Kirsten

Another mini done, and hopefully I am now regaining some lost  painting momentum for the project, after finishing Cordelia earlier this month and now Kirsten. I won't get ahead of myself though!

Kirsten has been part-done for a few months, and it was only in the last couple of weeks I was able to overcome whatever was blocking me from simply getting her finished off, so two satisfactions for me this time: another unit painted, and something completed that has been long-gestating in painting terms. Not my best standard of painting, but now done, which for me is the most important thing.

This silent assassin is described as an enigmatic killer in the ranks of Les Jaeger. She also completes my first Team in over a year, and over six months since I finished the third of four members of the Team (The Colonel). I will put a post up of my Team Les Jaeger in a few days time.

In game terms, Kirsten is a cheap Prowler unit for Azur. Her attacks can all potentially inflict Poison States, and in addition she has a ranged counter-attack and move and fire options in her armoury, as well as a potentially deadly one-shot area of effect attack against all enemies within line of sight within 12 inches; stack the right buffs on her at the right time and this fairly inexpensive unit could make a mess of clustered enemies. As a consequence, I think an Advantage Card buffing her Attack value does have real value, such as Supernatural Weapon or Cursed Weapon, but only if her player can plan properly to get maximum benefit. However, since it is vital to get her in the right position with maximum AP, then cards such as Fate Clock and Clock of Cronos also have real value, as does support from units such as Juliette Kaim.

I am not too sure what I will be painting next for Anima Tactics, but hopefully the current momentum will be sustained, especially as I am quite far behind my year to date target. Anyway, please stay tuned to see how the project progresses.

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Units Owned/Units Painted: 164/72 (43.9%)
Anima Tactics Range/Discrete Units Painted: 159/67 different units (42.1 %)
Year to Date Target: 2 of 9 units (3 per month target; 22%)

Church Agent (male)

Unit number 70 - done!

These Agents are the special forces available to the Church's highest circles of power. Many are trained from childhood to hunt down and destroy supernatural threats to humanity, while others use their divine gifts to further the work of the Church.

I started this mini along with another Church Agent and a couple of non-Anima Tactics minis at the same time, to take advantage of the fact that all were using red as a predominant colour. What that meant was that in a few days I managed to paint 3 minis, and so I have inched further forward with my Anima Tactics painting total. This mini was started once previously, and stripped of paint when I was unhappy with my progress. There is some pitting at the back of the mini I am unhappy with, but that will stay as it is, as I just do not want to strip and repaint it again. More importantly, it is my first Church unit completed (since Alis Testarossa) in almost 6 months!

As mentioned in a recent post (click for link), it looks like Agents may get a change to their rules, so I am very interested to see what will happen with Church Agents. once all the Agents cards have been revealed, I will probably get a set printed via Artscow until such time official cards are printed.

As the year draws to a close, I don't think there is any hope of achieving my target of 36 Anima Tactics units this year. However, I may get a couple more painted possibly, and if I can match the same total next year and the year after, the project will remain steadily on course. That may need me to paint 'smarter', doing what I have done with Deimon and Luther Delacroix and painting a couple of units in tandem for speed,

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Units: 164 (added: nothing and still no sign of that pre-order from months ago...)
Anima Tactics Units Painted: 70 (66 different units)
Painted Units Percentage: 42.7% (percentage of AT minis owned and painted)
Anima Tactics Range: 152 discrete units (including 2 LE minis; including September as he *still* is due for presumed release)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 43.4%
Year to Date Target: 29 of 36 units (3 per month target; 81%)

Akio Kageshima

Akio Kageshima is described as a powerful wizard from Lannet, who is seeking to expand his mystical skill.

He is also one of the older models in the range as far as I can tell, and so is one of the few not sculpted by Juan Navarro Perez. It is also a mini that I have been putting off painting for quite some time until biting the bullet while still gripped by recent painting momentum. In the end the colour scheme is one I am happy with and something I hope that contrasts nicely with my Organization colour combos. I am also hoping this is the start of a small surge in AT painting for me until the end of the year. I am way behind where I wanted to be, but getting more done each week, even if there are not necessarily the finished models to show for it yet.

