Birthright Homebrew Conversion, part 8: Armies and Warfare
Armies and Warfare
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Here are my notes, drafts for creating my own Mass Combat system from the Birthright rules. Some parts may not make total sense, as there are often one-line placeholders for ideas I wanted to expand upon.
Armies
An army is a collection of one or more units under a unified command structure.
Armies without a commander do not fight at their best. Without a strong presence to direct
their efforts, the individual units waste some of their energies in petty rivalry. For each
unit above 1 in the army, the attacks of all units are reduced by 1. The presence of a
Commander negates this penalty. The penalty is increased if the units are from different
races. For races historically allied, the penalty is –1. For races with a neutral history,
the penalty is –2. Races that are typically enemies suffer a –4 penalty. A Commander cannot
negate this portion of this penalty.
Armies move at the average rate of the units that comprise them. The units each require
separate Movement Points to move during War Moves. Each unit pays the appropriate cost for
the terrain being crossed.
Armies defend better together.
Armies attack better together.
Building an Army
Armies are composed of units. Armies may, or may not, have a Commander. At any time when two
or more units are in the same province, the regent may elect to form them into an army as a
Free Action. Likewise, it is a free action for a regent to disband an army into its
composite units.
Commander
A Commander is a singular individual creature whose presence can affect the performance of a
unit or army in combat.
Units
Units are composed of multiple creatures. The statistics block of one creature is used to
represent the unit. Typically, units are composed of 200 Small or Medium, 100 Large, 40
Huge, 10 Colossal, or 1 Gargantuan creature(s).
When a unit is created, it has the average statistics appropriate to a creature of that
type, with average ability scores and hit points. Units of humans, for example, are composed
of 200 level 1 Warriors with ability scores of 10 and 11 and 5 hp each. Weapons have a
damage increment which is the average damage for that weapon plus any bonuses the unit is
entitled to add. Double weapons add together the damage for both “heads” – double weapons
are quite lethal when used in mass combat.
The unit is represented as if it were one creature: War 1, Attack Longbow +1 damage 4 or
Spear +1 damage 3.
Unit Types
Code:
Basic Unit Types (Recruits*)
Unit Type Move Muster Maint Requirements
Archers 2 2 1 Province (2) Note 1
Barbarian 2 0 1 Tribe (1)
Cavalry 3 4 2 Province (3)
Infantry 2 2 1 Province (1) Note 1
Heavy Infantry 1 3 1 Province (2) Note 1
Irregulars 2 1 1 Province (1) Note 2
Levies 1 0 1 Province (1)
Merc Archers 1 4 2 **
Merc. Cavalry 3 6 2 **
Merc. Infantry 2 4 2 **
Merc. Hvy Inf 1 5 2 **
Merc. Irreg 2 3 1 **
Merc [Polemen] 1 4 2 **
[Polemen] 1 2 1 Province (2) Note 1
Scouts 3 2 1 Province (0) Note 3
or Tribe (0)
Marines 1 2 1 Province (1) Note 1
*The numbers here are for raw recruits. For each grade of additional
experience, add 1 GB to the Muster cost. For each 2 Grades of
additional experience, add 1 GB to the Maintenance cost.
** Mercenaries can be hired in any province
Note 1 Can be raised by any Temple, Guild, or Law holding
of level 4 or better
Note 2 Can be raised by any Temple, Guild, or Law holding
of level 3 or better
Note 3 Can be raised by any Guild holding of level 2 or better.
[Polemen] are Pole-arm wielding units. Which particular polearm
is in use varies by culture, but the essential idea is the
same. In some lands, these would be Pikemen, others would
be Glaivers or Ranseurmen.
