Book Review: 25 for 25 part 5

Well here we go, last but not least, the last five stories of Black Library's 25 for 25.

Snares and Delusions by Matthew Farrer was first published in Dark Imperium and tells the story Chaplain De Haan and Word Bearers as they attempt to take over an Eldar Exodite world. This was a very good story because you totally feel it is going to go one way that the beginning, and then it totally goes a different way at the end. Very good read!

Next up is The Curiosity by Dan Abnett. This story was in Cruicible of War, and it tells us about one of my favorite, least known Dan Abnett character, Magos Biologis Valentin Drusher. I read about Drusher the first time in Fear the Alien. In that story, I really felt that Abnett was riffing on Harry Dresden, but I don't get that feeling in this story. In this one, the Magos, having completed cataloging all of a fauna on the planet, is sent to check on a predator he may has missed. Hijinks ensue!

Book Review: 25 for 25 part 4

Part four of the five-part saga that is 25 for 25 continues today.

First up we have The Burning by Nick Kyme. This one comes from the 2010 BL Chapbook. I haven't been much of a fan of Nick Kyme's Salamanders, so I really didn't read through this one very thouroghly. Probably because this story takes place between Salamander and Fire Drake and I never finished Salamander.

The second story for today is A Good Man by Sandy Mitchell. This story was published in the Sabbat World's Anthology, and it tells a rather unique story of a non-war related tale that takes place on Verghast long after the Tanith have left. This tells the story of Zale Linder, a scribe, and what happens when he tries to look up a friend when he first lands on Verghast. This feels more like a detective story than a 40k story, and it is such a great change of pace!

Book Review: 25 for 25 part 3

Here we are again for another day and another five of "the best" from Black Library.

First up today we have Even Unto Death by Mike Lee. This story was first published in Bringers of Death. This is an awesome story, and that isn't just because it is a Space Wolf story (although that certainly doesn't hurt!). It tells the tale of Skaflock, a Wolf Guard in charge of a bunch of scouts on the world of Volturna. The Wolves are in town to clear out some Orks, but the sneaky Orks aren't making it easy. The Orks have ambushed the Wolf Lord and stolen his body! Well, the Wolves can't let that stand!

Next up we have The Carrion Anthem by David Annandale. This one is in Hammer and Bolter Issue 11, and it tell a story of how Typhus gets things done when he decides to take over a world! I don't think I have read anything by David Annandale before, but this story makes me want to read more! Very good story, very grim-dark ending!

Book Review: 25 for 25 part 2

All this week I am going over Black Library's celebration of the 25th anniversary of 40k, yesterday I went over the first five stories, today I will be doing the next five.

First up we have At Gaius Point by Aaron Dembski-Bowden. First printed in Legends of the Space Marines
(available from BL), this is a story of a Flesh Tearers squad that has had one of its battle brothers succumb to the black rage, and it is a very good tale of how far they will go to make sure that the truth of their curse does not get out.

Up next is Mistress Baeda's Gift which is in the Fear the Alien anthology (currently out of stock in paperback, but still available on ebook). This is the story of Malwrack, and Dark Eldar that is trying to win the hand of his lady fair, well not exactly like that. Lets just say that Dark Eldar courtship is... interesting. This is very good read.

The third story for today is Survivor by Steve Parker. This story comes from Hammer and Bolter issue 9, and it has got to be my pick for best story of the five today. This is a very cool story, and it has a very nifty unexpected twist at the end. I'll leave it at that.

Next up is The Heraclitus Effect by Grahm McNeill which comes from Planetkill (another one that is OOS in paperback but still available in ebook). This is one of the Iron Warriors short stories about the Warsmith Honsou and it gives us a glimps into what he is willing to do to get back at his favorite Ultramarine Uriel Ventris. Let me tell you, you don't want to piss Honsou off!

Last for today is Flesh by Chris Wraight. This one comes from Hammer and Bolter issue 7, and it is an Iron Hands story. While I don't think I liked this story 100%, I think it does an excellent job of giving you a glimps into what Space Marines (for the most part) are like, and where the interests of "humans" fall in their spectrum of "giving a crap".

Well that is it for today, tune in tomorrow for stories 11 - 15!

Book Review: 25 for 25 part 1

With the recent 25th anniversary of Warhammer 40,000, the Black Library released an anthology called 25 For 25. The ebook has 25 of the best 40k short stories every written (or so they claim).

This week I will be going through this book five stories at a time.

In this first installment, we start out with Pestilence by Dan Abnett. I believe that this story was first published in Deathwing, and then published again in Let the Galaxy Burn. An Imperial Recollector has been sent to the Hospice of Saint Bastian on Symbal Iota to help uncover information that will help fight Uhlren's Pox on Genovingia. To do that he must interview Colonel Fege Ebhoe, a man that has worked on a malady similar to the pox. Unfortunately Ebhoe is not so forthcoming with information, and what he does give, is rather unsettling.

The second story is Wrath of Kharn by William King. This story was first published in Dark Imperium and it tells the take of (oddly enough) Kharn the Betrayer. Kharn and is lovely band of berserkers are assaulting the Temple of Superlative Indulgence which (also oddly enough) is a temple to Slaaneshi. In the temple a daemon of great power tempts Kharn and the berserkers with infinite pleasure. Obviously the daemon doesn't know who he's dealing with!

