The Eternal Warriors

This weekly guest article comes to you courtesy of The Jersey General.

Despite what GW seems to believe, what with completely ignoring it, the Internet has become a big part of our hobby.   Of course that leads to many turning to this magical world of all-you-can-click porn and Nigerian princes waiting to give you money to get hobby advice.  One of the biggest debated questions usually becomes “what army should I start with?”   Now the easy answers are usually what do you like…what models appeal to you…Do you want to play IG and always win… but then there are those looking for a good army to provide an introduction to the game and many people (and seemingly GW) say Space Marines.  I think this is just not a wise decision.  Modern Marines have become trickier to play and can be complicated for a novice player.  Personally I go for something a bit pointier and say to pull out the tried-and-true devotees of the dark gods…the Chaos Space Marines.  Why? They can field a varied army list, they’re fairly simple and straightforward and they will teach a player how to play the game.

First, I feel the CSM dex and the Ork dex are the bar to which other dex’s are measured as to quality. I say this for 2 simple reasons. 1 they’re balanced and 2. you can easily have a half dozen players all have completely different armies that are all competitive. Orks lose the recommendation just because they’re labor-intensive. A new player may be overwhelmed when he asks what he’d need for a 1750 point army and the answer is 160 models. So Chaos it is then. Chaos has the ability to become the army you want it to be. First you can take Marine squads and add marks to give them a bit of a bonus.  These guys are decent all-around and have the added bonus of not forgetting those heavy chain-swords in their other pants so unlike their loyal counterparts, they can engage in CC and have a shot at doing fairly well.  They’re not fearless, but since our focus is about learning the game a new player should know how morale works before getting too many fearless units or modifiers like ATSKNF.  These guys can get transports, can be run in horde-sized mobs and can take plenty of weapon choices to get their assigned job done.  When the rookie is ready to start specializing there are cult troops.  Here you have scoring units with stats and special rules that put them on par with some armies elites.  They do what they’re designed for well and even the less popular choices like Thousand Sons are viable in the right list.

Second, you have the models.  They’re readily available, largely plastic and lack massive gaps in their model line that are becoming common in newer armies. New players don’t always like the idea of reading about some cool unit only to discover there’s no model (and sometimes no picture…) and they have to build one themselves.  Yes, there are a few metal models that are a pain (Oblits) but lets be honest…in this hobby learning how to deal with these sort of models is part of learning the hobby.  If the new player does want to convert, though you have options and there are Chaos aspects that are forgiving.  A plastic Chaos Marine and a bit of greenstuff can make a Plague Marine and seeing that they’re supposed to look like rotting blobs of putrid flesh it can look less then spectacular and still be suitably Nurgle-y for example.

Chaos introduces basically everything you need to know to play the game. They don’t have any funny rules, but use most of the core rules you’ll see. They have monstrous creatures, independent characters, named characters, normal troops, fearless troops, vehicles, transports, walkers and just about anything else you’ll need to know about. Through the army, you’ll see Relentless, Slow and Purposeful, Furious Charge, Feel no Pain, and just about every other universal special rule in the book.  The only things missing are fast, open-topped or skimmer vehicles.

Chaos are more of a jack of all trades then most armies. Their basic troop can hold its own in CC, can bring special or heavy weapons and can take marks to specialize their mission further. Beyond that you have cult units. As a player gets to know himself as a gamer, he will discover what strategies he likes and what works for him. He can then expand with cultists that follow what he wants from the army. This is also an army that can grow with the player. With some armies when the time comes to expand, it’s often more of the same thing (ask Necron players what I mean…). That’s not a bad thing at all, but if a player has a budding force and wants to experiment, having so many choices gives new opportunities to try things out without completely re-building the army or changing its entire construction.

At the end of the day an army choice is something a gamer has to consider carefully. This is far from a cheap hobby, so its important to pick an army that becomes an investment. Just about any army can be picked up by a rookie and will draw them into the hobby if its right for them (except maybe Necrons, sorry guys but you still suck). Putting a few hundred bucks into some models means changing your mind completely isn’t always an option. Having an army that can change with a player, do so many things and get them into the game is valuable so I usually will point someone to chaos first. Besides, Grandfather Nurgle always needs more children to spread his infectious love.

