tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6350611440505059146.post1693113386867022368..comments2024-02-12T05:24:22.186-08:00Comments on Always Board Never Boring: Shadow War: Armageddon - Look At What You Could Have WonCarbon Copyhttp://www.blogger.com/profile/13155710832017131015noreply@blogger.comBlogger6125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6350611440505059146.post-10993513755001279812017-04-13T09:26:51.190-07:002017-04-13T09:26:51.190-07:00Ah, I used to loved going into the GW in Swindon w...Ah, I used to loved going into the GW in Swindon with my pocket money, perusing the racks of blisters. Never really sure what I wanted, but knowing I wasn't leaving without something cool to paint. Even though I was exclusively a Fantasy Battle player, I still picked up some metal orks and terminators, just because I liked the models.<br /><br />Shadow War could have been a really good gateway game to 40K, I think.... <br /><br />You want to play Cadians, so you buy a box of shock troops. After a while you realise you need a sniper or a melta pistol, so you buy a HQ box. Then you think you wouldn't mind bringing an ogryn for some muscle, so you buy a box of them; but you don't always want ogryns for special operatives, so you pick up a commissar as well. Suddenly, you look at what you've got, and realise, "Hey, if I buy a tank, this is a 40K army."Carbon Copyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13155710832017131015noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6350611440505059146.post-9043934727192171742017-04-13T06:55:30.716-07:002017-04-13T06:55:30.716-07:00Yeah to be fair Age of Sigmar does have a few elem...Yeah to be fair Age of Sigmar does have a few elements in it that assist starting gamers off. The loss of metal Troops blisters was an issue for me as it moved almost every model out of pocket-money-gamble range and into a dedicated purchase - but I see there have been some efforts to do something more manageable.<br /><br />While I know the rules for AoS aren't to everyone's taste the downloadable army sheets, minimal rules and ability to combo any models together means you can grab a few boxes of figures, sit with your friends and play something super quick. Like the Necromunda/Blood Bowl/Space Hulk of the old days you're only assembling and painting a dozen or so figures at a time, a much more manageable amount for a newbie. In contrast even a 500K Ork army is going to look a daunting prospect both in cost but also in admin time before you get to The Fun.George Qhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08706465827178319046noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6350611440505059146.post-11356745165042734652017-04-12T12:23:45.694-07:002017-04-12T12:23:45.694-07:00It's an incredibly tiresome practice. There ar...It's an incredibly tiresome practice. There are certainly people who want to buy these products, but GW seem reluctant to embrace that.<br /><br />While I agree with you in general, I do think Age of Sigmar proves that Games Workshop does know how to do it. The main starter for that system is £75, but it's packed with content and actually cheaper than some other options. Furthermore, they pushed the boundaries by making the Spire of Dawn set, which was only £50, and also the Storm of Sigmar set, which was only £20 and is an absolutely fantastic "pocket-money" level entry point into the system. Now, they have announced they are re-doing the starter, with colour-coded pieces, a vinyl mat, and a box that acts as terrain. If that's priced less than £75, I think it's one of their most exciting moves for a little while in terms of opening doors.<br /><br />But of course, Age of Sigmar is a core product. I don't expect the same level of commitment from them when supporting sideline games; but there's clearly a market for them, and they should be doing more.<br /><br />It's going to be very interesting to see how they support Shadespire. People who have played it are already suggesting it could be a "game of the year," and it looks amazing. They've also played it clever by including a female stormcast and a stormcast without a helmet, securing purchases from their core demographic. I remain eternally hopeful that it might be the first step in turning a corner for non-core lines.Carbon Copyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13155710832017131015noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6350611440505059146.post-81000406575968065222017-04-12T04:46:44.535-07:002017-04-12T04:46:44.535-07:00The short run boxed games never fail to bamboozle ...The short run boxed games never fail to bamboozle me. Time and again we end up with things selling out in minutes, stores only getting a handful of copies which immediately sell out, online scalping and a total inability to sell a starter game to a new generation of gamers who want a games-night-in-a-box. It was Hero Quest and Space Crusade that got me into the hobby as a kid; it was messing about with Blood Bowl in the mid-2000s that drew me back in as an adult. The failure to offer up that sort of entry point again leaves most beginners facing a substantial learning curve and cost to begin play and it just isn't doable for normals.<br /><br />The first time round with Space Hulk back in 2009 I can maybe accept, but there was no excuse in 2014 and I don't think there's any excuse with SWA either. Blood Bowl too got some cool opening releases but the minimal access to the archive of figures and the way the rules have been released makes it still mostly a thing for established hobbyists.<br /><br />I think the biggest problem GW has had in the last decade or so has been the lack of a good starter product that's priced down in the "normal person board game" price and has appropraitely entry level rules. I'm not sure how else you keep new ten year olds feeding into the hobby.George Qhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/08706465827178319046noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6350611440505059146.post-4808694621063597802017-04-08T07:37:44.799-07:002017-04-08T07:37:44.799-07:00I'm disappointed with how they are handling Bl...I'm disappointed with how they are handling Blood Bowl too. Stuff is constantly out of stock, and if I want to flesh out my skaven and dwarf teams I have to make my own conversions or buy awful Forge World products.<br /><br />I continue to cross my fingers and hope they eventually realise that people really do want to buy their products. Carbon Copyhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/13155710832017131015noreply@blogger.comtag:blogger.com,1999:blog-6350611440505059146.post-1820927656888915922017-04-08T06:12:14.566-07:002017-04-08T06:12:14.566-07:00You're not wrong, the artillery and scatter di...You're not wrong, the artillery and scatter dice were 16mm back in the 90's. They were still in use -- albeit shrunk to 12mm -- up until the most recent revision of the main games. GW used to sell a dice cube, which was twenty five d6s, an artillery die, and a scatter die, all in a box that was also a die, but those are now gone.<br /><br />Yes, the way <i>SWA</i> has been handled is disappointing. I can't quite believe GW's claims to be surprised at the game's popularity after the same thing happened with <i>Blood Bowl</i> four months ago.thekelvingreenhttps://www.blogger.com/profile/01928260185408072124noreply@blogger.com