Warmaster. Worth starting up?

[Paradus]

Greetings everyone.
I am new to the specialist games site but have been playing GW games for near 8 years. My main interest is warhammer fantasy for I prefer fantasy to scifi and I quite adore the miniatures.
The problem for me with fantasy though is that I am a prefectionist when it comes to painting 28mm and because of this I can never get many models painted at all.
I just prefer painting individual models and characters at that scale and I know I'll be really hard pressed to get an army done.

Fortunetly There is Warmaster. I have read through the book and I quite enjoy the flow and tactical importance of the game over fantasy (Which unfortunetly has degarded in quality thanks to GW's balance inconsistancies. )
I also painted up a 6 man halberdier stand and because of the scale I don't have to worry about going really OTT when painting them which is a huge relief for me.

The only problem I am having now is if it is really worth starting up. My gaming club is a full fantasy club but I don't know how to get them into warmaster as well, especially since it will require learning a brand new set of rules.

But I still really want to get into warmaster since I also find the 10mm scale alot grander than 28mm (I.e it actually feels like I have an actual army) and the painting will be alot easier for me personally.

So do you think it is worth starting up and if so what tips and tricks could I use to persuade my fellow club members to start up warmaster too?

cheers.

[pw]

I'd say it's certainly worth starting (as I think will most of the folk here, you can expact a WM-bias!  . Getting people to learn the ruleset should be much of an issue as it's really elegantly simple (not simplistic) and is eary to pick up. The good news is that the tactics required aren't simplistic, quite the opposite, and the game plays very well rewarding clever play (in the main and in games of over 1000 points).

As for how to get people playing... The current state of Warhammer has to be a major help! At present it's so oddly inbalanced that I can't be bothered playing unless it's against people I want to hang out with. The idea of a 'pick-up game' at a club doesn't appeal at all. I guess you could get a couple of armies together for demos (and to prove that the 10mm miniatures actually look fantastic). Or perhaps run a campaign? Vincent's campaign documented on here would surely get the most reluctant player excited enough to join in.

I'm sure you'll get some more good ideas soon, I guess it may prove to be tricky to find players but the game is certainly good enough to make it worth a go.

[azrael71]

A good way to get players interested is to paint up 2 seperate armies and lend one out to an opponent.
When others see you playing this can sometimes get them interested.
If you use eBay as a source 2 x 1000 point forces can be done quite cheaply (compared to warhammer).

[fracas]

i love how a warmaster army looks on the table top battlefield. so much more grand than warhammer.
so i say go for it, and build 2 for variety and to lend.


biggest problem i see with Wm is sheer cost in money to get a 2000 pt army

[Lex]

i love how a warmaster army looks on the table top battlefield. so much more grand than warhammer.
so i say go for it, and build 2 for variety and to lend.

There are plenty nice and workable counters to try the rules with before invensting in mini's.

biggest problem i see with Wm is sheer cost in money to get a 2000 pt army

----------------------> check 2d hand sales on shops (B&M or webbased) as well as online-markteplaces
                                  buying "regular" troops is not too expensive. Also, there are more and more alternatives hitting the shelves nowadays

[Stomm]

Let me illustrate my current gaming circumstances and let that guide your decision if you will.

Basically we started a games club in December, Warhammer and 40K dominates, obviously enough (or not as the case may be, quite a few older clubs are now dominated by non-GW fantasy games as older players get grumpier and more anti-GW in outlook). When we first started there were no Warmaster players at the club at all, luckily though Space Hulk was newly out and I played a lot of Space Hulk, still haven't finished the campaign though.

Anwyay, there is now one other guy at the club that plays Warmaster, and now Warmaster Ancients (personally I find WMA a more satisfying game to actually play). However, in merely just playing Warmaster at the club, and talking about how great a system it is whenever possible, guys have dug out armies they've had sitting in blisters for years, are considering getting into the game and so on.

Obviously it goes both ways though, and you need to show willing to play their favourite games. And ultimately for me playing different games is a good thing, as it means playing different people and adapting to different styles of play and exercising my mind a little in trying to fit the different game systems into my head.



But, oddly enough I suspect that if anyone else at the club starts to dabble in historical Wargaming, as I and Rich are already playing Warmaster Ancients, I'd be very surprised if they didn't choose Warmaster Ancients over any other alternative systems.

[jchaos79]

warmaster definitvely its worth. It paints almost quick (compared to 28mm) and ebay gives you the possibility of take a core of figures quite cheap.

The rules are simple to start with, and not too comlicated. And the simulation of a large battle is achieved easly.

If you like fantasy GW world, try to get some heroic battles of the background and porpouse to your group recreate the epic moment of GW fantasy world. The feeling of get involved in some heroic huge renown battles (with little effort and little money compared to 28mm) should encourage your group to play warmaster. It does not need to make a battle of 5000 points each side, instead 1500 points makes the illusion of a heroic battle. Paint some units as the battle was, and customize units (a unit of elfs could become the dragon princess bodyguard with a little paint). If your group start to get involved in the new dimension and the flavour of the renown battle they will learn the rules and speccial rules of monsters quickly. (well I think so)

Warmaster also permit you to have different armies of 1000 points with not a huge economic and dedication effort. So it let you enjoy different armies while in 28 mm usually you get stacked in one or two armies never finished, with warmaster your group could enjoy palying with those vampire counts army that always attract you but never had the money to start with. When your group have 2 o 3 armies you could rotate them for playing.

I wish you have luck with your group and you will enjoy warmaster!!

[marell le fou]

For my part i had the same problem. Nobody played Warmaster. I found someone in a forum who accepted to come to our shop to make a demo with me. After that i founded two person ready to buy an army.