Forum adverts like this one are shown to any user who is not logged in. Join us by filling out a tiny 3 field form and you will get your own, free, dakka user account which gives a good range of benefits to you: No adverts like this in the forums anymore. Times and dates in your local timezone. Full tracking of what you have read so you can skip to your first unread post, easily see what has changed since you last logged in, and easily see what is new at a glance. Email notifications for threads you want to watch closely. Being a part of the oldest wargaming community on the net. If you are already a member then feel free to login now.

Hello everybody!

I have been in the actual collecting and playing hobby since September but I have been watching and reading battle reports for various gaming systems for a couple of years now.
I have noticed IRL and on youtube batreps that players in general count their model wounds in four ways.

1) They use dice to count down from the maximum wounds the model has. Ex. I have a model with 10 wounds, it takes 4 wounds so I use a dice showing a 6 to show wounds remaining.

2) They use a dice to count up from zero wounds to show wounds taken. Ex. I have a model with 10 wounds. It takes 4 wounds so I use a dice showing a 4 to show wounds taken.

3) They use counters of some kind to show wounds remaining. Ex. I have a model with 10 wounds so I put 10 counters on it. It takes 4 wounds so I remove 4 counters.

4) They use counters of some kind to show wounds taken. Ex. I have a model with 10 wounds. It takes 4 damage so I add 4 counters to it.

The vast majority of people I have seen usually use one of the first two methods using dice but I have seen the token method from time to time. In my local Warmahordes scene it is common to show the heroes` wounds with either the adding or subtracting of tokens methods to make it easier for the opponents to see so they don`t have to keep asking to look at the cards. In my local 40k scene I have seen both the first and second methods of using dice to count up or down. I have seen some people, StrikingScorpion82 on youtube, use a count up token method for low wound characters but use dice for larger wound models.

I personally use the dice to show the remaining wounds. I find it makes it easier for newer players by myself who don`t know all of the wounds for various models.

How do you track your model wounds and is there a method that you prefer or hate?

May the dice be in your favour,

Apocritas

Yes, generally we use a die to show the remaining wounds. I find clutter on the gaming table breaks the immersion, so to remind me not to clear them away, I like to use a dedicated style of die – generally a smaller or more subtly-coloured one, to be as unobtrusive as possible.

Like you, I've seen lots of methods used; so I find it's always best to check with the other player(s) during the warm-up. I think my favourite ever method was one I saw at a campaign weekend, where a player had made a dedicated model for each wound – so his Space Marine commander gradually looked more and more raddled!

Most systems I play have some official way of tracking wounds (Warmahordes damage matrices, X-wing and Armadas shields and damage cards). For my tyranids, what I would do is decorate my monstrous creatures bases with rippers, and remove rippers as they take damage. On smaller stuff I would typically use different-coloured dice.

I use dice counting down. I bring 2 sets of dice with me.. 1 color that I roll all the time, and another color that I only use for tracking wounds. I tried using counters, but that got old fast. My favorite way though is to have a card with wound boxes that you can fill in with a dry erase maker, like Warmachine.

Coming from Warmachine I was used to using dice to mark how many wounds taken so far. Over the course of my first month of Warhammer 40k, I received so much flak for doing so I gave up and went to wounds remaining.

Likewise I retired my D3 dice for the same reason. I had two players refuse to believe that such a thing as a d3 even existed and was accused of cheating. Noone could explain how I was cheating, only that these were clearly cheating dice. I gave them up after someone waved an ITC packet at me.

I have dedicated dice that look different from all of my other dice to count wounds taken (method 2). I use the different colored dice so that I don't accidentally pick them up. I ONLY use them to track wounds.

I do wounds remaining, For a few reasons:

Everyone knows how many wounds the model still has even if you dont know how many it had at full health. If you do wounds taken you always have to calculate how many are left.

I use blue 6mm d6 dice for models with 6 or less wounds and d20 for 20 or less.

Depends on the game.

For 40k, a die counting the wounds taken. Been using D6’s, but as I think about it D10’s (or some other die you woudln’t acciedentally grab to roll as an attack) would be much better.

X-Wing - damage counters on the card

Other TT games - glass beads beside the unit to mark wounds taken.

In 8th ed. W40K you're supposed to count down.

While I agree dice are a bit obtrusive, it is the easiest and fastest way to indicate to both the players how many wounds something has left (in 40K at least). I use red D12s so they're not confused with anything (and it helps that all of my models have 13 wounds or less at the moment...so a D12 is perfect).

For other games, it depends. I like slightly more styled stuff for my Old West game. I use either acyllic red blood splashes or custom tokens. I made these for my Old West game:

Out of old habit, our group counts upwards with dice.

In 8th edition, it is normally more useful to count down, with the way monsters and vehicles degrade. My collection of dice comes from all manner of sources. I'm a die scrounger. I pick up some dice here and there and everywhere.

If I pick up a "wound" die, I agree with my opponent what was dealt / left over and move on with our lives. We're garage gamers, so gaming tends to go hand in hand with other vices. We make mistakes.

Smaller, white dice that show wounds remaining.

Iv seen those really small dystopian wars dice being used

pretty cool

Counting up with wounds taken for AOS because their degrading units go based on how many is taken

counting down for 40k because thats how they count with remaining wounds (WTF GW)

Count up on wounds taken here - makes it very easy to see what hasn't been wounded as to my mind showing wounds remaining would mean marking up everything.

Would love the old bases the Epic Titans had with a built in wound wheel though

For 8th we all mark wounds remaining because of the degrading nature - obviously healthy models do not have a dice, so you don't have to mark up everything.

I count down using little doll house food, like pizzas and cookies and such.

I usually use some very bright green dice (I play nurgle and Orks) as my playing dice only have 20 so sometimes i need to roll a couple times, I use the dice from the Burning at Prospero box so red 10mm and up to D12 all in red as my wound allocation markers, I count down so newbies who havent seen that model know how close it is to death without having to ask every time.

Miniature d6 from Hobby Stores to mark Wounds Remaining


Automatically Appended Next Post:
These are new Dial style wound counters

https://www.ebay.ca/itm/Pyrkol-Wound-Tracker-Dials-for-Warhammer-40k-Space-Marines-Terrain-Tau-Dice-Alt-/112573744714

Different size and style of dice showing wounds remaining. Using the old "skull" dice, but guess I'll need to switch to D12 or D20 soon.

Anyone here actually using the GW D10 wound counters?

No, they're quite cluttered and hard to read...and expensive compared to buying normal D10s or D12s. This is just going off the ones I've seen which are needlessly ornamented on each face.

Using 6mm red d6 dices counting down.
That size means i can place them on the base instead of next to the base.

if you dont do number 1, you're wrong

I use Woundwangs

I use dice to count down, but not D6.

 Fifty wrote:
I use Woundwangs

My faith in humanity just died a little.

I count down using my many non-standard dice.

 Stormonu wrote:
Anyone here actually using the GW D10 wound counters?

someone locally bought a pack, they used them once, realised they are unreadable and gave up.

I mean seriously, how can you screw up a dice?

I use a unit card with wound boxes in a clear card sleeve for any single model that has multiple wounds [characters, vehicles, monsters], etc.

In the occasion I run units with multiple-multiple-wound models, I just use a d8/d10/d20, whatever I have on hand. Since in 8th, wounded models have to die first, I don't need many of these special die.

The only other times I use those d8-20s are for Command Points or Victory Points.

I use old RPG dice (d8's, d12's, etc).
A lot of people I know like to use d6's, but I find that I never accidentally pick up a d10 to make a Hit or Wound roll. LOL

Eric