Showing posts with label Level 50. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Level 50. Show all posts

Sunday, 25 October 2015

Sharsha 'Friedegunde'

Months have passed, and I have finally completed a new Anima Tactics unit! Spurred on by my Zomtober painting exertions, I was determined to use this month as a spur to getting other tangentially related stuff painted, and for me, Sharsha 'Friedegunde' fit the bill. While she is not an Undead, she has abilities that reference life after death and I thought it would be interesting to use my zombie-skin recipe on her with her patchwork body.

Sharsha is of course one of the four recently released but long-awaited final minis from Cipher Studios/Ninja Division, and I was pleased that they finally surfaced - although two more minis remain yet to be released: Legion and the new Limited Edition Celia.

The initial painting was pretty quick as I went back and forth between this and other minis I have tackled for Zomtober. I am hoping that in the last couple months of 2015 I can at least get one or two more Anima Tactics units finished.

I haven't played the game in quite a while, with enthusiasm seriously dampened by the Cipher decision about the game, but hope to maybe play a game or two soon or early next year. It would be nice to get Sharsha onto the table if I do. In game terms, Sharsha is having to compete with Organization-specific units as well as other Wanderers for the coveted Wanderer slot in a Party (except Black Sun who she cannot work with). Therefore she has to offer something exceptional, and with her Power Token management adding extra options such as instant AP recovery (theoretically allowing for 7 AP expenditure once per game), Healing, coming back from being reduced to 0 Life Points, and increased Speed, then I think arguably she does.

For Advantage Cards, I think the ideal choice is Orb of Power so she starts with 1 Power Token, and meaning she should be up to 2 or 3 Tokens by the end of her first Turn if she also uses her Pure Anger Action twice - that sets her ready to use Limit Break (AP recovery) and just 1 Power Token short of being ready to use Beyond the Grave which allows her to return from being reduced to 0 LP.

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Units Units Painted/Owned: 74/169 (43.8%; added - Sharsha, Nimrod, Anaximenes, September and another Ahriman. Lord of Darkness)
Anima Tactics Discrete Units Painted/Range: 70/163 different units (42.9 %)
Year to Date Target: 4 of 18 units (3 per month target; 13%)

Thursday, 28 August 2014

The Colonel

The Colonel is the head of Les Jaeger, and a man whose power and influence extends across the entire world.

The Colonel is the third member of Team Les Jaeger that I have painted, and leaves just one more mini (Kirsten) to finish the whole Team; Team Les Jaeger is currently the only Team comprising 4 units.

In game terms, The Colonel is formidable prospect, with hand to hand and ranged Attacks, as well as the option to steal Life Points from allies and a defensive Action, meaning he is potentially quite durable. However as a member of Team Les Jaeger he gains Arbiter status, adding bonus Actions to his Team. Looking at the Team, I really cannot see a good reason to not invest the 5 Levels Advantage Card cost to get the benefits. He also has the Initiative ability which helps with the Initiative Roll each Turn.

This mini has been assembled for several months, and I think it would have remained unpainted had I not finished painting Reindhold so close to having some time off work. I had some motivation and was able to get him finished over three to four sessions. I may go and do a little more tot he flame to create greater hot to less hot contrast. Please forgive the ropey photography.

This takes me to four Anima Tactics units for the month, and with a few days left I hope that I can get at least one more done before the end of August. It will help me recover some of the deficit that has built up!

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Units: 163 (added: nothing new since the last unit, but I am hoping for another couple of releases soon...)
Anima Tactics Units Painted: 61 (57 different models)
Painted Units Percentage: 37.4% (percentage of AT minis owned and painted)
Anima Tactics Range: 152 units (including 2 LE minis;including September as he still is due for presumably imminent release)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 37.5%
Year to Date Target: 20 of 24 units (3 per month target; 83%)

Monday, 26 May 2014

Raziel Archetypum

My rate of painting has fallen off a cliff once again. This month has required a lot of attention for the course I am doing and as part of the Pulp City creative team. For some reason, I just have not made even the odd five minutes for painting to keep things ticking over.

I started this one at the beginning of May to try to rectify that, but soon lost all momentum. With the bank holiday weekend I decided I needed to get a mini finished, and this made the most sense in terms of stage of completion. My enthusiasm for painting, which is limited at the best of times, has pretty much gone out the window.

