Collection of Warmaster community House Rules

[Lex]

@ Zelekendel :  we tinkered with that one too, and it was part of the alternative Dwarfslayers rules, to move a random distance forward.

Remember there will be a natural reluctance to move towards the enemy (or rather death and mutilation) for the most part of your troops!  That said, the suggestion is a good one. I assume you make the move a mandatory FULL movement distance?

alternativly, and making this a tad more challenging

adjust the move with  minus 1d6 for each turn they use it in..... and for brigades, nominate the first unit you want to move before rolling the modifier...     This will reflect the hesitance of the troops, and make it slightly more challenging when eg. you infantry surges forward while the flanking cavalry lags behind.

[Dobbsy]

Hi all (first post, so hello to everyone).

An idea (borrowed from another player) I'd like to trial is:

Roads give command rolls a +1 due to ease of movement along them by messengers etc. So if a unit is situated on a road the character issuing an order has +1 modifier.

[jchaos79]

sounds great. In should try it in a game.

[Edmund2011]

Roads give command rolls a +1 due to ease of movement along them by messengers etc. So if a unit is situated on a road the character issuing an order has +1 modifier.

I wanted to try something like that to use roads in the games.

The rule I am going to try is:

"A unit (except monsters) situated on a road (any stand touching the road) will receive a +1 bonus to the command roll as long as the unit moves along the road (in column) and finishes the movement touching the road (in any final formation of the stands). The order can not be a charge"

This simulates moving on a road is easier for a unit and the order is easier to understand and receive. Charges are resolved as usual.

[David Wasilewski]

Edmund - that's exactly the rule our group uses too, except we even allow monsters to benefit too.

Dave

[Edmund2011]

  Good! what are your impressions after using it?

[David Wasilewski]

oops - sorry Edmund, I missed this one and have only just noticed.

We like the rule as it means roads are "relevant" in the game and it also helps with scenarios where armies can start off a long way apart. The general is then faced with the dilemma: does he maximise moveemnt but have his army strung out in column of march or does he ignore the road and be (probably) slower but in a line of battle.

Dave

[frogbear]

I've long thought to simply allow units to move on initiative. However, this movement would have to be made straight forwards (no turning whatsoever!) and with their maximum normal movement rate (not any less!).
Of course, the normal rules already preclude units that moved on initiative from moving in the command phase, so this would not lead to extra movement for commanded units. This would simply represent standing orders or a general call to advance - we can assume troops know enough whether to keep moving or stop as required.

Thoughts?

I think this is an interesting rule.

Recently I have come to my own conclusion that Warmaster is a game reliant on scenarios. If not, and it is merely a standard battle lineup, invariably it is the General that fails orders and finds only part of an army moved too far that looses. The opponent who does not play to the spirit of the game and sits back waiting for initiative charges or simple attacks against outlying units (due to opponent's bad fortune) seems to win. I think such a rule may assist Generals to move an army forward, albeit not as tactical as they may wish but something that may provide support in a future turn. 

[David Wasilewski]

In my experience the general who sits back and does nothing, waiting for his opponent to fail command rolls is taking the same risk as the attacker because he is risking his opponent making those command rolls and rolling up his flank!

Dave

[Jester3627]

We play a house rule where any unit (except flyers) who complete their entire move on a road may move an additional 5cm per order. Its makes roads far more tactically important and needless to say our battlefields are usually criss crossed by roads. One order doesn't make too much difference but if out can get a couple of orders each turn over two or three goes it can make a big difference and makes flanking manouvers etc far more possible.

[Stormwind]

In blitzkrieg commander, units on a road don't suffer penalties for distance - which could allow a unit to gallop across the table, but in a column and end up in an unfortunate position.

[greenskinchief]

not so much a house rule as a rule I could with modifying;
troops with 360 deg vision, these should be allowed to initiative charge any enemy within 20cm, in ancients they would be skirmishers and hence allowed to charge, in fantasy no charge is allowed unless in front and in living rules initiative evade is allowed but not initiative charge, and again in BOFA initiative charge/evade is fine, surely if you can see to shoot something within initiative range you can charge/evade it?