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Author Topic: Dux Anyaral, Big Battles in the World of Twilight  (Read 7123 times)
NickH
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« on: March 24, 2014, 01:30:59 pm »

I really like the World of Twilight but I just don't have any enthusiasm for 'warband' type games so my intention with my figures is to use them for 'big battles'. Actually, if I'm being nerdy about it the games I want to play are large skirmishes representing clashes between a few hundred combatants. The kind of games I'm looking to play will be in the form of a narrative campaign between a fubarnii tribe and raiding devanu brought together by a high-kopa.

I'm going to base the rules on the well-received Dux Britanniarum rules by the TooFatLardies which are set in post-Roman Britain at the time of the Saxon raids (the 'Age of Arthur'). My reasons for choosing these rules are as follows:
  • The settings are similar, a settled people fighting to defend their lands against savage raiders
  • Both settings pitch asymmetric forces forces against one another
  • Both the official Twilight rules and Dux Britanniarum emphasise leadership and training (or innate abilities) over technology
  • Dux Britanniarum has proved very adaptable (there's at least one other fantasy version available)
  • Dux Britanniarum is not fussy about how models are based

As a working title I suggest using Dux Anyaral as the name for this project ('dux' means leader in Latin http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dux|) as it will allow both fans of Anyaral and fans of Dux Britanniarum to search for it easily.

Dux Anyaral will be built around a narrative campaign with each player being either a fubarnii tribal leader struggling to defend and improve their land or an aspiring devanu kopa attempting to weld fractious family groups into a conquering force.

At the start of a campaign I expect a standard fubarnii force to be (total 44 figures):
  • Leader and champion/bodyguard
  • 2 captains (subordinate leaders)
  • 1 unit of elite troops (6 figures)
  • 2 units of warriors (6 figures each)
  • 3 units of levy (6 figures each)
  • 1 unit of skirmishers (4 figures)
Note that I'm not specifying what figures to use for each type of unit, that might vary from tribe-to-tribe, however 'special' weapons like deraks should not be given to levy units. As fubarnii are slower than devanu I will need to find some way to compensate for their relative lack of mobility, possibly by replacing the skirmishers with light cavalry.

At the start of a campaign I expect a standard devanu force to be (total 21 figures, because of their larger size each devanu/grishak/kosok model fights as 2):
  • Aspyring Kopa and bodyguard/pet (grishak or kosok)
  • 2 under kopa (subordinate leaders)
  • 2 units of elite troops (sempa & 2 grishaks each)
  • 3 units of warriors (3 grishaks each)
  • 1 unit of skirmishers (archer equivalents, I'm going to use kosoks) (2 figures)
I've been more specific with figures here as the devanu have a smaller range to choose from but feel free to adapt to suit your collection, the important thing is the number of models and troop quality.

Over the course of a campaign a successful leader might add a dozen or so additional figures to their force if fubarnii, half that if devanu.

Games are scenario driven, you always use all your available force however this may be reduced by losses in previous game(s) unless you take the time to recruit replacements.


EDIT: corrected spelling of Anyaral  Embarrassed
« Last Edit: March 26, 2014, 06:42:14 pm by NickH » Logged
Lost Egg
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« Reply #1 on: March 24, 2014, 08:55:44 pm »

Interesting idea though I know nothing of Dux Britanniarum.
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NickH
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« Reply #2 on: March 24, 2014, 09:30:43 pm »

Interesting idea though I know nothing of Dux Britanniarum.
I'll explain a few of the concepts as I sketch out my ideas for big battles in Anyarel.
You should be able to find several reviews and blogs covering Dux Britanniarum with a quick search including the TooFatlardies' own website: http://toofatlardies.co.uk/blog/?s=dux
It's not a ruleset that I have played a lot because I'm not interested in wargaming the Age of Arthur, however it has been on my 'must adapt' list for some time and I feel that the fantasy world of Anyarel, with its self-consistent and realistic feel is a good match for the rules.

One thing about the rules you may find unusual is that movement distances are not fixed, you roll dice to see how far units move each time they are activated. When I first discovered the TooFatlardies rules a few years ago I thought this was silly, now I appreciate that it's a very good model of both the problems caused by micro terrain features too small to show on the table and the hesitancy real-world fighters show when facing mortal danger.
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serin
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« Reply #3 on: March 26, 2014, 06:33:19 pm »

Very interesting. As I am acquiring more and more models (!), the concept of a 'big battles' system appeals.

Pedantically though, isn't it AnyarAl rather than AnyarEl?

Seriously I look forward to early drafts.
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NickH
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« Reply #4 on: March 26, 2014, 06:38:45 pm »

Pedantically though, isn't it AnyarAl rather than AnyarEl?

 Embarrassed  I've corrected the title of the post.
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NickH
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« Reply #5 on: March 30, 2014, 03:02:44 pm »

Sorry for no further details here, I didn't want to confuse things during the last few days/hours of the kickstarter.


One thing I will do is clarify what this project is not:
  • First, and most importantly, I'm not trying to 'fix' the official rules, because they are not broken!
  • Second it's not meant to be a solution for people who want the same sort of game, just with more figures (I think someone commented on the kickstarter campaign about doing just that).

My aim is to create a system that allows you to play out some of the larger struggles for Anyaral,  EG to be able to play through the story of a fubanarii as they rise from lieutenant in command of a local defence force, through to captain in command of a clan's defence to general of the empire over the course of several games.