The Raziel Archetypum is a step up in raw power from the weaker (lower Level) Undead that Black Sun can draw upon. As with most other non-unique Undead, there are some options in terms of upgrades, and when assembling the mini I chose to give it Dual Raxxors (the huge swords). The paint scheme reflects my usual approach to Black Sun foot soldiers.

I am hoping to get some games in in the next month or so, so a Black Sun Party could well get a run out before too long I hope!

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Units: 158 (added: another Hellhound and another Wrath of Nature; also I have 4 minis on back order....)
Anima Tactics Units Painted: 53 (51 different models)
Painted Units Percentage: 33.5% (percentage of AT minis owned and painted)
Anima Tactics Range: 151 units (including 2 LE minis; added September as he is due for imminent release)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 33.8%
Year to Date Target: 12 of 15 units (3 per month target; 80%)

Friday, 28 June 2013

Odin Goldsmith

My second Empire unit, and this is a big one.

For those not familiar with the mini, Odin Goldsmith is mounted on a 40 mm base. He is a big beast of a model, even if he does not look it at first sight. Nowhere near Wrath of Nature size, but still 45 mm tall, and his weapon? That is approximately 2 3/4 inches long!

Like I said - he is big!

Odin Goldsmith is the warrior incarnate; his background describes that for over thirty years he has been present in every documented conflict and involved in hundreds of secret special operations, that he is an unstoppable fighting machine.

Colour-scheme wise I wanted to stick with what I laid down with Janus Faith, but having no tunic I substituted the blue onto his cloak. Even though there is an established official colour scheme for Empire which I *think* varies by rank, I want a more uniform look for my Empire so I will be sticking with the combination with some exceptions like Samiel.

I am looking forwards to unleashing Odin Goldsmith in some games as he has a couple of cool Action, but a really cool special ability (Chain of Blows), which can keep going with the right amount of stupendous luck. It could be interesting to see that ability explode as it were.

Stats wise, he has very high armour, a lot of Life points and attack 5/Damage 6, so pretty hard-hitting. Definitely one to sue Gnosis on to maximize the chances of Chain of Blows.

His main drawback is that he has a relatively very low AP regeneration, but this improves as he takes more damage, although for the best 4/4 he will be close to being taken out, so it maybe worth considering Advantage cards that offer synergy with how he is set-up such as Last Stand (+1 Attack and +1 Damage at below half LP); Talisman of Eriol (re-roll one die); Primal (since you are likely to be using Gnosis etc anyway, he should hopefully hit, and Primal stacks that up); and any of the usual suspects like Supernatural Weapon, Elemental Weapon or Supernatural Armor.

Ultimately he looks like he can be a heavy hitter, but one that is fallible. Definitely want to get some games in with him as soon as possible.

Getting this finished was a little surprising as I had started work on Luzbell at the time, then thought I would do 'a bit' on Odin while she was drying at some points, Then I carried on, and on, and eventually finished him. I really have little control over what I finish and when sometimes! Luzbell is nearly done and I have a few more Empire (Vayl; Veronica; Erika; and Female Empire Agent) in the possibly infamous 'queue', so I hope more will be done soon. That said, I have a painting challenge for another game next month, so that may slow things down a little on the Anima Tactics front, same for August, but rest assured I will keep plugging away.

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Minis: 127 (added: nothing!)
Anima Tactics Minis Painted: 21
Painted Minis Percentage: 16.5% (percentage of AT minis owned that are painted)

Sunday, 21 April 2013

Azriel

Painting slowed down a little this month, but I am hoping that picks up in the next four days, however in the mean-time Azriel was finished today. The shininess from the washed areas should be fixed when varnished.

Azriel is an Inquisitor, so is part of the same branch of the Church as Lostaroth Marchosias. What I plan to do with my Church minis is use red as the unifying theme, with Inquisition models having black as the primary additional colour, and the Saints and similar having white as their additional colour. Grey as a former agent of the Inquisition sits neatly with his grey colour theme between the two. Almost like I planned it (or a happy accident...)!

This is not my favourite Anima Tactics mini by any stretch, although I generally like it; it is just that the sword is unnecessarily thick and therefore 'chunky', especially when compared to the finer-style sculpting of Juan Navarro Perez. Things like this remind of the early 90's and GW-style sculpting  but things have moved on. And so the sword, which should be one the focal things given the size of it, is actually a detraction.

Anyway Azriel is another Warrior, and his arrival means that I can now do a Level 200 or 300 Church Organization Party (with the help of a Wanderer, and a Summon for the Level 300 Party).

