Vyros/Ossyan Combi-list

Back when the Retribution of Scyrah was brand-new and shiny, I got hooked by Vyros' background, and tried out his original tier list in a Battle Report. With Wrath, Lord Arcanist Ossyan came, and his background was also very appealing to me. So it was set that I'd get into Retribution as a secondary faction sooner or later.

But with me being prone to spending as few cash as possible, how could I play these two, basically different warcasters without creating two inherently different armies, I thought?

The answer:

Merry Christ-mas from CRL!

The crew would like - well I, Marth, do, and I think Arides'd be in too - to wish everyone reading these lines a Merry Christmas. That is all. :)

Tiers of Distinction VI - Epic Irusk can field WHAT?!

Just glanced over the current NQ (which arrives in ye olde world slightly delayed), and looked at the Tiers of Distinction article, which has so far brought us - among many others which are not relevant to me - the "Dawn's Talon" and the infamous "Hunting Wolves" alternate tiers. Now, it sports Epic Irusk. And slightly turns him into a heavy metal machine. The one thing that switched my brain to WTF?-mode was his allowance for Warjacks: Both non-character and character warjacks with at least one open fist.

Marth & the Machines #52 - Double Feature

Alright, double-feature time! Watch Gurvaldt Irusk going up against Archdomina Makeda, and then against Haley Xp. I had these matches almost half-a-year ago, when preparing for our B.A.D. tourney. Still, enjoy!

Marth & the Machines #51 - Reloaded

I finally was sick of U-Tube screwing with my video formats. After uploading my Videoresponse to VeilofDarkness000's contest from my brother's laptop (older laptop), I figured it's not to blame on the hosting site, but on the software.

So I requisited his fancy SOTA Macintosh to redo #51 - because, hey, with the second half of M&tM just having started, it's easy enough to retroactively apply a new design. And this is what came out of it, after redoing a M&tM issue from nothing (and scratch, and notes). I'm slightly quivering with fear of the next battle reports, but it'll work out. Sound is giving me more issues than graphics. A-ny-way - here's #51 again. ENJOY!

Marth & the Machines #51 - Xerxis v. Bethayne

Oops, that was a delay. Here's issue #51, another more plot-driven batrep with a narrower point of view. Enjoy!  

Marth & the Machines #50 - The Hail Mary Effect

Help Asphyxious to take victory away from the Butcher!

Marth & the Machines #49 - Zoktavir v. Doomshaper

A 25 point Mosh Pit game on the gaming day which, in time, spawned the B.A.D. tournament, pits Orsus Zoktavir, the Butcher of Khardov, against Hoarluk Doomshaper, Shaman of the Gnarls.

Marth & the Machines #48 - Alexandra Zerkova v. Victoria Haley

In this issue, the Hunting Wolves stumble into a trap laid by Cygnar! Who will emerge victoriously from this 35 point "Bait & Bludgeon" match?

"The Foundry" - WM SR-Tournament in Koblenz

Hey guys, I just came back from a SR-tournament held in Koblenz. It was 35 points, 45-min shotclock (i.e. you lose when out of time), with 6 players total. The split among factions was Khador *2, Protectorate *2, Searforge Committee and Skorne. Scenarios where, in order of play, Overrun, Destruction and Killbox. Assassination victory was NO win condition except for Killbox.

Marth & the Machines #47: Servath Reznik v. Markus "Siege" Brisbane

Ah, it's been too long, but here it finally is. As another "Beyond Enemy Lines" report, I'm actually just giving a voice to a batrep originally done by another player of our group. Enjoy!

Cooking up a scenario

Hey everyone, video updates are delayed as usual. In the meantime, Arides and me came up with an idea to a scenario, but it's not fleshed out yet. The basics are that most of the battle takes place in a (large) indoor area, and that some confined spots are your usual "out-in-the-open" areas. Yes, it does resemble the old jungle terrain rules for Catachans. We haven't gotten very far on it, so any input at this stage (via comment, for example) is appreciated and might be considered.

Oh, and the working title is "FISH" (Fighting In Someone's House) ;-D

B.A.D. #1 Redux

Okay, I'll make this quick, but there'll be a more detailed Video coming up!
B.A.D. #1 had six participants (Trollbloods, Mercenaries, Skorne, 3*Khador), and my matchups were Trollbloods, then Khador, then Mercenaries. I won with Zerkova v. Grim Angus, and lost with Irusk against Epic Sorscha as well as against Constance Blaize. Maybe I should've stuck to Zerkova in the later rounds. ;-)

We're already in the planning stages for #2, but tournament-wise, my next target is scheduled for the end of August, and happening in Koblenz. I view it mostly as a scouting mission - checking out the competitivity of the other gaming communities in the region before we open up the B.A.D. to anybody (i.e. make it non-invitational).

