Roleplayer #30, January 1993
GURPS Mass Combat
Generic Land Battle Rules for GURPS
By Brett Slocum
Several GURPS worldbooks have featured rules
for resolving large battles and their effects on PCs in a few die rolls.
GURPS
Conan, GURPS Horseclans, GURPS
Japan and GURPS
Vikings all have systems for land-based mass combat.
Unfortunately, each product using mass combat has to repeat all of the rules
(7 to 10 pages), even though most of them are nearly identical. This is
a waste of pages, and SJ Games has decreed that it will stop. Therefore,
this article presents the generic portions of these mass combat rules for
use across Tech Levels, along with two new examples: fantasy battles on
Yrth and combat in World War I.
This material will appear in a future edition of GURPS
Basic, so only a page or two, similar to one of the examples,
will be needed for future worldbooks requiring mass combat rules.
This system is not a set of "war game rules" for gaming
out a long battle in full detail. Instead, it gives quick answers to the
most important questions for a roleplaying campaign: Who won? and
What happened to the PCs? Costs are also given for raising and
paying military units, for those campaigns in which the PCs are, or want
to become, military leaders.
Overview
Each military force contains a number of units, each with a single type
of fighter. For instance, Megalan mounted knights and yeoman long bowmen
would be treated as two separate units. Most units should be from 10 to
500 men; the GM has the last word on what may be a unit.
Each unit has a Troop Strength reflecting its size, type, and quality.
A force's Troop Strength is the sum of its units' Troop Strengths. All units
are recorded on a Force Roster (a blank form is at the end of the
article). Each unit has a designated commander, who may be a PC or NPC.
The force has a force commander, as well.
In a battle, the opposing commanders roll a Quick Contest of their Strategy
skills, modified by Troop Strength and other advantages. The contest determines
who wins the battle and how many casualties were taken. Meanwhile, each
PC's Battle skill and choice of Risk determine his chance of Survival and
Glory.
This procedure lets the GM reduce a long battle to a very few die-rolls.
Again, this is not a wargaming system, but a roleplaying aid.
Mass Combat Turn Sequence
The system has seven steps for each battle (or for each day of an extended
battle):
1. Determine each military force's makeup by unit. Determine
each unit's Troop Strength. Total the units' TS for the force's TS.
2. If special abilities (magic, psionics, superpowers, etc.) are being used,
determine each military force's Extraordinary Strength. Allocate ES points
to the special effects in both offense and defense. Resolve special effects.
3. Roll for Catastrophe for each force.
4. Determine each PC's Battle skill and Risk factor, then roll for Survival
and Glory.
5. Modify commanders' Strategy skills by:
a. Catastrophe, if any.
b. Relative Troop Strength.
c. Defensive position.
d. Special unit superiority.
e. Glory (or death) of unit leaders.
f. Special circumstances.
g. GM's appraisal of the two commanders' battle plans.
h. Use of magic, assassins and diviners.
6. Quick Contest of effective Strategy skills
7. Each PC on the losing side makes a second Survival roll.
8. Determine casualties for each army (and, if it matters, for each unit).
The Armies
The first step in fighting a battle is determining the composition of the
opposing armies. Throughout history and literature, many types of military
organization have been developed, some more "organized" than others.
In general, there are four main classes of military organization (listed
in order from most to least organized): modern, ancient, feudal and tribal.
Modern Armies
Modern armies are usually organized as described below. For more on Military
Ranks, see p. B22.
A squad (or cavalry lance) is the smallest military unit,
composed of six to 16 soldiers, including a squad leader of Rank 1 or 2
(Sergeant or Sergeant First Class).
A file is composed of two to four squads (12 to 48 soldiers) and
a leader of Rank 2 (Sergeant First Class). This unit class is often omitted
from many armies.
A platoon is composed of two to four files (26 to 196 soldiers)
and a leader of Rank 3 (Lieutenant).
A company (or cavalry troop) consists of two to four platoons
and a leader of Rank 4 (Captain or Major). At the company level and higher,
there will be support personnel (e.g., cooks). There may also be special-purpose
troops, temporarily or permanently attached to the unit (e.g., engineers,
scouts). Larger units are usually composed of mixed troop types.
A battalion (or cavalry squadron) consists of two or more
companies and a leader of Rank 5 (Lieutenant Colonel). Artillery is usually
organized in battalions (or batteries), and combined with larger units.
A brigade (or regiment) consists of two or more battalions
and a leader of Rank 6 (Colonel).
A division consists of two or more brigades and a leader of Rank
7 (Brigadier or Major General).
A corps consists of two or more divisions (plus attachments) and
a leader of Rank 7 or 8 (a General officer).
An army consists of two or more corps and a leader of Rank 8 (Lieutenant
General or General).
Ancient Armies
Ancient armies often displayed complex organizations that were not matched
until the Napoleonic era. The best-known examples are Greece and Rome.
Greece
The Classic Greek armies were organized as follows:
A file was composed of eight soldiers in line behind the front
soldier.
A platoon (enomotia) was composed of three to four files side by
side (24 to 32 soldiers), including a leader of Rank 3 (enomotarch),
plus a rear guard leader of Rank 2 (ouragos).
A company (pentekostys) consisted of two to four enomotiai (50
to 128 soldiers), including a leader of Rank 4 (pentekontere).
This is the basic unit of the Greek phalanx, a rectangular formation
of heavy infantry with spears
A battalion (lochos) consisted of four to six pentekostyes (200
to 768 soldiers) and a leader of Rank 5 (lochagos).
A division (mora) consisted of two to four lochoi (400 to 1,540
soldiers) and a leader of Rank 7 (polemarch).
The Spartans had six morai and Athens had ten, one for each tribe of Athenians.
Rome
The organization of the legions of the Roman Empire (in the period 100 B.C.
to 300 A.D.) was as follows (see GURPS
Imperial Rome for more details):
A century contained 80 to 100 legionaries, including a leader of
Rank 4 (centurion). The centurions from the First Cohort outranked
the rest (Rank 5). The Senior Centurion of the First Cohort, the Primus
Pilum ("First Javelin"), (Rank 6) was second-in-command of
the legion in all but name. The principales (Rank 1) and the cohort
standard bearers, or signifiers (Rank 2) were the lowest petty
officers. The optiones, or "chosen" were the centurion's
immediate assistants (Rank Level 3); sometimes there was more than one optio
in a century.
A cohort consisted of 6 centuries (480 to 600 soldiers) and was
led by a tribune (Rank 5). The Tribune of the First Cohort (Rank
6) was the official second-in-command.
A legion had 10 cohorts (4,000 to 6,000 soldiers) plus a unit of about 120
Light Cavalry (LC) to protect the flanks and for use as scouts and messengers,
and was led by a legate (Rank 7) and the Prefect of the Camp (Rank
6), second-in-command of all non-combat matters.
A large army would consist of several legions and auxiliary units.
Roman auxiliary cavalry was divided into units called alae, between
500 and 1,000 men strong. Each ala was divided into smaller units
called turmae, which had about 20-40 men trained to work in groups
of 6-10 men each.
Alae were led by a tribune; the turmaes were commanded
by decurions (Rank 3). There were 1-4 decurions on each turma;
in theory, they commanded units of 10 men.
Feudal Armies
Feudal armies are much more loosely organized. The main constituents are
the feudal levies. These march to battle under their local leader. Once
with the field army (which is simply all the troops under a single command
for a battle or campaign) they are formed into ad hoc units with similar
equipment and the senior man in each such unit is designated its commander.
Such units are usually no more than 100 strong; that is about the largest
force that one man can control by voice and hand signals. These units are
normally called companies and their commander is called a captain. Such
appointments are only for the campaign; they do not require the Military
Rank advantage. The captain appoints a petty officer for every ten soldiers;
these also do not require Military Rank.
In addition to feudal levies, some feudal armies had small, permanent units,
usually the rulers' elite guards. These would be organized along more modern
lines.
The higher appointments of a feudal army are also ad hoc. The force is usually
broken into three components: Van or Vanguard (the advance guard, which
marches first), Main and Rear. Each body is under a commander selected by
the king. The commander is usually a senior noble or veteran mercenary;
again the appointment is only for the campaign. Each commander selects a
number of aides, ranging from messengers to senior advisers.
Mercenary forces in a feudal setting can be of any size and organization.
Anyone who can attract a following can set himself up as a sell-sword. They
usually ape the composition of the armies around them. Commonly any leader
who can supply up to 100 men is called captain, while one who can supply
several companies calls himself a general.
Tribal Armies
Primitive societies fight by tribe, clan and band rather than in any organized
formation. The only title of command is chief, and may represent anything
from half a dozen rogues to thousands of warriors. Some tribal armies include
female warriors and, therefore, can field relatively larger forces.
Troop Strength (TS)
The next step is determining the strength of the soldiers within the army.
The Troop Strength value of an individual in a unit depends on his type
and quality. Multiply this value by the number of men (or other creatures)
in the unit for the unit's total TS.
Troop Type
Each unit is composed of a single troop type. All persons in a unit are
similarly equipped. Troop types are differentiated by armor, weapons and
mobility.
