Pathfinder - scouting out the world of geek

Haven't been to a game store in 8 weeks - GASP! Haven't done any painting or played a game in a while either... everything is kinda on hold. Why ...?

Well I done gorne fell off the wagon, didn't I?

No I haven't become an alcoholic, despite my many and varied attempts. I've simply stepped away from war-gaming for the moment. I'll come back, I just need a break. Rather than whitter on about my lack of any progress, I've decided to post about what I've been doing in the meantime...

What I've been playing ... World of Tanks

Be afraid people. This game is a seriously addictive ride and as one commentator said ... people just don't leave. After the last update I've upgraded my fleet extensively and now have 9 tanks ... 3 medium's including the M4 Sherman and the M4 'easy eight', 2 russian tank hunters including the lush SU-85. My Leopard and Luch still bring me some fun games, and a level 4 B2 german heavy is a right laugh. Finally, I just purchased an SU-26 ... which is rubbish and tinpot - but good fun for an SPG.

...and why do you play?

Let me paint a picture for you. I'm loading up in an SU85 tank, I'm playing 'Cliff' - which is one of the many well designed maps for WoT's. Look at the map below ... it has a gulley running along the whole western side of the map, a plateau (overlooking the gulley) in the middle and a eastern mountain flank. Being a great big gun on a fairly average platform, I position myself at the mouth of the western gulley and await anyone stupid enough to walk up that way ... defence defence.

Unknown to me, the entire opposing side have decided to rush the western route. As such, within moments I've spotted me a juicy big KV to take a hole out of. I do. I sitting in a little courtyard surrounded by 3 farm houses, giving me some line of sight blocking terrain. Boy do I need it. The next moment the KV bank east, avoiding my further fire. However, my shooting has given my position away and I'm suddenly the primary target for the whole rush. In less than 2 minutes a total of 5 medium tank and tank hunters attempt to take me down.

Now tank hunters have frontally fixed guns, so close up dogfights just ain't their thing as they are just too easy to get behind.

Without even thinking, I'm moving and firing, moving and firing - avoiding incoming SPG rounds, and popping enemy tanks. The buildings give them cover but forces them to try to coordinate their attacks, giving me time to take them on one by one.

I'm punching holes left right and centre, getting ricochet warnings from my crew and killing for all I'm worth. After a minute, it goes quiet. I'm shattered, at 40% health - but with 5 kills to my name. I text the other players to go on without me as I'm physically shaking.

After a minute to gather myself I start to follow the rest of the team towards the enemy base and the remaining few opponents. I'd killed the majority of the 'rush', allowing the rest of the team to gang up on the two KV's (no mean feat, but I'd knocked one down to half strength).

As we move towards the enemy base, I tag along behind a medium tank. I'm just thinking 'Oh, it would be really typical if the enemy hid right there in front of me' when out pops a hiding SU-26, moving up to take a rear shot on the medium.

I BOOM ... 6 kills.

Then out there somewhere is the last opponent. Out of nowhere a Panzer 3 come haring down the hill. He shoots at me and missing, he fills my aim reticle as I fire AND MISS ... WTF? He charges down the hill and rams me, I explode - but he explodes too! Seven kills.

I had to go lie down after that one.

Other past-times ... reading.

I'm a voracious fantasy and sci-fi reader and thoroughly well versed in all manner of readership. My latest treat has come as a pleasure and a joy...

Joe Abercrombie has written an instant classic in the First Law Trilogy. He handles the story seemlessly, making light work of unfamiliar territory through some brilliant story telling. Alike to all the best Fantasy and Scifi writers, Abercrombies real talent is in character writing, as it through these characters that you believe in their environment, surroundings and the evolution of the story.

Here's a taster of the sort of characters he brings to the table:

Inquisitor Glotka: Previously a dashing and arrogant noble cavalry captain, Sand Glotka is captured by the Gurkish (read turkish) army and tortured for years, he is now a heartless and bitter cripple working as their most brutal inquisitor and torturer. Despite the pain and nastiness he doles out, Sand is just the right side of a villain. As the plot thickens and his own lack of morals take a toll, he starts to rediscover his humanity. But what use would that be in a game of intrigue and death. As Glotka would say, "the thing about pain, is that it is a very selfish pursuit."

