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Some minor omissions I see, that I wager you've already caught:
p.6, under "Melee" modifiers, add the +1 die from being on higher ground (p9)
p.13, "Flyers" refers to Swarms but I see no Designator called that in the book
p. 13, "Monstrous Creatures", you need to replace the XX page reference with "P. 17"
p. 14, "Mounted Weapons: Lances", you refer to Fast Cavalry but I see no such designation in the rulebook
p. 16, "Heavy Armor" should add "or Heavy Crossbows" under the "offers no protection from" section
NOTE: Sorry to pick some of this stuff apart. I think I did this to some of your other rulesets via email...but its only because Im excited about it!
Arrrgh! I can't believe I missed the Monstrous Creature page reference!! I'll get in in the next update. And don't worry, I appreciate the extra editorial eye. I want everything to be perfect when I release the print version.
As for Swarms and Fast Cavalry, they are both being included in the STRONGHOLD Expansion and were kept in for agreement with future rules. Nice catch!
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Movement: Since a unit is allowed to pivot on its center up to 90 degrees, either before or after a movement, is not being able to move laterally really a penalty? I suppose it would be once engaged in melee...Since you dont use Wheeling, Im trying to envision how Cavalry or Chariots move. I guess they just draw a line in their front 90 degree arc, move their distance in a straight line to a point within that arc, then rotate on their axis as they set up their next movement? This means maneuvering through a tight, windy path would require multiple activations...which is as intended, I assume.
It is intended. As you noted, this comes into play on the most basic level when trying to maneuver through tight or congested areas. Cavalry and Chariots are at their best when able to freely maneuver in the open a set-up favorable impacts. Not being able to move laterally or backwards also means that these units may only actively initiate contact with the enemy by their front edge. This makes them extremely vulnerable to the enemy if they get bogged down in melee.
The other way this comes into play is by way of Command points. If you want to move a Cavalry or Chariot unit out of the way for a friendly unit without leaving their flank or rear open to the enemy, then this will probably take two activations with a minimum of 3 Cp. An infantry unit could simply shift to the side for 2 Cp on a single activation. It may not seem like much now, but I think that you'll find that every point counts!
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Ranged Attacks: Just for clarification: a successful ranged attack on a Disordered unit kills it, right? "Successful" is defined as "rolling lower than your opponent in a damage roll" (I had to clarify this for myself on p.6 under the "Melee: Things that are True" list).
Yes- you are correct.
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Melee Attacks: p7 under "Melee Modifiers", "per additional friendly unit engaged" just means "in base contact with the target unit", right? That might be an easy clarification - that column has the space below to change the wording.
Your interpretation is correct for all situations that can arise now. In the future, other effects [like certain magics] will require the 'engaged' definition for the rule sentence to
always be true.
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LOS: Flying units ignore LOS through both friends and enemies. Can enemy Ranged units also ignore these units when drawing LOS to the Flyer? This is especially key because all ranged weapons are Hard Counters vs Flyers! *note: I was reading on p.13 under "Flyers" about this. Then I came to the LOS rules on p.19. I recommend adding a portion to the "larger" entry, stating "and can be seen by models of the same category as the intervening model" just for clarification. Combining entries 1 & 3, I can deduce this, but clarification might be good.
Ranged units can ignore flying units [both friend and enemy] for the purpose of LOS when targeting a unit. Screening bonuses will still apply as normal if the line of attack passed through the flyer's current location.
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Beasts: Paying the 2 points for Beasts only seems to be removing the "Infantry" type from these creatures...which affects Counters. Other than fluff, this seems to be the only reason to spend the 2 points for this Designation (well, and Beast allows you to buy Pack Hunter...)
You've nailed the main tactical reasons. Causing some of your opponents counters to cease to exist against this unit type is 2 points well spent and will normally make you at least break even in a unit to unit cost comparison. The Pack Hunter ability, on the other hand, is extremely nasty and useful for making a unit that specializes in hunting down enemy cavalry and chariots.
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Heroes joining units: Im failing to see the point of "why". I understand being driven into one by an enemy unit; in fact, I thought this was rather clever. Is it only to use the General's/Heroes stats rather than the unit's in combat, because normally a Hero cannot make attacks against units?
I'm glad you like the rule for a hero being driven into a unit.
It forces quite a few tactical considerations.
There are several reasons why. I'll give you a couple here and then revisit it in your next question. The coolest reason is actually best addressed when talking about unit cost.
One is to extend your command range while retaining mobility. Let's say that you wanted to have 3 Cavalry units begin the game on the far right flank and you planned on pushing them forward through use of the Advance action and Overdrive. If you place a mounted hero in the center unit, then you will have a mobile command point. Without the hero, your flanking unit would be out of most Generals' command range and be subject to the additional cost penalty.
Another reason would be to seek sanctuary from an opposing
'hero hunter'. Some opponents will create a hero for the express purpose of hunting down and engaging a enemy hero. Normal units can't engage and/or attack heroes unless they are in a unit but other heroes can!! As many players tend to put their heroes on mounts, one of my playtesters took great delight in creating and utilizing a Dire Wolf hero [Beast and Pack Hunter] to pressure opposing heroes to spend command points to avoid danger instead of activating their army, enter units where they would be vulnerable, or engage in unwise heroic one-on-one battles.
Hero versus Hero combat- what's more awesome than that?