Usually armor and weapons are lumped together into classifications of "Heavy,"
"Medium," and "Light." Heavy troops have rigid armor
and heavy, or "shock," weapons; medium troops usually wear flexible
armor (e.g. chain mail) and have somewhat less damaging weapons; light units
have little or no armor (leather or less) and have less damaging weapons.
A final division is whether the soldiers have formal training in weapons
and other military matters. Soldiers without training (and often with no
armor and improvised weapons), such as feudal peasant levies, are called
"irregulars." Beware of underestimating the strength of irregulars,
since they can still be battle-hardened elite warriors (see Troop Quality
and Morale below).
Issues of troop mobility come down to whether or not the soldiers use vehicles
for transportation and in combat. Those who walk are called "infantry"
and those with some vehicle are usually called "cavalry," be it
a horse, a tank (armored cavalry), or a helicopter (air cavalry).
If a unit also uses ranged weapons, a bonus to the Troop Strength is added.
Those troops with specialty weapons, such as artillery, and members of non-human
races are put into separate units.
Some units treat a group of soldiers as one unit, usually the crew for a
large piece of equipment, such as artillery. The TS of these units includes
the crew. The crew has no separate TS, except when they get separated, such
as in a Rout. In this case, treat these soldiers as TS 2.
The following tables provide guidelines for the Troop Strength of various
troop types:
Equipment
Light +3
Medium +4
Heavy +5
High Tech armor +1/2 DR
Fine or Very Fine weapons +1
Irregulars -1/3 TS (round down)
Mobility
Light Horses + 1
Medium Horses +2
Heavy Horses +3
No stirrups - 1
Armored vehicles (e.g. armored personnel carriers, but not tanks) +TL
Flying vehicles (e.g. helicopters) +TL
Ranged Weapons
Sling, javelin +1
Ordinary bow +2
Longbow, composite bow or crossbow +3
Pistol or other short firearms +3
Rifle or other long firearms +TL
Special Weapons
Light Chariots (TL 2-) (add TS of additional Light missile wielder)
+ 15
Medium Chariots (TL 2-) (add TS of additional Medium missile wielder) +25
Heavy Chariots (TL 2-) (add TS of additional Heavy missile wielders) +35
Elephants +100
Small Ballistae (TL 5-) +15
Large Ballistae, Small Siege Engines or Light Artillery (TL 5-) +25
Large Siege Engine or Heavy Artillery (TL 5-) +50
Light Tank +25
Medium Tank +40
Heavy Tank +60
Fighter Aircraft +50
Bomber Aircraft +100
Helicopter Gunship +50
Modem artillery (TL 6+) +100
The value of other special weapons is up to the GM.
Examples: Medieval knights are Heavy Cavalry, giving a TS of 8
(5 for heavy weapons and armor and 3 for heavy warhorses). If they carried
crossbows, the TS would be 11 for the ranged weapon bonus. Modem TL 7 Air
Cavalry, consisting of six light infantry and a helicopter gunship with
a crew of two, would have a TS of 17 for each soldier (3 for light weapons
and armor, +7 for firearms, and +7 for mobility), plus a TS of 50 for the
helicopter, which operates as a gunship after dropping off its infantry,
for a total of 152. The crew of the 'copter is included in by the helicopter
Troop Strength.
The Stirrup
There is some controversy over the value of stirrups for cavalry. The traditional
view is that stirrups significantly increased the effectiveness of cavalry,
while some military historians say this claim is overblown.
For these rules, cavalry troops without stirrups have a -1 TS penalty, as
shown in the Cavalry table above. They are limited in the weapon tactics
they can use and the missions they can perform. Cavalry charges using couched
lances cannot be performed without stirrups. Cavalry without stirrups will
generally be used for scouting, raiding, flank and missile attacks, and
charging broken or shaky formations of infantry. If battle plans call for
cavalry to charge well-formed infantry, especially pikemen, the GM should
penalize the Strategy roll appropriately.
Though Light Cavalry have the same Troop Strength as Light Infantry, there
is a Special Unit Superiority bonus (see below) for cavalry, so a completely
LC force gets a +3 Strategy bonus against a force composed entirely of infantry,
the equivalent of a 2 to 1 advantage.
Experimental Weapons
Shortly after a new weapon is introduced, it may be deemed to be experimental,
while armies struggle to grasp the best way to use the new technology and
while the "bugs" are worked out. The GM may rule that such weapons
are worth less TS than indicated above, subtracting up to half the given
Troop Strength or more in cases of extremely unreliable or risky weapons.
Non-Human Races
Members of non-human races get a bonus (or penalty) to their TS equal to
half (ST modifier + HT modifier + Extra Hit Points) -- each level of Increased
Strength counts as a ST modifier of 10. For example, a reptile man gets
+3 bonus and a halfling gets a -1 penalty. TS can be no lower than 1 because
of racial penalties. Bonuses for ranged weapons and armor are added after
determining this minimum TS. For example, halfling light infantry have a
TS of 2, while halfling heavy infantry with slings have a TS of 5.
TL Differences
When armies of differing TLs fight, a special adjustment is made to compensate
for advances in tactics, logistics, medicine and other fields, plus the
sheer shock value of advanced weaponry: the more advanced army's gets a
bonus to the Strategy roll equal to the difference in TL+2. So, a TL5 army
attacking a TL3 army would add +4 to their Strategy roll. A small, technically
advanced force can still be overwhelmed by superior numbers, better strategy,
or unlucky accidents like anyone else. GMs who feel this adjustment is too
unbalancing can ignore it, reduce it or put an upper limit on the effects
to the Strategy contest contributed by TL.
Increases in TL may also increase the effectiveness of soldiers in large
numbers. Therefore, the limit of 10 to 1 on bonuses to the Strategy roll
for relative TS is waived for the higher TL army when the difference in
TL is greater than 2 (see Relative Troop Strengths below).
Superpowers
Supers with significant offensive and defensive abilities should calculate
their TS using a variety of the above rules. Those Supers with more subtle,
less front-line powers can consult the Exceptional Powers in Battle
section.
Use the High Tech armor adjustment for Supers with large amounts of DR.
Use the ST and HT adjustments from the Non-Human Races section
above to compensate for high levels of those attributes. Flying Supers with
ranged offensive abilities (Flamin' Jane for example) should use the Helicopter
Gunship TS as a base, while flyers without ranged abilities use the Flying
Vehicles mobility bonus. Gadgeteers with advanced technology can use the
TL Differences section to adjust their TS. By using the available
tables, the players and the GM should be able to calculate satisfactory
TS values for Super individuals.
Troop Quality and Morale
Troop quality is determined by the average experience of the men in the
unit. This directly determines the unit's base Morale (see table
below).
If the campaign situation or adventure does not dictate the quality of a
body of troops, determine troop quality by rolling three dice on the chart
below.
Use the same chart when determining the quality of a newly-raised unit (see
Raising Troops) or when recruiting replacements -- in this case,
it gives the average quality of the replacements you were able
to hire.
Morale is used to determine the reactions of units due to losses and overwhelming
odds. More experienced soldiers are more likely to hold their position in
a bad situation than raw recruits.
Troop Quality Table (roll 3d)
Die Troop Battles Base Troop Base Pay &
Roll Quality Fought Morale Strength Cost to Raise
3* Elite (E) 15+ 16 2 x base TS +50%
4-6* Veteran (V) 10-14 15 1.5 x base TS +25%
7-9 Seasoned (S) 6-9 14 1.2 x base TS +10%
10-12 Average (A) 4-5 13 base TS base
13-15 Green (G) 1-3 11 .8 x base TS base
16-18 Raw (R)(t) 0 9 .5 x base TS -20%
*Roll again if you were trying to raise a new unit, or to recruit more than
10 men.
(t) No battlefield experience. If troops of this quality are also Irregulars
(no military training), their morale is reduced by an additional -3.
Typical Skill Table
Troop Quality..Weapon..Tactics..Battle
Elite* 15 11 15
Veteran* 14 9 13
Seasoned* 13 7 12
Average 12 6 9
Green 11 5 8
Raw 10 4 7
*This type of troop has the Combat Reflexes advantage.
Unit Commander and Morale
A unit commander's leadership can affect the morale of his soldiers. Add
+1 to Morale for every 3 skill levels in Leadership skill over 12 and -1
for every 3 levels below 12. For example, a Seasoned unit with a commander
with Leadership 15 (+1) has a Morale of 15, while a commander with Leadership
9 (-1) would bring Morale down to 13. To randomly select the Leadership
skill of a unit commander, roll on the Force Commander's Experience
table below, substituting Leadership for Strategy.
When a unit gets a new commander (no matter how experienced), drop all troops
except Raw to the next lowest Quality.
Force Commander's Experience Table (roll 3d)
Use if one or both force commanders are NPCs.
