Forest of the Impaled: Vlad Dracula's Final Stand Rulebook

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

• Components and Starting Forces
• Setup
• Map and Terrain
• Units and Ratings
• Generals
• Sequence of Play
• Alter the Turn Order (Step 3)
  • Delay
  • Jump
  • Roll to Alter Order of Appearance
• Movement (Step 4)
• Resolve Combat for Battles (Step 5)
• Roll Sieges (Step 7)
• Check Supply (Step 8)
• Victory Conditions
• Limited Communications

Components and Starting Forces

Sticker Placement. Gently align each sticker, then press firmly to set it in place. Place Command Chit stickers on the larger side.

The sticker sheet for the Sultan's forces shows, for each General, the General piece and its Command Chit, with red Troop stickers in rows beside them. The labels printed on the sheet are Sultan, Radu, Generals, and Command Chits.

Starting Forces (Dracula's side)

The sheet is labelled as follows:

• Dracula (General piece and Command Chit).
• 1 Troop.
• 1 Group.
• 1 Army.
• Penalty Token, x7.
• Optional Radu Pieces (General piece and Command Chit).

Setup

First, Dracula sets up these pieces anywhere in Wallachia or Transylvania. They can start:

• Dispersed. They do not have to be grouped together in armies of 12.
• In Castles.
• As Impalements.

Use the Dracula die to track turns.

Second, the Sultan player sets up these pieces anywhere in Rumelia.

• More than 12 can start in 1 space. There are no stacking limits.
• Each General does not have to start with 12 Troops. The Sultan is free to locate and assign them to Generals as he sees fit.

Place all Command Chits in the cup.

The setup map shows the numbered starting locations for Dracula and the Sultan's forces (red and pink numbered circles), the Secret Base at Poenari, and the Muslim Start area in Rumelia. The numbered circles are map graphics and are not reproduced in this text.

Map and Terrain

• Castles are great strongholds for defense. The tower symbol denotes how many towers the castle has.
• Mountains. The areas are either clear or mountains. To be mountains, the majority of the area must be mountains.
• Villages do not help on defense, but you can Recruit there.
• Poenari was a secret base hidden deep in the mountains.
• Ignore the trees and alleys. They have no effect on play.

Units and Ratings

Troops. A Troop is 1 unit. The Troop chart lists:

• Movement
• Combat (Attack, Defend)
• Hold territory

Groups. Arrange Troops in Groups of 2, 3, or 4 units per Group, based on the General's rating (see the Generals section below).

Army. An Army has a maximum of 12 Troops.

Ratings.

• 4: Dracula
• 3: Radu
• 2: Muslim

Generals

Generals have a rating that determines what they can do:

• Search
• Grouping: arrange Troops into Groups of 2, 3, or 4 units based on the General's rating.
• Generals turn order: a higher-rated General may change the turn order.

Generals can order:

• Movement: only Troops associated with the activated General may move.
• Combat: only Troops associated with the activated General may Combat.

Each Group must Search prior to Combat.

Sequence of Play

Resolve each turn as follows. The turn-sequence flowchart and the printed table use slightly different wording for steps 1 and 2 ("draw cup" and "pool"); both are transcribed as printed.

Step	Action
1	Place all Chits in a pool. (Flowchart: "Place all chits in a draw cup.")
2	Pull 1 Chit randomly. (Flowchart: "Pull 1 General chit randomly.")
3	Allow eligible Generals to Alter the turn order.
4	Next General can Move.
5	Resolve Combat for Battles.
6	Repeat Steps 2-5 until pool is empty.
7	Roll Sieges.
8	Check Supply.
9	Start a new Turn. Rotate all Generals back to eligible (flag) side up.

The flowchart shows the same loop: Step 5 leads to STOP, then Steps 7 and 8. Step 6 ("Go to step 2, repeat until pool is empty") returns to Step 2. Step 9 starts the next turn, and after Turn 4 play proceeds to the Victory Conditions.

The Dracula die is used to track turns (Turns 1 through 4).

