You found a game you are interested in, and decided that you want to get into it. Outstanding! I would hope this game would have a local community of players who are active, but sometimes I realize you might want to play a game that no one else does simply because you like it. Maybe you just like the models? Regardless of the reason, you selected a game, and now it is time to choose a force within that game that you are going to use.
If you have never played the game before, I would highly recommend you find a way to do so before making the investment. Gaming IS an investment, in both time and money, and it is important that you know it is going to be a worthwhile one before you follow through. Over the years I have bought into several games on a whim, or because it was the 'next big thing' at my local store. Usually I played at least one game, and then picked up enough stuff to play, and just kept buying. It was rare that I still played it six months later. I was sold on the hype, the newness, and ended up with a bunch of minis for a game I was not that interested in, not to mention a serious case of buyers remorse.
So, lets say you have played the game a few times. There is regular group of players locally that you have access to. The next step is to try out a few different factions in your game. I can not speak for every group, but most are very anxious to get new players interested in the hobby. That is one of the things I enjoy most about it, the sense of community. Chances are you will have several players with several different factions. Look them over. You should have a copy of the rules already, and that should give you an overview of what options you have. Look at the figures. Ask questions. If they are willing, maybe try playing a game with whatever faction you are interested in. Take the time to be sure what you want to play.
Some key points to consider here:
- Do you like how the models look? - You are going to be spending long hours assembling and painting these figures, so if something bothers you with the aesthetics of the model, or the fluff (background or story) of the faction, you might want to try something else.
- Is it an Elite, Regular, or Horde force? - Elite armies tend to be fairly small in model count. They are the best of the best, so there are not many of them. Hordes tend to be of lower quality in the game, or have some sort of serious disadvantage game-wise, so there are a LOT of models. Regular forces are generally a balance of the two. Model count determines cost. Elite armies are less expensive, but if you do not LIKE it (and so you do not play with them) the whole investment is wasted.
- Do other players at the store play the same force? - This has advantages and disadvantages. Some games have so few factions that doubling up is not a bad thing. You can trade parts and unused models with another player, or maybe pick some up on the cheap from them. Other times, if you like two forces about equally, having diversity in the community is a good thing. In the end, though, it is your decision. If you are sold on one faction, go with it, regardless of who else might also be playing it.
Now, its story time. I will relate to you how I made some gaming decisions of my own, and what I learned from it. The rest of this article is made up of my personal experiences with choosing a force for games I have played, which is what shaped this article.
Warhammer 40,000:
As I posted in an earlier article, I first saw 40k being played before I really knew what it was. My next experience with it was in 2001 in Colorado Springs. We had gone to eat Chinese that night, and next door to the restaurant was a hobby store,
Gamers Haven. While looking around, I noticed they stocked the game I saw when I was a kid, so I asked about it. They were extremely helpful, explaining how it worked, various factions, and showing me examples of painted armies. Rob, the owner, even took the time to set up a mini game for me so I could see how it worked.
I played with a squad of Blood Angels Space Marines against a Mob of Orks. It was fun! I liked the models, the colors, the mechanics of the game, all of it. Over the next few weeks, when I went into the store, I looked at the various Armies. I looked it up online, and saw what forces were available. Finally, I settled on the Blood Angels. I liked the jet packs and the Death Company (a special unit made up of models picked from squads that are like berserkers). They were fairly elite, so cost would be low. Still, the Tau were brand new, and I really liked how they had a "protoss" (from Star Craft) feel to them. Battle armor, drones, and the look of their armor all appealed to me.
In the end, being between jobs and broke meant I did not buy either. I went back to Battletech, which I already had books and minis for, and mostly forgot about 40k again. Then, a few years later, a friend that owed me some money gave me a box full of 40k figures to pay his debt off. I figured I could sell them off, and he was on hard times, so it worked out. They were Space Wolves, one of the Space Marine factions I was interested in but decided against because I was into medieval recreation at the time, and they had a bit too much of a "viking" feel to them.
So off I went down to the other local game store,
Compleat Games & Hobbies, and when the group played I showed up to sell my figures. I figured, someone would be interested in them, so I could make some money on the whole thing. Turns out, no one was interested, but since the group was new they were starting up a league in the next few weeks. I could easily play with what I had, all I needed was a rulebook. They had one on the used shelf, which I picked up, and next thing you know, I am playing Warhammer 40,000. That was in the Fall of 2003.
I would go on to play 40k regularly for six years, and only finally sold off the last of my models last year (2012). I ended up playing several different armies over that time (Tau, Necrons, then Tau again, as well as a 'home made' Space Marine chapter). Still, the Space Wolves were my primary army. A very good friend of mine had been a long time Space Wolf player and he gifted me with quite a few vintage figures, which I still have. He died last year, so I kept the models he gave me, as well as a few others, so I guess technically I am still able to play (though I consider myself out of that particular game).
Sometimes, you pick your force. Other times, your force picks you. There were no space wolf players at the store when I started. I had a bunch of models already. My friend played, and had a bunch of extra figures. Plus, I got into the fluff of the army.. who doesnt like giant armored space vikings? All of these things contributed to an army for a game I no longer play, but I still keep, because of the connection I built to it.
