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Hello everyone. Just wanted to throw this question out there and see what you all think but after playing a game yesterday and watching my High Elves get blown to pieces against my brothers Empire Mortars a thought came to mind. How is it warmachines just ignore cover completely? Personally i think that if a model is in a patch of woods or something very simililar they should get a cover save of sorts be it 5+ or 6+. Not at all trying to complain about the loss as he did role very well but it is just a thought that has crossed my and a few people i play withs minds and wanted to know: Should you get a cover save if you are in cover from warmachines?

I suppose the idea is that roughly 1/6 of the time, the non BS-based shooting tends to blow up that cannons/stone-throwers are allowed to bypass cover.

None BS warmachines don't need to allow cover saves because scatter is the offset to the cover (cannons not included here). Also as mentioned by Jin, they all have a 1/6 chance to misfire and potentially blow themselves up. I'd say that warhamines are pretty balanced.

You also need to keep in mind that HE are pretty fragile with almost army wide T3 and 5+ armor saves.

There is a solution to the warmachine issue that HE have easy acess to – it's called Pha's Protection.

Not to mention shield of Saphery. or moar phoenix guard.

I do hope GW continues with the example set by the Warp Lightning Cannon / Plague Claw Catapult kit and starts supplying war machines with bases though.

streamdragon wrote:I do hope GW continues with the example set by the Warp Lightning Cannon / Plague Claw Catapult kit and starts supplying war machines with bases though.

Amen. I don't own a war machine that isn't based (even if the base is a bit of a trap, since troops charging a machine are under no compulsion to line up with the model / base beyond touching it).

I think the real problem with war machines is that they ALL exist in 7th edition books, at 7th edition prices, created under the assumption of 7th edition FOC slots and 7th edition mechanics. If the O&G book addresses war machine points costs as it should, I'm going to be impressed ... and also feel bad for the orcses, since they'll have 'properly costed 8th edition artillery' while everybody else (Empire, looking at you with your mortars / cannons; Brets, at those sex-on-a-stick-with-four-wounds-no-less trebs) will have uber-cheap ones for as much as the next 5-6 years.

- Salvage

With the hard cap on duplicates, I think they are a lot less severe. And as stated, they blow up. Or just miss. Or hit your own guys.

There's lots of high risk high reward units across WHFB. Most races have access to some el-cheapo low level mage who could get lucky and wipe out 1/4 of your army. Or get unlucky and blow himself up.

The problem is you never know what you're fighting--or you shouldn't. Your brother probably does cuz he's your brother. But if you have skirmishers or blasty spells or the many other counters, it can make warmachines kinda junky.

It could just be my expierance but don't war machines spend a lot of time just blowing up?

heacy hitter wrote:It could just be my expierance but don't war machines spend a lot of time just blowing up?

With the chances of them blowing up/not doing anything being what they are I would say yes.

Was not trying to turn this into a thread about my brothers Empire vs my high Elves just was curous about warmachines in general, every race and every rule, ect.

My Helstorm has an awesome track record of blowing itself up first turn in both games I've brought it along. Warmachines can be nasty but at least for the empire, they allow their average troops not to get steamrolled every time but cutting down some baddies before the lines meet.

The issue with war machines is mainly in the armies with nigh unbreakable units to screen them. Anyone who has played the 6 War Machine + 3-4 unbreakable blocks castle in the corner dwarf army knows exactly what I am talking about. Its not that the army is unbeatable, but its boring as hell to play against.