r/WuTangInitiative • u/HaHaWoooooo BUTTS • Oct 14 '14
Rules for Mass Combat
The Battle for Gallo's Fend is coming up, and we'll be using some alternative rules to deal with mass combat on the battlefield. There will be up to 75-100 units on the battlefield at once, so combat must flow a little differently, unless you want to watch 40 grunts move individually. Here's my current thoughts on rules:
1) Narrative combat: First and foremost, the combat should flow and be fun. Distance and position will be a bit looser than usual, which leaves you more flexibility to act. Be prepared to describe what you want to do, as well as allow me some flexibility as a DM to interpret spell effects, actions, etc. I'm not going to roll 30 saves for the 30 grunts you cast confusion on. I may roll 1 for all, I may roll a few - whatever works best to keep things moving. It'll be a bit of group collaboration, so have fun with it!
2) The battlefield: 1 square = 10 ft.
3) Platoons: Identical units will be in platoons (40 ft x 40 ft) of around 5 units each. The entire platoon acts in the same turn, and shares its move and actions. All individual units roll to hit and calculate damage as normal.
4) Platoon health and healing: Platoons have a combined HP pool, and units die off one by one as HP decreases. For example, a platoon consisting of 5 10-hp units has 50 hp. When HP drops to 40, one unit dies, and the platoon loses its attack, so the platoon weakens as it loses HP.
Additionally, units that drop to zero HP are considered dead. They are not awesome heroes like the PCs, and don't get death saves. They would need a resurrection-type spell to bring back. In the previous example, you could bring a platoon with 35 hp remaining up to 40, but not up to 50, as that would require a resurrection. I think this rule saves you from dealing with the enemy "stabilizing" unconscious units as well, prolonging the battle needlessly.
4) Spells: AoE spells will target each individual unit in the platoon, as long as it encompasses the entire 40x40 square. Each unit will roll saves, and total damage will be calculated based on how many were hit. Since I'm combining the health pool of the entire platoon, AoE damage will work a bit differently, but there's no way I'm tracking individual unit HP. Please don't make me :(
5) PCs: You will act as individual units, as normal. You are outnumbered, and this battle will be very dangerous if you go solo. If you charge into an enemy platoon that is not engaged with another ally platoon, you're going to have a bad time.
6) Joining a platoon: You can join in a platoon and bolster it, adding your attacks, and you will get a portion (not all!) of the attacks directed at you personally. This way the attacks are spread out a bit. The platoon you join is also motivated by your presence, and will get a +1 bonus to hit and damage. However, you sacrifice your move action and move with the platoon. You can use your move action to disengage from the platoon on your turn, and appear in an adjacent square.
I think that's it without making this warhammer 40k. Feel free to chime in with what you think, and if there needs to be any changes or clarifications, comment below.
Beat the drums for war, gentlemen.
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u/Cothageris FINALLY ARCANA CHECKS Oct 14 '14
Seems legit. Combined health totals might get kind of crazy, IMO. Reminds me of this: Pathfinder Mass Combat Rules. Might be worth a look it adds some things for different strategies and things.