curtournrule

Current tournament Rules

Here are the current tournament rules from UK. These are the rules I'm testing under now, with the hope that the US GTs will follow them at least in part. Previous mailings to the list with this file as an attachment didn't seem to work, so this is just the text from the doc below.

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WARHAMMER TOURNAMENT RULES

On the following pages you'll find all the rules that will apply in the Warhammer Tournament. Read them carefully, especially if you've been to any of our other Grand Tournaments, as there are a number of new rules and special limitations we'll be using this year. I highly recommend you try a few games with the tournament rules before you come to the tournament, especially with regard to trying out the two brand new scenarios you'll have to play!

I've included a number of appendixes after the rules, amongst which are copies of articles written for White Dwarf and other magazines explaining why the rules for the tournament are the way they are. These are well worth reading, especially the copy of the Magic Revisited article, as they often include a more detailed explanation of how a rule works, and sometimes even an example of the rule in action!

Finally, if you have any questions about the rules or things you are not sure about, please write to "The Chief Umpire, Warhammer Grand Tournament, Games Workshop Ltd, Willow Lane, Lenton, Nottingham, NG7 2WS".

HOW TO GET TO THE 1998 TOURNAMENT (AND WHAT TO DO ONCE YOU GET THERE!)

The tournament will be held at our Head Quarters on Saturday ??? and Sunday ??? of August 1999. You should aim to arrive on the Saturday by 9.30 am at the absolute latest. Players that have booked a room for Friday night can arrive at any time from 5.00 p.m. on Friday. You will be given a name badge and full schedule of events when you arrive, which will include details of when and where you play each of your games.

Included along with this information pack is a map showing how to get to our HQ, and a list of nearby hotels where you can book a room. Note that you will need to arrange your own accommodation, and we recommend that you do so ASAP!

Lunch with be provided on Saturday and on Sunday. Breakfast will be available on Saturday and Sunday mornings, but is not included in your ticket price so you will have to pay for it separately. Soft drinks and snacks are available at reasonable rates from dispensing machines in our restaurant, and Bugmans Bar will be open on Friday and Saturday nights. All of the tournaments are designed to guarantee every player a full weekend of gaming fun - so don't worry, you can't get 'knocked out' after your first game and be left with nothing to do for the rest of the weekend. In any case, apart from the tournaments themselves we will be putting on a number of other things to take part in. For a start we are going to make sure that all the gaming tables will be available for players to use while tournament games are not in progress. For those who prefer to save their game-playing energies for the tournament, there will be the opportunity to have a drink and a chat with fellow gamers, or even to take part in the infamous Saturday Night Team Pub Quiz! Finally there will be the Q&A Sessions, Brain-Storming Sessions, and anything else we can think of! Sadly the tournament will have to end, which will be after the awards ceremony at around about 6.00 p.m. on Sunday. The details of how the tournament itself will be run can be found in the rest of this information pack. If you have any questions that are not covered then please write to "The Chief Umpire, Warhammer Grande Tournament, Games Workshop Ltd, Willow Lane, Lenton, Nottingham, NG7 2WS". We will be pleased to answer any questions or queries that you may have, no matter how minor or trivial.

TOURNAMENT CORE RULES

The following special rules will apply to the games played in the Warhammer tournament.

1. You will take part in five games, each against a different opponent on a 5' by 4' table. ??? games will be played on Saturday and ??? games on Sunday. You must use the same army for every game that you play.

2. When you arrive at the tournament you must hand in a written or typed copy of the army you will use. In addition you will need a second copy of the list so that your opponent or our umpires can refer to it if they require.

3. All models used must be PAINTED Citadel Miniatures, of the appropriate type for the troops they represent. I'm not going to write a legalistic definition of what constitutes an 'appropriate painted Citadel Miniature', as you know what I mean as well as I do. Suffice to say that an undercoat is not enough...

4. All weapons, armour options and upgrades chosen from the army list must be shown on the models themselves. For example, if you pay the points to upgrade a model to be equipped with halbard, then the model must have a halbard. By the same token, equipment shown on the model must be included in its points cost. For example, if the models in a unit have bows, then you must pay the points for them. The intent of this rule is to make sure that when an opponent looks at your army, then 'what he sees is what he gets'. You may use converted Citadel Miniatures to represent troop types that are in the army list but are not yet available in the Citadel range.

