Warhammer: Diskwars Review
on Nov 5, 2015
Any time my wife thinks the amount I spend on board games is over the top, I point at miniatures gamers to relieve my guilt. No matter how far down the rabbit hole I go, Iâll never be that far gone, or so I tell myself. Yet there is something tantalizing about watching their delicately assembled, intricately painted armies mash up against each other in the midst of model rubble, ruins, hills, and forests. They pour more thought, time, and love into each soldier and army than I put into entire game systems. These playersâ dedication is something I really admire about the deep end of our little hobby.
For the more casual gamers interested in the open-ended, free-for-all skirmishes of Warhammer and 40K, Fantasy Flight has repurposed Tom Jollyâs old Diskwars design. Only here, you wonât be asked to spend a monthâs rent on one factionâs worth of units. Instead, armies are represented by large, attractive POG-like discs, and movement is accomplished by flipping them end over end rather than pulling out the trusty tape measure. The core set features four factions, all of which are reasonably fleshed out for a starter kit. Itâs a neat concept, itâs well-executed, and overall itâs a welcome change from some of the more anemic âcoreâ offerings weâve seen from FFG and other modern publishers.
The star of the show here is the movement system. Flipping discs feels like a revelation for anyone who has played minis games in the past: no rulers, no piles of movement templates. It integrates perfectly with all the different faction and unit types, making big, heavy dudes feel--well, big and heavy. Cavalry will handle as youâd expect, zipping about the battlefield, flanking your opponent and pinning down units that would otherwise decimate your lines. Itâs an unmatched tactile experience that quickly becomes second nature (just note that youâll want to play on a felt board or other playmat for best results).
Battles in Diskwars are whirlwinds of blood and magic. Most every unit will get activated every turn, and movement allowances tend to get most of your warriors into the fray in a turn or two. This structure lends itself to conflicts in which battle lines form up quickly, then descend into chaos as units engage in deadly clashes. You end up with battles that look very much as youâd expect them to: ranged units hiding in forests and perched on hilltops, hurling a barrage of deadly projectiles onto a horde of melee units below. Monsters, soldiers, artillery, and heroes will turn the tide of each melee âscrumâ with the usual range of rule-breaking keywords and abilities.
Perhaps surprisingly, thereâs very little luck involved in DiskWars. Players control everything from their order of deployment to the makeup of their hand to the location of the terrain. Even melee battles resolve in a deterministic fashion, though swingy ranged combat and other special ability rolls can bring the winds of fortune to bear on a sessionâs outcome. I could have used a little more wristage in the game overall, as sometimes melees can feel like a foregone conclusion once the stacks are formed. Ultimately, the commander who can use his armiesâ unique mix of melee strength, ranged covering fire, and special abilities will usually be the one to score the victory.
The game is more than just a bloodbath however. FFG has introduced all sorts of nuance and mechanisms to the design, but none of them feel overly tacked on. The simultaneous action card selection at the beginning of each activation round isnât exactly novel or inspired, but it works well enough to pick someone to move first. Those with the desire to tinker with armies and off-the-wall strategies will appreciate the ability to customize the action decks and the somewhat modular approach to army building. And of course, gamers who spend time studying the ins and outs of the keyword abilities will have a great advantage over those with just a cursory understanding.
In our Battlelore Second Edition review, we lamented the over-long setup introduced in the custom scenario generation and army building before each game. Those same concepts are present in Diskwars, but here they feel much more natural, rather than being shoehorned into the C&C system. The secret objectives feel right at home for most any matchup, and placing terrain is an intriguing puzzle instead of a mindless chore. Pre-built army lists can serve as a starting point for those not inclined to fine-tune their orders of battle. Not everyone will want to min-max their regiments in between each and every battle, and Diskwars feels a little more accommodating for these casual players. Still, those with the spare time, spare cash, and thirst for customization will get the most out of the game.
Iâm sure, for the initiated, Diskwars is no replacement for an honest-to-goodness set of miniatures rules, but itâs a great starting point. No, Iâm not crazy about everything here. Melees can lack that sense of calculated risk and dangerous maneuvering due to a fairly luckless combat resolution. The keywords can get overwhelming if youâre brushing up on a play after a few months of inaction, and army customization is lacking if youâre not dying to pick up the expansions. But at the end of the day, itâs a wonderful game that generates fantastic war stories, lets you feel like a master tactician for an hour, and doesnât lay siege to your bank account.