# Fantasy?



## TheWarsmith (Apr 5, 2009)

Hey im a 40k player (Iron Warriors Chaos Space Marines and Imp. Guard) Me and my friend love the old Medeival style combat and we are trying out Fantasy. I got a few questions before I go buying an army box.
1. What are the diffrences in gameplay (please specific nothing like more guns or tanks or something i mean like turns and rolling) 
2. Are there seiges? I saw Seige towers and Rams on GWs website plus fortress walls since im a IW fan i love seiging. 
3. Im going to try Bretonnia and most likely paint them like the Knights Templar, or my Highschools colors (GO THOMAS DALE KNIGHTS! Our mascot is a knight and same with our logo and stuff) so whats good to start out? Army Box or buy a few units I like 
4. It seems more "Organized" than 40k. 40k is more like squads a little apart behind cover spread out, fantasy looks more like old Medieval combat, tight formations and stuff is that true? 
5. Im not giving up 40k but how hard is it to switch from 40k to Fantasy? Many rule diffrences? (similar to question 1) 
6. Are they harder to paint than 40k as in more details on the models.
All help appreciated!


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## Dragearen (Sep 8, 2009)

TheWarsmith said:


> Hey im a 40k player (Iron Warriors Chaos Space Marines and Imp. Guard) Me and my friend love the old Medeival style combat and we are trying out Fantasy. I got a few questions before I go buying an army box.
> 1. What are the diffrences in gameplay (please specific nothing like more guns or tanks or something i mean like turns and rolling)
> 2. Are there seiges? I saw Seige towers and Rams on GWs website plus fortress walls since im a IW fan i love seiging.
> 3. Im going to try Bretonnia and most likely paint them like the Knights Templar, or my Highschools colors (GO THOMAS DALE KNIGHTS! Our mascot is a knight and same with our logo and stuff) so whats good to start out? Army Box or buy a few units I like
> ...


1. Not being a 40k player, I don't know how to answer that.
2. There is a form of gameplay called Last Stand. I don't know the exact rules, nor where to find them, but it is basically one team/army in a Fortress boxed set(or make your own) with half the points of the other team/army. There are siege towers, I'm not sure what the rams do though... Probably just really strong against gates instead of hitting the gates with units.
3. I'd buy the Battalion(army box), do junk with that like converting and painting and all that(I'd use white primer for Bretonnians), then buy more.
4. Yes, most troops are what's called "Rank and File", which is basically blocks of units. There ARE, however, some units like the 40k squads, for example, Skink Skirmishers. They obey same or similar rules, but typically cost more points(skirmishing is a very good thing for ranged combat, but not very good in melee).
5. I've heard that 40k is much simpler than Fantasy, so you'll have some complex rules to learn... But besides that, it shouldn't be too hard a transition.
6. That depends entire upon your army... But seeing as I've never painted 40k... Well, there's a lot less conversion capabilities... ='( But with Bretonnians anyhow... It shouldn't be too different/hard.


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## maddermax (May 12, 2008)

*1. What are the differences in gameplay (please specific nothing like more guns or tanks or something i mean like turns and rolling) *

There is quite a lot of difference really, but the biggest parts are the movement and combat. Because units come in large blocks, not individual skirmishers, and they can only see/shoot/charge at things they can see in front of them, movement and positioning become very important. Rather than moving in any direction like in 40k, you can only move in certain ways, turns take movement, so it makes it a lot more tactical. Also, your flanks and rear are very vulnerable to enemy attack, so keeping your flanks protected, while getting into your enemies is pretty important. 

meanwhile, in combat you have large blocks of 20 or 30 guys, but only the front rank or two will usually get into combat. Also, charging only lets you strike first, but doesn't give you any extra attacks, and most models only get one or two attacks. So unlike 40k, where you'd roll a bucket of dice and a half of dice for 30 guys, usually you're only getting 5 or 10 attacks all over. What becomes just as important as damage dealing in combat is having weight of numbers, plenty of ranks backing you up, and standard bearers and musicians to help win combat and break the enemy.

There are lots of other things that change too, magic is it's own complex thing, not just a part of shooting, Units have the option to flee, stand or shoot at chargers, not just take it, and template weapons are few and far between, because with tightly packed units, they're amazingly effective. Also, unlike 40k where there are a lot of units that are great for both shooting and assaulting, in fantasy they usually have a specific purpose, it's rare to find a good shooting unit that can hold it's own in combat, and vice versa. 