Book Review: Fifteen Hours

A couple of weeks ago, Pat from the 11th Company contacted me to do an interview/book review. That review was of Deliverance Lost, and at the end he asked me if I wanted to do another review in the future. I gushed a little and said, "sure," so a week later we sat down and reviewed Fifteen Hours.

It had been a while since I had read this book so I sat down to read it again, and I re-found out that this is really a very enjoyable book.

One of the things that really make this book enjoyable to me are the characters. Mitchel Scanlon does a great job of creating some very memorable characters in a few short pages. These little vignettes are what make the story.

The first one we see if of Erasmus Ng. He is what I guess you would call a scribe. He works 12-hours a day 7-days a week transcribing a series of numbers broadcast to him by some disembodied voice.

Hobby: How to keep your Dread from Falling Down on the Job

Thought I'd put a little tutorial together for today. A very basic one, but I was looking for something to post.

One of the most vulnerable joints on the Dreadnought is the ankle joint. I have dropped a plastic and (shudder) metal dread and they always break along the ankle. I've even had someone knock over a metal dread on the table top and break the ankle, so I'm going to set my Grey Knights Dreads up right!

Book Review: Path of the Seer

Well this was supposed to go out on Friday, but with my mom in town for spring break, I didn't actally get around to writing the post, and I've learned that if you have a blog post without any writing, it isn't actually very interesting, so here we go. This time with more interesting!

Path of the See is the second in the Eldar saga. I really enjoyed Path of the Warrior, and I was looking forward to reading this book, but when I got it I had a hard time initially getting through it. I want to say that it was because I read a not-so-flattering review from another blog before I read it, and I think it put me off the book. So after setting the book aside for a good long time, I finally came back to it.

This tells, well, not the same story as Path of the Warrior, but sorta the same story as Path of the Warrior, but from a different persective. One of the issues I had to begin with was the fact that both books begin at pretty  much the same point. Thirianna and Korlandril are waiting for their buddy to come back from a long journey. They have pretty much the same conversation as they did in the first book, and both of them are kind of annoying.

Space Wolves Venerable Dreadnought: WiP 3

This guy is 99% complete, and I think he is looking pretty spiffy. 

Space Wolf Servitors: Delemma

So last time I posted my Space Wolf Servitors. I think they look really good... except... these two guys.

Space Wolves Servitors: WiP 2

You know, for the longest time, I really didn't want to paint these guys. I was unsure of the colors I wanted to use on them. I was afraid that I would paint their overalls in the same shade as my Space Wolf power armor, and that would look silly. I was a little apprehensive about painting the skin on these guys as I wanted them to look wasted and pale, almost dead (as servitors appear in my mind).

Book Review: Dread Fleet

Waaaaaaaaay back when Dread Fleet came out I went down to the FLGS and noticed all of the boxes and along with them was a little book by Andy Hoare that went with it.

I really regret not getting the Black Reach book and the Space Hulk book (which I have recently fixed) so I picked this one up.

This story is about Captain Jaego Roth and his Ahab-like thirst for revenge for Count Noctillus after he wreak  Jaego's home town and is generally a bad dude.

Roth starts out by going to the Empire and stealing a vessel he believes is capable of taking out Noctillus' flag ship the Bloody Reaver. After that he assembles a gang of like-minded captains to help him take down Noctillus. This story reminded me of the old Sinbad movies from the 70's-80's with it's road trip feel how at each stop they picked up someone to add to their super group.

Chaos Space Marine Lord with Jump Pack: Complete! (really)

I know that I have already claimed that my Chaos Space Marine Lord with Jump Pack was complete, but now he is super-complete! I really struggle to motivate myself to do the bases on my minis, and most of them are pretty lame (see any of my Space Wolves bases). 

I had a brainstorm when it came to my Red Corsiars (or at the very least the independent characters). I wanted them to be standing on a pile of skulls! How bad-ass is that?

I searched around for some resin bases that have skulls on them, and while some of them were good, I didn't really like them over-much. That led me to Secret Weapon Miniatures and their Sack o' Skulls. 

Chaos Space Marine Lord: WiP 2

Here are some updates of my on-going Chaos fetish (and yet I'm not into Slannesh). Here is my second update for the Chaos Lord.

Book Review: Know no Fear

Right on the heels of Deliverance Lost, we have Know no Fear by Dan Abnett, and I was feeling so good about DL, that I knew KnF was going to be a great book, and boy was I right!

This is the story of how the Word Bearers try to destroy/cripple the Ultramarines so that they can't play a part in the siege of Terra. This is still the point of the Heresy where the bad guys know whats going on, but the good guys still have no clue.

At the beginning of the story, the Ultramarines and Word Bearers are joining together to go put down some filthy xenos culture. Everyone assumes that the pairing is so that the two legions can bury the hatchet for the smack-down the Emperor laid upon the Word Bears via the Ultramarines 40 years previous. Little did the Ultramarines know it would be a literal hatchet that was in-fact a power ax buried into someones face!