Best tips for a newcomer?

[Scorch]

Hello all, I'm a little dubious about posting here, as there seem to be some frustrated forum goers about... But hopefully this rather innocent topic might spark some conversation?

With an upcoming tournament this weekend, my friends and I decided to recruit and train the only one of us who didn't play Warhammer. He picked it up in one afternoon just about, and hopefully will do well this weekend.

But where am I going with this? Well, 2 things can spring to mind. First of all, what would people say, with the benefit of hundsight, would be the most important/useful rules for a newcomer to know straight off?
And also, if you'd known more about Warhammer when you first started, what would you have done differently? If anything?

[Deadlift]

Most important rule, easy "have fun" too many people take the game far too seriously. As for hindsight and how would I have started into the hobby differently ? Looking at alternative hobby supplies instead of buying everything with GW stamped on it would have been a good start. But then I paint more than play and knowing what I know now I think my painting would have improved much quicker had I experimented more with other materials and products.
Oh and make sure your tape measures is in inches and not cm, games are really slow when you make that mistake ;)

[walrusman999]

Hello all, I'm a little dubious about posting here, as there seem to be some frustrated forum goers about... But hopefully this rather innocent topic might spark some conversation?

With an upcoming tournament this weekend, my friends and I decided to recruit and train the only one of us who didn't play Warhammer. He picked it up in one afternoon just about, and hopefully will do well this weekend.

But where am I going with this? Well, 2 things can spring to mind. First of all, what would people say, with the benefit of hundsight, would be the most important/useful rules for a newcomer to know straight off?
And also, if you'd known more about Warhammer when you first started, what would you have done differently? If anything?

We are talking about 40k right? not fantasy? I first found out about this game through one of those little pamphlets you get occasionally in miniature boxes. I really didn't have anyone to play with and just kinda brought it up around friends and got the codex and rules before I ever really found anyone to play with. I would say that be sure to have fun and don't sweat over the rules. I still don't know them all and just go for the fairest solution when playing a game. I don't like to get hung up on rules, I have before and it doesn't end well. Know how you are going to play your army, speed daemons, or slow and purposeful. Also be prepared to lose, alot.

If you are talking about rulebook rules, know the standard movement, shooting, and assault rules you can worry about the special rules later. And be sure to have read through your codex before playing and write down anything special you want to remember but don't know. Maybe make a cheat sheet of your own.

[DarkLink]

Despite the bulk of the rulebook, 40k really isn't all that complicated.

Know how far each type of unit can move, and how they interact with difficult, dangerous, and impassable terrain.

Know how to embark/disembark from a vehicle, and how vehicle damage affects the passengers.

Know what types of weapons can move and shoot.

Know how to roll to hit, to wound, and to roll saves, both in and out of assault.

Know how morale and pinning tests work.

Know how to allocate wounds, and how Look Out Sir works.

Know how you declare and move during an assault, and how Pile-In and Combat resolution works.

Know how psychic powers work.



That's pretty much all of 40k right there.

[Wolfshade]

I would agree with Deadlift about making sure you have fun :)

The other things I would suggest is make sure you know your army well. So you know what it's strengths are and what it's weaknesses are. There is little point in charging a 5 man assault squad into a 20 strong genestealer brood!

[imperialpower]

Have fun and learn from your defeats/victories, makes sure you know the basics of the 40k rules and what each of your own units is best at but of course that does not help if you do not know anything about your oponents army and the best way to learn is to keep having battles and useing different tatics until you find a way you like playing that hopefully brings you a win as well. Don't forget everyone looks up rules when they are not sure so as long as you have a rule book to hand use it as much as you need to.

[Chris Copeland]

Buy and paint stuff in small batches. Buy a unit/paint a unit. DON'T buy a huge army all at once. It's not going to paint itself and a huge pile of gray plastic can sap away one's desire to paint. Again: buy a unit. Assemble and paint said unit. Wash, rinse, and repeat... soon you'll have a fully painted army...

[sangrail777]

My advice is simple. Every thing you face can die. No matter what army, no matter who leads it, everything can die. I haven't lost a single game since 2005 (and that was to my wife's Necrons) but as I tell everyone I have faced since, everything can die. Embrace your dice and paint your armies, (painted armies fight better). Good luck and the Emperor Protects.

[Kevin48220]

It's important to keep in mind that one will likely spend more time on painting, modelling, and doing conversions than actually playing the game. I may only get out to play once or twice a month, but I work on the hobby constantly. A new guy who finds the fun in doing the hobby as well as the gaming is likely to have more enjoyment overall. 40K or Fantasy isn't just playing the battles; it's also the time invested in making an army your own.

[Caitsidhe]

Expect to be beat. Embrace it. Enjoy it. Everyone must walk before they run. In fact, experience being the best teacher, a new player should want to play as often as possible and against the people MUCH better. If you are going to lose anyway, you might as well lose to the best and learn something. Losing to mediocre players happens simply because they will make fewer mistakes. Losing to good players is generally because they are proactively doing things a new player should internalize.

It is just like a new video game. You should always set the damn thing to the hardest level possible and learn to play it that way. Why muck around and play silly baby level? New people should expect to be beat and enjoy it, knowing that doing their time early and paying attention will allow them to catch up much faster.

[Themaninthegreenhat]

Hi!

asa newcomer to the game i might either have some very usefull advice, or night useless depending on your view in the matter.

I'd say, if it's about collecting, make sure he knows what he want's to get out of his army. This'll spare him buying units he doesn't need/use.

About playing? Make sure he remembers "to hit/arms ave and to wound" i keep forgetting the formulas m'self. :D