I can chill. Some random dude calling for the thread to be deleted so that CB doesn't have anything to react to is just not cool.
I poke my head in this morning and wow, just wow ... CB's marketing and community-relations people really need to step up their game. If these rumors are true, we shouldn't have heard about it via a third-party leak. If they're not true, CB should have already stepped in and said so. There's no reason to allow your forums to degenerate into this sort of doomsday speculation. If you need to axe certain product lines to make room for new shit, that's fine, but just be up front about what's going on so players who have forked over their $$$ to you over the years aren't left wondering whether their armies are going to be viable in the new edition. This is not hard.
Here's a thought on the topic of "can't they just keep them alive?" Maybe CB doesn't want Haqq to have access to Sniper and HMG MSV2 in the way Djanbazan enables. Maybe CB wants to retire the Az'rail from Haqq and slim down the selection of HI in general without diverting resources to both reinvent Az'rail and to also develop the legacy sectorial around it. It is possible that CB wants to reduce the duplication of basic light infantry that happens because of Regulars and Fusiliers by removing one of them. Potentially CB wishes to take Pan-O in a different direction than what Bagh-Mari represents so that there's no room for them in vanilla any longer. There is a possibility that Scylla and Nagas will find a new role in their home sectorials and CB wants to develop further on those without also juggling with a legacy sectorial. MRRF could perhaps represent a direction they didn't quite want to take with Ariadna, leading to duplication of abilities that they want to push further in existing sectorials. Perhaps they have plans to rotate in MRRF at a later stage, but now transformed significantly and having a legacy sectorial with similar units would encroach on such plans. What if CB has plans for Spiral Corps to become a more important player and have an expanded range where the role of Ectros is replaced with a mixed human-Tohaa regiment carrying weapons that the old Ectros just doesn't have. What if Swiss Guard and Locusts are planned to feature in Svalarheima, but with changed abilities that just doesn't work if they also exist in another sectorial. But can't they make a new faction called "Legacy Armies" or "[insert year here] Armies"? Sure, but would it still be worth it to maintain these, play test around them, and so on when it is not something that brings income to CB and fewer and fewer players play? More importantly, does that actually fit with the mission objectives that are ITS? What's stopping you from using those sectorials for non-ITS games, similar to running 20x20 events? Unless they make significant changes, which it doesn't seem like they'll do, it should be possible to translate abilities and hopefully the power curve won't be too out of whack. Maybe the community could maintain the legacy sectorials on the forums or in a separate mobile app?
I was thinking about old Aleph Toolbox recently, and how we could use it - or create a new builder - to experiment with unofficial, fan-made armies. I'd very much like to see if my ideas what could be done with MO is viable and balanced, and I'm sure others have their own pet projects as well.
There's nothing absolutely tying Djanbazan to MSV2. Their rules are only locked into HMG, MSR, SMR and a Hacker if I remember correctly. They can, keeping that be reworked into anything. Nagas don't have to stay in Acontacimento, Acontacimento can have their own alternative, such as Croc Men or something of the sort. Units don't have to stay identical even in gear, they did that with Knights of Santiago. Older models, everyone understood that, even if they could have kept their BSG profile. A cutting of wholse sectorials seems to only be there to stimulate more buying and remove extra effort they would need to put into balancing them. But that even isn't a massive issue, Bagh Mari, Akals, Montesa see rather limited play in vanilla, not exactly limiting anything. Just an ordinary drop troop, biker without any competition as a really fast attack model and a mimetic HMG, almost identical to the Kamau HMG in function. There's multiple alternatives to these problems and axing seems like the worst possible way of resolution.
The Polish community is so competetive I don't see anyone allowing homebrew N4 Tohaa in events. Especially with the "OP / broken" rep it has. I barely see anyone playing for "just for fun", it's always ITS events left,right and center :(
I honnestly think CB's only interest in not updating sectorials would be to save the updating cost (which is not negligeable if you consider proper play testing and QC And please don't say "I don't need play testing" when talking about ITS, whole clunky unavailable to buy faction at an official tournament, even if only optional, is everything but fair). Therefor I think that a properly made homebrew could actually get an official release in the end, emphasis put on properly. There is no guarantee this will happen, either on our end or theirs, but the possibility is here.
Guys, tomorrow our communication head will make an statement. Thank you for your patience and stay calmed, please.
Exhibit B for this rumor being fake news... They'd have to be higher than giraffe ass to release new Kaplan sculpts the same month they announce intent to kill their original sectorial. ETA ninjaed by Koni...ty bro
Thanks, glad to see you guys react. Bostria's post on his private FB comes off across really cheeky, borderline trolling. Don't panic or panic? Part of the fun? Enjoy the ride? Could be cultural difference, dunno, but I'm way more glad for Koni's statement here. I really hope that there's a plan and that the plan is not to leave players and their armies behind. I hope the "end of 2020, look back and smile" is not another "Kriza Boracs soon" in 2013.
What did you expect? Bostria is terrible at his job and has a bad habit of pissing off his customers. More news at 11.
is it possible, just for a moment, to imagine a world in which this situation isn't life or death? That Bostria is having a bit of fun over metal dollies?
The same situation usually meant worst case scenario in terms of Infinity. We'll see if this will continue the trend.