B.A.D. this weekend!

As stated, the first Bruhl Annihilation Days tourney is this Saturday. I've recently done some more testing, especially on the Irusk List, and applied some changes - I switched to cheaper jacks, cut down on the Ironfang Pikemen (one min unit w/ UA is left), and also got myself two Freebooter's Fate miniatures to stand in as Kayazy Eliminators. I'm certain that this 25 pt List has more potential than the Tier 2.

Marth & the Machines #46 - Base, Body & Beyond / Beast 09

In this issue of Marth and the Machines, I do another BBB coverage - on one of the best warjacks in the game, Beast 09. Enjoy!

Marth & the Machines #45: Tank Brush Commander - Iron Painter 4 & Beast 09

Iron Painter 4, "Revenge of the Robots", is long gone, but here's - finally! - our report, and some closer looks at my scheme for Beast 09. Enjoy!

Marth & the Machines #44 - Butcher v. Brisbane

Watch me with the Butcher of Khardov going up against Arides with Markus Brisbane and living to tell about it. Enjoy!

Marth & the Machines #43 - Base, Body & Beyond / Gurvaldt Irusk

I have to once again thank the guys over at Tabletopgamers for letting me use the name. It feels like I'm contributing something to a bigger series. Because this time, in M&tM, I will give you an in-depth look at one of Khador's more competitive casters - Kommandant Gurvaldt Irusk. I mean, I can't reinvent the wheel, and some of you probably know all this already, but maybe it's of help to someone - and it was a interesting experience for me which I'm about to do again. Enjoy!

BAD - First tests, first results

Anyway, today we had a first test of what lists we want to take to our BAD event (see post below). I'm still wondering as to what to take as my second list, or what that should actually cover. I'm certain to take Zerkova as one of them, and up to now, I was eyeing a Irusk Tier 2 list.

B.A.D. thing coming up!

Just for your information, our local community - which has been growing a lot lately - has decided to get a first tournament going in July!

S.C.R.A.P. - Blueprint 01

This is the first post for Secret Cygnarian Research and Accelerated Prototyping, or S.C.R.A.P. for short.

I came up with this idea because I had the feeling, that every time someone brought up something "homemade", it was like every thing for max. 12 points in total. And I found myself stuck with the same question again and again: "Have you ever tested this monstrosity or do your friends not allow it?"

So I said to myself (freely adapted from Mythbusters) "I'm not just designing these things, I putting them to the test." And the first fruit of this questionable endeavour is a character warjack based on the Stormclad, called "Project: Durandal"

Marth & the Machines #42 - Sebastian Nemo v. Sorscha Kratikoff Xp

In issue #42, watch me - armed with the forces of Cygnar under Commander Adept Nemo - go up against Khador under Forward Kommander Kratikoff. The scenario roll came up for Throwdown, and the size was 25 points. Enjoy!

Marth & the Machines #41 - Zerkova v. Garryth

Here's the forty-first instalment of M&tM, with a battle report about a tense 17 point battle between the Howling Wolves and the Retribution of Scyrah! Enjoy.

"Ambuscade" Revisited: C.R.L.'s Bait & Bludgeon (with edits!)

So I promised to the Tabletopgamers I'd test the ambuscade scenario they came up with (see earlier post), apply some tweaks of mine, and then report. This is it. The full report on Lady Z springing a trap from Victoria Haley will be in M&tM #48, but here's the technical rundown and observations. Enjoy!

Dawnlord Vyros "Dawn's Talon" Tier List

The most recent NQ held another set of "Tiers of Distinction." The one they presented for Dawnlord Vyros was particularly interesting to me. Let's face it - Retribution Tier Lists stood at the start of Mk II developments, they were the first of their kind - and you can tell it by looking at them. Here, I'm going to take a look at what I consider a revamped Vyros Tier first and foremost. Enjoy!

Warmachine - "Unorthodox Scenario Review" - Ambuscade (TableTopGamers)

I'm a sucker for good, creative, "unorthodox" scenarios. And last night, my brother and me had a go at the Ambuscade scenario from the TableTopGamers. It was... enlightening, and inspired me to give the matter some thoughts of my own.

