The 3rd Edition Positivity Thread!

[NinthMusketeer]

Since @Kramer's original thread become lost amidst excitement & discussion surrounding a new edition, I felt it was appropriate to revive his excellent idea with a fresh one tuned for our new third-edition state.

This is a thread for POSITIVITY, this is a thread for what you LIKE about Age of Sigmar. Have criticisms? That's totally fine! But this is explicitly a discussion for passion, good feels, and excitement; negative posts are off-topic in this thread and will be reported as such (one must try their luck in... literally any other thread).

So, what are you liking about Age of Sigmar? Doesn't have to be specific to third edition or even to gameplay at all; feel free to talk about anything from much you liked one of the novels, to how easy a kit was to put to together, to how much you enjoy a particular scenario! Let's hear it!

[NinthMusketeer]

So the random thing that eventually led to me digging up this thread concept was noting how OWC and SCE did not get a terrain piece with their new 'tomes. I know not everyone is on the same page here but personally I like that only some armies get a terrain piece and only some armies get endless spells. It makes the ones that do exist more unique and more a feature of their army than an obligatory element tacked on to every 'tome.

[Dogmantra]

Yknow I'm pretty new to AoS. Got into it via the Mortal Realms magazine. I played 2nd ed on tts a few times, but 3rd is just fantastic compared to 2nd imo. I'd like to list changes that I like, but the 3rd edition rules have now so thoroughly replaced the 2nd ed rules that I don't really remember what has improved. I just remember thinking that it's a much cleaner edition with some really nifty changes. I like Heroic Actions and I like Monstrous Rampages. I even like Unleash Hell

Also, minor point, but I think the presentation of the General's Handbook was phenomenal. As someone just starting out playing the game in person and buying books, I really appreciated that buying the General's Handbook was all I needed to get the core rules in a bound official copy, I liked that it came with tokens for the battle plans and for objectives, and I love that it's spiral bound making it easy to leave open flat to the scenario you're playing or the rule you're referencing. It's something that feels so obvious in retrospect that they should have done for all their games years ago because it is just a much nicer experience to use than a traditionally bound rulebook. I almost wish they'd gone that way with the battletomes too, or made cut down "General's Tomes" or something that you could get instead if you were into purely matched play that were just spiral bound collections of the army's rules with no fluff or narrative stuff in it. But yeah, big ups to the spiral binding, and I was glad to see that the new Killteam also seems to be going down that direction too.

[Praecautus]

I was initially really cool on AoS 3.0 as my army was messed up and did n it transition well. However in recent weeks I have started to warm to it. This is mostly driven by my son and nephew rekindling their interest. We have had a few games at home and at element games (first time been, was great). I am not as positive o 3 as I was on 2 prelockdown, but you know what, having games w my family is a lot of fun and the trajectory is upwards.

[Neverchosen]

I really love 3.0!

Gameplay: It reminds me of everything I love about AOS with some key influences from WHFB. I think that the balance likely needs fine tuning but I only play friendly non-competitive games and this edition really speaks to my interests. I honestly love what they have done with battalions and I am absolutely fine with what we have seen of the faction specific variants. The emphasis on heroes and monsters makes it feel much more epic and also creates more dynamic list building options in the future for assassins and monster slayers. The return of miscasts and wards are two of my favourite inclusions. 

Aesthetic: Age of Sigmar is already a beautifully sculpted and designed game with terrific miniatures. But Thunderstrike armour and Kruel Boyz have taken two of the factions that I felt rather indifferent towards and created some of my absolute favourite models in the game! How I will resist the upcoming releases is beyond me, luckily my bank account will hold me at bay. 

Lore: I really like the direction that the lore has taken since Broken Realms and I am greatly looking forward to seeing things unfold. I am cautiously optimistic that the Dawnbringer Crusades will result in a more scattered position for order as Destruction continues it's push to batterdown the gates of heaven. Path to Glory is really amazing although I am still trying to figure out how to get it to work effectively alongside my prebuilt 2000 point armies. But it has inspired me to really work on the narrative of my factions. I have enjoyed it so much that I have been working on genealogies, maps and social structures for my armies. I was so inspired I thought about trying my hand at submitting some work for the call for submissions for Black Library but I feel I would need to better iron out my ideas and tie them directly to the Dawn Brigades. 

So yeah, I am really enjoying pretty much every aspect of the game right now.

[yukishiro1]

I like the way the 3.0 rules have breathed life into Sylvaneth. I'm not 100% sure some of it is good for the game overall (save stacking, looking at you), but it's amazing how many different ways Durthu and the Ancient got better. It also feels like after about fifteen tries, they've finally mostly got the Wyldwoods to the right place in terms of letting you put down 1-3 pieces depending on the amount of space you have, so you can actually put them where you need to most of the time. With that plus the Warsong, it's really refreshing to feel like finally Sylvaneth have the reliability to be able to use your army rules based on something other than just blindly hoping for good rolls on your spells, which feels good. 

