Let's be beardy or Saga for one

Ok folks there was a post on facebook about if saga can be played solo , well the good news it can

I did a 4 point Anglo-Saxon Vs Norman control the ford scenario

The normans had 2 units of 4 hearthguard mounted knights , 1 unit of 8 warriors with sword/shield and 1 unit of 8 warriors with crossbow.

The Anglo-Saxon had 1 unit of 4 hearthguard with dane axe , 2 units of 8 warriors with spears and a unit of 12 levies with bow


Here is my Saga AI

Create 2 armies , you will control one of them and the AI the other , roll for each armies aggressiveness , intelligence and posture and assign victory conditions , you will then dice for which army you will control and which will be controlled by the AI.

Determine the aggressiveness and intelligence of the warlord for the game and the army posture
Aggressiveness :- Cautious 2-4 , Normal 5-9 , Rash 10-12 ( roll 2d6 )
Intelligence :- Dumb 2-4 , Average 5-9 , Clever 10-12 ( roll 2d6 )

Army Posture :- will it be attacking (4-6) or defending (1-3) roll 1d6 for each turn 

A -1 modifier to the dice if there are more missile focused units that are not Exhausted in the army

A +1 modifier to the dice if there are more melee focused units that are not Exhausted in the army

Applying dice to battle board

The AI dice placed columns 2 and 3 are not removed until the order can be completed but may be removed if the intelligence rating dice roll decides otherwise , completed orders must be used this turn or removed from the battle board at the beginning of the next turn.

When selecting dice for the AI’s orders if there are more than one choice for order selection

Spend dice on the unit types depending on the aggressiveness and intelligence of the warlord and if the army is attacking or defending this turn.

A Dumb warlord will select Levies before other types

An Average warlord will select Warriors before other types

A Clever warlord will select Hearthguard before other types

Activating the same unit again

A Dumb warlord will activate that unit again on a 3-6

An Average warlord will activate that unit again on a 4-6

A Clever warlord will activate that unit again on a 5-6

A Cautious warlord must spend at least 2 dice in the 1st Column of the battle board (any number of times)

A Normal warlord must spend at least 1 dice in the 1st Column of the battle board (any number of times)

A Rash warlord must spend at least 0 dice in the 1st Column of the battle board (any number of times)

A Cautious warlord must spend at least 0 dice in the 2nd Column of the battle board (once per turn)

A Normal warlord must spend at least 2 dice in the 2nd Column of the battle board (once per turn)

A Rash warlord must spend at least 1 dice in the 2nd Column of the battle board (once per turn)

A Cautious warlord must spend at least 0 dice in the 3rd Column of the battle board (once per turn)

A Normal warlord must spend at least 1 dice in the 3rd Column of the battle board (once per turn)

A Rash warlord must spend at least 2 dice in the 3rd Column of the battle board (once per turn)

A Cautious warlord must spend more dice on Levies and Warriors than Hearthguard

A Normal warlord must spend more dice on Warriors than Hearthguard and Levies

A Rash warlord must spend more dice on Hearthguard than Warriors and Levies

An Attacking warlord must spend more dice on “Orders” and “Activation”

A Defending warlord must spend more dice on “Reacting” and “Shooting”

A Cautious warlord must spend more dice on “Reacting” , Units will Rest (1-3) or Shoot (4-5) or Move (6)

A Normal warlord must spend more dice on “Activation”  , Units will Shoot (1-3) or Move (4-5) or Rest (6)

A Rash warlord must spend more dice on “Melee” , Units will Move (1-3) or Shoot (4-5) or Rest (6)

Fatigue points on the enemy side will always be spent as soon as they can.

