You’ve just opened your first set of boosters, and you have all these marvelous figures … what to do next? Before you can take to the field of battle, you must first assemble your forces.

Points Level

You and your enemy should decide on a starting points value. The rulebook recommends a maximum of 1000 points for a 30-45 minute game. This article will look at two points levels: 1000 and 500.

Hero Selection

Since your heroes determine your maximum number of minions, your first job is to decide on which heroes your army will include.

For 1000-point games, you should avoid spending much more than 500 points on heroes. Try to choose ones that have abilities that help your minions, like Battle Cry or Shot Caller.

Taking too many heroes can be dangerous, as you risk the chance of being overrun by superior numbers.

In a 500-point game, you should consider either taking a single hero and maximum minions, or all heroes. This is due to the fact that you will lose once you have lost half of your force.

Minion Selection

While quantity can be important, the limitation on the number of minions you can take ensures that you have to look at quality as well.

There are 3 basic classes of minions: fighters, archers and spearmen.

Fighters should generally make up the bulk of your force. It is easier to hit with them than it is with archers, and they can benefit from the special abilities that help minions in combat. Try to choose fighters with toughness 3 or 4, as they tend to live longer in combat.

Archers can be a tough call. They usually fill 2 roles; softening up the enemy or harassing enemy archers. If you intend to use them to soften up the enemy, you should take 3-5. If you just want to protect your warriors from enemy archers, 2-4 is best. Some armies rely on no archers at all, so it's up to you.

Spearmen have a great special ability that lets them support the warrior directly in front of them by giving them +1 attacks. This lets them contribute to the combat without being at risk themselves. In a 1000-point army, you should take a few spearmen, with 3-6 being about right.

Those are the basics, but the bottom line is that you are in charge! Keep your play style in mind while you build your force, so that you will enjoy playing it even more.