5. All dice and Magic decks (the Magic deck is the Warhammer deck with the power cards, dispels etc.) will be provided by the event organisers. Spell cards, Magic Item cards, templates, Chaos Gift decks, and all other materials must be provided by the players. IMPORTANT: Some players will be required to bring along 'home-made' cards for certain things; Dwarf players need to bring along a home made Rune Item card for each rune item used in their army, for example. These special requirements are listed below.

6. Set up and game length is described in the tournament scenario rules below.

7. At the end of the game the winner will be the player that scores the most victory points. See the victory condition rules below.

8. Each player will be provided with a 'Result Card', with their name printed on one side, and spaces on the other for recording the results of all of their battles over the weekend. Once the battle is over the card must be filled in and given to an umpire. The information will be entered on our database, and we'll return the card to you at the start of the next round.

9. You must bring along a copy of the games rules, the Army Book you will be using, as well as copies of any material you will be using from White Dwarf magazine, so that your opponent can check the rules and characteristics that apply to your troops.

PLAYING THE TOURNAMENT

You must participate in ??? games, each against a different opponent. Your first opponent will be chosen using a random method. For subsequent opponents we will be using a Swiss System. This has nothing to do with cuckoo clocks, but is rather a way of deciding who plays against who in each round of the tournament. In the first round players will be matched randomly against an opponent. After that, in each round the two players in 1st and 2nd place will play each other, the players in 3rd and 4th place will play each other, the players in 5th and 6th place will play each other, and so on. The only exception is that you can never play the same opponent twice; should this happen an umpire will step in and sort things out so that the players face fresh opponents of a suitable calibre. The main advantage of the Swiss System is that it seeds players after a round or two, and makes sure that the final winner of the tournament will have faced some tough opposition along the way. On Saturday we'll only use the points for games play to determine the rankings, but on Sunday morning we'll add in points for army selection and painting, and the test paper. (We add these points in at this stage so that players who score a lot of points for painting and selection are moved up to the top tables where they have to play games against strong players. If we left these points until the end of the tournament it would be possible for a player to 'jump' into first place from the middle tables.)

Once your opponent has been determined you will be assigned a table. Each game will be played on a 4' by 6' flat table. Each table will have a 1' sideborder that you can use for casualties or storage of reference materials. Please try to keep their playing area clear of excess 'clutter'. Each table will be outfitted with a set number of pieces of scenery. Warhammer Wood Elf players will receive one extra wood that they may take from game to game as they play. Details of how to set up the terrain are included in the tournament scenario rules below. The attached schedule shows how long each gaming session lasts. This time includes a five minute 'warm-up' period which is described in more detail below. As we're playing five turn games this year it means players will have to play at quite a brisk pace - so no time-wasting please! Each player has a special 'results card', with their name printed on one side, and spaces for the results of their battles on the other. Once you've finished your game, you must fill in the card and then hand in the card to an umpire or at the information desk. Your results will be entered on the database, and your card will be returned to you at the start of the next round.

ARMY SELECTION

When you arrive at the tournament you must bring a copy of your army list for the Judges, and you will require a second copy of the list which you should keep with you when you are playing. The list must include all of the models in your army, their points value, the points value of any upgrades, And must specify which model is carrying any magic items/wargear that you decide to take. Please put your name on all copies of the list. Please make absolutely certain that the list you hand in is correct and conforms exactly to the army you will be using. It goes without saying that the army lists of the tournament leaders after each round will be scrupulously checked, and that any errors will result in the culprit losing so many points that they will almost certainly have no chance of winning the tournament. So, double check all of your calculations, make sure that every item of equipment shown on the models in your army has been paid for (remember 'what you see is what you get'), and make sure that you don't exceed the percentage allowances for different troops types. It is also important to remember that when you use a points limit in Warhammer you can only spend up to the limit agreed - this means that in a 2,000 point game you must spend 2,000 points or less. Finally, make absolutely sure that you haven't broken any of the special tournament limits (see below). Remember, if you make a mistake you will lose points, even if the mistake was a completely honest one.

WARHAMMER TOURNAMENT LIMITATIONS

� No more than 2,000 points may be spent on the army.

� All armies must have an army standard if one is included in their army list.

