Here are my pictures from the Dux Brit game at HMGS Cold Wars in Lancaster, PA. I ran a raid on a village using my Last of the Romans supplement.
The Franks, led by Clodwig Wodenborn, were intent on looting the village and the Gallo-Romans, led by Malamus Sexus and Maximus Minimus, intent on stopping them. What started as a raid quickly evolved into a pitched battle when the Romans were able to get to the village first and the Franks were forced to dislodge them. After several combats in and around the fenced enclosure, it appeared that the Franks had the upper hand, but upon the arrival of Malamus Sexus and his Warriors on the Frankish right flank as well as the undisciplined charge of Clodwig in the center, which left him isolated behind the Roman main line and heavily weakened, turned what could have been a great victory for the ginger German into an absolute rout of his forces. Leaving over twenty men to the mercy of the Romans, Clodwig fled back into Frankish territory empty-handed and foul-hearted.
Forced to lick his wounds until the next campaign season, Clodwig was barely able to pay King Arnulf the Strange his taxes, but he knew that next year would see his fortunes returned, he just needed more men.
The War to End All Blogs
Monday, March 25, 2019
Tuesday, February 26, 2019
The Cards Have Arrived
My first order of cards for Dux Arda and my Franks have arrived from Arscow! They aren't perfect, but thanks to John Cunningham, the only imperfections are my abilities to properly use the Artscow formatter (Or their limited instructions, but who's to say?). I plan on making cards for all of the factions moving forward, and thanks to John, it's just a matter of cutting and pasting for the most part.
Wednesday, January 9, 2019
Dux Arda: Lard of the Rings- Men of the East Force Information
(Just a preface, none of these pictures are my own)
While
they have not always been in service to Sauron, the Men of the East have traditionally been enemies of the men of the
West. The threat of the Wainriders during the middle of the Third Age is what
led to the formation of Rohan and their alliance with Gondor as well as the
dramatic decrease in Gondor’s power East of the Anduin as Sauron consolidated
power in Mordor. Made up of several tribes and nations, the Men of the East are a varied force,
relying on cavalry, chariots, and many types of infantry. However, the true
power of the Easterlings’ armies are the cataphracts and heavy infantry of
Rhun. The former empire of Kamul, second most powerful of the Nazgul, Rhun
boasts the greatest heavy cavalry East of the Anduin and arguably all of Middle
Earth. The Men of the East form the
backbone of the armies of Sauron, fighting on an equal, or often better,
footing than their enemies.
The
Easterling player takes the role of an Easterling Captain, commanding a band of
raiders, in service to the armies of Sauron. He seeks to slaughter the Men of Gondor and Dale wherever he finds them, and in doing so, advance his position
using both loot and the favor he gains through success. Sauron is a harsh
master, but he rewards those who please him, and you aim to do so.
Gripping Beast Attila |
The troop types of the Men of the East are the same as troops presented for the Romano-British in the main rules and The Raiders supplement with two additional unit types shown below:
BALCHOTH CHARIOTS
The
very sight of Balchoth Chariots
strikes fear into the hearts of the men of the West, who’s memory of the
Wainriders is one of terror. While they are not as well armored as the chariots
of the Wainriders, their effect on the morale of their enemies is great. To
reflect this, a Group of Balchoth Chariots functions as Warrior Shock Cavalry. However, if they
are within twelve inches of an enemy Group
or Formation at the start of
their activation, they will inflict two (2) points of Shock on each Group within
this range.
Gripping Beast |
CATAPHRACTS
The
greatest heavy cavalry in Middle Earth, Cataphracts
are both extremely effective in combat and a fearful sight to behold.
Completely covered in armor and riding armored horses, they strike fear into
their enemies and form an nigh-unstoppable hammer blow to enemy formations. To
reflect this, a Group of Cataphracts functions as Elite Shock Cavalry and die on a 6 and
Shock on a 4, or 5. Due to their hulking armor, they also Always count as being in
one level of cover higher than they are currently in and they also Always
ignore the first kill in combat. However, this protection comes at a cost. Cataphracts do not gain the bonus inches
of movement that cavalry typically receives, they may only move 3D6. Also, if Cataphracts are ever forced to take a
test for being unhorsed, subtract one (-1) from the roll for each man.
|
Force Rules
Easterling Bows: All Raider Cavalry and Raider Skirmish Cavalry carry bows, rather than javelins. To reflect this, they use
the To Hit table for Missile troops, rather than the To Hit table for Skirmish troops.
|
Starting Forces
The
starting forces for the Men of the East
are as follows: One Captain (Status III Lord), two Lieutenants (One Status II
Noble and One Status I Noble), and a Champion.
