The scan+sig+spike rule in Dropfleet was the main thing that pushed me into actually buying the game. It's so clever, strategic and thematic at the same time.
I see conquest activation system of needing to prepare the order of activation at the begging of the round was already mentioned :) In that case I'll go with Rumbleslam: if you do the same action to often in a row (twice, three times? I forgot). If you do you roll the "crowd" die and if it turns up with "Boooo" you loose your action. It is a game about fantasy wrestling - the crowd getting bored seeing a fighter do the same thing over and over again makes sense and it incentivises not to just do just do the same powerful or efficient action all the time. Beside beating your opponents fighter you want to ensure the crowd is getting a spectacle
Heat is a fantastic rule for Battletech. A lot of the crunch comes from the fact that each weapon is tracked and fired separately, and the hit locations. The only other thing that approached that level of detail and gameplay was GW's Imperial Knight game they came out with a few years ago, and to a lesser degree, WarmaHordes.
I was really curious if he was going to say the heat system, or initiative system. The heat system is really cool and a huge draw imo. But personally, the fact that everything that happens simultaneously which means even a destroyed 'mech is still going to get it's shots off, makes a lot of other initiative systems look much less fun to me!
An extra fun feature of the heat system in BattleTech is the option of infantry with flamethrowers of inferno (ie napalm) missiles to build up enemy heat, or specialised mechs like the firestarter to run round igniting woods or buildings to hem the enemy in and get them to overheat.
Bolt Action's "no measuring before acting" rule means that you are estimating if something is within range and firing, then measuring to see if you are in fact in range (or over half range for some effects on some weapons). It speeds up play because you cannot measure everything and choose your action afterwards. It also means that as shots are fired, you get some sense of distances as you play. There is also a similar mechanic to Zone Wars with a die for each unit being put in a bag and drawn at random to activate units, although there are no zone tokens in this case.
@@ethanmckinney203 No worries. It's a great game. In fact, my Scourge fleet will be in orbit this evening, when a mate of mine brings round his cursed PHR!
I'd add the patrol phase in 'Chain of Command' - it reflects the chaotic way small unit engagements occur, and does away with the startikng line, with a side benefit of accelerating action.
Really enjoy the patrol phase in CoC. Also really like the simple list building. Never made a list before going to play. Just bring a platoon and some stuff.
GW’s Middle Earth LOTR game does a great job of making heroes a much bigger and more tactically interesting part of the game than most war games I’ve seen. The actions of other units are much more dependent on them because of their heroic actions and stand fast against courage fails. Really works in that setting. I think Hail Caesar’s system of issuing orders to troops is interesting - makes the quality of your general more relevant and good simulation of the difficulty of commanding armies esp in ancient times. Though can be very annoying if bad luck causes your army to just not carry out your orders and lose you the game
I am a fan of the Middle Earth SBG myself. When the new boxed set comes, I plan to give it some coverage. And, I totally agree, the heroes are really influential- which nicely mirrors the source material. 👌
Interesting selection. Two more games that have great mechanics are 'Malifaux' - I love the fact that there are no dice at all. And 'Saga' The battle board and possible multiple moves for a single unit, together with the fatigué mechanic, make that game very interesting and unique.
I have conflicting feelings about Blood Bowl. I love the theme and models, but found that games ran too long. BB needs a league, which is easier to keep running with shorter games IMHO. It still provides a big slice of nostalgia, that’s for sure. 😊
@@The.Game.Cave. Yeah fair enough, an hour and a half is pretty standard for 2 players who know the rules inside out. Maybe a chess clock would speed it up, dunno. Clocks create their own problems
@paddymick4627 I must admit, games with my group were longer than that! I have fond memories of a few long-bombs and heroic charges through ork blockers. 🙂
Dropfleet is a lot of fun. You get plenty in the starter set for your first few games. After that, picking up a light ship boxed set is a good way to go. 🙂
ASOIAF tactics board is my absolute favorite mechanic as it allows the inclusion of NCUs that are so important to the story but would otherwise never see play in a war game
The Activation Dice, Command, and Reaction mechanics of Full Spectrum Dominance elevates a surface level IgoUgo system to something far more dynamic. Spending more dice on a unit allows them to do more at the expense of not being able to activate others. Very cool game design.
One of my favorite rules in wargaming, at least in more casual, relaxed matches, is "What I say goes" from Brikwars. Essentially, it says that if it takes you longer than 30 Seconds to look up a rule, that rule is not worth looking up as it disrupts the flow of your game too much. So both players just state their interpretation of the rule, role a Die and whoever rolls highest decides on how the rule should be interpreted. Just don't go too over the top with it, because if you abuse that to make your opponents day miserable, they'll a) no longer want to play with you and b) use that rule at every opportunity to ruin the rest of your day too
That's great. I love the ethos behind it - keep playing, have fun. With this rule, you'll also quickly learn whether you're playing with someone even-handed or not.