Akio is a Wanderer, and a pretty inexpensive one at that at 35 Levels. He offers a couple of Ranged Attack options, as well as a Special Dodge. It is one of his Attack options that really interests me most. Soul Storm has Range 16 inches, and is  6 Attack, 10 Damage. It uses all of Akio's AP to unleash the Attack, meaning that you need to position him in advance. It is a big threat and Akio is pretty weak otherwise with 8 Defense and 10 LP with low 2 AP recovery; so getting the best out of the shot is key. Now, I wouldn't build a list around such a fragile although potentially hard-hitting character, but there are some options that come to mind to help get the best out of him.

Nullum Lusec is a useful Advantage Card option. At 35 Levels Akio could be targeted against a higher cost character quite freely; Nullum Lusec is a one-shot +2 Attack boost, so improves likelihood of success and fits the idea of using him in a 'cheap sniper' capacity. Characters that also offer Attack buffs include: Juliette Kaim, Sophia Ilmore and Saint Evangeline are all useful options. Finally, a unit such as Luzbell can be used to transport Akio to the perfect vantage point to make his Soul Storm Attack.

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Units: 163 (added: nothing, but I *still* have two minis on pre-order <sigh>)
Anima Tactics Units Painted: 66 (62 different units)
Painted Units Percentage: 40.5% (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, and has been for a long time)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 40.8%
Year to Date Target: 25 of 33 units (3 per month target; 76%)

Samael Agent (male)

Forming a shadowy network of operatives, Samael Agents are tasked to unleash chaos and confusion across all of Gaia in the name of the Fallen Angels of Samael.

With this mini, I have been painting it bit by bit through the week, desperately clinging on to my often fleeting motivation! I wanted a quite muted palette, to create a sort of 'fantasy ranger' look to him; green, grey and brown as the main colour blocks all fit that kind of vision I think, with some contrasting brightness from the stave and magical effect. When I finished Dagger, this Samael Agent was only under-coated, so it has quickly leap frogged a number of part-done minis, which is okay - at least something has been finished! It may be a bit rough in places, but I can live with it. The most important thing for me is getting another mini done, and it has also been a useful exercise in  working with the green colour I used here and which I am using for another non-Anima Tactics project.

Until I get a more substantial Samael force together, I think this Agent is most likely to  be used in games as created by an Al-Djinn as an Ash Slave. Samael Agents belong to either Light, Dark or Neutral Faction depending on the abilities. This can have slight impact of things like choosing Advantage cards, as well as how a few units do or do not get bonuses against specific Factions.

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Units: 163 (added: nothing, but I *still* have two minis on pre-order <sigh>)
Anima Tactics Units Painted: 65 (61 different units)
Painted Units Percentage: 39.9% (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, and has been for a long time)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 40.1%
Year to Date Target: 24 of 30 units (3 per month target; 80%)

Reindhold

Fast on the heels of the Gear Mk. Trithemius comes Reindhold, my 60th Anima Tactics unit! Alfred Reinhold Webber is a descendant of one of the oldest and most influential noble houses of Togarini (a land of Gaia), and a captain of Les Jaeger. Reinhold wields powerful psychic powers, and is able to move mountains with the power of his mind.

In game terms, Reindhold is a little unusual. Most of his Actions are Effect based, meaning they cannot be Dodged, although Resistance applies. That said, his Damaging Effect is restricted to 6 Life Points Damage, so he has his limits. He also has a Paralysis causing Action, as well as another that can move enemy models, useful with models who have yet to Activate or are in tricky positions to reach. He can also move scenery, but I never like those kinds of Actions in games, since scenery sizes vary so much by gamer’s collections, and also because a beautifully crafted board with fixed scenery renders the Action useless. A minor criticism though.

Reindhold is a member of Team Les Jaeger, and the second member of the Team I have painted after Kyler; I still have to complete Kirsten (part-painted) and The Colonel to finish the group. Azur will take a bit of working out in terms of effective game-play I think, so I may hold off playing them until I have Team Les Jaeger and an Arbiter at the very least. So quite a way off then! When I do finally get around to using Reindhold, Advantage Cards that make sense are Clock of Cronos or Fate Clock for the extra AP; Control Bound to boost the Reindhold’s Effect values (making Resistance rolls harder against his Actions); or maybe Presence (extending Reindhold’s Control Zone, therefore his range with abilities). He is also one of the units that benefited from a cost reduction with the 2013 Update.

