for the masses: fantasy mass combat system

24

Upload: others

Post on 01-Feb-2022

4 views

Category:

Documents


0 download

TRANSCRIPT

Page 1: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System
Page 2: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

1

Page 3: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

www.mj12games.com

2

Credits &

Acknowledgements

Written and Designed byJim Callahan & Noel Weer

Edited byJeff Peterson

Creative ConsultantsDaniel Kast &Kevin Smith

PlaytestersGraham Parr, Devin Callahan,Daniel Kast, Kevin Smith, and

various convention-goers

Graphicssome images © 2003-2004

www.clipart.com

Cover DesignJim Callahan

Cover MiniaturesBlack Raven and Old Glory

http://www.oldglory15s.comPainted by Noel Weer

Printed in the USA byGorham Printing

http://www.gorhamprinting.comFirst Printing, April 2004

ISBN 0-9715979-6-0

Majestic Twelve Games5335 S. Valentia Way #459

Greenwood Village, CO 80111

Version 1.0, modified 04/04/04

Copyright ©2004Jim Callahan & Noel Weer

All rights reserved.

XII

“The way wargaming should be”

Page 4: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

3

Table of Contents ................................. 3Introduction ........................................ 5

Background ........................................ 5Game Components .............................. 5Unit Characteristics .............................. 6Mounting Your Miniatures: .................... 7

Playing the Game ............................. 9Sequence of Play ................................. 9Command Phase ................................. 9

Command Points & Initiative .............. 9Combining Command Points .............. 9Number of Commanders ................... 9Command Distance .......................... 9General versus Personalities .............. 9

Formations ....................................... 10Regular Formation .......................... 10Column Formation .......................... 10Irregular Formation ........................ 10Zone of Control .............................. 10

Action Phase ...................................... 11Allowable Actions: ............................. 11Command Point Cost .......................... 11

Passing ......................................... 11Taking Actions ............................... 11

Move ............................................... 11Column Movement ......................... 12Move to Contact (charge) ................ 12Terrain .......................................... 12Artillery and Monsters ..................... 13

Weather (Optional Rule) ..................... 13Snow ........................................... 13Rain ............................................. 13High Winds ................................... 13

Standard Reform ............................... 13Optional Reform Rule ......................... 14Withdraw .......................................... 14Regroup ........................................... 14Cast Spell ......................................... 15

Melee Attack ..................................... 15Melee Attack Modifiers .................... 15Counter Attacks ............................. 15Melee Attack Damage ..................... 16

Ranged Attack ................................... 16Line of Sight .................................. 16Ranged Attack Resolution ................ 16Ranged Attack Damage ................... 17Friendly Fire .................................. 17Opportunity Fire ............................ 17

Doubling Up ...................................... 17Casualties ......................................... 17

Removing Elements ........................ 18Morale ............................................. 18

Morale Test ................................... 18End Phase ........................................ 18

A sample game: ................................. 19Special Abilities ................................. 22

Special Abilities Cost Matrix ............. 24Magic ................................................. 25

Determining Magical Energy ................ 25Pooling Magical Energy ....................... 25Concentration ................................... 25Spell Construction ............................. 25

Spell Distance ............................... 25Spell Duration ............................... 25Terrain Effects on Spell Casting ........ 25

Schools of Magic ................................ 26Guidelines for Spell Design .............. 26Spell Cost and School Matrix ........... 27Combining Factors Into Spells .......... 27Spell Factor Descriptions ................. 27Special Ability Factor Cost Matrix ...... 29Point Values .................................. 33

The Magic Formula ............................. 35Appendix I: ........................................ 36

The Known Kingdoms ......................... 36People of the Boreal Clans .................. 36

Table of Contents

Page 5: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

www.mj12games.com

4

Pantheon of the Boreal Peoples ........ 36The Boreal Horde ........................... 37Boreal Units .................................. 37Boreal Heroes ................................ 38Grimoire of the Boreal Peoples ......... 39Priestesses of Syajes ...................... 39

The Grimmpule ................................. 40The Grimmpule Warbands ............... 40Grimmpule War Leaders .................. 41Grimmpule Magicks ........................ 42

The Grand Duchies ofAlverness ......................................... 42

Chevaliers de la Prophête ................ 42The Twelfth Duchy .......................... 43Alvernan Units ............................... 43The Eleven Duchies of Alverness ...... 43Champions of Alverness .................. 44Grimoire of Alverness ..................... 45

The Orc Tribes ................................... 46The Tribes ..................................... 46Orc Leadership .............................. 46Orc Units ...................................... 46Orc Chieftains ................................ 47Spells of the Orcs ........................... 47

The Elves of the Woodlands ................ 48Wood Elf Units ............................... 48Wood Elf Leaders ........................... 49Magic of the Wood Elves ................. 49

Appendix II: ...................................... 50Orders of Battle ................................. 50The Boreal Clans ............................... 50

A Small Horde ............................... 50A Horde Vanguard .......................... 50A Standard Horde .......................... 50A Large Horde ............................... 50

A Great Horde ............................... 50A Horde of Syajes .......................... 50

Grand Duchies of Alverness ................. 50A Duchy Patrol ............................... 50An Order Company ......................... 50A Ducal Battalion ........................... 50An Army of Alverness ..................... 50

The Grimmpule ................................. 51Warband Raiding party ................... 51A Gather of Warbands ..................... 51A Host of the Haran Forest .............. 51

The Orc Tribes ................................... 51Sept Raiding Party ......................... 51Tribal Raiding Party ........................ 51Orc Host ....................................... 51

Elves of the Woodlands ...................... 51An Elvish Mairo .............................. 51An Elvish Mehtar ............................ 51An Elvish Rimbe ............................. 51

Appendix III: ..................................... 52Basic Scenarios ................................. 52

Meeting Engagement ...................... 52Defend the Hill .............................. 52The Gauntlet ................................. 52Reinforcements .............................. 52Breakout ....................................... 52

Detailed Scenarios ............................. 53Yeti Attack .................................... 53Horde Raid .................................... 53Battle of Ghel-Bedhbh .................... 55The Siege at Bar-Tussah .................. 56The Hâte of Grashnok Buls .............. 58

Appendix III: stuff ............................. 61Bibliography ...................................... 61

Index ................................................. 62

Page 6: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

5

Introduction

BackgroundThe tent was filled with the smell of bloodand battle. General deMirian was dead; itwas up to him, Captain Hans deRinoit, tolead the troops now. What remaining forceshe had under his command were tired,beaten down and filled with despair.

“How is it possible,” he thought, “for thatso-called army of misshapen creatures tobe so incredibly well organized? Perhaps oneof the Warband leaders has gotten himselfan object of some power.”

