Keith Ammann
Yep, That Guy
Planning (way) ahead for some of my players' personal quests, I realized that D&D 5E has no official rules for handling large-scale warfare. Since I'd like to give my players the opportunity to lead armies into battle (and personally slay the opposing generals), I decided it was necessary to come up with a homebrew system. I'd like to put it out here so that other people can alpha-test it.
D&D 5E Fantasy Warfare Rules - by Ambrose Honeysuckle
I. Composition
Fantasy armies, like real armies, are made up of units. These units come in three sizes: the group, the platoon and the company. A group consists of 1d6 + 6 soldiers and a sergeant. A platoon consists of two or three groups and a lieutenant. A company consists of 1d4 + 4 platoons and a captain. (Because of voice command limitations, it's not feasible for a commanding officer to give orders to a unit larger than a company.) The typical soldier is a level 1 fighter or other class, the typical sergeant is level 3, the typical lieutenant is level 5, and the typical captain is level 7.
In addition, every army -- whatever its size or largest unit -- has a commander-in-chief, or general.
An army need not be made up of multiple companies. Depending on the scale of warfare, it may comprise just one company, or even just a platoon or group, if the battle is only a skirmish.
A group may be irregular, regular or elite.
To recruit a group, a player character must convince it to join his or her cause. This involves a Charisma (Persuasion) check against a DC of 20 minus the number of groups that the army already comprises. For this purpose, irregular units count half (round down), and elite units count double. Charisma (Intimidation) may also be used to press irregular units into service, but may not be used to recruit regular or elite units. A PC may recruit no more than 5 percent of the total population of the locale where he or she is recruiting.
A PC must also pay his or her army. A group, including both fighters and noncombatant support personnel, costs 2 sp to maintain, a platoon costs 5 sp per day, and a company costs 3 gp per day. Irregular units cost half; elite units cost double.
The three basic types of group are infantry, archery and cavalry. A company may comprise only one type of basic group -- all infantry, all archery or all cavalry. It may however, include special groups alongside the basic groups. Pike are a subset of infantry group that may be part of a company alongside ordinary infantry.
In addition to the basic group types, PCs may recruit special units that may be substituted for fighting groups or platoons within a company:
A barbarian character may command an army or a barbarian unit of any size.
A bard character may command a bard group.
A cleric character may command an army or a cleric or paladin platoon.
A druid character may command druid group or an army made up entirely of druids, archers, scouts and beasts.
A fighter character may command an army or any top-level unit.
A paladin character may command an army, any top-level unit, or a cleric or paladin platoon.
A monk character may command a monk group or an army made up entirely of monks.
A ranger character may command an army, any top-level archer unit, or a scout or beast platoon.
A rogue character may command any top-level archer unit or scout platoon.
A sorcerer, warlock or wizard character may command an army or a wizard group.
II. Unit Stats
Infantry Group
Speed 25, AC 14, HP 12, +3 to hit, 1d6 + 1 slashing
Archery Group
Speed 25, AC 13, HP 7, +3 to hit, range 80/320, 1d6 + 1 piercing, attack with disadvantage when engaged in melee
Cavalry Group
Speed 60, AC 14, HP 12, +3 to hit, 1d6 + 1 slashing
Pike Group
Speed 25, AC 12, HP 12, +3 to hit, reach 10 ft, 1d6 + 1 piercing, advantage vs. cavalry, cavalry attacks w/disadvantage
Barbarian Group
Speed 25, AC 12, HP 8, +3 to hit, 1d10 + 3 slashing, Damage Resistance: bludgeoning, piercing and slashing from normal weapons
Bard Group
Speed 25, AC 13, HP 4, +2 to hit, 1d6 slashing; two Bardic Inspiration dice (d6)
Cleric Group
Speed 25, AC 14, HP 4, +3 to hit, 1d6 + 1 bludgeoning; resistance cantrip; two 1st-level spell slots (choose three 1st-level spells)
Druid Group
Speed 25, AC 14, HP 5, +2 to hit, 1d6 piercing; shillelagh cantrip; two 1st-level spell slots (choose three 1st-level spells)
Monk Group
Speed 25, AC 12, HP 4, +3 to hit, Multiattack: 1d6 + 1 slashing, 1d4 + 1 bludgeoning
Paladin Group
Speed 25, AC 14, HP 5, +3 to hit, 1d8 + 1 slashing, Lay On Hands
Scout Group
Speed 25, AC 13, HP 5, +3 to hit, range 80/320, 1d6 + 2 piercing, Stealth +4, company attacks with advantage
Wizard Group
Speed 25, AC 11, HP 3, +2 to hit, 1d8 bludgeoning; fire bolt cantrip (+4 to hit); two 1st-level spell slots (choose three 1st-level spells)
Beast Group
Uses same stats as a single beast of the same type. A beast group may comprise multiple types of beast; a mixed group uses the median AC, HP, attack modifier, damage die and damage modifier, and the slowest speed, of all the beasts in it.
