Hi all,
ow that my box has finally arrived I can write my long-awaited review of the new crusade system. In this article we will cover some of the issues with the old system, what is new in this system, and my overall thoughts. Let’s jump in!
The Crusade systems remains one of the best parts of 9th ed. The inclusion of a dedicated campaign system finally gave narrative players a tool to build enduring stories and characters. The system worked for both long and short campaigns, although it had some issue. Even at launch, the game demanded a lot of book-keeping. Tracking the number of units killed, how they were killed, battle traits and scars, etc. It worked okay for campaigns with a lot of down time between battles but was a mess for events. This was further compounded when army-specific rules were released. While many of these rules had great mechanics, they also added more book keeping and were wildly imbalanced between books. The core missions, relics, traits and agendas were all pretty good at launch but also got badly powercrept. By the end of 9th some missions could end in a turn 1, or 2, tabling. Thus at the end of the edition GW needed to solve the following issues:
- Find a way to cut down on the amount of book keeping
- Re balance the relics and battle traits within the book
- Fine tune the missions
- Overhaul the agendas
9th Edition Changes
In the new campaign rules Gw has carried through the streamlining found in the rest of 10th. Psychic fortitudes have been removed, lists are now calculated in points, and the requisitions and other tables have been updated. When it comes to requisitions there is a new option that allows you to select a non-character unit and allow them to gain more than 30 exp, which is neat.
Experience gain is the same, and the requirements for leveling up are also identical. When it comes to after-action steps, a cool new wrinkle is that the Battle Scar sequence has been reworked. One issue in 9th was you would almost always take the loss of experience, as the battle scars were too annoying. Now you must choose between losing a Battle Honor and taking a scar.
The other major change is that all generic relics and Battle Honors have been replaced by seasonal options. This will make running campaigns a little harder, as there will likely be numerous different options running around, and players will struggle to find the best one. The release copy is the Tyrannic War ruleset.
- Battle Traits: The battle traits have been reworked in a very positive way. Now upgrades tend to give units abilities (like Scouts) and make them more interesting rather than +1 BS/WS, better AP etc.
- Relics: The relics have been expanded, with the new options like giving a character Lone Operative. They are still worth taking, the old legendary classics are still there like the Vortex Grenade or the Null-Field Disrupter.
- Agendas: The agendas are more interesting this round, some are no-brainers, Mosnterous Targets is way too good vs Tau now that Suits are vehicles. However, most of the abusable options from 9th have been modified. There are more good options and a few that allow you to perform “Pseudo actions” to gain experience and a CP.
Crusade Blessings: This was another sticking point in 9th ed. Crusade armies rapidly became imbalanced and the gap between mature and new armies was immense. Now, you get a number of abilities for your army that favors the weaker player. These buffs aren’t amazing, some give you cover for the first turn, or the ability to Scout etc. But they go a long way in helping armies with fewer crusade points catch up. Furthermore, there are also army-specific options. The Non-Tyranid one is a little better, allowing re-rolls vs Vehicles and Monsters bu the Tyranid one does allow you to get 3 RP if done correctly.
Missions: There are a lot of great missions here, 15 in total with a number of interesting options such as planetary evacuation or fleeing a Tyranid swarm. There are more generic options too, Scattered Supplies is a common one many players experienced in 9th although, they seem to have removed any relic missions lol.
Concluding Thoughts:
In many ways this is a refinement, not overhaul of the Crusade system. The game type is largely intact when compared to 9th although there are major changes. While I do appreciate the changes, I feel like they don’t capture the biggest issue with the Crusade System. So far, the amount of bookkeeping has only decreased because we don’t have army-specific Crusade rules. They still require you to log a lot of information between games, which is a bit disappointing. I think the missions show GW is still committed to giving players a lot of cool scenarios, and the revised agendas mean it will be a hard choice on many battles. In sum, if you liked the old Crusade system there is a lot here to give you hope. If you were looking for a simpler system, it doesn’t look like GW is taking the game in that direction.
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