Book Review - "Nagash the Sorcerer" by Mike Lee.

Books! To review! This time around we have a Black Library release from 2009 from the "Time of Legends" series. Next up will be a review of the first book of  the Sigmar trilogy "Heldenhammer" by Graham McNeil.

"Nagash the Sorcerer" by Mike Lee

"Nagash the Sorcerer" is the first in the Time of Legends: Nagash trilogy. The story begins in  the ancient empire of Nehekhara just moments before a series of extraordinary events leads to the death of Nagash's father (the current king) and mother. It isn't long before the cunning youth Nagash begins to form a plan to seize control of his father's kingdom from his brother - beginning a series of events that will change "the blessed land" and the face of the Old World forever.

The tale unfolds through the eyes of several characters and jumps back in forth through time in a way that can be unsettling and confusing to the reader. The initial origin of Nagash is continually interrupted by a "present day" setting where Nagash (known as the Usurper) has begun a war against the people of the Nehekharan empire in advance of his siege of the holy city Mahrak. This strange narration becomes less prevalent later in the book when the focus is placed more squarely on the "current events" as Nagash's army rampages across the desert sands. 

In addition to the narrative jumping about the pacing of the story tends to advance in fits and spurts - often spending pages describing mundane events and dialogue or focusing on the less interesting battles being waged in the name of Nagash's blood campaign. Time spent detailing the pantheon of gods (which is incredibly similar to Egyptian mythology) is interesting but seems to be a large departure from more "established" Warhammer lore. Perhaps this new focus is what future tales of the Tomb Kings and Nagash will build upon in the future?

The most enjoyable parts of this book for me were the more in-depth looks at Nagash's past - his magical training, the beginning of vampirism in the Old World, the construction of the Black Pyramid, and other similar major events from Warhammer "history". These moments make reading through the incredibly repetitive descriptions of armor (apparently everything was "hammered" for the warriors of the blessed land) more bearable and lend a much needed excitement to this workman-like tale.

While it is at times confusing, repetitive, or just downright boring there are some great moments scattered throughout the book for those who are interested in the history of the Old World. Nagash is a great villain and I look forward to seeing how he grows into his truly "evil" nature in the next two books of the series. If you like Warhammer lore, vampires, twisted sorcery, or undead things you will find a thing or two to like in this book. 

Verdict: 7.5 out of 10. Without the interesting lore/back story I think this book would be more like a 5.

I'm still drinkin' and modelin' ... honest!

Things have slowed way down around here. Part of it is my "new" life here in my hometown - the focus on tabletop gaming is just not the same. Part of it is my new job which doesn't afford me time to waste on a computer while I work (in fact I hardly get to use my computer at all).

The result of both has been me not being able to find a game of Warhammer. This in turn has slowed (stopped) my drive to complete my Vampire Counts army, which also put my Warriors of Chaos force on hold. While I had planned on finishing the VC army in time to attend BoLSCon it doesn't look as if that will be a financial possibility. Moving and taking a pretty steep pay cut has left me without much in the way of "disposable income" - including things like beer, models, paints, and cross-country trips to weekend long gaming conventions.

So where does that leave me and my miniature obsession? Well most recently I found some solace in a local Blood Bowl league and I am in the process of building an Ogre team to play in it (the Bultimore Bullies). Also, just last week my preferred gaming store changed ownership with a promise to focus more on GW games while building a community of players (something I intend to support however I can). And who knows? Maybe once the 8th edition of Warhammer is released the local scene will explode with new fantasy players (for me to abuse with my "overpowered" Ogre Kingdoms army).

Two lengthy work related trips this week and next may keep me from updating this blog as much as I would like - but stay tuned later this month for a look into my painful initiation into Blood Bowl, fantasy book reviews, progress reports, and more. In the meantime I leave you with a review of a beer I probably won't ever be able to buy again!

Lagunitas Brewing Company - 2009 Correction Ale

Beer Type: American IPA

Appearance: 22 oz. brown bottle with a white label, the Lagunitas dog, and some text. Beer poured an amber-gold color with a thin head that quickly faded.

Smell: A lot of floral and citrus hops followed by a little bit of sweet malt.

First Drink: Mostly sweet, with a bit of the floral and citrus flavors from the aroma.

Mouthfeel: Well carbonated, a little oil slick, and a nice crisp finish.

