User guide

PairForge helps a Warhammer 40k team prepare for and run team-event pairings. Players score how they expect to do against every opposing army; the captain uses those scores to run each round's pairing, and the whole team follows live on their phones. PairForge shows facts and totals. It never recommends a pairing.

Who does what

PairForge works on phones, tablets and laptops, and the pairing keeps going when venue Wi-Fi drops. Everyone signs in with Google.

Everyone in the team can see the team's scores. No other team can.

Getting in

Captains register a team and wait for approval; everyone else joins through the captain's invite.

If you're a captain

1. On the PairForge front page, tap Request beta access.
2. Sign in with Google, enter the team name and usual size, and tap Submit for approval.
3. You'll get an email when the team is approved. Then invite your players.

If you're a player

1. Open the invite your captain sent: a team link in your chat, or a personal email link.
2. Tap Continue with Google to join and pick your Google account.
3. You're in the team as a player. There's nothing to apply for.

Email invites last 7 days and work once. If yours has expired or doesn't work, ask your captain for a new one.

Moving around

• PairForge's home page lists all your teams. Tap one to open it.
• If you're in more than one team, use Switch team at the top of a team page.
• Help at the top of every page brings you back to these guides.
• Sign out is at the top right. Signing back in takes you to your teams.

Put PairForge on your phone

PairForge runs in your browser, but it works best installed on your phone's home screen with notifications on. Look for the PairForge on your phone card on your team page.

1. Install it. On Android, tap Install PairForge (or open the browser menu ⋮ and choose Install app or Add to Home screen). On iPhone, in Safari tap Share, then Add to Home Screen, then Add.
2. Open it from the new icon. On iPhone, notifications only work from the home-screen icon.
3. Tap Turn on notifications and allow them when your phone asks.

You'll get a notification when:

• your captain sends a reminder to finish your scores
• your captain asks you to recheck a score
• you're defending and need to choose your layout
• your captain asks for an update on your game

For players: before the event

Your two jobs are to enter your army and score your matchups. Everything saves as you go, and your captain can see and edit your scores.

Enter your army

1. Open the event from your team page.
2. Under Our armies, tap your name.
3. Choose your faction and Force Disposition, and add your detachment. Pasting your list is optional.
4. Tap Save army. If a choice breaks the event's faction rules (for example, two players on the same faction), it's marked so you can sort it out with your captain.

Score your matchups

Each score is how you expect to do against that army, from 0 to 20. 10 is an even game.

1. Open My scores.
2. Archetypes first: score each army type on your team's list. These fill in your scores against matching opposing armies.
3. Opponents next: work through each opposing team. Use − and + to set each score, then Confirm.
4. Tick Depends on layout when the result really depends on the table layout.
5. Turn on Only show scores still to check to see what's left.

Pre-filled scores are marked Pre-filled · check (from your archetype scores) or From last event · check (from an earlier event against a similar army). They don't count until you confirm them.

Playing a similar army to last time? Copy from a previous event brings over your army and archetype scores. Scores you've already confirmed against opposing armies here stay as they are.

For players: on the day

Keep PairForge open during pairings and games. Your screen updates as your captain records each step, and with notifications on you'll be told when something needs you.

During the pairing

1. Open the event and tap View pairings on the current round.
2. Watch the steps come in: defenders, attackers, refusals, then layouts. Locked games appear under Locked pairings.
3. Tap an opponent's name to see their list.
4. If you're a defender, you'll see You're defending: choose your layout. Tap View the three maps if they've been loaded, then pick A, B or C. Your choice goes to the captain to approve.

Once the captain confirms, you'll see your opponent, layout and mission.

During your game

1. Open Live round and tap Update my game.
2. Set how you now expect the game to finish (0–20). Adding the game turn and a short note is optional.
3. If your captain taps Ask everyone for an update, a notice appears at the top of your screen. Update your game, or tap Got it.
4. When your game ends, enter the final score. That locks your result into the team total.

Some events don't allow phones during games. Then your captain, vice-captain or a coach asks you in person and enters your update.

For captains

Captains do everything players do, plus run the event. The full step-by-step is in the captain's guide; this is the outline.

1. Build your team: invite players by link or email, set a vice-captain and coaches, and check your archetype list.
2. Set up the event: dates, team size, rounds and each round's layout, archetype mode, who's playing, and whether players post in-game updates.
3. Add the field: paste the opposing teams and armies, set each team's priority (High, Medium or Low), and check every army has an archetype.
4. Get the scores in: watch the Prep dashboard and send Email reminders to anyone with gaps on High and Medium teams.
5. Check the numbers: clear Flags to review.
6. Practise: run practice pairings against likely opponents.
7. Run each round: choose the opponent, record each pairing step, use what-if previews, then Confirm pairings.
8. Follow the games: track projections on Live round and make sure every final score is in.
9. Review: compare expected and actual, add notes and replay the pairing.

For vice-captains and coaches

Vice-captain. The vice-captain can do almost everything the captain can, so the work can be shared:

• Set up and edit events, add the field and manage the archetype list.
• Enter or fix any player's scores, and check flags.
• Run a round's pairing. Only one person records at a time; if the captain loses signal or their phone dies, tap Take over running this round.
• Ask for and enter in-game updates.

Only the captain can invite people, change roles or remove members.

Coach. A coach sees everything the team sees and can help on the day:

• Follow pairings and the live round.
• Tap Ask everyone for an update, and enter updates and final scores for any game. This matters at events that don't allow players' phones during games.

Key terms

Troubleshooting

More questions? See the FAQ.