rise of legends free pdf rulebook Credits C r e by André Schillo d & i David Saunders t s game design lead designer sculptors André Schillo André Schillo Raffaele Stumpo David Saunders Lukasz Krysa graphic development Paul Deheleanu rules designer & writer Nicolas Nguyen André Schillo Yannick Hennebo André Schillo Mohamed Ait-Mehdi logos & iconography James Van Schaik background development Martin Müller Anne Geske David Saunders Heike Weiskopf terrain André Schillo art director Martin Müller layout director Dirk Scheidemantel André Schillo André Schillo André Schillo concept artists miniature painting photographer Santiago Iborra Jose Antonio Hidalgo David Saunders Peter Grusel Martin Müller André Schillo André Schillo editors illustrators Raoul Hippchen miniature casting Ivan Gil Fabian Ries Miniaturas Alemany Santiago Iborra Martin Müller Karl Richardson Ingo Gerhartz proofreading Florian Stitz Erich Schreiner playtesters Raoul Hippchen Annelie Kretschmar Fabian Ries Ralf Fettkenheuer Christian Metz David Saunders Artur Fast Martin Müller Irene McNulty Juan Diaz Raoul Hippchen André Schillo Nick Oroc Simon Hosseus Fabian Ries background consultants Nico Bludau lead writer Dirk Scheidemantel Ingo Gerhartz David Saunders Ingo Wolff Raoul Hippchen www.megalith-games.com Megalith Games Ltd. Product Code: MG-0001 EAN: 4250787100011 73 West Park Road First Edition. Printed in Germany, September 2012. Handcross Haywards Heath ©2008-2012 Megalith Games Ltd. All Rights Reserved. West Sussex All contents herein including Megalith Games Ltd.™, the Megalith Games Ltd.™ Logo, RH17 6DN GODSLAYER®, Calydorn™, Ghorn™, places, things, and character names, factions, and their distinctive UK. likenesses, all illustrations, images, graphics, logos, texts, design elements and photographs are property of Megalith Games Ltd. and are either © copyrighted, ™ trademarked and/or ® registered by 2 [email protected] Megalith Games Ltd. 2008-2012 in the USA, Europe and other countries by law. GODSLAYER® Rise of Legends Table of Contents Introduction 7 Game Terms 35 s Welcome to Godslayer 8 General Terms 36 t What is Godslayer? 8 Objects 36 The Game 8 Measurement 36 n The World 9 Lead Range 36 A Game Overview 9 Being Within Ranges 36 e Base Contact 37 About These Books 9 Lines 37 t Content 9 Tests 37 Usage 10 Dice Rolls 37 n Game Overview 13 Origin and Target Models 37 Resolving Attacks 37 o How to get Started 14 Line of Sight 37 Game Requirements 14 Drawing Line of Sight 37 C Equipment 14 Interposing Models and Objects 37 Miniatures 14 Sight Values 38 Dice 14 Drawing Line of Sight through Models 38 Tape Measure 14 Drawing Line of Sight through Objects 38 f Profile Cards 15 Drawing Line of Sight and Elevated Positions 38 Card Protectors and Non-Permanent Markers 15 Line of Sight Obstruction 38 o Paints 15 Action Tokens 40 Battlefield 15 Definition of Actions 40 An Opponent 15 What are Action Tokens? 40 e Game Conventions 16 Action Token Pool 40 Dividing and Rounding 16 Generating Action Tokens 40 l Disclosure 16 Spending Action Tokens 41 Rules Conventions 16 Tracking Action Tokens 41 b Understanding Rules 16 The Game 43 a Rules Priority 16 Resolving Rules Issues 16 Starting a Game 44 T Preparing the Battlefield 44 Models 19 Table Sides 44 Types of Models 20 Determining the Starting Player (Priority Roll) 45 Warbands 20 Setup and Deployment 45 Models & Units 20 Advanced Deployment 45 Model Affiliation 20 Secret Deployment 46 Warlords 20 Game Turns and Game Rounds 47 Characters 21 Activations 49 Units 21 Creatures 21 Activating models 50 War-Machines 22 Standard Activations 50 Attachments 22 Activations per Turn 50 Spellcasters 22 Starting Activation 50 Model Profiles 23 Activating Individual Models 50 Statistics 23 Activating Units 50 Profile Cards 23 Remaining Activations 51 Model Attributes 25 Passing Activations 51 Model Bases 25 Tracking Activations 51 Passive Activations 51 Warband Composition 27 Abilities & Tactics 53 Creating a Warband 28 Battle Level 28 Abilities 54 Choosing Models and Composing the Warband 28 Abilities 54 Deployment Limit 29 Weapon Abilities 54 Warlords 29 Tactics 54 Unit Composition 29 Tactics and their