Last Drink: A pleasant bitter finish and a little more sweetness.

Drinkability: Very drinkable, not sure what really makes this stand out from a "beer snob" point of view but I like it.

Notes: This beer is limited edition and seasonal. I was lucky to get one bottle of it from the local beer troll. The labels says "this is NOT a double IPA". I'd have to agree - I didn't much care for their Hop Stoopid Ale which was a double IPA.

Verdict: 4.25 out of 5. Flavorful, with a secretly hidden ABV, and it's easy to drink. What more can you ask for? Now only if I could get this beer all year long...

Links: Beer Advocate and Lagunitas Brewing Company.

UPDATE:  Forgot to mention it in my original post but I wanted to say ... go check out the new forums hosted by The Trading Post. Kuffeh (or Kuffy) is the nice bloke who put together the forum as a place for:

"Just a bit of fun, somewhere for general Fantasy based chatter. Please feel free to join and promote the forums to others. I am not expecting much, but it be cool to have a little place on the web for some nice friendly chatter."

I've already stopped by and registered my name so you'll have to get your own! See you there!

WHFB 8th Edition - Rulebook sneak peek from GW newsletter.

Hot off the electronic presses from the Games Workshop newsletter:

Since we announced the new edition of Warhammer back in April, the excitement has been slowly building. Across the land hobbyists have begun gathering their forces in preparation of the mighty battles that lie ahead; in hushed whispers they've talked about what might lie within the 528-pages of the new Warhammer rulebook. Well prepare to ramp your excitement up a notch - Warhammer will be available to advance order from the 15th of June. Inspired by the clockwork creations of the engineers of Altdorf, we've today added a swish countdown clock to games-workshop.com, so you'll know exactly how many minutes and seconds to go before you can order your copy.

To thank you for subscribing to our newsletter (these images won't be shown anywhere else!) we thought we'd give you a sneak peek inside the new book. And don't forget that June's issue of White Dwarf is out this weekend and contains more exclusive information and pictures from the new Warhammer rulebook.

Enjoy.

The scenario page is the most interesting to me but you can't really make out any details of the text! Looking forward to seeing more as the release date gets closer ... how about you?!

Progress report - Blood Bowl team 5/23/10.

Been working on my Blood Bowl Ogre team and the picture above is what I had done as of yesterday afternoon. I have since completed some more Snotlings (Gnoblars) and have two more Ogres in the works. I also finalized my roster and team name ... say hello to the Bultimore Bullies!

Look for more models and updates on the BB action later this week!

Blood bowl?!

Still haven't spent any additional time painting, modeling, or playing WHFB. The "fantasy day" at the local game store went kaput as the store is no longer open on Sundays. Sad times for my fantasy addiction. 

But!! Earlier this week I was contacted by one of the Kalamazoo Ultimate Blood Bowl League with this:

"We started a new blood bowl league in Kzoo, and wondered if you’d be interested in joining us.  I see you are also a fan of beer….good beer that is.  I am a brewer and so are at least two of our other players.  Here is our site, and we definitely want some good coaches playing and good looking models too."

How could I resist something like this!? Beer?! Nerds?! Blood bowl?! I immediately sent a response of "Hell yeah!" and went out to the local league meeting on Wednesday night. After observing the game, and stumbling my way through half a match, I had signed up for the league and become a Blood Bowl coach... but I still didn't have a team. 

Enter the Ogres! I've decided to model and paint myself an Ogre Blood Bowl team for entry in the new season of the league (which begins in just two weeks) and I am getting started on them tonight! I can't wait to see these big guys on the field, and hopefully I will manage to crush and kill a few star players and maybe even win a game or two in the process. 

Stay tuned for more details in the coming days...

Progress report - 5/12/10.

Oi! Look at this poor neglected blog! No pictures, no updates, no modelin' and what a sad lack of drinkin' related posts!! Something must be done...

Not a lot of WHFB in my life at the moment. Spent last weekend smashing things with a sledgehammer and avoiding a variety of spinning blades while helping my "in-laws" prep their summer garden. Also went to the local farmer's market, had some breakfast at one of my favorite diners, and spent some time playing board games (Pandemic and Small World) and Left 4 Dead 2, but no games of Warhammer...

I did manage to assemble (and complete some minor greenstuff work for) my first Warrior/Chosen for the Malal themed force, although I have not begun to paint him yet (need more paint). There is also one Beastman/Marauder I am in the process of painting, hopefully I will have some pictures of that up here soon for everyone to look at.

