What did you do today.

[job]

@ J-Z: Very fearsome! And nice foxholes.

@ Koji: Nice looking model. I see lots of attention to the details.

Today, after work, I've started writing some of the 40k lists I'll use on Saturday. I'll also put together another German for my BA models and then try to put the brush on something.

[me_in_japan]

today I almost finished el capitan. Just the face to do now, plus a smidgeroo of base decoration (flowers, vines, rust, etc) So...almost...there...*

In other news, did anybody else read/notice that all 6th ed 40k rulebooks have been pulled from retailers, including the GW sites. Eh oop. Looks like trouble a' mill. A new edition? A change of tactics? A free update for all cuurent owners of 6th ed?


* Internet props if you get this reference...

[Miguelsan]

I couldn't care less but rumour says GW has gone Lady Gaga and will be releasing a new edition late May... repackaged 6th ed with Escalation and Stronghold? Totally new ed? 6th with some a new cover to sucker people into buying a new book? Not interested in anyway.

On other things I managed to slap some paint on some Stormtroopers, a Hvy Bolter team and a second CCS for the 2000 list. Also sand bases... ohh sand bases how much I hate you for being so messy.

M.

[Lovejoy]

There have been rumblings..(oh there have been rumblings, have there? Round the Horn we shall go sir, round the horn, damn your eyes!)* ...there have been rumblings that there is a new 7th 40k edition due out, or at least 6.5.. with various supplemental rules folded into it. Wasn't the previous edition only 2012? I suppose they want revenue from something that they reason almost every player will have to buy.

I heard something about a starter set as well. There was talk of an Ork vs Blood Angels set, but I don't know if that was the rumoured Epic set, or 40k. Interesting though, certainly.

Today I assembled and spray undercoated some BEF/Home Guard bits and bobs (good old Tamiya Matt Olive Drab).

*movie reference?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wUlgVqSeLRk

[Spevna]

A new edition? This soon?

Hmmm. I think I may well give up on the rules altogether and just use FUBAR if I want a game of 40K.

Me and Lovejoy we're saying the other day how the 40K rules leave us cold, so I would have no qualms about using a completely new set.

[AndrewGPaul]

The rumours I've seen aren't for a new edition - just a new box set and an updated rulebook - presumably including any errata and clarifications, as well as folding Escalation and Stronghold Assault into the main rulebook. The release date I've heard quoted is the 24th of May, so blurry leaked photos of the White Dwarf should be imminent!

[Lovejoy]

Re 40k, I like a lot of the background I've read, the models are (generally) superb, and I hope to play in that setting. I don't dislike the rules per se, but I don't feel passionate about them, whereas I have felt that other systems I have played more recently have really put a smile on my face for one reason or another.
Gaming is full of innovation these days and 40k probably needs to change things up. Also the rules seem to have a lot of exceptions and special, situational bits and bobs in each codex. How more tournament orientated players (probably no one locally) keep up I have no idea.
So yeah, alternative rule sets that let me use great GW models seem appealing.

[me_in_japan]

Fwiw, I really enjoy 40k. The rules are wobbly as all hell, but for a fun beer n pretzels game it's a lot of fun. The fluff is also standout fantastic. I've been doing a lot of HH reading these past couple of months, and recently I've been struck by how difficult it must be to keep things coherent over 30 books (and many audio dramas, short stories etc) written by many different authors. But, so far it all seems to hold up to scrutiny. 40k (and 30k) is a humongous epic space opera of unprecedented scale, and I really enjoy the creative possibilities inherent in building a 40k army. So, I do not see myself dropping 40k any time soon.