� Dogs Of War armies may be used.

� Chaos armies may include allies from the Chaos army book, and Empire armies may include human mercenaries. No other allies are allowed.

� Amendments from Magic Revisited will apply (see attached copy).

� Magic Per Level from Magic Revisited rule will be used (see attached copy). Dwarf Runesmiths counts as Lords for the purposes of this rule.

� Wizards with a magic level of 5 may not be used, event if the 5th magic level is gained from a magic item (like the Book of Ashur).

� No Special Characters or Greater Daemons are allowed. Special Characters or Greater Daemon models may be used to represent 'normal' characters or Daemon Princes respectively, if desired.

� Total power is barred. If the card is drawn from the spell deck, count it as a power card.

� Dark Elf & High Elf repeater bolt-throwers cost 100 points each.

� Stegadons may not be formed into units.

WARHAMMER TOURNAMENT SCENARIO

Tournament Battle Scenario: With the exception of the changes described below, this scenario use the Tournament battle rules described in the Warhammer Battle Book.

Table Edge: Players should simply agree amongst themselves as to which player sets up on which edge of the table.

Scenery: At the start of each game the terrain should be placed in the 'side-bar'. The players then take it in turn to set up a piece of terrain in their half of the table, but with all of the terrain at least 8" away from the centre point of the table. Roll a D6 to see who sets up the first piece, and then take it in turn to place pieces of terrain. Both players must set up one piece of terrain, but after that a player may 'pass, in which case the opponent may set up one last piece of terrain and must then stop. Note that this is a modified version of the random terrain set-up rules from Warhammer, and it's worth referring to these rules before the tournament. Wood Elf players set up their extra wood after normal terrain has been set up, per the rules in the Wood Elf army book.

Warm Up Period: Before battle commences there will be a five minute 'warm-up' period. During this period players must first hand over their army list to their opponent for inspection. Either player is allowed to ask their opponents questions about the army list and the rules that apply to the units and characters in it. After inspecting the army lists both players should discuss the terrain for the battle, and how each feels it will effect the units in play (i.e. how do woods effect line of sight, how do hills effect the ability of units or archers to fire, and so on). The can also discuss any other rules points that they think may come up in the battle. Finally, both players must shake hands, and then battle can commence, starting with the opportunity to veto magic items as described next.

Veto Rule: Before either side deploys each player must lay out all of their Magic Item/ Chaos Reward cards in a row so that their opponent can see them. Chaos players must make up cards for Daemon Rewards, Bretonnian players must make cards for character Knightly Virtues, and Dwarf players must make up cards for Rune items. Each card must list a single virtue or reward, or all the runes embossed on a single item. The opponent is then allowed to veto up to two of the cards. Each card that he veto's gives the Opposing player 100 victory points plus the cost of the item itself. Vetoed cards are put to one side and are not used.

Big Guy Veto Limitation: Any model that has 4 or more wounds is counted as a big guy. Chariots and War Machines count as big guys if the total number of wounds for the crew and mounts comes to 4+ (i.e. don't count the wounds of the chariot or the war machine itself). Swarms don't count as big guys, as you divide the wounds amongst the models in the swarm and this comes to less than four. Ridden monsters, stegadons, etc., with 4+ wounds are big guys. Each big guy in your army denies you the use of a veto. Therefore, if you have one big guy you may only make one veto, and if you have two or more you can't make any!

Set Up: Follow the set up instructions in the Warhammer Battle Book, except that units that have a charge move of 18" or greater may not deploy within their charge range of an enemy unit (i.e. you can't set up in such a way that will allow you to charge on the first turn of the battle). Of course, if an opponent is foolish enough to set up one of his units so that an already set-up unit can charge them, that's his own fault!

Special Deployment: Units with special deployment rules may use them in this scenario. In addition, they may use the special deployment rules to deploy so they can charge on the first turn. Remember that special deployment rules don't apply to characters other than champions.

Who Goes First: Each player will must secretly write down how many victory points they will bid in order to have the first turn. Players can bid from 0 to 1000 victory points, in multiples of 100 points (i.e. 0, 100, 200, etc.). After both players have recorded their bid, they are revealed. The player that bid the most gets the first turn, but must give the victory points he bid to his opponent. The player that made the lower bid does not give away any victory points. If both players bid the same amount, then each player rolls a D6. The player that scores highest get the first turn, but his opponent gets the victory points that were bid.

