Gamers ready armies for Goonhammer Canada Open

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This article was published 29/09/2022 (1238 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

Two Brandon tabletop gamers are readying their armies for what is expected to be one of the biggest tournaments of its kind in Canada.

Corey Trumbley, manager of I Want That Stuff game store, and employee Logan Litzenberger will be joining around 80 other Warhammer 40,000 players from around Manitoba, Saskatchewan and the United States for the inaugural Goonhammer Canada Open in Winnipeg on Saturday and Sunday.

The tournament is also part of a larger series of international competitions run by the gaming organization Goonhammer that produces analytics, articles and reviews for Warhammer 40,000 — often referred to as Warhammer 40K — and other gaming platforms.

This isn’t just about playing for fun, Trumbley explained. The tournament will help teams and individual players earn points for national and international standings and therefore advance in the gaming circuits.

But at its heart, the competition is about reconnecting with fellow gamers, showing off army designs and learning new battle strategies.

“This is going to be one of the largest tournaments of its kind in the country, outside of Toronto and the West Coast,” Trumbley said. “It’s their first push at hosting what is called a ‘super major’ tournament in the competitive circles.”

While open to all Warhammer 40K players, Trumbley said the quality of players who come to these games is going to be high. Many have spent years building armies and playing in major tournaments, as well as smaller regional games. Whoever wants to refine their game strategy and advance in standings will be there. This is also a chance for newer players to learn from others.

All points earned at Goonhammer Canada will go toward the Independent Tournament Circuit for international standings, which culminates in a four-day contest in Las Vegas in February.

“We know some of the best players in Canada will be in Winnipeg to cement their final push for a spot at the Vegas tournament,” Trumbley said. “This is also a time for people to travel, meet new players, as well as elevate their game and earn some points.”

Both are bringing their Warhammer 40K armies: Trumbley’s Dark Angel Army and Litzenberger’s Chaos Demons.

For the competition, all players will receive a package outlining the sequence of missions in each round, explained Litzenberger. This isn’t an organized campaign, he added; it’s more about getting the highest possible score in an individual game and get the highest rankings overall for the tournament. They will know the missions going in, but not who the opposing player is until they meet. Individual players can pick an objective they will try to achieve during that game.

They will also have to tailor their strategies based on their opponent and their armies.

“There are some objectives you may not take, so you will have to shore up your offensive to shore up your strengths and counter their weaknesses,” said Trumbley.

However, players from the same team will not face each other in the first round. After that, they will play against their own team members in subsequent rounds.

Trumbley and Litzenberger are part of a larger gaming team called The Northern Front that covers most of Canada.

The Prairie provinces have experienced a boom in tabletop gaming, specifically Warhammer 40K. The pandemic played a role in that, Litzenberger said, as people searched for hobbies to pass the time under restrictions.

Other factors such as online games and forums, the participation of celebrities like Henry Cavill, social media and talk of a Warhammer TV series have kept the momentum going.

Warhammer 40K is a science-fiction and fantasy tabletop game by Games Workshop. Set in the far future, armies of superhumans and aliens battle each other for supremacy of the universe, while also combating gods and creatures from another dimension known as the Chaos Realm. The tabletop game involved manuals known as codex that provide back stories, characters, worlds, weapons, motivations and strategies. Players buy and design their own models, and they can customize them any way they want.

Trumbley said players invest a lot of time in designing and painting their models as well as building armies. People have their preferences, Litzenberger said, but it’s inspiring to see how others create their armies.

“I’ve seen converted armies online, and you want to try something like that yourself,” he said.

As well, companies like Games Workshop are heavily invested in analytics from tournaments to develop new missions and characters. People upload their results through apps and all of that gets sent to a central hub to help with future development.

More information on the Goonhammer Canada Open can be found at tinyurl.com/bdh6ecke and more on Warhammer40K can be found at warhammer40000.com.

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