Die Roll..Quality..Battles..Strategy Skill
3 Elite 15+ 16+(1 die)
4-7 Veteran 10-14 14+(1 die)
8-11 Seasoned 6-9 14
12-15 Average 4-5 12
16-17 Green 1-3 10
18 Raw 0 9
Unit Morale and Troop Strength
Units that are demoralized (i.e., below their base Morale) often fight less
effectively than normal. At the GM's option, the Troop Strength of demoralized
units can be reduced or units whose Morale is above their base Morale may
also have their TS increased. A unit's Troop Strength can be reduced (or
increased) by 10% for each point their current Morale level is below (or
above) their base Morale.
Example: Due to poor leadership and some serious defeats, a Veteran
Heavy Infantry platoon (30 soldiers with total TS of 225 and base Morale
of 15) has an effective Morale of 13, the same as Average quality troops.
This unit's TS could be treated as 180 until they can regain their base
Morale level.
Changing Troop Quality
In a continuing campaign, units will lose troops and replace them -- sometimes
with experienced men, sometimes with raw recruits. Keep track of the number
of battles (not just days of battle) a unit fights, counting anything over
20 as 20. When a unit adds new men for any reason, the new Troop Quality
is the new average experience of the men. GMs may not want to count battles
where there was little resistance, such as engagements with odds of greater
than 10 to 1.
Example: Titus of Megalos commands a veteran unit, with average
experience of 10 engagements. It has 87 men. Titus recruits 11 more men,
of "green" quality. Average experience is computed as follows:
87 x 10 for the old troops. 11 x 1 (use the low end of the experience scale)
for the new men. 870 plus 11 is 881. Divide that by 98 men, for an average
experience of just under 9. Round down to 8. The company is now considered
to have an average experience of 8 engagements, making it merely "seasoned."
Two more fights will bring it back to "veteran" status.
Six months of military training will change Untrained troops into Raw quality.
A year of training will turn Raw troops into Green. No further increases
in quality can be made without actual battle experience.
Building and Feeding an Army
An army travels on its stomach, but it won't go very far if you don't pay
it, either. The following sections gives costs for raising, feeding and
paying troops.
Raising Troops
The cost to raise a body of troops is determined by troop type. The general
method of determining this is to total the cost to purchase equipment and
pay a hiring bonus. The hiring bonus is usually equal to a month's pay,
or about 10% of the equipment cost.
GMs may modify costs for special circumstances, such as unusually good or
bad availability of men, horses and equipment.
For ranged weapons, add the equipment cost and the difference in hiring
bonus to the total, per man. The hiring bonus is usually considerably higher
for trained missile troops because of their lower availability.
Normally, troops of Elite and Veteran quality cannot be "raised"
-- there are not that many trained men currently unemployed, unless the
GM decides that a mercenary unit is available.
The GM decides what sort of troops are available. PC leaders will usually
want to raise the best troop they can, given their budget. If the GM needs
to determine troop quality randomly, use the table above under
Troop Quality and Morale.
Paying and Maintaining Troops
The cost to feed and maintain an infantryman is equal to the cost of living
for Status level 0; the cost to feed riding animals is generally the Status
0 cost of living times their size in hexes. Particularly large animals (e.g.,
elephants) or those with expensive feeding needs (e.g., carnivores) will
cost more; how much more is up to the GM. Troops must be fed, or
a unit will revolt, dissolve or desert.
Troops also expect monthly pay; unpaid troops can be dangerous to their
leaders or employers. Morale drops by 1 after the first missed payday, 2
after each succeeding missed payday. Make a Morale roll on each missed payday,
after reducing morale. A failed roll gives bad results, as per
the GM's whim. Every second payday made increases morale by 1,
but only to the extent of eliminating the negative modifiers for previously
missed paydays. Limit the Morale of Elite and Veteran units to 14 for determining
the results of no pay.
Generally speaking, human troops expect to be paid about 10% of the cost-to-raise,
each month, with the bonuses given in the Determining Troop Quality table
for experience. An additional 50% bonus will increase morale by 1 for the
next month; a 100% or more bonus will increase morale by 2 for the next
month. Income from looting counts as pay. Troops may forego some pay, if
the chances of substantial looting in the near future are high. If those
chances are not fulfilled, though, the backlash from the troops could be
much worse. In some eras, troops may be paid in lands, citizenship and other
inducements.
Conscripts fighting against their will do not need to be paid, though some
conscripted armies still do pay their soldiers (e.g. the U.S. Armed Forces
during the Draft). Additional paid security forces will often be needed
to keep unpaid conscripts from deserting. These forces should be better
equipped than the conscripted forces to maintain order (e.g. the Republican
Guard of Iraq during the Gulf War). Conscripted troops generally have lower
morale than volunteers; -1 for paid conscripts, and -2 or lower for unpaid
conscripts.
The Battle
This section describes the method for determining the outcome of the battle
between the armies constructed in the previous section.
Special Abilities
In some settings, special abilities (magic, psionics and superpowers) can
be used in warfare. Before rolling for catastrophes, resolve the effects
of special abilities on the battle. For more details, see Exceptional
Powers in Battle, p.19.
Catastrophe
When the battle begins, the GM rolls three dice on the following table,
once for each side, to see if something goes disastrously wrong. The commander
(but no other PC) can use Luck, if he has that advantage, to re-roll an
catastrophe.
Catastrophe Roll
3-7 -- No catastrophe.
8-9 -- Enemy manages some sort of surprise: -1 to Strategy roll.
10 -- Enemy receives unexpected reinforcements or is just lucky. Increase
his Troop Strength by 10%. (The GM may be creative about what occurred.)
11-The battle plans have been partially revealed to the enemy by turncoats,
spies, magic, etc.: -2 to Strategy roll.
12 -- Dissension among allies or top leaders weakens morale. -2 to Strategy
roll, -1 to Morale of all units.
13 -- Enemy reveals a terrifying atrocity: -1 to Morale of all units if
Morale roll is failed; +1 to Morale, in anger, if Morale roll is made.
14 -- Ally or unit commander defects to enemy, revealing plans and taking
his troops with him. Recalculate forces' Troop Strengths; -2 to Strategy
roll.
15 -- An important unit leader (rolled randomly among leaders commanding
at least 20% of that side's Troop Strength) is wounded early in battle (2d
of damage): -1 to Morale of all units, -2 to Morale of his unit.
16 -- Commander wounded early in battle (2d of damage): -2 to Strategy roll,
-3 to Morale of all units.
17 -- Important unit leader (rolled randomly as above) killed (or if a PC,
wounded and unconscious) early in battle: -2 to Morale of all units, -3
to Morale of his unit. (If a PC, he makes no further Survival or Glory rolls.)
18 -- Commander killed early in battle (or if a PC wounded and unconscious).
Base Strategy roll cut in half (round up). -5 to Morale of all units.
The Catastrophe table may be altered depending on the culture involved.
For example, defections are more common than atrocities in feudal Japan,
so their positions in the above table could be switched.
Consequences to Player Characters
The more daring and brave a warrior is, the more likely he is to get hurt!
Each PC in a battle must roll against Battle skill. Battle skill
cannot be studied or taken as a beginning skill. It is equal to the average
of the PC's Tactics skill (defaulting to IQ-6) and his main weapon skill,
with +2 if the character has Combat Reflexes and +1 if the character has
Danger Sense. If he uses both a melee and a missile weapon, base Battle
skill on the melee weapon. Since the battlefield is a very dangerous place,
no matter how careful or skilled a soldier is, Battle skill rolls are limited
to 16. If the PC is rolling for survival at a penalty, due to Risk or being
on the losing side, these modifiers are first applied to Battle skill before
imposing the limit of 16. Therefore, PCs with Battle skill greater than
16 can still receive some benefit.
The Tactics skill covers the PC's prudence; the weapon skill covers his
ability to kill his foes before they kill him. Note Battle skill on the
PC's record sheet in pencil, since it will change if he goes into
battle with different weapons or if his Tactics or Combat skills are improved.
Risk
A PC can choose to take more or less Risk in a battle, announcing his choice
before his Survival roll. He may choose any number from -6 to +6 as a modifier,
-6 being very risky and +6 being very cautious. This Risk modifier is applied
to the Survival roll. However, the opposite modifier applies to
his Glory roll. No guts, no glory! If Survival is -4, then Glory is +4.
Cowardly PCs and those PCs in units held in reserve or who otherwise were
not exposed to the full impact of the battle, should not pick a Risk factor
below -1. Overconfident PCs should not pick a Risk factor above +1. Berserk
PCs should not pick a Risk above 0.
Survival Roll
If the Survival roll results in damage, take the injury directly off HT
-- subtract Toughness. Determine hit location(s) randomly. If a PC unit
or army leader takes enough injury to fall unconscious, his unit's final
Strategy roll is affected as per Catastrophes (see above). A PC can use
Luck to re-roll the Survival roll.
Battle Skill............Roll Result
Made by 5+ Unhurt
Made by 1-4 1 hit of damage
Made exactly 2 hits of damage
Missed by 1-2 Damage Table Column A
Missed by 3-4 Damage Table Column B
Missed by 5-6 Damage Table Column C
Missed by 7+ Damage Table Column D
(or critical failure)
See Damage Table at the bottom of the page.
