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Maintaining the feel of Hammer and Anvil without 256 wargamers running around 128 tables and side boards constantly due to issues related to a deployment zone.

mike, in the modified hammer and anvil deployment the full short table edge is used for the purposes of reserves and fall back ?

zedsdead wrote:mike, in the modified hammer and anvil deployment the full short table edge is used for the purposes of reserves and fall back ?

This is a good catch / question. Play by Hammer and Anvil rules for now, and let us know how that works out.

As to your point on Ruins ... I don't know that I want to modify the rules, though I can understand confusion with people arguing about whether the actual ruin is obscuring or whether the unit is simply on the base.

FYI to all - feedback here is going to have an impact on the final missions, when it is positive / constructive, and especially when backed by some playtesting.

So (and maybe I'm just blind);

For the Trios, what's the limitations/rules for the 1000 point list? Do we share force org with our partner, or is it 2 1lk separate FOC per player?

From last year's Trios packet:

Each member of your three person Team Tournament Team must select one codex and bring:
• 1,000 Point Army List (1 HQ, 1-3 Troop, 0-1 Elite, 0-1 Fast Attack, 0-1 Heavy Support)
 2,000 Point Army List (Standard Force Organization)

That said - this year armies will interact per the Allies Matrix of the new 6th Edition Rulebook.

Edit - Pause on the army interaction; we'll have to nuance it to ensure people who have "Desperate" or "Illegal" allies and no time to change aren't screwed over by the release.

Anticipate something like either:
1) If not Battle Bros, then Allies of Convenience for all
2) If Battle Bros, then ... Battle Bros

OR

1) All are Allies of Convenience

Awesome, thanks.

zedsdead wrote:Mike,
just a small clarification on the ruins rules. As per the book we are to use ruins with bases as 4+ for the actual ruin and 5+ for the base its on ? Having played a number of games im wondering if this is a good idea in a tourny setting. Keeping the whole thing as 4+ ruins seems to be a simple solution.

The base is 5+, but the vast majority of the base is behind the ruin, making most of the base a 4+. All that does it stop you from getting full benefit from the ruins by having a few millimeters on the forward lip of the base.

I agree with keeping the whole thing 4+ as it will cut down on arguments and speed up game play. It doesn't matter that it doesn't say to do that in the core rules...it doesn't have tournament rules, so streamlining for a smoother tournament is no big deal.

For the Trios, even though I won't be playing, I would vote for allies of convenience just be cause it levels the playing field.

Mike,

If we're not staying at the Hyatt, is there a fee for parking? Or does the NOVA ticket cover the parking fee?

jesse wrote:Mike,

If we're not staying at the Hyatt, is there a fee for parking? Or does the NOVA ticket cover the parking fee?

If it's the same as last year, then yes there's a pretty hefty parking fee.

They cut the parking in half for NOVA attendees, now $12.50/day. Also, just fyi, there's metro nearby serviced by a free Hyatt shuttle, and rooms are only $85/night.

MVBrandt wrote:They cut the parking in half for NOVA attendees, now $12.50/day. Also, just fyi, there's metro nearby serviced by a free Hyatt shuttle, and rooms are only $85/night.

There is also a parking garage on the other side of hotel that's $10/day, but it's a pain to get to. I'll probably go with the $12.50/day option.

Beer4TheBeerGod wrote:

MVBrandt wrote:They cut the parking in half for NOVA attendees, now $12.50/day. Also, just fyi, there's metro nearby serviced by a free Hyatt shuttle, and rooms are only $85/night.

There is also a parking garage on the other side of hotel that's $10/day, but it's a pain to get to. I'll probably go with the $12.50/day option.

You could just hope for another Hurricane; on-street parking was pretty easy to find last year and is free on Sunday (possibly Saturday too).

spyguyyoda wrote:
You could just hope for another Hurricane; on-street parking was pretty easy to find last year and is free on Sunday (possibly Saturday too).

Yeah, but then I have to contend with the wrath of my wife being home alone in a hurricane. I'll gladly pay the $10.

Can we please not invoke wishes for another hurricane, or earthquake?

The Hurriquake was the single least pleasant thing about the 2011 NOVA.

Seriously, in all of our feedback from the awesomely-responded-to survey we took, the single biggest negative comment ... not kidding ... was people jokingly asking if we could please not schedule the NOVA on the same weekend as a major Hurricane this time.

Don't worry Mike, this time we'll get an earthquake.

Suggest we FAQ a "play where they lay" rule with respect to any terrain or models that are moved. Any flyers that tip over count as crashed.

Hi

I had a look at the primer and I hope to get a few test games in. However, I would like some additional clarity on the dimensions of your terrain pieces. I don't expect that they are all the same, but I imagine there is a range that is typical. I skimmed your blog but didn't find exactly what I am looking for.

