Bilbo's Birthday Bash 2012 Coverage

Bilbo's Birthday Bash has come and gone with another great weekend in the books. The overall feeling was more like a reunion of friends than a competitive tournament, although there were some tight races and games to be had.

Some raw results until the official ones go up are

Best Overall- Kyle Toth
Best General- Terry Schaffer
Best Sportsman- Tyler Dumontelle
Best Appearance Overall- Jim Wappell
Best Good Army- Jeremy Williams
Best Evil Army- John Humphrey

With the good vs evil format and requiring 2 armies, some awards were split between good and evil factions.

Best good and best evil armies were split appearance awards after the best overall appearance.

 Some real quick game reports. Game 1 was against Jim Wappell, with my Rohan vs his Easterling charioteers.

 Pictures do not do it justice but it was a great looking game.

 The king proved his worth by taking down Erkenbrand in 1 turn of combat.

 The rest of the chariot gang did not fair so well. Result Major Victory for Rohan.

 Game 2 led the dunland raiders into the jaws of Gondor/Rohan. Not many photos, but rest assured, the vikings got their tails handed to them.

 Rohan continued to prove their worth when facing some orcs. Round 2 went against Tyler Dumontelle's Mordor in a game of Lords of Battle. The high courage let Grimbold and the royal guard slip through to punk a shadowlord and his cloaked entourage. Rohan carried the day with a minor victory. 

 Game 4 landed the underskilled vikings against some dwarves in the same situation, lords of battle. Some deployment trickery and flank relocation allowed my force to crush the center of the board while holding off the slower dwarves on the flanks. The tide was turned when the random game ending just would not end and the dwarf kill count climbed higher and higher. Surprisingly it came out to a dead tie when the nunbers were crunched.

 Game 5 started the recon rotation against John Humprey's Angmar force led by the witchking.

 I got the chance to slip some riders off the board but the tricky magic delayed my complete escape route and things got close with some orcs slipping away. End result was a minor victory again for Rohan.

 The last round was against Elrond and Gil-galad, least to say, while I got a huge amount of wargs off the board, the killing field ended up giving the elves more points for the minor loss to me. Odd scenario that allows an army to simply eliminate the opponent and not actually win in the recon escape department.

The first official tournament using the new book scenarios was an overall success. Some of the Gamesworkshop FAQ's clash with the actual objectives of some of the scenarios and the victory points make for some weird situations were you do not need to play an objective; but some slight tweaks can make for success. In the end, the games are faster and less archery crippling. 

While the legions book is gone, some concerns over theme were put to rest. Armies all clocked in between 35-45 models and there were not many egregious flaunting of themes. Some of the more powerful armies on paper were not present, for example 50% bow harad.

The Fords of Isen

 With less than a week to go, and the finishing touches have been, well finished. There is a small matter for 4 models left to paint but the rest is all done. The tournament format is 3 games with a good army and 3 games with an evil army. Who couldn't make matching forces...

 Giving my dunland army another chance in the spot light it sets a great Rohan scene in the fords. While the stat lines maybe less than stellar for a lot of the army, it fits a great theme and display for the force.

 I really wanted to capture a chaotic scene and a dynamic unity to the display. The bright difference in army colors also adds some clarity to a scattered appearance.

 It was the first time using a resin product called, envirotex. The wooden box sprung some leaks but in the end the resin gave a great water look.

 Clash in the center with Theodred and the Dunland King.

Really looking forward to seeing all the armies next weekend and check back for event coverage later.

Walking Red

 After surprising myself and finishing 40 models in the past three weeks; two realizations dawned, I do not like painting that many models that quickly, and trying to watch the walking dead and paint does not work. 

 So here are some of the foot grunts for for this Rohan force. I tried to mix up color schemes on them just to break up the armies appearance. Not everyone can dress the same....

 Dead center there is the westfold's leader, Grimbold, with his big old viking axe.

"Are you not entertained!"

Rounding off the army is Theodred and his royal guard contingent. I veered from the Lannister red and took up the anti-Russel Crowe flag in ancient Rome. 

 Royal guard models seem to be a hot commodity with people nowadays, so I thoroughly used up my extra rohan heroes.

The Fords of Isen are ready for some dead models and water effects and we should have quiet the scene.

Viking Law

The Cavalry has arrived! HBO's costuming sure has been an inspiration for these army, especially with my Westfold Redshields led by Erkenbrand.

Going forward, these conversions can also double as the elite sons of eorl units for future variations of Rohan forces. 

 The gamble of using some generic historical knights paid off. While GW's constant price hikes, it was a great way to finally get this army on the table and not drop 3/4 of the wallet. I believe that when playing GW games and going to a tournament, if everyone built and painted their armies exactly like the box showed, it would be a boring looking tournament.

You have to go outside the box sometimes. While walking through the Baltimore tournament halls way back when; the armies I still remember are the ones with over the top, out of the box designs over the plain, expertly painted forces.

 A couple horses still need some paint...

Progress is going better than I thought. With now half the army finished and 3.5 weeks on the timeline, I am hoping for no all night paint sessions the week of...

Always Pay Your Debts

 This would be a moment for a clever line from the Imp but lacking that wit, we shall continue with the first batch of infantry for the upcoming Fords of Isen themed army.

 Up front we have what will stand in for "the kings archer", a newly released model from the last wave of rule books. Basically a minor legolas type character.

The colors seem to work well for the rank and file. There will most likely be some variations as I move through the different units. It will be hard to keep an entirely uniform paint scheme but I think switching up some variations on the warriors will add a depth of militia feel.