This episode is brought to you by Don from Milwaukee, Wisconsin who donated to help keep TEW on the air for another month. Thanks Don!!!

In segment 1, we discuss a project that Rich has joined, called The Codex Project. We then get into a Storm Raven sighting at the Bunker, some other non-40K news and a Rogue Trader tournament in Binghamton, NY on 26 February.
In segment 2 we mention our front page article contest before moving into a special plea from Chris at Deepstrike Radio for the Australian Flood victims. We also announce the winner of the New Year’s Resolution contest and how ‘Orky he wishes he could be. A mention is made of Rich’s Deathwatch Kill Team hobbying before we move into Big Game discussion. Does Dave have a bigger game or does Jon? Listen to find out!

In segment 3 we discuss, in an opinionated way, the recent Dark Angels and Black Templar FAQ releases. Basically, Rich tells the community to stop making the same Ultramarines/Space Wolves/Blood Angels lists you’ve been making but now calling them Dark Angels or Black Templars.

As a reminder you have one week left to submit your Aaron Dembski-Bowden interview questions. Also, the Astro Mag will be conducting an interview with Gav Thorpe and Andy Chambers. If you would like to submit questions for either chap, please email them to consadine@gmail.com with Gav or Andy as the subject line.

We hope you enjoy this episode and take this opportunity to inform you that you have red on your shirt.

L I S T E N !!!

Please enjoy this review from Sidetrack Nick of the The Purging of Kadillus by Gav Thorpe.

A Space Marine battle report – this book has it all!  Tactical squads, devastators, scouts, captains and chaplains!  In fact, this book gets really daring and includes elements of the Ravenwing and Deathwing.  As the plot of the Green Hornet consisted of a car chase and arguments, this book’s plot was a space marine battle!  No, there’s no character development.  No, there’s no tricky hand of chaos, suspense, or individual personalities of note: exactly what you might expect from a book by Space Marines, about Space Marines.

Not the Dark Angels we were thinking of.

Okay, enough sarcasm!  I must give kudos to Gav Thorpe for writing this book.  Why?  Because with a pure Orc vs. Imperial battle; chaos and ‘the Fallen’ don’t play into the story and we can see the Dark Angels as a generic Space Marine chapter doing what Space Marines do.  It proves to us that despite their questionable past, the Dark Angels are capable of fulfilling their primary purpose of being the Emperor’s elite shock troops.  All the elements are there: Captain Belial of 3^rd Company, Chaplain Boreas, and Scout Sergeant Naaman tell the story of the defense of Kadillus Harbour on Piscina IV of interest to the Dark Angels as a base of recruitment and home of a chapter cathedral.  Our favorite Warlord Ghazghkull has targeted the planet for mysterious reasons, and the size of his forces cause worry to the company-plus sized group of Dark Angels and local Guard regiment.  The book shifted between the points of view of the aforementioned characters and a couple of guardsmen.  It is linear in time, but not in location, telling the story of the prolonged battle where the action was most intense or dramatic.  The Space Marines of this story are not immortal or full of bravado.  The typical professional-wresting-style of dialog is subdued and at no time during the story is victory a guarantee for the Imperial forces.

This book is the ultimate contrast to Helsreach from the perspective of Chaplain Grimaldus of the Black Templars on Armaggedon.  A historical, autobiography comparism could be made between the writings of Kurt Meyer of the 1^st SS, and that of Erich Von Mannstein.  Both are officers of the Wermacht in World War II describing some of the same battles in their books.  Meyer writes dramatically, triumphantly, and keeps the reader racing along with the recon units of the SS over the steppes of Russia.  Mannstein wrote a deadpan accounting of the facts and strategies behind the battles he led on the Eastern Front.  Chaplain Grimaldus is Kurt Meyer, and Captain Belial is Erich Von Mannstein.  For those of you looking to delve deep into the mysteries of the Dark Angels, you will be disappointed.  For those looking for a detailed accounting of several key moments in the battle for Piscina IV; read this book.