You may be worried that I'm trying to shoehorn the rich world of Anyaral into a 'foreign' set of rules, I understand that concern and I'd like to assure everyone that this is not my intention! With your help I would like identify the key aspects of combat in Anyaral and make sure they're replicated in the rules. Please be aware, however, that because the game will be played at a somewhat higher level (one model representing several fighters, rather than one-to-one) some of the differences between troop types will need to be abstracted to ensure the game remains playable.
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Carcharoth
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« Reply #6 on: March 31, 2014, 08:27:06 am »

This is an excellent idea - creating a completely different style of game but staying true to the world I've created  Smiley
I'll also work on larger scale rules based on the skirmish rules, but the two can comfortably coexist and will play very very differently!
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Kryptovidicus
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« Reply #7 on: April 01, 2014, 05:54:51 am »

While I'm not a big fan of larger battles myself, I can see the merit of such rules.
What I find very interesting are the risk like rules you present, where one miniature represents a full unit.
It's like moving on a general's map.
Perhaps it would be cool if you scale down the terrain too 15mm (or even 6mm in really large battles).
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NickH
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« Reply #8 on: April 01, 2014, 09:35:34 am »

What I find very interesting are the risk like rules you present, where one miniature represents a full unit.
You can't say things like that to a grognard (big-battle wargamer), it's like telling a Texan his pickup truck isn't big enough  Grin

Quote
It's like moving on a general's map.
That's about it. You command the leader and sub-leaders whilst hoping the sergeant (or equivalents) get the troops to do what you want.
There will be Fate cards to simulate things like getting off a co-ordinated derak volley or a (particularly) aggresive charge by the devanu.

Quote
Perhaps it would be cool if you scale down the terrain too 15mm (or even 6mm in really large battles).
I don't think we can ask Mike to re-sculpt Anyaral in 15mm or 6mm  Shocked
You could probably find some proxies in 6mm or 10mm, I'd suggest starting a search with http://www.irregularminiatures.co.uk, not because they are the best (they aren't) but because the impressionistic sculpting style may be easier to reinterpret with a suitable paint job.

Seriously, one of the reasons I'm suggesting Dux Britanniarum is that those rules were designed to be played with (not too many) 28mm miniatures so we can still enjoy playing with the characterful Anyaral miniatures whilst recreating larger battles.
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hithero
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« Reply #9 on: April 01, 2014, 10:31:49 am »

What army sizes work for this game?
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NickH
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« Reply #10 on: April 01, 2014, 10:53:42 am »

As a fubarnii leader you would start a campaign with an army of 44 figures, this might grow to 50-60 over the course of a long campaign as your fame grows.

For a devanu leader you would need only 21 figures as each devanu or beast figure would fight as two furbanii troopers (leaders are a bit different) that might grow to about 30 figures. The 'fights as two' rule is because even a grishak looks much more massive than a fubarnii and to somewhat balance the costs of buying an army.

I realise these are quite large forces compared to what you need for the skirmish game but there's no rules dictating what minis you use in a unit so long as your opponent knows what they count as. In part this is possible because the game does not use points, instead it uses starting armies with fixed composition to ensure each campaign starts off balanced.
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Kryptovidicus
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« Reply #11 on: April 01, 2014, 05:56:15 pm »

Sorry if I offended you, didn't mean too  Undecided.


I actually meant to use smaller terrain with the excisting miniatures. As a single miniature represents a whole unit (or larger group) you could enhance the map feel by shrinking your terrain. Suddenly a simple countryside becomes a territorium. And where you only have a few buildings to represent a city in 28mm. You could have an entire group (single miniature) occupy a city if the terrain is 6mm.
It's just an idea though
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NickH
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« Reply #12 on: April 01, 2014, 06:27:13 pm »

Sorry if I offended you, didn't mean too  Undecided.
No offence taken! (my reply was meant to be taken as a joke  Embarrassed)

Quote
I actually meant to use smaller terrain with the excisting miniatures. As a single miniature represents a whole unit (or larger group) you could enhance the map feel by shrinking your terrain. Suddenly a simple countryside becomes a territorium. And where you only have a few buildings to represent a city in 28mm. You could have an entire group (single miniature) occupy a city if the terrain is 6mm.
It's just an idea though
It's a very good idea  Smiley
Ideally you want models which are almost 'true scale' in the vertical but 1/2 scale (or so) in the horizontal.
This may be possible if you use printed terrain, also some model railway terrain is deliberately out of scale with itself.


For playing infantry-centric WW2 skirmish I've got 25mm infantry, 1/72 (about 20mm) tanks and 15mm buildings (but mounted on thick bases to give them height).
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Kryptovidicus
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« Reply #13 on: April 01, 2014, 06:44:07 pm »

Sorry if I offended you, didn't mean too  Undecided.
No offence taken! (my reply was meant to be taken as a joke  Embarrassed)

 Smiley Didn't know how serious you were taking it (and noticed the smiley too late).
Where does the term grognard come from by the way?
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NickH
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« Reply #14 on: April 01, 2014, 07:27:49 pm »

Grognard mean grumbler in French and its common use is said to date from Napoleon who used it as a familial term for his veteran/old soldiers who were always grumbling about something.

It's been taken up by a section of the wargaming community (particularly those who play 'heavy' hex-and-counter games) as an honorific.
Outside of that community it's sometimes used an a dismissive epithet to describe people who won't play a game unless every last technical detail is correct.

I wouldn't describe myself as a grognard, but I wouldn't take offence at it either Wink
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