How Game Theory Can Work For You!

One of the discussions I have a lot lately is about comp scores. The reason they are so popular is that many players focus on one or two skill sets while learning the game and they feel this is the way the game “should” be played. Those players who throw down at 40k 3 or 4 times a weak usually feel that comp scores are unnecessary. It’s a matter of practice and a deeper understanding of the armies. This is basically what defines their play “style”. Modern Game Theory has many different skill sets and for the most part Warhammer 40k makes use of them all tactically and strategically, but many armies lean towards one skill more heavily than others. This is the typical “style” of the army. So what makes a good Marine player or Tyranid player?

I thought I would turn my BA in Game Design towards the world of 40k and talk about some rather esoteric stuff today… hope ya’ll don’t mind.

I’m going to walk through the current “Fifth” edition armies (as I see them) and talk a little about how each one uses a different skill set that many may not have thought about. It should be noted that every army requires ALL of these skills, some just function better in the hands of a player who has honed one area of expertise. This is typical referred to as “play style”. I (Miggidy Mack) function better with armies that focus on Dismantle tactics and find Space Wolves right up my ally. Richard is very skilled with Target Priority and plays Space Marines very well.

Chaos Daemons & Opponent Reading
The Chaos Daemon army is best played by a player who knows every other codex inside and out. Players who have had many other armies and know how they function are able to read their opponents army list and know exactly how to pull them apart. Many players attempt to field “powerful” forces with this codex. Those players who are successful field armies able to pull strategies apart. A good Daemon player has an army able to shift what goes into each half, and has a contingency plan for bad random selection. The Daemon player has to be able to read his opponents actions and through his own experience know how to counter act his opponents hidden strategy.

Daemons truly is a veterans army. Without a world of skill and lots of practice one will think that the army is weak. It is not, in the hands of a skilled player it decimates even the hardest “power list”. Poker players make good Daemon players as they know how to react to bad luck and to watch an opponents actions for strategy tip offs. Thus the importance of Opponent Reading in both poker and playing a Daemon army.

Orks & Field Manipulation
While the typical Ork army relies on volume of fire over quality of fire there are some notable exceptions that allows the force to field some very powerful elite units. It also combines speed and resilience, but rarely in the same unit. The obvious exception is Nob Bikers. Because of this the successful Ork player is able to manipulate the field to his advantage. Be it cover saves for his efficient Boyz or knowing when to Waaagh to cover those critical few inches into an assault. Orks take advantage of the game board as best as they can to bring their power to bear while protecting themselves.

Ork armies are more unforgiving than many players think, now that the metagame has calmed down. Go players find themselves at home with an Ork army. Their sheer volume of attacks makes “mathhammer” fairly predictable with them and this allows players well versed in strategic games able to make use of their strengths while minimizing their weaknesses.

Space Marines & Target Priority
With their resilience, variety of weaponry and higher than average ballistic skill the marines have a shooting answer for everything. Combine this with inexpensive transports and rapid assault units and you have a recipe for an army that does extremely well in the hands of a player who is good at target priority. Knowing what will do the most damage to your forces and taking out quickly (and reliably) is a complex topic but with marines it becomes much simpler. Ap 2 and 3 shooting becomes a priority, high strength shooting and power weapon wielding units need to die first. If this is done properly the Space Marine player will meet with much success.

Marine armies are often thought of as “beginner” armies because they are forgiving of mistakes. It is also true that they give new players a variety of options and let them learn the critical target priority skill. Players who are good at chess and can think several steps ahead while juggling multiple unit functions find Space Marines to be right up their ally. Just because people think that his is a “beginners” army that doesn’t mean it can rock your world!

Imperial Guard & Foresight
With big guns, lots of outflanking units and fragile units the Imperial Guard player finds himself needing a plan. He must choose his deployment very carefully and be ready to manipulate the pacing of the game from turn 1. Knowing his opponents deployment and holding units in reserve become critical to a guard player. The easiest way to defeat a guard player is to force him to go first! Guard players will often hold everything in reserve when going first, so that they can give themselves time to adjust to their opponents deployment.

Guard armies are attractive to players who appreciate redundant units, as it’s easier to plan when it’s unlikely to lose an entire strategic function in one round. Risk players are good Guard players. Their ability to plan the game out from deployment and then adapt to dice rolls makes a Risk player ready to handle bad scatter dice when his plan gets shaken up.

Space Wolves & Dismantling
Dismantling is a close relative of target priority, but it uses shock & awe to limit an opponents response options. By getting tied up in assaults the army protects itself from shooting. With the sheer number of characters the army also functions with fewer tactical assets. While a Space Wolves army might have 10 units, their are only 3 or 4 operating groups (HQ’s with troops in transports is 3 units that operate as one). This makes for hard hitting hammers that tear through enemy lines. Dismantle armies hit an opponent hard, forcing them to respond. A second unit then responds in turn and hopefully the opponents force is dismantled one piece at a time or at least reduced to intellectuality.

Space Wolves armies are another good army for a new player. In the hands of a veteran they can be even more devastating. Dungeons & Dragons players make good Space Wolves players, as they know the strengths of a few units and are able to support those units with each other.

Tyranids & Situational Analysis
The nids is a newer codex, but it really boils down to one thing… knowing the odds. With a relatively few number of attacks (4 or 5) on monstrous creatures they just won’t be able to take down a horde. Combine that with inefficient units (when compared to guard or orks) and you have a force that can field hordes, but not as well as other forces. It’s all about knowing the odds and not getting stuck in a war of attrition. It may seem like Tervigon’s will let you fight on forever, but often they just result in more dead bugs when a more powerful assault army hits your line. When faced with 30 Ork Boyz with a Klaw a much more expensive unit of Termigaunts and their Tervigon are just going to get crushed… so Nid players need to be able to guess ranges and do the math in their head or risk being ripped to shreds by attrition.

Nids are a great army for players who can deal with layers of complexity. It’s not 100% (as any statistician will tell you) but it does let the nid player know when he is up against a wall. Magic the Gathering players make good Nid players. They have to assess their tools and the metagame when building their army list. The nid codex is capable of several different strategies ranging form drop pod assaults, swarm tactics and hammer units. All these options operate differently and combining them well into one deck … er army list, is something Magic players have grown accustomed too.

So there you have it. The “5th edition” codex’s and their chosen “other skill”. I haven’t talked about older codex’s, but you can easily see how many function… but who knows how that will change! Eldar, for instance, are a focused fire army, bringing firepower to bear quickly and decisively. Daemonhunters operate similar to the Space Wolves but with an eye towards resilience. It’s an incredibly complicated topic that I could discuss for years without ever getting bored!