101 Ways to Win at Warhammer Thanks to the LO fantasy community at large for producing this list. It's proven a worthwhile endeavor that has accumulated a sort of collective Warhammer wisdom.
Special thanks to Visitor Q and Stonehambey for their additions, not to mention their editorial input.
1.
Know your army's weaknesses and strengths. Avoid the first and exploit the second.
2.
Know your enemy's weaknesses and strengths. Exploit the first and avoid the second. If you can't buy all the armybooks, then either borrow a friend's to read thumb through them at your local store. And the obvious one: pay attention when you're playing different armies.
3.
Don't be afraid to tailor your army to fight different opponents. If your opponent is fast and light armoured, be shooty. If they are slow, be fast, etc. My brother says that this is beardy, but I state that the wise general will take the troops best for the job.
4.
Know your enemy. If you're playing in a tournament over a few weeks and you know who you are playing next, study them. Learn how they play the game and how well they play.
5.
Be humble when you win and gracious when you lose. The only thing worse than a bad loser is a bad winner. Compliment their army choices and thank them for the battle, no matter the outcome.
6.
Never cheat, and smite those who do.
Cheating destroys the fun of the game, and winning by cheating is no win at all.
Dare to play honest and dare to talk with those who cheat!
7.
Play with humour and courage.
Have fun as you play, and never give up until its done.
Dont worry about the outcome and have the guts to do what you want.
8.
Paint Your Army. The Dice Gods, dig fully painted troops and will smile upon them with sixes:ninja:
9.
Be a sporting player. Winning isn't everything. I generally use WHFB as something to do when I hang out with certain mates. If someone's charge is out by a quarter of an inch, what the hell, I always give it to them.
10.
Know the definition of victory. Is victory crushing your foe with a beardy army, or a draw and having a really good time doing it?
11.
Don't fear a challenge. If you have the best cavalry in the game, why not throw in some infantry, too. Challenging lists and games are usually the most enjoyable.
12.
Rip the heart out of the enemy. Every army has a core: its artillery, its magic, its cavalry. Seek to strike at an army's core and destroy it quickly.
13.
Seek to end a battle quickly. If an opportunity presents itself to destroy several enemy units in one turn and win the battle, take it. More is lost through indecision than through a wrong decision.
14.
Base your decisions on probabilities, not potential. What could happen isn't necessarily what will happen. 20 goblin archers all firing will not kill 20 opponents.
15.
The Illusion of Power: People see power where they believe it resides. Learn to recognize this irrational assumption and build on it. Misdirection, to quote a very great man: "Where we are weak, feign strength. Where we are strong, feign weakness."
16.
Fear of Loss: Learn to identify the the unit closest to the enemy general's heart. Contain this unit with the potential for its destruction. Use the enemy General's love for his troops to bring indecision and doubt to his mind.
17.
Exercise Control: Make the Enemy react to you, rather than reacting to your enemy.
18.
Create a sense of fear in the heart of the enemy.
Whether through an impressive win record, knowledge, or confidence, you need to undermine your opponent's confidence in his ability to beat you. This is not to say that you should be cocky or rude, those aren't required. [
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19.
Keep playing to the end. Almost the counter point to the last tactic, if you find yourself at a disadvantage with your best unit gone early in the game, keep playing, take table quraters, and destroy the opponents weaker units. Your opponent's belief that he has already won may allow you to scrape victory from defeat. Equally, don't become complacent when you gain an advantage.
20.
To Know and Not to Do is Not to Know.
21.
Prevention is Action.
22.
Adapt, Improvise, Overcome. When drawing up that army list of yours, I'm sure you had an idea of how you wanted to implement it. When, however, has your plan ever panned out the way you envisioned it? Learn to overcome adversity and adapt to different situations.
23.
Visualization: This ties into the above, but before the game, realize what your army can do and envision the battle against your foe. Think about what he will do and visualize what you will do to counter. This will help you keep a cool head during the battle because you've already visualized it happening and saw yourself victorious.
24.
Somtimes more is learnt from defeat than from victory. If you lose, don't become disheartened, but ask yourself did your opponent win? Or did you lose?
25.
Divide and Conquer: Every army has deployment or tactical options for misdirection. If you concentrate force where they don't expect it, you've won.
26.
Free flow of information: In games, be explicit with any weird rules your army has. Out of game, ask for and give suggestions to improve tactics and composition. That way everyone stays happy and grows as gamers.
27.
Learn the power of the correctly-timed flee response.
By fleeing you can often throw your opponents plans into disarray, while setting him up for your counter-stroke. Remember, though, he can flee, too!
28.
