Why do we play Warhammer? I mean truly, why do we play? Most of us have in some way in the back of their minds the visions of sweeping armies, or grand battle scenes and epic campaigns where armies clashes. We weave tales of heroism and grand villainy at the back of our minds as we paint and play. Wichever aspect of the hobby appeals to you that idea is always there, and in fact that’s what got us playing in the beginning. So why when I see a suplement like Warhammer: Empire at war, do I feel empty? Why can’t I be excited?
I’ve been talking with other gamers I know and so far everyone seems to feel the same way… everyone thinks it’s nice but no ones feels excited. I can’t be sure about everyone reason but in my case I know exactly why. It’s simply because I know at some level that a warhammer campaign is something I can’t afford. And when I say I can’t afford it’s time wise. I think a lot of people out there think the same way I do, that warhammer campaigns are something they cannot do, that is not for them…
But let’s not get ahead of ourselves and look at the suplement first. Warhammer: Empire at war is a suplement designed to help you organise a warhammer campaign. Everything is there to help you out design and support a campaign. There’s rules written if you don’t want to create ones and a ton of ideas and advice on how to run a campaign, either the suggested one coming with the book or an entirely new one. And to top it all off we get the tiles! They are designed so they can fit any terrain, they can be moved easily to liberate gaming space and they look good. All in all, Empire at war is an excellent suplement for a very reasonable price. So why again does this doesn’t attract me.
Because I don’t have the time for a warhammer campaign, because very few people do. Let me explain, to run a campaign you ideally need to get a decent sized group together(four active players are often enough), you need them to play around 2-3 games a week, you need someone to actually run the campaign and finally you need a place to play. Sure you can play around with these parameters but in the end it usually comes down to that. I know I’ve ran a campaign and played in another and altough it was great fun it was also something of a burden at times to have to play so many games in such a small period. I mean that usually I would play around 3 games a week, at different days wich meant that I had to plan my week around my opponents and games. It is demanding even if I love warhammer and there was time when I was needed to play a game where I should or would have done something else. And that was at a time where I only had a part time job and no school.
Not a lot of people can make that commitment and neither can I. With a full time job and obligations I can’t dedicate 3 days a week to warhammer. Not a lot of people I know can. I’m happy if I can get just a weekend or 2 each month of playing. My gaming store organises one day tournaments each weekend and more often than not these make the bulk of my playing. When I compare to other players this makes me a frequent player. So it’s no wonder that a suplement concerning exclusively campaign play doesn’t really appeal to a lot of people. Sad to be sure seems it’s a lot of fun but I don’t have that much time anymore.
jeudi 5 juillet 2007
vendredi 29 juin 2007
Blood Angel Codex
Just finished reading and analysing the new Blood Angel codex in White Dwarf and I’m now ready to give my toughts on it. I want to start with the army list itself before talking about the actual idea of the codex in White Dwarf.
The good
-Black rage: I think there’s an improvement here even if not all BA players I know agree with me here. For one thing it removes the randomness factor of it and it allows you to know exactly what you are getting. And the combat bonuses are very good. Also, it will prevent the cheesy BA armies that I’ve seen some player use where the goal was to have the biggest, meanest Death company possible. I do however admit they lose the very fun and characterful part of rolling to see who goes mad…
-Death company: It’s free, fearless, got 2 base attacks, completely enraged and they have rending attacks! The death company is now officialy one of the deadliest units this game has ever seen and its free… best of all you know exactly how many you will get and can even get them a transport. Free space marines with rending attacks… *drools* (well not exactly free.. see later).
-Supercharged engines : They are now reliable and that extra 6’’ should allow BA to get close enough to dismount and charge a turn earlier. And it costs nothing.
The bad
-5/10 man squads: It sucks.. I got the same with my Dark Angels and so far it caused me more trouble than it helped. And unless I’m mistaken BA can’t even split them up like the Dark Angels.. In short it’s a constraint to army composition and it’s a mean one.
-Increased cost on space marines : Not only do you buy them in 5 or 10 squads but you pay extra for that Death company member. My advice would be to buy 5 man squads to get more death company for the same price.
The ugly
-Special characters: BA special characters feels more like premade commanders than ever. I suppose in order to save space they forgot to include backgrounds or interesting special rules. Very disapointed with those characters who used to be so cool.
-Background : Simply put there is none or at least not enough to be worthwhile. For me this is a capital sin.
