Unseen Lerker Issue 4

™

ISSUE 04 JUN – JUL 2010

More fun than joining a cult EVENT SPOTLIGHT:

MAELSTROM’S SUMMER INCURSION EXCLUSIVE 8TH EDITION BATTLE REPORT! ARMY SHOWCASE:

GENIES, CARPETS AND PARASOLS

HOBBY CORNER:

A BWUSH WITH DESTINY

SHUURO WARMACHINE …JEDI?

A magazine for gamers, hobbyists and collectors

Jacob Scott’s

Tomb Kings

Check it ONLY IN out on UNSEEN page 18 LERKER

Unseen Lerker

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SINCE YOU LAST TUNED IN Shameless Plugs

Team Unseen Lerker Achievements

Thanks to the following people for allowing us to promote ourselves at their events and on their shows and websites:

(write and tell us yours!)

Baddice, D6 Generation, Heelanhammer, Podhammer, DakkaDakka, Tales of Battle, The Warhammer Forum, Warseer, Maelstrom Games, OG Games, Arcane Scenery.

And as always, thanks to our readers and everyone else who supports the magazine.

Isaac Alexander

One Magazine To Rule Them All

Best Sports, Maelstrom Summer Incursion

Bryan Carmichael & 1st Overall, Greg Dann Brighton Warlords Doubles Team UN(seen Lerker) 2nd Overall, 6 Nation ETC warm-up

Unseen Lerker Winners Graham Franks (UK) free dice (Find Lergy competition, Issue 3) James Peterson (USA) 10 free dice (Issue 3 competition) Marcus Pitt (UK)

free Uncharted Seas game (Test Dummies, Issue 3 competition)

Nicolae Lupu (USA)

free Foundry brush set (Hobby Corner, Issue 4 competition)

Operation: World Domination

COUNTRIES WHERE UNSEEN LERKER IS READ

Unseen Lerker is now on Facebook! Just search for Lergy Lerker and add us a friend to stay in touch!

Australia, Belgium, Bulgaria!, Canada, Croatia, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Ireland, Japan, Malta, Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Slovenia, Sweden, Switzerland, United Kingdom, United States

Unseen Lerker

EDITORIAL

CREDITS The Unseen Lerker Team Editor: Isaac “Bobo” Alexander

Greetings travellers,

Business Overseer: Bryan “Ubertechie” Carmichael

In a departure from normal service ‘Bobo’ has asked me write the editorial this issue - probably caused by his confusion over 8th edition and how to make his beloved Lizards effective once again. Rest assured that normal service will resume next issue.

Editorial Consultant: Chris “Fitz” Fitzsimmons Hobby Corner: Joe “Kittens” Sturge Lead Artiste: Max “Brakken” Karpsten

So 8th edition is upon us and the Warhammer landscape is awash with change. Some doomsayers are berating the new edition and/or proclaiming that their armies are now worthless and that The Company are the spawn of the warp. Calmer heads and those of us that have had a chance to get in some games under the new edition are pleasantly surprised at new edition and it’s evident that GW have seriously upped their game in terms of quality and clarity of rules writing - yes there are a few ‘grey’ areas but nowhere near as many as previous editions.

Also the new way of classifying troops and having special rules in the rulebook makes it look like future army books may well see similar, equally streamlined, improvements.

Graphic Design: Heath Moritz Contributors: Jacob Scott, Stu White, Russ Wakelin, Gary Moore, Jacek Jedynak, Andrew Galea, Zach KinWilde, Greg Dann, Dan Comeau, Ibis Miniatures, Arcane Scenery, Jane Doe. Special Thanks: Ben Curry & Bernard Lewis www.unseenlerker.com editor@unseenlerker.com Want to advertise in Unseen Lerker?

Well now you can! A variety of options available. Email shiny@unseenlerker.com for more info.

CONTENTS 16 4 Event Spotlight

Bobo reports on Maelstrom’s Summer Incursion.

8 9 13

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Unseen Lerker Around The World

The Hobby Corner

Joe Sturge tells us all about paintbrushes, Dali, and gruel.

We interview Jacek Jedynak, head honcho of the ETC.

In summary ‘The King is Dead - Long Live the King’.

See you on a table soon!

Bryan Carmichael (the real boss)

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Army Showcase

Jacob Scotts’s AMAZING Tomb Kings.

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HAVE YOU SEEN LERGY THE LERKER?

Battle Report

This is Lergy, Unseen Lerker’s official mascot. He’s an insatiable little fellow who gets up to all sorts of mischief and turns up in the strangest of places. Unfortunately we here at the office have a hard time keeping track of his antics all the time, slippery little sucker that he is.

THE DARK SIDE

A new guest column focused on alternate games systems. This issue – Russ Wakelin and Warmachine!

Special Characters

This new edition makes for a very interesting time in our hobby and with the growth of the independent tournament scene, podcasts, and magazines such as our own and Tales of Battle I think we can expect to see an influx of new or previously disillusioned players into our gaming groups which can only be a good thing for us all.

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Wood Elves vs Empire in a special 8th edition showcase report.

Coming Soon Check out what’s in store for Issue 5…

LEGAL DISCLAIMER This magazine is completely unofficial and in no way endorsed by Games Workshop Limited. The Chaos devices, the Chaos logo, Citadel, Citadel Device, the Double-Headed/Imperial Eagle device, ‘Eavy Metal, Forge World, Games Workshop, Games Workshop logo, Golden Demon, Great Unclean One, the Hammer of Sigmar logo, Horned Rat logo, Keeper of Secrets, Khemri, Khorne, Lord of Change, Nurgle, Skaven, the Skaven symbol devices, Slaanesh, Tomb Kings, Trio of Warriors, Twin Tailed Comet Logo, Tzeentch, Warhammer, Warhammer Online, Warhammer World logo, White Dwarf, the White Dwarf logo, and all associated marks, names, races, race insignia, characters, vehicles, locations, units, illustrations and images from the Warhammer world are either ®, TM and/or © Copyright Games Workshop Ltd 2000-2009, variably registered in the UK and other countries around the world. Used without permission. No challenge to their status intended. All Rights Reserved to their respective owners.

If you happen to see Lergy doing something suspicious somewhere in these pages, send us an email at lergy@unseenlerker.com and let us know which page number(s!) he’s on.

The first person to send in the all correct page numbers receives two free Unseen Lerker dice.

Isaac Alexander EVENT SPOTLIGHT Words: Photos: Stuart White

Maelstrom’s Maelstrom Games, as well as being the leading independent miniature retailer in the world and featuring on the coveted back cover of this magazine, have recently constructed the ultimate gaming venue, ‘The Eye of the Storm’. On the 12th and 13th of June they hosted the venue’s debut tournament, and, being the bunch of curious minstrels we are, the Unseen Lerker team decided to camp out in the bushes with binoculars and see what was going on. Isaac Alexander’s witness statement follows.

it as undercooked pudding. I’ve been experiencing somewhat of a Warhammer burnout of late, and if I hadn’t been specifically invited to come along to Summer Incursion I don’t know if I would have purchased a ticket. BUT! I am so very, very glad that I went along.

Bobo: This first sentence probably isn’t going to be the introduction that the Maelstrom team want to read in their event’s coverage, but in the weeks leading up to this tournament I was about as enthusiastic about The Barfield brothers in a bottom table face-off!

Unseen Lerker

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Summer Incursion Summer Incursion was one of the best run and most professionally organised tournaments I have been to in my life, and (as somewhat of an addict) I’ve been to quite a few!

Maelstrom’s venue, The Eye of the Storm, is located in Mansfield in central England*. While parts of their not-so-secret lair are still work in progress (and understandably so, considering the ambition of the project), they have a fully operating mail order centre, a fully furnished shop, a fully functional gaming hall with enough room for 100 players, and a (fully) mysterious inner chamber which they simply refer to as ‘The Room of Doom’. I didn’t ask about that last one.

Included in your tournament ticket was a buffet lunch on both days, a shiny 32 page rules pack, and as much tea and/or coffee as you could humanly ingest in 48 hours. They also have a bar for those who are more alcohol-inclined. * From what I understand they originally wanted a hollowed-out volcano to host their fortress, but alas England does not boast such things.

The Maelstrom staff even put on a BBQ for everyone!

EVENT SPOTLIGHT summer incursion The rules pack is always an important shaping tool for any tournament, and like another certain large tournament which we’ll be covering next issue (see pg43 for details) Maelstrom decided to try and even up the field a bit by allowing some of the lesser-seen armies to take additional points when facing tougher foes. For example, I was using Daemons of Chaos and played against Tim Fisher’s Beastmen. I had 2000pts of troops, while Tim got to use 2750pts – quite an interesting experience seeing so many models across the board!

Bobo gives away some copies of the magazine as prizes.

The gamers gather round to watch England play (read: fail) in the World Cup.

In addition to these “tiered” points brackets the mini Bible of a rules pack had six different scenarios, all custom written for the event and unique in nature from game to game. Personally this was the single element of the event which I disliked, purely for the fact that they were a bit too wordy for what was needed. The rules pack is very nicely laid out though, a full colour A5 booklet with loads of photographs depicting models acting out the scenarios, some very pretty maps illustrating deployment in each game, examples of how special rules worked, directions to get to the venue, recommended accommodation, and enough funky fonts to impress even the Romans (both those from the old times and the new). It also includes your tournament results card on the back, and gets posted to you with your ticket.

Organisation on the day was smoother than a baby seal, with draws going up on time, lunch being ready when it was needed, and head organiser Gary Moore keeping everyone well informed of the goings on via the inbuilt PA system. Another nice touch was highlighting some of the crazy dice moments of the tournament and awarding spot prizes (including a few copies of Unseen Lerker) to the unfortunate victims of fate. And if that wasn’t enough the Maelstrom staff kept the venue open all night on Saturday for people to play more games and/or celebrate their victories at the bar.

