FOB NZ Open - Rolling in Cash

So now a week on from the Fields of Blood NZ Open I have paid all my bills and am now rolling in the surplus cash.

Of sixty dollars.

The cost of running a large scale event for an individual is not insignificant. I was very lucky that I could call on the tabletops of the Warlords and terrain of mates (Hagen & Aaron) to alleviate some of the cost.

When it was created the FOB NZ Open was going to be an 80 person event in a licensed venue. The ticket sales allowed this to stretch to 90 people.

What does this mean? Forty-five tables each with tabletop and terrain. I'm lucky in that I have a good relationship with my club, the Warlords, and we help each other out. I run 5 one-day events for them providing all the terrain as well as supplying the terrain for Call to Arms. They let me use their tabletops a couple of time a year.

I have managed to build up 23 tables of terrain - all in tubs and each with a neoprene  mat. However this is now pushing my storage capacity. Hagen has ten tables worth which now lets us run up to a 66 person event without calling on others. However for a 90 person event that means we still need to rely on the generosity of others to provide the remaining dozen tables of terrain.

Now the asset base has been built going forward means we need to factor in replenishment and repair (stuff does get damaged).

As I said, I was able to sell an additional ten tickets and the money for this was earmarked to allow the Down Under Network to attend and stream the event. Covid-19 killed that so the money was leveraged into $1000 of prizes with our local sponsor, Kapiti Hobbies. Given the investment in trophies for performance, it was felt that spot prizes were the way to go. This meant that of the 90 ticketholders, 19 walked away with a $50 gift voucher (the last voucher went to Hagen for giving up his weekend for umpiring).

So was FOB NZ Open a financial success given it barely broke even......and if it had been cancelled would have run at a sizeable loss given the sunk costs?

The answer is a wholehearted "yes". While a TO will never be compensated for the time they put in - unless perhaps they are Frontline Gaming - the event allowed the expansion of an asset base to allow events of significant size to be run in Wellington in a more professional manner. Expectations of a certain amount of quality and consistency can be made by people attending Fields of Blood (and Hagen's) events. Now created that allows us as TOs to do other activities e.g. facilitating streaming to publicise the NZ competitive community, invest more with sponsors, fund event specialty items etc.

So was it worth it all for $60.....hell yeah.

And finally a special thank you to those who signed up and because of Covid-19, workplace issues, etc were unable to attend. I really appreciate your support for the event and hopefully we'll see you at a future event.

FOB NZ OPEN - Results

Here are the results for the NZ Open held last weekend:

Included is the Strength of Schedule, Number of Best Presented Votes and Best Opponent votes. In addition, I have included the average number of turns each player completed and the average time their games took.

FOB NZ Open 2020 Awards

Here are the Trophy Winners for the 2020 Fields of Blood New Zealand Open

NZ OPEN CHAMPION - Sean Sullivan (Mixed Imperium)

SECOND PLACE - Courtney Thomson (Thousand Sons/Death Guard)

THIRD PLACE - Scott Paterson (Tau)

FOURTH PLACE - Jordan Green (Mixed Chaos)

FIFTH PLACE - Jasper Ford (Grey Knights)

BEST PRESENTED - Scott Clough (Dark Angels)

SECOND BEST PRESENTED - Chris Parkin (Space Marines)

THIRD BEST PRESENTED - Luke Archbold (Mixed Imperium)

Also BEST IMPERIUM

BEST ARMY (Judge's Choice) - Steve Hill (Genestealer Cult)

BEST OPPONENT - Regan Ridge

SECOND BEST OPPONENT - Josh Lloyd

THIRD BEST OPPONENT - Steve Joll
Also BEST TAU

BEST TERRAIN - Aaron Wilson 

BEST CHAOS - Vinnie Purcell

BEST CODEX SPACE MARINES - Sam Nightingale

BEST NON-CODEX MARINES - Paul Knieriem

40k - Time Management at the Fields of Blood NZ Open

In the words of the sadly missed 40k sharpshooter, Geoff Robinson:

"You are in charge of your own enjoyment"

Time Management of your games is up to you. Some people play fast, some people play slow. Some people are aware, some are oblivious.

Games at the NZ Open are three hours long. Ideally this means that each person gets an equal portion of the time and the game reaches a natural conclusion. However, at the recent The Long War - Bombardment, some people averaged three turns finished per games while others managed six finished turns (2.5 hour rounds).

If you want to ensure that you get an even amount of the alloted time then you should use one of these:

Either a physical chess clock or a chess clock app on your smartphone will mean you get an even amount of time each.

