Warrior Rules of Thumb

January 31, 2005

Table of Contents
Overview 1
Troop Types 3
Troop State 3
Morale State
Fatigue State
Order State
Causes of Unease
Morale Class and Waver Tests 4
Sequence of Play 4
Setup
Turn Sequence
Movement 5
March Moves
Tactical Moves
Variable Moves
Orders 6
Terrain 7
Types
Movement Effects
Combat Effects
Interpenetration 7
Combat 8
Casualties
Shooting
Hand to Hand

Overview

Warrior is a set of miniatures rules covering warfare up to the early gunpowder

period (roughly 1500 AD).

In Warrior, figures are organized into elements, elements into units, units into
commands, and commands make up an army. Units suffer fatigue and lose morale,
as a result of which they may become routed or destroyed. Deterioration of units in a
command will cause a command to go into retirement, and loss of commands
debilitates the army.

Units are differentiated by density (as in close formation vs. loose or open), by
training (regular or irregular), by morale grade (the best is A, the worst is E) and by
troop and weapon type. These combinations determine how effectively units move,
maneuver, fight, and withstand casualties and adverse morale situations. Individual
figures are not removed, but units do suffer fatigue and casualties. As a result they
may become tired, and eventually exhausted. In addition units may be disordered,
shaken, or routed, the latter two conditions usually resulting from failed waver tests
against morale grade.

Warrior is basically an alternating move system, with units making tactical moves to
charge range, and then in the same turn making charge moves if they so desire or if
they are required to. Warrior achieves its sense of simultaneity by randomly changing
initiative in moves from turn to turn, and by always giving mounted troops an
initiative advantage over foot troops.

Games are typically won not by sheer casualties inflicted, but by delivering a
catastrophic result on your opponent at a key point in the battlefield, leading to a
“domino effect” series of failed waver tests. The most important tactical skills in
Warrior are troop placement, spacing, and maneuver in an attempt to get the decisive
matchups to deliver that catastrophic result.

These “Rules of Thumb” are not intended to be authoritative, comprehensive, or

100% accurate. They are in no way a substitute for the actual rules of the game.
Instead they provide general guidelines to the key points in Warrior, the key ways in
which Warrior differs from other miniatures systems, and the most common
questions that arise from beginning players.
Troop Types
Troops can be either mounted or foot, and in addition can be either open order, loose
order, or close order. The most typical resulting troop types are:

• Foot, open order: light infantry (LI)

• Mounted, open order: light cavalry (LC)
• Foot, loose order: light medium or light heavy infantry (LMI or LHI)
• Mounted, loose order: light or heavy chariots (LCh or HCh), medium, heavy, extra
heavy cavalry (MC, HC, or EHC), all knights (HK, EHK, SHK)
• Foot, close order: medium or heavy infantry (MI or HI)
• Mounted, close order: elephants (El), super heavy cavalry (SHC)

Whether a unit is foot or mounted, and how dense a formation it is, affects how fast
it moves, how it moves through terrain, and what other troop types it can
interpenetrate or be interpenetrated by.

Troop State
Troops have a morale state, a fatigue state, and an order state; the combination
creates the overall states that a unit can be in. The state a particular unit is in affects
other nearby units.

When at least half the units in a command are either shaken, routed, or destroyed,
then that command automatically goes under retreat orders.

Morale state. A unit can be eager, “normal”, uneasy, shaken, or routed. Eager units
require two causes of unease to become uneasy. Normal units require one cause.
Troops with A morale class are never uneasy. Irr B troops are eager unless tired or
uneasy. Both eager and normal units can make impetuous charges, if of a troop type
entitled to charge impetuously. Uneasy units suffer a -1 on all waver test die rolls.
Shaken units also suffer this -1. In addition, shaken units cannot charge or counter
charge, cannot get closer to the enemy, and count as disordered. Shaken units that
fail a waver test become routed units. Routed units suffer all the negatives of
shaken, cannot fight, typically cause waver tests for nearby friendly units, and are
effectively out of the game unless rallied by a general.

