Something about teaching, two advisorships (including the yearbook), home ownership, and two graduate classes just sucks the energy out of me. When I make it home, if I don’t have work to do for school or around the house, I just don’t have the energy to sit down and write. For a while, I was doing some short pieces about Fallout 3 in the Nerds at Play category, but I couldn’t muster enough oomph to dive into any deep articles about education or web design.

Although I love blogging, and I really hoped that combining all of these sites into one site would help me keep up with it, it doesn’t fit into my life at the moment. Too much going on.

However, I’m still not ready to just drop the whole web dev bug altogether. Which means it’s time for a new direction.

One problem I’ve found with a blog is that there’s a push to post regularly. What good is subscribing to a blog if there are no posts for weeks at a time? I know I’ve unsubscribed from other people’s sites because of weeks of downtime.

Instead of blogging – at least as a main venture – I’ve decided to shift to smaller, one-off sites. Theses mini-sites will probably be 5-20 pages in size, and they probably won’t include a blog/weekly articles section.

Why Shift from a Blog to Static Sites?

First, I’m not pressured to work regularly. When I have a lull from my other responsibilities, I can sit down and work on a site. If I’m busy, I can wait a week or two. There’s no pressure to have it done right now.

Second, it’ll let me work on my web development skills. Since creating this site, I haven’t done a lot of fiddling with designs and programming. Creating new sites every month or two will give me an excuse to break out some of those design skills and sharpen them.

Third, I can create some revenue through text links like TNX. I’ve ear-marked online revenue for electronics and supplies that I use in the classroom, so I’d like to continue to make some extra pocket cash this year. I think this mini-site model will yield more profit per time invested.

So No Blogging… At All?

I wouldn’t say that. It’s just not going to be my main project.

I definitely want to create a sustainable education blog. As I get started on this doctoral program, I know that I need to get out there and get my name and my work recognized by a larger audience than my Rutgers professors. I’m unsure if it’ll be here or located somewhere else, but in the next year or so I definitely plan on working on that.

I’ll probably also create a minimalistic personal blog to track all of my projects. I may re-vamp this site over the summer to fulfill that role. I’ll write quick updates about new projects going up, share lessons learned about web dev, and ponder about new project topics. It’ll more or less be a place for self-reflection about the whole process.

So… don’t expect to see a lot around here in the near future. I may stop in from time to time, but the days of posting something on a daily basis are unfortunately gone. They were fun, but short lived.

The Victory Rifle, one of the two unique sniper rifles available in the game, adds a twist that makes it much more useful against big monsters – like Super Mutant Masters. Whenever you score a critical hit with the weapon, it knocks the target down for a couple of seconds.

Larger mobs typically have too many hit points for you to kill with one sneak attack critical, so this gives you time to make a couple of head shots before they get a bead on you and start shooting.

So where is it? Locked up nice and tight in an abandoned shack. Hope you’ve been practicing your lockpicking.

Illustrated Walkthrough

First, here’s a quick walkthrough via screenshots to guide you to the Victory Rifle.

Detailed Instructions

First, head to Rockbreaker’s Last Gas. It’s kind of in the middle of nowhere – about three to four squares due west of Arefu.

While standing at the gas station, turn and look westward. There’s a pretty big mountain in view, and at the top of the mountain you should be able to see an Abandoned Shack. That’s where you’re headed.

If you head around to the left (the south side of the mountain), you should be able to find a path up. Once you’re at the top, enter the Abandoned Shack.

Inside, you’ll see a number of locked containers straight ahead – an ammo box, a safe, and a locker. The locker has a Very Hard lock (requires 100 lockpicking) and will contain you Victory Rifle. You have been practicing that lockpicking, right?

After you open the locker and grab the rifle, be sure to open up the ammo box. There is probably some .308 ammunition inside to test out your new weapon.

But I Don’t Have 100 Lockpicking…

Shame on you.

I quickly decided that Lockpicking and Science were two of the most important skills in the game. Repair probably comes in at a close third.

But I suppose you’re entitled to skill up the way you want. There are a variety of bugs that will allow you to snag the Victory Rifle without opening the locker.

The simplest method is to bring Dogmeat along. When you talk to Dogmeat you can ask him to find a weapon. In the Abandoned Shack, he’ll sniff around the locker and yank out the Victory Rifle for you.

