Hogs of War: The Miniatures Game
Hogs of War: The Miniatures Game Rulebook
Table of Contents
Table of Contents
- Components
- Game Overview
- Winning the Game
- Setup
- Game Board Setup Example
- The Player Area
- Setting Up the Base Zone
- Setting Up the Aerial Zone
- Setting Up the Ground Zone
- Changing Ground Unit Selection
- Round Structure
- Swill Explained
- Counting Hexes
- Scoring Secondary Objectives
- Unit Core Rules
- Reading a Unit Card
- Initiative Order and Activation
- Aerial Unit Initiatives and Activation
- Ground Unit Initiative and Activation
- Actions
- Attack
- Attack Dice
- Damaging Infantry Units
- Damaging Vehicle Units
- Aerial Unit Health (HP)
- Anti-Air Attack Actions
- Ground Vehicle Health (HP)
- Leaving the Battlefield
- Vehicle Special Rules
- Bailing Out
- Aerial Unit Special Rules
- Aerial Vehicle Actions
- The Bombing Action
- Airship Special Rules
- Sniper Example Turn
- Plane Example Turn
- Terrain
- Deployables
- Types of Deployable
- Destroying Buildings
- Mega Buildings
- The Campaign Book
- Team Games
- Sandbox Map Tips
- Horde Mission AI Rules
- Building Tile Types
Components
Terrain Tiles (6 of each type)
- Mountain / Lake tile (reverse side view shown)
- Swamp / Forest tile (reverse side view shown)
- Road / River tile (reverse side view shown)
- Further double-sided tiles combining Mountain / Lake and Swamp / Forest terrain (reverse side view shown)
Tokens (18 of each type)
- Vehicle Damage tokens (-1 and -2)
- Infantry Damage tokens (-1 and -2)
- Construction / Stun tokens
- Flame Damage tokens (1 and 3)
- Bomb / Incendiary Bomb tokens
Apart from these, there are 24 further Bomb / Incendiary Bomb tokens.
Dice and Miscellaneous Components
- 6 Melee Attack dice (red)
- 6 Gun Attack dice (blue)
- 6 Explosive Attack dice (green)
- 6 Vehicle Damage dice
- 1 First Player coin
- 24 Aerial Vehicle Damage cubes
- 28 Indicators (Flight Consoles / Swill Total)
Card Decks
- 18 Secondary Objectives cards
- 34 Airship Parts cards
- 8 Automated Enemy Unit cards
Battlefield Board
- Battlefield board with a Victory Point (VP) Tracker along its edge.
Deployables and Other Hexes (4 of each)
- Deployable hexes, including Strategic Point hexes and Swill Pump hexes (7).
Mega Building Tiles and Cards
- Mega Building tiles (1 of each type) and their associated reference card.
- Railway Cannon card (used within the Base Phase).
Faction Starting Components
(Number below = number per Faction.)
- 2 Planes and stands
- 2 Aqua-tanks
- 2 Armoured Cars
- 4 Tanks
- 2 Bombardier Hogs
- 2 Sniper Hogs
- 2 Engineer Hogs
- 2 Orderly Hogs
- 5 Grunt Hogs
- 7 Faction Capture tokens
- 1 Airship and stand
- 30 Unit Upgrade cards
- 14 Unit cards
- 1 Swill Income die (the 8, 10, 12 die)
- 1 Faction Base hex
- Building tiles (the same number for each Faction; a list of Building tile types can be found on the back page of the rulebook)
- Battlefield base grid
- 1 Plane screen (Flight Screen)
- 2 Plane consoles (1 is the Co-Pilot), with a Co-Pilot token in Faction colour
Game Overview
In Hogs Of War The Miniatures Game, you will play as a Hog General from 1 of 4 competing Factions:
- Tommy's Trotters
- Uncle Ham's Hogs
- The Sow-A-Krauts
- The Piggystroika
You are fighting for control over Saustralasia, a dreary rump-stain of a continent brimming with untapped Swill reserves.
Winning the Game
To win any game of Hogs, you must score 12 Victory Points (VP) before any of your enemies do... or force your enemies to surrender in the face of impending defeat!
VP are scored in 4 ways:
- Completing a Mission's Primary Objective
- Completing Secondary Objectives
- Controlling a Strategic Point Hex in the End Phase
- Destroying a 'Unit-unlocking' Building in the enemy Base.
Whenever VP are scored, immediately update the Battlefield Board's Victory Point Tracker by moving the scoring Faction's Capture Token to reflect their new total.
The game ends when any player (or team) reaches 12 VP.
If multiple players (or teams) reach 12 VP at the same time, the player (or team) with the least Secondary Objective Cards remaining will win the game.
