Did GW Accidentally Make a GREAT New Faction? Emperor's Children
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CM7ajb4fRiM

Trovarion - Straight From the Basement wrote:
Going over all the new Slaanesh models and analyzing the design direction the Warhammer studio took with these. What can we expect from the new range? Do you like it so far?

DexPunk wrote:
40k exists in a weird dimension where the newest and the most anticipated faction usually is the one that already existed in the first edition 30 years ago.

Warhammer 40k Wiki wrote:
The Emperor's Children, also sometimes known after their fall as the Lords of Profligacy, are a Traitor Legion of Chaos Space Marines who devote themselves solely to the service of the Chaos God Slaanesh, the Prince of Pleasure, though they were originally the Imperium of Man's proud IIIrd Space Marine Legion.

The Emperor's Children was the only one of the original First Founding Legiones Astartes to bear the Emperor's own name and His own icon—the Palatine Aquila—granted to them by His hand as a symbol of the Legion's martial perfection. Few were ever so honoured amongst the ancient Space Marine Legions and given less cause to betray the Master of Mankind than the Emperor's Children.

Stahly wrote:
Included in the box are:

• a Lord Exultant
  
• 12 Noise Marines (2x 6 models)
  
• 20 Tormentors/Infractors (4x 5 models)
  
• the 10th Edition Emperor’s Children codex with special edition cover design
  
• a set of datacards
  
• an Emperor’s Children transfer sheet

Stahly wrote:
The Emperor’s Children army set has an RRP of £145 / 180 € / $230. For that, with 33 models, you get significantly more plastic than in the most recently released army boxes, but also a lot of repetition. Perhaps it would actually have been better to limit the number of Marines to 10 and instead add Lucius or the Lord Discordant. Because as it is, there’s a lot of overlap with the announced Combat Patrol, which, in addition to the Lord Exultant, also includes 10 Tormentors/Infractors.

However, the savings are exorbitant thanks to the large number of models. The individual prices of the models are not yet known, but if you compare them with similar Chaos Space Marines units, there should be a saving of about 50% compared to buying them and the codex/datacards individually, which is absolutely outstanding for boxes of this kind. Be aware that this is a limited edition box set, so stock might run out fast.

5. Stunthammer
So there won't be any arts & crafts faggotry in my game. Every unit comes already perfectly assembled and perfectly painted, something which to achieve in the tabletop version would require great talent, years of practice, and thousands of dollars. Oh sure, you can buy used armies, and you can hire people to paint your armies for you. But if you think that $92 for some grey bits of plastic is expensive, don't look up how much a perfectly painted Trygon costs. And that's just ONE unit in your army! Can you imagine having to paint the same damn miniature 300 times? I'd kill myself—no game is worth such punishment no matter how good. This isn't gaming, this is anti-gaming: it's actively preventing you from playing the damn game, by requiring you to spend entire months if not years on preparation before you can even run a single battle!

To be sure, such absurdly high barriers to entry have their advantages: Warhammer, and miniature wargames in general, are an exclusively straight White male hobby. Roleplaying is much friendlier to morons in comparison because it doesn't even require miniatures, or knowing the rules. All you need is to know a single straight White male to GM the game, and he can run the rules in his head. But in Warhammer you need to be rich, smart and talented merely to BEGIN playing. You must even be an artist!

The funniest demonstration of the above is this video I found:

Rahul and Rebecca's first game of 40k! Tyranids vs Ultramarines Warhammer beginners battle report!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JbhFuJwOfoA



This is two male White Game Masters teaching the game to a brown guy and a White woman. Because god forbid the brown and the woman buy a couple of books and read them to learn the game on their own: they need the White guys to take them by the hand and make them understand. And because the White guys know their pets are stupid, they trash half the rules lol! They literally only play with half the rules! But I like this video anyway because on top of the comedy it has great production values and shows how beautiful the game is. The units are large and... look real. I have no other way to put it than this: they are some of the coolest-looking units in all of tactical gaming. So they make the battlefield come alive in a way it doesn't in any tactical videogame I've ever played despite the lack of animation. (And btw, animation is coming... more on which soon.)

Anyway, I got my racism and sexism for today out of the way, but it wasn't (wholly) gratuitous, I want the reader to understand how demanding this game is to play, and not in a good way demanding, i.e. not demanding in player engagement and skill, but in something totally unrelated: arts & crafts mastery. So it shouldn't come as a surprise that this entirely new and foreign to gaming dimension actively hurts the game. And I am not just talking the prevention of playing altogether, I am talking it necessarily DUMBS DOWN the game.

Or why do you think the recommended table width is about one metre? It's because that's how far the average person can comfortably stretch to move a unit. Make it any wider than that and only NBA players would be able to play the game, or you'd need to take the table outdoors to bring a crane in! (and remember, it's an English game: you couldn't play outdoors there even if you wanted to). But this utterly butchers the battlefield size! Which has tremendous knock-on effects on the scale and scope of tactics that can be simulated! Why else do you think that Warhammer armies number in the dozens of units and not hundreds or thousands? It's not only that such armies would take forever to assemble and paint (AND cost a fortune!), but the tables simply can't hold them!





Oh sure, there was Warhammer Epic and various other attempts to increase the scale of the battles. But since the table size can't be changed, in order to add more units they had to... make them smaller. And since painting smaller minis is both tougher and less rewarding (they simply don't look as good as bigger ones), the playerbase kept preferring the normal ones, so all "Epic"-type attempts were eventually discontinued. Remember: half the playerbase at the least is arts & crafts faggots who just like to collect and paint AND DON'T EVEN PLAY THE GAME. They even hold PAINTING COMPETITIONS! That's the game many of them prefer! So of course they have a massive influence on the game's direction.

But the biggest influence is... the table's itself. Or have you never wondered why there are no... naval units? I'd like to see the arts & crafts faggots build hamster swimming pools on their tables. Or what about... underwater units? Underground? Zero-G? There's just a huge amount of cool stuff that can't be done on a table.

Even air units is a tough nut to crack, and though there is an air game in 40K with some really cool vehicles to boot, it's not as fully developed as the land game, and as a consequence Warhammer is known above all for its land battles because that's what works best on a table.





Again, as with Epic, there have been attempts to address this deficiency, from 1993's Man O' War (discontinued in 1995) to 1999's Battlefleet Gothic (discontinued in 2013).

But you can see what the problem is right away: in order to fit capital ships on a table, they must be tiny. And if they're tiny, they can't fit any units in them. And if they can't fit any units in them, they can't really interact with a ground battle. I suppose you could have ONE cap ship fly over a 40K battle and utterly obliterate it, but what would be the point? The scale of the land battles just isn't large enough to warrant adding large ships to it, so the ship game was spun off as an entire other game, thereby jettisoning the awesome land complexity on which the game built its name. But this meant that the ship battles by themselves were... boring. At least in comparison to the land game. And that's why every attempt has failed within a few years.





This on top of the difficulty inherent in trying to represent more than one layer on a table. So you can have either a land game, or a space game, or a naval game. But you can't have two full-fledged layers at the same time. Even the addition of a minor air layer to the land is problematic, because how do you hover a fighter ship above a building? The ship can't really fly, it is supported by a base, and if the base is big enough and the building small enough, it can't hover above the building! I don't know how they solve this on the tabletop, but in my Battlemaster it's not an issue, just like blending all layers together is not an issue at all, and moreover my "table" stretches to infinity, and it can accommodate infinite units, which can be zoomed in and out of to any degree desired to admire the artwork and achieve battlefield awareness. It helps by the way that Titan model sizes were added to Cult Engine 3 just over a month ago. Before that we wouldn't have been able to add precisely the largest and coolest 40K units. Now we can add them all, and that was the very last feature needed to make Warhammer fully playable in CE3.

Feature Release: Titan Sizes
https://bouncyrock.com/news/articles/fe ... itan-sizes



But probably the greatest deficiency of the tabletop that stunts the game, more than the reduced scale and scope and layers, is the terrain itself. Look up any image of any version of Warhammer played on actual tables and you'll note that the terrain is always a flat plain with some rocks and ruins thrown in. There are no mountains. No forests. No cities. There aren't even any proper buildings since how would you remove the roofs to run battles inside them, especially on multistory structures? Many units wouldn't fit in normal buildings anyway, and for many of them you'd need a freakin' cathedral to fit them. In short, there are no BUILDING INTERIORS in this game, and even the ruins are always open-air so that the players can reach inside and move the handful of units small enough to fit in them.

You want to see an exception? Here, have one.

I made a Massive Warhammer Cathedral Imperial Palace on Terra | 40k Scenery ‪@Creality3D‬ Ender-5 S1
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xbHuRZQZ9ig



This guy is a freakin' engineer with an entire carpentry workshop who slaved for MONTHS to make this, on top of being sponsored by multiple companies including Games Workshop, and his build STILL isn't even 1/10th as complex as what can be easily achieved in my game. Moreover, what little set complexity he managed to achieve by dedicating his life to it for months on end IS IMPOSSIBLE FOR ANY OTHER PLAYER. If you go out right now and buy some 40K kits, you will still never play on this guy's build simply because you don't know him. And I bet even people who know him don't get to play on his set because this guy simply doesn't have time to play the game. And even IF you knew him, AND he had time to play with you... you would have to fly to his city, wherever the fuck it is lol. AND lug your army with you (in the special backpacks and carry cases they make for moving your armies lol). And all this to achieve a simple 1v1. You wouldn't even be able to play a 2v2 because it would be 2 more friends of yours flying over from other parts of the world while carrying THEIR armies... only to play on a set that's 1/10th as complex and detailed as what my set builders can pump out in like one day.