Classifications 54 Items 30 Performing, Ordering and Receiving Tactics 55 Spells 31 Limitations of Tactics 56 Equipping Spells 32 Tactic Durations 56 Variable Tactic ACT Costs 56 Special Talents 56 Moving & Engaging Models 59 Movement 60 Moving Models 60 Unit Formation 60 Unit Models Out Of Formation 61 Exhaustion Limit 61 Falling 61 Leaving the Battlefield 61 Engaging Models 62 How to Engage Models 62 Types of Charges 63 Moving Chargers 64 Successful and Failed Charges 64 Charge Attacks 64 Moving into Close Combat 65 Slay Movement 65 3 GODSLAYER® Rise of Legends Table of Contents Combat & Magic 67 Special Effects 95 T Melee 68 Channelling 96 Models in Melee & Melee Range 68 Channelling Models 96 a Melee Range Benefits 68 Channelling Effects 96 Melee & Elevated Models 68 Area of Effect 97 b Attackers and Defenders 69 What is an Area of Effect? 97 Fighting in Melee 69 Determining Areas of Effect 97 l Melee Attack Roll 70 Affected Models 97 Determining Melee Attack Hits 70 Deviating Areas of Effect 97 e Initial and Further Attacks 70 Knocked Down Models 98 Fighting Styles 70 Knocked Down Individual Models 98 Charge Bonuses 71 Knocked Down Unit Models 99 o Counter Attacks 71 Strike Ranks and Simultaneous Combat 72 Stationary models 99 f Free Strikes 73 Shields 99 Combat Duration & Reinitiating Melee 73 Shield Bonus 99 Missile Combat 74 Shield Items 99 C Shooting 74 Auras 100 Missile Attack Roll 74 Continuous Effects 100 Determining Missile Attack Hits 74 Initiation of Continuous Effects 100 o Shooting at Long Range 75 Types of Continuous Effects 100 Screening & Cover 75 Ending of Continuous Effects 100 n Screening & Cover Exceptions 76 Affliction Tests 100 Shooting Over Models 76 Expiry Tests 101 t Shooting at Engaged Models 76 Multiple Continuous Effects 101 Magic 77 General Effects 101 e Casting Spells 77 Handling Effects 101 Spell Complexity 77 General Effects Limitation 101 n Spell Casting Roll 77 General Effects Durations 101 Spell Attacks 78 Haze Effects 101 t Spell Limitations 78 Sustaining Spells 78 Terrain 103 s Magic Attacks 78 Magic Attack Roll 78 Terrain 104 Determining Magic Attack Hits 78 Open Terrain 104 Dealing Damage 79 Difficult Terrain 104 Damage & Armor 79 Impassable Terrain 104 Marking Damage 79 Forests 104 Seriously Wounded Models 80 Hills 104 Destroyed & Removed Models 80 Buildings 104 Direct Damage 80 Conclusion 107 Special Combat Situations 81 Critical Hits 81 Multiplayer Games 108 Fumbles 81 Victory Conditions 108 Kill Points 108 Psychology 83 Determining the Winner 108 Psychology 84 About Scenarios 109 Bravery Tests 84 Using Scenarios 109 Fear 84 Developing Scenarios 109 Horror 85 Multiple Psychology Effects 85 Scenarios 111 Fleeing 86 Rallying 87 Banebrood 121 Model Special Rules 89 Halodynes 139 Warlords 90 Assigning Action Tokens 90 Mortans 157 Hardened Will 90 Multiple Orders 90 Nordgaard 175 Unit Leaders 90 Musicians 90 Troglodytes 193 Creatures 91 Primitive Instinct 91 Wyldfolk of Annyr 211 War-Machines 91 Machines & Machine Crews 91 Appendix 229 War-Machine & Machine Crew Actions 92 Handling War-Machines 92 Painting Miniatures 230 War-Machine Long Range 92 Colors 230 War-Machine Line of Sight 92 Other useful items 230 Preparing the miniatures 230 Model Classifications 92 Painting miniatures 230 Light Infantry 92 Banebrood color scheme 231 Heavy Infantry 92 Halodynes color scheme 231 Light Cavalry 93 Mortans color scheme 231 Heavy Cavalry 93 Nordgaard color scheme 232 Sub-Factions 93 Troglodytes color scheme 232 What are Sub-Factions? 93 Wyldfolk of annyr color scheme 232 Sub-Faction Abilities 93 Building Terrain 233 4 GODSLAYER® Rise of Legends Nimbur, the jewel of Volturna and largest city on that continent, is so old that its foundations actually pre-date the birth of Mankind. Populated by the aloof and enigmatic race of Aetherions, it possesses the largest library in the world. Conquered during the Blessed Age by Halodynes, Nimburia was forced to endure a 1,700 year occupation which altered it in fundamental ways. The Aetherions during that time were suffering the infertility curse placed on them by the Asrae gods, and with the conquest by humans a caste of mixed