by Peter Atkinson

It’s taken a while to pull this one together, but to wrap up our coverage of June’s Sydney Slaughter we’ve got an interview with the two winners of Best Opponent at the event, Brogan Clark and Katie Daly. It’s an aspect of the game that deserves to be celebrated more, so I was delighted to see Slaughter award two prizes in this area, and equally delighted that Brogan and Katie were happy to discuss how they go about creating a great experience for both players, every time.

The format is that the bits in bold are me yapping on, with Brogan and Katie’s comments below, and photos of both players’ beautiful armies interspersed.

Ready? Let’s go.

Congratulations on picking up the Best Opponent awards at Slaughter!  I’m a big believer that it’s a really important award, so it’s great to see a large event celebrating good sportsmanship with multiple awards. 

Is this the first time you’ve won one of these, or have you won one before? 

Brogan: Thank you so much! I can see the irony in a best opponent bragging here, but I’ve proudly won two runner up Best Opponent and two Best Opponent awards at Sydney Slaughter.

Katie: Thank you! This is my first time getting an award like this and I was really quite surprised. Voting for best opponent was probably the hardest decision I made at Sydney Slaughter, I had so much fun in every single game and it means a lot that my opponents had a great time in our games as well.

Best Opponent Bragging, huh? Well since you raise the subject, here’s a couple of my own Sportsmanship trophies, but only if we’re already talking about it of course.

What does a good, enjoyable game look like to you? 

Brogan: An enjoyable game for me is an experience that includes both sides of the table. The opponents turn up to the table with equally prepared armies and minds that are set for a challenge and fun. 

The players know how their armies work, so the game is allowed to flow smoothly, which should create room for the additional banter and moments of bonding between players.

Katie: A good game at an event really needs proper preparation from both players for things to run smoothly and avoid stressful time crunches. I love a bit of banter but I do have to keep an eye on the clock or I can get a bit carried away. Winning is never really a priority for me, the enjoyment for me comes from a closely-fought battle, sharing the excitement of the match with my opponent and learning about a different army or faction. You know it’s been a good game when you and your opponent are both cheering each other on and celebrating and commiserating together as the game plays out.

You know that’s a really good point: being right across your rules really liberates your mental energy, and then the game can find its own rhythm.  So is being a good opponent something you proactively work on, or do you just let it flow? 

Brogan: I believe it’s allowed to flow once you’ve prepared adequately for the event. I find that negative play experience can be found in opponents that don’t know their armies or the specifics of the missions at the event people are playing at. 

People don’t enjoy being slow played, so I try my hardest to eliminate that from the games I play. Once you feel prepared to play a quick and clean game, you’ve got the room to smile more and let the good vibes flow.

Katie: It’s definitely something I try to be aware of when I’m playing, especially at tournaments when the days are long and concentration fades. Talking with my opponent at the start about their level of experience and what they want to achieve from the tourney or game can really influence my approach. If I know it is someone’s first tournament and they are new to the game I will be fairly forgiving of mistakes and give lots of reminders about my army’s mechanics. But if I know they have a lot of experience and are playing for rankings I’ll play a lot more competitively and make sure to keep an eye on the clock.

That’s a good perspective.  And are there any actions you’ve had to take over the years to improve your game?  

In my case I’ve made a big effort to whinge less about dice – I used to be a shocker for it. My next step will be to do more thinking on my opponent’s turn, so I’m ready to go when my Hero Phase rolls around, because I can be a bit of a chin stroker at times.  Battle Tactics is a big one – I reckon I could be a lot quicker in my Hero Phase if I think through my next couple of BTs while my opponent is moving their models around.

Katie: Time management has been the biggest thing I’ve had to work on. My army is fairly slow and attrition based, so games rarely finish early. With how tight the schedules can be at tournaments it can be really stressful trying to power through the last few rounds to finish on time. I have a terrible memory so making a nice, concise cheat sheet and having organised reference cards has made a big difference. Also not overthinking and second guessing every decision. If I’m unsure now, I go with my first instinct and it will either work out or I’ll learn a valuable lesson along the way!

Brogan: Time management has also been something that I’ve worked on. From list creation to how I play on the day, I try my darndest to be as quick as possible. I even stopped using my Soulblight army for a while, as I was struggling to finish most games. 

My Ironjawz are geared to smash and smash quickly if they can. I’ve purposely opted for no magic phase and barely have any shooting (don’t tell my Mawkrusha that though haha).

Ha!  So what kinds of opponents (if any) don’t you like playing against?  Without naming names, what (if any) bad experiences have you had at events? 

For me I can deal with quirks or foibles, or playing slow.  It’s only outright cheating that gets me.  I absolutely lost it once in Melbourne when my opponent was taking the piss again and again.  Things like scooping up huge handfuls of dice and claiming it was 30 dice (and insisting that he’d counted them), then when I forced him to count them out in front of me it was closer to 50 dice.  And that was the fourth or fifth thing in our game.  This dude has an awful reputation in Melbourne despite only playing a handful of events.

