Astynax
06-03-2010, 10:47 PM
I've put the following together based on the previous combat patrol rules in conjunction some 4th edition missions and the warbands secret objective idea to make each battle different and add another level of strategy to the game. Several games have been playtested and goes fairly quick and very strategic.
Looking for comments & criticism on the balance and structure! Also some thoughts & feedback on the victory conditions. Thanks!!
Combat Patrol Basics
Armies of no more than 500 points
You must have at least one Troops choice
You may include a single HQ choice, but no more than one
You may spend remaining points on anything else in the codex
No model can have more than 2 wounds
No special or unique characters
No model can have a better save than a 3+ or 4++
Vehicles cannot have a total Armor Value greater than 33 (Front + Side + Rear)
No Ordnance weapons
Victory points are used to determine the winner
Victor points are determined by the cost of the unit and is counted on a per model basis
+100 VPs are awarded for achieving your secret mission.
The side with the most VPs at the end of the game is the victor but VP differences of +/- 50 points is a draw
Secret missions are assigned to each patrol. Do not reveal your mission to your opponent until the end of the game. Each player will secretly roll a die (or draw with the mission names on it)and record their result without showing their opponent until the end of the game. Consult the following table for the mission:
Roll of 1 - Assassinate: Your Patrol must slay the enemy Commander (or cause him to flee off the table or be fleeing) by game’s end.
Roll of 2 - Invade: Get as many of your units into the enemy's deployment zone by the end of the battle.
Roll of 3 - Capture & Control: Your Patrol must capture two objectives and control it at the end of the game.
Roll of 4 Annihilate: Your Patrol must reduce the enemy by reducing the enemy army to 75% of its starting Unit Strength by the end of the battle. Units or models that are fleeing at the end of the game or that have fled off the board count as destroyed.
Roll of 5 - Hold Territory: Your Patrol must attempt to control the battlefield. At the end of the game, divide the table into four quarters. You must control more table quarters than the enemy. To control a table quarter, you must have a unit in the table quarter with no enemy in the quarter. Fleeing units don’t count.
Roll of 6 - Choose: Inform your opponent that you may choose your Unknown Objective. Secretly choose any objective from those listed above for your Patrol and only reveal it at game’s end.
Mission Specific Rules
Assassinate - The commander must be the HQ selection taken. If the HQ choice is a unit or includes a retinue, only the main general must be slain. If no HQ choice is taken, a unit leader or model must be nominated as the commander of the patrol. This nomination must be done at the start of the game regardless if any player has rolled Assassinate (as it is a secret mission you will not know!)
Invade - All units in the enemy deployment zone count as double VP for the controlling player. The task player must have at least 200 points worth of their patrol in the enemy to acheive primary task points.
Capture & Control - Any model can capture objectives. Any enemy model can contest objectives. 3 objectives are placed on the board at the beginning of the game regardless of which mission each player rolled. If neither player has the Capture & Control task, these objectives are worth 40 VPs each at the end of the game.
Annihilate - The strength of the enemy patrol is measured by victory points, therefore in order to acheive this task the enemy must be reduced to below 125 points (75% of the enemy must be eliminated). Immobilized AND a weapon destroyed vehicle or walker counts for half VPs.
Hold Territory - Any model can capture a quarter. Any enemy model can contest a table quarter. Units with an armor value can control or contest a quarter as long as it is not destroyed.
Design Notes:
Basically this game will give you a wide range of missions which affects how you will play, but none of which you will know what you will do until the game starts! As well, you will not know the desired playstyle of the opponent until further in the game based on what you think they rolled for their secret mission. This means lists cannot be tailored for certain mission as when it was previously straight up kill the other patrol and generates several layers of strategy to carry out your mission while denying the opponent theirs.
As well, a balanced list will perform the best to perform well for all the missions available. Currently each mission rewards a certain armybuild:
Assassinate - precision strikes
Invade - speed
Capture - high staying power
Assassinate - high damage output
Hold territory - high model count
Annihilate and invade offset with one going for pure destruction and the other rewarding survival. Capture & control and quarters will reward table supremacy. Speed will be a massive asset in most of the tasks, but if reserves are used then you will not have much on the table to start so choose wisely!
Hold territory would be beneficial to try to take the middle of the table so your units can straddle the corner of all 4 quarters, but invade & objective missions will take action away from the middle. With all the possibilities every section of the table can potentially be important!
All models have been chosen to be scoring so non troop selections will not be penalized. They will already at a disadvantage with fewer models as non troop selections cost more than troops.
VPs have been chosen since KPs will not work as some armies will only have 2-3 units while others can take 5+. As well, in small scale engagements every model will be worth something and I needed a scoring system from tasks which would work with the damage done to the opponent.
Scoring Example 1:
Team 1 kills 240 points of the enemy, has 230 points of their forces in the enemy territory with the invade mission. Requirements to acheive the objective is 200+ pts, thus they gain another bonus 100 VPs for completing the mission. Total = 240 + (230x2) + 100 = 800 VPs
Team 2 kills 260 points of the enemy, has 2 objectives and has drawn the annihilation objective. As 260 VPs is not greater than 75% of enemy forces, they have failed the mission. Neither side has the capture objective mission, thus each is worth a bonus 40 VPs. Total = 260 + 40x2 = 340 VPs.
Team 1 wins
Scoring Example 2:
Team 1 kills 330 points of the enemy, has 2 objectives, contests 2 quarters and has drawn the capture & control mission. Total = 330 + 100 = 430 VPs
Team 2 kills 370 points of the enemy, has 1 objective, contests 2 quarter and holds another. They have the hold territory mission. Thus they have completed the mission to hold more than the enemy.
