Alright, the cat is finally out of the bag on the table size thing so we can actually speak somewhat freely about it.
Today GW announced that the new standard minimum size for a 2,000pt game was going to be 44×60″. We wanted to share some insights about this and where we stand on the topic.
First: do you have to switch your table size? No. As they say in the article, it’s not required if you want to stick to a 4×6′ although it is good to know that 9th was designed to be played on a smaller surface and the missions as many of you have seen were designed with that in mind. They still function on a 6×4′ for sure, but I wanted to put that out there. Will the ITC require this change? No. Use what you have.
Second: why did GW do this? The answer as it has been related to us and as as it was outlined in the article is incredibly simple : it allows new players to build a table using Kill Team boards that easily fit into boxes. That’s it. No conspiracy, a simple choice based on what they felt was best for accessibility to the game from a business perspective. It’s also been related to us that this size fits particularly well on many common kitchen tables such as those you can purchase at Ikea to make it easier for new players or players with no access to a club or FLGS to play at home.
Third: did we at Frontline have any input on this choice? No. We have absolutely zero influence on or usually even knowledge of product development choices GW makes. We only give feedback on rules in our role as playtesters. We were pretty surprised when we learned about this ourselves.
Fourth: will we be running our events on these new sized surfaces? Yes we will. Also, other events such as NOVA, Adepticon, the LGT, Battle for Salvation, and many more are making the switch as well. Just ask your local community organizer in advance what to expect to avoid any dissapointment.
Fith: My thoughts: once I got over my shock and initial aversion to the idea, and I saw that it was much better for the long term logistics of event organization, I started to come around on it. You can fit a lot more people in the same space for a Game Store or organized play event which helps them to succeed, you need less terrain to get started and over time, it will make it a lot easier to get involved as a community organizer as the barrier to entry has been lowered. A smaller game really is a better game, it’s just jarring now to people like all of us that have made investments in terrain and mats/play surfaces assuming that that wasn’t going to change.
Sixth: Do you have to buy new gaming surfaces? No, you can continue to use what you have, you can cut your existing mats down if you feel comfortable doing that, you can use painters tape to mark the smaller area, you can mark on them with a pen if that suits you, or any number of ways to use what you have without having to shell out any more money. We will have the new sized mats available soon, but it is not a requirement to purchase them if you do not want to, of course.
Hopefully in time, after the dust settles, you all can see the very real long term benefits to this change. And again, if you want to continue to play on a 4×6? Go for it! The world is your oyster.
And remember, Frontline Gaming sells gaming products at a discount, every day in their webcart!
