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I know that every time I get a tac squad and their rhino squashed and only killing one gaunt/boy/warrior/etc. or when my landraider goes belly up before it delivers its precious cargo or an assault squad that gets gunned down before they come to grips with the enemy or any big point unit doesn't pay for itself before it dies I find myself getting demoralized and the idea of throwing in the towel looking more and more appealing.

I'm not sure if this is only a common problem for SM players but I've seen tyranid players nearly come to tears when their big scary uber-expensive hive tyrant or carnifex doesn't even make it into combat. I wonder how many of us in the dakka community suffer from these demoralizing setbacks and how we cope with them.

Even something seemingly insignificant can be demoralizing like that. When a rhino gets wrecked in the deployment zone or a tervigon only spawns 3 gaunts for the entire game. Or even something as simple as looking at the board after DoW deployment and seeing that you're greatly outnumbered (again, probably only a problem for SM players. Especially with combat squadding.) or not having a certain unit come in from reserves to seize a target of opportunity can be almost psychologically painful and depressing even if it is just the dice' fault.

So, dakka, my question to you is this: How do you cope when you're faced with a demoralizing setback or even several? Do you just throw in the towel or do you shrug it off and hope everything else makes up for the lost points?



Also, sorry if this is in the wrong forum. Tactics just seemed like the best place for it.

It might go better in general discussion.

Personally I try to not take lynch pin units that can crush your chances and your hopes if you lose them or they under perform.

I also like to do the math when bad things happen, if its just bad luck, I take it in stride. If it is bad play, well, I try to not repeat that mistake.

This thread would probably fit better in "dakka discussions"

As for coping mechanisms, I try to remain calm and remember that 40K is just a game, and that the idea is to have fun. Oh, my carnifex just fell into a pit from jaws of the world wolf? I try to imagine the confused wail it would make as it fell into the crevasse. Your Archon just huskbladed my trygon before I had even a chance to throw one attack? That archon must be COVERED in blood and ichor...good luck explaining that one to your drycleaner. Etc, etc. It's just a game, for fun. Once you start getting too competitive and living or dying based on your dice rolls, you need to take a step back and relax.

All of that being said, take some time to model and paint for awhile. That aspect of the game is just as rewarding, in my opinion, as the game portion with rules. You can come back to the table with a clear head, and some beautiful looking models, to boot.

Grow a pair: it's a game, not something important.

The most carefully drawn up plans are ruined the second they are initiated.

Don't expect everything to work. Have a plan, a back up plan, and then a contingency plan in case everything else falls through.

This can be accomplished by having redundancy in 40k. 1 rhino is going to get destroyed. 6 rhinos will make it to the objective.

After a couple crushing defeats, I changed venues, that is LGS. It helped.

Also, I've really paid attention to competitive list builds. They often have *several* threats, meaning that losing your one-trick-pony isn't the end of the game.

Recently, I had my LRR get immobilized on its first move, trying to get away from the enemy Multi-Melta Dreadnought. Fail to hit with its own MM. Next turn the enemy Dread hits it, Explodes!, and then that dread ate the marines inside ... who only had one meltabomb (WolfPriest) capable of hurting its front AV of 13. Buh-bye 12 BloodClaws!

I suppose after 6 years, I'm veteran enough to know that games can still turn around, but yes, it was discouraging. I did lose that one.


If worse comes to worse, play some nooBs. It's petty, but a Win is a Win.

How did an enemy Dreadnought with a Multi-Melta have AV13?

Thanks guys.

Sometimes you do have to remind yourself, and occasionally your opponent too, that it is just a game. Winning does not necessarily equal fun, nor does losing.

Taking lynch pin units, notabot, is somewhat inevitable when each unit constitutes 1/5 of your army (a tac squad w/ rhino in 1000 points) but I understand what you're saying. Don't put all your eggs in one basket, so to speak.

As for your suggestion of redundancy, rryannn, which is a valid tactic, with the limited resources of most people (at least the ones I know) that becomes a little difficult. With GW's pricing those 6 rhinos are $190 that an american high school student, such as myself, most likely cannot afford to spend on a hobby. But the subject of GW's pricing is a topic for an entirely different thread.

Also, noob question here, how exactly do I move this thread to discussions? Or should I just let a MOD take care of it?