*3. Im going to try Bretonnia and most likely paint them like the Knights Templar, or my Highschools colors (GO THOMAS DALE KNIGHTS! Our mascot is a knight and same with our logo and stuff) so whats good to start out? Army Box or buy a few units I like 
*
As a Bretonnian player for many many years now, I can say with authority that they are awesome as a playing force, and a lot of fun! they can really dish out the pain, and you'll always be dictating the course of battle. 

White and red can look really nice, though they can be a bit hard to paint - the newer foundation paints though probably make it easier than it once was though. Maroon and silver could look nice, though I'd suggest making up a couple of test models, to see how it goes. 

The Army boxed set... just gives you a free pegasus over buying things seperately. This isn't too bad, though I personally don't like the men-at-arms that come with them, game play wise they can get slapped around by a goblin. Still, small units of them can probably come in handy. Otherwise, go for 2 units of knights (make them up as half errant and half knights-of-the-relm is my suggestion), a unit of bowmen and the 3 boxed set of pegasus, which will give you a great start. add in a mounted damsal and a hero and standard bearer, and you'll have a decent little army.

*4. It seems more "Organized" than 40k. 40k is more like squads a little apart behind cover spread out, fantasy looks more like old Medieval combat, tight formations and stuff is that true? *

very true, as I said up above. There are usually a few skirmishing units in any army, that work somewhat like 40k units, but though they have a lot more freedom of movement, they pay for that with a being unable to get certain combat bonuses, putting them at a disadvantage in a fair fight. 
*
5. Im not giving up 40k but how hard is it to switch from 40k to Fantasy? Many rule diffrences? (similar to question 1) *

lots of rule differences, It is a completely different game. This helps somewhat, it means you aren't always mixing up rules between the two though  don't worry, it's not too bad. have someone show you the ropes with the battle for skull pass, and you'll pick it up quickly.
*
6. Are they harder to paint than 40k as in more details on the models.
All help appreciated!*

haha, depends what you're trying to paint! some things are harder, power armour is pretty easy in 40k, but you won't have too much trouble I think. They knights are pretty nice, just remember to paint the knight, shield and horse seperately, or it'll be a bit more difficult for you.


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## forestreverie (Sep 10, 2009)

I actually started with fantasy and then tried 40k later, and i found that it was a lot easier to learn the second game than starting from scratch, as you already understand most of the gaming terms, for example, you know what all the stats (WS,Bs,S,T,W,I,A,Ld) mean, you know how to take a leadership test, you know about deployment and game turns, so it is a lot easier than you might think.


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## Creon (Mar 5, 2009)

I can give you a brief precis of some of the differences:

1) Fantasy is a game of mass and maneuver. 40K is a game of skirmish combat.

2) Fantasy relies less on individuals, though that is changing. 40k the ICs sometimes dictate the battle

3) Fantasy relies far more on terrain. NOT TLOS. Movement is very difficult through terrain, for most armies. 

4) Fantasy has a seperate magic phase. You can stop magic on your side. Magic is dangerous, far more than psychic powers.


The rules are all far different from each other. WH uses to hit and to wound modifiers, 40k no longer does. Armor isn't binary in fantasy, you check your modified number, and that's what you roll. 

It's basically the difference between Checkers (40k) and Chess (Fantasy). Both are fun and challenging, but Fantasy has a lot more rules to worry about.


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## KarlFranz40k (Jan 30, 2009)

40k is considerably easier to learn to play than fantasy, in 40k alot of things are set and straightforeward, like shooting, armour saves and psychic powers. In fantasy there are a large number of modifiers, shooting models have an easier or harder job to hit depending on what they are shooting at and how for away it is. Armour saves are reduced by high strength attacks, and power weapons don't (apart from runefangs) exist. Magic is far more destructive than psychic powers, it can be stopped by use of dispel dice or magic items, and there are loads of lovely spells to choose from, which makes choosing a lore of magic for your wizard (he gains random spells from whatever lore he chooses) a real chin-scratcher. 

However much of the core mechanics are similar, the profile stats are almost identical to 40k, as are strength-toughness rolls.

Model-wise fantasy is quite different from 40k, the models are more realistically scaled, and are slightly smaller overall. But you will have to paint alot of them, even in a warriors of chaos army there will be loads of minis on the field.

But its great craic learning a new system, games start to depend more on tactics than your army lists, characters have more.....character  and the FOC is more balanced, keeping the number of very powerful models available low, until the size of the game increases.


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## Creon (Mar 5, 2009)

Almost every race has a "no armor save" magic weapon or two, but that's the extent of it.


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