Comparing hims to a unit like Drake makes me think he looks fairly competitive, with a relatively cheap (AP-wise) reactive Attack - hurt him close-up and he hurts you back if he is still standing. I am thinking that Equipment cards that could go well with Azriel are things like Nephiros (eliminate a character and recover 1 Action Point); Blood Omen (recover 1 LP per Attack that causes damage); and the weapon standbys of Primal, Elemental Weapon or Supernatural Weapon.

Time for the running total, and as I type these words I have not yet worked out the percentage, but have to acknowledge I have recently had another sizable intake of minis, so a little worried...


Running Totals
Anima Tactics Minis: 94 (added: Konosuke; Takanosuke; Daniella Meris; Janus Faith and Rayne)
Anima Tactics Minis Painted: 14
Painted Minis Percentage: 14.9% (percentage of AT minis owned that are painted)

Whew! Slight increase. If I can finish another couple this week then that should drift up a couple of percentage points. Stay tuned!



Saturday, 6 April 2013

Wrath of Nature

My first Summon!

Not that I have painted up a worthwhile Summoner yet (I do not see Sarah Reindhold as a useful Summoner at this stage of my understanding of the game), but hey, it is a start...

The blurb for Wrath of Nature describes them as 'an incarnation of the unleashed power of Gaia'.

Summons are non-unique, meaning a Party can include more than one of each type subject to the Levels limit. Summons do not start in play, but are brought to the battle-field by the Summoner they are attached to. Summoning has an Action Point cost according to the Summon's rules. In addition, most Summons have a choice of Level cost which they can be bought for, with a lesser and more powerful version available. That difference may be in characteristics, or Innate Abilities or Special Actions. The Level cost of Summons is accordingly lower than perhaps an equivalent model with the same abilities (if there was such a thing), and this is reflected in their Atman rating, which is their relative worth. In addition they can be used within an Organization Party without taking up the Wanderer slot.

The Wrath of Nature is a bit of a lumbering beast with a lot of Life Points and Armor, but not too mobile. The fact that it is huge should be evident from the third photograph alongside Sarah Reindhold.

I would like to get at least one more Summon and a decent Summoner painted up before my planned games later this month.

In the mean time the painting queue changes randomly as ever, and Yuki had some work done today: not even a Summoner! So whether I get done what I want is anyone's guess...


Running Totals
Anima Tactics Minis: 89 (added a lot since the last update: Kerberos; Veronica; Deadmoon; Jerome; Justine; Cordelia Rosalind; Damaris; and Momiji)
Anima Tactics Minis Painted: 12
Painted Minis Percentage: 14.6% (yep, it has gone down! That splurge has dented my progress, so time to get splashing those hairy sticks onto minis!)


Thursday, 27 December 2012

Hiro

Go Avenger Ranger, go!

Hiro's background posits him as a boy reborn after an accident and rebuilt as the hero of his wildest dreams. He sees himself as an 'Avenger Ranger', a hero of justice, something he sees in the other Crows of Wissenschaft.

I love this nod to the Tokusatsu shows known to most of us in the west through Power Rangers, Masked Rider and V.R. Troopers. The rules of this guy emulate my memories of those shows, as perfectly demonstrated by his Posing rule; when Hiro defeats an enemy he has to expend an Action Point (or suffer Slow Level 1).

I have yet to play Anima Tactics, so I do not have a clue how he plays in the game, but I can guarantee that even when I have a few minis ready for my first games, I wholly expect Hiro to get a few outings!


I am pretty happy with how Hiro turned out, although I may do a little more on a couple of the areas of 'metal' on the model.

Hiro was started before Dereck Shezard, but it took until I felt I had enough focus and motivation to finish him off (if indeed he is finished) in a few stints.

I am pleased with how the figure looks in the pictures, and it probably photographs a little better than it looks in hand to be honest. That said, I definitely need to add some 'lighter' palette minis in my Anima Tactics selection I reckon; there is a lot of 'dark' going on so far. Well across the three minis if that counts as a 'lot'.

On my Anima Tactics painting slate now: Shinobi; Clover; Grey; Genma. 

Other minis that are base-coated include: Akio Kageshima; Bael; Dark Cheshire. 

I have a few other minis based and ready, but no under-coating: Covel; Deimon; Juliette Kaim; Bella and Aqua; Ingnis, Fire Demon.

Not sure which of these will be finished next, or whether something else will jump the queue - so stay tuned to find out!

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