Many times, defense can be the best offense. Don't be afraid to play defensively when you need to. Many times, it is better to play defensively and strike hard when the opportunity arrives.
29.
Know the rules. It's common sense, but knowing the rules to a large degree can give you a huge advantage. A good example would be the surprisingly little-known rule that independant characters get to move through cover and skilled riders for free. The rules can give you the tiny edge you need to beat an opponent.
30.
Use your surroundings to their fullest extent.
If you can exploit impassable terrain, cover for vulnerable troops, hills or such, you can begin to dictate the battlefield, and we all know how fun that can be sometimes.
31.
Diversify. Army lists are designed to employ troops with different advantages and tactics. Avail yourself of them all.
32.
Disrupt the enemy. Friendly troops appearing behind or within enemy lines always effect confusion. Use scouts, flyers, and other units like gorgers, ambushers, or zombies to sow the seeds of chaos.
33.
Sometimes you've gotta live with luck. Sometimes the armies in a game are so evenly matched that a game can depened on a small number of dice rolls. Don't complain; just roll the six-sided destiny decider, and afterwards laugh with your opponent about how it could have gone the other way.
34.
Know that the battle begins well before the armies completly see each other. Army selection and deployment can often win a battle before any dice are rolled. Unlike WH40K, your average Warhammer army can not rapidly move around and redeploy around the battlefield. This makes deployment and selection of your army essential. Often you will be able to predict how the battle will unfold just from the deployment of the two armies.
35.
Test yourself against the best. If there is someone in your club who seems to be a cut above or who has lots of experience, don't be afraid to challenge them to a game. Afterwards, ask them for advice and get their tips on how you can improve your list and/or tactics. The same is true for tournaments: don't cringe when you come up against a great player, but see it as an opportunity to test yourself.
36.
Have a magic rolling chant. You know what I mean...when you have that big roll to make, you need a battle cry to get the dice to go your way. Don't use it too often, or it won't work. Just pull it out in turn 4 when you need to pass that crucial break test, so that you can get your flank charge in. In case your wondering, mine is, "Daddy needs a new pair of shoes."
37.
Musicians can return their cost many times over. Even your best units can flee. Seeing them rally can turn the game in saved Victory Points and regained offensive ability.
38.
If you max out your character, then use him. Nothing is more pointless than a powerful character that is a veritable killing machine being stuck near the back of the army for protection; this applies twice as much for special characters. This isn't a point primarily based on whether this is beardy or not. Rather it's that if you spend 300 pts on a character and don't use him, this is the equivalent of giving yourself a 300 pt handicap.
39.
A good plan can survive anything, except contact with the enemy. Having a plan is great: the only problem is your opponent hasn't read your plan and will rather inconveniently not stick to it. Have a loose game plan at the start of the game and be flexible with it rather than rigidly sticking to a plan that isn't working.
40.
Charge headlong into eternal damnation and to hell with the consequences. Fortune favours the bold, so get stuck in and killerise the bad guys. Even weedy goblins can win a fight if there are enough of them, and if they lose and get crushed what the hell - they were only gobbos.
41.
All is fair in love and war. With more emphasis on the war part here. My definition of fair is where my opponent dies and all my guys come home. Don't fight one unit on one unit. Stack the odds in your favour by ganging up on individual units. Soften their strongest units with magic and shooting so that by the time they reach combat they are ineffective.
42.
Undo the Ego and You Will Become Fearless: Don't be concerned with making mistakes and being embarrassed. Mess up in front of other people and don't care. Your own ego can be your worst enemy when you're too afraid to make that decisive move.[/quote]
43.
An army should be animated by one sprit, one will. If you are to be successful as a commander, you must animate you troops with one will. They should not be a collection of individual units, but small pieces of a far greater whole. When building a force, model it off your own body, and animate it with a single will.
44.
Commitment and Perseverance. Study the field before you determine where your enemy is most likely to deploy, formulate your plan, and commit to it. In the chaos of battle, one will not be able to see with clarity. Doubt, anger, vengeance will cloud your vision. Trust not the whims of the heart.
45.
MOSS MOUSE:
Mobility: Outmaneuver your enemy and you will put him at a disadvantage.
Objective: Know the purpose of the mission at hand and work towards that goal.
Surprise: Catch your enemy off guard and you will have gained the advantage.
Security: Keep your own forces aware and out of situations where they do not excel.
Mass: Overwhelm the enemy with coordinated, simultaneous strikes.
Offensive: Act, and let the enemy react; this brings momentum to the strike.
Unity of Command: Use skilled commanders who have the trust of the soldiers.
