London GT

It’s fun to play games. This weekend D and I went to the Lee Valley Athletics Centre along with, about 1,000 other people to play Warhammer all weekend. He and I were playing Warhammer: The Old World which had about 80 players while there were hundreds of people playing Warhammer 40,000 in the main hall. Someone mentioned that it was the largest GT in the world, I found it pretty easy to believe that.

I took a Warriors of Chaos army. They’re brand new to me, I’ve not played the faction before and over the last few weeks I’ve been busy putting it together and trying to paint it quickly in the evenings. I managed to get it to a sort of reasonably presentable standard so I didn’t feel too embarrassed putting it out on the table and some people even complimented me on the effect I’d achieved, but I think they were just being polite.

My general is a Chaos Lord riding a manticore. I took a pair of Chimera, 16 Chaos Warriors with the Mark of Tzeentch, including a Chaos Sorcerer Lord. I also took an Aspiring Chaos Champion riding a demonic mount as my battle standard bearer with the Doom Totem. I rounded things out with two units of seven Marauder Horseman and a block of 16 Chaos Marauders with flails. Compared to my Orcs and Goblins army it’s incredibly compact. I think it’s about 50 models in total while I have 70 goblins in just two units in the orcs. My Renegade Crowns list has twice as many models.

Lee Valley is an interesting location. it’s not far enough away for us to really pay any attention to booking a hotel. We can just drive in the morning, take part in the day and then drive back again but it is a little over an hour’s drive each way which means you get up, you drive there and then you’re a little bit tired already when you start the day and then playing three games really is quite a lot of effort and I’m not a spring chicken any longer, it really took it out of me. I was surprised just how tired I felt on the Sunday morning.

Who did I play? Well, first up was the City State of Nuln. Three cannon and three Hellblaster Volley Guns. A comprehensive victory for the forces of the Empire of Man. Next up I played Bretonnian Exiles, scoring my own crushing victory as everything went wrong for the French-themed warriors of the Lady. In round three I played another Warriors of Chaos army. Getting thoroughly smashed by a pack of champions on Demonic Mounts (the new hotness apparently). I have one and I leave him at the back of my army looking dapper.

I will say, even though I took two drubbings it was a lot of fun to see so many well-presented armies at the event and to play with one which is so different to what I am used to. I had to keep reminding myself that I could go into combats expecting to win. Not an experience Goblins often have!