Turns: All battles will last for five turns, or until one army has been broken (see next). The game ends immediately as soon as an army is broken.

Breaking The Enemy: An army is broken when it has a third or less of its starting number of models left on the table the table at the end of any player turn. For example, if your army started with 60 models it would be Broken if there were 20 or less models left in play at the end of a player turn. Models with more than one wound, chariots, war engines, and characters riding mounts all count as a single model for this purpose.

Fleeing models are counted until they have fled the table, as are models that are flying high, or trapped by magic or stored in a Giants bag, etc. It is possible for two armies to break if casualties are suffered by both sides in the same player turn. In this case both sides break!

The Lucky Seven Card: When you arrive at the tournament you will be issued with a 'Lucky Seven' card. This may be used once in each battle to convert one of your own 2D6 rolls from whatever was rolled to a '7' instead. Note that the dice roll is changed before modification for other factors, and simply allows you to change an unlucky roll into an average one. It also only applies to 2D6 rolls (i.e. ones where you roll two six-sided dice and add the scores together). I recommend holding on to the card for the time that the army general rolls an 11 or 12 for a panic test...

Victory: If the game ended because one player was broken, then the opposing player wins. If both armies were reduced to half strength at exactly the same time, or if the game lasted the full five turns, then use victory points to determine the winner. Use the modified 'VP100' table included in Appendix 2 at the end of the rules rather than the one in the Warhammer rulebook. If one player beats his opponent by 500 vps or more then he is the winner, otherwise the game is a draw.

DECIDING THE WINNER OF THE TOURNAMENT

The winner of the Warhammer tournament will be the player that scores the most points in the categories described below. The points scored in each category will be added to together, and the player with the highest total will be the winner. In the case of a tie the winner will be the player who scored the most points in the game play category. If still tied the prize will be awarded to the player who has, in the opinion of the judges, the best army in terms of painting and army selection. In addition to the overall winner we will also give out a number consolation prizes, which will be announced at the awards ceremony.

Game Play (0-100 Points)

This year I've decided to simplify the procedure for working out the tournament points scored for games play. What's more, I'm expecting you (i.e. the players) to work out the points for each game and record them on your results card! The reason for the change was that the old system was complex, needed a database to convert vps to tournament points, encouraged players to crush their opponents into the dirt in order to get as many vps as possible, and meant a player couldn't concede a game that they are not enjoying. The new system will hopefully do away with all this, and works as follows:

� Win game = 12 points

� Drew game = 10 points

� Lose game = 6 points

� +1 per game your opponent has won or drawn so far in tournament (not including this one)

� +1 if you won the game by breaking the opposing army, or if the opposing army was within five models of being broken, or your opponent conceded.

� +1 for slaying the opposing army general

� +1 for capturing the opposing army standard

� +1 if you have units in the opponent's half of the table, and they have none in yours (fleeing units, characters and skirmishers don't count)

� -1 if no enemy unit has been reduced to half strength or less, or is fleeing or has fled the table, at the end of the game

� -1 if you conceded the battle

� -1 if you bid more Vps than your opponent to get the first turn

� -1 if your army includes three or more 'Big Guys', or three or more war machines (war machines includes chariots, pump wagons, steam tanks, doom wheels, etc.)

� -1 if, in the opinion of an umpire, you act in an manner likely to bring the honour of the hobby or the race of your army into disrepute, when playing a game on one of the top ten tables. This includes things like arguing about the rules or being rude to an opponent, and also doing things like fleeing as a charge reaction with Bretonnian knights, or hiding your Khornate Chaos Marauders behind a wood for the entire battle so your army can't be broken. Don't worry, you'll get at least one warning about such behaviour first, so you'll have a chance to mend your ways!

Example: Its the fourth round and you win by breaking the opposing army (killing their army general in the process), against an opponent with a 2/1 win loss record. You score 12 (win) +1 (broke enemy army) +1 (opposing general killed) +2 (opponent won two games so far) = 16 points.

