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I'm sure this has been covered before, but I'm feeling like exploring this topic, so here goes.

Lately I've been playing a lot of Warlord and just tried "The Rules With No Name" (the western rules related to Street Violence), and it's gotten me thinking about IGOUGO.

Has anyone tried either a card or similar-based initiative method for 40k? I.e. both opponents put a card for each unit in a deck, shuffle and whichever unit comes up is the one activated (variations would be colored beads or dice in a bag)? Would that slow the game down too much? Or would it work? It means somewhat rethinking certain phases (so you'd take more leadership/pinning tests than in a standard game, for example), but I think it's workable...

Thoughts?

I don't like the idea of random activation, it kind of takes the tactics and strategy out of the game. However, I really like the idea of alternating activations, much like in the VOID rules, as long as you get to choose which units to activate first.

IIRC: There are no 'player turns', only 'game turns'. Every unit gets an 'activation counter' at the beginning of the turn: whoever wins initiative gets to choose a single unit to activate. Activating units can do two of: move, shoot, assault. Once one unit is done, the other side gets to activate one unit. Back and forth it goes.

I think that unactivated units get to 'reaction-shoot' anything that comes within 4" of them, but only with 'squad weapons' (no heavies).

The system really rewards those with lots of units, something that I like (as a horde Guard and Nid player). The extra units get to go after the entire enemy side is finished.

Lots of changes would need to be made to 40k to get it to work properly like this, but I think it could be done and would improve the game immensely!

While I liked the card system for Warlord and it did not ruin my strategies the game is more small squad based and fluid in that units get to do things in different orders so if the unit goes second and was out of charge range it can fire and move back etc. The game just plays differently.

What I would like to see is combined movement phases, where both sides move at the same time, and shooting happens simultaniously. Or have something like the move+move move+shoot shoot+shoot type abilities that Warlord has, with special additional shooting for vehicles/terminators. I don't have a working system for this, but that is closer to what I would like, where the order things happen in aren't as one sided as they can become in 40k.

There's the confrontation card system, too.

Each player has their own deck which they arrange the order they want to play their units. Initiative can go first. Also, a player cna reserve cards under certain circumstyances, and play multiple untis at once in this way.

I tried doing the card way with warhammer 40 It works out pretty good, you have too do a little treaking liek if you take a chaplin or librian you get to add a extra card in ur deck, If you have fast attack you can pass and set up later it works out pretty well. Plus U still get to react If you get charges like iN 40k ur strikes back and stuff. it made the game go by a lot faster and I and thje person i play with most of the time both enjoy it it works well I beleive

In my group, we've played exclusively this way with cards since 2nd edition. It doesn't destroy the usual strategies and tactics, but you have to be ready for the fact that the other side may interfere with your movement plans. You also have to gamble on weather to make a certain move or not, 'cause if the cards don't come out right, someone might be left hanging out to dry.

Most of the tweaking involved for us concerns necrons and WBB rolls. We do these between decks, once all cards cycle through. If a bunch of necron warriors go down and you haven't moved yet, you need to keep them near the "corpses" so that they'll have a chance to return. Either that, or have a follow on squad move into WBB range.

It sure beats having one side or the other sweep across the board unopposed, while the other stands there and gawks during the whole parade. It makes tank battles a bit more cat and mouse, too.

ZF-