If you’re walking in on the middle of the Advanced Fantasy Dungeons series, there’s an index here.

War is a ambiguous in the second edition; implied in the code, and detailed over major lines like Birthright and Dragonlance. The challenge is having a straightforward procedure to war, while still having it interesting to engage with. My gut feeling was to replicate and simplify Risk on a map. But that’s not mirroring procedures. So, can I make war mirror Dungeoneering or Journeying?

When you issue an order to a battalion, tell your general. They will report back to you when the order has been resolved. Orders are usually along the lines of “Send Eagle and Falcon Battalions to take Saint Garifods”. The battalion will follow the order as best it can.

Battalion movements take one real-time week. Each week, roll the movement die and follow the instructions, then resolve battles. The movement die is a 1d6, interpreted as follows:

1. Supply chain failure. Your battalion is thirsty and starving. If they battle this week, they have –1 power. 2-5. Movement as normal. 6. Beneficial Positioning. Your battalion finds themselves at an advantage. If they battle this week, they have +1 power.

All battalions can move one county each week, but cannot move over difficult terrain. If at the end of a week, battalions of opposing sides are in the same county, they battle.

To battle, compare power. If power is equal, the attacker is forced back. If one sides’ power is greater, all battalions on the side with less power is destroyed.

Battalions tied to some holdings have special features, such as the ability to move through water or difficult terrain, move 2 spaces in a single week, or possess 2 rather than 1 power.

A strike force refers to an adventuring party participating in operations to give one side in a battle the advantage. A successful strike force provides 1-2 additional power, depending on the nature of the operation.

A successful battle allows the winner to lay claim to the county as part of their domain once peace has been sued for, along with access to its holdings potential trade routes.

Ok, this is a good start, a mix of dungeon exploration and Risk, but we need a rule for the GM:

When creating the map, the GM breaks it into 3-5 hex counties, according to local politics and resources. When battalions are moving around the map, their movement in terms of counties.

I love this simplicity, but I feel like there’s a more complex rule set that mirrors the combat procedure for battalions. Do we want that though? I suspect not. Overall, I think this might be a fun but simple war procedure, and I’m impressed I fit it into one post.

I’m even more excited, because this puts me into the final stretch that is the GM section, before I attempt to work all of these developments into a cohesive whole guided by the concepts put forward in Principles and Procedures.

This has been a part of the Advanced Fantasy Dungeon Series! Let me know your thoughts on war, whether this is interesting enough to be pursued, or anything of the sort!

Idle Cartulary

14th May 2022