Late last year, I played a 4 player game of Age of Sigmar. I had participated in a total of two games in 2022, so to say I was rusty was an understatement. I don't have a lot of time to focus on the rules and stay updated, and the meta moves quickly, what with the General's Handbooks dropping every 6 months now and an edition change every 3 years. It's too much, and I sound like an old man. So I need something a little more simple for my old man soul.
This line of thinking has lead me down various rabbit holes and a few jaunts down memory lane. I remember having a blast with early Age of Sigmar, where it was more about the rules on the warscroll and duking it out with your opponent over some beer and pretzels. When it comes to Age of Sigmar, I'm not a "competitive" player. I have been for other games, like Pirates CSG, but not here. I like my Warhammer casual with a side of beer. But, I do like the flavor of all of the faction rules. It gives each army a lot more identity, and something unique to do on the tabletop.
So now I think, what's a good middle ground between the two? I'm leaning towards a one page summary of each factions rules, artifacts, and spells. Not a reference sheet, but a refinement of the core values of an army. I think this will require adjustments to some rules, some tweaking to get the rules to better align with the narrative and lore. This now brings me to the crux of this post: this would count as house rules.
House rules are something I don't see a lot in Warhammer. Everyone seems so strict with all of the rules and books. If you're not using the latest paragraph of the FAQ from the newest book that is 90 pages of filler lore and a page of new, esoteric rules, well, what are you doing? I'm not criticizing per se, but I come from a lot of games where it's almost expected to make your own rules, and each gaming group has their own unique stamp on the game. Hell, I wrote a whole new rules system for Pirates CSG that added an economy, and lots of people really enjoyed using that system.
But again, for whatever reason, Warhammer isn't like this. I think it has quite a bit to do with the over emphasis on the tournament scene. I have no issues with them, but is every game of Warhammer a tournament game? Why do we all play like it is? I never see one sided scenarios like ambushes where the goal is to see how you do, or if you can manage to turn it around. Or castle sieges, I can't think of the last time I've seen one of those.
I'm not just talking nonsense either. Even mainstream games have custom rules that everyone plays by. In Uno, everyone knows that you can stack +2 and +4 cards, but officially, the makers of the game say you can't do that. But we all do because it's fun. In Monopoly, you're supposed to auction plots of land that someone lands on but can't afford. But I almost never see that happen. But again, in Warhammer, we all just decided to be so uncreative in such a creative hobby.
All I'm trying to do is to encourage players to try new things, and maybe try out some house rules and mix up your games with your groups. Who knows, maybe you'll really like it.
-The Space Dinosaur
GW does discourage house rules as it's focused on tournaments, which makes some sense. though GW has also been full of itself and it's part of it's business plan that you need to get the latest release / FAQ. There's no reason if you playing with friends that you couldn't have house rules. Though it sometimes helps to have played the game 'as is' a few times just to make sure that you know the rules first.
ReplyDeleteThese days I more often play with 'tool kit' rule sets that give you lots of options and you customize as you see fit. it's like having house rules / tinker kit built in. 😁
I just find it strange that a lot of the community as a whole seems so against them, I've never seen such a tournament focused gaming group haha. I have been looking into systems like One Page Rules, something a little more plug and play that might let me be more pick and choosey with the rules.
DeleteThis is why I'm a middlehammer guy. It's a dry of rules people are largely familiar with (heck, the old world rules previews could mostly be lifted from the 5th ed. book) without the need to be current, because the whole thing isn't current! The issues people had with herohammer we're the army composition rules, core rules barely changed moving to 6th ed. I enjoy a game and appreciate anyone who is willing to say "it's not official but it's more fun!"
ReplyDelete(Just discovered your blog and loving it!)
Glad you’re liking it and welcome! I have been really eyeing the new Old World rules, they seem to be quite good. The “it’s more fun” way to play is my favorite, it creates so many fun moments.
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