To INFINITY and beyond - Day 4

Hello people,

The dreaded slump has hit early and there's not too much to report.

In short the game with Rich has been rainchecked and the brushes have been idle other than touching up undercoat.

On the positive I now have a wireless colour printer and a VERY clean flat. As such the assault on the painting tray commences at the weekend. As below it's a rather full tray!

As a result there shall no toy bribery in the near future. Having only painted one Infinity figure previously I'm not sure on timescale but I think I should be able to cracking on once I get into a groove.

There shall be blood, Blood Red :)

To INFINITY and beyond - Day 2

Okay people, welcome to the first update post :)

In the last couple of days reasonable progress has been made on almost all fronts with a little bit of Shasvassti bonus in the mix.

Construction, basing and undercoat of ALL figures WILL be completed tomorrow. I just need to finish my Shasvassti drones and reposition a couple of Nomad duplicates. The only fly in the ointment is that Rob's TAG is missing a shoulder-pad which will require a customer service interface :/

I've put together a box of relevant scenery from my collection though I need to track down some AT-43 bits which seem to have gone AWOL. Rich is dropping round tomorrow night for a game which will give me the chance to layout the majority of it.

I've also had my new Galaxy Tab 4 delivered today which I have setup, and upon which I currently type, downloading all of the rules and FAQ from the Infinity site and sorted out links to the online army builder. A colour printer is on the hitlist for lists and tokens.

A bit of everything but progress!

Tomorrow I need to read up on Hacking and then Thursday the brushes shall be unleashed. So, relatively small steps so far but a few of them. Walking before running and all that ;)

Old Beginnings

Hello people,

 

Yes it's been a while again for most of the same old reasons. Another reason has been that my laptop has, unsurprisingly, failed to sort itself out and so is currently at the mercy of PC World.

 

Yes I know but I'm immensely tech illiterate for a geek and it's the easier option. Having said that I have realised that if the situation is terminal replacing like with like might not be the best option. I haven't gamed on it for years so it's primary use is Internet,  email and occasional word processing. Surely a tablet might be a better option? I assume I can connect the right tablet to a wireless printer? Feel free to enlighten me :)

 

So, back at the point of the post I attended the X-Wing Nationals in Birmingham a couple of weekends back. It was my first proper weekend tourney for far too long and long story short I had a great time.

 

On the Saturday I went 4-2 with Boba Smurf to place 25th of 118 of which I'm hugely proud. All the practice paid off and with a  bit of luck I feel I outperformed the list which is testament to the balance and variety within the game.

 

On the Sunday I went 3-3 flying casual in the escalation event with a Soontir swarm that I learnt a good deal more about. The format also threw up some really interesting lists despite the much smaller field.

 

One downside was that by playing 6 games each day I saw nothing of Games Expo which was a shame though we had Infinity in with us on the Sunday which I strolled past a few times.

The other downside was drawing a few Win At All Costs  (WAAC) players,  two each day. I've found that these guys are definitely a minority within the X-Wing community and I suppose nationals were always going to attract them.

 

I don't feel there's too much to get funny about with X-Wing but there's still scope for quick rolling, nudges and bendy templates / arcs of fire. Otherwise there's the usual gamesmanship and general bloody mindedness ;)

What was slightly different was my second game on the Saturday saw me roll four double evades in a row with Boba at which point my opponent requested that I change my rolling technique. Apparently he wasn't accusing me of cheating except for the way he kept on about it. It has at least become a fun in joke for a couple of months :)

 

Two difficult games each day was hard work and did mar an otherwise excellent weekend. I won 3 of those 4 games but it felt so unnecessary. I have wondered if it's a tactic to frustrate people into making mistakes but each to their own. I was there to play my games in a positive manner and so was the vast majority of the field.

 

I've had the conversation with people that those affected with WAAC seem to have little else going on for them and it over compensation. It's almost a diagnosable condition but I'm not in healthcare at which point the short sharp shock method is my preferred option. Nothing rude but a couple of polite open challenges can work wonders.

 

It's hard work but to me if you don't challenge you condone. I've reversed a template placement, asked for dice to be left on the table for more than 3 seconds. Firm but fair. I imagine it's much like dealing with a five year old....... ;)

 

At the end of the day we all know they're out there. Let them have their version of OUR game but don't let them ruin YOUR game, YOUR hobby.

 

On that note I've really enjoyed stepping up my X-Wing game. Thursday nights at Dark Sphere have been a huge positive in so many different ways. To that end some of us will making the trip to Copenhagen for the Scandinavian Nationals and I'm definitely up for it :)

 

186 for the win ;)

New(ish) Beginnings

So do you see what I did there? Well I entertained myself at least :)

Right now I have two and a half weeks on leave from work. As is so often the case I'm setting myself some hobby targets while I'm off. For once I'm going to keep it simple as I've done this many times before and constantly underachieved by over-reaching.

Following KISS I'm simply going to "sort out as much Infinity stuff as possible". I will also post every other day in an effort to exhort / shame myself into further efforts.

Loose targets are as follows;

- sort out my Nomads
- sort out Rob's Tohaa
- sort out a scenery "package"
- sort out a rules & accessories "package"
- learn some of the rules and concepts that have been eluding me

None of these are too taxing individually and the intent is to avoid taking on a grand plan doomed to failure from the outset. I may bribe and corrupt myself along the way...... infact I'm sure it's almost a certainty..... probably with that Iguana TAG I almost bought at Dark Sphere Thursday night ; )

For now the Shasvassti will sit in reserve as I get the feeling that they're a bridge, or two, too far and will lead to ultimate defeat.