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Units: 163 (added: nothing new....yet!)
Anima Tactics Units Painted: 60 (56 different models)
Painted Units Percentage: 36.8% (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: 36.8%
Year to Date Target: 19 of 24 units (3 per month target; 79%)

Gear Mk. Trithemius

This is my first Gear, and a tester of sorts. I have a couple of these now and will use them to work out my painting approach to the bigger Gears like Goethia, Theurgia and Grimorium. Legacy of Solomon may be different but I am not sure yet, and the Golem Gears such as Hecatondies Sigma Zero will be certainly be approached differently.

Gears come in two flavours so far, and the more common type is considered Technomagical Powered Armour, and that is the class that the Trithemius seems to fall into. Gears are mostly developed from examples of rediscovered technology known as Lost Loggia in the Anima Tactics background. Most of them have Damage Resistance, cannot take Advantage Cards, and many are Immune to Poison.

The Gear Mk. Trithemius is a sort-of Agent type of Gear; it is not an Agent as such, but counts against the limit of Agents, and like Agents has a small menu of options to customise its abilities. Unfortunately, the creators appear to have printed the game card for the unit with an error in its AP recovery rate (the card has it as way too fast for its Level value), although this has not been officially addressed in an Errata or update that I can find. I hope that is rectified fairly soon.

Since I mainly play against Wissenschaft when I play Rob, I hope we get a game in with one or more Gears fairly soon, although countering the decent Armor values prevalent among Gears will take some working out.

I enjoyed painting this and turned it around quite quickly, so the second one may be done before too long. Possibly.

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Units: 163 (added: Gear Mk Trithemius x2; October)
Anima Tactics Units Painted: 59 (55 different models)
Painted Units Percentage: 36.2% (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: 36.2%
Year to Date Target: 18 of 24 units (3 per month target; 75%)

Hellhound/Type-004: Hellhound (III)

I evidently like painting these things (after my first Hellhound/Type-004: Hellhound is here; and the second is here)! The main reason for painting a third is that I wanted a couple of 'Summon'-version paint-schemes, and  also because my painting has slowed down. As they are quick and easy to do, it helps me avoid full-on painters block to have got 'something done'.

The funny thing is, I am not sure I have actually used any of them in a game yet! I may have faced one once, but I have not yet selected a Hellhound or Type-004: Hellhound unit in a game that I can recall. That said, now that I have added a few more Summons in the past two or three months, I am much closer to being able to try out a Summon-horde type of list.

Keep an eye out soon for a group shot of all my painted Summons so far, ten models in total, although I really intend one of the Hellhounds more for my Black Sun than as a Summon.

Still, I cannot see me painting any more of these - three is plenty I think - so its is time for me to look for other 'quick-fix' minis for when I experience painting slumps in my Anima Tactics project. That said, I have been doing a bit of work on some other units, so hopefully I can get on track with the project sooner than later.

Of course, I had to get a picture of all three Hellhound/Type-004: Hellhounds together.

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Units: 160 (added: nothing - but I am now waiting on 3 minis; one has been dispatched from the USA, and hopefully the other will be too soon - also from the USA)
Anima Tactics Units Painted: 58 (54 different models)
Painted Units Percentage: 36.25% (percentage of AT minis owned and painted)
Anima Tactics Range: 151 units (including 2 LE minis; added September as he still is due for imminent release)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 35.8%
Year to Date Target: 17 of 24 units (3 per month target; 71%)

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%)

Tiamat

Tiamat is described as the youngest of the four 7th Heaven Knights that serve the Empress, and as a lazy womanizer, but with a peerless talent for fighting.

He is also my fifty-first completed mini for Anima Tactics as my painting rolls on. Tiamat utilises the same basic Empire colour scheme that I have used elsewhere (although there will come a variation when I eventually come to the likes of Samiel and Iosara), with the addition of red as a flourish which should help him stand out a little against the rank and file. I may repeat that red flourish on other Empire Leaders as it should help keep them looking a little distinct.