Damage Table
TL............A...........B............C................D
3- 1d+2-DR 2 x 1d+2-DR 2 x 2d+2-DR 3 x 2d+2-DR
4-7 (TL/2)d-DR 2 x (TL/2)d-DR 2 x (TL)d-DR 3 x (TL)d-DR
8-9 (TL-3)d-DR 2 x (TL-3)d-DR 2 x (TL+3)d-DR 3 x (TL+3)d-DR
10-13 (TL)d-DR/2 2 x (TL)d-DR/2 2 x (2TL)d-DR/2 3 x (2TL)d-DR/2
14 (TL)d-DR/5 2 x (TL)d-DR/5 2 x (2TL)d-DR/5 3 x (2TL)d-DR/5
15-16 (TL)d-DR/10 2 x (TL)d-DR/l0 2 x (2TL)d-DR/10 3 x (2TL)d-DR/l0
Glory Roll
A warrior who gains glory will have improved Reputation, and the associated
reaction bonus, for the specified period. The indicated modifiers to the
Strategy roll are used only if the PC is a unit leader. This Strategy bonus
is 1 point higher (and any penalty is 1 point worse) if the PC is force
commander. Roll for Glory even if the character dies -- a glorious death
can inspire the troops.
Battle Skill Roll and Result
Critical success -- Covered with glory: +2 to Reputation for
1d months, and +1 permanently; roll for promotion; +2 to Strategy roll.
Made by 7-9 -- Fought with great courage and heroism: +1
to Reputation for 1d-2 months (1 month minimum); roll for promotion; +1
to Strategy roll.
Made by 4-6 -- Fought heroically: roll for promotion; +1
to Strategy roll.
Made by 0-3 -- Fought competently.
Missed by 1-3 -- Fought adequately.
Missed by 4-6 -- Fought poorly: -1 to Reputation for 1d-2
months (1 month minimum); -1 to Strategy roll. Superior officer notices
your ineptness or caution; make a reaction roll to see how he will treat
you after the battle. A result of Bad or worse indicates a possible demotion
in rank.
Missed by 7+ (or critical failure) -- Fought very badly;
-2 to Reputation for 1d months; -3 to Strategy roll. Results from superior
officer as above. In addition, if you survive the battle, someone your equal
in rank will publicly name you a coward and, in some cultures, will try
to provoke a duel.
Some results may be different depending on the culture involved. For example,
a loss of Reputation in feudal Japan may cause a character to contemplate
suicide.
Promotion
Check the reaction of the character's superior officer after the battle,
based on the character's improved Reputation. With a Very Good reaction
in some cultures and time periods, the character may be offered a battlefield
promotion of one Rank (see p. B22). If the reaction is Excellent, the PC
may also be offered a transfer to an elite unit. In any period or culture,
a favorable reaction (Good or better) will dispose the superior to do the
heroic warrior some favor; this may well consist of an especially dangerous
and honorable position in the next battle.
Strategy Modifiers
The GM now takes into account the circumstances of the battle, which may
raise or lower the effective Strategy skill of each side's commander. All
these modifiers are cumulative.
Relative Troop Strengths
Compare the troop strengths of the opposing forces. Divide the greater TS
by the lesser one for the "odds factor." For example, a TS of
100 vs. a TS of 50 is an odds factor of 2. The greater the odds factor,
the greater the bonus to Strategy skill of the stronger force's commander.
Odds Factor: Strategy skill bonus
1.2 or less: No bonus
1.2+ to 1.4: +1
1.4+ to 1.7: +2
1.7+ to 2: +3
2+ to 3: +4
3+ to 5: +5
5+ to 7: +6
7+ to 10: +7
greater than 10: +8
When a force is more than 2 TLs higher than the opposing force, the 10 to
1 odds limit is waived for the higher TL army. Each additional 10 to 1 odds
is equal to another +1 Strategy. For instance, when a TL 6 force is fighting
a TL 3 feudal army, 30 to 1 odds would yield a +10 on the Strategy roll.
Defensive Position
If one side is clearly the defender, it gets Strategy modifiers based on
its position. When appropriate, these modifiers are cumulative.
Attacker attacks downhill: -3 or worse
Attacker approaches under cover: -1
Attacker must come up a gradual incline: +1
Attacker must come up a steep incline: +2
Attacker must come up a steep incline on bad ground: +3
*Attacker must force a narrow passage (defile, pass, ford, or bridge): +2
to +8, depending on how narrow it is.
*Defender is protected by palisade, breastwork, trenches, dry moat or unforded/unbridged
river: +3
*Defender occupies a manor, stronghold, unwalled city or fort: +4
*Defender occupies a walled city: +6
*Defender occupies a castle: +8
These defensive factors can be combined. For instance, a castle on top of
a steep hill would count as +10.
* Reduce the value of any modifier with an asterisk (*) by 2 if the attacker
has artillery or mining crews with Demolition experts. Battles involving
the starred modifiers use a different set of combat tables (see Resolving
the Contest of Strategy).
Special Unit Superiority
A force will receive a Strategy bonus if it has at least a 2 to 1 superiority
in the numbers of certain troop types, regardless of troop quality. In a
siege action all cavalry are counted as infantry. If the opponent has no
troops of the equivalent type, treat as 5 to 1 or better. There are three
types of superiority for low tech armies (TL 5-): artillery (only in siege
situations); cavalry (only in non-siege situations); and ranged weapons
(not artillery). In modern ar-mies (TL 6+), there are also three types of
superiority: artillery (always counts), armor and aircraft. Other types
of units, such as undead or high tech Mobile Infantry, can be considered
special units at the GM's option.
Each type of superiority counts separately: if you have a force of mounted
archers and the foe has no cavalry or missiles, you have 5 to 1 superiority
in both missile weapons and cavalry. Ratios for determining superiority
are rounded down.
Ratio Strategy skill bonus
2 to 1 +1
3 to 1 +2
5 to 1 or better +3
Neutralizing Special Units
Some types of units neutralize the superiority of the special units described
above. For instance, pikemen can neutralize a cavalry charge, and anti-aircraft
artillery can neutralize the advantage of air superiority. When figuring
special unit superiority, count these neutralizing units as the same type
as the special unit for the side with less of the special unit. Thus, pikemen
cannot give you cavalry superiority, but they can neutralize the other force's
superiority.
In cases where the neutralizing unit is also a special unit for other purposes
(e.g., anti-aircraft artillery), these units cannot count as both. So, artillery
devoted to the anti-aircraft role do not count towards artillery superiority.
Special Circumstances
Add Strategy bonuses or subtract Strategy penalties for any of the following
situations. All these circumstances are determined by the GM or the group's
roleplaying; for instance, a unit is unsupplied if the GM says it is.
Taken totally by surprise -5
Partial surprise -- less than an hour's warning -2
Force-marched into battle -3
No supplies -3
Short supplies in a besieged city or castle -2
Supplied by forage only - 1
On home grounds +2 (not cumulative with Defensive bonus for village, temple,
city, manor or other fortification)
GMs may give additional bonuses or penalties from -5 to +5 for other factors
as they see fit: e.g., a heavy fog when trying to launch a closely coordinated
attack might be worth -3.
Battle Plans
The GM should sketch a map of the battlefield (or perhaps of several, optional
battlefields) for the players based on their armies knowledge of the area,
especially if the PCs are unit or force leaders. The GM should then ask
the players to give him a battle plan for their side (for both
sides, if there are PCs on both sides or if there is an Adversary Player
for the non-PC side). If the GM thinks a plan is especially good or bad,
it deserves a Strategy roll bonus or penalty of from +3 to -3.
If the GM is playing the part of the adversary, he should occasionally spring
a tactical surprise on the players. Describe what happens realistically.
If they handle it well, they get a Strategy roll bonus; if they react poorly,
they suffer a penalty.
Special Forces
If either side has the services of assassins, commandos, scouts or spies,
their proper use can be an important part of the battle plan. Special forces
like these may be sent on a variety of missions. The success of each mission
depends on the number of personnel assigned and (in general) on the Stealth
(or in some cases Tactics) skill of their leader. Special forces missions
can be played out as whole adventures (see GURPS Special Ops),
or abstracted into the general battle plan.
Assassination of the enemy leader will be a Catastrophe for the
foe, if it works. But it's risky, and if it fails, the enemy's morale will
be improved, especially if your spies are publicly executed before the battle!
Scouting the enemy forces is much safer and easier, and will usually
give a + 1 or, if many commandos are used, a +2 on Strategy.
Security assignments can be given, to protect the lord and generals
from opposing assassins, or to ambush and kill enemy scouts.
Other creative uses of spies should be encouraged and rewarded
by the GM. If assassins are paid well and treated with respect, they will
undertake almost anything.
Diviners
A careful commander might consult diviners before a battle. The effectiveness
of divination in general is known only to the GM . . . and even in a campaign
where magic is real, an individual diviner may be a fake. A general may
have many diviners, but he must pick just one to believe. A genuine diviner
who makes his skill roll gives +1 to his lord's Strategy roll, or +2 on
a critical success. If the diviner is a fake, average his own Strategy roll
with the commander's, unless the commander either fully accepts (use just
the diviner's Strategy) or discounts the diviner's advice (use the commander's
Strategy). The details of these modifiers, of course, must remain secret
from the players.