Monster Group
Uses same stats as a single monster of the same type. A monster group always consists entirely of one type of monster.
Irregular units have −2 to AC; elite units have +2 to AC.
Any group consisting entirely of dwarves has 1 extra hit point. Any group, platoon or company consisting entirely of elves or halflings has +1 to AC; and any archery group, platoon or company consisting entirely of elves or halflings gets +1 to hit and does +1 damage. Any non-cavalry unit consisting entirely of elves and/or humans has a speed of 30 ft.
III. Combat Mechanics
Combat takes place at the level of the largest unit that both armies possess: company vs. company, platoon vs. platoon or group vs. group.
Units attack as mobs (DMG p. 250), with each attacking group in a company or independent platoon treated as an individual creature. A company or platoon defends as if it were an individual creature with hit points equal to the total HP of all its component groups, and armor class equal to their median AC. For the purposes of calculating the attack roll needed to hit, advantage and disadvantage are treated as +4 and −4.
A unit behind a fortification receives a bonus to AC appropriate to the amount of cover it has. Flanking attacks, surprise attacks and special conditions are treated the same as in normal combat. Cavalry, paladin and all irregular units have disadvantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks.
Irregular units have disadvantage on attack rolls and saving throws (including morale checks). Elite units have advantage on attack rolls and saving throws (including morale checks), and elite scout units have advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks.
A unit that contains irregular and regular subunits has disadvantage on attack rolls; a unit that contains regular and elite subunits has advantage on attack rolls. A unit that contains irregular, regular and elite subunits has both, and they cancel each other out, along with all other factors conferring advantage or disadvantage.
A unit may not contain both irregular and elite subunits without also including regular subunits. Any unit that contains all three types of subunit and loses its last regular subunit fractures, and its commander, if he or she is still alive, is separated from both. An uncommanded unit must make a morale check every turn or be routed.
A routed unit attempts to flee the field, using the Dash action. A commanding officer eligible to include it under his or her command may try to rally it with a Charisma (Persuasion) check, with disadvantage, against the same DC as for other morale checks. If the check is successful, the unit resumes fighting on its next turn, attached to the commander's unit.
Once a defending unit has lost half or more of its HP, its commander may be engaged in single combat by the opposing unit's commander (while the units continue to fight each other). If the commander of a unit is slain (or, in the case of a PC, knocked unconscious), it breaks into independent subunits, and each of those subunits must make a morale check or be routed.
Also, when any unit has lost half or more of its HP, each of its subunits must make a morale check or be routed.
Once an army has lost half or more of its top-level units, its general may be engaged in single combat by the opposing army's general (while the armies continue to fight each other). If a general is slain (or, in the case of a PC, knocked unconscious), each of its remaining top-level units must make a morale check or be routed; in addition, the captain of the largest intact top-level unit becomes the new commander-in-chief of the army.
The DC for any morale check is 10 × the number of top-level units in the opposing army ÷ the number of top-level units in the friendly army, rounded down. Example: If the army of the unit making the morale check has 4 intact companies, and the opposing army has 6, the DC = 10 × 6 ÷ 4 = 15. Meanwhile, for a unit in the other army, the DC = 10 × 4 ÷ 6 = 6 (rounded down). A player character commanding a unit may use his or her Charisma (Persuasion) skill to make the morale check for that unit.
