Since I first posted this article the format for Arc40k 2023 missions has been revealed… and well this article got really out of touch and most of the advice wasn’t on song to help anyone prepare for our 25 year anniversary event. Thankfully I’ve managed to get some help from Gaming Coordinator Ben to make this updated version help you all get ArcReady!
@HobbyCrusaider
At an Arc40k weekend you won’t play the latest centrally designed and approved missions, that’s just not the Arc40k way!
This event has a rich tradition of missions being outside the box, quirky and embracing the most enjoyable aspects of the hobby and lore within Warhammer 40,000.
Across the years Arc40k has created a legacy of challenging missions, many achieving legendary status among participants as they have created unique and exciting gaming memories.
So, just how do you prepare for the great unknown and the fun challenging twists that come with playing Arc40k missions?
The secret is…... not so secret.
Thanks to some tweaks and updates from the Arc40k team these articles will provide you with updated versions of the 2022 missions.
Will practice make perfect?
Far from it as missions are announced only moments before each round starts, with all special rules read aloud to the competitors - you will need to then carefully read the missions and ask any questions that may arise.
Arc40k missions strive to make you think and play every game in a unique way, not relying on one playstyle or meta trick to win games, but utilising a strategic brain or in most cases, following the rule of cool and saying what the…, move your toys and hope the dice gods are in your favour.
So a great way to prepare for Arc40k is to play some of the missions in this series of articles.
And you might even be able to fine tune the composition of your army list to help achieve most of the objectives.
Debrief - Mission #1 - Pillars of Power
So Primary Objective 1 you score points if your Pillars survive. You don’t have to hold them. But the aim of this mission is to keep your pillars intact so you can earn 3-9 Vps per turn after the second turn.
Then you must also try to destroy all of your opponents pillars to maximise both Primary Objectives. That’s because you can score 15 Vps from Destroy them all. Depending on how many you’ve destroyed there are end game bonus points for initiating and achieving the Kaboom! Act5ion to destroy your opponent’s Pillars.
So what's the key to wining? Protect all your Pillars and destroy all of your opponent's! Simple right...
So the most important tactic you need to fulfil is to attempt to be the first to fight, contest and then destroy one of your opponent's objectives. It's destruction will immediately block them from earning 3 VPs per turn.
If you are able to then destroy a second or if luck is on your side a third - then you're well on your way to victory as you'll deny them 9 Vps per turn and stop them from achieving the maximum 38 Vps available for achieving the Protect the Pillars Primary Objectives.
Each of your Opponent's Pillars that you can destroy will give you 5 VPS adding up to a maximum of 15 VPs for the Destroy Them Primary Objective - and you score that at the end of the game. So even last ditched efforts to recover lost ground can be fruitful.
The Three Secondary Objectives you choose should be icing on the cake.
If you are confident then you'll just choose Behind Enemy Lines (as forces should be surging across the board and trying to contest and destroy those pillars in your opponent's deployment zone). And if you're pushing forward then Engage on All Fronts is probably the easiest other Secondary as it will be all about being in your opponents face and trying to destroy those pillars.
But, there may also be faction specific secondary objectives that will be easier to start earning Vps from turn two... so choosing those or any secondary that will better suit your army is up to you to decide.
This will be the sorts of thing you can test as you practice by playing the missions and the secondary objectives that you are best able to achieve with your army.
So getting across the table quickly and decisively so you can start destroying pillars, all the while protecting your deployment zone and your pillars from counter strikes is all you need to do!
If you'd like to read more about my thoughts on the fun experience of playing Arc40k missions over the years has been for me then there's a whole article talking about that: https://www.arc40k.com/post/challenging-fun
Download a printable copy of the updated mission here:
