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I finally put paint to my Thunderhead, after only
three years of sittting unassembled in my closet! |
I originally got into Warmachine as a painter. I bought
my first model (a Cryx Harrower) back in April of 2006. I didn’t even play
my first game until November 2007. I didn’t play my first game in a store until September 2008, when I
came back from PAX fired up and ready to learn. I met up with Bobaferret and the folks from Rivercity Warmachine who brought me into the fold. I played in my first
battle box tournament a month later. From there, we had a “slow grow” series of tournaments, working our way up to
750 pts. By the end, I could call myself a Warmachine player.
Over the next couple of years, I continued to grow my army, and I probably became a little more focused on playing than painting. My model count increased while the proportion of painted models decreased. I learned my casters, found my style, and in general got pretty good with my Cygnar. I have never been a dominant force on the local scene, but I played well enough to not embarrass myself. I
even managed to place in a few tournaments.
Unfortunately, things have started to fall apart in the last year. Lately, I’m struggling to put in a decent showing, and I’m feeling like a noob all over again. What the hell happened?! I’ve been thinking quite a bit about that lately, and I think it boils down to the switch to MKII, and me not recognizing the turn in the road. No, I’m not going to complain about MKII – in fact, quite the opposite – I love what they have done in MKII. But, somehow I got stuck halfway between MKI and MKII, and can never quite seem to remember if that is how something works now, or the way it used to work…
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| Hot off of my painting desk: 100% MKII goodness! |
We have all heard the old saying, “Practice makes perfect.” That is especially true in a game like Warmachine. When I look at the people in my local group who have really mastered this game, I realize that there is a almost a stair-step function to player knowledge. After a little thought about how that might be structured, I submit for your approval
Dangerfish’s Seven Divine Levels of Warmachine Enlightenment:
Level 1: Know The Rules It’s a game, and you need to know the rules. You can’t really play well (even correctly) until you have a pretty firm grasp on the rules that govern the game. If this step is too much for you, you should probably stick with video games.
Level 2: Know Your Faction’s Models The second level of awareness is knowing what your models can do. Not just knowing it, but internalizing it. Remembering the little situational things like the cortex damage from a shock shield or the magic attack re-roll from the Squire's Arcane Realignment. This also means knowing the restrictions on those same models and abilities (yes, Stormsmiths do require line of sight, and no, Epic Stryker does not get to use Overload on the attack granted by his feat.)
Level 3: Know Your Faction's Combos Once you have a good understanding of what each of your models can do, you start to notice the interesting and synergistic ways those models can work together. You notice that the extra die from Dead Eye can really help gun mages get those critical brutal damage rolls or that the Siege/Rienholdt extra shot combo can be a game winner on the feat turn. Knowing these combos tends to be where a lot of the fun and satisfaction can be found in the game.
Level 4: Know Your Enemy’s Models By this, I mean simply knowing what your enemies models can do. Which ones have
thresher or
vengence? You will approach them differently when you know what they can do... For most players, this is probably developing pretty well while you are starting to really dial in your own combos as well.
Level 5: Know Your Enemy’s Combos By this time, you have mastered your own bag of dirty tricks, and for the most part you know what each your enemy’s models can do individually. Eventually, you start to put together the really nasty combos that they can pull off. I don’t just mean learning them on the forums (like the Molik Karn missile), but actually developing the ability to put them together the possibilities in real time while your opponent is moving models around the table. You have mastered this level when you are seeing combos in your opponent’s army that he is missing.
"It is said that if you know your enemies and know yourself, you will not be imperiled in a hundred battles; if you do not know your enemies but do know yourself, you will win one and lose one; if you do not know your enemies nor yourself, you will be imperiled in every single battle." -The Art of War, Sun Tzu
Level 6: Know Your Meta Know the tournament scenarios inside and out. Study them, learn them, dismantle them, and own them. Know your local meta: What are your opponents likely to bring? What models and tactics do the top players have and affinity for, and how will you counter those? Is it a jack- or infantry-heavy? What factions are you most likely to see? By understanding the meta around the game, you can prepare your response accordingly and go in with an advantage.
Level 7: "Just Win" You know everything there is about the game, the models, the rules and the meta. Hell, you even memorized the fluff. You planned, strategized and schemed and crafted an unstoppable battle force. Unfortunately, as the old saying goes, “No plan survives contact with the enemy.” From the moment you start rolling dice, chaos theory will kick in, and things will start to go sideways. All you can do now is think on your feet, and draw on all of your knowledge and hard won experience to win.
Unfortunately, to reach this much-vaunted Seventh Level of Wargaming Nirvana takes a whole shitload of time and dedication. I think the frustration I feel today is because back in the MKI days I had worked myself up to somewhere in between levels 4 and 5. Now, with all of the MKII changes and less time spent with the game, I find that I’ve slipped back down to somewhere between the first and second levels. The worst part: I didn’t even recognize it had happened because things are so deceptively similar to what they were before to make me think I
still knew everything. I finally figured it out when I got my ass kicked by another Cygnar army doing things I didn’t know it could do.
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The dwarves I won in a Breast Cancer Brawl auction.
Nothing to do with anything - they just kick ass. |
So now what to do? Well, like a college football program gone awry, I’ve come to terms with the idea that his may be a “rebuilding year” for me. I need to take some time and really pour over the faction books. I need to relearn the armies, and purge all the old MKI data once and for all. More importantly, I need to get back to the painting table. One of our locals, Brotherscott, has always told me that “painted models play better.” I used to take that as gamer superstition, but now I think there is some truth to it. While I’m painting a model, I’m thinking a lot about it. I tend to look at the stats more, imagine how I’m going to use it on the table. I even build little fluff stories around them in my head. For me, the time spent painting creates a connection with both the models and the game that I don’t have when I’m just throwing my carrying cases in the car and rushing to game night with no prep.
Here is another overused sports analogy: “Victory is won in the off season” – for me, perhaps it is won at the painting table and in the den. I’m going back to my roots, when I was ass-deep in the Iron Kingdoms, lovingly painting models and devouring the books over my morning coffee and just trying to take it all in. This is an amazingly rewarding hobby, and I want to be sure to enjoy it all. Like most things in life, you get what you give.
Labels: Cygnar, miniatures, wargaming, Warmachine
