Tabletop Teacher

Whilst it's not as exciting as weapons rules, or as glamorous as new models, what can make or break a system in a game is actually the game you play. Which means the context in which you push around your plastic soldiers. Frankly, it's also the hardest bit to sell to neophyte students. They're generally champing at the bit to just roll dice at the other person until everything's dead. Games Workshop has given players like that a simple battle system to follow: Only War. Because that's in the 40K tag line. This is similar to the Age of Sigmar freebie rules mission, and is designed for quick games with new players or just people who want to roll dice at each other until the other guy is dead. Well that's a bit unfair. Unlike the Age of Sigmar mission, this has objectives. We keep seeing 40K as being like AoS but with more complexity, and this is an example of just that. AoS also launhed without any way to balance armies. Having learned from th...

I'm old enough to remember the first Cities of Death expansion for 40K, and so I'm rather pleased to see this come in on release! The main claim to fame for the old version was doing away with templates, as they tended to get stuck on terrain making them impossible to fit on a unit hiding in rubble. Instead, units within the range took a random number of hit, which certainly sounds familiar . Rules for 8th Edition we can pick out of the release over at Warhammer Community : Only infantry get a natural cover bonus for being in cover. Monsters and vehicles must be obscured to gain a bonus (no more toe-in-cover for you Mr. Wraithknight). Specific rules for Cities of Death specialist missions include: Doubling the cover bonus for infantry that don't move. Flying units can jump from rooftop to rooftop... although I don't see why they can't in normal missions... Grenades thrown in ruins always have the maximum number of shots possible (does this appl...

I think everyone has heard of a T'au T'ide W'all, or an Imperial Aegis Line, but I don't think the majority of players actually use them. The rules for buildings have always seemed a bit obtuse, and were considered an add-on rather than an integral part of the game. 8th Edition is no different, but will have "advanced" rules for strongholds and structures at release. A few quick points, as Games Workshop has been light on this reveal: New Batlefield types and deploments New Strategems (shown above) Extra specialist rules for blowing up Buildings etc. Buildings will have Toughness and an armour Save, with more than a dozen Wounds The direction this seems to be heading in is for Narrative games, or fun set pieces rather than competitive matched play. The good old Void Shield may still be around, but at least the marketing thrust seems to be geared towards charging the other guys castle, or holding out in a bunker. Not much new here, apar...

Yep, free as the sky! My first scenario I wrote on Patreon is available to the public . There have been a fair few posts since then, and if you want to see all of them, drop a few pennies into the hat (seriously, minimum donation is $1). Those pennies will go towards my school's club. Whilst I do get a budget for the term, and a great deal of support from Games Workshop itself, I still put in about £100-£200 worth of my own money into getting club supplies for each term. I don't mind doing it, and I do use the paints and tools for my own projects, but it does cut into my families budget quite a bit. Helping me out on Patreon means that I can keep the club in paintbrushes and spray cans without putting me into bankruptcy (and maybe buy some more technical tools for the students). As ever, I want this to be a resource for students and teachers alike, and don't want to start adverts to avoid any issues with school firewalls. Have a look at my first scenario, and re...

It's been a while since I've had a chance to talk about the school club, and what goes on in it. School has (finally) settled down after mock exams and Christmas holidays, and despite a few Physics trips I've actually managed to get back to routine. It won't last. Half term is around the corner, and then actual exam panic for the Year 11s will set in. But for now everything is running normally, which means rampaging kids and their Space Wolves. What is clear though, is the immense disparity between students' toy soldier budgets. Whereas one boy is happily putting together 'club miniatures' funded by the school (well, actually me... Patreon link below), one boy has had parents drop around £300 on him over Christmas. What is happening with him is known as the Wallet Warrior, where he will simply buy the best stuff, or in this case, the most stuff to get an advantage over his buddies. Although in 40K the points system should be good enough to keep thi...

The next Patron Only Scenario is up on Patreon. This is a very brutal, and bloody scenario, that favours melee heavy lists. That's not to say ranged armies can't do well in it, but it removes the kiting distance that shooting units tend to need. It's a tight map, and is better for smaller lists. However, it can lead to awful blood bath of a battle when used with larger armies! Here's a short clip from the Scenario: Scenario: This is it. You've scouted the enemy out. You've snuck past their defences. And now, you and your men are ready to hit them where them where they live. Even as you slink your way closer to the camp, your infiltrators are listening at their tents and barrack buildings, just waiting for the signal to knife them in their sleep. Your Scouts are already itching to get ahead, some of the more zealous ones all but on top of the perimeter. You have reserves waiting to fall from the sky. A decapitation strike. All going according ...

The second of my paid posts is now on Patreon . It's only available to Patrons on my Patreon page, so drop in a few pennies now! Not only will you be able to see the scenario in full, but you'll also be supporting a poor teacher promote his hobby within his school. It's another solo scenario, that I personally use to test how durable my army is, whilst still seeing if it's speed can make up for it. Here's a little taste of the scenario: A variation on the first one, this is to help students understand the run rules, and defensive tactics in Warhammer 40K. It's flexible to other game systems, but those tweaks will rely on your own knowledge of the defensive rules. The idea is that the players army is continually under fire, forcing you to make use of cover and run moves to get your army out alive. It's a neat little scenario to let you know how good your army is at absorbing firepower, whilst still balancing against the speed of your army i...