Table Minimum Sizes

[Valerian]

Although these are new minimum sizes, and nobody is being forced to change their 4'x6' tables, it looks like all/most of the major events are indeed going to transition to the smaller sized tables.  If you're a tournament player, you may want to read up about it here.

 

My initial reaction was, meh, nobody is going to change how they've been playing, but apparently I was very wrong about the big Organized Events.

 

On a positive note, however, this can only advantage melee-focused armies, like Space Wolves.  "Compressing" the playing surface, along with much improved Terrain rules, means a much easier time coming to grips with our adversaries.

 

Val

 

[Dark Shepherd]

Smaller tables also equals more/better social distancing which could be a factor in some jurisdictions

[Lord Blackwood]

So do you think  this makes our outflanking stratagem more competitive , especially combined with the fact that we will have more command points to burn?

[TiguriusX]

So do you think  this makes our outflanking stratagem more competitive , especially combined with the fact that we will have more command points to burn?

 

In theory the answer is yes

 

Our outflank is now closer to people hiding in the middle (board is smaller so less hiding space to avoid the edges)

 

Our 6" heroic intervention and counter charge stratagem are also improved because there is less room to avoid us

 

 

In reality...meh...not many games I played in had people relying on the extreme edges of the map to avoid stuff

[Debauchery101]

Smaller tables also equals more/better social distancing which could be a factor in some jurisdictions

lol

[Iain_Stormeyes]

So do you think  this makes our outflanking stratagem more competitive , especially combined with the fact that we will have more command points to burn?

 

No, I think it actually makes it worse, since it will be easier to cover the board and screen out deepstriking.  There is 5.25 sq. ft. LESS of space on the new board, so that 5.25 the opponent doesn't have to worry about screening out.  

 

I'm reserving final judgment on deepstrike in 9th until I see all the rules, but from a first glance, having less space to go/have to screen against helps the defender not the deepstriker.

[Kallas]

Bear in mind that it's not necessarily going to become a new standard board size.

 

The table that we've seen on WHC is the minimum size, and the game is still able to be played on a 6' x 4' which is what most people have already got and accounted for.

 

If people start building around a 44"x60" (just under 4ft x 5ft) table then, sure, it might make a significant impact but this is very much going to depend on your meta. I am expecting, personally, that when my local club reopens however many weeks/months down the line that is, that we'll continue to use 6'x4', because we have a huge stock of mats, and tables cut to those dimensions, as well as boxes of terrain that are designed to (mostly) fill a 6'x4' - though to be fair, some of those boxes really would fill a 5'x4' better.

[Valerian]

Kallas, the point of the post was to highlight the fact that all/most of the major Organized Events have already declared that they’re making the change to 44x60 inch tables. So, it’ll impact all of the tournament players, and will have some downstream effects where those folks are going to need to do their local practice games on this size, as well.

Otherwise, yeah, you’re free to do what you’ve been doing, and your local store may see one changes.


Taped off my mat to the new dimensions; looks crazy weird, and really small. But, on a positive note, I have room now at the end of the table for my dice tray and army binders.

 

 

The playing area seems weirdly small.

[Valerian]

It is also well worth pointing out that the reduction of a standard 4'x6' playing surface down to 44"x60" is almost a full 25% reduction!  

[Lord Blackwood]

I honestly  really like the change from a space wolves perspective we struggle at getting our boys where they need to be  having to cover less distance in our impulsors , or coming off the board edge can only really help us , Less room on the board for people to run  from  you 

[Iain_Stormeyes]

It is also well worth pointing out that the reduction of a standard 4'x6' playing surface down to 44"x60" is almost a full 25% reduction!  

 

Even if we keep the same amount of terrain as before, with some improved rules the smaller board could feel more like a battlefield we fight on.  As it is, most of the time, I view the board as a flat surface with a few rocks on it.  I'm happy to play on a smaller board if it feels more interactive.

[Rune Priest Jbickb]

And dont forget points increases will reduce army sizes some as well. Not quite as much as the board reduction, but some. And, with less incentive to spam troops, more, smaller, elite units will be on the board so the army footprint will likely be lessened for many armys.

 

My favorite part of the change is it make the game playable on most common tables for the first 3 game sizes which I think is a major step toward accessibility of the game. Now when someone comes in interested in how to play you dont need to explain that if they would like to play at home they needed to buy/construct a large piece of furniture to play. Now you say measure up your table and see what game size will fit. It's really good for opening the game to new players.

 

As for the tournament scene I suspect a couple reasons. 1 Space is always a premium, and you can invite more people to your tournament, or have more space for putting peoples stuff, depending on which issues they view as critical to their event. Plus with social distance regulations potentially still in place,

at least this year, that will be easier as well. 2 TO's dont need to buy crazy amounts of weird furniture either. Most venues have tables for rent and now they might be able to rent them there or from an outside company potentially cutting costs and setup times.

 

Personally I think this is a really great thing for the hobby.