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Hi! I've been interested in Warmahordes lately, but as someone who has never played a wargame before (oh, I've fantasized about WHFB and 40k, but they're expensive!) I have no idea where to start, what to buy, where/how to find games, etc., so I'm looking for general advice. I won't be able to actually do anything about it for a while until I get some spending money, but it should help a lot to know what I'm doing when I start out. So, where can I find games? buy products? etc.?

Please help!

As far as where to start, I'd pick up the Battlegroup box for your faction of choice, along with either Prime or Primal Mk II. They give you a solid army to learn the game with, and a good base to expand from.

As for where to buy product/find a game, I'd suggest your Friendly Local Gaming Store. But really, that depends exactly where you live. If you let us know, I'm sure someone here can point out a good place to head for a game.

Warmachines is only slightly cheaper then a game like 40k, sure you may not need as many models, but the models you need are expensive.

If you wait a month or two, PP is releasing the faction boxes in plastic, which is great if you play one of the main factions and not mercanarys.

Its a awsome game though, I'd check out your FLGS for games.

The first thing you should do is check out your local FLGS to see if there are actually any people playing the game in your area, its no fun getting into a game system that no one around you actually plays!

If there are a group of people playing then you can get some battle box demo games before you buy anything, most people that play Warmahordes will jump at the chance of getting a new opponent, so I'm sure that you'll have no problem getting a demo game or three even if you don't have a PG in your zone.

As to what to buy, we can't really answer that one for you, most factions in Warmahordes are pretty balanced (I would exclude Mercenaries from this group since they are IMO the only faction that is noticeably weaker than everyone else), so just choose a faction that you like the looks / story / general idea of and go from there. Buy the Battle group box for that faction and play a few games with that before you buy anything else, that should give you a good feel for the faction itself and for what things you should buy afterwards.

@ Tarot: Ok, thanks. I live in Byram, Mississippi, just south of Jackson, in the United States; however, the only non-employees I've seen there have just been browsing, so . . . yeah.

@ Catyrpelius: Really? I haven't seen the prices for the models, but they can't be that expensive, can they? I mean, my memory may be all borked up (and probably is), but I'm pretty sure I saw a large 40k army going for $3300 on eBay once. (Again, my memory is probably wrong, since that was at least a year ago.) And I'm going to have to wait at least a couple months anyway to get the stuff, so that's not a problem.

@ PhantomViper: See my response to Tarot for the FLGS. And I have no problem with choosing the faction; as a matter of fact, I've already decided which one(s) I like, so that's not a problem. The Battle Box and Prime/Primal MKII comments already solved my problem there, but thanks anyway.

EDIT: Also . . . I was stupid. Looking around, I suddenly noticed that there was a section called Find A Game. So, with both my problems solved,

Thanks much,

/thread

For the cost, bare minimum I'd say:

Battle Box: $40
Rulebook $22.99

If you want to play against people in your area you'll probably need to bring that group up to 35 points so at least:

One unit ($30ish)
A solo or two ($8 each)
Another warjack ($30)

Plus you'll need paints, brushes and glue.

As you can see, not super cheap. If money is an issue see if anyone plays skirmish games in your area (Mordhiem, Malifaux) those will be significantly cheaper to start.

I never said it was cheap, just cheaper. I hadn't considered the possibility of skirmish games, but then they're not much different from Warmachine/Hordes, are they? I mean, Mordheim has 15-20 models a side (says the Wikipedia page), not much less than this. Money isn't really an issue, just the time it takes to get that money. It'll be a few months at least until I have enough money to assemble a medium-sized force. Though, I do already have brushes from an abortive attempt to paint some WH40k, which was a large part of what scared me off of GW's stuff. (Another point for Warmachine's low model count - not nearly as much to paint!)

I'd agree with the others, the best place to start is a battlegroup and the rulebook. Play a couple of games with just the battlebox and you can decided from there. Which faction were you thinking about, by the way?

Sidenote: while most of GW's stuff costs much in the $$ department, the LoTR game is actually pretty good at not annihilating your wallet, really. If you were looking for an alternative skirmish game, I'd start there, maybe.

Mordheim can be as cheap as £20, rules are free from the website.

[/threadjack]

If you want to figure out your play style, pickup a pack of bases from the LGS and drop some masking tape on them with "Front" and Model name, like "Iron Clad". For less than $10 + a rule book, you can try out all the factions in the game.

Do Warjacks / Robots or Warbeasts interest you more? That will help pick between the two major divisions in the game, Warmachine & Hordes.

In general, the factions play as follows:

Durable attrition armies: Trolls, Khador, Protectorate (though in a different way)

Ranged Armies: Cygnar, Retribution, Khador (to an extent)

Fast assassin armies: Legion, Cryx

Magic Armies: Circle, Cryx

Buffing Armies: Protectorate, Trolls

Combined Arms: Cygnar, Protectorate, Skorne, and maybe circle.

I'll see if I can track down a Press Ganger for you to contact in your area.

Dont count mercenaries out of the running, they are some of the most unique models in the game, play what you like. There isnt really a faction in the game that cant win.

There are alot of skirmish size games out there and alot of them are pretty good.

Best advice I can think of is see what the people around you play and go from there.

I already know I want to play Cygnar. The whole faction is just simply to me. Also . . . Press Ganger? *shows off newness* What is a Press Ganger? I presume a PP employee of some sort? And thanks for the advice on playtesting Endgame.

styles1005 wrote:I already know I want to play Cygnar. The whole faction is just simply to me. Also . . . Press Ganger? *shows off newness* What is a Press Ganger? I presume a PP employee of some sort? And thanks for the advice on playtesting Endgame.

The Press Gang is the volunteer organization run by Privateer Press -- Press Gangers run demos, tournaments, hang out at the LGS during game nights, etc. I am a Press Ganger -- if you're ever in Northern Colorado I'd be happy to give you a demo / hook you up with some games with a bunch of painted Cygnar.

So far the nearest PG to you that I've heard from is Baton Rouge -- not very close, but I'm still hoping I can turn someone up nearby.

styles1005 wrote:I already know I want to play Cygnar. The whole faction is just simply to me. Also . . . Press Ganger? *shows off newness* What is a Press Ganger? I presume a PP employee of some sort? And thanks for the advice on playtesting Endgame.

You might want to check this thread then:

http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/306233.page

I think I go over step by step what to get after the battle box. Keep in mind it's my opinion, and not a guaranteed winning army.

Basically Battle Box ----> Journeyman Warcaster -------> Unit (Trencher/Gun Mage) -------> Squire