Epic Armageddon (Small Game)

 I found the opportunity last week to print off the current Epic rules available free from Games Workshop. Although I enjoyed the previous incarnation, it felt to me that the amount of work required during the army creation process did not yield a proportionate amount of fun or detail in the gameplay, so was keen to try a different version.

I put together a small table and fought a battle using two Space Marine forces, mostly consisting of Marines and Land Raiders so I didn't have to worry about a lot of special rules, although I did include a few characters and a small titan. The simple story was that one force had turned traitor and the other had been dispatched to show them the error of their ways and flush them out of the city they had fortified.

End of Turn 1

 The assault got off to a reasonable start. I like how each side alternates in giving formations an order, with the option to attempt to command two in a row. This makes a change from the usual IGOUGO format of GW games and, although I played solo, I imagine this would add to the meaningful decisions during a game as you have to decide which formations are important to be ordered early on and which can wait until later in the turn.

End of Turn 2

At the end of turn two the defenders had started to take a battering. Their only Land Raider formation had been almost destroyed by the titan's firepower and the defenders on the right flank had been driven back from their fortifications.

End of Turn 3

By the end of the third turn it was all over. The attacking force had shown itself to be overwhelming and there was no point continuing. 

 

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Although it was very one sided, it was a fun enough learning game. I definitely feel motivated to paint up some of the vast amount of Epic figures I have, more so than when I played the previous version of the rules. I'm very interested to see what it is like with a greater variety of unit types and different armies. The rules are not very complex at all, but have a better level of detail than the last edition, which I think makes the game feel more engaging and interesting.

It is slightly disappointing that GW decided to focus on the Armageddon campaign and therefore focus on Imperial and Ork forces, as there has only been an Eldar list published in addition to the core rule lists (and two alternative Ork and Imperial Guard ones). That said, there are fan made lists for Tyranids and Squats, which I look forward to using.

I always liked this scale of game in the Warhammer 40K universe and look forward to painting and playing more battles using these rules. I had previously intended to use Dirtside 2 for 6mm, but they are back on the shelf for now...