A low rumble from the battlefield filleddeRinoit with fear and anger.

“There’s that confounded beast ripping thevery hills up from the earth again. How arewe to combat these monsters if the landitself is working against us?”

Pulling his helmet on for his final battle,deRinoit spared a passing glance at thetactical map describing troop locations. Atlast, he saw it! The maneuver that wouldoust these foul beasts from his territory hadbeen staring at him without him evennoticing. If only he can hold his troopstogether for this final stand to their victory!

For the Masses is a complete fantasymass-combat wargame system. But it isalso much more: The flexibility of thesystem allows players to use any fantasysetting and armies to play out famousfantastical scenarios and ancient epicbattles. Several sample army lists areincluded in the book, but the real strengthof For the Masses is the unit creationsystem. This system encourages playersto be creative, use their imagination andhave fun, which is the way wargamingshould be.

Game ComponentsIn order to play a game of For the Masses,you will need to gather the proper materials:

Game Board: This game is played on agame board marked off with a hexagonalgrid that is used to regulate movement andweapon ranges. The standard For the

Masses board is 30 hexes across and 45hexes wide, with hexes 40mm (1.5”) across.It is also possible (but not recommended)to play the game without a hex-grid withonly minor modifications to the rules. In this

case, the playing area should be about120cm (4ft) across and 150cm (5ft) wide.Several example maps are available free ofcharge at www.mj12games.com, download,print, and play!

Playing Pieces: While not designed for anyspecific scale, For the Masses works mosteffectively with 15mm miniatures. Manydifferent miniatures lines are available in thisscale.

Unit Record Cards: Each unit in For the

Masses is defined by a series ofcharacteristics that indicate its capabilities,and these are recorded on the Unit RecordCards. Several blank cards are included tohelp you create your own units.

Dice: You will need several dice in order toplay. Dice used in For the Masses rangefrom d4 through d12. You will need at least2-3 of each die type to play For the Masses,

although 6-7 of each type will probably makethings a lot easier when getting into heavyfighting. These dice may be picked up atalmost any gaming store or online.

In For the Masses, when we indicate 2d6,we mean roll 2 six-sided dice and note theresults separately. Note that this is differentthan rolling two six-sided dice and addingthem together. Certain units will have attackvalues of two or more dice, and each die iscounted separately from all the rest.

Tokens: Certain effects in the game willrequire players to place some type of tokenon a unit. Usually we suggest using a smalld6 or some other numbered marker.

Page 7: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

www.mj12games.com

6

Unit CharacteristicsEach unit has a number of characteristicsthat help differentiate the powers andabilities of the unit. Usually thesecharacteristics will be accumulated into asingle Unit Record Card that looks somethinglike the card below.

Point Cost (pts): A quantification of theunit’s combat effectiveness. In theory, anarmy whose units have a total point costrelatively equal to that of its opponent willhave an even chance of winning.

Army: Fluff text to describe which army theparticular unit type originates from.

Unit Type: One of five different types ofunits: Infantry, Cavalry, Artillery, Monsterand Personality.

Size: The physical number of Elements inthe unit. While the numerical strength of theunit isn’t indicated on the card, it is importantto understand the number of Elements thatmake up the unit. The minimum number ofElements at the start of battle is 3 and themaximum is 12. Note: A unit might fall belowthree elements during combat but it muststart the combat with at least three elements

Defense: This is a generic term to indicatehow difficult it is to cause damage to theunit. The lowest defense value is zero; thehighest is 6. This number could representthick skin, speediness, armor and shield, oranything that keeps a guy or gal from gettinga sword in the gullet.

Attack (Melee): The type of die the unitrolls when making a melee attack. Thesmallest die type is 2D4; the largest is 3D12.Each Element (generally) rolls the dice�indicated for each attack, modified by terrainand special abilities unique to that unit.

Pts

Army: ___________________

Unit Type: ___________________

Defense: ___________________

Attack: ___________________

Rng Att/Dst: _________/_________

Movement: ___________________

Wounds: ___________________

Morale: ___________________

Command Dice:___________________

Magic Dice: ___________________

Specials:

Page 8: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

7

Ranged Attack (Rng Att): The type of diethe unit rolls when making a Ranged Attack,plus the maximum distance (in hexes) atwhich the attack can be made. The smallestdie type is 2D4; the largest is 3D12. EachElement (generally) rolls two dice per attack,modified by terrain and specialcharacteristics unique to that unit.

Distance (Dst): the maximum range a unitmay be attacked by this ranged weaponattack. The minimum distance for a RangedAttack is two hexes; there is no set maximumrange.

Movement: How quickly the unit crossesthe battlefield. The minimum move score is1; there is no set maximum.

Wounds: The number of wounds that a unitcan suffer before losing an Element. Thedefault wound value is 3. Only extremelytough creatures should have more than 6and the wussiest of all should have 1.

Morale: A reflection of the mental andemotional toughness of the unit or Monster,expressed as the number the unit must equalor exceed on a D10 in order to pass a MoraleTest.

Command Dice: Commanders do not havea morale rating. Instead, they have a numberof command dice, which are used todetermine how many Command Points (CPs)the commander will get each turn. Acommander is considered to be a Personalityfor purposes of unit generation, and istherefore exempt from the three-Elementminimum.

Magic Dice: Personalities may also bedesignated as Magicians and given a numberof Magic Dice. These are used to generateMagical Energy each turn in much the sameway that Command Points are determined.

Special: Any special abilities or rules thatapply to the unit. These are exceptions and/or modifications to the basic rules, and aretherefore collected into a separate sectionof the rulebook.

Mounting Your Miniatures:We have found it much easier and more funto play For the Masses if our units aremounted on bases that match the hex-grid.If you are going to base your units, eachunit in For the Masses should be mountedaccording to the instructions below.

Generally, the rule for mounting figures isthat each figure is mounted pointing towardone of the hex “points”. However, players

who have mounted their units on some otherbase type are welcome to play. 40mmrectangular Elements will work fine with For

The Masses. As long as players rememberthat all units must clearly face the hex-point,there will be little difference between anElement mounted on a hex base and onemounted on a 40mm rectangle. Bases of theproper hexagonal shape and 40mm size maybe purchased very cheaply from LitkoAerosystems (www.litkoaero.com).

Unit Types & Mounting Your Units

Personalities

Great lords, heroic knights, generals,wizards, brave captains, villains, nobles. Theromance and drama of fantasy battle isfrequently filled with the exploits of the suchlegendary figures.

