Romp'n Stomp'n Robots

Ok, so Arc40k 2023 is on the distant horizon and I’ve heaps of time to get ready right… not really, because this beast has a nasty habit of sneaking up real fast.

Hi I’m Tim and DanTO has asked me to take part in recording my journey to the 2023 event through a Hobby Blog. Hopefully, by sharing my thoughts and experiences so I can give some idea about how I’ll be preparing my next army.

Do I panic now or save that ‘til later? I think I’ll wait for now…

So, the big questions is what army list do I take for the 25th year in 2023?

Tim’s Arc40k 2022 Army Stompy Stomp!

Well to answer that question I have to take you back to when I was preparing for Arc40k in 2022. I saw two important things that I needed to think about in choosing the army for this year’s event. The lists needed to be 1600pts… and we were going to have to play 6 games.

I asked myself how do I get through it - what will work and suit me best?

See I’m a super casual gamer. I like it best when it’s easy, relaxed, and i’m always looking for it to be fun for me and whoever I find myself across the four feet of terrain covered gaming board. That’s my aim for these games and hey if I score a few points on the way - well that’s just gravy.

So in 2022 I decided that the best way to get through that was simply to take 2 Stompas!

A simple, straightforward army and a massive load of fun for me to push around with hopefully huge laughs for my opponents.

Initially, I admit my opponents were a little taken aback! But like me, they soon found out how great it is to strip massive amounts of wounds off these hulking behemoths, all the while running rings around them in securing objectives. Primary and secondary objectives… what are they? This army wasn’t nearly as competitive as many of you might first think.

The result was I had a really great, laid back weekend, and played some great folks across my six games. But I also found that I really, really, enjoyed pushing BIG robots around the table and chucking a heap of dice. Buckets of them!

Now let’s not talk about the Missions? Yeah, I couldn’t achieve most of them. I knew that going into each game and that wasn’t an impediment to the fun we had!

So let’s get back to the current project- what to take for Arc40k in 2023?

What boxes does this next army need to tick:

• Is it more Big Robots? Hell yes!

• Converting? Absolutely.

• Themed army? Of course, it’s Arc40k.

• Interesting to paint? Yep, I spend way more time painting than playing so that’s a given.

• Effective on the table? Something slightly better on the table than 2 Stompas, sure, why not.

• Fun to play against? This is a big one for me, this is about not only the list but how I approach the weekend. It’s also the hardest to answer. I really want to provide my opponents as best an experience I can.

With all that. One Army stood out, Chaos Knights!

How good is it going to be? Once again I’ve got Robots, more opportunity to do conversions, and I can work on the theme in a big stompy stomping package. Effectiveness and fun for opponents, that’s on me really. We’ll have to see how that goes - but this project is about to start getting somewhere now.

The Project Begins!

So, I’ve chosen the army. Decided to wing it a bit… so let’s get it all going by starting with some conversion work and let’s see where that leads in the search for a theme and how it might get painted.

So I’m going to get started with the biggest model in the codex…a Chaos Knight Tyrant.

It’s a great centre piece model - so that makes it a must have for me. That and there is no Chaos specific model for this beast. The first stage is to grab the Imperial Castellan Kit and I’m ready to let the conversion inspiration begin.

In this first stage of the project I have a lot of faith in my ability to get it started and to get there in the end. Even without a lot of forward planning. Leeroy Jenkins if you will!

The basis of this demon engine conversion are some 3D printed bits! I have to say I owe a massive amount of thanks to House of War who gifting me a printer for achieving my 20 year veteran status at Arc40k this year. A new hobby challenge and something that will see this project through a whole range of challenges.

Oh and then there is greenstuff, chains, and some stolen gubbins from a Beastclaw Raiders box.

So I’m on my way. Big Robots Rule!

I hope you‘ ve been able to follow my thoughts and can understand a different take on how to approach building Arc40k armies and hopefully you’ve all be challenged to take up the Arc40k challenge with some insights into what’s to come from me… a 20 year veteran of the event for 2023.