Logan Nine-fingers "The Bloody Nine": Logan is the most 'feared man in the North' and a Viking-esque brute he is too. Smart and brutal as he is ugly. Logan's internal dialogue in at odds with his external appearance and abilities. A man of considerable talents and very very good at killing people, Logan holds a dirty secret close to himself. A man who is both haunted by his past and in fear of it. An intelligent man coming to terms with the brutal acts of his youth and their consequences.

And what I've been watching...

Caught Flashpoint on the telly the other day. As an historical kung-fu buff this was a refreshing change of pace away from both JC and the China Jet Li historical epic. It's brutal and very violent, but some of the martial arts is extraordinary. Donnie Yen is particularly cool and the film seems to end with the moral of "Why should authorities bother with the law when you can beat a criminal to death ... saves on paperwork."

Very Chinese.

And who am I following...

Worth a look is http://www.pornokitsch.com/. This is the best collection of 1980's sci-fi and fantasy films, books etc. The writing style is genius and a very very funny collection they are, in particular the analysis of the Hobbit and Flash Gordon stand out for me.

Genius.

Hate list on D&D

Gremlins

Harry Potter Breakdown

Yes I'm back, and I'm tanned!

Well two weeks in Cornwall were great, I ate too much, drank too much, played with the kids until I was sore and tetchy and they were shattered and MADE love to my wife under the stars (and the canvas, we're kinky - but we ain't that brave, plus who would mind the babies?)

Needless to say, I looked tanned for a total of my holiday - the day my holiday stopped - I start peeling, It's like an allergic reaction, what's a guy to do?!?

So back to the grindy thing and the email mountain (200 emails, 700 spam emails - I think I got off lightly really)... work become and paychecks Kaching and all that.

On the hobby side - well nada really. I do have some LURVELY forgeworld, specialist and GW priceyplastic to build and paint however and I'm easing back into it gingerly.

Llugft Huron in Terminator Armour - lush.

Abbaddon in priceyplastic - a winning at the BlogWars (yeah!)

Several lush Infinity models.

And a Pirate band...

So no worries.

EXCEPT: DIY beckons and the wifey's foot is tapping, plus World of Tanks has turned into somewhat of a total obsession in the obsessive mind of your truly.

My 'garage' is heaving with some pretty pathetic tanks, but take a look:

M2 Medium Tank

It's completely rubbish, but I'm totally in love with it. It has pretty paltry armour for a medium tank (some German Panzer mediums rival Russian heavies), but the beauty of it is the variety of games you get dumped in. Sometimes I'm going head to head with a KV (huge russian ball breaker, kills me in one shot and crushes my burning remains), other times I'm playing the 'mini-KV' in really noob games taking everyone out with kill shots. Armed with a 75mm howitzer it's totally overgunned for it's play level and a really really fun tank.

PzKpfw II Luchs

This was a joy of a tank until they nerfed it on a recent update. Not the fastest scout tank, but turns on a dime and doesn't slow for hills either. Running around causing havok and playing the 'target' is what this little Luch is a beauty for. It can take a half decent gun too, although ditching it in favour of a super-light pop gun is very tempting and then you just race about annoying people. Even less armour than the M2, but at this speed?!?

VK 1602 Leopard

The latest (and best) tank in my garage. It's almost as quick as the luch (and faster downhill), but with double the armour and a good gun. The downside, every game you are going into battle against tanks that never fought in WW2, IE really really really big tanks that make the IS and KV look well a bit silly. Fun to drive though.

SU-85B

A tank hunter. Up until today (I've been playing a month), I didn't like tank hunters. Basically a huge gun on a shit chassis. That said, I'm gaining respect for this beauty. Hunting is all about the position and the waiting and taking the shot that counts. I'm starting to rack up quite a tally with this beauty - with an eye set on the SU85 ... which is a really dirty tank.

Ram-II

The first of my premium tanks. It has a average gun on a tough medium tank. Good armour though. Won't face down much 1-2-1, but in a wolf pack, this tough nut shines.

T14

My only heavy tank, premium and a bit rubbish. It can take some punishment, but its armour ain't great and it's gun is only good for picking off the supporting tanks. Sometimes however, you manage an outflank with this beauty and the look on their face when a T14 rolls into their base - lush! The biggest asset, this baby earns $7-15,000 credits for every game. Which I can only spend on my other tanks. Nice.

