Age of Sigmar: Spearhead – Games Workshop Explains Why These Games Are Nail-Biters
Spearhead games of Age of Sigmar really keep both players in the game. But how did Games Workshop pull it off? I’ll let them explain.
Games Workshop really wanted to get the back-and-forth nature of a tabletop wargame right with the new edition. That’s pretty clear when you read about how they designed Spearhead games of AoS in particular. There’s a couple factors that keep both players engaged and on the edge of their seats. Rarely will you want to just call these games at the midpoint because the outcome will still be up in the air. How did GW manage to pull that off? Let’s get into it.
The Spearhead Balancing Act
Battle Tactics and Twists are on of the mechanics that were developed for Spearhead in particular to keep the games close. We’ve talked about these before. I still find them intriguing and I think that they are key factor for why Spearhead games feel so back-and-forth.
Battle Tactic Cards aren’t just how you score points. They are also Command cards, too. You’ve got a tough choice to make with these cards: Do you use them to score points or do you use the Command for an advantage? Furthermore, you’ll have the option to discard and draw up to three of these cards every round. It’s a good system that keeps both players in the game.
The next mechanic that keeps both players in the game is the Underdog catch-up mechanic. If one of the players has fewer victory points than the other then they are considered the Underdog. When the twist card is drawn, they will apply a special condition to the round that will generally help the Underdog in some way. If you’re thinking “well that’s not really fair — it’s just luck.” You’re not wrong. These boosts are there to keep things interesting regardless of the actual “point values” of the forces on the tabletop. Because at the end of the day the Vanguard boxes aren’t equal in points so having these catch-up mechanics help to rebalance the games.
Reinforcements And Reserves
There’s yet another mechanic built in to help with that point imbalance, too. Some of the units in your Spearhead will be Reinforcements on their respective warscroll. That means when the unit is destroyed it can come back to the battlefield once per game. I really like this mechanic because it’s a built in balancing factor. As stated by GW:
“…because if you’re winning and you aren’t losing units then you don’t get the benefit, but if you’ve lost units then you can reinforce, replenishing your army and staying in the game.”
On the other side of the coin some of the higher-point forces have units labeled as Reserves. These units won’t arrive on the battlefield until later in the game. Both of these mechanics also benefit from being able to deploy these units later in the game to counter your opponent’s positioning. While it might feel like the game is a little one-sided early these units showing up can really tip the scales back around to keep things interesting!
Spearhead Is For Everyone
One final thing that I think keeps Spearhead games so close is the experience of the games. It doesn’t matter if you’re brand new or a long time veteran Spearhead games are fast and engaging. You might be down one turn but you’ll be able to come back swinging. And with as many Spearhead armies there are to try out it never gets old. If you do get bored playing one army swapping over to a different one is as easy as grabbing a different box. And if you’ve already got a few armies in your collection odds are good you’ll have the miniatures you need to put together a Spearhead force and play them, too.
I keep saying that I think Spearhead could make a big splash on the competitive scene. I’m hoping that people will want to try to play Spearhead games outside of just starter leagues. I think with the variety of armies and the small footprint on the tabletop (and also the shorter time commitment) you could really bang out a handful of games in a day. Or you could play best 2 out of 3 rounds. Or perhaps a tournament or gaming group could host “drafts” of Spearhead. There’s loads of ways a competitive scene could push Spearhead as a format.
Of all the stuff in the box, I’m probably most excited about the Spearhead rules. I really can’t wait to take them for a spin at my local game store.
Are you excited to give Spearhead a shot?
