Warhammer: The AoS Bounty System Needs To Be A Thing In 40k
Priority Targets and Prime Hunters need to be a thing 40k steals from Age of Sigmar. Bring on the bounties for Matched Play!
In case you missed the news, Age of Sigmar got a new Battlescroll Update recently. It’s an attempt by Games Workshop to rebalance some of the Matched Play options in AoS without completely redoing all the points or armies with a full on rework. It’s similar to the Balance Dataslate for 40k in that regard. However, this particular Battlescroll Update introduced a new mechanic to the game that’s way more targeted but could have some potentially big meta impacts.
This new system effectively created a Bounty System in AoS for specific units in the game. If you kill those units (aka the Priority Targets) you score an additional VP. If you’re also playing one of the Prime Hunters factions/sub-factions you score an ADDITIONAL VP.
You can view the entire list here, but that’s not the point we’re trying to make. It’s that this concept is really solid and needs to be a “thing” for 40k, too.
Bring On The Bounties
40k’s meta shifts typically around codexes and their releases. But there are always trends that emerge from the data. Right now, we’ve seen certain armies rise to the top. Within those lists we’re seeing other trends with specific units that keep popping up in lists. There’s a reason for this: Those units are good. It could be a points thing or it could be a rules thing or some other synergy. Whatever it is, these units might swing above their weight class or provide something extra to the army.
Players are going to gravitate towards what works. That’s totally normal and expected. And we shouldn’t punish players for choosing those options. This Battlescroll Update presents an elegant solution for everyone. You can still run those powerhouse units and you current armies aren’t invalidated with a points increase. However, it does paint a target on the backs of those units. It might only be a VP or two, but that could tip the scales against you — especially if you’re bringing 2 or 3 copies of the same unit.
If you’re still bringing those units you’ve also got to play a little wiser now. Keeping them alive is denying your opponent VPs. Suddenly the game is a little more interesting and engaging. And you can still run them and play your game — you just have to be more aware. That rewards smarter play on both player fronts.
Prime Time Hunters
This system also incentives players who might run off-meta (aka the “lower tier”) armies to play at events. From what we could see, the armies that were picked to be Prime Hunters had particularly low representation or lower win rates. Basically players weren’t using them as much compared to the average and/or players weren’t winning as much with those armies either. So, instead of just making those armies cheaper, they gained a way to score some extra VPs vs the “heavy hitter” armies. It’s an effort to rebalance things without a complete overhaul — or at least a patch until a bigger fix (aka a new codex/battletome) can be released.
Now that GW is releasing those Balance Dataslates more frequently they can release this “Bounty List” alongside it. That would encourage players to try new things or at the very least it would allow players to score more points against those armies/units that are on the Bounty List. It’s making things a little bit more difficult for the “top tier” and making things a little easier for the “lower tier” — it’s flattening the bell curve. And, just as importantly, it doesn’t directly change any existing armies. I think that’s a good thing overall.
What do you think? Would you be interesting in some sort of Matched Play Bounty Hunter System in 40k?
