WFB: Notes for a Perfect Tournament
This one goes out to all the Fantasy Tournament organizers out there. Now that we’ve had a couple of GT’s put into the books, and we have another event coming up this weekend in the Colonial GT in Nanuet, NY, I thought this may be a good time to offer some ideas to tournament organizers. After all, we all want to have fun and attend the best events possible.
First and foremost, rules are the most important thing. It is very important to have someone at your event that is thoroughly up to snuff on all of the new mechanics and rules. Since there was a big change to most everything from 7th Edition to 8th Edition, a head judge that has the rules down pat makes for a much more successful and smooth event. They can also offer advice on things that may be a problem before the tournament even starts.
Now that we have that out of the way, it’s time to think about what we might change to fit our particular event. I know I just told you to know the rules, and now I am saying change them. I think modifying certain things to make your particular events more successful is vital.
Some things a T.O. might want to change to make an 8th Edition tournament a better event….
#1: LOS and terrain
One of the biggest problems I have seen for 8th Edition T.O.’s is the true line of sight mechanic. The problem lies not in the rule itself, but in the terrain that the T.O. may have used in previous years of their event. In our local gaming area the store where we all regularly play has terrain that was very 7th Edition. The hills wouldn’t block line of sight to a smurf, and the trees don’t have enough actual foliage to block anything from line of sight. For this we can use a modified version of the rules. One of the things you could do for woods is say that anything completely blocked by the terrain and lying completely outside of the feature is out of sight. If any part of the unit or model is partially or wholly lying within the terrain feature then it is in sight and will receive the soft cover bonus for shooting purposes, etcetera. For hills and other terrain features you could use a modified 7th Edition rule. For example you could say that anything but a large target is blocked by a hill. Or, you could say that anything on the opposite side of a hill feature is completely blocked from sight.
#2: Buildings
Buildings can be a real problem in 8th Edition. The rules are pretty straight forward, however, they pose a problem if the occupancy isn’t restricted. What we have seen at a couple of events now is the occupancy for any size building capped at around 30-40 models. It seems that most players agree with this as a rule and limit to occupancy.
#3: Magic Items
Most of the magic items in 8th Edition are great additions to the game. The items that already existed in army books all work pretty well too. That being said, there are a couple of things that need to be addressed. Public enemy number 1 being Power Scroll, and number 2 Book of Hoeth. You may see some similarity here. With the introduction of game changing and breaking spells in most Lores in the BRB these items, if permitted, are an auto-take in a competitive format. It may make the game fun for one player, but as a tournament organizer the goal is for everyone to have fun. If you decide to allow these items you may want to think about allowing a “Look Out Sir” roll for characters in units targeted by the big spells at a minimum.
#4: Special Characters
Many events already have policies for or against special characters. From what we here in Texas have seen it seems that most issues concerning special characters are resolved by banning Lord level special characters all together. Not much else to be said here, just think about what the characters are capable of doing and modify according to what you want for your tournament.
Well Fantasy tournament organizers, that’s what I’ve got for you. Just some thoughts to keep in mind as you plan your next event. All of us here in my local gaming group had a great time at our last event at The Alamo Indy GT. Like always it was an amazing event and utilized quite a few of these ideals. Good luck with your individual events, and I hope to see all of you at the next GT.
Well readers what do you think? Do you agree with these changes or ideas? Would you prefer the events you attend to do things similarly? What are some of the things the tournaments you have attended did to modify things? Let us know in the comments! Make yourself heard!
