A couple of friends and I have been playtesting Andy Chambers' rules
for experience and found them to be quite good for allowing units to
improve between games. (One particularly interesting revelation on my
first read of them was the fact that Space Marines are stubborn just
because they have more experience/training) However, we also wanted a
system that would allow us to have some real context to our battles
(ala Mighty Empires in Warhammer Fantasy) without adding too much
record-keeping. We also wanted it to actually add some strategy,
rather than just another layer of complexity.
What we're testing so far is the following. I'd appreciate it if any
of you would be interested in testing the below rules in conjunction
with Andy's experience rules and letting me know your
suggestions/comments. If any of the below is unclear, please pipe up
and I'll explain what I meant to write. <g>
The Rutins Rules for EPIC 40k Campaigns
(with help and inspiration from Andy Chambers)
----------------------------------------------
- Army Creation:
Create your army, divide it into detachments. These detachments are
fixed for the duration of the campaign. Generate starting experience
for each detachment, per Andy's rules. One detachment may have/be the
supreme commander for your army. You may have only one such detachment
(in the case of Tyranids, multiple supreme commanders are allowed).
- Your Command:
You are considered to be in command of a key sector of your race's
military effort on a given planet. As such, your failures or successes
will influence overall victory strongly, but will not be the sole
determinants.
- Determination of Planet Type:
Determine what kind of planet the battles will take place on (either
agree with your opponent(s) or roll on the following chart):
2d6 Roll Planet Type
2 Daemon World
3 Death World
4,5 Primaeval World
6 Ice World
7,8 Agri World
8,9,10 Hive World
11,12 Desert World
For all battles in the campaign, use the terrain available on your
planet type (consult charts in battle book pp. 52-63)
- Territories and Lines of Resistance:
Your sector is considered to have 2 Major Territories and 7 Minor
Territories. These territories are divided into three 'lines of
resistance', each consisting of three territories. In order for any
territories in the second line to be attacked, a battle for a first
line territory must be won. In order to attack the third line, both a
first and a second line battle must be won in succession (see isolation
below for more info). The exception to this rule is attacks by
completely airborne or dropship-borne forces, but also see isolation
below for more info.
- Allocation of Detachments in Territories:
Once you have arranged your territories into three lines, allocate your
detachments between territories. Each major territory must have at
least one detachment, regardless of where it is situated in your lines.
My recommendation is to keep your detachment sheets face down in
stacks representing each territory. This makes it easy to keep track
of moves, attacks and responses (see below). Your opponent will only
see your detachments when battle is joined, unless he gets lucky with
scouting (see scouting below).
- Scouting
Before the declaration of Moves, each player may roll one d6 for each
detachment that has at least one unit with the infiltrate ability _and_
is in a line of resistance that can attack the enemy this turn. On a
roll of 6, the player may draw one detachment sheet from the enemy
territories that can be attacked this turn and examine it before
returning it to the enemy player. A player may make no more than three
scouting rolls per enemy territory in contact.
- Declaration of Moves, Attacks and Responses (this reads long, but
plays quickly):
Players begin by declaring moves. The player with the higher strategy
rating may choose who will declare the first move. Players then
alternate.
This is followed by declaring attacks and responses. Initiative and
procedure are the same as for moves.
A player may declare a number of Moves equal to his army's strategy
rating. A Move consists of stating (example) "I am moving these
detachments from my minor territory #5 to my major territory #2" and
placing the detachment sheets that you are moving face down on the
stack of the territory they are moving to. A player may also make one
extra move using any one detachment in the same line of resistance as
his supreme commander's detachment (the moving detachment can be the
supreme commander's detachment. also see army creation above).
A player may declare a number of Attacks equal to his army's strategy
rating. An Attack consists of stating (example) "I am attacking your
minor territory #2 with these detachments from my minor territories #1
and #3" and placing the detachment sheets that you are attacking with
face down next to the stack of enemy detachment sheets for the
territory you are attacking. You may attack territories on adjacent
lines of resistance. Attacking regiments may only come from an
adjacent line of resistance to the defending territory, except for
entirely airborne detachments which may attack from any line of
resistance to any other line of resistance.