Alter the Turn Order (Step 3)

Each eligible General may attempt to alter the turn order by one of two methods, Delay or Jump. An eligible General may attempt once per turn.

Delay

• If you don't want to go now, the picked General may attempt to alter the sequence.
• An eligible General may attempt once per turn.
• Rotate the General's chit to Crest side up. It becomes Ineligible.
• Roll 1D6 (see the Roll table below):
  • If the roll is equal to or greater than the General rating, continue with the present General.
  • If the roll is 1 less than the General rating, pick another chit randomly, then return the Delay General chit back into the pool cup.

Jump

• If a General wants to go ahead of the present Leader (the Jump General), it may attempt the jump.
• May attempt with as many eligible Generals as are available.
• An eligible General may attempt once per turn.
• Rotate the Jump General chit to Crest side up.
• Roll 1D6:
  • If the roll is equal to or greater than the General rating, there is no effect. Play the picked General. Attempt another Jump sequence by another eligible General.
  • If the roll is 1 less than the General rating, pick the wanted Jump General and proceed. Pull the Command chit representing the Jump General from the pool cup. Hold the original Command chit and play the General chit on the next sequence.

Roll to Alter Order of Appearance

Generals	General rating	Roll to alter order of appearance for Delay	Roll to alter order of appearance for Jump
Dracula	4	1,2,3: Pick another chit. Return chit back.	1,2,3: Pick wanted chit. Play chit on next sequence.
Radu	3	1,2: Pick another chit. Return chit back.	1,2: Pick wanted chit. Play chit on next sequence.
Muslim	2	1: Pick another chit. Return chit back.	1: Pick wanted chit. Play chit on next sequence.

Movement (Step 4)

Move units controlled by that General. Generals can spend 3 MPs.

Moving

• Cost of moving to a new area is 1 MP.
• At no cost when in a new area, a General can pick up troops, drop off troops, or reorganize Troops and Groups.
• Only Christians can move into mountain areas.
• Lead troops from one area to the next: Troops can spend 2 MPs only.

Picking up troops

• Can pick up troops that have already moved.
• Can pick up troops that are without a General.
• Can pick up troops of other Generals only if that player agrees.

Recruiting new troops (cost 1 MP)

• The General must be in an area with a Castle or Village in its home area.
• Radu can recruit in Moldavia.
• Dracula can recruit in Poenari.
• Only in 1 area per move.
• Cannot recruit in a Castle under Siege.
• Roll 1D6. The die roll equals the number of troops recruited.

Dracula

Dracula acts like a General except as follows:

• Dracula can place 3 impalement markers per area that he enters or is in.
• A marker is drawn from the dead pile or from his own troops in the area.
• Max number of 6 per area allowed (6 Groups of 2 would be affected).

Effects of Impalements

• For each Impalement, 1 Muslim Group must roll for morale. Roll 1D6:
  • 1-3: Morale breaks. Units move back to the area they came from.
  • 4-6: Remove 1 Impalement to the dead pile and continue the move.
• If Muslims enter an area with an Impalement, they must roll for morale. If the roll fails, they are eliminated.

Resolve Combat for Battles (Step 5)

• When entering an area with enemies, a General must stop to battle.
• If a Castle is under Siege, the General can continue to move and not battle.

Fire (search). Each side completes a Search roll to be able to battle.

• The attacker must be able to find the enemy to attack.
• A defender with a General must be able to find the enemy to roll for defense.
• Roll 1D6 for each Group. (Printed note beside the Search dice: "IE Six rolls," shown as six Group icons.)

Found or Lost

• Muslim Found Group, 1-2: can attack.
• Radu Found Group, 1-3: can attack.
• Dracula Found Group, 1-4: can attack.
• Lost: if the roll is above the General rating, the Group is considered Lost.
• Found Groups are placed with the General prior to battle. Once a Group joins a battle, it does not have to re-roll to Search.
• Lost Groups should be placed away from the General, as they cannot attack or defend unless Surprise Fire applies (see below).

