The Inside Scoop on Gaming

Warhammer 6th ed. has now been out for almost three years and I figured now would be a good time to review it.

Physical components: The game comes with a 288-page rules booklet, the start of two armies (Empire and Orc), plastic templates and rulers, dice, and a cardboard ruined building model. The army starters each contains a missile armed regiment, a melee regiment, a support unit (orcs have a chariot and Empire get a cannon or mortar, and a mounted leader for each). The regiments are plastic figures that require a fairly significant amount of assembly. The figures are well detailed and their assembly allows for some fairly creative posing. If I have any issue with the figures it’s their blocky features. Hands and heads, while well detailed, are larger and blockier than the scale should permit. Games Workshop’s (aka Citadel) pewter figures designed to go with the game are better detailed and more realistically proportioned (though still not perfect). The $75 price tag is a bit steep for any game, but the quality of the components is high enough that it’s worth picking up if you plan on building either army, or are new to the hobby and want to have two sample armies to push around and get a feel for the system before investing further. In the past, veteran gamers of Warhammer have had to pay the high cost for the boxed sets to get the newest edition of the rules set. Games Workshop has taken mercy on us this time and is selling the 288-page manual separately for $30.

Background: Warhammer has been around a long time. I remember painting up my first army in 1985 and using the 1st edition rules. Since then the background has changed little, though the continents have shifted enough in the Europe-like setting to account for millions of years of geological activity. The various player races are still in the places they first existed when the game was in its infancy, but you’d have to squint hard anymore to see the European continents on the map. The dark and gritty world of Warhammer is still there, but it’s not laid on as heavy in the 6th edition as it has in the past. The artwork in the manual is still evocative of the dark spirit of the game, but gone are the mohawks and piercings that were more reflective of our popular culture than of Warhammer’s medieval one. The rulebook has a large portion devoted to background and history. It’s not bad reading, but not necessary to know to play the game. This helps when faced with 288 pages of material. The war with chaos is still the strong central theme. The races have changed little, though the undead have been better developed. There are now two undead armies, the Vampire Counts and the Khemri. If you have played any of the other editions of Warhammer you will be pleased to know that your miniatures still work for the most part (though my 20 man Reiksguard foot have ceased to be a valid regiment for the Empire unless you count the option in the back of the Empire Army book).

Changes: So why did we need a 6th edition? Games Workshop is infamous for discontinuing their product only to release a ‘new and improved’ version later that requires the buyer to shell out yet more cash for huge boxed extravaganzas that they will only use a small portion of. Most of the time we have been left thinking “was this thing really broken? Why did it need to be replaced?” In this case I think we can actually say,”yeah, it was broken.” By the end of its run the 5th edition was suffering from a number of flaws that had been growing steadily since the 4th edition release. The army books were released over several years and it seemed that each army book sought to outdo the last one in making the next most powerful army. By the time the last army book was released none of the early armies could hope to compete. 5th edition also suffered from vaguely written rules that could be interpreted many ways by even the stodgiest rules lawyers. Finally, army construction was too open ended. Individual heroes could take on entire regiments of infantry. Loose army organization allowed players to field armies that were composed of mostly heroes. It was so bad that players began calling the game Herohammer. Magical weapons were handed out like candy on Halloween and wizards could cast spells that would end the game on the first turn. All of this has been addressed. The army books have remained consistent and competitive with others in the series, the new rules are very well written with simple illustrations that illustrate how they work. Clarifications have been added at the back of the book to clear up confusing situations that can develop. Army composition has been very strictly addressed. Regiments are now classified in three categories – core, special, and rare units. Players must take a certain number of points in their core units before they can start spending on the pricier elite units. Heroes are still powerful, but they can only be taken in small numbers now. Limitations on magic weapons and spell selection have been limited and de-powered enough that none of these will dominate the game. Can a hero on a dragon still win the game? Yeah, but that hero is now much more vulnerable to the standard trooper. No one will be winning the game on turn one because they have a super-spell. There are still some holes in the rules, but they aren’t large enough to drive a Kenworth through…we are now down to a mini-cooper.

Support: Games Workshop has actually supported their product well. Amazingly enough, I wasn’t required to buy a huge amount of new troops to field a complete Empire army. All of my characters still work. My only sore points are the Reiksguard Foot, War Wagon, and Grand Theoginist War Altar. These were all MIA though the war altar made an appearance in the 2002 annual and the Reiksguard Foot are added as an afterthought in an optional army in the back of the Empire Army book. As mentioned earlier, the Empire army has stayed competitive with the later releases (I have yet to play against the Khemri though). Where units have gone ‘out of print’ (i.e. the Dogs of War regiments of renown) there is easily accessible information on Games Workshop’s website that allows you to field these units easily.

Conclusion: This game was a very pleasant surprise for me. I have always had a love/hate relationship with Warhammer. I loved the minis, the creativity behind the milieu, and the simplicity of the rules. I hated the spotty support, profiteering, and shameless planned-obsolescence geared to sell more miniatures. In the few years Warhammer 6th ed. has been on the market I have seen all of the positives that I mention above and no evidence of the negatives. Reverse compatibility of existing miniatures, well-written rules, quality components, and a solid fantasy world reflect very well on the game and almost…almost…makes me forget the great disservice GW did to its player base with the 4th and 5th edition rules.