Personalities are mounted on a single base.These include heroes and leaders as well asMagicians. Some heroes may have more thanone figure mounted as part of a singleElement; this represents the entourageassociated with a famous person and istreated as if it were a single figure.Personalities are always a single Element.

Infantry

Foot soldiers have always been consideredthe core of the military—the “grunts” thatactually get their feet dirty and their swordsbloody.

Infantry should be mounted 3 or more to ahex for normal human-sized creatures. Somelarger races may be mounted fewer to abase, but should not usually be mountedfewer than 2 on each hex to avoid confusionwith Personalities or Monsters.

Cavalry

Traditionally the term cavalry is used todenote troops trained to fight on horseback.In a fantasy setting, however, this takes ona completely different tone—it could behorses, unicorns, giant lizards–there aremany options to consider. Or, cavalry couldactually indicate a significant number of largemobile creatures, such as giant wolves.

Cavalry is generally mounted 2 to a base.Occasionally, depending on the size of thefigures, 3 figures may be mounted on a singlebase, but one figure per base should beavoided as it may cause confusion withMonsters and Personalities.

Due to the inherent size and weight of themounts, cavalry is at a distinct advantagewhen attacking infantry—particularly when

Page 9: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

www.mj12games.com

8

RearRear

moving into them at full speed. As a result,all cavalry units are automatically consideredto have the Special Ability Irresistible Chargewhen charging Infantry. Note that this bonusdoes not apply to Personalities, Monsters orArtillery.

Monsters

A single model representing an individualcreature on the table may represent aMonster, or Monsters may have more thanone model per base. This Element mayrepresent a horde of tiny creatures, e.g. agroup of rats summoned by a vampiric lordmay be twenty tiny rat figures mounted ona single base. Or, it might be several smallertree-like models surrounding a central, largertree, mounted on a four hex base. In anycase, treat these Elements as a singleMonster with a single set of statistics.

Monsters come in a variety of sizes. Size 1or 2 Monsters are mounted on a single base.A size 3 Monster is mounted on a three-hexbase, arranged in a triangle, with the singlehex pointing to the front. Size 4 Monstersare mounted on a four-hex base with a singlehex pointing to the front and one attachedto the back.

Monsters and Fear

Monsters size two 2 and above usuallyrepresent the largest and meanestspecimens of their genus and species. Tohelp model this on the tabletop, any Monstersize two 2 and above automatically gainsthe Cause Fear Special (which you will readabout in the Specials section, because it is,well, special).

Artillery

Artillery represents machines and devices ofall kinds used in war, such as catapults,cannon, ballistae and trebuchet. These aremechanical tools crafted for destruction andbrought to bear upon your enemy.

Artillery is mounted on a three-hex base,arranged in a triangle, with the single hexpointing to the rear with the largest sideserving as the front.

There are no other unit types other thanthose indicated above.

Mounting Examples

Front Front Front

Flank Flank

Rear

RearRear

Rear

Front

Flank

Rear Rear

RearRear

Front

FrontFront

Flank

Front

Flank

Front

Front

Flank

RearRearRear

FrontFront

Flank Flank

Artillery

Monster Size 4

Infantry Monster Size 1or Size 2

Front

Monster Size 3

Page 10: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

9

Playing the Game

Sequence of Play

I. Command Phase

II. Action Phase

III. End Phase

Command PhaseEach commander has a particular quality.Whether this reflects determination to “getthe job done” or a great charismatic presenceon the battlefield, each commander is uniquein his or her strengths and weaknesses. Toreflect the differences from commander tocommander, and indeed from minute tominute on the battlefield, each Personalityhas a set of one or two dice that he or she isgiven at the beginning of the game. Thesedice determine how many points thatPersonality can allocate to units during thecourse of the game.

Command Points & Initiative

At the beginning of each turn all playersroll each command die to determine howmany Command Points (CPs) each sidewill have for the turn. The side with thehighest number of CPs has the Initiativefor the turn.If both sides have an equal number of CPs,the side that rolled the lower number ofCommand Dice has the Initiative. If bothsides have an equal number of CPs andCommand Dice, then the force with the mostunits has the Initiative. In the unlikely eventof a tie, either roll a d6 to determineinitiative, or the player sitting closest to Danwins the Initiative.

Combining Command Points

More than one Personality may order a singleunit during a turn; however, all the CommandPoints for each order must come from thesame Personality. Personalities may notcombine Command Points to generateenough points to command a unit (i.e., if aPersonality has 1 point and the General has2 points, they may not add those pointstogether to give a unit an order which costs3 points).

Number of Commanders

Generally speaking, no player is required tohave any certain number of commanders onthe board. However, it has been noted duringplay testing that a Personality cannot usuallycommand more than about three units each,unless he or she is extraordinarily gifted. Sofor an army with 12 units, 4 Personalitiesmay be a good number to field. However,you may, if you wish, field nothing butPersonalities.

Command Distance

Personalities have a basic CommandDistance of 8 hexes. Also, Personalities mayissue orders to any unit on the boardregardless of distance from the Personalityto the unit. If a Personality issues an orderto a unit outside the normal 8-hex CommandDistance, the cost of the ordered Action isincreased by +1 CP per additional hex.

For example, if a Personalityissues the first order to a unit 10hexes away, the CP cost for thatorder would be 3, one for theorder plus 1 for each hex beyondthe normal Command Distance of8.

Intervening terrain or other units from eitherside have no effect on Command Distance;the only relevant factor is the distance fromthe Personality to the closest Element in theacting unit. In other words, line of sight hasno effect on command.

General versus Personalities

Each side must identify one army leader or“General.” Armies may contain manyPersonalities, such as Heroes, but theGeneral is identified as the Personality whohappens to be in charge. The commandradius of the General is 12 hexes instead of8, and the cost for commanding units beyondthis range is +1 CP for every 2 hexes, with aminimum extension cost of 1 CP.

In the event that the General is destroyedduring combat, all units with line of sightto the general must make an immediateMorale Test.

Page 11: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

www.mj12games.com

10

FormationsThere are three types of standard formationsin For the Masses, Regular Formation,Column Formation and Irregular Formation.

Units not in Regular or Column Formation,as well as those with Elements in contactwith an enemy, are restricted in the types ofActions they may take (see below).

Regular Formation

A unit is in Regular Formation if all of thefollowing apply:

• All Elements in the unit are facing in thesame direction.

• There is a front rank of at least twoElements, aligned perpendicularly to theunit’s facing.

• All ranks (except the last) contain the samenumber of Elements.

• All Elements in the second or subsequentranks (if present) are in a rear hex of anElement in the preceding rank.

• There are no gaps in any rank except thelast.

A unit consisting of one Element is alwaysconsidered to be in Regular Formation.