Simplicity: Plans should not be overly elaborate. This leads to fallacies in the strategy.
Economy of Force: Use the best force to overcome the enemies given the unique situations a battle produces.
-United States Armed Forces Nine Principles of War
46.
Know how to deal with frenzied troops. Remember frenzied troops need to charge if they can. Use this to draw them where you want them.
47.
Never underestimate the power of Fear. Large fear causing units can cause havoc. Take them if you have access to them, and neutralise them quickly if you are facing them.
48.
Hold your enemy by the nose while your mate lines up to kick him in the nuts.
Use fast moving units to engage the enemy and hold them up (grabbing the nose) while you maneuver your big-hitting units to charge them (the kicking in the nuts part). It gives you more room and time to get off the charges you want if your enemy can't move to counter it.
49.
Look at the table from all angles. It's very easy to spend the entire battle on your side of the table but wander over to your opponents side once in a while, that cunning surprise attack down the left flank might not look so cunning after all.
50.
Never become reliant. Don't become too reliant on a certain unit or strategy. Chosen Knights of Khorne are great, but they can be defeated with the roll of all 1's.
51.
Don't get upset or angry. This is just a game. There is no need to get upset or angry when things don't go your way. It ruins the game for both you and your opponent. Additionally, when your emotions get the better of you, you stop being a good general and start making bad tactical decisions.
52.
3 questions for unit selection:- Can this take out its points?
- Does this confound opposing tactics or strategy?
- Does this complement my army?
53.
Use the Jedi Mind Trick.
Learn the fine art of bluffing. If you can convince your opponent that the a unit/units are a threat, when the real threat lies elsewhere, you instantly gain the advantage.
I used this trick with an Empire army. I nearly always take Van Horstmann's Speculum, yet this time I didn't. My opponent was convinced that one of my lowly characters had it, and spent much of the game avoiding combat with my characters.
54.
Respect the work of others
Before you even think of touching an opponent's models, ask him first. Some people can get really pissy about others touching their models. So always, always ask permission before touching models that are not your own.
55.
Never allow the combat lines to immobilize.
When the combat becomes still, luck starts to play too great a role. Then your enemy has just as much a chance of getting lucky as you do.
56.
Sneak.
You've charged the enemy unit, you can either take a flank charge with one of your other units, or you can sneak through the back of the lines to a greater tactical advantage. Always choose the tactical advantage over brute force.
57.
Frustrate your opponent.
Once you have an opponent believing he can do nothing then he will do nothing.
As an example if you happen to know you will be facing a magic heavy opponent, deck yourself out with numerous dispel magic scrolls. The frustration at not being able to use his greatest strength (at least early in the game) will lead your opponent to make mistakes, and allow you greater freedom to position your troops.
58.
Grab Victory Points where you can.
This is not just through destroying units. Its about forcing units to flee with shooting in the last turn, its about getting your fast cavalry to contest/control a table quarter. Its about killing their BSB and picking it up. Its about killing his general. You may have destroyed a lot of his army, but it is likely a lot of yours is gone as well. This is where table quarters and banners come into play. This is how you turn a draw into a victory or a victory into a massacre.
59.
Place your Faith in your Army and you will Prevail.
60.
Learn to See The Obvious: Sounds weird but sometimes a tactic that should be obvious gets overlooked. As an example I once played a Lizardman army (I was dwarfs). My opponent won in the end. After the battle he pointed out that I had so many large blocks of infantry that if I had marched forward in a long line there would have been little he could have done to counter that. As it was I had sat back Dwarf style and let him dictate the game. Equally if you have an uber unit of knights, pay heed to the possibility that a headlong charge might win you the game.
61.
Don't always conform to a stereotype. If you play a regular opponent who knows your army/playing style very well, then mix it up a bit and try to surprise them. It usually works quite well and also keeps them on their toes for next time.
62.
Know your opponent's magical limits. If you can force your opponent to use all of his dispel dice on your weak spells, then you can cast your stronger spells with less dice. Also, by keeping your opponent's wizards busy, you can negate some of his defensive magic abilities.
63.
Don't ignore the shooting phase. If your army offers missile troops, take advantage of them. Armies such as Dwarfs and Skaven have outstanding shooting and perform very well when that shooting is utilized. Handgunners and even peasant bowmen can do a number on the enemy and more often than not pay for their own points.
64.
Expendable:
Playing Skaven for years taught me that anything is expendable if it can give you a tactical advantage in the end.
Skaven slaves are always bait, and an organic shield, but people think they're weak and charge them every time. Of course they're weak! That's why I put them in front of my Plague Monks!
65.
Don't Be a Fish on a Hook.
