Foundry's God of Battles fantasy rules

[Timbor]

So I saw that foundry is having an open house to launch their fantasy ruleset, God of Battles.  http://wargamesfoundry.com/



Interestingly, the pictures depict figures in more of a skirmish formation:



Anyone hear much about these rules, and how they might be different or similar to current rulesets on the market?

GOD OF BATTLES RELEASE DATE AND OPEN DAY


God of Battles is Jake Thornton's new fantasy wargaming rules, in which players command armies of model soldiers to battle against each other across Aren’s troubled lands.

Jake is the author of our own Tribes of Legend, as well as having written Dreadball, Dwarf King's Hold and Project Pandora for Mantic Games.  Jake has done design work for Warhammer 6th edition, managed Blood Bowl, Necromunda and Mordheim and was the editor for White Dwarf for two years.

The book has over 285 full colour pages, weighs over 3.2 lbs.  and contains hundreds of exquisite Kevin Dallimore photos.
 

We are holding the book launch on the 1st and 2nd of March at our factory shop here in Nottingham.  We will open for visitors at 10am and finish at about 4:30pm on both days. Anyone is welcome to turn up and meet Jake Thornton, who will be pleased to sign copies of his book and answer his fellow gamer's questions.
 

We will have a stock of our new ranges of God of Battles miniatures which will be available at a discount on the day.
 

Your best bet for parking is the multi storey car park on Curzon Street (shown on the map as A).  It’s only a short walk from there to our front door (shown on the map as B).  The Curzon Street car park’s postcode for Sat Nav is NG3 1DE. There is also a good car park in the Victoria centre.

[Stavros Banjo]

A brief review & rundown of what to expect can be seen here:

http://thelostcityofcarcosa.com/2012/10/03/god-of-battles-a-rules-review/

So, basically looks identical to their previous game 'Tribes of Legend' but with a different hat on. I'm not dribbling with excitement myself, all looks a bit 'Warhammer lite' to me, but will probably buy it anyway. It's hell being a shiny new rulebook addict 

[Gibby]

Those are nice models in that picture. I've always liked the Ogres but they don't really fit a fantasy world in my head. Those elves are looking rather nice as well.

[Stavros Banjo]

I knew it was pointless trying to resist this new rulebook so dropped Foundry an email asking if I could pre-order a copy. Was a bit surprised to receive the reply "You can have one now, if you want". It landed on my mat the next day 

This is a stunning publication, very high production quality & full to the brim with gorgeous pics of painted models by Kevin Dallimore and co. Can't wait to dive in properly & see how the rules themselves play out. There is a definite Warhammer vibe about them, hardly surprising considering the author, but they do stand alone in their own right as a totally different game. Although the rules appear quite simple, the use of strategems & unit threat areas certainly make it more of a tactical game than first perceived. Some of the new forces that Foundry are releasing to support the game look pretty tasty too. Sea elves, anyone? Not too sure about the insectoid looking Tlekkan but the rest are great. There's full army lists & painting guides for each of the forces in the book too so no forking out extra cash for supplements - bonus!

I will hold my hands up & say that I didn't really expect much from this new set of rules & only purchased it because I'm a total rulebook junkie with an addiction to pretty pictures. Well done Foundry & Mr Thornton, you've proved me wrong. In fact it's all rather spiffing 

[workerBee]

Okay, cut to the chase:

Skirmish game?

Skirmish Lite/small units (up to 20 figures a la TSATF units) size games?  Thinking Viking Raids from a single ship or two.

Battle size games ?  Defined as unit based with heroic effects from characters.  Thinking very large raids or small invasions of Goths/Huns/etc., here.

Large Battles sized?  Defined as 4-6 units per player/players (multiple per side) of reasonable size (minimum 20 figures per unit,) heroes/characters represent command control/morale effect/limited Magic (no Fire balls that destroy 10 figures representing 100 or more actual troops,) with off board movement for flanking attack units.

Rules mechanics reflect Evil Empire in nature?  How close?

Are other sized/scale figures usable int he abse game or are the mechanics strictly 28+ mm driven in design?

Gracias,

Glenn

Edit: read the linked review above and while it answers some questions it raises more questions in my mind.

[axabrax]

Could this be used to flesh out the Mythic Greece game?

[Stavros Banjo]

Definitely not intended to be a skirmish game. More of a unit based mid to large battle affair. Unit size varies from around 6 figs for specialist/elite fighters up to around 12 figs for your average Orc, for example. Largest unit size from memory was 16. Units can either be formed in ranks or in a loose formation, each with its own merits & drawbacks. This is a points-based game when it comes to creating your army, with around say 6 or 7 units per side for a standard battle. There are scenarios in the book for both smaller & larger forces.

Combat is a very stripped down affair which I wasn't sure about at first but now actually quite like it. There's no roll to hit, roll to wound, roll armour saves a-la Warhammer, it's much more basic. Very quick & very brutal.

If your looking for a rules-heavy, crunchy game then I don't think God of Battles is for you. I would definitely say it's quite simplistic but with a few decent strategic elements to spice things up. Fast, fun & brutal is how I can best describe it. No reams of charts to refer to either. In fact, once you get into the swing of things you won't need to refer to the rulebook for much.