@@The.Game.Cave. Sure. The BM rule is if you get hit you recive 1 BM. If you loose a unit you recieve 1 more (1 for each unit lost). BM makes it harder to activate, supresses your units and adds up until you break. Very cool. Crossfire rule works like if you have a friendly unit on the other side of an enemy unit you fire on, you add more BM:s (see above) and the armour of the enemy get reduced by 1. Makes positioning very important in that game. Epic:armageddon is probably the best ruleset ever made for wargaming IMO.
Have you tried Infinity the Game by Corvus Belli. They have a fifth edition coming out and it has a fantastic automatic reaction order mechanic and D20 face to face dice offs that make it really dynamic.
This is a game I’ve looked at several times. The miniatures look stunning - but I’m not a fan of metal models. Even so, I may pick up the Essentials Set that is due to come out soon.
I agree, I really love the "ARO" (automatic reaction order) as well as how your whole activation is rolled up into one and not two separate actions. I am glad someone mentioned infinity as it's a surprisingly great game.
This was interesting, thank you. The rule reminds me on the Noise mechanic that is becoming quite prevalent in dungeon crawler/ exploration styles board games.
Sure - Reichbusters springs to mind. That's a WW2-themed dungeon crawler that's getting a re-fresh later this year. Too much noise raises the alertness of the guards and can set off an alarm. Which games were you thinking of?
My favorite game is middle earth strategy battle game. The random priority, alternating phases, and and heroes ability to break the rules, make for a great game.
I am a big fan of the pin rules used in Warlord Games Beyond the Gates of Antares and Warlords of Erehwon (and also Bolt Action, I believe, though Im not familiar with those rules). Units accumulate pins when they come under fire, whether or not the shooting hurts them, and pins acts as negative modifier to activation rolls. If a unit hss more pins than their courage they automatically break and you have to periodically sacrifice an activation to rally and remove them. Its a really simple, clean mechanism for managing battlefield morale.
@@HumorousConclusion That's another good one! I've played games where it's referred to as Supression. I think it nicely simulates the fact that troops under fire won't always do whatever an officer says - such as charging an enemy fortification!
The old game Battlemaster had a deck of cards that you pulled from to tell which units went. I thought this was a fantastic mechanic that made you count cards before reshuffling
@@The.Game.Cave. Yes. Each unit has a card, and you stack them at the beginning of the round. You need to anticipate in which order your opponent might activate his unis, so it requires a lot of thinking ahead =)
@jeronimo486 That does sound cool! I had a good look at the models for 'Last Argument' a few UK Games Expos ago. The scale was really impressive - and the range since then has grown enormously (pun intended!).
A really overlooked Wargame that has been a favorite or mine since the early 00s is "Battlegrounds Fantasy Warfare" by YourMoveGames/Rattrap. Whenever I pitched this game to tried and true veteran wargamers I also told them "what if Warhammer Fantasy was still around and cheap?" It usually got a laugh but it's true, instead of miniatures they used cards to simulate the units which was really clever. And as a broke college kid some years ago, that's exactly what I needed to introduce it to my friends who had never heard of wargaming. Great little ruleset that is easily accessible and played, definitely worth a check out IMO
@drewslater6790 A friend of mine raves bout this game. It's the one where you send your units forward and then have limited influence to change their momentum? I've always thought it sounds interesting.
@The.Game.Cave. that sounds like it! You mark down command orders for all your units at the beginning of a game, simple things like "Close", "Range", "Charge" ect. And they will continue to do so unless you spend a "command action" on your turn. Pretty simple rules, plenty of fantasy factions (I am partial to my dwarves) love grinding out victories with a good ol shield wall!
My experience with random activations came from Bolt Action 2nd edition. It felt clever at first, but then seemed a problem. My working theory on games (whether miniatures or card games) is 1) Did I bring the right faction list (or deck)? 2) Did I make the right choices in game? (moving/activating units or playing certain cards from my hand) and 3) the luck of dice rolling or drawing the right cards from your deck at the right time. Adding yet ANOTHER random element takes away from the skill portion of list making/deck building/decision making in-game. Your Star Wars example seems to mitigate that some what, in terms of you getting to decide what units activated and when. There is a game that comes to mind, I can't for the life of me remember the name, but it seemed simple and elegant. Your Warlord was free, and you paid points for 4-model 'veterans', 8-model 'regulars' and 12-model 'fodder' units. At the beginning of your turn you rolled a handful of symbol dice and consulted your unit/ability dashboard. If you didn't roll the right dice, some of your units just couldn't activate that turn. That felt much too random for me; took away all the energy/skill of putting together a good list and making good decisions in-game. There are fun games where Luck is a majority element and deck/list/faction and in-game decisions are minor elements and that's okay, it changes your mindset when playing. But otherwise, if the focus of the game is deck/list/faction and in-game decisions, then the randomness of dice rolling and other factors needs to reduced. The Scan+Signature of the Dropship game sounds very clever.
@jonmattison3939 Great comment - thanks. My own tolerance for randomness is closely linked to both game length and theme. I don't mind swingy dice or mechanics in a short game - but if it loses someone a game that has taken all evening, then that can reduce the fun. When a game is intentionally more chaotic (such as Zone Wars), I've found people are more likely to chuckle at a crazy dice roll. Can't say I recognise the game you've described...
