Solo Wargaming Rules, V.

1
By David Hiscocks

Remember, solo wargame rules only work if you play fair. If you don’t, you are only cheating
yourself…
The following rules offer a very basic guideline for solo wargaming. These rules are a work in
progress. However, despite this I feel that they are complete enough to start getting other
people’s opinions on them. Any suggestions or amendments please email the author at
david.hiscocks@googlemail.com and they will be much appreciated!
As such these are designed for use with the majority of wargaming rules (not for RPG’s
however). Because of this they are by necessity vague and so will probably require a degree of
tweaking for your preferred rules to make them most appropriate. With that in mind I hope that
this ruleset offers a starting point. Good luck!

**NOTE**
These rules are a work in progress and do not yet cover unit movement on the battlefield
during a game. So far these include only deployment and deciding who moves first.
 Contents
Topic Page

The main rule

Setting up
Tools
The Commander
Deployment

The Battle
Objectives
Deciding who moves first
On the battlefield

Conclusion

The Main Rule

If you are ever in doubt about what you should do, then you should always give the enemy
the advantage. War is hell after all, you do not always get your own way. Also, where is the
fun in not being challenged?

Setting Up
Tools
2x D6’s
A sense of sportsmanship and a willingness to play in character

The Enemy Force

The enemy will be known as Autonomous Force (AF).
The composition of the AF will be up to the player to decide. If you want to insert an element
of randomness then I would suggest that 2+ army lists are created, with the one to be used
decided upon with a die.
The Commander
The commander of the enemy force represents the other ‘player’, in their role as an embodiment
of the enemy force leader, general, etc. In a sense the ‘commander’ is an amalgamation of the
enemy player, and the commanding officer they represent. The commander’s traits may be
temporary, enforced on them by circumstances (e.g., lack of supplies, etc). Or they may be
inherent to that individual.
Roll a D6 for the character of the commanding officer of the Autonomous Force (AF). 1 This
will determine deployment as well as the meaning of the cards you will be drawing later for
actions.
1- Reckless
2- Aggressive
3- Indecisive
4- Cautious
5- Average
6- Tactical Genius

Deployment
For the purposes of determining the deployment of AF units, references will be made to the
following map which represents the AF’s deployment zone. Zones A, B, and C run along the
board edge, while D, E, and F are closest to the enemy deployment zone.
If a deployment instruction is not a valid action in the game system EITHER, a) modify the action if
there is a similar in-game action they could take similar to the invalid one. Or, b) decide on two (or
more) options and roll a D6.

A certain amount of common sense must be used when deploying the AF units. Remember you only
cheat yourself if you do something obviously ridiculous (such as deploying a unit in an open grassy
field knowing it is under the guns of a machine gun company, that sort of thing). If you are unsure
whether what you’re doing is sportsmanlike, then toss a coin to decide if you can or cannot deploy a
unit there. Play to the spirit of these rules, not the letter.

A B C
1If playing a campaign, or if you simply already have a personality for a commander planned out, just pick the
most appropriate option from the list.
 D E F
1-2 Reckless or Aggressive
Infantry on foot must be placed in Zone B, D, F and E, with at least 50% in Zone E
Artillery must be placed in Zone B
‘Fast/ Heavy’ forces, tanks, cavalry, mechanised infantry, excluding scout units, must be placed
in Zones D, E, and F. 50% of these forces must be placed in Zone E.
Scouts must be placed in Zones D, E, and F in equal proportion. The first scout unit must be
placed in Zone E however.
a) No units may be placed in terrain that would slow that unit’s movement down UNLESS
that piece of terrain is or holds an objective the force must hold.
b) No units may be placed in overwatch (or similar).
c) No units may be placed in reserve. Nor may any enter the board from a flank.
d) No units may be hidden.
e) The AF will start deploying first.

