Mass combat systems

[mattcolville]

Yes. We use it for "smaller" mass combats (<200 combatants). It's pretty good, and can be easily modified to suit your needs. Kerrick is pretty much right on the money with his comments.


We also use Eden's Fields of Blood, for much larger (big army-sized, 200+) combats.

Both those systems are in use in our campaign(s), depending on the number of combatants. Works for us.

What do you think of as the strengths and weaknesses of Fields of Blood?

 

[reel_big_gish]

I was always partial to the D&D 4th Edition Rules Cyclopaedia mass combat system.

 

[BiggusGeekus]

http://www.rpgnow.com/product_info.php?cPath=1_260_329&products_id=4037&

From the pages of Slavelords of Cydonia
and the ENnie Award Winning GRIM TALES

This 10 page PDF supplement presents rules for Mass Combat.

Using the simple but powerful concepts presented in Grim Tales’ Gamemastering sections, this Mass Combat system allows the GM to integrate the excitement of vast battles into his game without the overhead of complicated mass combat systems.

This Mass Combat system works on the very simple assumption that EL is an accurate representation of a group’s combat effectiveness. Indeed, the accuracy of the EL system increases with multiple iterations (or, the law of averages), making it an excellent choice for the core of an abstract mass combat system.

Because EL is based upon CR, and CR encapsulates all of a creature’s combat capabilities, there is no need to further break down the mass combat system into BAB, armor class, or the other particulars of a creature’s statblock.

Using the infinitely-scalable concept of EL presented in Grim Tales, this system can handle units of any size and composition, while still allowing for unique unit types that can take advantage of battlefield position (range, movement, command, morale, etc.). A single Battle Rating (BR) for each unit determines its attack, defense, and staying power.

These rules accommodate Mass Combat on both the strategic and tactical scale, and can be played with or without the use of a battlemat, with or without the intervention of PCs and other heroic figures.

I've never used these rules, but I'm told they are good. At $2, the risk is low

 

[pogre]

I'm partial to the Slave Lords rules set for truly large scale battles. Anything less than 500 on a side I want a one-to-one minis system. Just a personal preference.

 

[Infernal Teddy]

Thanks guys

 

[Infernal Teddy]

Chainmail (1971) by Gygax & Perren

And for the rest of us?

 

[Kerrick]

We'll see a link here, I trust?

Here you go. I decided to forgo the sample units because I got busy working on other projects, but the rest of it is done.