Withdrawal

• If ALL enemy Groups are lost, you can opt to retreat before battle.
• The attacker retreats via the way it entered the area.
• The defender retreats into an adjacent friendly area. If the defender cannot retreat, it eliminates all units; the General survives and moves to another area.
• If Muslims enter an area with an Impalement, they must roll for morale. If the roll fails, they are eliminated.

Combat Rounds. Resolve combat in rounds as follows:

Step	Action
1	Each Lost Group rolls 1 die for Search. Roll the General's Rating or Less to Join the battle. If not, the Group remains Lost.
2	All Joined Groups Fire (simultaneous).
3	Lost Groups that were fired at, Join and return Fire.
4	Defender may Retreat.
5	Attacker may Retreat.
6	Start a new round until 1 side is destroyed or Retreats.

Battle results. Roll for battle results simultaneously (based on Troops). Roll 1D6 for each Troop:

• 1-3: No effect.
• 4-6: Kills 1 Troop.

The Fire box lists Found Attacker Troops with General (each roll) and Found Defender Troops with General (each roll).

Surprise Fire

• Lost Groups: a Group can fire AFTER it has been fired upon, if it survives.
• Defender without General:
  • Place all Troops as Groups of 1.
  • Do not search if all are lost.
  • The attacker rolls its first attack and announces which Troops are attacked.
  • If the defender survives, it may then roll for battle.
  • All surviving Defending Troops must Retreat.

Castles

• Castles give the defender a large advantage.
• The defender must man the Castle, max based on the number of towers.
• A defender outside a Castle must be attacked and defeated first, prior to attacking the Castle.
• A defender outside a Castle that is defeated immediately attacks the Castle.

Ways of attacking troops in Castles

• Storm. 1 on 1 Troop. Defender fires first. If the attacker survives, it can then attack. If all defenders are eliminated, the Castle falls. Otherwise, repeat rounds until either side wins or withdraws, or move to Siege.
• Siege. To Siege, the attacker must have 1 more Troop than the defender. Sieging a Castle gives you control of the area. Troops may pass through the area without having to stop for battle. Supply may be traced through this area. Roll at the end of the turn if a Castle falls.

Roll Sieges (Step 7)

Roll at the end of the turn for each sieged Castle to see if the Castle fell.

• Roll 1D6.
• If the roll is equal to or less than the number of turns the Castle has been sieged, the Castle falls. All troops are eliminated.
• No effect: continue the Siege.

Check Supply (Step 8)

• Must trace a supply path from the home area to the Troops.
• Muslims can supply in Rumelia. Each Christian area must have Muslim troops to be controlled. Muslim troops in supply.
• Christians can supply via Wallachia and Transylvania.
• Radu can also trace supply to Moldavia.
• If out of supply: roll 1D6 for each out-of-supply (OOS) Troop.
  • 1-2: Remove the Troop due to starvation.

Victory Conditions

Victory is checked at the end of Turn 4. The victory chart is organized by Radu's status.

Radu stays loyal to Dracula. By the end of Turn 4, Muslims must control every castle in Wallachia (5 castles).

Radu goes Muslim. By the end of Turn 4, Muslims must control:

• Every castle in Transylvania (4 castles), and
• Every castle in Wallachia (5 castles).

Dracula wins if he controls 1 castle in Transylvania and Wallachia.

Limited Communications

Players can talk freely before the game. During the game, players can only "Communicate About the Game" if their Generals are in the same area.

Communicate. This includes any and all forms, both verbal and non-verbal, such as groans, sighs, eye rolling, nodding, smiling, frowning, staring, etc.

About the Game. This means anything to do with the game strategy or situation. Unrelated social small talk is allowed, as long as it is not used as secret communication.

• You can ask questions about the rules and mechanics of game play. Players can answer for clarification.
• You cannot "ask questions" as a way of communicating with a player, so as to prompt him to avoid a threat.

Policing. Immediately announce every time you catch an enemy player in violation of this rule. For each violation, you get a re-roll token to use at any time in the game.