Setup
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Choose a Hog Faction to command and take that Faction's starting components (see page 2). Use these components to create a Player Area as shown on page 5.
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Choose a Mission from the Campaign Book. Missions provide a game's Objectives and Mission-specific rules.
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Place the Battlefield in the centre of the gaming area, with all remaining tokens and dice within reach. Place a Capture Token from each player's Faction at the bottom of the Battlefield Victory Point Tracker.
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Lay out the Battlefield's terrain, using the Mission's map as a guide. (Once you are comfortable with the game, you can use the Sandbox method; find tips on page 26.)
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Lay out any Special Hexes.
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All players roll their Swill Income Dice; the player with the highest result will be First Player and takes the First Player Coin.
Note: In the event of a tied roll, the player who last saw a real-world pig is the First Player. Play always starts with the First Player and proceeds clockwise around the table.
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In player order, each player places their Base Hex on to the Battlefield according to the Deployment Rules of the Mission, as well as any free Units or Deployables granted by the Mission.
All free Units and Deployables (see additional player setup from the Campaign Mission) are Deployed in the player's remaining Deployment Zone after the Base Hex has been placed.
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Shuffle the Secondary Objectives cards and deal 4 face-down to each player. Each player chooses a single card to keep and then passes the remaining cards clockwise. Once every player has 4 cards, each player chooses one of the 4 cards in their hand and discards it. The 3 remaining cards are your Secondary Objectives for the game. Place the 3 cards face-down above your Player Area. You can check these cards whenever you wish, but don't reveal them to the enemy!
Game Board Setup Example
The example board is annotated with numbered callouts matching the Setup steps above:
- Faction-specific Capture tokens: Tommy's Trotters, Uncle Ham's Hogs, The Sow-A-Krauts, The Piggystroika.
- The Campaign Book, which provides the Mission.
- Use a Faction-specific Capture token for the Victory Point Tracker. The Capture token starts at the Starting Position on the Victory Point Tracker, and the first Faction to reach 12 Victory Points wins.
- Terrain tiles.
- Special Hex.
- Swill Income dice.
- Deployable hex.
- Secondary Objectives cards.
The example also shows the Tokens, Explosion Marker, Mega Buildings, Deployable tiles, Airship Parts and Secondary Objectives cards, and the Melee, Gun, Explosive Attack dice and Vehicle Damage dice pools.
The Player Area
Every player has a Player Area which is set up before the game begins. A Player Area is subdivided into 3 parts:
- The Base Zone, which contains your Base Grid (with Swill Tracker), Buildings, Capture Tokens, and Swill Income Dice.
- The Aerial Zone, which contains your Flight Screen, Plane Consoles (with Flight Indicators), Airship Parts Cards and space for any purchased Aerial Unit Upgrade Cards.
- The Ground Zone, which contains your Ground Unit Cards, their associated miniatures and space for any purchased Ground Unit Upgrade Cards.
The Player Area diagram labels: Swill Income Dice; Flight Screen; Plane Console cards; Flight Indicators; space for purchased Airship Parts; First Player Coin; Capture Tokens; Ground Unit cards (start locked); space for Upgrade Cards.
Setting Up the Base Zone
- Place the Base Grid on the left of your Player Area.
- Take the HQ and Large Swill Refinery Buildings and place them anywhere on the Base Grid where there is room. Don't worry about the Construction Icons on these Buildings for now; these come into play when these Buildings are damaged (See page 25).
- Set your Swill Total to 6 (using the Indicator) and your Swill Income Dice to 4. This represents your starting Swill total and current Swill Income (from the Large Swill Refinery) respectively. The Swill Income Dice will be updated whenever you are subject to a recurring Swill Income or recurring Swill Upkeep cost.
- Group your Faction Capture Tokens together and place them near to your Base Grid.
Setting Up the Aerial Zone
- Place both Plane Console cards in the middle of your Player Area, locked side face-up. Make sure the Co-Pilot Console is the rightmost of the two cards. The Co-Pilot Console is indicated by the Co-Pilot icon.
- Place 2 Indicators on each Console, along with a Plane Miniature and stand. Place the Co-Pilot Token on the Co-Pilot Console (this token is marked with the same icon as the card and accompanies the Co-Pilot's Plane Miniature when it enters the Battlefield, making it easy to distinguish from your other Plane).
- Place the Flight Screen in front of both Consoles, so that other players cannot see your Aerial Zone unless the Flight Screen has been removed.
The empty space below your Plane Console Cards is where your Airship will be constructed, using Airship Parts Cards (see page 19).
