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Mr Mystery
08-05-2015, 03:58 PM
How do?

So I'd imagine most of us have some games under our belt, and are starting to find our feet with the new rules.

I make that 'sharing is caring' o'clock!

First up, if you're just here to make snide remarks, bugger off right now. Nobody cares what you think, so save yourself the bother.

Rightydokey.....

1. Pick your fights with care....

I cannot stress this one enough. The old maxim of 'always better to charge' just doesn't hold true anymore. In my first couple of games, I was pulling off my charges en masse. All this did was mean my smaller units got the crap kicked out of them before they got much of a chance.

Take your time, and don't over commit to charges, unless you have a specific purpose (such as pinning an opposing unit in place, perhaps to keep it away from an existing combat)

2. Learn2reach!

Yep. This is a new one on me! Although formal formations are gone, we can still make use of them, after a fashion. Example? I can put a line of Ironguts (2" melee range) behind a unit of Ogres (1" range), ensuring their 'flank' is covered by Ogres (so if I've put my Ogres 7 wide, have 5 Ironguts behind them).

Whilst this of course limits the 'reach' units movement, it's a solid defensive move, as you make it very hard for your opponent to directly engage the heavy hitting 'reach' unit, whilst they get the full brunt in return.

Have a look at the units available to you, and see who might benefit from a shielding unit. You don't even need matching base sizes :) this is also a good excuse to make the most of your square based units, as they of course will line up nicely!

Right, there's two for thought. Bring your own, comment and critique away!

nsc
08-06-2015, 07:36 AM
1. Pick your fights with care

Well said, not just your fights but your activations! While it seems simple to only activate units which strike an opposing unit which has not yet been activated, I still see many people activate units which are "safe" (can no longer be attacked this combat phase) which is just denying yourself attacks.

Do not discount morale! While 'battleshock' may seem tame, even bravery 10 units can route if two or three units crash against the. Especially if you get flanked! If you get flanked by a decent charge roll then a great deal of their front ranks will fold around your forces and box them in, bringing a great deal of attacks against you. Bravery 7 might seem like a lot, but if you lose 7 guys in one turn then suddenly d6 more flee! If you engaged with two units, front-rank to front rank, dividing your opponents possible attacks then your units will be in good morale!

2. Learning to reach.

Ah yes this has a special place in my heart, see, beastmen can pile-in-4" which means if you charge in an L shape you can have about two or three guys in range of an opposing front rank, which means they'll get about 2-4 guys in range after a pile in, the rest will be over an inch away, thus they can't attack ;)

Furthermore I've been using ungors to stab spears over gors or bestigors, ungors are cowardly and are very light infantry, but if the enemy is unable to attack them then their spears can do great work as "free attacks"

3. Positioning and Movement

Similar to the first two points, and previous editions of warhammer fantasy -- Your deployment is the most important part of waging war. Especially with key supporting units (like the bloodsecrator) only moving 4"

Try and envision where the ranks will press together, you will be undone if your slow support units are too far away from your units or if they are too close to the enemy units!

Remember cover grants +1 to your save roll unless you charged that turn, so don't worry about most things charging you (worry about knights charging you of course).

Mr Mystery
08-06-2015, 12:09 PM
Positioning is another good one, and again because of how Battleshock works. Cunning positioning of your troops, particularly with 'Reach' units means you can make combats relatively one sided, ensuring maximum casualties on your opponent, and helping to minimise your own losses due to Battleshock.

Consider keeping any multi-damage hitters behind your line infantry, allowing them to really get swinging, particularly if they have range 2" or more, as there is every chance your opponent just won't be able to direct attacks against your reach unit.

4. Look for your opponent's synergy, and break it.

Characters themselves now tend to bring benefits to units, whether via a bubble of effect, or 'pick one and buff it'. I got caught out by surprisingly effective Empire Soldiery, who due to a couple of characters lurking nearby put up much more of a fight than I expected.

Some characters really bring the buff - look out for them, and you might just be able to spot his overall plan and have a chance to derail it.

nsc
08-06-2015, 12:37 PM
Breaking Synergy

Yes this is a good point, dismantling BSBs or the General are a huge factor, as with before morale (battleshock) is key in this system, and if you take out their general who usually improves morale (inspiring presence for example) then the units are more likely to rout. For many other armies (Beastmen and Vampire counts spring to mind most readily) the heroes directly improve standard troops, usually making them much more effective with bonuses to attacks or +1s on various die rolls. Killing these models can take the teeth out of the army for sure!