An Alternative Points System For 'Hordes Of The Things'
By Jeff Bolton
Jeff Bolton writes:
Well, I just put the finishing touches to 40 25mm Orcs. (OK, I get to the facings of the shields as soon as my hands stop being numb. Happy now?) And, I started to fantasize about a "real" AP system for Hordes of the Things.
So, I whipped out the old Excel spreadsheet and started to crunch some numbers. Basically, I added up what are - to me - the most important factors in determining the worth of a HOTTs element. Those are:
Regular Move divided by 100. See, I took the regular movement rate and divided it by 100.....
Range divided by 100. See previous explanation.
Best Combat Factor. This required *real* concentration. Especially trying to pick the best from a single offering, like that for riders or warbands.
Support. Basically, Yes (1) or No (0). It turns out only Spears the only Yes....
Quick Kills By. This is an expression of the element's ability to run rough-shod over the opposition (or make them flee the battlefield in a pique). As a sop to orcs everywhere, I used the values 1, 2, and many (or 3). IOW, if the element could quick kill three or more elements, I gave it a value of 3. I didn't want to strain my PC's RAM.
Quick Kills Against. This is an expression of the element's ability to be a speed-bump. Same numbering system as previous, expressed as a negative number. At about this point, my PC began to spark....
Combat Special Cases. If there were special combat cases for the element, I gave it a +1. Otherwise, 0.
Movement Special Cases. This was an expression of special movement cases that apply to the element - mostly interpenetration.
So, I hit the GO button on my Sparky 4000 PC and got the (insert trumpet fanfare) HOTTs Modified Army Point System. As follows:
Element Type HOTTs New AP Hordes 1 4 Lurkers 1 5 Blades 2 6 Spears 2 6 Warbands 2 6 Clerics 3 7 Sneakers 3 8 Knights 2 8 Beasts 2 8 Behemoth 4 9 Riders 2 9 Airboat 3 10 Shooters 2 10 Hero (Non-Air) 4 10 Paladin 4 13 Artillery 3 13 Flyers 2 15 Magician 4 16 God 4 18 Hero (Air) 6 18 Dragon 4 19
So what does it all mean? Not a thing. Generally, I like the values that I got after a little bit of number-crunching. I think that this point system gives greater definition. To use this instead of the old HOTTs system, simply assign 100-120 AP to each side (or whatever level really turns you on). Generals are free.
I think I might try this with DBA next.......
Stop me before I spark again!