Rule Changes
PassionsCritical Success = +20 to one skill, or +10 to all rolls.
Success = +10 to one skill, or +5 to all rolls.
Failure = -5 to all rolls.
Fumble = -10 to all rolls
TraitsNot entirely a new rule, but I'm going to try to reintroduce these more prominently than in the past. I will either suggest a trait in a given situation, or you may request a trait be used. Roll the trait like a skill. Unless the result is a critical or a fumble this roll does not mandate what your character does or doesn't do, it merely informs you of your character's immediate inclinations towards this situation. For example, say you're facing a dragon and you succeed cowardly. Your Knight is afraid, and his first instinct it to run away, but by player choice, he may choose to power through his fear. However, choosing to act in accordance with a successful trait will earn you some glory, for playing into your established character and allowing the story to develop a little more naturally. You will also gain an experience check in the trait, and this is mostly how your traits are going to change over the course of play. You can only use 1 trait at a time.
Critical Success = Immediately act in accordance with the trait, gain glory equal to the trait in question, earn a checkmark, gain a +5 modifier in all rolls related to the situation.
Success = If you choose to act in accordance with the trait, gain glory equal to the trait, an earn a checkmark.
Failure = Start over, rolling the OPPOSITE trait. If that trait fails, then your character doesn't feel strongly one way or the other.
Fumble = Immediately act in accordance with the OPPOSITE trait, gain glory equal to the trait in question, earn a checkmark, gain a +5 modifier in all rolls related to the situation.
Group-FightingYou can now face up to 4 opponents who are on foot, 2 opponents on Horseback, or 2 opponents on foot and 1 opponent on horseback.
You no longer divide your skill between multiple opponents. Fighting multiple opponents is treated like a combined action, like re-arming. When fighting two enemies at once, you fight both with a -5 to your skill, and a +5 to each of theirs. When fighting three, -10 and +10. When fighting four, -15 and +15. Hopefully if you're fighting 4 footmen, you're on a horse and so get +5/-5 relative to them, so it's really more like -0, -5, -10.
Battles and SkirmishesUnits comprised entirely of infantry are twice as large as ordinary units. So an average-sized unit of infantry is going to be ~120 men strong. So if you're rolling with the minimum unit, 30 men, you're going to be outnumbered 4:1 more often than not, which after calculating comparative troop quality, is a -5 to your battle roll and +5 to the enemy's.
Normally, a battle round is comprised of 2 combat rounds; the initial lance charge into the enemy formation, and then a melee fight to hack your way back out again. However, if you prefer, (suggested trait roll: Valorous/Cowardly or Reckless/Prudent) the second phase, the melee amongst the enemy, can last more than one round. You continue to accrue glory and result points to help your unit as normal, with one added danger: for every round you tarry within the enemy formation after the first, you face 1 additional enemy.
For example, if you were fighting boldly, against 2 opponents, and you decided to keep fighting for a third combat round, you would face 3 opponents. If you stayed for a fourth, your would face 4 opponents.
Use this option if you are confident in your own fighting ability, but your side of the battle is losing badly, or you're just hankering for extra glory.
Glory for Commanders (Per Battle Round):
------------------------------Unit----------Battalion----------Army
Small Defeat----------------0----------------5-----------------10
Small Victory---------------5---------------10-----------------20
Medium Defeat-------------5---------------10-----------------20
Medium Victory------------10---------------20----------------50
Large Defeat---------------10---------------20-----------------50
Large Victory--------------20---------------50-----------------100
Glory for Unit Commanders (Per Skirmish Result)
Massacred Enemy: 50
Crushing Victory: 20
Decisive Victory: 10
Indecisive: 5
Decisive Defeat: 0
Crushing Defeat: 0
Massacred by Enemy: 0
Enemy GloryThis has been slightly nerfed.
Youth: 1/5/10
Ceorl or Bandit: 5/10/15
Hearthguard or Footman: 10/20/30
Thegn: 20/40/60
Berserker: + 5/10/15 to base
Knight: 25/50/100 (x2 if Notable, x3 if Famous, x4 if Extraordinary, x5 if Legendary)
Common Dangerous Monster (Like Wyvern, Water Leaper, or Small Giant): 50/100/200
Multipliers (applied only to glory from enemies):
Fighting Boldly x2
Fighting Aggressively x2
Fighting Orderly x1
Fighting Balanced x1
Fighting Hesitantly x1/2
Fighting Defensively x1/2
CasualtiesUnit Losses after each Battle round, determined with commander's Battle Skill + Comba Result Modifiers.
Critical Success: %5 losses
Success: %10 losses
Failure: %25 losses, retreat
Fumble: %50 losses, rout
To find what kind of soldier you lost, roll 2d6.
2-9 Footman
10-11 Knight
12 Squire
Next, roll a d6 for each casualty to see their status.
-1 Back at Camp
-0 Recovery upon treatment.
1 Missing (Fled or Captured)
2 Infection: Roll again +5
3 Mortal: Decapitated, Run through the Heart; killed outright
4 Recovery in 1d3 weeks
5 Mortal: Lost a Limb (Arm at Elbow or Leg at Knee) or Run through the Gut, roll 1d3, survive on 3
6-8 Dying of Infection or Dead of Blood Loss
Modifiers to the above roll (they stack):
Won the Battle -1
Available Healer -1
Lost the Battle +1
Routed +1
Healers can be retained for the campaign at a cost of 1 Pound each. Each healer has a Medicine skill of 4d6, which they can use to treat your wounds, as well as tend to a number of casualties equal to their skill per battle; if their skill is 15,15 of your casualties get the -1 modifier.
Fate PointsYou can no longer use Fate Points to save yourself from death, you must either spend it like a glory bonus for better stats, or use it In-Game to guarantee a critical hit in something.
META DiscordAs most of you already know, we're going to be running most of this adventure on our Discord Server, and then posting the results here when they come through. The reason for this is that you all are jointly commanding part of an invasion for a full campaigning season, and that involves a lot of complicated rolls and decisions. If we did all of this on the forum it would take months. So please, try to be on the server at least once a day, around half-an-hour to an hour in the evening time if you can manage it.
If your schedule doesn't jibe with that, that's fine, but please let us know to put your strategic decisions on autopilot.The expository topic post will be coming today, until then feel free to carry on in the previous winter phase.