If your opponent does something strange, or stupid, he may be trying to dupe you. Don't get excited to remove a unit if it's utterly worthless in the end, because your opponent may have some trickery up his sleeve....:shifty:
66.
Look at the board; then decide where you want to be on turn 3.
A little gem I picked up from a seasoned vet. It actually harder to do than it sounds. This also correlates nicely with the whole "don't move a unit for the sake of it" advice. I.e., make sure you have a plan when you move a unit; don't just "march everything forward" (unless that's your plan^_^)
67.
Not all heroes need to be tooled up with expensive magic items. Save points by giving them a two handed weapon and watch them spank characters in challenges.
68.
If you deploy correctly and think positively, then you're 90% of the way to winning.
Deployment and forward thinking is the key. For some strange reason, if you think you're going to lose then you probably will.
69.
Strong units aren't invincible. Even if you have the strongest unit in your army decked out to be stupidly strong, don't rely on them to win every battle on their own, and don't forget to have a backup plan in case they do get destroyed or flee.
70.
Bring out your units' best side. In other words, if the unit is best at shooting, then get them in the best position to shoot; if the unit specializes in close combat, make sure they get into close combat. Don't put units into situations that they can't handle.
71.
Learn to "guess-timate" ranges. Knowing distances without needing to measure is an invaluable skill to any general. A well placed cannon shot or being a half-inch out of charge range can turn the tide of a battle.
72.
Know your stuff. Read the army book several times until you know every single one of the special rules, advantages, and disadvantages; and how to make your weakness to your strength:ninja: . (Or cover it up so no one notices it, your choice.)
73.
Play with your head, not your emotions. Just because the unit is your favourite doesn't mean you have to sacrifice all else to save it. Play smart and think before you act.
74.
Don't forget dispel dice. Don't forget to put a wizard in there with dispel scrolls. There's nothing worse then getting hit by a burning head and having three units flee.
75.
Give your characters objectives and limits. Very few characters can do everything! Give them a set task and follow it; for example, make characters a horde killer, which maximizes attacks, or a character killer and send him character hunting. Wizards don't belong in combat so keep 'em out, with the exception of vampires of course.
76.
Voltaire was wrong.
He said, "God is not on the side of the big battalions, but those who shoot best." While shooting well is important, Warhammer battles are more regularly won by units of troops, not maxed out characters or one-trick ponies, so don't stint on your Dwarf Warriors, Empire Swordsmen, Orc Boyz and the like.
77.
Don't leave things up to the dice gods. If you take an unit head on, you could just as easily lose the combat as win it with a few bad dice rolls, even if you are relatively equal. If you put two of your units into the combat suddenly you cut your chances of losing roughly in half. It's not that simple, but it is that effective. Don't rely on both you and your opponent to roll average.
78.
Respect other peoples' style of play. You will play against many people. Some will measure the distance traveled by every model, and others will just measure the first and move the rest up. Or one may be easy going with the rules and if you say something will go with it, but others will want to check the BRB. Neither way is wrong. Be patient.
79.
Don't assume what your opponents stats are when you are rolling hit, wound, and so on. They may have something that gives you a penalty to hit or something similar. Make certain both you and your opponent know what's needed on the dice.
80.
Always say what you are rolling for when you roll dice and let your opponent see them! Obvious, really. Do it or be smited.
81.
Be efficient with your points. You are never going to take everything you want in one army so don't try. Better to take a compact, well-equipped army that can do the job than an army that spreads the points out on lots of units that are easily broken.
82.
Be aware that your opponent will react. Sounds obvious, but sometimes it is easy to forget that your opponent is trying to win as well.
83.
Make sure you know what effect terrain has. Both from the point of view of avoiding arguments, but also so you know when to avoid it and when to use it to cover your approach.
84.
Know the size of the board you are playing on. This is getting on to being slightly beardy, but knowing the exact dimensions of the board you are playing on (and the fact that you will generally start 24'' away from the enemy) is useful knowledge for guessing ranges, delivering successful charges, and so on.
85.
Movement is key. Movement is key in warhammer so know what can move where. After deployment take a moment to review both your own army and your opponent's and make a mental map of which units will engage which units first.
86.
Always try to win. Even against seasoned vets. But never try to win at the expense of fun.
87.
Come prepared to face anything! Don't tailor your army to fight a certain opponent. Balance your army so you can properly react to any enemy or circumstance. You could have 10 dispel dice, but what happens if you come across a Khorne army?
88.
