Warlord - Battles in War-Torn Taltos

The latest release from Reaper is a 144-page hardback rulebook - Warlord - Battles in War-Town Taltos.

The land of Taltos has never known peace. Monstrous entities, petty thugs and immigrant mercenaries battle against aristocrats, natives, and visionaries for the power and influence necessary to become local authorities - to become Warlords. Now you too can choose a side, marshall your troops, and take up a standard. Taltos awaits. What legends shall be written about your deeds?

The first 30-or-so pages are devoted to background, chiefly fleshing out (through art and fiction) the major factions vying for control and influence in Taltos:

Mercenaries

Some are stand-up-battle types, others are assassins, and some are good with a spell. Their code: The strong survive...

Dwarves

Since the fall of Karzabal, only one Dwarven kingdom has been reforged - the Iron Empire of the Ash Mountains, the Seventh Kingdom. The Dwarves sweep the land, seeking out those who would strike against the kingdom.

Elves

The Elven kingdom of Tirithillia borders Taltos. Their knowledge of the dread secrets of Taltos gives them purpose...

Necropolis

From the greatest of the ancient tombs, come the forces of the Undead and their vampire leaders.

Nefsokar

Born of the Beautiful God Sokar, Commanded to Guard the Northern Garden. The ancient dead seek to reclaim the lost home - Taltos, the Northern Garden.

Reven

The alliance of the "degenerate races" of the steppes - orcs, beastmen, ogres, goblins, and worse.

Overlords

The slave traders of Craclaw, driven in the pursuit of power.

Darkspawn

Twisted elves, demons, and others that dwell underground - the enemies of all that is decent.

Reptus

The ancient reptilians are leaving their swamplands, to wreak revenge on those who have raided their treasures.

Crusaders

Do what is right. Let the consequence follow. The militant order that defends the people of Taltos.

The basics of each faction is provided in this rulebook. Future supplements will detail the major factions.

Creating Armies

Each of the factions has its own roster, allowing players to construct their forces using four types of models:

• Soldiers - the basic troops.
• Elites - More powerful soldiers, including clerics, heroes, mages, and rogues.
• Solos - Figures which fight alone, including certain monsters and war machines.
• Leaders - Figures able to command other figures. Includes sergeants, captains, and warlords.

Players spend points to purchase their Fighting Company. The selection of leaders is crucial, since leadership determines how many figures can be in a force. Figures are organized into Troops, which are either Solo models or groups of other models.

It is also possible to field a Freelance Company, consisting of models from any faction (as long as they have compatible affiliations - good, neutral, evil, and mercenary).

The Rules

Warlord is a "fast-paced, small unit, fantasy miniatures-based combat game" using the R.A.G.E. system (Reaper Adventure Game Engine).

Each game turn consists of a series of Initiative and Action phases - continuing until all troops have acted - and a final End Phase.

Using a standard deck of cards (or, alternately, the Warlord Data Cards that come with the figures), each side chooses a suit, and then a Draw Deck is constructed with one card for every Troop in their force. In some cases, special abilities will add bonus cards to the Deck. The drawing of a card determines which side has Initiative.

During the Action Phase, the player who has won initiative selects one of his Troops to perform up to 2 actions. Actions are considered combat (close combat, ranged combat, cast a spell, invoke, rally) or non-combat (move, pikc up, loot, regroup). Only one combat action may be performed per phase.

The combat system generally involves rolling a d10, applying modifiers, and comparing against a defensive value.

During the End Phase, the Draw Deck may lose cards (if figures were eliminated). The deck is then reshuffled.

The rules also cover Special Abilities (i.e., Firststrike, Horrid, Flyer), common spells (for clerics and mages), generic equipment, and Stunts (optional urban combat rules - such as leaping, searching, and climbing).

The Campaign

While the Warlord rules certainly allow players to determine a point score and fight a battle, the campaign rules provide a structure for a series of continuing struggles.

The campaign map - players may use the one provided, or come up with their own - defines the city and countryside as Blocks. Each block has an ID number, a category (urban, village or wild), and a type (such as dwellings, mining, dungeon, etc.). Some blocks are Unexplored at the start of the campaign.

Players start in control of several contiguous blocks, and receive the resources which those blocks generate. As they conquer more blocks (and can maintain contact with them), their resources will grow. Resources can be spent to acquire a Mansion or Castle, and to add guards or mercenaries to your forces.

During each campaign turn, players conduct their financial affairs (collecting and spending resources), write orders, reveal orders, resolve conflicts, and record advancements. Players can use their forces and resources to conduct political, financial, or physical attacks on neutral or enemy blocks. Since orders are written simultaneously, it is possible for multiple players to attack the same block(s).

Campaign actions often lead to armed conflict. Players decide whether to game out these actions on the tabletop, or to resolve them with a roll on the Combat Chart.

As the result of combat, individual figures may earn Squares and Circles, which may be eventually cashed in for advancements.

The rulebook concludes with 12 reference pages, including charts, forms, and campaign aids.

The Painting Guide

The rulebook also includes an 11-page guide to painting miniatures. Topics covered include washes, shading, highlights, drybrushing, layering, and details.