Setting Up the Ground Zone
Choose a single Unit Card of each Initiative value between 1 and 6, ensuring that no Units of the same Class are chosen (see page 12 for more information about Ground Unit Initiative).
Place the chosen Ground Unit cards to the right of the Plane Consoles, in ascending Initiative value order. Place the miniature associated with each Ground Unit above its corresponding card.
Note: Unit Cards are placed with their locked side face-up unless that Unit has been unlocked by a Building on your Base Grid.
All Missions require a player to start with the HQ Building on their Base Grid, thus the Grunt Unit Card will always occupy the Initiative 3 slot and be unlocked at the start of a game, as shown in the diagram above.
Changing Ground Unit Selection
If, during the game, you Construct a Building that unlocks a Ground Unit Class not chosen during Ground Zone setup, you may remove and replace a current Unit Card with the newly unlocked Unit Card, provided that both Unit Cards have the same Initiative value.
Note: This is only possible if you have no Units currently on the Battlefield matching the Unit Class whose card is being replaced.
All Upgrades applied to the Unit Class Card being replaced are removed and placed back into the Upgrade Cards deck. Upgrade Card decks are not ordered, so you can put these cards back anywhere in the deck.
Round Structure
Each Round is divided into 5 Phases. These are the Base Phase, The Aerial Phase, the Ground Phase, the Recruitment Phase and the End Phase. Each Phase is played sequentially, with a Round moving into the next Phase once the last player has finished their actions within that Phase.
Phase 1: The Base Phase
A. Choose one of the following actions:
- Construct a Building, or
- Demolish a Building, or
- Repair the HQ or Large Swill Refinery (if damaged), or
- Pass.
B. Generate Swill
A. Constructing and Demolishing Buildings
To Construct a Building, add the Building to your Base Grid so that it fits entirely within the squares printed on the Base Grid without overlapping other Buildings. There is no cost to Construct a Building (other than 'spending' an action).
Note: Building position within your base will influence what other Buildings you have space for, so plan ahead carefully!
To Demolish a Building, choose a Building within your base and remove it from the Base Grid. There is no cost for Demolishing a Building.
Unit-Unlocking Buildings
If a newly Constructed Building unlocks a Unit Class (shown by the Unit Class symbol), flip any Unit Card in your Player Area that matches this Unit Class so that the locked side of that card is no longer showing. This Unit Class can now be recruited during the Recruitment Phase (see page 8).
Note: Some Buildings unlock a limited number of Units from a Unit Class. This Unit Cap is shown next to the Unit Class symbol (shown to the right 'x2').
If a Building that unlocks a Unit Class is Destroyed or Demolished, Units of the unlocked Class on the Board are unaffected. You will not be able to recruit more Units of this Class until the Building is Repaired or Constructed again.
Upgrade-Unlocking Buildings
Infantry Unit Upgrades are unlocked by Constructing the Research and Development (R'N'D) Building.
Vehicle Unit Upgrades are unlocked by Constructing the Chop Shop Building.
If a Building that unlocks an Upgrade is Destroyed or Demolished, Upgraded Units on the Board are unaffected, but you will not be able to Upgrade any more Units until the Building is Repaired.
Repairing the HQ or Large Swill Refinery
If your HQ or Large Swill Refinery are damaged, you may choose the Repair action to remove a Construction Token; see page 25 for more information on damage to your Base Buildings.
B. Generate Swill
Gain Swill equal to your current Swill Income, minus any Swill Upkeep costs generated by constructed Buildings in your Base.
Swill Income includes Swill generated by captured Battlefield Swill Pumps and by Swill Refinery Buildings in the Base.
The Swill Income Dice is used to track net Swill Income. Keep it updated with recurring Swill income and Swill Upkeep costs to speed up the Generate Swill step in subsequent Rounds. (See page 10 for more information on Swill.)
Example: The Large Swill Refinery gives the player +2 Swill, the Chop Shop then reduces it by 1 giving a +1 net Swill Income.
Phase 2: The Aerial Phase
If there are no Aerial Units (Biplanes, Triplanes or Airships) on the Battlefield Board, skip this Phase.
If there are Aerial Units on the Battlefield, do the following:
A. Ensure that Aerial Zones are hidden by Flight Screens. B. Move the Indicators on the Aerial Units' Consoles to set a Flight Speed and Rotation Direction. C. Remove Flight Screens. D. Carry out Aerial Unit actions in Initiative order (note that Aerial Unit Initiative is flexible and changes based on the Unit's speed).
- Aerial Unit Initiative and Activation are covered on page 12.
- Aerial Unit health is covered on page 16.
- Aerial Unit special rules and actions are covered on page 18.
- Airships have their own additional rules and are covered on page 19.