Also spent some time writing Vampire Counts army lists for the upcoming Bell of Lost Souls convention in Austin, TX later this summer. I have a couple lists in mind but I need to get some practice games in before I really commit to one over the other. Perhaps a poll here on the blog would help me decide which way to go? I don't expect to win the whole thing, I just need a good reason to "finish" my VC army before I really dive into the Malal WoC army, and I have a lot of models... so...

Yup. Life here has been pretty busy, mostly with social pursuits outside of Warhammer, although I am hoping to get some games in this weekend ... who knows!? Maybe I will even put up a battle report or two if the games are interesting enough?!

In the meantime... something that has been severely lacking from this blog as of late - BEER!

Lagunitas Brewing Company - Lagunitas Hop Stoopid Ale

Beer Type: American Double / Imperial IPA

Appearance: 22 oz. brown bottle with a green label that pictures a farm. Beer poured a medium golden color with a short head that hung around.

Smell: Hops. Lots of hops. Something else comes through too .. perhaps grapefruit or some other citrus.

First Drink: Hops in the front, followed by sweet malt, grapefruit, and some bitter pine flavors.

Mouthfeel: Crisp and a little oily (probably the hops). Not too much carbonation, seems just right.

Last Drink: A lot more bitterness from the hops as this beer warms up. I am getting a lot more pine flavors now.

Drinkability: Well this is a pickle. I love this brewery, and I am growing to love IPAs, but the pine flavors in this brew are a bit much for me. It isn't bad but I wish the flavor was just a little more mellow.

Notes: This beer was given to me by an ex-coworker! Ah the days when people brought me free beer...

Verdict: 3.75 out of 5. Well crafted but not really my favorite (I like their regular IPA better).

Links: Beer Advocate and Lagunitas Brewing Company.

Army of Malal - 2,250 Warriors of Chaos list (version 1.0).

 Malal!!

"There is a name whispered quietly and with fear even by the most depraved, the most evil, and the least sane of the worshipers of Chaos. That name is Malal, the Renegade God of Chaos. Any man who dares look within the unholy black pages of The Great Book of Despair, that foul tome held sacred by worshipers of Chaos, would find the following words: "...and he that went before now came last, and that which was white and black and all direction was thrown against itself. Grown mightily indignant at the words of the Gods, Malal did turn his heart against them and flee into the chambers of space . . . And no man looked to Malal then, save those that serve that which they hate, who smile upon their misfortune, and who bear no love save for the damned. At such times as a warrior's heart turns to Malal, all Gods of Chaos grow fearful, and the laughter of the Outcast God fills the tomb of space . . ."

In eons past Malal was cast out from the bosom of Chaos by the other Gods, or else abandoned them of his own volition, no one is sure which. In any case, Malal's relationship to the other Gods of Chaos is a strange one. All Gods of Chaos pursue purposes that are wholly their own, yet only Malal occupies a position so resolutely parasitic upon his own unfathomable creed.To be a follower of Malal is to be a Chaotic warrior bent upon shedding the blood of other Chaotic creatures. As such, Malal is both feared and hated by the other Chaos Gods. Malal's worshipers, too, are loathed by other Chaotics; they are outcasts beloved by neither the friends nor enemies of Chaos, dependent upon the least whim of their patron deity. Few men worship such a God; fewer still live long in his service. The bonds that tie master and servant ever drain upon the soul of the warrior, and it is a rare man that can loosen the bonds of Malal once forged."

Sounds pretty cool... but where does Malal come from? Well, since you asked!

"The concept of the Chaos God "Malal" was created by comics writers John Wagner and Alan Grant along with Malal's champion, Kaleb Daark, for the Warhammer Fantasy world in the Citadel Miniatures Compendium and Journals. In the comic strip adventure Kaleb Daark's mission allied him temporarily with the forces of good. He fights at the siege of Praag and confronts the followers of the Chaos God Khorne, and also finds himself at odds with the Skaven. Less mutated than other followers of Chaos, he is equipped with his soul-drinking daemon axe "Dreadaxe" with its pterodactyl-like head on a shaft of bone. His shield was shaped in the form of Malal's skull symbol, his armor was all-black with white details and his steed was a black mutant horse. Kaleb himself appeared pale, as the contact with Malal supposedly drained him of energy. His battle cry was "Dreadaxe thirsts for you!"

