Greyhawk Wars (game)
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| Greyhawk Wars | |
|---|---|
 Game cover |
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| Designer | David Cook |
| Players | 2 to 6 |
| Playing time | 180 minutes |
| Skills required | Dice rolling, Strategy |
Greyhawk Wars is a fantasy board wargame published by TSR, Inc. in 1991. The game was designed by David Cook as a strategic simulation of the eponymous Greyhawk Wars on the fictional world of Oerth, the World of Greyhawk campaign setting for the Dungeons & Dragons role-playing game.
Contents |
[edit] Components
The game included two fold-out color paper maps; two sheets of cardboard chits; several sheets of cards representing the various countries, events, mercenaries, and treasures; a rule book; two ten-side dice, and a book containing a history of the war and a set of scenarios.
The maps depicted the various lands and nations involved in the war, and were joined together along the edge to form the full game world. The map is sub-divided into areas of roughly equal size, with edges often lying along various geographical boundaries such as nation borders or terrain features. The nations are divided into "good", neutral, and "evil" states, with green, gray, and red borders, respectively. The terrain types included plains, forest, marsh, mountains, hills, lakes, oceans, and wastes. The major rivers are also depicted, usually along area borders. The map also contained a series of iconic symbols depicting the various capitols, ports, fortifications, and sites where treasure or mercenaries could be obtained.
In addition to their place on the map, each of the countries in the game is represented by a card. Each player starts with one or more country cards representing their home nations. Additional nations can be gained through alliance, conquest, or by liberating a conquered nation. The cards for these nations are placed under the home nation cards. Every nation card includes their Alliance ratings, which determine how easily good or evil nations can ally with it. The card also includes a modifier for alliance attempts to specific countries, and a roster of troops that the country can raise.
Each player has a set of hero markers that they can use for various purposes each turn. These represent a band of heroes that can perform various special actions. They can not be destroyed, although they can be hindered in various ways.
Armies are represented by colored chits that are printed with a shield symbol of the owning nation. These are placed on top of a stack of up to 5 troop units. Troop chits have a strength rating, a silhouette symbol for the creature type, and sometimes special information indicating a unique ability.
The color of the troop chits are based on the ethos of the creature, with good-natured creatures being green, neutral creatures gray, and evil creatures in red (the same colors as the nation borders.) There are a number of different creatures represented by these chits, and the various races or species are drawn from the Greyhawk world setting. Thus there are Elves, Bugbears, Orcs, Humans, and so forth. There are also counters to represent fleets for nations along the coast.
The various scenarios require from 2 to 6 players, and the two-player scenarios only use one of the maps. Each scenario lists the initial set-up, any special rules, and the victory conditions. The scenarios attempt to replay the situations described in the war history.
[edit] Game play
Each turn of play represents a full year in the game setting, and is divided into a series of phases. Every player must complete the procedure for a phase before continuing to the next phase. The first phase is used to randomly determine the order that each phase will be performed. The remaining phases are used to place heroes, draw event cards, and perform actions, in that order.
A player's heroes can move across up to six contiguous areas each turn, although their path may be (optionally) blocked by the occupying armies of another player. Areas with terrain features cost more movement to enter, such as desert, hills, and forests, while swamp and mountains ends movement for the turn.
The event cards produce a random element that can positively or negatively affect a player's situation. These can range from additional forces joining your side, to a sudden attack or rebellion that draws off some of your forces. The cards can also affect the actions of heroes.
The main part of the game occurs during the action phase. Here the armies can move, attack, create fortifications, or disband. Likewise heroes can either aid the forces of the player's armies, recruit mercenaries, perform diplomacy, or search for treasure. The type of mercenaries recruited or the type of treasure found are determined by random card draws.
A player performs actions with their armies and heroes one at a time, with all actions being performed before moving to another marker. Armies and heroes that have completed their action are then flipped over to their white side.
Land armies can move through up to 3 areas in a turn (or 4 if they are all cavalry). Fleets can move up to 6 areas, but can never enter a land area. Ship markers can be used to carry troops that are in a port, and can unload them along a coast or on an island.
Combat occurs when an army enters an area occupied by the army of another player. The troop markers are lined up to the side of the map, with the attacker matching units against the deployed defending units. The forces on either side may also be modified by various event, mercenary, and treasure cards. The terrain can modify the strength of each attacking unit, as can magic cards and heroes. If the roll of a ten-sided die is at or below the resulting attacker strength rating, a hit is scored. The defender then gets a chance to reply, and the hits are applied. Many troops are destroyed when they take a hit, but a few have a back-printed reduced strength rating that can take a single hit and remain in the battle.
Certain special units have unique abilities in combat. Cavalry can pursue a retreating enemy or screen against pursuit (if the optional rule about pursuit is in play.) Marines can take part in sea battles. Scouts can attack first in a round and the result is applied before being attacked. There are also specific races that gain a combat bonus in their native terrain, such as dwarves in mountains or hills.
The battle continues for up to 3-4 rounds, or until either the attacker or defender retreats. The winner then takes possession of the area.
As the final step of the action phase, a player can heal damaged units, and raise new armies. The type of troops that can be raised is determined by the country card, and can only be raised by heroes or armies.
[edit] Relationship to WGS modules
The events described in the game occur chronologically just after the conclusion of Greyhawk module WGS2 - Howl from the North. The WGS, or World of Greyhawk Swords series, was originally intended to be a trilogy of modules beginning with WGS1 - Five Shall Be One. The third module in the series, which would have been coded WGS3, was never produced. Instead, the material originally intended for WGS3 was reworked and incorporated into the Greyhawk Wars game. As such, in some sense this game serves as the third installment in the WGS trilogy.
