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I'm really enjoying the new Stronghold Assault book and what it adds to our game/list/play options. But I'm concerned about the real utility of many of these strongholds after realizing that, according to the RAW, players are supposed to place their strongholds or other pieces of army list terrain down before the players place terrain on the board. Why wouldn't my opponent just make sure some large line of sight blocking terrain was placed right in front of my Vengeance Weapons Battery or Imperial Bunker? It seems quite easy for the opponent to at least seriously inhibit my fields of fire by placing intervening terrain.

A second 'issue' is pre-set terrain. Most tournaments will already have the terrain placed and skip the terrain placement by the two players. How are people/shops/tournaments handling this as players bring differing stronghold or other list built terrain pieces to the table top? If you haven't looked at the Stronghold Assault book yet, know that it provides the option to pack a TON of stronghold and battlefield debrie pieces into that 'single' FOC slot.

Thanks in advance for your thoughts!

I like to set up a cool looking board before the game starts. Then we plonk down our walls, halls, plates and towers of shame.

Don't bring too much terrain to tournaments would be my suggestion. Either that or talk to the TO about it. I am sure you could work something out. They usually are raisinable people.

1. It is entirely possible for an opponent to do just that. One of the broken parts of the game that could easily be fixed in a faq.

2. he TO, usually lets you take fortifications and place them when you play the game. Some will let you move 1 piece of terrain to "make room". Where I usually go, you put it in where it will fit. If you cant get it to fit the way you want, you fit it in as you can and work with it. Works better this way then by the book.

I still find the idea of people placing terrain after fortifications nonsensical.

The rulebook itself lists it purely as a suggestion, and even that it makes no logical sense (this being the era of "Forge the Narrative"). I don't know of a single tournament or friendly group personally which does it that way, with the exception being the single game I've ever played at a GW store.

Honestly, I don't see fitting fortifications being a problem unless you're playing on an extremely dense table, or are bringing some of the mega bunker complexes.

 MajorStoffer wrote:
I don't know of a single tournament or friendly group personally which does it that way, with the exception being the single game I've ever played at a GW store.

Adepticon.

And I agree, it makes no sense. Placing terrain is yet another thing to slow the game down. Bad idea for a tournament. Often in local tournaments... my opponent and I both look at the pre-placed terrain and make small changes that are mutually agreeable before we roll table sides.

Unless the fortifications are "neutral" and any player may come and take them, placing them before setting up terrain is simply stupid. I'm not investing 100 pts. (and real money) to get an ADL with a Quadcannon to counter my friend's Flyrant, only for him to place a mountain in front of the gun before we deploy I would consider such a thing bad manners, no matter what the rules say.

 MajorStoffer wrote:
I still find the idea of people placing terrain after fortifications nonsensical.

The rulebook itself lists it purely as a suggestion, and even that it makes no logical sense (this being the era of "Forge the Narrative"). I don't know of a single tournament or friendly group personally which does it that way, with the exception being the single game I've ever played at a GW store.

Honestly, I don't see fitting fortifications being a problem unless you're playing on an extremely dense table, or are bringing some of the mega bunker complexes.

I looked all over and couldn't find where the rule book (either one) says anything about the terrain placement rules being optional or only a suggestion. I know that almost nobody at our local game store uses the written terrain placement rules but I agree with the guy who said he doesn't want to spend all that money, time, and points on something that is immediately pawned by poor rule writing.

Of course the issue becomes even bigger as people figure out how to fit in whole fortification/battlefield debrie 'networks' into that single FoC slot, which the new book makes lots of room for. Existing terrain on boards will have to be more than nudged a an inch or two.

Thanks for all the really GREAT FEEDBACK guys!!

Everyone at my LGS sets up boards beforehand, and if anyone bought fortifications they're only placed afterwards. Seems like what a lot of people do, and it just makes sense. Sometimes we'll have tables set up in advance before anyone has agreed to a game, or one person will just construct a board and ask if the opponent is fine with it.

As a hobbyist I enjoy putting terrain down before the game starts. Fortifications before, after, or as a part of, that process is useful.

If you're playing competitively at a store that only has so much. it doesn't make much sense.

But!

Having a ton of good terrain on handfacilitates different game play. And you can choke out a corner with fortifications before that big LOS blocking piece is put down anyway.

options options options.

Edit: because I'm tired and grammar, and words and hard.