Resolving the Contest of Strategy
After determining the opposing commanders' effective Strategy, a Quick Contest
of Strategy is rolled to determine how well the troops are handled. (For
battles involving a total of less than 200 men, Tactics skill may be used
instead.) The force commander can use Luck, if he has that advantage, to
reroll the Contest.
The winner of the Quick Contest of Strategy is the winner of the battle.
The difference in the amounts by which the commanders make (or
miss) their rolls will determine how decisive the victory is. Whether defeated
troops withdraw in good order or rout depends on their Morale roll
(see below). Refer to the appropriate table below to find the outcome. Use
Tables B or C if any of the starred Defensive Position modifiers applied
(see p.00).
Example: One leader makes his roll by 4, the other by 2. The difference
is 2; the battle was inconclusive. If one leader makes his roll by 4 and
the other misses by 4, the difference is 8 -- a much more one-sided
battle.
A. Open-Field Battle
Won by 0-3: Inconclusive battle. Each unit on both sides should
make a Morale roll. Those who succeed hold position. Those who fail by only
1-4 withdraw in good order. Those who fail by 5 or more rout (see below).
Won by 4-7: Marginal victory. Each unit of the loser withdraws
in good order if it can make a Morale roll; otherwise it routs.
Won by 8-12: Definite victory. As above, but loser's Morale
is -2.
Won by 13-16: Great victory. As above, but loser's Morale
is -4.
Won by 17+: Overwhelming victory: The loser routs.
B. Defender Wins
Won by 0-3: Inconclusive battle. The attacker is thrown back
but holds his former position. He may attack again on the next day, at -2
Morale.
Won by 4-7: Marginal victory. The attacker holds position
if more than half its troops can make a Morale roll; otherwise the whole
force withdraws in good order.
Won by 8-12: Definite victory. As above, but Morale roll
is -2.
Won by 13-16: Great victory. Each attacking unit withdraws
in good order if it can make a Morale roll; otherwise it routs.
Won by 17+: Overwhelming victory: As above but Morale is
-2.
C. Attacker Wins
Won by 1-3: Inconclusive battle. The attacker technically won,
but the defender will suffer no Morale penalty on the next day of battle.
Won by 4-7: Marginal victory. Both sides hold position.
The defender will be at -2 Morale on the next day of battle.
Won by 8-12: Definite victory. The defender holds position
if more than half its troops can make a Morale roll; otherwise the whole
force withdraws*.
Won by 13-16: Great victory. The attacker captures the
position. Each individual unit of the defender withdraws* in good order
if it can make a Morale roll; otherwise that unit routs or, if there is
no escape, surrenders.
Won by 17+: Overwhelming victory. The attacker captures
the position and takes the enemy commander alive. Each individual unit of
the defender withdraws* in good order if it can make a Morale roll at -2;
otherwise that unit routs or, if there is no escape, surrenders.
*If defenders get a "withdraw" result and have nowhere to
go, make a second Morale roll for each such unit at +2 over the previous
roll. A success means that unit holds position and another battle is likely.
(These defenders probably have their backs to a wall or have retreated to
an inner stronghold.) A failure means that unit surrenders.
Some outcomes on these tables may be modified by culture. For instance,
losing feudal Japanese commanders in Table C who cannot withdraw will attempt
suicide.
Sieges
In an actual siege involving a defender within a walled city or castle,
the above rules and Tables B and C only apply when the attacker storms the
fortifications. The overall siege is a long, drawn-out affair, taking months
or even years to complete. Many other tactics may be employed instead of
an all-out assault, which tends to be very bloody. Cutting off supplies
and water to the area and waiting for starvation, bribing someone to open
the gate, catapulting diseased animal carcasses and firebrands, and infiltrating
with spies are all alternate methods of taking a fortification.
Morale
Each unit starts with a Base Morale, determined by its Troop Quality.
Campaign events can affect morale before the battle. Catastrophes affect
morale for that battle only. Loss of established leaders affects
morale until the force wins a clear victory; as long as the force is defeated,
has inconclusive battles or marginal victories, the morale will stay low.
Example: Titus of Megalos has a veteran unit -- base morale 15.
Loot was good last month, so they entered the battle with a +1 morale, for
a 16. In the first hour of battle, Titus was wounded (-1 morale). So effective
morale is back to 15. After the battle, morale returns to 16.
Morale is used to determine whether a defeated unit withdraws in good order,
or routs. The GM may also require a morale roll whenever a unit is asked
to do something dangerous or unreasonable (e.g., fight at unreasonable odds,
go without food, water or pay, scale a castle wall despite the fact that
the defenders are dumping sewage over the walls, etc.).
Morale Modifiers
In a war against a hereditary foe, Morale is always +1.
Units defending home territory always have +2 morale.
Atrocities always require a morale roll. On a failed roll, morale drops
by 1. On a successful roll, morale rises by 1 instead, in anger.
Morale before a battle is +1 if the unit has defeated the same foe this
year. It is -2 if the unit has been defeated by the same foe this year.
A force that knows its position was penetrated by spies will have -1 morale,
or -2 (at least) if important people were killed. It will have +2 if enemy
spies were caught and slain. Likewise, a force will have +1 morale if it
knows its spies have succeeded in scouting the foe, and -1 if it knows its
spies were killed.
Bonus payments can increase morale (see Paying and Maintaining Troops,
p.00).
Rout
Units, or even the entire force, may rout, fleeing in panic, on a very bad
combat result (see Resolving the Contest of Strategy) and/or a
failed Morale roll. If a unit routs, its casualties are increased. Whether
a routed unit will ever reform as a unit is up to the GM. The survivors
may be able to reassemble under a number of circumstances: the battle was
in friendly territory, the unit was largely cavalry, there were plenty of
places to hide, the leader is charismatic, etc. PCs whose units are routed
(or totally crushed) must make their second Survival roll at -2 (see Second
Survival Roll).
Casualties
After the Contest of Strategy, casualties for each force are determined.
This does not affect the PCs; their fates are determined by their
Survival rolls. Even if a PC's unit is entirely wiped out, a PC who makes
his Survival rolls gets away somehow.
Find the Quick Contest of Strategy difference on the Casualty Table below.
Opposite that number (a positive number for the victor, a negative number
for the loser) is listed the percentage of troops that side lost in the
engagement. For example, if the difference is 3, the loser consults "-3"
and loses (4:1 +20)% of his troops as casualties, while the victor consults
"3" and loses (4d)% of his troops.
If the defender was protected by his position (modifiers with an * under
Defensive Position), add that modifier to his Contest difference
(but not his opponent's) before assessing casualties. For instance, if the
defender lost the roll by 3, but had a +3 Strategy modifier due to position,
it would take casualties on the "0" line.
A unit's armor type (heavy, medium, or light) moves them downward on the
Casualty Table.
Heavy Cavalry, Heavy Infantry: adjust result down by 4 lines.
Medium Cavalry, Medium Infantry: adjust result down by 2 lines.
Light Cavalry, Light Infantry, Pikemen: adjust result down by 1 line.
If a unit routs, roll a die and adjust casualties upward by that many lines
on the Casualty Table.
If the GM thinks that the battle was particularly intense, the casualty
results for both sides can be moved up one or more lines.
Round all losses up. Losses are divided evenly among the units of a force
unless the GM decrees (or a PC leader says) that some particular unit was
leading the fray or holding back.
Half the casualties (round down) are killed or permanently maimed. The other
half recover at (2 + TL)% (of the original unit) per day in camp, or 2%
per day on march. If magic healing is available, add 1d% to the recovery
rate. One healer is required for every 10 injured soldiers to get this bonus.
Races with Slow Healing recover half as quickly, and those with Rapid Healing
recover twice as quickly. These racial qualities do not affect the magic
healing rate of 1d%. Treat races with an average HT above 13 as having Rapid
Healing, and treat races with HT of 7 or below as having Slow Healing.
Lost artillery become the property of the victor; after an inconclusive
battle, each side retains half its lost artillery and the others are considered
destroyed.
Casualty Table
Contest difference..Casualties
-19 or less (12d + 60)%
-17, -18 (11d + 55)%
-15, -16 (10d + 50)%
-13, -14 (9d + 45)%
-11, -12 (8d + 40)%
-9, -10 (7d + 35)%
-7, -8 (6d + 30)%
-5, -6 (5d + 25)%
-3, -4 (4d + 20)%
-1, -2 (4d + 15)%
0 (4d + 10)%
19 or more no losses
Contest difference..Casualties
1,2 (4d+5)%
3,4 (4d)%
5,6 (3d)%
7,8 (2d+2)%
9, 10 (2d)%
11,12 (1d+2)%
13, 14 (1d)%
15, 16 (1d-2)% (1% min.)
17, 18 (1d-4)% (1% min.)
Second Survival Roll
Any PCs on the losing side of a battle must make a second Survival
roll, using the same Risk modifier as for the first roll. Adjust this roll
down by -1 for every 3 full points of difference in the Contest of Strategy.
