Dawn of a new age

With all the excitement surrounding the recent news about upcoming sets, chase figure dials and that stunning Iron Man/War Machine sculpt, Wizkids' fairly low-key (and lengthy) announcement about new tournament formats has faded into the background.

I'm guilty of this; I skimmed it a few days ago and assumed it was simply the new owners renaming restricted/unrestricted as Golden Age and Modern Age. On further reading it is more than that, it's a strong indication of the way the game is likely to develop - and it's pretty exciting as far as I'm concerned.

In a nutshell the two formats are:

Golden Age

• Anything goes, any figures, maps, feats BFCs and bystanders you want to play.
  

Modern Age

• Only figures from Avengers onwards
  
• Sets will rotate out every year, with a set typically staying legal in Modern Age for two years
  
• All colour-coded maps are legal
  
• No BFCs, feats or event dials may be used
  

It's that last point that's got me excited. When feats were created they went a long way to allowing you to play a more accurate version of a character that couldn't be represented through the use of standard powers. However, I believe the creation of the 'white power' mechanic rendered the use of feats unnecessary in terms of playing a comic-accurate figure and in some ways made feats even more open to abuse.

Wizkids says a key reason for not allowing the use of feats and BFCs in Modern Age is because it wants to return the game to a state where what matters is what is on the map - and I love this idea. One of the things that drew me to the game was the fact every piece of information you needed about a miniature was there on the dial. Modern Age players will still need character cards, but won't have to worry about keeping track of a dozen-or-so feats between them and their opponent.

Wizkids has said it will continue to support feats and BFCs, and create them, but I suspect we will be seeing fewer new ones than we did under the old regime.

The company has also said Organised Play kits will contain suggestions for tournamant formats, but organisers should feel free to run the games they want to - so Modern Age with feats is OK by them too.

Personally, I like the idea of playing some - but by no means all - my games to the formal Modern Age rules. Who'll join me?