THAT'S why this guy calls himself "the king of stupidly massive scenery", because it's STUPID to put all this energy into arts & crafts faggotry when we have COMPUTERS that can render whole PLANETS today.

I mean look at this:

What hides under the surface - realistic diorama / 14 months work / Warhammer
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g5eBZ4FHjnI



Yeah it's beautiful, but FOURTEEN MONTHS OF WORK??? How is that a game? That's a profession! Moreover, the area is TINY. You can barely run a tiny battle there, and then you scrap the set, meaning 14 months of your life! All the while my level designers can pump out multiple such areas per day, and even link them together to form vast regions!

Plus if you bring tanks and spaceships to the battle you should be able to LEVEL these buildings! But where are the rules for building destruction? All the terrain they sell is already ruins anyway precisely to avoid having to deal with this entire dimension. But that shortchanges the people who've invested hundreds of dollars and dozens of hours to purchase, assemble and paint the bigger vehicles. What's the point of a massive vehicle of war if it can't level anything? Not to speak of constructing buildings. That hasn't even entered anyone's head yet, and would turn Warhammer into a strategy game if implemented (and I WILL implement it).


To be continued...

You can accept the contract and go about your day, and if it gets completed, you get the chair. That's how I got mine. Of course, we want to actually do the mission at some point, but if you at least want to secure the chair, that's what you can do.

As for the shirt, it's a reward for completing the three Navy Patrol Training scenarios that appear in your contract manager's "Priority" tab. They are very easy, and took me about 15 minutes to complete in total.

https://www.reddit.com/r/starcitizen/co ... ber_of_the

https://x.com/RobertsSpaceInd/status/19 ... 4588222650



There's a little trailer on Twitter that's not on YouTube.

https://www.reddit.com/r/starcitizen/co ... nt/mr3vgh8

StarHunter_ wrote:
Imagine the US Navy going, "Uh, so some bad guys stole one of our big ships. We need you to go out in your fishing boats and take it out."

LeEbicGamerBoy wrote:
Hunt the Polaris is sick

I love how the whole server comes together, with their ships big and small, to hunt down this monstrosity.

Zipping around with a large group, splitting up to search and mop up any fighters.

Then the Polaris fight starts and everyone starts blasting it, lasers flying everywhere, people dodging the turrets.

It's incredible. Love that PvE is finally getting some love!

Sea-Percentage-4325 wrote:
This is what the XenoThreat Idris mission was like during Overdrive and it was one of my favorite missions. I'm glad to see they brought it back in a new form.

Malacky_C wrote:
The only thing that sucks is the payout. The whole lobby is accepting the mission only to find out that there are 10 out of the 100 ppl actually there fighting the Polaris and once we do all the work we get 20k maybe less cuz the whole lobby wants to accept it. They got to change it to where you have to be at the actual mission to get payout or something.

wazsub wrote:
I did the mission 8 times today while I was refitting my ships in my hangar. I have over 100 scrip. I ain't boverd about the money.

hoax1337 wrote:
What is scrip good for?

Rekees wrote:
Trading for Wikelo favours.

LeEbicGamerBoy wrote:
It's global to the whole server, so everyone does the same mission at once, no need for grouping or coordinating.

umbralupinus wrote:
Trying to find the enemy escort ships is exhausting, the Polaris is at least sort of easy to find because the entire furball trails it the whole battle, but trying to cycle targeting to get the Hammerheads is near impossible with so many hostile players everywhere all the time so it's hard to know who to avoid and who to shoot. And the scan system takes so long to get a read not to mention you've got to nose down a thousand rounds of laser fire to even try and get one, so the entire scan system is as likely to get you killed as it is to make it any easier.

https://www.reddit.com/r/starcitizen/co ... nt/mshessv

CosmicJackalop wrote:
I'd rather they didn't bundle this shit together at all.

vheox wrote:
Want one thing? You gotta buy them all... I have a Corsair skin from the last bundle. I don't even have that ship. And I don't use the armor. I just wanted the gun. What am I doing with my life?

Past-Dragonfruit2251 wrote:
Slowly buying an Idris, $30 of future melted crap at a time?

Invictus launched and the Praetorian Pack is still intact with the Idris-M and Pioneer with land claim, thank Nietzsche: https://robertsspaceindustries.com/en/p ... ck-Digital

No price increase either.

That's the GREAT news.

The GOOD news is that there is now an Aegis Complete Pack for $8,500 cash/$9,500 credit that includes an Idris-P, and those are still in stock!



https://robertsspaceindustries.com/en/p ... ck-Warbond
https://robertsspaceindustries.com/en/p ... plete-Pack

I like this pack because it's a halfway point to the M. For those who haven't quite spent $15k yet, they can melt and buy this, and then a couple years later melt again and buy the Praetorian Pack, assuming it still includes the M and hopefully the land claim.

The BAD news is that the Idris price went up a lot, especially in credit terms, from $1,300 cash/$1,500 credit to $1,500 cash/$1,900 credit. It makes sense, prices always go up on release, but for some reason it hadn't hit me that this would also happen to the Idris. Imagine how much the Javelin's price will increase...

https://robertsspaceindustries.com/en/c ... is-Idris-P

In any case it's sold out, but there will be 5 more waves. Details at the bottom of the link above. It should be easy to get it with cash. With credit you'd have to play the F5 Wars. I should write a post about that.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=idFmqkJ ... XVyolQO3wj

Cloud Imperium Games wrote:
Explore the devastating potential of the highly anticipated Idris-P and its additional K and T kits that let you customize and optimize your loadout.

Why not follow your sneak peek of this legendary ship by touring an operational Idris at Invictus Launch Week 2955?

@amigo3284 wrote:
@5:55 that Star Wars reference though. Awesome!

@FarragoFox wrote:
Beautiful recreation of the opening Star Wars shot.

@suppentoast wrote:
That ending was chef's kiss.

@brady3610 wrote:
Sold out instantly.

@brentgath4447 wrote:
So annoying, took an hour off from work to try and secure one... Ya right. Couldn't refresh the page fast enough.

@Tengu98 wrote:
Was on website at 9 AM. Sold out 9:01 AM :)

@drancon101 wrote:
It's moments like these that make me despise the limited hull sales of ships like the Idris. The second it went up for sale it instantly sold out. It's both funny and infuriating. I want one too!

@Gargoyle11 wrote:
Sold out instantly, and also is only available to Chairman's Club members which was never communicated.

@Anjelus wrote:
I do like the Idris, but man it takes a village.

@fico1557 wrote:
It's a perfect base for clans, basically a space station with trusters on it.

@suppentoast wrote:
We've misused the mining lasers as weapons for years and now finally there arises a new question: Can we use the Idris laser for mining rocks?

@ProGamer-gc3wv wrote:
Yes, sure. You can mine the whole moon :)

You think the Emperor bothers to think about where the Medic will put his medgun, how dare you.

But yeah, what he said. I need to put some hours into the specs and I will do it after I've launched Warhammer.

Gear - Downburst - Patch Bundle $30
https://robertsspaceindustries.com/en/p ... le-Warbond

Cloud Imperium Games wrote:
Take on the wilds with this armor, weapon, and ship paint pack featuring a black camo pattern with accents of gold. Includes the Banu Ana armor, a Volt Parallax assault rifle, and the Downburst Camo paint for the Drake Corsair.

In 4.1.1, the ParaMed now goes in the pistol slot, which means you can only equip either a ParaMed or a pistol. What I am guessing the Emperor will want to do is keep the ParaMed for the Medic Spec, who will then lose the pistol, and have all other specs do the same as the Pirate Inquisitor: Multi-Tool with LifeGuard Attachment + LifeGuard Refill, and TruHold Tractor Beam Attachment in the backpack. A side effect is that it frees up a utility slot, one of which is also the knife slot (right thigh), and so every spec could now use a knife.

A note on the LifeGuard Medical Attachment: the LifeGuard Refill should be inserted in the multi-tool's consumable slot, as the attachment itself doesn't contain any green goo and needs a refill to function, much like the Cambio-Lite SRT Attachment needs a Cambio-Lite SRT Canister.

https://www.reddit.com/r/starcitizen/co ... idris_hype



https://www.reddit.com/r/starcitizen/co ... nt/ms8r0bb

_OceanOdyssey wrote:
Ironcore: The chrome and black colors of the Ironcore livery helps the Idris obscure itself against the dark expanse of space.

Sea Serpent: Cool blues and black combine for this subdued Idris Sea Serpent livery.

Triton Camo: Conceal the shape of the Idris with the blue camo pattern of the Triton Camo livery.

Sharktooth livery: Charge into battle in stylish and dramatic fashion with the Sharktooth livery. It gives the Idris a distinct look using beige and black for a disruptive coloration pattern that helps break up the silhouette of the ship.

