RangerWickett
Legend
I need mechanics for a not-too-complicated mini-game. The goal is to have the PCs spend 15 minutes each session. I have a starting idea, but I'd love feedback, especially from people who could take a few minutes to run a test war and see how it turns out.
{Mild spoilers for ZEITGEIST: The Gears of Revolution adventure 10+}
The party's nation is under attack by three other nations who erroneously think you're villains. While the PCs are off visiting spots around the world trying to clear their country's name and stop the invasion, I want a ticking clock to show that the country could be pummeled if they fail. I don't want it to take up a ton of time, as it should happen in the background.
The party is in a position of command, and they'll need to divide their military resources between different cities they need to defend. Depending on how they've done in the campaign, they might have learned the enemy invasion plan and so can have the perfect counter, or they might have special allies who can bolster certain locations.
If the party fails completely, the first two cities should fall in about 6 weeks, and then the rest not long after that.
{more major spoilers in the spoiler block}
[sblock]
Risuri National Defense
Use these rules to track your nation's defenses against the invading armies. You need to defend five locations. Each location provides a benefit for as long as you control it, and has a Force rating that represents its military might. Likewise, the invading armies each have a Force rating.
Risuri Locations
Additionally, the party has 10 Power they can assign wherever they want at the start of the adventure, which represents them deploying the standing army.
Invasion Rounds
The GM should keep track of the passage of time on your adventure, and every week another Invasion Round happens. Each round, the attacking force's commander and the defending force's commander make opposed Command checks. A Command check is a d20 roll, plus the highest Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma modifier among the party. (The invading armies have pre-set Command scores.) Determine who wins and by what margin. The winner can then choose either to avoid battle (basically, they stall and prevent a decisive engagement) or to fight.
In a fight, each side deals damage equal to some fraction of their Power (round down) to the other side. Damage reduces the army or location's Power. When Power is reduced to 0, that side is defeated.
Tie. No battle.
Win by 1 to 5. Even battle. Winner and Loser each deal Power/10 damage to the other.
Win by 6 to 15. Moderate advantage. Winner deals Power/8. Loser deals Power/10.
Win by 16 to 25. Major advantage. Winner deals Power/6. Loser deals Power/10.
Win by 26+. Overwhelming advantage. Winner deals Power/4. Loser deals Power/10.
Invading Armies
These each have a specific tactic that the PCs don't know about at first. Also, each round each army is reinforced by 2 Power (or 1 Power as long as the party still controls Shale).
Ber doesn’t arrive until Round Two. If the party prevented the orders from being sent out to the armies of Drakr and Crisillyir, their armies don’t arrive until Round Two. If the party saved Cherage in Adventure Ten, the Danor armada starts with 30 Power, and doesn’t arrive until Round Two.
The enemy plan is to send Danor against Shale, Drakr against Flint, and Ber and Crisillyir together against Bole. They're leaving Slate alone at first. If they defeat a location, all the invading armies gain the benefits granted by it.
If two armies converge on the same location, such as Ber and Crisillyir vs. Bole, everyone makes a Command check, but can only target one enemy at a time. So Bole could choose to go after Ber, and Ber and Crisillyir would both go after Bole. If Ber wins but Crisillyir loses, then Bole doesn't get to choose whether to attack Crisillyir.
Special Resources
If a PC chooses to fight with a location instead of adventuring for a week, he or she deals 2 extra damage to the opposing side.
The party can also get aid from any of the four Fey Titans whom they managed to befriend in a previous adventure. The fey titans are effectively invincible, and the enemy armies cannot defeat them.
And that's all I have for now. Thoughts?
{Mild spoilers for ZEITGEIST: The Gears of Revolution adventure 10+}
The party's nation is under attack by three other nations who erroneously think you're villains. While the PCs are off visiting spots around the world trying to clear their country's name and stop the invasion, I want a ticking clock to show that the country could be pummeled if they fail. I don't want it to take up a ton of time, as it should happen in the background.
The party is in a position of command, and they'll need to divide their military resources between different cities they need to defend. Depending on how they've done in the campaign, they might have learned the enemy invasion plan and so can have the perfect counter, or they might have special allies who can bolster certain locations.
If the party fails completely, the first two cities should fall in about 6 weeks, and then the rest not long after that.
