What is your favourite tabletop wargame or skirmish game and why?

Started to play Anima Tactics this year because I was already a fan of the RPG so the setting and the visual style appealed to me. But it is also rather well balanced, somewhat cheap as far as miniature games go (six miniatures are a middle sized army although you will want to own a lot more) and has a lot of depth. Besides there is a bit of a shortage of non-OOP generic fantasy skirmish games and Malifaux and Helldorado come with a lot of thematic baggage I don't care for.

I have also been doing a lot of Warmachine/Hordes (actually a Press Ganger in my local area) for several years. First I looked for something to replace 40k I was getting burned out on, and was very happy with the fresh Mk2 revision of the rules. The model rules have a lot of flavor while still being designed with game balance first, so you end up with a system that works for casual as well as super competitive play, and fewer bad feelings about beardy/cheesy lists and endless arguments thereof. Besides, the publishers do a lot of officially sanctioned events every year, such as a halloween themed event with special patches and coins. Prize support is great overall, as Privateer Press release relatively inexpensive sets of metal coins for event awards (including theme events) and people love getting those for their performance.

Also, I play mercenaries in Warmachine so I'm not really tied to a single thematic the way other factions seem to be and can go with pirates/mafia/freedom fighters/RPG party with some henchmen/whatever I like for a given day.

I have a 40K army. I don't really like the rules and I definitely don't like the company behind it. But it's the only game in town most of the time, so if you want to play a game, there ya go. I mostly use third-party figs or buy stuff second-hand to avoid giving in to Games Workshop.

The rules themselves are too fiddly. Too many special rules for each army and way too much stuff out of balance. But, I play wargames to hang out and give me a creative outlet when I'm not in a social setting, so 40K scratches both those itches.

Still, anytime gaming events are held at my house, I try to force people to try one of two systems I really enjoy (in a doomed and failing attempt to get them popular).

1. Basic Impetus/Impetus. I've never tried the full rules (Impetus) but I have played Basic Impetus (the free version) a handful of times. It's played at whatever scale you choose and pretty easy/cheap to raise an army for. As good as the rules are, the biggest barrier for Impetus is the abbreviations for the game are in Italian (the game's creator is Italian) so the Unit's Basic Value is VBU and Heavy Cavalry is HP, stuff like that. So, I think that and the lack of fiddly bits (people seem to LOVE special rules) keep the game from really catching on.

2. Song of Blades and Heroes. This is a skirmish game and a great one. It's truly simple (just two stats!) and has what everyone seems to like: special rules. You have a Combat Value and a Quality plus whatever special rules make your character different (Shooter, Leader, Assassin, etc.). You attempt to activate each unit with a Quality roll. A particularly bad failure to activate can turn control over to your opponent, so there's some wagering and some active back-and-forth. Games play pretty quickly and for such a simple game, it can really give you in-depth and tactically rich games. It's easy to pick up (my wife who doesn't game at all, was able to pick it up and play — and win!) while also offering some depth (a hardcore 40Ker and I spent an evening getting a lot out of the game). It's got a ton of expansions and variants, too.

I'd love to see both of these games get a major boost over some of the more popular games that aren't as fulfilling gaming experiences.

Advanced Squad Leader: Starter Kits 1 and 2 are a lot of fun. I think Set 3 is a let-down, but ASL has never done vehicles well.

Conflict of Heroes is awesome, if you like WW2 games with simple rules and great components.

Game of Thrones is great, if you have players for every House. It is not good if you have empty seats, though.

I play several games, and whichever campaign I'm playing at the time is my favorite.

Warhammer 40,000 - I have ten armies for this and a scattered buttload of assorted minis.  This is probably my favorite, definitely my first.

Warhammer Fantasy Battle - Started this back in 2007.  Now I have ten armies and a scattered buttload of assorted minis.

Warmachine - Started this two years ago, currently have a 50pt Cygnar army and going to go in for a Khador army as well.  One of the best new games.