Marauder: Designed for the Idris-K aftermarket kit, the Marauder livery is primarily black with subtle red highlights.

Beachhead: Proclaim your presence with the Beachhead livery for the Idris. It uses various shades of beige and brown for a look that stands out against the dark of space.

Commando Camo: The Commando Camo livery brings a classic green and tan camo look to the Idris.

Nightbreak: Discreetly soar through the night sky in the Idris with the Nightbreak livery, which is primarily black with red highlights.

The_AmoK wrote:
Idris looking like a proper warship!

It's just like the Thundercloud for Perseus, damn it's looking good!!!

Earlier in this thread I asked Adjudicator to explain to us the differences between the Idris variants and the aftermarket kit. He replied in a huge post that I have now moved to the Idris thread because it's more fitting there: https://culture.vg/forum/topic?p=39565#p39565

Star Citizen | The Rumors Were True...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2OFObi ... XVyolQO3wj



https://culture.vg/forum/topic?p=40278#p40278

I wrote:
The commercial is incredible as usual. I love how they try to introduce some quasi-philosophical idea in the commercials for the bigger stuff. This one ship commercial is vastly superior to entire trailers for others games. One vehicle in this game destroys entire other games and genres of games.

https://www.reddit.com/r/starcitizen/co ... ris_owners

dlp0e wrote:
Attention Idris Owners

Just wanted to take a moment to congratulate every owner on the pending release of your ship. A grateful 'verse recognizes and thanks you for your dedication to the game and its development.

Also, kindly consider this advance notice that we're definitely coming for all y'all's Idrises once they release.

o7

The commercial is incredible as usual. I love how they try to introduce some quasi-philosophical idea in the commercials for the bigger stuff. This one ship commercial is vastly superior to entire trailers for others games. One vehicle in this game destroys entire other games and genres of games.

The Aegis Idris (specifically the P model + K refit kit) commercial was uploaded 30 minutes ago on Star Citizen's YouTube channel.

Star Citizen | The Rumors Were True...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X2OFObi ... XVyolQO3wj



The commercial for the Idris is not as dramatic as the Polaris one, but is all business—a textbook ambush showcasing its Size 10 Hurston Exodus Beam weapon, against a hostile Polaris and its escorts.

TheAstroHistorian wrote:
There those who said this day would never come, what do they say now?

harryt3008 wrote:
Best way to sell a new ship is showing it melting the current strongest ship in game.

latch9781 wrote:
A Polaris getting ambushed by an Idris is deliciously ironic. Excellent work on the ad as always.

Jasta85 wrote:
That Polaris captain is never going to hear the end of if if he survives. It's like the stealth archer being sneak attacked by the warrior in full plate.

Avean wrote:
I have a feeling this is only the start of a wave of surprises incoming for Star Citizen. Most of the technical barriers are gone so now they are going full throttle and I love it!

hebaap3145 wrote:
One step closer to releasing the BMM. Keep it up CIG!

So I've been thinking about some stuff and whether or not I should say it, but you know me, I can't keep anything inside me for long, so I might as well come out and say all I have to say.

First off, that pack you just bought is the coolest gift I have received in my entire life. Yes I know it's not mine, but I will be able to play with all that stuff to my heart's content, and it's only because of you. So thanks. You've made my day, week, month, year and possibly decade.

So now we have the mighty Idris-M, an 890J for recoil, an extra Pioneer and Polaris (plus some more capitals that are coming in the far future), and a free land claim which I hadn't realized before might have unique strategic value but which after reading someone's analysis on Reddit on base-building [ > ] it seems it might. An additional cool bonus is that you're getting dozens of rare posters and in-game takuetsu models and other unique shit, and we can use it to e.g. decorate hallways or meeting rooms or even build an entire Library of Cult building.

Now, if the Idris-M is as significantly superior to the P as I have heard it might be (not only in terms of the railgun but also hull/shield strength), then it makes fuck-all sense for people with $15k spent to not melt everything and buy the Praetorian Pack. If in addition to this the land claim bonus is significant, that's even more reason to melt, melt, melt. Think of the stuff that ysignal and shubn—the two melting candidates—have in their fleet. Nothing in them will be anywhere near as useful as the M and the land claim. What's the point of collecting tons of little ships you rarely if ever use and can buy in-game anyway when you're giving up the one ship and one thing that you CAN'T buy in the game?

The above analysis applies 100% to ysignal, and even more than 100% because I think he hasn't been paying much attention to LTI so the pack would turn his entire fleet into LTI which is yet another bonus for him, and us. In shubn's case the analysis doesn't apply 100% because shubn has been playing the CCU game aggressively for massive discounts, all of which he'll lose if he melts. So in the end shubn is getting 2x the ships for his money, which is awesome, but... these are smaller, far less powerful ships than the Idris-M. So do we give a fuck that shubn will end up with a collection of every ship in the game if he lacks precisely the biggest, coolest and most powerful one? So if I was shubn, I would STILL melt everything at this point and get the Idris-M and land claim, because in terms of "gameplay" this is the best decision. In terms of collecting, maybe it is not, depending on whether you value more having more ships than a few big ones. So shubn's mileage may vary.

If the land claim bonus is significant and all three of our "Noble Houses" have one, we could potentially use them to put down a megabase on Terra or some other cool upcoming system. But then again there may not end up being a land claim bonus, so maybe this won't matter. But 3 Idris-Ms would mean we'd have at least one at our disposal almost all the time, plus we could field 2 from time to time. AND we would have hundreds of posters and takuetsu stuff etc. Plus, I believe the pack has better choices than the players have made in their fleets: we'd get 3 890Js with the packs for example, whereas no player has so far chosen to buy an 890J on their own. And isn't it fitting that the 3 Noble House leaders each have an 890J?

HOWEVER, there is another way we could do things. If the 4 of us (plus recoil who has also put quite a bit of money in the game) exchanged main account logins, then the entire analysis changes. Then we certainly won't need 3 Idris-Ms because we can always have Adjudicator's available. In that scenario I would still recommend ysignal getting one because we COULD field 2 Idris-Ms at the same time (5 players in each on a Saturday could easily be arranged), but shubn could keep playing the CCU game to give us access also to every other ship in the game.

HOWEVER HOWEVER, this second analysis doesn't take into account the new systems coming in the game. Even Nyx would screw up this plan because to get to Nyx from Stanton you have to pass through Pyro, so we're talking 1+ hours potentially for the trip, and it will only get worse with more systems added. At that point the only way for all players to be available to play in any system without long commutes would be cheap $45 clones scattered around the galaxy. You wouldn't absolutely need one for each system, but maybe one for each cluster of systems. Otherwise you would be hard pressed to participate in impromptu sessions far from your main account. So clones is the way to go, but that means that for every system we would be restricted to using the Commander's/Supreme Commander's fleet. So if we only have one Idris-M in the entire galaxy, even login sharing won't suffice to make it usable at all places at all times. So it is in that case that my Cult Spec shines, because it stipulates the vehicles that every Commander/Supreme Commander must have to maintain operations in a system. And in that case it would be best if both ysignal and shubn melt and buy the Praetorian Pack exactly like Adjudicator so they can spread out across the galaxy and allow us to manage more of it. recoil and I will also keep acquiring stuff to the extent that our budgets allow, but again we must be smart about it and not divide our funds among hover bikes or some shit: we too should melt and buy Idris-Ps at least, with the K upgrade when we can afford it. Or in the case of recoil, if he plans to remain in Pyro and other lawless systems, he should melt and play the F5 Wars and grab an 890J at the first opportunity.

And don't even get me started on Javelins. At that point I would recommend even pooling funds to get one, if we can only get one.

Now I'll completely change tack and talk about the thing I wasn't sure I should talk about.

You might have noticed that I've basically stopped buying SC ships in the last few months. This is partly because I can no longer afford to, but also partly because what little disposable income I still have I prefer to put into my Battlegrounds, and I hope the day will come when more people will start to think this way. I was even thinking at one point of selling my SC account for a couple of grand to put the money into my game, and if it was an easy and fast process I might have already done it. That said, I love my SC account and all the stuff I've amassed, so I will do my best to avoid selling it, and I might still buy the odd item for it now and then, especially if my crypto goes up. If my crypto goes up by even 4x-5x at this point, then I will have no problems and I'll be able to fund both my SC and BG addictions. But maybe this won't happen, or maybe it will take years to happen, so I have to plan for the worst contingency. Ergo why I have essentially stopped buying SC things. But precisely for this reason it gives me tremendous pleasure when I see other people still buying things, since I will get to use them.

However, and this is the thing I wasn't sure I should talk about, I must admit I also get an oh-so-slight pang of disappointment when I see people dropping fortunes on SC and nothing on my game. Even 10% of that spend redirected to my game would solve all my pressing funding needs. BUT, I don't want anyone's charity! I don't want people to spend on my game because they pity me, or "want to help me out". That's unsustainable and leads to nowhere: I want people to drop money on my game only if they think "Damn that thing's cool and I want it!", and I want them to redirect money from SC only if they feel it's the best deal and will give them the most pleasure!