If you try and tell me that you don’t have Dogmeat with you… well then I can’t help you.

Now all you have to do is find something to snipe. Enjoy!

What’s better than the Chinese Assault Rifle? The Xuanlong Assault Rifle – the unique, named version of the Chinese Assault Rifle in Fallout 3.

This rifle can be a bit tough to obtain if you don’t know what you’re doing. In order to get it, you must complete a sidequest that contains a puzzle. To make matters worse, one mistake in the puzzle and you’ll have lost your chance to get the item for good.

To obtain the Xuanlong Assault Rifle, you’ll need to go to the Museum of Technology in the downtown area. Inside, you can complete a puzzle through a series of computer terminals. If you successfully complete the puzzle, you’ll be told to meet up at the Jury Street Metro Station – and you’ll find Prime’s dead body there with the Rifle.

Important Note: You can’t take a shortcut and just go to the Jury Street Metro Station. If you haven’t completed the side quest, Prime’s body (and the rifle) won’t be there.

Quick Walkthrough – Finding the Xuanlong Assault Rifle

Here’s the down and dirty version of the walkthrough.

Find your way to the Museum of Technology in the downtown area. In the first room, you’ll see a computer terminal with an option titled “#000.” Use it and you’ll learn that a guy, Prime, left some clues around the Museum about a stash of items.

There are three terminals scattered around the Museum that you need to find. The first is that one that you used to get the clue. Each one will have an option with a # (#001, #002, or #003) and you need to respond with the correct number to complete the puzzle.

The trick is that your response must be a prime number. You remember what those are, right? Think back to math class.

The other tough part is finding the three terminals – because there are a lot of terminals in the building. If you’re too lazy to find them yourself, check out the detailed walkthrough and the screenshots below.

Once you find the three computer terminals and enter the right responses, you’ll be told where a stash of items is inside the museum. More importantly, Prime will tell you to meet him at the Jury Street Metro Station (west of Vault 101) – and his dead body will be there with the Xuanlong Assault Rifle.

Important Note: If you try to solve the puzzle on  your own, be sure to save it before you start. If you mess up any of the responses, you’ll fail the quest and you’ll never be able to get the Xuanlong Assault Rifle.

Detailed Walkthrough – Finding the Xuanlong Assault Rifle

I managed to solve this quest on my first run through the game, but it involved a lot of wandering around aimlessly and a lot of re-loading when I got wrong answers. If you want to avoid that, here’s is a very detailed guide to completing the side quest. At the end of this page, you’ll also find a lot of screenshots that document exactly how to go through the museum and solve the puzzle.

First, head to the Museum of Technology. It’s in the Mall in the Downtown area,  about four squares from the bottom of the map and two squares from the right.

When you enter the museum, there is a computer terminal against the far wall. First, kill the Super Mutants in the room, and then interact with the computer.

Use the last option, “#000.” Prime tells you that he has left clues throughout the museum to help you find a stash of goods inside the museum.

The same computer terminal will now have an option, “#001.” Use it. You should see four numbers that you can pick from. You want to pick the prime number. For this terminal, choose #019. The terminal should now say “#001 Confirmed.”

Next, go upstairs. Go through the Vault Tour, and at the other side you should find a double door that leads into the West Wing of the museum (another local zone).

As soon as you enter the West Wing, ahead and to your left are two computer terminals against the wall. Interact with the terminal on the right and select the option titled “#002.” Again, you want to respond with the prime number (this time #053), and again you’ll see “#002″ confirmed.

In the next room, you should see a giant rocket. Follow the stairs all the way to the ground floor, and on the wall opposite the stairs you’ll see another computer terminal. This one should have the option titled “#003″ and you should respond “#113.”

After you respond correctly, you’ll see a new option labeled “Get Passcode.” Choose that, and you’ll get a message from Prime telling you where to go. You can now go find the secret stash of loot inside the museum, but more importantly you can go to the Jury Street Metro Station and pick up your Assault Rifle!

Backtrack out of the Museum of Technology, and head to the Metro Station. If you haven’t discovered it yet, go to Vault 101 and head due west. There should be a marker on your map from completing the quest (Jiggs’ Loot) in the museum. It’s about two squares to the west of Vault 101.

