Hordes Campaign

CAMPAIGN RULES
Version 2.3 (effe !i"e from #$#$%&'

(VERVIE)
Each player is a nation, and starts in control of an army and a number of provinces, each of which is represented by a city (not all the cities are actually cities but I will refer to them as such). By capturing the city, an army can ta e over a province for their nation. !rmies may move between the cities (and other nodes) only along the mar ed routes, and fight battles or sieges to gain control of the cities. Each year of the campaign is divided into three seasons " #pring, #ummer $ !utumn. !t the end of !utumn all armies must retire to a friendly province for %inter, during which time they can raise new troops.

*R((P *+PES
&o'' divides troops into a number of basic types whose fighting style or effect in battle is similar. 'roops are classified as either aerial, mounted or foot, and each has a cost in !( (!rmy (oints) per element. Gods (!erial, )!(). Immensely powerful supernatural entities who are prepared (usually in return for being worshipped) to aid mortal battles. 'hough virtually invulnerable, they are fic le and prone to leaving their worshippers in the lurch. *ods are only usable by pagan peoples, as neither +ira nor !,un will ever manifest themselves in this way. ,ragons (!erial, )!(). &uge fire"breathing intelligent armoured flying creatures. 'hey are too arrogant and indiscriminate in their fighting style to co"operate with other life"forms, and especially not with other dragons. 'hey are at ris from &eroes and +agicians, but largely invulnerable to other troops. &owever if they do find themselves in trouble they are apt to panic and flee the battlefield. Air-oa!s (!erial, -!(). !ny large flying platforms, whether living or levitated by magic or artifice, able to drop missiles onto ground troops. ./0ers (!erial, .!(). !ny medium"si,ed flying creatures, either intelligent (such as winged (teor), or used as steeds (such as gryphons or giant eagles), or directed by an intelligence (such as magically summoned swarms of birds or bats). /ot particularly powerful in combat, but can ma e themselves deadly by using their superior mobility to mob enemy ground troops. Heroes (+ounted, )!() and Aeria/ Heroes (!erial, 0!(). +ighty individual warriors and champions, unbeatable in hand"to"hand combat and able to escape danger with a single bound. 'hey count as mounted (since they always find a horse when they need one), unless on a flying stead, in which case they count as aerial. 'hey are best suited to doing heroic things li e slaying dragons and single"handedly sei,ing the enemys stronghold. 'heir most dangerous foe is +agicians, but instead of being slain if defeated by a +agician, they will be held in captivity while the +agician e1plains his fiendish plans, then loc ed up and given plenty of time to escape.

Pa/adins (+ounted, )!(). #imilar to &eros, but pure of heart and strong in spirit, ma ing them invulnerable to magic. (aladins can never be generals, being too unworldly for politics. 1nig2!s (+ounted, .!(). &eavily armoured (but slow) horsemen or riders of similar beasts, whose preferred tactic is to charge the enemy and destroy them by sheer weight and impetus. 'heir charge can sweep away lesser mounted and foot, but they are vulnerable to missile fire. Riders (+ounted, .!(). 2ther cavalry, often armed with missile weapons. 3aster and lighter than 4nights, and less committed to the charge. 5seful against irregular foot but vulnerable to beasts. Includes both the 6B! 7avalry $ 8ight &orse categories. 3e2emo!2s (+ounted, )!(). *round creatures or engines of e1ceptional si,e and strength, such as giants, elephants, ents or landships. +ost useful for smashing through massed ran s of enemy ground troops, but can be a danger to friendly troops behind them if they rout. 3eas!s (+ounted, .!(). (ac s of carnivorous animals. (articularly effective against cavalry or in bad going. 3/ades (3oot, .!(). 7lose fighting infantry with melee and light hand"hurled weapons, s illed in individual combat, and generally well"trained $ armoured, such as dwarves or dismounted men" at"arms. 'he best infantry troop type against other infantry, though not as good as #pears against mounted. (enalised in bad going. Spears (3oot, .!(). 7lose formation infantry fighting with spears or pi es in a rigid formation. 'hey have considerable resisting power and are able to fend off cavalry, and benefit from being deployed in deep formation. &owever they are unwieldy and infle1ible, at ris from dragons, behemoths or warbands, and perform poorly in bad going. )ar-and (3oot, .!(). Irregular foot warriors depending on the ferocity of their charge to sweep the enemy away, such as orcs or barbarians. 5naffected by bad terrain, good at overwhelming infantry formations, but vulnerable to harassment from mounted or aerial troops. S2oo!ers (3oot, .!(). #hooting collectively with bows or similar missile weapons in dense volleys. (articularly effective against mounted troops such as nights, but li ely to be swept away if their shooting fails to halt the enemys charge. &owever they can also hold their own against other infantry, and are very effective at holding bad terrain. Ar!i//er0 (3oot, -!(). (ro9ectile"throwing crew"served engines, whether mechanical, magical or gunpowder"powered. (articularly effective against large slow"moving targets, and especially against #trongholds. Hordes (3oot, :!(). 5ns illed, undisciplined, poorly e;uipped or generally unenthusiastic rabble, such as peasant conscripts, coerced or con;uered masses, lesser orcs, ,ombies or s eletons. (ossessed of no real advantage e1cept numbers, and easily swept away by mounted troops. (/B< despite what it says in &o'', &ordes can not be re"incarnated unless specifically allowed by your army list). L4r5ers (3oot, :!(). 'hose creatures whose main weapons are surprise and stealth, and who lie