Tiamat offers me a bit of flexibility for building up my Empire towards a reasonable size Party (i.e. 300 Levels), since he is an Optional Leader, meaning I could still add a unit like Griever if I wanted. With Tiamat I now have around 275 Levels of Empire, so a couple more units are probably needed to make viable Party configurations. It could still be a while before I play a game with Empire, except maybe at a lower Level game such as 200 Levels (usually around 4-5 units).

In game terms, Tiamat looks like a decent fighter, although not in the class of some more combat-focused units; balancing that he has some support capability, with Actions that can disrupt enemies (World of Wires and Starlight Romance - and the latter is an area effect which is very potent) and has an Action that offers exceptional Haste for a paltry cost of 1 AP (basically better than most if not all Neokinesis). He has a fairly low Armor compared to some Empire units, but is very mobile so covers some of their perceived weaknesses.

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Units: 156 (added: nothing, but currently several mins are on order...)
Anima Tactics Units Painted: 51 (49 different models)
Painted Units Percentage: 32.7% (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: 32.4%

Kira

Another minis finished. In all, March 2014 has been a pretty productive month for me, with five Anima Tactics minis painted (the others being a Type-020: Verrier; a second Type-004: Hellhound/Hellhound; Arkham; and Ahriman, Lord of Darkness) and two minis for other ranges. Like Arkham, this one had been part-painted for months, so it is very pleasing to have cleared it from the painting queue. Even if looking closely at the pictures it looks like I have a bit of tidying to do around the back of the left ankle!

With Kira completed (with the caveat above!), my Wissenschaft force has grown to the point where I have a few options for 300 Level games. This year, I would really like to crack into the Gears. That will be dependent on settling on how I want to paint them in a consistent and pleasing way.

In game terms, Kira overlaps a little with Alessa Raincross, so I can see them being played together to double up capabilities. They are far from identical however. Following the 2013 Update, Alessa Raincross had her cost adjusted to 40 Levels, the same as Kira. Kira edges capabilities with higher Attack (5 vs. 4) and Life Points (13 vs. 10). However, Alessa has a longer range Special Attack (24 inches). Both have a multi-attack Special Action, with Alessa's throwing out more actual Attacks against a slightly better range for Kira. Alessa has Stealth, which Kira does not, but that is limited in context of her two Special Attacks, so in all, I think Kira wins out for me. That said, they look pretty 'shooty' for 80 Levels together, and I can see both getting a run out in a Party.

The obvious Advantage Cards are probably things like Piercing Weapon and/or Elemental Weapon, and also Gnose to reduce the threat of enemy Ranged Attacks against Kira.

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Minis: 155 (added: nothing, but I have something on order...)
Anima Tactics Minis Painted: 48 (46 different models)
Painted Minis Percentage: 30.97% (percentage of AT minis owned and painted)
Anima Tactics Range: 150 (including 2 LE minis)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 30.7%

Hellhound/Type-004: Hellhound (II)

This is my second Hellhound/Type-004: Hellhound (the first can be seen here - click for link); and painted slightly more in keeping with my Black Sun forces this time, and alongside the Type-020: Verrier I posted a few days ago. Hopefully the upcoming picture of my Black Sun units together will bear that out.

I picked this model out to paint last week almost as soon as it arrived in the post, as I wanted something I could finish quickly and easily and because as much as I don't really enjoy painting that much (I am a gamer first, painter second I think; I want my gaming pieces to be painted though), I did quite enjoy the first one as something quick and easy to do, and this was no different thankfully.

I hope that I can overcome the lull I have been in and get a move on through some more Anima Tactics units sooner than later, I'd like to get to 50 painted models for the game before the end of May, preferably even sooner (although I wonder if the end of April is a goal too far!).

I have a fair number that have yet to be used in games I have played, including the Hellhound/Type-004: Hellhound. Looking at this unit's rules again, especially as a Black Sun unit rather than as as Summon, it looks like a fairly cheap but potentially decent unit to harry and harass weaker support type enemy models. As a Dark Summon it is incredibly inexpensive at a mere 15  Levels.