Outside the Metro Station is a diner. Walk inside, and you should find Prime’s body on a table behind the counter. Walk up, loot away, and enjoy your Xuanlong Assault Rifle!

It’s a huge upgrade over the regular Chinese Assault Rifle, with a larger ammo capacity and higher damage. Definitely a great gun to hold onto if you like Small Guns.

Illustrated Walkthrough – Finding the Xuanlong Assault Rifle

In case you’re having trouble finding some of the locations mentioned above, here’s a completely illustrated version of the walkthrough.

Enjoy the weapon!

Then the Reservist’s Rifle is the gun for you. It’s a unique special weapon version of the Sniper Rifle available in Fallout 3. You can loot it off of the Drifter hanging out in the Dickerson Tabernackle Chapel.

Here’s a quick walkthrough to help you obtain this awesome weapon.

Visual Walkthrough – Screenshots

First, here’s a quick step-by-step walkthrough by way of screenshots.

Commentary and Tips

Go to Dickerson Tabernacle Chapel. First, you’ll need to go to the Chapel. It’s in the Northwest quadrant of the map – about four clicks from the north and four clicks from the west.

Approach in sneak mode. Remember that the Drifter is a sniper. You’ll want to approach in sneak mode so that you can kill him before he starts taking pot shots at you. If you sneak up from the East, you’ll be able to sit in the open wall of the church and shoot at him.

Kill the Drifter! The Drifter will be on a walkway on the second floor of the church. When you kill him, his body should drop to ground level so that you can loot it. Sometimes it bugs out and gets stuck though – so reload and try again.

If he gets stuck on top of the walkway, you can also try shooting his dead body. When it explodes, one of the body parts should fall to the ground. You only need to interact with one part of the body to loot it.

Grab the Reservist’s Rifle and start sniping. Although the Sniper Rifle isn’t my favorite weapon in the game, it can be great situationally. If you’re engaging humanoids outside (like at Evergreen Mills), you can quietly kill them from long range without pissing anybody off.

Just use it sparingly, because there’s relatively little ammo for it in the Wasteland (compared with, say, an Assault Rifle or a Shotgun).

Along came Nurgle Chaos, and what a weapon it is.

My first game with my Nurgle Chaos didn’t go too swell. I squared off at 1,000 points with a High Elf army, and I came out with a minor loss. Some poor tactical decisions along with some cruddy luck with my magic left most of my army impotent until the last turn of the game.

Last Saturday, I met up with that same High Elf army for a rematch. The results were much different.

Deploying Differently

I was using the same list as the first time. A level 2 Sorcerer, a block of Warriors, a unit of Knights, two units of Marauder Horsemen, and a unit of Dogs. A little beef, a dose of speed, and some magic for fun.

I split the army up into two parts. The Sorcerer, the Warriors, and a unit of Marauder Horsemen occupied the left portion of the battlefield, while the rest of the army came up the right flank. My opponent deployed most of his army opposite my Warriors with his Bolt Thrower on a hill, but there was a lone unit of Seaguard waiting for my Knights.

I went first – allowing everyone to march forward and close ground quickly. He flew his Eagle over to march block the Knights for a turn, and his first volley of shooting decimated my Dogs. The next turn, the Warriors were able to keep marching, while the Knights slowly walked across the field.

With this second march, my Sorcerer was in the perfect position. For his two spells, he had the #1 spell (Magnificent Buboes, 5+, 1 wound on a single model) and the #6 spell (Rot, Glorious Rot, 12+). As it turns out, that #6 spell was going to be the deciding factor in the game. It’s effect reads:

Each enemy unit within 18″ of the caster takes D6 SD6 hits with no armour saves allowed (roll separately for each unit). This spell can even effect enemy units in close combat.

I threw three dice and the spell went off easily (Irresistible Force ftw!). When I measured out the range, almost the entire army was hit. I caught the Eagle, the Knights, the Swordmasters, the Spearmen, the Seaguard, and the hero on foot (standing by himself).

I initially read the spell wrong and resolved each hit at S6. I couldn’t believe the utter destruction that befell the High Elf army, so I read the spell over a few times – and I eventually noticed that it was a SD6, or a strength of D6. We went back and resolved the wounds a second time – rolling for the strength of each volley – and it was still pretty devastating. The Knights and Swordmasters were almost wiped out, and the character was killed.

