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Hello, I've recently finished a contract in the military and have returned to find that my beloved WHFB to be a different beast. I'm hoping some helpful folks here could help me out!

1. Warhammer Fantasy is now "Warhammer: Age of Sigmar? (I really don't want to buy the wrong books.)
2. Anything I should know about the new rules, as in advice you would give a newbie since I know nothing about the new stuff.
3. What's the best way to find a game? I'm in the Dallas area and I'll be browsing facebook and the local gaming section here, but if anyone has a Discord or anything that works better, hook me up!

Thanks again for any help!

the rules are free download from their site, so you dont have to buy any real books.

If you do want to buy some books, start with the Generals Handbook, its about $25 so not a heavy hit. Battletomes are not bad, but you don't need them

if you already have models. you can download their warscrolls from GW site for free and print them out. Realistically you can try the game out for $0 if you already have warhammer models.

Age of Sigmar
WEDNESDAY EVENINGS AT TEXAS TOY SOLDIER
active group of Age of Sigmar players Wednesday Evenings, normally starting around 6 pm.
2540 MARSH LANE, SUITE 100
CARROLLTON, TX 75006

(1 block S. of Trinity Mills on Marsh)
Phone 972-418-2200

So you have nothing to lose giving it a go.

Outstanding! thanks for the pointers there and even the store hookup!

no worries, I am in that odd spot of I hate the game, but my son adores it, so I am a reluctant fan, these were hard for me to dig up on my own, so figure I would send the links:

https://www.games-workshop.com/en-GB/search/searchResults.jsp?qty=com.gamesworkshop.endeca.EndecaUserContext%4073a4b211&sorting=&view=&Ntt=warscrolls

thats all the scrolls for pre-existing armies.

the 4 pages core rules

https://www.games-workshop.com/en-GB/AoS-Rules-PDF-English

good luck!

Yeah, the general's handbook is a must for getting the most out of AoS.(though AoS on it's own is pretty fun)

Before that though, you can use this scrollbuilder to make "matched play" (aka using points)lists so you can better decide if you like the game:

http://www.scrollbuilder.com/

Also, fully recommend getting the free AoS app which lets you look up warscrolls efficiently and has the updated faqs under "gaming aids".

Yep, you should try everything for free first. If you're playing a few games with points from Scrollbuilder you should also set up a simple objectives scenario, such as 3 objectives down the centre line scoring 1 point at the end of your turn if you more models within 6" than your opponent. I say this because Matched Play is built around objective scenarios and there is no default death match scenario - which is a good thing in my eyes but means if you want to get a feel for the game first you should try to play objective based games too.

Thanks everyone. Looking over the AoS stuff and it seems the game has REALLY changed quite a lot since I had to take a break.

I found it best to just consider it a whole new game, and abandon the thoughts behind warhammer fantasy altogether. the story while being a continuation is nothing alike in tone or feel. the rules are a complete departure. As a new game and new experience, its not too bad, as the spiritual successor to warhammer it is absolutely abysmal.

Yeah, if ypu look at it like a Magic: the Gathering setting where there are multiple planes each with an aspect, then it actually feels more apropriate than a successor to the Old World (which is technically thousands of years ago in the AoS timeline, so other than the various gods of the mprtals and the Chaos pantheon, there is no meaningful link.

Do you have an iPad? How about Android? If so, download the Age of Sigmar App. Again it's free (there are some pay options in there but can be skipped) and it has all the warscrolls (unit rules) that are on GW site for free but in a nice all in one place.

AoS use to be no points but now with the General's Handbook points have been added into AoS. There are 3 ways to play, but I am sure most places only play with points. So therefore the General's Handbook will be a must as was said.

Also as was said just get the stuff for free first before you want buy. What old minis do you have? You can still use them without ever buying anything. Some of the names may have changed though.

Again, easiest way is to download the AoS app if not then go on the GW website and just look at the minis there and then you will find a link on the right side to download the rules.

My recommendation? If you really liked the rank and file style of Warhammer, then give The Ninth Age (T9A) a try. Same factions, similar rules, live rulebooks and better balance.
http://www.the-ninth-age.com/index.php?simple-page/

All the material is free and you can see and contact some of the players in your area, using the map, to give it a try:
http://www.the-ninth-age.com/index.php?user-map/

So I browsed through all the stuff that the nice people linked to me. Then I read it again, and looked around for pdf's I was missing...

So there's no point value system anymore? People just field whatever they feel like VS. whatever the other person feels like playing?

I only see two spells in the main rules and one or two spells in most Wizards warscroll entries.

This is not at all what I was expecting and it makes me a little sad, but I haven't actually tried the game yet.

The Generals Handbook has points, but basic AoS does not use points, it is bring what you want. It assumed that you are playing with people you know and have an idea what you have and what they have, it is not perfect, but it can work out. basically just talk to your opponent. I believe the App has points? I dont play with points so not entirely sure. The spells are not bad, give it a go,. you may find it plays faster than the old warhammer, but it is NOT warhammer at all. Give it a go, you may actually like it, just go in with a open mind and try to not compare the two.

Points are on a separate book, the general's handbook. It's a must buy if you want points and matched play. There are two default spells, arcane bolt and mystic shield found on the 4 page rules. Plus whatever spells wizards have. Some battletomes contain extra spells for the allegiance (sylvaneth, bonesplitterz i think.

Like they mentioned, go to www.scrollbuilder.com to test makinh an army list. Unit sizes are taken in bunches, so a 10 man minimum sized unit only comes in 10, 20, 30, etc.