in wait to ambush the unwary, such as bandits or rangers, giant spiders, ape men, wood sprites or ghouls. 'hey are not deployed at the usual time but can appear to attac enemy that move into bad going. !lternatively they can be %ater 8ur ers (such as water sprites, crocodiles or ra en), and ambush enemy crossing water features. Snea5ers (3oot, -!(). Infiltrators and assassins, such as nin9a, wraiths or halflings with magic rings. 'hey are not especially effective in battle (although they can assassinate enemy generals and capture #trongholds). 'hey have out"of"combat campaign uses as well though. Magi ians (3oot, )!(). +asters of offensive magic. !lthough classed as foot (since arcane gestures and spell"reading re;uire steady footing), they can move with magical speed. 'hough powerful, they are not all"powerful, and when their magic fails them they may re;uire protecting by conventional troops. !n over"dependence on magic may end up hindering their own army. C/eri s (3oot, -!(). #ervants of an organi,ed ethical religious faith (that of +ira, in other words), whose powers are defensive in nature. 'heir presence hinders all magic in their vicinity, and they can sometimes drive away pagan *ods. 'hey count as foot as they are assumed to re;uire to pray and fight manfully among their floc .

ARM+ (RGANI6A*I(N
Genera/s. !n !rmy must be commanded by a general. ! body of troops without a general is a garrison, and may only move between cities which you control. *enerals are not separate elements but are an attribute of one of the armys troop elements. If you have two generals in one army, only one of them commands. If that general is illed the other can attempt to assume command (he succeeds if the armys ne1t (I( dice is greater than the number of elements lost). =ou are free to give names to your generals if you wish (it helps me trac them). 'roop types permitted to be generals vary and are given in your army list. In some cases a primary and secondary troop type is given, in which case the general must be of the primary type if possible, otherwise of the secondary type. E1cept during a battle, a general may be moved between eligible elements (e1cept that it cannot move from a primary to a secondary type), but an opponent is always entitled to now which element contains the general. If your army wins a battle as main protagonist, you gain a new general, added to an element in that army. If you do not have sufficient elements of a type permitted to be a general to accommodate a new general, he is assumed to be in the same element as the e1isting general and both are illed if that element is destroyed. If at any point you have fewer than two generals, any eligible element at your capital may become a new general. If you dont have an eligible element at your capital the first one to move there or be raised there becomes the general. If at any point you have no generals remaining you immediately ac;uire a new general element at your capital (of the cheapest eligible type). Armies and Garrisons. !n army can move to give battle, and must be commanded by a