Your army must have strengths, so use them, but minimize your weaknesses. Every army has strengths, and all have weaknesses. If you're low on magic but good in combat, don't fret; change a hero into a wizard, or throw in some magic resistance items. I'd much rather sacrifise 3 hero attacks for 2 scrolls and a dispel die which could potentially turn a game.
89.
Listen to Sun Tzu. "Every army has a weak spot. If they send men to reinforce that weak spot, then there is another weak spot. If they send men to that spot, then there is yet another weak spot. If the enemy reinforces every position, then every place is a weak spot." Exploit your opponent's mistakes. No army is perfect.
90.
Don't forget your upgrades.
It seems like it would be difficult to forget, but in the heat of battle, it's all too easy. If you buy your unit full command, remember that you (usually anyway) get an extra attack for the champion, win drawn combats because of your musician, and so on. Forgetting these could change the course of a game. Try not to forget what magic items you have on your characters for similar reasons. Also, don't be too conservative with things like dispel scrolls; learn to use them at the right time. There's no point in saving them until later if there is no later. Then they're just wasted points.
91.
Always look to your victory conditions. In most scenarios you can win the battle with only 1 regiment left, regardless of how much your opponent has. If you realize you are going to lose, then hide a unit of Pegasus Knights or a dragon. Take an objective with them last turn. I myself have saved many games by using a lone Elector Count or Beastman Chariot to capture a table quarter whilst my opponent still had of most of their accursed greenskins.
92.
Beware the Leader
If playing against multiple foes or teams, always beware of who is the leader. Listen to what they tell their allies and teammates and counteract it. If one player tries to use the others to his own advantage, focus on him. If he puts himself out in danger for the others' trickery, watch the others closely. A strong leader can also be a weakness.
93.
Don't be *Too* Smart
Don't outsmart yourself! Try not to overthink things or get yourself trapped into a box of a plan. If you do, you leave youself open. Also don't overthink about your opponent. You can get trapped either underestimating him or get stuck in the loop of "He knows that I know that he knows that I know..."
94.
Take a Broader View of Victory Points. Be wary of getting caught in the trap of units having to kill their own cost or better in Victory Points. Sometimes, sacrificing an expensive unit to stop an inexpensive enemy unit from spoiling your flank is worth much more than the cost of that lost unit. Also, don't forget #58. In pitched battles determine if you captured any standards, killed the enemy general, or secured table quarters. You're never going to convince someone the next day that you really did win that battle the day before.
95.
Know when to combine units in combat.
Often having two or more units attacking a single enemy is a good thing. Knowing when it isn't is also a skill though. For example in VC armies ethereal troops often work best if attacking with other ethereal troops. If spirit hosts and ghouls attack together, for example, the enemy can slaughter the ghouls and let the combat resolution wounds spill over onto the otherwise untouchable spirits.
This is also true of heavy cavalry and lightly armoured troops if the heavy cavalry is unable to break the enemy in the first round.
96.
Cross list comparisons aren't necessarily useful.
Don't dismiss a unit just because another army can get a similar unit cheaper than you can or a stronger one for the same points. A unit's worth is based on how it fits in with its own army, not how it compares to similar units in other armies. Too many people say things like "I won't take any High Elf Archers because they're not as good as Glade Guard". True, they aren't as good, but it doesn't mean that you should avoid taking them because of it. They can still play a valuable role.
97.
Magic means more early in the game. Stop the opponent's magic in the early turns of the game. At first this seems self-evident, but burning dispel scrolls early in the game along with smart use of dispel dice can benefit your army in later turns. Once you're in close combat, many spells no longer affect you, so getting past the magic phases of turns 1 and 2 can mean a lot when it comes to combat.
98.
If a list isn't working, drop it! If you've written what seems a really great list but keep losing with it, then maybe it's time for a new list.
99.
Take notes. They don't have to be detailed, but it helps if you know how many power dice your opponent is throwing and where his magic items are. It also works for reflecting and reviewing ones plans, and why they might not work.
Just a scrap of paper will do. That way when the battle is over you can review what happened and what went right and wrong, and if it's there on paper right in front of you, there's less chance of forgetting something in the middle of the game (like that blasted Staff of Damnation in a unit of shambling zombies).
Just to add to this excellent point, it's also useful to make a note of your own magic items and abilities so you remember to use them.
100.
Use markers to track gameplay. With a good set of markers, you can note charges, effects like stupidity, remains in play spells, and carried wounds directly on the tabletop. This leads to a related point. Before you end a phase (movement, magic, shooting, whatever) scan the battlefield and see if you overlooked anything. Unforced failures can prove the downfall of any army.
101.
Success is the ability to go from one failure to another with no loss of enthusiasm. ~Winston Churchill.