3-4 Indecisive or Cautious

Infantry on foot must be placed in Zone B and E, with at least 50% in Zone B
Artillery must be placed in Zone B
‘Fast/ Heavy’ forces, tanks, cavalry, mechanised infantry, excluding scout units, must be placed
in Zones A, and C in equal proportions. If the AF has no infantry on foot, then 50% of the fast
units must be deployed in Zone B and E as per the infantry on foot guideline.
Scouts must be placed in Zones D, E, and F in equal proportion. The first scout unit must be
placed in Zone E however.
a) 33% of the AF force MUST be kept in reserve.
b) Units MUST be placed in defendable terrain wherever possible within the deployment
zones (use your best judgement). Ignore if not relevant to the scenario or if this would
contradict the rules of the scenario. Units must not be placed with their rear face within
a movement distance of impassable terrain (for that unit). If dangerous terrain is the
only option, then the unit must nevertheless be deployed there.
 c) 50% of units must be placed on overwatch (or similar).
d) D3 units may be hidden (if rules permit they must be so deployed).

5 Average
Infantry on foot must be randomly allocated to Zones A to F (using a D6). 50% of the infantry
units must be assigned en-masse to one zone together (using a D6).
The first artillery unit must be placed in Zone B. Any remaining artillery should be randomly
placed in Zones A, B, or C (use a D3 to decide).
‘Fast/ Heavy’ forces, tanks, cavalry, mechanised infantry, excluding scout units, must be placed
in Zones D, E, and F. One group consisting of at least 50% of the AF’s Fast/ Heavy units (but
no more than 75%) must be randomly assigned to one of these three zones (using a D3). The
remaining units of the other 50% must be randomly allocated to Zones D, E, and F by individual
units (using a D3 for each unit).
Scouts must be placed in Zones D, E, and F in equal proportion. The first scout unit must be
placed in Zone E however.
a) D3 units may be hidden (if rules permit they must be so deployed).

6 Tactical Genius
If you rolled for your commander as being a tactical genius, congratulations! Set up the AF in
the same manner as for the average commander. In addition, one of the following advantages
apply2, to decide which, roll a D3 and reference the advantage gained:
1. Up to 33% of the AF MUST enter the board by flanking OR be kept in reserve.
2. D3 units of the AF may be re-positioned to achieve a better advantage by the human
player AFTER both sides have finished deployment. Units can be repositioned
anywhere they could move to within one movement action.
Don’t abuse this rule to gain an advantage to the human controlled force! Shame on
you for considering that. If you still cannot trust yourself to do this fairly, then choose
option 3.
3. D3 of the human controlled units, units being randomly selected using a die, must make
a full movement to their rear (if this impossible due to terrain, or if it would take that
unit off the board, then the unit in question should be moved to the left or right decided
on a coin toss or similar). This simulates the force being played by the human being
taken off balance by their opponent’s tactical genius.

The Battle

2 As applicable to the game system. If not a valid action in the game system EITHER, a) Ignore and re-roll the
D6 to decide the advantage gained, or, b) modify the action if there is a similar in-game action they could take
similar to the invalid one.
Objectives
How do you set and achieve objectives for the AF?

Deciding who moves first3

Most wargames will involve guidance on which player moves first. Unless it is impractical,
this simple set of guidelines should replace or at least compliment the wargame rules.
Taking into the account the character of the AF commander, check the relevant trait to see who
goes first:
1- Reckless
Must be the first to move.
2- Aggressive
Must be the first to move on a roll of a D6 3+
3- Indecisive
May not move first.
4- Cautious
Must move first if a D6 is rolled 5+
5- Average
Roll a D6, 4+ AF moves first
6- Tactical Genius
The human player decides if they want to go first or second. THEN, the human player must
flip a coin. If it is heads, then AF chooses the option the human player has already chosen,
thereby superseding the human player’s choice. The key to this is the human player playing
honestly and fairly, otherwise this won’t work.

3 Many rulesets and scenarios have their own conventions for deciding this, this system is only designed to
simulate the human interaction. Use as applicable.