The Aerial Phase ends when all Aerial Units have had their turn.
Phase 3: The Ground Phase
If there are no Ground Units on the Battlefield Board, skip this Phase (this is very rare).
If there are Ground Units on the Battlefield Board, activate any Ground Units and play out their turns using their fixed Initiative order.
Ground Unit Initiative and Activation are covered on page 12.
The Ground Phase ends when all Ground Units have completed their turn.
Phase 4: The Recruitment Phase
Spend Swill to perform as many of the following actions as you can afford, in any order:
Recruit New Units
Deduct the new Unit's Swill cost from your current Swill total and place (Deploy) the corresponding miniature on to the Battlefield, on any empty hex directly adjacent to your Base Hex.
New Units can only be recruited if:
- You have enough Swill to Recruit the Unit and the Unit Class is unlocked (see page 6), and
- There is a miniature remaining to represent the Unit in your Player Area, and
- There is an empty hex available to place that Unit on to. Aerial Units ignore Ground Units for the purpose of determining whether a Battlefield hex is empty.
Note: New Units cannot be placed on to Impassable terrain (see page 21).
Forward Deploy New Units
Recruited Infantry Units may be Forward Deployed.
For the cost of 1 additional Swill per Unit, you may treat a captured Bunker or Trench Deployable as your Base Hex for the purposes of placing the new Infantry Unit on to the Battlefield.
Purchase New Upgrades
Upgrades grant powerful new abilities or effects to specific Unit Classes.
Purchase Upgrades from your Upgrade Cards deck by paying the Swill Cost shown on the Upgrade Card, then apply the Upgrade by sliding the Upgrade Card under a Unit Card with its lower area visible (as shown below). The Upgrade's effect is immediately active.
Upgrades have specific limitations on which Unit Class they can be applied to and cannot be removed once applied.
Note: Each Unit Class may never have more than 2 Upgrades.
Diagram: A Grenade Lob Upgrade under the Engineer Unit card. (The diagram shows a Shotgun Upgrade and a Grenade Lob Upgrade, each with a level scale from 1 to 6 and dice icons for the attack dice that each level grants.)
Purchase Bomb Tokens for Aerial Units
For the cost of 1 Swill per Bomb, you may place standard or incendiary Bomb Tokens on to the Console of any Base-Hex-adjacent Aerial Unit, as long as there is room on that Unit's Console for the token(s).
Phase 5: The End Phase
A. Check in the Campaign Book Mission page whether the Primary Objective's scoring conditions have been met. If so, score VP as per the Primary Objective information, then
B. Check if any players control a Strategic Point Hex; if so, that player scores 1 Victory Point (VP) per Strategic Hex that they control, then
C. Pass the First Player Coin clockwise to the next player.
Swill Explained
Swill is an in-game currency, tracked on a player's Base Grid Swill Tracker. Swill is spent throughout the game on Units, Upgrades, Deployables and Mega Building special abilities.
Each time you spend Swill, immediately deduct the amount spent from your current Swill total. You cannot spend more Swill than you currently possess.
- The Swill Income Dice shows how much Swill you earn each Round.
- Your Swill total is tracked on your Base Grid (Swill Tracker, with a Max Swill of 12).
A Green Swill Barrel icon represents Swill Income; this is immediately added to your Swill Tracker when it is received.
The Red Swill Barrel icon represents Swill Cost, deducted immediately from your Swill Tracker upon use of the ability or purchase of a Unit, Deployable or Upgrade.
Red or Green Swill Barrel icons with an arrow represent recurring Swill Income or Swill Upkeep cost. This is covered in the Base Phase section on page 7.
Counting Hexes
To work out a range (distance) on the Battlefield, count from the starting (origin) hex to the destination (target) Battlefield hex using the shortest possible path.
Include every Battlefield hex this path passes through including the destination (target) hex.
Any hex (or Unit on a hex) at range (distance) 1 from the starting (origin) hex is considered to be adjacent.
Any interactions taking place between Units sharing the same Battlefield hex count as occurring at range 1.
The diagram shows a starting (origin) hex with a Unit, a target Unit at Range 2 and a target Unit at Range 3, with the shortest path to each marked.
Scoring Secondary Objectives
Each Secondary Objective Card has a Swill condition and a Victory Point condition.
Fulfil either condition to immediately score the associated Swill or VP shown on the card. Discard the card once one condition is scored.
You may choose not to score the Swill condition in order to retain the chance to score the VP condition later.
Example: The "Hail Mary" Secondary Objective card has two conditions: "Jetpack: Move a Unit twice in a single Round and survive", which scores Swill (2), and "Attack the enemy Base with the Super TNT attack action", which scores 2 VP.
