AgentP Posted February 23, 2015 Report Share Posted February 23, 2015 I attended my first LVO this year, and thought I’d share some observations. First, TO’s can learn a lot about organization just from attending and observing. The Frontline Gaming crew are masters of logistics and event planning. Everything was top notch, and each table was beautiful. The event ran smooth for such a large endeavor, and my hats are off to everyone involved. I played in the 40k Championship and found it a great experience. I’m not a very competitive player myself, having switched to 40k from Fantasy only about eight months ago. But the event offered learning experiences at every turn. Here are a few of the takeaways I had. I'm sure everyone else already knew all this stuff, but it was a learning experience for me: 1. Objective Secured: That little rule is really important. I myself foolishly brought no objective secured troops, opting for two alternative formations. I’d be curious to see if what percentage of top lists had zero objective secured troops. I spoke with several top players and most, if not all, acknowledged that objective secured is more important than average players (like myself) sometimes give it credit for. 2. Knowledge is Power: No surprise here, but not knowing an opposing unit puts you at a disadvantage. I learned that I really need to read more codexes with a closer eye. 3. Knowledge is Power pt2: Along those same lines, I think the Tyranid winner exemplifies the proposition that thinking outside the box is a huge advantage. You will always have a better chance if your opponent is facing a list for the first time, not the tenth. I find this exceptionally encouraging. The Internet has been a boon and a hindrance to the gaming community. It has fostered connectedness amongst gamer groups, but has homogenized the games themselves through the proliferation of Net Lists. But be it in gaming, or any human endeavor, following the pack rarely puts one in front of the pack. Innovation is always a strength. 4. Full phase play: I learned that's it's critical to play in all phases of the game. Despite rumors of its demise, assault is not dead. I took a close combat Hive Tyrant and did not regret it. He normally earned his points. Whatever my next army is, it will include an assault unit. 5. First Blood. My close combat Tyrant was designed to get first blood, then he could die if need be. In the games I got first blood, the game went well for me and was very close. In the games I lost first blood, it was always an uphill slog. I think first blood is incredibly important for tempo, player morale, and of course the +1 point that you get, and deny to your opponent. 6. Knights: Knights are all the rage - you saw them everywhere. But I wonder if you’ll see them as much next year. I’m not a good player, let’s be clear. But my best games were the ones against lists with knights. And in conversing with folks in the bottom half of the tournament like myself, that sounded like a well-shared experience. Which has to make me wonder if knights are more of a liability than a bonus. 7. Fashion: I found it funny how wargame painting follows fashion-type trends. Remember a few years back when power armor was covered in gothic writing? Nope, didn’t see that – that’s out. What I did see what a huge enthrallment with airbursh glow effects. I’ll be curious what next year brings, but I guarantee it will be something different. 8. Good people: I didn’t have a bad opponent. Nor did I hear of anyone having a bad opponent. Big tournaments sometimes scare people off because there is a perception that such events bring out the jerks. The LVO didn't comply with that. Everyone was very nice, and it was one of the more enjoyable events I’ve attended. Anyway, it was a great time, and I will definitely be back next year. 8 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pretre Posted February 23, 2015 Report Share Posted February 23, 2015 Great recap! Glad you had a good time. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dalmer Posted February 23, 2015 Report Share Posted February 23, 2015 Thank you very much for the observations, it's appreciated. I haven't competed in a tournament since the early 2000s (were they called GTs back then?) and reading your post made me want to start looking into them for the journey/experience. Stay safe, don 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fluger Posted February 23, 2015 Report Share Posted February 23, 2015 8. Good people: I didn’t have a bad opponent. Nor did I hear of anyone having a bad opponent. Big tournaments sometimes scare people off because there is a perception that such events bring out the jerks. The LVO didn't comply with that. Everyone was very nice, and it was one of the more enjoyable events I’ve attended. I think this is a big thing. Most people at the tournament aren't in the running for the big prizes, most are just there to get games in. 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Hanaur Posted February 23, 2015 Report Share Posted February 23, 2015 I attended my first LVO this year, and thought I’d share some observations. 3. Knowledge is Power pt2: Along those same lines, I think the Tyranid winner exemplifies the proposition that thinking outside the box is a huge advantage. You will always have a better chance if your opponent is facing a list for the first time, not the tenth. I find this exceptionally encouraging. The Internet has been a boon and a hindrance to the gaming community. It has fostered connectedness amongst gamer groups, but has homogenized the games themselves through the proliferation of Net Lists. But be it in gaming, or any human endeavor, following the pack rarely puts one in front of the pack. Innovation is always a strength. 4. Full phase play: I learned that's it's critical to play in all phases of the game. Despite rumors of its demise, assault is not dead. I took a close combat Hive Tyrant and did not regret it. He normally earned his points. Whatever my next army is, it will include an assault unit. 5. First Blood. My close combat Tyrant was designed to get first blood, then he could die if need be. In the games I got first blood, the game went well for me and was very close. In the games I lost first blood, it was always an uphill slog. I think first blood is incredibly important for tempo, player morale, and of course the +1 point that you get, and deny to your opponent. 8. Good people: I didn’t have a bad opponent. Nor did I hear of anyone having a bad opponent. Big tournaments sometimes scare people off because there is a perception that such events bring out the jerks. The LVO didn't comply with that. Everyone was very nice, and it was one of the more enjoyable events I’ve attended. Three cheers for innovation! Assault is so definitely not dead. I really have come to embrace a phase of the game that I really had no interest in, having come from a Tau empire background for so long. But Assault is now the answer to a great many things in 6th and 7th Edition. First Blood is important, though I do go second on purpose as often as possible and have become somewhat immune to the sting of losing that point. It's valid though, because in a really fun game, it can come down to one point a lot! I was especially glad to here this last point you made. I myself have had literally zero interest in going to events over 100 players just because I fear this very thing. I went to the Seattle GT a couple times and it was... um... Now you have to go into a 256 player tournament KNOWING only one is coming out alive. So you can't go there purely for the title. You HAVE to go there for the fun and I have just always feared that the games wouldn't just be competitive (which I enjoy) but might actually just end up not being any fun. And that would really make me question why I spent THAT much money for an experience I could pay a 10th of the price for. I mean come on. We gave away $1280 in prizes at my last tournament on Saturday, and only 22 players absorbed those prizes. That's freaking awesome. So for me to want to go to the LVO, I'd need to hear more comments like this one. Going to prove soemthing isn't my thing, but going to play endless Warhammer and hanging out like a vacation, now that I'd be down for. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AgentP Posted February 23, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 23, 2015 Going to prove soemthing isn't my thing, but going to play endless Warhammer and hanging out like a vacation, now that I'd be down for. It was a lot of warhammer, followed by a lot of dining and drinking. Unfortunately this year my wife could not go, but she might be able to come next year. And in any event, I think some more Ordo people will be attending. The evenings were very social, with a lot of players and spouses hitting Vegas. I should also mention that there was a full bar in the game room, and at least half of all games were played over drinks, which is just a great thing. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CaptainA Posted February 23, 2015 Report Share Posted February 23, 2015 It was great to see you there Bronson! Glad you had a good time. I did and am certainly pooped. I'd echo about your observations.I struggled against list with tons of obsec unit.s 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pretre Posted February 23, 2015 Report Share Posted February 23, 2015 Nothing against you, Aaron, in fact the opposite, but I still am amazed that Cent-Star did as well as it did. That is a testament to you as a player. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Threejacks Posted February 23, 2015 Report Share Posted February 23, 2015 Great write up!,thnx! And yeah,I agree that ObjSec is a very important aspect of the game now,so much so that my recent lists have been trying to spam it.Last I checked my Annihilation list will sport 10 objective secure units...yeah probably overboard on that,lol. Its also nice to see such a great mix of armies in the top 10 lists.I see this as a testament to how much improved 7th edition is over 6th along with GW taking steps to balance the game with recent codex releases and rule updates.Along with that, the BAO Scenarios are spot on for balanced play and I really have no desire to play the brb scenarios ever again having sampled them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Hanaur Posted February 24, 2015 Report Share Posted February 24, 2015 It was a lot of warhammer, followed by a lot of dining and drinking. Unfortunately this year my wife could not go, but she might be able to come next year. And in any event, I think some more Ordo people will be attending. The evenings were very social, with a lot of players and spouses hitting Vegas. I should also mention that there was a full bar in the game room, and at least half of all games were played over drinks, which is just a great thing. I don't drink sadly, but I could enjoy an ice cold Diet Dr. Pepper or Diet Pepsi! I would like to get to know people on a more social level. Forums are terribad for getting to know people despite the obvious opportunity. I think I could get my wife to buy off on it if she got to go and kick it with her buddies. Maybe we need to get one of her single friends to go with her and they can hang out while I annihilate stuff. Neither one of US gambles, so they would have fun touring the different shows and eating out and stuff. We had a GREAT time going to shows in Vegas last time. We saw a LOT of them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AgentP Posted February 24, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2015 My wife and I love Vegas. While we gamble, it's very little, less than $100 a trip usually. But we love to eat out, and we love shows, and Vegas has amazing restaurants and fantastic entertainment. It also has great pools. I do wish LVO were more towards the summer, because the pool at Caesar's can entertain a person for an entire day. In any case, yes you should definitely consider coming next year. I hope a lot more from this area attend. 3 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DisruptiveConduct Posted February 24, 2015 Report Share Posted February 24, 2015 WARNING: The entertainment at Caesar's pool is NOT wife-approved! 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fluger Posted February 24, 2015 Report Share Posted February 24, 2015 Depends on the wife... 4 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Lord Hanaur Posted February 24, 2015 Report Share Posted February 24, 2015 Does the wife have pink hair or not. Ask yourself that question. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
AgentP Posted February 24, 2015 Author Report Share Posted February 24, 2015 WARNING: The entertainment at Caesar's pool is NOT wife-approved! That's a separate pool. No, that's no wife approved. But the regular pool is awesome. Lounge chair, book, Big Gulp sized rum drink....ahhhh Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
pretre Posted February 24, 2015 Report Share Posted February 24, 2015 Dammit. Now I have to go google. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PourSpelur Posted February 24, 2015 Report Share Posted February 24, 2015 Safe Search off... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PumpkinHead Posted February 24, 2015 Report Share Posted February 24, 2015 Just the Venus pool... there are like 8 other pools to choose from. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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