The 33rd part of the Warhammer 40,000 Imperium Battle Report Series.
In this episode, we play the next Scout Mission!
Who will prevail in this battle between the sinister Necrons and a combined force of the Adeptus Mechanicus and the Blood Ravens!
You can buy your own Task Lamp here
You can support what I do by doing any of the following:-
I have been provided with an advance copy of the new Marvel Heroines book Black Cat: Discord by Cath Laura and published by Aconyte Books, so here is the honest review I promised in exchange for the book.
So here is an important disclaimer which is always important to put out there first. I have a casual work contact with Asmodee to demonstrate board games for them in stores and at conventions. Asmodee being the parent company of Aconyte the publisher.
I am going to try my best to not let these things cloud my judgement in this review, but I accept that subconsciously it might.
Also, I won’t lie, I have looked at other reviews to see what others think, so there may be some influences from them in this book review. If I am going to quote them, I will attribute them. But if I forget to, or something is highly influenced by them, and you think I ought to attribute someone, let me know so that I can.
Look at this point I would bore you with a bit of background to the game/universe, but lets not, you all know the Marvel Universe, if you don’t have you been living under a rock!
The Marvel Heroines series focuses on the female hero’s of the Marvel universe, the other books in the series soi far have all be very very good!
Focusing on, no surprise, Black Cat, aka Felicia Hardy, the cat burglar extraordinaire of New York and the Marvel universe as a kid turns up on her doorstep needing help to save her father’s life.
As well as that a mytical golden apple has appeared in New York, and despite wanting nothing to do with its wish granting powers, it keeps crossing her path!
The story is very much influenced by Jed MacKays Black Cat run referencing events in those stories quite a lot, and we get cameo appearances from a load of Marvel heroes, Iron Man, Daredevil, Spider-Man and Iron Fist, whilst she fights off Hammerhead, Silvermane, Kingpin and others.
The main thrust of the story is Felicias quest to save the father of her teenage guest, but every lead she tracks down, forces her into the game of the golden apple as both heroes and villains try to grab it.
This is probably one of the strongest Aconyte books published so far, strong, tight story that covers all the bases, keeps you on the edge of your seat and also pulls a few heartstrings too.
Once again Aconyte have great LGBT rep, and with no romantic subplot either as Felicias bisexuality is very much acknowledged, but without forcing a romance.
The strength of this book is absolutly Felicias voice, it comes through very clear and she is absolutly a strong modern woman, who whilst not a hero, has no need for villioany, she cares for thise closest to her, and the interactions with other charcters is just *chefs kiss*
No question, 5 out of 5 stars
Black Cat: Discord is out now as an eBook and on paperback.
There has been a lot of talk about the Xbox Series S being an underpowered potato that is holding back game development, and I guess I fancy weighing in on it.
When the Series S was unveiled, I admit, I was unimpressed, it’s seemed lacking in comparison to the Series X.
But it has one compelling feature, it’s price, it’s in reach of a lot of people, because the £450 the Series X costs is a lot of money.
But my heart was set on a Series X, but well 2020 happened and the chip shortage hit.
The Series X and both PS5 models were only available in limited quantities, but the Series S, well here is the genius in that little thing, it’s APU, is smaller.
It uses fewer chiplets than the Series X and PS5s and therefore has higher yields per wafer, meaning it can be produced in significantly higher numbers.
As a result the Series S has remained almost constantly in stock and not suffered any significant shortages, whereas even today, you will struggle to get a PS5, and Series X stock levels now seem to have finally stabilised.
So couple in availability, and cost, especially when you factor in GamePass, and I honestly think, the Series S might emerge as the winner of this generation.
Now the excuses used by some developers, well I think that’s all they are, excuses. The 30fps cap in Gotham Knights is frankly more likely down to poor optimisation and an old game engine.
Other games have managed fine, and cone on, these games are also built for PCs with wildly varied specs, and the modern consoles aren’t architecturally that different to PCs, heck the Steam Deck, which a lot of these games run fine on, uses a very very similar chip to both consoles.
But then looking at Gotham Knights PC specs, yeah I suspect very very poor optimisation.
To summarise, the Series S, might not be the powerhouse, but it’s actually making gaming something most people can do, it’s cost means no parent has to buy last Gen hardware, that those on lower incomes can still game, and that this hobby is not restricted to the better off.
Gaming at the best graphics available is great, but just gaming is great as well, even with modest graphics.
I love my Series S, yeah I also have a Series X and a PS5, but most of my gaming, is still on a Series S.
I finished up a squad of Catapractii Terminators for the Imperial Fists, this time armed with Power Fists and Storm Shields.
I also got a Praetor in Tartaros Terminator Armour, with a Paragon Blade and Storm Shield.
I am now working on some Factorum Ruins and a Shrine of the Aquilla for my Imperium table.
I finished The Deadly Grimoire by Rosemary Jones, and you can read a review here.
And I have now started on Echoes of Eternity by Aaron Dembski-Bowden.
I got three Battle Reports published since the last blog post!
I am currently backing the CoraQuest expansion – Keep On Questing.
