So... Warhammer (The tabletop version)

MASTACHIEFPWN

Will fight you and lose
Mar 27, 2010
2,279
0
0
Oh boy, where to even begin.

So the strategy smuck that I am decided to buy Total Warhammer upon its release, and I've had a pretty good time with it (Some ups and downs, but overall good, by Creative Assembly standards). And now, for some reason- I want to start collecting these ridiculously expensive miniatures- which to my knowledge have been largely discontinued (With this whole age of sigmarine thing).

So I've decided to turn to you for advice, escapist- How do you like Warhammer (in any tabletop incarnation) and do you have any tips for someone who potentially might want to start collecting? None of the more current offerings I've seen on Games Workshop's website seem very appealing, so I've mostly looked at stuff on ebay and amazon. Is it worth it? Because it does seem expensive (Which, unfortunately for me, I have money to fund such a hobby at the moment); not only economically, but time-wise? (Like putting the figures together and painting them?)

Any good memories or recent stories with the game? Any general table-toppy madness you'd like to discuss? Any suggestions for good alternatives if the general consensus is trash?
 

bartholen_v1legacy

A dyslexic man walks into a bra.
Jan 24, 2009
3,056
0
0
MASTACHIEFPWN said:
Oh boy, where to even begin.

So the strategy smuck that I am decided to buy Total Warhammer upon its release, and I've had a pretty good time with it (Some ups and downs, but overall good, by Creative Assembly standards). And now, for some reason- I want to start collecting these ridiculously expensive miniatures- which to my knowledge have been largely discontinued (With this whole age of sigmarine thing).

So I've decided to turn to you for advice, escapist- How do you like Warhammer (in any tabletop incarnation) and do you have any tips for someone who potentially might want to start collecting? None of the more current offerings I've seen on Games Workshop's website seem very appealing, so I've mostly looked at stuff on ebay and amazon. Is it worth it? Because it does seem expensive (Which, unfortunately for me, I have money to fund such a hobby at the moment); not only economically, but time-wise? (Like putting the figures together and painting them?)

Any good memories or recent stories with the game? Any general table-toppy madness you'd like to discuss? Any suggestions for good alternatives if the general consensus is trash?
Long time player (13 years of hobby, 11 years of gaming). I'd say hold off for a while if you're interested in starting playing the game. The current incarnation of fantasy Warhammer is incredibly divisive, and only in its baby shoes at the moment. The previous, nearly 30-year old Fantasy Battles was axed last summer in favor of Age of Sigmar, which is way, way, way simpler and meant to be more accessible. A points system is meant to come out this summer in order to balance the game; at the moment there's nothing forbidding you from making an army consisting of nothing but dragon riding lords. The new system has been met with basically nothing but vitriol from long time fans, as it removed entire factions from the game, created a new lore that's been met with universal derision, and stripped large parts of the armies from their personality.

As a starting off point I'd suggest buying the starter painting set that comes with a few miniatures. Those are around 25-30 bucks a pop, which isn't too bad these days, and will give you the general feeling of what that part of the hobby is like. If you can, try to find a store where you could have a few demo games to see if the game seems appealing. Most Games Workshop stores host tables for this purpose alone, and games nights where newcomers can battle against other newbies in small skirmishes. Then, if you decide to commit to the hobby, I suggest picking your favorite army carefully. Whose lore, visual look, general feel, models and so on do you find most appealing? If you're unsure about your decision, you'll end up with a pile of random models and no consistent army to play with. Though it all depends on how deep into the hobby you're thinking of getting: if it's just painting and collecting the models, go nuts. It's quick and easy. Getting into the game requires a lot more time and effort.

I love the hobby: it's versatile, it's social (don't expect to find any girls though), it's deep and satisfying, and best of all, there's no demands of anything. You only need to put in as much effort and time as you personally want. I hate the company that produces it: their prices are outrageous, their business model completely unbalanced, quality control of the rules is nearly nonexistent and their customer practices have, in the past, been beyond abhorrent, though some slight twinkle of improvement could be seen from their facebook page, where they *gasp* actually respond to their customers!
 
Jan 19, 2016
692
0
0
Don't get into Fantasy now. The current game "Age of Sigmar" is a shitshow and GW have been beyond incompetent in the last few years.

