Difference between revisions of "Kingdoms: Summer - War"

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The '''Checkmate Objective''' has two additional special rules that limits its use:
 
The '''Checkmate Objective''' has two additional special rules that limits its use:
* Assigning the '''Checkmate Objective''' to a ''Summer Campaign'' has a cost of '''5 Glamour''', which must be paid at the time of deciding objectives, and for each attempt made.
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* Assigning the '''Checkmate Objective''' to a ''Summer Campaign'' has a cost of '''10 Glamour''', which must be paid at the time of deciding objectives, and for each attempt made.
 
* No-one may attempt the '''Checkmate Objective''' in the first third of the game (years 1-4).
 
* No-one may attempt the '''Checkmate Objective''' in the first third of the game (years 1-4).
 
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Latest revision as of 03:22, 14 December 2009

Kingdoms: Main Page -> Kingdoms: Summer - War

Summer - Season of War[edit]

Long hours of sunlight make for easy campaigning, and between the seasons of sowing and harvest there are plenty of able bodied farmers that a King can gather into his armies. Also of course, the heat of a summer's day makes for short tempers, and summer is when men's lust for rapine and pillage run highest. Is it any wonder that Summer is the Season of War?

Summertime Events[edit]

Before the Season begins properly, the Adjudicator may declare that one or more Events has occurred. Events are limited only by the Adjudicator's imagination, but miught include such things as:

  • Relations between the kingdoms souring, granting a mutual bonus to attack.
  • Sandstorms make travel difficult, granting a mutual penalty to attacks.
  • Civil unrest throughout both kingdoms demands internal commitment of troops.


Launching Summer Campaigns[edit]

Summer Campaigns happen when the Kingdom sends it armies to war. The King himself decides what Campaigns will be launched, and assigns his Attack Armies to each one. As long as he has enough Armies, he can launch as many Campaigns as he wishes.

The King assembles a Campaign List, which details each Campaign's Attack Commander, Attack Armies and Campaign Objective.

Attack Commander[edit]

Every Summer Campaign must have one Attack Commander. Any back rank piece can act as an Attack Commander, though some are clearly better at it than others.

The King Player can always choose the King, or any Dominant Actor of the Court, to lead a Campaign as the Attack Commander.

However, if he wants the Queen, or Shadow Actor of the Court to be an Attack Commander, he must first gain the consent and agreement of the Queen Player.

If a planned Campaign does not have an Attack Commander attached to it, it is cancelled and does not take place. Also, a Campaign cannot have less or more than one Attack Commander.

Attack Armies[edit]

Every Summer Campaign needs at least one Attack Army. Each Pawn piece represents a single attack army. The King decides how many armies are assigned to each Summer Campaign.

If a planned Campaign does not have at least one Army as part of it, it is cancelled and does not take place.

Campaign Objective[edit]

Each campaign must have a stated objective. The types of objective that can be aimed for are defined by the Armies involved. By default there are four objectives that armies can go for:

  • Pillage - When you declare this Objective you must name one specific Improvement in the enemy kingdom. If you achieve this Objective, destroy that Improvement.
  • Plunder - When you declare this Objective you state that the army is Plundering. If you achieve this Objective, steal 1 Glamour from the target kingdom per Army in your Summer Campaign. Stolen Glamour is added directly to your own King's total.
  • Rescue - When you declare this Objective you must name one specific Piece that has been captured by the enemy. If you achieve this Objective, that Piece is rescued, and no longer considered captured. He can immediately be used by you as normal (and can even contribute to War Defences later this Season).
  • Checkmate When you declare this Objective you must state that you are attempting Checkmate. If you achieve this Objective, you capture the enemy King.

The Checkmate Objective has two additional special rules that limits its use:

  • Assigning the Checkmate Objective to a Summer Campaign has a cost of 10 Glamour, which must be paid at the time of deciding objectives, and for each attempt made.
  • No-one may attempt the Checkmate Objective in the first third of the game (years 1-4).


Total Attack Strength[edit]

The Attack Strength of a Summer Campaign is equal to the totalled Battle Rating of all the armies assigned to it, plus the Sorcery, Warcraft or Dreaming attribute of its Attack Commander.

Note that the Protection and Intrigue attributes do not add to Attack Strength of Summer Campaigns. While a Rook or Bishop can lead a Summer Campaign, they add nothing to the Campaign's strength.

"In the Field..."[edit]

Importantly, from the moment they are included in a Summer Campaign, an Attack Commander or Army is considered to be in the field. This happens before any attacks are resolved in Summer, and even before the first Summer Campaign is revealed.

Pieces that are in the field remain there for the whole of Summer, and cannot participate in War Defences in any way.

