Why do you play?

It’s Friday night and our group has gathered for our weekly game of Warhammer 40,000. In between dice rolls I pause and survey the room. I’m stuck by the players we have gathered here; while we are all playing the same game, we all come at it in very different ways. You could say our gaming group runs the full spectrum of this hobby.

The Tactician

To him the greatest enjoyment to be had is finding devastating combinations of units and following them with solid tactics. The point of the game is to have fun and winning is fun. When you play him you know you’re in for the fight of your life because not only does he know his army inside and out, but he probably knows yours too.

The Collector

He had just started building his first army (Space marines) when the new Chaos Marines came out. He had to have them. Two weeks after the codex came out he had a brand new army pledging allegiance to Grandfather Nurgle. When the new Eldar codex came out we had to restrain him and take away internet access to keep him from spending his mortgage money. With so many excellent models he always has his eye out for his next purchase.

The Painter

In the fluff the Blood Angels are the most beautiful and cultured of all Space Marines to behold and this extends onto our table top. Winning isn’t his highest priority (but never take him for granted) but you won’t catch him without a new model to show off. Having cut his teeth on War Master and 15mm minis the switch to 28mm has let him go crazy on the details that Games Workshop is known for and his army is always the best looking on the board.

The Ork

Ork players love their armies like no one else; it’s almost like there is a bit of green skin  in their DNA. Crashing a squad of Boyz into close combat is the highlight of his night because it means he gets to roll handfuls of dice. The more dice he gets to roll the happier he is. We’ve almost gotten used to him screaming “WWWWAAAAAAGGGGHHHH!!!”at the top of his lungs half way through the night… almost.

The Socialite

It’s not winning he cares about so much as making sure everyone has a good time. Telling jokes we can’t get away with around our families? Check. Singing Brittney Spears at one in the morning? Check. Getting to spend time with his friends is the most important thing for him but watching his Tyranid swarm devour the unwary is a close second.

So then where does that leave me?

The Story Teller

I love a good story. I’m not as worried about my record as I am about seeing awesome things happen on the table. Watching a squad slog through a hail of bolter fire to barely hang on to an objective, or seeing two massive characters duel to the death in single combat is why I play. Some truly epic moments have been had as my Stealth Suits dug in and held off waves of Hormagaunts while I desperately tried to recover an ancient relic. Giving a running narrative of the heroic exploits of the previous night takes up much of my next morning at work.

So that’s the beauty of this game we play. We all come for different reasons; crushing opponents, scratching the itch to collect beautiful miniatures, painting those beautiful miniatures, sluggin it out with da boyz, and weaving an epic tale of conquest. This hobby has room enough for all of our motivations and tastes while still letting us get together as friends and play the same game for a few hours every week.

… and maybe some impromptu belting out of Justin Timberlake around 11 o’clock at night. Because after all, if you’re not having a good time you’re doing it wrong!

So why do you play? What drives you to roll dice while pushing around tiny metal/plastic/resin people?