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After following it vaguely for a few months, watching and reading stuff about the game here and there, I'm now looking at actually jumping in to Frostgrave. But as with any new system I start, I turn to Dakka to make use of its collective wisdom... So a few questions, any and all answers appreciated.

1) Warbands. I've found a warband builder online, and I'll have a play with that later, but for now, questions.
- How many models for a minimum/maximum/typical warband?
- How often do guys die and/or need to be replaced. How many minis total do I need per Warband relative to what I'm using in-game?
- Is there a maximum Gold Coin limit on Warbands?
- Are loadouts set, or can I buy dudes additional gear?

2) Wizards
- Do I need/is it advisable to take an Apprentice in ever game, or can I run a Wizard solo for now and add one at a later date?
- Aside from Summoners, will I be needing models for Summoned creatures if, say, I'm running a Sigilist or Elementalist?
- Can Necromancers actually raise skeletons/zombies ect or do they just do magic based around death?

3) Terrain:
- This game seems to use a lot of terrain, will it matter if most of what I have is los-blocking rather than cover-providing scatter terrain?

4) General- anyone got any other tips for starting out?

1. I believe you will never have more than twelve models, and that is an edge case assuming your "base" is an Inn, and you upgrade it with a kennel. After a few games you will likely find yourself, and stay at ten models.

Those grunts can be fairly disposable, but remember, they don't truly advance. As such, if your Treasure Hunter dies, you will likely end up buying another one. In essence a single box of Frostgrave Soldiers, or a hodge-podge from your gaming collection will be in permanent rotation.

2. It is certainly advisable to have an apprentice. Not only go their group activations give you huge tactical flexibility during their own phase of the game, but they outright improve as your Wizard does. Don't leave home without one. EVER.

And yes, you can have real summons of zombies, etc...

3. Some people argue LOS blocking terrain is best, but I am a fan of a mix. Some get this childish notion that units with a 24" range should never be allowed to use it, which I find counter to the game's design.

In essence, LOS blocking will diminish the effectiveness of ranged options, which is valid, but something to be aware of. If possible, a mix of both scatter and LOS blocking is clearly intended, however.

4. My best general tip, is make something uniquely your own. People are mathing out the "best" spells, etc... but it is a game without clear winners/losers, and instead one of degrees of growth/advancement. Pick what you enjoy! I love my Tomb King Warband, and don't care how they perform, so long as they play the way I envisioned.

Just to expand on NewTruthNeomaxim's answer to 2. Your Wizard can learn spells outside of his/her school of magic and in fact 5 of your 8 starting spells are not of your school so you may need them if you choose summon spells. Most summon spells are out of game spells that replace a soldier with a summon however some let you cast it during the game. There are also optional random encounters monster and some spells that let you control a type of monster for the game.

Very helpful, thanks. I'm looking to be using a few sample sprues from Perry, WGF and Fireforge that'll get me a couple dozen models, so in theory I should be able to get a couple of working bands out of that. Starting out with an Apprentice should also give me a few more spare minis at the start to build as and when I need replacements or new types of model.

And honestly, as I said... you'll reuse models often. At least for the moment there is a very limited pool of general hirelings and you'll quickly figure out what you like, and in what rolls.

After you realize, for example, that the cheapest Thug will inevitably be fine for running your nearest treasure off the board (and thus him out of the game), you'll tend to replace a dead Thug... with a Thug who looks oddly similar. ;-)

This game looks pretty interesting. What's it take to get started? Just the book and a d20?

 Paradigm wrote:
After following it vaguely for a few months, watching and reading stuff about the game here and there, I'm now looking at actually jumping in to Frostgrave. But as with any new system I start, I turn to Dakka to make use of its collective wisdom... So a few questions, any and all answers appreciated.

1) Warbands. I've found a warband builder online, and I'll have a play with that later, but for now, questions.
- How many models for a minimum/maximum/typical warband?
- How often do guys die and/or need to be replaced. How many minis total do I need per Warband relative to what I'm using in-game?
- Is there a maximum Gold Coin limit on Warbands?
- Are loadouts set, or can I buy dudes additional gear?

2) Wizards
- Do I need/is it advisable to take an Apprentice in ever game, or can I run a Wizard solo for now and add one at a later date?
- Aside from Summoners, will I be needing models for Summoned creatures if, say, I'm running a Sigilist or Elementalist?
- Can Necromancers actually raise skeletons/zombies ect or do they just do magic based around death?

3) Terrain:
- This game seems to use a lot of terrain, will it matter if most of what I have is los-blocking rather than cover-providing scatter terrain?

4) General- anyone got any other tips for starting out?

I've gotten about half-a-dozen games under my belt (modified with the Bad Karma rules changes, which go a long way to fixing some problems with the campaign).

1. Warbands
-10 maximum for starting out. 1 wizard, and nine other guys (usually an apprentice and eight others). Certain structures, like choosing an Inn for a base or buying a Kennel, will allow you to increase that max amount. But starting out, you get up to 10 total.
-That depends on how well you do in a game! But if I remember correctly, a model removed from the game has a 10-20% chance of dying, a 20-30% chance of missing the next game, and the rest will result him in being a-ok. I think in the six games I've played I've dismissed more mooks than I've actually lost through death. And you need 1 mini per guy.
-Starting out, it's 500 gold. Wizard is free.
-You get to choose if your wizard/apprentice start with a hand weapon or a staff, and then buy additional weapons at a cost. Loadouts for the basic soldiers are fixed, although you can replace a single item that they have with a magical version, or just give them a single magic item (like my Treasure Hunter's Ring of Teleportation).

2. Wizards
-I'd take a Apprentice from the start. Not only do you miss out in one of the activation phases of the game, but you also lose additional spells cast. And Apprentices only get more expensive to buy as your Wizard levels up.
-It depends on the spells you chose. They'll tell you if you're summoning a new model or not.
-Necromancers can summon a zombie prior to the game, which make decent treasure caddies or meatshields. Useful if one of your guys is missing a game.

3. Terrain
-I kind of agree with NewTruth. I'd say you generally want to favor LOS terrain as to not let range-based warbands get too many advantages. You are only playing on a 3x3 table and can start up to 6" from the edge. Not to mention that most spells are LOS only with no actual ranges.

4. General tips
Don't be too tempted to spend a bunch of cash on elite soldiers at the beginning. Bring along a couple Thugs to act as treasure caddies (since they leave the game after moving the treasure off the table). And a Warhound is a great investment. First game I ever had, my 10 gc warhound tied up and killed my opponent's barbarian. They fast and can be pretty deadly as well.

Cheers again for that advice, covers all the questions I have!

@argonak: by the sound of it, assuming you have a dozen or so fantasy minis and some terrain, then yep, just the book (which is frankly dirt cheap for a rulebook) and a D20!

I am thinking about getting into this and am thinking of models. What do the weapons do and is there a difference from a sword to a mace as an example. Or what about a 2 handed weapon versus a one handed one.

Can anyone give me an idea on that?

Soss wrote:
I am thinking about getting into this and am thinking of models. What do the weapons do and is there a difference from a sword to a mace as an example. Or what about a 2 handed weapon versus a one handed one.

Can anyone give me an idea on that?

The weapon-classes have minimal modifiers versus one another. For instance, a 2-hander adds +1 to damage, whereas a Dagger reduces damage by 1. Weapons are generally associated more with a type of hireling though, so if a model says "Treasure Hunter" to you, that means more than if it happens to be WYSIWYG.