

That’s not to say Steve only won because i made mistakes, or i was tired. It’s simply that IMO the points system refines you to players at your level as the day goes on, so we were quite well matched, and I couldn't afford to make any mistakes at all in such a tightly fought match. and I did.

Either way I doubt I would have pulled off a win, have won, I just feel I should have been able to hold that to a draw.

Lose

I don’t feel bad about my or my armies performance, I’m not an experienced player by a long shot, and at a tourney of 26 to come in 14th is something I’m comfortable with.

I especially don't feel bad because between Tim (see above) and Myself, we split the best painted prize! Tim was very gracious indeed and took only a small nibble from the prize pot allowing me to pick up a box of WGT for a fiver!.

All in all an excellent event, and I will SO do this again.

If I had a single regret it’s that I didn't get to speak to more people, put more names to faces and tell more of the people there how much I enjoy reading their blogs.