"Saga V2 Intel" Topic

Good intel on Saga v2 here:

link

hmmmmmm interesting.

Wow, they "fixed"a bunch of things that didn't need fixing.

Wow, they "fixed"a bunch of things that didn't need fixing.

And some of them that did, like the absurd of 1-warrior units esconced in a corner of the battlefield and generating Saga dice.

Personally? I will check how second edition works. If I like it, I will use it. Otherwise, I will stick to First edition. What I won't do is pre-judge before having a go at the actual rules.

Very interesting. I'm glad they're nerfing the 4 man warrior units that do nothing but generate a saga die tactic. I always thought that was a really cheesy tactic.

WOOHOO!

The only fix needed for the one-fighter group tactic to generate dice is to not play with the perpetrator again.

I wouldn't want to game with someone who needs to win that desperately.

Rick

Thank you very much for the report. Agree looks like there are some good ( no more 1 warrior units) and some not so good( warlords generate only 1 die) changes. We will probably pick and choose. But like Basileus will see what the whole package looks like together. Looks like the old boards should work.
Thanks again

Joe

And some of them that did, like the absurd of 1-warrior units esconced in a corner of the battlefield and generating Saga dice.

I agree with this.

However, looking at the list of changes in the link above, they seem to be changes for the sake of changes, rather than actually fixing broken things.

All the old battle boards will have to be updated……..sheesh.

I don't see any changes I outright disagree with.

Levy certainly needed a boost. Unless you had a board that gave you bonuses to ranged attacks, there was rarely a time when taking the levy was a better play than taking the warriors. So giving them the saga dice helps with this.

I kind of like that the warlord + huge HG unit attack has been eliminated. Upping the hitting and survival of the warlord helps make up for this, but it adds an element of risk that you have to deal with.

The rest seem pretty minor, and I'll see how they play out.

The straight line moves isn't an improvement.
I don't think having everyone exhausted on 3 fatigue is an improvement either, although with the ability to cancel an activation by spending 2 fatigue, maybe nobody will accumulate much fatigue anyway.
The ability to bank dice renders the Skraeling board obsolete (as that was their special ability).
The abolition of 'side by side' for the warlord is probably a good thing; there were a lot of funny corner cases caused by having two units in one melee.

Dexter,
Interesting take on the fatigue. For me it is an improvement as it will add another decision. It seemed hard to accumulate 4+ fatigue so was a no brainer to just use it. Three seems possible so will give me another decision; use it now for a quick gain or forgo that in the hopes of fatiguing the unit. ( Or forcing my opponent to rest.)
Thanks

Joe

Explanation I was given at Warfare (Reading, UK) confirmed much of the above.

IIRC 'closing ranks' loses half your attack dice (not all of them) and there will two types of levy with a better class of 'shield and spearmen'.

Overall I like the look of the changes, a lot of gamey tournament-style stuff being smoothed out and a recalibration of the later "crikey, how do they do that' factions to stop the 'core' actions being left in the dust. Basic rulebook will be cheap (£10) with a £30.00 GBP Viking Age 'sourcebook' being published simultaneously with the battle boards and army information.

It better be good (he says after feeling $69 USD whooshing out of his wallet!).

Second addition will give SAGA the shot in the arm it needs at this stage in its evolution. It's about time the books were tidied up, though I'll still hang on to my gorgeous Crescent & Cross book for the eye candy.

The changes all make sense to me. They either streamline the game or balance it better and plenty of cheesiness has been chopped out along the way.

Explaining the "with me" rule to beginners was painful and gave experienced players an unfair edge. I like how levy are now worthwhile and that one-man dice generators are gone. Only hearthguard dying for their warlord is more realistic. It's all good from my perspective!

It's hard to complain about the pricing of the core rulebook – very smart to keep it affordable to get people started. I'm looking forward to my next SAGA purchases now…

The new pricing could also kill the game dead.

A £20.00 GBP starter game just doubled in price. Not very clever IMO.

Apart from the Viking book I have already abandoned plans to buy the new supplements, at £30.00 GBP each they are too expensive.

Its out, I picked it up at the York show. Several nations have been combined for example Strathcyde and Welsh. The absorbed nations such as the Strathclyde have lost their battle boards and special rules. For example all the off-board work of the Strathclyde has gone, theay are just mounted Welsh. Picking up the old boards while available could be worthwhile although the new dice allocation and generation may mean there are less or more dice to go round. I have yet to grok that bit. The rules refer to a battle book with scenarios and more terrain rules. No idea how much extra that will be. 3 Aetius and 1 Crescent list are supported by the new Viking book.