KOW - Culture Shock

Looking back on almost two years of playing Kings of War, I think that it is amazing how well the game, the rules and the community have survived the culture shock of the overall explosion in player numbers.

The potential for there to be major clashes in approach, philosophy etc was enormous but I believe that hurdle has been conquered and the future for KOW looks "peachy". Remember two years ago in most jurisdictions Fantasy Gaming meant Warhammer Fantasy Battles. Yes, Kings of War had a loyal following but that was mostly in the UK Midlands and North. With the End Times explosion Fantasy gamers were largely cast adrift and that opened up enormous potential for conflict and culture shock as they looked for new outlets.

Now we have a far more diverse Fantasy gaming landscape with GW's Age of Sigmar, the ETC's Ninth Age and Mantic's much larger Kings of War.

Plug: "No, you change"

Let's look at some of the hurdles that have been scaled in the Kings of War community since July 2015.

Influx of Warhammer Refugees

This was a really interesting social experiment. Suddenly KoW numbers ballooned as whole communities arrived on the doorstep with the demise of WHFB and the release of KOW 2nd Ed. No small part of this influx was due to the Fantasy community in the USA shifting en masse to KOW after adopting it for their Masters system.

How was the culture shock experienced? Firstly, the rules came under scrutiny like never before. It was like a Gentlemen's Club had been invaded by Attila's Huns. From the existing KOW players' perspective, I have no doubt it seemed that the cosy collegial atmosphere that existed prior to the migration, suddenly had been assailed by hordes of rabid power gamers wanting to question every premise, word and item of punctuation. On the other side, it was viewed as a cosy old boys' club who were increasingly defensive and threw up barriers to discussion (sorry, the pursuit of knowledge) at every juncture. Go back on various forums and you can see the evidence of the two cultures colliding.

Overall - and with the benefit of time - I think the game, specifically the rules, survived this well. Both sides adapted and softened their approaches. However the major reason why the conflict diminished was on account of just how tight and well-written the rules were. The refugees were used to GW-speak where there were constant Rules as Intended (RAI) versus Rules as Written (RAW) conflicts. There was very little avenue for this in KOW and over time the new players acclimatised. Even 18 months on the number of required FAQs, errata and clarifications is tiny compared to other games.

The second area of conflict between the groups was the common refrain "Stop trying to make it into Warhammer". Undoubtedly there were people that would have liked some of the Warhammer rules mechanisms ported over but I believe that they were a minority. The biggest call was for greater variability between the races, largely through the magic system - spells and artefacts. A lot of new players were seeing Fantasy players drift off "because KOW lacked the depth of WHFB". In my view that was always a shaky premise, but you can't always change people's perceptions especially if you are trying to break down 30 years of history. The easiest way to assuage this was to give some headline variability in Magic Items and Spells. Over time that ship sailed and potential players were lost. I can't help feel that the hostility to some accommodation was an opportunity lost. However, the recent Clash of Kings book has made some steps along that road. There are now increased options for Magic Items and Spells and that promotes list variability. I love the KOW Magic system - it is elegant without being bloated - but I still hope we'll eventually at least trial some race-specific spells (one per race) and items (same). I think it would add "colour". Still this conflict has largely faded.

The Hobby

Within the pre-existing KOW community the concept of soft-scores was a foreign country. The idea of points for army presentation and sportsmanship were not part of their landscape. All it took was a few visits between different scenes and the idea of the hobby being an integral part of the tournament scene is now well established. And this hasn't been at the detriment of gameplay. However there is now a realisation that how an army looks and how a player behaves have an impact in attracting an audience. Again the US scene has been the poster child for this but these were already key parts of the tournament scene in Australia, Canada and New Zealand. Europe and the United Kingdom are now catching up. There has even been an outbreak of display boards in England as these latter day St. Pauls embrace the hobby.

Fun Vampires & Mathhammer

Really the only area of culture clash that exists now is acceptance of the Fun Vampires (adherents of the Cult of Mathhammer). You'll regularly see accusations that these pointy headed gits armed with a calculator and a spreadsheet are sucking the fun out of the game. Their application of Expected Values, understanding of standard deviations and kurtosis flies in the face of the Cyndi Laupers out there.