Warhammer 6th edition
Warhammer 6th edition Capsule Review by Stormcrow on 24/01/03 Style: 5 (Excellent!) Substance: 4 (Meaty) Warhammer's 6th Edition - 6th time the charm? Product: Warhammer 6th edition Author: Rick Priestley, Tuomas Pirinen Category: Miniature Company/Publisher: Games Workshop Line: Warhammer Fantasy Cost: $75.00 Page count: 288 Year published: 2000 ISBN: 1-84154-058-7 SKU: Comp copy?: no Capsule Review by Stormcrow on 24/01/03 Genre tags: Fantasy	Warhammer 6th ed. has now been out for almost three years and I figured now would be a good time to review it. Physical components: The game comes with a 288-page rules booklet, the start of two armies (Empire and Orc), plastic templates and rulers, dice, and a cardboard ruined building model. The army starters each contains a missile armed regiment, a melee regiment, a support unit (orcs have a chariot and Empire get a cannon or mortar, and a mounted leader for each). The regiments are plastic figures that require a fairly significant amount of assembly. The figures are well detailed and their assembly allows for some fairly creative posing. If I have any issue with the figures it’s their blocky features. Hands and heads, while well detailed, are larger and blockier than the scale should permit. Games Workshop’s (aka Citadel) pewter figures designed to go with the game are better detailed and more realistically proportioned (though still not perfect). The $75 price tag is a bit steep for any game, but the quality of the components is high enough that it’s worth picking up if you plan on building either army, or are new to the hobby and want to have two sample armies to push around and get a feel for the system before investing further. In the past, veteran gamers of Warhammer have had to pay the high cost for the boxed sets to get the newest edition of the rules set. Games Workshop has taken mercy on us this time and is selling the 288-page manual separately for $30. Background: Warhammer has been around a long time. I remember painting up my first army in 1985 and using the 1st edition rules. Since then the background has changed little, though the continents have shifted enough in the Europe-like setting to account for millions of years of geological activity. The various player races are still in the places they first existed when the game was in its infancy, but you’d have to squint hard anymore to see the European continents on the map. The dark and gritty world of Warhammer is still there, but it’s not laid on as heavy in the 6th edition as it has in the past. The artwork in the manual is still evocative of the dark spirit of the game, but gone are the mohawks and piercings that were more reflective of our popular culture than of Warhammer’s medieval one. The rulebook has a large portion devoted to background and history. It’s not bad reading, but not necessary to know to play the game. This helps when faced with 288 pages of material. The war with chaos is still the strong central theme. The races have changed little, though the undead have been better developed. There are now two undead armies, the Vampire Counts and the Khemri. If you have played any of the other editions of Warhammer you will be pleased to know that your miniatures still work for the most part (though my 20 man Reiksguard foot have ceased to be a valid regiment for the Empire unless you count the option in the back of the Empire Army book). Changes: So why did we need a 6th edition? Games Workshop is infamous for discontinuing their product only to release a ‘new and improved’ version later that requires the buyer to shell out yet more cash for huge boxed extravaganzas that they will only use a small portion of. Most of the time we have been left thinking “was this thing really broken? Why did it need to be replaced?” In this case I think we can actually say,”yeah, it was broken.” By the end of its run the 5th edition was suffering from a number of flaws that had been growing steadily since the 4th edition release. The army books were released over several years and it seemed that each army book sought to outdo the last one in making the next most powerful army. By the time the last army book was released none of the early armies could hope to compete. 5th edition also suffered from vaguely written rules that could be interpreted many ways by even the stodgiest rules lawyers. Finally, army construction was too open ended. Individual heroes could take on entire regiments of infantry. Loose army organization allowed players to field armies that were composed of mostly heroes. It was so bad that players began calling the game Herohammer. Magical weapons were handed out like candy on Halloween and wizards could cast spells that would end the game on the first turn. All of this has been addressed. The army books have remained consistent and competitive with others in the series, the new rules are very well written with simple illustrations that illustrate how they work. Clarifications have been added at the back of the book to clear up confusing situations that can develop. Army composition has been very strictly addressed. Regiments are now classified in three categories – core, special, and rare units. Players must take a certain number of points in their core units before they can start spending on the pricier elite units. Heroes are still powerful, but they can only be taken in small numbers now. Limitations on magic weapons and spell selection have been limited and de-powered enough that none of these will dominate the game. Can a hero on a dragon still win the game? Yeah, but that hero is now much more vulnerable to the standard trooper. No one will be winning the game on turn one because they have a super-spell. There are still some holes in the rules, but they aren’t large enough to drive a Kenworth through…we are now down to a mini-cooper. Support: Games Workshop has actually supported their product well. Amazingly enough, I wasn’t required to buy a huge amount of new troops to field a complete Empire army. All of my characters still work. My only sore points are the Reiksguard Foot, War Wagon, and Grand Theoginist War Altar. These were all MIA though the war altar made an appearance in the 2002 annual and the Reiksguard Foot are added as an afterthought in an optional army in the back of the Empire Army book. As mentioned earlier, the Empire army has stayed competitive with the later releases (I have yet to play against the Khemri though). Where units have gone ‘out of print’ (i.e. the Dogs of War regiments of renown) there is easily accessible information on Games Workshop’s website that allows you to field these units easily. Conclusion: This game was a very pleasant surprise for me. I have always had a love/hate relationship with Warhammer. I loved the minis, the creativity behind the milieu, and the simplicity of the rules. I hated the spotty support, profiteering, and shameless planned-obsolescence geared to sell more miniatures. In the few years Warhammer 6th ed. has been on the market I have seen all of the positives that I mention above and no evidence of the negatives. Reverse compatibility of existing miniatures, well-written rules, quality components, and a solid fantasy world reflect very well on the game and almost…almost…makes me forget the great disservice GW did to its player base with the 4th and 5th edition rules.

Warhammer 6th edition