What's in an Order Marker? (D1, D2, and D3 up)

[Jexik]

The Sacred Band and Armoc Vipers are both pretty good squads that bond. As you mentioned, they both have somewhat limited bonding options compared to the Romans or Knights of Weston. The Armocs also suffer from only having 3 members per squad. I think the main reason I don't have them listed as Bread and Butter units is that I have yet to see many people base armies solely around them in competitive events. Armies with 4 or 5 squads of Arrow Gruts or 4th. Massachusetts line are quite common, and armies prominently featuring multiple squads of Marro Stingers will likely be common in the future. Melee Orc and Roman armies are also quite popular.

The thing about some of those squads of 2nd Stringers is that with the right setting, or future releases, they can become key players in great armies. If we see more Einar or Ullar Warlords, the Band and Armocs will rise in value. The Sacred Band will also get better with each release of Disciplined units. Another common Disciplined ranged squad (like those upcoming Redcoats if they're "better" than the Ashigaru or Tag. Sam. archers) could make the Greeks quite fieldable.

I like getting use out of different figures just as much as the next guy, but I also find it difficult to put many squads in the same category as the Minutemen. The second problem with both of the squads you mention is that I'm not sure how well they fit in with any of the other categories either. Armocs might be slightly sharky due to their high movement, and the Sacred Band could be thought of as Menacers or Defenders when combined with Parmenio. I'll mull it over a bit (or wait for more releases) before placing them in different categories.

As far as the Shark comment, thanks. It's probably my favorite category name as well. The difference between Sharks and just about everything else is what inspired me to write this article. Zombies, Airborne Elite, and Venoc Vipers can all be extremely effective, but you just have to be careful how you use them.

[DoesntCompute]

Originally Posted by Su_Nan

If you don't use order markers you are just not as good at strategy as those who do. You could almost say you are either not as smart or lazy.

I use order markers so that comment isn't directed at me but I found that comment and others like it in this thread to be insulting even with the wink at the end. Just because someone plays a game differently does not make them worse at strategy, less intelligent, or lazy. It means that they find the game to be more fun by altering one of the rules. To imply anything else is irresponsible at best and slandering their character at worst.

My

[Taeblewalker]

Originally Posted by DoesntCompute

I use order markers so that comment isn't directed at me but I found that comment and others like it in this thread to be insulting even with the wink at the end. Just because someone plays a game differently does not make them worse at strategy, less intelligent, or lazy. It means that they find the game to be more fun by altering one of the rules. To imply anything else is irresponsible at best and slandering their character at worst.

My

For what it's worth, my first game we didn't quite read all the rules so we played with the master game sides of the card and thought we were playing the basic game rules. We figured it out when we turned them over and said, "You mean there is something on the other side of the cards?"

We were too impressed by the terrain and too eager to get started to read everything carefully. It was kind of fun to choose whomever we wanted.

I will say that you lose point value with certain powers like Crippling Gaze, Utgar's Orders, Red Flag of Fury Aura, etc. when you remove order markers. Perhaps you can change the value of those units.

[Jexik]

Now that I've actually been to a tournament and seen how units are used a bit more by other people, I've amended my categories a bit.

Bread and Butter units are now squads that require 2-6 squads to be effective, and serve as the backbone of an army, even to the exclusion of Cleanup figures.

I added Marro Stingers to the Menacer category, because they are very strong and very dependable, but they are limited by their low mobility and the fact that they only have 3 figures per squad. Most Menacers are A class units, and the Stingers are no exception to this rule.

I put the Armoc Vipers, Ashigaru, and Aubrien Archers down as Sharks, and the Sacred band as Defenders. Marrden Hounds are also Defenders, and I might just make Tagawa Samurai Archers as a new Menacer. I removed the 2nd String category altogether.

I answered my own question about Venoc Warlord, placing him in the Cheerleader category most of the time, but as a 'Shark who also bonds' when drafted with the Armocs.

Nilfheim is now also listed as a Menacer. He used to be a Shark. He's a bit tougher than Braxas and Mimring.

If I'm missing any units, or you wish to argue any classifications, feel free to PM me or raise questions here.

For fun's sake, I'll add the NHSD champs' armies in this post with my color classifications:

spider_poison
4x Marro Stingers 240
2x Deathreavers 320
Raelin (RotV) 400
Kaemon Awa 520
Isamu 530

Revdyer
4x 4th. Massachusetts Line 280
2x Sentinels of Jandar 500

[brunakor]

Me personally, I never used order markers because I thought it took long to finish a game with big armies. But since joining the forums, I started re-reading the rules for HS over and over ad understood more fot the purpose of the order markers. And used them more.



Also, I never used them because I never knew what they were for.

[robopesant]

Lol.

[Aldin]

I just reread this after seeing your OM III article - great stuff

~Aldin, getting ordered around

[Jexik]

I was told recently that the names of my categories are pretty awful.

Any ideas of what would be better?

Cheerleaders and Cleanup units are names that I had seen being thrown around by other players long before I put them in the article. I think they also make the most sense.

Defenders, Sharks, Menacers, Bread and Butter units are largely my own creation. I could also see Meatshields or Tanks, Finesse, Power, and Swarm replacing these, but I am certainly open to suggestions.

Niche makes sense, but I could see them being called Situational, or even being called Counter-draft units to really bring that idea home.

Also, there is the question of color. I went with green instead of blue for defenders because they complement the red sharks well. I went with orange for BB because they are complemented well by the blue cheerleaders. Menacers are purple because they are an intermediate order marker priority, a mix of blue/green and red. Cleanup units are dark red, like congealed (late-game) bloody sharks! Any better ideas?

[ThrasherDarkrai]

Don't change them. I like them the way they are.

[Taeblewalker]

The categories seem fine to me.

[hi1hi1hi1hi1]

From me.

[Browncoat]

I think if you're going to color code them like that, reading the newest Heroscape Codex could probably inspire you to come up with different names. There's a very solid article in there about the colors and what they mean.