Fatigue state. Units can be “normal”, tired, exhausted or destroyed. Units

accumulate fatigue points throughout the game for actions (such as charges) and
combat (casualties per figure). At 5 fatigue a unit is tired. Tired units cannot be
eager, and cannot charge impetuously. At 15 points a unit is exhausted. Exhausted
units count as shaken. A unit that is both exhausted and routed is destroyed and
removed from the game. Shooting fatigue is tracked separately from normal fatigue.
Every normal fatigue point is also a shooting fatigue point, but not the other way
around.

Order state. Units are either steady or disordered. Only steady units can provide
support for other units, and disordered units suffer adversely in combat and
shooting. Some forms of disorder are cessation cured: disorder ends at the end of
the turn in which the cause of disorder ends. Other forms are rally cured: disorder
ends at the end of a turn in which the unit started the turn rallying.

Causes of Unease. The following are typical causes of unease:

• Being unsupported
• Seeing unbroken enemy behind the flank within 240 paces
• Seeing enemy chariots or elephants within 240 paces
• If not knights and frontally charging super heavy troops (SHK, SHC, SHI)

Support. Units who are unsupported by nearby friendly bodies have a cause of
unease. What kind and position of nearby friendly body is required depends on the
type of unit:
• LI and elephants require a steady friendly body directly behind them within 240
paces
• Mounted require a steady friendly body with 240 paces
• Terrain can sometimes provide support for infantry, but generally close and loose
formation foot require a steady loose or close formation body within 120 paces of
each flank

Morale Class and Waver Tests

Various game circumstances will force units to take a waver test against their
morale class. Most shaken or routed units in a game, and thus most game results,
come from failed waver tests. A low number is bad, and a high number is good. To
pass a test (remember that these results are modified for uneasy or shaken troops):
• A and B morale class troops pass on a 2 or higher
• C morale class troops pass on a 3 or higher
• D morale class troops pass on a 4 or higher
• E morale class troops pass on a 5 or higher

Typical causes of waver tests are:

• Seeing a friendly routing unit within 120 paces, unless the unit is LI or E morale
class troops
• Receiving a combat cause of disorder (including shooting) when already
disordered
• Close or loose formation foot who received 2 CPF in shooting when unshielded, or
from artillery
• Being open or loose formation foot and charged in the open by mounted
• Seeing a general in the unit's line of command killed/destroyed within 240 paces
• Seeing the army standard lost either because of the general killed or the unit
destroyed

Sequence of Play
Setup. Setting up a game involves these steps:
• Declare nationality/period of competing armies
• Choose and position terrain (typically 4 terrain picks per side, alternating picks)
• List units by command
• Adjudicate scouting
• Dice for character of generals; 1: unreliable, 2: cautious, 5,6: rash
• Write deployment orders: indicate what flanks marches you have, if any, and
where force marchers/ambushers will be, assign initial orders to generals
• Deploy: alternate setting up entire commands, with the player with the least
scouting points going first; commands must be placed such that a rectangle could
be drawn around the entire command that completely encompasses it and doesn't
overlap with the smallest encompassing rectangle around any other command
• Interpret orders based on character of generals
Turn sequence. Once the game is under way, each bound typically includes the
following steps, in this order:

• Dice for initiative

• Approach moves, as follows:
• Foot approach for high roll in initiative
• Foot approach for low roll in initiative
• Mounted approach for high roll in initiative
• Mounted approach for low roll in initiative
• Counters (low initiative roller goes first)
• Retirements (low initiative roller goes first)
• March moves, which are simultaneous, not initiative based, as follows:
• Segment 5: LC
• Segment 4: LI, MC, HC, EHC, and continuing LC
• Segment 3: Regular LMI and LHI, and those continuing from Segment 4
• Segment 2: Basically everyone else, and those continuing from Segment 3
• Segment 1: Those continuing from Segment 2
• Shooting declarations (decide in secret who will shoot, and then reveal decisions)
• Preparatory shooting, resolved sequentially from one side of table to the other, as
determined by die roll
• Charge declarations (decide in secret who will charge, and then reveal decisions)
• Charge movement, resolved simultaneously
• Combat, resolved sequentially from one side of table to the other, following same
direction as prep shooting
• Results of combat movement
• Staff moves

Movement
In 15mm, the unit of movement is an inch, while in 25mm the unit of movement is
40mm; both units in scale are 40 paces. Movement is either tactical movement or
march movement. A special subcase of tactical movement is variable movement,
which applies to pursuit, evade, break through, and break off moves.