If defending, adjust up by any bonus for starred Defensive Position
modifiers (see p.00).
If the PC's unit was routed (see Rout), the second Survival roll
is made at -2. Any adventuring after that will be directed, at least for
a time, toward getting home alive or regrouping with other lost battle comrades.
Roleplaying Battle Scenes
The system presented here will resolve large combats. It is up to the GM
to make these interesting for the players -- and vice versa. The GM should
always sketch a map of the battlefield (or perhaps of several optional battlefields)
to help the PCs visualize the strategy, especially if they are unit or force
leaders.
Players whose characters are in leadership positions may attempt to give
orders to their troops once the battle has started and any enemy surprises
have appeared. PCs who are mere troopers can control only their own fates
-- and then, only to a limited extent -- by deciding how much bravery (or
cowardice) they will show. But they should describe their actions anyway:
not just "I'm going for a -3 on Survival to get a +3 on Glory"
but "I'm shouting insults and charging the enemy standard-bearer."
Similarly, the GM should present all morale effects with maximum drama --
during preparations for the battle, at the beginning of battle and when
the troops begin to rout.
Remember: roleplaying should be fun. Players should be heroic; after all,
each character thinks of himself as the hero of his own story. GMs should
remember that they are storytellers; tell the tale well, and reward
heroism.
After the Battle
When the battle is finished, there will be opportunities for looting, ransoming
prisoners, and regrouping forces.
Loot
Many military units -- not just mercenaries -- depend largely on loot to
make life worthwhile. The loot available in even a burned-out and picked-over
city can be immense and is up to the GM to settle.
But the loot from a battlefield is also very valuable. The force that holds
the field after a fray will be able to recover the arms and armor of all
its own casualties, and most, if not all, of the other side's dead. If the
foe routed, both its dead and wounded -- all its casualties --
will be left for looting.
Very roughly speaking, the average value of the gear stripped from a killed
or captured trooper would equal 1/3 of the cost to "raise" that
trooper (see Raising Troops). It would sell for less -- possibly
only 20% of that cost, in cash -- but to an army, most or all of the salvage
will be useful. Halve these numbers again for cavalry; live horses are expensive,
dead ones are rations at best.
Some cultures (e.g., feudal Japan) did not make a practice of looting the
battlefield for many reasons. Other cultures may take trophies, such as
heads, from their dead enemies. Battlefields were often looted by the locality's
poor (bandits or peasants) before the relatives of the dead could make arrangements
for burial. Sometimes such scavengers also found soldiers who had been left
for dead by their comrades and enemies. In such a case, check the scavenger's
reaction roll; he might kill the soldier, ignore him or nurse him back to
health.
PCs who have been wounded, or even those who thought themselves dead, may
wake up in a peasant's cottage, in the enemy camp, in prison, or as slaves.
Ransom of Prisoners
Especially in aristocratic societies, it can be highly profitable to take
a noble foe as a prisoner rather than slay him outright. Many such lords
would carry a ransom of hundreds, if not thousands, of dollars.
Some cultures did not hold captured enemies for ransom. They may be either
executed, held as hostages for their relatives' good behavior or held for
some other fate.
Multiple Combatants
Most battles are fought between two sides, though many individual allies
may be on each side. If more than two forces are fighting independently
from each other, a multi-party Contest of Strategy can be used with the
commander who wins by the greatest margin holding the field, while the others
take the effects from the tables based on their difference from the winner.
In this case, the Relative Troop Strength Strategy bonus is figured against
the average of the other opponents' TS.
Quick and Dirty Mass Combat
If you don't want to take the time to break each side down into its component
units, just estimate the force's Troop Strength and overall base morale
(possibly by as-signing an "average quality" and "average
type" to each force). Apply all other modifiers as before, estimating
where necessary. Roll the Quick Contest as before, taking casualties and
checking morale, when required, for the entire force.
Two sets of equivalents may help here.
500 irregular infantry are approximately equal to:
330 light infantry, irregular cavalry, or pikemen,
250 medium infantry or light cavalry,
200 heavy infantry,
165 medium cavalry,
125 heavy cavalry,
20 siege engines.
Similarly, 500 raw recruits are approximately equal to 300 green troops,
250 average troops, 200 seasoned troops, 165 veteran troops, or 125 elite
troops.
Exceptional Powers in Battle
Combat in many settings can be affected by exceptional abilities, like magic,
psionics and superpowers. These powers can be used directly, such as hurling
fireballs at enemy troops, or more subtly, such as disabling enemy leaders,
scouting enemy forces, or bringing a single morale-shaking disaster to the
enemy. Supers with powerful offensive and defensive capabilities should
fight as soldiers, using the Troop Strength section to calculate TS. Those
supers with less battle-oriented skills, along with mages and psis, should
use this section to determine their effect on the battle.
Determining Exceptional Power Available
To determine the exceptional power available to the troops, a Exceptional
Strength (ES) must be calculated for each practitioner.
Computing Exceptional Strength
Compute the Exceptional Strength (ES) for each force by computing the number
of ES character points invested by each practitioner in their specialty.
Mages count points invested in IQ, Magical Aptitude (or Clerical Investment
if it grants battle spells), Strong Will and battle-related skills. Psionicists
count points invested in IQ, Strong Will and battle-related psionic powers
and skills. Supers count points invested in IQ, Strong Will and battle-related
super powers and skills. If the total is less than 100, the practitioner
is not strong enough to affect a mass combat. If the total is 100 or more,
use the following table.
100 character points = 1/2 Exceptional Strength point
150 character points = 1 Exceptional Strength point
200 character points = 2 Exceptional Strength points
250 character points = 3 Exceptional Strength points
300 character points =5 Exceptional Strength points
350 character points = 8 Exceptional Strength points
400 character points = 12 Exceptional Strength points
450 character points = 16 Exceptional Strength points
500 character points = 20 Exceptional Strength points
Add 1 Exceptional Strength point for each additional 10 character points.
Exceptional Strength Modifiers
Mage possesses Powerstone: +1/10 points of Powerstone
Mage possesses enchanted item: +1 to +5 (GM's discretion)
Low mana: x1/4
Normal mana: 0
Very high mana: x 2
Psionicist has assistance of booster drugs or technology: +1 to +5 (GMs
discretion)
Using Exceptional Powers on the Battlefield
Each player secretly and simultaneously marks the number of points expended
on each special effect detailed below (including defense -- see Defending
Against Hostile Powers below), after the Troop Strength of both forces
have been calculated, but before they are revealed or any die rolls are
made.
To use a specific effect, a practitioner must have some power or spell that
could produce the desired effect. If all the mages available have no Healing
spells, they can not perform battlefield Healing effects. The GM can determine
which effects are possible for each side.
Catastrophes
Special powers can attempt to force a Catastrophe (see above) on its opposition
by increasing the opponent's Catastrophe roll. Each 2 points expended, will
give the foe a +1 modifier on its Catastrophe roll.
Affecting Morale
Exceptional powers can be used to improve the morale of friendly units,
or to reduce the morale of enemy units. In either case, one point provides
a +1 (or -1) morale modifier for 100 TS of troops. Thus, for example, a
unit of 20 Green Heavy Infantry (Total TS 100; Morale roll of 11+) can have
its morale modified by +2, giving them the morale of Aver-age troops (13+),
or -2, lowering their morale to that of Raw troops (9+), for an expenditure
of 2 points.
Healing
Exceptional powers can be used to improve the survival chances of injured
troops. One Exceptional Strength point can adjust the result on the Casualty
Table down by one line for 100 TS of troops. This option counters and is
countered by "Striking against the Foe" below.
Scouting
Exceptional powers can be used to observe enemy forces, and to thereby reduce
the effectiveness of an enemy's strategy. If the force with the exceptional
individual is being run by the player, successful use of scouting
powers will give him some advance warning of the preparations used by the
enemy, and allow him to revise his battle plan (GM's discretion as to how
much).
If the force is being run by an NPC, abstract this information to a +1 Strategy
modifier, costing 3 Exceptional Strength points. More energy can be expended
if desired (particularly if the enemy has special defenses), but no more
than a +1 modifier can be gained in any case.
Confounding the Enemy
Special powers can also be used to disrupt the enemy's battle plan. If the
force leader knows the enemy battle plan (through diviners, scouting magic
or more mundane means), or if he just wants to guess, he can use the exceptional
abilities to create conditions adverse to the enemy's plan. Such efforts
include flooding a river to be forded, bringing up a dense fog, or even
causing an earthquake in a narrow defile.
To do this, the player of the force should describe the effect, and how
it would be produced (what spell or psionic skill would be used, etc.).
The GM should analyze the effectiveness of the strategy and assign an appropriate
Excep-tional Strength cost and Strategy roll modifier.
Striking Against the Foe
Rather than providing unique capabilities, many of these powers can simply
be hurled against the foe. These special powers can be powerful weapons,
and have made the difference between defeat and victory in more than one
battle of myth or science fiction. Each Exceptional Strength point can adjust
the result on the Casualty Table up by one line for 100 TS of troops.