Mustering
Archers: 1st Level Warriors; Feat: Weapon Focus (missile) (Humans add Far Shot)
Cavalry: 1st Level Warriors; Skills: Ride +4; Feat: Mounted Combat (Humans add Weapon Focus
(lance))
Infantry: 1st Level Warriors; Feat: Improved Formation Combat (Humans add Weapon Focus
(melee))
Heavy Infantry: 1st Level Warriors; Feat: Improved Formation Combat (Humans add Weapon Focus
(melee))
Irregulars: 1st level Experts; Feat: Militia (1 melee and 1 missile weapon proficiency)
Levies: 1st level Commoners (no skills, no feats, etc)
[Polemen]: 1st Level Warriors; Skills: ; Feats: Improved Formation Combat (Humans add Weapon
Focus (polearm))
Scouts: 1st Level Experts; Skills: Wilderness Lore, Spot, Listen; Feat: Alertness (+2 to
Spot and Listen) (Humans add Weapon Focus (missile))
Skirmishers: 1st Level Warriors, Skills: Wilderness Lore, Spot, Listen, Hide, Move Silently;
Feat (Alertness (+2 to Spot and Listen) (Humans add Weapon Focus (missile))
Marines: 1st Level Warriors; Skills: Balance, Climb, Use Rope; Feat: Weapon Focus (Short
Sword)
Code:
Special Unit Types
Unit Type Move Muster* Maint Requirements
Artillerists 1 4 2 Province (5)
Berserkers 2 ? ? Tribe (2)
Elite Infantry 1 4 2 Province (3) and Law (1)
Elite Cavalry 3 4 3 Province (4) and Law (1)
Knights 2 6 3 Province (4) and Law (1)
Sea Wolves ? ? ? Port
*Muster cost is the full GB price for raising this type of unit.
Artillerists: 1st Level Fighters; Feat:
Berserkers: Barbarian 2 with light armor and weapons; Skills: ; Feat: Weapon Focus
Elite Units: Fighter
Knights: Aristocrat 1 / Fighter 1 Cavalry with heavy armor and weapons; Skills: Ride +5;
Feats: Weapon Focus (lance); Mounted Combat
Sea Wolves: Fighter 1 / Rogue 1 Marines with light armor and weapons; Skills: Balance,
Climb, Use Rope; Feat: Weapon Focus (Short Sword)
Adding a specialist to the unit
A regent may choose to substitute a few members of a different character class for warriors
in a unit. Units with Clerical members can bless the unit before battle, giving it a +1 on
attacks. Such units can also cast bane on opposing units when in melee range, and can
attempt to turn enemy units composed of undead.
No more than 5% (10 creatures in a 200 creature unit) in a unit may be substituted this way.
Attempting to substitute more than one character class in a single unit is not effective.
Combet
In each round of combat, units move then fight. Initiative only matters in terms of deciding
which units move first. Units move in descending order of speed, with Initiative Modifier
used to break ties. Combat is handled simultaneously, and the results applied to both units
before the next round.
Units select a target to fight and a weapon to use against that target. Combat is resolved
using opposed rolls. The attacking unit rolls 1d20 and adds its attack bonus with the chosen
weapon to determine its attack strength. The attack strength is compared to the defense
strength of the defender (10 + Armor, Dexterity, etc.). If the attack is greater than or
equal to the defense, the attacker has succeeded. The attacker’s damage increment is
subtracted from the hit points of the defender unit. Criticals do not apply.
A unit reduced to exactly 0 hit points is routed; enough of its members remain that it can
be rallied by a commander in a later round. Routed units cannot initiate attacks, but
counter-attack normally when attacked themselves.
A unit reduced to between –1 and –9 hit points is severely damaged. 5% + 5% for each hit
point below 0 of the unit are lost (affecting the ability to recover or merge the unit).
Until the unit is restored, its AC and attacks are penalized by the amount its hit points
are below 0.
A unit reduced to –10 hit points or lower is eliminated. That is to say, there are not
enough survivors for the unit to even be merged into another.
Example
Jeremy has a unit of Goblin Infantry (basic goblins) with stats: Speed: 30 ft.; Initiative
+1; AC 15 (+1 size, +1 Dex, +3 Studded Leather), hp 4, Attacks Javelin +2 damage 3 or
Morningstar +0 damage 4; Feat: Alertness; SQ: Darkvision
Ron has a unit of human Infantry (Fighter 1) with stats: Speed: 30 ft.; Initiative + 0; AC
12 (+2 Leather), hp 8 (+3 for feat), Attacks Longbow +2 damage 4 or Spear +1 damage 3;
Feats: Weapon Focus (longbow), Toughness, Point-blank Shot
The Goblins are in trouble. Being on the battlefield in daylight, they suffer an additional
–1 to their attacks for the daylight.
The Goblins, having the higher initiative modifier, go first.