From there, it quickly went downhill for the High Elves. A unit of Marauder Horsemen was wiped out by shooting, but the Knights managed to crash into the line. They wiped out the Archers with ease, and they pursued into the Bolt Thrower.

After a turn of moving up, the Warriors engaged the Spearmen and the lone remaining Knight. The High Elves didn’t pack enough oomph in that first round to break the Warriors, and they slowly whittled down the Spearmen. Warriors with hand weapon and shield and a Mark of Nurgle are very sturdy against strength 3 attacks. It’s laughable the amount of spear-pokes that simply bounced off the unit with minimal wounds.

By the end of turn 6, the battle had turned into a massacre. It took a few rounds of combat, but the Warriors broke the Spearmen and pursued them. The Knights had easily taken care of their side of the field – the Archers, the Bolt Thrower, and the Sea Guard – and the magic had done the rest.

What Worked

A lot.

The clear winner of the game was magic. Rot, Glorious Rot is a ridiculous spell. If your opponent is bunched up in one area, do whatever you can to get your wizard in range of a handful of units. It wouldn’t be as effective against swarms like Skaven or Empire, but against highly armored, expensive units… it’s a dream come true. No Armour Saves. Woot!

The Knights survived a couple rounds of shooting (with only two or three guys alive) and smashed into some small units. They did their job well – however I think I might beef them up with an extra Knight or two. Starting with only five Knights quickly takes them down in fighting strength, making them less effective against sizeable troop blocks.

The Warriors did great in combat. Their armor stood up to the puny spear attacks, and they slowly fought back. At first, it was a close combat – due to the Dragon Prince charging, the Spearmen ranks, and the High Elves outnumbering. It quickly turned the other way, though, when almost none of the Chaos Warriors died. Hooray survivability!

Lessons for Next Time

At full points, I’m definitely taking a Sorcerer lord, and I think I’ll take the magic item (gift?) that allows him to get a fifth spell. Along with Rot, Glorious Rot, there are several wicked spells in the Nurgle arsenal – and getting five out of six for the Lord should be very helpful.

At full points, I’ll also beef up the Knights a bit. I had thought about taking a second unit, but there probably won’t be enough points. Adding 2 Knights to the initial unit will probably be more cost effective – allowing them to reach the enemy with almost full fighting strength (4-5 Knights alive, 2-3 casualties).

Keep the Knights and Warriors split up. By putting them on opposite sides of the board, the Eagle was only allowed to march block one unit. It’s kind of daunting to look at a block of Warriors and a unit of Knights, but it’s not so scary if they’re stuck in place. Split them up, allow one of them to go full speed ahead, and force your opponent to make some tough choices.

That puts my record with the Nurgle Chaos at 1,000 points at 1-1. I suppose that’s acceptable. We’ll have to have a third match soon as a tie-breaker.

In the meantime, I need to paint some stuff. I did finish a Warrior (which I’ll photograph and post about over the weekend), and I think my next painting project will be to start the Dogs.

Chaos Sorcerers are pretty beefy, and if they get into combat they have to issue a challenge. It’s pretty important, then, to take some magical items that beef up their survivability as well as (or instead of) their magical potential. A dead sorcerer is no good.

There seems to have been a lot of argument around the internet as to whether or not a Chaos Sorcerer can equip a magical shield, and I think I’ve finally come up with the definitive answer.

Why Should Chaos Sorcerer’s Be Able to Wield Magical Shields?

There is one major justification for the argument.

In the Warriors of Chaos army book, the section titled “Using Chaos Magic” states:

The term ‘Sorcerer’ is used to describe Wizards who follow the Chaos Gods. Sorcerers are unusual in that they wear Chaos armour and use magic shields or magic armour just like other Champions of Chaos. (p. 106)

Many people have interpreted this to mean, quite literally, that Chaos Sorcerers can use magic shields. Since this accompanies other “rules” text, like the fact that a marked Sorcerer must use spells from the Lore of his chosen god, it should also be deemed “rules” text.

Why Should Chaos Sorcerer’s Not Be Able to Wear Magical Shields?

