Changing the CP System

[Ipsen]

TLDR (Add a max pool and an active pool for cp. Generate max pool as it is currently. Move 3cp a turn from max to active. Use max for pre-first turn stratagems and active for stratagems used during a players turn.)

 

There's been a lot of talk about how the current system of command points (cp) and stratagems is "broken". That most of the top tier lists in recent months have been lists that use cheap brigades/battalions to generate large pools of cp and then regenerate them with certain relics and warlord traits. This would potentially allow these lists to use 20+ cp over the course of a game, spamming powerful stratagems with impunity every turn.

 

So what specifically are the problems with this? Where do i think this causes disparity?

 

Firstly not every army can efficiently generate a large pool. Armies like Astra Militarum can easily fill brigade or battalion detachments with very cheap units. The ubiquitous "Loyal 32" coming in under 200pts being biggest symptom of this disparity.

 

Secondly not every army can regenerate cp. These effects are also more significant the larger the pool you start with.

 

And Lastly not every army can efficiently use such a large amount of cp even if they were to gain access to it.

 

So what do I think should change? I quite like the idea some have suggested of giving players 3 cp per turn. This seems like a good number however i would advocate something of a middle ground between this and the current system. I think players should have 2 pools of cp. A max cp pool and an active cp pool. The max cp pool being generated as it is now through detachments. Players would use this pool for any and all stratagems that are used before the first turn. Then at the start of every turn the player moves 3 cp from the max pool to their active pool. The active pool would be used for any stratagems that are used during a players turn.

 

As an example a player has a battleforged army with a battalion, a vanguard detachment, and a special character that gives them an extra cp as their warlord. This player starts with 10 in their max pool. They use 2 stratagems before the first turn, taking an extra relic and giving a character a new keyword for 1 cp a piece. This reduces their max pool to 8. At the start of the first turn they move 3 cp from their max pool to their active pool. Their max pool now has 5 cp remaining. The player then uses 2 cp from their active pool during their first turn leaving 1 remaining in their active pool. At the start of their second turn they move another 3 cp from their max pool to their active pool. The player's max pool now has 2 cp and their active pool now has 4. During their 2nd turn the player uses all 4 cp in their active pool. At the start of their third turn the player moves the last 2 cp from their max pool to their active pool and moves no more cp over for the rest of the game.

 

Pretty much every army can fill at least one battalion or has some way to generate 3cp. By virtue of how 40k is structured the first few turns are the most impactful. So by changing the cp system as detailed above i think pretty much any army can generate enough cp for those first few turns. Generating more than 9 cp would allow a player to use more stratagems before the first turn without running out by turn 3. Coincidentally armies that can generate more generally have more bodies and more staying power to last into those final turns to make use of the additional cp.

 

Also... cp regeneration. If this active pool system were used it potentially wouldn't be that much of a problem. With only 3cp a turn the effect would have a much smaller impact, as all cp regeneration effects are at best a 5+ roll. A player would usually only gain 1 or maybe 2 cp a turn early on. It might still be worth it but i doubt it would be oppressive like it is now. 

 

And finally pushing everything back to smaller cp pools should equalise the disparity in powerful stratagems. Some will still be stronger than others but players won't be able to use all of them every turn as i can't believe that was ever intended.

[BlackTriton]

I like the idea of having a limited amount of CP availlable in a turn without limiting max throughout the game.

If we where talking about a video game your proposition would be great.

However, the amount of book keeping in this case is absurd. The desing need to incorporate an effort to keep it simple, and in this case we would acheive a very similar end result by giving X CP base + Y CP per turn where Y is define by detachment.

While I like your Idea, the desingner will always favor a simple anwser to a better, complex one.

 

A simpler way to implement a similar idea would be to limit the amount of CP one army may use in a turn.

Then change current CP regen ability to additionnal Cp usage per turn. Maybe we want detachment unlock further CP usage.

[Ishagu]

The CP system will likely be changed in the big FAQ coming up in the coming weeks.