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Hello everyone. Based on several conversations around the boards and some outside discussion among the NetERC, I've decided to post this proposal for moving forward with a TacComms EA project.
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1) Let the core rules sit for a year based on the 2008 Errata/FAQ. Ultimately, we'd like to update/rewrite the air rules (or maybe that's just me...) and do a few more tweaks, including adding in the proposed special rules, but for now let it sit. The various army lists can incorporate the proposed "core" special rules as they see fit and we can sort it out later.
2) Set up the "NetEA Tournament Lists" to include the minimum changes, primarily point adjustments, that the ACs think are appropriate for balanced lists.
3) Set a schedule for pushing forward variant lists and more extensive "core" army list changes, with scheduled playtest periods for each. At the least this should result in a new revision and for many lists I think it's within striking distance of a NetEA Official version.
The schedule for rotating through army lists will take close to a year. At that point we can revisit the core rules. Sticking with a rotation based on the army release dates, the schedule should look something like this:
May - "Tournament" list mods for official army lists from all ACs
June - SM month
July - IG
August - Ork
September - Eldar
October - Chaos
November - Tau
December - Nids
January '09 - Necron
February - WE lists (AMTL/OGBM/Eldar Titan Clans)
March - "Minor" or composite armies - Dark Eldar, Daemonhunter/Witchhunter, Adeptus Arbites, Harlequins, etc.
April - "cleanup" or break
May - NetEA Rules Review begins
Obviously, this is highly tentative at this point, and schedule requires the agreement of the AC and so on (if TRC is in Bangladesh without internet access, there's no point in running IG month).
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More about the schedule:
Coordinating the forums to work towards a single goal is rather like herding cats and as far as I'm concerned, that's as it should be.
I'm sure that I'm not the only one that has observed that the boards can support short periods of relatively intense focus and get quite a bit done. A good recent example of this is the AMTL flurry of activity. The idea is to declare a defined period for work on a particular set of lists. The period is just a request for feedback on certain items within a certain window.
Obviously, everyone can still do whatever they want. This schedule won't (and really can't) prohibit people from playing what they like. Even people participating in the group can keep doing other things when they're on a roll in some way (again, citing E&C and the AMTL lists as an example).
The monthly cycle would be something like this:
1-2 weeks prior: The AC posts a list of topics of particular interest for playtesting. This should cover most, if not all, of the variant lists for that particular "race."
Weeks 1-4 of the playtest month: People test and post results. Everything from fullblown batreps with pics to summary descriptions are welcome, just like normal.
Weeks 3-4: AC starts posting proposed revisions for discussion and refined testing.
Week 4 through 1-2 weeks after: AC updates the lists. Ideally, the core list and most if not all of the variants will advance 1 iteration or reach a "NetEA Final" form.
Since the variants use many of the same units, formations, upgrades and so on, feedback from one will help with others. For example, the "Heavy Support" option is present in the Blood Angel and the Salamanders lists so playtest results would be useful for developing both lists. Concentrating the playtesting of all army variants into a smaller period should squeeze a lot of value out of a limited time.
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Let me know your thoughts on the viability of this plan and willingness to go along with it.
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Neal
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