Unit Core Rules
The term 'Unit' refers to a single Infantry or Vehicle miniature.
Each Unit belongs to a Unit Class and has a corresponding Unit Card which details their stats, available actions and other important information (see 'Reading A Unit Card' below).
A Unit will activate during the Aerial or Ground Phase and use Action Points (AP) to perform actions (see 'Actions' on page 13).
Unit Types
Unit Classes are grouped by:
- Whether they are a Ground or Aerial type Unit (Aerial Units have special rules; see page 18), and
- Whether they are an Infantry or Vehicle type unit (Vehicle Units have special rules; see Page 17).
Grunt, Medic, Engineer, Espionage, Heavy Weapons and Legend are all types of Ground Infantry. Unit Classes with the Medic, Engineer, Espionage and Heavy Weapons keyword also count as Specialists.
Note: This is important for some Missions and Upgrade Card effects, as shown by the Super Shotgun card, which is marked "Specialists only".
Reading a Unit Card
The Unit Card diagram labels the following parts:
- Unit Initiative Value: This value determines the speed at which this Unit Class activates relative to other Units on the Battlefield.
- Unit Health Points (HP): How many HP the Unit can lose before it is destroyed.
- Unit Class name.
- Unit Type identifier and symbol.
- An Action.
- Action Point (AP) Cost.
- Action effect.
- Free Action: Any actions with this symbol are free to perform. They cost 0 AP to use but each free action can only be used once per turn.
- Attack Action Stat Block: Shows the Attack Dice to be rolled when attacking an enemy Unit at each range from 1 to 6 hexes. A dash [-] denotes that an Attack cannot be used at that range.
- Attack Dice.
- Applied Upgrade Cards (maximum 2 per Unit).
- Action Point Total (AP): How many Action Points the Unit can spend on actions during their turn.
- Controlling Faction flag: Denotes which Faction the Unit belongs to.
The example card shown is the Engineer. Its actions are "Move 1 hex" and "Remove 2 Construction tokens", and its Attack Action is the Shotgun, with the Free Action "First movement action move 2 hexes" and the Super TNT attack action.
Initiative Order and Activation
Units are activated based on the Unit Class Initiative Value. The Unit Class with the lowest Initiative Value is activated first. In the case of a tie, tied Units are activated in player order.
The controlling player selects one Unit of this Unit Class on the Battlefield to activate and may then spend this Unit's available Action Points to perform actions (see Page 13).
The activated Unit's turn is complete once it has 0 Action Points remaining and no free actions left to take, or the controlling player chooses to Pass.
The activated Unit must complete its turn before another Unit can be activated.
Once the Unit has completed its turn, the controlling player may activate another Unit of that Unit Class.
Once all of the player's Units of that Unit Class have completed their turns, activation moves on to the next Unit Class based on Initiative order as detailed above.
The Action Phase ends when the last Unit belonging to the Unit Class with the highest Initiative Value has completed its turn.
Note: This could be a Unit Class with the same Initiative Value but belonging to the next player in player order.
Example: Tied Initiative of Units. Being the First Player means that Tommy's Bombardiers will activate before the Sow-A-Kraut's Sniper unit.
Aerial Unit Initiatives and Activation
Aerial Unit Classes (Biplanes, Triplanes and Airships) activate in the Aerial Phase (Phase 2).
Unlike Ground Units, Aerial Units have variable Initiative Values that change throughout a game depending on the Unit's Speed (see page 18).
- Plane Initiative is found on Plane Consoles (as shown on the Plane Console diagram, which marks Speed 1 to Speed 6 and Initiative values 1 to 6).
- Airship Initiative is found on tail Airship Parts cards (as shown on the Airship diagram, with Move 0 Turn 3, Move 1 Turn 3, Move 2 Turn 2 and Initiative values 2, 4 and 6).
Ground Unit Initiative and Activation
Ground Unit Classes (Infantry and Ground Vehicles) activate in the Ground Phase (Phase 3).
Ground Unit Initiative values are fixed and do not change.
Actions
Units can Move, Capture, Construct and Attack. Some can perform Special Actions.
Move
Pay the Action Point Cost (1, 2 or 3 AP) listed on the Unit Card and move the Unit the stated number of Battlefield hexes.
Ground Units cannot end their turn on a Battlefield hex occupied by another Ground Unit, a Deployable or certain Impassable terrain types (see page 21). Ground Units may, however, move through occupied hexes by using consecutive Move actions in the same turn, as long as the Unit possesses enough Action Points to do so.
Note: Some Battlefield Terrain special rules may restrict a Unit's movement (see page 21).
