I was so gratified by SC grizzly’s what-I-learned-about-MW-from-Hclix post under a different topic, I decided to do the same thing. After all, the more different lessons we have from different games the better. My resume consists largely of 6th and 7th edition Warhammer Fantasy, so I feel like I might have some insights that differ slightly from those offered by the card gamers and squad-level minis gamers in the group.
1. The player that dictates the terms of engagement will probably win the match. In a wargame this mostly means ganging up on enemy units with multiple units of your own, getting flanking bonuses, and tying down your opponent’s heavy hitters with chaff. This applies to MW as well (taunts, force holds, quicksand, tanglevines can tie up big nasties so the rest of your creatures can take apart supporting creatures), but in MW there’s also a tempo element that WH has less of . If one player is running an aggro book and the other is planning for a long game, the winner will probably be the one that ends up dictating the tempo.
2. Mobile troops are key, but not everyone needs to be super mobile. Fast, elusive, and flying are great abilities and most books should include some or all of these traits (teleport-heavy wizard builds possibly being the exception), but not every creature needs them. Those traits aren’t free in terms of either books points or casting cost, and a fast-themed or elusive-themed build will often find that once it gets where it’s going it doesn’t have the staying power or damage potential it might have had if only one or two creatures had been super mobile.
3. On a related note, you’re paying some sort of premium (book cost, casting cost, actions) for every spell and creature you have. If your opponent can tie down your bear strength, fast, unavoidable steelclaw grizzly with a quick sleep spell, he’s winning the resource game. If you’re investing a lot of resources in a particular strategy, make sure you’re also taking steps to ensure that strategy stays effective given your opponent’s likely counters (and, conversely, if your opponent is highly invested in a particular strategy, keep an eye out for efficient ways of disabling it).
4. No plan survives contact with the enemy. Having a plan and sticking to it is important, but once your enemy figures out what that is he’s definitely going to try to disrupt it, and a successful player will be prepared for that.
5. Unless you invest very heavily in your defenses and your opponent invests very little, you’re not going to dispel/nullify your opponent’s entire enchantment/incantation game. Learning which spells must be dealt with and which to ignore is a big part of the game and may vary based on your build. A forcemaster probably can’t allow Agony on himself long term. A wizard might be able to roll with it.
6. Learn to lose gracefully. I’m always surprised at the percentage of adult humans who can’t lose a game without getting visibly angry. This hurts the fun for everyone, is bad for the culture, and is a barrier to entry for potential new players. Get it together, people.
