Clan War

"However, I just can't see paying US$3+ for poorly cast figures (not to mention the scale differences within the line)"

Yes, the additional blister packs are about US$11.99 for 4 figures. This is in line with the pricing of another major manufacturer.

I have no problem paying the prices quoted. Thomas mentioned the figures in the basic box were poorly cast. Hmmm, have to disagree. The figures I've plucked from my basic box, my infantry expansion, and others I have received through trades were cast just fine. There were some rather heinous bits of spikey "channel strands" on the figures. Two seconds with an old Exacto and that was done.

To be honest, I think the basic pose archers and swordsmen are the best human infantry released yet. If the batch you got were bad, ok. But unless your retailer really marked up the price, they should've come out to be about US$1.29 a piece (US$74.95 MSRP with 52 infantry and 6 characters). That's not counting the rules! The infantry expansion has 28 figures at US$34.95, giving an average of about US$1.24. Even cheaper per figure. The Clan expansions have 13 figures at US$34.95, giving an average of about US$2.68. Add in the clan book, a number of cards for new spells, changed spells, new units and magic items, etc. Still not a bad deal. The other figures from blisters I have purchased were nicely molded as well.

As for the "scale" issues, not everyone is exactly 5'11" tall. I don't expect my figures to be as well. Some are shorter, some are taller, big deal. I think it helps to add more variety and visual appeal to the figures on the table overall.

"...they are selling the playtest version for US$75+, and will release the "real" rules in a year or so."

Show me a rule system without errata, and I'll show you a rule system no longer supported by the developer/manufacturer. The errata is available for free online.

"...GW style add-on problem. (In other words, unless you buy the add-ons, you will get your ass kicked by people who did, and therefore have better units, more tactical cards, etc...)"

Thomas mentions this, and then in another post says he won't be playing tourney-style due to the "fascist" basing requirement.

If you won't be playing tourney, then you'll be presumably playing solely with your regular gaming group, assuming you have a regular group. I don't know about other people's groups, but normally, one member of my group will buy a set of rules for testing purposes. If we like it, either the rest of us will buy a set ourselves, we'll borrow the rules (and expansions) or start scouring the trading sites for copies people wish to part with. Does Thomas' group not excercise this ethic? Just wondering.

As for the basing requirement, I see it as very valid, especially when things like frontage mean quite a bit in a game like this. If I have an 8-man frontage using the official bases, it will be about 8 inches across. If my opponent is using 20mm bases, he too will have an 8-inch frontage, but will present 10 combatants! A 25% advantage he didn't have to pay for.

Do I support going out and buying the "official" bases? Eh, maybe not. At least use the right size. Easiest way to use the right size? Buy the right bases.

"the lacing on the armour is sparse (one or two sword cuts would make it fall apart!), and the cavalry figure has western style stirrups."

Sorry, I thought this was a fantasy game. I don't recall any of Stephen J. Turnbull's excellent books on samurai warfare mentioning Magic Mud Goblins, Oni no Tsuburu, and Shugenja casting "Fury of Osano-Wo." Odd, that. Must have missed it.

I'll err on the side of artistic license. If you were buying the box to get the figs to use for historical gaming, cool. Just realise that they are figures intended for a fantasy game. Certain liberties have been taken with the interpretation of the armor, proportions, etc.

(To be really nitpicky, the archer from the basic set who has knocked and drawn looks like he's holding the arrow in the European 3-finger style, rather than the Japanese 2-finger draw.)

"Before even starting, we altered the rules by allowing wheels without a maneuver test. (Partially because we went very light on heroes)."

Leave the wheels as they are. That's what heroes, leadership packages and the un-collectable "Parade Ground Practice" are for.

"...big monsters will probably not be too bad..."

Very true. The bigger they are, the harder they fall. Dragons, major Oni, etc are best used in a supporting role. Just like you don't send tanks into a town without infantry to clear out the guys with the B-40 rockets.

"Heroes seem to last longer (hiding in units) and boost units rather than acting directly."

I'm not sure the Heroes are "hiding." Rather, they are being protected by the men in their unit to the last man. I think it gives a Kurosawa-esque or, dare I say, heroic feel. Much like at the end of the film Throne of Blood. I do like the fact that unit leaders are there to lead for the most part, not to be the "+3 Boon of Whipping Ass." There are exceptions like Kakita Toshimoko, Crane Clan fencing master and Cuisinart on legs. This cat does 49 points of damge just by sending an ingraved invite to a duel!

Needless to say, I love this game. Now, if I can only paint all my figures before the big game Sunday...

"You don't have to buy all the clan books" and "All the rules will be collected and republished." In regard to the former, if the case were similar to GW's army books, it would be no big deal. But as I understand it, each clan expansion has erratta and expansion to the core rules (for example, the Crane expansion has the missing rules for Honor), not just the army lists. In regard to the second comment, what that seems to indicate is that they are selling the playtest version for US$75+, and will release the "real" rules in a year or so.

As far as the figure casting, I can accept that they are just starting out. However, I just can't see paying US$3+ for poorly cast figures (not to mention the scale differences within the line). I can accept that Old Glory figures have a lot of flash and mould lines. They're less than US$1 per figure. But I expect premium figures if I'm going to pay a premium price.

As for the tourney comment, it's a moot point for me. Over half my figures are Old Glory, Reaper, Foundry and others. Similar to other companies' fascist tourney rules, this disqualifies me. (As well as the line in the rules about "must be on Clan War bases...")

