I've just got a beta test of the rules and thought I'd share my initial thoughts.
Is this Hordes of the Things on steroids? Yes.
Has it been made over complicated? No.
What is the average game time? Definitely, that's wot playtestings for-.
Yes, it's written in clear, precise language.
Measurements are done in inches and/or BW's - base widths.
2 things missing! The One Dice To Rule Them.
The old 6 segment campaign map.
Most of you, if you haven't existed down the grandma wendy sinkhole, will have used a WRG set or a derivative. I started with 5th Ancients, Renaissance then 6th. Out comes DBA and this had, and still does, have a HUGE effect on the wargaming world. Then Hordes Of The Things does the same for the fantasy market. It's influence goes far mostly because you could use ANY figures or scale without being demonised.
I'll give you a bit of my history - a campaign: http://unitrecon.blogspot.com/2023/07/just-dont-move-history-lesson.html
Way, way back in 2016 when we were selected to playtest for OAAH we looked at the current crop of rules - and Hordes of The Things came out on top. http://unitrecon.blogspot.com/2016/01/kings-of-war-vs-hordes-of-things.html
Target audience? This is a big scale game with (I'm guessing) lots of armies that are semi-historical. So lots of gamers who want to add fantasy elements or a good dose of "what if" into the mix, I'm guessing that fielding Leonardo as a magician, a squadron of turtle cars and a couple of flyers are going to become popular--. Lion/Dragon Rampant players who want to "go large". Grandma wendy players who are transitioning out. Same with Kings of War who want to field masses of 10mm figures.
Here goes! I've put direct quotes in italics:
The standard playing area, “the Battlefield”, is rectangular; with sides 1,500mm/60” by 1,200mm/48” for the larger scale and 1,200mm/48” to 600mm/24” for the smaller scale. Areas bigger than the minimum will be needed for larger point games or be used for fantasy armies featuring significant numbers of Mounted Troops or Aerials. That fits in well with my carpet tiles, allowing for a quick change of edge.
The average game features around 200pts, though games sized between 100pts and 250pts will play well. Each Troop type is defined by an Element type, as found in the troop type definition section, and a point cost. The lists will also include a minimum and maximum number of Elements per troop type to purchase for a standard sized game of 200 army points and 1-4 commands. For a smaller game, halve the maximums and minimums (to a minimum of one). For larger games, double the maximum and minimum purchase numbers for the troops.
I've looked at a couple of the army lists and produced playsheets for same below.
Now let's look at some of the troop types. Some are divided into solid and fast. No "x" class or other.
Flyers Very big, big and regular.
Pikes AND spears, HOTT lumped them in together.
Bows plus warbows and crossbows.
Characters such as heroes, paladins, clerics and magic users.
Beasts, great beasts (trolls/giants) and behemoths.
Infernal machines, more like your average turtle car or Hussite warwagon.
Terrain choice, one added:
WASTE Rocky Dangerous, Marsh, Rough or Difficult Hills, Scrub, maximum 1 Gully
Terrain placing, deployment and all the other stuff is a comfy old slipper, just need to wriggle your toes for a comfy fit.
Magic is just another form of shooting? Not quite- Two types of Spells are defined:
A Standard Spell represents the effects of magical missiles, horrible releases of energy, debilitating induced terror or perhaps the creation of more subtle confusion and chaos, that can frighten, rout, or even kill the enemy.
A Ritual is a spell that can have special effects during the game such as changing terrain or summoning creatures from alternate dimensions. These special Ritual Spells are defined in the army lists for various Mages.
Spells are cast using left over PIPs. A player must save some PIPs from the Movement Phase to cast spells.
Spell Casting
In Ranged Combat a Mage can attempt to cast one Standard Spell against one enemy Element or to enact a Ritual if:
(a) The Mage’s Element is not in front edge contact with an enemy Element &
(b) The Mage’s Element is within 5BW (Note: some Ritual Spells may be different) of the target measured from nearest point to nearest point &
(c) The Mage expends PIPs
Up to 2 additional Mage Elements can reinforce a spell at a cost of 1 PIP per additional reinforcing Mage.
For a Standard Spell, the aiding Mages must also be in range (ie. 5BW) of the target. The additional Mages aid the original Mage casting a Standard Spell by inflicting a -1 modifier on the target, instead of resolving their attacks separately.
Shooting comes down to ranges - dragons are not mobile artillery.
Range
All Bows and Infernal Machines can shoot to a maximum range of 3BW.
Dragons can shoot to a maximum range of 1BW.
Artillery can shoot to a maximum range of 5BW.
Combat is as usual, a few things to note here:
Equal Exceptions:
Dragons v Heroes or Paladins Both Destroyed
Heroes v Heroes Both Destroyed
Paladins v Mages Both Destroyed
Behemoths Flee from Bows and Auxilia
Recoiling Behemoths and Dragons
Behemoths and Dragons are an exception to the normal Recoiling rules. A Recoiling Behemoth or Dragon that meets (ie. touches with its rear edge or rear corner – corner to corner contact does not count) any Element, friendly or enemy, that are not in a BUA or Camp, Destroys that Element and then completes its full Recoil (see Figure 32).
If a Behemoth or Dragon Recoils into another Behemoth or Dragon, both Elements are Destroyed.
A Behemoth treats a Recoil result from Close Combat against a City or Castle as a Destroyed result.
Good news! (for once) the PDF transferred over to a more basic spreadsheet. Here's my first attempts for Orcish forces. I could do most in 15mm by using blue tac or sticky back plastic. However, I'll probably find and remount my old 6mm orcs - some have the same basing.
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