Warhammer 40K: 3 Movement Issues GW Needs to Fix in 11th Edition
Goatboy here and there are some funky movement issues in 40k right now. GW needs to get these patched up in the next edition.
I know I utilize these Movement tricks to get my armies business done, but let’s be honest- they can feel like such an un-fun interaction to new players. I think a few simple changes would just make thing easier for new players, clean up some interactions that feel a bit much, and create a much more cohesive game to learn and play.
Surge Moves with Reactive Moves
The big question I have for GW is do you want armies to move multiple times outside their turn and movement phase? I say this as we now have a unit such as Space Marine Victrix Guard that will be able to do a reactive move if an opponent gets within 9″ and then get a chance to do a Surge move if they get shot at during the opponent’s movement phase. The rules right now allow it as these moves happen in two different phases of the game, but I wonder if that is what GW wants to have happen. If they do, then it is a very powerful interaction as it really incentivizes some aggressive play style and can lead to some interactions that might be rough for new players. This gotcha as a unit of deadly warriors shoots across the field because you got to close and tried to play the game of move, shoot, and remove your opponent’s assets.
Engagement Range and Moving Assault Units
This is one of those rules I utilize heavily in the game as I play an assault army. It is the idea that if your models (such as unit of 20 World Eater Berzerkers) can’t get into engagement range of the enemy, they can now move differently in the assault phase. We all know they could get closer to their target if they wanted too by pushing towards the enemy, but it is a very distinct level of player skill to utilize your movement to block yourself and create an advantage that can feel bad for the opponent. I don’t know if GW just goes in and shifts how assault works and force movement to always get closer to the target. That method is a heck of a lot easier for a new player to grasp and while it does hurt assault armies I wonder if there were other things that can be done to help that out. The idea of multi-charging should be a choice you get but you have to take the risk of not making it to one of the units instead of just picking one target and careful placement lets you get your other target without the risk of failure.
Make Stratagem Rules Work Consistently with Things Like Advance and Charge
There are too many options that do the same thing but activate at different times. I know there is some thought that it balances a bit, but it becomes confusing to a new player that tries to pick up a different army. Just one example is the oddly similar, yet subtle differences between the two Blood Angel and CSM strategems above. There is no reason the Advance and Charge rule shouldn’t just work the same for all armies. I think any option to do that needs to be activated in the charge phase and I would even say that the stratagem should almost be basic game option like Rerolls and smoke. I am sure this might be too powerful for other armies, but it was always an option in the old Challenger cards and having it where everyone can use it could create some fun interactions for armies to try and win the game with a hail Mary charge or other option. I just think if a rule could almost be a keyword, then it should always work the same for everyone to make it easier to learn, to use, and just to react too.
Do you think there are any other movement rules that could be fixed? Should we do a better shift with Assault vehicles or Open Topped tanks? Would it better to lock some things down in a way that is intuitive to a new player or leave the skill level high?
