Why is it so Hard to Score?

Warhammer 40k players, why is it so hard to keep track of the score in Warhammer 40k matched play games? Let’s analyze this consistent problem.

The Las Vegas Open 2023 was a great success, but there was a recurring theme, which has been a recurring theme for this entire edition when it comes to Tournaments, and that theme is games being scored incorrectly. I’m SaltyJohn the FLG/LVO Head Judge for 40k and a contributor to TFG Radio. I have been judging the LVO and helping Frontline Gaming since 2016, I was a contributor to the ITC Missions for 7th and 8th editions and consistently help with event FAQs, etc still. There has definitely been an increase in the number of errors, and fixes, to scores during tournament games of 40k. So, what is it about the Games Workshop GT Missions that has caused an increase in so many errors with the scoring of missions?

First, the complexity of the missions themselves plays a role in this. While the Primary missions are similar they aren’t all the same. For example, some missions give points for holding one, two, and more objectives than your opponent. Not all though, you also have hold 2, 3, and more than your opponent. Each mission then has Primary bonus points, that are scored differently from mission to mission. So even with the Primary objectives for all 9 missions, there is a variety of ways to score, but that variety also provides more failure points where consistency would provide more stability.

The secondaries have caused issues from the first GT book, and while condensing all the secondaries, factions, and generic secondaries into the same book each season has made them easier to access the sheer number and variety of secondaries are problematic. Besides each secondary having unique criteria for scoring, the differentiated ways in which the score is tracked causes issues as well. Some secondaries are scored at the end of your next Command Phase, or the end of your next Psychic phase, perhaps the end of the Battle Round, or scored at the end of the battle itself.

This means that besides scoring your own Primary, and bonus, which are the same for both players, you are also tracking and scoring 6 secondaries which could all potentially be scoring points at different phases of the turn or battle. That is a lot to keep track of during a single game of Warhammer, there are a lot of potential fail points to having scored a game with complete fidelity. Now, imagine having to do that for 6-9 rounds over the course of a weekend, and the chances of making a mistake increase exponentially.

So what can be done about scoring mistakes? The best fix would be a top-down fix, a reworking of the missions, and secondaries themselves, to have a single scoring mechanic. In other words, have Primary and Secondary objectives all checked for points being scored at a specific phase, for example, the end of each player’s turn. Having a single checkpoint for scoring objectives each turn would go a long way to helping players score their games accurately.

Now, fixing the missions to be easier to score would be preferable, but that is something GW is in charge of, and while they might agree changes are needed, the chances those changes are made sooner rather than later are low. So what can we as players, judges, and TOs do in the meantime? There were several cases at the Las Vegas Open 2023 of players scoring games incorrectly and almost every instance of the score being incorrect had a similar, easy-to-rectify issue. The biggest issue was easily one player ceding the responsibility of scoring the game to their opponent. Every game at LVO I was called to that needed help adjudicating a scoring issue, and it was around 50 games over the course of the weekend, had only one score sheet kept. Meaning only one player had kept score during those games, and it wasn’t just problematic games, this was something we, the judges, noticed was common throughout the entire event.

One of the best, and easiest ways, to catch errors is to double-check. I’m a teacher by profession and double checking your work is something we grill into students because it allows them to catch their mistakes before turning work in for a score. Scoring a game of Warhammer is no different and the easiest way to double-check a score is to have both players keep track of the score, not just one. The act of actually writing down, or inputting a score in an app, not just verbally confirming a score with your opponent is a superior form of double-checking the scores.

There isn’t a good reason for ceding control of scorekeeping over to your opponent. Yes, the missions are complex, and yes scoring them can be a bit tedious, however, we also play 40k in a time where the tools to score games of 40k have never been easier to use! There is a myriad of options to print out in terms of score sheets, you can laminate them and use a dry-erase marker to keep score. Another great option, which just received a major update is the Tabletop Battles App available in your app store. This app makes playing games of 40k and scoring them, so much easier than previous iterations. All the information you need about scoring points, and when, is there with a simple easy-to-use interface. Whether you’re someone who loves to use technology and apps, or you’re more of a pen-and-paper kind of player the options for how to keep score in 40k are all at your disposal and as a participant in the game it’s your responsibility to make sure your scores are accurate.

Hopefully, we will get some new missions that are easier to play and score in the future, but until then don’t give control of your score over to someone else. Keep score along with your opponent on your own score sheet or an app like Tabletop Battles, there’s no good excuse not to.