Characteristics of the Offense

We have discussed the merits of being a proactive player in Age of Sigmar, but not so much what that really characterizes. Luckily, yet again the ever-wise (I say this with a great deal of sarcasm) institution that is the US Army has a doctrinal explanation for this very topic. Let us take a closer look at the characteristics of the offense: audacity, concentration, surprise, and tempo.

Audacity is understanding where and when to take risks and not become tentative in the execution of your plan. "a difficult situation [...] handled boldly often leads to dramatic effect," (ADP 3-90, p.7). A good example of this is employing the correct high variance strategy in a "bad" matchup. Your opponent will often assume they hold a position of relative advantage due to the inherent strengths their faction enjoys relative to your inherent weaknesses. You can accept this, or you can accept risk and employ an audacious approach.

Concentration is "the ability to mass effects without massing large formations," (ADP 3-90, p.8). In other words, it's the practice of putting the correct resources into the enemy without committing your entire force. A common misplay in this game is diluting your forces so wide that they cannot benefit from the desired effects. There is a sweet spot to strive for in remaining compact enough to maintain these benefits while still being able to score primary points and achieve battle tactics. 

Surprise is achieved by "striking the enemy at a time, place, or manner for which the enemy is not physically or mentally read," (ADP 3-90, p.8). Understanding how to employ this is largely by developing an intimate understanding of what your army's capabilities are. Sometimes it is a manner of movement tricks, spells or abilities, or even weapon ranges (at least while we are in 3.0). But the most effective means of achieving surprise is inducing psychological shock by doing something they were not expecting. I heartily avoid performing any "gotcha" tactics, rather I am encouraging clever play by setting up enticing trades, shaping the battlefield for your to employ a favorable deepstrike, or setting up for a big combo. There are a number of psychological traps a player can fall into. At the most basic level, most beginning players will feel compelled to send their resources crashing into yours. If you are struggling to get wins, one of the easiest ways to achieve surprise is appropriately screening then beta-striking your opponent (if your army has the capacity to do this). Incorporate this concept into your planning and list-building sessions.

Tempo is "the rate of speed and rhythm of military operations over time with respect to the enemy," (ADP 3-90, p.8). Tempos vary widely across armies in AoS. If we were to put it on a spectrum, on the left let us consider an alpha-strike plan with an army like Ironjawz. This is a high tempo, early game, chips in approach. There are benefits and drawbacks to this, but it capitalizes on inflicting maximum damage as early as possible to put their opponent in a position that they cannot mass their forces effectively. At the other end of the spectrum would be armies that focus on recursion or summoning and rely on grinding out a battle of attrition. Soulblight Gravelords, Flesheater Courts, and a Disciples of Tzeentch summoning list are examples of mid to slow tempo approaches at the game. Understanding where your army fits on this spectrum and not forcing the square peg into the round hole is what we are trying to achieve. 

A final note: there are times that you will not be able to maintain the offensive. Remember the enemy always gets a vote. There are also characteristics of the defense in ADP 3-90, which we will discuss in the next read. Again, thank you as always for joining me in this profoundly geeky approach to an already geeky endeavor. If you have any thoughts, feel free to leave a comment or drop me a line. Stay sparkly, my friends.