6x4 is no longer practical

[Inevitable]

6x4 works as long as you have decent terrain. Most of the time at our LGS we use an 8x4 board. Usually the board is setup in a way that there are pockets of 'open' areas and pockets of heavy obstruction. When you have a board that has a coherent theme it makes it alot easier. Albeit I do agree with the issues people point out about 25mm games -v- smaller. For a Tournament (most tournaments) are 1500 points 6x4 board, 25% terrain. At that point cost its balanced. If its a friendly game, then just discuss whatever will make the most sense.

We've done 8x4 Spear-head, 8x4 longs but 4' deployments (each half). This allows Lemans to fire the entire length, but also allows close combat to start towards the middle of the board. Also if we find the game is getting too bunched up we just allow each other to do things like outflank with units that normally can't outflank. It's up to you and your opponent to agree to what to use. On those larger battles discuss it ahead of time. Often we'll discuss next week's battle the week prior then spend the entire week designing the army. Allow flyers to 'redeploy' similar to how a Mawloc redeploys (Return to reserve, deepstrike next turn without rolling for them to come on board) etc.

The game is based around 1500 points, 1 FoC, 1 6x4. What everyone is saying is they want MORE. If you want more, then just do more. The last game we ran, was a city seige. Entire board was coated with terrain. Buildings, roads, debris, etc. The only open areas where peices of road not cluttered with Terrain. The game was a blast and exceptionally tactical. It was hard for both melee AND shooting. There was no safe deep-strike zone, there was lots of areas to hide, and there was alot that hindered movement. It was themed.

I understand many people want to play exactly word for word how the rules are written and often play against people they don't know. For those games, just use the standard 1000 - 1500 point games on a 4x4 or 6x4 board. Once you've gotten to know the people through social interaction (A huge part of war-gaming that we often overlook) then talk about different battles.

For example, I'm trying to design a Tyranid -v- Space Marine battle similar to Starship Troopers last stand at a bunker. We're going to allow rules that if a Marine isn't supporting melee fighting at the gates (More than 2" away from the people engaged) then you can split fire at enemies not in melee combat that you can see (Such as large bugs). The marines will deploy (no vehicles) in a bunker about 12" x 12" in the center of the table. The tyranids will assault from all sides. We're not done designing it, but that's an example of creating a themed scenario utilizing 40k rules while also supporting things we think would make sense in that final battle. WOuld we run that for a tournament? no.

If the game ends and both sides are happy over a fun game, then you've both won. Everyone wants to win but winning shouldn't come at the expense of having fun.

[Mikial]

My wife and I have a 5X6 table at home, but play on standard 4X6 at the game store. We much prefer the 5X6 as it gives us more room for maneuver and makes the game more interesting. It really makes objective games more fun since it makes the objectives more difficult to reach and hold.

[Omniassiah]

We've done 8x4 Spear-head, 8x4 longs but 4' deployments (each half). This allows Lemans to fire the entire length, but also allows close combat to start towards the middle of the board. Also if we find the game is getting too bunched up we just allow each other to do things like outflank with units that normally can't outflank. It's up to you and your opponent to agree to what to use. On those larger battles discuss it ahead of time. Often we'll discuss next week's battle the week prior then spend the entire week designing the army. Allow flyers to 'redeploy' similar to how a Mawloc redeploys (Return to reserve, deepstrike next turn without rolling for them to come on board) etc.

The fact that most of the games maneuvering is done through "Off-table" through special abilities is one of the things that has turned me off from 40k. It's hard to outflank an army when it covers then entire length of the board.

[jet_palero]

When I was last in my local GW and saw some of the games going on, they did seem pretty crazy big. The tables look small when filled with so many troops. I think they need to encourage people to add more terrain mostly. But the individual units seem to move so much faster than in previous additions.

The recent aircraft seemed completely out of place to me too. Even in Epic aircraft don't stay on the table, they do their mission and then go back off board.

It's impossible because of the investment people have in models, but I think most 40k players would be a lot happier playing a 15 mm game, something scaled like flames of war. Easier to paint than epic, but much easier to have large battles with.

The apocalypse crowd really surprise me too. I always want to ask them, "Why don't you just play epic? Then the titans aren't six feet tall and can actually, you know, move."

Maybe its just because I wish I had people to play epic with though.

[FashaTheDog]

Part of it comes down to looks. A 40,000 point army of Apocalypse looks better than similar size Epic one. At that stage, the table size gets to silly proportions, but it still makes for a great sight and if the models are painted, a great photo shot. Another reason for Apocalypse is that it actually fixes a lot of 40K's rules issue because the details that are questionable cease to matter and players are too busy to stop and argue the point when it is easier to just hit the problem unit with a Str D weapon and be done with it.

