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Author Topic: Played my First game  (Read 2133 times)

Offline The Peacemaker

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Played my First game
« on: December 11, 2016, 11:26:22 AM »
 I have not played much of anything in the last 1.5 years. ....2 games of kings of war and 1 of 8th ed. Mostly been painting models.

I finally got my friend to play a game of AoS. He bought the generals handbook a while back and then it just sat there. He hasn't hobbied much and doesn't go online to talk about the game like I do so he was going in with a fresh view.
I went in to the game with I guess fresh view? ...anyway I wasn't expecting the same type of game as 8th, I already knew its a simplified game like KoW.

We used the warscrolls that were given for the old stuff when AoS was first released.
I took:
20 Orcs with Spears - skull icon, no champ or drummer
10 orcs with bows - no command guys
10 orcs with bows - no command guys
9 Brutes - Champ and guy with that 1 in 5 weapon
Orc boss

He had stuff from the wanderers
10 glade guard - full command
10 glade guard - full command
5 waywatchers
10 eternal guard
Sorceress
Hero with bow and hawk - glade lord?
5 glad riders.

His shooting was on the brutal side. Got my Brutes down to like 4 dudes before they even got to combat. My spear orcs were pretty much just cannon fodder. Eternal guard spear wall ability is really good. The command ability to not do a break test is good. As well as the Orc boss ability to give all orruk units +1 attack. ...much better than the Ironjaws Megaboss ability which requires a dice roll and more units?

We both used to play lots of 40k 5-6 years ago then switched to fantasy. We both felt AoS was very much like 40k. Just without vehicles.
He was very annoyed at the line of sight rules or lack of them even though he was the shooty list. I don't know why GW likes pushing true line of sight with no penalties. I haven't met anyone who likes to play with just open shooting.
Shooting into combat was fine. Although we felt there should be some kind of penalty(again, see open shooting with no penalty statement). Even if shooting into combat would just be like shooting into cover for the +1 armour save.

Overall I found the game to be lacking in Strategy. Sure its got tactics, i heard the fanboys rage about that. But its tactics are just about slight movement placement, pile in moves, etc.... Just like 40k.

Not a fan of the rules that require more and more models. With skirmish movement it just takes too long and kind of annoying to move all the models. The orc bows where they stand still and get +1 is more to my liking - it changes rules based on what you do rather than what you brought.

Game should be better with terrain and scenarios I guess. I'll play it once in a while.
AoS reminded me of playing 40k before vehicle spam.
« Last Edit: December 11, 2016, 11:28:47 AM by The Peacemaker »
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Offline StealthKnightSteg

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Re: Played my First game
« Reply #1 on: December 11, 2016, 03:33:35 PM »
Glad you guys tried it!
Did you play with a battleplan? Those for match play are good to have a balanced game, or from the realmgate wars to give a bit more story line, that will probably give a bit less 40k feeling (though I'm not aware of a 40k feeling as I have never played it)

TLoS is also still one of my gripes with the game and I always talk it over with my opponent that when a unit in front of me is not in loose formation that I can't look through it, same with not being able to look through a wood.
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Offline The Peacemaker

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Re: Played my First game
« Reply #2 on: December 13, 2016, 05:47:27 AM »
We didn't use match play, just the 4 page rules sheet. Did the model count thing for balance.
I wasn't disappointed cause I already kinda knew the problems with the game. I certainly now understand the frustration people felt when AoS came out and it was supposed to replace fantasy.

That true line of sight stuff, uggh. It slowly took the fun out of 40k back in 5th edition and made us stop playing.


Played a second game.
We just use the 8th edition crossover rules. No new stuff because we didn't want Super IronJaws deleting units.
Basically I just took more ocs, he took more wood elves to take advantage of some of those 20+ models in unit for bonus rules.

I do like the rules layout system with the warscrolls. Everything on one warscroll entry.  Its got enough special rules to make the units feel a little more unique. Re-roll 1's to hit or wound, re-roll saves, etc... Its a good way to write rules. And its got enough synergy with hero bubbles and battle scrolls to make list building a little interesting.

One thing I like that is controversial to most AoS players is the round bases vs square bases vs no bases - and just measuring from the model.
I noticed that without buffs to increase damage output(or using new models with insane dmg output) you can be locked in combat for quite a while. If you are using rounds, 1" weapons basically means only base to base guys attack. 2" means the guys behind can attack. So I'm fine with measuring from the model, even the long spears.
now I might change my mind when I see some multiwound beatdown creature whose rider has a whip extending 6" from the body edge or something.

Another thing I don't like or rather not fond of is the combat phase attack sequence. Picking a unit, attacking with it, Then opponent can pick a different combat and attack there, etc...
It does give the game a tactical element which is good - games need tactical mechanics so you can make choices. Its fine for balance. But it doesn't feel like it is sufficiently representing a battle. It just feels like an arbitrary mechanic. Like in chess - the knight moves in an L, the bishop moves diagonal   ---> pure arbitrary, doesn't feel like I'm moving a knight or a bishop, feels like I'm moving a piece.