I have a great sense of humor and this is only a game so when something goes tragically wrong for me or the opponent its just a little laugh for me. I play horde orks so seeing 100 of them die in a game and still winning is just another chuckle.

Alert a mod using the yellow Alert button in the top right of yor posts.

Like the earlier posts said, imagine what happened. Laugh if off too. If you lack imagination or an understanding, smoke works just fine.
Dreadnaught missed 4 hits on a tac squad, smoke, he couldn't see
Landraider immobilized by enemy tank in deployment zone? It wasn't an enemy tank but smoke blinded the drivers as they deployed into a melta mine.

Some other explanations

Mis Communication- Failed Reserve
Donkey Kong (game or character) in the Situation Room- Failed Reserve
Mines
Sniper
Natural Disasters
Drugs (jk)
Unit trips
Starbucks (not really)

Not really a good list but you get the idea

Nurglitch wrote:How did an enemy Dreadnought with a Multi-Melta have AV13?

*gulps. This was a RTT. scratches head. checks codex ... sighs relief.*
Musta been just the meltagun on the Ironclad. And since it Drop Podded *right next to* my LRR, the double-die melta range wasn't an issue. ... crap. Now I'm beginning to wonder as it wasn't an Ironclad model ... and ... hmmm. Great.



Automatically Appended Next Post:
@NamTaey:
Your avatar is screwing up the page's set up. It needs to smaller.

The most demoralizing thing is when your winning by a long shot and the last remnants of the enemy force manage to wear down your entire army and force a draw.

Jaon wrote:The most demoralizing thing is when your winning by a long shot and the last remnants of the enemy force manage to wear down your entire army and force a draw.

Or slaughtering the enemy entirely aside a handful of models countable on 1 hand and in your overzealous action you left your objectives alone, it's top of turn 5, he has yet to go, moves a solitary troop model 6", runs another 6" and wins the game after rolling a 1 for going to turn 6.

I tend to just laugh it off. Like if I notice that I made a bad move, and something nasty is gonna crush my Boyz next turn, I just go, "Oh man.... they're gonna get creamed..." and laugh it off. I tend to laugh more at my misfortune than my opponent does!

If your battle hinges upon one unit at the start of the game your doing it wrong. Write your lists with multiple redundancy in mind. Things go wrong. its part of the game. Get on with it and keep fighting. Even a draw can be snatched from the jaws of defeat. Also just because you field a unit doesn't mean you automatically have the right for it to do its job. That's down to your tactics and a little luck.

It can definitely be depressing when it seems like everything's gone wrong early in the game. Even if you're playing for fun, it's not hugely enjoyable when the dice let you down. That said, the best thing to do is just keep going and try and finagle a result out of it anyway - do something a bit mental that you wouldn't normally try. Otherwise, set yourself a personal goal - 'I might not be able to pull a win out of this, but I'm damn well going to kill off that character/get revenge on that Predator/kill his Land Raider in return!'

a) take several threats- at least one will make it through.
b) set a goal +1. "Oh, your DP kills my last scoring unit? Oh well, i'll just try and kill that DP with my captain- that should be interesting"
c) always have a plan B.
d) always have a plan C.
e) " " D.
f) ect.

If you're screwed you're screwed. at that point I try to do something crazy / slowed just for the lols
I started taking way more vehicles than i used to. target saturation seems to help.
Whatever happens just roll with it. and if you find yourself getting too serious step back and realize you're playing with plastic army men.

plastic army men? not if you do GK or SoB...
I agree- if you're destined to fail, do something crazy. I had a weaponless basilisk tank shock a captain with PF and he fails the DoG.

Shrug it off bro.

We'll all have to die... we can't always win, but if you're getting your teeth kicked in. At least fight to the last man.

Like down here us being Texan and such, we're all like "Remember the Alamo!" then I realize I'm Hispanic and quietly LoL to myself.

If your uber transport blows up taking your elite troops with it the best cure is to point and laugh. It's just a game after all.

I had a PF/SB termie squad DS behind a shadowsword- it turned around and killed all but one. He then ran up to it, hit, penetrated, and caused a chain reaction, causing it to explode, surviving the explosion, and killing the two LRBT's protecting it. He now has blood all over his PF, along with the words "Your face here", and an arrow pointing to the knuckles.