An army that loses its last intact company (or platoon, if that was the largest unit at the start of the battle) is defeated and either surrenders or flees, though any single combat in progress continues until it's resolved.
IV. Battlefield Spellcasting
Cleric, druid and wizard units may cast spells rather than join their fellow groups' conventional attack. Cleric spells that normally target a single creature instead target a full platoon; druid and wizard spells that normally target a single creature instead target a group. Spells that normally target multiple creatures (such as magic missile or fog cloud) target the next level up -- that is, cleric spells affect whole companies, and druid and wizard spells affect whole platoons. A group or platoon that is sidelined by a disabling condition (such as being blinded by fog cloud, restrained by entangle or poisoned by ray of sickness) does not contribute to the attacks of the unit it's attached to.
Bardic Inspiration affects the entire top-level unit to which the bard group is attached. A paladin group using Lay On Hands has a combined pool of 50 points to spend.
V. PC Commanders
Units commanded by player characters will default to either the Attack action or the Ready action (engaging when an enemy comes within range). The commanding PC must use his or her own combat action to order his or her unit to do anything else -- to cast a spell, use a special ability, move to another location, retreat or surrender. When the PC is engaged in single combat with a foe, he or she cannot give directions to his unit, which will simply fight for as long as an enemy unit is engaging it, then hold its ground.
Let me know if I missed anything!
D&D 5E Fantasy Warfare Rules - by Ambrose Honeysuckle
I. Composition
Fantasy armies, like real armies, are made up of units. These units come in three sizes: the group, the platoon and the company. A group consists of 1d6 + 6 soldiers and a sergeant. A platoon consists of two or three groups and a lieutenant. A company consists of 1d4 + 4 platoons and a captain. (Because of voice command limitations, it's not feasible for a commanding officer to give orders to a unit larger than a company.) The typical soldier is a level 1 fighter or other class, the typical sergeant is level 3, the typical lieutenant is level 5, and the typical captain is level 7.
In addition, every army -- whatever its size or largest unit -- has a commander-in-chief, or general.
An army need not be made up of multiple companies. Depending on the scale of warfare, it may comprise just one company, or even just a platoon or group, if the battle is only a skirmish.
A group may be irregular, regular or elite.
To recruit a group, a player character must convince it to join his or her cause. This involves a Charisma (Persuasion) check against a DC of 20 minus the number of groups that the army already comprises. For this purpose, irregular units count half (round down), and elite units count double. Charisma (Intimidation) may also be used to press irregular units into service, but may not be used to recruit regular or elite units. A PC may recruit no more than 5 percent of the total population of the locale where he or she is recruiting.
A PC must also pay his or her army. A group, including both fighters and noncombatant support personnel, costs 2 sp to maintain, a platoon costs 5 sp per day, and a company costs 3 gp per day. Irregular units cost half; elite units cost double.
The three basic types of group are infantry, archery and cavalry. A company may comprise only one type of basic group -- all infantry, all archery or all cavalry. It may however, include special groups alongside the basic groups. Pike are a subset of infantry group that may be part of a company alongside ordinary infantry.
In addition to the basic group types, PCs may recruit special units that may be substituted for fighting groups or platoons within a company:
- Barbarian units are platoon-level units. They have resistance against damage from all normal weapons, cannot be routed and will continue to fight even if uncommanded, but if the army to which they belong loses more than half its top-level units and the opposing army has more, they must make a morale check each turn or switch sides.
- Bard units are group-level units. They are always irregular but fight as regulars. They may use Bardic Inspiration to rally a fellow group or the platoon or company to which they are attached at the time.
- Cleric units are platoon-level units. They are always regular. They may cast spells to support a fellow platoon or the company to which they are attached at the time, or to attack an opposing platoon or company. They have disadvantage on morale checks if commanded by a cleric or paladin of a different domain.
- Druid units are group-level units. They are always elite but fight as regulars. They may cast spells to support a fellow group or the platoon or company to which they are attached at the time, or to attack an opposing group or platoon.
- Monk units are group-level units. They are always elite but are far more vulnerable than a normal infantry unit.