A Lord may to substitute up to two Groups of six Warriors or
two Groups of six Elites, once he has Elites, with two Groups of four Warrior Light Cavalry or Elite
Shock Cavalry, respectively. He may also elect to substitute up to two Groups of six Levy for four Raider Skirmish
Cavalry. The Lord may select any of these options, or he may elect to keep
his men on foot. Men who are mounted will fight on horseback for the duration
of the game; they may not dismount.
When fielding mounted troops, the Men of the
East
may attach any of their Nobles to command the
cavalry. If a Lord is mounted then his champion will be too. A mounted noble
may only influence cavalry troops during the game.
The Lord may also elect to fight mounted on horseback or on a chariot. The chariot functions the same way as a chariot mounted Lord in The Raiders supplement, but he moves and fights as whichever type
of Group he is attached to. If he is
not attached to a Group, he functions
as Warrior Shock Cavalry. When mounted on horse or chariot, he may only influence mounted or chariot troops.
Property of James Wappel |
Led
by these Nobles, you will have one Group
of Elites, two Groups of Warriors, and
three Groups of Levy troops. All of these Groups
will be six figures strong. You will also have one Group of four Missile troops
armed with bows, and one Group of
four Raider Cavalry (From The Raiders supplement).
Reinforcements for the Men of the
East are gained the same way as the Saxons in the main game.
Reinforcements which arrive using the reinforcements table as
below.
Reinforcements arrive in the order shown, from 1 to 5. The first
time a force receives
reinforcements it will gain the Group indicated in row 1, the
second time the Group
shown in row 2, and so on up to row 5 after which no further
reinforcements are
available. However, at any time a player may choose to take the Group from the row
numbered higher, but this will mean that he will never receive
the Group he passes over.
Order
|
Men of the East
|
1
|
Six
Warriors
|
2
|
Four
Raider Cavalry
|
3
|
Four
Balchoth Chariots
|
4
|
Six
Warriors with a Status I Noble
|
5
|
Four
Cataphracts with a Status I noble
|
Footsore Late Romans |
Men of the East Cards
The
Men of the East begin the game with
one Variags! card and one Darting
Blow card. The balance of their hands are dealt at random from the Fate Deck.
The remainder of their cards added to the Fate Deck are as follows:
Carpe
Diem x 3
Aggressive
Charge x 1
Goad
x 1
Thundering Hooves x 2
Variags! x 1
Thundering Hooves - A Group of Shock Cavalry
moving into close combat may play this card to instill fear upon their target
as they see their dreaded enemies charge. Roll 1D6 for each attacking figure
before the charge, counting one point of Shock on the front rank of their
target for each 5 or 6 rolled. All morale effects will take place before the
charge continues, meaning that the target unit may fall back or or before
receiving the charge. The charge will then proceed as normal and if they
contact a routed enemy cavalry will fight a single round of close combat,
doubling the number of dice it rolls. This is a Pursuit Card in Post-Game Phase. (Use unused Saxon or Raider cards
to Represent this card, or make your own!)
Variags! - A Group of Raider Cavalry
or Raider
Skirmish Cavalry may play this card if
they are within twelve (12) inches of an enemy Group or Formation and
form a shooting circle. By doing so, they fire at a minus one (-1) To Hit. However, what this allows the
unit to do is mimic the movement of their enemy, moving the exact same distance
as the nearest enemy Group,
maintaining the same distance from the nearest enemy Group while still remaining in the shooting circle. They will remain
in the shooting circle for this activation and their next activation. The enemy
may be stop this action by playing a Carpe Diem card during their activation.
Dux Arda: Lard of the Rings- The Elves of Lothlorien Force Information
(Just a preface, none of these pictures are my own)
The troop types of the Elves of Lothlorien are the same as troops presented for the Saxons in the main rules.
The
Elves of Lothlorien, or the Silvan
Elves, are the oldest and wisest of the races of Middle Earth. Secluded within
the mysterious forest of Lothlorien, they tend to stay out of the affairs of
Middle Earth as a whole. While they do not take part in much of the warring
around them, they still defend their realms with unmatched skill and resolve.
The Elves of Lothlorien defend their
forest homes and the surrounding area from orcs and evil men from Isengard and
the Misty Mountains, killing any who dare stray too close to their realm.
The
Elven player takes the place of a
Captain of Lothlorien leading a small
force of warriors defending the forest. You must protect your halls as well as
the frontiers around your secluded home from all threats.
|
The troop types of the Elves of Lothlorien are the same as troops presented for the Saxons in the main rules.
Force Rules
Immortals: Elves do not sacrifice their
immortal lives without great cause. Therefore, they will receive a Force Morale Loss if their Force Morale
ever reaches three (3) or less. However, they may use any Retreat cards that they hold, unless their Force Morale drops from
four (4) or above to zero (0) in the same activation phase.