If you want to get into miniatures wargaming right now, I would suggest you look at Kings of War (Warhammer Fantasy knock off) or Warmachine/Hordes (collectively known as Warmahordes), as they are both increasingly popular, in no small part due to GWs efforts to alienate their audience through bad decisions and price gouging, and they are quite a bit cheaper too. However, you should also check out what games are played regularly in your local area, as you want to play a game that has a community.
 

Thaluikhain

Elite Member
Legacy
Jan 16, 2010
18,580
3,539
118
I'd recommend getting daemon models, because then you can also play 40k with them. 40k currently isn't completely rubbish.

EDIT: That could do with some expanding. Anyway, as mentioned, GW killed off 30 years off fluff, got rid of the Bretonnian and Tomb King (French Knights and Egyptian themed undead respectively), and are dropping models from the range like there's no tomorrow. They've totally given up on making the game balanced of fair, just stick the most expensive models on the table and read 2 free pages of rules and an 100 page expensive book of expansions.
 

SocialistSaxon

New member
Sep 2, 2014
7
0
0
As someone who's played the game for over a decade but fell out of habitual modelling and playing just before the End Times event (precursor to the new Age of Mediocre game) I'd say it might be best to start out slow. The key thing to remember is that because GW don't like money, you're not allowed to play any old versions of any of their games, and seeing as Age of Failure is technically the 9th edition of Warhammer Fantasy, they don't let you play proper WFB in the stores anymore. The best thing you can do is get your hands on a beginner's set of some kind, so you can have a bash at painting the miniatures and see if you enjoy it or not. There should be plenty of tutorials online on how best to do it.
Finally i'd like to say that i'm still convinced that Age of Awful-Setting-Pisspoor-Rules-Marketing-Disaster will be the New Coke of GW, and even if it takes a few years, I think we're gonna see a return to proper Warhammer eventually.
 

09philj

Elite Member
Legacy
Mar 31, 2015
2,154
947
118
GW is in a rut at the moment. Ignore them. Privateer Press's Warmachine/Hordes is meant to be a good game, but I really dislike the miniatures. http://privateerpress.com/

Corvus Belli's Infinity is an excellent game, although it's sci fi not fantasy. The models are very expensive, but you only need a few to play. infinitythegame.com
 

Chairman Miaow

CBA to change avatar
Nov 18, 2009
2,093
0
0
bartholen said:
I love the hobby: it's versatile, it's social (don't expect to find any girls though)
Hey! My wife has quite a sizeable collection of Chaos Demons!

Don't have much experience with fantasy myself, but everything this guy has said seems like great advice. Make sure you have the patience for painting, do a couple of testers. Don't worry if your first few attempts are awfule, nobody starts great. They usually have sessions in store where they are very helpful if you don't know how to start.

The other thing I would add is don't take on too many or too big of a project at once, it can be really demotivating.
 

MASTACHIEFPWN

Will fight you and lose
Mar 27, 2010
2,279
0
0
bartholen said:
MASTACHIEFPWN said:
Oh boy, where to even begin.

So the strategy smuck that I am decided to buy Total Warhammer upon its release, and I've had a pretty good time with it (Some ups and downs, but overall good, by Creative Assembly standards). And now, for some reason- I want to start collecting these ridiculously expensive miniatures- which to my knowledge have been largely discontinued (With this whole age of sigmarine thing).

So I've decided to turn to you for advice, escapist- How do you like Warhammer (in any tabletop incarnation) and do you have any tips for someone who potentially might want to start collecting? None of the more current offerings I've seen on Games Workshop's website seem very appealing, so I've mostly looked at stuff on ebay and amazon. Is it worth it? Because it does seem expensive (Which, unfortunately for me, I have money to fund such a hobby at the moment); not only economically, but time-wise? (Like putting the figures together and painting them?)

