[The General]

Morning all!
Well, I have to say that heat had THE BEST atmosphere of any GT I've been to!
All my opponents gave me really good games, and I had a really good time.
Anyhoo, on with the breakdown

ROUND 1
Black Templars vs. Daniel Folly's Necrons.
GAMMA RECON

I was thinking on my way down to Warhammer World, I'll be ok as long as I'm not against any destroyer armies....
Thankfully, Dan only had 8 destroyers in his balanced 'Crons list along with a monolith, destroyer lord with wraith bodyguard, immortals and a couple of units of warriors.
The game went well for me, and I was able to Phase Out Dans army on turn 4, although in that time his phylacteried lord did get back up twice, one with 3 wounds, then again with two!

Result: Black Templar win! (massacre)


ROUND 2
Black Templars vs Will Beeleys Nidzilla
OMEGA SEEK AND DESTROY

Oof - game two, up to the top tables, and straight into the top tier lists!
This was going to be a tough one for me, as only around 800 points of my army is scoring, so I had to get into him and cause some damage - preferably with somewhat expendable non-scoring units... Also turn 6 onwards was to be played with nightfight rules, which meant I would have to get uncomfortably close to 7 TMC's...
This was my closest game of the weekend, and Will was a very cagey opponent. My unit of the match was my largest Crusader squads rhino, which despite having both its storm bolters blown off zoomed up to Will's lines and illuminated his lead carnifex with its searchlight - never has 1 point been better spent lol!
Random game length took us up to turn 8, and when we added up victory points after the game, I'd scraped a 185 point margin, giving me a win by 35 points.

Result : Black Templar win (narrow).


ROUND 3
Black Templars vs David Minnis' Eldar
OMEGA TAKE AND HOLD

My first Flame On opponent of the weekend, Dave qualified third in his heat last year, so I knew I was in for a tough time - he was running 2 prisms, a falcon, wave serpent, fire dragons, harlequins, jetbike autarch, 2 units of pathfinders and some warp spiders... oh dear.
I'd like to point out at this juncture that I've never had such blazing luck as I had in the next hour. Both our forces came on piecemeal, and I was luck enough to get the roll off and choose to go second, enabling me to counter Daves reserves.
This is where it gets sickeningly lucky.... I one shot one killed all of the holo fielded tanks on the turns they arrived. Double 5 on the falcon, and double sixes on both the prisms!
Without his heavy support I was able to bombard Daves army, although his harlequins did a number on a crusader squad and my chaplain, they finally bought it on turn 6.

Result - Black Termplars win (massacre)

Day 2 to follow...

 

[The General]

DAY 2

Woke up at seven having had about 5 hours sleep. My tongue feels like its welded itself to the roof of my mouth, and I really dont want to get out of bed.
On the plus side my head feels ok, I just wish I could say the same for my stomach.

By the time I got to Warhammer World I'd sort of recovered a bit - I'd need to be awake 'cos I was up to table 4...

ROUND 4
Black Templars vs Stu Robertsons Tau
GAMMA CLEANSE (like we couldnt see that one coming)

I have to say now that this was probably my favorite game of the weekend, we took almost the full two hours to play, and the balance swung back and forth before the end.
Stu had 2 commanders (dirty deepstrikers with fusion guns 'n stuff to back scuttle my tanks) 2 fireknife suit squads, kroot(!) a tiny unit of warriors, a piranah which refused to die, stealthsuits, 2 braodsides with shield drones, an ionhead and a railhead. Ouch!
Fortunately - I got to choose quarters, and I gave Stu the least JSJ friendly terrain I could. Stu won the roll off, and elected to go second to give him uncontested quarter grabbing chances in the last turn. Forced into seizing the initiative I piled a lot of stuff forwards. By the end of my turn 2 I had taken out his broadsides and Kroot, and was in combat with Stu's fire warriors.
Unfortunately for me, on Stu's turn two, both his commanders deep struck in, and took out two of my predators - bum!
Fortunately, my horrendous-non-scoring-point-sink-biker-chaplain(tm) came into his own in this game (he was in the list specifically for JSJ'ers after all), taking out: a broadside, a crisis suit squad, the ionhead and the railhead. Booyah!
The only downside to the game was one of my crusader squads losing 1 guy, failing a zeal check and fleeing, never to regroup. This was unforunately a precursor of THINGS TO COME.
Still, for the time being, things were going really well.