So, despite my enthusiasm for Warhammer being virtually nil preceding the event, by the time I got in the car to go home I was literally buzzing with excitement and wishing for a seventh round to the tournament – and I know I wasn’t the only one! I haven’t enjoyed an event as much as I did Summer Incursion in many a moon, and I will definitely be checking out more of Maelstrom’s events in the future.

Even if it’s only so I can finally figure out what is in ‘The Room of Doom’...

Craig Johnson dazzles his opponent with his mad gaming skillz – and exceptionally blurry hands.

Unseen Lerker

Amidst the hectic cut and thrust of battle, we managed to batter our way to the front lines and interrogate head organiser and Maelstrom events co-ordinator Gary Moore.

What is your personal favourite thing about the Summer Incursion rules pack?

It’s different! The intent behind it is to make people think without being a comp system. When we came up with the idea we had three goals. One, don’t tell people what they can and can’t bring. Two, ensure that players feel they have a chance when they sit down opposite their opponent. Three, fun! Above all we want to make sure people enjoy their weekends when they come to the Eye of the Storm.

Do you think there is going to be a place for this sort of rules pack with 8th edition breathing down our necks?

The simple answer is I don’t know. There are so many changes on the way that it’s too hard to predict, so for our first 8th edition tournament we’re running equal army sizes, no restrictions, no special characters, no banding, free for all. Let’s see what happens!

What sort of challenges do you think 8th edition will present to you as a tournament organiser?

Hard to say, really. I’m hoping it presents opportunities rather than challenges!

Well, a girl can dream. Speaking of which, tell us what other features we can expect the Eye of the Storm to boast in the future?

There is a user-friendly IT system being installed in the gaming area, along with several flat screen televisions for displaying the round-by-round draws, watching sport etc. Downstairs will house a fully functioning bar and restaurant, while outside will be a landscaped barbeque and patio area. I might have to ask to live here, come to think of it.

It certainly would cut down your commuting time.

On an unrelated note, what’s your favourite part of Unseen Lerker? (we couldn’t resist asking!)

The sense of humour evident throughout. This is a hobby we all spend a lot of time and money to enjoy – so let’s enjoy it.

Ah, but the real question is, do you prefer pineapples or Mexico?

Can’t I have both?

What do you have in your pocket – right now?

Timmy!

Oh let’s! Did you have any particularly memorable moments over the weekend? Any juicy stories to tell?

The bottom table battle between the Barfield brothers – everything to play for! Adam Hutchinson losing his Vampire general to a bolt thrower shot on the first turn of the game, his opponent then kindly allowing him to promote another Vampire to be the general, said general then rolling double 1 double 1 on Adam’s first turn.You couldn’t make that stuff up. Oh, and round 6, table 1 was one of the most intense games I’ve ever seen – Ant Spiers’s High Elves vs Ben Curry’s Dark Elves.Yowzer!

As an experienced tournament organiser, what would be the top piece of advice you’d give to anyone else running a Warhammer event?

The winners: Ben Curry, 1st overall; Bobo, Best Sports; Matt Howley, 3rd overall; Brett Wilkie, Best Painted Army

In my opinion the top players are used to receiving trophies, recognition, rankings position etc, so my top piece of advice would be to ensure that every player at the event enjoys themselves, whether by recognition for achieving a personal goal, random spot prizes, or other means. These are the players that make events happen.

One of the many lengthways scenarios in progress.

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Unseen Lerker Around The World Reader Steve Leckman with UL Issue 3 at the Hubbard Glacier, Alaska, USA.

Want your picture in here?

Unseen Lerker is a truly global magazine - we want everyone in the world to be able to appreciate reading it. To spread word of its existence, we are looking for our readers to take Unseen Lerker to the most unusual places on earth. To get yourself in the magazine (and win an Unseen Lerker dice set!), simply send us a photo of yourself somewhere fun with either a copy of the magazine or a piece of groovy Unseen Lerker merchandise to lookatme@unseenlerker.com. Don’t forget to include your full name and location!

Unseen Lerker

THE DARK SIDE The Dark Side is a brand new column in Unseen Lerker, created with the intention of broadening our readers’ horizons. We are all enchanted with our beloved game, but there’s a whole big hobby world out there, waiting to be discovered. For our first article we managed to rope in Russ Wakelin of the D6 Generation Podcast to talk about his favourite pastime – Warmachine!

WARMACHINE Steam Powered Skirmish Words: Russ Wakelin Photos: Andrew Galea As I’m penning this article for the pages of Unseen Lerker, I know many of you good readers are fanatical Warhammer Fantasy players. And why shouldn’t you be? Games Workshop has created one of the most visually stunning massed miniature combat games ever conceived by man. It’s an amazing hobby game that allows the clash of massive armies on battlefields filled with large units, hails of arrows, huge monsters, flying dragons, and blasting trumpets.

Name: Russ Wakelin

But we all know that after our 150th game with Tomb Kings we get the urge to try something new. Usually this takes the form of painting up a new army for our favourite game. However I’d like to humbly suggest that the next time you get such an urge, you take a look at expanding your gaming experience to a whole new game. Not something to replace your current passion, but rather complement it.You know, like chocolate and peanut butter. Mmmm...

The noble plum

Where was I? Oh yes! I can think of no better complement to a massed army game than a skirmish game, and one of the best skirmish games available is Warmachine. Warmachine has all the advantages of a typical skirmish game: low model count = less to buy = less to paint. In addition, Warmachine has the three cornerstones required for a great hobby game: Imagery, Mechanics, and Quality.

Age: 41 Location: New Hampshire, USA

Favourite army: Cygnar

Favourite fruit: I would never…

Eat live insects

Imagery Let’s start with arguably the important corner stone: Imagery.

For a hobby game to even deserve our consideration the imagery must captivate.

The artwork in the books must inspire you to read on and absorb every detail of the story. The models must beg you to paint them with dynamic poses, fantastic figures, and overwhelming detail.

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Imagery is one of Warmachine’s greatest strengths.

Privateer Press, the company that produces the game, is blessed with some amazing artists and sculptors.

Just flip through any of the source books to see page after page of full colour art that brings the world of the Iron Kingdoms to life. It is a world of fantasy, magic, and steam powered gear. A world in which a massive robotic Warjack armed with a cannon and an axe can stand across the battlefield from archers and knights on horseback. A world in which a unit of steam powered, armour clad infantry is supported by cloak wearing mages in tricorn hats whose flintlock pistols fire magically enhanced rounds.

The distinctive imagery of Warmachine can be a bit of a double edged sword. Some folks don’t care for the anime inspired proportions of some of the Warjacks and weapons. I’d recommend spending some time online and in your local gaming store checking out the look of the different factions and models. If none of the factions call to you, this isn’t the game for you. But be sure to check out all six of the factions: from civil war styled kepi of Cygnar, to the Russian style wool hats of Khador, to diving bell helmeted pirate mercenary ‘jacks, to the smooth lines of the Elven Retribution, to the holy knights of Menoth, to the undead forces of Cryx, there are bound to be more than a few images that catch your eye.

Mechanics Assuming the imagery appeals to you, let’s consider the second cornerstone: Mechanics. The mechanics are only slightly behind imagery in importance.

Without great mechanics the ‘game’ portion of ‘hobby game’ is missing. Before we can dive into what makes this game different, we’ll need to look at the basics of a typical Warmachine force.

A Warmachine force centres around a single command model known as a ‘Warcaster.’ The Warcaster is the leader of your army. It is like the king and queen in chess rolled into one. As the queen it is your most powerful piece, empowering your ‘Warjack’ minions, slinging spells, and performing incredible feats that can knock your opponent’s army to its knees. But this great power comes at a price: like the king in chess, if your Warcaster dies, you lose.Yes there are scenario objectives in the game, and they are critical, but all the while you must be careful to not over extend your power piece. This requirement to keep a constant eye on your Warcaster at all times lends to the unique experience that is a game of Warmachine.

Unseen Lerker

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And now we get to the Warjacks (or ‘jacks’ for short).

You probably know of these guys. Warjacks are those giant steam powered robot things you see on the cover of the books and from which the game takes its name.

Warjacks are semi-autonomous creations that can act on their own a bit, but require a psychic link to a Warcaster to really shine. This link is simulated in game terms via Warcaster’s ‘focus’ ability, allowing the ‘jacks incredible boosts of speed, power and ability while within a certain proximity of their fearless leader. And here is where the strategy element comes to the fore, because while the Warcaster is busy empowering the ‘jacks he is himself more vulnerable. So it’s a tricky double-edged sword: do I protect my general, or make my robot minions super, killy and awesome?

I think you’ll agree the choice is a fairly easy one.

There are few things as cool as having a giant robot walk up to an enemy and simply headbutt it into submission, or open up with a mini-turret machine gun or a heat-seeking missile launcher. The greatest thing about Warmachine is the way the imagery and the game mechanics are so closely interwoven, which gives you a very characterful gaming experience and leads to many cinematic moments.

If giant smashy robots aren’t your thing, I should point out that there is more to a Warmachine force than just Warcasters and Warjacks. Warmachine has come a long way since its 2003 release and each army has access to cavalry, artillery, and a wide variety of units and solos.

These units add more flexibility to your force since they don’t depend on proximity to your Warcaster to be effective, meaning they fill important gaps the Warjacks can’t cover.

Quality Finally, let’s talk about product quality. Their miniatures are very well cast, with minimal flash removal and filing required. Even their plastic model kits are not on sprues, rather they come like the metal kits: just a pile of bits you glue together, prime, and start painting. Beyond the models, their books are extremely well organised, written, and edited with the most useful indexes I’ve seen in any war game.

