Simple Rules for a Skirmish Campaign

I’m been trying to cook up some simple rules for a Savage Worlds Skirmish Campaign set in World War Two. Thought I ought to set some down in cyberland.

For anyone that hasn’t been paying attention I’ve been running a skirmish campaign set on the East Front starting at the beginning of Operation Barbarossa. So far I’ve been completely “winging it” in terms of replacements and ammo and stuff. But I thought I’d like to come up with some sort of randomizing system to generate replacements and resupply, etc.

Wounds and Recovery - Extras

For each extra that was knocked out of action during the combat make a vigor roll (this is usually done at the end of a game – but can be done during the game if anyone goes to check on the downed comrade). The roll is modified by -2 if they were left on the battlefield and/or their side lost.

1 Killed in Action
2-3 Seriously Wounded
4+ (success) Lightly Wounded
8+ (raise) Knocked Out

A Killed in action extras is dead. Gone from the game for good.

A Seriously Wounded extra will miss the next game and roll again as above after the next game (feel free to apply any situational modifiers – harsh conditions, on the move, no medical attention, etc).

A Lightly Wounded extra will miss the next game but return the following game.

A Knocked Out extra was simply knocked out or otherwise temporarily combat ineffective, but is fit to return to action for the next battle!!

Any extras that are left on the table, and the enemy is in control of the field of battle at the end of the game, must check to see if they are captured. They must make a stealth roll to escape and evade (Lightly Wounded extras are at -2, Seriously Wounded extras are at -4). Failure means the extra is captured and remains a prisoner of war for the duration of the campaign and effectively removed from the game.

Wounds and Recovery - Wild Cards

This is dealt with as per the normal rules in the Savage Worlds book with the exception that each wild card may make one natural recovery roll between each scenario, regardless of how much time actually takes place (keeping in mind all situational modifiers; environmental conditions, on the move, lack of medical attention, etc). If there is a point in the campaign where the unit would be brought out of the line for an extended period of time the wild cards may make natural healing rolls for every full five days between actions.

If at all possible any wild card with one or two wounds may be evacuated to a hospital behind the lines – any with three or more will (if possible) be evacuated. They are out of the game until they recover (natural healing rolls every five days) and can return to action.

Experience – Extras

For every two actions that a team of extras takes part in they can have a level-up rank isn’t kept track of – they are limited to the improvements they can take in Showdown and must have all trait requirements to take the level up. Attributes can only ever be raised once each and attributes can only be raised every second level-up.

Replacement Credits

Each character with rank may make a replacement credit roll per turn. This is a d6-2 (or -3 if the unit is cut off from higher echelons that could supply replacements). Characters with rank may pool their replacement credits.

One replacement credit can replace one base level conscript with no experience. Replacements can be found for experienced units. A replacement for an experienced unit requires an additional replacement credit for each level-up the unit has had.

A Negative result on the Replacement Roll means one extra under the command of the Character in question is lost between games due to desertion, sickness, air or artillery bombardment, mines, etc…

Ammunition Credits

After every game, each wild card and unit of extras drops one ammo level. Before the next game each wild card and unit of extras will roll d4 to determine how much ammo they have been able to replace. This roll is modified as follows

-1 if in Good Supply
-2 if in Poor Supply – general lack of supplies or means to get it to the frontline units.
-3 if Out of Supply – looting corpses of friends and enemies

Again ammo credits can be pooled. Each Ammo credit will raise one wild card or unit one ammo level OR may be used to supply a unit/wild card with d4 grenades.

Fatigue

Each unit or wild card should check for fatigue if they are taking part in a second engagement within 6 (4? 12? 24?) hours, if they have been on the move and haven’t slept in over 24 hours, or if they are out of supply.

If a character had survival they may attempt to make a survival roll to avoid taking a fatigue test due to lack of supply (modified by -2 if on the move or in a region where food and water aren’t redily avaialbe – i.e. middle of a desert). For each raise another character or unit may ignore a fatigue test.