Today is clearing decks as I generally sort and tidy my life, go and play footy and then drop round to Rich's for a 300 point shootout.

Day 1 is tomorrow :)

      

Taking Stock

Hello people,

 

For those of you who have noticed, yes it's been a little while. A combo of being overly busy and not too much to say other than the same old same old. It has helped that my laptop seems to have had something go pop and suddenly won't take charge.

 

Similarly I dropped a Dumbell on my uninsured smartphone recently and the time without one highlighted just how dependant I am on one for blogging ad much as anything/everything else!

So in recent weeks X-Wing has, unsurprisingly continued to dominate as Nationals up at UK Games Expo is this weekend coming up. I have no grand expectations other than wishing to give a decent account and enjoy my first full tourney weekend for quite sometime.

 

To that end Boba Smurf has seen plenty of exclusive play recently including a couple of more casual events. Mid table will suit me well and the escalation games on Sunday will be something different.

 

Meanwhile Infinity continues to take hold with 6 of us at the club committing it'll be my Tuesday night game of choice for a while. Last week a lot "clicked" for me and I gave a much better game with my Shasvassti utilising their cloak and dagger style far better. Learning the Camo rules properly was a big bonus for all involved!

 

Rolling on myself and Dave split an Op Icestorm box set with myself taking the Nomads. I'm also taking Jon's Icestorm Nomads from him to double up, theory being that with far less special rules I should be able to concentrate on learning the core game a bit better. Also, the model range is SUPER COOL!!

So with two fledging factions and Rob's Tohaa very painstakingly put together all other projects have been swept aside in a fit of reality. The paint station has been cleared with a number of slightly dusty refugees consigned to cases and a paint restock list being drawn up! The always rather ambitious projects list has received a similar dose of reality ;)

 

With X-Wing playing a lot of Boba has been the smart move and also a lot of fun but after the weekend some variation will be required.

 

After all you know what they say about all work and no play! I assume that also applies to Toys ;)

Boba rides again!

Hello people,

First a caveat, this is NOT a Charlie Large Spuds I'm so great post.....honest :)

Dropping down to Dark Sphere Thursday night I rocked up with my Boba Smurf list determined to put into practice my recent epiphanies about deployment and opening moves. I've realised that I generally set up facing forward and fly off in that direction with a plan but less idea of execution.

I drew John as an opponent. John's a great guy and a very good player. He's been terrorising people with his HLC  IG / Quad Z95 list for a while now and placed top 4 at last weeks MK Regional. In honesty I was just looking to give a decent game and try out a few ideas around deployment, opening moves as well as bait and switch.

As it happens I somehow flew probably the best game I ever have with this list and took the win 100-36 :)

As a  flanker list my opponent has rarely given me that lank with any ease. As such it was time to start creating one. Deploying my Z swarm on the far right John followed conventional practice to follow suit on the diagonal and had his IG lurking nearby. I knew that he was likely to burn a few turns with the IG to force the engagement with his Zs so that the IG was free to swoop about sniping from range with the HLC.

As such I had Boba adjacent to the Zs angled toward the board edge so that Turn 1 the Zs pulled hard left along my horizontal board edge while Boba ran up the vertical.....thus creating my flank!

After that it was some pretty hard flying as I attemptted to engage the IG as soon as possible. A couple of turns in Boba's boosts had him a bit farther ahead than I would have liked and leaving the supporting Zs behind. Luck played an early hand as Jon rolled his Zs in after Boba as I deliberately bumped the IG with him to deny him the shot.

Trapped between Boba and his Smurfs Jon's Zs were soon falling though I was very aware that I wasn't focusing in on IG and I aware of his late game strength. Boba getting some decent rolls helped out greatly and by mid-game I was feeling far more comforatable as I'm pretty happy with my dogfighting abilities. Being far more positive with Boba was reaping rewards and moving last I was often able to dodge IGs arc.

Late game it a was Boba and two Zs versus IG and I gladly paid a sacrificial Z to run away and regroup. Re-engaging with the Z, no 13, running as a blocker I had the upper hand and eventually got on to IGs tail at which point it was waiting for the dice to come up.......which they did.

In honesty I flew much better because I realised what I needed to do and actually did it. Luck still played a big part, with a few crucial turns where the game swung both ways, though you've got to give Her Ladyship the chance to smile on you :)

A big game for me but mainly because I didn't just learn, I applied the learning :)

That would be an Ecumenical matter!

Hello People,

Bit of a hiatus once again but there you. Yet another impressionistic style mini review as we played a bit more Infinity down at Enfield Gamers this Tuesday.

This time it was a four way 250 point game with pretty much the full rules with Star Wars themed forces. Yeah, biting off more than you can chew and all that jazz!

I'd previously heard that Infinity can be a bit fiddly and there are quite a number of special rules and the like, in fact it can be a bit bewildering at first contact. On the other hand some things are super dead simple, such as linear terrain. If the figure isn't right up against it then no bonus. The LOS "silhouette" system is similarly very black and white. In fact there's very little grey with Infinity, just plenty of actions, states, abilities and skills to take into account.

For a skirmish game it's quite a different design philosophy, at least it is for us. I found that once I realised that and got my head around it a lot more fell into place. You need plenty of terrain on an Infinity table to break LOS, your aiming for that cluttered feeling. Initially the rules felt similarly cluttered by once you realsise that they're actually individually simple LOS opens up. It feels like a very different design philosophy. Once I realised that and got my head around it a lot more fell into place.

Once again.....grown up Necromunda. More tonight  :)