Bad Dice is the UK’s first Warhammer Podcast and is hosted by Ben Curry and Ben Johnson.

Bad Dice is dedicated to bringing you news and reviews from the UK Tournament scene with an emphasis on events taking place around the country and even around the world. www.baddice.co.uk So there you have it, good readers. With the quality cornerstone completing the set I submit that Privateer Press’s Warmachine has all the elements to make it a worthy addition to your gaming collection.

Warhammer Fantasy players have long known the value of these cornerstones, as they are what make that game great and enduring. With Warmachine, Privateer Press brings that level of expectation to a skirmish game. And in some cases they even raise the bar.

Perhaps the next time you’re browsing the local game shop you’ll give Warmachine try.You may be pleasantly surprised by just how much of an imaginative, innovative, and interesting game it is.

Happy gaming!

But quality goes beyond the look and feel of the models and the editing and presentation of the books.

It also means support for players. Do they answer rules questions quickly and accurately? Do they make it easy to get missing parts and/or bits? Do they have prize support for local and national events? In short: Yes, yes, and yes.

Star Dragon by Michael Biggs.

Jacob Scott’s

Tomb Kings Check it ONLY IN out on UNSEEN page 18 LERKER

Unseen Lerker

THE HOBBY CORNER Joe ‘KITTENS’ Sturge

A Bwush With Destiny They say the pen is mightier than the sword, but where does the humble paintbrush rate in this array of artist’s armaments?

The most qualified person to answer this question seemed to be professional painter Joe Sturge, who we enticed out of his cave with a tasty biscuit…

But will it make toast?

So, you want to transport paint from point A (the pot), to point B (the toy soldier)? An admirable goal, to be sure.

Oh, so you want the paint to be on the right parts of the model, in reasonable quantities? With highlights, shading and stuff too? Ok, I suppose that’s a perfectly reasonable too. If only there was an easily available and affordable range of tools to accomplish this radical redistribution of pigment...

Can we get on with the article please...

So, a good paint brush is effectively a means to an end. However, different brushes are good for different things: a £10 double-zero fine-tipped Artistic Tool should probably not be used to stir a pot of PVA glue, while using a drybrush to highlight eyeballs may lead to frustration.

And mime (which is often the same thing). I tend to classify my brushes into a number of general categories of usefulness: Drybrushing, Basecoating, Detailing and Misc. Oh yes, Misc!

Brushes used for drybrushing (on bases, textured surfaces such as fur, etc), should be flat and durable. They’re gonna take a real beating, and having almost-dry paint on a brush can frequently be followed by having actually-dry paint on a brush, which is Not Good For The Brush.

I therefore try not to shell out topdollar (yen, yuan, rouble, groat, etc) on drybrushes, but beware any really cheap ones which won’t last five minutes.

Basecoating brushes are for applying nice even layers of paint. Having a fine tip is

useful here as nobody likes going over the lines (quiet in the back, Mr Dali), as is the capacity to carry a lot of paint. If you’re just trying to cover the surface area then having to go back to the pot for more paint every fifteen seconds can lead to frustration, swearing and excessive M&M consumption.

When looking for brushes to apply fine detail, the point of the tip is very important: a nice sharp tip gives you more control over the paint. The firmness of the bristles is also something to look out for: how stiff or supple they are will affect how the brush performs.

These brushes don’t necessarily have to carry enormous amounts of paint (but a big carrying capacity is always nice), but if the end splits, the tip curves or they spontaneously burst into flames then that’s not so useful. This is where lady luck can come into play, as it’s not possible to know how any brush will respond to repeated use: you can treat a brush as roughly as you like and the tip may stay perfect and sharp for months, or it could fray and split after only a few days of painstaking care. Generally speaking, the higher the quality the more reliable the brush.

Of course, not all brushes can lead a glorious life applying stunning glazes, scintillating highlights or harsh, dramatic shading. Paint needs to be mixed and PVA needs to be applied to bases, so rest easy that any brushes which become too old, battered or frayed for any other use can still be put to good purpose for any number of nasty, bristle-destroying tasks (up to and including creating a scale model of the Sydney Opera House made entirely of discarded Size-2s).

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THE HOBBY CORNER JoE ‘Kittens’ sturge There are of course many brands baying out for your hard earned (or hard borrowed, hard stolen, hard imagined, I’m not fussy) money. Having used most of them in my time, I’ve managed to acquire a few opinions over the years.

Windsor & Newton Series 7 Tastes like happy. These are the big kahuna, the best of the best, more fantastic than a satchel full of super. We’re specifically talking about the Kolinsky Sable series, with a variety of sizes from triple-zero to enormous. They cost a fantastic amount of money, with my local retailer requiring anything up to one thousand of my hardearned pennies to be produced before any transaction may take place (online retailers are cheaper, but Your Mileage May Vary).

These brushes really are worth the money. I’ve made extensive use of the smaller and finer W&Ns, and they combine super-fine tips with surprisingly large paint capacity. I started by getting a couple of the very smallest and finest brushes, then realised that a (larger but still not enormous) size 1 or 2 is perfectly good for fine detail work and can multitask for basecoating too.

If you have any ambitions beyond producing a gaming standard army for the minimum possible investment of time and effort, I genuinely believe that these brushes will help! They should last a minimum of 6 months or so if you clean and store them properly (and if not, can I please have some of the money you don’t seem to like).

One slight word of caution when ordering over the internet: I’ve only ever bought W&Ns over the counter where I can closely inspect the condition of the tip and bristles. Receiving a split or battered Series 7 from an online retailer would be enough to bring a brave man to tears, so don’t be afraid to ask for a replacement from your kind supplier if necessary!

Good ol’ GW These are the brushes that a great many aspiring painters start with, and that kind Professor Inertia often sees to it that Average Joe’s brush experience goes no further.

They’re available from any GW Emporium and Happy Independent Retailer and are very average indeed.

Being of a lesser calibre than the holy W&Ns, Games Workshop brushes are prone to splitting and the bristles can sometimes warp and distort surprisingly quickly (then again, I’ve also had a GW brush that has lasted for months and retained its shape and tip brilliantly, it’s just a matter of luck). That being said, they’re not massively expensive and more importantly come in a large range of shapes and sizes: I’ve had good experiences with GW drybrushes and while I’ve not yet experienced the joy of the GW Stippling Brush I can see it coming in very handy.

However, for your middle of the road workmanlike brushes, I’d recommend that you also check out...

The Wargames Foundry I’d rate these as slightly higher quality than their GW equivalents, with a similar variety in all the wacky shapes and sizes that kids seem to like these days. I’ve found them to have more reliable tips and to distort less, but for some reason the ferrule (the metal bit wot attaches the bristles to the brush) is prone to coming loose- nothing a careful dab of glue can’t fix. They’re not as ubiquitous as Papa GW, but still readily available if online ordering is your thing, and are currently my Miscellaneous Journeyman Brush of Choice (MJBC. Yeah). I might even be able to persuade Mr Bobo to hand out a freebee or two to spread the good word further.

Unseen Lerker

Privateer Press (P3) and friends

If in doubt...

Ok, so I’ll confess to not having tried these bad boys, but some very good painters (and Tim Fisher) have highly recommended them. Then again, there are a whole range of companies out there which sell brushes alongside their ranges of paint: I’ve never been much of a Vallejo fan personally, but their brushes are apparently much loved, as are Da Vinci brushes and many others.

...Experiment. No, not like that. Put the kitten down please...

The unwashed masses

WIN STUFF!

Of course, there are times when using a brush for a week or less then throwing it away (or sharpening it into a point and running around with a t-shirt wrapped around your head pretending to be a ninja, whichever suits) is necessary, and at those times a trip down to your local discount art retailer is in order (although asking for their cheapest and sh*ttest brushes may sometimes offend). Four brushes for £1.50 is a reasonable goal to aim for, and my personal favourites (pictured nearby) are good for drybrushing bases, applying flat colours and sometimes the most basic of detail work.

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Ahem. Even a modestly sized collection of toy soldiers costs a butt-load of money to acquire, so splashing out a few extra coins on a new brush just for the heck of it is only a drop in the ocean. Also bear in mind though that taking care of your current brushes is better than having to buy new ones to replace them. I’ve not covered the myriad of ways that a Good Brush can very quickly and easily become a Bad Brush with the help of just a little carelessness, but maybe the Unseen Lerker Dark Overlords will let me write a little on that topic at some point in the future. A little warm gruel wouldn’t go amiss either. Mmm... nourishing gruel...

Every issue we like to give our subscribers a little something for their dedication. If you’re a subscriber you’ll be entered into the draw to win the following toys:

A set of spangly new

Games Workshop templates! (spiky enough to take out a baby seal’s eye if wielded correctly)

A full set of River Horse’s Shuuro game! (as reviewed on page 38 & 39 by the Test Dummies) Remember that only Unseen Lerker subscribers get entered into this draw. We’ll announce the competition winners in the next issue, so subscribe for your chance to win!

Name: Jacek Jedynak

Special Characters

Age: 38

Jacek Jedynak

Location: Golków, Poland

Favourite army: Dark Elves

Favourite fruit: Banana

I would never… hurt a fly

The European Team Championships (ETC) began in 2005 when a bunch of Warhammer players from Poland decided to visit some gaming friends in Denmark. Many fun games were had, and the Danes were invited to Poland for a revenge match. Then a lightning bolt of fate struck the minds of the players – what if they invited other countries too? From there the idea grew and grew, and now once every year dozens of teams from all over the world descend upon central Europe to compete in the largest multi-system teams tournament in wargaming history. In the dark depths of Poland we managed to track down one of the prime instigators of the whole thing, head WHFB organiser Jacek Jedynak, and using only sharp objects and our imaginations, managed to get some answers out of him.