Round 1: The Goblins attempt to close, hurling their Javelins. The goblins move 30 ft.
closer to the humans, reducing their attack penalty for range from –2 to –1. Their attack is
12 (1d20) + 2 –1 (daylight) –1 (range) = 12, not enough to do damage to the humans (AC 14).
The humans return fire from their archers, getting 9 (1d20) + 2 = 11, not enough to hurt the
goblins.
Round 2: The goblins close in further, moving 15 ft. closer (eliminating their range
penalty) and hurling more javelins. Their attack this time is 13 + 2 –1 = 14, enough to hit
the humans for 3 points. The humans have 4 hp left. The humans return fire again with their
archers, getting 14 (1d20) + 3 = 17. That is sufficient for 4 points of damage, which is all
that the unit can take. The goblin unit is reduced to 0 hit points. The unit is routed, and
will withdraw from the fight unless rallied.
Uneven ratio fights
When units fight other units that have a different number of creatures per unit, the
abstraction used here becomes hard to maintain.
Unit vs. Gargantuan (ex: Soldiers vs. Dragon)
Unit vs. Huge (Soldiers vs. Giants)
Unit vs. Smaller (Soldiers vs. Pixies)
Melee
Melee with reach weapons
Ranged attacks
Area attacks
Rallying a Unit
Unit Advancement
Units that defeat other units receive experience points for defeating their foes. The number
of experience points awarded is based on the number of combatants, and shared among the
winners. In the example above, 200 human warriors share the experience for killing 200
goblin warriors. This equates to each member of the human unit receiving the experience
points for killing 1 Goblin warrior (75 xp).
Units may advance upon reaching the experience point requirements.
Units may not advance beyond 5th level without special circumstances.
Units are graded according to their experience level: Recruit (1st), Green (2nd), Blooded
(3rd), Veteran (4th), and Campaigner (5th)
Instead of tracking the XP for the unit, you can assume that Units gain 1 level every 2
years of active service.
Unit Advancement improves Base Attack Bonus, Saving Throw Bonuses, and Ability Scores. The
progression is not exactly the same as it would be for a single character, as it is assumed
that along the way the low-Con and low-Hit Point soldiers are replaced by healthier
varieties. As a result, the soldiers get an assumed Con bonus early in their careers, but
they lose out on the potential for taking one later (as the 1 point stat increase to Con
will not help them, then).
Melee troops favor Strength, and start with an average 12 in that score, and an average 11
in Dexterity. Missile troops favor Dexterity, and they have an average 12 there with an 11
Strength.
Typically, when the 3rd level Feat is available, the soldiers take Toughness and gain a 3 hp
boost.
When the stat increase at 4th level is available, the units balance their favored scores to
wind up with 12s in each of Str, Dex, and Con.
More experienced, and thus more capable, units increase the Muster and Maintenance costs.
The Muster cost of raising a more experienced unit is increased by 1 GB per level over 1.
The Maintenance cost of such units increase by 1 GB per 2 additional levels over 1.
Code:
Example Level Advancement for Infantry Units
Level 1 2 3 4 5
-------------------------------------------------------
Hit Points 5 12 21 31 38
Base Attack 1 2 3 4 5
Fort 2 3 3 4 4
Ref 0 0 1 1 1
Will 0 0 1 1 1
Str 11 or 12 11 or 12 11 or 12 12 12
Dex 11 or 12 11 or 12 11 or 12 12 12
Con 10 or 12 12 12 12 12
Int 11 11 11 11 11
Wis 11 11 11 11 11
Cha 11 11 11 11 11
Avg HP/Level 5 6 6 7 7
Toughness +3 hp +3 hp +3 hp
Stat Increase Str or Dex or Con
Maintenance Base Base +1 +1 +2
Muster Base +1 +2 +3 +4
Hit points are calculated as: [Level] x [Avg HP/Level] + [Toughness Bonus]
Non-Human Units
The tables here list the values for human units. Non-Human units of basic Humanoids (Dwarf,
Elf, Gnome, Goblin, Orc, etc) use the same figures with some slight adjustments.
Dwarf: +1 to the Fortitude Save figure, +1 hit point on the average hp per level. -2 to
Command.
