What is Codex Creep?

[40kGamer]

Codex Creep? Maybe it's me but I'm just not seeing it. I read through every codex and play around with different builds. I'm still relatively new to 5e but I played a lot in 3rd & 4th. I think a lot of people confuse different with better. Every rules change makes some things better and others worse. So I have a Darwinian attitude of adapt or perish!

Look at the Space Wolf codex. From all of the belly aching you would think that the wolves would never lose a game. That ain't happening.

I'm even starting a Dark Eldar build now for 5th. At the moment I think the Raider force is one of the better competitive builds in the game.

[DuskRaider]

Codex creep... I thought I believed in it at one point, but really I don't find it too true. As said previously, Dark Eldar are still a powerful army, and they do, in fact, have more then one build and can still be quite competitive (more then I can say for my CSMs).

What it comes down to is, with the edition change, rules need to be changed too. The concentration has gone from Elite and HQ choices to Troop selections. What does this do? Makes the core troops of an army a lot more powerful and reliable (look at SW troops and compare them to CSM troops as an example). We're also seeing HQs that allow the option to take an Elite or Fast Attack selection as a Troop Choice, really emphasizing GW's intent on making the grunt the star of 5th Edition.

Does this mean older codices are invalid? Well... Sometimes, yes. Necron are the biggest example, they've been nerfed FAR more then any other codex with the advent of 5th Edition, which is why I'm mystified to see GW release Tyranids before 'Crons. DH are also feeling the pain quite a bit, but let's face it... They're a specialist army that's meant to battle a specific opponent. And let's take a look as well. How many abilities do they have that nullify an ENTIRE Daemons army? So I wouldn't complain too much (you did choose them, after all).
Dark Angels are an example of GW's attempt to "streamline" a codex in anticipation of 5th Edition (CSM are another exmaple, but NO WHERE near the level of DA). Absolutely no options, a bland flavorless waste of paper. I truly feel sorry for Da players at this point.

Blood Angels are good for showing just how lazt GW can be sometimes. There's not much to say about this pamphlet. It sucks.

Witch Hunters haven't gotten the nerfhammer anywhere near these armies, so I don't want to hear any complaining about them.

What it comes down to is, adaption. Yeah, some armies are weaker now. But instead of rolling over and crying and throwing in the towel, switch up tactics and try a variety of lists. Just because [Insert Name Here] says that the only viable list for [Insert Army Here] is [Insert List Here], doesn't mean it's true.

So is codex creep real? In some ways yes, and in some ways no. Most of the "weaker" codices are those of 3rd and 4th Edition, which will all "eventually" get their update. It's unfortunate, but blame 5th Edition rules more for the power gains then the individual codices.

[Duke]

The funny thing is that the same people who whine about codex creep are the same ones who stop talking once their codex 'creeps.' Aren't we just a great big smelly band of hipocrites?

Duke

[Aegis]

At least with WH, the units that suck in 5th, sucked in previous editions too...

[Melissia]

At least with WH, the units that suck in 5th, sucked in previous editions too...

And celestians and dominians also suck more as well. Troops are now the only ones that can capture objectives, so non-troops infantry has had its value decreased.

[Duke]

But all codicies had simliar things happen to them.

[jahred]

I think Codex Creep does exist but certainity is not as bad as the internet often claims it to be.

[therealjohnny5]

codex creep is an elaborate plan by the government to make us not think about the economy and then supported by GW to cover the fact that most of us are grown adults playing with little men. It's a counter conspiracy theory....and we're all suckers.

[Katie Drake]

And celestians and dominians also suck more as well. Troops are now the only ones that can capture objectives, so non-troops infantry has had its value decreased.

Celestians have pretty much always been balls, at least since 3rd, so that's not really anything new and doesn't hurt all that badly.

I'm not sure why Dominions would have taken a hit, though. I mean, yes, they're no longer scoring units, but they can still contest objectives, their transports are no longer rolling coffins, they get the better version of smoke launchers (unless the rules from the Imperial Armor 2 update are being used, that is) and weapons like flamers and meltaguns (both of which Dominions have access to) have become far more effective in the new ruleset. Flamers vitally ignore cover and there's no need to resolve each template one at a time anymore like there was in 4th - now one gets to just place as many templates as they can, count up the number of hits and roll to wound, usually causing extreme casualties. Meltaguns are pretty much the last word in tank hunting if they can get within their optimal range, which because of all the reasons listed above is much easier than it was.

[NockerGeek]

Thank you for proving my point. There is codex creep, whether you want to admit it or not.

To quote The Princess Bride, "You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means."

What I was referring to is not codex creep. Rather, it's a change in the underlying ruleset and the codex design gameplan. 3rd Edition codices were designed a certain way. 4th Edition codices were designed a different way. 5th Edition codices (and those made in anticipation of 5th Edition) were designed yet another way. They had to be, because there were certain underlying premises for each system that were different than those before it. Point values were considered differently, unit upgrade philosophy has shifted considerably, and FOC slot priorities have changed substantially. The 5th Edition game is a completely different beast than the 3rd Edition game, so it's only natural that a 3rd Edition codex doesn't seem to fit the environment as well as a newer codex. That doesn't mean that the newer codex was designed to be more powerful (the "creep" you're referring to), but just that it takes as given things that were never even considered when the 3rd Edition codex was written.

While I won't deny that a codex from an older edition is at a possible disadvantage compared to a current codex, I don't think that means that the newer book was written with the particular goal of being more powerful, or of one-upping the books before it. That would be codex creep, and I don't see it.