@@The.Game.Cave. Yes, for instance, I love Zombicide (Black Plague, Green Horde, etc) because it's a different kind of fun with all the randomness of card draws for loot and spawning and the dice rolls. But for something like Warhammer 40k or Magic the Gathering, I want a game where my decisions matter. I've invested in this army, this deck, and I want an end game more dependent on skill than on luck. I don't remember how long ago I played or how the game may have changed in the meantime, but I just looked it up; the game I was referring to is Saga by Studio Tomahawk. As I've grown older I'm definitely more of a fan of shorter games (Combat Patrol/Spearhead) and less interested in longer games (40k/Age of Sigmar). Preferring to collect/paint/play multiple Combat Patrols and Spearheads (collect wide) than look at my painting table with 188 tyranid models partially painted.
@@jonmattison3939 It sounds like our hobby journey - and changing preferences - are similar. I can remember happily spending a whole Saturday setting up and playing a game of 5th Edition 40k. These days, I'd rather play several shorter games.
@@The.Game.Cave. Exactly. These days I reserve Saturdays for building/painting. My buddy comes over for a game night on a weeknight and after a day's worth of work, I'm not always up for an evening's-worth of 'homework' for a full 40k game. I'd switch it up be he works on Saturdays.
@@jonmattison3939 I know what you mean. After a long day, I don't want a game that demands too much of me. Definitely prefer a daytime session for that sort of thing!
I chose Dust, as I'm a lot more familiar with system. Infinity has always intrigued me (Sandtrap looks great!) - but I am not a fan of glueing together metal models. Particularly when I drop them. 😬 That has always put me off.
@The.Game.Cave. I hope you give a try someday. Constantly exchanging fire, face to face rolling, and expending multiple orders really let you have action sequences. But yeah i dig the list. Maybe another one could be malifaux card system.
@The.Game.Cave. Sure. You can win the game following scenario rules but you also can win anytime simply by killing your opponent's warcaster, which makes protecting your caster quite important.
@@beathitus Of course! I remember now. I’ve always liked the look of War Machine/Hordes - I hung on to a huge crocodile dude, simply as a display piece! - but there were not many players in my area.
@kieranham3002 I missed out on Warmaster, back in the day: I was only interested in heroic scale minis at that point. Did units take some sort of test to see if they did as they were told?
@@The.Game.Cave. Yeah you have a general and can have heroes and sorcerers that can command too. 2D6 roll looking to get under their command value. You can continue to order that unit/brigade but negative modifiers apply. When that character fails an order he can no longer give orders, when the general fails that's the end of the order phase. There's more to it but that's the general idea. The game is quite strong these days, community kept it alive and have made changes to the rules where necessary. The rise of 3D printing has really helped, some great sculptors doing warmaster armies out there.
@kieranham3002 Thanks - that dies sound cool. I would definitely like to give it a try one day. Now, all I need to do is convince my wife that I 'need' a 3D printer...
@@The.Game.Cave. it's a slippery slope, there's also plenty of official resellers around that will print armies and sell them to you. My personal favourite sculptor is forest dragon. He has a bunch of armies fully done. The rules and army lists are free at warmaster revolution. Just give both a google.
@@The.Game.Cave. I'm personally loving the small scale stuff at the moment, can enjoy great rules systems and the painting and storage is really easy. Currently doing Warmaster, Armoured Clash, 15mm Bolt Action and waiting on Epic Warpath from Mantic to arrive.
Grim Dark's AI rules operate similar to the Dust Tactics idea, just a different die roll. Really appreciate your doing this video. Any suggestions on best solitaire rules for conquistadors v Incans, and for Saxons v Vikings?
@peterixon8708 Not tried Grim Dark - but that sounds cool. My knowledge of Solitaire games is limited, I'm afraid. If I'm on my own, I tend to play a board game with decent AI. I've had requests to cover Rangers of Shadowdeep, so I may look at that some time.
Well, you did a good job with your video; I took notes and I've been doing war games - for pleasure, and in my government career that I retired from last year - since 1978.
I really dig OnePageRules' implementation. Heavily inspired by the GW games, but alternate activations, model agnostic so you can use the stuff you already bought for other games, *much* faster play and the rules are free so you don't have to buy books that become outdated in short order ^^"
@andreazaltron6850 Good question! Zone Wars works well with 3. Its chaotic nature makes it harder for players to gang-up on someone. The Middle Earth Strategy Game is also pretty good. I've played with a large bunch of orcs against some allied good goog guys a few times - Rohan and Gondor or Elves and Dwarves, for example. You know, this might make a good video itself! 🙂
Seconding the odd player video! 2 and 5 players are easy. 3 and 5 players is a lot more restricted. Particularly with war games where it needs to try and incentivise not picking on one ppayer
Dropfleet commander was awesome but the 2.0 version killed the fun for me to many thing went out the windows the game loosed a big part of his uniqueness ! Battletech and asoiaf are trully awesome games not so a fan of legion ! But great video thanks !
