 |
| Come at me Bro-Deamons |
Well, I, ah umm....
I can't really compose many rational thoughts on GW these days. To do so would be to try and impose agency onto random chaos. That way lies madness.
The only interesting thing I can gleam from this whole affair is the big push by their sales division to get LGSs to buy 80 AoS starters each. I think it's a tell-tale sign that their annual financials are going to be rather catastrophic.
Best of luck GW. I guess. I suppose Mantic is really loving this.
80 AoS starters EACH!?!?
ReplyDeletelol, good luck with that....
That was coming from a store owner that regularly posts on dakka who has two largish stores in Baltimore. He gave the impression that other owners he knows where getting similar numbers pushed on them.
DeleteMost game stores around here don't even have enough room to store that many sets.
Don't think about it. Just buy.
ReplyDeleteIf you just relax and let GW happen, it will all be better. Just buy.
Yeah. I'm betting this is this quarter's push to make financials not as abysmal as they really are. I wouldn't want to buy 80 copies of something possibly as great-selling as DeadFleet, then sell only 1/4 of it.
I think selling 1/4 of it is a bit optimistic...
DeleteThere will be more than a decent number sold to Khorne fanatics who will eBay the dumb gold dudes and make them into khorne berzerkers and cultists...which is what I am doing with them :)
DeleteHow many they sell depends on how many suckers walk into the stores without reading the rules online first.
DeleteHere's a link to the free rules compendiums in case you want to laugh/cry at the fail. There's literally rules that cause bonuses on your next game, and one that's based on the size of the player's mustache compared to his opponent.
ReplyDeletehttp://www.games-workshop.com/en-GB/age-of-sigmar-compendiums
Core rules are 4 pages, and they've appeared to have mashed up Mantic's Warpath with WFB rules.
There's absolutely no system in place to balance games. Although I keep hearing how LGS owners are "working on a system" with their GW sales reps. How sad is that?
Apparently GW had a guy at the Forgeworld open-house answering questions on AoS. He said the scrolls for the exiting models where supposed to be a humorous sendoff, and that AoS branded releases would be more serious. He also said that campaign rules and a tournament balance system where forthcoming.
DeleteI like how they can put up a stupid statue, but their damage control and PR is some dude at one open house.
Stay classy GW.
God. They are Microsoft now.
DeleteAs someone who hated 8th edition I'm pretty optimistic about this release. There's a lot of good in it. It's too bad that we have to take the promised balance system as an article of faith at this stage but everything else is pretty good. The two highlights for me are:
ReplyDeleteFree rules (pramatic and great).
Unit damage output and resistance isn't dependent on the opponent's stats - 40k needs something like this!
Mantic just announced their rules are going to be free now. http://www.tabletopgamingnews.com/mantic-to-post-kings-of-war-rules-for-free/
Delete1) Take nothing on faith with GW. Or I'll tell you about the time that I bought into WarMaster and Inquisitor expecting product support that never appeared.
DeleteLook only at what we have now, and make any purchasing decisions based on that instead of their promises.
2) Damage Output & Resistance shouldn't be dependent on opponent's stats? Really? Because I think they should be MORE dependent on the opponent's stats.
What they've done is incorporate much of WarPath's damage system into this PoS, and that game never exactly lit the world on fire. But much as GW may dislike Alessio, they're still willing to steal design ideas from him, rather than come up with something new or cast a gaze beyond their walls at what other games are doing.
Go Mantic! Kings of War is actually a pretty decent system. In that it's balanced, and tactics actually matter.
DeleteMantic's getting in on the action:
ReplyDeletehttp://i.imgur.com/dU3n85X.jpg
This is like Christmas in July for them. :)
DeleteI'm hanging out to see if this is another D&D 4th edition v Pathfinder type situation. The 'clone' exceeding the parent.
ReplyDeleteOr perhaps it will be similar to new coke?
It's astounding to me, as GW seemed to have their thinking cap on a little these past few years, a quicker release schedule, encouraging more spending with allies, and offering limited release saving bundles with codexs. I also think it was pretty clear fantasy needed to change as it was unsustainable. You would think that this level of change would be tested and well thought out with a clear target audience.... but somehow I doubt it.
I gave the game a go last night at the FLGS, and it dawned on me that it's designed to hook in 8-10 year olds instead of GW's usual 12-14yo range for beginning players.
DeleteSimple mechanics, no tactics to speak of, no formations, etc. It's really not such a terrible entry-level fantasy game. If the game was $50-$75 instead of $125, I'd probably even buy it for my kids.
But... Making this game the replacement for WHFB, instead of an adjunct, is the real stupidity. Because there's nothing there for adults to enjoy. You run your guys straight at the enemy and roll dice. There's no subtleties, and no potential for long-term skill building beyond what order you choose to activate units in.
And, of course, no way to fairly balance a game for tournament play.