Result: Black Templar win (massacre)


ROUND 5
Black Templars vs Gaz Jones' Eldar
GAMMA SECURE AND CONTROL

Table 1. Bugger. I've never had a good game on Table 1. Best I've managed was a draw. I was already talking myself into a loss before I was infected with THE WORST F**KING DICE ROLLS IN THE HISTORY OF THE WORLD.
Stilol never mind eh. Gaz was a good opponent and I'd already beaten one Flame On Eldar flying Cheese so how bad could it be....
I thought my luck was holding as I got first turn, and despite the horrendous terrain on table 1 I was able to draw a bead on Gaz's stationary tanks with 5(!) twin linked lascannons - the result? I took the pulse laser off his falcon, and shook his prism and wave serpent. Woot. And they were my best rolls of the game. For the rest of the game my lascannons either missed or rolled a one to penetrate. Other highlights included a crusader unit spending the entire game stuck in a wood as in 6 turns they didnt roll higher than 2 for difficult terrain, another crusader squad failing a zeal check and running a 12" straight off the board (oh theres my double 6's...) The best part came while Gaz was telling a ref how bad my rolls had been - I hit a unit of jet bikes with 4 heavy bolter shots, and proceeded to roll 4 ones to wound.... not that I'm bitter mind, OH NO!!!!!!!!!!!!.
On the bright side at least I didnt get wiped......

Result :Black Templar loss (massacre) (boo) (hiss)


ROUND 6
Black Templars vs Ben Harris' Orks
OMEGA RECON

Down to table 6, and against a mixed orks army (3 big boyz mobs plus a load of warbuggies, killa kans, taqnkbustaz and a looted russ.)this was going to be tricky. Especially as I lost the roll off to go second. Still, I made a good fist of the first half of the game - my chaplain killed a squad of killakans and some tankbustas, my crusaders took out the other tankbustas mob along with a boys bob, and my Emperors Champion took out his warboss. Even my landspeeder was useful, taking care of the other killa kan mob.
I have no idea what happennd in the second half of the game...I made several bonehead longshot plays that didnt pay off, and as a result it cost me a victory that would have probably got me top 5. Bugger.
Still, my qualification was pretty much assured, so all together I was prettuy pleased.

Result: Draw

I came 12th overall, which equals my best previous GT result, and it was definitley the best GT I've been to in a long time.
Roll on March!

 

[Skcuzzlebumm]

Well done dude, 12th is mighty impressive with BT's.

Glad you enjoyed playing some of my fellow Flame On'ers (for the record Dave came 3rd at the Final - you beat Mr Eldar UK!) heard some good stories about you aswell from them.

Now you just gotta face more of us at the final.

 

[anathema]

I'd like to point out at this juncture that I've never had such blazing luck as I had in the next hour. I one shot one killed all of the holo fielded tanks on the turns they arrived.

He didn't even buy me dinner first, but at least bought me a pint afterwards:grin: Damn your incredibly good dice sir!

Good game though and you played it spot on. Congrats on the 12th place. Hopefully we'll get a chance for a rematch sometime!

 

[Darkangeldentist]

Congratulations, very impressive with Black templars. (All I've heard is tales of woe about their tournament record so extra kudos for that.)

 

[The General]

Thank you kindly.
I'm that impressed with the list that I reckon I'll take it5 unchanged to the final!

@ Anathema - was a real shame you didnt qualify, I'm sure you'll get chance for payback in the heats next year, or maybe at the store if I take a trip into manc.

@ Skuzz - I fully expect to be facing 6 red shirts in the final lol! How many of you are there? I'm sure I counted at least 542375438654653543 at heat 3....

 

[Skcuzzlebumm]

IIRC there are only 10 of us going this year (compared to 20ish last year), the heat 3'ers let us down a little by continually playing each other and therefore all ending up on 10/11pts.

