Friday, August 17, 2012

Call to Arms Fantasy Predictions

Tomorrow is Call to Arms and Fantasy has 24 participants. I posted the lists yesterday - sans Michael Vercoe (whose list was left out the final spreadsheet). One eagle-eyed reader picked up an illegal list and that is being rectified as we speak. I get to play policemen and intone "Rules are not guidelines, you know".

So what's going to happen?

Well we have 6 players in the Top 20 ranked players competing - Tim Joss, Tom Dunn, Mike King, Raymond Dick, Sam Whitt and Neil Williamson.

Any reasoned analysis says that we can forget the last two of these. If Sam was using Chaos Dwarfs maybe but taking his Orcs & goblins means that he has already written his excuses. Not that O&G aren't competitive, rather the act of taking them seems to betray a defeatist attitude - "But I was playing O&G", as if that explains everything.

Neil's taking his Brets. I don't think that they are going to enjoy all the Undead and I can't see how they can beat the Daemons.

So of the remaing four Top Rankers, I think Tim has the best list. However I'll qualify that by saying he has the best list against the full field but there are one or two people that will cause him headaches. If he hits them then dual caskets, dual catapults and Khalida and her crew mighn't be enough to save him. These lists are those with a degree of speed to get into the squishy stuff....It will be fascinating to see.

Tom's list sees the last hurrah for his flamers before they are retired (thanks GW). Strong list should see him in the top five. Raymond's list looks strong and I suspect him and Mike to do well.

Outside these guys, I can only see one threat and that's Reid. He and Ray have similar lists and I expect Reid to be on the podium.

I'm sure others will feel I am being overly harsh on their chances, the "War of the Beard" coalition of High Elves and Dwarfs chief among them. But seriously, Dwarfs? They will be doing well if their opponents last the weekend awake.

And High Elves. Well, Kenny has been in the UK for the past two years and if he thinks that that plus him bringing Tyrion is enough to elevate him from also-ran to contender, it says more about his generation's sense of entitlement!

So my Top Five in no particular order - Mike King, Raymond Dick, Reid Pittams, Tim Joss and Tom Dunn.

You'll note no South Islanders apart from Tim. I don't know what they get up to in Christchurch, and I don't want to know.

16 comments:

  1. My tailor-made excuse is taking a dragon and my Empire being stuck in maintenance...full plate and barding is very hard to upkeep considering all the scratches it gets.

    Also there will be no talk of alliance between the High Elves and the Dwarfs...my elves wouldnt "lower" themselves to that!

    Joel v

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  2. Every draw counts as a win and double points for Dwarf players whose role is purely to take points away from grubby Skaven and the other sneaky armies with their big bags of tricks ;)

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  3. Yeah those beastmen lists look good, they seem to have scared all the Empire away. My Kdaaii would go down in a screaming heap against a few of those armies.

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  4. Haha, I fully expect to be mid table, my list is terrible! Silver helms, reavers, no WLs? But who can pass up using Tyrion when you have a chance :-)

    But meh, I'm using a list I enjoy in the style I'm comfortable with so I'll do alright. Just wait for the whining of the Deathstar players, I'll probably be sitting opposite them ;-)

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  5. Damn,

    What is it you have against names beginning with W?
    psyched out before I even start.
    If you are told you are going to lose - you lose.
    You're doing the draw Pete, just don't give me any VC to even it up.

    Neil

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  6. I agree with Neil. When I crash and burn Pete I will be blaming you!!! Or the Orcs lol.

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    1. personally, I would blame animosity...

      us orc players will look sombre and nod sagely, non-orc players will look bewildered and wonder why you play an army that can screw you from the start lol...

      :)

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    2. Yawn....it's 2012, change the record.

      You get ultra cheap warmachines that don't test, plenty of random movers that don't test and you shove a Blorc in every unit that matters to quell animosity......

      If you don't like the residual randomness then it's probably not the army for you. Try dwarfs?

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    3. I LOVE my orcs, they were my first and favourite army to use.
      I have also included all the above Pete and you still don't give me a chance...;)

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    4. Yeah sorry Sam....there are two potential explanations - either Orcs are shite or you are :-)

      As I remember Harry Dixon won CTA with O&G

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  7. I am only shite on day 2's. Also i don't think Harry had any fluffy Orcs in his list.

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    1. Certainly no Black Ones to quell animosity!!!

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  8. Well I'm looking forward to sucking the fun out of the weekend for five other players with my Dwarves. Then I'll mug some old ladies, kick a few cats and spray some obsenities on people's fences, coz that's just the way us anti-social bastard Dwarf players roll.

    Of course, if I was really socially maladjusted, I'd take Skaven. But I'm not that bent, not yet.

    Oh, and Pete, I've printed off 189 photos of my kids, as well as their friends and cousins to show you. I know you'll love it.

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  9. I promise you all, if you fall asleep, my organ guns will start magically rolling 10s!

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    1. That's quite dependent on your opponent bothering to come within 24" isn't it?

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  10. Shhhh, don't give it away!

    Well, if they don't want to come within 24" of me, then I'll take a 10-10 haha :D.

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