Capture
Ground Infantry Units may Capture an adjacent Strategic Point, Swill Pump, AA Gun, Trench or Bunker Deployable for the cost of 1 AP.
The capturing player places a Faction Capture Token on the captured point immediately, removing any existing enemy Faction Capture Tokens already present on the point.
Capturing a point in this way immediately brings it under a Faction's control.
The capturing player now benefits from any VP or Swill Income granted by the captured point and can use any of the captured point's abilities, such as a Bunker's Forward Deployment ability.
Diagram: Capturing the Swill Pump. For 1 AP remove the opponent's Capture token and replace it with your own lovely flag.
Construct
Ground Infantry Units may Construct a Deployable on any adjacent unoccupied Battlefield Plains Hex for the cost of 1 AP plus the Deployable's Swill cost.
Deployables include Trenches, Bunkers, Hedge-Hogs, Minefields, Artillery and AA Guns. Each type of Deployable has its own function, Swill Cost and number of starting Construction Tokens to be placed on it when it is added to the Battlefield (For more information on Deployables, see page 23).
The Construct action may alternatively be used to remove 1 Construction Token from an existing Deployable. Doing this costs 1 AP. All Construction Tokens must be removed from the Deployable before Deployable Hex is flipped to its active side.
Diagram: Constructing a Minefield. Choose an adjacent Plains hex, pay the Construct action cost (1 AP) plus the Minefield cost (1 Swill), place with the correct amount of Construction tokens, remove 1 Construction token per subsequent Construct action, flip over the Deployable when constructed.
Special Actions
Some Unit Classes and Upgrade cards have Special Actions that can be activated as a free action or by paying the indicated Action Point cost.
Attack
Available Attack actions are found on Unit Cards and on some Upgrade Cards, which can be used if applied to the Unit Class as an Upgrade.
Each Attack action has a unique name, an Action Point (AP) cost and a stat block, as shown by the Rifle example.
How to Carry Out an Attack Action
First, declare that your Unit is attacking a Deployable, enemy Unit or enemy Base with an Attack from their Unit Card or applied Upgrade Cards and pay the associated AP cost.
Count the number of hexes between your Unit and the target, then compare this number to the coloured Range bar on the stat block for the Attack you are carrying out.
Example: The Grunt's Rifle has a range of 1 and 2 only (without Upgrades).
If the box below this range shows a dash (-), the Attack cannot be used against targets at that range.
If dice are shown, the Attack can be used against targets at that range. The box shows the starting number and colour of Attack Dice that will be rolled to determine the Attack's outcome.
Before rolling, consider the following:
- Has the Attack of this Unit Class been upgraded? If so, add Attack Dice as per the relevant Upgrade Card.
- If you are targeting an enemy Infantry Unit, do they have a Cover Bonus from being in terrain or adjacent to a Deployable? If so, once your enemy has chosen which Cover Bonus to use, remove the relevant Attack Dice. See page 21 for more about Cover Bonuses.
- If you are targeting an Aerial Unit, remove all Melee Attack Dice.
Example: Shotgun at range 1. Two Glancing Hits become a single Hit, combined with the green single Hit, for a final result of a Critical Hit.
Attack Dice
Attack Dice represent the potential damage that an Attack can inflict on a Unit. There are three types: Gun, Explosive and Melee.
Each type is different to the others, featuring a different combination of Misses (blank sides), Glancing Hits, Hits and Critical Hits.
After Attack Dice have been rolled, the results are evaluated and applied to the enemy Unit as damage.
Faces of an Attack Dice
- Miss: No damage will be applied; discard any Miss results.
- Glancing Hit: A single Glancing Hit result does not inflict any damage; it must be combined with another Glancing Hit result to create a Hit (see below).
- Hit: A Hit inflicts 1 point of damage against Infantry. It does not damage Vehicles. 2 Hit results combine to form a Critical Hit.
- Critical Hit: A Critical Hit inflicts 2 points of damage against Infantry. Critical Hits are the only result that can damage Vehicles (see page 15).
Combining Attack Dice Results
After rolling Attack Dice, results are combined to determine the final amount of damage inflicted on the targeted Unit.
Pair up all Glancing Hit results to create Hit results, with 2 Glancing Hits becoming a single Hit. Remove any remaining single Glancing Hit results.
Then, pair up all Hit results to make Critical Hit results, with 2 Hits becoming a single Critical Hit. Remove any remaining single Hit results if the target is a Vehicle.
Damaging Infantry Units
Infantry Units have a Health Points (HP) value, represented on their Unit Card by the heart icon. When Recruited, Units Deploy with their full HP allowance.
A Unit's HP is reduced by damage (inflicted by enemy Attacks, or self-inflicted as a result of some abilities).