Most of the arguments against the use of magical shields by Chaos Sorcerer’s rely on this statement in the Warhammer Fantasy Rulebook, in the section titled “Magic Armour“:

A character that is not allowed to wear ordinary armour cannot be given magic armour/helms (unless differently specified in the Army book). A character that is not allowed to carry ordinary shields cannot be given magic shields (unless differently specified in the Army book). This includes many kinds of Wizard whose natural magical harmony would be seriously affected by the armour (p. 121).

Following this logic, the Chaos Sorceror is allowed to wear magical armor because he normally has a suit of Chaos Armor. However, there is no option on the Sorcerer profile to upgrade to a shield, so therefore it was not intended for Sorcerers to wear magical shields.

If the Sorcerers are intended to be battle wizards (of a sort) that wear armor, why would they be allowed to take a magical shield but not a mundane one? Makes little sense. If that was the intent, they would probably be able to wear a shield so that they could wear a suit of magic armor and still benefit from a shield’s protection.

Furthermore, they state that the descriptive information in the “Using Chaos Magic” of the Warriors of Chaos army book is simply descriptive text and not rules text. Therefore, it does fulfill the requirement in the rulebook: “unless differently specified in the Army book.” Presumably this would come in the form of a rule attached to the character’s profile, which specifically stated that the character could take magical armor and shields.

Is There a Definitive Answer?

There have been several discussions online (and I’m sure many more in gaming stores) about the correct answer to this question. There seem to be proponents for each side and little common ground to stand on. Either you believe the descriptive text is a rule or you believe it isn’t.

There has been, however, some indication from Games Workshop that it is not intended for Chaos Sorcerers to use magical shields. In his article “Eye of the Gods, Favour of the Ruinous Powers,” Adam Troke said:

Oh, and despite the scurrilous advice I’ve given in the past, you can’t equip your Sorcerers with magic shields… and apparently no amount of wishing, arguing or whining on my part will make it true.

While this is not an official FAQ, it is published on the Games Workshop website and it comes from someone within the company. Adam seems to state unequivocally that Chaos Sorcerers cannot use magical shields.

Unless someone has a more definitive answer, I’m with troke: no magical shields for my poor little sorcerers.

If you need some general help, check out the full Tranquility Lane walkthrough. Otherwise, you might find the following list of frequently asked questions helpful.

If all else fails, leave a question in the comment section and I’ll try to help you out!

1. How do I get to Vault 112?
2. How do I get out of Tranquility Lane?
3. Where did all my stuff go?!?
4. Where’s my dad, James?
5. Do I have to be evil in Vault 112?
6. How do I access the failsafe terminal that Old Lady Dithers keeps babbling about?
7. How can I kill Mabel Henderson with her oven?
8. Why do I gain karma from killing everyone?
9. Do my karmic choices in Tranquility Lane effect later parts of the game?

How Do I Get to Vault 112?

Vault 112 is located underneath Smith Casey’s Garage. The Garage is in the Southwest quadrant of the map, near Girdershade and Evergreen Mills. You’ll need to go downstairs into the basement, and you’ll find the entrance to the Vault.

Read part of the walkthrough for more detailed instructions on how to find Vault 112.

Back to the list of FAQs.

How Do I Get Out of Tranquility Lane?

You can’t! You’re stuck forever! Muahahaha!

Just kidding. Betty controls the town, and you’ll have to convince her to let you out. The simple way to do this is to do exactly what Betty asks you to do. Old Lady Dithers will give you an alternative suggestion, and if you figure out the puzzle you can force Betty to allow you to leave.

Ultimately, Betty will open a door for you to walk through – taking you back to the real world of the Capital Wasteland.

Back to the list of FAQs.

Where Did All my Stuff Go?!?

It’s only gone temporarily. While you’re inside the Tranquility Lane simulation, you won’t have access to any of your inventory items – or to your Pipboy. Try to bring up the Pipboy and you’ll just see a silly wrist-watch.

As soon as you escape Tranquility Lane, all of your inventory items will be restored to you. However, you’ll have to re-equip your armor and reset the hot keys for your weapons.

Back to the list of FAQs.

Where’s My Dad, James?

He’s hidden in the simulation. Betty, Dr. Braun, turned him the dog Doc that hangs out on the playground. This confused me the first time through, because I thought the dog was Dogmeat!