Flames of War - Started this last year, and I have a Soviet tankovy batalon at 2000 pts.  My current favorite, the games can be very tense and swing back and forth a lot.

Mordheim - I have two unique warbands that do not belong to any of my other armies.

Necromunda - I have four unique gangs that do not belong to any of my other armies.

Lord of the Rings Strategy Battle - Six armies for this game!  We started a few years ago, and the minis have tons of applications if you do MERP!

Currently we've been working on a Five Rings battle game based on the LOTR ruleset, mainly because we have tons of Clan War and Wargames Foundry Rising Sun minis, and we want to play wargames with them.

Quote from: Kaz;611807I have a 40K army. I don't really like the rules and I definitely don't like the company behind it. But it's the only game in town most of the time, so if you want to play a game, there ya go. I mostly use third-party figs or buy stuff second-hand to avoid giving in to Games Workshop.

The rules themselves are too fiddly. Too many special rules for each army and way too much stuff out of balance.

This seems like it's a pre-packaged response for many posters here, yet most roleplaying games have rules that are way more "fiddly" and "out of balance".  Also, the rpg companies have more of a "grind" when it comes to lines for new editions.

You don't have to buy new minis to continue playing Warhammer, but I'm gonna have to buy yet ANOTHER matrix book when SR5 comes out.  Along with all the other books.

To Wit:  You are going to find an enemy force that's equipped to deal with yours.  That's not imbalance.

My favorite is the old hex-and-counter game the Russian Campaign. It's incredibly fun. I also really like Hannibal: Rome v Carthage and Up Front.

Favorite is star fleet battles, because I get to use Romulan ships.



Romulans are better than you.

Quote from: Bill;611911Favorite is star fleet battles, because I get to use Romulan ships.



Romulans are better than you.

For some reason, I can't get anyone in the club to want to do any kind of space battles.

Not even Battlefleet Gothic.  It's a shame, cuz my first wargames were the Renegade Legion Leviathan and Centurion.  I wouldn't discover Battletech proper until later.

Quote from: Blackhand;611941For some reason, I can't get anyone in the club to want to do any kind of space battles.

Not even Battlefleet Gothic.  It's a shame, cuz my first wargames were the Renegade Legion Leviathan and Centurion.  I wouldn't discover Battletech proper until later.

I played Leviathan; such a cool game!

Napoleon's battles is by far my favorite wargame.

My 1808 Spaniards have yet to win a battle

Quote from: Blackhand;611880This seems like it's a pre-packaged response for many posters here

My opinion is my own, derived from playing the game and continuing to play the game.

Quoteyet most roleplaying games have rules that are way more "fiddly" and "out of balance".  Also, the rpg companies have more of a "grind" when it comes to lines for new editions.

Doesn't mean I play those games. Doesn't mean that I'm OK with those. I'm not sure where the comparison to RPGs came from, other than this being a RPG site.

QuoteYou don't have to buy new minis to continue playing Warhammer, but I'm gonna have to buy yet ANOTHER matrix book when SR5 comes out.  Along with all the other books.

I dunno what a matrix book is or what SR5 is. I don't know what this has to do with 40K being fiddly. I didn't make a complaint about how often editions come out with Warhammer, either.

QuoteTo Wit:  You are going to find an enemy force that's equipped to deal with yours. That's not imbalance.

What's imbalanced is that there is no system behind the madness. Armies disappear for long periods of time and people talk about how weak they are, that is until they get a new codex, then the army becomes popular and you see them all over the place. Sure, just like any game, a good player can make up the difference either through skill, luck, mathhammer or some combination of the three, but that doesn't mean the system itself — in a vacuum — is balanced.

And perhaps fiddly isn't the best word. There are a shit load of special rules. I feel like if you want to be a truly competitive player, you have to read and know everyone else's codex while keeping up with the updated FAQs released by the company. That's a lot for a every-other-weekend type player like me, who just wants to show up and play and not have to spend my free time reading codices and online strategy guides.