If a side looses their warlord they can only put dice into the first column

End of turn intelligence rating dice roll (roll 1d6)

A Dumb warlord will remove all dice on the battle board at the beginning of the turn on a roll of 4-6

An Average warlord will remove all dice on the battle board at the beginning of the turn on a roll of 5-6

A Clever warlord will remove all dice on the battle board at the beginning of the turn on a roll of 6

So Now to the battle

As you can see this is a 15mm game on a 2 foot table , i used a measuring stick marked off in 1/2 inches

The Normans rolled a rash / average commander and the Anglo-Saxons a normal / clever commander

So from the outset the normans decided that the anglo-saxons were not going to deploy on the edge of the river and defend they would take the battle to the enemy

so the  Norman warlord with a unit of knights charged but from a little too far away , and gained a little too much fatigue for their own goon and when it came down to the fight the levy held and the anglo-saxon hearthguard flattened those knights and the warlord

This is the scene after turn 2 with the anglo-saxons preparing a defence of the stream

With the loss of their leader the rest of the Normans wanted vengeance so like any good Norman would do they charged another unit of knights only to be thrashed again  , this really was the straw that broke the camels back as the only units left after this were just the infantry which were then being peppered by the anglo-saxon levy bow.

On the whole a quick fun game which i used the AI for both sides rather than taking control of one of the sides

Stalingrad Picnic

Something i have meaning to play for a while is a Russian "Just got off the boat in Stalingrad" as the film Enemy at the Gates" led me to the inspiration of how would this work

so I setup a table and used force on force with the WWII download sheet , on the whole it was over in  about 4 turns as the casualties mounted , i decided both sides would stop fighting when they reached 33% casualties , Force on force proved to be quite entertaining as one side would fire and then the reaction system would ripple down the table but the main decisive threat were the large soviet squads compared to the smaller but better equipped german ones.

The forces involved
German
TQ d10 , supply normal , morale d8 , Normal Confidence
Hq 2 man smg
Squad 1  , 2 X 4 men + 2 men light mortar
Squad 2  , 2 X 4 men + 2 men light mortar
Squad 3  , 2 X 4 men + 2 men light mortar
Squad 4  , 2 HMG teams of 3 men
Soviet
TQ d8 , supply normal , morale d8 , Normal Confidence
Hq 2 man smg (no shooting past half range , +1 fire dice)
Squad 1  , 10 rifles ( only 5 fire dice , no effect on casualties until down to 1/2 strength)
Squad 2  , 10 rifles ( only 5 fire dice , no effect on casualties until down to 1/2 strength)
Squad 3  , 10 rifles ( only 5 fire dice , no effect on casualties until down to 1/2 strength)
Hq 2 man smg
Squad 1  , 8 smg (no shooting past half range , +1 fire dice)
Squad 2. , 8 smg (no shooting past half range , +1 fire dice)
Squad 3. , 8 smg (no shooting past half range , +1 fire dice)

Any rifle stand down to 1/2 strength may exchange itself for a sniper stand
Sniper team TQ d10 , supply normal , morale d8 ( this did not happen as there was not an opportunity that would make this worth while ) , the Russians managed to win the initiative every turn ( both sides were a d8 with the Russians starting the first turn with initiative

the starting positions

The Game

The total casualties on the German side was 33% , the Russians 40% at the end of turn 4 , so both sides consolidated their positions . The german centre squad would probably with draw next turn because of the risk of being surrounded , the bottom german flank is relatively secure but at the top it is about to be destroyed as both squads were at 50% casualties and faced with an almost untouched Russian smg squad and leader.

Modern imaginations skirmish game

I have been looking at various modern skirmish sets of rules , normally i would go for force on force but i wanted something a little more special where each figure acted and fought and interacted with the terrain individually so i have been looking at infinity , these are a hard scifi set but the core mechanics work well for individual figures. so i created / modified the weapons to be a little more in keeping with the this game.

house rules

since i am playing this in 15mm i am halving all ranges

As infinity is an individual figure game i needed a group mechanism so i decided to have the units training/morale reflect this so militia must always be able to see 3 other figures or they stay put , average 2 others and veteran 1 other , elites may do as they wish

At the start of the game there are 5 hotspots as per the normal FoF rules where the insurgents can appear however the hotspots will move half an infinity move at the end of the turn towards the businessman or product

each move on the table made by the pmc will increase the threat level by 1 , at the end of the turn a d6 is rolled and if that number is rolled the enemy gang may start to arrive with the leader arriving with the last gang , they arrive on a random hotspot  and within or behind a building or wall

