Warhammer 8.ed - 2010

[Ancalagon]

Yes, you're right. The main problem facing the games designers when coming up with a new core ruleset is how far they can change the rules without unbalancing several of the army books. Especially since it would probably take a couple of years before all the armies unbalanced by whatever the change may be receive a new Army Book. This really limits what they can do to the core rules, whether they want to make big changes or not.

It's a shame the system is so limited in this way, because it really does limit 8th edition (whenever it actually does come out) to being a slight alteration to the 7th edition rules in the same way as 7th isn't hugely different from 6th. It's just too difficult to make major changes that don't unbalance the armies.

[Akaroth]

They do have a lot of work to do with a system where they have to reinvent the entire game to sell products. So with a constantly shifting game they can't really develop it to be balanced . Personally though, they could still do better in development.

Its funny really, even if they invent the perfect core rules, army books and everything, they're basically forced to change them eventually.

[CaptainSarathai]

Agreed, they DO need to sell new rulebooks and editions in order to force people to buy new models. If you showed the idea of what GW is trying to accomplish to a business major, they'd tell you that it's impossible.

Unlike a card-game, they can't just release new cards all the time. This is something which Privateer Press could actually do, as their game doesn't work around an Army-Book, but rather, around a deck of cards. Pokemon and MtG have seen a lot of success because there are always new cards to buy, and the game can change without changing the core. Maybe GW should look into a similar system.
GW is selling products to a limited market. It's less like a card-game, and more like buying a car. Once a customer has invested in their army/auto, they won't be coming back for quite a while. The exception of course are car collectors, or army collectors. The people who love to have 'extras' just sitting around.

Car companies however, make money off of the routine service and tune-ups. It's actually a contributing factor as to why the Electric Cars of the mid-90s didn't take off. The manufacturers lost money on oil changes, tune-ups, oil filters, air filters, fuel injectors, and the other parts that wear down on a standard gasoline engine but don't exist in an electric version. To GW, redoing an army-book is like forcing someone in for a tune-up or an oil change. Suddenly, they have to go out and drop $30-100 to bring their army back into the fold, plus buying the new book.

Changing the edition is a chance to bring everyone together for a total recall. It could also serve as something a census- telling you how many customers you have, since some gamers will stop playing and not buy the new book, while others will start playing right at 8th edition.

Really, I think that there might be better ways to run the system. At the very least, starting with a balanced core of ArmyBooks and THEN releasing a new edition, with the armybooks in mind, would be great. This would take years and years of R&D between each edition though, and you'd still have hiccups whenever they released new armybooks between editions (unless they did away with the idea of staggering the releases).

I'd really like to see Warhammer become something of a card-game. Not in the manner of MtG, where the most money = the best player, but rather more like PP games, with stat-cards represent units and spells and magic items. I'd like to see a deck released, and then cards released on top of that deck between editions. At the end of each new EDITION, they could have the list of 'banned' cards from the last edition, and also maintain a list in each of the new 'starter decks' that would replace the armybooks.

This is too forward thinking though, I believe, for GW. We're going to have to deal with their constant system of trial-and-error "upgrades" until one of several things happens:

1) we stop playing
2) they go belly up
3) we die
4) A higher power smacks GW around a bit and convinces them that I'm right

[omegoku]

A deck of rule cards?
What happens when you can't remember what a certain magic weapon does? You need to go thru your deck of 200+ cards?
How much will the cards cost? Each armies deck will cost the same as an army book?
so €20 for some cards? where will the fluff go?
If GW decide one card is overpowered and FAQ it, what happens?
They release it in WD? Lots of (sensible) people do not buy that.
Have downloadable cards? you need to print off?

What happens when my 2 year old son comes across my deck and loses my sword of Might card?
Sure i should keep it out of reach, but someday, somewhere he is gonna get his mitts on them!
If he finds an army book, he looks at the pics and bends my pages a bit..
Sorry, I don't think it can work.

The current system would work, assuming all (future) army lists are kept in mind and really old army books should have temporary lists included in the box set. (like 40k 3rd Edition)

[PsyBomb]

War Machine and Hordes have a given unit, that unit has a Unit Card presenting the rules for it. They have a core rulebook that presents the base rules of the game and the fluff. It is easy for them to change a given card or concept, because they don't have to rewrite an entire book to do so.

[DavidWC09]

I was incredulous when I saw this thread title. How much credence do we give these rumors? Like someone said early on, with so many books not even rewritten, it seems odd.

It kind of irks, me, though, as so many FAQs have been released and the rulebook interpreted and in use.

[Ancalagon]

Originally Posted by DavidWC09

I was incredulous when I saw this thread title. How much credence do we give these rumors? Like someone said early on, with so many books not even rewritten, it seems odd.

It kind of irks, me, though, as so many FAQs have been released and the rulebook interpreted and in use.

I think it's odd that they're considering a new edition now (I'd expect it more around 2012 or something like that), but I don't think it really matters too much that not all armies have been updated. After all, better to get a new book at the start of 8th edition which is fully designed to use the new rules than to get one at the end of 7th which is designed with 8th in mind, but is still essentially a 7th ed book.

[Enigmatik1]

Originally Posted by Ancalagon

I think it's odd that they're considering a new edition now (I'd expect it more around 2012 or something like that), but I don't think it really matters too much that not all armies have been updated. After all, better to get a new book at the start of 8th edition which is fully designed to use the new rules than to get one at the end of 7th which is designed with 8th in mind, but is still essentially a 7th ed book.

I think there are a legion of Greenskin players who would respectfully disagree with ya, Big Dragon.

[Ancalagon]

Originally Posted by Enigmatik1

I think there are a legion of Greenskin players who would respectfully disagree with ya, Big Dragon.

I have an orc army! Granted, it's been in an abandoned and half finished state for about two years now, but the important thing is that I have it!

[Tyfus]

Originally Posted by DavidWC09

I was incredulous when I saw this thread title. How much credence do we give these rumors? Like someone said early on, with so many books not even rewritten, it seems odd.

When looking at 40k specially, but also WH, i think the fact that GW hasn't gotten around to update all the codexes in one edition, is less and less an indication that a new edition is far into the future.

On the credence-topic: The fact is that several people on other forums who has a long track-record of being into the info-loop, and which has produced a long list of earlier rumours who has "come true", has gone on the record and supported that we will see a new WH. 8.ed. in the near future - mostly naming 2010.

There also seems to be an inreasing numbers of other - more new and unrealiable sources -who speaks of the same.

It's still all rumours so salt should be applied. But is it unlikely rumours ? Nah, i don't think so.