As stated in my previous post I will be running a campaign based upon the First Crusade, with the players split into two teams, Christian and Muslim. These are split further into Early Crusader/ Early Byzantine and Fatimid Egyptian/Seljuk Turks. Teams will not have a specific team leader, although someone to moderate and solve arguments amongst them may be necessary, and players are advised to communicate amongst themselves, before submitting their orders.
Here is the map of the Holy Land that players will be fighting over
for ease of reference regions will mostly be known by their number. only numbered regions are used in the game. The Crusade has been going on for over a year and the crusaders have made some headway into the Holy Land already, however the Muslims have started to gather more resistance against them. The Crusaders and Byzantines occupy the land coloured red. The Seljuk's occupy the blue land and the Fatimids occupy the green land. The white spaces belong to other Muslim leaders who have yet to join the Jihad. These are controlled by no-one but can be attacked as normal. When attacked one player is randomly selected (by me) to play a 400pt Seljuk list in defence of the region.
Other regions are owned by their respective faction although at the start of the campaign territories are divided on a first come first served basis, between the players in a team. This territory is owned and controlled by the player and is the starting position of their character.
Phase One - Orders
The first phase of the campaign is the orders phase. Players in their teams decide who will attack where. Each player has two orders per turn and can use these to either attack from a region or bolster the defences of a region, any mix is acceptable.
Attacking orders must be stated as where the attack is coming from and what region is the target, as well as what character if any is going with the army. Armies can only attack regions adjacent to the one they are coming from, unless it is a naval invasion, in which case any region adjacent to the sea is a viable target.
A bolster order allows the player to increase the defence armies in any ally held regions by 50pts for a single turn. This has no effect on attacks coming out of the region.
If a character is not attacking with an army the player must state in his orders which region his character will be in. More on characters later.
Orders are PM'd to the Gamesmaster (me) and revealed at the start of the next phase.
Phase Two - Revealing Orders
I will place a reply on the thread revealing each players orders and the battle to be fought in the turn.
Phase Three - Battles
Each player fights out his battles and posts the results on the discussion, including final BP's and details Commanders killed.
Final Phase - Update
The Gamesmaster updates the map and posts a new one on the discussion aswelll as revealing the random event for the following turn.
Battles
Battles are fought on a base points value of 400pts.
Armies defending a region with a city or castle in gain 50 additional points of troops.
Armies fighting with a players character in then gain 50 additional points (see later)
If two players are attacking the same region two battles are fought but the attackers must win both in order to capture the territory. If the two attackers are from different factions only one fights (selected randomly) If the army wins it may try to capture the province but suffers a -1 to it's capture score, see below.
When one player decides to initiate a battle he sets up a challenge and PM's his opponent the password. Some opponents will be random but teams should decide early on who controls what regions armies. Battles are fought as normal with whoever controls the region playing the part of the defender. If an army is attacking a region which is attacking the region they are coming from then the player with the initiative in the coming battle will count as the attacker and will be liable to capture the region.
If the attacker wins his battle he may attempt to capture the region. The outcome of the battle will dictate whether or not he was successful. Using the chart below work out the winners capture score. The attacker must accumulate 3 points to claim the region. Any less and the attack has failed, the region remains in the defenders hands and the armies return home.
- Broke enemy army +2
- Over half attacker BP's remaining + 1
- Took defender 10% over Break point + 1
- Defender Resigned with less than 25% BP left + 2
- Defender Resigned with less than 50% BP left + 1
- Defender Resigned With more than 50% BP left = Auto capture of the region. The cowardly defender obviously ran for it. The region enters open revolt and welcomes in the Aggressors
- Winning Army within 10% BP - 1
- Winning Army has a player character in it + 1
- Enemy CinC killed + 1
- Friendly CinC killed - 1
Any regions which are captured, become the property of the player who fought the battle.
Additional Stuff
Players each control their own character, based loosely on a figure of the time. These characters all came to the holy land for different reasons and so each have their own personal objective to complete. These are secret, but the player cannot win without completing his objective.
On the campaign map a character can only be in one region at a time. They can choose to join armies attacking out of that region or remain behind to defend it. At the start of every campaign turn each player must state which region their character is in. There are no movement restrictions for characters other than they can only move between friendly territories.
Multiple characters can be in the same region at once, but only one per side play out the battles in the region. Players decide amongst themselves who will fight the battle and for each allied commander in the same region he may add 50pts of reinforcements to his army.
If a character fights a battle he must be represented as an IC and be the CinC. No other armies may include an IC. Additionally if a character fights a battle the player may add 50pts to his army.
If a character dies in battle he is taken from the game. The player loses all benefits the commander had.
If a character is captured in battle ( i.e was killed in rout) then the owning player may ransom him from his opponent. His opponent cannot stop him from doing this and the character is free to act as normal next turn. However the strain of the ransom means that the next army he tries to build cannot be paid and supplied properly. When this commander next fights a battle his army loses 50pts of troops.
Diplomacy channels can be opened between two players through PM's at any time during the campaign. Players are encouraged to use their imagination during diplomacy, offering regions and settlements, declaring on aggression etc. Sometimes it may be necessary to communicate with the opposing team to complete your objective. Players must notify any land exchanges Immediately
Random Events
0-25% Nothing special
26-30 Crusading enthusiasm The player owning a region closest to Jerusalem, decided by the GM, must declare at least on assault on a region closer to Jerusalem.
31-35% Crusader reinforcement One random Crusade player may add 50pts to any attacking army this turn.
36-40% Muslim reinforcement One random Muslim player may add 50pts to any attacking army this turn
41-50% Pope declares you a heretic One random Crusade character is declared heretic. This player cannot capture Jerusalem in the name of God. If this player owns Jerusalem the Crusaders cannot win.
51-60% Caliph declares you a traitor One random Muslim player is declared a traitor. This player's land is counted amongst the heathen's. This character cannot own regions that contribute to the Muslim victory objective.
61- 65% Caught hunting One random player has his character capture whilst hunting. He immediately ransoms him back suffering the loss of troops that follows as normal.
66-75% Open Revolt One random territory revolts. No one can claim ownership of this region, it becomes independent.
76-90% Invasion One random territory is attacked by another army from the book. A random player is chosen to fight the battle as the attacker.
90-00% Storms at sea No naval invasions are possible this turn.
Victory objectives.
The Crusaders will end the campaign if they can take and hold Jerusalem for 4 consecutive turns.
For the Muslims to win they must capture a total of 8 of the crusaders original territories.
Secret Objectives
Upon choosing a team each player will be given a secret objective. To win they must complete their objective before the campaign is ended. You do not have to keep your personal objective a secret, but other players will find it easier to stop you if you give it away. Players should be wary of each others secret objectives, as they might not be in the best interest of the team.
Feel free to PM me if you are interested in play. Don't forget to tell me which team and army list you would want to use.
BenMetson
