Lead Adventure Forum

Miniatures Adventure => Fantasy Adventures => Topic started by: jet on October 07, 2008, 07:52:25 PM

Title: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: jet on October 07, 2008, 07:52:25 PM
Hi all,

I never see these games mentioned here, and I'm wondering if it's because they are generally shunned.  I've been doing my best to expand into new types of gaming, but I have largish galleries for both Warmachine and Hordes on my site for those who are interested.

http://geektactica.blogspot.com/2008/09/cygnar-gallery.html

http://geektactica.blogspot.com/2008/09/trollblood-gallery.html

If there's a general feeling of animosity towards the games or their models, my apologies in advance.

JET
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: Grimmnar on October 07, 2008, 08:00:26 PM
Boy i would hope not. Please tell me it aint so? :-(

With that said, you got some mad painting skills there my friend. I cant condone your choice for WM, as i am an avid Menoth player and now i must hate you, still some wicked kool painting going on. :-)

Grimm
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: Operator5 on October 07, 2008, 08:32:46 PM
If there's a general feeling of animosity towards the games or their models, my apologies in advance.
I don't think their is animosity toward any game. It's a fairly open-minded bunch around here. There are some games that are not actively discussed simply because people who want to talk about them usually go where they have dedicated forums.

That being said, I have a 750pt Warmachine pirate force. I didn't paint a single model for it since I got them just to play with the local group.
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: RJ on October 07, 2008, 09:46:41 PM
Post up whatever you have and never be afraid to.

Everyones hobby is different and its awesome to see what people like.

I love warmachine and have more Menoth than i can store! Definately my favorite wargame.
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: Rhoderic on October 07, 2008, 10:30:49 PM
I don't think they're bad words. They're just more like non-issues because no one ever brings them up (presumably because of the dedicated forums thing). The best way to change that is to bring them up yourself, as you've done rather admirably with those galleries of yours. Great paintjobs!
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: dodge on October 07, 2008, 10:35:19 PM
Those minis are crackingly painted . The finish is so smooth good stuff
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: Danny the Chimp on October 08, 2008, 12:17:56 AM
While I havent a clue about the games, I'm not a gamer, or a decent painter.... But.

I really like your painting, they look fantastic, love the natural colours you've brought out on them!
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: jet on October 08, 2008, 12:46:30 AM
Thanks for all the positive feedback.  I realize that there are various forums dedicated strictly to many of the mainstream games, but frankly, I find that there are a high ratio of immature posters and idiots, and I don't enjoy sifting through their brainless commentary.  o_o

The lead adventure forum, on the other had, is a place that I've always found to be approachable and welcoming.  Traffic-wise it seems to sacrifice quantity for quality, and I'm fine with that.

As for my Privateer Press Collection, I only have four models left to paint, and although I'll be playing the game regularly, I will be taking a break from painting the boys in blue.  When I finish them up, I'll post my final 10 or so models and let you guys know. 

(And then, FINALLY, I'll be ready to start painting my Old West buildings and models.  It's getting really hard to maintain self-control)
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: Sinewgrab on October 08, 2008, 05:53:10 AM
I hope not - my very first post to the "What I finished in September" was full of them. Privateers and Cryx, baby.

I think that this group of forums just isn't too focused on any one game - and so we lack the fanatics who are copnstantly shoveling their game pieces *cough cough GW cough* in our faces. While you do see representation of the major games - Warhammer, Warmachine, Battletech, Confrontation, etc - it isn't overbearing.

Which is just the way I like it. I just wish there were more people here in the Portland area of Oregon USA that played VSF, and the Pulp miniature games, and such. They are too focused on the tournament style 600lb gorillas of GW and Privateer.
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: Malamute on October 08, 2008, 08:39:21 AM
Very nice. I like your painting style, do you use a lot of ink washes?
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: Terrible Tim on October 08, 2008, 10:26:52 AM
I also play Cygnar (2000 pts) and trollbloods (800 pts), although I have not played much lately. They are not as well painted as yours. I am currently working on my small western town.  8)

TT.
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: jet on October 08, 2008, 11:07:15 AM
Funny that we are both working on small western towns and have the same armies.  spooky.

I don't really use any ink washes, except for early on in my Cygnar painting.  I had difficulty making the blue layers blend on the first models and units (The Arcane Tempest Gun Mage Unit).  To remedy this, I used to water down my darkest blue and glaze the blue parts to blend them together. Other than that, most of the models are good old fashioned layered highlights and shading.

Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: Plynkes on October 08, 2008, 11:17:17 AM
I don't know why you would assume there is bad feeling toward a game because of an absence of comment upon it. Much more likely to be bad feeling if there are lots of posts slagging it off.

All it means is that it is not hugely popular among the members, which is not the same thing at all as there being animosity towards it. Personally speaking, it's only on the vague edges of my gaming consciousness. I'm not at all familiar with it.

Your painted figures are lovely, though. So please don't hesitate to post more pictures when you have them.
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: meninobesta on October 08, 2008, 11:24:02 AM
with an excelent paint job like that, you can even post monopoly hotels!  lol
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: Dewbakuk on October 08, 2008, 11:48:13 AM
They're great games and I have to agree, I don't really have any interest in their forums either. For the same reasons. The only Warmachine/Hordes site I pay any attention to is this one (and I don't look on their forums either):

http://battlecollege.wikispaces.com/

As for my forces, I too am a Menoth player, although I also have a Merc force which incorporates a few Privateer bits and pieces.
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: Gluteus Maximus on October 08, 2008, 11:54:55 AM
I'm not particularly interested in either game and the style of sculpting doesn't really appeal to me, but your brushwork, however, is absolutely splendid!

So, please do keep posting pics of your figures  :D
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: Westfalia Chris on October 08, 2008, 12:07:35 PM
I started a Khador troop back in 2003, but lost interest in the game when it became abundantly clear that it would be yet another combo-building tournament thing, here in Germany.

Nonetheless, the figures are top notch. I still want to convert my Manowars to japanese power armours for 3W2 games.
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: Dolmot on October 08, 2008, 04:25:19 PM
I have a small, painted Cryx army, and another group coming up some day. They're fine models, both inspired and inspiring. Consequently I found the bots pleasant to paint. In many cases all you need is a metal colour, some oily wash and then a few theme colours for the plates.

Unfortunately the game itself has escalated (yes, that's the name of one expansion) to a heavyweight gamers' game. Nowadays one single <30p model can come with seven different special rules, which don't only affect the model itself but everything around it too. Each of them modifies the outcome so heavily that without memorising all of them you're potentially screwed. Then all these bonuses stack up so eventually a properly built army will break every single core rule of the game. It will teleport 30 inches and gain +20 attack dice for some truly absurd reasons. It's a fine game for professionals who have the time to study the stats of each faction and every new release. It's good for sunday gaming as long as none of the players want to take it too seriously. However, it would be pure suicide to play casually and then enter a competitive event. You will get instantly devoured by the special rule combo hell.

I just don't have the time it would take to "learn to play" - that is, memorise special rules. Buying yet another 200 page rulebook every year is also a bit excessive. They're nice books, but the rules get scattered over too many heavy volumes. Cards do help but they aren't always enough.

Anyway, the models are cool. I'm going to buy the bear (http://www.tabletopgamingnews.com/2008/10/07/18053) as soon as it ships, for example. In other news, I just heard that my new camera has arrived so I can take some pics of that Cryx army for anyone interested.
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: Backyardpatrol on October 09, 2008, 02:11:14 AM
I started with Khador painting them high end, then got burned out on all the models. 'Couple years later the guy I sold my Khador to bought me the Menoth boxed set, this time I gave them a playable paint job.
I have yet to win a game, it reminds me of Magic the gathering with miniatures.
We play for fun now, I've noticed that the game polarizes people. Definitely not your beer and pretzels sort of fun/tactics.
You can't beat the figures, I use alot of them for other games.
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: Dewbakuk on October 09, 2008, 08:08:35 AM
It is indeed Magic the Gathering with figures. My little group of players has made that comment many times. If we played it competitively, I think we'd stop playing very quickly. It's all about pulling off combo's at the right moment.

As an example, I played a game last night with my Menoth against a friends Khador army. I was using Amon Ad-Raza as my Warcaster and as a result was using quite a Jack Heavy army. We manouvered around each other, while lining up some charges etc. I'd gone first and I knew he was lining up a boosted charge with Beast-09 (a Khador character jack) so once he'd positioned himself, I threw down my surprise. I used Amons feat which allows him to cast spells and then allocate that same focus to jacks in his battlegroup, but just as importantly, gives jacks in his group, his movement stat for that turn. I then cast Mobility (gives all jacks and himself +1 movement and allows charges over difficult terrain) and Synergy (gives a +1 bonus to hit and damage, to the battlegroup, for each jack that hits an opponent in his control area) and allocated out 7 points of focus to the jacks (I'd sacrificed my move). I then activated the Choir and had them cast Infuse which gave all my jacks +2 to hit and damage.