Specifically, the hills are X*Y with a height of Z? (I current;y have 8*10 hills with a height of 1".)
The scatter area terrain is X*Y? (I currenty have 6*8 forests in place)
The 3 ruins are X*Y? (I currently have a 10*10 LOS blocker in the middle, and 6*8 ruins in the outer corners.)

And just to be clear, we can expect LOS blocking terrain in the middle?

Thanks for addressing my nitpicky questions.

Cheers,
Nate

All of the terrain pieces will be closer than not to 1'x1' ... the middle pieces in particular are mounted on 1'x1' bases.

The hills, while irregular, are going to be of roughly that size (sometimes a little larger/longer), and the scatter pieces will be cut down from originally 1'x1' pieces, but more oddly shaped.

The ruins in the corners opposed to the hills are also on 1'x1' starting pieces, with some but not too major variability.

The hills are all 4" tall at some points, and sometimes a tad taller ... comprised of a minimum of 2 stacks of 2" thick pink foam as their base construction material. They are not that tall uniformly across their form, but you can consider them meaningfully LOS blocking, and with enough structure to provide a fair bit of "4+" ridgeline/crestline cover per the BRB. While none will generally cover a flyer at all, many will, from at least some angles, block LOS to a backfield land raider, artillery piece, etc. This does mean if you have a gunline army with no ability to get "across" the field with ordnance, outflankers, deep strikers, etc., your opponent will be able to hide at least something across the field.

The center buildings are generally also significantly LOS blocking, and while their shapes and structures are not all uniform, most of them can be used to shield your army from some firing angles.

The corner ruins only partially block LOS, and will only be able to fully block individuals from infantry units from most angles ... while you might find an odd angle at which you can hide a rhino or chimera behind them from certain points of the field, that will by far not be the case in 90% of the situations.

The area pieces in the middle of the long table edges also generally do not block LOS.

So, 3 significant LOS blockers, 4 area/ruin pieces, all of them substantial in size.

Finalizing details -

In addition to our Painting Contest (independent of the main events) yielding several hundred dollars in prizes, the Best in Show will win free airfare to the Crystal Brush at AdeptiCon 2013, paid for by Cool Mini or Not.

In support of this, expect some cool prizes on top of the already-hundreds provided by two of our attendant companies - Secret Weapon MIniatures, and Grex Airbrush.

Registration Update:

40kGT is down to around 35 spots left out of 256

Narrative registrations are spiking, with the primer releasing later on this afternoon/evening

Trios is ahead of last year's pace at this time

Fantasy has already sold its sell-out point last year, but we have room up to 64 this year; updated/revised packet will go up shortly (first draft needed some edits)

Warmachine/Hordes has already sold all its sell-out point spots equivalent to last year, with attendees from across the US at present; it has also been bumped up to 64 spots for this year

Infinity is in its first year, and has sold 13/16 spots ... grab these quick (Sunday only, can attend w/ just a Day Pass)

There are 8 VIP bags left, now loaded with TONS of unique and limited product, valued at over $200 at this point

Flames of War is in its first year, and both of its 32-man tournaments are beyond half sold out

Secret Weapon Miniatures Hobby Seminars are starting to sell quickly, especially Friday courses. If you are playing in the 40k GT, or any other major event, you can still attend ALL FOUR HOBBY SEMINARS if you so choose. Justin McCoy is a HIGHLY regarded instructor, who has given courses across the country, including at AdeptiCon

The Paint Competition at this point has 30 individual miniatures submitted; prizes now include donations from Grex Airbrush, and are VERY generous; top prize includes hundreds in value, AND airfare to AdeptiCon 2012, paid for by Cool Mini or Not

The site's registration page has been revamped to be easier to navigate (finally!):
http://novaopen.com

Just to mirror the Infinity sentiment... we are also looking at using YAMS for missions:
http://wargamingtrader.com/files/downloads/YAMS%20v1.0.pdf

If anyone has feedback before these go into the primer that would be much appreciated!

Awesome about Infinity, there are quite a few local players just north of DC, although not tourneygoers that I know of. Hope to watch a bit of it...

I don't see anything on the website about FW models (or I'm just blind), so is it safe to assume that they are not allowed?

To my understanding they don't allow FW units.

I believe they allow FW models to be used, if they are using the rules for a regular codex unit which is physically very similar, and don't cause confusion. For example, if you had one Leman Russ model in your army, and chose to use a cool LR variant from FW to represent a normal Russ, that would usually be allowed as it wouldn't cause confusion, but would look cool.

MVBrandt wrote:From last year's Trios packet:

Each member of your three person Team Tournament Team must select one codex and bring:
• 1,000 Point Army List (1 HQ, 1-3 Troop, 0-1 Elite, 0-1 Fast Attack, 0-1 Heavy Support)
 2,000 Point Army List (Standard Force Organization)

That said - this year armies will interact per the Allies Matrix of the new 6th Edition Rulebook.

