We had fun with the first play of
Mayhem, a fantasy combat war-game. It's like a better version of HOTTs to me. Although
Cluck Amok would argue the opposite.
The basics are easy to pick up, and the most enjoyable part is the risk vs reward aspect. Each stat a stand has is given a d4, d6, d8 ,d10, d12, or d20. When moving, fighting or shooting, you have, as the owner, the option of playing it safe and taking the default (half of the die type, so a default for 6d is 3), or risking and rolling, taking the chance you'll roll lower than, or higher depending on what you need than the default. The same goes each round with generating Command Points, which are need to move/attack.
So for instance, during the game, my pikemen needed to close quickly with bowmen across the river. I decided to risk it and roll their move die of d6 instead of taking the default 3". I spent 3 of my CPs (1 to move, 2 for crossing a difficulty Level 2 obstacle) and moved 6". This paid off as I contacted them. I still needed to fight. That would cost 2 more CPs (each time a unit does something else after the first, it cost more. Second action costs 2, Third: 3, etc). This ate up 5 of my 6 rolled CPs for the turn, which effective left my other troops standing around, but I rolled and killed the bowmen.
One thing we did wrong the first play was Volley Fire. Longbowmen can give up lethality for a chance to drive back enemy units. You get to roll 3 dice instead of 1 to hit, and 3 to harm (always only keeping one) but can't harm the unit. You may drive them back instead. Before we allowed them to count disorder and kills, and they of course, were vey deadly.
In our battle I successfully punched thru the middle, but in doing so lost my ass. I killed, but was killed in turn. That left the flanks to duke it out.
The Orcs on the enemy left slowly trudged forward. They did little damage until the ogres finally got int the fight. The general in charge "risked" his move roll every time and was rewarded with a roll of "1" six times in a row. He literally moved 6" over the course of 6 turns. Whereas taking the default would have got him 18" in the same time.
I've decided these are the rules I want to use for my dream Greyhawk Wars battles.
4 comments:
I need to hang all of your Generals for continually set up to fight a full battle on ether side of a river.
Outlaw the River! Outlaw the River! Outlaw the River!
My archers were glad that flaming river was between them and the Ogres! If I had my way, there would have been a river, a lake, a moat and assorted tasty sheep to keep them at bay.
Nice report, beautiful troops!
I picked up Mayhem but not played it yet. Great battle report. I am a risk taker. I'd "risk" over "reward" every time!
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