However, I also have to respect the fact that my cash is limited. I used to be a huge fan of buying the rules in paper form. As anyone who has gamed at my place knows, I have shelves full of rulebooks for all the games I play. Heck, I even have 2 collectors editions of 40k. I really like big hardback rulebooks. But, I'm aware I don't need them. As distasteful as it may be, I know I can get said rules from the Internet. So it comes down to a moral choice: how much do I want to give GW my money? A few years ago, I was all over their ltd ed rulebooks. Then it became just a regular book. This time, after only 2 years, I'm finding the Internet option increasingly attractive. If they continue to play with our wallets in this manner we can simply choose to stop giving them our money. Whether that means dodgy downloads or simply sticking with 6th and ignoring their updates is up to you. You can walk away from GW but continue playing 40k without too much difficulty.

[Spevna]

Fwiw, I really enjoy 40k. The rules are wobbly as all hell, but for a fun beer n pretzels game it's a lot of fun. The fluff is also standout fantastic. I've been doing a lot of HH reading these past couple of months, and recently I've been struck by how difficult it must be to keep things coherent over 30 books (and many audio dramas, short stories etc) written by many different authors. But, so far it all seems to hold up to scrutiny. 40k (and 30k) is a humongous epic space opera of unprecedented scale, and I really enjoy the creative possibilities inherent in building a 40k army. So, I do not see myself dropping 40k any time soon.

.

I agree with you in regards to fluff and wobbly rules, but I wouldn't consider it beer n pretzels as there are just too many special rules. I suppose it depends on what you put on the table though. If you have plain vanilla beakies versus a horde of Ork boys, sure, most beery and pretzely. Once you start adding some of the fancier stuff it all gets much harder to keep track of IMHO.

[Primarch]

I think BoLS worked out that if you wanted to buy ALL of the current rules, codices, dataslates and supplements, (circa Jan this year) it would set you back about $1300, or 130,000 JPY. While their books are always very nicely presented and are nice to read, I don't have that sort of cash to drop on books. Of course, you only really need the core book and your own codex, but the number is still staggering.

By all accounts this new edition/book will include the rules for Stronghold Assault and Escalation as AGP said. So long as it doesn't change any of the other rules from 6th, there is no need to rush out to buy a copy (especially as no-one around here plays either of those supplements anyway).

As for the rules themselves, I have found that I need to look things up in the book more often than I did with 5th edition simply because when I played 5th, that was pretty much all I played. Now I have a half dozen different games I am playing and so my grasp of 6th isn't as solid as it could be. More games = Better memorisation of the rules. I haven't had any problems with the rules themselves though and most questions have been answered in a moment or two. 40K has some glaring balance issues which means that certain units see a lot more play than others, but in our part of the world, this is a minor thing. Players who want to play competitively will find a way to min/max the best units no matter the game.

I enjoy a variety of rule sets for a variety of reasons, but I have never found a set which would let me play every game I wanted. I love the rules for Malifaux, but I wouldn't try playing a Napoleonic battle with them. Bolt Action is a great system, but it wouldn't work for Warmachine without significantly changing how Warmachine needed to be played. You CAN play Game X using minis from Game Y, but it won't really be Game Y. I have thought about using WFB minis to play Hail Caesar, but it wouldn't be WFB any more, rather it would be a generic fantasy game. I'm not sold on the fluff for WFB so it wouldn't bother me, but for someone who loved the WFB setting it wouldn't hold the same appeal. Minis are just bits of plastic and metal, rules are a set of guidelines for moving them around the table, fluff is just stories to give you some background, but together the three of them are the game. To me 40K will always be Space Marines Vs. Orks, 3+ saves and The Horus Heresy and all the rest of it.

Moving to a new rule set poses a whole new range of problems. Are my minis compatible? What rules need to be changed? Is everyone using the same rules? Is everyone willing to change? Does everyone agree that new rule Z is the best way to represent Mini X? At least with 40K as it stands everyone is on the same page and everyone has bought into the same system. Is it the best system ever? No. But the problems with it mainly come down to WHO you play and HOW you play and locally, both of these are really non-issues in my view.

That's my two yens worth anyway, feel free to ignore the above if you want.