Brogan: I too can’t abide cheating and I find its existence in our community to be so unnecessary. I mentioned being prepared for the event earlier and to further digress, I think this means that you should be able to clearly state what your army does when you exchange lists at the start of the game. I don’t enjoy playing against opponents that rely on slow playing or using ‘gotcha’ moments as part of their strategy to win. 

Katie: I’ve only encountered it once or twice at events but I have an issue with people who get hostile or aggressive over games for whatever reason. I understand people are passionate and things can get tense sometimes but there is never a good excuse to start yelling or throwing models or dice around. 

Yeah…must admit I’ve never come across that kind of aggression yet myself, but you do hear some horror stories.  

I was glad to see two Best Opponents awarded at Slaughter, where most events would typically have one award for Sportsmanship and a full podium for results.  Do you have any thoughts on how sportsmanship should be celebrated at events?  E.g. would there be room for a full sports podium at large events, or is one prize generally enough?  

One idea if had for prizes at an event I’ve had is to celebrate the Coolest List, similar to how we sometimes have a distinction between Best Painted and Coolest Army (not strictly the same thing as Best Opponent, but it’s kind of adjacent!).

Brogan: I would love to see the top three sports on a podium for sure! Celebrating the Coolest List would venerate the people in the community that already gravitate to more creative builds over the top meta picks. The existence of the award may even encourage people to submit army lists that are a bit more fun to play with or against.

Katie: Your opponents can really make or break your experience at an event so I’m always happy to see sportsmanship being encouraged and rewarded. Having awards for a top three would be a good way to emphasise how important a factor it is for the overall play experience. 

Do you think sportsmanship should impact the overall winner of an event, or be completely standalone?  Flipping that around, another one I’ve seen is that the tie-breaker for Best Opponent when sports votes were level was that the player with the best gaming record got the award, because they managed to play enjoyable games while winning – what are your thoughts on that? 

Brogan: I’m happy for the TO’s to choose how this decision adds flavour to their event. This and other decisions to involve paint scores, narrative inclusion to missions and list building can really decide on the feel of an event. 

The idea of rewarding the Best Sport that also held the best gaming record sounds fantastic. The guys from my gaming group D3 Mortal Wounds try to embody this. None of us turn up with the intention of losing the game, yet we still have a good time with our opponents.

Katie: Depending on the event it could be a great way to mix things up. Especially if it is a more casual event where the focus is on community and fun. I think it might also encourage people to try some lists with a bit more fun and flavour.

Deciding ties for Best Sports with gaming record is a great idea. Winning with grace is an important skill in a competitive scenario so I think it makes sense to factor that in.

Do you believe that the army you run does (or should) factor into sports votes?  E.g. would you leave an army at home if you thought it was bad to play against, or at the other end of the scale would you consider some armies just too weak to give a truly enjoyable gaming experience? 

Brogan: I’ve definitely noticed that people react to certain armies and factions more positively over others. I’ve been a favourite opponent three times now with my Ironjawz and have noticed that people tend to light up when they see the big green lads, so maybe there’s more to it. 

I don’t feel like the army/ faction choice should really factor into gaining sports votes. The composition you take within that army/ faction does matter, as really tooled up lists can lead to a negative play experience. For example, my Ironjawz aren’t going to be an easy fight for my opponent (they even ended up as Best in Faction at Slaughter this year). For me, it’s about finding balance.

If you’ve ever taken on an army that tables you before you’ve had a turn, you’ll know what I mean. I can’t even imagine that piloting these lists can be that satisfying. I’m not saying to not take competitive lists, but maybe don’t expect to score many Favourite Opponent votes if you’ve taken a list designed for play at Masters, rather than your local event. 

Katie: I’m not sure the army itself should be a major factor in voting, but the list you run can definitely have a huge impact on your opponent’s play experience. People still haven’t forgiven Nurgle for the fly spam and that does make me lean away from running them. I’ve always preferred to run the daemon lists personally, they are never an easy fight, have some fun tricks and the models are adorably disgusting. I really enjoy Nurgle lore so I do tend to build lists around these themes, it’s a fun and silly army and my opponents usually get caught up in the fun. I definitely think there is a place for the more competitive lists but I agree with Brogan that it comes down to finding a balance.

Fair.  So what are the big factors for you when you’re handing out your own best opponent votes? 

Brogan:

• Did I have fun with my opponent?
• Did they celebrate my in-game moments, as well as theirs?
• Did I feel like they were there for more than just winning the game?
• Am I looking forward to my next game against them?

Katie: I think the biggest sign of a good opponent is that you walk away looking forward to playing them again. Usually that means they were well prepared, fair, and we’ve had a fun, challenging game with a bit of banter. Brogan makes a great point about celebrating opponents’ in-game moments, it’s a much more positive and interactive experience when you can share the excitement together.

