I was messing around with reserves squads, especially using the Voxyn Queen, and I kept running into the trouble that your starting squad is too weak, and sometimes you won't get enough reserves before the match ends to make up for that. Reserves seems to be very feast/famine. Either it works really well or kinda falls flat.

What then is everyone's thoughts on a piece that had guaranteed reserves instead of relying on an initiative check?

Obviously some differences from normal reserves would have to be implemented. You would probably want it to be a reserves for a specific piece, probably a relatively weak piece but maybe one that had some specific uses. To prevent an infinite MTB engine, you would probably want to make the piece brought in too valuable to sacrifice, but then that would mean you would need to make the initial piece a very high point value. Or you could make some sort of ability that prevented the reserves piece from being sacrificed to the MTB. It wouldn't be consistent with other reserves and reinforcements, but you could also make the pieces brought in count for points. Just some thoughts I was thinking while wishing that the Voxyn Queen cost less.

indeed, it can be very hit-or-miss,
and if your opponent has stuff that steals your reserves etc, it can get really messy.
if you do the probability combinatorics, making it auto-success by Turn 3 round 2 would be awesome.

A lot of folks would want it to be Turn 2, from Activation 1 onwards...
that's just a little too soon
alternately, from turn 2, it could be "call- even or odd, if the initiative roll is what you called it, you immediately get your reserves from all pieces", in the glossary definition.

I weight Reserves abilities which are not assured as a minor negative, -2pts to the overall cost of the mini.
precisely on the basis of "what are the odds this thing will even survive to use it?"

It's an issue with reserves in the first place. It's much better suited for a scenario game. In the competitive skirmish game it is either inconsistent and more often too weak (but feast or famine as you said), or broken. The bottom line is that it doesn't have a place in the competitive game, and it really shouldn't.

It's great for fun/theme squads, and scenario play. It just has to remain there.

No disrespect, but you are trying to fix something that is inherently broken. In my opinion delayed employment of any kind is bad for the game. It slows the game down, both in the actual stopping of the game to add something else, and in advantages to delay engagement. It's not good connected to init or built in.

I will say that there is a strange classification that would make some possible future abilities technically reserves - even though they wouldn't be connected to init, or built in as delayed (but assured) reserves.

A possible example would be this:


Even though it is not connected to init, and is done before the game starts - it is not reinforcements. It falls under reserves because there is a chance you may or may not get it, and your opponent would score points for killing those characters (where as reinforcements' cost is built into the character with the ability and the characters you bring in are not worth points to kill)


So I guess with this technicality - I am ok with this type of reserves. I am against anything based on init, or anything else that happens after the game starts.







In general - reserves focused pieces are overcosted on purpose. They are meant to be used for fun/themed games. Have fun with them in that manner. My advice - if you are building a competitive squad - ignore reserves entirely.



Also please keep in mind that my viewpoint above is solely about the competitive game. I am not against reserves pieces made for casual/fun/themed use. (Although Vset 13 did go overboard)