Warhammer Fantasy:
This was 40k's 'sister' game. Basically the medieval/fantasy version. Our gaming group at
Compleat was talking about starting up a beginners league, similar to the one that got me hooked with 40k, that most of my friends were playing in. It was a chance for the long-time players to start playing again, as well as a good excuse for the rest of us to start a new game. So, there was an enthusiastic group of players and a prime opportunity to get into it as a beginner.
When looking over the armies available, my friend (and in-game rival), Mike, sold me on an army with a single phrase. "Deathwing with an 18 inch charge." To translate that, it means a highly elite force, that is heavily armored, that is very fast (speed is usually the Achilles heel of elite armored forces). Next thing you know, I am starting a Bretonnian force.
In this case, I did not exercise good judgement. First, I was already heavily invested in 40k. I was dividing my time between the two games, leaving me less time to really focus (and finish up projects) for either. My plate was way too full. Second, while I did go with a very elite force, it needed a horde to support it to be effective. This meant if I wanted to have a chance at winning games, I needed to buy even more figures. Third, while I liked the late medieval British/French look they had, I still wanted to do some heavy modification to them to get them how I wanted them.
The end result was an army I played maybe a dozen games with over the course of a year, then sold off for much less than I paid just to get my money back. I had assembled them well, but never even managed to get them primed for painting. The game itself had flaws that I found difficult to overlook at the time, and I was burned out on the "win big / loose big" way I played. There were few close games for me.. they were wrapped up in a few turns, one way or the other.
Warmachine:
As the interest in 40k and Fantasy died down, this was the next league that got started up at
Compleat. You may be noticing a pattern. Still, I had a friend at work who was looking to get into it and had a rulebook to give me. After spending a week reading the rules and looking at the armies, I decided to give it at try. It was still a fairly new game, established enough that it was going to be around, but not so established it was daunting for a new player.
There were only four factions at the time. I was torn between two of them (Khador and Cygnar), but one of the other players at the store was running Khador, so I decided against that. It was a small group still, and there were no Cygnar players. Turns out, this was a good decision, as the strategy and tactics fit my play style better. The look was what really got me interested. I had played Final Fantasy 6 (FF3 for the SNES) as a kid, and Cygnar really had that 'feel' about it. The turn of the century soldiers mixed with magic and steam-driven technology. They also had decent colors (Blue and Gold).
Cygnar is a regular style force, with a mix of elite and horde, and needed a certain mindset to play. I did well with them, almost winning the league (I think, I know I did fairly well). However, the way I used them was not popular with some players, which undercut my enjoyment in the game. To be effective (and to win points in the league) I had to use them how I felt was best, which many considered to be 'cheap' or 'cheesy'. However, this is nothing I could of known at the time I was choosing my army, as everything I read was pretty clear that ANY army could be broken in such a fashion. It was how they designed the game.
I eventually sold off my collection to pursue another hobby (reenactment, in this case), but a recent Kickstarter project for a Warmachine video game that I picked up carried with it a great deal on the new starter boxes, so I picked one up. It was cheap, the models were plastic (the old ones were metal, and very expensive), and I still like the look even if I am not terribly interested in the game itself.
Flames of War:
While playing another game at
Gamers Haven I noticed several gentlemen setting up a very big table with some very nice looking terrain. That got my interest, especially the detail they were putting into setting up rivers, buildings, and hills so that it looked like a modern battlefield. I went over to look after my game, and it turned out they were playing a WW2 miniatures game. It was a smaller scale than the games I was playing (15mm rather than 28mm), and they had some amazing detail in the figures. After talking for awhile, I was invited to come back next week when they set up a large multi-player scenario and I could join in (I would of played then but was on my way elsewhere).
In that game, I got to play a platoon of US armor and some artillery units as a part of a general allied offensive against the Germans, set in the later years of WW2. I was hooked. The game mechanics were clean and easy to pick up, the models were smaller (thus, cheaper), and I have always been interested in history. Next step was to choose a force to play.
Some things were covered by the group. The game is broken into periods of the war, and Late War (1944-1945) was the primary one being played. I could go with any of the major powers (US, British, German, and Russian). All appealed to me except the British. While I was looking over the rules and armies, another friend, Randy, was also interested in the game. We considered picking up the starter set, which was US and German, and he wanted to play the Germans. We never did pick that set up, but I got a rulebook and a few sourcebooks, and continued to consider armies. Until then, I bought a single model that I really liked the look of, the
Königstiger (German for Bengal Tiger, though we call it the King Tiger/Tiger II).
In the end it was the considerations above that sold me on Germany. I liked the look of their tanks! Cost was also a heavy factor in my decision, and German armor was the elite, so I would only need a few tanks. Already owning one King Tiger I found the list that used that tank and started checking around. No one else played a Schwere Panzerkompanie (Heavy Tank Company), so I decided on that. The look, the cost, and the uniqueness (especially for a game with so many different factions). It was another win big/loose big list, which has its own stigma in games, but I had a very different mindset with my gaming at this point.
That force has since expanded into a variety of other German armies, as one of the things I like about Flames of War is that you can use your units in a variety of different configurations. I still have my King Tigers, and bring them to the table every now and then. But, that start kept me interested in the game, and motivated to build and paint, which in turn maintains my interest and motivation. That is part of why I feel it is very important to put that time and effort into your first force in any game. 
