Editing Infinity/N3 Tactics/General (section)

==Beginner Advice==
*'''Buy a starter box''': The starter boxes are small (typically 6-model) boxes that are about 150 points.  That's enough to get a feel for a faction, and give you a feel for the core rules of the game.  Movement, Line of Sight, Shooting, and Camouflage will come into play without it being too big of an issue.  Picking up a package of cardboard terrain (~$15 or so, cheaper online) will give you plenty for a small game, and can be expanded to a 4'x4' board with one or two more packages.
**The 2-player boxes are even better if you have someone to split it with. They include rules, terrain, and missions to get you up to speed on your own.
*'''Start at 150, then jump to 300''': When you decide to jump into the full game, go for 300 points.  It gives you a feel for the faction and will let you play with all the rules in the book.  You'll get some wrong, you'll get confused, but the rulebook and online wiki gives you the info you need to sort through it.  Other sizes of games (200 and 400) create wonky balance or gaps in factions that can be hard to spot right away.
*'''More Orders is easier...to a point''': When you jump up to 300 points, plan for 13-15 orders.  This will give you enough orders to accomplish things on the board, without starving you as your models get killed off. 
*'''10 order lists are hard mode''': At 300 points, 10 orders means that every lost order and every mistake is amplified.  You'll want to do this size a list because of all the fun toys, but don't fall into that trap (yet).
*'''Pick a couple stars, and support them''': Focus on one action piece (something fancy, or dangerous with an HMG), a couple mid-tier specialists, one or two reaction pieces (Sin Eater Observant, Total Reaction Bot with HMG) that can shoot well in your reaction turn, and order monkeys to pump actions into your action piece and specialists.
*'''Corners and Doors''': That's where they get you.  Peek out around corners enough to see a single target and shoot with as many bonuses and as many dice as possible.  Weight the odds in your favor instead of attempting risky shots that 'might' pay off.
*'''Paramedics can't heal''': Go for a doctor if you really want to try healing your multi-wound models when they go unconscious.  Paramedics are good for pushing buttons and tagging the HVT, but will kill your guys with their medkits more often than not.

If you're looking for a 'beginner friendly' faction, most are a good idea.  The proliferation of 300 point boxes may make it feel like they would also be a good jumping-in point, but they're probably not something you want to get as an initial purchase. Likewise, just because you're losing with a new faction repeatedly doesn't mean they're "bad" per-se. They just might not match your play style, or have units that look super enticing but act as gameplay traps that you might not be aware of yet.

Instead, here's a good list of what to avoid as a new player:
* '''JSA''' - the Uprising folks are a dynamic and...unstable army to play as.  They can be a lot of fun, but use a lot of finesse and combos that may be hard to immediately wrap your head around.  If you like the models, try something like Ikari Co. instead.
*'''Spiral Corps''' - These bad boys (and girls) have a completely different power curve to everyone else that looks like it'll be super interesting, but also hard to teach.  Consider vanilla Tohaa, or Combined Army instead.
*'''Druze''' - While a super fluffy army, and with access to some interesting toys and combos, they're a bit of a high skill cap army. Consider Ramah or Dhashat. Many players dislike their extreme lack of list flexibility and find them samey. They're also fragile.
*'''Shasvastii''' - These guys are amazing, but their ebb-and-flow sacrificial play style can be tricky to get feeling right.  Instead, try out Vanilla Combined (with some Shas troops).
*'''Military Orders''': Space knights are cool, but they're points-heavy, tricky to build lists for, and lack shiny toys. Their use requires a very risky, very calculated playstyle that emphasizes aggression in a game where overextending is a death sentence.