Modified Weapons

Pistol range 0-8 (+3) , 8-16 (0) , 16-24 (-6) , dam 12 , burst 1

Heavy pistol range 0-8 (+3) , 8-16 (0) , 16-24 (-6) , dam 14 , burst 1

Machine pistol range 0-8 (+3) , 8-16 (0) , 16-24 (-6) , dam 12 , burst 4

Sub Machine Gun range 0-8 (0) , 8-16 (+3) , 16-24 (-3) , dam 12 , burst 3

Light Machine Gun range 0-8 (-3) , 8-16 (+3) , 16-24 (-3) , 24-48 (-6) , dam 13 , burst 3

Vehicle Machine Gun range 0-8 (0) , 8-16 (+3) , 16-24 (-3) , 24-48 (-6) dam 14 , burst 3

Heavy Machine Gun range 0-8 (-3) , 8-16 (0) , 16-24 (+3) , 24-48 (+3) , 48-96 (-3) dam 14 , burst 2

Vehicle Auto Cannon range 0-8 (-3) , 8-16 (0) , 16-24 (0) , 24-48 (-3) dam 16 , burst 2

Grenade range 0-8 (+3) , 8-16 (-3) , dam 13 , burst 1

Demo Charge / IED range (0) (+3) , dam 14 , burst 1 , AP (varies) 1-4

Grenade launcher range 0-8 (0) , 8-16 (+3) , 16-24 (0) , dam 13 , burst 1

Constructed Rifle range 0-8 (-3) , 8-16 (0) , 16-24 (-6) , dam 12 , burst 1

Carbine range 0-8 (-3) , 8-16 (+3) , 16-24 (0) , 24-48 (-6) , dam 12 , burst 1

Rifle range 0-8 (-3) , 8-16 (+3) , 16-24 (0) , 24-48 (-3) , dam 13 , burst 1

AK47 range 0-8 (+3) , 8-16 (0) , 16-24 (-3) , 24-48 (-6) , dam 13 , burst 3

Assault Rifle range 0-8 (+3) , 8-16 (+3) , 16-24 (-3) , 24-48 (-6) , dam 13 , burst 3

Modern Assault Rifle range 0-8 (+3) , 8-16 (+3) , 16-24 (0) , 24-48 (-3) , dam 13 , burst 3

Shotgun range 0-8 (+6) , 8-16 (0) , 16-24 (-3) , dam 14 , burst 2

Sawn-off Shotgun range 0-8 (+6) , 8-16 (-3) , dam 15 , burst 1

Sniper Rifle range 0-8 (-3) , 8-16 (0) , 16-24 (+3) , 24-48 (+3) , 48-96 (-3) , dam 15 , burst 1

Mini-Gun range 0-8 (0) , 8-16 (+3) , 16-24 (-3) , 24-48 (-6) , dam 14 , burst 4

LAW / Rpg range 0-8 (0) , 8-16 (-3) , 16-24 (-6) , dam 15 , burst 1 , AP 3

Knife Dam ph-1 burst 1

Bayonet ph 0 burst 1

Sword Dam ph+1 burst 1

Communications

Units with man to man comms may spend action points as per normal infinity rules , units without man to man coms have their own stack of action points which can only be spent by that group. At the beginning of the turn each group is assigned a number of action points from the main pool.

Scenario 1

A group of private military contractors escort a business man to meeting and then on to the exit

the meeting is taking place in a well protected building.

A local gang leader is going to try to disrupt the meeting or try and capture the businessman  , if captured this will lead to scenario 2 where he will need to be rescued or scenario 3 where some product will needed to be delivered to a point on the table

Forces 

1 civilian armed with pistol , 4 veteran pmc armed with Assault Rifles and 2 smoke grenades

They will travel in protected car , arm 2 to destination wait 4 turns then move on to the exit , they have man to man coms for pmc only

Mov 4-4 , cc 12 , bs 14 , ph 12 , wip 12 , arm 0 , bts 0 , w 1 , s 2

The meeting area is defended by 5 average guards and leader

Mov 4-4 , cc 12 , bs 12 , ph 12 , wip 12 , arm 0 , bts 0 , w 1 , s 2

Armed with machine pistol

gang forces (All Militia are Irregular)