I enjoyed Dropfleet 1st edition, but I found the games ran long. The streamlining in 2.0 removed some interesting complexity from ground battles. I understand why they did it, though - played a 750 point game last night in just over 2 hours. It's more manageable now, I think. And I still love the models! 🙂
@The.Game.Cave. The model are great. But for me the activation, the all mesure and Los for the group leader (ignoring the other ship in the group) The splash damage, the 4 status effect ignored on group. The only two orbit. The bombardement busted at a point when reentry do nothing. The bomber and fighter being way to pricey for their impact. And a lot of weapon totaly busted..... Have totaly killed the hype for me. I have make 6 games 4 with my ucm and 2 with my shaltari. We are just playing "40k" in space rven BFG was more fun. I liked the first one and found it better than armada 2.0 but this 2.0.... All my friend in our group agree anf a lot a of new player in my local storr tried it and found it lack of everything and prefer armada. It's really a bummer. I love the model and some change. Like the new armor es/ks/bs. But some weapon do nothing now... Playing shaltati against PHR is a lot of fun..... They have 3+ sav on Es and 90% of the shaltari arsenal is E. Bioficier are also the new shaltari lol. Busted weapon, low sig, good scan and poor sav but with always a bs. Which is a lot better than shielf sav and nothing or 6+ I will stop my rant here sorry x) I was just really hype during announcement then afraid during the first tease and now totally disappointed.
I have to confess that it reflects my taste in games. There are plenty of historical periods that interest me, but I generally like to add in a dash of 'weird', sci-fi, or the like. Plus, I don't have the inclination to build/paint units that have entirely authentic uniforms and weapons. That always seems really important in historical games.
Great collection of good game rules. What I also enjoyed with Dust was how well they managed to make a game around a D3 instead of a D6. Really gets you thinking 🪖
The scan+sig+spike rule in Dropfleet was the main thing that pushed me into actually buying the game. It's so clever, strategic and thematic at the same time.
@pluisjen134 I agree. I think this also combines well with fire-arc rules and limited turning options to make it a really tactical game.
Game sounds so fun have to try it, but hard to find players around here. Had a lot of fun with dropzone commander, great setting.
@andersand6576 2.0 is more streamlined and approachable for new players. Of course, local availability of games is always key. 🙂
Great game, agreed
@@The.Game.Cave. might very well be Christmas present for myself (:
I see conquest activation system of needing to prepare the order of activation at the begging of the round was already mentioned :)
In that case I'll go with Rumbleslam: if you do the same action to often in a row (twice, three times? I forgot). If you do you roll the "crowd" die and if it turns up with "Boooo" you loose your action.
It is a game about fantasy wrestling - the crowd getting bored seeing a fighter do the same thing over and over again makes sense and it incentivises not to just do just do the same powerful or efficient action all the time. Beside beating your opponents fighter you want to ensure the crowd is getting a spectacle
@@S0nyb1ack That's a great rule 👌 Really captures the feeling of entertaining the crowd.
Heat is a fantastic rule for Battletech. A lot of the crunch comes from the fact that each weapon is tracked and fired separately, and the hit locations. The only other thing that approached that level of detail and gameplay was GW's Imperial Knight game they came out with a few years ago, and to a lesser degree, WarmaHordes.
I was really curious if he was going to say the heat system, or initiative system. The heat system is really cool and a huge draw imo.
But personally, the fact that everything that happens simultaneously which means even a destroyed 'mech is still going to get it's shots off, makes a lot of other initiative systems look much less fun to me!
An extra fun feature of the heat system in BattleTech is the option of infantry with flamethrowers of inferno (ie napalm) missiles to build up enemy heat, or specialised mechs like the firestarter to run round igniting woods or buildings to hem the enemy in and get them to overheat.
Bolt Action's "no measuring before acting" rule means that you are estimating if something is within range and firing, then measuring to see if you are in fact in range (or over half range for some effects on some weapons). It speeds up play because you cannot measure everything and choose your action afterwards. It also means that as shots are fired, you get some sense of distances as you play.
There is also a similar mechanic to Zone Wars with a die for each unit being put in a bag and drawn at random to activate units, although there are no zone tokens in this case.
Using those rules, estimation of distance becomes a key skill for players!
Thank you for covering Dropfleet Commander!
@@ethanmckinney203 No worries. It's a great game. In fact, my Scourge fleet will be in orbit this evening, when a mate of mine brings round his cursed PHR!
I'd add the patrol phase in 'Chain of Command' - it reflects the chaotic way small unit engagements occur, and does away with the startikng line, with a side benefit of accelerating action.
@@paulhefferan8106Not played that, but it does sound interesting. 🙂
Really enjoy the patrol phase in CoC. Also really like the simple list building. Never made a list before going to play. Just bring a platoon and some stuff.
@andersand6576 That sounds cool. I've not played Chain of Command - though I've heard good things about TOOFATLardies.
@The.Game.Cave. Really enjoy that system, have not played a lot else from the lardies.
GW’s Middle Earth LOTR game does a great job of making heroes a much bigger and more tactically interesting part of the game than most war games I’ve seen. The actions of other units are much more dependent on them because of their heroic actions and stand fast against courage fails. Really works in that setting.
