Need help with battle reports please!

[najo]

So, the staff here is very interested in your ideas for creating and sharing battle reports. We like to know the tools, the steps from start to finish, the best methods for keeping the report easy to follow and fun to watch or read.

So please, share links, procedures, ideas, software, etc. Let us know what works best in a forum post or on YouTube. We like to hear all your great ideas fellow Masters of the Night!

 

[Von Calyptra]

This tutorial from the Dark Eldar forum might be useful. It uses free software called Battle Chronicler.

 

[HERO]

Battle Chronicler is great for really indepth reports, but it takes FOREVER to do a proper report.

Normally when I'm done playing a game, I want to blog about it and write about it because it's fresh in my head. Since BC is a comprehensive visual guide that follows everything that goes by turn-by-turn, you really need to be taking notes and remember exactly what's happening while you're playing. This not only slows down the game that you're playing (and thus making it less enjoyable overall), but frankly, is a big hassle to do all this work after you just got done playing a 2-3 hour game. The worst part is if you let it sit and put it off, you risk forgetting the details which are critically important to draw an accurate turn-by-turn picture.

For me, I just use bullet points to describe critical moments in the game that I played. Take a few pictures here and there, and share tales of epic moments. Don't boggle yourself down with super minor details that only the most die-hard of readers care about. The objective is to share a story first and foremost, discussing strategy and tactics come later.

Something like this maybe:
http://lkhero.blogspot.com/2014/05/br-50pt-ecaine-vs-butcher3.html
http://lkhero.blogspot.com/2013/10/br-2500-de-vs-he.html

 

[Sanguinus]

Von Calyptra already posted what I going to suggest. Mush hasn't really been active for a while but his batreps with BC are great.
Another Dark Eldar player who's often praised for his batreps is Skari - he uploads videos on YouTube (Skared Cast) that are edited to show the results of each phase as he narrates what occurred, so they're short but informative, then has a section at the end where he discusses the match's tactics.

The objective is to share a story first and foremost, discussing strategy and tactics come later.

I disagree. A lot of players read battle reports to improve their understanding of the game, to learn new strategies and tactics, not only for the army(ies) they play but also those of armies they'll likely battle.

 

[najo]

Great advice so far. I think both hero's point and sanguinus' point aren't mutually exclusive. Keeping reports short, entertaining, visual and informative with clear tactics would be ideal.

Please link some examples of the best Bat Reps in your opinions.

 

[HERO]

Von Calyptra already posted what I going to suggest. Mush hasn't really been active for a while but his batreps with BC are great.
Another Dark Eldar player who's often praised for his batreps is Skari - he uploads videos on YouTube (Skared Cast) that are edited to show the results of each phase as he narrates what occurred, so they're short but informative, then has a section at the end where he discusses the match's tactics.


I disagree. A lot of players read battle reports to improve their understanding of the game, to learn new strategies and tactics, not only for the army(ies) they play but also those of armies they'll likely battle.

But you learn both if you keep the BRs short and concise with limited pictures. Further explanation can be built in the comments section of your video/blog. That's how discussions are formed. You want the people you're giving advice to to engage with you in discussion so you can go more indepth and elaborate.

The BR itself shouldn't be more than 15-20 minutes long if video, and enough for anyone to digest (experienced and new) within 10 minutes on the blog.

 

[bigbadbat]

@najo I'll do a good write up of how I make mine as well as some tips for content and such. Apologize for my absence as of late, the Internet at my home has been on the fritz.