Priority and Revealing Campaigns[edit]

Summer Campaigns are planned by the teams, as above, and are not revealed to the opposition until they happen. Although they are considered to happen in the same Summer, each Campaign is resolved in a strict order, with the next Campaign not revealed until the previous one has been completed in its entirety.

This is important, as lack of foreknowledge greatly effects the way that defenders will react. Also, the effects of one Campaign may negatively or positively impact other Campaigns later that Summer.

It is however worth emphasising again that regardless of what order the Campaigns are resolved, any characters and armies in the field are considered to be in the field straight away, before any Campaigns are revealed and resolved.

Court Priority[edit]

When the White Court has Priority, all the White Court's Summer Campaigns are resolved before any of the Black Court's Summer Campaigns.

When the Black Court has Priority, all the Black Court's Summer Campaigns are resolved before any of the White Court's Summer Campaigns.

As a reminder, White has Priority in Years 1,3,5,7,9 and 11, while Black has Priority in Years 2,4,6,8,10 and 12.

Order of Attacks[edit]

The Court's Campaign List is run through in order, from top to bottom.

This makes the listed order very important tactically!

Assigning War Defences[edit]

When the Summer Campaign is revealed, the defending players are made aware of who the Attack Commander and the Attack Armies are.

The defending King can then decide whether to mount a War Defence or not. Each War Defence must consist of exactly one War Commander (any back row piece), and at least one Army.

Unopposed Campaigns[edit]

If no War Defence is organised, then the Summer Campaign achieves its Objective without any resistance.

Defence Strength[edit]

The Defence Strength of a War Defence is equal to the totalled Battle Rating of all the armies assigned to it, plus the Sorcery, Protection or Dreaming attribute of its Attack Commander.

Note that the Warcraft and Intrigue attributes do not add to Defence Strength of War Defences. While Knights and Bishops can coordinate a War Defence, they add nothing to it's strength.

Resolving Battles[edit]

When a Summer Campaign meets a War Defence, battle occurs. This is resolved by a single D6 roll, which the Attacker rolls.

If Attack Strength is greater than Defence Strength, add +1 to the roll. If Attack Strength is equal or more than twice Defence Strength, add a further +1 to the roll.

If Defence Strength is greater than Attack Strength, deduct -1 from the roll. If Defence Strength is equal or more than twice Attack Strength, deduct a further -1 to the roll.

  • 0 or Less: Atackers routed. All attacking armies are broken, and the Attack Commander is Captured.
  • 1: Attackers soundly defeated. All attacking armies are broken.
  • 2: Attackers defeated. One attacking army is broken.
  • 3: Attack fails. This Summer Campaign has no effect.
  • 4: Attack succeeds. This Summer Campaign achieves its Objective.
  • 5: Defenders defeated. This Summer Campaign achieves its Objective, and one defending army is broken.
  • 6: Defenders soundly defeated. This Summer Campaign achieves its Objective, and all defending armies are broken.
  • 7 or More: Defenders routed. This Summer Campaign achieves its Objective, all defending armies are broken, and the Defence Commander is captured.



Roleplaying the Summertime[edit]

Generally, the structure of Summertime will be as follows:

(1) The Adjudicator declares Summertime has begun, and reminds the players which game year they are in (1 to 12) and which Court has priority this year.

(2) The Adjudicator relates any Events to all the players as a group.

(3) The two Courts split off, and quietly discuss their plans for the Season, without letting their opposites hear what they are saying.

(4) The two Courts each tell the Adjudicator what Summer Campaigns they are launching.

(5) In strict order, Campaigns are revealed to the group, and defended against and resolved one at a time.

As with any Season, Summer offers opportunities for roleplaying as the Queen and King plan the Season's actions together, and in the communication (or trash-talking, as the case may be) between kingdoms.

The bulk of roleplaying though, takes place as war flares and the Summer Campaigns begin. Even though each Campaign is resolved in a single D6 roll, there is no reason why the battles need not be roleplayed out. The Adjudicator can take the role of storyteller, and the controlling players the role of the Attack and Defence Commanders, telling the unfolding battle as a story. Player/GM groups who like to feel that teir actions directly impact the battle's outcome in a mechanical fashion might want to introduce a rule that the outcome of the roleplaying can add +1 or deduct -1 from the dice roll...

Alternatively, the dice can be rolled first and with player foreknowledge (but not player character foreknowledge) the battle's story can be fashioned collaboratively. It all depends on what suits your groups playstyles best.

Regardless, the nature of the game requires players and the Adjudicator to see the Summer Campaigns in a narrrative way. In essence, the creation of the story of the Game of Succession depends upon it.