Defending Against Hostile Powers
Exceptional Strength points can be allocated to defend against hostile powers.
These points are not allocated to other specific effects; rather, they are
used to block other effects after the allocations are revealed.
Each point of power allocated to defense blocks 1 point of the opponent's
offensive power. Exceptional powers must be blocked in units. It is not
possible, for example, to block only 1 enemy ES point allocated to Catastrophe
modifiers; these must be blocked in units of 2.
Should more points be allocated to defense than the other side allocated
to offensive capability, all of the opponent's power is blocked, but the
remainder of the defensive points are wasted.
This ends the "mechanical" portion of mass combat. Dealing with
the outcome in terms of the campaign is left to the GM and the players.
Below is a completely worked out battle and two examples of these rules:
the armies of Yrth and World War I.
Examples
The examples in this section are based on fantasy war-fare on Yrth and modern
combat during World War I. Combined with the above rules, these examples
provide all the information needed for a particular culture and time period.
Yrth Armies
The nations of Yrth employ a variety of military organizations and troop
types. The available troop types will be described in detail, followed by
a section describing the military particulars for each nation.
Troop Types
Heavy Cavalry (HC): Armored cavalry with trained warhorses, heavy
lances and other "shock troop" weapons. Megalan and Caithness
knights are considered heavy cavalry. Horse archers of this type normally
employ crossbows. TS value 8.
Medium Cavalry (MC): Moderately armored cavalry using medium warhorses
(with light barding), light lances, spears and other light weapons. TS value
6.
Light Cavalry (LC): Troops mounting light horses, with very little
armor; javelins, spears and other light weapons. TS value 4.
Irregular Cavalry (IC): Troops, without formal training, on light
horses, with a variety of weapons and armor. Barbarians fit this troop type.
TS value 3.
Heavy Infantry (HI): Footmen, in full plate, with axes, great swords
and other heavy hand weapons. Dismounted knights are one excellent example
of this type of force. TS value 5.
Medium Infantry (MI): Moderately armed footmen, in half-plate or
less, fighting with polearms, swords and other medium weapons. Most military
troops fall into this category. TS value 4.
Light Infantry (LI): Regular footmen and trained spear levies wearing
little or no armor and fighting with polearms, spears, javelins, short swords
and other light skirmish weapons. Most of the militias and tribal warriors
of Yrth fall into this description. TS value 3.
Irregular Infantry (II): Irregular footmen and untrained spear
levies employing any armor and weaponry available. Barbarians, pioneers,
miners and other specialists are included in this troop type. They are likely
to be experienced. Peasant levies also are irregular infantry, but inexperienced.
TS value 2.
Pikemen (PI): Lightly armored -- generally leather and light metal
combinations -- and equipped with pikes or poleaxes, and dirks. Pikemen
are typical in Megalan Imperial legions, but rare in forces of other countries.
TS value 3.
Miners (MN): Mining crew of 10+ miners and a Demolition specialist.
TS value 2 (in an open battle) or 8 (to the attacker in a siege). Miners
at TS 8 can comprise no more than 10% (up to 1,000) or 5% (over 1,000) of
the TS of a siege force. Miners over this percentage are TS value 2.
Small Siege Engine (SE): A small stone or dart-thrower, with crew
of two. TS value 25. Siege engines of both sizes can comprise no more than
10% of the TS of a field army, and no more than 50% of the TS of a castle.
Large Siege Engine (LE): A large stone or dart-thrower, with crew
of four. TS value 50. Siege engines of both sizes can comprise no more than
10% of the TS of a field army, and no more than 50% of the TS of a castle.
Troop Costs
The cost to raise troops is as follows, per man:
Heavy Cavalry: $14,000
Medium Cavalry: $9,000
Light Cavalry: $5,000
Irregular Cavalry: $3,000
Heavy Infantry: $9,000
Medium Infantry: $5,000
Pikemen: $2,000
Light Infantry: $1,500
Irregular Infantry: $200
Small Siege Engines: $15,000 average -- varies widely, includes armor.
Large Siege Engines: $25,000 average -- varies widely, includes armor.
Add $500 per man if the troops are slingers, $1,000 for ordinary archers,
$1,500 for archers with composite bows, longbows or crossbows.
The cost to maintain a soldier in the field is $200; to maintain a knight
and horse costs $800. Monthly pay is expected to be equal to 10% of the
cost to raise listed above, regardless of experience.
Megalos
The backbone of the Megalan military is the Imperial Legion, organized after
the Roman model of ancient armies (see Military Organization and Command,
p. 00). All legions are pure infantry. These are trained professionals (usually
Seasoned or better), divided into heavy, medium and light legions. Private
legions exist, usually controlled by powerful nobles, but their morale and
training is usually lower (Green to Seasoned) than for the imperials. The
Imperial Legions are the most powerful fighting force on Yrth.
The True Dragon Legion is an elite heavy legion composed of reptile men,
whose ancestors were slaves, freed to subdue an island. They are fanatically
loyal to the empire, and act as the Emperor's Guard.
Megalan knights are heavy cavalry, often of Elite quality, and are organized
along feudal lines.
Megalos deploys small units of mounted scouts and light cavalry, no larger
than a company in size.
Each legion and many smaller units have powerful contingents of magicians,
expert in battle magic. Megalan military tactics rely heavily on magic,
so they are at a disadvantage in Low and No Mana areas.
Araterre
This country has no armies. If necessary, the inhabitants could fight as
Irregular Infantry (II) with the fencers being of Elite quality.
Caithness
Caithness is a feudal country, relying upon their knights (Seasoned to Elite
Heavy Cavalry) for protection, backed up by feudal levies of men-at-arms,
mostly Light through Heavy Infantry (LI, MI and HI) with other types possible.
Because of the Low Mana of the area, Caithness does not use magic in battle.
Al-Haz
The desert warriors of Al-Haz are nearly all medium and light cavalry with
regular bows. The armies of Al-Haz are feudally organized. For religious
reasons, magic does not play a part in the military of Al-Haz.
Al- Wazif
Al-Wazif maintains a standing army composed of most troop types and organized
similarly to the ancient Persians. The soldiers are well-trained and are
of Average or better quality. Individual lord's have their own feudal armies,
as well. Mages are very important to the Al-Wazifi military, and stockpiles
of magic items are hidden around the country in case of war.
Cardiel
Cardiel has two legions, one Seasoned Heavy and one Veteran Medium, carryovers
from the period of Megalan domination. The rest of their army consists of
knights and feudal levies, similar to Caithness.
Sahud
Each Sahudese lord can call upon troops of all types, organized feudally.
The thought of fighting these soldiers, though, whose rules of war are so
strange, would give a Megalan commander nightmares.
The Nomad Loads
The various Nomad tribes field differing types of warriors, but most are
either Irregular Infantry or Cavalry (II or IC), often of Seasoned to Elite
quality. They are organized around tribal clans.
Non-Human Races
Centaurs: Treat as Irregular Cavalry (IC) of Average or better
quality. Centaurs are tribally organized. Racial TS modifier is +2.
Dwarves: Always Medium or Heavy Infantry (MI and HI) of Seasoned
or better quality. Dwarves are also supreme miners, and Dwarvish MN troops
have a TS of 10 in a siege, and TS of Medium or Heavy Infantry in open battle.
Use either modern or Classic Greek organization. If the Dwarvish mountains
are attacked, all adult dwarves, male and female, would fight, fielding
a powerful force. Racial TS modifier is +1.
Elves: Light Infantry or Cavalry composite or long bowmen (LI or
LC), usually of Seasoned or better quality. In their home territory, elves
are the consummate guerrilla warriors. Feudal organization is used by the
elves. Because of their racial Combat Reflexes, Elves cannot be Irregulars.
Racial TS modifier is +0.
Giants: Usually Medium Infantry (MI) of Average or better quality.
They can throw rocks like a small siege engine and they can thus be counted
as such. Giants are tribally organized. Racial TS modifier is +11.
Gnomes: Gnomes rarely fight outside their forest homes, but if
attacked, they would be Irregular Infantry (II) of Green to Seasoned quality.
Every adult would be a part of the fighting force. A Gnome village can display
a surprising force with little preparation. Racial TS modifier is 0.
Goblins: Goblins rarely fight open battles. If a village was attacked,
treat as Irregular Infantry of Green to Seasoned quality. Racial TS modifier
is -1.
Hobgoblins: Treat as Irregular Infantry (II) of Green to Veteran
quality. Hobgoblins organize along tribal lines. Racial TS modifier is +0.
Halflings: Treat as Irregular Infantry (II) with slings and other
missile weapons, of Green to Seasoned quality. Racial TS modifier is -1
.
Kobolds: Treat as Irregular Infantry (II) of Green to Seasoned
quality, but you never know how many are going to come out of the woods.
Racial TS modifier is -1.
Minotaurs and Ogres do not organize into armies, but would
be considered Irregular Infantry of Average or better quality. They both
organize along tribal lines. Ogre TS modifier is +7. Minotaur TS modifier
is +3.