Hordes of the SAVAGE Things

Has anybody else considered using Hordes of the Things (or other tabletop rules) to resolve mass combat on the tabletop in their role-playing campaigns?

Since I first started playing role-playing games I always thought it would be awesome to have characters rise to a station where they could command full units or armies in battle. Around 1985/86 I bought AD&D Battlesystem when I first saw it. I don’t think I ever convinced anyone to ever play it with me. I certainly never got any D&D characters to lead armies…

We did play a lot of Mech Warrior/Battletech in High School – might have had characters leading lances (platoons/troops of 4 mechs), but that’s not QUITE the same. Maybe if we had gotten to playing Battleforce… or I think there was a strategic level game where you could play out planetary invasions.

Always wanted to track down a copy of Sriker for Traveller so mercenary characters could play out some tabletop actions, but never could… I did pick up Invasion Earth with some megalomaniac dream of characters being involved in that…

For a while I played Warhammer Fantasy Role-play with the hope that characters might lead Warhammer units. During a few brief (…or not-so-brief) moments I even imagined characters becoming heads of state or otherwise being somehow involved in a Mighty Empires Campaign (BWA-HA-HA-Ha-Ha-ha-ha-ha… heh… yeah…)

None of these ever really got off the ground.

I’ve been playing Savage Worlds for a couple years now and it’s great for small unit actions – I’ve had characters leading small units in skirmishes. But I still dream of having characters involved in MASSIVE battles. There is a system in the core book for working out the results of a massive battle, but I’m a miniature gamer at heart, I’ve got the toys, so I want to work out the battles on the tabletop.

One system that looked like it had some hope (and still does) is
Warmaster Ancients and it’s variants (Cold War Commander, etc). Commanders order units around and have a command value between 6 and 10, which correlates nicely with the Savage Worlds skill “Knowledge: Battle” (d4 = CV6, d6 = CV7, etc – one could even say an unskilled leader could have a CV of 5, but that would be disastrous – as it should be!).

I have recently fallen in love again with Hordes of the Things - a brilliantly simple, fast-playing tabletop fantasy miniature war game. As I have also been running a Savage Worlds fantasy campaign I have been giving some thought as to how Savage Worlds Characters might influence Hordes of the Things battles (you know for when they become king of a civilized land by their own hand… been reading some Conan too…). Mostly I have looked to the Mass Battle system right out of the Savage Worlds core book.

For those not familiar HOTT is played in alternate bounds, each turn being approximately 15 minutes. Each army (or command within a “Big Battle” army) has a general that rolls a PIP (Player Initiative Points) each die turn to determine how much he can maneuver his army. The army or command is generally made up of 9-12 stands that represent units of up to a couple hundred fighting men (and/or women… and/or critters…). When a stand fights another stand (possible aided by others) each side rolls a single six sided die, tactical factors are added, results are compared and the losing side is either pushed back, flees or is destroyed – depending what the different troops types involved and whether the result simple beat or doubled their opponents roll.

So if a character was commanding an army (or sub-unit/command) they should somehow be able to influence the PIP roll. I decided they should make a Knowledge: Battle roll each turn before the PIP roll. This could be a Group Roll – if there were multiple characters acting as advisors or a council of war.

BUST: -2 to PIP roll
FAILURE: -1 to PIP roll
SUCCESS: PIP roll is unmodified
ONE RAISE: +1 to PIP roll
TWO RAISES: +2 to PIP roll
(More than two raises won’t add anymore to the PIP die)

If the General’s stand is involved in direct combat the Character will also affect the combat results as below…

Other characters (and the General) leading, or simply accompanying stands should also be able to affect the combat results of the unit they are with. So on any turn that the stands they are accompanying are involved in combat (whether in close combat, shooting or being shot at!?) they should make some sort of appropriate skill roll (fighting for blades, spears, warband, etc, Shooting for shooters, maybe stealth for sneakers, etc).

This is NOT a group roll – if multiple characters are accompanying the same unit/stand the results of their skill roll are cumulative to a min/max of -2/+2 tactical factors.