Aetherions and Mortals inevitably developed. During the occupation, cabals of Aetherions worshipping the Dawn Gods went underground. These inscrutable deities were the creators of the Aetherion race, dwelling in the outer planes. Over a period of four thousand years the mystic priests healed and reinvigorated the Dawn Gods by channeling Keraunoi energy - raw reality. As the Halodynes’ Threxian Empire peaked and declined, the Aetherions patiently waited through 23 incarnations of the phoenix Corpse-King, and when the Halodyne temple cult of Aesys later seized the collapsed chunk of the empire and ruled the land, the Aetherions bided their time. The millennia passed but for the immortal Aetherions, 4,000 years was but a single chapter in the history of their great city. The miraculous birth of a child to the deposed imperial family heralded a new chapter which began with the Night of Poisoned Daggers when the pure-blood Aetherions rose up and assassinated the entire Halodyne patriarch’s family together with most of the temple priesthoods. A new hierarchy fell into place, with pure-blood Aetherions as rulers, hybrid Mortherions forming the middle class, and Mortals constituting the under-class. The combined armies of the resurgent Golden Kingdom now march relentlessly westward, crushing everything the Halodynes can throw at them. chapter i I n t r o d u c t i o n C h a p t e r I - I n t r o d u Welcome to Godslayer® What is Godslayer®? c t Well done, you made it! You got your hands on the avant- the game i garde game system which we are confident sets a new Set in a rich and detailed fantasy universe named Calydorn, o benchmark for the tabletop gaming hobby! GODSLAYER® is a fast and tactically challenging tabletop skirmish game played with highly detailed metal miniatures. n As you browse through the following pages you are embarking on a blood-spattered quest through the hazardous The game is designed for two or more players and offers and exotic world of Calydorn! a totally new gaming experience with many aspects never before seen. After fifteen years of miniatures gaming ourselves, we felt compelled to design a new rules system and accompanying In the world of Calydorn it is common for charismatic or gaming universe, and thus GODSLAYER® was born. brawny leaders to attract loyal troops, heroic individuals, and terrifying creatures to their cause - be it noble or nefarious. At this moment you might ask yourself “Does the world really need another miniatures game?” - YES, it certainly As a skirmish game GODSLAYER® allows players to field does! a group of warriors in combat engagements. These so called warbands represent hunting parties, scouting forces, raiders We found no other game satisfied us in terms of both ease of or simply bands of adventurers, mercenaries, or bandits, etc. play, tactical challenge and authenticity, and so the creation of GODSLAYER® became a quest for that holy grail of game- The game places you in the role of a warlord, allowing you design - the perfect combination of realism and playability. to create your own individual warband based on a versatile system of model and item selection. Now, after four years of relentless scribbling by candlelight and quill, locked within the dungeons of our own obsession, Great care was taken to ensure that the rules system offers and after countless hours of play-testing by our rabid team a new level of realistic miniature behavior. A unique system of devotees to the god of perfectionism, we are maniacally of action and resource management allows fast and logical happy to unleash upon an unsuspecting world these tomes of game-play, while retaining core rules which are simple and mythic mayhem! memorable, allowing you to learn them rapidly. After playing a few games we hope you agree with us that To keep players continuously challenged, each model GODSLAYER® has reached a new pinnacle in game design! has been provided with individual rules that result in a vast multitude of devious and deadly combinations embedded But do not take our word for it - grab your dice and miniatures within the system, providing a rich resource for developing and leap