[Deff Mekz]

If the game ends and both sides are happy over a fun game, then you've both won. Everyone wants to win but winning shouldn't come at the expense of having fun.

And that's going in the sig.

I personally like playing on a 8x4 board mainly becuase I like having all that extra room to move around. I find a bigger board naturally adds a more tactical edge to the game (out manevouring for eg), it helps shift the game from being less about the list building, and more about the player's skill.

[Modhail]

All I can say is: Back in 2nd ed (When 40K was still a skirmish game), the standard table size GW advised was 8x4. Since then army size has gone up massively, but "standard" table size has been adjusted to 6x4? Bigger armies need a smaller table, go figure...
With the army sizes these days, I would figure 5x10' to be optimum/minimum, but good luck getting that into a standard home...

[carlisimo]

6'x4' is difficult enough: you can't find a table that wide in a normal furniture store. (It's easy to find tables 36" wide, or ~900mm, but not more than that.) I put plywood boards over a folding table in my study, but it's not ideal. My house isn't big enough to build a permanent table of that size, either.

How do you guys with 5' wide tables reach figures in the middle? It may not be out of reach, but it seems difficult enough to grab something 2.5' away (like say, a Falcon grav tank) to increase the risk of accidents.

[Col. Tartleton]

5 feet? I'm pretty tall and I'd guess my arms are at least 2.5 feet long. Plus you factor in height and you can bend at the waist. It's like playing ping pong, that's how wide a ping pong table is. I can pick up a ball anywhere on the table. I wouldn't do more than 5 wide though. I'm sure it would be more difficult for smaller people, but they don't have to play... If it was flat and not covered in terrain I could nearly grab the other side.

I think part of the problem is that Epic is not supported as a mainstream game to the extent of the big 3. For which I honestly blame LotR. I have nothing against it, but LotR is story driven mythology, not a universe, I'm never going to invest in it as a wargame. I'd much prefer 4 supported systems and recast the "Specialist Games" as accessory games:

Epic 40,000 - 6mm Science Fiction Wargaming (For Doing Battle in the 41st Millennium)
- Planetary Empires (For Waging Campaigns in the 41st Millennium)
-Battlefleet Gothic (For Waging Space Battles in the 41st Millennium)
-Aeronautica Imperialis (Advanced Rules for Aerospace Dog Fighting in the 41st Millenium)

Warmaster Fantasy- 10 mm Fantasy Wargaming (For legendary battles in the Warhammer World)
- Mighty Empires (For Waging Campaigns in the Warhammer World)
-Dreadfleet (For Waging Naval Battles in the Warhammer World)

Warhammer 40,000 - 28mm Science Fiction Wargaming (For brutal skirmishes in the Grim Darkness of the 41st Millenium)
- Space Hulk (For life or death struggles within the Labyrinths of the 41st Millenium)
-Inquisitor (For Role Playing within the Intrigues of the 41st Millenium)
-Necromunda (For blood soaked fire fights within the 41st Millenium)

Warhammer Fantasy Battles - 28mm Fantasy Wargaming (For minor battles in the Warhammer World)
-Mordheim (For maddening quests into the darkest corners of the Warhammer World)
-Blood Bowl (For bloody good fun in the Warhammer World's most dangerous sport)

Etc.

[FashaTheDog]

We can reach because we experimented with dangerous chemicals and nuclear radiation to mutate ourselves to have arms so long we can scratch the bottoms of our feet without bending. It's like a superpower for wargaming.

[Tarax]

If ever I started experimenting with chemicals I want to sprout wings and fly across the table!

[Cheeslord]

I think part of the problem is that Epic is not supported as a mainstream game to the extent of the big 3. For which I honestly blame LotR. I have nothing against it, but LotR is story driven mythology, not a universe, I'm never going to invest in it as a wargame. I'd much prefer 4 supported systems and recast the "Specialist Games" as accessory games:
.

if Epic became a properly supported game again I would become quite poor, having spent all my money on Epic stuff.

Not going to happen any more than Squats coming back however... (which is a shame as my main Epic army was... Squats. If I can find them in my parents attic I had a nice squat army in the olden days... mmm... Overlords...)

Mark.

[Kisanis]

I've built a 6x4 collapsable folding table (folds up with a centre section acting as a spine and two folding legs) Why? Stores away nicely, easy to move when I move house, and most importantly of all.... I can shove it in the back of my 2 door civic (by myself) with the seats down, making it nominally portable when playing at another persons house.

6x4 is fine for most 'standard' games. I do have a deep down preference for 8x4 just to keep things tactical and have better flanking, but 6x4 just seems to always work. Maybe not perfectly, but it does work.