As the competitive world melts down over the changes in the Arks of Omen book, narrative players have been given the chance to see some details about the Boarding Action rules. While it is described as a narrative-focused option, it looks equally well suited for some competitive events. In today’s article we will examine what we know so far and how it could be used in various settings.
What We Know So Far:
We have yet to get the full picture of how these games function. We do know that armies will have limited detachment options, and that they can only use a handful of stratagems. While this is being presented as a narrative type of game, they haven’t shown any distinct tie-ins with the Crusade system. Thus, GW might be trying to provide another light version of 40k that can be played in a shorter period of time. Consider that the boards will likely be terrain-dense and played on only one or two of their game mats (roughly 1/2 to 1/4 the size of a regular game of 40k). The detachments offer enough slots for a 500-750 point army (depending on faction) which should make the games go quickly. GW likes to release these game at the end of editions when the rules bloat begins to creep up on them.
As a Competitive Game Type:
This game type can work for competitive events, especially for players who are seeking refuge from the endless stratagems and shenanigans of standard 40k. By stripping down the detachment and stratagem choices, it appears that this game will be in-between Kill Team and normal 40k. At the same time, they have introduced a number of rules changes that will make the game different and might catch players off guard. I am guessing opening or closing hatches will be an action (which is why Fenrisian Wolves are losing their ability to do actions).
At the same time this system won’t be a perfect fit. The stripped down detachments means that some armies will perform better than others based on how good their troops and elites are. The games might be a pain to police as the rules seems to have some space for interpretation. The boards will also be very terrain dense, which means running a large event will be time-consuming and expensive (although this can be mitigated by having a smaller number of players). One issue is that GW will balance their armies around the regular version of 40k, which could lead to balance issues going unaddressed. Furthermore, GW has a bad habit on introducing game types only to abandon support for them down the road which might give players second thoughts about going too heavily into this game.
As a Narrative Game Type:
As previously mentioned, this game type does appear to be geared towards narrative players. It is described as a “Narrative Game”, although this perhaps just a justification for not updating the rules, or balancing the factions in the coming years. We will need to wait and see what missions are released with the rule book to determine how fluffy it is and how well they can be adapted into the current Crusade system. Speaking of Crusade. It is a little troubling that GW seems to be moving away from the Crusade system set up in 9th and the early narrative supplements. I wonder if GW will radically alter or abandon the rules with the next iteration of the game in 10th edition?
My Thoughts:
Oddly enough I think these boarding actions work perfectly for a few very specific situations. They are perfect for use as:
- Side events for newer/time-constricted players at large events
- Narrative team games
For many of my Apocalypse events, I try to find ways to involve players with smaller collections or those who cannot play the whole event. These quick missions could be a good way to involve players in side-quests that can impact the larger battle. The lack of terrain is less of an issue as you can have these players queue up to play a game, or team up together. This game type will work really well for group games. With smaller armies you can fit more people in one game, the heavy use of terrain is thematic and can be adapted for a variety of narrative settings. As a narrative game type the GM will also have more control over identifying problematic units and providing house buffs and nerfs as needed.
Any time GW introduces a new game type it is always interesting to ask the question: Why? I think this game type has been conceived as a way to provide a game that will be passable as a competitive game but will also provide narrative players rules for unique games. It would appear that the rules for this game type will leak out over several books and it remains a question if GW will updated this game type after the release of 10th edition.
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