- Paladin units are platoon-level units. They are always elite. They have disadvantage on morale checks if commanded by a cleric or paladin of a different domain.
- Scout units are platoon-level units. They are always irregular, but the company to which they are attached attacks with advantage.
- Wizard units are group-level units. They are always elite but fight as regulars. They may cast spells to support a fellow group or the platoon or company to which they are attached at the time, or to attack an opposing group or platoon.
- Beast units are platoon-level units. They are always regular but may only be recruited if a druid or ranger PC commands them. If the druid or ranger commander is slain and not replaced by another druid or ranger, they automatically desert.
- Monster units are group-level units consisting of up to 20 small creatures, 10 medium creatures, 3 large creatures, or 1 huge or gargantuan creature. They are always elite but fight as regulars. If they fail a morale check, they go berserk and fight the nearest group regardless of which side they were originally on.
A barbarian character may command an army or a barbarian unit of any size.
A bard character may command a bard group.
A cleric character may command an army or a cleric or paladin platoon.
A druid character may command druid group or an army made up entirely of druids, archers, scouts and beasts.
A fighter character may command an army or any top-level unit.
A paladin character may command an army, any top-level unit, or a cleric or paladin platoon.
A monk character may command a monk group or an army made up entirely of monks.
A ranger character may command an army, any top-level archer unit, or a scout or beast platoon.
A rogue character may command any top-level archer unit or scout platoon.
A sorcerer, warlock or wizard character may command an army or a wizard group.
II. Unit Stats
Infantry Group
Speed 25, AC 14, HP 12, +3 to hit, 1d6 + 1 slashing
Archery Group
Speed 25, AC 13, HP 7, +3 to hit, range 80/320, 1d6 + 1 piercing, attack with disadvantage when engaged in melee
Cavalry Group
Speed 60, AC 14, HP 12, +3 to hit, 1d6 + 1 slashing
Pike Group
Speed 25, AC 12, HP 12, +3 to hit, reach 10 ft, 1d6 + 1 piercing, advantage vs. cavalry, cavalry attacks w/disadvantage
Barbarian Group
Speed 25, AC 12, HP 8, +3 to hit, 1d10 + 3 slashing, Damage Resistance: bludgeoning, piercing and slashing from normal weapons
Bard Group
Speed 25, AC 13, HP 4, +2 to hit, 1d6 slashing; two Bardic Inspiration dice (d6)
Cleric Group
Speed 25, AC 14, HP 4, +3 to hit, 1d6 + 1 bludgeoning; resistance cantrip; two 1st-level spell slots (choose three 1st-level spells)
Druid Group
Speed 25, AC 14, HP 5, +2 to hit, 1d6 piercing; shillelagh cantrip; two 1st-level spell slots (choose three 1st-level spells)
Monk Group
Speed 25, AC 12, HP 4, +3 to hit, Multiattack: 1d6 + 1 slashing, 1d4 + 1 bludgeoning
Paladin Group
Speed 25, AC 14, HP 5, +3 to hit, 1d8 + 1 slashing, Lay On Hands
Scout Group
Speed 25, AC 13, HP 5, +3 to hit, range 80/320, 1d6 + 2 piercing, Stealth +4, company attacks with advantage
Wizard Group
Speed 25, AC 11, HP 3, +2 to hit, 1d8 bludgeoning; fire bolt cantrip (+4 to hit); two 1st-level spell slots (choose three 1st-level spells)
Beast Group
Uses same stats as a single beast of the same type. A beast group may comprise multiple types of beast; a mixed group uses the median AC, HP, attack modifier, damage die and damage modifier, and the slowest speed, of all the beasts in it.
Monster Group
Uses same stats as a single monster of the same type. A monster group always consists entirely of one type of monster.
Irregular units have −2 to AC; elite units have +2 to AC.
Any group consisting entirely of dwarves has 1 extra hit point. Any group, platoon or company consisting entirely of elves or halflings has +1 to AC; and any archery group, platoon or company consisting entirely of elves or halflings gets +1 to hit and does +1 damage. Any non-cavalry unit consisting entirely of elves and/or humans has a speed of 30 ft.
