Last week, we decided our wargame would be massed battles in a fantasy setting. It would ge both scale and miniature agnostic and would forgo the usual I go, U go system favoured by the majority of wargames. Instead, it would go for a draw system, much like Bolt Action.
Continuing our series on our homebrew wargame, this week we’re looking at the command element of the game. This is one of the sections that I already have predetermined when thinking about the rule set.
Please be aware that this is an evolving ruleset, and changes are likely to be made in the future. For the full ruleset and for clarifications, check the downloadable PDF once it is available.
Issuing Orders
I wanted a command and order system that would reflect both a Commanders ability to issue the order and the units ability to interpret those orders.
To do this, I’ve decided to implement an intelligence ability on all units. This intelligence ability would range from 1 (the worst) to 6 (the best).
Order Test
When a commander in the army wishes to issue an order to a unit, you would simply add the unit and Commanders intelligence together to give you a score between 1 and 10.
Once you have the score, the player would roll two dice and try to roll less than or equal to the combined score in order for the unit to receive and interpret the orders correctly.
As always, a natural roll of 2 will always pass, and a natural roll of 12 will always fail.
Example: Player A wishes for their base of Human Warriors to move into contact with the Goblins base. To do so, the Human Hero must pass their Order Test. The Hero has an intelligence of 3 and the elite Human Warriors, an intelligence of 4. A score of 7 is needed. The player rolls 6, and the test is passed. The player may then move their Human Warriors into contact with the Goblins.
Multiple Unit Orders
In most cases, units will be joined together into what’s referred to as a brigade. These are friendly units that are in base to base contact with each other.
Orders can be issued to brigades as a whole. However, for brigades where the units have varying intelligence stats, the lowest is used.
Example: A player wishes to order their brigade consisting of two units, each made up of two stands. The player, therefore, combines the lowest value in the brigade with that of their hero, in this case, the human warriors.
Characters
There are three types of characters on the battlefield. Lords, Heroes, and Wizards. Each type is able to issue a number of orders and have a set command range.
Lords: 24″, Orders 7
Heroes: 18″, Orders 5
Wizards: 12″, Orders 5
Enemy Close
In some cases, a unit won’t need to be ordered to act (unless they suffer from stupidity) and will do what’s in their best interest when confronted with an enemy.
For example, a unit being charged may choose to either stand and shoot (if equipped with ranged weapons) or fall back.
Units in combat with an enemy will automatically fight that enemy, and their target will also fight back without receiving orders.
What do you think? Anything that could be improved upon here?