BUST- the character takes 4d6 damage and if leading the unit the unit suffers a -2 tactical factor
FAILURE - the character takes 3d6 damage and if leading the unit the unit suffers a -1 tactical factor
SUCCESS – No damage, no bonus
ONE RAISE - If the character is leading the unit, the unit receives a +1 tactical factor, no other result otherwise.
TWO RAISES - If the character is leading the unit, the unit receives a +2 tactical factor. If the character is simply accompanying the unit his heroism inspires the unit and they receive +1 tactical factor
(More than two raises won’t add anymore to the PIP die)

Combat Results – if the unit/stand a character is accompanying recoils in combat or is destroyed they must make an immediate skill roll (no modifiers if recoiling, -4 if destroyed)
BUST – 4d6 damage and captured by the enemy!
FAILURE – 3d6 damage – make a second skill roll with all appropriate modifiers; success = escape, failure = captured!
SUCCESS – 2d6 damage
RAISE – no effect
(More than two raises won’t add anymore to the PIP die)


Bennies – Bennies can be used on the skill roles and to soak any damage. They can not be used for PIP die rolls.

Other Modifiers

In the Savage Worlds Mass combat rules in the book characters get a bonus +1 for each rank above Novice (i.e. Seasoned = +1, Veteran = +2, etc). I suppose this could apply. I had kind of thought only the skill roll should apply – what does it matter what their rank is – if they’re veteran and they’ve only raised their Knowledge: Battle or Fighting to d6… serves them right…! But then I suppose it’s to represent in some way the sum total of their knowledge and experience because it wouldn’t JUST be Fighting or Knowledge: Battle that they are using….

Shaken and Wounds - I’m wondering if I should ignore shaken results and effects. In the tactical game you get to check for recovery every 6 seconds… HOTT turns are ~15minutes… maybe one could burn a benny to remove it, or try to recover on their next bound. If they fail they are -1 to all skills for that turn, then automatically recover at the end of that bound (assuming they aren’t shaken again…?). Penalties for wounds sustained should affect the characters trait rolls as per normal – hard to make those snap decisions when your bleeding from your head…

Darkness, etc…? Meh… I guess any situational modifiers could be left to the GM. I can’t think of any others I’d really use.

I might tinker with this yet… I think in the GURPS mass combat rules there combat results and survival were separate rolls and giving yourself a bonus to one affected the other – i.e. if you wanted to be rash/brave and throw yourself into the thick of it you would get a bonus to the combat results but an equal negative modifier to your survival roll or if you wanted to be cowardly you could take a negative modifier to your combat results, but were more likely to survive. I like the idea, but I also like the simple one roll above… we shall see.

Thoughts? Post a comment below!

The Hats

I love hats. I have quite a collection. I use them all the time when playing wargames. Whenever I've run Savage Worlds Demos at conventions and stuff I've brought along a hat for each character. It helps with immediate identification of who is who and sometimes even helps the players get into the role.


This was at the Pulp Adventure game I ran at Edmonton Mayday in 2007

So anyone that shows up with a hat appropriate to their character will get an instant level-up and maybe even a bonus benny fro each session they show up with it.... I'm still thinking on that one...

House Rules for Savage Saturday

PAY ATTENTION THOSE WHO ARE PLANNING ON PLAYING!!!

First a couple of rules pertaining to the Game night itself:

WE will be STARTING at 8PM sharp! So show up anytime after about 7:30 but before 8PM. I give out bennies at 8PM if you aren't here you don't get any!!!

I will be accepting bribes for bennies as in the past, but as I've been trying to cut back on the root beer consumption (and doing pretty good, I've only had two in the last 14 weeks) I will now ONLY accept ORGANIC root beer as bribes for bonus bennies. Santa Cruz are available from Steep Hill Food Co-op and I think there’s one available at some Safeways… (“Brews” or something like that…).

Also anyone that posts a comment on this blog with their (or rather their CHARACTER’s) take on the evenings adventure will get a bonus benny the next week.

Next post I’ll get to some actual house Rules for the Savage Worlds System!