"Building Armies By the Rules?" Topic

When you build an army, how closely do you follow the rules of the army list or codex?

* 100%
* I make adjustments
* I never use army lists
…

Depends. Some games we play 100% "by the book", while for scenario-driven games we don't.

The rules I play don't have "army lists".

Lists?

I enjoy historical armies

But do not use army list for points – only as a reference

Prefer actual OBs or as close as I can get

AS Saber6 said "Lists? What are these 'lists' you speak of stranger?"

I build straight from OoBs. For Science Fistion I create my own OoB. Don't believe in points systems.

Normally scenarios…sometimes army lists

Army lists are a guide. Nothing more.

I normally regard army lists (and points) as a guide not compulsory that said I often end up within the list values.

x42

Army lists change. I used to build armies to lists to a certain extent, but with units that had a few 'spare' figures to allow for such changes. My current armies having suffered 40 years growth the subject is rarely an issue now.

Never use army lists. Army lists are like instructions for a new power tool, piece of software, or something else you have bought.

Real men don't read instructions. ;-)

Anyway, I really don't use army lists. Although I do understand why some wargamers find them useful, I think they limit the creativity of the player when setting up games. It's as if the ruleswriter takes control over how you should play your games, and I think I can do a better job of setting up interesting games than to rely on army lists.

rarely. maybe when I am first starting off with a new set of rules so as to fully get get the authors intent.

Maybe to get started. If there are lists.

Depends. Some games we play 100% "by the book", while for scenario-driven games I don't.

Lists, with extras for choice.

We don' need no stinkin' lists!

When building I use it to get an idea of what I'll need for a good game. I will also pick a scenario and build towards that with extras.

I never use army lists, I am a scenario player.

Use army lists if its a points driven game.

If its a scenario driven one, start with an OOB and then chop it up a bit to be more realistic.

I don't play games with army lists in the rules. I play and write games with army lists (or OOB, or whatever nomenclature) in the scenarios.

I build what I want and use what I have. It's one of the reasons I went into Imagi-Nations. Army lists are nice… provided someone makes the figures. So for example, if I have a Roman Republican Army and I want to paint a few Mongol Horse Archers really well, I'll use them for the vestigial light cavalry. They will have the appropriate stats for whatever the Romans had historically, but they will be the figures for the Mongol Horse Archers.

Besides, the fun of painting is painting what you want, and using "lists" means I can't paint up the truly awful units my fancy wants. For example, each unit of Line infantry has a regimental gun with it. This regimental gun is a small howitzer used to fire off fireworks and star shells at the Princess's birthday. In the backstory/myth of the army, the colonels go to great competition in designing and producing "gala" uniforms for the gun crews. This allows me to use Manchu spearmen, Turkish Mutes, Zulus, Amazons, Nappy Horse artillery, persons in opera clothes, Turkish "Jannisaries" dismounted Polish Winged Hussars, Mohawks, and so forth as the gun crews (all converted with rammers and artillery tools in their hands. which uses up the odd one or two packs of figures I buy on a whim at a convention. On the table top they are worthless and have no fire value, melee value or any role at all. They are there "just for looks."

Army lists are a very useful tool in my opinion. It gives me a guide as to what a reasonable/plausible force should be. The use of army lists might be connected to the number of games played. If fewer games are played then the lead player can determine what is used, the scenario and other crucial factors. I would put this at maybe 6 to 10 games of that rule set games per year? if players do a lot more gaming with that set of rules or have a greater number of opponents, then army lists help to get the game going wth minimal "on the night" or lead player preparation. this wold apply to maybe a 10-40 games a year using a particular set of rules.
I suspect that many players who do not need points values or army lists play less than 10 battles a year of that rule set and design the game without input from the players? In these cases the lead player will set up the game, design the scenario and possibly umpire too.
I suspect that players who do not use army lists still have an unofficial army list by dictating what is allowed upon the table.
Without army list. official or unofficial the games would probably be "bring whatever you have and get to the fighting!"

martin

"Lists? Where we're going we don't need lists."

A bit of both – and other than historical refights, there's a lot in what Martin says …

Phil

I always build to an army list. Whether it's the army list of the rules, the OoB of the battle I'd like to play, or even the list of what was "in the area" of the time period involved. Always building to one list, whether a list in a rulebook or a list in a history book.

I haven't played a game to an army list for 30 years, which was when I realised how bloody awful they were, and how they generated not only terrible games, but an equally poor mindset in the players who used them. They encourage players to focus on unrealistic nonsense in order to squeeze the last tiny advantage out of a rule system.
I know, I could do it way better than most…it didn't help me understand the period at all, in fact, quite opposite.
read some books, design some scenarios, free your mind.

I tend to build a bit more than an army list allows, so I can use the figs for other rules, historical re-fights and so on.

David F Brown

The rules are a nice starting point, but things should be varied for certain scenarios or campaigns if research contradicts the lists.

Though, sometimes, I worry that the writer will show up at my door and demand his rules back if I don't follow the lists. That would be bad.

It depends.

If the lists are fundamental as to how the game works, as in, say AK47, then yes.

Unfortunately build to the maximum,not the mean. Late Achaemenids means a lot of figures! Then there are the other armies.