Archive of all ‘’ Articles
Designer’s Notes… Surrounded Enemies
Friday, March 4th, 2011One question that comes up from time to time is why isn’t there a Combat Results shift up when a foe is in close combat with multiple enemy units? The answer really is that the bonus for such a situation is already built into the system.
When a unit is surrounded by enemy units, the potential for a disaster for that unit is very high. If one of the surrounding enemy units has a Melee Surge Action, the result could force the surrounded unit to Fall Back leaving it vulnerable to Shots of Opportunity and Parting Blows from the other units surrounding it. If an attack does not force the surrounded unit to retreat, the attack could still leave the unit Shaken or Out of Action – thus giving any future attacks from the enemy units surrounding it an additional step up on the Combat Results chart. (more…)
How Do I… Match Unit to Model
Thursday, March 3rd, 2011A frequent dilemma that comes up for players as they prepare their forces for battle is how to classify a particular model for the upcoming battle. Should it be an Armored Unit? What about a Behemoth? If it is light in armor and weaponry, should it instead be a Recon Unit? While there is no easy answer for this, there are a couple of perspectives to keep in mind.
First, remember that your force is structured around the units, not the models. The model simply serves to remind the players of what unit it is for this battle. So if your army has four Armored Units in it, it really doesn’t matter if you are going to use a German Panzer III or Panzer IV tank model to represent them. The important thing is that you chose models that will help you remember what the unit is supposed to be – there is nothing more frustrating than to lose a game because you used armored car models to represent Armored Units, but forgot that during the game and instead used them as Recon Units. (more…)
How Do I… Use Urban Terrain
Tuesday, March 1st, 2011When laying out terrain on the tabletop battlefield, most forms of terrain are pretty easy and obvious to fit within the context of the Combat Cards. Woods are typically a Template of Covering Terrain, swamps are Templates of Hindering Terrain, hedges are Linear Obstructing Terrain and so on. The one form of terrain that often gives players fits is the dreaded ‘built up’ or ‘urban’ areas (e.g. cities, towns, villages and buildings).
Should urban areas be Templates of Impassable terrain? Or should each wall of a building be Linear Covering Terrain? Should roads be Clear Open Terrain, or should the walls and hedges that often run along them force them to be Obstructing Terrain? As players will play a host of different scales, genres and battlefield sizes there really isn’t a single authoritative answer to the question. What follows are some ideas which have proven effective in different types of games. Hopefully one them, or some combination of them, will help you lay out a better battlefield for your games.
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