 

 

Edited October 2, 2021 by yukishiro1

[overtninja]

As someone who plays Sylvaneth Monster Mash pretty exclusively, i couldn't agree more. There are so many things about 3E that have advantaged the army setup - the changes to Wyldwoods are huge because it's much harder to hedge out their deployment with terrain; monsters and heroes are more survivable and effective thanks to the addition of many abilities; the changes to the way unit size is arranged (via limited reinforcement) really stifles the elite model deathstars that defined 2E's army compositions; the changes to missions and objectives, and the addition of battle tactics each turn really reward the army's mobility; the changes to how command points are generated and issued makes units more independant and individually useful; and the points changes mean that each unit or model is has a higher value on the field (since there's less of them overall, generally), which is felt even more if your army is Oops, All Monsters.

I haven't gotten a chance to play 3E yet with my army (my country's locked down for months and months), but it's all positive from my perspective. I'm even looking back at my CoS army with all the new possibilities and strategies I could employ in mind! It'll be great to play games again.

[Sarouan]

Is it ok if I'm focusing more on the narrative ? I mean, sure, I'm ok with the rules, but what really attracts me in the 3.0 so far is the story clearly focusing on Dawnbringer Crusades - building new settlements and potentially new realms on the now clearer maps of the Mortal Realms.

It's really giving you a big reason to fight : defending / attacking key places. That is depicted with the new Path to Glory : even if it's basic so far, it's really about building your own realm and inviting you to dig a bit deeper into the story of your armies and what they are standing for.

I also like the new campaigns written on the White Dwarf : linked games with choices to take until the final battle, that can be used in multiple ways (most obvious is Path to Glory). I can totally see a supplement book written the same way. I'd love to see campaign books for AoS for that reason.

The background is more consistent in 3.0, IMHO. More maps, more notes on it, more glimpses on what life is in the Mortal Realms...makes the world more living and worth fighting for.

[Skreech Verminking]

So the positivity chat.

lets see,

I guess I am having a positive feeling that skaven might be getting a new model release this edition.

 

[Orbei]

I think they really nailed it with the core rules this edition. I say this as someone who doesn't like how often editions change. 3.0 is a nice step forward from 2.0 though, and I'd love for this edition to have a long lifespan.

I like how interactive it is. The command point system ensures that both players have command points throughout the game with plenty of opportunities to use them even during your opponents turn. They can also be very impactful, like a key redeploy. I have never been fond of you go I go but thanks to commands and hero phase abilities both players remain very engaged throughout the game.

The battle tactics are a nice idea, and I like the scenarios in general. They seem designed to keep the sore as close as possible throughout the game. It's great when games come down to the wire, and a big plus when you can still score lots of points even if your army is falling apart. Really gives the chance for good generalship to shine even if the dice gods aren't entirely on your side.

[dirkdragonslayer]

Despite my gripes about some changes and how they affect my army (RIP buff stacking), I do think it's good for the health of the game in the long run. I also like the change to generic formations, because the disparity between some factions available ones were nuts. Sometimes you would get good ones like Brass Despoilers, and sometimes you would get bad ones like the Troggherd.

Also can I just say the 3rd edition generic relics and spells are fantastic? The Arcane Tome, while maybe not the best relic ever made, offers so much for conversion potential due to how keywords work (at least in Gloomspite). Miss the WHFB days where you could mount your Shamans? Give a Loonboss on GCS the Arcane Tome, and he has all the keywords to take Moonclan spells. Want a Troggoth Hag without buying the FW model? Dankhold Troggboss with Tome and the cauldron spell gets you a similar unit (albeit smaller and weaker). I just love the versatility of this relic, and it makes for fun conversion fodder for armored mounted wizards.

[NinthMusketeer]

6 hours ago, Skreech Verminking said:

So the positivity chat.

lets see,

I guess I am having a positive feeling that skaven might be getting a new model release this edition.

 

Skaven have many-great model releases every edition! Greater than all others! Their smart-quick cunning is simply so great that us measly man-things are unable to witness them.

[Talas]

I've played just a few games of 3.0 and all of them have been a blast, very close and fun. It's been a while since I took my Stormcasts out, but now they are my main army again.

[Skreech Verminking]

3 hours ago, NinthMusketeer said:

Skaven have many-great model releases every edition! Greater than all others! Their smart-quick cunning is simply so great that us measly man-things are unable to witness them.

Yes-yes cunning-thing tell-sqeaks the truth.

many-many non skaven models there are-exist to be desecrated.

 

[NinthMusketeer]

Clans Moulder have powerful fleshcraft, yes-yes!

[DooomRider]

Heroes feel heroic and monsters feel monstrous. I feel like the "epicness" of the setting went up as the big stuff hits hard and makes an impression.