Sorry, probably hasn't really answered your questions in detail but I don't have the book to hand to be more specific.

Can't comment on how it would be of any use fleshing out the Mythical Greece game as I haven't played it. However, from what I know about it I suspect not.

[Gibby]

How exactly does combat work then, if I may ask?

[Conquistador]

Definitely not intended to be a skirmish game. More of a unit based mid to large battle affair. Unit size varies from around 6 figs for specialist/elite fighters up to around 12 figs for your average Orc, for example. Largest unit size from memory was 16. Units can either be formed in ranks or in a loose formation, each with its own merits & drawbacks. This is a points-based game when it comes to creating your army, with around say 6 or 7 units per side for a standard battle. There are scenarios in the book for both smaller & larger forces.

<snip>

This I like very much, being an old Fantasy Rules! 2nd Edition fan.

Armies may be "small" but they have a different flavor than  'skirmish on steroids.'

Gracias,

Glenn

[Conquistador]

<snip>

Combat is a very stripped down affair which I wasn't sure about at first but now actually quite like it. There's no roll to hit, roll to wound, roll armour saves a-la Warhammer, it's much more basic. Very quick & very brutal.

<snip>

Absolutely hated that mechanic (along with buckets of dice.)  Also not a fan of D6 when D10 exists.

Gracias,

Glenn

[Conquistador]

<snip>

If your looking for a rules-heavy, crunchy game then I don't think God of Battles is for you. I would definitely say it's quite simplistic but with a few decent strategic elements to spice things up. Fast, fun & brutal is how I can best describe it. No reams of charts to refer to either. In fact, once you get into the swing of things you won't need to refer to the rulebook for much.

<snip>

Despite being a 1970's grognard I find I prefer subtle, fast rules that reward "historical" tactics and Grand Tactics (not a ton of true strategic elements before armies get too large to be under good command/control with runners/aides de camp alone.)

I fear the price and window dressing that drives up the price may put it outside my budget.

Gracias,

Glenn

[Timbor]

I decided to give the rules a try - just ordered them tonight along with some of the rereleased ancient germans that are on 3-for-2.  If nothing else, it will give me some inspiration to paint my mercenary orcs and ogres... perhaps some rules for them if I wanted to incorporate them into other games as well!

The price wasn't too bad either - $38.  It's cheaper than a GW armybook nowadays 

It will probably be a week or two until it gets to me though.

[Stavros Banjo]

Absolutely hated that mechanic (along with buckets of dice.)  Also not a fan of D6 when D10 exists.

You probably won't be a fan of this either then, it's a d6 bucket of dice fest too 

For combat, attacker & defender roll a number of d6's depending on how many figures their unit contains. Additional dice are added or subtracted to their 'pool' for things like unit formation, leader present, standard or musician in the ranks & any special abilities the unit has. Subtracting the number of successful defence rolls from the number of successful attacks gives you the number of casualties inflicted.

[workerBee]

You probably won't be a fan of this either then, it's a d6 bucket of dice fest too  

For combat, attacker & defender roll a number of d6's depending on how many figures their unit contains. Additional dice are added or subtracted to their 'pool' for things like unit formation, leader present, standard or musician in the ranks & any special abilities the unit has. Subtracting the number of successful defence rolls from the number of successful attacks gives you the number of casualties inflicted.

Meh.  

Seriously, if they had used some combination of D4/D6/D8/D10 instead of D6 or base D10 with modifications I might have been tempted.  

At least it appears to use opposed dice that keeps at least two players "involved" during combat.  That's a good thing and faster then Hit/Wound/Save...

Now the following is said without reading the rules so understand there may be things that are incorrect because they are only based on perception and reported aspects of the rules:

I guess I don't see the value of a bonus for a leader and a standard and a musician.  Shades of the Wargames Research Group anal retentive (Javelins and bows anyone?) style.  This is a battle game, not skirmish, right?  In command or out of command; brilliant command or dullard command; yada-yada-yada all seem as capable as specialist figure presence for battle based games.

For a bucket of dice mechanic of subtract defense (or defence) dice from attack dice is okay (Force on Force does this well with D6 and D8.)  

And 16 dice, while excessive IMO, is manageable...  12 or less better IMHO.  

Guess I will have to check out the rules when someone local buys them first.

Gracias,

Glenn

[Stavros Banjo]

No complicated command rules here but having a leader is compulsory for every unit. Apart from adding additional dice to combat they are also the main focus for all movement & ranges. All ranges to & from a unit are measured to the leader. All movement is measured using the leader with the rest of the unit forming up around him at the end of the move. In other words, no faffing around wheeling & pivoting etc. simply move your leader and the rest of the boys follow. I know it all sounds rather basic but I kind of like it.

Regarding standards & musicians, a standard bearer grants you additional defence dice & musician additional attack dice. You decide wether to use their abilities or not during each round of combat as any casualties inflicted on your unit results in their immediate death.

Oh, and for those wondering, yes there are plenty of unique special characters, monsters & war machines for each of the different forces. They also all have their own style of play & magic so there's plenty of variety to be had.