I think that’s a really good point, and something I’ll try and take forward into my own games. Do you bounce off your opponent’s energy at all, or bring your own energy every time?  

One thing I’ve done before is bring a Bluetooth speaker and a sound effects app on my phone.  Then you can play little sound effects at key moments, like every time I was making a charge I would do a lion’s roar and when our centrepiece models threw down I played the start of the Rocky theme tune.  I definitely would not do that in every game, but you can generally pick up the vibe pretty quickly for whether your opponent is going to enjoy that kind of thing. 

Brogan: Haha absolutely! That said, I’ll try my hardest to create the energy if it doesn’t exist. I’m showing up for a good time, every time.

Katie: I do try and bring a lot of energy to a match but I definitely get a bit of a boost if I match with someone high energy. If I feel like my opponent has a more quiet personality I try and tone it back and just have a fun relaxing game. I do find it hard to stay high energy for two day events so it can be nice to have a chill game every now and then to break things up. Caffeine also helps.

That’s the spirit!  Now who’s the best opponent you’ve played against, and what made them such a good opponent? 

Brogan: That’s a really tough question, as one of my favourite parts of playing Warhammer is meeting good people. I’ve been doing this for a long time now and have made friends all over the country. To pick one is rough, so I’ll opt for a recent favourite.

Katie was a total legend to play against last year at Sydney Slaughter and I’d happily play her again. She made all intentions clear as she played, kept a good pace, shared beers with me, had a beautiful army and was full of banter. I cheered for her when she took out a Best Opponent award this year.

Katie: I’d be up for a rematch against Brogan any day, I need to get my revenge and I think I still owe him a beer! There’s a reason he’s won Best Opponent so many times, he’s an absolutely amazing person to play against and you know you’re going to have some fun when you see his name at a tourney. 

One of my most recent stand out games was at Sydney slaughter against Tero from D3 Mortal Wounds*, running Ironjawz. He was my vote for best opponent that weekend. He’s such a friendly guy and has an amazing energy, really gets you hyped up for the game. He knew his stuff which made running through the armies during setup really easy and quick. He was great with answering questions and announcing his actions as we played. We had some solid banter and were cheering for each other the whole way through.

Good on ya Katie.  And yeah, I remember in an old Doom and Darkness video, Michael said that the best thing about playing tournaments is that once you’ve been doing it for a while, you could rock up anywhere in Australia and you would know someone locally to grab a beer. That’s pretty good when you think about it.

And finally, do you have any general tips for being a good opponent? 

Brogan: My recommendation is that you think about the play experience of your opponent. It’s an old adage that applies here; treat your opponent how you would like to be treated. 

Its a great adage though and one that I try my hardest to abide by. As soon as you remember that the game is about more players than you, you’ll progress into being a better opponent. Take to the field with empathy and humility and you’ll find yourself having a better time.

Katie: I think Brogan has really summed it up well here. We all want to enjoy ourselves at these events and respecting other players is a huge part of being a good opponent. I’ve also found that learning to laugh it off when rolls fail horribly, cheer for your opponent when they pull off a great move and learn from losses and mistakes have helped me to become a more positive player and better opponent. Good preparation and communication are also key skills which you can hone over time to make for a better play experience for you and your opponent.

Open mic: Feel free to get anything off your chest about the game, life, the event or any shout outs you wanted to give! 

Brogan: Cheers to Chris and James from Mortally Wounded for hosting my favourite annual AoS event. These lads continue to deliver an incredible experience each year and manage to elevate AoS year on year.

Thanks again to my fantastic opponents, I couldn’t have had the same Sydney Slaughter experience without you.

Lastly, big ups to the crew from D3 Mortal Wounds. Keep up the killer hobby, gaming and equally brilliant attitudes towards gaming. This team is the reason I can enjoy Warhammer the way I do.

Katie: Thanks to Chris and James for hosting another amazing Sydney Slaughter. You guys put together a fantastic weekend and I can’t wait to come back again for it next year.

Shout out to my brother John Daly for teaching me how to play, you are far far too patient for your own good. Thanks Austin Cranfield for keeping me up to date with rules changes and memes and a big shout to the Crackhammer team, I couldn’t ask for a better group of friends to roll dice with. 

Thanks so much guys! So to summarise a few points from Brogan and Katie’s experience, here’s a few things to consider for anyone who is interested in giving their opponents a great game:

• A good understanding of your own army helps the game to flow
• Celebrate your opponent’s big moments as well as your own
• Ask your opponent what kind of game they’re looking for
• Be prepared to explain how your army operates
• When things do go against you, handle it with grace

*I don’t believe that’s his correct title. I think he prefers to go by Hey Look It’s Tero Kanko From White Dwarf.

If you’d like to help us continue with our work, we’d love to have your support. We’re the Age of Sigmar specialists, publishing regular AOS articles, including Patron-only posts on that platform. Please click here to join us on Patreon.