March moves: March moves are completed in segments, and each segment is up to 6
units (240 paces) in distance. If a unit wishes to continue marching in the next
segment, it must move its full 240 pace distance in the current segment. If a unit
wishes to automatically be eligible to continue marching next bound, it must march
at least one full segment this bound. Units that make tactical moves cannot march.
Units that march can neither prep shoot nor declare charges.

Tactical moves: Tactical moves can be an approach, a counter, a retirement, a

charge, a pursuit, a break through, a break off, an evade, a recall, or a rout move.
Charges, pursuits, break throughs, break offs, eavades, recalls, and routs are
variable moves.

Tactical moves include forward and wheeling movement, and any formation changes.
Forward/wheeling movement cannot exceed a unit's tactical move distance. This
distances are:
• 5 units (200 paces): light cavalry
• 4 units (160 paces): medium, heavy, and extra heavy cavalry; all knights
• 3 units (120 paces): light infantry, loose order infantry, elephants, chariots, and
super heavy cataphracts
• 2 units (80 paces): close order foot

When measuring distance covered by wheeling, measure distance covered by the

outside corner of the wheeling unit. In other words, measure from the corner
opposite the direction of the wheel: if wheeling left, measure from the right corner;
if wheeling right, measure from the left corner.

When irregulars make a formation change, their tactical move distance is reduced to
40 paces. Regulars may make one formation change without reducing their tactical
move distance, and may make two formation changes with their tactical move
distance reduced to 40 paces. Typical formation changes include:
• Expanding or contracting by up to 2 elements
• Facing 90 degrees or 180 degrees
• Going into skirmish formation
• Mounting or dismounting

Variable moves: Variable moves cannot include formation changes. When making a
variable move, a die is rolled for distance. Irregulars roll a regular D6; regulars roll
an average die (D5). On a roll of 1 or 2, the variable move distance is reduced by 40
paces. On a roll of 5 or 6, the variable move may be unaltered, increased by 80 paces
for mounted, or decreased by 80 paces. Orders for the unit's command may
constrain which of these options are available.

Orders
Each command in an army has orders. These determine what restrictions are placed
on the command in terms of advances, movement, and charge eligibility. 90% of all
games involve only attack, probe, or wait orders; wait orders partially involve hold
orders. Of course, all games inevitably involve retreat orders too.

Attack: Half of the command must advance towards the enemy, and the requirement
to advance applies until within 80 paces of the enemy. Non missile troops may
charge without being prompted when first eligible to charge. Normal charges
thereafter must be prompted. Bodies containing any Irr A troops must charge when
able.

Probe: Half of the command must advance towards the enemy, and the requirement
to advance applies until with 240 paces of the enemy.
Charges must be prompted. Mounted may not frontally charge steady close order
foot with P or LTS. Bodies containing any Irr A troops must charge when able.
Pursuits cannot add any variable distance unless resulting from an impetuous
charge.

Hold: Troops cannot advance across the center line. Close formation foot cannot
declare charges. Charges must be prompted. Only skirmishers can evade. Pursuits
cannot add any variable distance unless resulting from an impetuous charge.

Wait: As hold, except that no charges are permitted except following 2 CPF from
prep shooting. Changes to “Attack” when any of the command charges, or when the
general sees a signal.

Retreat: No advances towards the enemy permitted, nor charges allowed. Units not
already in combat must attempt to withdraw towards their rear table edge as quickly
as possible. Troops in combat replace normal combat results with “break off” as a
result of combat.
Terrain
Types: Terrain has movement effects and combat effects. The most common types of
terrain are:
• Brush
• Woods
• Steep Slope
• Gentle Slope

Movement effects:
• Brush reduces tactical move distance for foot by 40 paces. Brush disorders
charging cavalry and any close order troops.
• Woods reduces tactical move distance for foot by 40 paces, and reduces mounted
move distance to just 40 paces. March segments in woods are cut to 120 paces
instead of 240. Woods disorders close order foot and any mounted.
• Steep slopes have the same effects on movement as woods.
• Gentle slopes have no effect on movement.