Column Formation

A unit is in Column Formation if the Elementsin the unit form a continuous chain in whicheach Element beyond the first is in a rear

hex of the Element before it, and in a fronthex of the Element behind it. Units in ColumnFormation are considered to be in RegularFormation with regard to the types of ordersthey can receive.

Irregular Formation

Any deviation from previous formations willcause the unit to be in Irregular Formation.In other words, any unit that is not in eitherColumn Formation, or Regular Formation isconsidered to be in Irregular Formation.

Units in Irregular Formation may not beissued Move orders.

Remember, of course, that these formationsare as abstracted as the rest of the rules.The diagram describing an IrregularFormation shows three infantry elementsfacing 60 degrees counter-clockwise of theother five Elements. While this formation isIrregular, it does not imply a state of chaos.Instead, imagine a group of soldiers whohave had an order given to them to protecttheir left flank as well as present a unifiedfront to the enemy. This grouping is stillcohesive and will act as a unit, but they mustreorganize into a Regular Formation if theywish to move.

Zone of Control

Once an Element finds itself in the front hexof an enemy Element, it may not move outagain without performing a Withdraw Action,although it may change its facing.

Colu

mn F

orm

ation

Irregular Formation

Regular Formation

Page 12: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

11

Action Phase

Actions are the heart of For the Masses.Each unit must be issued an order to performany Actions, and each subsequent Action forthat unit within a single Turn costs more thanthe previous. You will find that this systemprovides your opponents ample opportunityto make mistakes that you can then exploitin order to crush them under your boot.

Allowable Actions:Move

Reform

Withdraw

Regroup

Ranged Attack

Melee Attack

Cast Spell

Command Point CostBeginning with the side that has theinitiative, each side alternates issuing Actionorders to one unit at a time. The first Actiontaken by a unit costs one Command Point(CP); the second costs two CPs; the thirdcosts three CPs, and so on. There are,however some special abilities and spellfactors that modify these Command Points.Regardless of modification, no commandmay ever cost less than 1 CP.

Individual Personalities spend CommandPoints to activate units. Personalities mustexpend CPs to activate other Personalitiesor to take Actions themselves. A singlePersonality must contribute all the CPs for agiven Action.

Passing

A side may choose to pass its opportunityfor activation. However, if both sides pass insequence, the turn ends immediately andall unused CPs and Magical Energy (c.f.) arelost.

Taking Actions

There are seven typical Actions a unit maytake during a given turn. These Actions canbe performed in any order and as many timesas the player has Command Points to spend.A single unit may take two Move Actions,

three Reform Actions, and fourteen moreMove Actions, provided the player has 190Command Points to spend.

Once a unit finishes taking actions, it maynot take any more actions for that turn.

MoveA unit must be in Regular or ColumnFormation, with no Elements in contact withenemy Elements in order to take a MoveAction.

When moving, each Element receives anumber of movement points (MPs) equal toits Movement characteristic. A Element usesone MP to change its facing by turning 60°(one hex side), and one or more MPs to moveinto one of its front hexes, retaining itsfacing.

When a unit has completed its movement,all Elements must form one contiguousgroup, although that unit need not end itsmove in Regular Formation. Not all Elementsin a unit must use all the movement pointsallocated to it, though no Element may usemore MPs than it has movement unlessmodified by some external means.

Elements may not move into their own flankor rear hexes except when performing aWithdraw Action (see below).

1 Pillbugs may not wheel.

Page 13: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

www.mj12games.com

12

Column Movement

A unit that begins in Column Formationreceives a 50% movement bonus (round up)or an immediate (and free) Reform Action.

Move to Contact (charge)

The hexes immediately in front of an Elementare considered its Zone of Control. If a unitends a Move Action with any enemy Elementsin its Zone of Control, it may take animmediate (and free) Melee Attack Action.However, for this attack, it may not performthe free Reform Action normally allowedbefore an attack. (c.f. Reform, below).Subsequent attacks are resolved normally.

Terrain

The outcome of many historical battles canbe attributed to the terrain. Who can forgetCheatham Hill and the Kennesaw MountainRanges?

If two terrain types—e.g. hill (up) andforest—are encountered in the same hex,then the costs are combined.

Open: No movement penalty, no effect oncombat.

Open terrain is defined as fairly level terrainwith a clear line of sight from one point toanother. Units moving through open terrainare at no penalty

Forest: +1 MP to enter; Each hex of forestthat is between a ranged attacker and itstarget causes a –1 modifier to any rangedattack die roll.

Forest terrain is defined as terrain that ismostly trees and underbrush. Units are at apenalty to move into forest, and are also ata penalty to fire through and into forestterrain.

Artillery and Monsters

If a Monster (size 2 or greater) or Artillerypiece is being targeted by a Ranged Attack,the ranged unit does not have to incur thepenalty for forest unless the entire base ofthe unit in question is in or behind forest.

Impassable: Impassable; usually nocombat effect.

Page 14: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

13

Unless noted by the specifics of a scenarioor a Special, an element may not enterimpassable terrain. Water is usually definedas impassable terrain.

Some other types of impassable terrain maybe: lava fields, rough rocks and shale. It isup to the players to agree on which terrainis impassable and what, if any, effect it hason combat.

Hills: +1 MP to go up, no penalty goingdown; +1 die attacking down to a lower level.-1 die attacking up to a higher level.

Hills represent the difference in level betweenone set of terrain and another. There is amovement penalty for crossing level oneterrain up to a higher-level terrain.

Cliffs: Impassable, melee combat from onelevel to another is usually impossible.

Cliffs occur when there is a two-leveldifference in elevation between two hexes.No units may pass across a hex that is twoor more levels different from its neighbor.

Artillery and Monsters

Multi-hex bases for a unit are affected byterrain according to the worst terrain typeunder any one of the hexes. If Artillery or alarge Monster moves any single base hexthrough a terrain hex with forest, forexample, that unit must spend +1 MP tomove into that forest hex.

Weather (Optional Rule)When the weather outside is frightful, manysoldiers lose confidence more quickly, strikeless true and make more mistakes.

Players must decide on what types ofweather they will be playing in and whatthe effects of weather are going to be ontheir units.

Of course, while there’s always a chancethat a battle will be joined during a blizzard,we’re assuming that commanders will notsend their troops out during any weatherthat is potentially life threatening. To thisend, we’ve put together a list of somecommon, less-dangerous weather types andtheir effect on battles.

Snow

Snowy weather makes it more difficult tosee, effectively reducing the range of RangedAttacks and Artillery by 25% (round down).Note: no range may be reduced below 2.

