Scales Of War
Source: White Dwarf #496
Warriors who survive the lethal environment of the outer Gnarlwood find themselves facing an even deadlier challenge - the Scales of Talaxis. A swampland near the very heart of the Gnarlwood, the landscape is dotted with damaged Seraphon technology. Though often inert, these giant edifices can suddenly activate, obliterating all life nearby, or worse, sending waves of celestial energy into the pools of primordial gunk that surround them. Though not immediately lethal, the supercharged horrors that emerge from the pools most certainly are. Yet still there are those who face such dangers unbowed, their greed or lust for glory overpowering their fear or survival instincts.
A Month of War
This article gives you all the information you will need to run a small Warcry tournament in your gaming group over the course of a month. You could play all the games in a single weekend, or even a day, or you could space the games out over the month. Bear in mind that the event needs an organiser, someone who is willing to collate results and allocate opponents. This is not a difficult job to do at a small event and shouldn't prevent that person playing either!
- To begin with, each player needs to pick a 1,000-point warband using the rules in the Core Book, pg 60. Once a player's warband is selected, they can't make any changes to it during the event.
- Then, a battleplan is determined at random by rolling a dice and comparing it to the numbers on the battleplans in this article. More information can be found on those battleplans later in this article.
- Then, each player is randomly assigned an opponent and they get to gaming! Once the battle is completed, the players report their results to the organiser and get ready for their next battle.
- The organiser then ranks each player based on their results - first by the player with the most Victory Points, followed by Kill Points as the secondary sort (see pg 96 of the Core Book).
- The organiser then assigns each player their next opponent. There are many ways to do this, but the simplest is the `Swiss' method, whereby the first-place player plays the second-place player, the third-place player plays the fourth-place player, and so on. If a player has already played someone, simply swap them with someone who they have not played with, ideally one who is as close as possible to them in the rankings. If you have 6 or fewer players, the 'round robin' option is likely better, whereby each player simply plays each other player once, regardless of their rankings.
- Once the desired number of battles have been fought, the final results are tallied and prizes are awarded! Some example prizes are below; players should feel free to add more.
First Place - Awarded to the player who won the most victories.
Second Place - Awarded to the player who won the second highest number of victories.
Third Place - Awarded to the player who won the third highest number of victories.
The 'Wooden Spoon' - Awarded to the player who won the fewest victories.
Talaxian Honours - Awarded to the player who received the most 'favourite game' votes.*
*Favourite Game Votes - To gather this information, the organiser should simply ask each player to vote (usually in secret) regarding which game they enjoyed the most. The opponent who receives the most votes wins the award.
How Many Games?
You can play as many games as you like. You don't even need to run a tournament to use these battleplans; they are perfectly useable for one-off games too. When running an event of any size, if you want to play through everything in an evening, three is as many as you are likely to get finished comfortably. If you have a whole day, or even a weekend, then playing through all six would be ideal.
Swamps Or Not?
These battleplans work perfectly well with both sides of the 'swamp' battlefields that can be found in Scales of Talaxis, and equally well with the Heart of Ghur battlefields.
In Summary
So there you have it, some simple yet fun battleplans and a rough guide on how to arrange some games with your friends or gaming group over a month. All that remains is to present the battleplans you'll need and wish you good hunting in the depths of the Gnarlwood.
Battleplans
The following six battleplans are designed for matched play in games of Warcry. Matched play battleplans are intended to give each player an even chance at victory, with player choice being the ultimate determining factor in who rises up to snatch victory against all odds.
Deployments
Each of these battleplans has a unique deployment linked to a specific victory condition. To allow a game to be played through in an hour or less, only one battle group from each warband starts on the battlefield - this makes battle round 1 a nice and quick affair. The others arrive at the start of battle round 2, and this is often where the action really begins. Finally, no one battle group has an inherent advantage over any other, as over the six battleplans each battle group begins the battle twice, so if you play through all six, then you are best off dividing your warband up into relatively evenly powered groups.
Victory Conditions
Each battleplan comes with a victory condition, which comes with both primary and sidequest victory conditions. The primary is similar in each battleplan, and the sidequest is unique. In addition, the number of objectives often varies considerably, and the combination of those three factors makes each battleplan a very different experience, never mind what warbands are being used!
Swamp Raid
Two hunting expeditions catch sight of each other in the early light of a new day, while mists still cover the ground. Each races to secure vital supplies while stealing what they can from enemy hands.
Deployment Map
Victory Condition
Before the battle, 4 objectives are placed on a platform or the battlefield floor as shown on the deployment map. At the end of each battle round, the players score 1 victory point for holding 1 or more objectives, 1 victory point for holding more objectives than the other player and 1 victory point for holding 2 or more objectives. The battle ends after 4 battle rounds. The player with the most victory points wins the battle. Any other result is a draw.