Orcs: Usually infantry of any type (LI, MI, HI, or II) of Green
to Seasoned quality, though a few small groups of Veteran or Elite quality
exist. Orcs organize tribally. Racial TS modifier is +1.
Reptile Men: Usually Medium or Heavy Infantry (MI or HI) of Seasoned
or better quality. Rumors of reptilian riding beasts (allowing cavalry)
have been heard in far western Caithness, but their truth has not been verified.
Wild Reptile Men organize along tribal lines; civilized Reptile Men adopt
the organization of their host country. Racial TS modifier is +3.
Zombies: Light. Medium or Heavy Infantry. Zombies never check morale.
TS modifier is +3.
Skeletons: Light, Medium or Heavy Infantry. Skeletons never check
morale. TS modifier is -1.
Dragons: Hatchling is TS 15, Young is TS 30, Adolescent is TS 45,
Adult is TS 60, and Monstrous is TS 80.
Lycanthropes: Werewolves are TS 5 each. Werebears are TS 10 each.
Wereboars are TS 10 each. Weretigers are TS 15. Wereeagles are TS 7.
Armies of World War I
The nations involved in World War I were fairly standardized in organization
and troop types. The available troop types will be described in detail.
The composition of the armies of the nations involved in World War I is
sufficiently similar to be treated the same for the purposes of GURPS
Mass Combat.
Troop Types
Light Cavalry (LC): Troops riding light horses, with little armor,
using rifles and sometimes sabers. TS value 10.
Light Infantry (LI): Regular soldiers wearing little or no armor
and using rifles. Most of the armies of the war fall into this description.
TS value 9.
Irregular Infantry (II): Irregular foot soldiers and untrained
fighters employing whatever weaponry is available. Specialists are included
in this troop type. They are often experienced. Villagers also are irregular
infantry, but inexperienced. TS value 2. Add any ranged weapon bonuses that
apply.
Light Armor (LA): A light tank, with crew of 2-3. TS value 15.
Since the tank was experimental during WWI, the TS value is reduced appropriately.
Fighter Aircraft (FA): A plane with a crew of 1 or 2. TS value
25. Since aircraft were quite new to warfare during this period, their TS
is reduced by half.
Modern Artillery (MA): A large cannon or howitzer, with crew of
four. TS value 100. Artillery can comprise no more than 10% of the TS of
a field army.
Battle Example: Caliburn the Bravo Goes to War
Caliburn, a thug for hire, lives in Bannock on the border of Megalos. Their
hereditary enemy is Al-Wazif, since they have been invaded by them (and
have returned the favor) many times over the centuries. One summer the Al-Wazif
border army marches in to attack the city. Caliburn and 14 of his fellow
thugs, er, bodyguards decide to volunteer to help fight off the enemy (because
otherwise the local magistrate will arrest them as unpatriotic vagrants).
They have no military training and have never fought in a battle before,
so they are Raw Irregular Infantry. The 15 of them at TS 2 are a unit, counted
at half base TS because of their inexpe-rience: TS 15 in all.
The rest of the Megalan army consists of a few cohorts of the 5th Megalan
Heavy Legion ("Warhammer"), a couple of medium mercenary companies,
the city militia (including 120 archers -- 600 TS) and numerous irregular
units like Caliburn's, for a total TS for the Megalan force of 3,500. Unfortunately,
there are no knights or other cavalry in the area. The commander of the
city militia, a retired legionnary, is acting as force commander and is
a Seasoned veteran with a Strategy skill of 14.
The Wazifi army has a variety of troop types, including cavalry and 40 Light
Cavalry archers (240 TS), for a total TS of 4,000. The commander of the
Al-Wazif force is of Veteran quality with a Strategy roll of 16.
Neither side is using special forces, but both sides have mages. The Megalan
army has a total of 4 ES points and the Wazifi army has 3.
The mages of Megalos decide to use a point to reduce the morale of one of
the Seasoned Medium Infantry 20-man units (TS 96 reduced to TS 86), as well
as Striking it. Another point is spent on Striking an Elite Heavy Infantry
unit (TS 100). The last point is spent on Healing for one of the Medium
Infantry mercenary platoons (TS 96).
The Wazifi mages use two points to Strike at one of the mercenary companies.
The GM secretly determines that this company contains the mercenary platoon
protected by Healing. The last point was used to improve the morale of an
Average Medium Infantry unit (TS 40 increased to 48) by 2.
The Catastrophe roll is next. The Bannock commander rolls an 8, indicating
an enemy surprise and giving -1 to the Strategy roll. The GM determines
that a company of Wazifi Heavy Cavalry was missed by the Megalan intelligence
reports. The commander of the Al-Wazif army rolls a 17, indicating a unit
commander has been killed, giving a -2 to the Strategy roll and -3 Morale
to his unit. The GM determines that this is the unit of Light Cavalry archers
(TS 240 drops to 168). The final Troop Strength of the Wazifi army is 3,926.
The other Strategy modifiers are calculated below:
Relative Troop Strength bonus: Al-Wazif gets + 1 to their Strategy
roll (3,942/3,500 = 1.36).
Defensive Position: No modifiers, since the Bannock army is meeting
the Wazifis in an open-field battle.
Special Unit Superiority: Megalos gets a +2 for archer superiority
(600/168 = 3.2). Al-Wazif gets a +3 for cavalry superiority, since Megalos
has no cavalry in the field.
Special Circumstances: Megalos is on is home ground and gets a
+2 bonus.
Battle Plans: After reviewing the battle plans of both force commanders,
the GM decides neither battle plan is substantially better and gives no
bonus.
The total Strategy bonuses are +2 for Al-Wazif and +3 for Megalos.
In the quick Contest of Strategy, the Wazifi commander rolls a 14 (made
by 4) and the Megalan commander rolls a 10 (made by 7) for a difference
of 3 in Megalos' favor. Since this is an open-field battle, Table A is used,
yielding an inconclusive" result. All units on both sides roll Morale
and take casualties, and all PCs make Survival and Glory rolls.
Caliburn has IQ 12 (Tactics defaults to IQ-6) and Shortsword skill at 15.
His Battle skill is therefore (6+15)/2 = 10.5, rounded down to 10. The player
chooses a Risk of -2, giving him a Survival roll of 8 and a Glory roll of
12. Then the player rolls a 10 for Survival (missing by 2) and an 11 for
Glory (making by 1). Looking on Column A of the damage Table under TL 3,
Caliburn takes 1d+2-DR (4 points damage), but fights competently. The battle
is inconclusive. The thugs' base Morale is only 6, but it is +3 because
they are defending their home territory against a hereditary foe. On a roll
of 8, they hold their position. Caliburn has his buddy with the First Aid
skill treat him, and recovers 2 points.
The Wazifi unit which lost its commander has an adjusted morale of 11 (+1
for hereditary foe). They roll a 15, indicating they withdraw in order.
If they had not been fighting a hereditary foe, they would have routed.
Since the Bannock army won the Strategy contest by 3, they look under 3
on the Casualty Table (4d%), while the Wazifi army uses the -3 row (4d+20%),
yielding base casualty rates of 13% and 30% respectively, for unarmored
troops. Individual units apply the armor modification to the casualty rate
(down one, two or four lines on the table for Light, Medium, and Heavy units).
Those units that suffered magical Strikes increase their casualty rates
by one line on the chart, while those that were magically healed reduce
the rate by one line. After calculating all the casualties, the Bannock
army has 3,268 TS and the Wazifi army has 3,351 TS. The odds are now better
for Bannock.
The next day, Caliburn is more cautious and chooses a Risk of -1, giving
him a Survival roll of 9 and a Glory roll of 11. One of the thugs has been
killed. Caliburn's player rolls 13 for Survival (missing by 4) and 10 for
Glory (succeeding by 1). Caliburn is wounded twice for a total of 3 hits
of damage, and again fights competently. Today Megalos wins a Definite Victory,
and the Al-Wazif army withdraws to its homeland. Another one of the thugs
has been killed; the others are now more experienced at fighting and count
as Green troops rather than Raw ones, bringing their TS up to 80% of base:
(13 x 2 x 0.8) gives TS 20. Caliburn and his 12 friends return to their
city, full of stories of their glorious deeds, without which the city would
never have succeeded in repelling the devilish invaders.
FORCE ROSTER
Troop name..Troop type..Troop quality..Morale..# men..Basic TS..HT..Leader:
Strat..Tact..Battle
__________..__________.._____________..______.._____..________..__..______________..____.._____
__________..__________.._____________..______.._____..________..__..______________..____.._____
__________..__________.._____________..______.._____..________..__..______________..____.._____
__________..__________.._____________..______.._____..________..__..______________..____.._____
__________..__________.._____________..______.._____..________..__..______________..____.._____
__________..__________.._____________..______.._____..________..__..______________..____.._____
__________..__________.._____________..______.._____..________..__..______________..____.._____
__________..__________.._____________..______.._____..________..__..______________..____.._____
(Back to Roleplayer
#30 Table of Contents)
(J. C. Connors has written a simpler
article on PCs' roles in mass combat. --arcangel@io.com)