40K: What Size Game Do YOU Play?
Warhammer 40,000 has points levels for a reason – what size games do YOU like to play?
Way-back-when Games Workshop sat down to work on Warhammer 40,000 they needed a way to determine the size and scope of the game. Someone in the design team came-up with the idea of having a points value associated with the model, their stats, and their wargear. It was the early points-based system that has morphed and evolved into what we have today.
Now, say what you will about points and about how they are or aren’t balanced – they still allow players to gauge one very important aspect of the game: Time. Players are still able to determine if they have the time to play a 1500 point game or a 3000 point game based only on knowing that upper limit. Games Workshop has even written up a handy guide on just the thing – and while it’s not an “exact science” it still helps everyone get a rough idea of how much of a time commitment the game will be:
via Games Workshop (Webstore Team)
Kill Team – 200 Points or less: These games take about 30 minutes or less to play through. Perfect for lunchtime battles, if you are lucky enough to have a gaming table available at work.
500 Points or less: This size of game takes a little under 45 minutes to 1 hour to play through. This may seem a little long, but includes set-up and deployment times. The game itself will be reasonably quick.
500 Points – 1,000 Points: This game should last a little longer than 1 hour, but not much more than an hour and a half. It will take less time if one side brings a super-heavy to the table!
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1,000 – 1,500 Points: This size game usually takes roughly an hour and a half, but could easily take less or more time. At this size, army composition plays a much bigger role. Two hundred Orks running across a board takes a long to move and shoot with, but three Imperial Knights take far less.
1,500 Points – 2,000 Points: This size game takes anywhere between an hour and a half and two and half hours. At our gaming events in Warhammer World we typically set aside two and a half hours to make sure everyone has a comfortable time to play, and even then some people finish in an hour, while others play well past the two and half hour mark.
2,000 Points – 3,000 Points: This size game is the kind of game you set aside an evening for. It’s fairly large, but will easily fit on a Realm of Battle Board and take no more than four hours to play through.
3,000 Points and upward: This size of game is typically something you want to plan for in advance – make sure you have the guts of a day set aside, as you are in for a battle of epic proportions (one might say.. Apocalyptic)!
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If you want to read the full article you can check that out HERE. But I think it’s a great guide to ball-park how long a game will take.
I think this begs the question: What size game do YOU like to play? Let us know in the comments below and tell us WHY it’s your preferred game size – is it because of time or do you have another reason you want to play a particular size?
Depending on time, I like 1500-2000 point standard games – but I also really enjoy playing in Apocalyptic Style Mega Battles with multiple players and 10,000+ Points per side! What about you?