The 9th layer of Hell
For some dark reason GW decided that the codex would be released in a) White Dward , b) over two issues. I don’t know if it’s because they want to increase WD sales, faze out slowly the Blood Angels or whatever else they where thinking. I don’t know what the BA players did to deserve such a cruel punishement. I’m not even a BA player and it makes me angry so I can imagine how pissed off the BA community is. Why can’t they have a real codex? Not a piece of rushed junk that you need 2 white dwarf to refer to. It has been a long time since GW made such a major blunder and I hope no one else gets this treatment.
Wraping up
Speaking strickly about the codex I do think it’s an improvement over the last one(rule wise). It follows the tread of cleaner, simpler and removes randomness wich makes it more solid. The deathwing is so sweet it’s almost too much. As for the rest of the list I know that when people get used to it they will find strengths in it. It will require a bit of adjustment but speaking from experience with my Dark Angels in the end it’s worth it.
The good
-Black rage: I think there’s an improvement here even if not all BA players I know agree with me here. For one thing it removes the randomness factor of it and it allows you to know exactly what you are getting. And the combat bonuses are very good. Also, it will prevent the cheesy BA armies that I’ve seen some player use where the goal was to have the biggest, meanest Death company possible. I do however admit they lose the very fun and characterful part of rolling to see who goes mad…
-Death company: It’s free, fearless, got 2 base attacks, completely enraged and they have rending attacks! The death company is now officialy one of the deadliest units this game has ever seen and its free… best of all you know exactly how many you will get and can even get them a transport. Free space marines with rending attacks… *drools* (well not exactly free.. see later).
-Supercharged engines : They are now reliable and that extra 6’’ should allow BA to get close enough to dismount and charge a turn earlier. And it costs nothing.
The bad
-5/10 man squads: It sucks.. I got the same with my Dark Angels and so far it caused me more trouble than it helped. And unless I’m mistaken BA can’t even split them up like the Dark Angels.. In short it’s a constraint to army composition and it’s a mean one.
-Increased cost on space marines : Not only do you buy them in 5 or 10 squads but you pay extra for that Death company member. My advice would be to buy 5 man squads to get more death company for the same price.
The ugly
-Special characters: BA special characters feels more like premade commanders than ever. I suppose in order to save space they forgot to include backgrounds or interesting special rules. Very disapointed with those characters who used to be so cool.
-Background : Simply put there is none or at least not enough to be worthwhile. For me this is a capital sin.
The 9th layer of Hell
For some dark reason GW decided that the codex would be released in a) White Dward , b) over two issues. I don’t know if it’s because they want to increase WD sales, faze out slowly the Blood Angels or whatever else they where thinking. I don’t know what the BA players did to deserve such a cruel punishement. I’m not even a BA player and it makes me angry so I can imagine how pissed off the BA community is. Why can’t they have a real codex? Not a piece of rushed junk that you need 2 white dwarf to refer to. It has been a long time since GW made such a major blunder and I hope no one else gets this treatment.
Wraping up
Speaking strickly about the codex I do think it’s an improvement over the last one(rule wise). It follows the tread of cleaner, simpler and removes randomness wich makes it more solid. The deathwing is so sweet it’s almost too much. As for the rest of the list I know that when people get used to it they will find strengths in it. It will require a bit of adjustment but speaking from experience with my Dark Angels in the end it’s worth it.
mercredi 27 juin 2007
Battle plans
No battle plan survives contact with the enemy
-Helmuth von Moltke
This maxim is one of the one well known of any strategy enthusiast. It’s taught in every military school around the world and even if von Moltke was the first to write it, the principle has been around for millenia. So of course I’m going to resolve the whole issue in this blog! Seriously, I want to talk about a few ways to help your plan survive and make sure the enemy plan doesn’t survive your contact.
1- Have a plan!
Sounds like common sense but you have no idea how many people start a game/build an army without any idea of how it will operate on the battlefield. When I was working at a gaming store I gave ‘’Strategy Saturdays’’, wich basically where introductions to the game for younger players along with a painting session to teach basics. The first thing I would always ask is ‘’How do you win with your army ?’’. You have no idea of the number of blank stares I got or answers like ‘’well.. my knights will kill them...’’. This simply does not work. When your building your army try to envision how it will operate on the battlefield and how it will win… you’ll be surprised at how much this helps having a cohesive army.
2-Make a flexible plan
Make your plan a general one without going in specifics. This way you will be able to adapt it to the enemy/scenario you are facing.
3- Tailor the plan and stick to it.
Making plans is no use if you don’t use it when your on the battlefield. Don’t get afraid of the enemy and what you think he will do to you. Adapt the plan to the scenario/enemy and then execute it. Also, don’t give up the second something goes wrong, hang in there. If you idea is a sound one you’ll pull through most of the time.