The game feels more interactive and their is a more tactical air meaning you can focus on more than just slaughtering your opponent

[RandyRyan]

I haven't been able to play a game yet, but I love the idea of Path to Glory. As someone who doesn't have any regular gaming buddies, being able to take my army "on campaign" independently of regular opponents is really appealing.

[Skreech Verminking]

15 hours ago, RandyRyan said:

I haven't been able to play a game yet, but I love the idea of Path to Glory. As someone who doesn't have any regular gaming buddies, being able to take my army "on campaign" independently of regular opponents is really appealing.

It really is.

yet i personally enjoy the company of some other players interested in taking part in a campaign.

 

[RandyRyan]

3 hours ago, Skreech Verminking said:

It really is.

yet i personally enjoy the company of some other players interested in taking part in a campaign.

 

Oh don't get me wrong, I would love to be in a proper organised campaign, but between having a young family and doing shift work I don't much get the chance other than the odd Wednesday every couple of months...

[Phasteon]

First of all, 

THANK YOU for this kind of thread! 

After reading through the last pages of the Stormcast Discussion I was aboot to quit the forum for a few weeks, because the negativity of so many people towards the army and GW in general is taking over again, which is just frustrating when all you want to do is reading and talking about one of the most exciting Editions (imo) so far! 

 

As you can already tell by this introduction I am VERY pleased with the current state of the rules and I am excited for everything that will follow. 

 

I think 2nd Edition was well designed as well, though battalions and buff-stacking went too far, to a point where you couldnt beat a LotL HGB unit if you hadnt some crazy combo yourself. 

Now its much more toned down and because of that more impactful when you can create a little combo here and there. 

I played OBR, Fyreslayers, KO and ofc my new Stormcasts so far and I really enjoyed every single game so far. 

The games were very close most of the time with t4/5 being the decisive ones. 

And even if a game was decided on t3 it was still fun to finish because both sides had still many units left to play with. 

That being said, I won all my SCE games so far, I think the army works really well and I love the changes to old units! 

The preview article did not lie! 

As mentioned Retributors (Paladins in General) & Judicators are big winners, they are doing such good work. 

 

All in all I am really hyped and I think its a great time to be in the hobby! 

 

Cheers!

[NinthMusketeer]

The SCE thread may have turned into another rendition of "talk about the most competitive game-breaking combo possible or GTFO" but it will be temporary; the people passionate about the army still exist and will re-emerge when FOTM dies down.

[NinthMusketeer]

While I lament the loss of details present in earlier tomes I do really like the fluff of the new ones. They are a lot more units to cover in the same amount of space, but the briefer rundownds feel like the best elements were taken and mediocre ones left out. They also seem to have tomed back the 'propaganda' a bit so the armies aren't described as unstoppable god mode all the time where even thoe lowliest mook is capable of murdering whole units by themselves (looking at you Slaanesh).

[Kadeton]

I'm enjoying the way that this edition has made me re-think my tactics and my tournament list. I've rebuilt my army to focus more on survival and securing objectives, and my play focuses more on positioning rather than running headlong at the enemy and smashing them to pieces - or at least smashing at the right time against carefully chosen targets, rather than as soon as possible against whatever's in the way. The ability to actually keep tough models alive under intense and focused damage has really improved the game for me.

[Melbar]

Good morning everyone,

thanks a lot for this thread – for me it speaks volumes that we need to have a separate thread to discuss the positive sides of AoS 3. And to see the low amount of responses support my observation, that AoS 3 clearly split the player base even further than the 2^nd Edition (3^rd feels like the Tournament-Edition, so they are not aimed at me).

But back to the positive things (at least for me):

1.       The Miniatures! I like the new Kruelboys as they are generic enough to use them in other games without worrying too much about the size or aesthetic. Also the updated Stormcast Eternals are nice and with a little tweak they can be used as special Troops in games like SAGA Age of Magic without any problems.

2.       Painting! The current Minis are a joy to build and paint. Big Plus on my list!

Not so positive things:

Nobody in my neck of the woods plays it or even plan to test it (40k and other games are king here, and sadly the rules are a chore to read).

[Beer & Pretzels Gamer]

After my first tournament I’m feeling I have a much better grasp of what 3.0 is trying to get to and while I think there are still a few wrinkles to be ironed out I’m a lot more positive on both that destination AND the probability that it will get there.  That it could “arrive” as early as GH2022 is exciting.

Like @Kadeton mentions I’m finding the new tactical focus and list building challenges enjoyable.

And I should finally be able to pick up my new Warclans Tome Friday, allowing me to start preparing a plan for my new Kruelboyz to start on the Path to Glory.

So while I’ve gotten off to a slow and uncertain start with 3.0 it has been nice over last couple of weeks to feel the momentum build.