into the game. We sincerely hope you have as much new tactics to win upcoming battles. fun as we have! 8 GODSLAYER® Rise of Legends the world a game overview GODSLAYER® revolves around the grim world of Before we bombard you with all the detailed rules of Calydorn, upon which numerous factions wage war for the GODSLAYER®, we would like to give you an overview of very survival of their cultures and species, where individuals how a typical game of GODSLAYER® runs so that you have undertake heroic or diabolic quests to acquire unto themselves a broad picture before learning the detailed game mechanics. n godlike powers. o Two players face each other over a model battlefield, each Where once gleamed the glorious nations of the Golden Age of them controlling a warband of different models which are i now sit the ruins of the Darklands - regions where creatures composed before the game according to a points system that t of shadow, cursed races, and demons hold sway, their hordes balances the opposing forces. Some models are individuals; relentlessly pounding the walls of crumbling civilizations. some operate in groups (which are called units). c u The history of Calydorn is painted with the blood of countless The game is divided into six or more rounds. In each round, fallen cultures, and its denizens are only now beginning to re- players take alternating turns to activate some of their models. d discover some of the world’s more eldritch secrets. Activated models may do such things as move, shoot, fight, cast spells and use tactics. o Ghorn - the central continent - has become the furnace of the gods, wherein deities forge the spirits of the boldest mortals All actions are regulated by a system of action tokens, r into merciless mages and brutal warriors - fitting heroes for whereby every model has a specific number of action tokens the current age, striving against hope to avert the holocaust of at the start of its turn, and each action they perform uses up a t the Omegalypse. certain number of tokens. This system is a natural and realistic n way of managing your warband’s actions during each round The most exceptional characters manage to increase their and is one of the core systems of the game. I powers through heroic deeds, mystic rituals, and the patronage of divine, demonic, or elemental entities. Some even follow In GODSLAYER® there are no artificial turn sequences, and - the path of the Godquester, seeking out the Celestial Vortexes due to the constant turnabout play, the game has an immediacy and consuming the encapsulated anima - the essence of a dead and flow which other games may lack. The order in which a I goddess - in order to attain the status of a demigod. A select model performs its actions is basically open to the player’s few even undergo apotheosis, ascending to take their place choice, making the game very realistic and flexible. among one of the divine pantheons. r Statistics represent the fighting skills, the armor, the e All such heroes of legend began their careers as leaders of determination, etc. of each model, and are listed on profile warbands, fighting countless battles - just as you will soon cards which are included with each model. These statistics t fight! are used in conjunction with dice rolls to determine if actions p such as fighting or shooting are successful. Often the result As you will discover, the world of GODSLAYER® is a rich is compared against an opponent’s statistic or roll. Luck a tapestry on which to weave the heroic quests and sagas of your plays a part, and so managing probabilities is a key factor, h warbands; and on the brutal world of Calydorn thousands of but GODSLAYER® is primarily a tactical game where even a such warbands seek glory or infamy, or simply strive to amass streak of bad luck can be outweighed by clever play. C power and wealth in spoils and magical artifacts. Each type of model has a unique combination of abilities and Now is the time for you to prove yourself worthy, leading tactics which are special rules that translate the character of your warband to its bloody destiny! the model into game mechanics. In addition, some individual