Edit - Pause on the army interaction; we'll have to nuance it to ensure people who have "Desperate" or "Illegal" allies and no time to change aren't screwed over by the release.

Anticipate something like either:
1) If not Battle Bros, then Allies of Convenience for all
2) If Battle Bros, then ... Battle Bros

OR

1) All are Allies of Convenience

1000 point list have to be out of the 2000 point list? (ie using units that you were taking in the 2k list), or new list, same codex?

What exactly comes with a seminar registration? Do you just watch a lecture or do you get something to hands-on practice with (and keep afterwords)?

MasterSlowPoke wrote:What exactly comes with a seminar registration? Do you just watch a lecture or do you get something to hands-on practice with (and keep afterwords)?

I'm not sure what the seminars will be at the NOVA, but my gut tells me these will be a "make and take" format. I've taken a seminar with Justin before (secret weapon minituares) at Adepticon, and you got a model/base/something to work on and get some hands on coaching, with paints/materials provided. I'd GUESS that this will be the same/similar, but I'll let Mike chime in for the final word on it.

Edit: For what it's worth I took that seminar on a bit of a whim, and had a blast/learned a lot. I'd def. do it again given the chance.

Weekend Q&A:

1) Mannahnin's answer is correct, more or less. You can use FW models, but not the rules, for the GT/Trios. That's to say, you could use the FW GUO as a Great Unclean One if you wanted, provided proper base sizes / yadda yadda. You can use FW models AND rules for the Narrative, with the exception of Super Heavies and Gargantuans.

For the Narrative, there is both a Tactical Track and a Cinematic Track, so if you're more of a competitive player and want to get in some 6th Ed games with a FW-inclusive army, you can do the evening Narrative alongside the GT, and get 4 games using such a list in.

2) For the trios, your 2,000 point "singles" list needs to be from the same codex as your 1,000 point "team" list, but it does not need to use the same building blocks; it can be completely different.

3) The seminars are explained in more detail on the site - from there:
Hands-On Weathering -
Justin “misterjustin” McCoy, founder of Secret Weapon miniatures, will introduce participants to weathering pigments and give them an
opportunity to use pigments to weather a class exclusive 50mm base. Topics will include:

* What is a pigment
* What to look for when you buy
* Pigment weathering vs. painting
* HANDS-ON rust weathering
* HANDS-ON brick and dirt weathering
* Mud and muck weathering

DEMO Weathering Techniques:
Justin “misterjustin” McCoy, founder of Secret Weapon miniatures, will spend two hours introducing participants to a wide range of

weathering techniques working as quickly as he can to cover:

* Order of application
* Acrylic paint techniques (sponge, salt, hairspray, etc.)
* Weathering pigments
* Pencils
* Oil paints

DEMO Basing Your Models:
Justin “misterjustin” McCoy, founder of Secret Weapon miniatures, will share some of the techniques he has used to make hundreds of display
and gaming bases from 20mm singles to army display boards in this two hour demonstration class. Topics will include:

* Display vs. gaming – approach
* Display vs. gaming – materials
* Theme
* Composition
* Order of application
* Painting, pigments, and scenics

DEMO Airbrushing
Justin "misterjustin" McCoy, founder of Secret Weapon miniatures, will introduce participants to the basics of airbrushing models, from small infantry to large vehicles, in this two hour demonstration class. Topics will include:

* Airbrushes, compressors, and canned air
* Airbrush and compressor components
* Basic airbrush techniques
* Proper paint dilution
* Spraying techniques
* Pressure and flow regulation
* Airbrush cleaning and maintenance



I believe the DEMOS are more lecture-based, while the Hands On is DEFINITELY something where you will work with a model yourself. I'll see if I can route Justin himself to eyeball this for proper descriptions or explanations.


As Target shared, a lot of the people who've had courses with McCoy have had an AWESOME time; that and his very responsive nature were big reasons for why we pursued him as a sponsor and for giving demos.

Finally, Narrative DRAFT Primer (not formatted yet, but helpful hopefully)
http://www.novaopen.com/wp-content/uploads/2012/07/Narrative-DRAFT-Primer-and-Rules.pdf



Our Paint Competition will be awarding a Grex Tritium TG Pistol Grip Airbrush to EVERY Category Winner (that's a $300 MSRP highly-reviewed/regarded airbrush), in addition to vouchers from SWM, and numerous other prizes. It's cheap to get into, and it's getting in on the first year - if you've got models you think are half decent, submit them in for judging!

How do you wish narrative lists and playstyle submitted?

I am kinda bummed out, I intended to get a new unit converted and painted for this event using the narratives, but I don't think I will have time. I will barley get my transports finished in time :(

I'm going to be rushed to be ready for the GT... it's getting close!