Warhammer is not a game of hidden knowledge. If your opponent asks you a question about your list or your army, it's up to you to answer that in the most accurate way possible. Understand the intent of the question and answer what they were asking. Like we have mentioned above, there is a library of rules to know, and knowing it all is very unlikely. However, with a base amount of knowledge, you and your opponent can ask the right kind of questions to avoid the dreaded "gotcha" moment! An excellent example of understanding intent is when someone asks about an ability to do something twice. If they ask, "do you have a spell that lets you move twice, like warp time?", the technically correct answer is "no." I play Tyranids and don't have a spell that lets me move twice. I do, however, have an ability from the Swarmlord that acts the same. They specified a spell, but the intent is clearly any ability that performs the same. Whether it is a stratagem, baked-in ability, or anything else, the intention is to know precisely how far you can move. Don't be that guy. Tell them what they need to know. Giving out more information than was asked for, and maybe even letting them know about odd things that could happen, will allow you to start to build trust. I'll use my faction as an example. Genestealer Cult has the most lengthy and in-depth pre-game shenanigans. I will go step-by-step through everything I'm going to do. "Do you understand the blip mechanics? I can pull blips back into ambush. These are my three warlord traits, some gain CP back, Vigilus detachment, adaptive physiology choice, multiple relics, stealers move 34." Anything I can do that is going to make my opponent feel cheated or lied to, I'm going to tell them off the hop, and I expect the same in return. With Psychic Awakenings coming out rapidly, I can't keep up with it all. Does your whole army have seven racial traits? Iron Hands, let me in on that knowledge.



3. Understanding Frustration

Psychology and biology time! Impulse control and emotional response are some of the key things that show a person's maturity. Children don't have impulse control, and neither do some adults. Don't feel superior yet, 'cause man, is it a challenge, one we probably deal with our whole lives. There are a variety of reasons we can get frustrated in-game: poor rolls on our part, excellent rolls for our opponent, making mistakes, or in the worst case, the opponent playing in a less than sporting way. We will start with the game-time disasters that we associate with the D6: everything from horrible saves, rerolling a one into a 1, or failing a short but necessary charge (did I mention I play GSC?) These things are out of our control. Still, they can get the blood pressure up when they persist. They can feel like you have been robbed of a well-deserved win. Of course, you didn't deserve to win. See above for more on that, but it certainly can feel that way. Keeping those emotions under control is important. Your opponent has zero effect on what is occurring, so your frustration exists but can't be directed anywhere useful. Sometimes all it takes is a quick word to your opponent: "I think you can understand my feelings. It's not directed at you, though. Just let me stew for a second, and we can carry on." This can quickly diffuse uncomfortable feelings. Making mistakes is a big one for myself personally. I have no problem if my opponent beats or outplays me, but I hate when I play poorly and hand my opponent the win. None of us are ever going to play the perfect game, but we can always work towards it. Making the big game-throwing mistake is a terrible feeling, but again this has nothing to do with our opponent. Our moment should not lead to an outburst or a reason for them to feel anxious. This especially goes to the big players in the community. If you are six foot plus and throwing a tantrum, and your opponent is 16 years old, it is more than just poor sports. You could be turning someone off from returning to events. Frustration happens, but it's our job as good sports and responsible adults to have self-control in public situations. Now the last point is when your opponent is not acting in a sporting way. This is a little harder to deal with. It can get frustrating very quickly when someone is starting to act the bully, or even just playing the game in a generally poor way. Sloppy movement, hidden dice rolls, fast dice, and anything similar: doing something about it can be, literally, a nightmare for an introvert, but hopefully a good judge and TO is there to make life easier. If you're one of the weirdos where confrontation doesn't scare the pants off you, then dealing with it yourself can also be tricky. How much of your response is standing up for yourself, and how much is just picking a fight? Be firm about the game being played correctly, but don't become a bully yourself.