So clearly, I have a fight with SC on my hands, and it's a big one, and you know I love a good fight, and I intend to win it. It's me against Chris Roberts: who is the best designer? I believe I am so much better than him that it's not even funny, and I intend to prove it, and I have a whole armory of aces up my sleeve that I am about to unleash to achieve it. I am preparing to sell entire Warhammer 40,000 factions for about the price of an Idris, for example. This has never happened in the entire history of gaming, and if you went to a 40K player and you told them that they could have an entire faction with INFINITE UNITS for $1.5k, and also have that faction EXCLUSIVELY IN THE WHOLE WORLD, and also use it in PA-style 4X solar-system wide wars that last a year, he would BURN HIS ENTIRE PLASTIC ARMY if need be to gain that faction and play that game.

And that's just ONE of the aces I am preparing in my fight with Star Citizen and Chris Roberts. Will anyone choose my game over his? Maybe no one will. Except me. Because I've already chosen, and that's why I stopped buying his ships.

It's a frustrating competition because I LOVE HIS GAME TO DEATH and not a day doesn't pass when my fingers don't itch to drop some more cash on SC. But if I keep doing that, my game is over. And I love my game much more than his. So I master my emotions, and keep my wallet closet. It also helps, as aforesaid, that Adjudicator and ysignal and shubn and recoil are still buying things that I will get to use. And hopefully my crypto will go up so I can buy some more stuff eventually.

IN SUM...

Everyone please do what you think will give you the most pleasure, both in regards to your SC fleet management, and in regards to my game. Play or don't play what you want, and buy or don't buy what you want. Trying to please me is a dead-end: the best way to please me is to please yourselves, and everything else will work out from there. We used to have a few people here who only played PA and Rust because I like these games and they wanted to like them too. But they didn't like them, and where are those people now? They aren't even subbed anymore. They left without even saying goodbye, that's how sour their experience here was. So don't sour your own experience. This is a site and clan about gaming, which means about fun! If you aren't having fun, you're doing it wrong! And understand that icy's brain works on overdrive 24/7/365 and he analyzes everything to death and back, and this post is merely my latest brain dump of some of the stuff I have been thinking about recently. That's all it is. Read it for the fun of it and out of interest, and then just do what you feel best for you. Thanks for reading.

Just saw this on Reddit. It's especially interesting to me because he assumes the land claims that came with old Pioneer pledges and are still available with the $15k Praetorian Pack and up will function differently to the aUEC land claims that most players will have, conferring important benefits. And now that Adjudicator bought the Praetorian Pack [ > ] we have one! I was gagging for that pack only for the Idris-M, but now I am glad it also gives us a permanent free land claim and look forward to figuring out how to best utilize it to gain an advantage over the pleb players who won't have one.

https://www.reddit.com/r/starcitizen/co ... nstruction

jsbot-02 wrote:
Some Thoughts on the Impact of Base Construction on Fleets

Preface. Base construction is a vast and complex system that significantly impacts fleet operations. It can be divided into three phases: the construction phase, the production phase, and the expansion phase. To achieve efficient base construction, resource allocation across these phases must be carefully managed. Drawing inspiration from real-world administrative and financial systems, I propose the following framework. These are personal opinions, not representative of any group, and are intended to foster discussion and optimization.

1.1 Construction Phase. The core challenge in the construction phase is land acquisition. Years ago, CIG sold "land claims," but due to high pricing and the distant timeline for base-building gameplay, player purchases were limited, with most claims capped at 4×4 units. As of 2954, the Pioneer no longer includes land claims by default. Globally, there are approximately 4,000 8×8 land claims, averaging 1–3 per fleet. These larger claims will be critical for early-stage base construction.

Cash-purchased land claims (via real currency) may differ from UEC-purchased claims, potentially offering tax reductions or other benefits. Thus, early fleets should prioritize cash-acquired 8×8 claims for permanent infrastructure (e.g., command centers, trade hubs, industrial facilities). UEC-purchased land should focus on forward outposts: defensive/offensive garrisons, troop depots, resource collection hubs, and supply relay stations (to reduce reliance on returning to the main base).

1.2 Production Phase. Once construction is complete, fleets enter the production phase. Members specialize in roles (combat, resource gathering, refining, and building defensive outposts) to accumulate resources and capital. During this phase:

• Combat targets should prioritize NPCs/AI (e.g., bounty missions). Avoid provoking conflicts with other fleets; focus on covert development without formal alliances.
  
  
• Resource gathering should prioritize materials for defense infrastructure and outpost construction, preparing for expansion.

1.3 Expansion Phase. In the expansion phase, fleets shift focus to capital deployment and territorial growth. Resource allocation tilts toward combat readiness (reducing construction investments). Expansion strategies vary by fleet and may involve morally ambiguous decisions, which this document will not detail.

2.1 Resource Allocation Across Phases**
Proposed Allocation Ratios: 10%–10%–40%–40%

2.1.1 Construction Phase

• First 10%: Permanent future production shares for land contributors. Example: A member contributing an 8×8 claim receives 2% of future output.
  
  
• Second 10%: Shares for construction labor, allocated based on contribution.
  
  
• Remaining 80%: Reserved for the fleet’s public warehouse.

2.1.2 Production Phase

• 40%: Reserved for public warehouse (funding fleet-wide activities).
  
  
• 40%: Time-limited shares distributed to contributors based on labor input.

2.1.3 Expansion Phase. Maintain production-phase ratios. Adjustments may temporarily reduce permanent shares to fund wars or expansion.

3.1 Base Location Strategy

3.1.1 Core Infrastructure

• Priority locations: High-security zones (HSZs) under UEE jurisdiction (e.g., Stanton system planets) to minimize attacks.
  
  
• Terrain:
  
  
  • Large fleets: Flat plains for scalability.
    
    
  • Small fleets: Forests, mountains, or swamps for natural concealment.

3.1.2 Layout Design

• Central Ring: City hall, residential zones, and trade hubs clustered equidistantly.
  
  
• Middle Ring: Hangars and basic warehouses interspersed near residential areas.
  
  
• Outer Ring: Industrial zones arranged circularly to act as a defensive buffer.

4.1 Security and Defense

• Central Ring: Minimal security at city hall, core warehouses, and trade routes.
  
  
• Residential Zones: Periodic surveillance systems.
  
  
• Middle/Outer Rings: Heavy defenses around hangars, warehouses, and industrial facilities to delay enemy advances.

5.1 Access Permissions

• City Hall: Concealed location, restricted to leadership.
  
  
• Core Warehouses: Hidden in obscure terrain, leadership access only.
  
  
• Residential/Hangars: Open to all members.
  
  
• Industrial Zones: Restricted to production personnel.
  
  
• Trade Hubs: Public access lanes with defenses maintained.

6.1 Counterintelligence Measures

• New Members: Limited to residential/hangar access until probation ends.
  
  
• Reporting System: Reward whistleblowers; enforce collective punishment for unreported espionage.

Asmos159 wrote:
I think you're expecting far too much on how things will work.

Somebody finds a point of interest such as a defensible location, or area near a good or vein.

Yeah place down the claim to prevent others from claiming that area.

People come in with equipment and resources to build the infrastructure you deem needed.

When you decide to move to another location because the ore vein is gone or something. Yes salvage what you can, and abandon what you can't.

Buying location of a good ore vein from someone is just a flat upfront payment.

jsbot-02 wrote:
In my vision, the main city—that is, the fleet’s primary base, which serves as the initial hub during the early construction phase—will remain fixed in location unless exceptional circumstances arise. Regarding concerns like mineral vein depletion or resource distribution challenges you mentioned, I believe temporary outposts could be established to address these issues. However, all resources would ultimately be centralized and processed at the main base. This is just my perspective, though your points are quite valid as well.

Asmos159 wrote:
The closest thing to "a main City" that we are going to get is a defensible location with space to fit a lot of infrastructure.

The only reason it is not abandoned quickly is because the quality of any other spots found is not so much better that it is worth setting up the infrastructure again.

The two options are that the org has members assigned to coordinate everything, and the org pays for all the work. Or, The org declares where they have decided their hub to be for people to set up their own infrastructure, and everyone would share defenses.

CIG have mentioned activities that are a massive money sink for orgs. So the orgs participating in this gameplay will need to have membership fees to get the credits to cover expenses.

So the business model is that you need to be a member in order to make use of the infrastructure. Everyone involved in the infrastructure gets paid for the work they do.

JN0115 wrote:
Bro has never tried to build a base on a public ARK or Rust server lol.

jsbot-02 wrote:
I've played Rust for 1,000 hours and have never built a house above ground—I've only lived in cave bases, lol.

AHRA1225 wrote:
This is some fantastical level of thinking. Your vision is a decade away at best even if they go that hard on construction.

It’s gonna be a standard hanger pad or building. A standard living quarters and a farm module or storage module. Maybe two types of gun turrets and that’s it. This shit will be so bare and basic you guys are gonna lose your minds when it comes out and cry about how it wasn’t anything like your crazy imagination.

Debtfree58 wrote:
So looking forwards to this as I plan to build my own industrial base.

Ian_everywhere wrote:
I just hope we can change our home location to our base(s).

It is done. I have committed the answer to the question of "What ship?" with "YES".



"What did it cost?"



"Everything."

Spent almost 6 hours converting 3 years of accumulated pledges into store credit, then redeeming the credit into the pack, plus some additional funds, to purchase the Praetorian Pack.