As soon as an attack is declared, the defending player must declare a
response. The defending player may declare a total number of responses
during each turn equal to his strategy rating or the number of enemy
attacks, whichever is higher. A response may only be declared when the
attacking player is attacking a territory which already contains a
defending detachment. Response detachments may be taken from unengaged
territories on the same line of resistance or from unengaged
territories one line of resistance to the rear. Each territory which
is used to respond counts as one response (in other words, pulling
detachments from two territories to respond to one attack counts as two
responses and requires either a strategy rating of two, or two enemy
attacks, one of which was already declared without a response).
Completely airborne and dropship-borne detachments may respond from any
line of resistance and all such detachments responding to one attack
together count as one response.
A Response consists of stating (example) "I am responding to your
attack on my minor territory #2 with this detachment from my minor
territory #5." and placing the detachment sheet(s) next to the already
engaged detachments. In the following battle, any response detachments
enter as reserves, according to their reserve speed.
- Isolation
Territories and the Detachments in those territories are considered
Isolated when both of the following conditions are true:
1. There are no friendly-controlled territories in the line of
resistance immediately behind the line of resistance the detachment is
in. (i.e. if you are in your first line and the enemy controls every
territory in your second line, you are isolated until that changes).
2. Condition #1 existed at the end of the last turn.
So a detachment does not become immediately isolated, but if it ends
the turn meeting condition #1, it is isolated for the next turn.
Isolated detachments may not be used to declare moves or responses.
Isolated detachments which lose a battle are destroyed (gone!).
Isolated detachments may only declare one attack for each isolated
territory (this counts as part of your normal attacks).
Exception: Completely airborne units which are isolated may also
declare a single move if it brings them back to a friendly-controlled
territory. Dropship-borne troops, when isolated, are isolated just
like any other unit - no special escape rules, as dropships are
considered one-shots.
- Battles:
In a battle, defending detachments that were not part of a response may
use fortifications and start the game set-up within their half of the
board.
Defending detachments that were part of a response enter as per the
reserve rules.
Attacking detachments enter the board as per the meeting engagement
rules.
Entirely airborne attacking detachments that are attacking from a
non-adjacent line of resistance enter the board as per the reserve
rules.
The victor of a battle gains control over the territory. He may choose
which detachments to leave in the territory and which to move back to
their starting territories (pre-attack). The defending detachments
must retreat to a friendly territory in the same line of resistance or
to a friendly territory one line of resistance to the rear.
- Scoring:
Each player starts with a victory score of 0. Victory can be achieved
by gaining a victory score of 25, controlling all 18 territories, or
through your opponent's unconditional surrender.
Victory score modifiers:
Gaining control over a major territory: +2
Gaining control over a minor territory: +1
Winning a battle: +1
A detachment is 'wiped out' (see Andy's rules): -1
In addition, at the end of each turn a d6 roll is made to determine the
modifiers to the overall victory score based on events in other
sectors. The d6 roll should be modified as follows:
Your victory score:
<0 = -2 modifier
0-5 = -1 modifier
6-10= 0 modifier
>10 = +1 modifier
d6 Roll Strategic Victory Score Penalty/Bonus
1 -2: Your forces have been dealt a severe blow in another
sector.
2 -1: The mounting casualties in other sectors make a quick
victory unlikely.
3 0: The struggle is even, all depends on your forces.
4 +1: The enemy is being worn down, there can't be much of a
struggle left.
5 +2: News of the collapse of an enemy line on one of your
flanks.
6 +3: An enemy sector has collapsed, drawing strength from
those facing you.
--------------------------
<phew!>
Please let me know what you think, once you get a chance to print it
out and play with it.
Regards,
- Erik
"Look within. Within is the fountain of good, and it will ever bubble
up, if you will ever dig."
- Marcus Aurelius
Received on Wed May 07 1997 - 23:48:45 UTC