general. It is limited in si,e to between > and .) !(. !n army without a general (or with fewer than > !() is a garrison. ! garrison must be located in a city, and can do nothing e1cept defend that city against siege. 'he ma1imum si,e of a garrison in one city is :. !(, and a city can accommodate one army in addition to this. 'roops can be moved from a garrison to re"inforce an army provided they can do so within their normal move and without leaving friendly provinces (e1cept that they can enter a contested province to 9oin an army already in it conducting a siege). Arm0 Res!ri !ions. ! nations overall force is limited in that it must have at least half its !( total in elements costing .!( or less (3lyers, 4nights, ?iders, Beasts, Blades, #pears, #hooters, %arbands, &ordes or 8ur ers). It may also be limited by minimum numbers of a particular troop type which are specific to its army list. If it ceases to comply with this as a result of losses in battle, any new troops raised must restore this balance. Cos! and Va/4e. #ome nations have to pay a higher cost in !( to raise certain troop types than their nominal value (for e1ample most nations have to pay -!( for an element of 4nights). &owever the value of such an element for all purposes of calculating losses, army si,e, etc remains its base value (.!( in the case of the 4nights) Ma7im4m .or e Si8e. 'he ma1imum si,e of any one nations force is @. !(. 'hus, as youre Empire e1pands in si,e and magnificence, you will need the co"operation of loyal allies or vassals to defend all your borders.

*HE CAMPAIGN +EAR

2rders are written for each season in turn (not including %inter), starting with #pring of =ear :. In this first season each nation has -0!( of forces, and two generals. 6ecide the composition of your force, how you wish it deployed (it can be deployed in any of your cities) and where you wish to move it. !n army can< +2AE to a friendly or empty province. I/A!6E a province of another nation " this may result in a battle. 6E3E/6 " this is an active defence. 'he army will battle any invaders that enter its province and will also move to confront any invaders entering an ad9acent province of your nation (unless you specifically order it not to). #'!/6 #EI*E " the army will sit tight in the city and not give battle. 'his is the only option that a garrison has. ?E'?E!' in the face of an invasion, providing that this is possible to a friendly or empty province. =ou can include as many conditional statements as you li e in your orders (eg< defend if invaded by one army, but stand siege if invaded by two, and retreat if invaded by three). )in!er. !t the end of !utumn all armies in the field must retire into winter ;uarters in a friendly city (a city can accomodate a ma1imum of -0 !( of a single nation, or a :. !( garrison of the owning nation and a .) !( army of a different, allied, nation). !n army can automatically fall bac one movement stage to do so (even if it has already moved that season) but if it has to move further than this it looses . elements per stage travelled. If completely cut off and unable to reach a friendly city it looses 0 !( or half its !(, whichever is more. 6uring %inter each nation can raise new troops to a value of .!( per city controlled plus an

additional .!( for its capital. 'hese can be deployed into any city you control (but not to 9oin an army wintering in an allys city). !lternatively e1isting troops can be promoted to a more costly type (Im not going to issue a list of permissible promotions, but use your common sense. =ou can promote halfling 8ur ers into #nea ers, but not into a (aladin). 5nused !( cannot be carried forward to ne1t year.

S*RA*EGIC M(VEMEN*
/ormally troops can move a ma1imum of two movement stages along the defined routes. 'hey cannot pass through a province that they do not control, unless it is the province of a vassal or ally, or the controlling player has specifically granted them permission in his orders, or it is an empty neutral province (such as an oasis or ruins). Sea Mo"emen!. !lternatively an army may travel by sea along one of the defined sea routes. Each nation possesses only enough ships to move 2/E army by sea per season, and this must be from or too one of that nations own cities. &owever it does not have to move an army of its own nationB it can move an army of an allied nation. 'he nation owning the fleet must specifically say in his orders that he is moving his allyCs army. &owever an 2verlord is entitled to insist that a vassal provide a fleet. #ome nations have no fleet, either because they have no seaports or because this is a restriction placed on them in their army list. 'his does not prevent them being transported by an allies fleet, however. It ta es an entire season to travel a sea route, and an army traveling by a sea route other than in #ummer (even if flying) ris s loosing some elements as a result of storms, shipwrec , sea" monsters, pirates and other calamities. 'hese are selected randomly, but the first lost will always be mounted if any are present, and the general will only be lost if the entire army is lost. =ou may wish to include an !bort clause in your orders giving a level of losses above which the army will turn bac . Mo4n!ed Mo"emen!. !n army consisting entirely of mounted troops (or mounted and aerial troops) may travel three movement stages in a season. 3or this purpose Behemoths are not counted as mounted, but +agicians and #nea ers are. In addition 7lerics, #hooters, Blades or #pears can be made mounted infantry at a cost of : e1tra !( and can then 9oin a mounted army (although this does not change the way they fight in battle D their mounts are purely for travel and they dismount to fight). Aeria/ Mo"emen!. !n army consisting entirely of aerials can also travel three movement stages, and can additionally travel along one sea route and also one standard stage (either before or after the sea stage). 'he usual ris s apply for sea movement. 'here are no restrictions on the number of aerial armies that can travel along sea routes, and an aerial army travelling by a sea route does not preclude another army of the same nation accompanying them along the same route by ship. 'here are also some stages classed as !erials only. 2nly aerials can move along such a route and it is a standard stage for them. ! +agician can be made an !erial +agician at a cost of : e1tra !(. 'his has no effect on battles but allows the magician to be part of an aerial army.

