A Brief Argument for Theme

Sooo how many tourney games have you rocked to only to discover that your opponents idea of fluff is that their army is from the lascannon/ plasma gun manufacturing forge world. I know that fluff is obsolete in some regions of the world and in some games. I included a few bonus theme points in the Book of Grudges tournament and I was shocked at what people were claiming. Shocking.

Now, in order to make theme work in my mind, you need to come from two angles... Appearance and list.

Appearance: I like a cohesive looking army that would look like it is all from the same place. I find that cohesive basing REALLY helps in this regard.

More to the point, your fluff should be backed up by the painting and modeling of the figs in your army. If you are going for the plasma factory fluff (WEAK!) for example (and you really wanted to sell it) I think you should have models with burns and missing limbs and/or possessing extra padding to accommodate for instability of the weapons the models are using. A trench fighting army should not look like their vehicles have just been detailed. Etc etc…

Theme is huge for me because it guides my modeling and painting when I build and army. I would be bored to tears as a hobbyist if I did not have a direction to follow. Theme helps me to focus where I am going when I paint. It really helps.

The List: This is where most of my gripe lies. Army lists should reflect the fluff of an army if you really are going for the idea of a themed army. Going back to the plasma factory list: this would actually work for me as far as a themed list goes. The list contains lots of plasma weapons in lieu of other choices. It just so happens that that theme is VERY effective in lots of circumstances. I suppose in the modern metagame the meltagun factory list is more appropriate but you get where I am going from.

If you are really going for a proper themed list to match your army you should limit your list selections to those that actually fit your theme EVEN IF THIS WEAKENS YOUR ARMY. I have played two different Khorne marine armies in the last year for example and BOTH were lead by a nurgle daemon prince with warptime! Ok I get it they got rid of the a lot of the fluff from the CSM book BUT that is just silly (when everything else in the army is CC armed and has the mark of khorne).

I know that people’s hobby is their own and they are free to pursue their hobby as they like BUT common sense should prevail. Even if fluff is “dead” where you are I highly recommend your challenge yourself and give it a go. It is a good challenge for you competitive players and it is good for the hobby AND your soul.

Open Letter to the Local Shop...

After a fairly long running series of problems with my mobile phone provider I was struck how, as hobbyists, we put up with rubbish that we would never deal with reasonably outside of the toy soldier world. If “normal” companies that we deal with regularly tried the tactics often employed by businesses in our hobby we would be voting with our feet and either going elsewhere or rage quitting. Let me give you a few examples.

My personal bane… Low stock levels. If you walked into your local grocery store and they were out of milk, eggs, and all meats except for a small section of beef and pigs feet you would probably not go shopping there again. Why? Because it is a waste of your time. We expect businesses to sell what they advertise. If I had a dollar for every game/ hobby shop I have been in that has a minimal stock of EVERYTHING (not just GW products) I would be a rich dude. It is a worldwide phenomenon. I like to think that I am fairly well travelled and from Boston to Bermuda to Tokyo to Paris to… you name it… you will find poorly stocked shops everywhere. What is also universal is that they all tell me that if I don’t mind waiting two weeks they can get me what I need. WTF? Video game shops (similar market) don’t make people wait to buy hot sellers.

I am not talking about obscure Wood Elf character models either. My base line for years has been two boxed sets. Space Marine Tactical Squad and the Rhino Tanks. Stores should a stock of at least basic essential products of popular ranges. I have often travelled an hour away to a decent retailer avoiding closer crappier stock levels even though they may have what I need. I would rather support people that regularly have what I need.

Now lots of these retails have been bemoaning the internet and discount sellers there. I would say that is a conversation for another day except for the following. I have been doing this for years before the internet was even publically used and accessible. Crappy “stock listers” existed then too in the same numbers. Do you know what has driven me to internet shops (and I have only ever used them two or three times in my life)? The fact that they have what I want when the local shop does not. As I have stated in the past: I HATE TO WAIT. I want to walk into a shop with money burning a hole in my pocket and get what I came for. I do not want to walk out of that shop with that same “hot” money in my pocket disappointed. If you make me wait I might just go to where I will also wait but get what I want for a better price and/or where the customer service is better. Notorious internet discounter in the US, The Warstore, is popular for obviously reasons (price) BUT also because even though they are an internet business their staff are always friendly and knowledgeable about amazing amounts of the product in a variety of games.

