Slitherine

Money well spent for 62 counted hours. Enjoyed it but there were times when I wanted something more from it, and felt game could have been more fleshed out. I won all missions on first try, by always destroying all enemies.

What game lacked:
1. Combat objectives
Currently total destruction was only thing that mattered. AI didn't care Capture point so I also didn't. Only walkt over them if it was near, or went to them to find rest of the missing Orks. It would have been more intresting to protect the generators providing power to Orbital relay. Or instantaneous lose if orks managed to actually capture 3 of 5 capture points in Defence mission. Protect and move Relics/important supplies with Rhino from A point to B and win. Or similar breakthrough mission through Orks lines and arrive to extraction point. Every few turns more orks would appear on sides.
2. Bland campaign story
I actually had to check from 40k wikipedia the information why Space Wolfs in Sanctus, what where the things like Scorched Knight. Almost total lack of background information. This made campaign feel like normal skirmishes. Small text info panel for units could have helped much. Heck, even talking head befriending you after each major mission would have had huge impression.
3. Lack of urgency
Or should I say lack of hurry in missions, there was no emergency feeling nor penalty in campaign if I failed in my missions. Also heavily tied with combat objectives.
4. Missed RPG potential
Squads leveling and gaining new skills was very nice, otherwise unit surnames wouldnt have mattered to me. Tried to level them to max until last mission, but in Hour of the Wolf campaign it somehow broke as I had 3 companies instead of 1 like in first campaing. And then in last mission I got 0 level Terminators instead off my previus battle hardened level 3-4 Termies, what a bummer. Also I never used Heroes them in Skirmishes as I trained / tried to get experience for my other troops.

Overall felt that here could have more improvement but things left out due to lack of further vision, and time of course.
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One game I would recommend who liked this game or even to developers, would be "Templar Battleforce". Very grimdark feel like, 2D, square turn based, leading squad of 6-9 into combat. And it had a very good story with talking head chats and few cheap cinematics. Easy rolemodel where story holds game till the end, and keeps urgency up in its missions.
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My thoughts summariced.

I have the same feeling about your thoughts, even in the tactical point of view I have some doubts (i.e. you can move at full speed and still able to fire twice) but I agree it is very fun to play!

Templar Battleforce was one tough game for me. I am afraid to go back to it!

Sorry to hear about problems with the second campaign regarding leveling up. I am not there yet.

But yes, fun game and I think it will be improved as sales seem fairly good.

I'd agree with a lot of that, Merkarri. I've played 57 hours and found I enjoyed the game the more I played.

Like you said, the Orks don't sit around much. Almost every scenario is a full on attack. Though it's not in their nature, teaching them to guard a position would be a nice change of pace. In all seriousness, knowing the AI will always attack is a huge tactical advantage - which isn't good in a tactical game.

Storyline was really, really bland. There is so much potential. I'm not familiar with the details of the 40k universe but playing Armageddon had me looking up backstory all the time. Sanctus... not so much. I found the campaign map could have been a lot better. Imagine if it were dynamic like Dune 2 (yeah I'm going way back). Instead of 3 identical skirmishes, how about when the player attacks one province, the orks attack/capture another? Then when you attack their secured province they have a defensive advantage. Maybe the missions could reflect the changing battlefield. The main campaign was also vague at times. When I went west early on, I was blocked from completing the last mission until I went back and finished the other two mission arcs. From the text I wasn't sure where I was supposed to go. Lastly, I had a mission where a certain someone was "laid out" shall we say, but in the next skirmish he was back in action.

Also, not sure if it's just me but the one track that plays during every mission has this high-pitched whine at one point that was quite noticeable. Background music usually becomes white noise to me but that sound seems to pierce my brain.

I do hope the game spawns a ton of content though. For an old school TT player like myself, this is like a second golden age: TW:W, Man O War, Battlefleet Gothic, Armageddon, Sanctus, Dawn of War.

For an old school TT player like myself, this is like a second golden age: TW:W, Man O War, Battlefleet Gothic, Armageddon, Sanctus, Dawn of War.

Yes, moreover in few months will be relased the WH40H TT 8th edition...maybe can be worth to use the plastic glue one more time