Army Painting & Selection (0-60)

Your painting ability and overall composition of your army is rated by a group of judges. Each judge will rate your army on a scale of 1 to 5. The judges marks are then averaged and the result is used to generate your score. Clearly a player that brings along an army that is well-painted and is highly appropriate for the race it represents will pick up a lot of points in this category, while one that brings a badly painted beardy army will not!

Knowledge (0-15 Points)

At some point over the weekend you will be given a test paper and 15 minutes to complete it in. The paper will have 15 multiple choice questions, which must be answered before the time limit is up. It is OK to look up answers in any reference books you have brought with you, but we ask you not to confer with other players or 'swap' answers. Each correct answer is worth 1 point.

Sportsmanship (0-25 Points)

We've included this category to encourage players to take part in the tournament in the right spirit. Obviously we deplore rude or unsportsmanlike behaviour and we hope that the points that can be earned for being a sporting and friendly opponent will discourage players from even thinking of acting in this manner - after all you can pick up as many as 25 points in this category which could make all the difference to winning the tournament!

In each round you will be asked to answer a short questionnaire about the opponent you have just finished playing against and record the answers on your results card. By the end of the weekend you'll have recorded 5 sets of marks, one for each opponent, and 5 sets of marks will have been filled in about you. The answers to the questionnaires will be used to generate a sportsmanship score for each player of 0-20 points. To ensure fairness we'll be checking some of the marks ourselves by observing the players conduct in future rounds, especially for those questionnaires that say a player was either a saint or a complete git. If this observation shows up any discrepancies (i.e. the player is clearly not a saint or a git), then we'll be asking the person who filled in the questionnaire to justify their answers...

In addition, at the end of the 5th round you'll be asked to pick one opponent as the most sporting opponent by ticking a box on your result sheet. Each opponent that picks you as their most sporting opponent adds +1 to the score generated by the questionnaires. Your total score for sportsmanship can therefore be anywhere from 0 to 25.

APPENDIX 1: ARMY PAINTING & SELECTION

Many players ask how we work out the scores for army painting and selection, so I've included this appendix to describe what our judges are looking for.

All armies in the Warhammer tournament must be painted (and no, just being under-coated doesn't count!). Your painting ability and overall composition of your army is rated by a group of judges. The judges will ask to look at your army list, so make sure you have a copy available when they come round. Each judge will rate your army on a scale of 1 to 5. The judges marks are then averaged and the result is used to generate your score. Clearly a player that brings along an army that is well-painted and is highly appropriate for the race it represents will pick up a lot of points in this category, while one that brings a badly painted and unrepresentative army will not!

Painting Citadel Miniatures is a skill that takes months or years to learn. However there are a number of things which can make an army look great even if you're not the best figure-painter in the world. � The most common and easily rectified mistake is poor basing. Try to make sure that all of the models in your army are based the same way. In particular, avoid using 2 or 3 different basing techniques for models belonging to the same regiment, it will just make it look messy. � Spend some time the week before the tournament touching up any chipped paintwork and fixing any broken models or standards etc., especially if your army is old or has seen a lot of action.

� In Warhammer regiments with standard bearers look better than those without, so you should always try to include one, and you should try to include a leader or champion and a musician as well if you can. In 40K its worth adding back banners and such like when they are appropriate. � Try to avoid taking too many elite or specialised troops, as they will make your army appear to be 'worked' to win games. If you are going to take a highly elite/specialised army, try to justify its existence in your army list, either with a piece of background text or (even better) a short piece of narrative fiction.

� It's worth spending extra time on your army general and achieving the best paint job that you can for the model. Also, avoid the temptation of sticking a character models on top of a monster that is inappropriate for the army (i.e. an Empire character on a Chimera). Certain monster mounts suit certain types of army, and you should stick with these monsters where possible.

� Don't go overboard on war engines or similar specialised troop types unless they form part of a characterful and appropriate theme for your army. � The judge will also take a look at your army list, so spend some time making sure it is neat and legible. It's well worth naming the characters and regiments in the army, and even including short pieces of background text or history, or even pictures, as these will add a lot to the armies character, and this will generate you extra points.

� Try to pick magic items and war gear that are appropriate for your army, or failing this, aren't the ones that everybody seems to take - I'm sure you know what I mean. When the judge looks are your army list he will check up on your selection of equipment, and while taking things like the Black Gem of Gnar, Executioners Axe, Vortex Grenade, etc., won't lose you points, taking an interesting and appropriate selection of magic items or war gear will earn you extra points.