At least I can get back the Idris-P and the Galaxy for my main account and my Crusader Spirit 3-pack when I accumulate more store credit.

It's clear all three of these are variants even if CIG doesn't acknowledge it so I am putting them in the same thread.

I won't bother posting the community uproar over the Asgard being essentially an improved Valkyrie. They're right, at least for the time being, but I am sure that the Valk will eventually find its niche as a dedicated dropship, or dropship/gunship hybrid, whereas the Paladin is a dedicated gunship, and the Asgard is a heavy combat lift vehicle. It can fit a Nova! And Atlas Platforms!

ANVIL ASGARD - FULL Interior Tour | Leaked Footage from Test Servers
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YwswNvmvuwU



Anvil Asgard with Minigun Nova inside
https://www.reddit.com/r/starcitizen/co ... ova_inside



(The minigun is a new Nova weapon coming at Invictus. Pretty cool.)

So now, even if you have a Hercules and can load it up with 2 Novas/Atlas Platforms, it's better to use 2 Asgards instead because this way you don't risk both of them in the same ship, plus they can be inserted in different locations. Of course the Hercules has other tactical advantages, especially if it's the A2, it can nuke stuff etc. Still the Asgard is a great alternative to carrying the biggest ground vehicles around. Much cheaper too for newer players and orgs. I can think many instances in the past when we could have used them.

I share the criticism voiced by many that "Asgard" is too cool of a name to waste on a mere Valkyrie variant. But whatever. It's just extreme nitpicking at this point.

https://www.reddit.com/r/starcitizen/co ... nt/mrxgve4

Senior-Assist7453 wrote:
Still, they try to compare it to the Ursa where in fact this needs to be compared against the Cyclone.

Which will probably lead to,
it's slower, and can carry less storage, but has an enclosed cabin, is tankier, comes with guns, and a lot safer in use. I think it's pretty much better for a bunker vehicle than the Cyclone. Depending on the price, it might be a good deal too.

Also seems like a good vehicle for delivery missions.

Ursa is on a league of its own with its 6 seats, or 2 seats and 2 SCU of storage.

Strange-Scarcity wrote:
It's same width as Ursa, almost as tall and almost as long. It's a smaller Rover, not a Cyclone-comparable.

lucavigno wrote:
That's the problem though, the only reason the Ursa doesn't fit in the C1 or Zeus is because it's just that tad too wide that it can't enter; length and height clearance aren't an issue at all.

Star Citizen | Behind the Ships: Greycat MTC
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KqRPIQM ... XVyolQO3wj

Cloud Imperium Games wrote:
Greycat's newest off-road-ready vehicle arrives this Invictus. Welcome the MTC, a mobile armory and your stalwart ally in planetside combat.

@minecrafter991 wrote:
Seems more like a armoured recon vehicle to me than a direct combat vehicle like you described it. Unless I completely misunderstood what you where saying.

@LycosLuppin wrote:
The MTC stands for Mobile Tactical Center, they have no idea what words they are using lmao.

@avitus2 wrote:
I was hoping it would have a upsized radar and a command and control section in the back. You know, like a vehicle based command center. This thing isn't even an APC or IFV. It's an armed loot buggy. Very neat, but very much mislabeled.

@wun1gee wrote:
This thing looks like a GI Joe vehicle from the late '80s or early '90s. I could totally imagine being a kid and putting my action figures in it. Haha.

I love it.

@FlukeyLuke wrote:
Nice but does it fit inside a C1 spirit with that terrible rear air lock door shape?

You claaim its slightly shorter but length aint an issue, it's the width and height for a lot of ships.

@eltreum1 wrote:
This looks pretty cool. I like that the turret uses the roofline to tuck in for height clearance with more protection than a Cyclone.

New 4X rule drop: If you are Supreme Commander of a system, in order to expand to a second system you NEED a Pioneer. It can be purchased in game or out of game, I don't care, but you need one to expand. Same as with 4Xs where you need to build a "settler unit" to make a second city.

Pirate Supreme Commanders (i.e. in lawless systems) are exempt from this rule. Pirates aren't supposed to build things.

The Emperor also doesn't need a Pioneer, he owns everything anyway, and he sends people out WITH Pioneers.

This is an awesome move for you that hadn't occurred to me because I hadn't realized you were near the $15k mark. Moreover, you're seriously underselling it because you would also get an 890J that we very much need and you could give to recoil for his mobile HQ, a 4th Polaris so that every Commander in the Stanton system plus the Emperor would have a Polaris, and all this in addition to our 3rd Pioneer (so that every Stanton Commander/Noble House would have a Pioneer, which is very fitting for them), and of course above all the best ship in the game, the Idris-M, which on top of its utility is serious prestige for our org. VERY few orgs have an Idris-M! It was only sold during the original Kickstarter aeons ago, plus to a few rich people with the big packs.

You should also stop worrying about what the clones have (they should have nothing beyond their starter ship, really), as well as for cheapo stuff like the C8R, Terrapin Medic, Ursa Medivac, etc. which we can buy in-game in like a day for peanuts. The Galaxy too isn't a huge deal, even I can buy a Galaxy or upgrade to one whenever I want. This bullshit SHOULDN'T stand in the way of us snagging an Idris-M, 890J, 3rd Pioneer, 4th Polaris, and so on.

And do it NOW because it's not worth risking CIG changing the pack during ILW.

Same goes to anyone else thinking about it: if your total spend is already at or near $15k, melt the lot and get us more Idris-Ms because NOTHING ELSE IN YOUR ACCOUNT matters anywhere near as much as this ship!

I just checked my pledge amounts across my account and my CULTCLONES (2, 6, 7 and 8).

If I convert most of the pledges to store credit, transferring and pooling the credit back to my main account, I would have just enough store credit to get the Praetorian Pack, which has the Idris-M along with the Pioneer + Land Claim/Beacon.

I am strongly considering this, as that would allow me to get the proper military version of the Idris frigate.

There are several considerations holding me back from doing so:

1. I am tempted to wait for Invictus Launch Week and see what new ships show up. I can pledge for some new original concept/launch ships and convert them to store credit to place the pledge in my buyback while accumulating more credit.

2. On the other hand, CIG could discontinue the current Praetorian Pack right before or during Invictus, forever losing access to the Idris-M and Pioneer with Land Claim + Beacon in that package.

3. Converting the sheer number of pledges (mostly LTI tokens) into store credit and consolidating the store credit will require a lot of time and planning so that I am able to obtain the Praetorian Pack and retain important ships that are not in the pack for my account and the clones (C8R, Terrapin Medic, Ursa Medivac, Spirit series and the Galaxy).

Bought a Buccaneer with aUEC.

https://www.reddit.com/r/starcitizen/co ... f_you_want

Gromington wrote:
Idris Tour Sign | Is this the damn proof you want you heathens?

Let the hype train derail. Not even I can do anything against that now.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mAYojpn ... XVyolQO3wj

Cloud Imperium Games wrote:
Get ready for mission overload! With over 60 new missions launching in Alpha 4.1.1, join us as we showcase several contracts coming your way, along with new additional features rolling out during Invictus Launch Week.

4. Why Gamers Don't Play Warhammer
You might say at this point, okay, so icy is putting Warhammer 40,000 into his metaverse. Great. But why is he renaming it to Alex Kierkegaard's Battlemaster though? What is he adding to it? What is he changing?

First off, understand that if all I was doing was converting 40K into a videogame, that would already be a GOTY-worthy achievement, because no one else has even attempted it, let alone succeeded in it. All the 40K programmer minigames you see on Steam ARE NOT 40K: THEY AREN'T EVEN THE SAME GENRE, let alone the same game. Exactly as with roleplaying games: there still wouldn't have been a real D&D game without Fantasy Grounds' release in 2004. Baldur's Gate III IS NOT D&D. It doesn't even have 10% of its features. It's just a tactics game with a mild exploration aspect. There's practically no roleplaying in it whatsoever.

So I am turning 40K into a videogame. That's the first thing I am doing. But that is only the beginning. What else am I doing?

First of all you need to understand how 40K, and Warhammer in general, works. It's not your regular tabletop game. It's way more demanding than any kind of game I've ever seen: tabletop and digital included. It's ABSURDLY demanding, and I only realized this recently while looking into the game in preparation for adapting it into a videogame. So check this out. First you need to understand why the stuff you buy is called "kits" and not "miniatures".

Trygon $92.00
https://www.warhammer.com/en-US/shop/Tyranid-Trygon



Wanna add a Trygon to your army? First off, $92. But that's not all. You thought all you had to do was open your wallet? Think again, pleb.





THAT'S what the $92 Trygon that you bought looks like when you open the box. It looks ABSOLUTELY NOTHING like the picture on the box. You paid $92 for some bits of random plastic that aren't even painted! Hell, you need to CUT THEM OFF WITH A KNIFE before they can even qualify as "bits"! And if you cut by mistake the wrong bit of plastic, THERE GOES YOUR FUCKING 92 DOLLARS AND YOUR FAKE TRYGON!

And that is only the beginning. Because once you've cut all the bits off, you now need to glue them together! Make a mistake in gluing? There goes your $92 again.