Though i'm sure with even just 10 we'll make a lasting impression :grin:

Plus there's plenty of time to corrupt others to the cause :biggrin:

 

[O'sharan]

Yes but dont blaim the flame on crew, this heat looked by far the hardest with 170 ppl!

 

[O'sharan]

Dont blaim the flame on crew, it looked by far the hardest heat. 170ppl!

 

[Skcuzzlebumm]

Dont blaim the flame on crew, it looked by far the hardest heat. 170ppl!

I know, but just can't help but have a cheeky snipe.

From what i heard there was a mass of blue on blue (should that read red on red?) that made things hard for everyone involved. Anyway next year there may be enough of us to have our own heat :shok:

 

[Ultima]

Well guys. You are allowed to swap opponents (apart from your last game of course). How come you didn't? Also despite there being 170 players, it required the least amount of tourney points to get through.

 

[Exodite]

Anyway next year there may be enough of us to have our own heat :shok:

:laugh:We wouldn't wan't to go to the same heat, we would be guaranteed to knock each other out. What we want to do is spread ourselves between the heats and aim for a Flame On final.:wink:

 

[jigplums]

Surely half of you must have won, so should really even out after that plus at least you already know each others armies so at an advantage to if you got some random guy who doesn't have a netlist

 

[Skcuzzlebumm]

:laugh:We wouldn't wan't to go to the same heat, we would be guaranteed to knock each other out. What we want to do is spread ourselves between the heats and aim for a Flame On final.:wink:

but imagine what a heat that would be! 170 Flame On'ers! :shok::shok::shok:

 

[Exodite]

but imagine what a heat that would be! 170 Flame On'ers! :shok::shok::shok:

True, that would be quite scary, it would be ace though. What I was saying was what an achievement it would be if we managed to get the majority of Flame On to the final.

 

[Skcuzzlebumm]

True, that would be quite scary, it would be ace though. What I was saying was what an achievement it would be if we managed to get the majority of Flame On to the final.

Agreed (sorry thought that went without saying) but then unfortunalty the higher you would go the more odds on facing each other. And you tend to find on the top tables ppl aint has happy to swap tables.

 

[warrior-of-hope]

its the problem that generally if you swap someone may be getting a more difficult match up. Why would a guy with mech tau, wanna swap to face a destroyer hoard, so there mate with Ba doesn't phase them out of qualifying? Also it has in my exp caused polling difficulties for the results sometimes as well. Tbh in the finals theres not so much reason to swap anyway

 

[Skcuzzlebumm]

its the problem that generally if you swap someone may be getting a more difficult match up. Why would a guy with mech tau, wanna swap to face a destroyer hoard, so there mate with Ba doesn't phase them out of qualifying? Also it has in my exp caused polling difficulties for the results sometimes as well. Tbh in the finals theres not so much reason to swap anyway

agreed but it would be nice say that they enter team names onto the system and set it so they don't pair up on day 1 for example. That way you are at least getting 3 new opponents. I know for a long time it was in the rules pack about this been and opportunity to play new ppl and therefore if you draw your mate, swap.

But as you say ppl can through hissy fits when they feel onto a sure thing/don't wanna pull their nemisis by been asked to swap.

In the past when i have done so, both me asking or been asked, i just do the classic 1-3 me, 4-6 my opponent thing. Let fate take control and live with it (as that is often the case with matchup's outside the top few tables - then you often know who's coming next by the small number of possible opponents).

 

[jigplums]

yeah thats a fair way of doing it roll a dice. But not good to force others to swap either. For example in game 6 at the GT longbeards opp wanted to swap and i was on the next table. But i didn't wanna swap as i had drawn orks and it was my second game vs orks EVER in 16 years of gaming. Now in game 6 you can't swap anyway, or so it says, so it didn't matter that much, but if i had been forced to swap i'd not have been too happy about it.

 

[Skcuzzlebumm]

Why did his opp wanna swap? There wasn't any FO Ork players at heat 2 this year so it can't have been for that. Plus i'm pretty sure Matt didn't play the same person twice.