Sidequest: Raiding Supplies: At the end of each battle round, score 3 victory points if your warband controls an objective your opponent controlled at the start of that battle round.
Twist: This battleplan has no twist. You could add a twist from the Hunter and Hunted book to represent battling around the Scales of Talaxis.
Deadly Encounter
A vicious battle for resources erupts in the swamplands surrounding Talaxis as two hungry warbands descend on some essential supplies.
Deployment Map
Victory Condition
Before the battle, 4 objectives are placed on a platform or the battlefield floor as shown on the deployment map. At the end of each battle round, the players score 1 victory point for holding 1 or more objectives, 1 victory point for holding more objectives than the other player and 1 victory point for holding 2 or more objectives. The battle ends after 4 battle rounds. The player with the most victory points wins the battle. Any other result is a draw.
Sidequest: Might Makes Right: When determining control of an objective, each player must pick one friendly fighter within 3" of that objective (if any). Of those fighters, if one fighter has a higher Wounds characteristic, that fighter counts as 1 additional fighter for the purposes of determining control of that objective.
Twist: This battleplan has no twist. You could add a twist from the Hunter and Hunted book to represent battling around the Scales of Talaxis.
Rush for Riches
Two sides barrel forwards, intent on gathering as much riches as possible before reprisals can be brought to bear, or worse, the arcane energies of the Scales of Talaxis erupt into life.
Deployment Map
Victory Condition
Before the battle, 3 objectives are placed on a platform or the battlefield floor as shown on the deployment map. At the end of each battle round, the players score 1 victory point for holding 1 or more objectives, 1 victory point for holding more objectives than the other player and 1 victory point for holding 2 or more objectives. The battle ends alter 4 battle rounds. The player with the most victory points wins the battle. Any other result is a draw.
Sidequest: Gather What You Can, Leave the Rest: After determining control of an objective, each player scores 1 additional victory point for each subsequent turn they have controlled the same objective.
Twist: This battleplan has no twist. You could add a twist from the Hunter and Hunted book to represent battling around the Scales of Talaxis.
Blades of Blood
A deep and abiding hatred exists between two warbands, and when on the search for riches and artefacts in the mires, an opportunity arises to settle the matter once and for all.
Deployment Map
Victory Condition
Before the battle, 3 objectives are placed on a platform or the battlefield floor as shown on the deployment map. At the end of each battle round, the players score 1 victory point for holding 1 or more objectives, 1 victory point for holding more objectives than the other player and 1 victory point for holding 2 or more objectives. The battle ends alter 4 battle rounds. The player with the most victory points wins the battle. Any other result is a draw.
Sidequest: A Bloody Victory, or None At All: Score 1 victory point each time an enemy fighter within 3" of an objective is taken down.
Twist: This battleplan has no twist. You could add a twist from the Hunter and Hunted book to represent battling around the Scales of Talaxis.
Hidden Treasures
Two warbands battle over treasures yet to be revealed, hidden as they are in the murky waters of the Scales of Talaxis. When they do emerge from the gunk, the fighting will grow ever more deadly.
Deployment Map
Victory Condition
Before the battle, 2 objectives are placed on a platform or the battlefield floor as shown on the deployment map. At the end of each battle round, the players score 1 victory point for holding 1 or more objectives, 1 victory point for holding more objectives than the other player and 1 victory point for holding 2 or more objectives. The battle ends after 4 battle rounds. The player with the most victory points wins the battle, Any other result is a draw.
Sidequest: Treasures Revealed: At the end of the second and third battle rounds, after the players have scored victory points, the player with the fewest victory points must pick one of the two locations shown in red on the deployment map and place an objective there on a platform or the battlefield floor. The same location cannot be picked more than once.
Twist: This battleplan has no twist. You could add a twist from the Hunter and Hunted book to represent battling around the Scales of Talaxis.
Gifts From the Gods
Two warbands battle as the gods watch on, eager to help their side win, for the treasures hidden within the Scales of Talaxis are well worth the divine investments.
Deployment Map
Victory Condition
Before the battle, 3 objectives are placed on a platform or the battlefield floor as shown on the deployment map. At the end of each battle round, the players score 1 victory point for holding 1 or more objectives, 1 victory point for holding more objectives than the other player and 1 victory point for holding 2 or more objectives. The battle ends after 4 battle rounds. The player with the most victory points wins the battle. Any other result is a draw.
Sidequest: Divine Gift: Starting from battle round 2, at the end of each battle round, after both players have scored victory points, the player with the fewest victory points can pick 1 friendly fighter within 3" of the centre of the battlefield who is not carrying treasure. That fighter is now carrying treasure. If that fighter cannot carry treasure, they drop that treasure (see pg 75 of the Core Book). At the end of the battle, the players score 1 victory point for each friendly fighter who is carrying treasure.
Twist: This battleplan has no twist. You could add a twist from the Hunter and Hunted book to represent battling around the Scales of Talaxis.