Combat effects:
• Brush. Light infantry are not visible in brush beyond 120 paces, and thus cannot
be shot at from beyond 120 paces. Open and loose order infantry in the brush do
not have to waver test if charged by mounted.
• Woods. Visibility and thus shooting range in the woods is 40 paces, and rear rank
shooting is not possible in the woods. Woods provides cover (-2 to shooting factor)
against all missile weapons except JLS. In the woods pike, LTS, lance, and 2HCT
may not be used.
• Elevation. Troops higher than shooters shooting at them are harder to shoot (-1 to
shooting factor). Troops halted higher against charging opponents have an
advantage (-2 to chargers' hand to hand factor). Troops charging who make
contact with enemy below them on a gentle slope get an advantage (+1 to hand to
hand factor).

Interpenetration
Depending on troop type and/or situation, some units can interpenetrate some other
units. Some interpenetrations will cause disorder, others will not. Interpenetrations
are generally not symmetrical; just because one unit may interpenetrate another
does not mean the reverse is true. For example, mounted other than LC may
interpenetrate LC, but LC may not interpenetrate mounted other than LC.

Who can interpenetrate:

• Mounted through LI, LC, or LCh
• LI through any
• LMI or LHI through Ch, El, or LI
• Mounted through LMI or LHI if either in rout

When such interpenetrations disorder:

• Interpenetrating disordered bodies, moving bodies, or Ch
• Interpenetrating in a charge or counter-charge
• Are interpenetrated except by LI
Combat
Casualties

Either shooting, hand to hand combat, or the combination inflicts a number of

casualties on a unit. This total number of casualties is divided by the number of
figures in the unit, dropping any remainder, to produce a number of Casualties per
Figure (CPF). Normally, for each CPF received, a unit take one fatigue point. The
exception is any unit in hand to hand combat containing irregular foot; thes units
take two fatigue points for each CPF received in hand to hand combat. For example,
95 casualties done to a 32 figure unit in hand to hand would do 2 CPF, and thus add
2 fatigue points to the unit, unless it was irregular foot in which case it would add 4
fatigue points to the unit.

Casualty calculations are determined by cross indexing the weapon type of the
shooter or attacker with the armor type of the target or defender. This yields a
weapons factor. This factor is modified by a random die roll of two dice. The factor is
modified by the difference between the “up” die roll and the “down” die roll. Note
that all shooters, and all regulars in hand to hand combat, roll two “average” dice
(D5), while irregulars in hand to hand roll an up die of a D6 and a down die of a D5.

Circumstances also modify weapons factors. Being disordered and/or shaken

detracts from shooting or hand to hand factors. Facing P, LTS, or 2HCT (except
when armed with HTW) detracts from hand to hand factors. Terrain can also detract
from both shooting and hand to hand factors. In hand to hand combat charging adds
to weapons factor, and charging impetuously adds further. Following up or pursuing
add to weapons factor. Mounted get a bonus for fighting against disordered foot. All
troops benefit from shooting at or fighting hand to hand against shieldless
opponents.

Once the modified weapons factor has been calculated and modified by a die roll,
cross index the number of figures firing or attacking with the factor, and you'll get a
total number of casualties.

Note that this means both depth of unit and weapon factor of unit are important. A
low factor but many effective figures can equal a high factor with fewer effective
figures. For example, Pike vs. MI is only a factor of 3, but pikes get 2 full ranks of
figures fighting. 2HCW is a factor of 5 against MI, but only gets 1 rank of figures
fighting.

Shooting

Who/where you can shoot: Each element armed with a missile weapon can shoot in a
rectangle whose width is 3 elements (it's own, and the equivalanet of one element's
width to either side), and whose length is its range straight ahead. Weapons vary in
range and eligible ranks:
• JLS – short range only, 40 paces, 1 ½ ranks
• Hand gun – short range only, 80 paces, 1 rank
• Dart – short range only, 80 paces, 1 ½ ranks
• Sling – short range only 120 paces, 1 ½ ranks
• CB – short range 120 paces, 2 ranks, long range 240 paces, 1 rank
• LB – short range 120 paces, 1 ½ ranks, long range 240 paces, 1 rank
• Bow – short range 80 paces, 2 ranks, long range 240 paces, 1 rank
• Artillery – short range 200 paces, long range 480 paces
Maximum range for mounted is 160 paces
What you can shoot: Different elements in the same unit may well shoot at different
targets. What an element can shoot at is not voluntary, but must follow these
priorities:
• Enemy directly in front and capable of shooting
• Elephants or artillery
• As directed by a general in or joined to body
• Nearest in arc