Jacek, why don’t you start by telling us a bit about the history of the ETC? How has it grown over the five years since its inception?

The first ETC, held in Gorzow, had 16 teams of 8 players in attendance. We were super impressed with this, and thought we had reached the pinnacle of wargaming.

This year there are 32 WHFB teams, 26 40k teams, plus around a hundred non-playing officials like captains, coaches, referees, and cheerleaders. There is also a separate 160-player side event going on, but with over 600 people in the hall already we have had to move the side event to being two days earlier, since there simply isn’t enough space!

As well as the accelerated attendance levels, the ETC is growing in other ways too. The democratic (“gens una sumus”) structure is becoming more and more

professional, and every year we introduce new things like committees, chairmen, spokespeople. This year we have an official podcast (Bad Dice), an official website (RankingsHQ), an official sponsor (Maelstrom Games), and an official magazine covering the event (hey wait, that’s us! –Ed.).

What has been the most uplifting thing about the event from your point of view as an organiser?

The spirit, the camaraderie of the players. Courageous, adventurous, generous. The rest – doesn’t matter.

How long have you been involved in the hobby and running events, and how does the ETC differ in comparison to running a ‘normal’ event?

Six years. There is very little difference. I worried at first about different rules interpretations in different

Unseen Lerker

countries. Those were Dark Times, with no GW FAQs to speak of, but the Direwolf and Polish rules clarifications documents saw us through. It transpired that players wanted to play, and were ready to accept any set of rules, provided they were known beforehand.

Humanity working together towards a common goal – who’d have guessed?

Who indeed! In that regard, do you have any ‘ultimatums’ for the ETC, ie, a final vision that you want it to become?

Of course. A simple, medieval castle, with solid tables to play and feast on.

Nice! Tell us a little about what goes on behind the scenes. How much work goes into making sure the event runs smoothly?

The organisation of the event on the day is a huge task.

Just the logistics and taking care of the players is enough to kill. I know from the first two ETCs, which were held in Poland.

Most of the work is done in the months beforehand though, sitting at computers and making phonecalls.

This part is usually quite easy, if one’s brain happens to be present.

Regarding the rules pack, what were aiming for when you created it? What influenced you in settling on the current (mid-high) power level?

The army restrictions were based on Danish comp – cutting off the edges of the extreme, boring builds. It worked well until Modena (2008) where, as speculated,

Daemons and Vampires slaughtered the opposition, destroying the fun of gaming for the players. Army restrictions are meant to enable the players to have a meaningful, skill based game. They are an emanation of the players’ needs, and since those needs change every year based on new rules and armies being released, then the restrictions too change to accommodate this. It’s not perfect, and never will be, but it works.

With only four weeks left until the 2010 ETC, to be held in Germany, what sort of preparations still need to be made? ie, what is this interview delaying you from doing!

Refereeing and playing in hard tournaments as preparation. I am a strong believer in referee training. The year of the first ETC I took part in 35 tournaments, and organised a bunch more. I was in form back then. Ah, those good ol’ times.

With the 2010 ETC just around the corner, we thought it would be daft not to attend, so the Unseen Lerker team will be on site in Germany and reporting back on all the exciting goings to make sure our readers don’t miss out on the action!

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Tomb Kings

Special Characters Jacek Jedynak Name: Jacob Scott Age: 26 Location: Lund, Sweden Favourite army: All of them!

Favourite fruit: Banana

I would never… swim with sharks!

Army Showcase:

As well as being a top player and dedicated pipe collector, Swedish gentleman Jacob Scott has a habit of producing some very nice looking armies. We originally stumbled across him in 2005 at a tournament in Sweden, but he’d been converting, painting and winning awards for years before that. In issue 2 of Unseen Lerker, Jacob and his Tomb Kings featured in the battle report, and after a plethora of eager emails we were sequestered into bringing him and his army back for a much closer look.

How long have you played Tomb Kings for? What was it that originally drew you to them?

I’ve been playing Tomb Kings since 2007. It was more or less a coincidence that I started playing them. A friend gave me a large amount of Skeletons, because at the time I was building two VC armies! From there is seemed natural to start building

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a Tomb Kings army.

Initially it was mainly the model construction, conversions and painting that inspired me in putting the army together, but once I started playing it then I became excited to build even more new units.

Many of the figures in this army are classics.

Have you been hoarding these yourself all along, or do you tend to acquire the models you want as and when you need them?

A lot of the models in this army were donations from friends, but the characters, Bone Giant, Ushabti, Carrion, etc. are models that I gathered while I built the army.

When building my armies I usually try to create a mental image of how I think each model should look, then I go out searching and converting in order to fit that image.

How long does it take you to complete an army like this? Do you tend to work on your projects very intensely over a short period or spread it out over more time?

I tend to paint armies rather quickly, usually in the insane painting marathon before tournaments! After I started the Tomb Kings, I went into voluntary exile in Central America for 5 months. This delayed the painting somewhat, as you would expect! Normally I can produce an army in about half that time, depending on my other commitments.

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Do you have a favourite aspect of the hobby? Do you find you need to balance between different activities to keep yourself entertained or do you just jump from one exciting thing to the next?

I enjoy all parts of the hobby, but recently I’ve been far more hooked on building, converting and painting big armies like this one. What I enjoy most is to have an army project ‘realised’: from the time an idea comes into my head to collecting and converting the figures, painting them up and seeing the finished creation in front of me. I’m pretty conservative in the choice of models, what I appreciate most of all to see, both in my own armies and those of others, is the old classic models. My favourite army is actually my brother John’s Dark Elves – made entirely from 1980s figures and with loads of hidden treasures in it.

I usually try to concentrate on one army at a time, however, I occasionally throw together a quick project between larger, more demanding ones. My motto is that if you are inspired by a specified army you shouldn’t be hampered just because you’re busy with one another at the time!

Did you have any specific inspiration for this army?

Initially the idea was that I could paint the army in a week or so, which was appealing because I was working on a bunch of other projects at the time! My speedpainting plan unravelled, however, when I came across some very nice illustrations in One Thousand and One Nights, the book I happened to be reading at the time.

After that, it seemed obvious that I should build an immortal Arabian army. Most of the conversions, on the other hand, were developed over beers with other Warhammer players, as is often the case!

What made you pick such a bright and vivid colour scheme?

Is this a trademark of your armies or something you chose specifically to compliment the Tomb Kings?

When I start building armies, I try to choose a colour scheme that fits the feeling of the army, or have one main colour which is perhaps a bit unusual.

In the case of the Tomb Kings I chose turquoise, partly because I had never painted the colour in the past but also because I felt that it fit and would stand out. In most cases I choose strong primary colours that are visible from a distance, but it’s always important to balance this with more traditional supplementary colours – in this case Scorched Brown, dark red and ‘non-metal metal’ gold worked best.

Your armies are regularly among the best painted at the events you attend. What is it that constantly drives you to go the extra lengths and create these spectacular forces?

A big reason why I try to conjure up armies that look decent is that I have been lucky enough to spend time with several talented painters. The inspiration that I get from seeing others with the same attitude as myself to the hobby (that we like old school models, painting and conversions) is a huge driver for me to try to make my armies that extra bit special. However, I am also a gamer, and sometimes I do prefer to spend less time on an army in order to get it onto the gaming table quicker – something which occasionally disappoints my more ‘artsy’ friends! Fundamentally, for me at least, this game is about seeing two well painted armies playing against each other. Nothing inspires me as much as watching a well-painted army in action. I love to sit down and chat about tactics, but if given the choice between that and talking about painting and army building I would choose the latter every single time!

Unseen Lerker

Video Game Review

A Fist Full of Redemption

Zach Kin-Wilde

Book Review

Azincourt Author: Bernard Cornwell

Chris Fitzsimmons

Ever had a childhood fantasy to saddle up and ride through the Wild West? The immense world of ‘Red Dead Redemption’ will put the trigger in your hand, the dust in your throat and the thrill of the wild frontier in your game-loving heart.

You can choose from a plethora of adventures cleverly woven together with snippets that become the main story. It also offers multiplayer online gameplay (but I’ve yet to venture there, since I’m still exploring my surroundings).

The graphics present a realistic Wild West world of rugged landscapes, hardy settlers, villainous outlaws, and critters a-plenty – all of whom seem intent on their own goals, which may or may not include you.

As reformed gunslinger, John Marston, you play a free-roaming character with a shady past and his own code, who can choose to aid or break the law. Challenges include pistol duels, hunting, rescue, skinning and trading, horse-breaking, or escaping the posse of bounty hunters if you’ve gone rogue. The story builds with gritty details from the days of the New Frontier when the white man had relegated the aboriginals to missions, and crisscrossed

To many people Bernard Cornwell is merely the creator of Richard Sharpe (famously played by Sean Bean). However, for those who delve a little further into his literary canon will know what Cornwell has produced a host of material centred on a variety of different settings in the history of the British Isles and elsewhere.

In Azincourt, Cornwell has picked on one the most iconic battles in English history, but unless you’ve read your Shakespeare (which I haven’t since school!), it’s unlikely you know much about the place other than the fact that there were some long bowmen and that the English won. Oh, sorry, did I spoil the ending?

Our hero is Nicholas Hook, the son of a shepherd who find himself running from his master and into the arms of Henry V’s swelling army. However much like Cornwell’s other tales, it’s not really the main character that makes this book worth reading: it’s Cornwell’s attention to his setting. Azincourt is painstakingly researched, as evidenced by the comprehensive suggested reading list found in the end notes.