Any good memories or recent stories with the game? Any general table-toppy madness you'd like to discuss? Any suggestions for good alternatives if the general consensus is trash?
Long time player (13 years of hobby, 11 years of gaming). I'd say hold off for a while if you're interested in starting playing the game. The current incarnation of fantasy Warhammer is incredibly divisive, and only in its baby shoes at the moment. The previous, nearly 30-year old Fantasy Battles was axed last summer in favor of Age of Sigmar, which is way, way, way simpler and meant to be more accessible. A points system is meant to come out this summer in order to balance the game; at the moment there's nothing forbidding you from making an army consisting of nothing but dragon riding lords. The new system has been met with basically nothing but vitriol from long time fans, as it removed entire factions from the game, created a new lore that's been met with universal derision, and stripped large parts of the armies from their personality.

As a starting off point I'd suggest buying the starter painting set that comes with a few miniatures. Those are around 25-30 bucks a pop, which isn't too bad these days, and will give you the general feeling of what that part of the hobby is like. If you can, try to find a store where you could have a few demo games to see if the game seems appealing. Most Games Workshop stores host tables for this purpose alone, and games nights where newcomers can battle against other newbies in small skirmishes. Then, if you decide to commit to the hobby, I suggest picking your favorite army carefully. Whose lore, visual look, general feel, models and so on do you find most appealing? If you're unsure about your decision, you'll end up with a pile of random models and no consistent army to play with. Though it all depends on how deep into the hobby you're thinking of getting: if it's just painting and collecting the models, go nuts. It's quick and easy. Getting into the game requires a lot more time and effort.

I love the hobby: it's versatile, it's social (don't expect to find any girls though), it's deep and satisfying, and best of all, there's no demands of anything. You only need to put in as much effort and time as you personally want. I hate the company that produces it: their prices are outrageous, their business model completely unbalanced, quality control of the rules is nearly nonexistent and their customer practices have, in the past, been beyond abhorrent, though some slight twinkle of improvement could be seen from their facebook page, where they *gasp* actually respond to their customers!
Honestly, most of what intrigued me was from WFB- what I've been looking at is discontinued sets on ebay, because space marines with hammers isn't really doing it for me; and there doesn't seem to be any offerings for Brettonia. I honestly just plan on buying a few loose figures off of there and seeing how I enjoy assembly/painting, maybe find a paint kit from somewhere. There is a gamesworkshop store like twenty minutes away from me (Honestly shocked by that), but their prices do seem ridiculous.
 

Silentpony_v1legacy

Alleged Feather-Rustler
Jun 5, 2013
6,760
0
0
Don't bother with Fantasy. Its all but dead. The new Battle of Calth box sold better than the entire Age of Sigmar launch, and the community is all but disbanded. Ironically, Age of Sigmar completely devastated the fandom and broke the entire tournament scene apart. Now fans exist in isolated pockets, trying to just keep going, constantly at war with one another over rules and units.
 

Smithnikov_v1legacy

New member
May 7, 2016
1,020
1
0
I've never gotten into the two flagship games from GW, but I adore much of their "Specialist" lines. Space Hulk, Space Crusade/Tyranid Attack, Man O War, Mordheim and Necromund, I still have my paint jobs and builds for them and adore them.
 

The Harkinator

Did something happen?
Jun 2, 2010
742
0
0
Warhammer Fantasy in it's proper incarnation, and it's Games Workshop that killed it. Steer clear otherwise you'll get stuck in the Age of Sigmar crap they're pushing right now. If you like the world of Warhammer Fantasy just keep playing Total War: Warhammer. If you want to play a similar tabletop game take a look at Mantic's Kings of War.

I was an Empire player, but I dabbled briefly with the Bretonnians before realising they were getting rolled up and thrown away as part of the complete mishandling by GW. It's really expensive and only going to get more so, and if you want to get a decent size army it takes lots of time and money. Then again Fantasy wasn't really my main game system, I primarily played 40k (Imperial Guard) which they haven't messed with as much but the power creep going on there is insane.
 

frankelee

New member
Jun 5, 2016
1
0
0
Goodness, there's no need to wait to start playing. Games Workshop ended Warhammer Fantasy Battles and replaced it with Age of Sigmar, which is not so much a game as it is an excuse to take your expensive painted models and use them them to do something while hanging out with friends. It's only 4 pages of rules and they're all free online so it's very easy to try out the game, but your better options are instead Mantic's Kings of War (something of a reaction to Warhammer Fantasy Battles by an old, well known GW designer), and 9th Age, the spiritual, if not legal successor to Warhammer Fantasy Battles 8th edition. (It's called 9th Age because it's really the 9th edition of WFB, just made by a large collective of fans.) Both Kings of War and 9th Age have their rules available online, 9th Age is totally free, Kings of War has some further rulebooks which you have to buy. Online battle reports on Youtube explain the games better than anything, but both seem quite popular right now.

