Hej, it might sound like a stupid question, but i would like to understand why fireteams have to be so complex and complicated? - there are so many different types which can even have the same size. - the naming seems complicated - it is complicated to form a fireteam due to the different types and requirements to fit - … how does that come? Is that for reasons of legacy, balancing or just madness?:) thanks P.S: i like fireteams and their tactical impact a lot but not the rule-overload…
So, the good news is that for the vast majority of factions, fireteams actually aren't as complicated as they initially seem. If you aren't playing a Sectorial List (or Tohaa), you can't make fireteams, so you don't need to worry about them. If you are playing a Sectorial, you've got 3 options: Duo, Haris, and Core. Cores are the most common, consisting of 2-5 members. You can only have 1 Core. Haris Fireteams consist of 2-3 members, and are likewise limited to only 1. Duo Fireteams consist of 2 members, but you can have as many as you want. Fireteams consist of the same unit unless a special rule (such as Wildcard) permits. Fireteams also give bonuses to their members depending on how many members the Fireteam has. For MOST factions, that's all you need to know. There are some factions (ISS, Military Orders...) where they have complicated restrictions, and some factions (Steel Phalanx, Tohaa, Spiral Corps) that follow VERY different rules altogether, but for most factions just building a Core and Haris is enough.
Fireteams are a legacy from N2 & N3 building on the framework of a Core Fireteam with Haris, Triad (originally called Fireteam: Tohaa), Enormoustacos, and Duo being added in later, then Wildcards, Can Join, and Counts As slowly spreading through the various factions over time. As the note in the Fireteams rules says they were pretty much ported into N4 with minimal modification and are due to be revisited. From recent seminars and Studio Updates they're looking at revamping them in 2022.
Looking at legacy Fireteams, they used to be a lot simpler - if the unit on the table had the same troop name (e.g. Keisotsu Yuriko Oda had Keisotsu in the name and could join Keisotsu fireteams), you could join them up in a fireteam provided that troop was at all allowed. Every sectorial could have a core and several duos, but basically only Qapu Kalkqi had Haris and Duo was fairly uncommon skill. Wildcards didn't exist outside of Hafza and special fireteams were very rare. Mostly I think they did this to balance sectorials by providing bonuses instead of trying to mimic the mechanisms that balance generic factions.
Maybee (obiously), regarding the complexity of game mechanics, i simplfy to much, but: i would think creating a simple ruleset for fireteams which works for each sectorial and all their troops in the same way, would keep the balance as it is… im not sure if adding complexity to balance complexity is the best way - anyway in point of game experience an game play i don‘t like this kind of complexity in fireteams! Although i really like the idea of fireteams and wahr you can do with… anyway ;) Don't ask me, because I don't know why But it's like that, and that's the way it is ;)
Right now the most simple Fireteam is Triad, for Tohaa. You just take three miniatures with the rule in their profile and group them together. Done.
Haris and Duo have gotten to that level as well, but allowing only the same unit to join, it's just that they often have hanger-ons without the skill
