No longer playing WHFB, what to do with my old armies?

[realmfw]

Hi Nord,

If nobody minds me tooting my own horn so to speak, I believe a game of my own creation fits what you're looking for.

Realm - Fantasy Warfare

Modern mechanics, interactive turn sequence (no downtime!), customizable and loads of fun (in my more than biased opinion).

Any questions feel free to ask away, otherwise good luck with the search.

Scott.

[ogryn]

I vote, 3rd wfb, kings of war or Armies of arcana
Plus lots of skirmish games out there

[beefcake]

Just had a look at armies of arcana. I think I've been convinced to sell up my eighth edition whfb books, rules and two army books, and spend the cash on armies of arcana with a bunch of cash leftover to buy some of those grenadier barbarians I have wanted for such a long time.

[beefcake]

Also, not meaning to hijack the thread but are there any good fantasy skirmish games people know of? I think mantic might have one in the pipeline but I'd like to hear about more myself.
Thanks

[Nord]

Maybe start a new thread with the skirmish question? I think it's worth a separate, more complete discussion.

[beefcake]

Will do.

[maxxon]

Since nobody else brought this up: I used to play Chipco's Fantasy Rules!

The reason I haven't been playing them lately is mostly that I haven't been playing any fantasy mass battle rules. To be frank, the rules are pretty much dead in water, but I think they are still available as PDF.

I like them, but they are rather abstract mass battle rules - so probably not what you are looking for if you want more of a skirmish game.

Another thing about the Chipco rules is that they are not tied to any specific background. So you can use them to play LotR or Barsoom or whatever you like... no %#"#"¤&#"¤&% named heroes in sight. The rules owe a lot to DBM/HotT, except without the Barkerese.

If you don't like DBM, approach with caution. Though I hate DBM and I still love FR!...

[Yuber Okami]

Just had a look at armies of arcana. I think I've been convinced to sell up my eighth edition whfb books, rules and two army books, and spend the cash on armies of arcana with a bunch of cash leftover to buy some of those grenadier barbarians I have wanted for such a long time.

Welcome to the Arcanian Brotherhood then! Hope you find it as rewarding as most of us do. I now there is people who have used it to play historical battles, and i have even pushed the limits of the rules and used them for the XIXth century and for playing one of those odd battles in a feudal  world of the WH40k universe. You can check them here http://huestesdearcana.blogspot.com.es/2013/04/arcanian-bakumatsu.html and http://huestesdearcana.blogspot.com.es/2011/12/batalla-de-revodan-battle-for-revodan-i.html if you like

[maxxev]

bit late but another vote for AoA though again I only managed a read through of the rules rather than a play through. I then gave my rules away to someone who actually had opponents willing to try it out. however I have since moved clubs so sm looking st getting a new copy at some point.

[beefcake]

Welcome to the Arcanian Brotherhood then! Hope you find it as rewarding as most of us do. I now there is people who have used it to play historical battles, and i have even pushed the limits of the rules and used them for the XIXth century and for playing one of those odd battles in a feudal  world of the WH40k universe. You can check them here http://huestesdearcana.blogspot.com.es/2013/04/arcanian-bakumatsu.html and http://huestesdearcana.blogspot.com.es/2011/12/batalla-de-revodan-battle-for-revodan-i.html if you like

I'll be keeping my old army books, warhammer undead and orcs and goblins can't remember which edition they were, only the one leadership characteristic. I thought it was a real shame when they split the undead in two. I liked the idea of being able to use any undead minis or having your own styled army, much the same as chaos splitting into three armies. Probably should have posted this on the GW stickied board. 

[Nord]

I have spent a little time researching the recommendations. I think the best fit for me will be either Armies of Arcana or Mayhem. AofA sounds like a streamlined, modernised, customisable version of WHFB, which will suit me down to the ground. Why not just go back to previous versions of WHFB? The fluff and background of WHFB is what drew me in originally, the rules have never been that smooth or easy and I like alternating activations now that I have tired it. The old IGOUGO just doesn't cut it for me any more.

Mayhem gives me a chance to try out element based games, again with all the tools in the book to include/adpt my existing armies. I am hoping this will lend itself to bigger, grand scale battles, whereas I am hoping that AofA will fill the role of smaller battles with a little more detail in the characters and monsters.

God of Battles I also looked at, but was put off by the prescriptive nature of the rules. You buy units by size, 6, 8 or 12 or whatever. I like to be able to decide these things for myself. I am also not a massive fan of the Foundry aesthetic so that didn't help either. I didn't really fancy spending £30 on a massive book full of minis I don't like! There was also no mention of conversion/customisation, so I will pass on that.

I will still check out the other recommendations, but for now my short term aim is to get a copy of Armies of Arcana and Mayhem and move on from there.

Cheers for all the advice, when I have got a few games under my belt I will report back on the new systems. 

[sukhe_bator]

I came to this thread late, but my vote would also be for Armies of Arcana. I got very jaded with WHFB even after only a few goes with it. Then I saw an AoA game at Salute, got the rules and never looked back. The creature creation formula enables you to tailor your figures, and I have played massed battles and large skirmishes using my Lord of the Rings themed armies equally successfully. I prefer the simpler, more elegant system but you still get that frisson of excitement when you roll loads of bones.

[VoodooInk]

Mayhem gives me a chance to try out element based games, again with all the tools in the book to include/adpt my existing armies. I am hoping this will lend itself to bigger, grand scale battles, whereas I am hoping that AofA will fill the role of smaller battles with a little more detail in the characters and monsters.

If you have any MAYHEM questions, then don't hesitate to as- especially if it's about building and converting units! That's always good fun.

[Nord]

If you have any MAYHEM questions, then don't hesitate to as- especially if it's about building and converting units! That's always good fun.

Thanks, I will then.   

As I said in my first post, I am trying to breathe new life into my WHFB collection. I want to play using my existing setup as much as possible, so ideally I would like to use regiments in their current configurations. Missile troops tend to wide frontage, narrow depth, as do elite warriors, whereas more basic troops tend to be deeper ranked. In other words, various sizes of rectangles, not many squares. Is this a problem with Mayhem, I think I read that it recommends units are squares for ease of play?

[VoodooInk]

Thanks, I will then.      Is this a problem with Mayhem, I think I read that it recommends units are squares for ease of play?

While squares are recommended, you won't have a problem using troops based as you've described. Squares just make all unit interactions much clearer and cleaner. If you are used to playing with bases of varying sizes, then the little oddities associated with different base depths and widths will be nothing new.

If your current armies aren't element based and use traditional movement trays, then you can always make some new trays after a couple of games if you think that you will prefer it.