Wargames with campaigns

[simons]

Hey all,

Right now I'm looking around to try to find games that have campaign modes (or, rules that allow you to play from game to game with the same group, somewhat akin to an RPG).  What all is out there?  I'd like to see party-based games (as opposed to army based), although the genre doesn't matter too much (fantasy, sci-fi, or anything else, though fantastic would be better).  

What have people done?  What has worked the best?  Also, are any of these games freely downloadable?

Simon

[Mainly28s]

The first one that springs to mind is "Mordheim", available for free from Games Workshop's sites (10-15 figures per side). Necromunda is the Sci-Fi version.

The second (third?) is Warhammer Ancient Battles, which is slightly larger in scope (about 75-100 figures).

Warrior Kings is also a possibility, although it is definitely more army-oriented (definitely over 100 figures per army).

[simons]

Okay, thanks.  I have seen the various GW games out there, but was kind of curious if anyone else was doing this.  I kind of hoped they didn't have a solid monopoly on the that genre.

Um, in terms of the game "Warrior Kings," is this what you meant:
http://www.angelfire.com/az3/twohourwargames/files/free/MayhemWarriorKings.pdf
It does have a rather simple campaign mode (interesting, there is no risk to losing your own characters in battle), but it doesn't look like a 100+ figure army game.  Is there another game out there with that title?  I know there's a computer game called "Warrior Kings," so I'm wondering if there are other things I just couldn't find via Google.

Simon

[Poliorketes]

The real thing is Mighty Empires from GW. Not the new game but the one from around 1990. AFAIK GWUS has the rules for free as a download, just search their site. Bur beware - this is not a 08/15 campaign but for hardcore campaigners.

Another really good s<ystem are the Warmachine Campaigns in the WM-supplements

[Mainly28s]

Um, in terms of the game "Warrior Kings," is this what you meant:
http://www.angelfire.com/az3/twohourwargames/files/free/MayhemWarriorKings.pdf
It does have a rather simple campaign mode (interesting, there is no risk to losing your own characters in battle), but it doesn't look like a 100+ figure army game.

Simon

Yup, that's the one- it relies on units of figures, and in order to play a decent-sized game you need several units of +/- 20 figures each.

As for campaigns- GW does seem to add a campaign to most of their rule sets, which I found sadly lacking from many other rule sets. Still, it's fairly easy to adapt a GW campaign to any other rule set.

[Ruarigh]

Um, in terms of the game "Warrior Kings," is this what you meant:
http://www.angelfire.com/az3/twohourwargames/files/free/MayhemWarriorKings.pdf

Yup, that's the one- it relies on units of figures, and in order to play a decent-sized game you need several units of +/- 20 figures each.

Actually, that link is to Mayhem:Warrior Kings, which is not the same as Warrior Kings. Both are from Twohourwargames, but Mayhem:Warrior Kings and Mayhem: Warrior Heroes are skirmish level games that only require a few figures each per side. I have played both and really enjoyed them, but prefer to adapt THW's Legends of Araby for skirmish gaming. LoA has a sub-RPG campaign system that gives you a wide variety of encounters in town and more combat-oriented encounters outside the town. It has an Arabian nights setting, but could easily be adapted to suit other settings too.

Warrior Kings is a massed battle game that involves elements of troops and not singly-based figures. It is similar to Warrior Heroes and I actually prefer Warrior Heroes for massed battles because the game and campaign are more evolved. I play WH using 15mm figures on 60mm x 30mm bases. My basic Viking army for this has about 200 figures in it.

Another game you might look at is Wargods of Aegyptus. While it is a warband level game (30-50 figures per person initially) the narrative campaign works really well, and could be a way to take your games forward.

Hope this helps,
Ruarigh

[PeteMurray]

Tooting my own horn here, you might also want to look at the Rattrap Productions games - .45 Adventures, Gloire, and Fantastic Worlds. These are very small-scale miniatures games, requiring less than a handful of figures per side. There are now character advancement rules for all three systems, though only Fantastic Worlds covers them in the core book.

The Rattrap site is here, or you can follow the link to Gloire in my signature. I'm the author of that game. There are demo versions of the rules for you to try out, if you like.

Best of luck!