III. Combat Mechanics
Combat takes place at the level of the largest unit that both armies possess: company vs. company, platoon vs. platoon or group vs. group.
Units attack as mobs (DMG p. 250), with each attacking group in a company or independent platoon treated as an individual creature. A company or platoon defends as if it were an individual creature with hit points equal to the total HP of all its component groups, and armor class equal to their median AC. For the purposes of calculating the attack roll needed to hit, advantage and disadvantage are treated as +4 and −4.
A unit behind a fortification receives a bonus to AC appropriate to the amount of cover it has. Flanking attacks, surprise attacks and special conditions are treated the same as in normal combat. Cavalry, paladin and all irregular units have disadvantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks.
Irregular units have disadvantage on attack rolls and saving throws (including morale checks). Elite units have advantage on attack rolls and saving throws (including morale checks), and elite scout units have advantage on Dexterity (Stealth) checks.
A unit that contains irregular and regular subunits has disadvantage on attack rolls; a unit that contains regular and elite subunits has advantage on attack rolls. A unit that contains irregular, regular and elite subunits has both, and they cancel each other out, along with all other factors conferring advantage or disadvantage.
A unit may not contain both irregular and elite subunits without also including regular subunits. Any unit that contains all three types of subunit and loses its last regular subunit fractures, and its commander, if he or she is still alive, is separated from both. An uncommanded unit must make a morale check every turn or be routed.
A routed unit attempts to flee the field, using the Dash action. A commanding officer eligible to include it under his or her command may try to rally it with a Charisma (Persuasion) check, with disadvantage, against the same DC as for other morale checks. If the check is successful, the unit resumes fighting on its next turn, attached to the commander's unit.
Once a defending unit has lost half or more of its HP, its commander may be engaged in single combat by the opposing unit's commander (while the units continue to fight each other). If the commander of a unit is slain (or, in the case of a PC, knocked unconscious), it breaks into independent subunits, and each of those subunits must make a morale check or be routed.
Also, when any unit has lost half or more of its HP, each of its subunits must make a morale check or be routed.
Once an army has lost half or more of its top-level units, its general may be engaged in single combat by the opposing army's general (while the armies continue to fight each other). If a general is slain (or, in the case of a PC, knocked unconscious), each of its remaining top-level units must make a morale check or be routed; in addition, the captain of the largest intact top-level unit becomes the new commander-in-chief of the army.
The DC for any morale check is 10 × the number of top-level units in the opposing army ÷ the number of top-level units in the friendly army, rounded down. Example: If the army of the unit making the morale check has 4 intact companies, and the opposing army has 6, the DC = 10 × 6 ÷ 4 = 15. Meanwhile, for a unit in the other army, the DC = 10 × 4 ÷ 6 = 6 (rounded down). A player character commanding a unit may use his or her Charisma (Persuasion) skill to make the morale check for that unit.
An army that loses its last intact company (or platoon, if that was the largest unit at the start of the battle) is defeated and either surrenders or flees, though any single combat in progress continues until it's resolved.
IV. Battlefield Spellcasting
Cleric, druid and wizard units may cast spells rather than join their fellow groups' conventional attack. Cleric spells that normally target a single creature instead target a full platoon; druid and wizard spells that normally target a single creature instead target a group. Spells that normally target multiple creatures (such as magic missile or fog cloud) target the next level up -- that is, cleric spells affect whole companies, and druid and wizard spells affect whole platoons. A group or platoon that is sidelined by a disabling condition (such as being blinded by fog cloud, restrained by entangle or poisoned by ray of sickness) does not contribute to the attacks of the unit it's attached to.
Bardic Inspiration affects the entire top-level unit to which the bard group is attached. A paladin group using Lay On Hands has a combined pool of 50 points to spend.
V. PC Commanders
Units commanded by player characters will default to either the Attack action or the Ready action (engaging when an enemy comes within range). The commanding PC must use his or her own combat action to order his or her unit to do anything else -- to cast a spell, use a special ability, move to another location, retreat or surrender. When the PC is engaged in single combat with a foe, he or she cannot give directions to his unit, which will simply fight for as long as an enemy unit is engaging it, then hold its ground.
Let me know if I missed anything!
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