In addition to the Ranged Attack effect, snowis more difficult to move through. All unitshave their MP reduced by 50% (round down)when in snowy weather. Note that a unit maybe hobbled by snow to thepoint that it isunable to move.

Finally, it is much harder to believe in yourcause when you can’t feel your toes(assuming you have toes in the first place).All morale checks are made at -1 during snowconditions.

Rain

Rain is less difficult to maneuver in, and canbe quite a refreshing shower as a soldierhacks away at his or her opponent. However,most of the time, rain is a nuisance and haslittle effect on the outcome of a battle. Weassume that the rain we are discussing hereis the type that is associated with high windsand flash floods.

Ranged combat is at –1 to hit during rainyweather as it is harder to hit in the wind.

All units have their movement points reducedby 25% (round down) in the rain.

There is no effect on Melee Attacks; like wesaid, rain can be refreshing.

High Winds

The sirocco of the Mediterranean and desertlands can have a relaxing and mildly sedativeeffect if you are sitting on the back porchsipping tea while it blows in the valley belowyour home. But this weather is harsh ifyou’re marching through sand- and duststorms in preparation for combat.

High winds are nearly impossible to shootthrough, all Ranged Attacks made duringhigh winds are at –1. Additionally, all rangesare reduced by 50% (round down) forRanged Attacks during high winds. Note thatno range may be reduced below two.

Reduce all movement by 25% (round down)during these winds. Dust, leaves and small,domesticated fowl all tend to fly free duringthese types of storms.

High winds have no effect on Melee Attacks.

Standard ReformA Reform Action allows units in For the

Masses to change their orientation on thebattlefield. Any Element in the unit may beturned to face any direction, including a 180°turn.

Page 15: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

www.mj12games.com

14

Additionally, up to half the number ofElements in the unit, rounded down, maybe moved up to their full movement score.

No more than half of the original number ofElements in a unit can move or change facingin this fashion.

An Element in melee contact may not bemoved via a Reform Action, although it mayturn to face any direction. After Reforming,all Elements must form one contiguousgroup.

Optional Reform RuleThis rule may be substituted for the abovestandard Reform rule if all players in thegame agree before the battle begins.

A Reform Action allows units in For the

Masses to change their orientation on thebattlefield. Any Element in the unit may beturned to face any direction, including a 180°turn.

In addition to that free rotation, a numberof Elements equal to half the unit’s movescore (rounded up) may be picked up andreplaced on the board in any hex and facingin any direction. Regardless of the unit’smove score, at least one Element mustremain in its original hex.

No more than half of the original number ofElements in a unit can move or change facingin this fashion.

An Element in melee contact may not bemoved via a Reform Action, although it mayturn to face any direction. After Reforming,all Elements must form one contiguousgroup.

WithdrawAny Element may move away from contactwith an enemy unit, placing one hex spacebetween itself and the enemy. Let’s face it;sometimes retreat is your only option.Elements performing a Withdrawal maymove one hex away from an enemy Elementas long as the Withdrawing unit forms acontiguous group when the Withdrawal iscomplete and the hex entered is notconsidered impassable for that Element. TheWithdrawing unit may move into any hexadjacent to it, including the rear hexes. Notethat this is the only time an element maymove backwards.

Units may Withdraw even if they are inIrregular Formation. Any enemy Element incontact gets one free attack against theWithdrawing unit. No Element may Withdrawinto the Zone of Control of an enemyElement.

RegroupMultiple units may Regroup, or merge into asingle unit, if they are the same type. Onlyinfantry and cavalry may Regroup and onlytwo units may be Regrouped with a singleAction. In the case that units have slightlydifferent characteristics, the lowest-qualitycharacteristics are used. The Regroup Actionmust be the first order given to both units;the CP cost for Regroup is 4 CP.

Additionally no unit may be increased in sizebeyond 12 Elements. If a unit is created thatexceeds 12 Elements in size, then anyElements beyond 12 are forfeit.

If the characteristics are more than one dietype apart (i.e. d6 and d10) use the lowerdie type of the two. Morale is simplyaveraged, rounding down. Any commanddice or magic dice are reduced two levels asa result of combining units regardless of theoriginal characteristics. Specials not commonto both units are eliminated.

If one unit has a ranged weapon and theother does not, reduce the final ranged statsby two dice. In the event that a ranged unithas 2d6 or lower, and the other unit has noranged weapon, the ranged weapons arereduced to 2d4.

Page 16: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

15

Light cavalry w/bows and hand weapons

(7 Elements)

Cavalry

Mv Att Rng Def Wnd Mor ME CP

9 2d4 d8/10 0 5 4+ - -

Free-firing

Heavy cavalry with hand weapons

(6 Elements)

Cavalry

Mv Att Rng Def Wnd Mor ME CP

8 2d10 -/- 1 6 5+ - -

No Special

If these two units Regroup into one unit, itwould become:

Cavalry with hand weapons

(12 Elements)

Cavalry

Mv Att Rng Def Wnd Mor ME CP

8 2d4 d4/10 0 5 5+ - -

No Special

Cast SpellAny Personality designated as a Magicianmay prepare or cast a spell as one of itsActions. (See the Magic Advanced Rules forfurther details.)

Melee AttackA unit may make a Melee Attack Action ifany enemy Elements are within its Zone ofControl. Before taking a Melee Attack Action,a unit may take an immediate (and free)Reform Action.

Following the free Reform, resolve a MeleeAttack by rolling a number of dice equal tothe Melee Attack dice listed for that unit,times the number of elements withopponents in their Zone of Control.

Three Elements in a unit ofGrimmpule Warriors (Melee Attackdice: 2d6) have enemies in theirZone of Control. Assuming noterrain or weather effects, thisunit will roll 6d6: 2d6 for eachElement in melee contact.

The target number for any attack is one-half the attacking die size plus the targetunit’s Defense value.

For example, if using d10s toattack a target with a Defense of3, the target number is 8 or higher10 ÷ 2 + 3 = 8.

If the attacking unit is in contact with two ormore opposing units, make a separate attackagainst each, using the same Action. Theattacking player must decide which units aregoing to be attacked by which Elements ofthe attacking unit before the first attack dieroll is made. Individual Elements that are incontact with two or more opposing unitsmust choose which unit they will attack.

Melee Attack Modifiers

If the attacking Element is in a flank hex ofan Element in the target unit, and not alsoin a front or rear hex of any other Elementin the target unit: +1 die

If the attacking Element is in a rear hex ofan Element in the target unit, and not alsoin a front or flank hex of any other Elementin the target unit: +2 dice

If an attacking Element is on a higherelevation than the target Element: +1 die

If an attacking Element is on a lowerelevation than the target Element: -1 die

If all of the Elements under attack are inforest, then the target unit has +1 defense.The entire unit does not need to be in theforest for this defense modifier to take effect,merely the Elements coming under attack.This modifier does apply for counter-attacks.