And I am backing the TT Combat Paints and Washes project, only for a couple of paints to see how they are.
I bought some slippers, as my old ones fell apart.
A friend bought another Leagues of Votann box and sold me the spare Codex and models.
I also finally picked up the Sicaran that I bought for my birthday.
And I got another GameCube controller holder for my wall of Controllers!
And I also picked up a Steam code for Spider-Man Remastered!
Trying a proper camera this time instead of just using my phone, so sorry for any issues with slight blur, focus and aspect ratio!
The 32nd part of the Warhammer 40,000 Imperium Battle Report Series.
In this episode, we play the next Scout Mission!
Who will prevail in this battle between the sinister Necrons and the Adeptus Mechanicus!
You can buy your own Task Lamp here
You can support what I do by doing any of the following:-
I have been provided with an advance copy of the new Arkham Horror book The Deadly Grimoire by Rosemary Jones, published by Aconyte Books, so here is the honest review I promised in exchange for the book.
So here is an important disclaimer which is always important to put out there first. I have a casual work contact with Asmodee to demonstrate board games for them in stores and at conventions. Asmodee being the parent company of Aconyte the publisher.
I am going to try my best to not let that cloud my judgement in this review, but I accept that subconsciously it might.
Anyway that put to one side, let’s look at this book, by first looking at the game Arkham Horror which is a cooperative game, originally designed by Richard Launius, and is now in its third edition which was released in 2019.
It’s published by Fantasy Flight Games, a subsidiary of Asmodee, and is set in 1926 in the town of Arkham, Massachusetts. Each player takes on the role of an investigator, who are working to stop the Ancient Ones, eldritch horrors which lurk in the void beyond space and time.
It’s a 1-6 player game and you work together to gather clues and defeat the evil of the Ancient Ones and save the world.
As I said I haven’t actually played Arkham Horror but I do own its spin off Elder Sign the cooperative dice game.
Like the rest of the Arkham Horror novels, its set in the 1920s specifically 1926 and is a sequel to Jones’s previous novel in the setting Mask of Silver.
We see the return to Arkham of Betsy Baxter who has now become a star in Hollywood in a film serial series, The Flapper Detective, which has made her very rich!
After the fire at the Fitzmaurice house three years ago, Betsy has been looking for her lost beau Max, who disappeared that night, the last thing she saw of him was him stepping through a mirror as he pushed her out of the burning building.
Teaming up with fearless pilot Winifred Habbamock and bookseller Tom Sweets, she returns to Arkham to try and find out what happened to Max, and solve the mystery of what happened that night.
But the trio find themselves caught up in a mystery involving a mysterious book that belongs to Toms family, and is being fought over between an Innsmouth bootlegger, and a local doctor, who seek the forbidden knowledge within, to travel the secret ways.
Now this is a curious story, despite being set within the horror universe of Arkham Horror, there isn’t actually any horror to speak of, its a very interesting paranormal mystery, but even then, its quite light on that too.
But that’s not to say it isn’t a great book, Betsy was very much a minor character in the last book, but now she has been very fleshed out into a daredevil, wanting to perform ever more dangerous stunts to keep the punters buying tickets to her movies!
Yes, it’s a sequel and whilst I do think having read the previous book is helpful, you don’t need to, it explains enough to set the scene.
What is great about this book is that it’s not presenting Betsy, our Flapper Detective, as a mere jazz baby, with interest mostly in having a good time, but she is very well aware of the issues of the time, and this book doesn’t shy away from touching on the racial and social issues that those who aren’t white, and protestant faced in 1920 US. It’s not in your face, but it’s acknowledged in a very natural way which adds to the story and creates a deeper sense of immersion.
The story itself is very very well researched and there are a lot of references to silent movies, jazz, aviation etc that I ended up grabbing my phone to read more up on.
The story moves along very well, but the conclusion did feel a little rushed, but it worked.
I really want to hear a bit more about some of the characters, I think there is room to develop some other plotlines from the two books.
It is giving me lots of ideas for RPG adventures in the setting!
I have to give this book, 4.5 out of 5.
The Deadly Grimoire is out now in paperback, ebook and as an audiobook!
The 31st part of the Warhammer 40,000 Imperium Battle Report Series.
In this episode, we play the next Scout Mission!
Who will prevail in this battle between the sinister Necrons and the Blood Ravens!
You can buy your own Task Lamp here
You can support what I do by doing any of the following:-
The 30th part of the Warhammer 40,000 Imperium Battle Report Series.
In this episode, we play the next Scout Mission!
Who will prevail in this battle between the sinister Necrons and the Blood Ravens!
You can buy your own Task Lamp here
You can support what I do by doing any of the following:-
Well, I turned 40 last week, and it was not what I expected!
After Marys passing, I had stated that I wanted a quiet birthday, the only thing I wanted to do, was get a Big Mac, that’s it, nothing else.
But the polycule convinced me to make a bigger deal, we planned awesome meals that I love, a trip to Warhammer World, and watching Hamilton.
However, none of it happened, Lindsay got Covid on the Sunday night and all of the plans were cancelled.