Total = 370 + 100 = 370 VPs. The 1 objective they hold is worth nothing in this case as one side does have the capture & control mission.
Result = draw as the VP difference is 40 (less than 50).
Looking for comments & criticism on the balance and structure! Also some thoughts & feedback on the victory conditions. Thanks!!
Combat Patrol Basics
Armies of no more than 500 points
You must have at least one Troops choice
You may include a single HQ choice, but no more than one
You may spend remaining points on anything else in the codex
No model can have more than 2 wounds
No special or unique characters
No model can have a better save than a 3+ or 4++
Vehicles cannot have a total Armor Value greater than 33 (Front + Side + Rear)
No Ordnance weapons
Victory points are used to determine the winner
Victor points are determined by the cost of the unit and is counted on a per model basis
+100 VPs are awarded for achieving your secret mission.
The side with the most VPs at the end of the game is the victor but VP differences of +/- 50 points is a draw
Secret missions are assigned to each patrol. Do not reveal your mission to your opponent until the end of the game. Each player will secretly roll a die (or draw with the mission names on it)and record their result without showing their opponent until the end of the game. Consult the following table for the mission:
Roll of 1 - Assassinate: Your Patrol must slay the enemy Commander (or cause him to flee off the table or be fleeing) by game’s end.
Roll of 2 - Invade: Get as many of your units into the enemy's deployment zone by the end of the battle.
Roll of 3 - Capture & Control: Your Patrol must capture two objectives and control it at the end of the game.
Roll of 4 Annihilate: Your Patrol must reduce the enemy by reducing the enemy army to 75% of its starting Unit Strength by the end of the battle. Units or models that are fleeing at the end of the game or that have fled off the board count as destroyed.
Roll of 5 - Hold Territory: Your Patrol must attempt to control the battlefield. At the end of the game, divide the table into four quarters. You must control more table quarters than the enemy. To control a table quarter, you must have a unit in the table quarter with no enemy in the quarter. Fleeing units don’t count.
Roll of 6 - Choose: Inform your opponent that you may choose your Unknown Objective. Secretly choose any objective from those listed above for your Patrol and only reveal it at game’s end.
Mission Specific Rules
Assassinate - The commander must be the HQ selection taken. If the HQ choice is a unit or includes a retinue, only the main general must be slain. If no HQ choice is taken, a unit leader or model must be nominated as the commander of the patrol. This nomination must be done at the start of the game regardless if any player has rolled Assassinate (as it is a secret mission you will not know!)
Invade - All units in the enemy deployment zone count as double VP for the controlling player. The task player must have at least 200 points worth of their patrol in the enemy to acheive primary task points.
Capture & Control - Any model can capture objectives. Any enemy model can contest objectives. 3 objectives are placed on the board at the beginning of the game regardless of which mission each player rolled. If neither player has the Capture & Control task, these objectives are worth 40 VPs each at the end of the game.
Annihilate - The strength of the enemy patrol is measured by victory points, therefore in order to acheive this task the enemy must be reduced to below 125 points (75% of the enemy must be eliminated). Immobilized AND a weapon destroyed vehicle or walker counts for half VPs.
Hold Territory - Any model can capture a quarter. Any enemy model can contest a table quarter. Units with an armor value can control or contest a quarter as long as it is not destroyed.
Design Notes:
Basically this game will give you a wide range of missions which affects how you will play, but none of which you will know what you will do until the game starts! As well, you will not know the desired playstyle of the opponent until further in the game based on what you think they rolled for their secret mission. This means lists cannot be tailored for certain mission as when it was previously straight up kill the other patrol and generates several layers of strategy to carry out your mission while denying the opponent theirs.
As well, a balanced list will perform the best to perform well for all the missions available. Currently each mission rewards a certain armybuild:
Assassinate - precision strikes
Invade - speed
Capture - high staying power
Assassinate - high damage output
Hold territory - high model count
Annihilate and invade offset with one going for pure destruction and the other rewarding survival. Capture & control and quarters will reward table supremacy. Speed will be a massive asset in most of the tasks, but if reserves are used then you will not have much on the table to start so choose wisely!
Hold territory would be beneficial to try to take the middle of the table so your units can straddle the corner of all 4 quarters, but invade & objective missions will take action away from the middle. With all the possibilities every section of the table can potentially be important!
All models have been chosen to be scoring so non troop selections will not be penalized. They will already at a disadvantage with fewer models as non troop selections cost more than troops.
VPs have been chosen since KPs will not work as some armies will only have 2-3 units while others can take 5+. As well, in small scale engagements every model will be worth something and I needed a scoring system from tasks which would work with the damage done to the opponent.
Scoring Example 1:
Team 1 kills 240 points of the enemy, has 230 points of their forces in the enemy territory with the invade mission. Requirements to acheive the objective is 200+ pts, thus they gain another bonus 100 VPs for completing the mission. Total = 240 + (230x2) + 100 = 800 VPs
Team 2 kills 260 points of the enemy, has 2 objectives and has drawn the annihilation objective. As 260 VPs is not greater than 75% of enemy forces, they have failed the mission. Neither side has the capture objective mission, thus each is worth a bonus 40 VPs. Total = 260 + 40x2 = 340 VPs.
Team 1 wins
Scoring Example 2:
Team 1 kills 330 points of the enemy, has 2 objectives, contests 2 quarters and has drawn the capture & control mission. Total = 330 + 100 = 430 VPs
Team 2 kills 370 points of the enemy, has 1 objective, contests 2 quarter and holds another. They have the hold territory mission. Thus they have completed the mission to hold more than the enemy.
Total = 370 + 100 = 370 VPs. The 1 objective they hold is worth nothing in this case as one side does have the capture & control mission.
Result = draw as the VP difference is 40 (less than 50).