Zero Comp: Reece Robbins’s SoCal Smackdown Report
The Zero Comp team went to Los Angeles this past weekend to attend the SoCal Smackdown GT. I won best general at this event last year, earning my Golden Ticket and wanted to go and take another crack at it! As with last year, this time around it was held as a part of a large, non-electronic gaming convention and there was a ton of cool stuff to see and do.
There has been a change of management with the organizing party, and so things got a bit confused and there was a lot to criticize with the event. We were expecting a turnout of between 20-30 players, but when we got there, there was only 11….6 of whom were the Zero Comp team! Haha, so that meant 55% of the field were guys I play all the time.
So that was a bit of a bummer. The terrain was also a big bummer as you will see in the videos. There was a lot of it, but none of it LOS blocking. The TO, Adam, told me that GW lagged in getting them terrain and so they had to make do with what they had. The players moved stuff around to make it a bit more fair.
We played a mix of Adepticon 2010 and 2011 missions, which made for odd scoring. The 2011 missions are a marked improvement over the 2010 missions, IMO, and so that part of it was also a bit off. There was also a bit of confusion on the judge’s part as to what the missions’ rules meant, etc. They had never played them and it showed. There were also no rules judges present. Luckily all the guys playing in the tournament were really laid back and 9 of the 11 were what I would consider expert level players, so we pretty much regulated ourselves and it went fine. That could have easily been a major setback though.
My last critique of the event was that the paint judging seemed a bit inconsistent. An Eldar army that was predominantly painted only to a 3 color standard (he was finishing models between rounds! Haha) scored higher than a very nice, fully painted Grey Knights army that had several layers of low light and highlight.
Now for the good stuff!
The TO’s were totally open to suggestions and want to improve. They also know that not everything was perfect and want to make changes to appease the often fickle 40K crowd. Cool. The first step in improving a system is to acknowledge problems.
Secondly, the caliber of players present was VERY high. 5 of 5 of my games were brutally hard, which is just the way I prefer things to be! I can honestly say that only at Adpeticon have I had as tough of competition. The small field meant that you were going to play the tough games, so it was actually very challenging despite the small field. In a typical tournament, especially a GT, you get 1-2 easy games, particularly in the first rounds.
All that said, would I go next year or recommend another gamer to make the trip? Yes I would. The TO’s want to improve, they are willing to listen, and another GT is only a good thing, IMO. The more, the better and so long as things can improve, I will support the event, as will the Zero Comp team.
So, without further ado, here is the footage I took of the event and the corresponding army lists. Also, we tease each other a lot in the videos and there is a fair bit of adult language, so be aware of that. The teasing is all in good fun between friends, and as Mark Twain said: nothing gets your point across like a good expletive!
Game 1
Mission: Pitched Battle, Primary: Kill Points, Secondary: Destroy all Troops, Tertiary: Victory points
Bonus: Destroy FA, Destroy Heavy, Destroy the Elites
Sooooo….kill everything dead!
Opponent: ChristianA
Coteaz
Libby: Shroud, Might, Shrouding, Warp Rift
Techmarine: Rad, Psychotroke, Servo Skull x 3
Ven Psyfilmen
Ven Psyfilmen
3 x warriors with meltas, 6 x psykers, Chimera, Searchlight
3 x warriors with meltas, 6 x psykers, Chimera, Searchlight
3 x Warriors with meltas
6 x Death Cults, 3 x Crusaders, Chimera, Searchlight
6 x Death Cults, 3 x Crusaders, Chimera, Searchlight
Psyfilmen
Psyfilmen
Psyfilmen
Game 2
Mission: Dawn of War. Primary: Seize Ground, Secondary: Elimination, Tertiary: Victory Points
Bonus: Scoring unit within 3” of center, Most expensive unit lives, all HQs survive
Opponent: White925
Sorcerer: MoS, Lash
Sorcerer: MoS, Lash
Greater Daemon
Plague Marines x 7: Champ, Fist, M.Gun x 2, Fist, Combi-Melta, Rhino
Plague Marines x 7: Champ, Fist, M.Gun x 2, Fist, Combi-Melta, Rhino
Plague Marines x 7: Champ, Fist, M.Gun x 2, Fist, Combi-Melta, Rhino
Plague Marines x 6: Champ, Fist, M.Gun x 2, Fist, Combi-Melta, Rhino
Oblits x 3
Oblits x 3
Oblits x 3
Game 3
Mission: Spearhead. Primary: Objectives, Secondary: Table Quarters, Tertiary: Victory Points
Bonus: Opponent has no Objectives, secondary objective achieved with only scoring units, opponent has fewer than 4 units at game’s end
Opponent: Italiaplaya
Fateweaver
Herald of Tzeentch: Charriot, Bolt, Master of Sorcery, We are Legion
Herald of Tzeentch: Charriot, Bolt, Master of Sorcery, We are Legion
Bloodcrushers x 6: Fury, Icon, Instrument
Bloodcrushers x 6: Fury, Icon, Instrument
Fiends x 6
Plaguebearers x 5: Instrument
Plaguebearers x 6
Plaguebearers x 6
Seekers x 14
Daemon Prince: Flight, MoT, Bolt, Gaze
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9nrHX1jGAFc&feature=channel_video_title
Game 4
Mission: Pitched Battle/ Primary: Destroy half of your opponent’s army, rounding up, Secondary: Objectives, Tertiary: Have the most units in your opponent’s deployment zone at game’s end.