Elf: -1 to Fort Save, +1 to Ref save, +1 to Ranged attack for Archers (+2 to Ranged for
Infantry), -2 to Average Hit Points per Level, -1 to melee attack/damage
Gnome: -2 to melee attack/damage
Goblin: -2 to melee attack/damage, +1 to Maintenance
Orc: +2 to melee attack/damage, -1 to Will saves, -1 to Listen, Spot; -2 to Wilderness Lore,
+1 to Maintenance
The Maintenance cost for using units of a race other than your own is +1, as is the Muster
cost.
Unit Improvement
Units may be improved. The Improve Unit action is used to change a unit into a new category.
Units must be ready to advance a level to be eligible for improvement. Units may not be Improved into a type you lack the resources to build (in other words, you must Improve the unit at a place where you could Muster the same type of unit it will become).
The DC of the change is determined by how significant the change is. Promoting Irregulars to another type of “professional” soldier unit is the easiest change, with a DC of 5. Promoting other standard unit types to more specialized types is slightly more difficult, but not very hard, so it has a DC of 10. Promoting a unit to become an Elite unit of some type, however, is more significant and requires more attention, so its DC is 20.
Code:
Original Unit New Unit Change DC
----------------------------------------------
Irregulars Other Base Easy 5
Archers Artillerists Minor 10
Archers Horse Archers Minor 10
Archers Elite Archers Major 20
Cavalry Elite Cavalry Major 20
Cavalry Horse Archers Minor 10
Infantry [Polemen] Easy 5
Infantry Elite Infantry Major 20
Infantry Marines Minor 10
Marines Sea Wolves Major 20
Scouts Skirmishers Minor 10
Barbarians Berserkers Minor 10
Scouts Barbarians Easy 5
Artillerists Sappers Minor 10
Scouts Sappers Minor 10
Scouts Horse Archers Easy 5
Elite Cavalry Mounted Guards Major 20
Elite Infantry Foot Guards Major 20
Elite Cavalry Knights Major 20
Archers may be improved to Artillerists or Horse Archers
Cavalry may be improved to Knights or Horse Archers
Infantry may be improved to Pikemen, Elite Infantry, or Marines
Irregulars may be improved to Infantry, Cavalry, Barbarians, Pikemen, Marines, or Archers
Levies may not be improved at all.
Scouts may be improved to Horse Archers or Berserkers
Barbarians may be improved to Berserkers
Artillerists may be promoted to Sappers
These unit improvements create special unique units that are unique to the nation to whom they belong:
Knights may be improved to Mounted Guards
Elite Infantry may be improved to Foot Guards
Marines may be improved to Sea Wolves
Example:
Mary’s character has a need for soldiers to defend a mountain pass, but her domain is short of cash. She can better use a quantity of soldiers at the moment, so she creates three units of Irregulars in the province where the pass is located.
The attack comes as Mary had expected. Fortunately, there are some adventurers handy to assist the Irregulars in defending the pass. After a couple of attacks, two of the Irregular units are depleted and can be merged; the other is close enough to full strength that it can be left alone to recover.
When xp is awarded, the Irregulars have earned enough to advance to 2nd level. Without the Improve Unit action, they would gain a level of Warrior, with commensurate hit points and saving throw and base attack bonuses. Mary chooses to send them to two different provinces and uses Improve Unit as a Realm Action (now that she has more cash handy). One unit is made into Cavalry, the other into Infantry. Instead of gaining a level as Warriors, they gain one as Fighters (with the extra Fighter feat, and better hit points).
After a few more domain turns, Mary has a unit of Infantry ready to advance to 3rd level. At this point, she decides to use Improve Unit again, and create a unit of her famed Royal Bowmen guards, known for the deadly accuracy of their longbows (3rd Level troops with the Far Shot feat).
Merging Survivor Units
The merged unit has the weighted average of the experience points of the units merged into it. The units to be merged must have the same feats, or the resulting unit cannot use the feats until all members have the opportunity to master the feats.
Example:
Mary has two survivor Infantry units. One had the Improved Formation Combat feat and the other had the Improved Command feat. When merged, the resulting unit operates as if it has neither of these feats. After gaining more experience, however, the unit survives to the point where it can select another feat. The members who do not have the Improved Command feat select it, and those who do not have Improved Formation Combat select that one instead. The result is that now, the unit may use both feats.