Not the Orcs we were thinking of either.

Inspiration: If any inspiration could be found from reading this book, it would be the fun that could be found in making up a campaign based around this very book.  There are no super-machines, titans, violent one-sided clashes.  All of these battles can be recreated on the tabletop, and in fact, one could use the included order of battle to help design scenarios and what if? style campaigns.  The Dark Angels have to hold out until the fleet can come save them, and the orcs have to build enough force to affect a decisive breakthrough before the Dark Angels can find them and catch them unready.  No side has an overall advantage in the battle, and they each have enough of a variety of troop types to keep things interesting.  You’ll have cat and mouse chases through the barrens, cityfights, set-piece battles for geographic locations, and places of vital importance, in this case power stations and an airstrip making me think of Planetary Empires.

To enjoy this book, I believe you have to read it for what it is: a book about a prolonged Space Marine vs. Ork battle.  If you want glory, read Helsreach.  If you want prolific or ad nauseum descriptions, read the Heresy novels.  If you want intrigue, read the other Dark Angels stories.

This first guest article for our month long contest is from Dobie over at The Many Posts of Dobie Gillis.

If there is any one consistent truth about Warhammer 40k, its the prevalence of the Space Marine. It’s fairly easy to say that there are many, many Marine players, and that they are the iconic army of the forty-first millennium. Now, like every other player, I too find some interest and value in the Space Marines. They are fun to play, have an amazing history and background, and they are a very competitive army. When I collected my first real army, as opposed to a motley crew of miniatures, it was the Space Wolves. I loved the uniqueness and different kind of flavor that they gave the Space Marines. Sadly, I have floated away from the Space Wolves, due to the overwhelming number of bandwagon jumpers and haters of the new codex. I wished to go back to the uniqueness and interest that the Space Wolves had created for me in the beginning. I loved being the only guy bringing the Space Puppies. It set me apart from all of the other Space Marine armies out there. I like being unique. It was at this time that I had decided that I wanted to develop my own chapter of Space Marines.

Now, I had some experience with the creation of characters and back story. I am an avid reader and writer, an actor, and I LOVE RPGs, in particular Dungeons and Dragons. The concept of creating my own persona was certainly not new to me. I found the process of creating a Space Marine chapter, however, strangely difficult. It’s tough to create a unique overall design concept, but still be within some form of reality within the 40k universe. After a few months of deep thought and rough concepts, I was able to truly flesh out my own chapter, The Shadow Guard.

I figured that somewhere out in the realm of gaming, there would be another player that would love to create their own unique persona for their chapter. I wrote this article to hopefully help that other person go through the steps, and they will hopefully be successful in their own creation. These are some of the tips and ideas that I used to create my own design concept.

Step 1- Loyalist or Traitor?

This step is fairly simple. Does the chapter stay true to the Imperium or have they moved away, or possibly into the grips of Chaos? This, of course, is a really simple, but incredibly important decision in the overall  development of their background.

Step 2- Chapter History?

Where have these guys been? Who founded them? Why were they created? What are their overall motives and desires? What sort of traditions and ideals do they hold dear? These questions really emphasis the foundation that establishes what your chapter is now doing in the 41^st millennium. In theory, that could be a LOT of history to cover.

Step 3- Home world?

Where do these guys call HQ? What sort of planet is it? What kind of people inhabit the planet? Do they even have a planet? This creates the realm in which your Marines live. In a hive world, the Marines will likely play completely different roles on the planet and in the entire galaxy compared to a agri-world. Tied in with this concept would be, How does your chapter interact with the rest of the Imperium? Do they say F*** you, we do our own thing, or do they follow orders to the T?

Step 4- Leaders?

Who leads them now? What sort of person is he? Are there multiple leaders? What sort of relationship is there between the leaders and the rest of their battle-brothers? This does require a bit more of personal development beyond the normal marine, but I think it is important because it can give a hero that you really enjoy fleshing out.