Shooting Factors: Bow, dart, and javelin all use the same factor. Sling, staff sling,
and longbow all use the same factor. Hand gun and artillery use the same factor.
Crossbow is at a separate factor from any of these.

Bow varies in proportion to the target's armor. Longbow is typically a 4 against

mounted and a 2 against foot, though there are exceptions. Artillery is typically a 4,
though there are exceptions. Crossbow is typically a 3 against mounted and a 1
against foot, though there are exceptions.

Results of shooting: Shooting can disorder a unit, and/or force it to take an action.
Forced actions generally fall into four groups:
• Recall or take a waver test; applies if skirmishers or light troops take 2 CPF in
preparatory shooting
• Stand halted until the end of next bound; applies if shielded close or regular loose
formation foot take 2 CPF in preparatory shooting
• Waver test; applies if loose or close formation foot take 2 CPF from artillery
factors, if irregular loose formation foot take 2 CPF, or if unshielded loose or
close formation foot take 2 CPF
• Waver test or charge; if none of the above apply

Hand to Hand

Who can fight. Different weapons fight in different depths:

• Other infantry or other cavalry weapons fight in 1 rank
• Mounted armed with JLS fight in 1 rank
• Foot armed with 2HCW fight in 1 rank
• Foot armed with JLS, 1HCW, and/or HTW fight in 1 ½ ranks
• LTS halted or against mounted figthts in 1 ½ ranks
• Lance fights in 1 ½ ranks when charging, counter charging or pursuing
• Foot armed with 2HCT fights in 1 ½ ranks
• LTS charging or counter charging foot fights in 2 ranks
• P halted fights in 2 ranks
• P charging or counter charging fights in 2 full ranks and half of a 3rd and/or 4th
rank.

In addition:
• Troops in contact frontally always fight the first bound; overlapping elements
fight in subsequent bounds
• Elephants always fight, counting as 5 figures
• Chariot horses fight if moving forward, and count as the number of horses on the
chariot
• Elephant and chariot crew count up to 2 figures fighting the first bound, and all
figures fighting thereafter

Weapons Factors. Other infantry or cavalry weapons vary according to opponent's

armor. JLS adds +1 to this; 1HCW is generally the same as “other + JLS”. 2HCW is
generally a 5, though this diminishes against both heavily armored and open order
troops. 2HCT is the same as 2HCW. HTW is generally a 5 against foot and a 3
against mounted, though there are exceptions. P and LTS are generally at a 4
against mounted, and the same as “other infantry weapons” against foot. Lance is
generally a 4, though there are exceptions, and lance is lower against knights.

Results of Combat. Troops losing a round of combat may have to recoil, break off, or
rout; additionally they may become disordered. Note that becoming disordered in
combat while already disordered causes a waver test. Troops winning a round of
combat may get to follow up or pursue; additionally they may become disordered. A
loser is a unit who receives more total hand-to-hand casualties in a bound than it
puts out. Possible results are:
• Become disordered; applies to winners or losers who receive 3 CPF, and any foot
who lose in a combat involving enemy mounted
• Recoil; applies to losers who receive at least 1 CPF, and do not rout or break off
• Break off; Losing LC, LCh, and LI fighting foot must break off unless they rout;
losing mounted and loose formation foot may choose to break off; charging bodies
may break off if neither side inflicted 1 CPF
• Rout; losers who receive 3 CPF from hand-to-hand and support shooting
combined, and who receive twice as many casualties as they put out from hand to
hand alone
• Follow up; winners with at least one opponent who recoiled, and all of whose
oppoents were losers; units who stood to receive a mounted charge cannot follow
up
• Pursue; winners where all opponents broke off or routed; units who stood to
receive a mounted charge cannot follow up