Competitive 40k just got another black eye with everything that happened at the London GT recently, as the negative outlook on that side of our amazing hobby is growing.
Two out of the last three major 40k events have had some sort of controversy at the top tables. The events that are still unfolding from the LGT have created a commenting frenzy online over the past three days.
From the outside looking in, perhaps it’s time Games Workshop steps up and sets some standards like they did back in the day with their in-store events. I think we can all agree that one of the easiest ways for GW to keep this hobby moving forward, as they have recently figured out, is to become more engaging with hobbyists.
Therefore one of the biggest ways that they could continue to grow the hobby on the organized play side of things is to issue guidelines for these events that, as of late, have seeming started to alienate the hobby community from the top down.
This is especially true if they Games Workshop are the ones publicising and providing prize support for said events, as it looks bad on GW, the organizers, the players, and the hobby as a whole.
What Happened at the London GT
Surely by now, you’ve seen the internet blow up over the entire fiasco that was the London GT. While there was terrain at some of the tables that were provided by commercial terrain-making businesses and it was stunning, you would see other “terrain” made for the rest of the tournament boards. Any commercial terrain business can’t provide that sheer amount of terrain for any event and remain fiscally responsible, so it was a valiant effort for the organizers to make terrain of any sort.
However, the LGT terrain was universally panned online over the weekend, with some commenters saying it looked like they spent more time making Magic Cards for the top players on their Facebook page.
On top of all this as of late last night competitive player, Alex Harrison was banned for “cheating”. London GT announced the banning after they played back the video from the vent, and found multiple instances of cheating.
But what does that mean overall? Will other events allow someone who was allegedly caught cheating on camera to play in their events now? Was this all just a smokescreen to deflect the harsh criticism of their event?
Community Post London GT
We preach that the majority of the Warhammer fanbase (AKA the Hobby Pyramid) and support comes from the casual gamers who meet together at their local game store and play to have fun. There are a very select few people who fall strictly under the competitive category of gaming, (aka the “pros”) perhaps under 1000 globally.
Unfortunately, (or fortunately depending on how you look at it) on the playtest side of things Games Workshop has been taking advice from these “pros”, perhaps rather than the larger percentage of its other supporters (aka the hobby base).
For example, why are the dopest hobby kits out there from Forge World, that hobbyists fall in love with, not seen more often? Well, they are not allowed in most competitive events, and after the Chapter Approved point hikes last year they have mostly disappeared from competitive play. Of course, those changes were in part recommendations of the playtesters union made up of those “pro players” who keep getting into trouble on the top tables event after event.
Meanwhile, the casual fan base has to conform to what trickles down from the top of the hobby pyramid which is the ultra-competitive slant on the rules. However, on the other hand, some of the more recent codex books are indeed written to a higher competitive standard that keeps exploits to a minimum while maximizing comprehension of the rules. All thanks to these same playtesters.
Get Rid of Conflicting Interests
Now consider this, the competitive playtesters union already has knowledge of rules for the upcoming codices before they’re even out because they play-tested the rules for them. Between testing upcoming rules and FAQs, they gain leverage not only in manipulating the “feel” of the game but also how to win or place higher in the next event.
Take a look at Wizards of the Coast, which in our opinion is the go-to for organized play comparisons in this industry. They have play-testers and developers for their new card sets that are under testing and those play-testers aren’t even allowed to compete in any tournaments. Heck in some cases they work for WoTC.
Should this avoidance of said conflict of interest be taking place in the Games Workshop community? We already know from these continued instances that some organizers and players cannot seem to be trusted to conduct themselves by an acceptable social contract. So what good is a Non-Disclosure Agreement going to do to prevent these competitive advantages from becoming an issue in the future when it comes to the playtesters union?
One thing is for certain, these events are causing a negative outlook on the hobby world and are completely avoidable. A change needs to take place where even organizers, players, and playtesters alike are held to an equal and higher standard.
If there is an event that requires fully painted and based models, should the hosts of the event should provide a gaming atmosphere to complement the standard? And after all that where does GW fit into all of this?
Let us know in the comments on our Facebook Hobby Group.
Alea iacta est.
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About the Author: Rob Baer
