OT - Non Warhammer fantasy wargames & websites?

[Glyfair]

I will not be assimilated! I don't want the quality of my play judged on the quality of my paint jobs!

Well, depending on what you are looking for in a wargame, you might try Mage Knight. It has a bit of a rap for being only for kids. However, that seems to mostly be either regional or somewhat biased opinions of some of the more fanatical Warhammer players.

Pluses: Figures prepainted (although there is a set of unpainted figures for the core set available now). Simple rules (compared to most wargames). Almost no bookkeeping. A standard game finishes in less than an hour (the large army variation is 2 hours). Plus, if you like the rules there are variations now for Marvel & DC Superheroes & Mechwarrior. Excellent prize support from WizKids for their sanctioned tournaments. Excellent additional pieces (the Dragons & Castles are marvelous).

Minuses: The paints jobs vary from poor (the early sets), to passable (much of the more recent stuff), to excellent (some of the individual figures). Too simplistic for some. It's a collectable miniatures game. It's possible to just purchase single figures (there is at least one excellent store online), however, if you hate M:tG for it's collectibleness, you probably dislike it for Mage Knight (and Heroclix & Mechwarrior: Dark Age). You'll have the snobbish wargamers looking down their noses at you.

Glyfair of Glamis

 

[Dark Helmet]

I will not be assimilated! I don't want the quality of my play judged on the quality of my paint jobs!

Then you probably should play Mage Knight.

 

[Dark Helmet]

Well, depending on what you are looking for in a wargame, you might try Mage Knight. It has a bit of a rap for being only for kids. However, that seems to mostly be either regional or somewhat biased opinions of some of the more fanatical Warhammer players.

Pluses: Figures prepainted (although there is a set of unpainted figures for the core set available now). Simple rules (compared to most wargames). Almost no bookkeeping. A standard game finishes in less than an hour (the large army variation is 2 hours). Plus, if you like the rules there are variations now for Marvel & DC Superheroes & Mechwarrior. Excellent prize support from WizKids for their sanctioned tournaments. Excellent additional pieces (the Dragons & Castles are marvelous).

Minuses: The paints jobs vary from poor (the early sets), to passable (much of the more recent stuff), to excellent (some of the individual figures). Too simplistic for some. It's a collectable miniatures game. It's possible to just purchase single figures (there is at least one excellent store online), however, if you hate M:tG for it's collectibleness, you probably dislike it for Mage Knight (and Heroclix & Mechwarrior: Dark Age). You'll have the snobbish wargamers looking down their noses at you.

Glyfair of Glamis

I wish I had thought of that (sooner).

 

[Flexor the Mighty!]

I've looked at those games, and they just don't look like they are for me. The clicky bases don't do it for me. And the line about the judging by paint jobs was kind of a joke due to a thread I was reading on RPG.net. I can paint well enough to get by, but I am mainly looking for something cheaper than Warhammer that I can use all my non Citadel figures in.

 

[Purple]

Clan War

You might want to take a look at Clan War, from AEG. This game is set in the L5R world of Rokugan. The Daimyo Edition rulebook is very complete, and the figures are going to be re-released by Reaper sometime this year, I believe. I've had a lot of fun with it, and you don't have to use 'offical' minis like GW wants you to. While AEG is no longer putting out rules, I believe that you can still find the rulebook and cards in a large variety of places.

www.clanwar.com

-Purple

 

[mmadsen]

DBA is an excellent "ancients" period miniature wargames rules - you can play a battle in about an hour on a 2ft square board. Very exciting.

What did you like about it? That Free Fantasy Wargame Rules page linked to a DBFi ruleset (De Bellis Fictionalis) based on DBM (De Bellis Multitudinis). I'll need to study it a bit more to get the gist.

 

[bwgwl]

...but I am mainly looking for something cheaper than Warhammer that I can use all my non Citadel figures in.

like i said, try taking a look at Fantasy Rules! if you can. it's not tied to any miniatures line, so you can use whatever figs you already have. the unit types are generic, so it's pretty easy to "re-interpret" an army you already have into FR! terms. the gameplay is fast. heroes and magic are present but rarely overpower normal troops (something i had a problem with in Warhammer at times).

cons: it's not well-known, so you might not be able to find it in your FLGS to take a look at it before you buy it -- you'd probably have to special order it or get it online. also, you'd probably have to teach your friends how to play because chances are they've never heard of it before either. not insurmountable problems, but i could understand how they could give someone pause.

 

[bwgwl]

Plus, if you like the rules there are variations now for Marvel & DC Superheroes & Mechwarrior.

i hope they come out with a clicky-base version of Crimson Skies soon.

 

[Glyfair]

i hope they come out with a clicky-base version of Crimson Skies soon.

It's in the works and was demoed at GenCon. Pictures can be seen at this page http://www.wizkidsgames.com/wk_article.asp?cid=37101&frame=Events .

I was offered a chance to playtest it (I was a playtester for an earlier game). However, I turned it down mostly due to lack of time.

Rumor has it they are working on Shadowrun Clix.

Glyfair of Glamis

 

[Glyfair]

like i said, try taking a look at Fantasy Rules! if you can. it's not tied to any miniatures line, so you can use whatever figs you already have. the unit types are generic, so it's pretty easy to "re-interpret" an army you already have into FR! terms. the gameplay is fast. heroes and magic are present but rarely overpower normal troops (something i had a problem with in Warhammer at times).

I was looking at a wargame to use for large wars in my campaign (now D&D, but it's been through several iterations). After looking through various options I came down to two options. Dark Heaven Apocolypse from Reaper & Fantasy Rules! Fantasy Rules! lost out, but merely because I found a copy of Dark Heaven Apocolypse first.

So, without actually have played the game, I can recommend it based on thorough research on my part (although something better may have come out recently).

Glyfair of Glamis