Again this is just another case of different folks, different strokes as people approach the game different ways. There will always be those who want to analysis things - yours truly - but this doesn't mean they are anti-fun. In fact it is interesting to observe that some of the most analytical gamers in the community are also the biggest defenders of retaining the "Snake Eyes" rule - precisely because it offers both challenge and fun.

Overall I believe that the potential for real culture clash has been navigated well by the global KOW community. Sometimes it is worthwhile to sit down and take a look back on how far we have come on the journey.

Kumbaya!

KOW - Fat Tails

On the Fanatics FB group recently there has been an upsurge in discussion about mathhammer (or expected outcomes when rolling dice). There seems to be a real lack of knowledge regarding the maths of probability and what the relevance of expected out comes are.

I thought I'd show a couple of things that you should be aware of, because in considerations of probabilities "A little knowledge is a dangerous thing". And just to give my thoughts some cred, I traded financial derivatives for twenty years and saw fortunes lost because people didn't understand such concepts as fat tails, long tails, volatility "smiles" and skews. The Global Financial Crisis was largely caused by people believing the numbers outputted from their "black box" computers without understanding the maths or assumptions behind both the inputs and outputs.

Just Remember "It's all about the Greeks"

When you roll two D6 dice you have a range of outcomes from 2 to 12. You have an expected outcome of 7, with one chance in 36 of getting a total of 2 and the same of getting a total of 12. The important thing here is that your expected outcome is 7 although that only has 6/36 chances of being the actual outcome. 

What you in fact have is an expected outcome "centred" at 7 that follows a normal probability distribution pattern.

This is the pattern we all know and love - and should be make out wargaming decisions based on. In most cases. The important thing here is that this is a normal distribution pattern with no skew - and very importantly clear defined boundaries 2 and 12.

However this is not always the situation that confronts us. Let me use an example utilising my combat calculator "The Abacus of War":

Your opponent's Ratkin Tunnel Slave Horde has 30 25 attacks. It hits on 5+ and has no modifiers to hit or wound. Against a unit with Defence 5 it should do 2.8 wounds. However that doesn't tell you the full story. If he roll badly he might do 0 wounds, right? But if he rolled well then conceivably you could be wounded up to 25 times.

It's not likely to happen but it is possible.

Looking at the maths there is approximately a 90% probability he'll do at least 1 wound, around 70-75% that he'll do at least 2 wounds and 50% he'll do 2.8 wounds. But what about the other side?

This is where we have a skew and a fat tail.

16% (or 1 in 6) he'll do over 4 wounds, one in 20 times he'll do 6 wounds and one in 100 he'll do almost 8. There is an infinitesimally small chance that he'll do 10+ wounds but a chance exists all the way up to 25 wounds.

The above is an example of what you would expect to see (ignore the axes). In our example the hump of the curve is centred on 2.8 while the left hand side of the curve intersects (as above) at zero. The important point is that the tail extends all the way to 25.

One thing in our favour is that the tail can be calculated - because it is a closed system of 2 dice roles with specific obtainable outcomes (0 to 25). In real life (finance, economics etc) things aren't that simple ..... that's why you seem to get 100 year floods every 10 years!

The overall takeaway is that be careful what you "expect". Mathhammer is a great tool but be aware of the underlying assumptions.

KoW - Frozen Ponds

I have a bunch of Winter terrain that the local GW gave me about 10-12 years ago. It includes some buildings that they built for their "Kislev" themed table at the time of the Storm of Chaos campaign.

Over the years I have built hills to match and grabbed a Snowy Terrain F.A.T. Mat to go with it. Last week I picked up some winter ponds from GF9 and over the last few days have worked on them to create frozen ponds for my "Kislev".

The ponds come very unadorned so first I filled the water area with Realistc Water resin and used snow flock to build drifts in the pond and snow on top of the ice.

I then added Winter Tufts onto the bare areas before sprinkling flock all around.by one pond I placed a log then built up drifts on and around it. Finally I sprinkled a series of light coats of flock over the earth areas to approximate newly fallen snow. Both ponds were then sealed with Scenic Cement which you spray on to fix the piece ensuring nothing comes off.