Fear & Loathing in the 60's - my Shadowrun P&P games #01

Heya readers,

as I probably indicated, CRL isn't restricted to tabletop gaming. Now's the start of that, and I will call my coverage on the current progress of our Shadowrun games (mind you, all 3rd Ed) "Fear and Loathing in the 60's." (The 20-60's, that is!) The first episode will cover their shadowrun that took them to Prague.

Marth and the Machines #40 - Irusk v. Stryker

It's been up on both U-Tube and Dicerage.com for some time, but the blog starts catching up. I had to work a lot recently, but before that, we managed to celebrate the fortieth instalment of M&tM with a full-scale 40 points battle between Gurvaldt Irusk and Coleman Stryker - because this was the exact match-up of our first Warmachine match ever (which I won). Enjoy!

Marth in Space - Firestorm Armada 00

Here's the opener to the coverage that I'll dedicate to Firestorm: Armada from Spartan Games (FS:A from here on). It has some pictures and comments, but nothing too indepth on the game mechanics.

Enjoy!

Marth & the Machines #39 - Orsus Zoktavir v. Mikhail Kreoss Xp

Alright, issue #39, another battle report and another try at the Butcher of Khardov, gone 'jack-heavy. This time I'm up against Grand Exemplar Kreoss with a bunch of Exemplars. Enjoy!

Lady Z's "Hunting Wolves" Tier List

So, the new tier list for Zerkova from No Quarter #34. It does indeed contain all that was leaked. And the general consensus (on the PP-Forums, that is) is positive. I haven't gotten around to playing a larger game with it (35 points) yet, but there are a number of observations made both from the List and my Zerkova playing experience.

Warmachine: NQ 34 contains WHAT?!

From what I get on the forums, NQ #34 contains further tier lists (this I knew before), one of them being a Zerkova list. Though we got some friendly shared intel on the tier lists design, I'm not dead set until I read it with my own eyes.

But if it's anything close to what was told, there will be some further Zerkova coverage here. Definitely.

Warmachine: Spelling Difficulties - Khador

Welcome to a Calamity Research Labs Log on Warmachine. I call this one "Spelling difficulties: Khador." Meaning: Difficulties with some spells in the Khadoran Arsenal. Enjoy!

One word in advance: This will not be about the usefulness or situativity of attack spells or somesuch. We all know and have to accept that you cannot expect attack spells to matter, or to be needed, depending on how the game goes. But aside from that, there are some spells which make you scratch your head, generally accompanied by the thought "How can I make this work to my benefit?"

Warmachine: Disaster Casters / Alexandra Zerkova

There are good casters

There are bad casters...

...and there are disaster casters.

Welcome a Calamity Research Labs Warmachine Log: Disaster Casters, where I’ll give you an serious rundown on a caster which gives you the feeling you’re playing hard mode while all others play easy. For tonight, let me introduce you to Koldun Kommander Alexandra Zerkova. Enjoy reading!

Marth & the Machines: The Complete RTFM

In the past, I did a short series called R.T.F.M. - Rules Tolerating Frequent Misapplication. I dealt with Line of Sight, Formation, Cavalry, and Power Attacks. And now, I give you all issues in one blog post.

Thanks again to TinmanXL from steampoweredtv for featuring my first episode, and enjoy!

Marth & the Machines #36 - Sorscha Kratikoff Triple Feature

Hey folks, this is No 36. of Marth and the Machines, featuring three games with Kommander Sorscha Kratikoff. One against Kara Sloan, one against Asheth Magnus, and one against Garryth. The first one is the main feature (all were over by the bottom of round two), the other two are highly abbreviated - because the pictures were lost, unfortunately. Still, enjoy!

Warmachine - Siege Engines

So, this week Privateer Press "spoon-fed" us one major faction siege engine a day. Khador Gun Carriage, Cryx "Big Daddy Machine Wraith", Retribution Arcantrik Generator, Cygnar Storm Strider, Protectorate Vessel of Judgement. And I while I'm not going to make a final statement until I see rules, I do have an opinion.

Tank Brush Commander No. 2

Okay, I got another Warjack done in the meantime. See the transfiguration of my marauder from a bunch of basic painted bits to the world's most dangerous pinball machine! Enjoy.

Marth & the Machines #34

Alright, first report on the blog. In issue 34, there's a 15 point basic battle going on between Dominar Rasheth and Doomshaper Xp - with my widowmakers watching from the forest. Enjoy!