I think Hail Caesar’s system of issuing orders to troops is interesting - makes the quality of your general more relevant and good simulation of the difficulty of commanding armies esp in ancient times. Though can be very annoying if bad luck causes your army to just not carry out your orders and lose you the game
I am a fan of the Middle Earth SBG myself. When the new boxed set comes, I plan to give it some coverage. And, I totally agree, the heroes are really influential- which nicely mirrors the source material. 👌
I’ve always liked the Warmaster orders roll, which Hail Caesar is loosely based on.
Interesting selection. Two more games that have great mechanics are 'Malifaux' - I love the fact that there are no dice at all. And 'Saga' The battle board and possible multiple moves for a single unit, together with the fatigué mechanic, make that game very interesting and unique.
@Ant1815 Malifaux's use of cards is certainly very clever. Maybe I will get round to a second list at some point!
Completely agree about the Saga battle boards - a fantastic mechanic that allows for really dynamic play.
0:58 those drop ships are great looking
Thanks. They are lovely models to paint. 🙂
Blood Bowl's 'Illegal Procedure' rule was very important in making it such a great game from 3rd ed onwards. We still love you Jervis
I have conflicting feelings about Blood Bowl. I love the theme and models, but found that games ran too long. BB needs a league, which is easier to keep running with shorter games IMHO. It still provides a big slice of nostalgia, that’s for sure. 😊
@@The.Game.Cave. Yeah fair enough, an hour and a half is pretty standard for 2 players who know the rules inside out. Maybe a chess clock would speed it up, dunno. Clocks create their own problems
@paddymick4627 I must admit, games with my group were longer than that! I have fond memories of a few long-bombs and heroic charges through ork blockers. 🙂
Fantastic selection and presentation of these mechanics. Thank you!
@@mikec64 Thanks! 😊
Really cool video. Been looking for a good spacae game
Dropfleet is a lot of fun. You get plenty in the starter set for your first few games. After that, picking up a light ship boxed set is a good way to go. 🙂
ASOIAF tactics board is my absolute favorite mechanic as it allows the inclusion of NCUs that are so important to the story but would otherwise never see play in a war game
@daniellogue8365 Totally agree! Without Varys, Littlefinger, Cercei and all the rest, the heart of the IP would be missing!
The Activation Dice, Command, and Reaction mechanics of Full Spectrum Dominance elevates a surface level IgoUgo system to something far more dynamic. Spending more dice on a unit allows them to do more at the expense of not being able to activate others. Very cool game design.
@@schoon8654 Great choice 👌
One of my favorite rules in wargaming, at least in more casual, relaxed matches, is "What I say goes" from Brikwars.
Essentially, it says that if it takes you longer than 30 Seconds to look up a rule, that rule is not worth looking up as it disrupts the flow of your game too much. So both players just state their interpretation of the rule, role a Die and whoever rolls highest decides on how the rule should be interpreted.
Just don't go too over the top with it, because if you abuse that to make your opponents day miserable, they'll a) no longer want to play with you and b) use that rule at every opportunity to ruin the rest of your day too
That's great. I love the ethos behind it - keep playing, have fun. With this rule, you'll also quickly learn whether you're playing with someone even-handed or not.
The goal of the game is to trick people into playing with you again after all
@cybrandir I did not expect you here 😆
@Vomarsk Likewise :)
Blastmarkers and the crossfire rule from Epic:Armageddon are 2 of my favourite wargaming rules.
@mordoten I’m not familiar with those. Would you mind giving me an outline?
@@The.Game.Cave. Sure. The BM rule is if you get hit you recive 1 BM. If you loose a unit you recieve 1 more (1 for each unit lost). BM makes it harder to activate, supresses your units and adds up until you break. Very cool.
Crossfire rule works like if you have a friendly unit on the other side of an enemy unit you fire on, you add more BM:s (see above) and the armour of the enemy get reduced by 1. Makes positioning very important in that game.
Epic:armageddon is probably the best ruleset ever made for wargaming IMO.
@ Cool. That does sound good. 👍
I haven’t been able to play it, but “trench crusade” has an interesting system with adding dice or taking away dice depending on how the action is.
@Nuclear_Spider Trench Crusade looks very cool! I backed the recent Kickstarter - and the game will feature in an upcoming video. 🙂
Great video reviewing fun rules. Well done
Have you tried Infinity the Game by Corvus Belli. They have a fifth edition coming out and it has a fantastic automatic reaction order mechanic and D20 face to face dice offs that make it really dynamic.
This is a game I’ve looked at several times. The miniatures look stunning - but I’m not a fan of metal models. Even so, I may pick up the Essentials Set that is due to come out soon.
I agree, I really love the "ARO" (automatic reaction order) as well as how your whole activation is rolled up into one and not two separate actions. I am glad someone mentioned infinity as it's a surprisingly great game.
This was interesting, thank you. The rule reminds me on the Noise mechanic that is becoming quite prevalent in dungeon crawler/ exploration styles board games.
Sure - Reichbusters springs to mind. That's a WW2-themed dungeon crawler that's getting a re-fresh later this year. Too much noise raises the alertness of the guards and can set off an alarm.
Which games were you thinking of?
