Disk Wars: The Articles

<body topmargin=0 leftmargin=0 marginheight=0 marginwidth=0> <table cellpadding=0 cellspacing=0 border=0 height="100%"><tr> <td valign="top" width=200 BGCOLOR="#003333" TEXT="#F7F7FF" background="256e1c00dduajq.gif"> <div> <TABLE BORDER="0" CELLPADDING="2" CELLSPACING="0" WIDTH="95" BORDERCOLORLIGHT="#C0C0C0" BORDERCOLORDARK="#808080" FRAME="BOX" RULES="ALL" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0" > <tR> <tD VALIGN=TOP HEIGHT= 46 WIDTH="91"><IMG BORDER="0" SRC="1x1.gif" HEIGHT="46" ALIGN="bottom" WIDTH="91" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></tD> </tR> </TABLE></div> <bR> <bR> <bR> <bR> <div> Disk Companions</div> <div> <A HREF="http://members.tripod.com/diskwars/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://members.tripod.com/diskwars/"><U><IMG SRC="05d72c50.gif" border=0 width="114" height="197" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></A></div> <div> Salt Lake Diskwarriors</div> <div> <A HREF="http://www.geocities.com/bakija6/diskwars.html" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.geocities.com/bakija6/diskwar"><U><IMG SRC="05ea5a70.jpg" border=0 width="165" height="167" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></A></div> <div> Peter Bakija's Orcamania</div> <bR> <bR> <div> <A HREF="http://fanclub.ms/diskwars" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://fanclub.ms/diskwars"><U><IMG SRC="0f1a6a70.jpg" border=0 width="166" height="167" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></U></A></div> <div>            European Diskwars  </div> </td> <td valign="top" BGCOLOR="#FFFFFF" TEXT="#080000" background="163df0e3.gif"> <div> <FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#BF0000" FACE="Arial" ><B>The Mojo Dojo</B></FONT>     |     <A HREF="index.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="The Mojo Dojo"><U>home</U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id52.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Philosophy...."><U>Philosophy....</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id53.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Garrison 188 "><U>Garrison 188 </U></A>   |   <B>Disk Wars: The Articles</B>   |   <A HREF="id21.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Disk Trades Central Page"><U>Disk Trades Central Page</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id22.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Games you should be playing"><U>Games you should be playing</U></A>   |   <A HREF="id23.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Contact Me"><U>Contact Me</U></A></div> <div> Disk Wars: The Articles</div> <div>                          <IMG SRC="2833b6e0.gif" border=0 width="59" height="110" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"> <IMG SRC="0e599990.gif" border=0 width="153" height="153" ALT="Bitmap Image" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"><IMG SRC="285476e0.gif" border=0 width="71" height="110" ALT="Bitmap Image" ALIGN="BOTTOM" HSPACE="0" VSPACE="0"></div> <bR> <div> <I><B>                      </B></I><FONT SIZE="5" COLOR="#FFCC00" FACE="Curlz MT" ><I><B>In the Beginning....</B></I></FONT></div> <bR> <div> <B>The World is indeed flat!</B></div> <div> <B>DiskWars, by Fantasy Flight Games, is an incredible adaptation of the miniatures gaming concept.  Gone are the metal figures, the paints, and the inordinate amount of money and time involved in games such as Warhammer.  In their place are Disks with two-sided, stunning artwork and quantifiable game mechanics printed on each facing.  </B></div> <div> <B>Following are questions, guidelines and tips meant to ease the beginner into the world of DiskWars:</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Anatomy of the Disk.</B><B>  </B></div> <div> <B>Use the left hand scroll bar to view Zobak the Despised; an Orc disk.  Let's go through the numbers, one by one, starting at the eight o'clock position.  There you will see a number inside an arrow.  </B><B>This is the </B><B>movement rate</B><B>, or number of "flips" a disk normally uses per turn of the game.  Zobak can flip three times.  The next number, clockwise, is the </B><B>attack value</B><B>.  When Zobak is on top of an opposing disk, he delivers four points of damage.  Next is the </B><B>defense value.  </B><B>When an opposing disk is on top of Zobak, Zobak only delivers two points of damage back.  Coming to the one o'clock position, we find </B><B>toughness</B><B>; the amount of damage, in one turn, required to wound Zobak.  Most disks only require one </B><B>wound </B><B>to destroy, but Zobak's disk has a number (3) within the "iron cross" symbol.  This means that Zobak can withstand three wounds before being destroyed.  The last number, within the small black oval, is the </B><B>cost </B><B>to include Zobak in your army.  </B></div> <div> <B>Other defining factors include </B><B>border color </B><B>(which tells you what alignment that disk follows: red for evil; blue for neutral; green for good; and gold for special Champion disks); whether or not the unit has </B><B>flight</B><B> (denoted as a pair of wings in an orange circle, between the wound and cost symbols); and </B><B>disk text </B><B>(name, abilities, skills, and faction information).</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>How does a Disk move and why are they different sizes?</B></div> <div> <B>This, in my opinion, is the true genius portion of Fantasy Flight Games disk mechanics.  A disk moves by physically raising one edge of the disk and flipping it, once per movement factor, in the direction of movement.  Zobak, a two-inch disk, would move approximately six inches (if all done along the same straight line).  Size represents the physical ability to command the space around you, and is analogous to the "base" that a miniatures unit would occupy.  Sizes range from 1.75 inches in diameter (small units and many individuals), 2.00 inches (most infantry), 2.50 inches (most cavalry or large infantry), 3.50 inches (Giants, Large Dragons and Enormous Beasts), and 4.25 inches (Beasts of Incredible Destruction).</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>What is "Missile:(xxx)(y)"?</B></div> <div> <B>These are "archer" disks, and introduce another unique mechanic in the DiskWars universe: the missile drop.  Arrows (2 damage each) and Bolts (3 damage each) are 0.5 inch disks and have a unit range of 12 inches.  Unit Fireballs (4 damage each) are 0.5 inch disks with a 6 inch range, and Boulders (5 damage each) are 1.0 inch disks with a range of 6 inches.  All missiles for a given unit are arranged on a spare disk and dropped from a height of 12 inches.  What you hit is what you hit, and damage is applied.  Scatter is possible and friendly units can be damaged.  Nevertheless, archers can be awesome.  "(y)" is the amount of missile disks an archer drops.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Is there Magic?</B></div> <div> <B>Does an Elf poop in the woods?  Of course there's magic.   Each "spell caster" you buy is rated from level 1 to 3.  These correspond to a list(s) of spells available to the 'caster.  Individual spells are bought with army points, just the same as units.  A spell is discarded, once used.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Collectable is a dirty word.  What am I getting into?</B></div> <div> <B>Fair enough question.  The specifics of what is in each set is best found at the Salt Lake DiskWarriors site in the left navigation bar, but suffice it to say that you get from 2-4 "standardized" flats (a flat contains from 1-5 units, depending on size) and the rest of the flats (61-71 per set) are random.  So what you get is only partially controllable.  Yet, with the average army costing 150 points and consisting of 15-30 disks, and a strong Diskwars trading community, a viable army is not that hard to achieve.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Do I have to deal with rarity issues?</B></div> <div> <B>The short answer is: "no".  Each flat in a set was produced an equal number of times.  Due to the occasional disk being retired (only two), some promos being issued, and the general cheapness or utility of certain disks, combined with how many times a disk was printed on the flats set, a "pseudo-rarity" has evolved.  Yet, having the supposedly "coolest" disks is not a guarantee to winning, as much as a well run combat plan.  I'm a good player, but have had my army defeated by </B><B>pre-x-set armies with good tactics.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>What is the minimum I can invest and still enjoy the game?</B></div> <div> <B>Fantasy Flight Games recently (summer '00) issued four dual army boxes (Legions) with (approximately) 150 points of disks per army.  All needed rules and counters come in the box.  They retail for $24.95 each, but may be cheaper to get online, or at Ebay.  The word on the grape vine is that the armies are competitive within the box, and reasonably competitive with other armies in other boxes.  Each boxed set came with a couple, to a few, disks not available in any expansion.</B></div> <div> <B>This would be a good place to start, and would not require any additional expenditures.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Do I really have to have a "starter" (Revised or Legions) to get into this?</B></div> <div> <B>Besides game counters and the rulebook, a "starter" is not necessary.  The rulebook (in pdf form) is available at </B><A HREF="http://www.diskwars.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.diskwars.com"><U><B>www.diskwars.com</B></U></A><B> (I suggest reading the rules before you buy, anyway).  If you know an established player with extra counters, then you're set by buying any expansion box.  The Wastelands expansion is a special case, in that it contained all random flats.  