As for figures eBay is a great source, there aren't as many old armies on there for sale, but there's still some. Kings of War has army boxes which are pretty good values which I've also purchased on eBay. Also Avatars of War make figures basically to be used in Warhammer, they make very high quality character models cheaper in cost than GW's, as well as a few box sets for regular troopers. If you're building a Dwarf army I think they're very nice to look into, I've bought 5 or 6 unit boxed sets from them, also on eBay (and you have to be really specific about the searches with them for some reason, eBay frequently didn't show me all the Avatars of War stuff with an "Avatars of War" search, kind of strange).

I don't know if I can say it's worth it to get into the hobby. They call these little figures "plastic crack" for a reason, it's like an addiction that draws you in and you can't escape. Also you may find you like some games that don't revolve around battle scale conflicts. Frostgrave is very popular right now, it uses any generic fantasy miniatures to create little skirmishes between warbands of a dozen guys or so. And Games Workshop is getting back into the small scale games themselves after the poor reception of Age of Sigmar, you might find one you like with Warhammer Quest, Blood Bowl, Mordheim, and Necromunda. I really spent more time and had more fun playing those games than I did Warhammer Fantasy Battles as a kid.
 

09philj

Elite Member
Legacy
Mar 31, 2015
2,154
947
118
MASTACHIEFPWN said:
bartholen said:
MASTACHIEFPWN said:
Oh boy, where to even begin.

So the strategy smuck that I am decided to buy Total Warhammer upon its release, and I've had a pretty good time with it (Some ups and downs, but overall good, by Creative Assembly standards). And now, for some reason- I want to start collecting these ridiculously expensive miniatures- which to my knowledge have been largely discontinued (With this whole age of sigmarine thing).

So I've decided to turn to you for advice, escapist- How do you like Warhammer (in any tabletop incarnation) and do you have any tips for someone who potentially might want to start collecting? None of the more current offerings I've seen on Games Workshop's website seem very appealing, so I've mostly looked at stuff on ebay and amazon. Is it worth it? Because it does seem expensive (Which, unfortunately for me, I have money to fund such a hobby at the moment); not only economically, but time-wise? (Like putting the figures together and painting them?)

Any good memories or recent stories with the game? Any general table-toppy madness you'd like to discuss? Any suggestions for good alternatives if the general consensus is trash?
Long time player (13 years of hobby, 11 years of gaming). I'd say hold off for a while if you're interested in starting playing the game. The current incarnation of fantasy Warhammer is incredibly divisive, and only in its baby shoes at the moment. The previous, nearly 30-year old Fantasy Battles was axed last summer in favor of Age of Sigmar, which is way, way, way simpler and meant to be more accessible. A points system is meant to come out this summer in order to balance the game; at the moment there's nothing forbidding you from making an army consisting of nothing but dragon riding lords. The new system has been met with basically nothing but vitriol from long time fans, as it removed entire factions from the game, created a new lore that's been met with universal derision, and stripped large parts of the armies from their personality.

As a starting off point I'd suggest buying the starter painting set that comes with a few miniatures. Those are around 25-30 bucks a pop, which isn't too bad these days, and will give you the general feeling of what that part of the hobby is like. If you can, try to find a store where you could have a few demo games to see if the game seems appealing. Most Games Workshop stores host tables for this purpose alone, and games nights where newcomers can battle against other newbies in small skirmishes. Then, if you decide to commit to the hobby, I suggest picking your favorite army carefully. Whose lore, visual look, general feel, models and so on do you find most appealing? If you're unsure about your decision, you'll end up with a pile of random models and no consistent army to play with. Though it all depends on how deep into the hobby you're thinking of getting: if it's just painting and collecting the models, go nuts. It's quick and easy. Getting into the game requires a lot more time and effort.

