The Great Lakes Warhammer League: Join Up!

Thanks to Rhellion of Rhellion's Tabletop for this awesome article about one of the cornerstone hobby events of the Great Lakes region!

It is that time of year. Registration for the 2013 Great Lakes Warhammer League has opened. The GLWL is a Michigan-based Warhammer league that runs annually starting in January. All across the state there are divisions of players that play 5 games for W/L/D points and victory point tiebreakers. The top 8 Division winners then meet up at the Season End Championship tournament in a special championship bracket and fight it out for the League Championship. Last year there were 77 participants in the GLWL across Michigan and northern Ohio, and 30 players in the season end tournament!

The format of the League is unique in that there are a couple composition restrictions that aim to keep the playing field level, but not as intrusive as some "comp" systems. There are a couple restrictions on magic dice generated every turn, single unit point cap at 500 points or so, and limiting the duplication of some Rare choices. All in all the restrictions are few, and the focus is on getting in a fun games and sending the best player in your area to the finals and competing for the League Championship.

Painting is not required, but it is rewarded. If you are new to the hobby or starting an army, don't let you grey plastic models dissuade you. During the end of the season tournament painting is scored, but again is not required. That gives you even more time to finish up.

The most unique part of the League format is the fixed list system. The point total for the GLWL is 2500 points, but each player is required to turn in a 1500 point portion of their list as a "Fixed List". Players must use this list as the base for all of their games, and it must include their General. These lists are published for the entire League to view. So while your opponent can read your fixed list and plan accordingly with their remaining 1000 or less points, you are able to do the same. My advice for newer players is to put your General, Core units, and non magic using or preventing characters in your fixed list. You usually want to use your Special and Rare choices to tailor your army as well as saving the points on a Dispel Scroll in case you face Dwarfs.

Beginners are also encouraged to participate, and are helped a little with the New Player Adjustment Rule. After the first two games new players to the league are allowed to alter their fixed lists once if they have lost their first two games. With the laid back system of playing 5 games and the extra rules to help new players, I think the GLWL is a great avenue to introduce new players to some competitive Warhammer.

For more information including how to sign up and the full rules, check out the homepage of the GLWL.

http://glwl.org/glwl.html