This meant that I suddenly had 3 Warjacks (a Revenger and 2 Crusaders) charged with focus and a 10" charge range (12" for the revenger if you include Reach) that ignored difficult terrain. I also had another Revenger but I didn't have the spare focus to include him. I activated the Revenger first and charged his Demo corps, I had some bad rolls but still killed his Sergeant and more importantly kicked off Synergy. I then had the first Crusader charge one of his big jacks and do some damage and add to Synergy. Then I had my other Crusader charge Beast-09 with a +5 to all it's attack and damage rolls. The big, bad character jack died in one round.

That didn't win me the game but it knocked the Khador onto their back foot and they never really recovered. I took a pounding in the following turn when Sorscha used her feat and made my Jacks "Stationary" (can't move, can't defend themselves) but not enough to take me out. I then systematically took out all support and opened up a charge lane for my caster and killed Sorscha.

It could have easily gone the other way at many points and there are other units I could have brought in which would have made my combo even more vicious but would have made my army a true one trick pony, whereas that was done mostly on the fly.

The real problem with Warmachine is the shear number of special rules, a 500pt game is supposed to last about an hour, I don't think we've had one that's taken less than two. The interactions of all those rules mean they get checked so many times! I'm sure if we played competetively we'd have those all worked out though, and then not play as it'd not be as fun. Currently, our forces change every game as we try different combo's. Sometimes they work as above, other time they don't.
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: jet on October 09, 2008, 10:10:10 AM
As far as I'm concerned, Warmachine is certainly one of those games that really suffers when played in a competitive environment. (Of course, I feel the same about all wargames)  Because I play it with the same group of close friends, I don't worry about that .  We play the models based on looks and coolness factor.  I think Warmachine is a rich, fun game, and although there seems to have been some stackable/killer combo type developments as of late, that sort of stuff doesn't have to dominate your game unless you choose to allow it. We don't.  As for time issues, we play with a chess clock set at 7-minute turns.  The time limit makes the game more fun, as neither player has the time to execute the "perfect turn."  With the time pressure, mistakes are assured, and the game becomes a nail-biting, dramatic affair. ("Oh crap - I forgot to move my warcaster!")

Even though I'm a fan of the game, I am looking for variety now.  I'm looking forward to games that are a little more mentally relaxed and of a different format - 10 and 15mm historical gaming, historical skirmish, and perhaps T&T when plastics become available. 

Again, thanks for all the comments and input,
JET
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: Plynkes on October 09, 2008, 10:49:36 AM
The time limit thing sounds like a hoot.

I always remember that was one of the fun (and nerve-wracking) things about Space Hulk when playing as the marines. It really adds something (sometimes panic-induced paralysis!).
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: Argonor on October 09, 2008, 11:10:58 AM
I started a Khador troop back in 2003, but lost interest in the game when it became abundantly clear that it would be yet another combo-building tournament thing, here in Germany.

I got a Cygnar starter set for my 40-years birthday from a gaming pal who bought himself a Khador pack.

I have assembled the heavy 'jack, and halfways assembled the two light 'jacks... before I got around to finish the set, the game had also turned into 'Magic with Minis' here in DK, and I frankly prefer games where the outcome is decided on the table and not in the planning phase (both Warhammer and 40K suffers a bit from combo-disease, too, I think... although not as badly as they used to).

That being said, I like the look/setting/style of the Iron Kingdoms and would happily use their minis for other settings (as well as play friendly games of Warmachine/Hordes with small forces, just for the laugh of it...).
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: Argonor on October 09, 2008, 11:55:18 AM
The time limit thing sounds like a hoot.

I always remember that was one of the fun (and nerve-wracking) things about Space Hulk when playing as the marines. It really adds something (sometimes panic-induced paralysis!).

Oh yes... that look on your (marine) opponents face when he realizes he just lost another 15(?) secs because of this sarge dying  lol
Title: Re: Are WARMACHINE and HORDES bad words on these forums?
Post by: LeadAsbestos on October 10, 2008, 03:03:26 AM
I'm a fan!:
Circle
http://www.displacedminiatures.com/LeadAsbestos/gallery/1683/
Trolls
http://www.displacedminiatures.com/LeadAsbestos/gallery/1704/
Khador
http://www.displacedminiatures.com/LeadAsbestos/gallery/92/

All sold up the river, but what the hell! More room for the next project!