models are able to order tactics to other models, making the game even more strategic. The winner of the game is normally determined by comparing what we call “kill points”. Each player will earn a certain amount of kill points during the game and the one who has the most at the end of the game, is the victor! Special scenarios introduce additional victory conditions and provide new strategic challenges. About These Books To provide you with a short overview of these two tomes and our recommendations of how to get the most out of them, the following is a short introduction about their contents. content The two books of GODSLAYER® - Rise of Legends not only deal with all the rules needed for game-play, but also act as a sourcebook for GODSLAYER®. For ease of gaming we have separated the rules and the background material and that´s why you get two books. 9 GODSLAYER® Rise of Legends The rulebook of course covers everything you need to know future books and products to compose your warbands and lead them into battle. Here you will learn your tactical options and how to defeat your GODSLAYER® allows an immersive experience, starting opponents and it also contains scenarios, multiplayer rules, with the very first game, and increases in enjoyment the tips on how to paint your miniatures, build terrain, and advice deeper you go! on how to get the most from your hobby. With this information C you can recreate the dark and beautiful world of Calydorn on In order to support GODSLAYER® players, additional your tabletop gaming board. books will be released, extending the game with various new h miniatures, additional rules, and background information The background book will provide you with detailed about the world of Calydorn and its inhabitants. a information about Calydorn - the focus of the Seven Worlds, p and home of mortals - which has 50,000 years of history that has shaped the world into the darkly exotic and lethally vibrant t place it is today. This tome contains a detailed background e of each of the six main factions on the central continent of r Ghorn, each of which represents a unique empire or culture. usage I To ensure easy comprehension of the rules, all topics have - been placed in the most logical order possible. Nevertheless, it was occasionally unavoidable to foreshadow elements which I will be explained at a later point. In such cases, the element n previously not detailed will be written in red, bold italics, with the page of its later explanation noted in brackets. t Reading and memorizing the rulebook is not necessary r before beginning to play! o A lot of the material contained within these pages is primarily for reference and amusement, and most of the game-relevant d statistics and special rules are to be found on the Profile Cards u (page 15), supplied with each model, for easy reference, so you will not need to constantly refer to the rulebook. c If you possess a copy of the Quick-Start Rules (which come t as a printed version with each of the introductory boxed starter i sets of each faction and can be downloaded from our website o www.megalith-games.com for free), we would recommend you read the Quick-Start Rules first! After a few games you n will have mastered the fundamentals of the rules, and should then take your time to read the complete core rules. Further gaming will allow you to master the tactics and abilities of your chosen faction and gain an insight into the capabilities of other factions. At that point you may want to continue exploring the world of Calydorn in more detail on the Megalith Games website (www.megalith-games.com). If at times you find it difficult to grasp a rule or have problems remembering everything, we suggest you keep a few models to hand and play-test what is written as you go along. NOTE If you learned the basics of GODSLAYER® with the Quick- Start Rules, we strongly recommend you still read the core rules section in its entirety, even though some parts might seem familiar. This is because there are additional details for many of the rules which you should take note of that are not covered in the Quick-Start Rules. 10 GODSLAYER® Rise of Legends