Leadership

I read a lot of the forums and blogs related to Warhammer. One thing that has really surprised me since the advent of 8th Edition is how divergent my views on Leadership are from what appears to be the mainstream opinion.

For instance, there have been a number of threads/blogs critiquing the Warriors of Chaos army. In these it has been put forward that spending points on a Chaos Lord is a waste and even (warhammer.org.uk) that buying a BSB is frivolous.

I couldn't disagree more.

Why?

8th Edition has seen a number of important changes.

1. The advent of Steadfast

2. Introduction of more Leadership-based tests e.g. Combat Reform, Swift Reform, March, Frenzy etc

3. BSB-generated rerolls on all Leadership-based tests

Whereas in the past you might make 3-4 tests per game per unit if you were lucky, now it can be upwards of 10. I would think that you would want to take every opportunity to maximise the chances of passing as many of these tests as possible. The inclusion of increased Leadership (Ld 9 v. Ld 8) and rerolls (BSB) is vital in this.

While there are more tests, the passing of individual tests can be critical to your plan. The ability to march, ignore Frenzy or to reform have the potential to influence the game by pressuring your opponent and ensuring he has to make unpalatable choices.

Of course it's easy to ignore these factors, not take the higher Ld or the BSB and then bitch and moan how the game is now far more random. Myself? I prefer to maximise my chances of managing risk in this Brave New World!