CKO's Notes Progression!

CKO’s Notes Becoming Competitive

Before I start I would like to state my goal, which is to create a collection of miniature tacticas that will make the average player become above average and perhaps a great player. Each tactica is based off of things I have learned while playing or watching games, reading online sources, and listening to other players. I will call my collection of tacticas CKO’s Notes, and hopefully they will be useful to you!

Progression!

How do we define progress as a 40k player? Most believe that progress is made when you win, but the goal of this tactica/article is to show how players can progress even when they lose. This article/tactica will help you recognize your progression as a player despite your record.

The first major sign that a player has made progress is when he learns the rules of the game. Learning the rules is vital and if you don’t know the rules you will always be a beginner. I once won a game due to a rule that rarely comes into play. I made a cover save on Mephiston who had one wound left when he was out in the open why did I get the cover save, the infantry models were firing out of area terrain. By simply learning the rules you will become better then beginners.

The next step towards becoming a good player is to know your codex. Learning the rules and stats of each unit is pivotal towards your success. Knowing what you need to roll to hit without referring to the rulebook or moving 3 free inches followed by 6 inches to get in range of shooting something with your marines after you rally automatically is some examples of understanding your codex.

This is a good time to stop and mention wins and losses. You know the rules and your codex but that doesn’t necessarily means more wins. It takes time to become a great player, you may be losing the majority of your games but you should be learning from your mistakes. As long as you stay positive, study, recognize and acknowledge your progression you will eventually start winning more games than you lose.

The next action you need to take is to study your opponent’s codex. If you know the capabilities of your opponent’s units you will never be caught off guard. I was shocked when an Eldar player used guide, doom, and bladestorm on my terminators decimating all of them. There might be something that you can use to your advantage by studying the opponents codex. An example of this is that most psychic hoods are ld 10 while Grey Knights have ld 9 making it easier to stop their psychic abilities. Understanding the strengths and weaknesses of each codex gives you the best chance to win.

Once you know the rules and codexes you should be an above average player. If you wish to join the elite class the last thing you need to do is master your list. List creation and mastery is the only thing you have to worry about at this level. You should know what you need in your list in order to win. The only thing you are lacking is experience and you can gain that by playing games. In order to master a list you have to continuously play with it until you can execute your strategy to perfection.

Tony Kopach and Ben Mohile know their list inside and out and because of that they are very successful at tournaments. They are considered some of the best players in the world because they consistently win big tournaments. What is intriguing about their wins is that they usually use the same list with small changes. This is Ben Mohile’s 1st place winning list from last years Wargames con event and this is the list from this year’s event where he came in 3rd place in. Notice the small changes he made but the core remained the same. Knowing the rules, knowing your codex, knowing your opponent's codex, and knowing your list in that order will make you a better player because knowing is half the battle.

Consider this stolen. It will be up on 19th Legion this weekend.

I think one of the most important if not the most important thing is to remember to have fun! When all you care about is winning no matter the cost you have lost sight of what a game is all about. There are guys like the one from little wars where everyone walked away calling the guy a d-bag because his attitude towards the game and then there are guys like Ben Mohlie who are great players know the rules but aren't D-bags that still enjoy playing. At the end of the day the difference between a good player and a great player is attitude and enjoyment of the game. That's just my two cents

HereticWolf wrote:At the end of the day the difference between a good player and a great player is attitude and enjoyment of the game. That's just my two cents

I agree with you 100% enjoying the game is very important, and that is why I wrote the article. If you can recognize your own progress in the game despite winning or losing you will be able to enjoy every game you play. When you view losing as an opportunity to get better you are a great player, and like you said inorder to think like that you have to have a good attitude.

My take on the game is to try out different units and see how they go. With Necrons for instance, I'll run immortals one game and flayed ones the next. Change between monoliths and tomb spyders, scarab swarms and wraiths. There are lots of choices I can take each game. Granted, I lose all my games, but it doesn't get boring for me because I change it up every time I play.

There is a discussion on dakka that relates with the tactica I wrote, the discussion is about knowing the enemies codex and the writer list things you should know.

http://www.dakkadakka.com/dakkaforum/posts/list/400650.page