Note: It is possible (and likely) that, at somepoint during a game, one infantry Elementmay roll up to 5 dice to make a simple meleeattack. War is bloody hell.

Counter Attacks

Once the attacking unit has completed all ofits dice rolls, and the target unit has takenall casualties and incurred the effects of anyMorale Tests, the target unit is allowed tomake a free Counter-Attack against theattacking unit.

The counter-attack is resolved according tothe melee rules above, but now the counter-attacking unit is considered the attacker andthe original attacking unit is the target unit.

The counter-attacking unit does not get thebenefit of the free Reform Action prior tothis Counter-Attack. However, any Elementin contact with the enemy that made theoriginal attack may choose to change itsfacing 60° (one hex side) instead of makingan attack.

Page 17: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

www.mj12games.com

16

This attack does not include any Elementsthat are in the Zone of Control of the counter-attacking unit but are not part of the originalattacking unit. No other units may participatein this combat and there is no counter-Counter-Attack allowed.

Melee Attack Damage

The target unit suffers one wound for eachhit scored by melee attack. Once a unitsustains a certain number of wounds,elements must be removed according to theprovisions of Casualties, below.

Ranged AttackMeasure the distance separately from eachElement in the firing unit to any Element inthe target unit—each firing Element maytrack Line of Sight to a separate Element inthe target unit, although the attack isresolved on a unit-to-unit basis. Casualtiesare incurred according to the normal rules.

Line of Sight

Any unit performing a Ranged Attack mustbe able to see its target. In addition tocounting the distance from the attacking unitto the target, the target must be within lineof sight (LOS) of the attacking Element.

An imaginary line is drawn from center ofthe attacker’s hex to the center of the targethex. This line must pass through one of theranged attacker’s front hexes. If any part ofthat line passes over a hill hex or a city hex,the Element is considered to be out of sightof the attacking Element.

Additionally, if any part of that line passesover a forest hex or an intervening unit, theappropriate modifier must be applied to thatElement’s die roll (see below).

Ranged Attack Resolution

Roll dice for each Element in the firing unitthat is within firing range (distance) of atleast one Element in the target unit. Applythe following modifiers:

Ranged Attack dice are not modified for fireinto the flank or rear of a target unit.

Per hex of trees between the firing Elementand the target Element (this includes the hexoccupied by the target but not that occupiedby the firing Element): +1 to the targetdefense.

Per friendly-occupied hex between the firingElement and the target Element: +1 to thetarget defense.

If a unit of more than one rank takes aRanged Attack Action, each rank behind thefirst must modify the number of dice rolledbased on the following formula:

Rank 1: Normal attack dice per Element

Rank 2: Attack dice per Element ÷ 2

Rank 3: Attack dice per Element ÷ 3

In other words, if a unit has tworanks of three archers, and onerank of two archers, then it rolls6 dice for the first rank, 3 dice forthe second rank and no dice forthe third rank for a total of 9 dice.

A diagram might help understand rangedcombat better:

Line A represents the only Element in thearcher unit that cannot see the infantry unitnestled against the hill because of Line ofSight. The lines marked B are at a –1 to hitbecause ranged combat through a hex offorest incurs a –1 penalty. The two linesmarked C are at no penalty.

The Elements marked 1 and 2 are on thesame hex line as the line marked B, thereforesuffers the same penalty of –1 through theforest hex. Elements 3 through 5 have nopenalty associated with their line of sight.

As a result of these line of sight calculations,the Elements on line B roll a total of 6 diceat –1. These dice should be rolled and thenumber of hits noted. The remainingElements will roll 7 dice without any penaltyat all. This is figured at 4 dice for the frontrank and 6 divided by 2 for a total of 3 dicefor the second rank (Elements 3-5).

Page 18: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

17

Ranged Attack Damage

The target unit suffers one wound for everytwo hits scored by ranged fire. Any remaininghit is discarded; e.g., if a unit gets three hitswith a Ranged Attack, one wound is inflictedand the third hit is ignored.

However, if the firing unit immediately makesanother Ranged Attack, it may carry overany left-over hit from the previous Action;e.g., if a unit scores three hits and thenimmediately makes another Ranged Attackagainst the same target, this time scoringfive hits, a total of four wounds is inflictedon the target (3 hits from the first attackand 5 from the second equals 8 hits total or4 wounds).

After taking a Ranged Attack Action, a unitmay take an immediate (and free) ReformAction.

Artillery

Artillery attacks are considered rangedattacks and follow all the same rulesregarding line of sight and distance for otherranged attacks. However, artillery does nothalve its hits, meaning that each artillery hitdelivers one wound to the defending unit.

Friendly Fire

Sometimes a unit may choose to launch aRanged Attack against a target that is indirect contact with a friendly unit. If this isthe case, after resolving the attack againstthe enemy immediately re-roll the dice thatmissed against the friendly unit, as if it werea normal ranged attack against that unit. Inother words, the arrows that missed yourenemies may in fact hit your friends.

Friendly fire is only considered againstfriendly units in contact with the originaltarget of the Ranged Attack.

Opportunity Fire

Opportunity fire is modeled abstractly in For

the Masses. If a unit moves into contactwith a unit with ranged weapons, the targetunit may choose to take an immediate (andfree) Ranged Attack Action against theCharging unit. This Action takes the place ofthe free Counter-Attack that the ranged unitwould normally be able to use after meleeensued.

Opportunity fire takes place once theattacking unit is done moving but before theattack roll is made.

When using opportunity fire, the ranged unitforgoes the option of any Counter-Attack orReform. Subsequent attacks against theranged unit are resolved normally. In otherwords, opportunity fire precedes meleecombat and a charging unit could possiblybe destroyed before it can engage a ranged-armed defender.

Doubling UpA Unit may encounter an enemy that isextremely difficult to fight because itsDefense is too powerful for the weapons theunit carries. It is not, however, impossiblefor such a unit to hit this enemy.

If a target number is out of reach of a unitthen 2 or more dice in an Attack roll (Meleeor Ranged) that are equal to the highestpossible result on those dice may becombined to a make a single higher result.The first die is equal to the number it rolled,each subsequent die added to thecombination raises the resulting value by 1.

For example, if the target numberis 6, and the attacker rolls a d4;for each set of three 4s that arerolled, a single hit is recorded; 4+ 2 being 6.