Which brings me to my next gripe… Customer Service. GW retail staff have for years been saddled with the reputation of being overzealous. I know of a few friends who make a game of timing how long it takes the GW employee to come and say “howdy.” I’ll admit it… I kinda like this. The same questions are boring BUT they actually ask and interact with you depending on your answers. They generally know their product range and generally give a crap about how to help you with your hobby needs. GW has changed its retail policies in recent years, especially down here in Australia, to ensure that customers have positive experiences when they enter GW retail shops. I prefer this sort of behaviour all day compared to the alternative. The stereotype of the fat lazy game store employee is a stereotype for a good reason. They are everywhere! In many shops I feel like lighting a flare and running around the store, screaming like a banshee to get the “dude” behind the counter to even mumble something at me or heaven forbid look up from whatever computer screen/ paper/ game book/ sci-fi novel that is so damned important-that-I don’t-get-a-shred-of-help-finding-anything-on-their-poorly-organized-shelves… Grrrr…. I am an attention seeking kid. I know this… I have been that way since I was little… GIVE ME SOME ATTENTION DARN IT!!!

Bringing me to my final thought. Maybe it is because I am married to a librarian… BUT… Looking for a blister should not be like looking for the city of gold. Customers do not want to engage in an almost literal easter egg hunt to find the product that they want to purchase. I feel like saying “Give me a break. Take the morning off looking at the sci-fi novel and put your 35 blisters in order. You don’t have many because you do not stock the product in any depth!” Bitter much? Yes, I am. While I am at it… Vacuum the shop and air it out a bit. Game stores really do not need to smell of goats to get street cred. Trust me.

Anyway… Everyone is talking about global pricing. I thought I would shift the attention a little closer to home. I would recommend that shop keepers actually treat their businesses like businesses with customers who want to be happy. It will take a little work and sometimes a little money but it will pay dividends in the long run.

See you on the flip side…

B

WHITE LINE FEVER!!!

White Line Fever!

This last weekend was the first three game system Victorian Inter Club Championship. All the big clubs came out to play (and a few smaller groups) sending their best and brightest to drink, move wardollies and make merry. That was the intent anyway. I would like to start by saying that Rojo and the other organisers did an outstanding job setting everything up and making the event run like clockwork. From a player’s perspective the VICC”s ran smoothly and (for Victorian tourneys) almost on time.

The VICC’s were intended to bring the clubs together in a fun atmosphere. Generally this was the case but with the Best Club 40K trophy and Overall Club Trophy up for grabs the competition started to get to people. Don’t get me wrong I wear my heart on my sleeve and I get wrapped up in the hype of an event. It is part of the fun of it for me I suppose. I guess it would be better if I slept better before and during these things.

Anyway, it was really disappointing to see members from a number of established and well known clubs engaging in fairly shifty to downright underhanded tactics on the weekend. I thankfully skipped most of the internet foreplay to this event but I heard about it plenty on the weekend. This led several clubs to outright badmouth one club in particular over the course of the weekend. I am becoming more like my Grand mother everyday I think. If there is something you need to say about someone say it straight and be nice. It just got old. Rivalries I get I suppose.

Cheating on the other hand? OK, Cheating is a strong word, but as we had two experienced fantasy players rolling up with two games of 40K experience as half our 40K team who fell victim to rules manipulation on multiple occasions. Club interpretations of the rules are one thing what I am talking about is blatantly trying to take advantage of less experienced players. And after speaking with other clubs during and after the event we were not the only ones to hit this wall. I can also say that I witnessed one blatant act of cheating. Rubbish like this has no place in our 40K community let alone at an event promoting the advancement of the hobby through the supportive club growth. This combined with repeated warnings from the TO that REALLY low sports scores were regularly happening… Really is this the place for stone faces and chipmonking.

It is my belief that people just got a case of the “White Line Fever” and just had to win. The last time I experienced it in a tourney in such a pronounced manner was the Masters. Can’t we as one of the TO’s put it “Chill the ^&*^ out and remember we are playing a GAME!!!”

Tourney report to follow. This being said… The VICC’s were AWESOME and I am really looking forward to next year!

B

Where to go from the RANT! (The Rage Subsides) (AND KHAOS DWARVES!)

A MORE REASONED THOUGHT PROCESS...


I am guessing by the sheer number of responses to my blog rant yesterday that many of you read my tirade on the state of the Fantasy on some Australian Webforums. Well… Were do we go from here. Many people have left the game for greener pastures and other game systems. Some of these people were key to writing comp systems, ranking systems, and tournaments packs for editions past. I say “Thank you” to these individuals for helping support the hobby for years. I really do hope that some of the “elite” come around and come back at some point because I want a game (I really do). Now there has been some speculation that the sky will fall without these people to support the system. Well… It will… unless we stand up to make sure that player packs get written and good tournaments get run. It is also up to us to make sure that people play at these events in a fair and fun manner so that the hobby will continue to grow and thrive. This brings me to my next point.

Events. There seems to be a growing division (by geography and by mentality) in the Australian Warhammer community on the game itself. Many (notice I do not say all) NSW and Queenslanders seem to think the rule set for 8th edition does not lend itself to proper tournament play. Victoria on the other hand seems to go the other way and have been running events where the rules have not been monkeyed with. I for one usually vote with my feet which is a shame because it means I will probably just play in Victorian events in the foreseeable future. It is a shame because it means there is a huge portion of the fantasy community that I will not meet and have a game with.