Betty will eventually tell you that he tried to make James play the same games, but James refused. When you convince Dr. Braun to let you leave, he’ll also tell you that your father is the dog and that he’s free to go, too.

Back to the list of FAQs.

Do I Have to Be Evil in Vault 112?

Nope. There are two clear routes to escape Vault 112.

If you listen to Old Lady Dithers and figure out how to use the failsafe terminal, you’ll gain Karma points and Dr. Braun will be forced to let you James leave Tranquility Lane. You can read the relevant section of the walkthrough to learn how to use the failsafe terminal.

If you choose to play along with Betty, you’ll lose a lot of karma. You’ll eventually have to kill everyone (except for Timmy) and you’ll complete four quests that reward you with negative karma.

Back to the list of FAQs.

How do I Access the Failsafe Terminal that Old Lady Dithers Keeps Babbling About?

Go inside the abandoned house. Use the objects in the house in the following order: Radio, Pitcher, Garden Gnome, Pitcher, Cinderblock, Garden Gnome, Bottle.

If you completed the pattern correctly, the failsafe terminal will appear.

For a more detailed answer, read the relevant portion of the walkthrough on how to use the failsafe terminal.

Back to the list of FAQs.

How Can I Kill Mabel Henderson With Her Oven?

There are four different ways for you to kill Mabel Henderson. If you fiddle with the things in her house, it will seem pretty obvious that using the oven is one of them.

When you use the oven, you’ll have an option to tamper with the pilot light. I originally thought that if I left the house and waited, it would explode and kill Mabel Henderson. No such luck.

After tampering with the pilot light, you need to go talk with her and ask her to bake you a pie. You can then follow her downstairs and watch her die in a puff of flame.

Read the relevant section of the walkthrough for the other ways to kill Mabel Henderson.

Back to the list of FAQs.

Why Do I Gain Karma from Killing Everyone?

If you use the failsafe terminal, you’ll be able to activate the Chinese Invasion program. The flavor text in the failsafe manual explains that this will kill the residents of Vault 112 in real life, not just in the simulation.

It may seem a bit counter-intuitive to gain karma from slaughtering everyone, but the designers have decided that this is the humane thing to do to them. By killing them in real life, Braun can’t continue to resurrect them in new simulations and torture them. It also leaves Braun alone for eternity because he has no way to leave the simulation or kill himself.

Just one of those strange karmic decisions of Fallout 3.

Personally, I’d have preferred an option whereby I could leave the simulation (by following Betty’s orders) and then murder Braun in his Tranquility Lounger – leaving the residents of Vault 112 to control their own simulation. But unfortunately, that is not an option.

Back to the list of FAQs.

Do My Karmic Choices in Tranquility Lane Effect Later Parts of the Game?

Nope. Even though your father refused to play along with Braun and torture the residents of Vault 112, he apparently doesn’t care what you do.

When I completed Tranquility Lane the Evil way, I expected him to have some dialog about my decisions. No such luck. It seems that Tranquility Lane and your decisions there are entirely self contained – except for possibly changing your karma level.

This is one of the persistent problems in Fallout 3, IMO. Your karmic decisions have very little impact on the development of the story line. At the very least, it would be nice if there was some dialogue to resolve the fact that your father has just found out that you’re a world reknowned mass murderer.

Back to the list of FAQs.

Other Questions?

These are some of the most common questions that I’ve found around the internet and in search queries for this site. If you have another question, leave it in the comment section or drop me a line through the contact form.

I’ll be happy to help you out, and if I get enough extra questions I’ll create a second FAQ to summarize them.

I thought it was a great idea, but I didn’t like the idea of a $9.99 price tag for each unit. Even with my 50% employee discount, that’s a steep price to pay for bases in my opinion, especially if you play armies with lots of units (I used to play Skaven and Empire).So I went in search of DIY materials to make my own magnetic bases and movement trays.

I forget where I purchased it, but I found a roll of self adhesive magnets that I thought would work great. The roll was 25′ long x 6″. I figured I would trim small magnets for the bases and slap a larger piece in the bottom of the movement tray. Initially, this seemed to work out great.

However, I soon noticed a problem. Sometimes models next to each other would repel each other and sit about 2-3mm apart. Other times, one model’s base would rise off the magnetic surface and hover a mm or two above the ground. This became particularly troublesome when I took the models off the movement tray and put them back in – it seemed that they fit nicely if they were in the perfect formation but not if you switched the models’ positions.