This leads me to another problem I have with the figures... The slotted bases. First, it makes them a pain in the ass to base on non-CW bases. Second, some of them still don't fit in the CW bases (Yojimbo). Third, some of the figures have the little bit of cast on base (like most figures, OG, Reaper, RP, etc.), making the tab pointless. But they put it on anyway (the horses, the "Uninvited Guests"). It seems like the GW "look alike" companies feel they must imitate every aspect of the product/marketing in order to be considered of similar "quality."

All of this is a shame, since most of the figures are very nice, and I enjoyed painting them.

As for the rules, we played our first game. I put the armies together & helped preside over the rules learning. There were 2 players per side. Before even starting, we altered the rules by allowing wheels without a maneuver test. (Partially because we went very light on heroes).

The game itself went fairly smooth. The tactical cards caused the most confusion. I would probably remove them altogether if that didn't effectively remove almost all charging and dueling from the game. Combat is easy, yet satisfies the urge some people have to roll a lot of dice. The d10 worked better than I thought it would.

Although we only used infantry units, I can see that the big monsters will probably not be too bad. It seems that they can get chewed up by a unit of grunts or archers. The main difference between them and an elite unit seems to be that it's either a bunch of guys with 1 or 2 wounds versus one guy with 6 wounds or so. Heroes seem to last longer (hiding in units) and boost units rather than acting directly. We did not use any shujenga.

AEG definitely earns some bonus points for picking up some of the old rules WFB left behind in its stupification (er, simplification). The rules for becoming unformed and the differentiation between simple and complex manuevers really helped kill WFB. The rules for going spent are a nice touch too.

If all of the rules were included in the boxed set, I'd say it was a great buy. If the figures were in the US$1.50 to US$2.00 range, I'd think they weren't a bad buy either. (Although it's still impossible to pass up those Yojimbo!)

Clan War is AEG's first attempt at casting anything - they did not go out of house. The Boxed Set is their first casting run ever. Over all, I'd say it's not bad for a first try, and the new stuff has improved quite a bit.

The Tac Cards are available either in the boxes, or in the blisters (which are collections of the boxed cards for people who do not wish to buy the boxes). Yes, it is recommended that each player have their own boxed set, but it's not a waste of money in my opinion - you get 60 Minis, 2 of each card, and the rules.

Players have entered and competed well in tourneys with "Generic" non-Expansion armies. You don't need all the boxed sets to win, or even to have fun.

One last thought - Clan War is less than a year old! Once all the sets are out (should be by the end of 99), there will be no more new armies, and the rules will be collected and re-published as a single volume. AEG wishes to make sure they have the kinks worked out before the Daimyo Edition comes out, though, hence the delay.

I would like to answer a question that Thomas asked in a previous post. It is not necessary to buy all the clan books, just the one you want. All the new rules will be published soon in a compendium, or most of them can be found on the web. If you do buy the clan boxed set, you also receive one character mini and 12 house-specific mini's for that clan.

I had a great time with this game, and found the guys at AEG to be very helpful and knowledgeable. Having played WHFB since its inception, this system is much better.

In regard to a previous post in which someone said the tactical cards are not "collectable," it's not really a true statement. You pick 30 cards each, with no more than 3 of any one card. There are only 2 each of a "basic" selection in the boxed set, with additional sets sold separately. So if two people play and each want 3 of the same card, you either need a total of 2 boxed sets and two blisters, or some similar combo. Additionally, it is my understanding that new tactical cards (as well as new units) are in each of the Clan Expansion Sets (I think about US$35 each).

The figures are sculpted fairly nice. Unfortunately they are cast somewhat poorly. There was a lot of flash to clean. I was looking for historical samurai anyway, and these will do, but... there are some minor detals that are odd. For example, the lacing on the armour is sparse (one or two sword cuts would make it fall apart!), and the cavalry figure has western style stirrups. I should also add that some of the characters (figures) are very nice.

I bought the game for the figures, but the rules seem decent. I have yet to play them, and don't know if I will really get into them because of the GW style add-on problem. (In other words, unless you buy the add-ons, you will get your ass kicked by people who did, and therefore have better units, more tactical cards, etc...)

• It's all d10 dice. Nothing confusing about which die to roll.
• The Tactical Cards are not collectable. No CCGs here! You get a fixed set, and must choose 30 from the same set that everyone else has. This is part of the beauty and flexibility of the game, as the deck influences tactics and army composition quite a bit.
• Online support is excellent.
• The minis are excellent. The value you get for your money is good.

This game is going places, and has an involved fan base - more armies are still coming out, and the story-line of the game "history" is determined by players at tournaments. If you play the CCG or the RPG, this game is a breeze and a joy to pick up.

Random Thoughts

• The designers were able to incorporate all the events you'd see during a card or RPG L5R game, without sacrificing playability or flow.
• Big nasty characters can dominate engagements, but they won't win the battle for you unless your opponent has stacked everything he has in one or two units.
• Magic is available, but due to the side-effects of the really nasty spells (becoming spent, etc.) it is fairly balanced.
• Multi-player is well supported in the rules and requires very little (none) work to make the game flow with many players. I recently saw a fairly quickly moving game involving 8 players.
• The miniatures are excellent. The pewter used is slightly softer than you will find in GW mini's, which makes them easier to work with and less likely to break during bending.

If there is a downside, currently it is that they have errata'ed and added rules in each Army Expansion Set. I understand that in early 2000 they will make a Daimyo edition ruleset available, with all clarifications and additional rules. The public word on this is that they want to make that set the definitive set of rules, rather than patching piecemeal until they come out with a new edition.

All in all I've been very happy with both the support given by AEG, and the game itself.