Scenery: The lazy bastard approach

So, I should be crediting a website that I picked this up from years and years ago but I can't remember where I got it from. I will tell you this: they took considerably more care in the design of their structures but I like the crappy look of a poorly planned out building. We are talking ruined buildings after all.

I start with an old box, box cutter, ruler/pen, masking tape, drywall joint compound, and a brew.
With minimal planning, i chop the board up and tape it all in place.
Throw some joint compound on the walls.
I do a very crapy job spray painting and call it good.
This one has been around for years.

40k Wolves Strategy: Troops

Space Wolves have two options when it comes to troops: Blood Claws and Grey Hunters. In some ways it would make sense to discuss Blood Claws first. However, I've decided to build my force around a large number of Grey Hunters and for this reason, their strengths and weaknesses shape the tactical importance of the rest of my units. Ten Grey Hunters with bolters, close combat weapons, augmented with two power fists, a rhino with smoke and extra armor costs right around 270 points. 

Playing without heavy weapons in my tactical squads has certainly simplified the game for me. I don't stop to weigh the advantages of moving forward to claim ground versus the advantages of staying still to shoot my one lascannon at the tank across the board. Additionally, I have come to appreciate the power of the common bolter. 

Grey Hunters are gifted with the ability to use bolters as close combat weapons. The trade off is that they don't receive an extra attack when they assault. Consequently, you shouldn't be surprised when a Space Wolves player sits back for the rapid fire and waits for you to assault them. When you do assault them expect some special lovin'.

Instead of heavy weapons, two marines are allowed to wield power weapons or power fists at a reduced price. It is my understanding that because the two models wielding the weapons are not special characters that they cannot necessarily be singled out by enemy attacks. If I am wrong here please leave a post and set me strait. It is possible to include a Wolf Guard Leader in these units for a third power weapon/fist but that is overkill for me.

A mass of expensive troops with no heavy weapon moving six inches per turn just hasn't worked for me (and I've tried it). Rhinos or pods are essential. I don't have experience with drop pods but they are on my Christmas list. I've seen pictures of some great looking wolf pod armies. When playing with rhinos, I like to go first, get to some cover or launch smoke first round. When the transports are gone Grey Hunters have proven to be fairly useless against a shooty army. The cheesiest (er . . . um . . . most unique) special rules in the Space Wolves codex are clearly geared toward disrupting enemy fire. We'll discuss those eventually and lets not forget the other troop choice, Blood Claws . . .

More Wolves Please

Why did I choose wolves? I have to say that from the start I've been called to chaos. With Chaos, I can lay perfectionism to the side and get messy as I paint. Wolves gave me that opportunity  with a few other perks. I can be a good guy and I have relatively fewer models to move around during games. When I say there are fewer models we all know that I mean WAAAAY fewer models than some armies. This obviously offers some challenges on the board. With no heavy weapons in tactical squads, there is hardly any point in building up a shooting base so the key to winning with fewer models would seem to be being in the right place at the right time. It is easy to figure out what the Space Wolves are not:

• Wolves are not an assault army
• Wolves are not a shooting army
• Wolves are not a lightening quick army

Like most marine forces, space wolves are a responsive army. I have a primary game plan which is to get to where I want to be and wait to be assaulted. Many armies will assault me and win. Others will never assault me and win. Space Marines win by adapting to the situation. Space Wolves have a unique set of tools for adaptation.

Banner Waving

I got my title banner up. I also found my camera and got some good pics put together to get ready for future blogs. The banner turned alright I guess. I'm gone for a debate trip this weekend but I'll get back to work Sunday or Monday.

Plans

I guess, it isn't like a 40k player to share my plans before I get a chance to flank and gank and it is too late for you to adapt but I am making an exception here. I can't find my camera so that is slowing me down.

Layout:
I have some old pictures that I'm going to mutilate in fireworks and use for a title graphic. look for that within a week.

Content:
I think I will likely incorporate pictures slowly as I discuss my opinions concerning the advantages of specific units. Of course, I'll be working on some new models in December and January.

Organization:
I have decided that blogs are a great organizational tool. I'm tempted to start keeping a seperate blog just for my army lists. Some at various point levels. List mods for mele armies and ranged armies and tourneys. I'll generate some buttons to link them together of course.

Media:
The one picture that I've thrown up so far is from my cell phone and really sad. I have a decent digital slr (that won't turn off flash in macro mode) but I seem to have misplaced it since helping my son with a "reflections project" a week ago. I also have a digital video camera but it may be a while before I'm ready to invest that much work into "teh blog."

Love is Painful

I can't say that I win any more games than I lose with my Space Wolves but I faithfully stick with them. As I will explain in future posts, mele scouts make more sense for wolves but my love for my shooty scout squad is not unfounded (I love me some double negatives). In summary, playing what I want to play regardless of tactical reasoning often leads to rediculous defeat but this is the story of how shooty scouts came to be my favorite squad.

I am just now starting to read about the strengths and weaknesses of various armies. Traditionally, I have not concerned myself. I've had plenty of situations when what I brought to the board proved to be the perfect answer to what my oponent was using. My tactical squads don't carry heavy weapons but when they bring down HQs or walkers with their power fists or drop land speeders with bolter fire, the opponent has to appreciate their strengths. My shooty scouts on the other hand, have only ever had one good game.

The scenario was simply 2v2, kill everything to win. My partner was fielding 1.5k black templar and I was fielding 1.5k wolves. Our opponents were orks and 'nids. Over the course of a couple rounds, my snipers totally worked over the big nids in the backfield. My troops stood back, fired, and then proceeded to hold their own in close combat against all assault troops. As someone who was accostomed to losing, it felt good to not only take my first victory with the space wolves but to walk away as the MVP of the game. For tactical reasons, I have started using a mele unit of scouts but I always keep my shooty scouts on stand-by.

The First Blog

First impressions are something I could be good at with a little effort. I suppose the goal here should be to let you know if you are among the people who might want to give my blog a chance. How often will I blog? What will I cover and with what expertise? And who am I, the author? Tonight, I feel wordy like a drunk on a barstool but I will aim to limit the scope of this posting to address these questions.
I could write about my professional experience. I'm a classroom teacher. I could write about myhobbies (snowboarding, computers, video games, following the NBA) but I think I will begin this blog spot as a place to share one particular hobby, Warhammer 40k.
I've been painting and modeling since my first child was an infant. Ten years ago, I began the hobby as something to do in the middle of the night because I have never been good at waking up and going back to sleep. I settled for sleep every other night while my wife was on parenting duties. On my nights to parent, I stayed up and painted. I've painted chaos, and sisters of battle armies which I no longer have. I have painted some fantasy stuff, several ogres, and several Skaven. My primary army for the past five years has been the Space Wolves.
I took wolves to the Dallas Grand Tournament several years ago. Then, I was plugged into a great group of gamers in Waco, TX. Since then, I have moved to South-east Idaho and have essentially been cut off from the game. With the recent release of new models, rule books, and codexes, I have been compelled to seek out communities and blogs online. I'm a busy guy but I will do my best to put up pics and do my part to pass on the things that I'm excited about in the game.

Thanks,
Bill