I've been crafting a themed Malal Warriors of Chaos list since the new WoC book was first released. The basic elements of my Malal force will be a small band of Malal followers being led by a "Kaleb Daark" style hero (a Chaos Lord). Since Malal's followers rarely get together, preferring to work alone, I wanted to force to be representative of a small "elite" force. As such the idea of the Chaos Chosen fit perfectly.

While my first attempt was a Chosen "deathstar" (months before it became all the rage at tournament events/etc), my version of the list isn't as "cheesy" as others I have seen but still features some pretty hard elements. 

In addition to the hard Chosen center the force is backed up by two hard hitting Chaos Knight units and three sacrificial bands of Chaos Marauders (modeled as Beastmen to represent the "Claws of Malal"). 

So what does my list look like? Glad you asked!

LORDS: (400)
Chaos Lord - Mark of Khorne, Juggernaut of Khorne, Shield, Soporific Musk, Axe of Khorne, Crimson Armor of Dargan, Necrotic Phylactery (400)

My first Chaos Lord build featured the Chaos Daemonsword as a way of representing Kaleb's "Dreadaxe". Instead I decided to go with a build that is focused on destroying other followers of Chaos. With both the Crimson Armor and Phylactery the Lord will be immune to Poison, Killing Blow, and the magic lores of Nurgle and Death.

In close combat he has 6 strength 6 Killing Blow attacks with a 0+ armor save to keep him alive. The model will be a version of Kaleb on his mutant steed and will not feature any Khorne related imagery - I am just using the rules to represent Kaleb's desire to destroy the forces of Chaos.

HEROES: (680)
Exalted Hero - Mark of Tzeentch, Flail, Shield, Disc of Tzeentch, Bloodcurdling Roar, Book of Secrets, Golden Eye of Tzeentch (219)
Exalted Hero - Chaos Steed, Mark of Nurgle, Shield, BSB, Banner of the Gods (301)
Chaos Sorerer - Mark of Tzeentch, Level 2 Fury of the Blood God (160)

The other characters in this list all serve a very specific purpose. The BSB and Sorcerer will be deployed in the Chosen unit to give them the benefits of magic resistance 2, Terror, and Stubborn. Meanwhile, the flying Exalted will be harassing the enemy flanks and flyers or rushing off to kill enemy war machines. Not sure how I will model the flying aspect of this (perhaps he will be riding a Malal daemon or Malal inspired flying mount?) but I really like this character build and I want to include it in the list.

CORE: (174)
Chaos Marauders x 11 - Mark of Slaanesh, Musician (58)
Chaos Marauders x 11 - Mark of Slaanesh, Musician (58)
Chaos Marauders x 11 - Mark of Slaanesh, Musician (58)

Three units of minimum Core units, these guys are just bait. They will deploy near the Chosen to take advantage of the Stubborn rule and pull enemy units into position for a counter charge. As mentioned above, these units will be modeled as Beastmen to represent the "Claws of Malal". The number 11 is the number of Malal.

SPECIAL: (854)
Chosen x 16 - Mark of Tzeentch, Shields, Champion, Favor of the Gods, Standard, Banner of Rage, Musician (414)
Chaos Knights x 5 - Mark of Slaanesh, Musician (220)
Chaos Knights x 5 - Mark of Slaanesh, Musician (220)

The "meat" of the list - two hard hitting units of Chaos Knights and a solid block of Chosen. The "always Frenzy" banner of the Chosen allows them to ignore the units of Marauders that may be fleeing through them, and increases the chance of getting the "good" rolls on the Eye of the Gods table (in addition to their Stubborn and Terror abilities). The Mark of Tzeentch is for increasing their probable 4+ Ward Save to a 3+ Ward Save when they get a roll of 12 on the EoTG chart.

RARE: (140)
Chaos Warshrine - Mark of Slaanesh (140)

The Warshrine is basically just in the list to supercharge the unit of Chosen or the units of Chaos Knights as needed. Mark of Slaanesh keeps it from running off the table due to a bad failed panic test (or two), or from fleeing units of Marauders that may come too close. Not sure what the model will look like, but I am tossing around ideas such as a defaced Chaos statue or a sort of shrine to Malal.

Total Points: 2,248 (of 2,250)

Malal approves! What do you think?