Unbinding Unbound

No Quarter released a new variant format for Warmachine/Hordes in their latest issue. (#36 – get it!) The format, called Unbound, is an alternate way of playing games of 150 points and higher using 3 or more warcasters/warlocks. However, instead of using the typical turn structure, each player takes a number of turns in each round equal to the number of starting warcasters/warlocks per side plus one. A few things about the round change as a result (for instance, focus allocation is at the beginning of a turn rather than during the control phase), but you can check out the magazine for the specifics. I want to deal with tactics. Specifically, how it can affect feats.

The timing of your feat in a game is always key, but Unbound brings about a whole new dimension to this. Because there are now multiple turns in a round and you can only activate so many models (and only one warcaster-/warlock-controlled battlegroup) in a turn, you do lose some of the power a feat can provide in a multicaster game. For instance, in the 150-pt non-Unbound tournament I was recently in, I was able to combine Prime Butcher's feat while also barreling Sorscha in, reaping the effects from Blood Frenzy. This is impossible in Unbound. Because Blood Frenzy lasts for one turn only, other battlegroups don't benefit from it. It's restricted to The Butcher's battlegroup and models you activate during that turn. Privateer is pretty lenient on what you can activate during a turn (in fact, a decent number of non-battlegroup models can still activate), but you still have to be careful about what you activate when. Of course, turn-length spells such as Rhyas' Dash, Irusk's Battle Lust, or Caine's Deadeye are affected by this as well, but since those typically go on one model/unit (Dash being the exception here), it doesn't affect them too much; you're just activating a specific unit right away.

Round feats have less timing restraints. You typically want them to go off early, considering using them on the last turn of a round will have very little effect, since the round will reset right away and all those benefits will go away. Some feats, like Mohsar's Disjunction, received Unbound-specific errata to deal with this. Many did not, so these have to be kept in mind.

The turn structure brings about a lot of interesting points, though. While only one battlegroup goes, a good number of other models/units can activate with them, and often times you're spending your round tailoring each turn to a certain number of units while making sure not to overcommit or undercommit models and make later turns in the round very quick and/or very devastating. You also have to keep in mind that your opponent can keep track of what hasn't activated, concentrate on killing them, and leave you clueless as you have very few models to activate and all your plans ruined. The alternating turns brings about a lot of tactics that must be considered, and games might actually take a little longer as a result. Do you be “that guy” who kills everything before they activate? Does your opponent activate a section of the board on the opposite flank in order to try to gain an advantage there? Which battlegroup gets to do the smashing? Which battlegroup do you need to be afraid of? There are lots of questions surrounding an Unbound game.

I'm not sure what to think on the format yet. I like big games, but I rarely have time to get one in. I do want to try a few Unbound games, though. I like the combinations you can make in a normal 150+ better because of how feats can be combined, but I'm willing to give it a go. It's really more of a matter of when. In theory, it seems to be a pretty good way to keep players in the game in large games with long turns. But on the other side, there's a bit more bookkeeping involved, resulting in a bit more brainhurt. But I'm going to try it before I bash it.

Start Your Engines!

Battle engines have been all the talk over at Privateer Press, or at least that's what you'd get by looking at them online. To date, they have previewed two: the Khadoran Gun Carriage in No Quarter 35 and the Retribution Arcantrik Force Generator on Privateer Insider. Funny since Arkanika tends to want to feature Khador and Retribution. Let's take a look at these two monstrosities.

I have mixed feelings on the Gun Carriage. On the one hand, it is fast. Those two horses make the battle engine as fast as a Drakhun, and on top of that it can charge despite not technically having a melee weapon. It does have a mount, though, and the fact that the Gun Carriage is a cavalry model allows it do do something that the other battle engines cannot: make impact attacks. Don't have a specific target in mind? Never fear! You can just trample over any infantry in the way! The trample also grants the Gun Carriage one of the longest threat ranges in the Khadoran arsenal. 22” of threat (10” trample, 12” heavy cannons) are definitely something to be feared, especially with what are essentially Khadoran bombards on each side. In fact, the Gun Carriage can be a cheaper alternative to Behemoth if you plan on using it for artillery support. You lose 2” of basic range, an armor-piercing melee attack, and the ability to boost, but you do get a higher RAT, more speed, and a melee threat that automatically knocks its targets flat, so that even if the Gun Carriage doesn't kill them, you can automatically hit them and finish them off.

I'm surprised at its lack of melee power, actually, since that's one of Khador's greatest strengths. However, the engine can still find uses with several warcasters. Prime Vlad's Signs and Portents is a great example noted in the pages of No Quarter. Strakhov can, under the right conditions, give one a 26” threat range with the heavy cannons if you charge something in his control area. Either version of Sorscha can freeze potential targets and help the accuracy problem, and the Butcher helps with damage. I'd need to see it in play before I make any final judgments, but it seems like something that could prove very useful if played correctly.

The Arcantrik Force Generator is less in-your-face, and it is more about support. It can fire 3 different attacks depending on the situation: one makes the weapon more powerful and adds a rough-terrain AOE. Another slams a target, which can allow some less accurate models (such as Stormfall Archers) to get some more reliable shots in. It can also forget these abilities entirely and take d3+1 shots with a gun that is no slouch, all coming from a fairly respectable RAT. It's also more readily able to protect itself, as it's not screwed in melee thanks to Gunfighter and cannot be charged due to Polarity Field. Plus, once it's at the point where you can aim, it and ranged myrmidons by it get a slight range boost, keeping your 'jacks back until the point where they're needed in melee. In fact, with Ravyn, the Generator can turn the Hydra into a whopping RNG 21 powerhouse if it has 3 focus, which only gets scarier if Ravyn's using her feat and eliminating your need to boost manually.

Of course, Ravyn isn't the only warcaster that can get a nice kick from the Generator. Vyros and Kaelyssa can both use that Range Booster to support their 'jacks when they don't need line of sight to shoot. Rapid Fire can also help get kills in for Vyros' feat, causing those 'jacks to rain even more boosted death. Rahn and Garryth can use their spells to advance the engine slightly with Telekinesis and Mirage respectively, and still gain the aiming bonus while doing so. It's a pretty hefty points investment (as only Discordia and the Phoenix match its cost), but its abilities and general sturdiness help make up for that. I'd have to say I'm more hyped about the Generator than the Gun Carriage at this point.

But will they have an effect on the game? It's hard to say. The battle engines' point costs make them a liability in smaller games due to their base size and point cost, especially since a single heavy warjack or warbeast can destroy a battle engine in a few hits. They can take a fair amount of damage and can be repaired, but how survivable are they truly? Only experience will tell, and we won't have any of that until the Gun Carriage hits shelves next month. Stay tuned once this time comes around, as I'm sure there'll be at least one battle report involving a battle engine once the time comes.