Very intresting rulers
Very good ..I love those mechanics ....spoilt for choice ! 👍
@spaceoddity5674 Thanks - there are some really innovative designers out there! Andy Chambers bring a particular favourite of mine.
My favorite game is middle earth strategy battle game. The random priority, alternating phases, and and heroes ability to break the rules, make for a great game.
I love this game too. I shall pick up the new rules and plan to play some games. 🙂
I am a big fan of the pin rules used in Warlord Games Beyond the Gates of Antares and Warlords of Erehwon (and also Bolt Action, I believe, though Im not familiar with those rules). Units accumulate pins when they come under fire, whether or not the shooting hurts them, and pins acts as negative modifier to activation rolls. If a unit hss more pins than their courage they automatically break and you have to periodically sacrifice an activation to rally and remove them. Its a really simple, clean mechanism for managing battlefield morale.
@@HumorousConclusion That's another good one! I've played games where it's referred to as Supression.
I think it nicely simulates the fact that troops under fire won't always do whatever an officer says - such as charging an enemy fortification!
Those wer esome good rules you picked, grats.
@@RanwulfMaxwell Thanks! 🙂
The old game Battlemaster had a deck of cards that you pulled from to tell which units went. I thought this was a fantastic mechanic that made you count cards before reshuffling
@arcaniswithertree4284 Is that the one with the huge plastic mat?
Yes! one side is the Empire and the other side is Orcs.
@arcaniswithertree4284 That was a lot of fun. I remember covering my living room floor with that mat and moving all those minis around! 🙂
Those cards made me hate the game.
I really love the activation systems in Bolt Action and Conquest: Last Argument of Kings.
@jeronimo486 Bolt Action does it well.
Is it card-based in Last Argument of Kings?
@@The.Game.Cave. Yes. Each unit has a card, and you stack them at the beginning of the round. You need to anticipate in which order your opponent might activate his unis, so it requires a lot of thinking ahead =)
@jeronimo486 That does sound cool!
I had a good look at the models for 'Last Argument' a few UK Games Expos ago. The scale was really impressive - and the range since then has grown enormously (pun intended!).
Great video!
Thanks for this ONE!
@dariostabletopbastelecke4846 No problem - glad you liked it! 😀
Really like how infantry can stack up to take down larger monsters in warmachine/hordes
I love the aesthetic for Warma-Hordes. It'll be interesting to see how it goes now that Steamforged Games has the license.
@The.Game.Cave. crossing my fingers. Had a lot of fun with second edition. Hoping to find a community that it plays it once.
A really overlooked Wargame that has been a favorite or mine since the early 00s is "Battlegrounds Fantasy Warfare" by YourMoveGames/Rattrap. Whenever I pitched this game to tried and true veteran wargamers I also told them "what if Warhammer Fantasy was still around and cheap?" It usually got a laugh but it's true, instead of miniatures they used cards to simulate the units which was really clever. And as a broke college kid some years ago, that's exactly what I needed to introduce it to my friends who had never heard of wargaming. Great little ruleset that is easily accessible and played, definitely worth a check out IMO
@drewslater6790 A friend of mine raves bout this game. It's the one where you send your units forward and then have limited influence to change their momentum? I've always thought it sounds interesting.
@The.Game.Cave. that sounds like it! You mark down command orders for all your units at the beginning of a game, simple things like "Close", "Range", "Charge" ect. And they will continue to do so unless you spend a "command action" on your turn. Pretty simple rules, plenty of fantasy factions (I am partial to my dwarves) love grinding out victories with a good ol shield wall!
@drewslater6790 Yep, that's it. According my friend, it's the best wargame he has ever played!
@@The.Game.Cave. that's some high praise! But I love to hear it, it definitely is one of my favorites. Would be able to see if covered in more spaces!
My experience with random activations came from Bolt Action 2nd edition. It felt clever at first, but then seemed a problem. My working theory on games (whether miniatures or card games) is 1) Did I bring the right faction list (or deck)? 2) Did I make the right choices in game? (moving/activating units or playing certain cards from my hand) and 3) the luck of dice rolling or drawing the right cards from your deck at the right time. Adding yet ANOTHER random element takes away from the skill portion of list making/deck building/decision making in-game.
Your Star Wars example seems to mitigate that some what, in terms of you getting to decide what units activated and when.
There is a game that comes to mind, I can't for the life of me remember the name, but it seemed simple and elegant. Your Warlord was free, and you paid points for 4-model 'veterans', 8-model 'regulars' and 12-model 'fodder' units. At the beginning of your turn you rolled a handful of symbol dice and consulted your unit/ability dashboard. If you didn't roll the right dice, some of your units just couldn't activate that turn. That felt much too random for me; took away all the energy/skill of putting together a good list and making good decisions in-game.
There are fun games where Luck is a majority element and deck/list/faction and in-game decisions are minor elements and that's okay, it changes your mindset when playing. But otherwise, if the focus of the game is deck/list/faction and in-game decisions, then the randomness of dice rolling and other factors needs to reduced.
The Scan+Signature of the Dropship game sounds very clever.
@jonmattison3939 Great comment - thanks.