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I'm actually questioning the cost of Heroes as well...apologies! To buy a Hero, you stat up a normal unit, pay 6 extra points, and call it a Hero. This allows you to extend your command coverage, keeping your army in range of Command Points. Add this hero to a unit, and you've actually paid for more than twice that unit...and probably quite a bit more, since a Hero should really have better stats than the unit it joins, since thats the only way that hero can fight.
Here are a few more considerations...
1. Remember, a hero also acts like a Standard by allowing you to roll extra command dice with much less risk of being destroyed.When looking at the cost, subtract what you would normally pay for a Standard.
2. As stated above, heroes can attack other heroes when both haven't yet joined a unit.
3. This part gets it's own paragraph!
A hero joining a unit is a clever way to have a single unit fulfill multiple roles if planned for. An example would be to have a archer hero join an infantry unit armed with spear and shields. This would allow the hero to attack at ranged until the enemy sent some cavalry to try and take him out. At that point, it would come down to which player performed the most efficient activations as the initiator would have the upper hand [see page 11].
If you really want to be devious, then have a Behemoth hero join a unit armed with crossbows. Any enemy that engages this unit will have to honor the superior threat of the Behemoth [thus protecting the archers]. Goblin archers and troll hero anyone?
It's true that these combined 'hero' units can only do one thing at a time and suffer the disadvantages [soft/hard counters] of both, BUT they also have the advantages of both.
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I also see that the command range of heroes is dependent on their "type" (p.10). At this point, the 6-point "Hero" cost seems steep when adding it to an Infantry unit...buff the unit up a bit, call it Cavalry, pay the exact same 6 points and get a huge bump in command range. Either "Leaders" should be added to units for cheap (like a Standard or Musician), not adding to Dice rolled for CP but allowing the unit to "be in range", or adjust the cost of Hero based on the Type it is (so a Cavalry or Flying unit is still 6-ish points, but maybe an Infantry leader is 3 or 4 points).
In your example, don't forget that in addition to the cost for buffing up the unit, you would still have to pay the cost for the upgrade to cavalry. That cost is what's giving you the extended range. Is paying 6 points to make an Infantry unit a hero steep? It
can be. It will really depend on how you plan to use the unit and how it fits into your overall build. It's not 6 points I would spend just to do it. The choice to create a hero should not be a light one and many times a Standard will have a similar effect for less. Let me know what you think after you've played a few games.
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Flight movement range: Im curious, in most fantasy games, Flying units can move much further than ground units. Do you plan on including a d20 Movement Rate at some point? I was very, very surprised to see Dragons written up with a d10 movement, instead of at least a d12!
I don't feel that most fantasy games differentiate between overland flight and tactical flight or consider how altitude changes should be calculated into movement ranges/rates. I've tried to do both without a ton of special rules by limiting the horizontal distance [to account for altitude changes, turning arcs, high winds, and speed changes ]. Also, don't forget that Overdrive can be used to cover some large distances with a d10 movement. Feel free to try it with a d12 though. In this case, it really won't do much harm, and I'm open to the change.
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Traits - Ideas: I think an obvious Trait to add could be "Skirmisher", allowing an Infantry unit to move in any direction without paying extra CP to do so, but maybe with a penalty on being Beaten / Driven Back.
Also, maybe a "Slow and Steady" Trait that prevents a unit from using a Danger roll for Movement (maybe at a cost savings, maybe not) unless for being adjusted by Terrain. While this negates low Danger rolls, it also prevents them from hustling...
I have quite a few new unit types and traits coming in the expansion. I tried not to overload players with too much 'new stuff' in this initial release and bog them down with lot's of traits and specials. My goal was to establish a strong core game that players could hone their skills and flex their creativity with before ramping things up a bit. That said, I really like you ideas...
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I've read the Harrison's Ford BatRep a number of times (now that I have the rules, the well-written report makes even MORE sense). In it, the author changes the skeleton's abilities mid-game to reflect the undead's Immune to Psychology rules. One idea I had was you could simply create an Undead trait. Combining ideas that both you and the OP offered, combine STEADFAST and FEAR, plus the restriction of "Slow and Steady" (above) for a cost of of 4 (2+3-1). You could even combine a Lesser Undead, Undead, and Greater Undead" as templates to allow more unique unit types. Just an idea...I know you arent trying to pin players into certain "themes", but sometimes all they need is a template or "gist" of how to do something, and they're off (like what you did in the General's Compendium...a brilliant addition, btw, and the name of that great WFB Campaign book of old...)
That's an awesome BatRep!!
Your observation about the lists is a good one. I should have some army lists up very soon. This will include some generic fantasy templates [complete with army abilities
] and some armies for specific miniature lines. I really excited that you like the General's Compendium as well. My goal is to have the army lists share the same 'living document' concept so that more forces can be added [and revisions made] without players having to pay any extra cost.
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Man...Im getting hyped about this
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"Tough" or some such might be a way of making even tougher Behemoths, since players cannot customize their own Monstrous Creatures (which I find a little odd..). This could a way of increasing the damage the unit can take by increasing the Lucky 13 roll to 15 or so...make it expensive, like 4 points? [This would basically be a "Heavy Armor" for Behemoths...and since HA costs 3, this seems like a 4- or 5-point ability]
Fear not! There are more Behemoth traits on the way!
