It’s that time again. Time to lose some games in the cold weather. So what better way to do so than to host the third annual Warmachine and Hordes Bummer Bowl? But before I get into that, the non-bummer is that I finished a ton of painting. Still going strong with all the Minions.
First up, I finished Calaban, the Grave Walker, for the Bummer Bowl itself. Part of playing in the Bummer Bowl means bringing a less good warcaster or warlock, so Calaban fit that bill well. He was fun to paint, and I like the way the mask really ties the red color scheme together.
Next up, I finished a Sacral Vault. This was a beast of a model to get done, but I’m really pleased with how it looks overall. Definitely an army centerpiece kind of model.
Not content there, I also painted up a maximum unit of Gatormen Posse. This brings me to a fully painted 75 points list for my Maelok force, which alone makes me very happy to have completed.
Not to be outdone I also got some pieces done for my Jaga-Jaga list as well… a Bog Trog Mist Speaker being the first of them. Though honestly he’s for many lists, as one of the most ubiquitous of Minions pieces.
And last but not least: an Ironback Spitter. I managed to get him shaped up and finished. Was unsure about making him red but matching the shell to the more prominent ridge on my gators, but I think it turned out really nicely.
That’s more than enough painting for now (well, not really as I’m painting like crazy to get things into a semblance of order for the tournament this coming weekend. What’s more exciting than painting, though, is the official return of the Bummer Bowl.
The bummer bowl began in 2016, when Steve, Ryan, Brad, and I tried to head down to a tournament in Charleston, WV, on a snowy winter morning. We had a series of poor happenstance occur that left us entirely unable to go. So instead we hung around Ryan’s place and played what we called “the Bummer Bowl” (owing to the series of complications). We decided to flip the story of a usual tournament: instead, the people who lose each round continue on toward the championship*. Thus, the person who had the worst time of the day won* the prize*. And what a glorious prize it was: we wrote the words “Bummer Bowl” on a plastic spoon we found in the trash.
Enough about the past, on to this year’s Bummer Bowl. First round was Mike’s Cygnar, using Maddox, facing Ryan’s Skorne, using Makeda1, and my Minions Calaban clashed with Steve’s Retribution Thyron. The battle lines were drawn, and the war to see who was least bad began–as no one wants the shame of the Bummer Bowl trophy after all.
My first game was pretty effective, with Calaban proving to be a slow Warlock but a fairly effective one. I managed to harass Steve’s stuff enough to build a strong position–it got me the scenario lead and then he clocked out. Bummer! That meant I knew I was spared from being the Bummer Bowl 3 champion this time. Phew! Second round I played just a fun winner’s bracket game against Mike, who had triumphed narrowly in his first game. His Maddox list faced some serious hitting power with Calaban, and I managed to win via assassination.
Steve, the Retribution player, managed to win* the championship yet again (3rd time in a row, even). This time, Enrico Nardini at Drawbridge Games was generous, and he bought and helped construct a championship belt for the event. Note that we incorporated the “used spoon from the trash” plan, and made sure the belt held all three plastic trash spoons.
Overall the Bummer Bowl 3 was a great time. We’ll be planning a Bummer Bowl 4 soon enough. It’s always a great time, and a fun chance to play the game for laughs rather than more hardcore competition. Speaking of hardcore competition, my next post will likely cover my time at the ATC. So stay tuned for that fun!
365 Points Challenge Progress (2019):
99/365
Battles (Privateer Press):
Overall Totals 2019: 6 (Win/Loss 6/0); 2018: 129 (Win/Loss 78/51); 2017: 120 (Win/Loss 86/34): 2016: 123 (Win/Loss: 74/49); 2015: 43 (Win/Loss: 29/14)
Minions:
6 Wins (Nemo1 x2, Irusk2, Helynna, Maddox, Thyron) / 0 Losses (___)
The Dark Muse 