I love the hobby: it's versatile, it's social (don't expect to find any girls though), it's deep and satisfying, and best of all, there's no demands of anything. You only need to put in as much effort and time as you personally want. I hate the company that produces it: their prices are outrageous, their business model completely unbalanced, quality control of the rules is nearly nonexistent and their customer practices have, in the past, been beyond abhorrent, though some slight twinkle of improvement could be seen from their facebook page, where they *gasp* actually respond to their customers!
Honestly, most of what intrigued me was from WFB- what I've been looking at is discontinued sets on ebay, because space marines with hammers isn't really doing it for me; and there doesn't seem to be any offerings for Brettonia. I honestly just plan on buying a few loose figures off of there and seeing how I enjoy assembly/painting, maybe find a paint kit from somewhere. There is a gamesworkshop store like twenty minutes away from me (Honestly shocked by that), but their prices do seem ridiculous.
Brettonia was cut from the current line, along with Tomb Kings.
 

cleric of the order

New member
Sep 13, 2010
546
0
0
I play dwarves
I have had an army since 6th ed
MASTACHIEFPWN said:
Oh boy, where to even begin.
I want to start collecting these ridiculously expensive miniatures- which to my knowledge have been largely discontinued (With this whole age of sigmarine thing).
there's ninth edition and kings of war if you want to continue playing it otherwise you are kinda screwed.
GW is in it's death throes.


How do you like Warhammer (in any tabletop incarnation)
4000pts dwarfs so I'd say a good deal.

and do you have any tips for someone who potentially might want to start collecting? None of the more current offerings I've seen on Games Workshop's website seem very appealing, so I've mostly looked at stuff on ebay and amazon.
incidentally my first bit of advice is buy from ebay.
Ebay or mantic minis.
Ebay is generally the best.
Amazon has been weird with minis, craiglist and other places aren't a bad idea but generally you want ebay.

Is it worth it? Because it does seem expensive (Which, unfortunately for me, I have money to fund such a hobby at the moment); not only economically, but time-wise? (Like putting the figures together and painting them?)
oh if you are going to paint, buy a bunch of cheap gaurdsmen and paint them.
Get a wet palet
don't use citadel most people prefer vajeo or privateer press.
THIN YOUR PAINTS
https://1d4chan.org/wiki/THIN_YOUR_PAINTS
Any good memories or recent stories with the game? Any general table-toppy madness you'd like to discuss? Any suggestions for good alternatives if the general consensus is trash?
One of my favorite things was when my sergeant remained in combat with a deffdread to punch it through it's chest.
my worst experiences table top have been my adwares managing to panic off the table after an ally failed a 25% loss panic test which was like 3 models.
 

Realmikebob

New member
Apr 28, 2011
22
0
0
Tons of alternatives to GW these days.

Warmachine/Hordes has a fantastic ruleset (although 3rd edition hits this month. All signs point to it still being good though.)

Guildball has some lovely models, is cheap to play and is really starting to make waves despite only being just over a year old. Well worth a look and you can get the full rules and printable characters for free to try it out from steamforged.com.

Malifaux has an interesting diceless system using cards and some lovely models, although some of the aesthetics are a bit weird.

Kings of War is a good alternative to Warhammer if you want to stick to the mass armies games.

There is a fan written ruleset called 9th Age if you really want to get into the Warhammer side of things. I haven't paid it much attention but it seems like the guys behind are putting some great work into it.

Infinity has some fantastic models that look amazing. Ive only played a couple of games of it and there were some translation problems, but I believe it has a new edition now that has hopefully fixed things.

Mythos by Paranoid Miniatures is looking interesting, although its early days so far. It has a great Lovecraftian vibe to it, although the current beta rules are rough and need some work. It has just finished a kickstarter but I think there is a late backers option.

Dropzone Commander is a hard scifi game. I have only played a demo but it was pretty fun. Much smaller scale to the a lot of things though which might make scenery tricky.

Dystopian Wars is a steampunk game about mass battles but has rules for land, sea and air.

Firestorm Armada uses a similar system to Dystopian Wars, but is all about space battles (think Battlefleet Gothic)

Really is a great time to be a tabletop gamer, as GW cutting their lines to just 40k and AoS has really allowed the smaller developers to jump in and flourish in the spaces they have left.