1 leader and 4 groups , 2 average and 2 militia arrive at a hotspot which are diced for randomly

Mov 4-4 , cc 12 , bs 10 , ph 12 , wip 12 , arm 0 , bts 0 , w 1 , s 2

Armed with AK47 rifles , leader armed with 2 heavy pistols

The AI for the gangs are that they will move to a position where they can shoot at the enemy , 

militia will not cross open ground and will withdraw if they come within close range of the enemy

Average will not cross open ground

if any group outnumbers its visible enemy by double it may close to close combat

Drugs

Some units may be considered to be on drugs , those units ignore the group mechanism and will always try to close to close range before they may shoot

Use the force on force reaction system for troop reaction

Reaction

Any group that wishes to react to an enemy rolls is wip or under  , all reaction dice are rolled against all defence dice , the defender gets as many defence dice in its group multiplied by the number of groups shooting at it

Firing

Use the standard infinity d20 fire dice  , total burst number in attacking group and the best weapon for the range if group has different weapons

Use total figs in defending group for defence roll

Attacking

Militia lose 3 burst dice for each additional figure in group

Average lose 2 burst dice for each additional figure in group

Veteran lose 1 burst dice for each additional figure in group

Use normal Modifiers for dice roll

roll to wound as infinity rules

Outcome

Red arrows represent movement for that turn , yellow arrows are shooting that turn and the "X" is for downed figures.

Turn 1 , After the meeting the PMC and the civilian under fire from gang 3 and gang 2 enter the car which protected then from all small arms fire , the meeting area guards move to positions to offer supporting fire. Gang 1 and 4 move.

Turn 2 the PMC and civilian drive off and come under fire from gangs 1,3,4 which damage the car , the meeting point guards disable half of gang 2

Turn 3 Gang 1 fires at car putting it out of action , the driver failed to keep control and crashes into the corner of the building , the meeting point guards offer some suppressive fire against gangs 2 and 3

Turn 4 the PMC and civilian exit the car and move to cover around the side of the building whilst under fire from Gang 1

Turn 5 the PMC escape on foot

I didn't know if i would call this a win for the PMC as they are on foot, perhaps they would steal another car to get away , on the whole a very fast and furious game and seam to have lots of action with bullets flying in all directions.

The main mechanic is you have to roll under your target number and beat the enemy roll , if the unit rolls under its target roll and over the enemy roll it is a hit and needs a damage roll , this is for all relevant dice that do hit their target cause damage.

For damage a roll of above the weapon damage rating adding your armour to your roll , a fail is a wound taken which in most cases is a kia , all figures had 1 wound the car had 2 wounds

Descent 2e , D&D 4e and the Lash

Well folks i bought the board game descent 2 and have loved playing it with the app so i thought what about a D&D conversion after all i have had a 4e starter-box adventure for years and never even read the booklet so i picked to unlikely characters of a dwarf disciple and a human treasure hunter and proceeded to run though the adventure  , i had not previously read the adventure so just started at the opening encounter and fumbled my character through it

So as i was no able to use the app with this adventure i came up with a few ideas for running the over lord parts.

1. lay out the overlord cards in their respective card values of 0,1,2,3.

2. At the end of the characters turn roll a single grey decent dice , the number of shields displayed would indicate the value of the overlord card to be played ( this would prove to be quite dangerous for the characters at times).

3. Initiative , well i came up with this idea at the beginning of the encounter each character rolls awareness and if there were any failures then the monsters would go first and alternate between the monsters and heroes.

4. I would then set out the monster groups and assign equal values to each group using a black d6 and to this roll i would add a red and white d6  , so when rolled together would give me the which group and the master or minions of that group were activated

So on to the adventure , if there were any challenges that needed a check i used the default ruled of 1 grey and black dice against the relevant attribute on the descent character sheet , a failure would result in a fatigue or wound being taken.

This is how the adventure played out with the heroes only just surviving and i think they would deserve the XP when they completed the task.

On the whole a very enjoyable game that took about 8 hours to complete