Automatically Appended Next Post:

shrike wrote:a) take several threats- at least one will make it through.
b) set a goal +1. "Oh, your DP kills my last scoring unit? Oh well, i'll just try and kill that DP with my captain- that should be interesting"
c) always have a plan B.
d) always have a plan C.
e) " " D.
f) ect.

that or bring a CD player/MP3/MP4/phone and play this on a loop:



works for me. Honestly. (except I just play it in my head).

If your army and/or plan has gone down the crapper just do something stupid. Devestators charging a necron lord or a scouts attacking a Daemon prince.
Or simply start on Plan B since they seem to work better...

purplefood wrote:If your army and/or plan has gone down the crapper just do something stupid. Devestators charging a necron lord or a scouts attacking a Daemon prince.
Or simply start on Plan B since they seem to work better...

I have charged scouts into a DP. The scouts won (the 4 scouts survived 4 turns in CC with it, until the only surivor, sergeant caddius, killed it.

I was playing a game against an eldar player, and I mentioned the fact that my lysander hadn't yet fallen in battle- him and his 5 TH/SS termies DS'ed, got shot at by the eldar, 3 (not including lysander) survived. He then sent a squad of banshees after them- in CC, lysander crushed them, but all of his termies died, and he had 1 wound left. everything shot at him, and he lived. Another squad of 6 banshees ran at him- he ran away. Some devestators, after lysander landed, had begun sprinting full pelt towards him. A tactical squad, who had spent 3 turns against a wraithlord, doing nothing but dying (no PF), were freed by lysander punching it. The squad (2 men) joined lysander, he sent them to be 2" behind him- they got killed by the banshees- lysander lived (they attacked the tac. marines). The devestators joined lysander, did the same thing. turn 5 now. The banshees kill those as well. They then consolidate in a semi-circle around his front. He turned and ran the other way. The rest of the army (grouped up near a building) moved forwards to pincer him. My only other surviving unit (a rhino) drove and blocked thier way. They killed it, but lysander had gotten 15" away by then. The banshees chased after him, breathing down his neck 3" behind him after running, then it was turn 6- the game ended. I breathed a sigh of relief, and lysander lived. A very one-sided (but fun) game.

I was playing a friends IG artillery heavy army.
It basically consisted of several platoons of IG with as many mortars you can fit (I think it was 21 per platoon) and 3 deathstikes. We had no chance of winning, they got to our lines and began slaughtering us in H2H so i simply started firing at any availible target...
I killed whole lot of everyone. The board was very empty afterwards though. But 63 mortars and 3 deathstrikes will wreck anyones day.
Note: This was an apocalypse match.

I think it helps to remember that from the outset, some things are just gonna turn out silly. My friend's Juggernaut/Bloodfeeder Lord has nicknamed his daemon weapon "crotch-shot" because of the number of times it has metaphorically punched his army in the nuts. (This is also the guy who yells "HERE COME DA JUDGE!!!" when his biker warboss comes out of reserve.) Everyone has those moments when what should be a great unit just fails to live up to standards--As NamTaey said, make up a ridiculous justification behind it and keep playing; as long as your tactics weren't horribly flawed, most people will enjoy it.

Example:
My friend and I are playing his blood angels against my guard. I decided to use a gang of sentinels with lascannons for tank hunting (i know, right?). Anyway, every single turn, I shot at his dreadnought, and every turn, I managed to stun it but do nothing else. Eventually, we decided that the sentinels weren't actually hitting it, but it was so entranced by the amazing light show it couldn't do anything useful with itself. We decided that the missile launcher sitting next to it was performing poorly for the same reason.

Dice and chance are random and fickel gods.

Worst run of luck I had, in three turns I had a squad of three deffkopta kill my dreadnought, an obscured vindicator, and a whirlwind.

Best run of luck, Ghazgull got runover by a weaponless vindicator. I swear the orc player has never attempted death or glory since.

Stuff happens, make fun of it and move on.

After being really big into skaven, then joining 40k, you don't get too upset with your losses..

unless they are your HQ.

Karma Dice will come out of nowhere to bite you in the ass. Just remember that it will do the same to your opponent too.