{more major spoilers in the spoiler block}
[sblock]
Risuri National Defense
Use these rules to track your nation's defenses against the invading armies. You need to defend five locations. Each location provides a benefit for as long as you control it, and has a Force rating that represents its military might. Likewise, the invading armies each have a Force rating.
Risuri Locations
- Slate, capital city. Power 25. National pride grants +1d6 to each Risuri Command check. (Useless to an invader.)
- Flint, industrial hub. Power 15. Munitions and weapons grant +1d6 to each Command check of the controlling force.
- Weftlands, source of food and manpower. Power 25. Cannot be attacked until one of the city's falls. Food and troops let you add 1d4 points of Power each round, divided as you choose among your locations.
- Bole, resource hub. Power 10. Flint grants +2d6 instead of 1d6, and the Weftlands provide 2d4 power instead of 1d4.
- Shale, shipyard. Power 25. Enemies can only reinforce their armies with 1 Power each per round, instead of 1d4 Power.
Additionally, the party has 10 Power they can assign wherever they want at the start of the adventure, which represents them deploying the standing army.
Invasion Rounds
The GM should keep track of the passage of time on your adventure, and every week another Invasion Round happens. Each round, the attacking force's commander and the defending force's commander make opposed Command checks. A Command check is a d20 roll, plus the highest Intelligence, Wisdom, or Charisma modifier among the party. (The invading armies have pre-set Command scores.) Determine who wins and by what margin. The winner can then choose either to avoid battle (basically, they stall and prevent a decisive engagement) or to fight.
In a fight, each side deals damage equal to some fraction of their Power (round down) to the other side. Damage reduces the army or location's Power. When Power is reduced to 0, that side is defeated.
Tie. No battle.
Win by 1 to 5. Even battle. Winner and Loser each deal Power/10 damage to the other.
Win by 6 to 15. Moderate advantage. Winner deals Power/8. Loser deals Power/10.
Win by 16 to 25. Major advantage. Winner deals Power/6. Loser deals Power/10.
Win by 26+. Overwhelming advantage. Winner deals Power/4. Loser deals Power/10.
Invading Armies
These each have a specific tactic that the PCs don't know about at first. Also, each round each army is reinforced by 2 Power (or 1 Power as long as the party still controls Shale).
- Ber, beastmasters. Power 30. Command +4. Always fights, even if the PCs win and don't want to.
- Crisillyir, holy crusade. Power 45. Command +2. Immune to Granny Allswell's power.
- Danor, naval armada. Power 55. Command +8. If its opponent only gets an Even Battle or Moderate Advantage, Danor can choose not to fight.
- Drakr, war machine. Power 70. Command +5. When it wins a Command check it can 'wound' one fey titan involved in battle with it, or kill a wounded one.
Ber doesn’t arrive until Round Two. If the party prevented the orders from being sent out to the armies of Drakr and Crisillyir, their armies don’t arrive until Round Two. If the party saved Cherage in Adventure Ten, the Danor armada starts with 30 Power, and doesn’t arrive until Round Two.
The enemy plan is to send Danor against Shale, Drakr against Flint, and Ber and Crisillyir together against Bole. They're leaving Slate alone at first. If they defeat a location, all the invading armies gain the benefits granted by it.
If two armies converge on the same location, such as Ber and Crisillyir vs. Bole, everyone makes a Command check, but can only target one enemy at a time. So Bole could choose to go after Ber, and Ber and Crisillyir would both go after Bole. If Ber wins but Crisillyir loses, then Bole doesn't get to choose whether to attack Crisillyir.
Special Resources
If a PC chooses to fight with a location instead of adventuring for a week, he or she deals 2 extra damage to the opposing side.
The party can also get aid from any of the four Fey Titans whom they managed to befriend in a previous adventure. The fey titans are effectively invincible, and the enemy armies cannot defeat them.
- She Who Writhes, kraken. Deals an extra 2 damage in a fight, but only at Flint or Shale.
- Father of Thunder, bison. Deals an extra 3 damage, but also deals 1 damage to you unless you're in the Weftlands.
- Ash Wolf, pack-leader. Deals 1 damage, or 2 damage at Bole.
- Granny Allswell, gremlin. Makes the enemy roll two Command checks and take the worse.
And that's all I have for now. Thoughts?
