Warhammer, I tried it again!

A game for kids and you are not a kid anymore? 

I stopped Warhammer in the late 90’ having played countless battles with my dwarfs and elves. It was a time of superheroes and I still remember some epic battles. “Ok your frenetical Bloodthrister killed 3 ranks of my elite troops, but my Dwarven King is still alive. He kills on a single wound and has 4 attack dices with a few other magical bonuses… so….”

Basically, between invisible mages and unkillable heroes capable of killing literally hundreds of the “basic” guys, most battle where decided before they begun. Tactics was rarely to be found on the battlefield. May the best optimizer win… or the worst spirited player!

How does it look now?

Focus is back on troops: Basic troops are relatively much more powerful, so that maneuvering and placement will play a huge role.

Still very fun: Even basic troops have been customized for each race, with special rules to make them interesting and unique. You don’t have to rely solely on heroes for the fun factor.

More realistic: Numbers matter in war. Now big units provide larger bonus in a fight. Soldiers in the second and third rows will not sit idily when they camarades are fighting for their lives. Also large units do not flee so easily.

All in all, I find the game more interesting, with more choices to be made on the battlefield. You feel more like a general managing his troops and reserves. 

 

5th Ed. vs 8th Ed. – 5 Chaos Knights vs 40 Imperial Halbardiers

As we said, its more realistic, but I feel like making the point. Let us do some maths using edition 5 and edition 8 of Warhammer.

On one side, 5 Chaos Knights charging with lance and heavy armor. On the other side a horde of 40 Halbardiers with light armors. In Warhammer 5th Ed. it represents 330 army points of Chaos vs 360 of Imperials. But as you may remember, it is not an even fight… 

In 5th Ed.: Knights and horses will inflict 6.9 wounds in the first round. The lone halberdier still in contact will inflict 0.1 casualty in return. Chances to flee 89%. Chances to get caught and destroyed : 68%. 

If you stay for a second round of fight the odds will be exactly the same. Cumulatively you have 1% chance to see a 3rd round of fight.  

Result 5th: Imperials are doomed. 

In 8th Ed.:  Knights and horses will still inflict 6.9 wounds in the first round. The 17 surviving halbardiers in range will kill 1.4 knights in return. It is still a defeat, but they have only 50% chances to flee because they are more numerous. 

In the 2nd round, 4.6 halbardiers will perish while killing 1.6 chaotic knights. Comparing casulties and the +3 rank bonus, the 2nd round is a draw. Guess what? The 3rd round will be a crushing victory for the Imperials!

 

Result 8th: Imperials may not withstand the charge, but if they do, they will overrun those few knights with ease.

My recommendation:

If you enjoyed it back then, please come back. It is not the game for kids you imagine. Tactics, figures, emotions, It still has plenty of surprises for you. Also note, it’s a good option to lure your kid into gaming !

Let's go check it out Warhammer Official Website

Have you tried looking into the new Warhammer stuff ? What did you think about it ?

EuroExark