creating a boxed vs army composition

[Loempiaketzer]

Hi all,

i think i made this account way back in warhammer 7th edition.
now several years later, many editions and some dabling in other games [while also having some live changing stuff happen to me] im looking into getting back into the hobby.
heres my challenge / goalsetting. if its done before please point me to the thread discussing this but i dont know how to search for this.

im currently with my girlfriend and her 2 kids, im almost 40. i miss the dice rolling and measuring stuff and even the guessing of the distances from the warmachines cannonball rolls.
i do play some rangers of shadowdeep these days. it does a job, but not THE job of the old fashioned wargaming. I also play some dnd dungeon crawler boardgames, lotr journey in middle earth and some other cool mini-boardgames. but still. im missing the versus aspect.
i have 2 armies laying around and im wondering if i can fix something with them to get my current friends into trying a game and see what happens. they are not thouroughly wargamed seasoned people and sometimes have troubles remembering steps in somewhat complexer boardgames. so i dont know how tricky this will be.

goal;
having 2 armylists from whatever ruleset to create 'boxes like games workshop does' based somewhat on the old warhammer edition.
it should contain vampire counts vs empire, as i have a solid 5 to 10k models of those armies.
i'd like to field the following;
- smaller board than the 48x72 --> 48x48 should be fine
- armies will be vampire counts and empire
- army lists should be fixed and balanced to each other to a certain degree.
- playing time for the game should be roughly 1.5 to 2 hours

i didnt pour trough the entire one page rules community, but it seems a decent place to start.
also am i missing something here?

it would be really cool making a box containing the battlefield, 2 painted armies that are somewhat balanced, me knowing the rules so i could play with people again.


this or getting back into the hobby and traveling to my local game store.
seems like a larger order to go there seeing the time constraints and the times i can actually make the time to play.

thoughts?
best regards,
a random 39 year old guy trying to measure some distances and roll some dice to a cool looking battlefield.

 

[Zambula]

Hi there!

I feel your lack of time, it's frustrating not being able to finish a match (or spend more time explaining rules than playing).
In 6th edition we play "border patrols" often, which is a reduced version of the game, 500 pts each. 30-40 mins/match, played in 3'x4' or 4'x4'.
Since you come from 7th, 6th ed should be familiar enough. The reduced size (and lenght!) allows to paly several matches in the same session, and the armies get easier to manage. Perfect for beginners!

These are, summarized, the composition changes:

Army Size and Unit Composition

• The entire army must not exceed 500 points.
• The force must consist of at least two units and no more than four units (this limit applies to the regiments/war machines and excludes your Hero).
• You must include at least one Core choice.
• You may include one Special OR one Rare unit, but you cannot take both.
• You must field at least one infantry unit of 10 or more models. To satisfy this requirement, the models must be Unit Strength 1, non-flying, and on foot.
• No single unit may contain more than 25 models.
• Your army can include a maximum of one Chariot or one War Machine.

Characters, Costs, and Upgrades

• The army must be led by exactly one Hero, who acts as the General. This character cannot be an Army Battle Standard Bearer, nor can they be a character that takes up two Hero choices (such as a Black Orc Big Boss).
• No single model in the army may cost more than 125 points.
• No unit is allowed to carry a magical standard.

Army-Specific Exceptions

• Bretonnian armies are exempt from their normal requirement to include an Army Battle Standard Bearer.
• Tomb Kings must take a Liche Priest as their Hero and General, and this specific model is allowed an increased limit of up to 165 points. Additionally, Tomb Kings are permitted to field more than one Chariot.
• Vampire Counts are allowed to have a Vampire Thrall lead their force.

The results is: a smaller army, less space needed, faster matches. And all the fun, I can tell you. ONCE they are familiar with the rules you can escalate into proper battles.
Another easy ruleset is Ravening Hordes (balanced, 2-sheet/army rules), but I personally think it lacks flavour.

PD1: Regarding TOW Border patrols, I found this thread here: Border Patrol: Anyone tried it? | The Old World: Vampire Counts & Tomb Kings | Page 2 | Carpe Noctem
PD2: I also recommend to skip some "complicated" mechanics for the first games. For instance:

• pre-select some spells and print them into cards for quick reference.
• Print quick-reference sheets (to hit, to wound, modifiers).
• Use a digital army builder + the books (the books gives you the visual, the digital makes the math for you).
• Allow to pre-measure (until they develop the intuition themselves).
• Ignore Miscasts or Irresitible force.
• Skip special characters

PD3: Search for "Warhammer Warbands for 7th ed", which is based on what we said, but even smaller. There you go to almost skirmishes (even less miniatures), which makes it more narrative. You have Small warbands (1-199 pts), Large warbands (200-500pts). In this version, each faction has their own rules: Empire (detachements need 3+ models, and only units with 6+ models can have detachments) and VC (you can use a Thrall, Whraith, Wight, Necromaner or even a Champion, no wizard required)