lord_blackfang wrote:Looks to me like the cards are like spells in
AoS: 300 differently worded ways to deal a blast marker.
There are also things like, not having to reveal your order markers so your opponent doesn't know what your doing before you do it. Swapping your order markers to adapt to the opponents revealed plans, interrupting the turn order to act on one of your order markers first, defensive cards like Deny the Witch (does not require a psyker) or Iron WIll (same) or the earlier complained about Go to Ground, gaining rerolls, resupplying 1 use only weapons so you can use them again, healing damage that has been done, potentially destroying terrain features (like... in their entirety removing them from the board), respawning units (Endless swarm style) etc etc...
There is a lot of tactical and strategic options in the cards that are not just "Shoot these guys better" that I think in a lot of cases are more important than simply doing damage.
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Peregrine wrote: Because some of them are incredibly powerful and it's pure
RNG whether you draw them. If you draw the "your whole
IG artillery parking lot gets to shoot twice" card that's a ton of extra damage. The "roll for blast markers on every unit within 12" of a point" card can be crippling on the typical Apocalypse table full of models packed in as densely as possible. Etc. And these things don't involve any meaningful strategy by any player, whether in earning them or using them.
RNG just sometimes gives you powerful advantages because
RNG said so. If the cards were something you had available at all times and were paid for with points as part of your army then it would be much less of an issue. But as it is it's another instance of
GW replacing player decisions and interaction with
RNG.
The
RNG is not an issue for me. The fact that it's from a draw and not available all the time is what actually makes them fine. Stratgems are dull as dirt. The deck building and card drawing aspect works for me and my opponents. My meaningful strategy was how I built my deck to complement my list. My meaningful tactics in the game is how I place my orders, who I activate in what order, an how I make the most of the asset cards currently available to me. I don't want all 30 cards in my hand from turn 1 to use willy nilly. I WANT to weigh my options on if it's best to use it now or hold till later, being unsure what my opponent has and unsure what I will have next turn.
I made more actual meaningful decisions in the first game turn of apocalypse between my orders, my activations, choosing my targets not just based on pointing my guns at their most effecient targets but what it looked like my opponents plans were, and which cards I held onto and/or used and how, then I did in the last 2 whole games of regular
40k I played.