So if you haven't noticed yet, there's been a fair amount of netspeak about the pending 6th edition. With most everyone on about what they want (or don't, for that matter) out of the new rules set, I figured I'd throw my two bits in. So what do I really want to see?
A fun game.
Sure, there are a few other things that I would enjoy... if skimmers get more survivable, cool (although if it's a 5+ cover when I have a 5++ already? Happens I guess). If mech drops in popularity (aka every army in existence) because it's more balanced vs foot armies, lovely. I like seeing more variety on the board.
I'd like to be truly excited about Nids like I haven't been in a while. Changes to cover, both in the way it affects assault and the board in general, should be interesting at the very least.
More mission types. Dare I say even a return to Victory Points over the Kill Point system? Or a reverse KP (whoever has the most KP's alive at the end wins, rather than how many you've killed) objective. You guys should try that one out sometime - while I've only done it once or twice, it has struck me as a far more balanced "kill them all" scenario.
I don't know what's coming. But I'm excited. Not because I expect this to be perfect, to cater to casual gamers and hardcore competitors and fit everybody's favorite cookie on the plate... but because it's a big change to one of my biggest hobbies. I want to see what happens, both to the game as a whole and my favorite armies.
Most of all, I just want to keep having fun with my friends. And I think I will.
I'm pretty excited about flying monstrous creatures and allies.
ReplyDeleteI know a lot of people are worried about tournaments and cheese, but I could honestly care less about any of that stuff, even if I wind up participating in tournaments in 6th, I'm going to play new players and test my mettle, so what if I get beaten by a meltavet plus draigo doom list.
What it means is I can legally run the daemons I have for my Daemon lists alongside my Death Guard. Epidemius + plague marines = joy. I wont mind FNP getting nerfed to 5+ if it works against everything except instant death, that would also buff my dark angels (plus, hey fielding a land raider isn't pointless anymore apparently?). My Astral Claws can run a tyrant legion list suddenly, which gives me an excuse to buy from a new model range I've henceforth ignored.
Overall, I'm super excited. Now GW just needs to put out a harpy model so I can finish my nids.
Nice to see a positive post about GW and/or 40K here.
ReplyDeleteI feel the same way. I really enjoy playing this game with my friends no matter what.
If my Daemons get worse, I don't mind. I still think they'll be fun. If I can ally them with CSM or whatever...even better!
If my Tau get better - awesome! If they can then "abuse" some detachment rule - great! If they get terrible, maybe I can use them as allies with another army that isn't so awful.
So long as GW keeps fishing money out of my wallet while I'm distracted having fun with my friends, I don't care.
I'm actually very excited about the upcoming edition.
ReplyDeleteI'm not so much worried about whats going to get worse or better. Just to see the game get a new, fresh spin.
It was what made me excited about the new Fantasy edition and I'm very much expecting the same from 40k. The one thing I'm worried about that I'm still finding in Fantasy is finding all the small and large changes so that I can get used to the new rules.
Its pretty much the same as all rules changes, trying to remember it all while trying to forget all the old stuff. Its a big jumbled mess sometimes.
well, you guys know I'm very cautious about the new ed. I've not made really positive posts and cheerleaded for GW. I've not been pleased with their codex and supplement releases over the last few years.
ReplyDeleteI'd like to see a product that's balanced, and doesn't invalidate $1000's of models because an army simply can't compete with any of the Space Marine flavors even in a casual pick up game.
I don't want to see a new edition that gives a lot of the powerful SM codexes a further leg up on everyone else.
if that ends up being the case, tournaments will be even more Space Marine vs. Space Marine in the top tiers. There may be a need for a handicapping system (which I don't like at all)
I'd like to see models and rules designed so that wahtever you take is worth the points. so no serious undercosting to move model kits. (valkyrie anyone?)
I don't want to see the Xenos armies marginalized because the SM glory boys sell better. I understand that as a company, it's probably a wise move to write more beneficial rules for your best sellers. I still don't think it's fair or right to do so.
I don't want to see a game I used to love devolved into Marine flavor vs Marine flavor.
it reminds me of what some people said to me about FoW when I started playing it. "ugh. it's all human on human, there's no real differences there."
I feel the same way about Superhuman marine vs. Superhuman marine. There's even less difference there than in the nation rules and equipment in FoW.
I definitely agree with you - part of what makes a system fun is the balance and playability of factions against one another, leading to diversity on the board and in the gaming experience.
DeleteCodex creep has been happening since the dawn of the golden throne... although I felt that it was fairly minor a while back, when Marines and Orks were hitting the shelves. GK's and Puppies have seemed to have some nasty dirty tricks, although there's probably less than teh intarwebs would have you believe.
I also know that the Sisters "codex" was a disappointment to many... but all I can really say is that by the time that came out, no doubt 6th ed development was well underway. It's a tough balancing act... on a 5 year cycle, the last 2 years or so are being designed with the new edition in mind. The more that edition is changing, the more out of place nearly half of the new work will seem to be. However while working on, say, a 10 year cycle would allow time for individual armies to all be up to date, the game itself would be outpaced and more stagnant.
These are, in part, what excites me. No, I don't know that everything will be fixed up, but there's so much potential it's hard not to get a tad antsy. Maybe my would-be assault Nids won't be laughed at for their lack of grenades anymore. Maybe the Sisters' new abilities will shine fully under the bright new light of 6th.
I sure hope so. And I'll find out in a week.
I honestly think that 6th Edition 40K will still be a fun basement game. But in terms of competitive pick-up games and especially tournaments, I just haven't seen anything yet that gives me any confidence about it. As it stands now (according to rumors), comp will once again appear, and for very good reasons. Which will lead to, at the very least, 3-4 different versions of competitive 40K, depending on which tournament you go to. That will fracture the competitive scene and drive folks into playing other games instead.
DeleteI'm not entirely sure how that's different from now, with a mix of pure BP's, painting scores, and renaissance tri-fecta scoring.
DeleteTho in terms of hardcore tournaments, you really *have* to see all of the hard rule changes in tandem before saying anything. Single rumors (and honestly, how much is actually out there? Very little, considering how F'in huge that book is) are meaningless other than "oooooooh" factor. We have to know the game before we can say whether or not it's balanced - no single rule (or 5) is going to make or break a game, and that's all we have right now.
We actually have a lot more than that. We have an early test leak that showed us what the game looked like a year or two ago. Plus numerous rumors and leaks about various rules since. The track record on GW rumors runs about 85% true and 15% false.
DeleteSo even if you dial the OMG! down 50% or so, because even the true stuff typically gets overblown, it's still worrying. And while you can't get too wrapped up in specifics, you can glean a valid impression of GW's overall strategy for the game. Which is definately not going in the direction that I, as a competitive player, would like. I've spent 3 years now trying to help improve the competitive scene here and elsewhere. But I'm watching GW take the game in a direction that will invalidate most of that work. That's not good.