4-Break the opponent plan before he breaks yours.
Just like the maxim says your plan won’t survive contact and neither will your opponent plan. Who wins is often determined by wich plan breaks first. If you stick to your idea you will be able to enforce your game on the enemy.
Of course this is all easier said than done. But at least aiming for this will help you improve a lot over games. A final tip, being able to enforce a plan often comes down to army composition supporting your plan. Choose units who are the best at executing your plan and more often than not you’ll be the one dictating the pace of the game.
-Helmuth von Moltke
This maxim is one of the one well known of any strategy enthusiast. It’s taught in every military school around the world and even if von Moltke was the first to write it, the principle has been around for millenia. So of course I’m going to resolve the whole issue in this blog! Seriously, I want to talk about a few ways to help your plan survive and make sure the enemy plan doesn’t survive your contact.
1- Have a plan!
Sounds like common sense but you have no idea how many people start a game/build an army without any idea of how it will operate on the battlefield. When I was working at a gaming store I gave ‘’Strategy Saturdays’’, wich basically where introductions to the game for younger players along with a painting session to teach basics. The first thing I would always ask is ‘’How do you win with your army ?’’. You have no idea of the number of blank stares I got or answers like ‘’well.. my knights will kill them...’’. This simply does not work. When your building your army try to envision how it will operate on the battlefield and how it will win… you’ll be surprised at how much this helps having a cohesive army.
2-Make a flexible plan
Make your plan a general one without going in specifics. This way you will be able to adapt it to the enemy/scenario you are facing.
3- Tailor the plan and stick to it.
Making plans is no use if you don’t use it when your on the battlefield. Don’t get afraid of the enemy and what you think he will do to you. Adapt the plan to the scenario/enemy and then execute it. Also, don’t give up the second something goes wrong, hang in there. If you idea is a sound one you’ll pull through most of the time.
4-Break the opponent plan before he breaks yours.
Just like the maxim says your plan won’t survive contact and neither will your opponent plan. Who wins is often determined by wich plan breaks first. If you stick to your idea you will be able to enforce your game on the enemy.
Of course this is all easier said than done. But at least aiming for this will help you improve a lot over games. A final tip, being able to enforce a plan often comes down to army composition supporting your plan. Choose units who are the best at executing your plan and more often than not you’ll be the one dictating the pace of the game.
mardi 26 juin 2007
Back from the dead
Yeah it`s me and no I’m not dead. Thruth is last week I was on vacation and to be honest I completly disconnected. Every year I plan a ton of things for my vacation and end up doing none of them and this year was no different. I really wanted to finish those ravenwing bikers that have been sitting on my painting table for a while now and I ended up not doing anything warhammer. Anyway, I`m now rested and ready to get going again !
Real Value ?
How do you measure how efficient a unit truly is ? How do you calculate if that unit of ogres really paid for itself ? Most new players simply count how much carnage the unit inflicts. While this method does have some merit to it, after all how many models you kill does indicate that your unit is doing something, a 700 points lord will mow down skavenslaves for a whole game and end up being wasted even if he killed over 80 rats.
When a player realize this he will often starts to count how much points his unit kills. In the example above the lord would need to kill 700 points to pay for itself and more to make a difference on who wins the game. This method is the one I see the most often used when people talk about their army efficiency and in fact a lot of players I know stop there. And it`s a dangerous way to calculate efficiency. A lot of units in the game are worth way more than their point value not because of how much they kill but because of what they do or make the enemy do on the battlefield.
Here’s an easy example, in 40k a lot of armies have access to snipers units. Often, those have a high cost, low armor, and only manage to kill one or 2 models a turn. More often than not the same point value can get you a tank, heavy weapons, etc… who have a much higher kill ratio. Why take snipers then ? Because they can pin enemy units. If you manage to pin an ork warboss and his retinue for example not only have you killed one or two models but you have also stopped one of the deadliest units of the game from acting for a full turn. The scouts may not have killed their point cost but they have given you a huge tactictal advantage.
More subtle examples are ‘’Fluffy’’ like I discussed in my previous post or my dire wolves in my vampire counts army. I think so far my dire wolves must have killed 2 models in all all my games but they have deflected countless charges, have soaked up deadly waywatcher fire and drawn out a ton of fanatics. So while they have never killed their point value they have allowed me to control vital parts of the game and led me to victory more so than my super grave guards.
If you want to find out the real value of one your units consider not how much they kill stuff but how much of an impact they have on the battlefield.
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