You can see the finished ponds on my table and they fit nicely into the frozen wastes theme. They also will provide the low difficult terrain that the game suggests.

Very happy how they turned out for minimal - USD 25 - cost and about two hours work. They will provide the necessary terrain variation that the table needed, are easy to store and should last pretty much forever.

 

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Kings of War Day at Warlords

For any local or Greater Wellington Region gamers, next Saturday April 18 is the regular monthly KOW Day at the Warlords.

This month we are organising some fun doubles games for KOW players or those interested in trying the game. Currently there are six definite starters but there is room for many many more.

Bring along a 1500 point army and be ready to go. For those that don't have an army I'll be bringing along 2-3 extra so you can just turn up and try the game out. Doubles is a great way to get into the game as we'll assign you a partner that can guide you through the game so you learn while you play.

If you are at all interested in playing KOW - or even if you think you might be this is a great opportunity to try it out.

Warlords meet at KPC Hall in Ganges Road, Khandallah.

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KOW - Lycan: Final Touch

This morning I added the final touches to my Lycan Horde, blooding them so to speak.

I used some Secret Weapon Miniatures' "Drying Blood" across the area first. This gives the final effect some depth and also represents the after effects of a hunt.

I then applied a couple of thin coats of GW Technical Paint "Blood for the Blood God" and let it dry. Finally I gave the "wet" areas a light coat of gloss varnish to seal it.

Happy with the way it turned out. I think it captures their bestial Nature.

 

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KOW - Terrain

One aspect of Kings of War that I believe works really well are the Terrain rules. What I mean by that is that I think that the rules writers have got the impact and interaction of terrain with units pretty well set at the right level.

As a person that has come from WHFB (and before that 40k), the specifics around terrain have always been an area where the balance has never been achieved. Both of the GW systems have swung wildly from where the rules overly impacted the game to that where they had little effect. In some cases different types were at different points along the spectrum within the same edition.

The Use of Terrain Enhances the Immersive Wargaming Experience

Terrain has two main functions in my view. Firstly, it makes the game look so much better. To me, the opportunity to play a game on a realistic backdrop enhances the experience as much as a well painted army or a nicely presented display board. It does however seem to be the arm of the hobby that is most easily neglected, unfortunately.

The second function is to reinforce the strategic aspect of the game. Judicious use of terrain influenced by clear to understand rules makes a wargame so much more of a tactical challenge to participants. And it is here where I think KOW has got the balance right.

KOW defines three (effective) classes of terrain and then uses a system of Heights that interact with army units. This two prong methodology allows an easy to understand classification system for terrain pieces by which players can make tactical decisions which reward considered analysis.

Effectively using a category-classification (Obstacle, Difficult Terrain and Blocking Terrain) provides clarity in a way I have not seen used as well in other systems. Yes, it can be a bit abstract but it captures the clear function of terrain with the benefit of being easy to apply.

Is it perfect? No, the Rules Committee have identified that the system would be better if it had a small shift in Height classification (they have suggested adding +1 to all Heights would make it more easily understood).

There are other possible amendments that could potentially be added - combat modifier in relation to hills e.g. Charging downhill, charging uphill or possessing higher ground. Alternatively existing mechanisms such as Hindered might be applied in certain circumstances.

Another area is possible building rules. However I acknowledge that there is a delicate balance between adding greater challenge against unnecessarily complicating the game.

But overall I think that the authors have done a good job in making terrain meaningful without it being overbearing.

And no discussion of terrain would be complete without a shout out to Epic Dwarf and their terrain maps. Though I'm a recent convert the density and setup of terrain in these maps really complement the game.

 

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KOW - Sparkstone

One of the new Magical Artefacts introduced in the Clash of Kings 2017 rules is the Sparkstone.

Sparkstone [10 Points] - This unit has a Ranged Attack with a range of 18" that may only target enemy Heroes, Monsters and War Engines. Roll a single dice to hit, needing 4+ to hit regardless of modifiers. If a hit is scored, the target unit is disordered during its next turn.

