 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
| |
 |
Tabletop
by Tim Lieske
me was Axis and Allies, which is still one of my favorite games of all time. Ever since then I’ve played
everything from the classic game of chess to the sci-fi robot smashing action of Battletech. Two years ago
my friend introduced me to Warhammer and my interest has only increased in the game since then.
Warhammer has succeeded in grabbing my attention for so long based on a couple of features of the game. I
must admit I am a gamer before a modeler and the greatest thing about Warhammer are the moderately
simple rules that still manage to be deep and provide lots of options. Even though I put secondary priority on
the hobby aspect of the games, I still believe Games Workshop consistently releases great looking models.
However what keeps my appetite wet for the game is the great setting the armies clash in and the excellent
“fluff” stories behind all the armies.
My favorite aspect of Warhammer is the rich and colorful background behind the entire setting and the
detailed and specific histories of all the various armies. These great histories then shine through on the
tabletop in the form of units that the army may pick as well as specialized rules that just add wonderful flavor
to the army. To make the Dark Elves seem more sinister than their good natured cousins they have the
option of taking more menacing monsters as well as their overall appearance of being pointier than their
goody good brethren. Orks have a tendency of being rather unruly and selfish which is reflected in their
sometimes comical animosity rules, but every ork player always spoils the fun by putting plenty of black orks
in their army. These are just a few examples of the flavorful extras added to the game that make each game
fun and interesting. Even if an army doesn’t have some cool and far out rule to go along with it they at least
get stunning models to help them out.
Unfortunately Games Workshop must cater to one of their dominant types of player, and those are the
dreaded power gamers. Either that or it is simply the game designers imagination running rampant and all
sense of the “fluff” is lost in an orgy of making one army have some powerful rule or troop type. While I
enjoy Warhammer it saddens me to see when the game designers abandon all attachment to the story they
have given to simply goad people into buying their models.
One great example of this lies within the rumors that have already begun circulating about the release of the
highly anticipated Bretonnian army book. I always thought the motif behind the Bretonnians was very cool.
The whole honor and adhering to a knightly code thing was simply cool to me. Many people complain about
their lack of artillery saying it is unfair that the Bretonnians receive no form of heavy long range fire support. I
personally liked that, they felt ranged combat was dishonorable and to reflect that not only do they refuse to
use war machines but also have a special rule (the blessing of the lady) to represent their disdain for the
devises as well as balance out their lack of artillery. This was a very cool and character full part of the army
yet to my disdain I hear rumors about that the game designers may in fact give into the cries of “that’s not
fair” from the power gamers. In their latest incarnation reports have it that the Bretonnians will be getting
access to a trebuchet...a war machine. It saddens me to see such a well defined army fall apart simply so
they become more powerful. Here is hoping the rumors are untrue.
Today one of the most dreaded and feared forms of cavalry are the Lizardmen Saurus mounted on cold
ones. In the last edition of Warhammer cold ones used to be ridden to battle by skinks. To me this makes
much more sense. According to the fluff skinks are the intelligent ones in Lizardmen society, thus it seems
reasonable to assume they would be the ones who would have the skills able to maneuver the unintelligent
beasts into combat. Plus the image of the physically weak skinks atop the powerful mounts was just a very
amusing contrast. Now they have made the decision to put saurus warriors atop cold ones. This makes no
sense according to both the fluff and the rules. Saurus were bred to be nothing but mindless warriors and
have a ballistic skill of zero to reflect their primitive nature. Basically you put some form of bladed or heavy
weapon in their hands they begin swinging at what is in front of them. Yet somehow these unintelligent killing
machines are able to control the unruly cold ones, in fact they are even better at it than elves for some
reason....
In spite of all this, the worst crime every committed against fluff story in the history of gaming was committed
by the High Elves. High Elves have this peculiar rule that allows their spearmen to fight in three ranks as
opposed to two like every other race in the Warhammer game. What’s even worse is the pathetic
justification for this. As a result of the fact that every High Elf is required to serve in the army for a few years
their warriors are more disciplined which allows to them to fight in an additional rank. Since when has being
more disciplined made your spears longer? In addition, you mean to tell me that High Elf irregulars are better
than other armies’ regulars? For those of you who aren’t well versed in army terminology that means their
part-time soldiers are better than everyone else’s full time soldiers. If that isn’t the case can I simply spend an
extra two points a model and give my warriors long “High Elf” spears that let them fight in three ranks too?
While I picked on Warhammer in this article it does not mean that this does not happen anywhere else. Just
about all games these days are plagued by this very same problem. Perhaps I am part of a dieing breed.
Now I know at first it may seem cool to have an army that has the most powerful rule(s) just for the hell of it.
It is up to the gamers to stop these crimes against humanity where ever they may arise. Just remember, if an
army has to have powerful rules to make them seem cool, then they are in fact not cool.