M37

Finally I have my only SPG (Self-propelled gun). I'm not a big fan of these boys as they play (again) completely differently from my style. That said, they are cool and can rack up kills behind a good team no problem.

Conclusion

If you haven't tried it already, do so. World of Tanks is a world of awesomeness. It's free unless you start stocking up on Premium tanks like me (which kinda works) and I've spent a total of £13 on it in a month. And I don't need to spend anymore (at least for a while ... honest!)

I'm going on holiday...

Packed up the Routemaster and I'm off to the Cornish Coastline for some serious camping British styles ... think soggy sausages and hardcore badminton in a monsoon. I'll be sure to pick up a afternoon worth of Aussie sunshine and share it around my whole body!

Needless to say, I won'y be posting until July ... I'll be too busy making with the sandcastles!

BLOGWARS battle summaries

Big thank you to the guys at From the Fang for a great treat of a day at BlogWars. A lot of hard work went into a smashing day. After spending all day there I can confidently report that:

a) Bloggers are 50% normal, 25% geekizoid and 25% very cool.

b) They are also quite cagey about their identities...

c) Some can be quite weirdly competitive about their popularity ... as I discovered.

I never got to meet Mr Colonel Corbane ... despite him being the only person I actually sorta knew.

Anyhow, I met some great boys who travelled in packs, from the following blogs:

Claws and Fists: (clickety click) a bunch of really nice guys (and a very opinionated one with Navy links in his thirties... LOL), I played against Grazer/Graeme in my last game and he was a champion gentleman and a top bloke too.

Sons of Sanguinius: (clicky click). Didn't play any of them (and I'm glad), as these guys creamed all the top spots in the tournament. Two brothers came first and second, and the winner crack'd first place with Dark Eldar - which he'd pick'd up a few weeks before.

Brother Loring from 3++: (if you need a clicky click ... you'll need your head examined). Very nice fella, very nice girlfriend. Good to play against...

On with the battle reports:

Battle One: This is where my day sort of started and ended really. 7:30 start ... first game. I'm toting 105 guardsmen and 7 vehicles against. Draigo and 20 Grey Knight Paladins, 4 Psycannon with an Apothecary in two two wound mass blobs. It was nicknamed as the 'cheesy' list by the tournament runners. And it was VERY boring to play against. It was spearhead and capture and control and I really didn't know what to do about these boys.

I layered up in one corner and then sent the mech out to the other corner with the Vets and platoon command to challenge the other objective. I managed to put a wound on Draigo in the first turn. Then in turn three 20 2W Terminators with FNP arrived within charge range of my blob. I unleased everything at a squad and killed all but a few. They then shot at me and I lost the platoon command and the autocannons (running) (double Ld9 fail!) and then they ate my blob. All of them.

I hurt him, getting many victory points (747), but Draigo sat on his home objective and contested "LIKE A BOSS!", and my vehicles were left licking their wounds.

Battle Two: Brother Loring from 3++. Building a balanced list with unconventional units was a real joy. And then 16 Black Templars Terminators supported Grimaldus, a Chaplain and an Emperors Champion (2+) into my lines...

I played the beggining well. Placing two 'sacrificial' mortars squads on the 24" forces all the Terminators back at 6" from the start and started hurting them. Everything in his army not in Terminator Armour died badly.

And then a dreaded sense of deja vu overcame me as I was yet again trying to kill terminators with mass firepower. At this point it all got a little much ... a multi-army tournament and I'm facing nothing but 2+, 5++, 3++ ... boo.

It's a killpoint game. He's got 8 kill points in total and he topped ten... so there we go, 2 game sin and I'm too down.

And I'm so tired of Terminators.

Battle Three: finally Graeme arrives with Landraiders and Predators and stuff that most people arrived at the tournament with and I'd weirdly avoided. And this went the other way. Turn One, I wrecked his Landraider and a rhino in the first turn. Next up, Kharn and his Terminators went down kicking under the hooves of my rough riders.

With vehicles to bite into and only 4 termies on the board, the mortars ripped apart the Berserkers and the game finished with 3 objectives in my control and only 2 obliterators on the board. After two games of frustration, everything worked. Graeme was a real champ in taking some really hard knocks as all the rolls worked out.

So overall I scored 17th out of 26ish players. Damn you 2++, damn you to eternity.

Conclusions

The army list worked well, except against Terminators ... blasted termies...