To be honest, after having people making me build it up into something great, it turned out to be a huge disappointment.
I don’t know, it’s just really got me down, that the week was such a bust, and Lindsay has no more time off until Christmas, so we can’t even reschedule it to later on in the year, because Paul works weekends, and Megan can’t handle the crowds at Warhammer World on the weekend.
I did get some nice gifts; we did watch Lord of the Rings in 4k (Extended Editions of course), but it still felt like a big disappointing week.
Sorry for the moan, but I couldn’t even get a prearranged game at the club as I had planned, and Lindsay was mostly asleep, no not even any board games got played.
I guess my decision to make a bigger deal of 42 is more sensible.
I finished a squad of Terminators for my Imperial Fists first.
And then another of the same!
I then started work on a trio of Dreadnoughts, two Contemptors and a Leviathan.
I finished a Contemptor first.
Followed by the Leviathan.
I then finished up a second Contemptor, this time the resin legion specific one.
Making my way through Cthonia’s Reckoning which is not as good as I had hoped so far, but its ok.
I listened to both Mortarion – The Pale King and Rogal Dorn – The Emperor’s Crusader as audiobooks.
I have also started listening to the Doctor Who Monthly Adventures and just finished The Marian Conspiracy.
I am currently listening to The Great Clans of Rokugan Volume 1.
I have gotten back on the wagon of making Battle Reports!
More will follow!!!
Got myself a couple of treats for my birthday.
First was SuperHot VR for my Meta Quest 2, looking forward to playing that.
And secondly I got Uncharted: Legacy of Thieves Collection for the PS5.
I also scored a very cheap copy of Shadow of the Colossus for PS4 from eBay.
And a few more controller holders for the wall, so that’s pretty much what I want on the wall up for now.
So up there at the moment are:-
In the future I hope to add a PC Engine and CD32 controller as well as putting my SN30.
The 29th part of the Warhammer 40,000 Imperium Battle Report Series.
In this episode, we play the next Scout Mission!
Who will prevail in this battle between the sinister Necrons and the Blood Ravens!
You can buy your own Task Lamp here
You can support what I do by doing any of the following:-
These last few weeks have been a hell of a busy ones, with mine and Megan’s handfasting and house move, plus Company of Legends to boot.
My mental health is still in recovery mode, but I am getting there.
Me and Megan have intended to have a commitment ceremony for some time, because as a polyamorous couple and me already being married to Lindsay, we didn’t need to stick to the traditions of a normal marriage.
We were going to do it next year, but accelerated plans when Mary was diagnosed with cancer, in the hope’s she would still be with us. But the speed at which the cancer took her meant we are a few weeks too late, which in itself is devastating.
We hired a hall near Sedgefield, as it was close enough to Hartlepool for Mary that getting her there in the condition we thought she would be in, was not going to be too arduous.
Due to the speed in which it was organised, we couldn’t get a lot of guests there, especially with it being midweek, but we were happy with those that could make it.
Megan wore a beautiful green dress for the ceremony with a black shawl.
It was small and pleasant, not a lot of friends could come, but those that did, we greatly appreciated it.
It’s been nearly two months now, but we are pretty settled in Hartlepool now, and it’s quite nice here, the house is lovely if a bit smaller than the Pelton one, but in general is pretty good.
There are a lot more things in the town which is nice and that really does help you make a lot better when you can pretty much get stuff without having to make a big plan on how to get it.
Only thing I am lacking is a place to buy paint in Hartlepool, but so far Lindsay and Paul have been getting me to Asgard when I need it.
Slowly but surely getting my studio in order, but next step is to actually put some armies into storage.
The first models I was able to get painting the new house were two units of Necron Warriors and some Canoptek Scarabs for my Necrons.
After that it took me ages, but I did manage to get a start on my Imperial Fists, starting with the Praetors from the boxset.
And a Tactical Squad.
I am now working on a Terminator Squad for the Imperial Fists.
I have had a couple of games of 40K at Durham Raiders using my Necrons, but that’s pretty much it.
Again, not a lot, but I did play and finish A Memoir Blue, which was rather more emotional than I expected!
GURPS Pyramid Scheme is back for 2022 from Steve Jackson Games, so I backed that, at the level that got you all three issues.
Most I have just been grabbing bits and bobs for the house and my studio, but there have been a few notable purchases.
I got a C64 Mini to add to my collection of retro mini consoles.
The Snottling stuff for Blood Bowl came out, so I grabbed the cards and dice for them!
Now this might sound daft, but when I renewed my phone contact, I was offered, and I snapped up a PS5 with Horizon Forbidden West!
But I also wanted some other games too, so I bought myself for the PS4, Grand Theft Auto Trilogy, The Last of Us Remastered and The Last of Us Part II.
The Uncharted Trilogy (and the Doctor Who Beginnings boxset)
And God of War plus Days Gone.
I also picked up a Contemptor Dreadnought for my Imperial Fist too and a Sicaran (not pictured)
And at Tabletop Gaming Live, I picked up some spray paints, bases and dice from TT Combat, plus a paint from Turbo Dork.
And finally, I picked up the Age of Darkness Reference Cards
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