When an Infantry Unit is damaged, take a Damage Token with the corresponding amount of damage points and place it adjacent to the Unit on the Battlefield to show that the Unit's HP has been reduced.
Example: The Grunt has taken a wound and has 1 HP remaining.
When an Infantry Unit's HP is reduced to 0 or less, it is destroyed. Remove the Unit's miniature and Damage Tokens from the Battlefield and place the miniature back by its corresponding Unit Class Card.
Stun Effects
Stun Icons in an Attack's stat block will cause a Stun Token to be applied to the target if they are within the Attack's range.
A Stun Token costs the stunned Unit 1 AP to remove (as an action during the Stunned Unit's turn).
A Unit can never have more than 1 Stun; any additional Stun effects against a Stunned Unit are ignored.
All Stun tokens must be removed before a Unit can spend AP on other actions.
Example: The deadly Cattle Prod inflicts 1 Stun token on your target.
Damaging Vehicle Units
Unlike Infantry Units, Vehicle Units do not have an explicit HP stat.
Vehicles are only damaged by Critical Hits. For each Critical Hit scored against an enemy Vehicle, roll a Vehicle Damage Die (VDD).
There are 3 possible results on a VDD:
- Flame: Add a Flame Token to the Vehicle Unit. When subsequent VDDs are rolled against this Unit, roll an additional VDD for each Flame Token on the Unit.
- Minor Damage:
- Against Aerial Units: For each Minor Damage result, the player controlling the targeted Unit places a Damage Cube on any empty Damage Slot on the Unit's Console (for Planes) or Card (for Airships).
- Against Ground Vehicles: For each Minor Damage result, add a -1 Vehicle Damage Token to the targeted Unit.
- Major Damage:
- Against Aerial Units: For each Major Damage result, the player Attacking the targeted Unit places a Damage Cube on any empty Damage Slot on the Unit's Console (for Planes) or Card (for Airships).
- Against Ground Vehicles: For each Major Damage result add a -1 Vehicle Damage Token. Also add a single Stun Token to the targeted Unit.
Note: Regardless of how many Major Damage results are rolled, a maximum of one Stun Token will be added.
Flame Effects
If the targeted Unit is a Vehicle: Flame Icons in an Attack's stat block will cause a Flame Token to be added to the targeted Unit.
If the targeted Unit is Infantry: Substitute every Flame icon for a Melee Attack Dice before making the Attack roll.
Aerial Unit Health (HP)
An Aerial Unit's current HP is equal to the number of unoccupied Damage Slots on the Unit's Console (for Planes) or Airship Parts Cards (for Airships).
Thus, Damage Cubes placed on Damage Slots reduce the remaining HP of the Aerial Unit.
When all Damage Slots are occupied, the Unit is destroyed. If a Damage Cube is placed on to a Damage Slot that shares a space with an action or ability, that action or ability is disabled.
Actions that can be disabled on a Console in this way include:
- Selecting the Left Rotation direction
- Selecting the Right Rotation direction
- Selecting Flight Speed 3 or 4
- Using the Bombing action
- Using Attacks at specific ranges.
Example: Damage Slots on a Plane Console. Because this Damage Slot is occupied by a Damage Cube, the Airship's M-Gun can no longer target enemy Units at range 1.
Anti-Air Attack Actions
Example: The Airburst Attack action. Target any Aerial Unit in any direction within range.
Some Attack actions can only target Aerial Units, as shown by the Anti-Air icon.
Ground Vehicle Health (HP)
Ground Vehicle HP equals the Unit's Action Point total.
Vehicle Damage Tokens reduce the Unit's AP total by the number of points of damage shown on the token. Thus, Ground Vehicles with Vehicle Damage Tokens have less Action Points to spend on actions during their turn.
Once the Unit's AP total is reduced to 0 or less, the Unit is destroyed.
Example: This Fat Willie Tank has an Action Point total of 4 and may spend 4 Action Points in its turn. The Fat Willie Tank above has been damaged, reducing its Action Point total by 1 to 3; this Unit may only spend 3 Action Points on its turn.
Leaving the Battlefield
Aerial Units may leave the Battlefield voluntarily or due to forced movement. In this situation, remove the Unit's miniature from the Battlefield.
Next Aerial Action Phase, place the miniature on to the hex where it left the Battlefield with its Front facing orientated in the opposite direction (i.e. a 180° Rotation, see page 17).
Note: Indicators can be moved as usual once the miniature has been returned to the Battlefield.
Note: Ground Units cannot leave the Battlefield.