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the land with railways and bible-bound ethics – the land of opportunity interpreted as takers get lucky or get shot.

The music, sound effects and diverse conversations bring a cinematic atmosphere. From gameplay to save mode, all the elements unfold in such a way that keeps you engaged. The control commands add to the visceral involvement by making ‘R2’ (PS3) your shooting trigger.

Earning a fistful of dollars will buy you a range of outfits, including homage to Clint Eastwood’s poncho-wearing ‘man with no name’ of the great spaghetti westerns. Build your reputation or get a price on your head.

I was unsure about this game at first, but on experiencing it I’m convinced it’s not only an excellent Wild West adventure, but one of the best games I’ve played altogether.

What’s truly brilliant about the book though is how he works that research into such a readable story. When we’re given a detailed description of the construction of the medieval War Bow (no, not long bow) it fits beautifully into the story’s flow. As ever with Cornwell’s work there’s nothing romantic about war. Azincourt is a tale of mud, blood and dysentery wrapped up in the bowel emptying fear of trying fight in full plate armour in a ploughed field.

When you combine Cornwell’s ability to spin a yarn with his passion for his subject it’s hard to go wrong. The tale cracks along at a good pace and it has that un-putdown-able characteristic of all great yarns.

My one regret is that Cornwell hasn’t covered any more of this period (yet).

Cornwell’s writing can seem formulaic when he pens a longer series, but in the stand-alone Azincourt I’ve found something I enjoyed just as much as when I first picked up a copy of Sharpe’s Rifles over a decade ago.

BATTLE REPORT:

If you go into the woods today…

ISAAC ALEXANDER (EMPIRE) vs CHRIS FITZSIMMONS (WOOD Elves) Unless you’ve been living under a rock recently (metaphorically or otherwise), you’ll no doubt be aware that Warhammer 8th edition has just been released to the masses. New toy syndrome has every gamer’s eyes a-feverish and their hearts a-hammering; excitement is crackling in the air (or is that the sorcery?), and anyone who’s anyone is jumping out of their skin to give this new game thingy a spin.

So we thought we would!

Using a very complicated selection process (involving mystery, names and a hat) two members of the Unseen Lerker team were released from their holding cells and allowed out into the sunlight to play the game for this issue’s battle report. Chris Fitzsimmons was given command of the Wood Elf army, since he’s played them for so long we’re not sure he knows how to play anything else. His opponent on the other hand, the infamous Isaac Alexander, was deemed too dim-witted to competently command anything short of a bogstandard Empire army.

2400 points seemed to be a good sized game for our capable report-monkeys to play, and should make the maths a bit easier when it came to divvying up percentages and whatnot. Rolling to see what kind of game would be played, the combatants were gifted with the final scenario from the new rulebook – The Watchtower. (Details can be found opposite.)

Disclaimer: At the time of this report being played the promised army-specific FAQ documents have not been released.

As a result there may be things in the report which may seem incorrect in light of the new erratas. Any other mistakes are due to pure incompetence from the participants, and all blame should be directed at them.

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Scenario outline The scenario is much like a normal game of Warhammer, with the key difference being that the only way to win is to control the objective at the end of the game, by being inside (or nearest to) the settlement when the random game length says “stop!” (which it can do from the end of turn 4 onwards). This means that victory points are completely irrelevant, and can lead to players doing some rather odd things!

The Watchtower scenario is fairly simple. There’s a watchtower, y’see, and both sides want it. Told you it was simple. Unfortunately we didn’t have a watchtower, so instead we settled for a small group of low buildings, situated deep in a sinister forest… The Empire Arch Lector has clearly heard of some religious bauble in the village that he wants to get his hands on, and decides to seek out the treasure with his faithful posse. The Wood Elves, hostile at the best of times, sally forth to repel the foul invaders and drive them from their sacred grounds.

* insert blank battlefield map / photo * A

D

A – Hill with scree slope Pretty much a regular hill, but one side counts as Dangerous Terrain unless you walk very slowly over it.

E

B – Misty Marsh Very Dangerous Terrain. In addition models must take Initiative tests while in it or risk being lost in the mist.

C – Sinister Statue Which shoots laser beams from its FREAKING EYES if you approach within 6”.

C

F B

D

D – Mysterious Forest No one knows just how mysterious until you walk in…

E – Mystic Magic Circle Allows wizards inside it to channel up to four times instead of one, with an added risk of their brain leaking out their ears.

A

F – Large Impressive Obelisk Yep, it’s a rock. Don’t try to climb it.

Deployment

MAGIC ‘Oh I’m a lumberjack and I’m okay…’

Spellweaver

Wardancers

Arch Lector

Spearmen

Pistoliers

Noble

Treekin

Wizard

Free Company

Outriders

Noble

Wild Riders

Captain

Handgunners

Great Cannon

Glade Guard

Treeman

Swordsmen

Crossbowmen

Helblaster Volley

Dryads

Waywatchers

Halberdiers

Knights

Empire:

Wood Elves

Empire Wizard (Lore of Fire): Fireball, Flaming Sword of Rhuin

Wood Elf Spellweaver (Lore of Life): Awakening of the Wood, Flesh To Stone, Throne of Vines, Regrowth

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‘Oh I’m a lumberjack and I’m okay…’

Bobo: I’ve got to say, I was somewhat nervous about playing this game. Not because I was afraid of being defeated and embarrassed in print – I’ve been subjected to far worse humiliation for losing before (on one notable occasion I was forced to wear a full-body rabbit suit for an entire weekend). No, the reason for my trepidation is that I haven’t been massively excited about the new 8th edition game like everyone else on the planet. My background is in chess, so the secure reliability that has been inherent in the previous editions of the game feels like safe turf to me. I was just getting good at it, honest. The new edition seems, to me at least, to be shifting towards a completely different kind of game, with Mega spells, Mega units, Mega combats, and of course a Mega book to go with it. Welcome to MegaHammer!

Empire is an army that I traditionally have very little experience using, but after reading through the new rules and having a good ponder about what I want out of the new edition, I think they are the army for me. Simply, I just love the sheer amount of units they can put on the table.

And so my list began. I was constrained somewhat to using the collection of models we had available, but there was enough variety that I really didn’t mind. 20 Spearmen, 20 Halberdiers, 20 Swordsmen, and 10 of each missile unit started me out nicely. Added to this came the powerful strike force of two units of 10 Knights, with a couple of cheeky magic banners to try and catch Fitz out. Since I had the models available to me, I simply couldn’t resist adding in a unit of 40 Free Company for a mere 200 points. The idea just seemed too hilarious (though I did resist adding a Warrior Priest to give them re-rolls on their 40-odd attacks) to pass up, but also gave us a chance to see the new Horde rules in action – I certainly wasn’t expecting Fitz to bring a 10-wide unit of anything!

Backing up my formidable wall of troops I had two Great Cannons and a Helblaster, as well as both varieties of fast cavalry to nip about the place and steal people’s wallets. I would have loved a Mortar (since, frankly, they are awesome!), but again was limited by the models I had.

Finally I had to have some characters to lead my bunch of barely qualified rabble. Battle Standard Bearers now allow re-rolls of any and all Leadership tests, and I think it will

be a very rare army indeed that doesn’t include one. I gave mine a magic sword and some decent armour to make sure he didn’t get his limbs torn off straight away, which I fully expected Fitz to be attempting – I know I would be!

With the changes to the magic system now I was having a hard time seeing past just taking a single cheap wizard and chucking Mega fistfuls at a particularly destructive spell.

A level 2 wizard fitted the bill nicely, and even though I think there are better items I decided to equip him with the Feedback Scroll, a neat little gimmick which could well explode Fitz’s wizard if he got greedy with his casting.

Finally to round out the army I went for the ever-popular Arch Lector on War Altar. Not as useful now without the godly Cleansing Flare spell, I still felt like the model filled an essential hole in the army and would give Fitz another combat unit to worry about.

After we rolled the scenario I began to formulate a plan.

An evil plan. The day before we’d played a practice game using a different scenario (the diagonal one). My army had been horribly disjointed and Fitz had run me over like an unfortunate piece of roadkill. This time though I was much more comfortable. My army could set up in its patented cluster, with the war machines entrenched behind and the cavalry holding the tricksy elves at bay on the flanks. My cunning plan involved shoving 40 Free Company into the building and seeing what Fitz could do about it – with Stubborn, a re-roll, only one unit able to attack them at a time, and only one model needed to hold the objective at the end of the game I was fairly confident that they could stand there taking punishment for almost the entire game. Meanwhile the rest of my army would be tasked with holding the Wood Elves at bay (especially the horrid Treekin). Seeing as none of my men were worth victory points I could sense a few glorious sacrifices coming on – Mega sacrifices, come to think of it!

Bobo’s Empire 2399 pts Arch Lector – 294 War Altar, heavy armour, shield, Giant Blade Wizard – 150 Level 2, Feedback Scroll (Lore of Fire) Captain – 125 Battle Standard, Sword of Might, Armour of Meteoric Iron 20 Swordsmen – 145 Full command

10 Handgunners – 85 Musician 10 Crossbowmen – 85 Musician 10 Knights – 280 Full command, Banner of Eternal Flame 10 Knights – 290 Full command, Steel Standard 5 Pistoliers – 90

20 Halberdiers – 120 Full command

5 Outriders – 105

20 Spearmen – 120 Full command

Great Cannon – 100

40 Free Company – 200 Rocks, sticks and body odour

Great Cannon – 100

Helblaster Volley – 110 Gun

Unseen Lerker

‘Treekin, you say? I’ll take six.’