CasualtiesOnce a unit has received enough wounds tototal one Element (i.e. the number of Woundsper Element as indicated on the unit card)they must remove one Element from thatunit from the game. It is possible that a unitmay take more wounds than required toremove a full Element. In this case theremainder is indicated in some way that iseasy for all players to identify. In other words,these wounds are carried over and arecounted against the target unit.

For example, imagine that a unitof Boreal Warriors (3 wounds) isin contact with a unit of Orcs. TheOrcs attack the warriors and cause4 wounds of damage. The warriorsmust remove one Element (since4 is greater than 3) with 1 woundcarried over.

Suppose, the Orc unit attacksagain, but this time only inflicts 2wounds. Unfortunately for thewarriors, these 2 would combinewith the 1 carried wound for atotal of 3—or one Element.

Page 19: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

www.mj12games.com

18

To help keep track of these carried woundswe suggest using a token of some sort, suchas a small d6 or some other numberedmarker.

Removing Elements

When taking casualties from an attack ormorale loss, it is assumed that troops arerushing forward to fill any gaps. Therefore,the defending player may choose whichElements are removed as casualties, subjectto the following restrictions:

A unit must always remain one contiguousgroup; it may not be divided into two or moreparts.

An Element that is in contact with, andfacing, the attacking unit may not beremoved as a casualty unless there is noother option.

An Element that is in contact with anyopposing unit may not be removed as acasualty unless there is no other option.

If all Elements are in contact with theattacking unit, the Element that must beremoved is the Element that is in contactwith the fewest number of Elements of thatattacking unit.

If all Elements are in contact with enemyunits, the Element that must be removed isthe Element that is in contact with thesmallest unit that did not cause thecasualties.

The rule of thumb when removing Elementsis to remove the furthest Element from theattacking unit before any other Element isremoved.

MoraleEverybody has a breaking point; there is onlyso much mayhem an individual can takebefore he or she runs away. Perhaps thesecowards will return to battle again someday,or perhaps not. However, once an individualdecides to leave, it is extremely likely thathe or she will convince a few others to leavealso.

Morale in For the Masses is anotherexample of how we’ve tried to make thingsabstract but effective. When a unit isattacked and sustains casualties, individualsoldiers sometimes lose their nerve, melt intothe countryside, and never return.

Morale Test

If a unit incurs enough wounds to eliminateone or more Elements, that unit must takean immediate morale test.

To make this test, the player must roll d10,and must roll equal to or higher than theMorale of the unit. If they do not, then theunit has failed its Morale Test and anadditional Element must be removed fromthe unit, following the same restrictions aswhen removing combat casualties.

If the unit took more than one Element as acasualty, the Morale Test is modified by -1for each Element beyond the first.

For example, imagine that a unitof 12 Alvernan Archers (Morale:7+) is in contact with a unit ofBoreal Warriors and a unit ofGoblin Skirmishers. The playerchooses to attack the Alvernanswith the Warriors and manages toremove 3 Elements. The archersmust make a Morale Test at –2. Ifthey are attacked again by theGoblins, and only take oneElement of casualties, theAlverness will make a normalMorale Test.

Note that there are other situations whereina unit may lose an Element. At such time,that unit should also take a Morale Test. Inother words, any time a unit loses an Element(other than through failing a Morale Test),make a Morale Test.

End PhaseDuring the end phase, all Command Pointsare removed from the board and all MagicPoints (those not being held over until thenext turn—see Advanced Rules) are alsoremoved from the board.

The end phase is also an excellent time tobreak for beverages, and to clean up theloose Elements of casualties that inevitablyaccumulate on the fringes of the board.

A turn ends when there are no moreCommand Points that can be used on eitherside, or both sides pass.

This is the end of the basic rules.

Page 20: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

19

A sample game:

The following scenario is both a descriptionof a sample game which might have beenplayed and a start-up scenario to whet yourappetite for the complete ruleset.

First, you need a friend to play the gamewith; these can be found pretty muchanywhere, but a gaming store is the mostlikely place to find a friend with whom youcan play games. Each player chooses adifferent side for this match. This is anextremely important step, if each playerchooses the same side, the game will dragon, and on.

We should introduce the players for thissample game: Jim chose to play the Orcsand Noel chose the Alvernans.

Once players have chosen sides and selectedminiatures, they face off on either side ofthe playing board.

Since we are playing a normal meetingengagement scenario, the player with themost units sets up one unit on the board.Don’t forget that personalities are considereda single unit each.

The number of units is equal and so theplayers roll a d6 to determine who will gofirst, Jim rolls a 3 and Noel Rolled a 2, Jimsets up the first orc unit wihtin 8 hexes ofthe edge. Once this unit is placed, the otherplayer may set up one unit within eight hexesof the edge on the opposite side.

This continues until there are no more unitsto place. It may be that the player with moreunits gets to place several at the end of thesetup phase, but this is not the case withour forces, as there is an equal number ofunits.

Men at Arms (38)

Alvernan Infantry

Mv Att Rng Def Wnd Mor ME CP

4 2d6 -/- 2 3 7+ - -

Order Champion (209)

Alvernan Personality

Mv Att Rng Def Wnd Mor ME CP

6 3d8 -/- 3 6 - - d8

Orc Warriors (54)

Orc Infantry

Mv Att Rng Def Wnd Mor ME CP

5 2d8 -/- 2 4 7+ - -

Orc Chief, on foot (156)

Orc Personality

Mv Att Rng Def Wnd Mor ME CP

5 2d10 -/- 2 6 - - 2d6

Orc Forces

1 Orc Chief, on foot (General) 1563 Warrior units (5 elements each) 810

966

Alvernan Forces

1 Order Champion (General) 983 Men-at-Arms (8 elements each) 912

1,000

It looks like a pretty even match.

Once the units are placed, each playerusually gets to place a piece of terrain foreach of his or her personalities. We suggestthat you play on an open field for the firstgame because you will have enough to thinkabout without adding hills and forests.

See the following page for a view of thebattlefield after we setup.

Each player rolls thenumber of dice indicatedby each commander; inthis case it is 2d6 for theOrc Chief and 1d8 forthe Captain of theRealm.

Since the orcs rolled higher CP, Jim goes first.

He uses one command point to move oneunit forward full movement. Noel counterswith a similar move.

The next unit is in Jim’s right flank and hedecides he needs to command a presenceon that flank. He moves his unit forward,and at the same time, he decides that unitneeds a bit of a larger frontage, so hemaneuvers the unit to accomplish that task.