Overall, fun game. It seems designed to be balanced with a majority of multi-wound models rather than single models, which is the direction they are going with their releases. Can't wait for them to do the same with 40k.
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Offline StealthKnightSteg

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Re: Played my First game
« Reply #3 on: December 13, 2016, 08:03:32 AM »
Yeah the warscroll system is really neat, I like it a lot, no more flipping through a 200 page rule book, just everything you need at one place for a unit when you need to do something with it.

I think the controversie withe bases / model range will be out soon (at least for Match Play) as they found out with the few tournaments they covered that it gve to much trouble and will go with base to base and due to that models will probably be listed with their intended bases as well.
By the way, you do have 25mm models which are smaller then 1" so technically those smaller based units should get a 2nd rank in.

I think the Attack sequence feels good for this game a it give you a more 2 sided feel to the battle where you react upon each other.. At least way more then you used to with WHFB which was more one sided and then if your lucky the other one could do a bit.

And I too am curious what 8th ed 40k will hold, even though I don't play 40k (yet)
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Offline Oxycutor

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Re: Played my First game
« Reply #4 on: December 14, 2016, 12:03:01 AM »
The combat phase unit activation order is probably one of the key decisions you'll make each turn.

When I first had a game, I has misread the rules, and I though each phase was done that way, you roll-off and then hero phase in turn, roll-off move units in turn, then roll-off for shooting and then shoot in turn, roll-off combat phase in turn.   

That wasn't actually a bad way to play it.  It did make shooting even more useful, but it felt like you weren't watching as much, but turns did take longer.

I agree, I love having everything I need for a unit on it's warscroll, and I'd love the same for 40k dataslates, and arguable change BS to a to hit roll, since it's already that anyway in 40k.  Even if they don't change much else in 40k, having all the info on the dataslate would be what I want the most.   No referencing of a special rule at the back of your codex, that then references a special rule in the main rulebook, that in itself references another special rule. 

I did see a good argument, that it's harder to learn all the abilities of all the units with warscrolls, particularly, as a banner or musician for one unit has a different effect for another unit.   And not a generic effect.

Offline The Peacemaker

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Re: Played my First game
« Reply #5 on: December 15, 2016, 06:42:47 AM »
I'm going to have to get used the combat sequence. It seems interesting but still seems non immersive.
Like charging a unit with 2 units I heard is a bad thing because the enemy just attacks the unit you didn't pick yet to reduce their attacks. Or they could potentially remove casualties so that your second unit is out of 3" combat and then can't pile in and fight.

Its interesting tactics but not very immersive.


I did see a good argument, that it's harder to learn all the abilities of all the units with warscrolls, particularly, as a banner or musician for one unit has a different effect for another unit.   And not a generic effect.

But it is very easy to learn the game because you only have to know the war scrolls that are being used in that particular game. ...which makes AoS a great starting game for new players.
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Offline StealthKnightSteg

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Re: Played my First game
« Reply #6 on: December 15, 2016, 07:42:59 AM »
I'm going to have to get used the combat sequence. It seems interesting but still seems non immersive.
Like charging a unit with 2 units I heard is a bad thing because the enemy just attacks the unit you didn't pick yet to reduce their attacks. Or they could potentially remove casualties so that your second unit is out of 3" combat and then can't pile in and fight.

Its interesting tactics but not very immersive.


I did see a good argument, that it's harder to learn all the abilities of all the units with warscrolls, particularly, as a banner or musician for one unit has a different effect for another unit.   And not a generic effect.

But it is very easy to learn the game because you only have to know the war scrolls that are being used in that particular game. ...which makes AoS a great starting game for new players.

And with the app it's easy to just grab your opponents warscrolls to have a look, instead of having no clue as you do not own the codex or need to ask you opponent to see in to his copy.
Everyone is entitled to be stupid, but some abuse the privilege.

"Computer games don't affect kids; I mean if Pac-Man affected us as kids, we'd all be running around in darkened rooms, munching magic pills and listening to repetitive electronic music." -- Kristian Wilson, Nintendo, Inc, 1989

Offline The Peacemaker

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Re: Played my First game
« Reply #7 on: December 16, 2016, 03:59:01 AM »
Played my 3rd game today.
....the shooty rules really really really need work.  It's not even that the shooting is OP either.
I noticed combats can really be a grind while only killing a few models and then everyone passe their battleshock test and you just sit there grinding it out.
Shooting into combat is fine because it gets some casualties inflicted to get the game going.

But being able to shoot ANYTHING willy nilly means its very beneficial to target enemy heroes. While some may say this is a good thing, we found that losing those character buffs was a big reason combats started to grind to a halt. - we didn't get anymore benefits from the leader bubbles. No re-rolls, no extra attacks, etc...

And because you can just shoot the enemy heroes I quickly figured out that I should just make my general a generic guy in the big squad because then I can at least keep using his inspiring presence command ability. While my actual General just gets killed and I never get to use his special command ability.



On the fun side of things I got to cast mystic shield on my basic orc boys. ...they had choppa and shield so they were re-rolling 4+ saves in combat. ....made them feel like space marines!  :smile2:
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