While I like the whole WHFB package, I (like I guess most people) have a favourite aspect. For me it is the Magic Phase.
So why is this?
Well I like the fact that it is multi-layered and that it contains uncertainty. To be successful in the Magic Phase requires both resource management and risk management. You also need the ability to bluff and to read people.
For me the Magic phase begins at the start of the game when you find out what is someone’s list. You see where they have invested points and where they haven’t, if they are offense-focused or whether they are possibly risk-averse. Generally I find that by reading a list, followed up by a quick conversation that I can coalesce a plan on where I should attack somebody and where I think their threat will come from. And remember people have favourite units and models and sometimes develop a blind spot in respect to them.
Based on the above, I then select my spells. I’ve always had disdain for people who have Loremaster. To me it betrays a lack of confidence in their ability to select the right spells coupled with a propensity to blame failure on bad luck….”Of I didn’t get Purple Sun, so I couldn’t win”. Show me a Loremaster and immediately I see weakness. Selecting your spells is key aspect of your gameplan but if you don’t get the ones you want it shouldn’t torpedo your chance to win. Your plan….if it is a good one…..should be adaptable. If it really is just six-dice 13th or Purple Sun, well you probably need a new plan.
When I select spells, I like multiple channels of attack – be it Direct Damage, Augment or Hex – as this gives me the opportunity to bluff and play mind games.
The fun really starts when you get to the Magic Phase and have to manage your resources while assessing then re-assessing impact. So many times you see an 11PD Magic Phase go to waste due to a lack of focus be it lack of a plan or indecision (I do it far more than I’d like and it is the most frustrating thing when it happens).
Generally in your Magic phase you should expect to get one spell off and attempt to engineer a second success. In defence, you need to accept that they will get one spell and try to ensure they don’t have additional success. Once this is done the games to ensure the spell that you get off and the spell you let through are the ones you want. I’ll let you determine how you do that but to me it is one of the key skills in the game and a major part of the attraction.
One way to improve the defensive part of your game is to play without a Dispel Scroll in practice games – effectively 25 points down (leaving Arcane slot empty). It sharpens your decision-making. When you then put the scroll back in, it fulfils its true purpose – last line of defence – rather than how it is commonly used (and generally wasted).
The real beauty of the phase is that through judicious use of dice and the order you cast you can achieve some great combinations. And there is nothing better than the look of horror on your opponent’s face when they suddenly realise what you’ve done. Priceless!
So for me this is the most enjoyable phase of the game….and probably the reason I hate Dwarfs so much. Their defence has no subtlety but works with as much guile as a killswitch. I realise though that they are miserable bastards and them killing my fun is the nearest they will ever get to a victory.