I have a number of other Anima Tactics minis part-painted as well as dozens undercoated but not yet started. If I was a more disciplined painter I would start cranking through the partly done units I have, however I can be a bit of a gadfly when it comes to getting minis finished so that remains a forlorn hope I reckon. Maybe I ought to shame myself publicly by posting a pic of all the minis that have had some paint splashed on them? Or, then again, maybe not... :)

Anyway, this is my 45th Anima Tactics mini painted, which is pretty good going for a game that typically can be played with around 4-8 units at a time. Still, I really do want to paint at least one of every mini for this game, so that goal remains intact. Please stay with me and with the blog over the next couple of years to see how I get on with that ambition!

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Minis: 155 (added: nothing in the past few days!)
Anima Tactics Minis Painted: 45 (43 different models)
Painted Minis Percentage: 29.0% (percentage of AT minis owned and painted)
Anima Tactics Range: 150 (including 2 LE minis)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 28.7%

Type-020: Verrier

It has been a long lay-off from painting for me (due to working on the recent Pulp City Kickstarter), at least relative to my productivity in 2013. Therefore I am pretty pleased to have painted a few minis over the past few days.

I have managed to paint some Anima Tactics and non-Anima Tactics stuff that I hope will ignite some overall painting momentum, with a view to getting back on track.

This weekend I finished three minis including this one, and in the past few days I have prepped several other Anima Tactics minis: Luther Delacroix; another Al-Djinn; and Freya. While I already had a lot of stuff prepped, I am hoping completing 'some things' right now helps spur me on to getting some serious painting done in the next few weeks and months - time will tell of course, as ever!

This model has been in my pile of blisters for a few months, but having some time off work this week freed up a bit of painting time, so I had a small surge of motivation and assembled and painted this quite quickly by my standards; it effectively 'jumped the painting queue', but having not finished any painting for several weeks I am okay with that. While not my best work, I am happy with the results especially for a quick turnaround.

In game terms, one Type-020: Verrier can be taken per every 150 Levels of a Party. As an Undead unit you cannot attach Advantage Cards to them, so the key choice regarding the Type-020: Verrier is which upgrade to use. I suspect my primary choice will be the Queen until I get to grips with Guidance Points and Controllers; the Queen option allows lower-Level Undead to ignore the Uncontrollable rule. The options allow this unit to be fielded at Levels between 30 and 40. I have another Type-020: Verrier waiting in the wings (pardon the pun!), although not yet assembled, but with this unit finished and the next (to be shown in a few days), my Black Sun force is really growing; I expect to show a new Party picture very soon, and hope to get them on the table in the next few months.

I am also closing in on having a complete collection of the minis. There have been a couple of recent releases which I have yet to pick up (Gear Mk. Trithemius and October), so by my count I need five more minis for the complete set. Getting closer, although the paint total still falls short!

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Minis: 155 (added: Luther Delacroix; Mijhail Mashen’ka; a second Type-020: Verrier; and a second Type-004: Hellhound/ Hellhound)
Anima Tactics Minis Painted: 44 (43 different models)
Painted Minis Percentage: 28.4% (percentage of AT minis owned and painted)
Anima Tactics Range: 150 (including 2 LE minis)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 28.7% (this includes the two new releases)

XII

Phew, painting slump averted, I hope! Especially as it was three and a half weeks since Rayne was finished (well except for fixing her eyes).

He is described as the reserved and solitary supervisor of the Crows of Wissenschaft. The majority of Agents of the organization have never seen him, much less know him. He is a shadow that crawls in the dark, someone who appears inexplicably in different places of the world and leaves without a trace. Many say that he is no more than a ghost, a legend whose mantle is taken up by a different person over and over again.

I like this mini a lot, but then any regular reader knows I say that about most of this range, so nothing new there! I blocked out the base colours a couple of weeks ago then just struggled to paint anything. Finishing a Pulp City mini in the past couple of days helped reignite my motivations, which meant I was able to paint the majority of this in a couple of hours. I love the sword gun type weapon, which is a staple of some Japanese console rpgs.

If the picture looks a little odd at all, it is because I needed to do a quick fix to sharpen up the image. I also noticed I need to tidy up the purple sleeves where they meet the gloves.

In game terms, XII is naturally an accurate model with good Attack value. He also has a potential two to three hit combo of Actions he can use, so even lacking high Damage, against low Armor units I imagine he could be devastating. For Advantage Cards I am thinking either Supernatural Weapon or Piercing Weapon and Clock of Chronos; the former will add to his overall Damage potential, while the latter will try and ensure he can maintain those aforementioned two or three hit combos. No Primal on this guy, as the Damage boost would most likely be wiped out in a single Turn.