For the life of me, I couldn’t figure out why they were so troublesome. I’d used a few of the GF9 magnetic bases and tray inserts, and I never had that problem. I was meticulous in lining up the orientation of the magnetic strips (after the first couple incidents), and still some of the models would act funky.

To make things more confusing, I placed my models on a GF9 tray insert, and I had no trouble. Huh?

GF9 Movement Tray Inserts Aren’t Magnetized

When we first got the GF9 magnetic basing system, I noticed something odd. The tray insert wasn’t magnetized.

It looked like a self adhesive magnet strip, but if you stuck two of them together they just fell apart. I never looked into why, and I figured it was irrelevant. Turns out it isn’t.

This morning, I poked around the ‘net and found out exactly what those movement tray inserts are made of – rubber-coated steel sheets (see GF9 store page). The rubber coating makes the inserts look like a magnetic strip, but the insert itself is not magnetic. It’s a ferrous metal that attracts other magnets.

I’m thinking that my problem is I have magnets sticking directly to other magnets. The magnetic models don’t seem to be interacting with each other, they’re revolting when they interact with the movement tray insert. If I use the GF9 insert in a movement tray, I could drop in my magnetized bases and have no trouble.

Grr!

So What Should You Use for Tray Inserts?

This means I need to peal out the magnetic strips in my movement trays and look for another solution. One solution is the GF9 inserts, which you can order separate from GF9 or through a hobby store. They come in packs of 3 x 4″ x 10″ sheets – enough for roughly six infantry movement trays. At $10.99, that’s an investment of ~$2.00 per unit. Not too bad – I might do this in the short term for my tiny Chaos army.

I’ve found a similar product at MagnetValley. It’s sold by the linear foot (2′ wide), at $9.99 per foot. The minimum order is 2′, so you’ll be investing $19.98 for 2 square feet. That’s a little more than twice the amount of material you get in the GF9 pack. However, when you tack on $10+ shipping, it’ll end up being slightly more expensive. Boo.

You can get another similar product from Magically Magnetic. I think it’s the same material, per-cut into 3″ x 5″ strips. You can get them for $0.75 each of $6.75 for 10. Two 20 packs with shipping comes to just under $20. That’s somewhat more cost effective than the GF9 inserts and they’re the perfect size for a 5 x 3 unit of 25 mm models (Chaos Warriors). Unfortunately, they’ll be too small for larger blocks of troops (you’ll need 5″ x 4″ for 20 Warriors or 25 x 20 mm models). If you could find these things locally and not pay for shipping, it’d be the best solution, IMO.

I’ve also heard of people using thin metal sheets (like tin) to line the bottom of the movement trays. I’m not sure how expensive these are, but I plan on investigating.

Any other ideas for what to line movement trays with?

The High Elf player has a bolt thrower. It’s maximum range is 48″. If it fires at a target more than 24″ away, does it suffer a -1 penalty to hit due to long range?

Both my opponent and I haven’t played in many months (probably closer to two years), so we were a bit fuzzy on the rules. Some of the simple things, like the situation above, puzzled us – and we either asked for help or resolved to look it up later.

In this case, someone told us that it did not suffer from a long range penalty. I wasn’t so sure, though, so we accepted that ruling for the moment and I decided to look it up when I had some more time to peruse the rulebook.

Do Bolt Throwers Suffer a -1 Penalty to Hit from Long Range?

 Yes, they do.

According to the rulebook, some war machines (presumably including Bolt Throwers) operate just like regular shooting. Specifically, it states that the only way Bolt Throwers are special is that they don’t suffer a move-and-shoot penalty if they pivot in place.

Otherwise, the usual negative/positive modifiers should be applied as per the chart in the Shooting section.

Relevant quotes, from the large hardcover rulebook:

“For now it is enough to know that some war machines are fired like normal missile weapons and so make use of the crew’s Ballistic Skill…”  (p85, “Shooting”)

“To determine whether the bolt is on target, roll to hit using the crew’s BS in the same way as bow shots, crossbows, and other missile weapons. The usual modifiers apply, except no penalty is imposed for turning the machine, as it is designed to be used in this way.” (p90, “Firing a Bolt Thrower”)

Unless there is a special rule in the specific Bolt Thrower’s army list, the general rule is that a Bolt Thrower’s shot is most definitely affected by long range. If the target is more than 24″ from the Bolt Thrower, the crew will suffer a -1 penalty to hit.