Opponent: Grimgob
Ghaz
Big Mek: KFF, Klaw, Cybork
Lootas x 15
Lootas x 5
Lootas x 5
Nobs x 8: Full diversified, 2 klaws
Shoota Boyz x 18: Nob, Klaw, Bosspole, Rokkit
Shoota Boyz x 18: Nob, Klaw, Bosspole, Rokkit
Grots x 19: Runtherd
Deff Kopta: Rokkit, Buzz Saw
Deff Kopta: Rokkit, Buzz Saw
Battlewagon: Red Paint, Kannon, Boarding Plank, Grot Riggers, Deff Rolla
Battlewagon: Red Paint, Kannon, Boarding Plank, Grot Riggers, Deff Rolla
Battlewagon: Red Paint, Kannon, Boarding Plank, Grot Riggers, Deff Rolla
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zIi84wmagtI&feature=channel_video_title
Game 5
Mission: Pitched Battle. Primary: Destroy designated enemy unit, Secondary: Kill Points, Tertiary: Seize Ground
Opponent: Mortetvie
Eldrad
Yriel
Fire Dragons x 5
Wave Serpent: Stones, Shuriken Cannon
Fire Dragons x 5
Wave Serpent: Stones, Shuriken Cannon
Harlies x 8: Shadowseer, Kisses x 8
Wraithguard x 10: Warlock, Spiritseer, enhance
Dires x 5
Dires x 5
War Walkers x 3: Scatter lasers x 6
Falcon: Stones, Holofields, Scatter Laser
Falcon: Stones, Holofields, Scatter Laser
httpv://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iZ9WBX_NKs&feature=channel_video_title
So I came out on top and earned a Golden Ticket at the SoCal Smackdown again! Sweet! It was fun and I look forward to a much improved event next year with a larger attendance.
TastyTaste
Good report Reece!
I have to say, what surprises me is the army lists; while they’re not quite what I would have done, in most cases, they’re all fairly optimized.
Nothing soft, that’s for sure!
What were the other events like? More players?
Hey brent. Yeah, they were all very powerful armies commanded by excellent players. It made for very tough comp.
There were a lot of other games from fantasy, to warmahordes (which had excellent attendance), flames of war, historicals, monpoc, magic, yu gi oh, etc. each game varried in attendance.
It was a fun event, despite the small field, and I plan on returning next year.
It was a great convention. Saw lots of games. There was a very good showing for historicals. As well as Monpoc and WarMachine and 40K seemed pretty busy as well as many other games. I was there representing Catalyst Games Labs. We ran on Sunday full terrain non hexed BattleTech events.And were full. In fact we are gearing up for the Socal Cup this Sat Sept 10th. Over all attendance was way up from 2010. It will take time for Socal Smackdown to grow as there is a another convention only an hour away in LA. As this convention Socal Smackdown isn’t in Los Angeles but in Orange County.
My only complaint and it wasn’t just from me is the dealers room needs more vendors and stores . Other then that for a second year convention it has grown a lot. It is worth attending and is marketing itself well. There also was a good showing for RPG’s too.
I for one will be returning to host Battletech events next year and handing out the prizes again. Good con and glad we went this year too.
Yeah, we were going to play Battletech too, but just didn’t have time. I love that game! Got me into Minis way back when.
Oh yeah, and here is my list.
Bjorn Wolves 2000 Points
Unit Description Size Cost
HQ
Bjorn P.Cannon 1 270
Rune Priest JotWW, Storm Caller 1 100
Troops
Grey Hunters Flamer, Razorback, A.Cannon 6 150
Grey Hunters Flamer, Razorback, A.Cannon 6 150
Grey Hunters Melta, Lazorback 6 155
Grey Hunters Melta, Razorback 6 120
Elites
Dreadnought L.Cannon, H.Flamer 1 145
Dreadnought L.Cannon, H.Flamer 1 145
Fast Attack
Land Speeder Typhoon 1 90
Land Speeder Typhoon 1 90
Land Speeder Typhoon 1 90
Heavy Support
Long Fangs M.Launcher x 5 6 140
Long Fangs M.Launcher x 5 6 140
Long Fangs M.Launcher x 5, Lazorback 7 215
Totals 50 2000
really sad to see how far the competitive scene has shrunk ever since GW dropped its support.
That was really uncommon. The tournament scene in general is doing great, that tournent just got messed up due to some logistical issues with the organizers.
You going to be making it out to Memphis for Throne of Skulls next year?
I may. I am travelling a lot for 40k next year, so I can only afford so many trips. If this one looks cool and a lot of people are going, I may make the trip. Vegas was a lot of fun.
Good battle reports Reece. Hope you get some good vouchers to offset the 14 hours of driving! Tell Frankie Nice job on picking up the airbrush, his plagues are sweet.
Hey, Mike! Thanks, yeah it was a super tough field for how small it was. We had a good time and I got $150 in product, so that was cool. I will tell Frankie for you. That airbrush is SWEET! We have been using the hell out of it.
When will you be back stateside?
Back some time in October not sure exactly when … I’ll reach out to you guys when I know.
Alright, cool. We’ll have to get a game in next time you’re in town.