Frostgrave - Rules

[ChaosChild]

It strikes me that one potential use for group activations would be to gang up on the enemy in combat. Move two or three models into contact with the same enemy model, then when they fight as their second action they could all get the bonus for friendly models in the same combat.

Would this be a legitimate tactic?

[Jiron]

My question got lost in other, more serious questions so I will try again:

If the friendly model shoots into combat, the random roll is made after the shot. What if one of the models (the enemy one) is under effect of Glow? Will that affect the shooting roll or should the randomness be upgraded adequatelly.

The other question si Leap. Is it legit to leap a guy with treasure out of the table? In magic movement, there is a mention that if the model would cannot be forced to move from table "involuntarily". However, can I leap out friendly model to get him out faster? If I'd be a wizard hiring guys to carry stuff, I would prepare them that, I am able to do this so, they would leave table "voluntarily". :-)

Thanks for clarification.

[Lotan]

Hi gents, I have a quick question.

The leap spell moves the target model 10" and makes it so that it may not take any further actions this turn. Now, is this only friendly models or is it anyone? I know it would seem obvious, but every other spell that affects an enemy like that has a resist. Reveal Death, its 4 harder to cast, is resisted by will, and does not move the enemy but prevents activation. Or Petrify, 4 harder to cast, cannot take any actions in its activation, but it is resisted by a will roll vs cast and does not move them.

I hope you see why I'm asking, because at a cast difficulty of 4 less to stop further activation AND move the model 10", it seems vastly overpowered in comparison to other spells!

Secondly, it says you can make them leap 10" vertically. If you did it to an enemy and make them leap into the air 10", do they take falling as they return back down, or do they land safely?

Cheers! (great to have forum access to the author to get clarifications, you've done a cracking job on this Joe!)

[Calmdown]

Hi there Joe,

I'm looking for a few rules clarifications for my gaming group:


Decay - attacks "a target's weapon". Is this intended to mean that you choose a single weapon that the target is carrying?

Elenental Shield - presumably this cant stop Empowerment damage?

Elemental Hammer - can this be cast on a bow or arrow?

Embed Enchantment - presumably can be cast on an enchanted arrow (albeit it's still a one use item!)?

Teleport - When this spell says "may take no other action" does that mean you can use the other half of your action before the spell either? Ie is casting this a "long action" of sorts?

Spell Eater (and Dispel) - Can this target "global spells" such as Call Storm or Power/Draining Word and if so, what does the caster need line of sight to if anything? Also, what happens if you dispel a construct created with Animate Construct, or an animal summoned with Animal Companion? Can you Dispel a spell that has been made permanent with Embed Enchantment (assume not since its now a magic item)?

Steal Health - What happens if the target only has 1 or 2 hp?

Strike Dead - What happens when you cast this at 1hp? Does the spell go off or not?

Mind Control - What happens if the soldier that gets Mind Controlled has already activated this turn? Can he activate again for his new controller? Also, wha happens to both Soldier and Treasure if a Mind Controlled solider makes it off the board with a treasure counter?

Leap - Can this be cast on one of your models if it's already take its action?

Summon Demon and Imp - Nothing in these spells seems to indicate that the Imp summoned by the Imp spell would vanish if a Summoner summoned a Bound Imp or vice versa. That is correct right?

Circle of Protection - Is the Circle centred on the caster? Or centred on the point that the caster touches?

Blinding Light - Is the "otherwise the spells lasts until the end of the game" clause supposed to mean something or is it just clarfiying the fact that the spells continues unless saved at the start of any turn?

Familiar - Is the familiar itself there for any purpose other than aesthetic? Presumably it cant be attacked and has no stats?

Poison Dart - Is this a magical or nonmagical attack?


Many Thanks

[joe5mc]

Chaos Child - I had forgotten about that possibility - yes, that is a completely legitimate tactic.

Jiron - when shooting into combat - roll randomly for which model is the actual target first. Then apply all modifiers, including for Glow.

Lotan - Leap can only be cast on a model in your warband or one under your control. It can be used to leap someone off the board, such as to secure treasure.

Calmdown - Good list! I don't have the book in front of me at the moment, so I'm hesitant to answer all of the questions in case I have forgotten something. I'm actually flying back to England from Historicon today, so give me a day or two to get back to you with the anwers.

[Calmdown]

Cracking, thanks!

[Lotan]

I'd hate to see your list of questions when you actually have a rulebook!

[Argonor]

Just waiting for couple of books and other stuff to arrive, but am watching this space!

[Argonor]

OK, having skated through some of the rules, I must say that I think that armour seems to be very ineffective in Frostgrave?

I have not read the combat rules, yet, but a bonus of max +3 for mail + shield does not seem much?

[Lotan]

OK, having skated through some of the rules, I must say that I think that armour seems to be very ineffective in Frostgrave?

I have not read the combat rules, yet, but a bonus of max +3 for mail + shield does not seem much?

