Guess who's back?

Well it looks like I'm back guys.

Over the last few months I have been forced to focus on school and work and with the 55+ hours spent there I just didn't have the time to write down a decent article. However finals are done and I am ready to go!

I have been planning out what my next few articles and they are going to mostly focus on Khador, my main faction, and the occasion Circle piece.

Guest Article:The Juggernaut dilemma - why we love it but rarely field it

The following was written by a friend of mine and fellow Khador player: Chain_Gun for the Khador section of the PP forums. I find it is very true for Khador but also speaks towards the use of Warjacks in general. Thanks Chain_Gun for writing this up for us and I hope to hear more from you!

While most Khador players agree that the Juggernaut is a great warjack for its points, looking at most lists we see people tend to choose other warjacks for actual play. I feel that even though these cheapies give good, or even great value, when lists are compiled, it is Beast-09, the Kodiak, Torch or the Behemoth who usually see play. In this writeup I will try to explain why. While I use the Juggernaut as an example, I would like to expend the discussion to the other cheap warjacks as well, the Marauder and the Berserker.

Is there really an InfantryMachine?

Now something your gonna here quiet often is that Warmachine/Hordes should really be called Infantrymachine because of how you are gonna take infantry over Warjacks/Warbeasts. Now I will admit that this statement was extremely true in MK I but in MK II this statement is actually far from the truth. Now I admit that there are a few factions that want to take mostly infantry due to the general power level of their infantry but besides those few factions? Let's take a look and see what factions want to play the so called "InfantryMachine".

First Place: Khador/Cryx

Looking At Your Heavy Hitters

Warjacks and warbeasts are a fundamental part of the games Warmachine and Hordes. You will be hard pressed to find a list that doesn't include at least one jack or beast and most likely that will be a heavy. There are many reasons for this but the most simple of these is that jacks and beasts have the easiest time hitting and killing an enemy caster with their ability to boost either the to hit roll or the damage roll.

Now I think one of the most important things to consider when selecting a jack/beast is this: How will this compliment my army? What will it do inside of the army? As a Khador player I often times select just one Warjack because I want to run as many infantry and I select a jack that can kill both a Warcaster as well as a warjack; however when I run my Circle I select beasts for both their ability to kill as well as the animi and abilities that they bring my army. For example compare picking a Feral Warpwolf over a Woldwarden.

Privateer Press News (Yes this qualifies as an article)

So today (when I'm writing this it will be today, might be yesterday when its published) Privateer Press has announced who Khador is going to receive as their third tier caster. From the artwork above I'm sure you can tell that it is in fact Vladimir Tzepesci!

There has been much talk lately about these types of casters on the PP forums. We aren't even sure what is the name of their tier. Many have speculated they will be called "Legendary Warcasters" much like how we have "Epic Warcasters" but for now most of use are simply calling them the 3rd tier. An example being is how this is the artwork for Vlad3.

The only other confirmed Tier 3 casters are Asphyxious3 for Cryx, Lylyth3 for Legion of Everblight and Nemo3 for Cygnar.

Hope you all have an excellent weekend and enjoy your gaming.

P.S. Vlad3 is on a horse!! *squeals in excitement*

Hordes: Domination My Review

Privateer Press has finally released Domination, the first Hordes expansion book since MKII. This has also caused me to constantly pour over the book constantly trying to figure out every possible combination for each model in the book as well as determine the worth of the book overall.

I have to say that I am really pleased with Privateer Press once again. The book adds a lot to each Hordes faction with two Warlocks, a Character heavy Warbeast as well as well as each faction's new and original Battle Engine. Each faction also received a unique add-on from a unit attachment to a new unit to an additional light Warbeast. Now I will be the first to admit that there are some bad things in this book but I feel that is pretty much expected in any book.

Now let's move onto the meat of the book, shall we?

Warmachine & Hordes - Going Solo: Part 1

Solos are a part of Warmachine and Hordes that are capable of augmenting your army in a plethora of ways. Each faction has access to at least a half a dozen in-faction solos as well as Mercenary and Minion solos which they can hire.

Each faction will use their solos in a different fashion and often times it depends entirely upon the list you are making. Most list I have seen have about two or three solos but there are lists with up to six or seven used at once. Lets take a quick look at the most common solos you will see regardless of faction for Warmachine.

Focus vs Fury And How They Relate To Warmachine and Hordes

Warmachine and Hordes are two games made by Privateer Press which use the same overall format but with a few key differences. Having talked to many new players over the past few years, many ask "What is the difference between Warmachine and Hordes?" I have two answers for this. The first is simple - Warmachine is giant robots smashing stuff and Hordes is giant monsters smashing stuff. While that gives a very general answer and it's good for helping someone decide which game they find more appealing, it doesn't explain the rule differences between the two which are more in-depth. This leads us to the second answer - Warmachine uses the focus mechanic and Hordes the fury mechanic. Both of these control how their respective Warcasters and Warlocks operate, particularly with their Warjacks and Warbeasts, and can lead to very different gamestyles.

Hordes: The Factions

As I'm sure many of you noticed I wrote an article on the various factions of Warmachine and promised to write one for Hordes. Since all of the comments and reviews were positive I decided I have enough self confidence to write my follow up piece. Hordes uses the same system as Warmachine but with a few differences. Warbest use the Fury system instead of focus and have access to spells called an animus that their Warlock can use. Overall with the way the Fury system works, Hordes needs more Beasts than Warmachine needs Jacks. This is the major difference between the two but I will have a piece on Focus vs Fury as well as Warmachine vs Hordes soon. As promised here is the general overview of all of the various Hordes factions for your enjoyment.

Warmachine: The Factions

I enjoy spending my time chatting with everyone on the 3++ chat box on and several times I've noticed chatters talking about how they aren't sure what faction to pick or what each faction does as a whole. Using my amazing psychic powers I took a hint and decided writing an article about the factions and how to pick which one you like would be a good idea. (See what I did there?)

Now the first thing I always tell players when they want to start up is to go with what you like. If you look at a Cygnar Warjack and think its the coolest thing in existance then go for it. If you like the look of Khadors infantry then start up Khador. Play something you think is cool and will be proud to assemble and paint.

Theme Lists and How To Use Them - pButcher

Theme lists are in my opinion one of the most interesting aspect of the games Warmachine and Hordes. Each list is broken into tiers which offer separate benefits but require you to meet the specifications of the previous tier. Often times they have very strict requirements that are not worth the bonuses that they grant but a great many are worthwhile and even preferred because of what they offer.

Now when you are making your list and deciding if you want to use a theme list or not, you have to determine if you gain more by using the theme list or by running your warcaster/warlock as you normally would in faction. Unfortunately, most themed lists can only be made effective at 50 points or higher due to the restictions involved. Lets look at pButchers Theme list shall we?

Draxos, That New Guy

Hello guys,

My name is Draxos and I have been "brought on" by Sir Biscut. I won't mention the blackmail or anything like that. Haha. Funnily enough the afore mentioned Sir Biscut and I already knew each other when he mentioned on the PP forums that 3++ was looking for a Warmachine/Hordes writer. I shot him a message and we convinced bribed Kirby to let me on the team.

Now on to the point of my ramblings, having been brought on as an author for the Privateer Press crowds I intend on writing a plethora of articles in relation to the various factions and how they work, as well as how to use themed lists and to see if they are really worthwhile. I am of course willing to take suggestions on my articles and would love to get your guys feedback. You can reach me at my email or just leave some comments.