With Warmachine becoming a fixture in our pantheon of games I wanted to do a short primer for those folks who aren't versed with how units are delineated and armies constructed in Warmachine. Compounded with the recent announcement by Privateer Press of a new Iron Kingdoms role-playing game (which I believe we're going to see here at the Wargate soonish) it felt like the right time to discuss this. If you're not a Warmachine player yet, take a second (or even a first) look and join us in Immoren in a different kind of armored warfare!
There are four basic unit types available in Warmachine. These are warcasters, warjacks, units and solos. Each of these units will be described in a little more detail below, but for now just know that each army will possess the ability to buy units in those four broad categories. There is a fifth unit type that was made available last summer with the Wrath book: the battle engine. I'm not covering those here, however - this is a beginner's primer and the battle engines are a new addition to the game.
After you have decided which army you're going with, the next step is to pick a warcaster. You have to pick a warcaster before you choose your army, for a number of reasons. Warcasters don't remove points from your army total, instead they add points to your available total, but with one caveat: you must spend the extra points on warjacks.
Once you have chosen a warcaster, choose your army in one of two basic ways. First, you can simply take units straight out of the book. You have your army points limit and extra points from your warcaster, and there is nothing stopping you from taking whatever awesome units you want from the army list. However, your second option is a "tier" list based on your warcaster. Each warcaster will have a "tier list" card that shows you what the restrictions and bonuses you can accrue with that warcaster by taking certain units. For instance, Lt. Caine of Cygnar gains bonuses if he takes ranged warjacks and Arcane Tempest Gun Mages.
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| Cryx Warcaster - Lich Lord Asphyxious |
Your warcaster is your most important and arguably most powerful playing piece. It's the most important because most games are over if your warcaster (which represents you, the general, on the tabletop) dies. Warcasters possess fantastic stats, but also possess a range of special rules and are able to cast a plethora of spells. Each warcaster has his own theme to build on, so check out the spells and feats of each warcaster when choosing one.
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| Mercenary Warjack - Mangler |
Warjacks are the big robot things. Yeah, they might have different names, like bonejack or helljack. These monsters are the real line-breakers, and each one is tailored to a special battlefield need. You can mount heavy assaults with some, while others can deliver a punishing amount of firepower. Each army has access to a large range of warjacks for it's warcasters, however if you are using a tiered list for your warcaster you may be restricted to certain types.
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| Protectorate of Menoth Unit - Temple Flameguard |
Unit is the term for a squad of soldiers. These aren't powerhouse individual like warcasters, but regular troopers from your faction. Units are capable of fulfilling a lot of roles on the battlefield, and unlike warjacks can actually control an objective on the map. Units can pose a major threat to other units and solos, and can cause problems for even the mightiest warcaster. Beware warjacks, however - unless your unit is tailored to fight against a 'jack, the high armor ratings of such units means your soldiers will struggle with them. Briefly.
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| Khador Solo - Koldun Lord |
Solos are heroic individuals who are more powerful than a normal soldier but not as awesome as your warcaster. They typically possess several fantastic skills and are usually very cheap to include in your army. Solos usually work well with units, and in some cases represent a more advance warrior from a unit available to your force. These warriors can add special rules to your arsenal you wouldn't otherwise possess, and can be critical to achieving success certain forces.
All in all, Warmachine is a tight game. The mechanics are easy, the models are cool and building an army is fun. Don't listen to those nay-sayers - even if it shares elements with other genre of games, it doesn't mean it's not successful at the blend.
The Forest of Shadows continues this week! We're going to see some neat project logs this season from our clubs' jaunt through Immoren. The 15 point armies we've been playing with are small and easy to paint up, so why not give it a shot? It's cheap (for a wargame) and doesn't use up much space (for a wargame) or time (for a wargame)!
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