Unit Feats
There are special feats that apply only to units, like Improved Formation Combat and Improved Command. These feats may be added to a unit whenever an ordinary feat could be added.
IMPROVED FORMATION COMBAT [Unit]
The unit has drilled in using formations to fight.
Prerequisite:
Regions:
Benefit: +1 to the unit’s attack rating
Normal:
Special:
ENVELOPMENT [Unit]
The unit has mastered the art of surrounding a smaller unit to bring the most of its force to bear.
Prerequisite: Improved Formation Combat, melee or pole weapons
Regions:
Benefit: Units receive a circumstance bonus to their attack rating for the difference in unit ratio when confronting a smaller number of larger creatures.
Normal:
Special:
DEFENSIVE SQUARE [Unit]
The unit has mastered the art of minimizing its exposed members and reducing the effect of enemy envelopment.
Prerequisite: Improved Formation Combat, Envelopment, melee or pole weapons
Regions:
Benefit: The unit negates the effect of the Envelopment feat used by an opposing unit.
Normal:
Special:
CONCENTRATED FIRE [Unit]
The unit has mastered the art of firing effectively on a unit composed of a smaller number of larger creatures.
Prerequisite: Improved Formation Combat, missile weapons
Regions:
Benefit: The unit receives a circumstances bonus on its attack roll against a suitable unit.
Normal:
Special:
IMPROVED MORALE [Unit]
The unit’s command structure inspires the soldiers.
Prerequisite: Improved Command
Regions:
Benefit: The unit may attempt to rally without a Commander being present. Also, the unit receives a +2 morale bonus to saves vs. fear and the like.
Normal: A unit requires the presence of a Commander to attempt to recover after morale breaks.
Special:
IMPROVED COMMAND [Unit]
The unit’s command structure requires less direct supervision than normal.
Prerequisite:
Regions:
Benefit: The unit may move and attack without a Commander being present.
Normal: A unit requires the presence of a Commander to move and attack.
Special:
BOARDING [Unit]
The unit is trained in the art of invading a ship while fighting it.
Prerequisite: Improved Formation Combat
Regions:
Benefit: The unit grants the ship it is carried by a +2 circumstances bonus to its ship-to-ship combat attack rolls.
Normal:
Special: Multiple units with this ability add cumulative bonuses to the ship carrying them.
Moving Units
This set of rules is pretty much as described in the Birthright rulebook. Looking over my notes, it looks like all I did was to consolidate the tables with the additions of some material from Tribes of the Heartless Waste.
Ship Movement
Ships move a little differently than land units. Sailing ships are at the mercy of the winds, although ships that sail but also keep oars for emergencies are less vulnerable to being becalmed.
To move ships,
Code:
Direction Relative to Wind
Ahead Aslant Across Athwart Ag’in
Movement X1 X3/4 X1/2 X1/4 X0
Check DC +0 +2 +3 +5 +10
Code:
Wind Strength Category
Strength Base Points Seaworthiness Check DC
Calm 0 5
Light 2 10
Moderate 4 15
Strong 6 20
Storm* 6 25
Gale* 4 30
Hurricane* 2 35
Example:
David has a Huge ship at sea, in deep waters, and he wants to make landfall 2 spaces away to the Northeast. The wind is blowing Strong from the East. That puts David at moving Athwart the wind, and adds to 5 to the DC for sailing successfully. His sails are generating 6 MP per war move (week), and the base Seaworthiness check DC is 20. Because David’s movement direction is Athwart the wind, he only gets ¼ the usual movement points: 2 instead of 6 (rounded up).
The first war move, David uses 2 MP to move 1 deep water space closer to land. This uses up his movement for this turn, so it is time for the Seaworthiness check. The base DC for Strong wind is DC 20, +5 for moving Athwart it. The Captain’s Profession (Sailor) skill is 8. David makes the check and rolls an 18 for a total of 26; that beats the 25 DC, so the ship is intact.
David will need to wait until next turn to use 2 more to enter the coastal space; by then the wind direction may have changed.
Code:
Movement Points Required
Ship Size
Type of Movement Large Huge Gargantuan Colossal
Along major river 1 2 N/A N/A
Along minor river 2 4 N/A N/A
Coastal Waters 1 2 4 4
Deep Waters 2 2 2 3
Enter/Leave Port 1 1 2 2
