Time to vote!!

It's time to vote! Not for that silly US election, it's time to vote for the far more important Deathroller contest! Vote for me! Number 3! Or vote for whichever one you like I suppose...

Vote here! - http://bloodbowlmayhem.blogspot.com/2012/10/and-voting-for-best-deathroller-starts.html

Progress Report 10/21/12 - Gnoblar Groincrusher complete.

Behold! Groincrusher! A Gnoblar crewed Deathroller!

Groincrusher - crewed by many, lived by few.

Whattya doin' down there?!

Just a slight turn to the left...

We got beer and extra gnoblars... just in case!

The view of our next victim...

Yellow lightning makes us faster!

Still working on the details but I wanted to get photos done in time for the Merry Mayhem competition! Really had a lot of fun building and painting this monster. Hope to see it on the Deathroller track some time next year! A bit of the old "fluff" on Groincrusher:

"Crewed by Honcho Sleckbick the Groincrusher is the ultimate in Gnoblar reveng-eineering. Crafted from the bronze remains of a Dwarf Deathroller crew, this steam and rune imbued device has gifted Sleckbick with incredible luck, allowing only half of his crew mates to die each time it takes to the field. Sleckbick and his crew return to salvage wreckage from each race in an attempt to build and even bigger (and thus tougher and stronger) shiny metal crushing device. Some say Sleckbick's uncanny luck is the result of a magical talisman he took from a dead Dwarf Engineer, though it has been rumored that he actually recovered the talisman from a latrine. Reeking of blood, skunk ale, and filth both Honcho Sleckbick and his Groincrusher are truly a savage sight to behold!"

Update:  Bits used - two bourbon bottle stoppers, one small plastic bag roll, two random yellow plastic thingies from a construction site, jewelry chain, plasticard, a bunch of Ogre Kingdoms bits, some Ork bits, some Vampire Counts bits, and a few Gnoblars!

Also stole some of the fluff info/ideas from the Gnoblar Armies fan made army book! So thanks to those who worked on that Gnoblar masterpiece!

Progress Report 10/12/12 - Gnoblar Deathroller under way...

Still chugging away on the Gnoblar Deathroller for the Merry Mayhem Deathroller build contest! Here are some photos of the WIP build and the primed pieces ready for paint. 

I wanted the machine to look like a hot rod Gnoblar modification of a Dwarf machine. Not sure I accomplished that but I am okay with the results! Now to screw up the paint job!!

Beer Review - Stone Old Guardian Belgo.

Stone Brewing Company - Old Guardian BELGO Barleywine

Beer Type: American Barleywine

Appearance: 22 oz. brown bottle with the classic printed Stone design. Poured a crimson/copper color with a thin off-white head that laced nicely.

Smell: First up you can smell the booze. This is followed by a yeasty sweet bread, caramel, and a trace of dried fruit or apple. 

First Drink: Tons of yeast flavor up front.. almost like a strong Belgian ale. More of the dried fruit and sweet caramel comes through in the finish.

Mouthfeel: Big body with a bit of sticky alcohol mouthfeel and plenty of carbonation. Not what I was expecting.

Last Drink: A lot more hop bitterness and something slightly... spicy? 

Drinkability: This is not an easy drinking beer. Punches you in the face with complex flavors if you can make it though the booze up front.

Notes: I honestly can't say if I like or dislike this brew. It's really intense. I liked the original Stone Barleywine a bit more I think. This one is a 2011 special brew - or "odd year release" as Stone calls it. Odd indeed.

Verdict: 3.75 out of 5. There is more going on here but I am having a hard time finding it. Could be a great beer for aging?

Links: Beer Advocate and Stone Brewing Company.

Chaos Cup 2012 "recap"

Warning: after reading this post I can't help but notice how negative it seems. It is my intention to post my personal experience at one of the largest Blood Bowl events in North America for those who may be interested, and for my own historical information. I have nothing bad to say about how Chaos Cup is/was run, nor the fine folks I played against, but as you will see by reading below it wasn't a great time for me. Carry on...

Chaos Cup 2012 Nurgle Legacy Team - photo courtesy of Nuffle Hate Me

Well it's been a month or so since I attended Chaos Cup 2012. I had a bunch of notes taken from my matches and I promptly lost them on my return home. Here is my rough run down of the (mostly personal) events as I recall them now (which isn't well).

Friday

- Took the day off to leave early and beat Chicago traffic. Failed to do either. Stuck in traffic for an hour plus near the city but did finally make it to the hotel where the event was taking place. 

- Stopped by a Whole Foods, bought and ate some foods, and bought some beer. Highlight of the weekend? Drinking New Belgium 1554 is certainly up there.

- Played a round of Zombicide in the lobby where many nerds were gaming. Realized I am not really a fan of the Zombicide gameplay and I am glad I didn't contribute to their massive Kickstarter. Really slick board and pieces though!

- Drank a lot, tied my ZWF match during the "Uncivil War" and ran away from hotel security crashed the N64 event and proceeded to get a few hours of sleep. 

Saturday

- Woke up feeling like death (as I typically do when traveling). Ate a bit of food I brought with me and made my way to the site of Chaos Cup 2012!

- Played 4 games against fun opponents. You can see my results in the "Real Time Bore" feed to the left on the sidebar if you like. Day didn't go well for me. 

- Went to the after tournament drinking spot, got there late and didn't have anywhere to sit. Felt like the "not cool kid" and got bummed out. Bought an $8 glass of beer and got more bummed out. Got a tiny expensive pizza and got downright suicidal. Left to find other amusement.

- Spent the last portion of the evening running around WalMart and the local area trying to get all the photos we needed to win the Skavenger Hunt and looking like a nutter.

- Slept like the dead. 

Sunday

- Woke up feeling ready to take on the last 2 games of the tournament and dedicated to getting a win. 

- Lost both of my games and got nothing. 

- Lost the Skavenger Hunt in a way that pissed me off. 

- Left feeling bummed out and angry and broke and wondering why I went to the event. 

- Got stuck in traffic on the way home for almost two hours. 

- Figured out a way to restart our local league in the car on the way home.

The end. I took a team I thought might hack it, had miserable dice luck (as is typical - one example is only 6 instances of my opponent's rolling Foul Appearance in 6 full games), and a string of fun opponents, and took almost last place (77th out of 80).

One thing that occurred to me... I should bring better teams. If I am going to lose badly anyway I should stop giving myself a reason to lose before I start. Having said that there were plenty of Nurgle teams higher in the rankings and my matchups didn't even include any Dwarfs! Working on my Necromantic team now...

Our local league is starting up again, here's hoping it lasts so I have a reason to still enjoy Blood Bowl!! I'm playing Vampires (the Strigoi Slash) against Skaven, Humans, and Lizardmen. Should be a fairly even playing field? Our new season starts today.... wish us luck!

I am alive.

Testing, testing...

Yes I am still alive. Yes I played Nurgle in Chaos Cup 2012 and lost terribly. Yes I will fill you in on what I remember of that event at some point in the future.

Things of note right now:
- Working on scratch built Deathroller
- Working on painting the Necro and Undead parts to flesh out my Zombie team
- Working a lot at work and going to be gone for a week
- Borderlands 2

That is all. Carry on...