My own tolerance for randomness is closely linked to both game length and theme. I don't mind swingy dice or mechanics in a short game - but if it loses someone a game that has taken all evening, then that can reduce the fun.
When a game is intentionally more chaotic (such as Zone Wars), I've found people are more likely to chuckle at a crazy dice roll.
Can't say I recognise the game you've described...
@@The.Game.Cave. Yes, for instance, I love Zombicide (Black Plague, Green Horde, etc) because it's a different kind of fun with all the randomness of card draws for loot and spawning and the dice rolls. But for something like Warhammer 40k or Magic the Gathering, I want a game where my decisions matter. I've invested in this army, this deck, and I want an end game more dependent on skill than on luck.
I don't remember how long ago I played or how the game may have changed in the meantime, but I just looked it up; the game I was referring to is Saga by Studio Tomahawk.
As I've grown older I'm definitely more of a fan of shorter games (Combat Patrol/Spearhead) and less interested in longer games (40k/Age of Sigmar). Preferring to collect/paint/play multiple Combat Patrols and Spearheads (collect wide) than look at my painting table with 188 tyranid models partially painted.
@@jonmattison3939 It sounds like our hobby journey - and changing preferences - are similar. I can remember happily spending a whole Saturday setting up and playing a game of 5th Edition 40k. These days, I'd rather play several shorter games.
@@The.Game.Cave. Exactly. These days I reserve Saturdays for building/painting. My buddy comes over for a game night on a weeknight and after a day's worth of work, I'm not always up for an evening's-worth of 'homework' for a full 40k game. I'd switch it up be he works on Saturdays.
@@jonmattison3939 I know what you mean. After a long day, I don't want a game that demands too much of me. Definitely prefer a daytime session for that sort of thing!
Surprised you didnt choose infinity's ARO system as the reaction rule. But the dust one sounds good too
I chose Dust, as I'm a lot more familiar with system. Infinity has always intrigued me (Sandtrap looks great!) - but I am not a fan of glueing together metal models. Particularly when I drop them. 😬 That has always put me off.
@The.Game.Cave. I hope you give a try someday. Constantly exchanging fire, face to face rolling, and expending multiple orders really let you have action sequences.
But yeah i dig the list. Maybe another one could be malifaux card system.
@Blaowser I may pick up the basic starter set for Infinity that I believe is coming out soon and give it a try...
If i might just add to this, i was against infinity due to the metals, they are actually a really high quality, better than GW metals used to be!
@@The.Game.Cave.ok it's official I love you now.
Great video Carl 👍
Thanks, mate.
Good selection of rules 🤙
The spacecraft signature + scan range is really innovative 🤟
@@ronniabati Thanks. It is a great rule. 🙂
nice one
Random activations and tested reactions are the best.
I always find them fun. 🙂
Dropfleet Commander sounds great, but my favourite wargame mechanic is Infinity the Game's ARO system. Makes for incredibly compelling game play.
@@thwalmsley I think I’d certainly play Infinity if the models were plastic. I find metal fiddly and difficult to glue. Plus, I’m a dropper!
Urgh I want to try all these games! They all sound so much fun!
@@griffglowen5555 So many games, so little time! I feel your pain! 🙂
Caster kill in Warmachine deserves a mention.
@@beathitus I've not played War Machine for years. Could you elaborate, please?
@The.Game.Cave. Sure. You can win the game following scenario rules but you also can win anytime simply by killing your opponent's warcaster, which makes protecting your caster quite important.
@@beathitus Of course! I remember now. I’ve always liked the look of War Machine/Hordes - I hung on to a huge crocodile dude, simply as a display piece! - but there were not many players in my area.
@@The.Game.Cave. PP crocs sculpts were superb. Great vid btw !
@@beathitus Thanks. 🙂 I always liked the trolls as well.
Cool
Warmaster orders phase is great, you aren't sure if your units will actually do what you want.
@kieranham3002 I missed out on Warmaster, back in the day: I was only interested in heroic scale minis at that point.
Did units take some sort of test to see if they did as they were told?
@@The.Game.Cave. Yeah you have a general and can have heroes and sorcerers that can command too. 2D6 roll looking to get under their command value. You can continue to order that unit/brigade but negative modifiers apply. When that character fails an order he can no longer give orders, when the general fails that's the end of the order phase. There's more to it but that's the general idea.
The game is quite strong these days, community kept it alive and have made changes to the rules where necessary. The rise of 3D printing has really helped, some great sculptors doing warmaster armies out there.
@kieranham3002 Thanks - that dies sound cool. I would definitely like to give it a try one day.
Now, all I need to do is convince my wife that I 'need' a 3D printer...
@@The.Game.Cave. it's a slippery slope, there's also plenty of official resellers around that will print armies and sell them to you. My personal favourite sculptor is forest dragon. He has a bunch of armies fully done. The rules and army lists are free at warmaster revolution. Just give both a google.
@@The.Game.Cave. I'm personally loving the small scale stuff at the moment, can enjoy great rules systems and the painting and storage is really easy. Currently doing Warmaster, Armoured Clash, 15mm Bolt Action and waiting on Epic Warpath from Mantic to arrive.