The NZ Open Chess Clock rules borrow from the general ITC Chess Clock rules:

1. Time is split equally - 1.5 hours each

2. Your 1.5 hours includes your 6 turns plus deployment

3. When your time runs out the ONLY action you can do is make saving throws.
4. A player may play out his turns while he has sufficient time on his clock.

If one player decides to use a chess clock to regulate game time, then his opponent is also obligated to. However, the onus is on the player who wants to use a chess clock to physically provide it - not their opponent, not the TO.

Should you choose to not use a time clock and then you find your game is running into time problems call over one of the umpires. They will only do one thing. Split the time equally between players based on the amount of player turns left and allocate that to the participants. Each player turn from that point on should take no more than the allocated time. Any actions that don't fall in that time will go unresolved. My advice - Don't get into this situation.

You will get no traction complaining to the umpire that this is not fair. If you would like to pursue that line, please see Geoff Robinson's observation.

And remember if you feel that your opponent is deliberately not contributing to the game reaching a natural conclusion then you have a mechanism to punish them through the Sports system. However thing long and hard that the problem was purely one-sided.

The DUP Game Recorder includes a question on completed turns. Please fill this in honestly.

40k - Fields of Blood New Zealand Open Lists

In less than 2 weeks the Fields of Blood NZ Open will be held at the Cossie Club in Upper Hutt, Wellington.

This is a five round 2000 point ITC Major and has attracted NZ's biggest ever 40k field.

You can checkout the lists here

The Space Marine FAQ has had a few people second guess themselves - and we have seen a few significant pivots from their expected lists. However, for most when in doubt take more of the same.

Best in Faction trophies will be awarded for:

• Space Marines
• Non-Codex Marines
• Administratum (SoB, Custodes, Guard, Inq)
• Imperium (Emperor Soup)
• Chaos
• Tau 
• Forces of the Hive Mind 
• Ad. Mech 
• Aeldari 
• Xenos (Orcs/Necrons)

If you are in the area please feel free to check it out.

Playing by Intent: Redux

In December - post the Masters - I wrote a blog on Playing by Intent. You can see it here

It was a general discussion that then highlighted that what you intend should also be physically doable. I missed a couple of things in retrospect.

One of the key things about playing intent is that you must signal your intention PRIOR to it becoming a point of contention.

To do this you need to state to your opponent at the time you do it what your intention is. If you intend to be in 6" of the enemy then say these are within 6". If you believe your unit is out of LOS check with your opponent.

Only in Captain Hindsight's world is it acceptable to say "But it was my intention......"

I have got into the habit of asking my opponents when they move something - if I think it may prove "interesting" - as to what their intention is. Then as long as what they intend is doable, I am happy that a problem won't develop. I am trying to train myself to say "I understand/I agree" whenever an opponent signals an intention.

If you want to play by intent then you need to be open and you need to seek affirmation.

The Long War - Bombardment: Results

Yesterday we had the first of The Long War series. It was 2000 points ITC using the finalised 2020 Mission Pack. Three rounds.

Congratulations to Aaron Wilson for winning his first event and to Sam Whitt who was debuting his new Alpha Legion/Emperor's Children army (won Best Army).

Now there is 6 days until lists are due for the FOB NZ Open.

#	Player	Faction	RPs	VPs	Score	SoS
1	Aaron Wilson	Adeptus Mechanicus	3000	101	3101	1730
2	Sam Whitt	Chaos Space Marines	3000	78	3078	1396
3	Louis Thomson-Gregg	Eldar	3000	73	3073	1739
4	Sean Sullivan	Space Marines	2000	79	2079	1731
5	Scott Paterson	Tau	2000	78	2078	2080
6	Jasper Ford	Grey Knights	2000	76	2076	1752
7	Simon Smith	Imperium	2000	72	2072	1729
8	Michael Stewart	Custodes	2000	72	2072	1051
9	Matthew Tansley	Orks	2000	65	2065	1734
10	David Hodgetts	Dark Angels	1000	81	1081	1393
11	Kent Jackson	Space Marines	1000	73	1073	1731
12	Chris Sims	Space Marines	1000	70	1070	1053
13	Jordan Green	Chaos	1000	67	1067	2079
14	Locky Reid	Sisters of Battle	1000	62	1062	1392
15	Paul Knieriem	Grey Knights	1000	58	1058	1396
16	Jacob Arthur	Space Marines	1000	50	1050	2073
17	Ross Brewster	Eldar	1000	47	1047	1045
18	Chris Parkin	Space Marines	1000	36	1036	1743
19	Scott Engebretsen	Chaos	0	44	44	1067
20	Aaron Twose	Space Marines	0	26	26	1394