He is also a member of Team Assault Group, and the last unit I needed to paint for that Team, so it is nice to have another Team finished. I am hoping I can get some more games in of Anima Tactics in the next few months, and hope XII takes to the field alongside the rest of his Team.

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Minis: 151 (added: Hecatondies Zero Sigma and a second Elhaym, Maiden of Light)
Anima Tactics Minis Painted: 43 (42 different models)
Painted Minis Percentage: 28.5% (percentage of AT minis owned and painted)
Anima Tactics Range: 148 (including 2 LE minis)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 28.4% (this is going to look different as I go forward with some new releases due soon)

Rayne (XXI)

My first painted mini of 2014, and my 42nd Anima Tactics mini in all.

While it is not my best work (the face is disappointing), I have enjoyed painting this model (the jacket is pleasing and looks better in hand), and that is always a bonus! I hope it bodes for a good year ahead on the minis painting front.

Rayne, also known by the designation XXI, is a Wissenschaft Warrior who forms part of Team Assault Group, along with Lorenzo Cortes (aka VIII) and their mysterious Leader, XII. As I have been finishing Rayne, I have been thinking more and more that I want to get this Team finished sooner than later, although to make things  a bit more balanced, I also ought to try and finish a Church or Black Sun Team too.

In game terms Rayne looks to have an amazing Charge among other abilities; it does not have an especially high Damage value, but it is Attack 13 without enhancements, meaning with Gnosis or buffs, pretty much any target is fair game, even Dodging enemies.

In addition the Team option is an excellent return for 5 Levels of Advantage Card, and she also has Neokinesis, suggesting synergy with Dereck Shezard and Celia if they then take the Neokinesis Magnus Plot Card. I can see a Party with those characters featuring in a game or two this year (probably in Rob's hands since he has enjoyed playing Wissenschaft).


Running Totals
Anima Tactics Minis: 149 (added: Lilian Virgil; and Dagger - one of which has now been assembled and undercoated...)
Anima Tactics Minis Painted: 42 (41 different models)
Painted Minis Percentage: 28.2% (percentage of AT minis owned and painted)
Anima Tactics Range: 148 (including 2 LE minis)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 27.7%

Celia

Gotta paint 'em all! Yet another Anima Tactics mini painted by me, hot on the heels of Genma, and this one feels like more of a milestone than any of the preceding 39 did. I know that sounds obvious, but 40 minis painted seems like a nice, substantial number (heck, it is more minis by far than my last WH40K Grand Tournament army which was a meager 27 models; all Terminators mind you...). There is a sense of satisfaction having hit 40 minis painted for the range where just over a year ago I had been stuck at painting none of these.

So this is Celia; there is also a limited edition version, but that will be purely for painting and is never likely to be a gaming piece (except maybe at home). Celia is a Wissenschaft Warrior and is, I think, one of the older models in the line. That said, despite having quite a simple selection of abilities and Actions, and being an older unit, she still looks pretty useful to me.

In line with many non-Gear Wissenschaft units, Celia looks potentially quite fragile (no Armor, fairly low Life points), but this is made up by a decent Defense value and an excellent enhanced Dodge. Her special Attack looks a very good option too. She suffers from low Damage value, but using her main Attack she is likely to hit most targets, and using a Gnosis roll will have a good chance even against many Dodging targets. So using her against against targets with decent Armor or Life Points is less than ideal, but against more vulnerable options she looks like she could shine. I am also rubbing my hands at the thought of eventually trying her out with Dereck Shezard and Rayne as masters of Neokinesis; a true speed team with great Action Point recovery potential in the right circumstances. And compounded that both Celia and Dereck saw cost breaks in the recent update from Anima Studios Project/Cipher Studios/Edge Entertainment.

Speaking of 'circumstances', a Party featuring heavy use of Neokinesis demands that the Neokinesis Magnus Plot Card is used to maximize returns; I really need to think about the game-based timing issues required for that!

This year I have painted quite a few Anima Tactics minis (by my standards that is!), and if I can get another one done before 2013 concludes, that would make 36 for the year, or an average of 3 per month which would be a nice achievement I think.

