Which units do you teach with?

[InfraredFog]

I'm curious what squads or figures others use to teach the game to newcomers. I've taught the game to about 5-6 friends over the past couple months (yay! players to play with!), and have mostly been using Minions of Utgar to teach flying, 4th Mass to teach range, Krug to teach double-spaced figures, and sometimes another squad like Tarn Viking Warriors to teach melee/engagement type rules.

What are the common squads/heroes you teach with and why?

[MegaSilver]

I use the orginial master set.

[InfraredFog]

Ah, I guess I should clarify and say that the way I teach is to use a couple squads/figures to go over the basic movement/combat/engagement rules before we even dive into a game. Do you have specific figures you use to introduce those rules to players? Or do you dive into a full-fledged game with RotV?

[Jexik]

"So, what do you think looks the coolest?"

[cmgames]

Whatever comes to hand. There are a few I use for specific purposes (Deathstalkers for instance, to demonstrate the difference between size and height, Charos to demonstrate the limitations of fitting on every space along the way, etc.), but in general I just grab a single space and double space figure and any hero army card and a squad army card. Almost all the basic concepts can be demonstrated that way.

~Z

[Majora's Incarnation]

I taught a group using the Marro master set. Because thats all they had at the time, and had no idea that Heroscape was older than that. You can imagine their faces as they saw everything I had (RotV to D3)

[Shadespider21]

Does tough love count as teaching?


P.S. Not skullcrushing tough love, but tough enough love
P.P.S. Don't take the love part too seriously

[InfraredFog]

Originally Posted by Jexik

"So, what do you think looks the coolest?"

I like that, and will try that next time I teach someone! Will probably be like "Which one with wings looks the coolest?" And "Which guys with some kind of gun looks the coolest?" Some of the people I teach want to play the army that they like the best, and I let them. Sometimes that's what they think looks cool, and sometimes that's the A-A+ units (maybe I should hold off on describing which figures are better than others, see how that plays out).

Originally Posted by cmgames

Whatever comes to hand. There are a few I use for specific purposes (Deathstalkers for instance, to demonstrate the difference between size and height, Charos to demonstrate the limitations of fitting on every space along the way, etc.), but in general I just grab a single space and double space figure and any hero army card and a squad army card. Almost all the basic concepts can be demonstrated that way.

I like this. I usually don't teach the "if it can't fit it can't go there" rule right off the bat, but it's not hard to; I probably should. I usually save the Deathstalkers for a "strategy lesson" because most beginners don't see how they're good at first. I like to at least cover these things in the first lesson:

• flying
• squads
• engagement
• movement

So I think Minions + one other hero or squad could basically cover all of those.

[lefton4ya]

Originally Posted by Jexik

"So, what do you think looks the coolest?"

That's what I do - if they pick from the figures themselves, and its not a flagbearer or one of the Heroes of Fallcrest (most complicated figures in the game if you ask me) then I use them as most cards are very easy to understand the powers. Marro Stingers are probably the easiest to understand and I usually use them to teach the concept of common squads.

[MegaSilver]

Originally Posted by InfraredFog

Ah, I guess I should clarify and say that the way I teach is to use a couple squads/figures to go over the basic movement/combat/engagement rules before we even dive into a game. Do you have specific figures you use to introduce those rules to players? Or do you dive into a full-fledged game with RotV?

Yes, by applying most of the master rules, but having them use the basic side to start off.

IMO they need to learn the rules (which takes a game or two) before they learn how to break them.

[The Deadliest Warrior]

Whenever I teach a newcomer, first I pull out Ne-Gok-Sa and Agent Carr (to keep the theme varied and interesting) and explain the Move, Range, and Attack and Defense on each unit's respective card by staging a mock battle where I control both figures and have them fight.

Because the Basic Game really annoys me in its simplicity, and I have yet to know a single 'Scape who plays that regularly rather than the Master game, I always teach my newbies the Master Game, and explain the concept of Life value and then the Special Powers on the Card. It continues until either Ne-Gok-Sa has killed or Mindshackled Carr or Carr has killed Ne-Gok-Sa.

Then I go on to Squads, Glyphs, Terrain Rules, Height Advantage and the like, but I never use Order Markers because in my mind they take too long and are cumbersome and limiting to your strategies.

After I have lightly touched off on all of the unique mechanics of the game, then we do a quick battle (in which I usually win) but as we go along I point out useful tips for the newcomer and so they don't lose too horribly.

[InfraredFog]

Never thought about doing an initial battle with the basic rules. Seems like a good approach to teaching movement/order markers/attack/defence/etc., but I think I'd rather just start out with a real game.

Often times I lose the first battle to my newbies because they end up wanting to pick the awesome heros/squads, and I pick a fun and less competitive army. :P