C(VER* (PERA*I(NS
!n element of #nea ers may engage in a number of covert actions. It can be sent to spy upon an ad9acent province, infiltrating and reporting on the forces present there. #uccess is not guaranteed, and there is a ris that the spy will not return, especially if the target province has an opposing #nea er. !lternatively (or additionally) a +agician may attempt the same thing by magical scrying. 'his has the advantage that there is no ris to the magician, but the information gained is li ely to be less reliable than that obtained by a spy on the ground. !gain, the presence of an opposing +agician or 7leric will have an adverse effect on your scrying. !nother action which #nea ers may attempt is to attempt to assassinate an enemy general in an ad9acent province. 'his involves a significant ris to the #nea er element, and the chance of success is not great. 3inally a #nea er or a &ero element can attempt to rescue one of your &eroes (or an allied &ero) who is being held prisoner in an ad9acent province. In any of the above cases, if the element engaging in covert operations is part of an army, then the only action which that army may ta e is to 6efend or #tand #iege. 'he element will however participate in any battle or siege which the army is involved in.

SUPPL+
!n army is in supply if it is either in or has a standard land route connection to a province controlled by its own nation, or by an ally or vassal. If it is not in supply at the end of the season it looses (d0) !( due to hunger, disease $ desertion (of your choice if you specify in your orders, otherwise Ill pic the lowest value). 'his is after any battles or sieges ta e place, so the army is not out of supply if it successfully captures the province it is in. /ote that supply cannot be traced through a naval or !erials only route. It can be traced through a neutral (empty) province, but if a non"allied army moves into the province that season your supply line is cut.

3A**LES
Gi"ing 3a!!/e. Battles are fought after all movement is completed, so each army can only fight one battle per season. If two non"allied armies are in the same province and neither wishes to retreat, a battle results. 'he most li ely scenario is that one will be the army of the provinces owner and the other an invader. 'he provinces owner is the 6efender, and chooses the terrain. 'he Invader then assigns the numbers : to 0 to each edge (with one preferred edge being represented by )"0) and rolls to see which is his base edge. 'he 6efender then places his #tronghold on the opposite edge (representing his city). 2nly the provinces owner can have a #tronghold on the battlefield. 'he two armies are then deployed on table, Invader first. 'he 6efender ta es first bound.