And if by some miracle you manage to assemble everything to look something like the pic, here comes the last and best part that you will DEFINITELY screw up: you now need to PAINT the damn thing, and if you can paint it like the pic, why are you not a famous artist? Is this fucking game only meant to be played by famous artists?

So the correct answer to why aren't you playing Warhammer is: "Do I look like Michelangelo to you?"

It's not that it's impossible to put together a miniature properly. It's that it's A HELL OF A LOT OF WORK, and moreover NEEDLESS, POINTLESS work that's NOT THE LEAST FUN to anyone who isn't an arts & crafts faggot. So what Games Workshop has done is gate the greatest turn-based tactics wargame ever behind an absurd demand TO BE AN ARTS & CRAFTS FAGGOT IN ORDER TO PLAY IT. This is so cosmically dumb that it rivals the programmers' sheer stupidity in spending decades converting Warhammer to EVERY GENRE UNDER THE SUN EXCEPT THE ONE IT ACTUALLY IS. I really lack the words to express the sheer amount of contempt that I feel for both camps of faggots: the programmer faggots and the arts & crafts faggots.

But their loss is my gain. It is precisely because both camps are utterly retarded that I am afforded the opportunity of taking the best work of each and fusing it together via the power of synergy into the greatest tactics game ever: Alex Kierkegaard's Battlemaster, in which the Warhammer 40,000 setting is the first among many settings that will be introduced.

3. The Final Frontier
The above image is 4K btw, but it's nevertheless hugely zoomed out because of how many units it shows, so if you zoom in on the units, they will seem rough to you just because there's not enough resolution to resolve them further. So trust me when I say these models are NOT rough at all. In fact I dare say they're some of the most detailed Warhammer models to be seen in ANY videogame. And you don't even have to trust me, because look:



That is the level of detail of EVERY Warhammer 40,000 unit in Alex Kierkegaard's Metaverse. It's freaking unreal what Cult Games has accomplished here.

HOW did we accomplish it? Just plain hard work and ingenuity. I would explain, but it's coding stuff and you wouldn't understand. Here is the texture for example used for the above model:



Here's another zoomed-in unit:



And another:



And another:



And another:



Even more amazing than the quality of the models is that... they are painted EXACTLY like Games Workshop's reference models in their promotional materials. And when I say exactly I mean identically, down to the very brushstrokes.

How did we do this?

If there are any coders in the audience who want a hint on how we did this, I'll give you two words (a word and a number actually): 360 previews. That should get you on the right track. That and "photoscan, recolor, kitbash", because some of the models allow for customization (i.e. you can buy different gear to attach to them in order to make multiple versions of them), and that's where kitbashing comes in.

Salamanders Primaris Upgrades and Transfers $30.00
https://www.warhammer.com/en-US/shop/Sa ... rades-2020



KX139 Ta'unar Supremacy Armour Fusion Eradicator $62.00
https://www.warhammer.com/en-US/shop/KX ... Eradicator



Warlord Titan Mori Quake Cannon $175.00
https://www.warhammer.com/en-US/shop/Wa ... annon-2020



Note the prices, it's not a cheap game. But this is where Cult Games comes in.

So the quality of our miniatures is out of this world, and it HAS to be because this is... a miniature wargame. The miniatures are everything in this game. If you don't have them, you can't play. If you have them but in low quality, you aren't inspired to play. If you have some but not all, you CAN play, but you feel hamstrung. That's why I am adding 40K NOW to my metaverse. I'd seen attempts before to port the minis over, but I wasn't impressed. When I saw this latest attempt, on the other hand, I dropped everything I was doing—even paused the ongoing Master of Heroes Tutorial—to get the game set up. And btw, only Cult Games has these models. Check all other games: none of them have them. It's proprietary technology. I coded it myself.

So it's a lot of work, but the results speak for themselves, and I wouldn't be able to accomplish it without our excellent Cult Modelling team operating worldwide: dozens of people working for one goal: bringing my vision to life.

The group shot by the way DOESN'T show all the 40K units. I thought it did, when it was first shown me, but it's actually about one-third of them lmao. Warhammer 40,000 includes more than a THOUSAND unique units arranged into TWENTY-NINE unique factions, and we have more or less ALL of them, with one-third of them already ported into the engine, and more on the way.

How come there's a tactics game with over a THOUSAND freakin' units? AND 29 unique factions?!? StarCraft has THREE factions and that's considered A LOT for programmer games. How the fuck does this game have TWENTY-NINE AND RISING?!?

Well that's what happens when you develop a game for close to HALF A CENTURY. Entire generations of developers have worked on the game, then died, and handed off the baton to new generations, while the programmers can't seem to maintain their attention on a game for more than a couple of years, and can't bring themselves to devote more than a weekend to designing mechanics or lore for it. And once they've sold their game they trash it and start from scratch, since they know, after all, that their game is garbage. So what's the point in building on it? You can't build on garbage anyway, you need solid foundations. And the programmers can never seem to get that done.

If you want to see all the Warhammer 40,000 units by the way (and their spicy prices), this is where you want to look (and keep scrolling): https://www.warhammer.com/en-US/shop/warhammer-40000

Have you seen more and cooler units in any programmer game?

The secret of this game's success? No programmer was ever involved in it...

The secret of the failure to port this game to computers over decades? Only programmers have ever tried—until now. Same exact reason btw that there didn't exist a single roleplaying videogame before Cult Engine 1 was released in 2004.

You don't hate programmers enough, if you're a gamer. But you will. Oh you will, by the time I'm through with them.

So when I saw the massed hundreds of units in the group shot rendered fully in Cult Engine 3, I knew I'd found my full-tactics specialty setting and could forget about trying to shove my tactics game into the RPG settings. Here was a setting developed over decades specifically to serve as backdrop for infinite tactical battles, and I knew next to nothing about it because 1) I knew nothing about miniature wargames, and 2) It had never been ported to a videogame because programmers are retarded and instead of porting the game itself they insist on converting it into random genres like a Tetris clone or pinball or whatever the fuck.

And it made perfect sense in terms of lore too. Hell, it made perfect sense even in terms of my philosophy! For isn't Warhammer 40,000 the most far-future setting in all of gaming? Blade Runner is in the mid-2000s, Alien is in the 2100s-2200s. Traveller is 5627. You'd be hard pressed to find much beyond that. What game is set BEYOND 40,000? There's nothing! It is literally the ultimate setting, in the original meaning of ultimate: the last one. And it's also the future of mankind, as envisaged in my philosophy: the end of faggotry ("discussion"), and the start of endless war. Perfection! Game design and philosophy become one when I integrate Warhammer 40,000 into my metaverse. And it is my metaverse's final frontier.

Henry Cavill talks being a Warhammer nerd, his grey pile of shame and hobby painting
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eadjz-FO8N0



Henry Cavill & Joey Batey Get the Cast Into Warhammer Painting | The Witcher: Unlocked | Geeked
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TlkzcreCKrU



Henry Cavill talks Warhammer gaming/minis
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EmwAF6w1s0I



Henry Cavill talking WARHAMMER 40,000!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cNDi_y1znwk



Henry Cavill Talks The Witcher and Warhammer | The Graham Norton Show
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sj4vCA2BCqo



NEW Henry Cavill Warhammer Interview! HIS GREATEST PRIVILEGE!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=p0f68koKIAw



Henry Cavill Just CRUSHED Amazon After REBUILDING Warhammer Cinematic Universe!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TvVmsDK0i5s



Henry Cavill Visits Warhammer World
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J7wp4Rzoafw



The last video is the epic one. You can't look at it without thinking how epic the game must be.

There are at least a couple more but I've only been able to find them in compilations, not as standalone videos. I'll keep looking, and post here if you find basically any video that I don't have already.


P.S. Tangentially related:

Why NO ONE Wants To Work With Henry Cavill...
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0QMRHEYSYI0



The man is cool beyond belief. He collided with the anti-straight-White-male industrial complex, and he gave them a good licking, and has the scars to prove it. One of us.

When your partner shows a slight interest in your Warhammer collection.
https://www.youtube.com/shorts/6ZFDYf2AQ8M

Nova Open Preview: 40k Roadmap Graphic
https://www.reddit.com/r/Warhammer40k/c ... ap_graphic



40k Roadmap for 2025
https://www.reddit.com/r/Warhammer40k/c ... p_for_2025



I am quickly learning how Warhammer works, and I can sort of follow the news on it now. A mere two weeks ago I knew nothing and couldn't understand anything about what they were talking about on the tabletop sites. I encountered the game in the same places I get my GMRPG news from, but I just kept scrolling past them because I couldn't understand them. It's a totally different type of news than both the videogame and the roleplaying (and the trading card game) news. Essentially they release one new rule edition every 3-5 years, and then during this time they pump out new units and factions in both miniature and rule forms, and they revamp existing ones. Sometimes there are novels and campaigns and misc. stuff, but mostly it's just new units and their stats. And of course balance changes. That's the TL;DR to following Warhammer news. And it's all physical of course. They don't even release their books in PDF lol! It's absurd how physical the entire game is. In fact that is its greatest weakness, which I will be fixing in... oh a few days.

So this is a brief introduction to Warhammer news, for anyone who's interested in following it with me. I WILL become a Warhammer expert, and I hope some of my readers will follow me there.


