Book Review - Stronghold Assault

 
This past weekend, I went to Cleveland, TN with some of the gaming group to pick up the new expansion, Stronghold Assault. While I was not (and still am not) interested in Escalation, I was eager to get my hands on the newest way of war in Warhammer 40,000.

I plan to post my thoughts on Escalation in a future article. For now, I want to focus solely on Stronghold Assault, and what it brings to the game.

Appearance - 7/10

In this part of my rating system, I’m referring to the overall appearance and organization of the book. As we have come to expect from Games Workshop, the production value is high and the printing is very impressive. There was one new piece of artwork I really loved that depicted a massive Tyranid swarm assaulting a Fortress of Redemption, defended by Games Workshop’s standard poster boys, the Ultramarines.

Unfortunately, this is one of my negatives against the book; there was very little in the way of new artwork, with many recycled pictures throughout. Some of the new Fortifications entries were even supplied without a picture, using a stamp instead that says, “Forbidden by Inquisitorial Decree.” This may have been cool if we were talking about Daemonic Defense Hexes or anything of that type, but instead we have an Inquisitorial censorship stamp on…oil pipelines. Yes, they have decided the sight of a Promethium Relay Pipe is too much strain for the standard Imperial citizen.

This just feels somewhat like they were saying, “Well, we didn’t have a kit, and we didn’t have time to scratch-build anything. So, here you go.” With that said, I am glad they presented us with new rules. I just wish they had taken the time to truly make these new rules special by inspiring our imaginations to create our own.

Rules - 8/10

I am (and always will be) an Iron Warrior at heart, and I truly love the feel of a siege warfare game. Perhaps it explains a lot of my other army choices; Tyranids are known for assaulting strongpoints until their dead reach the ramparts, and the Death Korps of Krieg trains excellent siege masters as well. Because of this affinity, I’ve obviously been waiting a long time for a rules set covering siege warfare.

In terms of the missions, I think the supplement accomplished what it set out to do. The missions cover a simple fortification assault, an attempted line breaking attack, and a desperate last stand. Each of these represent a different facet of siege warfare at its worst, giving we players an excuse to build thematic armies to take or defend a fortified position.

There are also updated building rules, fortification datasheets, and building upgrades that are all designed for use with this supplement. I think the building rules and the fortification datasheets both add new depth to the siege game, but I’m still up in the air on some aspects. The void shields, as in Apocalypse, just feel so weak for what they’re meant to represent. This is a minor complaint, however. I’m really looking forward to trying out some of the new rules.

I do wish some of the datasheets and equipment were designed for individual armies. I personally would pay money for a Tyranid fortification with its own rules; instead of Heavy Bolters, how about Devourers? How about a Synapse upgrade for the “building”? I know other armies feel the same; when there is a Fortification that specifically affects only “Imperial” units, it is easy to become frustrated. However, I know amongst my friends I will be playing the Honored Imperium asset as a Hive Node cluster, substituting “Imperial” for “Tyranid” in all instances. When life hands you lemons…

Overall 7/10

While I do like this book, I feel Games Workshop could have given more for the price tag. The book feels very small, and the actual meat and potatoes of the book represent a small section. This is especially the case if you discount most of the fortifications material, since it is recycled from previous publications.

With that said, I’m eager to play some games with this book. It does seem to me that the rules are meant for higher points games. The fortifications should be large in number and imposing, and since they come directly from the defender’s points total, I hope to try the game out at 3,000 points.

Look for a battle report set in the grinding nightmare of a siege warfare in the near future!