House Rules and Clarifications

So last year, our Mordheim campaign was run relatively restricted. We only allowed official warbands, core mordheim rules (no optional rules), and using shield 5+ save with 'hand weapons' (Swords, axes, clubs).

I am organising Mordheim to restart again, and this time I'm running it so get a bit more freedom with what rules I can use.

So I am looking for what peoples oppinions are on a few things.

1. Shield 5+ save in combat
Last season, I ran it strictly as per 7th ed rules, only 'hand weapons' got the bonus. This time, I am looking at any single handed weapon. Morning stars for example, seem a tad overcosted for +1 str in first round, and can only be combod with a shield. Spears don't seem to be fluffwise, something that would get the bonus however.
Do people usually just run it as a "One handed weapon combod with a shield" or stick by the fantasy hand weapon ruling?

2.Optional Critical Hits rules
Do people find the Optional Critical hits in the Mordheim rulebook to be better/worse/sameish as the regular critical hit table?

3. Optional Blackpowder
Does it make Blackpowder weapons better or worse? 2 results are bad (exploding in face, cant use for rest of battle), 1 result is same as just missing, 2 results are good (Don't need to reload) and 1 result is great. Does it make Blackpowder more useable or less useable?

4. Mordheim Annual Items
Oppulent Goods look alright. Swordbreaker would be the only weapon im concerned about. How have people found the Items from the Annual. Are there any to watch out for. How do they combo with the shield bonus.

5. Mordheim Annual Academic Skills
How do people rate the Academic skills? Are there any combo's to be careful for, are they well thought out?

6. Blazing Saddles
I don't think people will go for mounts, but how will this affect the game if I just say it's included?

So yeah, if people could give their oppinions on the fairness/balance of some of the optional/extended rules out there, it'd be appreciated..

Thanks.

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1. Shield 5+ save in combat
Last season, I ran it strictly as per 7th ed rules, only 'hand weapons' got the bonus. This time, I am looking at any single handed weapon. Morning stars for example, seem a tad overcosted for +1 str in first round, and can only be combod with a shield. Spears don't seem to be fluffwise, something that would get the bonus however.
Do people usually just run it as a "One handed weapon combod with a shield" or stick by the fantasy hand weapon ruling?

Our campaign runs it as per 6th & 7th Warhammer

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.Optional Critical Hits rules
Do people find the Optional Critical hits in the Mordheim rulebook to be better/worse/sameish as the regular critical hit table?

I was a bit leery of these before we tried them. Now we've used them for 6 or more years and no one has suggested we go back.

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3. Optional Blackpowder
Does it make Blackpowder weapons better or worse? 2 results are bad (exploding in face, cant use for rest of battle), 1 result is same as just missing, 2 results are good (Don't need to reload) and 1 result is great. Does it make Blackpowder more useable or less useable?

We only use them when forced. My gut says if you always used them blackpowder weapons see less use.

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4. Mordheim Annual Items
Oppulent Goods look alright. Swordbreaker would be the only weapon im concerned about. How have people found the Items from the Annual. Are there any to watch out for. How do they combo with the shield bonus.

We use some of them all the time (rabbits foot) and most of them never get used.

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. Mordheim Annual Academic Skills
How do people rate the Academic skills? Are there any combo's to be careful for, are they well thought out?

They do not seem to have been playtested or well thought out. Tactician and its abuse has caused more uncivil arguments in our group than dwarves or Shadow Warriors. We don't use Tactician. We rarely use any of the them anymore.

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6. Blazing Saddles
I don't think people will go for mounts, but how will this affect the game if I just say it's included?

While I love mounted models in Mordheim and the various settings that players have developed, the Blazing Saddles rules seem to have been specifically written with the intention of making mounts difficult and dangerous to use. Why they went to all the bother makes me think they were written and released, not playtested. We use highly simplified versions and have a good time.

Hand Weapon - I agree, with any hand weapon, you gain an extra plus +1 in combat. This pretty much means anything in that player's hand outside of a second shield (so no, you can't carry a shield in both hands for a +4 save.)

Crit Tables - Our group just introduced the +2 shield rule, and while I think it's a keeper, the only that that doesn't make it TOO great of a bonus is the crit tables. The optional ones are lots of fun, and full of flavor. The bladed table is the most powerful though, so I'd recommend nerfing the crits on DAGGERS and daggers only (ex. roll on Bladed, with a -1 result).

Blackpowder- if you're using the Blackpowder misfire rules, drop the costs 20%, as they mention. This makes everything a much cheaper option, balancing out the lack of stability. (ex. pistols are 12 each, blunders 24, handguns 28.)

1. Shields are nearly useless under the core rules, making them a 5+ save makes them better, but not better then 2 weapons. I think this is a good change my group plays with it.