'he terrain must comply with the following< !t least three of the battlefields ;uarters must contain at least one terrain feature. !t least two ;uarters must contain a river or bad going or impassable terrain. If there is a terrain type mar ed on the map for the province, it must appear in at least two ;uarters. (rovince specific terrain types are indicated by a small letter in the upper right corner of the he1B (%)oods, (+)ountains, (#)wamp, (&)ills, (6)esertEsteppe. 'he latter needs more e1planation, as it is an e1ception. ! desertEsteppe he1 cannot have woods or rivers, and bad going E impassable terrain need appear in only two ;uarters. Ne4!ra/ Pro"in es. If two opposing armies meet in a neutral province, neither side has a #tronghold. Each side rolls a d0 and adds the number of provinces they currently control, and the side that gets the highest result is the Fattac erG. If the province has a city which is allied to neither of the combatants, it is unaffected by the battles outcome. M4/!ip/e Armies 9 A//ied Con!ingen!s. If multiple armies are present in a province things are more complicated. If the province owner has an army present then this army will always be one of the prime combatants. 2therwise, the two largest un"aligned armies will fight each otherB if one of these decides to retreat then the ne1t largest fights instead. If two armies from the same nation or two armies from allied nations are present, then the one which is not the prime combatant is a secondary combatant. Initially the armies of secondary combatants are not deployed on table, but they roll a (I( dice each bound, and when they first score a 0, they enter on their ne1t bound as an element"wide column on the table edge best representing their route to the battlefield relative to the main protagonists (but not their opponents base edge). 'hey may bring a ma1imum of > !( on in support of their ally, and this cannot include *ods, 6ragons or 8ur ers, nor both aerial and ground troops. Each allied army rolls separate (I( dice and they then move simultaneously in the same bound. )inning !2e 3a!!/e. !n army is defeated if, at the end of a bound< It looses its commanding *eneral, and also more !( than the other side. If it has a reserve *eneral, the reserve *eneral can assume command in the ne1t bound if the army remains undefeated. It looses one"half of its original !( !/6 more than its opponent. 'he latter gives smaller armies a chance against larger. It has lost its #tronghold. If allied contingents are present, calculate the one"half from the total initial element number of all the contingents present on the table (an allied contingent counts as present as soon as it rolls the initial 0 to come onto the table, even if its elements have not actually made it onto the table). If an allied contingent looses its *eneral, then all elements of that contingent immediately count as lost. 'hus the morale of the primary combatants army can be restored by the news that its allies have arrived, but can e;ually be shattered by the sight of them running away again. If an allied contingent becomes demoralised as a result of loosing its *eneral, but this does not end the battle, its surviving elements will, on their ne1t bound, start fleeing from the table. !fter all other movement has occurred, they will move directly towards the table edge they entered on at double their normal movement rate. 8ur ers or any aerials ;uit the table immediately. 'hey may change direction to avoid other elements, or bad going if they are of a type which would be slowed down in bad going. If forced into combat, or shot at, they suffer a ". combat penalty.

Af!er !2e 3a!!/e. 'he loosing side in a battle, and any armies allied to it, must immediately retreat from the province to another friendly or empty province. If invading, it e1its by the route that it entered if it can. If this was a sea route it rolls for sea calamities again, even in #ummerH Elements that fled off the table and ensorcelled +agicians re9oin their armies after the battle. &owever an army that lost as a result of the loss of its *eneral or its #tronghold looses an additional ) !( after the battle (as demorali,ed troops desert). ! &ero still captive at the end of a battle escapes if his side won the battle, otherwise is ta en to the bespelling +agicians nearest city. 'he &ero has a chance of escaping at each movement stage involved. &owever once the &ero reaches the enemy city he remains captive until voluntarily released, rescued by another &ero or a #nea er, released by the capture of that city, or escaped during a battle at that city. &e may be moved to a different city (unless the city is besieged of course), but this gives him another chance to escape at each movement stage. &e may also be e1ecuted by his captor, but &eroes cannot be simply put up against a wall and shotB they have to be e1ecuted using fiendishly complicated deathtraps, which gives them another chance to escape. If a defeated army no longer has a general it can only retreat to one of its own provinces. If it has to travel more than one movement stage it looses another .!( at each additional stage. If two armies of the same nation are retreating together it is permissible for one to be absorbed into the other if their total number of !( is now .) or less. If an army cannot retreat, it is entirely destroyed. If the nation owning the province was defeated, then the main protagonist on the winning side gains the province without any further siege.

SEIGE
If a provinces owner does not fight a battle to defend it, then its city is besieged by the attac ers. 'he besiegers roll a d0 to capture the city. 3actors which modify this roll include< I 'he besiegers include a *od or +agician $ the defenders have neither a *od, +agician, 7leric or (aladin. I 'he defenders include a *od or +agician $ the besiegers have neither a *od, +agician, 7leric or (aladin. I 'he besiegers have more artillery than the defenders. I 'he city is defended by an army or garrisonB the bonus is larger if this is ) or more elements. I 'he city is that nations capital. If the besieger fails to capture the city he looses .!( (I will pic the cheapest elements at if none are specified). 'his must be from the principal besiegers army. If the besieger rolled a 0 and failed to capture the city the defenders loose .!( too. 'he besieger may elect to attac by assault, which gives a greater chance of success, but at the cost of higher casualties. 'he besieger looses an additional )!( regardless of the success of the assault. 'hese may be from an allied army, but only if the ally agrees to this. If the city falls any forces within it are destroyed. ! field army that is besieged can sally out to give battle in its ne1t turn, but cannot retreat from the province without giving battle.

