Wednesday 26 August 2015

Battle of Calth board game: the new Space Crusade?

Hello and welcome to another edition of Drake predicts the future. The Horus Heresy plastic set is obviously on its way now are we now understand that it can be used as a standalone box game with apparently two rule sets. This two rule sets thing got me thinking over the past few days. We have not really got much of A difference between the 30K and the 40K rule set so in my mind it would be very silly to put two of the same into the same boxed game. Which led me down another path; how did we get the hobby? Most people got in early days when they first saw a Space Marine be this rogue trader, Space Hulk etc. I personally got involved at the Space Crusade stage. 


In my opinion this box which is about to come out is the new "Space Crusade". I'm not saying it's going to be called Space Crusade that would be damn silly, but what I am saying is could this be the jump off set that 40K and 30K actually need to bring more youngsters into the hobby? I mean if we all got in to it at the Space Crusade era and are still into it now, it can only be a decent sign. I personally believe that they went back to the drawing board on this one and started looking at the hobby from a day one "how did you start?". How can we re-introduce a Space Crusade style game into the hobby? Every kid like space Marines that is mainly the reason why they play 40K and there is a lot of characterisation and 30K (which did need plastic support), and it is predominantly Marine on Marine. 


In my opinion Assassination Force was a trial to see what they could do with the technology for cardboard boards and a simplified rule set. This made me think that it was quite similar to a simplified process which was used in the Space Crusade boxed game. Maybe one of the rule sets which are involved in this box is a simple move move for squares role to dice to kill that person style system. 



So I personally believe there will be a simplified rule set and a standard age of Darkness (7th edition equivalent)  rule set for the veteran gamer is inside this one box. Apparently it has 30 Mk4, 10 Cataphractii, 1 Contemptor and 2 Characters. 
It is rumoured to be called Battle of Calth.

Can't you imagine the boarding missile tiles for entry onto the opponents ship? Maybe a Cardboard Caestus Assault Ram or Kharybdis to help promote the FW Horus Heresy range? The trim of the box depicting different colour schemes for the different Legions? Ahhhh smell the Nostalgia. 

I do believe we will see it at the 40k open day in October on the 17th. 

What do you think? I could be completely wrong, but I would want to do something like this if I was in charge. 

Drake Seta 

11 comments:

  1. I think the idea would be good & have said for a long time that it's what GW need to do, but the worrying part will be the price, GW should be even willing to take a little lost on this but I fear what we'll will see is a price somewhere around £100 & that will be to much for what its in tended for.

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    1. Yes maybe. The thing also is it will be snatched up if any cheaper if released as a Ltd edition by all of the 30k Legion gamers / eBay sellers to either create a bigger Legion or make a profit, immediately negating it's importance if it sells out.

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  2. That's exactly what I started thinking when they started talking about boarding marines. We've had space hulk so space crusade was due a revamp I guess!

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  3. I personally think the rules for 30k are different enough to require rules for both systems. The troops options are completely different.

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  4. @ Hydrapup

    Releasing a new ruleset would be a disgusting cashgrab by GW like they are doing with 40k. Most of the books from FW are premium products which cost a lot of money and which most reasonable people expect to be one off purchases. To have those books rendered redundant after less than a few months in the case of Tempest borders on theft in my opinion. So I have to vehemently disagree with you it would be a massive fuck you to all HH collectors if they did that.

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    1. If they made the rules obsolete in that way is just stop playing, I'm tired of trying to keep up. HH is currently nice and simple as it is and I'm not really in it for the playing anyway as I prefer the painting and collecting.

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    2. My understanding is that the rules for them this game wouldn't replace 40k/30k in the same that Space Crusade didn't replace the 40k rules, but acted as an introduction (or a gateway drug!) to the cooler stuff. I'm really looking forward to this boxed game!

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    3. Yes mate that's the way I understand it too. I don't think it would be a redux of the rules but an alternative set to get the people who don't know how or haven't got the time to learn the core 40K rules into the hobby. Just like the execution force game.
      I still predict though in the distant future there will be a end times 40K and that is where it will end up going Age of Sigmar like (but to a lesser degree), but the 30K / 7th ed rule sets which we know and love at the moment will continue to be as it is in my opinion. I can't imagine them doing away with seventh edition but instead continue to make it compatible with Horus Heresy / 30K.

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    4. Woah woah... I'm not saying change the rules i'm just saying that if they are going to create a bundle for use in both systems then they need to include the rules to use the models in both systems. You can't take special or heavy weapons in 30k Tac squads and those kind of things need to be stated.

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    5. Well there's a difference between rules and a codex, the HH legion army list is essentially a different space marine codex. Both codexes rely on the rule book to work so as long as that is compatible with both there shouldn't be an issue

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  5. :O i love these Space Crusade Ultramarines ^^ really awesome work (and i know how ugly the models are normally :o)

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