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Minis: 147 (added: nothing, but still awaiting that recent order)
Anima Tactics Minis Painted: 40 (39 different models)
Painted Minis Percentage: 27.2% (percentage of AT minis owned and painted)
Anima Tactics Range: 148 (including 2 LE minis)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 26.4%

Genma

And another Anima Tactics mini is completed! More importantly, this is one of the nine minis I included in my first batch of prepped minis (click for link). That was twenty months or so ago, and of those I have only painted five so far, so I am clearly not the most disciplined of painters!

So at last Genma is finished. As much as I like the mini, I have struggled for motivation to get this finished, obviously, and I don't know if I can put my finger on why. I like the mini; I like the Anima Tactics range; I like Samael characters; I like Summons and Genma is a master Summoner. Yet still it stayed stuck in the queue.

So onto the mini. Well colour-wise I plan to eschew any uniformity for Samael. This risk is they may end up as a mish-mash, and are not differentiated from my Wanderers, but I am okay with that. Genma's primary focus is in bringing Summons to the table; she has a token ranged Attack, but I am never going to be taking her because of that! She is able to Summon Light, Dark and Void, so pretty much anything, and considering there are no Void Summons yet, I am very curious to see what they would be like! Definitely an area I want to see more of for the game. I would really like to do a Summoner duo (pick two of Genma, Belith or Covel) with a horde of otherworldly creatures flung onto the battlefield, meaning I really do need to paint some more minis to do that with!

In terms of Advantage Cards Familiar is an obvious choice. Assuming the Samael Organizational Advantage allowing an automatic extra Bind Point on each Summon, then Familiar could be redundant, similarly Seal of Bones. Thus, something like Container looks interesting, allowing Genma to Summon as many as four units. Or something like Protective Shield; it is expensive (but the Summons won't be using any individual Advantage Cards of course), but could add to her survivability with free Dodges.

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Minis: 147 (added: nothing, but awaiting an order)
Anima Tactics Minis Painted: 39
Painted Minis Percentage: 26.5% (percentage of AT minis owned and painted)
Anima Tactics Range: 148 (including 2 LE minis)
Percentage of Whole Range Painted: 25.7%

Faust Orbatos

Sudden change of gears here! Black Sun unit after Black Sun unit, then...a Wanderer. Faust Orbatos is one of the earliest models in the range, and one of the few not sculpted by main sculptor Juan Navarro Perez, instead sculpted by Bobby Jackson, and the difference shows. The chunkiness of the sword would not be out of place on a 1990's GW Chaos Warrior IMHO, and does not really do the original concept art justice. That said, it was reasonably quick to paint by my standards (which as ever has the caveat of not saying much!), and allowed me to try a variation on my 'gold' outwith my Empire units where I will stick to my usual approach as far as is possible.

In game terms Faust Orbatos is one of the earliest models rules-wise I would guess, since he was an early model produced, but looking at his card he largely stands up well I think. He has a Ki action which is unlikely to see use, simply due to its relatively low Effect value compared to the typical range of Resistance and alternative units' Effect values that now abound in the wider game. However his two Attacks look devastating. The old version of his card lists these two Attacks as +5 for 3 Action Points (which is great), but apparently the errata says it should be +6. Either way, opponents are pretty much forced to Dodge or be hit. He has good Armour, reasonable Damage and LP, and is pretty fast. At 60 Levels he is quite expensive to include in a Party, but is is a mobile 'tank' with deadly Attacks which is unusual to say the least. I will be very interested to see him in a game sometime.

Advantage cards that make sense to me are Raphael's Gift (keeps in the game longer, and mitigates one of his actions); Supernatural Armor; Alinor (to keep him in contact with foes); Heart of Gold (extra LP - nice!); and the usual standbys for Warriors of Elemental Weapon or Primal. Supernatural Weapon seems a little redundant I think.

Faust's background posits him as the last member of the renowned Orbatos lineage, a man marked by a dark destiny. After the destruction of his entire family, he now wanders the world looking for his destiny, even if it takes him to the depths of hell.

Not sure what will be painted next, as painting this was purely down to sudden inspiration, but I hope that either Kira, Genma or Covel could be finished soon, but time will tell on that. Still, more than anything, another one down!