The lowliest of thugs has 10 armour, then you add mail/leather/shields etc, it take some to 13. This means that the person has to beat your roll, AND roll at least a 14 (with modifiers) to do a single point of damage. So it is pretty good, it's not like you only get 3 armour.

[joe5mc]

Perhaps also worth noting that figures with higher armour tend to have higher health and the two work in tandem. Although their stats only seem slightly better, the Knight has a lot more staying power than the thug.

[joe5mc]

Okay, I'm still a bit jet-lagged, but let me try and answer those spell questions:

Decay - attacks "a target's weapon". Is this intended to mean that you choose a single weapon that the target is carrying?

Correct. So you could decay an archer's bow and he would still have his dagger. If you decay a thugs hand weapon, he is now unarmed. In fact, this is the main reason the 'unarmed' rules are in the game!

Elenental Shield - presumably this cant stop Empowerment damage?

No it can't. Nor will it stop damage from failing to cast spells. So, it should probably read "3 points of damage from any external source".

Elemental Hammer - can this be cast on a bow or arrow?

Yes. The spell should be cast on the arrow though (as the bow itself does not damage). This does mean if the next shot with the bow misses, or does no damage the spell is wasted.


Embed Enchantment - presumably can be cast on an enchanted arrow (albeit it's still a one use item!)?

Yes (and yes).

Teleport - When this spell says "may take no other action" does that mean you can use the other half of your action before the spell either? Ie is casting this a "long action" of sorts?

Should read 'may take no further actions'. So a wizard could move and then cast teleport (or theoretically, reload a crossbow as this takes the place of movement), but that's about it.

Spell Eater (and Dispel) - Can this target "global spells" such as Call Storm or Power/Draining Word and if so, what does the caster need line of sight to if anything? Also, what happens if you dispel a construct created with Animate Construct, or an animal summoned with Animal Companion? Can you Dispel a spell that has been made permanent with Embed Enchantment (assume not since its now a magic item)?

Spellcasters are assumed to have line of sight to any spell which is affected the entire battlefield, so they can attempt to Dispell or Spelleat (?) these spells from anywhere on the board. Neither spell has any effect on Animate Construct or Animal Companion, the spell that caused their existence or appearance is done and gone. Same with Embed Enchantment.

Steal Health - What happens if the target only has 1 or 2 hp?

It dies. More seriously the spellcaster still gains 3 health.  

Strike Dead - What happens when you cast this at 1hp? Does the spell go off or not?

You roll to cast the spell, resolve what happens, and then the spellcaster dies.

Mind Control - What happens if the soldier that gets Mind Controlled has already activated this turn? Can he activate again for his new controller? Also, wha happens to both Soldier and Treasure if a Mind Controlled solider makes it off the board with a treasure counter?

No. A Soldier can only activate once per turn, even if he switches sides during the turn. If a Mind Controlled soldier exits the board with treasure the treasure goes to the mind-controlling player. The soldier will return to his original warband after the game. Note this is the only instance where it is legal to use mind control to force a soldier to leave the table.

Leap - Can this be cast on one of your models if it's already take its action?

Yes. It should read target may take no further actions this turn.

Summon Demon and Imp - Nothing in these spells seems to indicate that the Imp summoned by the Imp spell would vanish if a Summoner summoned a Bound Imp or vice versa. That is correct right?

Correct. The two spells have nothing to do with one another.

Circle of Protection - Is the Circle centred on the caster? Or centred on the point that the caster touches?

It is centred on him. Although it will stay where it is, even if he moves.

Blinding Light - Is the "otherwise the spells lasts until the end of the game" clause supposed to mean something or is it just clarfiying the fact that the spells continues unless saved at the start of any turn?

It is just a reminder that the spell is not permanent - although this should be assumed for all spells unless otherwise stated.

Familiar - Is the familiar itself there for any purpose other than aesthetic? Presumably it cant be attacked and has no stats?

No. It's really just a stat boost that can also be used to add visual interest to a miniature.

Poison Dart - Is this a magical or nonmagical attack?

Magical. Although many things that are immune to non-magical attacks are also immune to poison.

Hope that clears a few things up!

[JamWarrior]

Sorry to re-post, but I think my question got missed in the group activation debate, and hopefully it's a quick easy one!

When making a new wizard and his starting warband, can you roll for Animal Companion/Animate Construct before buying soldiers?  As success in those spells takes a soldier slot this could impact on your decisions quite heavily.

[joe5mc]

No. Animal Companion is cast right before a game, after the rest of the warband is constructed.

[Argonor]

The lowliest of thugs has 10 armour, then you add mail/leather/shields etc, it take some to 13. This means that the person has to beat your roll, AND roll at least a 14 (with modifiers) to do a single point of damage. So it is pretty good, it's not like you only get 3 armour.

Yes, I can see that, now, after reading through the rest of the rules.

One thing I'm not sure that I understand is how to sacrifice a scroll to cause a failed spell to succeed (p60) - does it require a second roll?