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so have any of you played both and care to comment on the differences?
i like dust but have been considering bolt action. is that a mistake?

The two games have nothing in common, save for the era they are set in/the fact that they both use dice. IIRC, Bolt Action is a much more hardcore historical rulest, designed for Grognards, whereas Dust Warfare is a pulpy WWWII game designed for a general audience.

~Tim?

Tim, the games share a lot of mechanical similarities. Bolt Action is hardly hardcore.

Bolt Action is an easy game to get into if you play 40k, but has enough detail as to be attractive to historical players.

I've got both - but Dust hasn't grabbed my group - well, not yet. That may change with the Achtung Cthulhu sourcebook!

which is more interactive?
i want to get away from i go you go.

Dust is definitely not IGOUGO - the reaction mechanic is big in Tactics, and bigger in Warfare. Have you actually played it?

~Tim?

not yet

Why don't you do that, then make up your mind for yourself as to which game you like best. It saves forum clutter, and gives you an excuse for more game time.

~Tim?

 Some_Call_Me_Tim? wrote:
Dust is definitely not IGOUGO

~Tim?

Neither is Bolt Action, nor is it harcore or a game for grognards.

If anything, Bolt Action is an easy going game with not a lot of mechanics and rules tacked on.

I can't speak to the comparison, but I researched WW2 games recently, and it appears that Bolt Action is actually one of the less-hardcore ww2 rulesets out there.

It's often referred to as the Warhammer of ww2 games.

I'm sure most of you knew this but Rick Priestly wrote the rules for bolt action. They are very streamlined and as someone mentioned before are not coincidentally similar to 40k. I just recently got into BA and I have to say it is an INCREDIBLE relief from the current GW world.

The turn sequence comes from drawing dice blindly from a cup. If its your die you go. Units can react to certain actions and go into over watch type modes as well.

The turn sequence in Dust Warfare is fairly interesting.
Every game turn:
1) Both players roll a number of dice equal to their number of units on the board. The player with the *least* hits (5+) is the 'initiating' player and goes first, the and the player with less hits is the 'responding' player. This means that small, elite armies tend to go first most of the time.
2) The initiating player can issue a number special orders = number of hits he achieved. This (generally) puts a reaction marker on that unit, and lets them perform a single action without the opposing player being able to react. If you *hit* a unit with shooting, it puts a suppression marker on them and they can't react.
3) The responding player then does the same thing. One of the special orders is to remove suppression markers, so if the initiating player suppressed your whole army you can then remove those suppressions. The responding player also has more special orders to use.
4) The Initiating player then has his turn; every unit gets 2 base actions, minus 1 for a reaction marker and minus 1 for at least 1 suppression marker. Various actions you do during your turn (shooting at an enemy, moving within 12" of an enemy) allows them to place a reaction marker on that unit to perform an action (move or shoot). So even in my turn, you can still activate many of your units.
5) The Responding player then has his turn. Initiating player units without reaction markers can still react, meaning they potentially get 3 actions per turn instead of the normal 2.
6) End of turn, go back to step 1.

It's very interactive, feels very fluid and the reaction/suppression token system is very integrated into every single aspect of the game.

 Eilif wrote:
I can't speak to the comparison, but I researched WW2 games recently, and it appears that Bolt Action is actually one of the less-hardcore ww2 rulesets out there.

It's often referred to as the Warhammer of ww2 games.

1940K is the usual term.