Step 5- Appearance?

Especially with the role of hobby in Warhammer 40k, this is incredibly important. What sort of colors do these Marines wear? What kinds of symbols and other regalia are common? Do they have a very constant pattern or personal freedom? What would your leader wear? What would they wear outside of battle?

Step 6- Tactics?

This, for most competitive players, is the most fun step of the development. How does your Space Marine chapter win the fight? Do they bring as many heavy weapons as possible? Do they rely on manpower and brute strength? What sort of wargear do they have access to? If you could pick a preferred special weapon and heavy weapon, what would it be? Favorite vehicle? Each of these ideas can really emphasis your own personal strategies and preferences in the game, and they create an awesome set of fluff.

Step 7- Which codex should I use?

This step is the one that I write with some trepidation. I know from my own experiences, that many people ignore the true background and fluff of the codex in the effort to win games. That to me is perfectly fine. If you think it fits thematically with your own creation, that is ok. I would warn against the stretching and bending of the fluff to basically fit a square peg into a round hole. For example, just because the Space Wolves codex allows for 4 Psyker HQs does not mean that they would be good thematically for your Thousand Son army. Seriously. Don’t do it.

There you have it. Seven easy steps to create your own Space Marine chapter. Now the eighth step involves building, painting, writing, and, most importantly, playing. Keep track of your wins and losses. Creates small stories and little scenarios about your Space Marines. Did they totally whip Abbadon’s ass? Or did they get trashed by the Sisters of Battle? When you have your own creation and characters within the game, it creates more interest outside of gaming. I have found that it really adds a lot of interest and, most importantly, fun into my games. I record my amazing feats in order to look back and smile upon my achievements.

I hope that this article was some help to you all, and I would love to hear about what you have created! You can check out my blog at www.themanypostsofdobiegillis.blogspot.com , but most importantly…

FOR THE EMPEROR!

You’ve heard us gripe about GW not progressing the story line multiple times on the show. Instead of beating a dead horse I instead decided to look on the brighter side. I decided to look at the current fluff that’s out there and just read into it more. Coincidentally, Forge World released Imperial Armor 9 which is all about the Badab War.

Granted, I don’t own it (yet) and all I’ve seen was while I was browsing through Dave’s copy, but OMG Forge World, you did one hell of a job. Committing two books to the biggest Inter-Astartes conflict since the Horus Hersey means there’s a TON of fluff and content to make any 40K player water at the mouth. Face it, the Horus Heresy was the biggest event in 40k cannon. I feel that the Badab War is like a modern, mini Horus Heresy and hopefully a sign of things to come in the future of 40K.

I’ve been searching and reading countless articles on the internet about the Badab War and I just get more and more interested. I even got a great idea to start another army, The Astral Claws. Now trust me, I’m not going to use ideas that don’t make sense and use a Codex I’ve been using for the past year with this army… I have some really good and original ideas that are really making my creative side come out. I plan on making the army flexible enough where they can use which ever Space Marines Codex I plan to use, but also to where they can also be Chaos Space Marines. After all, we all know the Astral Claws turn into the Red Corsairs. I’ll keep you guys updated on my progress with this army, but I don’t think I’ll be starting it right away.

So basically the point I’m trying to make is if GW isn’t going to progress the story line, at least go more in depth with the fluff you have out now. 2 Imperial Armor books for 1 conflict is a great step in the right direction.

The Eternal Warriors have been given the privilege of doing an interview with the Black Library author, Aaron Dembski-Bowden. Now we need help from you, the listener.

Are there any questions you’ve been dying to ask AD-B? Perhaps you want to know what his writing process is like? How he came to write about the Night Lords? How he brought Chaplain Grimaldus to life? Or what goes into writing a Horus Heresy novel? Even perhaps why he hates Star Trek so much?

Besides writing The First Heretic and Helsreach, he has written several other 40K-centric novels as well as a host of other books for the sci-fi/fantasy genre. The deadline for submissions is 21 January. In the comment section below or via email, please post your question or questions for AD-B and we’ll see what his answers are.