Rather than leaving 3++ con to the last two-three months before, we're going to get started on what's what now. With 6th edition being brand new, this is going to be extra important and I'm going to be watching a lot of the other major tournaments in America to see how they handle certain things and what the outcomes are. Let's look at the basics remembering I want to include as many of the core rules as possible but still want a competitive event.
- Allies in
- Fortifications in
- Double FoC not in because we're playing 1850 points anyway
- Mysterious terrain out
- Mysterious objectives - not sure but likely out
- Warlord traits - I want to include them and there seems to be a couple of great ideas abound on how to do this without making it completely random and without allowing simple choice of the matter
- Flyers in and by this time one hopes more FAQs/models shall be released which can ensure flyers are a balanced part of the game
- Imperial Armor is not in unless there is an official Games Workshop sanction for it
Which takes us to...missions. NOVA did so well for a couple of reasons IMO. First, it got rid of draws (for the most part) whilst keeping with the 5th edition constructs. 6th edition has changed those so we need to adapt the type of missions to what 6th edition is all about (heavier emphasis on Troops). I'm going to try and include every aspect of those missions into the 3++ con missions (including secondaries, however I may do this) and be doing a lot of playtesting/observing what others do (i.e. NOVA, FoB, BFS, etc.). Some quick things of note:
- there will be tiers to ensure draws are less common, we still want a W/L system
- Hammer & Anvil will not make an appearance - yes there are some balance issues but nothing I'm sure some creative thinking couldn't fix but the main issue here is logistics. We were cramped last year and whilst I'm trying my hardest for more space, it's likely just going to be comfortable for our aim of 64 players. I'd need to halve that if we wanted H&A to be viable.
- the emphasis on objectives and reduction in emphasis on kill points shall be reflected in the missions (i.e. expect only one mission to be Kill Point primary but they will still be there as secondaries, etc.)
- a potential deployment split of Spearhead, old Dawn of War, new Dawn of War and Vanguard Strike
- the random Night Fight will likely stay, it doesn't seem to have had an adverse impact on games and adds something you need to take into account for during army list creation and gameplay
Other than that everything should be relatively similar to last year. This means:
- 6 games over two days
- 1850 points
- bracket break-down for Day 2
- tiered W/L missions (and as above, how these work is likely to be quite different)
Hoping for 64 players without any drop-outs this year. Beyond that, any feedback you have on basic missions you've played so far, what you'd like to see in regards to the missions at 3++ con and if you're you'd help out with playtesting the missions we do starting designing would be fantastic. Obviously the more games you guys can help us with, the better the missions will end up being (hopefully)! Until that time (I probably won't start devising missions until after NOVA though I'll likely brainstorm with Biscuit up until that point), discuss away on what you'd like to see/not like to see in the missions.