NEU*RAL PR(VINCES
Ne4!ra/ Ci!ies. 'here are a number of neutral cities on the map. 'hese initially belong to no nation and have no army. 'hey cannot be moved through without being captured, nor can they be retreated into. 'hey can be besieged and captured normally, however. If a battle ta es place in such a province neither side has a #tronghold, and the winner does not automatically capture the city. Emp!0 Pro"in es. 'here are a number of empty provinces on the map. 'hese are oases, ancient ruins, stone circles and the li e. 'hese belong to no nation unless they are occupied by an army, and revert to being neutral as soon as the army leaves. 'hey cannot be garrisoned or wintered in, and if occupied by a non"allied nation cannot be supplied through, or be retreated into.

ALLIES AN, (VERL(R,S

A/ignmen!. /ations are assigned an alignment based on whether they are +ira worshippers (*ood), !,un worshippers (Evil), or neither (/eutral D generally pagan or ancestor worshipping). *ood nations may not ally with Evil nations, but /eutral nations may ally with either. &owever individual nations may have additional restrictions placed upon them. A//ian es. 'wo nations may at any time declare themselves to be allied (providing the alliance is allowed by their national ob9ectives). Both nations must agree to the alliance. 'hey will then fight together in battle, can move freely through each others territory, can be supplied from each others territory, and can winter in each others cities. !lliances will be announced publicly. Either party can rescind an alliance at the end of a season, but not at other times. ("er/ords. ! nation may also as to become a vassal of another nation, which, if it agrees, becomes its overlord. ! nation can only voluntarily become a vassal of a nation which its political restrictions would allow it to ally with, and it may have additional restrictions. 'he overlord can move $ be supplied freely through its vassals territory. /either can attac the other while the relationship lasts. ! vassal cannot form alliances or invade another nation without the permission of its overlord. 'he overlord is entitled to demand that the vassal place an army (at least >!( including a general) at his disposal. 'his has to go where the overlord tells it to (the overlord writes its orders), but remains under the command of the vassal on the battlefield. It cannot attac the overlords army, but the enthusiasm with which it fights for the overlord is entirely up to its commander. !n overlord may renounce a vassal at the end of a season, but a vassal cannot renounce its overlord unless the overlords capital is captured by a third nation, or the overlord looses two consecutive battles (a simultaneous defeat $ victory cancel each other out). If a vassal rises in rebellion against its overlord there is a chance that any ungarrisoned cities controlled by the overlord which were originally the vassals will also rise in rebellion and 9oin in. ! vassal cannot have two overlords, but may retain or ac;uire vassals of its own, and may order these to supply an army to its overlord as a substitute for its own. ! vassal who blatantly fails to obey his overlord may (at my discretion) be penalised by loosing a province to the overlord. !n overlord is not automatically entitled to winter in a vassals cityB it must have the vassals permission to do this. !lso, a vassal is not automatically entitled to move through the territory of

its overlord, etc. !n overlord may offer to ally with its vassal, but is not obliged to. If a nations capital is captured it automatically becomes a vassal of the nation that captured the city. It retains its capital and any other provinces it still controls. If its capital is subse;uently captured by a different nation it becomes a vassal of that nation instead.

,E.EA*
!s a nation is never noc ed out of the game by the capture of its capital, no"one is ever forced to ;uit the game. 'he ob9ective is therefore to ma e yourself the ultimate overlord of all other nations. 'he e1ception however is the /ameless /ecromancer. /o nation can ever ally with or be a vassal of the /ecromancer, even if its capital is ta en. 'hus if all your cities are captured by the /ecromancer, you are indeed irrevocably and completely noc ed out of the game. 2n the other hand, it can be not a lot of fun to be compelled to eep playing if your nation has been reduced to a powerless, impotent shadow of its former glory, lorded over by an evil overlord who laughs manically at your humiliation (now who can I be thin ing offJ). In this case you may elect to ;uit the game. !ll your remaining cities will become neutral cities and your armies will disperse. Evil overlords should therefore note that active, powerful vassals are of more benefit than con;uered provinces. 'hey must try and wal the fine line between reducing their vassals to ab9ect sub9ugation, and allowing them to become too powerful.