2. Optional Criticals are cool, but they make the game longer until you memorize them.

3. Black Powder the rules are that much of a change, except now you have to remember them. Usually they are not that big of a change in game play.

4. Rabbit's feet are the best reroll in the game. They are the best item you can get for the price. Don't be surprised when you see everyone's heroes each with one. I've never played with the sword breaker so I would have to review their rules.

5. Hunch and any senario you have to check-out buildings. It is poorly worded, so it can be abused.

6. Mounts are speed boosters and death traps. You don't want to get into any combat on horseback. The problem is that you have to waste skills to do things you can normally do one the ground, all you get is increased speed, +1 armor and different much more brutal wounding chart.

someone2040 wrote:

1. Shield 5+ save in combat
Do people usually just run it as a "One handed weapon combod with a shield" or stick by the fantasy hand weapon ruling?

I like using this rule. In my circle we play that it is any weapon that does not have the "2 handed" special rule.

someone2040 wrote:

2.Optional Critical Hits rules
Do people find the Optional Critical hits in the Mordheim rulebook to be better/worse/sameish as the regular critical hit table?

We use them, but where there was a result that was "ignore armour saves and do other stuff" we removed the 'ignore armour saves' bit to make armour a bit tougher.

someone2040 wrote:

3. Optional Blackpowder
Does it make Blackpowder more useable or less useable?

By and large it makes them worse. *Definitely* use the 20% discount. Because we use this and the Swordbreaker we made a house rule that any weapon that needs a rare roll to purchase can be repaired for half price. If the weapon costs 100 gold or more then it can be repaired for 1/3 of the starting price.

someone2040 wrote:

4. Mordheim Annual Items
Oppulent Goods look alright.

Opulent goods are all fine. I would suggest house-ruling that Toughened leathers be declared a form of light armour and available to anyone that has light armour on their list. They are very handy for a cheap piece of armour that gives you a 5+ save vs daggers early in the game. Rabbit's feet and Tarot cards help people get to the fun items a bit earlier in the campaign than they otherwise would, but not in an overpowered way and has certainly never been seen as a problem for us. All the other items have their place and generally get used late-mid to late game. See above for the repairing rule for dealing with the sword-breaker.

someone2040 wrote:

5. Mordheim Annual Academic Skills
How do people rate the Academic skills? Are there any combo's to be careful for, are they well thought out?

Tactician is very potent, and helps to nerf the Orcs a bit as they are one of the few warbands who's leader cannot get tactician. Hunch is very handy for limiting the exclusivity of the Skaven Infiltrate skill. It allows only 3 instead of the skaven 6, but you get to put yours down before they get to put theirs down so very handy for limiting where they are allowed to infiltrate to. Noone I know has ever taken Scribe, but it could conceivably be handy if your caster got a high-difficulty spell and you were only playing a short-medium campaign. Mind Focus and Magical aptitude are fine. I play Marienburg and Orcs so I don't get to use any of the magic skils, but I have no problem playing in campaigns that use them.[/quote]

someone2040 wrote:

6. Blazing Saddles
I don't think people will go for mounts, but how will this affect the game if I just say it's included?

Not particularly useful in Mordheim or Lustria, but very handy in Empire in Flames and Relics of the Crusade.

Thanks for the replies so far.

In regards to optional blackpowder rules. I didn't mention it, but if we used them, we would definately be using the discount as well. To me they're basically part of the same rule! (But I can see why it caused a little confusion, as it's a suggestion to an optional rule).

Clarification time.

So hammer of Sigmar, caused us much grief last season. The player originall ran it weirdly, then his warband was super powerful and basically rolled through everything (Especially when he got good stat upgrades, and his hammer decreased in difficulty).

So I'm a tad confused by it.

Is it a physical weapon that the wielder uses in one hand? If so, do the stat increases only apply to attacks made with the Hammer, or to all attacks made?
If the hammer is a physical weapon and the ability is to all attacks made, the hammer itself is just a deadweight arm with no benefits (no cutting edge/concussion/parry, just a better dagger).

Edit2:
How would people in general feel, if I implemented a house rule that states Frenzy gives +1 attack rather than doubling. I've both seen and heard the atrocities that frenzy can make. Last season said Witch Hunter warband managed to get a frenzied flagellant, which meant things generally didn't look pretty.
I've also heard about frenzied super ghouls.
Frenzy has been +1 in warhammer for so long now, and doesn't seem like it would suddenly make having Frenzy unbearable. Has anyone ever tried something similar or had issues with Frenzy?

The Hammer of Sigmar is just a buff to the Warrior Priests attacks, (all of them). It is not a single magic weapon.

Frenzy=+1 attack. We did this so long ago I'd forgotten it wasn't a rule.