APPENDIX TWO: WARHAMMER TOURNAMENT 'VP100' SYSTEM

The following Victory Chart replaces the one shown on page 40 of the Warhammer Battle Book.

Each enemy unit either destroyed, fleeing or having fled the table. Victory points = points value E.g., if the unit originally cost 325 points, it is worth 325 victory points.

Each full table quarter wholly occupied by your own side. 100 victory points

Enemy general slain, fleeing, or having fled the table. 100 victory points, in addition to any points already earned for the general as a destroyed, fleeing or fled unit.

Each unit standard captured and held at the end of the battle. 100 victory points

Army battle standard captured and held at end of battle. 200 victory points

For each card vetoed by opponent. 100 + (cost of item) victory points

Opponents bid to get to move first or second. 0-1,000 victory points in multiples of 100 (i.e. 100 points, 200 points, 300 etc.)

APPENDIX THREE: SPORTSMANSHIP AND RULES QUESTIONS

The primary purpose of our tournaments is to get players together for the weekend, so that they can play their favourite game and meet other players who share their interests; in other words, to use a horrible 90's buzz-word we see the Tournament as an ideal net-working opportunity for Warhammer players. Finding 'champion players' of our games is a by-product of this, and we're really much more interested in creating a quality gaming experience for all the people that take part, where they get to play lots of games and meet a whole bunch of new players.

We've included the sportsmanship category to encourage players to take part in the tournament in this spirit. Fortunately 99.9% of Warhammer players are as charming and friendly an opponent as one could hope to meet, thank goodness! To monitor the 0.01% that think becoming a champion Warhammer player is more important than anything else, there will be umpires wandering about, and anyone spotted acting in what could even be considered to be an unsportsmanlike way will first be politely asked to act in a more sporting manner, and if this doesn't work will receive summery and (hopefully) deeply embarrassing justice on the spot! This being said we do understand that sometimes even the friendliest of players can lose their cool, especially if the dice have been going against them all day. The most common cause of friction in a game are questions about the rules of the game. Rules questions arise in most games of Warhammer, both because the huge number of variables involved in the game make it just about impossible for the rulebook to cover every situation that might occur, and because different people interpret the rules in different ways. In order to avoid arguments we recommend that you refer to the appropriate rulebook as soon as a question arises. If the rules do not cover the situation, then roll a dice to decide what happens. In other words, any question that cannot be answered by referring to the rules should be decided by a friendly dice roll. Please note that there is absolutely nothing wrong with asking an opponent if they can show you the appropriate rule or set of characteristics so that you can check for yourself that everything is being done correctly. All we require is that you ask nicely and politely, and that you do your best to sort out any problems yourselves!

If you really want an umpire to sort out a rules question, then you are free to call one over, and our umpires may intervene if they see an argument brewing (see the note on sportsmanship above). Be warned, however, that our umpires are under strict instructions to ask players to roll a D6 to sort out any rules problems unless there is a clear answer to the question in one of the rule books available at the table. You should also note that the prime duty of our umpires is to make sure that the majority of players in the tournament get a nice friendly game where winning is secondary to having a good time, and that anyone who keeps on spoiling a game with picky rules questions or that consistently bends the rules in his favour will be asked to desist or suffer the consequences.

The Warm Up Period

We've included the 'warm-up' period this year to help players get off to a good start, and to help avoid the situations that can lead to rules disputes and bad feeling. Basically the warm up period offers an opportunity for both players to have a chat about their armies and the way they play the game. As most rules problems occur because players interpret the same rule in a slightly different manner we hope that this period will allow you to settle any rules questions before they occur.

The biggest problem that some players have with the warm up is that they can't keep anything 'secret', because their opponent gets to look at their army list and magic item cards. This is quite intentional on our part; we want the tournament to be primarily a test of tactical skill, rather than one where the ability to 'trick' an opponent with a sneaky combination of troops wins the day. Such tactics have their place of course, but are best left for club and campaign games against regular opponents (who will get a chance for revenge!) rather than being used for tournament games. So, look on the warm-up period as an opportunity to get to know your opponent and his army, and to go over anything that may stop the game being quite as enjoyable as it could be.