Kings of War Grand Tournaments are a whole lot of damn fun. Actually, they’re a whole lot of damn everything, which means honestly, they can be a little overwhelming on your first couple times. This isn’t meant to dissuade you though, like I said they’re a whole lot of fun, instead, the goal is to better prepare you. I wanted to focus on some handy supplies/accessories/accoutrements that will make your life at the table far easier during a two day larger event.
But how are Grand Tournaments (GT’s) different? The first thing to understand is the scale of GT. Oftentimes in excess of 40-50 players, that is a whole lot of tables, terrain, pairings, armies and just people in a hall. Space very quickly becomes limited, your next table is suddenly much further away then you imagined and the cozy confines of your local game store event seem a distant memory. The second is timing, and for a tournament organizer (T.O.) to keep this thing running on time, there is often very little time between rounds for you to gather up your stuff, reorganize everything and make your way to the next game. Finally the standard of play can be higher (and the mechanics of play tighter). This isn’t a bad thing, and the KOW community is absolutely great at being able to play tough, clean, fun and relaxed games, but you’ll want to have the right tools to play at that level. Because of these factors, and my own lack of preparedness, I found myself constantly behind, flustered and up against the clock during my first couple GT experiences, and I’m here to help you avoid that.
Useful things to bring…
Dice
Okay, you already knew that, but let me help out with a tip speedy tip and some etiquette advice. Pre count your dice! During a leisurely game at a store or club, feel free to dump out your entire purple ‘Crown Royal’ bag of random d6’s and count out the 18 mismatched dice you need, but you’ll save yourself a ton of time over a 5-6 game tourney having a predictable number of dice, clearly laid out, you can just grab and go. Make different color coded piles, have a set number you subtract from etc… Just find what works for you. The less time you spend counting dice the more time you have to spend on the rewarding parts of the weekend.
Also, for the love of all things holy, if you have a special symbol replacing pips or a number, be consistent with it. Your symbol should replace 1’s or 6’s, you should never mix. Don’t be that person.
Blank Bases
Kings of War is a game of precise and tactical movement units across the battlefield. Games are won and lost in the movement phase so take a little time to make sure you’re doing it right. Here is where I advocate for bringing extra blank bases for your units to help plan, explain and get alignment with your opponent on tricky moves. I first started doing this with flying monsters, and it was such a breeze I now bring a duplicate empty base for every unit in my army just in case. It helps immensely for determining legal charges, nimble movement and especially if a unit can fit into combat. You just leave the original unit in place, and do your maneuvering with the blank base placing it into the final location. When you’re sure about the move, either mark the location and replace it with the real unit, or just pile that real unit on top of it and you’re good to go. They pack up easy to since they’re flat. You’ll thank me as you try and execute that high risk triple charge. To make these even more useful, attach a small handle to the exact center, makes placing and pivoting smooth like butter.
Laser Line
If I’m being completely honest I used to laugh at people with lasers at miniature games. Keep in mind, this was a few years back and was in the 40k scene. The people with laser pointers also tended to be the folks who made sounds for their plasma weapons, argued ad nauseam about how you’re using the wrong power armor and would clearly argue a rule they knew was wrong because they’d found one person on the internet who agreed with the interpretation that benefitted them at this moment.
Times have changed, the game has changed, and in KOW a laser line tool is absolutely a god send for better, cleaner, faster play. Have any kind of contention about what is flank and what is front? Throw your skinny charge arc down (more on that later), line up the laser line. Usually the answer is clear as can be and you’re ready to move on. Also, they’re great to mark safe areas to land flyers, determine shooting cover/line of sight, and projecting shapes on the ceiling as your opponent just cannot decide where to place his last individual for maximum charge blockings.
Skinny Charge/Corner Arc
I attended my first Kings of War GT at Adepticon a couple years back. In the dealer hall I bought a corner arc and it was magnificent. Bright orange semitransparent acrylic, it was enormous and I felt so prepared because now I could correctly trace the 45 degree line from the corner of a unit. Never again would there be ambiguity around front or flank. Couple turns into my first game and I realized it really didn’t fit into the spaces it needed too at least 75% of the time. It was pretty much useless. At Alamo I was handed a tiny little corner arc by Robby King and it changed my life. Only about an inch long, and with a tiny footprint, this little guy does the job so much better. Tricky situation, throw this little sucker down and things become clear. I’ve almost never found a time where it won’t fit. There are a number of variations, but what you’re looking for is the smaller and simpler the better.
Pens
You’ll have round scoring slips to fill out, sportsmanship votes, player’s choice paint voting, obscure beers to write down (something with pecan?) and all sorts of end of game attrition math to do. Bring pens. Hell, bring a bunch of them. Be the guy that when someone asks “Can I borrow a pen” your answer is always a robust “Hell Yeah” instead of a feeble little “let me check.”
Tray / Battle Chariot
One of the biggest differences for me between a local store one day event or casual game at the club vs. a Grand Tournament was moving from battle to battle. I’d always sort of make do with whatever I’d brought the army in. This meant essentially packing everything back up for travel, unit by unit, fitting it all into its carrying case and moving it to the next table, which is slow as damn molasses. This was tenable at a small game store where there was like a 30% chance I was staying on the same table, but when I was moving across the whole hall, it was damn suicide. What I needed, what you need, is tray for in tournament army transportation. Big enough to fit your army quickly and easily, small enough to fit through a door since tilting it is generally not a good option. Baking sheets, wall mountable cork boards, MDF etc… all make great trays for moving around a tourney. Many folks use their display board for this function, and that is a very sexy option.
Couple tips to take it to the next level. Give your tray or display board legs so it can more easily be placed on a table full of terrain. Bonus if they’re folding legs. This idea shamelessly stolen from Mike Adkins. Really want to kick your Grand Tournament transport up a notch? Try the Dustin Howard ‘Battle Chariot’ and bring an entire rolling multi shelf cart. Top shelf goes to the army, lower shelves hold dice, books, army lists etc… You’ll never be scrounging for extra chairs or table space to hold your stuff again. Not great for tight confines, but then, neither is Dustin.
Extra Army Lists
Much like pens, the more the better. Bring one for yourself, one for each opponent, one for the T.O. and another just in case.
So that wraps up my quick list of useful items to bring to a GT. Have any favorite tricks or tips? Handy tools? Advice for newcomers? Drop it in the comments and let the world know.