For
example: The Elven Force Morale is currently at four (4). The Lord and a Group of Elites are attacked by several Groups
of orcs and they are killed to a man, including the Lord. The resulting Force
Morale roll for the loss of the Elites
is a three (3), meaning that the Force Morale drops two (2) points to two (2).
The Force Morale roll for the death of the Lord is also a three (3), meaning
that the Force Morale drops two (2) points to two (0). At this point, the Elven
force has been truly routed and they must sacrifice their Retreat cards for the Post
Game Phase.
Skilled Ambushers: The forces of the Lothlorien are skilled ambushers. To
reflect this they may elect to use either the Surprise, Feign Flight, or Flank
Miracle from the main rules before every game. They do not inform their
opponent of their decision to use this ability or which option they select.
Skilled Marksmen: Every elf in Lothlorien is a master
of the bow, loosing arrows with unerring accuracy. To reflect this, all Missile troops, including infantry Groups acting as Missiles, attacks with a plus one (+1) on all To Hit rolls. These
effects stack with any cards played on the Groups.
Warrior Archers: Elven Missiles are trained to fight in melee as well as with the bow. To
reflect this, they may elect to stand and fight when contacted by the enemy. Missiles will fight as Warriors in combat to represent their
skills in combat. If they are defeated in combat, they will disperse like
standard Missiles troops. However,
because these archers are not merely boys learning the way of war, when they
are killed or dispersed, they count as Warriors
when consulting the Force Morale change table.
In
addition, unlike Missiles in the main
rules, Nobles may activate and
command any Missile troops as if they
were standard Warriors.
Missiles: All Elven Groups carry bows and may elect to function as Missile Troops during the turn. If they choose to do so, To reflect
this, they are able to both function as Missiles,
but with as many figures that are present in the Group, and melee infantry. This means that a Group of six models will use 6D6 to attack, rather than the 4D6 of
regular Missiles. If they are
attacked, they may attempt to Evade
like Missile Troops, but may only
evade 2D6 inches. If they are contacted, they will receive double Shock for the first two (2) rounds of
combat, and will fight as one (1) level lower in troop quality. For example: If
a Group of Elites is contacted while acting as Missiles they will fight as Warriors
and receive double Shock and if a
Group of Warriors is contacted while acting as Missiles they will fight as Levy
in regards to troop quality and receive double Shock. As long as all Groups
in a Formation are within two inches
on each other, they remain in Formation.
However, if any Group is further than
this distance, they are no longer in the Formation
and must be reattached.The Evade may
be stopped if the attacker uses a Carpe
Diem card, the same as in the standard rules. If acting as Missile Troops during the turn, the
Fleet of Foot card may be used on the Group.
(Author’s Note: The reason that the
penalties are so great for being unable to evade are to both reflect the lack
of preparedness as well as to prevent this ability to be used for too many
shenanigans. This has the effect of allowing all Elves to use bows, which
Tolkien described nearly all of them carrying, as well as being relatively
accurate to what would actually occur if combatants were forced to drop their
bows and fight unprepared.)
Vendel Elves |
Starting Forces
The
starting forces for the Elves of
Lothlorien are as follows: One Captain (Status III Lord), two Lieutenants
(One Status II Noble and One Status I Noble), and a Champion.
Led
by these Nobles, you will have two Groups
of Elites, and two Groups of Warriors. All of these Groups
will be six figures strong. You will also have one Group of four Missile troops
armed with bows.
Property of Dan Mersey |
Reinforcements for the Elves of
Lothlorien are gained the same way as the Saxons in the main game.
Reinforcements which arrive using the reinforcements table as
below.
Reinforcements arrive in the order shown, from 1 to 5. The first
time a force receives
reinforcements it will gain the Group indicated in row 1, the
second time the Group
shown in row 2, and so on up to row 5 after which no further
reinforcements are
available. However, at any time a player may choose to take the Group from the row
numbered higher, but this will mean that he will never receive
the Group he passes over.
Order
|
Elves of Lothlorien
|
1
|
Four
Missile Troops
|
2
|
Six
Warriors
|
3
|
Six
Warriors
|
4
|
Six
Warriors
|
5
|
Six
Warriors
|
Property of James Manto |
Elves of Lothlorien Cards
Elves of Lothlorien begin the game with one Bounding
Move card and one Evade card. The balance of their hands are dealt at random
from the Fate Deck. The remainder of their cards added to the Fate Deck are as
follows:
Carpe
Diem x 3
Darting
Blow x 2
Bounding
Move x 1
Peerless Warriors x 2
Peerless Warriors: This card, when played on a single Group of Elites, doubles it’s dice rolled for attack in the first round of
combat, as well as doubling any kills inflicted. This is a Pursuit or Retreat Card in Post-Game Phase. (Use unused
Romano-British cards to Represent this card, or make your own!)