'Course nothing's to stop you from building armies out of those random flats.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Is DiskWars an evolving game system, and where can I get my questions answered?</B></div> <div> <B>The DiskWars community, official and unofficial, is a great source of support.  I have a </B><A HREF="id57.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Additional Rulings"><U><B>central repository of additional rulings</B></U></A><B>, most recent </B><A HREF="id56.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Current FAQ"><U><B>FAQ</B></U></A><B> and rulings from the </B><A HREF="id55.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="DiskWars League Page"><U><B>DiskWars League Pages</B></U></A><B>.  Lists, spoilers and rulings can be found at the links on the left (among others) and at the official diskwars site: </B><A HREF="http://www.diskwars.com" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.diskwars.com"><U><B>http://www.diskwars.com</B></U></A><B> (again, in pdf).</B></div> <div> <B>The DiskWars creators are noted for listening to their customer base and have issued clarifications, new disks, and errata (when necessary) primarily due to the discussions at the official diskwars forum:  </B><A HREF="http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/cgi-bin/discus/show_disk.cgi?7/7" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/cgi-bi"><U><B>http://www.fantasyflightgames.com/cgi-bin/discus/show_disk.cgi?7/7</B></U></A></div> <div> <B>The basics of the game are sound and continue to improve in response to player input.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Where can I find a list of all the disks?</B></div> <div> <B>Salt Lake Diskwarriors (the link is in the left bar) is an excellent source.  </B><B>Please use the link to the left to access SaltLake.  </B><B> Another great utility is the DiskWars Commander's Toolkit: </B><A HREF="http://www.diskwars.com/dw.html" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.diskwars.com/dw.html"><U><B>http://www.diskwars.com/dw.html</B></U></A><B>.  For free you get all of the disks texts.  If you decide to register, you get all of the disk images and you get to save collection and army data.  </B></div> <bR> <div> <B>The European Diskwars page on the left has a drop-down menu of most of the flats, scanned for your convenience.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>I'm in the middle of Nowhere, (Arizona?){really, people, there's an off ramp on I-10} and I need DiskWars Products.  </B><FONT SIZE="3" COLOR="#BF0000" FACE="Arial" ><B>Where can I get them?</B></FONT></div> <div> <B>The most inexpensive supplier of diskwars, that I've found, is </B><A HREF="http://www.bouldergames.com/" TARGET="_top" TITLE="http://www.bouldergames.com/"><U><B>Boulder Games!</B></U></A><B>  Jim's a real nice guy and gives excellent service.  He also has access to most all games, including European imports.</B></div> <bR> <div> <B>Where do I go next?</B></div> <div> <A HREF="id53.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Garrison 188 "><U><B>Garrison 188 </B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id61.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Conversations: A new DiskWarrior to an o"><U><B>Conversations: A new DiskWarrior to an old Veteran</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id28.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="DiskWars Intermediate Issues 1: Army Con"><U><B>DiskWars Intermediate Issues 1: Army Construction</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id30.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="DiskWars Intermediate Issues 2: Army Uni"><U><B>DiskWars Intermediate Issues 2: Army Unit Composition</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id29.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="DiskWars Intermediate Issues 3: Trade To"><U><B>DiskWars Intermediate Issues 3: Trade Topics</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id48.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="DiskWars Advanced Issues 1: Conditional "><U><B>DiskWars Advanced Issues 1: Conditional and Threat Disks</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id49.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="DiskWars Advanced Issues 2: Range Consid"><U><B>DiskWars Advanced Issues 2: Range Considerations</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id50.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="DiskWars Advanced Issues 3: Missile Drop"><U><B>DiskWars Advanced Issues 3: Missile Drops</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id51.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="DiskWars Advanced Issues 4: Terrain"><U><B>DiskWars Advanced Issues 4: Terrain</B></U></A></div> <div> <A HREF="id21.htm" TARGET="_top" TITLE="Disk Trades Central Page"><U><B>Disk Trades Central Page</B></U></A></div> <bR> </td> </tr></table></body>