Storm Of Magic: First Impressions

Hey guys, Azeebo here. As of posting this I do not own a copy of the storm of magic and my comprehension of the rules are not perfect however i have played 2 games of storm of magic and would like to report my findings.

Apocalypse 
Many people have adopted the idea that the Storm of Magic expansion is Apocalypse for Fantasy. I for one disagree. The Storm of Magic is indeed a tool in which to bring fantasy to a larger scale however it is also very usable on a small scale. A 1000 point game using the storm of magic rule set is both exciting and fresh and most of all balanced. Unlike in its 40k 'equivilent' the special units you take are based upon the points level you are playing. You get an addition 25% in points to spend on Storm of Magic items and Bound Monsters to bolster your forces. This means at the lower end of the points spectrum you will be limited to units that are balanced with the armies that can be fielded and at larger point levels you can bring in the heavy hitting beasts that the book is chock full of.

Magic
Magic is of course the focus of the new rules, however it is not overpowered and does not replace the need for solid tactics and armies. Cataclysmic Spells are extremely powerful, but their casting is both limited and risky. You can only access these mighty spells if you are mounted upon an arcane fulcrum, furthermore you need multiple fulcrums to access the mightiest of spells as they are split into 3 level of magical domination. The fewer the fulcrums the fewer the spells. But of course, having the ability to cast the level 2-3 spells brings extreme risk as many require 25-35 to cast...this means 99% of the time you will miscast when trying to cast them and the miscast table in the storm of magic is not kind...it will either make you useless or kill you outright. Casting these spells requires timing and preparation, casting to early and you leave yourself open for a magical counter attack which you have no defense against since you wizard just blew up. But cataclysmic spells are not all that have been given to our wizards. We can access Cantrips. Cantrips are for the most part weak spells but extremely useful. You can teleport between fulcrums, summon entire units from nothing, engage in wizard duels and Unbind you enemies Bound Monsters and Units.

Bound
As mentioned in part 1, you get 25% extra points to spend of various things. Bound Monsters are one of the more fun aspects of this. Whether you decide to have a flanking force of Dragon Ogres or an Araknaroc Spider as your wizards pets you can really change up your army at any points level to cover your weaknesses or bring something you would not normally include in your army (bearing in mind it is essentially FREE). You could be packing a Treeman Ancient and a Level 4 Spell Weaver in smaller games if you so wish...bearing in mind your opponent can do the same thing! Bound Monsters are a fun element to the rules, and because of the % limitations it is actually a very balanced system.

Overall
Storm of Magic is great. It adds new flavor to the already great 8th edition rules, it is fun and most importantly BALANCED. Nothing is outrageously overpowered and everything has clearly been thought out. I could very easily see this rule set being used competitively...and i hope it does. Im not saying every game should be SoM but it is a fantastic way to mix things up a bit and have a load of fun without feeling cheated!

Leave comments on what you think