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Minis: 147 (added: still nothing!)
Anima Tactics Minis Painted: 35
Painted Minis Percentage: 23.8% (percentage of minis owned and painted)

Type-005 (blister) (II)

The last of my Type-005's. I think 3 is enough as in order to field more I would be looking at larger games, 400 Levels or more, which I don't see happening any time in the near to medium-term future. In addition, if I wanted to do another, I would want to balance things out with another copy of the Type-005 from the Black Sun Starter Set.

I am fairly please overall with how these and the Type-009 have turned out, and I can attribute my recent productivity with the Black Sun necromantic weapons largely to my Zomtober endeavours. To make a viable Party, I need to get some more options painted up I think, so units I feel I would like to get finished are Promethea, Bridget Setsuna, Deimon, Type-012 Hunter, Type-020 Verrier, and maybe another Type-004: Hellhound, the latter painted in a scheme more in line with my Black Sun units (meaning the first one will be for use mainly as a Summon). That said, I have 7 units for my Black Sun so far, 8 with the Type-004: Hellhound, so the basics are there!

On the wider painting queue, I did a quick count of undercoated or part-painted Anima Tactics minis that I have, and that is 45 or so currently, so I need to start making headway into that pile before long! At my current rate of around 3 per month on average, that is 15 months work, or around 3 years to paint everything I have acquired, so watch this space for progress!

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Minis: 147 (added: nothing!)
Anima Tactics Minis Painted: 34
Painted Minis Percentage: 23.1% (percentage of minis owned and painted)

Type-009

The Type-009, also known as the Deathhead, is another Black Sun Undead foot-soldier. Arguably more dangerous than the Type-005 (also see here), like the other necromantic weapons the Type-009 can also be modified towards a specialist role.

I think I will be fielding the Type-009 with the Type-010: Commander upgrade; that allows Type-005's and 009's to ignore uncontrollable, and gives them an Attack buff. Add in Elite Squadron Advantage Card for the Type-005's and suddenly they look a little more dangerous all around.

Yet again I have opted for a colour scheme intended to tie my undead constructs together as (hopefully!) a cohesive whole. I aim to use the same approach with the Type-020: Verrier and Raziel Archetypum when I eventually get around to those. My key Black Sun colours of black (really: dark grey with washes) and green are in there and will continue as a motif as far as possible on other in the same Organization.

Fielding the various basic Undead cuts down on some decisions: they cannot take Advantage Cards; they usually will have a limited selection of role-focused upgrades so choosing one should be straightforwards. Something they are is undeniably cheap units, so a non-Black Sun enemy should be outnumbered all things considered. as I gather more of these necromantic weapon constructs and their masters in painted form, i am quite looking forwards to fielding them as a Party - hopefully sooner than later!

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Minis: 147 (added: Eve; Griever; and Macbeth)
Anima Tactics Minis Painted: 33
Painted Minis Percentage: 22.4% (percentage of minis owned and painted)

Type-005 (blister)

My second Type-005 (my first is here); Zomtober has really helped spur me on to get a number of minis finished this month (on the day I finished this Type-005, I finished 3 other minis).

This Type-005 follows the same colour scheme as the preceding one, and the third I am working on along with a Type-009 which will have a matching scheme too. Hopefully they will be a fearsome-looking selection of units when finished.

There are two Type-005 bodies, with a selection of two left arms, two right arms and three heads. I plan to stop at three of these units, as with the Type-009 upgraded, I expect the four models will weigh in at 85 Levels as they benefit from a Black Sun Organization Advantage which awards levels for upgrades. In a 300 Level game that leaves 215 levels plus 5 upgrade Levels for another Undead unit, which should mean around 4-6 additional models, or 8-10 for a 300 Level Party as a whole. Given that a 300 Level Party would typically be 6-7 units, that is quite a potential numerical advantage. I will need to work on a few more units to get there though.

I have started work on both the remaining Type-005 and the Type-009, so hopefully they will be finished while I still have some painting momentum. Let's see how that works out...

Running Totals
Anima Tactics Minis: 144 (added: another Type-012 Hunter)
Anima Tactics Minis Painted: 32
Painted Minis Percentage: 22.2% (percentage of minis owned and painted)