DColtman | 05 Nov 2013 8:05 a.m. PST |
Is Altar of Freedom derived from or similar to Polemos? I am interested in the scale and fast-play nature, but never really took to Polemos. The Priority Points sound a lot like the Tempo bidding of Polemos. |
gaiusrabirius | 05 Nov 2013 8:49 a.m. PST |
I'm curious, too, if this is a re-write or improvement upon the Polemos ACW rules. |
Who asked this joker | 05 Nov 2013 10:16 a.m. PST |
Have you seen the FAQ? There might be some useful information there. link There are a couple of free scenarios there as well. Apparently each side rolls a die and adds some mods. The loser is pushed back or flees and accumulates fatigue. Fatigue causes reduction in a units ability to fight. Not sure about tempo bidding. I am not a Polemos player though I do own the ECW book. From a read through the tempo bidding is a bit fiddly. I prefer something more straight forward like a D6 command pips or something. I'd be interested to hear more about the game and how others who have played liked them. John |
DColtman | 05 Nov 2013 12:13 p.m. PST |
Yes read the FAQ, in fact the reference to bidding for priority in the FAQ actually made me wonder about the relationship to Polemos. |
Who asked this joker | 05 Nov 2013 12:44 p.m. PST |
Yes read the FAQ, in fact the reference to bidding for priority in the FAQ actually made me wonder about the relationship to Polemos. In the tips section of the FAQ, there is some sort of verbiage that suggests you bid by division which must somehow make you move in that order. Maybe something like Impetus only you don't roll. You just put orders down? Dunno. |
Who asked this joker | 05 Nov 2013 4:14 p.m. PST |
So here is how it works. Each corps commander has priority points that he can divide among his divisions. The higher the number the more likely that division will go first. You can place 0 to however many you have on a division for that corps commander. An overall commander can place his points on any division while a corps commander can only place his points on a division under his command. Distribution is done in secret. I think there is a command radius involved as well which determines which divisions can get priority points. Example: Hardee has 6 points to distribute. He has 2 divisions. If he really, really wants to go first, he might place all of his points on one division. The players each call out there highest division points. Highest total moves first. Ties go to the general that controls the clock at the beginning of the game. The clock is counted down by a certain amount. This can be tracked with a D10 or D20 for a larger battle. After each division is activated, both sides roll a D6. The general controlling the clock decides which die will be subtracted from the clock total. if the clock total reaches 0, the turn immediately ends. You gain control of the clock by a head to head die roll. Higher total controls the clock. You can influence the roll by spending priority points, +1 per point spent. Each commander (Corps or army) may spend up to half of their priority points for this purpose. Spend too much and you may not get to move at all! It is a good deal different than Polemos as far as the bidding goes. John |
Joe1870 | 05 Nov 2013 4:50 p.m. PST |
I have played several games of Altar of Freedom and several games of Polymos a few years ago. We have really enjoyed the Altar of Freedom rules, and how you use your points is a big key to the game (as there never seems to be enough to do everything you want). We played The Battle of Seven Pines several times, which seems to be a good learning game for 2 to 3 players per side. We never really took to Polymos. |
DColtman | 05 Nov 2013 9:39 p.m. PST |
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6mmACW | 06 Nov 2013 7:31 a.m. PST |
Aside from the scale (one base = one brigade), there is no relationship between the two rule sets. "Tempo bidding" and "Priority Points" do sound very similar, but the mechanics are not the same. Command and control works quite differently in each game. I've read and played both. I have nothing bad to say about ACW Polemos, except that it wasn't for me. |
louislouis | 20 Dec 2013 4:23 a.m. PST |
I have based my troops on 60x60mm bases, will that work with the AoF rules? cheers |
Number6 | 27 Dec 2013 7:43 p.m. PST |
To me, Altar of Freedom is very much like Volley and Bayonet with some very interesting modifications – like the bidding mechanism. Of course, you could certainly play it without using the priority system. 60x60 would be ideal for basing. |