Getting excited for NOVA!

So after a crazy 8-9 months of travel, changing jobs, and moving, I am finally ready to get back to geeking out with tabletop and board games!  While I will be playing X-Wing at NOVA (subject for a different post), I have had a blast playing 40K!  I know there is a lot of doom and gloom regarding Games Workshop right now, but I haven't had this much fun with 40K since 5th Edition!

I spent the last two months playing in the Road to NOVA 40K League in Northern VA and Maryland, which was an absolute blast!  I was rocking a full Drop Pod army which seems to suit my play style really well and got to play five great games against five great opponents in the area.  Every game was a nail-biter (minus the one against Werner where he crushed me with his Decurion) and it was amazing to finally have a chance to just play some 40K after such a long hiatus.  I actually went 4-1 and missed out on the final Top 8 by a single battle point, so I was very happy with how it went!

NOVA Open Narrative Registration Opens TOMORROW!

In case you have been living under a rock or stuck in the polar vortex for the past couple of months, this is just a reminder that registration opens tomorrow at Novaopen.com!  Do not miss out on this year's event... It is going to be awesome!  MVB sums it up much better than I can, though:

NOVA Open Narrative Tickets - Warlord and Nightfighter Tracks
The NOVA Open Narrative more than doubled last year, and surveys/interest seem to imply it'll do so again. Further, we've made a portion of the Narrative - the Warlord Track - a full-on GT-level 7-game event, inclusive of 3 day and 4 night games (first game is Thursday at night), as well as social activities and daily "Model UN Styled" planning sessions where the Narrative Warlords directly impact the mission direction and player deployment of the larger open-attended Nightfighter track.

If you're playing in the 40K GT and want to get some awesome games in with really innovative missions and rules battling across LED-lit boutique terrain ... participate in the Nightfighter track, scheduled to allow participation in both.
If you're looking for a full weekend of awesome Narrative gaming participating in a unique universe of the NOVA's creation, fueled by player participation, participate in the Warlords Track. There are only ABOUT THIRTY TWO SPOTS available for the Warlord Track, with only 16 initial offerings per Faction (Virtue or Human). If you want in this, you'd better sign up fast!

The NOVA Narrative is Coming!!

I have the rare opportunity to work as one of the staffers for the NOVA Open Narrative this year, and I think it is going to be absolutely amazing!  But do not just take it from me... read below and I am sure you will be convinced!

The 2014 NOVA Open Narrative is called Descension. The story follows the descent into madness and vengeance of Humanity following the intentional crashing of the Virtue mothership into the Earth's crust at the climax of 2013's Narrative. Virtue survivors also descend into confusion and anger as their self-doubt impacts and directs their actions moving into the Solar System and throughout Earth's wastelands. There are two tracks to Descension:

Warlord: Model UN type planning and strategic sessions - one (1) game during each day (Friday-Sunday) - one (1) game each night (Thursday - Saturday) - one (1) Final "Night Round" on Sunday morning. Warlords will comprise the Narrative War Council, and are strictly ticket limited to 16 participants per Faction, first come/first serve.

Nightfighter: Nightfighters are tactical commanders who will be battling it out during the evenings (Thursday-Saturday) and in the Final "Night Round" on Sunday morning, in line with past Narrative events. Nightfighters will be able to participate in the 40K GT or any other system's daytime events and seminars alongside their Narrative games.

Narrative players will be able to choose to activate optional supplements for their respective codices which will introduce more Humanity/Virtue-thematic ways to play the codex. This will also help improve the play-ability of some less common build types from each respective codex. These are fairly simple and straightforward, and do not preclude or obviate the freedom to play with your codex in its basic GW released format.

NOVA OPEN 40K NARRATIVE DRAFT PRIMER
CONVENTION SCHEDULE

Something Awesome is Moving in the Warp...

One of the (many) reasons I have not been blogging recently is that I have been helping MVB with something that I think has the opportunity to be truly groundbreaking in the gaming community: the newly improved NOVA Narrative!

http://whiskey40k.blogspot.com/2013/10/dc-narrative-2014-teaser-full-weekend.html

As someone who attended NOVA the last two years only to participate in the Narrative, I can only say that you do not want to miss this!

Going to BFS!!

I just signed up for the Battle for Salvation GT over Columbus Day Weekend!  This will be my first time actually playing in a GT, and I am pretty stoked.  The hard part will be settling on a list.  I have my Narrative list which was not terrible, but I have a month to try to put together a Space Marine list.  Hopefully I can find someone local who can loan me 20+ bikes....

BFS Info after the break:

Space Marines: Good, Bad, Ugly... and Meh

As I mentioned in an earlier SM post, I think the codex has a lot going for it.  However, I am not sold that the changes were enough to bring it in line with the most recent Xenos books.  MEQs still have a hard time surviving in the current environment and the price reductions only help so much.  I do not claim to be an expert, but here is how I think some of the units stack up:

First thoughts on Tau/SM

One of my new Tau Overlords....

After looking over the new SM codex, I have a few ideas for list builds incorporating my recent Tau acquisitions.  Everyone is well aware that Tau is very strong right now, and there are very few lists that cannot benefit from some Kroot, a Skyray, and a Riptide.  So I am still working on how I want to build a SM primary.  In the meantime, I am working on how Marines can benefit Tau.  Tau have overwhelming firepower, AA, and cheap troops, but lack somewhat in mobility, durability, and melee (duh).  So those are the areas I think I will focus on with SM allies.

My current Tau primary looks something like this:

Commander in Iridium Armor with PEN, CnC, MSS, RVT, Flamer x2, and PR (expensive, but reduces the need for marker lights)
Kroot x 40
2 Riptides with EWO, VT, IA, and TL Fusion
2 Skyrays with BSF