An idea for an alternative Big Battle rule
Jan 31, 2024 1:15:27 GMT
hodsopa and Brian Ború like this
Post by ashimbabbar on Jan 31, 2024 1:15:27 GMT
… but it's far from worked out yet ( I would have put that in the title but there's a size limit apparently 
)
)So I was rereading the Warhammer Fantasy Battles battle report A Gathering of Might in White Dwarf 182 instead of doing something productive with my life, and although the report itself is hardly interesting I think the system they used for a big battle with two opposing sides each made of three armies could profitably be emulated in a variant of Big Battle HOTT.
The following is what I’ve arrived to following that idea, which is only halfway.
So each side has three armies, each commanded by a general. But none of the generals is an Overall Commander.
Each army is 36 APs, but only 24 APs are on the table at first. The rest is in reserve.
Obviously Gods, Dragons and Lurkers can’t be part of the reserve, they’re part of the 24 APs.
Each general can call up his reserves with his pips - I haven’t yet figured how - as well as use them in the conventional manner.
Each side also has an Overall Commander who is commanding, not one army, but the whole three.
In the beginning he is in the deployment zone of any of the three armies.
He too rolls for pips. What can he do with his pips ?
. move, obviously ; with the special bonus in the rules.
. Summon any God or Dragon/s in one of the armies.
. Activate any Lurker within range
. Command any friendly stand within range that has not been activated by its general. The OC isn’t restricted to stands of the same army – he can command stands from 2 armies in the same bound or even from all three.
. Order reserves to come, but with a twist : he may reaffect them from one neighbouring army to another.
Let’s say the army’s right wing is being mauled and the reserves of the center haven’t been called up yet. The OC can send up all or part of the center’s reserves to the right wing and they will henceforth be part and parcel of the army on the right wing, so they’ll increase its APs ( whereas the center won’t get the increase ). If it’s the center that is imperiled, the OC can send up reserves from both wings ( and both in the same bound if so inclined ).
So that’s where things stand. I haven’t yet figured how to call up reserves or why the players should’nt stand in place calling up reserves and attack with the whole 36 AP armies complete ( obviously this worked better in WFB where there’s a time limit )
The following is what I’ve arrived to following that idea, which is only halfway.
So each side has three armies, each commanded by a general. But none of the generals is an Overall Commander.
Each army is 36 APs, but only 24 APs are on the table at first. The rest is in reserve.
Obviously Gods, Dragons and Lurkers can’t be part of the reserve, they’re part of the 24 APs.
Each general can call up his reserves with his pips - I haven’t yet figured how - as well as use them in the conventional manner.
Each side also has an Overall Commander who is commanding, not one army, but the whole three.
In the beginning he is in the deployment zone of any of the three armies.
He too rolls for pips. What can he do with his pips ?
. move, obviously ; with the special bonus in the rules.
. Summon any God or Dragon/s in one of the armies.
. Activate any Lurker within range
. Command any friendly stand within range that has not been activated by its general. The OC isn’t restricted to stands of the same army – he can command stands from 2 armies in the same bound or even from all three.
. Order reserves to come, but with a twist : he may reaffect them from one neighbouring army to another.
Let’s say the army’s right wing is being mauled and the reserves of the center haven’t been called up yet. The OC can send up all or part of the center’s reserves to the right wing and they will henceforth be part and parcel of the army on the right wing, so they’ll increase its APs ( whereas the center won’t get the increase ). If it’s the center that is imperiled, the OC can send up reserves from both wings ( and both in the same bound if so inclined ).
So that’s where things stand. I haven’t yet figured how to call up reserves or why the players should’nt stand in place calling up reserves and attack with the whole 36 AP armies complete ( obviously this worked better in WFB where there’s a time limit )