In this case, I don’t believe there is any such rule in the High Elf book – so next time I’ll know that the Bolt Thrower’s shooting should be penalized. It could mean the difference between a hit or a miss – a big difference when you’re talking about a bolt that will likely pierce two or three ranks of Chaos Warriors.

On one front I won: painting. I had one fully painted model to his none. Woot!

In the areas that matter, though, the game tipped in his favor. It ended up a minor victory in favor of the High Elves, although an extra turn or two would have swung the pendulum back in my favor.

Game Summary

I was playing the Nurgle Chaos list that I posted earlier in the week. Level 2 sorcerer, Warriors, Knights, 2 units of Marauder Horsemen, and some dogs.

My opponent was fielding a hero, a unit of Dragon Princes, a small unit of swordmasters, a unit of archers, a block of spearmen, a unit of sea guard, an eagle, and a bolt thrower.

In hindsight, my biggest mistake was in deploying. I placed my Knights and Warriors together on one side of the board, partially shielded by trees and screened by the dogs. My opponent was able to drop an Eagle behind them and march block for two turns until the Marauder Horsemen killed the Eagle.

That slowed me down a lot and kept the Knights and Warriors out of combat for most of the game.

The dogs were instantly mowed down in shooting, and one unit of Marauder Horsemen was quickly killed as well. The bolt thrower had some success whittling down my Knights – 2 of the 5 were dead when the got across the board – but they and the Warriors fared the arrow storm pretty well.

I was looking forward to some magic supremacy, since I had a level two and my opponent had no wizard. I managed to pick Plague Squall for one of my spells, and although I successfully cast it five turns in a row, I only hit an enemy unit once. The scatter die was not my friend! I guessed perfectly at a large block of troops each time, and the shot scattered 8+ inches in the wrong direction. /sigh.

My Knights eventually made it into combat on the fourth turn. They decimated the unit of archers and over-ran off the board. They re-entered the next turn, turned towards the Bolt Thrower, and proceeded to make mince meat of the crew. Unfortunately, the game was over before they could engage any of the other units.

The Warriors were bogged down for most of the game, and they only made it into combat on turn six. They charged the unit of Spearmen, and all those pointy attacks bounced off my armor. Unfortunately, my Sorceror got killed in a challenge (High Elves always attacking first is so not cool) and I had lost a rank due to shooting. I lost combat by a couple points but held my ground. The next turn, they took a hit to the flank by the Dragon Princes, sustained almost no casualties, and managed to wipe out my opponent’s hero before the game ended.

What Went Well?

Combat. With the exception of my Chaos Sorceror, my units did splendid in combat. The Knights and the Warriors both held up their ends of the bargain. I think I’ll spread them out a bit more next time, and just march them up the middle. I tried to gather some cover from trees, but this – along with the damn eagle – kept me out of combat.

Fast Cavalry. I love them. They are awesome. I deployed a unit to watch my Warriors, and they quickly chopped up the Eagle. They quickly got into position to harass and march block the enemy – if only they had a unit to support, they would have been more effective.

What Didn’t?

Magic. I was attracted to the instant gratification of the Plague Squall, but I was disappointed with the bad scatters. I also rolled Curse of the Leper, but I never cast it. I’m thinking that was a mistake. Since my opponent had no dispel dice, there was a decent chance that it would remain in play for a couple turns and wipe out an entire unit. Oh well.

Surviving Shooting. My unarmored units went splat. Perhaps that’s to be expected, but I think they would be more effective if the big armored units were marching straight down the pike. By trying to finesse the Warriors and Knights around some woods, I gave my opponent no choice but to chop up everything and then turn to the Warriors last. Time is important, so next time it’s right up the middle.

The Sorceror. In combat, that is. He got his ass handed to him. I’m going to reconsider what I give him as far as magic items, and I might pull him out of the unit to ride around on a horse.

I was a bit rusty this game, to be sure, and hopefully I’ll do better next time. In the meantime, I’ve got some painting to do!