The Rules:
I wasn't able to find any commercially available rule sets that I liked for this scenario. I ended up using a modified version of
Piquet. I've played Piquet's Archon (ancients to Dark Ages) and Cartouche (musket, American Rev. etc.) rule sets and liked the game mechanics quite a bit. I particularly like the fact that the players can't necessarily control everything that goes on on the battlefield. Particularly in the medieval context, I like the Piquet system because it is never certain what is going to happen when your mounted knights set up to charge a line of infantry: Will the archers be able to fire several times and mow them down, or will the knights contact the infantry without the archers being able to get off an effective volley? How quickly can your troops react to the sudden appearance of the enemy on their flank? The Piquet rule set introduces an element of uncertainty to these issues that I find refreshing compared to the traditional move/counter-move rule sets. I created a set of Piquet sequence cards specifically for this scenario.
While I adopted the Piquet initiative system and turn sequence, I had to modify the combat system almost entirely. The Piquet combat system operates on the assumption that units will be of roughly comparable size. In the Minas Tirith scenario, unit size can range from 3 to more than 70, so I utilized a combat system which would allow for this. It is a “fist-full of dice” system similar to the old TSR Chainmail rule set, where each figure rolls a die (or dice), with the number needed to kill the opponent determined by comparing the attacker and defender’s unit types (with a few modifications for tactical situation.)
All in all, the rules work reasonably well, and play quite quickly with no need for record keeping. Magic is pretty low-key, primarily enhancing (or harming) the combat and morale of targeted units, or aiding in personal combat between leaders.
Click HERE to view the rules in html. Click HERE to download the rules in Word Perfect format. Click HERE to download the rules in Rich Text format.
Click HERE to view the combat tables in html. Click HERE to download the combat tables in Word Perfect format. Click HERE to download the combat tables in rich text format.
Click HERE to view the sequence deck in html. Click HERE to download the sequence deck in Word Perfect format. Click HERE to download the sequence deck in Rich Text Format. The Word Perfect version is formatted to print on perforated Avery business card stock (available at office supply stores)
Click HERE to view the instructions for assembling the sequence and events deck. Click HERE to download the instructions for assembling the sequence and events deck in rich text format.
Click HERE to download unit tags in Word Perfect format. Click HERE to download unit tags in rich text format.