Flames of War VS Warhammer 40K VS Warmachine/Hordes, etc

[maple]

bigdaddy-
I have tried out a lot of different games and currently the only 2 I am playing are Confrontation v3.5 and Rezolution.
I really like the Confrontation rules and the mini's. A $30 rule book and $50- 75 worth of mini's and you are good to go. From a painting stand point, the mini's (IMO) are a painters dream.
The downside to the game is that the learning curve is high and the metal mini's are going bye-bye. As for the new rules, not really my cup of tea (to simplified), and the number of mini's required to play a game is high.
With Rezolution, I enjoy the rules (I go, you go and most die rolls are opposed) and the game concept, but the producers have virtaully disappeared and there were few releases in 2007. Overall, I love the game, but the mini's leave a bit to be desired.

Now, I have tried out Infinity, Urban War, Flames of War, 40K, Warmachine and a whole bunch of others.
Infinity has beautiful models, and I mean they are truly beautiful. They are great to paint and even a subpar painter like myself can make them look good. Unfortunately, the game has some fairly confusing rules.
FOW left a lot to be desired with me. The rules aren't bad and the mini's are okay too. Just something about it got stale pretty fast and the start up cost was very high.
Urban War...... mediocre mini's, mediocre rules. That's why I recently sold my supply of mini's for the game.
Warmachine was a great game, until PP decided to up the power level, stray away from the whole steam powered robots thing and turn it into a cavalry game. It's like playing 40k, only without Space Marines and and with a whole lot more of "cheese".

Now keep in mind, these are only my opinions, so before folks get all up in arms and hunt me down with pitchforks........ my wife would appreciate it if you didn't.

[Linrandir]

Hmm...I'd have to put my vote in for Warmachine & Hordes as well as some of the smaller skirmish games. I'm given to understand that Stargrunt is a solid ruleset too (but that you can use miniatures from wherever).

Disclosure: I'm a Press ganger for Privateer, so I'm a little biased.

That said, I like Warmachine and Hordes a lot more than 40K. Without starting a flame war, because there are some folks who'll start arguing the merits of everything, I'll share my PERSONAL IMPRESSIONS. So if you want to naysay, post about another game you like and don't tell me I'm wrong.

As someone who's dealt with both companies in a professional capacity, I find Privateer to be more responsive and friendlier. I like that they're not afraid to power down or power up aspects of certain models to improve overall gameplay (Sorscha & Haley, anyone?). The rules kind of start simple - it's an easy mechanic to learn - and can get as complex as you feel like being.

I like that all the models are amazingly sculpted, and they're proportional. You don't have fanboy wet dream female models with the 36DD breasts and the ultra-micro-super-mini-thong. Hell, my wife plays Warmachine because she likes the sculpting and the flat-out respect towards women she feels Privateer shows.

It's relatively cheap, too. The core rules come in each boxed set, and each boxed set is a playable army at ~300 points (though Hordes works out to about 270). Tournaments are typically 500 points, which you can reach with a boxed set, a couple solos, and a unit.

But hey, just my thoughts.

[Firebird4Life]

I skimmed through the replies and I'm sure its been said in there somewhere, but...

I would check out that local/closer gaming store you have by you and see what they're playing. If a good amount of people play one game, then give it a shot so you can get a good amount of gaming in. I know at my local store, whenever I pick up a new game, its because my usual group of gamers decide to pick up.

First, I might suggest Warhammer Fantasy before giving up on Games Workshop. 40K can be very basic and is definately a little "scaled down" in the rules. Fantasy has a lot more complex rules; failed charges, stand & shoot, modifiers to armor saves, etc. I started out with 40K (Space Marines, just like pretty much everyone who plays 40K...), then branched out into other games.

Axis & Allies is pretty fun; you don't need to paint stuff. The rules are pretty easy to learn. You can put together a game fairly quick, and get a good force together for pretty cheap. I play the War at Sea variant, where you can get a starter pack for $25 and booster packs for $15. I've spent significantly more than necessary, but you can get a good set together for maybe $100-$150, with no work necessary for painting, assembling, etc.

Warmachine is a pretty cool counter to GW stuff. The rules are similar, but the game is played a lot differently. However, like GW stuff, Warmachine is quite costly and time consuming. The figures can be a little pricey, you need to assemble and paint them, just like GW stuff. Its definately the preferred alternative to Warhammer/40K, mixing the those two a bit into one game (depending on if you pick Warmachine or Hordes).

Flames of War is probably the best choice for you if you want more rules and whatnot. Its got the resin models which vary in price from very pricy box sets (I paid $61 for a Company box of Italian Compagnia Bersegliere) to cheap little $7/$8 blisters; you still need to paint them, but its a lot easier than the GW stuff since its just a couple pieces and you can paint details with just simple drybrushing & inking if you want. The rules are pretty realistic with armor, rate of fire, historical accuracy, special rules representing nations, and more.

If you want more details on stuff, I would suggest visiting the games' websites or even entering them into Wikipedia (I know its not the greatest site in the world, but it'll give you some good info). If you're looking to unload some of your current mini's and swap them out for games, you already know the site for that.

Oh, also, you could try going to your store(s) and ask for a demo game. Maybe they can give you a little taste so you can see if you want to get into a game or not. Good luck.