Thanks for the reply but I still don't quite see how this works. In the Alpha strike Rule book on P22 it says:
Force Balancing
For the purposes of establishing game balance, every Alpha
Strike unit has a Point Value (PV) that provides a numerical
estimation of its overall combat ability. Forces with roughly the
same total PV and the same numbers of units should thus be
of similar combat ability, thus offering an even match. If players
choose to use partial (or multiple) army lists, the total PV and
number of units for each force should be likewise balanced to
have an even game.
The games I had of the previous quickstrike rules did seem to favour more cheap units over fewer expensive units of the same total point value. I had too few games to swear that will always be true. However, I would definitely feel guilty ever putting a load of savannah masters in again for the IS after trying them just once ;) I think most of the quickstrike IS vs Clan games I ran with reasonably "fluffy" looking forces ended up with about 2 IS units (mixed vehicles and mechs) for each clan mech with everyone on regular skill to keep things simple.
So first question, is the statement that both sides should have a similar number of units good advice based on the play testing? How far out can you go before it gets problematic?
If the advice stands, the options seem to come down to either:
a) Giving the IS a skill boost, the example IS forces are 12 models @ ~160 points vs the clans on 10 models @ ~225 points. Clans on regular, IS on veteran works out right PV wise. Doesn't feel right fluff wise!
b) Have the IS turn up in all heavy/assault mechs and the clans in all light/medium. I guess that works for house Steiner :)
Thanks again for you response,
Andy