Look, it's obvious you have a great love of the game (and a great deal of disposable income). A lot of people play it. That's awesome (I'm one of them). But there are less popular games that are better and cheaper (just like pop music and yep, even RPGs).

My favs are Flames of War, Warhammer Ancient Battles, Warmaster.

Well Kaz, I think you nailed it.  The GW hate I don't get.

You can't play only every other weekend and not read the codeci or learn the special rules or read the faqs.  There's a lot of folks into it.  It's not a static ruleset.  It's moderated and appended all the time.

How can you expect to be competitive at all if you don't keep up with the rules?  It used to be WAY more complicated than it is now, which I feel has been done since 1997 to accomodate folks who thought it took too much time to be competitive.  Oddly, the shift made it yet more competitive, a trend which has continued to this day.

Regarding Codex creep...well, you can't expect a codex to remain as relevant in subsequent editions as the one it was published in.  I really haven't noticed any single codex as having an unfair advantage over another pretty much ever...except last year before Tomb Kings got their new army book for Warhammer 8.  That was pretty bad.  

Why are certain armies prevalent over others at certain times?  It has more to do with new miniatures than it does old vs new rules.  The rules accompany the miniatures.  Whoever got new minis recently is what followers of the game are interested in.  Eventually you have so many miniatures something is always popping off for one of your armies.

I like to be an ass and run the oldest armies I have, against the grain of the newest.  Yeah I have 4000pts of Chaos Space Marines.  I have almost 1500 points of Dark Angels forming an entirely new army for me.  

This year I'm running my huge Imperial Guard infantry company.  I have 100 Steel Legion minis to plop on the board to fight the tournament hordes of space marines.

Yeah, Grey Knights won a lot last year, but it was pretty much the year of the Grey Knights.  They got their codex and it was their year.  Guess what?  Next month is Dark Angels.  2013 is going to be filled with Dark Angels and Chaos Space Marines because they have the newest codeci.  It's been 5 years since CSM and almost 7 years for Dark Angels.

Yet I can still use my Imperial Guard.  I really won't be at a disadvantage.  Yeah, I won't have any weapons with the "AA" special rule in my codex, but I still have like 30 missile launchers.

I expect we'll be facing down mostly CSM and DA, with a few daemons and other space marines thrown in.  I hear codex Eldar is plotted for next year as well, so when that happens ... there will be a ton of eldar on the board.  Hell yeah!  I have Eldar too.

BTW, I hate online strategy guides for 40k because everything I read is silly.  More discouragement than anything.  I like to be my own strategy guide.

My favorite is Field of Glory.  I like the ancient/medieval period, I like the rules, and I like the books (done by Osprey).

For something lighter and more skirmish-oriented, HAVOC is pretty cool.  

The Command & Colors games are nice, if you want something relatively simple and fast-playing, but still interesting.  (I like Ancients and Napoleonics.)

I'm actually much more of a wargamer than player of RPGs- so here goes:

Gruntz 15mm sci-fi skirmish (usually reinforced platoon) size.  Derived from the engine that runs Warmachine, it gives you lots of crunch and the ability to build custom armies based on your models at hand.  I use the point system more for a guide when making scenarios than hard army balance.

Fubar  One (or two page), free rules covering multiple scales.  The rules mechanics resemble a highly-stripped down GW ruleset.  Fast, easy to play, and fun, no balancing system at all, so I use it mostly for scenarios or call it- "yeah, close enough".  Possibly my favorite miniatures system, now.

Anything from Two Hour Wargames.  These have an emphasis on solo play, with an interesting Possible Enemy Force mechanic.  Fun, but the mechanics are almost identical regardless of system/period, which can lead to some "sameness".  I still like the game, though, and use it for odd-ball scenarios I can't interest anyone else in.

I have painted squads and gangs for Infinity and Malifaux, which I have yet to try out.  Mostly I was just interested in building and painting the models.  I still have a couple of 40k armies, and while I have no particular angst towards GW, I have zero interest in the tournament scene.  In my area, it seems that 40k pick up games are non-existant unless you're testing a new "list".