Fitz: Whilst I’ve now had a chance to read through the 8th edition rules several times, it’s still very unfamiliar territory, so to avoid making a complete fool of myself in this game I’d decided not to stray too far from my regular Wood Elf list. Stick to what you know and all that.

For me the biggest changes to the game are those made in the Magic and Close Combat phases. It is here therefore, that my list has been tweaked the most. Also playing at 2400 points meant I had another 150 or so to spend on what I’m used to with a tournament list, which was nice!

Magic changes or not, a level 4 wizard is never a bad place to start for a Wood Elf army. We were totally unsure of how the lore Athel Loren would be affected by the FAQs and, having looked through the new look lores, it’s pretty clear that Life is one of the stand outs. Its ability to buff units, deal some nasty damage and even heal or regrow models is pretty tasty when combined with the multi-wound creatures such as Treemen and Treekin that the Woodies have access to. My head honcho girl would carry a Dispel Scroll – never leave home without one, as my mum always used to say (though I have a feeling she wasn’t referring to Dispel Scrolls at the time).

The second character I chose is a new take on the ‘standard’ Alter Noble build, beloved of 7th edition Wood Elf generals. However, great weapons on lone characters are now accidents waiting to happen, so a quick change of kit saw him pick up an additional hand weapon, the Potion of Strength and the Helm of the Hunt for a total of six strength seven attacks, some serious one turn damage.

The Battle Standard Bearer, with quite a traditional item combination, is even more important now, given the fact you can re-roll all failed Leadership checks rather than just break tests, meaning my archers would stick around longer in a shooting fight. Also, thanks to the Hail of Doom Arrow, I was extremely likely to win that shooting fight.

FITZ’S WOOD Elves 2399pts Spellweaver – 295 Level 4, Dispel Scroll, Potion of Toughness (Lore of Life) Noble – 132 Battle Standard, light armour, Asyendi’s Bane, Hail of Doom Arrow Noble – 148 Alter Kindred, extra hand weapon, light armour, shield, Helm of the Hunt, Potion of Strength 10 Glade Guard – 126 Musician

10 Glade Guard – 126 Musician 10 Glade Guard – 126 Musician 10 Dryads – 120 10 Dryads – 120 5 Wardancers - 90 6 Treekin – 390 10 Wild Riders – 321 Full command, War Banner Treeman – 285 5 Waywatchers – 120

My Core choices haven’t changed much at all. 30 Glade Guard in units of 10 have got even better now they can rank up five wide and still all shoot, making it easy as pie to focus on targets for sustained fire. Mmm, pie… When I first read the rules for Skirmishers it felt like Dryads had taken a bit of a hit, as I wouldn’t be able to make use of them in their usual role as a missile screen for the Glade Guard. However, in my practice game the day before, with their role as cannon fodder relinquished, I actually found myself using them for something more fun: killing stuff!

Ten dryads in two loose ranks of five deliver some serious punch for their points!

Now, the Specials - this is where the biggest changes came into the list. Wardancers have always been a staple of the Wood Elf list, filling a variety of roles in the army.

However, I’m not sure if they will remain prominent in people’s lists. They’re even more fragile now, robbed of their covering terrain and screening Dryad friends. They’re also a lot less flexible in terms of movement. After dithering a bit I still took five of the buggers, mainly because they were cheap and provided a nice Immune to Psych bunker for me to fire the Hail of Doom Arrow from.

Treekin on the other hand are one of the big winners in 8th, in my opinion. Of the new Monstrous Infantry class they are the only ones with Toughness 5. With a unit of six combined with the Lore of Life, I was convinced they were going to be nails. I was pretty happy I could shove them in front of Bobo and cause him a headache, especially when combined with my next choice, their big brother the Treeman. When I saw the scenario I knew the Treekin needed to be the ones to go for the building.

Nothing else in my army was resilient enough to hold out and win the game.

To round out the list I had five Waywatchers – who are even cooler now that they can march and shoot – and a unit of 10 Wild Riders. In 8th edition the second rank of Riders can fight, giving me 11 strength 5 attacks on the charge. A unit of 10 might seem excessive, but in the practice the day before they’d impressed me by making big holes in a unit of Empire Knights, so they got to stay.

Now, what’s my line? Oh yeah – get out of my forest!

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Turn 1 The scenario dictated that the Empire should go first, and Bobo launched into his first movement phase with an odd sense of glee. The central infantry made it their mission to get clear of the forest as soon as possible, since it turned out to be the kind of forest that likes to eat people. Meanwhile the Knights advanced in unison, careful not get overextended from the rest of the line.

The Empire fast cavalry, meanwhile, had made good use of their Vanguard special rule and advanced into position to fire upon the enemy Wild Riders and Alter Noble, respectively. Unfortunately for Bobo he completely forgot about the rules for the Sinister Statue, which turned its bale gaze on the Outriders and killed two of their number at the beginning of the turn!

Fitz: “You’re a twit.”

Bobo: “Yes. Yes I am.”

Magic kicked off with the Empire wizard failing to channel despite the aid of the magic circle. The Arch Lector’s re-roll spell was dispelled, but the wizard then cast what Bobo called the ‘Super Mega Fire Ball’ with Irresistible Force, inflicting four wounds to the Treekin.

The Out of Control miscast result then killed five of the wizard’s Handgunner bodyguard, but they remain fast. Shooting saw both Great Cannons home in on the Treeman. With no more range guessing they both managed direct hits, but Fitz made both 5+ ward saves!

A similar story followed elsewhere, with the Pistoliers failing to kill the Alter despite him only saving on 6s, and the Outriders and Crossbowmen only killing two Wild Riders.

Fitz responded in true elf fashion, darting into the (Poisoned) woods with the Dryads, advancing up the centre with the Treeman and Treekin (who remained very careful not to slip on the scree slope), bombing the Alter forward, and preparing to open up with his archers. At the start of the turn the Sinister Statue once again shot laser beams at the Outriders, wiping them out and causing Bobo to grumble about old age and forgetfulness. Fitz’s magic opened up with the ever useful Throne of Vines spell, protecting him against future miscasts and boosting the effects of his remaining spells. With too few dice to stop it, Bobo let it through.

This was then followed by a Flesh To Stone spell on the nearest Dryads, making them Toughness 8!

Unseen Lerker

Shooting was brutal, with the Hail of Doom Arrow completely wiping out the Pistoliers, two Knights being shot out of their saddles by the Waywatchers, four Crossbowmen being killed by the Glade Guard, and five

Halberdiers scythed down as well. Thanks to the Arch Lector’s extended Leadership range and re-rolls from the Battle Standard, the required panic tests were passed‌

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Turn 2 Nervous now, Bobo’s advance faltered. The Knights west flank Knights backed off from the Treeman, while the infantry held back in the middle, waiting for the Cannons to do their dirty work. The Battle Standard shifted to the Spearmen, since the Halberdiers were the prime exception to the rule and were shoved forward to see what the enemy would do.

Magic was less spectacular this turn, with the Fire Wizard being quelled by Fitz’s dispel dice and Scroll.

The target of his spells, the Wardancers, barely had time to relax though, as both Cannons opened up on them.

The first shot smashed straight through their line, killing three. The second artillery piece then honed in on the Spellweaver – now bereft of a Look Out, Mam! roll – but the cannonball rolled to a gentle stop at her feet.

Nearby, a Wardancer fainted. On the opposite flank the Crossbowmen desperately tried to bring down the Wild Riders, but the ward saves again came up trumps and they were unharmed. Things did not bode well for the Empire on that flank.

To emphasise their failure, the Wild Riders galloped headlong towards the Crossbowmen with the obvious intent of charging them next turn. The Dryads, on the other hand, didn’t even need to wait, and leapt at the Halberdiers with ravenous intent. The Wood Elf characters decided that the Wardancers were no longer a safe haven, with the Battle Standard Bearer sprinting

back to the archers and the Spellweaver adopting a better central position to continue supporting her army with spells. Magic dominance once more lay with the Wood Elves, with the Dryads again being Flesh To Stone’d. This had the added bonus of healing a wound on the Treekin, thanks to the Life lore’s innate ability.

Shooting saw the Alter Noble notch and release, knocking a Handgunner clean off his feet. Several Spearmen also met the business ends of the Glade Guard’s arrows, while another Knight was killed by the Waywatchers.

Unseen Lerker

In combat, the Dryads went absolutely bonkers, killing eight Halberdiers with their ten attacks and suffering no losses in return. Unsurprisingly the humans broke, with the Dryads giving chase and cutting them down as they went. Their pursuit fell 1� short of the Empire Captain’s Spearmen, but it did have the effect of panicking the massive unit of Free Company despite their Ld9 and re-roll. The peasants fled, passing through the Helblaster and Knights and finishing their move on the hill. As they fled, over half their unit passed over the scree slope, where five unfortunates slipped and were trampled by their friends’ haste.

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Turn 3 With much gusto (and a little swaggering) the Spearmen charged into the victorious Dryads, determined to avenge the Halberdiers. Elsewhere, the Knights decided that the Treeman was getting a little too close for comfort and, spying an opportunity to sneak around him, declared a charge against the Waywatches. Fitz managed to resist the urge of more shooty killing blow goodness and fled, but the Knights managed to roll significantly high on their charge distance and thundered into the Dryads beyond.

In combat the Captain’s Spearmen did an absolute number on the Dryads, winning the combat by five and routing the survivors, killing them as they fled. The other combat also proved favourable for the Empire, with the Knights making all their armour saves against the other Dryads and also winning the combat by five.

Their pursuit cut down not only the Dryads, but also the Waywatchers who had fled earlier, and then went even further to barrel into the Glade Guard on the hill.

From one deployment zone to the other – crikey!