Notice that the unit is still in regularformation after the first move. The secondmove this unit takes costs Jim 2 commandpoints. The total command points used sofar for each side is Orcs: 4, Alvernans: 1

Command Points

Orcs: 7

Alvernan: 6*

Page 21: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

www.mj12games.com

20

Turn TwoCommand PointsOrcs: 5Alvernan: 6

Since there were no casualties or othermaneuvers which required clean-up,command points are rolled to start thesecond turn. Too bad for the Orcs, they mustnecessarily go second this turn as they rolledpoorly.

Noel maneuvers the center Alvernan unit toengage the orc infantry which is on the orcishright flank.

The movement ends in contact with theenemy (a “move to contact” or charge), sothe Alvernan infantry gets to take a freeattack action.

Starting from the right, Noel counts 2, 4, 6,8, 10, plus 1 for the orc element attackingthe exposed flank. Noel searches throughhis pile of dice for 11d6 and rolls.

Jim states that his Orcs have a defense of 2,so Noel needs a 6 ÷ 3 + 2 = 5 to hit theorcs. The dice end up 6, 6, 5, 5, 4, 4, 3, 3,2, 1, 1 for a total of 4 hits. Since the orcwarriors possess four wounds per element,this damage results in the removal of onefull element. His only choice is the singleelement without any enemies in contact.

The loss of an element sparks a morale testfor the orcs, and Jim rolls 1d10. Since theorcs’ morale level is 7+, he needs to roll atleast a 7. He passes, rolling a 9, and removesno additional element.

The orcs now have achance to counter-attack. Jim counts thedice and rolls 8d10against the Alvernandefense of 2, needinga 7 to hit. Jim rolls9, 8, 7, 7, 6, 4, 3, 3for a total of 4 hits.Now the Alvernanunit must remove anelement (theirinfantry elements canonly sustain threewounds), so hechooses to removethe element on thefar right, and rolls hismorale test: 4, belowthe 7+ morale level ofthe Men-at-Arms.Noel must nowremove anotherelement, and choosesthe element in thesecond row, secondfrom the right. Noelplaces a marker nextto his unit to indicate

that it is carrying a single wound.

Noel decides to spend his remainingcommand points on another attack. Noeltakes advantage of the free reform beforean attack action and moves his remainingelement into contact.

Since Noel moved some elements around, itwould behoove him to recalculate thenumber of dice allowed in his new attack.he runs through the numbers again, 2, 4, 6,8, 10, 12, +1 for the flank attack, + 2 forattacking a unit from the rear, for a total of15d6!

Noel Rolls 15d6, 6, 6, 6, 5, 5, 5, 5, 3, 2, 1,6, 4, 3, 1, 1, for a total of 8 hits, knockingout 2 orc elements! Jim will be forced toremove the two elements on his right andtherefore rolls a d10 for his morale test. Herolls a 7, which normally would be a success,but because the unit losttwo elements, Noelreminds him that his roll isat -1.

Jim sadly removes therightmost three elementsfrom his unit. Only one element remains tofight back! Jim rolls 2d10 to counter-attackwith his remaining element and rolls 10 and7, two hits. These, coupled with the extrawound the unit is carrying from the previousattack, mean that the Alvernans have lostanother infantry element. Noel curses the

At the end of turn one, after some movement

Page 22: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

21

After the first Alvernan attack

The orcs take a gamble in turn two

dice and rolls his morale test, 1d10. But theroll is a 9, and he does not need to removeany more elements. He removes the elementwhich is in the rear of the orcish unit as wellas the marker and claims victory for this turn.

Jim now has a big decision to make. Sincethe unit of Orcs on his left flank is in columnformation, it would be easy for him to flankthe Alvernan. However, since the unit is 18hexes away from the general, it would cost

Jim all of his command points to accomplishthis maneuver. Jim decides to gamble andcommands the unit to move.

This charge takes the unit directly into theflank of the Alvernan unit and affords themmany dice for their effort. Counting the dice,Jim says, out loud, 2, 4, 6, 8, +2 for therear, 10, +1 for the flank, for a total of 12d10.

Jim rolls 10, 8, 7, 7, 6, 4, 4, 3, 3, 2, 2, 1,and announces the 4 hits. Noel takes a singleelement and places a marker next to theunit as a reminder. He then rolls 2d6 toreturn the favor and gets a measly 4, 4, 2,1. No damage.

Who will win this small engagement? Thebrave and trusty Orcs, or the vile, Alvernan?Perhaps you’d like to set this up on yourboard and find out?

Happy gaming. If you have questions aboutthese rules, or any other of our games, youwill find the designers available on our yahoogroup e-list. Please sign up and pose yourquestions, submit army lists, and participate.

We can be found at:

groups.yahoo.com/groups/mj12games

Page 23: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System

www.mj12games.com

64

Iron Stars is a game of space combat inan age of steam and steel. Set in afictional universe based loosely on thewritings of H. G. Wells and otherfantasists, it provides a back story andship designs from an alternate history inwhich the Martian Invasion reallyhappened, the ether is all-pervasive, andCavorite is a reality. But, as withStarmada and other Majestic TwelveGames products, the focus is on players’imaginations; a clear and concise shipconstruction system is provided so youcan pit your own space dreadnoughtsagainst the likes of the Royal Navy EtherSquadron or the German Äthermarine!

Check out all our great gamesat www.mj12games.com

19th CENTURY MINIATURES, L.L.C.Old glory 15s - Ancients, Dark Ages, Jacobite Rebellion, Seven Year’s War, AmericanRevolution Napoleonics, ACW, Franco-Prussian War (1859-70), Sudan, Zulu Wars, BoerWars, Boxer Rebellion, Russo-Japanese War

Battle Honors 15mm - Napoleonics, ACW, French Revolution

Battle Honors 25mm - American Revolution, WWI, WWII, Vietnam, 1859/66 French/Austrians

Quality Castings 15mm - WWII, Post WWII, Modern

Rank and File 15mm - Medievals, Crimean War, Austro-Prussian War, Franco PrussianWar, Franco-Austrian War, Russo-Turkish War (1877)

Black Raven Foundry 15mm Fantasy - Orcs, Trolls, Dwarves, Elfs, Men, Giants,Oliphaunts, Amazons, Lizardmen, Wizards and Heros

Gripping Beast 25mm - Vikings, Normans, Romans, Gauls, Crusaders, Huns,Carthaginians, Sassanids, Saxons, El Cid, Moors, Germans,

Visit our website for full listing - �http://www.oldglory15s.com

Use Code ST100 for 10% off any order over $100.00 or 20% off any order over$200.00

E-mail: [email protected]

Phone: 616-837-7045Fax: 616-837-8568300 Watson St.,Coopersville, MI 49404

Page 24: For the Masses: Fantasy Mass Combat System