"Great, we've got the Sparkstone. Now if someone could just invent Tinder.

Again this is one of those items that screams "SITUATIONAL". Yes there will be times that this could be very useful but it is important to look at the cost of use.

First of all it is the unit or individual's one magic item. Would you want to fill that slot with this item over another? Personally I think items like Healing Brew or Dwarven Ale have better utility at the same or lesser cost for units or Amulet of the Fireheart for an Individual. For a few points more you can get Brutal or Fury.

Second, for it to be used then your target may not be charged that Turn or it won't be a legitimate target. Even the unit except that with the lowest combat stats is likely to inflict one wound on an enemy which achieves the same Disordered result. I'd say non-Individuals will likely achieve this in 95%+ of cases especially with triple attacks against Individuals and War Engines.

I'm sure that there will be cases where situationally it has proved useful but I don't see it becoming a staple in all-comer tournament lists. There are other items that offer wider utility - in that they will always be used - with a higher expected payoff.

Nice item, but I'd save it for narrative games.

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Call to Arms - Warlords' Annual Convention

Wellington Warlords have their annual convention "Call to Arms" on the weekend of 5-6 August.

This will be held at St. Pat's College Hall in Kilbirnie and will follow the usual multi-event format. You can find out further details at the Warlords' website 

Expect to see Players Packs uploaded over coming weeks but you can expect to see the following games offered:

• Kings of War
• Warhammer 40k
• Flames of War
• Malifaux
• Warmachine
• Age of Sigmar
• Historical Ancients (DBMM)

In addition there will be numerous demonstration and participation games, trade stands and the traditional Bring and Buy table.

I love the "convention" experience and Call to Arms is traditionally the best of the type in New Zealand. Hope to see a lot of new and old faces along.

KOW - Second Lycan Horde

I wanted to add a second Lycan Horde to The Herd. Luckily Mierce's recent sale of Monsters allowed me to pick up two Werewolf models. Both of these are mid size range and stand about 70mm at the shoulder when on all fours.

Both models are quite feral which fits well with The Herd. The front "paws" are very human hand-like while the rest is all wolf.

You can see that the two models fill the 120mm x 80mm base pretty much fully so I'm hoping that the "rule of cool" gets you past MMC.

Obviously these are Large Infantry, so Height 2. The models are probably a little big for Height 2 but I'll make sure opponents are aware of their gaming size.

The base is mdf from Sarissa Precision with magnetic sheeting on the bottom. I've used gravel as the rocks and a twig from the garden as fallen log. The sand has been PVA'd onto the mdf and then I have used some GW Aggrallen Earth to get the dried mud.

Finally I have used a mix of tufts to filled out the base to represent broken ground. I want to add some leaves as ground cover and will do that once the tufts are fixed.

Here's the General's eye view of the unit. Happy with how they turned out and expecting big things on the table.

 

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Weekly Hobby Update

Well I did manage to get some games in this week.

I met up with Josh down at the Warlords on Saturday and we got two games played in just under three hours. Josh was using his Orcs while I had the Herd. We played Pillage then Loot. In the first I was able to stretch the Orcs wide before using my greater mobility to concentrate force. We had a chat about deployment after the first game and Josh kept things much tighter. At the end of the game I was 2-0 up but if we had had a 7th Turn the Orcs would have won 2-1. Good games and a lot of fun.

The early part of the week was spent building the Mierce monster haul I got for my birthday. I also continued painting the Tabletop World River Mill and now have pretty much all the base colours done. The detail work starts now and I am hoping that I can get it to a stage whereby I can start building a base for it this weekend.

The last 3-4 days I have been working on my Lycan Horde. Here I'm using two of the Mierce Norse-inspired werewulfs. They are painted and have been based. I am now detailing the base and should have pictures up soon. As I mentioned in yesterday's post, I hit a "hump" early on but have worked through it and am now happy with how they are turning out.

On Saturday I confirmed the venue for "Runefang" which will be on the first weekend in June (long weekend here in New Zealand). Looking at having a one day event (four rounds) on the Saturday and a large multiplayer battle on the Sunday. Details will be posted soon.