With the Alter Noble closing in on the Cannons, Bobo reformed his Handgunners to interpose themselves between the two. The Battle Wizard, on the other hand, had bigger fish to fry. Passing his Leadership test, he marched out beside the Alter Noble then spun to face across the battlefield, spying his Wood Elf counterpart cowering behind the Treekin.

Scrambling to retaliate, Fitz launched the Treeman at the Helblaster, which had been firing ineffectually at the monster for two turns. It fell just short, however, and the crew could breathe a sigh of relief. The Wood Elves also performed the extremely desperate manoeuvre of sending the BSB’s archers into the flank of the already engaged Knights. ‘In a normal game,’ explained Fitz, ‘I would never do something like that. But when nothing is worth points it’s worth trying!’ The Wild Riders also pounced on the Crossbowmen, annihilating them in short order and using their new combat reform manoeuvre to turn and face the rear of the Free Company. The other combat fared less well, with the Knights easily withstanding the multitude of lowstrength attacks and lancing half a dozen Glade Guard in return. This was enough to see off both units, with the Knights pursuing and running down the flanking unit and claiming the enemy Battle Standard.

The Spellweaver hurriedly chugged her Potion of Toughness, readying herself for the oncoming onslaught.

However, a failed dispel attempt and 17 Fireball hits later, the she-elf was little more than a blackened husk.

No amount of Life magic was bringing that back!

Bobo: “Mega wins again!”

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Turn 4 The Free Company, severely depleted but rallied and ready for action, launched themselves at the Treeman.

Like their target though they failed to roll high enough to make the distance, instead losing another handful of men on the scree slope. Oops.

Bobo now had a very difficult decision to make. At the end of this turn there was a one-in-six chance that the game would finish, and with the Treekin currently in the building this would mean the Wood Elves won. He had two options: charge the building with the Captain’s Spearmen and try to push the Treekin out through force of arms, or take the riskier option and instead fire both Cannons at the building, hoping to wipe the Treekin out that way.

Fitz: “Are you a man or a mouse?”

Easily baited by his opponent’s jibes, Bobo declared the charge.

Magic this turn was quite crucial. It was unlikely that the Spearmen would beat the Treekin in a fair fight, so the Empire desperately needed to cast either the Flaming Swords of Rhuin or one of the other Augment spells from the War Altar’s Lore of Light. The dice pool only generated six dice for the Empire to play around with though and, taking a gamble, the Wizard threw all six at Flaming Swords. The casting total was pitiful and the Wood Elves easily dispelled it despite only having four dice. The Spearmen now had their work cut out for them…

They weren’t the only ones under pressure, however.

The Alter Noble had failed his Leadership test to march around the Handgunners, so had simply sidestepped them instead to line up on the Cannons. There were only four Handgunners left, and they needed to bring down the Alter this turn if they were going to save their artillery. Four hits and three wounds later and the Wood Elf Noble discovered that armour made of bark was a sub-optimal choice, no matter how trendy his lady friends thought it looked.

The war machines then opened up on the Treeman, since he seemed to be asking for it. The Helblaster, now at point blank range, misfired its first barrel and rolled a dud. It then misfired its second barrel and rolled the ‘Fhoom!’ result, expelling 20 shots onto the Treeman

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and then exploding! Only one wound got through the creature’s tough hide and ward save. This spectacular failure was compounded when both Cannons thundered, striking the monster cleanly, but then both rolled 1s to wound!

The charge of the Spearmen was even more brutal than expected. Striking simultaneously, the humans and treethings showed no mercy, hewing into one another with unrelenting violence. Unfortunately for the Empire the sheer difference between the statlines involved meant that they lost eight of their number, with the Treekin chuckling throatily as they suffered no damage in return.

The Spearmen stepped back from the assault, shaken (not stirred).

The Wood Elves could do little to retaliate. The Wild Riders charged the rear of the Free Company, but another pitiful charge distance (2,2,1) saw them fall well short. Another rank of the peasants was culled, however, in the face of a Strangleroot and the arrows from the remaining Glade Guard. The Treekin remained dug in in their hideout; after all, they had no reason to leave – they were winning the game!

Then came the all important roll… On the roll of a 6 the Wood Elves would retain the building and win the scenario. Fitz arced the dice high in the air, and it cascaded down the table’s length. It rolled, and rolled, and finally flipped onto a…..5! The game was still on!

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Turn 5 With the game at its climax, it was all or nothing.

The Knights in the Wood Elves’ deployment zone had reformed, and thanks to the new ‘true’ line of sight rules could see over the hill and charge the rallied Glade Guard. One horse snapped a leg along the way, but that didn’t stop the survivors shish-kebabing the unarmoured elves.

Seeing the Treeman exposed, and itching for a fight after being held in reserve all game, the Arch Lector cranked his vehicle into gear and sped toward the creature’s flank.

The Free Company finally found the momentum to charge in as well. Nearby, the remaining Empire units swarmed around the building. After last turn’s disastrous charge Bobo had chosen the coward’s option this time, preparing to fire on the building with his war machines.

Magic brought a total of 12 casting dice this turn. The first six of these were expended on a Soulfire from the Archlector, which crippled the Treeman with four wounds, leaving him on only one remaining! The Fire wizard looked around, wondering what to blast. There were no Wood Elves left. The remaining dice were used to allow the Archlector some re-rolls, but Fitz dispelled it.

The first Cannon opened up, but two very enthusiastic artillery dice rolls meant it overshot the building by miles. The second Cannon, however, scored a direct hit.

Templates (like a cannonball) inflict D6 hits against a building. 4, in this case. The building’s walls exploded inward as the cannonball struck home, lacerating the Treekin within. Each of the four hits still inflicts D6 wounds, which left three very dead Treekin and a very large hole in the side of the cottage.

Eager to see who was closest now that the Treekin were eradicated, the players got out their tape measures. It was….the Treeman?!

The War Altar impacted into the side of the beast with venerable force, inflicting two wounds. One of these made it through the armour, and when Fitz failed the ward save as well the monster came crashing down, annihilating half of the nearby kitchen (cutlery and dishwashing liquid flew everywhere).

Fitz’s Wild Riders thundered into the rear of the Free Company, trampling almost a dozen peasants beneath their flailing hooves and stabbing spears, but they held firm. The remaining Glade Guard in the far corner could do little other than shout encouragement.

Fitz again rolled the Dice of Fate, this time needing only a 5+ to end the game. The dice once more produced a 5, and the battle was over.

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A

Result: Win to the Empire!

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AFTER BATTLE THOUGHTS Bobo: Phew, that was intense!

Despite making the stupid decision to charge the Treekin in turn 4, I was pleased to get away with a win here. It would have been galling to kill most of Fitz’s army only to have three lousy Treekin baking cookies in the house and declaring themselves the victors!

I am still reeling at the stupidity of putting my Outriders next to the laser statue. Ugh. Apart from them, and the utter failure of the Halberdiers when confronted by a mere harem of Dryads, I was very pleased with how my units performed. The War Altar was, in retrospect, perhaps played too reservedly. In fact, looking back at it now, I wonder if just throwing all my units across the table would have led to a better or worse result. I really love playing scenarios where there are no victory points involved – it totally changes the players’ mentalities and makes them do things that you would normally never see.

One of my favourite things about the new edition is the total zaniness (I’m pretty sure that’s a word) of the magic phase. There’s nothing quite like chucking six dice at a spell and cackling as you roast a unit from 48” inches away. The random amount of dice generated makes it a strange one to try and get your head around too, and I quite like the fact that it somewhat discourages loads of wizards like the previous editions have promoted.

Random charge ranges and true line of sight are the two biggest things I’m going to need to get used to. I am used to playing very ‘clinical’ Warhammer, so these two elements feel very subjective and random and really do change to game into something completely different for me. I’m unsure whether or not I actually like these changes yet, but I will say that they can lead to some very random and weird situations.

I was quite happy with my deployment (apart from the Outrider thing, which we shall never speak of again), and thought I managed to mitigate the effects of the terrain quite well. With a large infantry-based army like mine you do have to consider where your army is going to end up as the game progresses, and despite only one unit of Knights making it across the field in the end I was pleased that my battleline stayed fairly intact (pretty much the opposite of the practice game we had, which can only be described as Carnage City).

I’m looking forward to testing out some different unit combinations with this army – starting with Mortars and Rocket Batteries! I already have a friend trying to talk me into taking 100 Greatswords in an army, but I think I’ll be able to resist that urge for at least a little while longer. My favourite unit in the army is probably the Pistoliers, despite them not even making it into turn 2. They are super fast and flexible, and with the longer range on pistols now are going to be even more annoying. Let’s just watch out for rampant laser beams, eh?

Fitz: Bah, how close was that?! As I feared all along it was the cannons that finally did for me. Bobo was nervous about my Treekin getting into the objective from the start, but Cannons have always been bad news for multiwound monsters in buildings. The fact that they can now see through woods and shoot whenever they want in the shooting phase makes them really tough to deal with. So, what went wrong?

Well, my original plan was to try to deal with the cannons early, however it became clear that Bobo would outdeploy me, meaning he’d get to place his cannons after I’d finished deploying my whole army. I’d intended to rush them with the Alter Noble and the Wild Riders but when that wasn’t possible I couldn’t see a good solution. The new war machine rules actually make them a lot easier to kill through shooting, since you don’t have to randomise onto the crew, but they were in deep enough that I was never going to get a good chance to shoot them – at least, not without advancing my archers across the field!

Elsewhere, losing my Spellweaver was also pretty massive. I was hoping that the Potion would protect her for that one turn, luring the enemy wizard out to where I could shoot him, but alas. Magic is now incredibly brutal, and having no defence is just a recipe for a unit a turn to be bashed up with a powerful spell. I think she’ll be toting a ward save of some sort in the future as well. That’s not a big problem though as she’ll not be able to spend as many points on additional Arcane items anyway.

