DFW - North Texas Shootout - December 6th

[Dignan]

The North Texas Shootout

General Details

When: Saturday December 6th
Where: My home in Richardson, TX (PM for the address)
Time: 1:00 to finish (three rounds)
Entry Fee: Just a prize for the table

Army Construction

Each player will command a retinue. This will represent a particular hero and his bodyguards. Here are the rules for army construction:
1. Each army must contain at least 1 hero between 50 and 150 points (figures above 150 points are not allowed)
2. Each army must contain at least one squad.
3. Armies will total 300 points. However, armies consisting only of units from one general my have units totaling 310 points.
4. Maps will limit army size to 14 hexes

Tournament Format

Players will compete on three or four player maps in a free for all battle. During the battle, players will score points for every figure they destroy. If a unit figure is killed, the player receives points for the individual unit using fractional scoring. If a hero is killed, the player inflicting the killing blow receives all the points for that hero, regardless of who inflicted any previous wounds. Battles will rage until only one player has units left. At that point, the player with units remaining will receive points equal to half his remaining units.

At the end conclusion of the match, the points for each player will be totalled up. Players will then receive "tournament points" based on their result as follows:

4 player game:
1st: 6 tournament points
2nd: 4 tournament points
3rd: 2 tournament points
4th: 0 tournament points

3 player game:
1st: 6 tournament points
2nd: 3 tournament points
3rd: 0 tournament points

After three rounds, the player with most tournament points will be declared the winner. Points received from each battle (the actual points of units killed) will be kept track of and used as tie-breakers.

Maps
Go to my map thread for downloads.

FAQ

1. What happens when I kill my own figure (falling, lava, etc)?
A. If it is a squad figure, it is simply removed and no one scores points for it. If it is a wounded hero, the last player to wound it gets all the points for it (unless you were the only player to wound it).

2. Who gets points for a figure killed by counterstrike?
A. The samurai's player gets the point when counterstrike kills a figure.

3. If my Wolves of Badru fail a pounce and are killed, who gets the points?
A. The defending player gets the points if he survives a pounce.

4. What does zombies' Rise Again and Marro Warrior's Water Clone do for point scoring?
A. Figures coming back to the board from death work the same as they do in a regular game. Everytime they are killed they give points to the player killing them, regardless of them coming back.

[Dignan]

Alright, time to get a thread going for this event. We need to decide which date in September will work best for this event. It will fall between the hero event that Velenne is hosting and the National Heroscape Day event that will be held in October. With this in mind, I think that one of the two middle Saturdays in the month will work best: the 13th or the 20th.

Please respond with any questions or concerns. Also, anyone interested can join several of us at my home in Richardson on Tuesday nights at 7:00 (PM me for address). We will be testing the format of the event and playtesting maps for the event. It is a great time to iron out the details and express concerns.

[CheddarLimbo]

Sounds like another great event Dignan, I hope I can make it.

With the scoring methodology outlined above, how do you score units that are able to regenerate? Examples include Zombies, or a Marro Warrior?

[Dignan]

Originally Posted by CheddarLimbo

With the scoring methodology outlined above, how do you score units that are able to regenerate? Examples include Zombies, or a Marro Warrior?

An opponent will score points everytime the unit is destroyed regardless of whether or not it regenerates. In theory, your opponents could score infinite points if you kept regenerating units. In practice, by fielding such units, you run the risk of giving more points to your opponents (but you will also be gaining the ability to kill more units and score points for them surviving the battle).

[Rÿchean]

I vote (if I have a vote) for the 13th; I can't make it otherwise.

I am not really on board with eliminating units from the event, but hey, it is Heroscape; I'm in.

add 10 points for same general..hmm..Only 10? smells fishy Can ya bump that up to 320. It feels cleaner to me.

[Velenne]

I don't get it. Why is there fractional scoring if you have to play until everyone else is eliminated?

[Dignan]

Originally Posted by Velenne

I don't get it. Why is there fractional scoring if you have to play until everyone else is eliminated?

Because the winner isn't the last one standing, it's the one who kills the most. If we just did last one standing, it would encourage too much turtling. This player who kills the most units with his small army is the winner. The last player standing may have spent too long out of the battle to score enough points.

[Dignan]

Originally Posted by Rÿchean

add 10 points for same general..hmm..Only 10? smells fishy Can ya bump that up to 320. It feels cleaner to me.

Well it was DrL's idea. We've been trying it out the last few weeks. For some reason he really likes it. Every once in awhile it pays off, but half the armies I build for this event end up around 290 or 280 anyway.

We can try it this week at 320. With these point totals, I doubt there will be much of a difference by making it 320 (other than encouraging people to play one general even more). Some armies will really benefit from the extra points and some won't have anything to spend the extra points on. I'll play around with some army builds this week and we'll see how it plays on Tuesday.

[Rÿchean]

DrL, huh? Well that explains it all.

Do it whatever you want and if you have it on the 13th, I will be there.

[Dignan]

Originally Posted by Rÿchean

DrL, huh? Well that explains it all.

Do it whatever you want and if you have it on the 13th, I will be there.

Cool. Once we get a little closer to the event (probably mid August) I'll put up a poll for a week to decide the date. Hopefully the 13th will work for everyone and we can have it then to avoid any conflicts.

[CheddarLimbo]

My mind has been kicking this event criteria around all weekend. It sounds like a lot of fun! Are you prepared to give us any insights from your testing, or should I just stop begging and start doing my own homework?

I've already got a couple of builds in mind, but the hard part will be testing them in a 3 or 4 player format.

Also, I know it's a while off, but do you know what maps you'll use?

[Dignan]

Originally Posted by CheddarLimbo

My mind has been kicking this event criteria around all weekend. It sounds like a lot of fun! Are you prepared to give us any insights from your testing, or should I just stop begging and start doing my own homework?

Well, our playtesting has been very fun and yielded pretty interesting results. Firstly, we figured that ranged units would be very dominant (since you don't have to commit as much to attack your opponent). However, with the nature of the maps (they are rather tight) it is difficult to keep your distance. With enemies on both sides, ranged units have a tough time avoiding engagement.

Also, the dynamics of the free for all are also entertaining. Many times, a player who loses several units early in the match will be ignored and slip under the radar and score enough points to come from behind. There has been a lot of power swings back and forth in our games.

Other than that, it seems that the 150 point ceiling and the 300 point army limit really makes some heroes shine that aren't generally regarded as "powerhouses". Cleanup heroes are really sweet (I'm looking at you Kaemon).

Also, I know it's a while off, but do you know what maps you'll use?

That's what we are working on right now during our Tuesday game nights. The maps will be original. Once we get some finalized, I will post them so that players can get a look at them.

Just a reminder, if you want to get some practice on some maps and the 3 and 4 player games, join us on Tuesday nights at my home in Richardson (PM me for the address).