Those are cool spaceship miniatures and stands. I guess they're from Dropfleet?
@cetx They are: the grey ships are UCM (humans), and the silvery-blue space sharks are the Scourge (parasitic aliens). 🙂
Grim Dark's AI rules operate similar to the Dust Tactics idea, just a different die roll. Really appreciate your doing this video. Any suggestions on best solitaire rules for conquistadors v Incans, and for Saxons v Vikings?
@peterixon8708 Not tried Grim Dark - but that sounds cool.
My knowledge of Solitaire games is limited, I'm afraid. If I'm on my own, I tend to play a board game with decent AI.
I've had requests to cover Rangers of Shadowdeep, so I may look at that some time.
Well, you did a good job with your video; I took notes and I've been doing war games - for pleasure, and in my government career that I retired from last year - since 1978.
@@peterixon8708 Wow - thanks very much! You must have thrown a few dice in your time. 🙂
Carl, bizarrely, I ended up playing the role of 'enemy' for 26 countries. I was very lucky how my professional life played out (no pun intended)
@@peterixon8708 That sounds intriguing!
Another good video. 👍
@@pdj672 Thanks, dude. 😄
Overall,I like alternate activations. I have started using them in 40k. It makes for a much better game
I wish GW would make that official. I suppose they worry about upsetting the apple cart...
I really dig OnePageRules' implementation. Heavily inspired by the GW games, but alternate activations, model agnostic so you can use the stuff you already bought for other games, *much* faster play and the rules are free so you don't have to buy books that become outdated in short order ^^"
any good games for 3 players?
@andreazaltron6850 Good question! Zone Wars works well with 3. Its chaotic nature makes it harder for players to gang-up on someone.
The Middle Earth Strategy Game is also pretty good. I've played with a large bunch of orcs against some allied good goog guys a few times - Rohan and Gondor or Elves and Dwarves, for example.
You know, this might make a good video itself! 🙂
@@The.Game.Cave. tnx man. I will try them. Make a dedicated video if you can
@@andreazaltron6850 Sure thing!
Seconding the odd player video! 2 and 5 players are easy. 3 and 5 players is a lot more restricted. Particularly with war games where it needs to try and incentivise not picking on one ppayer
@@Aneirinprime Hmm who would do such a dumbass move to gang up on a single player 😂
these are well done videos, enjoyable, concise, clear. please accept my subscription.
@pezpengy9308 Fantastic! Glad to have you. 🙂
Fantasy and SciFi gaming
Zone wars is great
@@henrikcollin4727 Yeah - one of my faves. 🙂
What about Malifaux's cheating fate mechanic?
@@sebastianb2044 A good choice. Maybe I needed to do a top ten!
BATTLETECH!!!!
@@grek6667 Love the enthusiasm!
I love the fact that DUST gets a mention. Such a great game!
@@nicktalbot3310 Absolutely. I hope for a revival some day. 🙂
Dropfleet commander was awesome but the 2.0 version killed the fun for me to many thing went out the windows the game loosed a big part of his uniqueness !
Battletech and asoiaf are trully awesome games not so a fan of legion !
But great video thanks !
I enjoyed Dropfleet 1st edition, but I found the games ran long. The streamlining in 2.0 removed some interesting complexity from ground battles. I understand why they did it, though - played a 750 point game last night in just over 2 hours. It's more manageable now, I think. And I still love the models! 🙂
@The.Game.Cave. The model are great.
But for me the activation, the all mesure and Los for the group leader (ignoring the other ship in the group)
The splash damage, the 4 status effect ignored on group.
The only two orbit.
The bombardement busted at a point when reentry do nothing.
The bomber and fighter being way to pricey for their impact.
And a lot of weapon totaly busted.....
Have totaly killed the hype for me.
I have make 6 games 4 with my ucm and 2 with my shaltari.
We are just playing "40k" in space rven BFG was more fun.
I liked the first one and found it better than armada 2.0 but this 2.0....
All my friend in our group agree anf a lot a of new player in my local storr tried it and found it lack of everything and prefer armada.
It's really a bummer.
I love the model and some change.
Like the new armor es/ks/bs.
But some weapon do nothing now...
Playing shaltati against PHR is a lot of fun..... They have 3+ sav on Es and 90% of the shaltari arsenal is E.
Bioficier are also the new shaltari lol.
Busted weapon, low sig, good scan and poor sav but with always a bs.
Which is a lot better than shielf sav and nothing or 6+
I will stop my rant here sorry x)
I was just really hype during announcement then afraid during the first tease and now totally disappointed.
And yet not one proper historical wargame !
I have to confess that it reflects my taste in games. There are plenty of historical periods that interest me, but I generally like to add in a dash of 'weird', sci-fi, or the like. Plus, I don't have the inclination to build/paint units that have entirely authentic uniforms and weapons. That always seems really important in historical games.
Great collection of good game rules. What I also enjoyed with Dust was how well they managed to make a game around a D3 instead of a D6. Really gets you thinking 🪖
@zaccoste8510 It does - very streamlined design. Dust has a great setting and look as well.