I feel like I wasted my Wild Riders a bit, especially compared to the practice game. Once the laser statue of doom (!) had seen off the Outriders I had free reign on that flank, but was too timid. I could have cleaned up the Crossbowmen in a turn and swung round to go after the war machines or the rest of his infantry. Instead I dithered.

At the other end of the spectrum, the Dryads who jumped out of the forest and ran off two whole units were fantastic!

The Free Company were going to be a problem, loitering outside the building from turn 1 as they were. Similarly, Stubborn Skirmishers in forests is going to be a real pain for people, and I think it’ll be something that my fellow Wood Elf players will learn to love.

Combat in 8th edition is really brutal, and I think the whole setup really encourages aggressive play very well.

Gone are the days when I’ll be able to hide 800 points of characters and Treeman in woods. They’ll just get cannoned and magicked to pieces now. The safest place to be now is combat (unless you’re an Empire Spearman, that is!). Rank bonus being calculated after casualties are removed is also massive. I’d happily toss 10 dryads into the front of most core troops in 8th, with the exception of Chaos Warriors, and perhaps Dwarves. Against Elves, humans, orcs and other squishy or poorly armoured things they will cause havoc with I6.

Overall, I think the Wood Elves have come out of 8th fairly intact. Gone are the days of skulking at the back of the table, but as far as I’m concerned, that’s not a terrible thing.

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Reader’s Rant

Stupid Plastic Men

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Jane Doe

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Feel the power. rants@unseenlerker.com

After months of negotiations over which army is to be purchased next, and how much of the household budget will be spent on which points, I have finally given up! I thought that SPMs (Stupid Plastic Men as I call them) will be a passing phase for my husband; hoping that days spent trimming, gluing, greenstuffing, and endless hours painting would be enough to discourage even the most avid collector. It could not be further from the truth – it seems the world is full of these seemingly ‘normal’ males who congregate in front of the ‘hobby’ tables.

I can just see it: tongues slightly at the corner of the mouth, full of concentration, considering if layer number 32 should be enough to bring that shine to a particular object invisible to the naked eye. And should two or more of the Michelangelos get together – the discussion on the subject would inspire any Fine Art sutdent to dedicate their PhD to it.

I can also guarantee that any wife, partner or poor soul associated with these hobbyists would agree with me that SPMs have an innate ability to multiply. Without being too intimately associated with the game, I can tell you that a 1500 point army does not come in 25 different boxes (which, by the way, keep hiding in some odd areas of the house). It seems that they like to breed in private only to come out of the darkness to the endless sound of clipping.

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And so my sisters-in-arms, if you happen to find a copy of this magazine where few pages have been Plastic Glued together, you will sympathise with me when I tell you how hard it is to compete with “the hobby”. Take for instance trying to communicate with the above-mentioned one when he is in the midst of deciphering the finer points of Turn 3 in the Tomb Kings and Orcs & Goblins battle report. Last time I did that, the children were left at school for an unplanned two hours, the cat had a new set of dentures made and grandma was taken to the vet (I will not enlighten you with the details of that last stuff-up).

Of course, having hoards of plastic, huge ranges of paints with names any demon would approve of and tools and accessories to make a dentist proud is not enough when you collect SPMs. A complimentary selection of podcasts, websites and chats is enough to make any gamer go weak at the knees; where every detail of the last battle or paint scheme is thrown to the forum for either approval, dismissal or at least some sort of discussion. It is therefore that I propose a similar support group for SPM widows – with no-holdsbarred stories, testimonials and maybe even pictures.

(Editor’s note:We are in no way encouraging readers to send in photos of their wives, regardless of how lovely they might be.)

THE TEST DUMMIES Shuuro

Producer: River Horse Games No. of players: 2+ Type of game: strategy board game “Shuuro is the core of a new system of abstract war gaming, which merges the precision and rigour of chess with the creativity and variety of wargaming.

Differently from traditional chess, you are not forced to field a given set of pieces on the board, but can choose which pieces to field, based on your skill and tactical preferences. The innovative gaming board features terrain elements that change position every time you play, so that each game introduces a different challenge.”

--River Horse Games, creator of Shuuro

Dummy #1: Greg Dann Greg: I’ve spent a few days trying to work out why Shuuro will probably not be on my list of board games to buy. I was struggling to pin point the specific reason when all of a sudden it came to me – well, actually, they both did.

Firstly there is no emotional connection – no ‘fluff ’, no story – and I was amazed at how much this affects my gaming experience, from the overriding reasons for battle to the individual moments in a game.

The second reason is the lack of random element.

There are no dice or card mechanics involved in chess and I have only just realised exactly how much I enjoy this aspect of gaming. We all complain about those moments when the dice screw you over, but those are also the crowning moments that we remember and talk about for years to come.

These two crucial aspect that chess lacks are, admittedly, exactly what appeals to most chess players.

It’s a pure game, with one mind against another, no luck involved to skew the outcome, and Shuuro retains all of that. The larger board does take some getting used to as you can find yourself focusing on area only to miss the blindingly obvious in another but this is simply one more tactical challenge for the players to overcome.

Given all this, I think a fair question is will chess players enjoy Shuuro? And I think yes, they will. The board size, terrain and army selection don’t detract

from the basics of chess. The terrain works as a way not only to balance the knights against the other faster pieces but allows the player to use them as protection or to lay traps, another tactical ‘layer’ if you will.

The army selection allows the player to tailor his/ her force and develop different play styles, in our first game Dan chose to go elite with 3 queens that took up over a 3rd of his points in just those pieces while I chose to fill up on knights, bishops and rooks with a strong wall of pawns in front. This allowed me to crowd out Dan and meant any trade off in pieces was going to be in my favour, as we are both mediocre chess players this gave me a huge advantage but I can see a good player being able to compete using an ‘elite’ force.

Riverhorse have the next generation planned called Turanga which allows 2-on-2 games and there is talk of variations in terrain to suit other pieces and multiple players. All of this shows commitment and indicates long-term plans, which bodes well, and it will be interesting to see what other ideas come out from these guys.

The gamers I have talked to that play chess are excited about Shuuro and rightly so in my opinion.

It certainly fits into a hole in the market, but your enjoyment will certainly be based on your enjoyment of (and ability to play) chess. Personally I can’t play chess to save myself, so it will not be making it onto my shelves. This is through no fault of the game itself and I can see many people enjoying Shuuro, so if it sounds like your thing I definitely recommend giving it a whirl.

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Thanks to Unseen Lerker and the Test Dummies we will be giving away a full set of the Shuuro board game – to one lucky subscriber! The winner will be announced in the next issue of Unseen Lerker, so subscribe today for your chance to win!

Alessio Cavatore is one of the instrumental individuals behind the Shuuro board game. In Issue 5 we catch

up with him for a one on one chat about life, love and the pursuit of victory.

Dummy #2: Dan Comeau Dan: I’ll get right to the point on this one. Shuuro is chess. It’s quite a radical variation on the traditional game, but at its heart it is still a game of chess. Now this is not necessarily a bad thing as this game combines very flexible wargaming elements with the rigid tactics and moves of chess.

So, what’s in the box? Firstly is the board, good thick card stock and good quality graphics. Due to the requirements of the game the board is 12x12 squares, but a nice little touch is a standard 8x8 chess board on the reverse. Each player gets a massive bag of chess pieces in red or blue. I was a little disappointed these were plastic and not wooden, but they are adequate for the job. And there are several blocks of “terrain”. These are brown plastic cubes, and I was very disappointed with the quality – they feel very thin and cheap and the colour just looks wrong! Alongside this you get a couple of dice, and a thin rulebook which is pretty good for picking up the game.

So, I said Shuuro was like chess. And it is. But it isn’t. Wait, let me explain. The first step of playing a game of Shuuro is to write your army list – a ritual all wargamers will be familiar with. You agree a set amount of points with your opponent (usually 800pts or so) and each playing piece is worth a certain amount of points. In addition there are set limits on how many of each piece you can have, i.e. no more than three queens. Next, you randomly place the terrain blocks (which block all movement, except for knights who ignore them completely). And then you play!

I am not a big chess player, and I found this game even more difficult to get my head around. For my first game of Shuuro I decided to go “elite heavy” and take multiple queens and knights, but I really struggled during the game. Greg took more of a “horde” list and was able to outmanoeuvre me significantly. Like most wargames, list structure takes an important role, and ensuring you have a good balance is key.

I like the added mechanic of the “terrain” as this ensures that the more manoeuvrable pieces do not dominate the game, however the random element of terrain placement can cause problems, particularly if you end up with terrain blocking pieces within your own deployment.

The size of the board really changes the way the game plays as it is larger than the usual size and if you are used to playing chess on an 8x8 board, the larger size can really throw you out.

I think that the game is fairly good value for money, the RRP is £35.00 and you get enough playing pieces for most combinations.

Overall, I would say if you are a big chess fan and lover of wargames (which you must be, reading this magazine) then this is a must buy. Like chess, the amount of tactics and forward thinking required makes this a game you need to concentrate on, even more so when factoring the changes made to the standard chess rules. In addition, the flexibility in the “list building” process means that there is a good variation in the game and significant replay value.

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Coming Soon…

Don’t forget to check out Unseen Lerker Issue 5, which will contain…

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MORE DESIREABLE THAN A STRANGER'S CANDY

ISSUE 05

AUG– SEP 2010

Jeff MacLeod’s

SENSATIONAL Dark Elves

HUGE coverage of the European Team Championships!

ALESSIO CAVATORE! MORE

Dark Side (darker still…)

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Test Dummies

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