Play on a smaller play space with fewer models to reduce the choices players can agonize over. I suggest half a board with three space marines each. Few table-top war games are as iconic as Warhammer 40,000. A game set within a grim, dark future in which there is only war, players are able to face each other using huge customizable armies. However, with the scope of the game comes a notoriously hefty price tag. As far as I can tell, the double-sided game mat has the same (and if not the same, a very familiar) print on it to the gaming board that came with Kill Team: Octarius.

The Kill Team Starter Set tokens come on a perforated board that you’ll need to push them out of, just like the one below. And, since no faction’s Kill Team canconsist of more than two Fireteams, this means quite a few of the currently available Kill Team configurations can simply only have one or two types of miniatures in them. Space Marines, who can only have one Fireteam, are especially hit by this homogenising effect. The Orks don’t have the same firepower, but make up for it with greater numbers, beefier maximum wounds, and the Throat Slittas rule, which allows them to charge the enemy directly out of concealment. Okay, okay, they might not be as exciting as your set of nebulous, colour-shifting Nahyndrian crystal dice that were forged in the heart of a dying star by Svartálfar and put on Etsy by some chap called Jason from Shropshire, but they are at least thematic, matching that orange streak we see in a lot of the new edition Kill Team art, and they don’t feel quite as cheap as some of the dice we’ve had in recent releases. The MiniaturesOperatives can now go On Guard, preparing for the chance of an operative entering their line of sight to unleash an Overwatch shot, or taking the initiative with a Fight action. I generally have one to two objectives to fight over, with one command point re-roll per player per turning point. Keeping the players focused on moving, shooting, and combat. The parts that lead to the best stories. There will be time for ploys and Tac Ops later. What I always find amusing about the art on these boxes is how, rather like in the Avatar: The Last Airbender TV series, in spite of the chaotic battle taking place between two heavily-armed and bloodthirsty factions and all the sharp edges, shooty bits and explosions, no one appears to have been even remotely injured. As I said above, there are plenty of build options across the set, too, so you don’t have to build the miniatures that you see here. Those miniatures that you don’t build will leave all their extra parts behind, so you’ve got plenty of bits left over to use in conversions or kitbashing, should such things take your fancy. Up next is the Psychic Phase. Your magic-users of the far future blow each other (or themselves) up – or not, depending on range, psychic ability, and so on.

There are some moments of clarity and brilliance – Shoot and Fight, for example – but a concerningly large portion of the book will leave a lot of newcomers to the game with more questions than answers. Whilst it’s not a flat-out useless resource by any stretch of the imagination, it’s definitely not the most beginner-friendly guidebook that GW have ever produced. Your objective will be defined on a mission-by-mission basis, but most revolve around accumulating Victory Points, which you win each turn by fulfilling certain criteria specified at the outset of the game. For our game, we could score victory points in each round by: Closing on the objective at the bottom of the map, the Heavy Intercessor Gunner and his comrade moved to intercept two Flayed Ones. First steps. It only takes about an hour to play a game of Kill Team, so you can squeeze in an epic special operations mission before the lunch whistle blows. 20. It’s Easy to Add New Kill TeamsThe scenery that comes with this set – that’s the Kill Team Barricades and the Ork Terrain – are blissfully easy to assemble. And that’s because they don’t actually require any assembly at all.