P.S. I am now trying to find out what "waha" means. The fans drop that term a lot, and it seems like a website. Maybe it's the official Warhammer site? They say things like "The new codex is not on waha yet, does anyone have it?", etc. I'm looking into it.

2. Against Simulation
So for three years, on and off, I tried to shove a full tactics game into Pathfinder (and/or Starfinder, D&D and so on), and kept failing to figure out a way to do it without ruining the settings. Why didn't Warhammer, and miniature wargames in general, pop into my head during this time? Well, because I simply... didn't really know much about them. People are used to me knowing everything about games, and having tried everything, and this is almost always true. But this is one exception. I have simply never tried miniature wargames, so it just didn't occur to me that they could be the solution to my problem. Even worse I've always had this idea of them in my head that they... don't take place in developed settings, that they're just drab military simulators, mostly historically-themed, and therefore fundamentally anti-artistic, which in the case of Warhammer is a ridiculous idea since its world is more developed than even those of most RPGs. To be sure, Warhammer's lore is non-interactive, it's just window-dressing, since there are no mechanics in the game with which to shape it. But that's precisely what I needed, since it was the interactive nature of the roleplaying games' worlds that kept conflicting with my desire to incorporate unlimited tactical battles into them!

Actually, I did have one experience with a tabletop wargame that colored all my perceptions of the genre: Advanced Squad Leader. I bought a box of that in the mid-'90s because they carried it at the store where I was buying my D&D stuff, and it looked mightily impressive so I just had to find out what it was about.



It was all thick binders full of rules and stacks and stacks of counters (not miniatures, so it wasn't a miniature wargame... just a plain tabletop wargame), and its tactical complexity looked like it dwarfed D&D's (2nd Edition D&D's at any rate, it was still the '90s remember).



This is how the game's current publisher describes it:

Multi-Man Publishing wrote:
Advanced Squad Leader has set the standard in tactical combat gaming since its 1985 debut. ... No other game matches its flexibility, scope, and challenge. Players can simulate nearly any battle in any theater up to the battalion level. Maneuver 10-man squads, five-man half squads, and individual leaders and vehicles across a combination of over 75 geomorphic map boards or fight a campaign game on one of several highly detailed campaign game map sheets.

Wikipedia wrote:
Despite the price tag and the expensive lists of prerequisites for each new module, the game system caught on and new modules continued to be produced twenty-five years after the original release - joining Dungeons & Dragons and Star Fleet Battles as one of what were known as "The Big Three" games of the hobbyist game industry.

After almost exactly seven years of operation, I finally cancelled my Shadow subscription. I started it in the summer of 2018, and it served me well for all this time, but it was time to retire it now that I finally moved all my files and settings to the new laptop. I think I wrote an extensive review of the service years ago, and posted it on Patreon. I should move it back to the site at some point. But my evaluation then remains the same today: It is an excellent service, but because you're running a computer through a computer, there's more stuff that can and will go wrong, so expect more downtime than usual, and more troubleshooting. If you're okay with that, and can't afford to outright buy a new PC, go ahead and subscribe, you won't be disappointed.

We'll see if I end up having a use for the service again in the future, perhaps for a second streaming/camera PC for Battlegrounds, or a Star Citizen clone. Though it's possible that a cheap laptop might do those jobs better, or one of those handheld PCs that have been coming out since the Steam Deck popularized the format.

https://www.youtube.com/shorts/KBAzE7evmzo



lmao

1. Only War
The idea for a tactics-only game component for Battlegrounds came for me instantly when I saw the Cult Engine 3 team experimenting with a group-move feature, about three years ago it was. I knew then and there that my Battlegrounds would feature a full-fledged miniature wargame component, or as we call it in the videogame industry, a tactics mode.

Cult Engine 3 Group-move Test
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KLNrGoxkX8I



But don't roleplaying games already include a heavy tactics component? Isn't Pathfinder the most complex turn-based tactics system ever?

Sure, yeah. Up to a point. But first of all, the RPG combat systems are designed for a couple dozen combatants at most. Any more than that and combat takes forever, which is why the RPG companies have been trying to introduce mass combat systems since the '80s, with varying levels of success. But these systems can't compete with the dedicated mass combat systems that the wargaming companies have been producing for decades. D&D itself was derived from that industry, and though it blew up the complexity for squad-based combat, it never quite got the handle of mass combat, let alone surpass the dedicated mass combat games.

Even more crucially, the way RPGs work, you can't just run a battle whenever you feel like it: entire sessions may pass without anyone fighting anything. So you can't just hop in the game on a Saturday because you have some free time and play a battle for a couple of hours. That's just not how RPGs work. Worse still, even if they did work this way, it would be dumb to risk the character you've been building up for months or years just for a quick thrill. Combat is serious business in RPGs, because they're supposed to simulate life. Characters don't just fight for the thrill of combat. Well, some of them do. But far from all. And even the thrill-seekers and nutjobs must rein in their impulses if they want to survive long enough to get any good at combat.

So even though my Battlegrounds, and even more my Master of Heroes mode, include a terrific amount of combat at all levels—from 1v1s all the way to armies clashing—they don't quite hit the spot for the diehard tacticians among us.

And this is where my new tactics game comes in.

It's not just a mechanical issue, you see. It's also aesthetic. Because grabbing the combat mechanics from miniature wargames is easy enough. But then in what setting do you place the combat? You can't do this on Golarion without ruining the setting. We're simulating the entire planet one day at a time, which means that months or even years may pass without wars, all the while the tacticians are chomping at the bit for some action.

So you need a new setting in which to run your full-tactics game. A setting where, ideally, there is only war...

Hello all! Battlegrounds Alpha 3.0 is now LIVE! Well, one part of it at any rate, my newest game: Alex Kierkegaard's Battlemaster. I chose to forge ahead with its release despite Alpha 2.0 still being in development because... well, because it was ready, really. And because it launches Cult Engine 3, which I've been hyping for years and is now finally at such an advanced state of development that it makes no sense to hold it back any longer. When the guy who does our 40k miniatures finished his work months ahead of schedule, I just couldn't contain my excitement and went ahead and put all the pieces together—setting, stages, models, rules—and the first setting for Battlemaster was complete. It's all playable right now, but I'll take a few days to explain the genesis of the game and how it will work before I open it up to interested players. Then, while that is running, I'll get back to finishing up Alpha 2.0 before resuming work on Alpha 3.0. And note that, since the centerpiece of Alpha 3.0 is Kingslayer—which runs entirely in CE3—any gaming we do in Battlemaster in the meantime, with its much simpler tactics-only mechanics, will be preparation for Kingslayer. There's no dialogue or complex dramatic scenes in Battlemaster: it's just straight-up tactics, so it's much easier to both play as a player, and run as a Game Master; in terms of mastering the interface at any rate, I am not talking about game mechanics here. We simply need to master the increased complexity of CE3, and Battlemaster is the perfect entry point, above all for GMs.

There's lots more coming in Alpha 3.0, but I am not giving away any more today! I'll be filling the table of contents below gradually, as I reveal all the features!


BATTLEGROUNDS ALPHA 3.0 FEATURES

A. Alex Kierkeggard's Battlemaster

--1. Only War

--2. Against Simulation

--3. The Final Frontier

--4. Why Gamers Don't Play Warhammer

--5. Stunthammer

B. TBA

C. TBA

D. TBA

E. TBA

F. TBA

G. TBA

H. TBA


See you on the Battlegrounds servers soon,


ALEX KIERKEGAARD
FOUNDER & CEO CULT GAMES STUDIOS

Done. I've made a World Anvil account and followed Battlegrounds.

https://www.belloflostsouls.net/2025/04 ... skies.html

Adam Harrison wrote:
New Space Marine Drop Pods Arriving From The Skies

Games Workshop has created a new Space Marine Drop Pod and it looks to solve quite a few issues from the previous kit.

I did not have “a new design for the Space Marine Drop Pods” on my bingo card for Warhammer 40k in 2025 but here we are! Coming in hot from orbit, there’s a new Drop Pod kit coming — and this time they come in pairs!



"The kit is significantly easier to build and will have a new Datasheet which clarifies exactly where everything gets measured from – leaving little room for creative rules interpretations. That new Datasheet will be available via free download when it’s released."

Space Marine Drop Pod Update
So there’s a couple of major changes/new features about this redesign that we need to go over. First up there are no long internal Storm Bolters/Deathwind Launchers inside the Drop Pod. I’m curious to know if those are gone completely or what. We’ll find out when the new Datasheet shows up.



The next major change and one I’m excited about is the fixed, open doors. As a person who has played with Drop Pods since they were introduced in 40k as an actual vehicle I can tell you stories about the arguments they caused. While it was a great modeling feature and allowed for some really cool options, those open doors caused so many rules arguments. This new design fixes many of those issues. More importantly, GW is even addressing where you measure from with this model. That’s going to cut down on the ambiguity the old/current Drop Pods created and help to make using them consistent.



I also wanted to note that the insides look a lot cleaner to build. As a person who’s built over a dozen Drop Pods in my time can I just say I’m glad to see this change. While I did eventually figure out how to build the insides so everything was were it was suppose to be, there really was no “easy” way to do it; the Drop Pod’s internals were just tedious to assemble. In fact, most games I’d just keep the doors closed because it looked better and people couldn’t claim they could shoot through the pod.