Why the hate? Why not play in these events anyway. Wellllll… As I have said before… I really like to play 8th edition fantasy. Not 7.6 or 7.9… I don’t need to go back to the golden days of having 5 pony riders break the rank bonus and steadfast of 25 of my elite dwarf hammerers. Sorry… There is a reason that I have jumped wholeheartedly from 40K to 8th edition fantasy. It is because I like 8th ed THAT much. I didn’t jump 12 months ago because IT WASN’T 8TH EDITION FANTASY. I know I am beating a dead horse here but I was around when Rogue Trader switched to 2nd ed and there were grumbles (talking 40K here) and was a full bore GT player when 2nd switched to 3rd ed and there was mass revolve and rage quitters all over the joint. 40K not only survived but it evolved and improved over time. I think that 5th ed 40K is by far the best edition the of the game that has been created. (My 2 cents) In all of that 20 plus years playing though… I have never played in a 40K event that would changed rules at all let alone ones that fundamentally changed the way the entire metagame of the system worked.

Dogcon has just put out a player pack that has been touted by many as the best thing since… blah blah.. But I think that a player pack that limits unit sizes in a game with hordes (WTF?), tells people that you need three 6’s for a irresistible force but 2 6’s for a miscast (Really?), and allows steady fast and ranks to be negated by 5 models is NOT for me. No offense to the writers of that pack. I met many of those guys earlier this year and they are great guys. That being said I am gonna call a pot a pot and I hate the pack. The problem is when the other major event that weekend decides that it might be using the same pack. Cancon runs the exact same weekend in Canberra as Dogcon (which is in Sydney). It is an 8 game tourney and is a heck of a lot of fun to go to (it has been in the past). I get one out of state tourney a year (a deal with the misses) and Cancon is it.

I am concerned not only because it might be using the Dogcon pack leaving those of us who want to vote with our feet no option other than to just not show up but also that THERE IS NO PLAYER PACK! One month out from the event and no player pack. This makes me VERY nervous. Silly hobby freaks like me need time to get their crazy projects together.

Sooooo until next time gang… I am waiting on a players pack and a comp system…

B

P.S. Mantic Games has declared this week "Khaos Dwarf Week!" Everyday they are showing more gear. Day is concept sketches... Colour me excited! I LOVE the king, the bull centaur and hob goblin art. I love that these models have honest to God big hats! If the models look like this I know what I am buying for Christmas!





More here: http://www.manticblog.com/

WARWHINGER RAGE!!!!

Well the introduction of 8th edition in Warhammer Fantasy Battle shaken up an otherwise generally stable community of gamers. Yes there are some major game changes (6th to 7th was more of a rules tweek than a proper edition change) that need to be considered. The hardest ones to swallow it seems are steadfast and the “Over the Top” magic system.
I am here to say that this is not your Dad’s warhammer. It is a new system with rules that interact completely differently than they did before. There are groups of very vocal gamers in other parts of Australia that have been publishing page upon page of vitriol on wargamerau.com for some time now. It started as whining. Then it turned to rage quitting and then it lead to a constant campaign to lure Warhammer players away from the scene to play warmachine. (Not everyone mind you truly fits this category and if you like warmachine God bless you that is fine with me). It has gotten to the point that people in other countries have contacted me and others I know to ask what the heck our problem is. It is an embarrassment within our hobby.
This madness has got to stop. It is pushing away new gamers and making “newcomers” to the scene (like me) want to rage quit. If you don’t want to play the game… Don’t! But leave me alone. I don’t like warmachine… sorry I just don’t like it. I want to play Warhammer.
I flew up to Orktoberfest earlier this year to play in a fantasy tourney and in the midst of the top tables a few of the (former) “Warhammer Elite” had set up a game of warmachine. Fine… They were friends with the TO. Whatever. Come game 5 though I get the draw and I am scheduled t play on that table. WTF? I walk up and politely inquire about using the table (that I have been assigned) only to get laughed at and told to find an empty table. While I should have caved someone’s skull in with my figure case at that point I did not. I played nice. I assure you next time I will not.
This just emphasises for me the arrogance of some people in the community. People think that they know better after a few games that the people that wrote the game system. I can safely say now with 6 8th ed tournies under my belt that IT WORKS THE WAY IT IS WRITTEN! Yes I have faced the endless horde. Yes I have had crazy magic work for and against me. If you play the missions as written it really does balance the game nicely.

People with huge hordes will have few banners and will loose that mission.

Hordes cannot start in buildings and they loose their ranks and other benefits when they are in a building.

That OTT magic… Well it houses large units as do war machines.

Leave 8th ed alone… Evolve or move on and most of all leave my player packs alone.

I like 8th the way it was written...