Tuesday, January 8, 2019
Dux Arda: Lard of the Rings- The Men of Dale Force Information
(Just a preface, none of these pictures are my own)
One change from the Romano-British force in the Main Rules is the ability for the Dale Lord to have mounted units exchanged for some of their infantry. A Lord may elect to substitute six Elite foot soldiers with four Elite Shock Cavalry in any game. He may also elect to substitute six of his Warriors with four Warrior Shock Cavalry. The Lord may select one or both options, or he may elect to keep his men on foot. Men who are mounted will fight on horseback for the duration of the game; they may not dismount.
Force Rules
The
Men of Dale are a people who have
reformed their kingdom within the last century. Under Bard’s line, the northmen
have reforged their alliance with Durin’s Folk after the Battle of the Five
Armies. This resulted in great wealth flowing back into the region, drawing many
of the scattered peoples of Rhovanian and Dorwinion back to Dale. Due to their
close relationship with Durin’s Folk, the Men
of Dale are well-equipped for war. When they were approached by emissaries
of Sauron, demanding they swear fealty, they and the dwarves turned them away,
resulting in an invasion by Sauron’s Easterling allies. While the Men of Dale are well-prepared for war,
they are still vastly outnumbered by their enemies, who are often just as
well-trained and well-equipped as they are. However, the Men of Dale have known hardship and peril for many years and they
will not balk in the defense of their realm.
The
Dalian player takes the place of a Captain of Dale leading a small force of
warriors defending a region of Dale. The forces of Rhun and the East are
marching West, intent on slaughtering your people and taking your homes. You
are sworn to stop them.
Gripping Beast Rus |
One change from the Romano-British force in the Main Rules is the ability for the Dale Lord to have mounted units exchanged for some of their infantry. A Lord may elect to substitute six Elite foot soldiers with four Elite Shock Cavalry in any game. He may also elect to substitute six of his Warriors with four Warrior Shock Cavalry. The Lord may select one or both options, or he may elect to keep his men on foot. Men who are mounted will fight on horseback for the duration of the game; they may not dismount.
When fielding mounted troops, the Dalians may attach any of
their Nobles to command the cavalry. If a Lord is mounted then his champion
will be too. A mounted noble may only influence cavalry troops during the game.
The
troop types of the Men of Dale are
the same as troops presented for the Romano-British in the main rules and The Raiders supplement.
|
Force Rules
Prepared for War: The Men of Dale, have just taken back their homes, are well-prepared to
defend it to their dying breath. To Reflect this, at the start of the game, the
Dalian player may make a pre-battle speech, even for Raids. When they roll for
the results, they add a plus one (+1) to the result. If the player rolls a
result of seven (7), rather than just receiving the results listed for a six
(6), all infantry and cavalry groups will roll a plus one (+1) To Hit in the
first round of combat in addition to the results for rolling a six (6). This
modifier will stack with all other modifiers.
|
Starting Forces
The
starting forces for the Men of Dale are
as follows: One Captain (Status III Lord), two Lieutenants (One Status II Noble
and One Status I Noble), and a Champion.
Led
by these Nobles, you will have one Group of
Elite troops, two Groups of Warriors, and three Groups of
Levy troops. All of these Groups will be six figures strong. You
will also have one Group of four Missile troops armed with bows.
Reinforcements for the Men of
Dale are gained the same way as the Romano-British in the main game.
Reinforcements which arrive using the reinforcements table as
below.
Reinforcements arrive in the order shown, from 1 to 5. The first
time a force receives
reinforcements it will gain the Group indicated in row 1, the
second time the Group
shown in row 2, and so on up to row 5 after which no further
reinforcements are
available. However, at any time a player may choose to take the Group from the row
numbered higher, but this will mean that he will never receive
the Group he passes over.
|
Order
|
Men of Dale
|
1
|
Four
Missile Troops
|
2
|
Six
Warriors
|
3
|
Six
Warriors
|
4
|
Four
Warrior Light Cavalry
|
5
|
Four
Warrior Shock Cavalry with a Status II noble
|
|
Men of Dale Cards
The
Men of Dale begin the game with one Stout Hearts card and one Shieldwall
Braced card. The balance of their hands are dealt at random from the Fate Deck.
The remainder of their cards added to the Fate Deck are as follows:
Carpe
Diem x 3
Strong
Arm x 1
Hero
of the Age x 1
Aggressive
Charge x 2
Stout Hearts x 2
Stout Hearts- This card allows the Dalian player
to not roll on the Force Morale Change table if he would normally be forced to
do so. However, they may also chose to play this card after losing a combat. If
they do so, they reduce the level of defeat by one. For example: If they are
defeated by three (3) men killed the player may play the card and reduce the
result to defeated by two (2) men killed. This is a Retreat Card in Post-Game
Phase. (Use unused Romano-British cards to Represent this card, or make your
own!)
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)