Give it a try first before making a judgment. If you dont like it, maybe yout local stores play 9th age or KoW.

As stated above, Generals Handbook has the point values.
It's great to mix with scenarios and narrative games. Campaign is a great fit too.

Playing with points makes it easy to get a few games starting. I was very doubtful until GhB was released, after my first game with the store owner I was hooked and dived into this.

Spells are unique between wizard types, makes it a tough choice in some armies. Meaning you have the basic mystic shield and the d3 dmg bolt. But also the unique spell for the model itself. And since you can only make use of 1 spell per turn for the model, the choice could be harder than you might think!

It's a very different game. Think large skirmish instead of massed rank battle. There are points, all the point values are in the a Generals Handbook.

I never played WHFB so I don't have any nostalgia for the Old World or moving bricks of guys around the table. What I like about AoS is that it is a big crazy open sandbox. Want to build a human/dwarf war band backed up by Stormcast Eternals, go for it. Ever wonder what would happen if Skaven and papa Nurgle ever got together, AoS has you covered.

I'm a big 40K player so not having to cart a small library around to cover all the rules I need to run my army is really nice. 4 pages and some war scrolls and your good to go.

I'll say this: AoS may not be your thing, but if you already have the models give it a try (you don't have to rebase them to round basses). There are a lot of good fantasy rule sets out there, 9th Age and Kings of War but I think AoS fills a niche for a fun flexible fast fantasy game that you can scale up or down as you wish

Im sure I'll get hate for this, but I personally really like AoS. I know it sucks that they blew up the original Warhammer to make it, but coming at it as a new game, it's really cool.
I'm a 40k player, so I don't share the anguish of the original lore being destroyed, but I have to say it is fun.

The unit stats, special abilities, the new points system; it's all quite well balanced and simple to get into, but still has plenty of customisation and strategy to it. Especially now that you can build armies with whatever you want. All the necessary rules being free also makes it so much easier to get into. And the biggest rule book they have is only $20 and still nowhere near the tombs the old books were.

It's not a game for everyone, but I can say that I'm getting a lot of enjoyment out of it, with the focus shift to be more on the fun and hobby aspects.

Im sure I'll get hate for this, but I personally really like AoS.

Haha, no worries about hate here, friend. You'll find only the faithful on this part of Dakka. (barring the occasional troggoth that wanders out from their cave, at any rate)

I've been a big fantasy fan since 2008 and heavily invested in the lore, even got the (expensive) rpg supplements just for more info on the Old World.

AoS had a shaky start up that could've been handled better (preferably age of myth> mortal kingdoms> and then the introduction of Stormcasts) but I'm finding every exploration into the new setting very entertaining with many unique twists and epic stories that show GW really wants to make an original setting that can grow into something great.

You know, I sometimes frequent this section despite not being a huge fan of AoS.

But to those who would judge you for liking this game? Feth 'em. I might not like it a ton, but if you like it, that's great! Have fun with it.

To the OP-you've got the models. The rules are free (borrow someone else's General's Handbook if you need points). Give it a try. If you like it, play it more. If you don't, well, check out 9th Age or something.

 JNAProductions wrote:
You know, I sometimes frequent this section despite not being a huge fan of AoS.

But to those who would judge you for liking this game? Feth 'em. I might not like it a ton, but if you like it, that's great! Have fun with it.

To the OP-you've got the models. The rules are free (borrow someone else's General's Handbook if you need points). Give it a try. If you like it, play it more. If you don't, well, check out 9th Age or something.

This I can respect, kudos to you, nice and refreshing to see this.

Davor wrote:
This I can respect, kudos to you, nice and refreshing to see this.

No problem. I mean, AoS is a game. No reason to get knickers in a twist or anything over it.

To the OP-have you played a game yet, or are you still looking over the rules that've been provided?

http://scrollbuilder.com/ has already been linked to earlier in the thread but that has the points values in for seeing how the Generals Handbook balances out armies.

First off infamous, welcome back!

I have a slightly different take on this that might make any go at AoS a more positive experience as someone who is used to WFB. Keep in mind this is just regarding trying it out. The game had a really bad launch for various reasons, which these suggestions are aimed at avoiding.

1) don't try to replicate WFB using the new 4 page rules. This is what happened when the game came out and a huge reason so many people were so negative about it, including me. It's not WFB 9th edition, don't treat it like it is. The lack of points makes it really tough to gauge what to use, since you really won't understand how powerful units are anyway for your first few games. Plopping a random assortment of 200 models on the table will probably not lead to a great gaming experience at first.

2) if you really want to give it a go, I recommend one of two approaches.

First, you could get the box set and play through the missions in it. No points or anything in there, but the missions give you a good framework for testing the rules with more realistic model counts and a narrative attached to each mission. Also gives you a taste of the new fluff, aesthetics, etc...

Second, get the generals handbook. It's essentially the real rulebook for the game. If that had been released at launch instead of the 4 page free rules things would have been so much better. Frankly I'm surprised so many here are encouraging you to play the game with just the 4 page rules and your old models. yeah, it's free, but in this case it's true you also get what you pay for, at least as a new player.

TLDR: the generals handbook is practically required to play the game, use it, love it. After gaining a better understanding of the rules and units you may find you want to do something different, great. But it gives you a framework to build your first games around, and will make ALOT more sense to you as a WFB player, than trying the 4 page rules alone.

Good luck!

Think of the 4 page download as a free sample, the general's handbook is the actual rulebook.