One last feature I do want to mention is that the debris around the impact of the doors is apparently modular. I think that’s also great! Maybe you want a “clean” landing. It’s a nice touch overall.

Drop Pods Come In Pairs?!
Okay, this isn’t a feature of the pods themselves. It’s more a feature of the new kit coming soon.

"Each box will contain two complete Drop Pods – an excellent proposition for those who lack the natural Deep Strike capability of Terminators and Jump Pack Intercessors. We recommend Infernus Marines for a blistering entrance, but the sky’s really the limit."

While I think it’s nice that GW is trying to pitch the uses for the Drop Pod, the important part there is that these Drop Pods will come in a kit with two pods to build. I do wonder why GW would want to put two in a box. Maybe they want to save on shipping costs? Or perhaps there’s some other design option to cram two in a single box. Surely it’s not because the price will go up...



What do you think of the new Space Marine Drop Pod redesign?

Adam Harrison wrote:
New Plastic Drop Pod – Worth It?

The new Plastic Drop Pod kit fixes two big issues in Warhammer 40k. But will the new version be worth taking?

Games Workshop revealed that a new plastic Drop Pod kit is coming. It’s a nice refresh of the miniature and the kit comes with two in the box. It also addresses one big pain point that’s been going on for years: Are the doors supposed to be open or closed when deployed? Well, the new kit has them in a fixed, open position — so we can all stop arguing over that one.

Another issue that Games Workshop seems to be going after is the whole “where do you measure distances from” for the Drop Pod. We’re supposed to be getting a new datasheet when the miniature lands that will clarify where everything gets measured from. Personally, I’m very grateful for that.

Over the years, I’ve seen lots of players try to pull some questionable deployment and measuring tricks because of the doors. Everything from measuring storm bolter shots from the edge of an open door to deploying the squad from them. Heck, I’ve even seen games where players have kept a couple doors shut just to keep the model from going “off the tabletop” due to some funky scatter or deployment trick.

Keep in mind many of these “tricks” got nixed in later editions or FAQs but that’s how long the old Drop Pods have been in use. If you can think of (or remember) a dirty trick with them due to vague modeling or “creative” rules interpretations, I’ve seen players trying to pull them all.

New Drop Pod, Old Problems
Again, I’m glad GW is deciding to take some firm stances on those issues — the doors being open and where you actually measure from. I’m also a little curious to see what’s going to happen now that the miniature doesn’t have the Storm Bolter or Deathwind launcher inside. Are those options just gone now? Is the Drop Pod even more of a terrain piece now than before?

I always felt like the Drop Pod was a mixed bag. On the one hand you had a (relatively) safe way of putting a unit where you needed it. This was a great way to deploy (and in some editions with pin-point accuracy) a unit’s firepower exactly where you needed it. I too have Drop Podded in a Sternguard Veteran Unit loaded with melta weapons to take out many Titan-level threats in Apocalypse-sized games.

However, you’re paying a points premium for a “vehicle” that’s effectively a faction specific terrain piece once it lands. Only now, without a weapon, it looks like it won’t even be able to shoot and be annoying. It’s literally going to land on the tabletop and just be in the way. I think a lot of armies are going to ignore them even more than before. Or worse, they’ll charge them to gain some extra movement... I’ve seen and done that trick myself.

As of right now, the Drop Pod is 70 points for a safe way to deploy a squad. It provides a very small amount of cover fire (and slightly more if you opt for the Deathwind Launcher). But when it lands, it’s immobile and it’s just in the way. If you remove the weapon system, will it be worth taking? I hope we at least see a points drop for the Drop Pods if that’s the case. I don’t even care if they make the thing paper thin toughness and armor. In fact, if the enemy wants to shoot it just to get it out of the way, I’m okay with that, too.

Deploying a unit safely and where you need them is the point. If it takes some fire away from other targets that’s just a side benefit. Hopefully this iteration will cause less arguments (and I think it will). But, after those things, I’m also not expecting Drop Pods to be anything other than in the way.

What do you think of the Drop Pods? Do you think we’ll get a points drop or not?

Awesome. That takes our Master of Heroes players up to 7, and Kingslayer potentially up to 16 if everyone chooses to join.

Go ahead and make a World Anvil account: https://www.worldanvil.com

And then with that account follow Battlegrounds so that your account will be visible here: https://akbattlegrounds.net/followers

Then come back here and let me know when that's done and I'll tell you the next steps.

I'll be upgrading to Superplayer next month in order to play Master of Heroes and Kingslayer.

Why is icycalm suddenly posting Warhammer 40,000 news?

You'll know soon enough. And then a new era of gaming will begin. Until then, read Warhammer 40,000 news to catch up to what's coming.

World Eaters tactics – Richard Siegler weighs in on Khorne's finest
https://www.warhammer-community.com/en- ... nes-finest

Warhammer Community wrote:
The World Eaters come to pre-orders this weekend, and they’ve got several exciting new ways to play (which still involve chain weapons to the face). Tournament pro Richard Siegler is here to extol the virtues of Berzerkers and Daemons.

Richard Siegler wrote:
It's time for Khorne's chosen Legion to have their time in the limelight. With the new Codex: World Eaters, there are many exciting new rules, playstyles, and tricks to master. This article is going to focus on some of the important changes and analyse two brand new playstyles that have emerged.

Richard Siegler wrote:
Berzerkers are back!

The first new playstyle centers around the iconic Khorne Berzerker. In the Index, Khorne Berzerkers were often seen as support pieces for a Master of Executions, and used on easy-to-kill enemy units too feeble to be worthy of being maimed by your Exalted Eightbound.

In the new Codex, Khorne Berzerkers can become the core of your army, and some of your strongest units when the proper rules are applied. What changed?

Richard Siegler wrote:
Daemonic destruction

The other major new playstyle for World Eaters involves the Khorne Daemonkin detachment, which allows your World Eaters army to be joined by up to 1,000 points of Blood Legion units in a Strike Force game. It was previously very rare to use Khorne Chaos Daemons allies, but this new detachment has several powerful rules that encourage you to do so, especially when combined with the recently upgraded Khorne datasheets.

Khorne may have punished Skarbrand for his hubris, but with his recent datasheet glow-up, this rogue Bloodthirster is one of the few ways to advance and charge with World Eaters – and one of the hardest-hitting combat units in the entire game.

Laddy_Taddy wrote:
How are the World Eaters still a thing?

Don't get me wrong, I love the World Eaters. From a purely "rule of cool" point of view, they are my favorite chaos legion alongside the Word Bearers.

But the more I think about them, I have to ask: How the hell do they still remain a threat into the 41st millennium?!

It's been established that one of the main weaknesses of the Chaos Space Marine Legions are their poor logistics and leadership. They are working with significantly inferior equipment, infrastructure, and recruitment numbers to that of the Imperium. Oh, and also 3/4th of them are crazy due to warp shenanigans. This problem has proven to be somewhat avoided due to people like Abaddon who have their shit together. Problem is, World Eaters are the exact opposite of "having their shit together".

The World Eaters' entire shtick is that they're batshit insane and charge at the enemy armed with laser weapons and tanks to engage in brutal melee combat. While this COULD work for the first few battles, it's hard for me to imagine how they survive after that. The World Eaters depend on high casualty combat, but I can't recall if they are even able to replenish their numbers. On top of that, there's no one in the World Eaters legion who are reigning them in, so to speak. From what I've read when they aren't busy shish-kebabing a guardsman they are murdering each other, which makes me wonder even more how they haven't just accidentally chainaxed the self-destruct button to their spaceship mid-flight.

So I ask again, how are the World Eaters still a thing? Every army needs SOME degree of logistics to survive, but the World Eaters are too blood drunk to even have any at all.

krorkle wrote:
Some of them still have their shit together, at least outside of combat.

Check out the new Angron novel by David Guymer. It shows what happens when a bunch of World Eaters and their hangers-on get together to follow Angron. They're basically ungovernable, but it shows how they're still able to be wrangled to point in the right direction. There's even a young traitor marine from a Blood Angels successor who wants to become a World Eater.

That's the exact same reason it's taking years to get my Battlegrounds off the... ground, but instead of developing technology I've been developing design. In Star Citizen, tech is everything because the game is real-time, and the design itself—while gargantuan by programmer standards—is quite pedestrian by tabletop standards (even stupid when you realize that their events are basically fake and nothing the players do can affect the outcome). Reverse this to get my situation: the tech itself is pedestrian, but the design is gargantuan, and I am just one person, and it's simply taking me a few years to devise it and put it all together. Not that two people could do it faster... No one else can even understand what I am designing let alone contribute to it. Not to mention the insane level of research I've had to do. Over half a terrabyte of data to comb, thousands of pages to read, countless forum threads, dozens of genres to fuse.

It will all come out in the end. Both SC and BG will be finished, and then even complete brainless retards like Robomoo and his brown Cult Rejects who to this day insist my game doesn't even exist, will eat shit and die, and their corpses will be added to the mountains of corpses growing beneath my feet for two decades now.

None of my and CR's wannabe critics will ever create anything at all, and we'll create the best artworks ever.