Vehicle Special Rules
Note: The terms Turn and Rotate (or Rotation) are used interchangeably on the game's cards. The term Rotation is used in the rulebook, to prevent confusion with a 'player turn'.
Vehicle Facing
All Vehicle Units, except the Armoured Car, have 'facings' which denote a Unit's Front, Back and Sides.
Vehicle Units must face towards a hex's flat edge with their miniature's Front; this is the Vehicle Unit's Front facing.
Diagram: Front facing of each Vehicle miniature.
Artillery is also subject to the facings rule. Its Front facing is denoted by a red dashed line on the Deployable's hex.
Attack Actions and Facings
Some Attack actions may target enemy Units within a specific arc, in relation to the Front facing of the Attacking Unit.
These Attack actions have a facing symbol after their name in the Attack action stat block, as shown in the images below.
Note that in this example, the Attack is targeting the Left side, but the Attacking Unit may choose either Left or Right.
Ground Vehicle Move Actions
All Ground Vehicles (except the Armoured Car*) are locked to moving forwards or backwards with a Move action.
To get around obstacles, these Ground Vehicles must use the Rotate action. Each Rotation of 1 hex facing (1 hex side) costs 1 AP.
Example: A single Rotate action has rotated this tank 1 hex facing (hex side) clockwise for the cost of 1 AP.
* Armoured Cars can move in any direction using a Move action in the same way as Infantry Units.
Bailing Out
If a Ground or Aerial Vehicle Unit is too damaged to be effective, you may choose to Bail Out at the start of its turn (before any Action Points have been spent). The Unit is immediately destroyed.
For scoring purposes, 'Bailed Out' Units count as being destroyed by an enemy Unit.
Aerial Unit Special Rules
Aerial Units use a Console to set their Speed and Rotation. As mentioned previously, this step is done secretly using the Flight Screen. The Flight Screens are removed when all players are happy with their Aerial Vehicle Consoles.
To set an Aerial Vehicle Unit's Speed and Rotation, move the Indicators up to 1 space in either direction, skipping damaged Damage Slot spaces (i.e. Damage Slot spaces containing a Damage Cube).
An Indicator must fully occupy its circular space on the Console.
Example: The example above shows the Unit's Speed change from 2 to 3 and their Initiative change from 5 to 4. The direction has also changed from Ahead to Left Rotation.
An Aerial Unit's Speed determines:
- Its Initiative value for the Round (indicated by the blue number).
- Its Movement Requirement for the Round (for every 1 Speed, the Unit must move 1 hex).
- Its Rotation Allowance for the Round (each hex facing Rotation counts as 1 Rotation).
- Whether it can perform a Bombing action.
- Any Twin MG Attack Dice penalty.
- Whether there is a risk of damage to the Unit (occurs at Speed 1 and Speed 6).
These variables are summarised on the Flight Screen.
Rotating
Aerial Units can only Rotate in the direction indicated by their Rotation direction Indicator, and up to the number of Rotations permitted by their current Speed (their Rotation Allowance).
Aerial Units with their Rotation direction Indicator in the central position do not Rotate.
Aerial Units with their Rotation direction Indicator in the Left or Right position and a Rotation Allowance of 1 or more must use at least 1 of their allowed Rotations to Rotate in this direction.
Note: If a Damage Cube is added to the chosen Rotation direction after it has been chosen but before the Unit has moved, move the affected Indicator to the central Rotation direction position immediately.
Example: With a Damage Cube applied, this Plane cannot Rotate left.
Aerial Vehicle Actions
Once activated, Plane Units must start their turn by moving forwards 1 Battlefield hex, even if this results in the Unit's destruction. This movement is deducted from the Unit's Movement Requirement. Airship Units are not subject to this rule.
Note: If your Plane Unit activates at Speed 1 or Speed 6, roll an Explosive Attack Dice against your own Unit immediately, as though it had been targeted by an enemy Attack roll (this is indicated on the Plane Unit's Console by an Explosive Attack dice symbol).
Then carry out the Plane Unit's actions in any order (Movement, Rotation, Attack and Bombing).
Note: Aerial Units must use all of their Movement Requirement by the end of their turn, but can choose how much of their Rotation Allowance to use. Remember; Aerial Units with their Rotation direction Indicator in the Left or Right position and a Rotation Allowance of 1 or more must use at least 1 of their allowed Rotations to Rotate in this direction.
The Bombing Action
The Bombing action uses stored Bomb Tokens to Attack ground targets from the air. Only enemy Ground Units, Deployables and Base Hexes can be targeted. An Aerial Unit adjacent to a Base Hex can be loaded with Bombs during the Recruitment Phase (Phase 4); see page 9.
First, declare that your Aerial Unit is dropping a Bomb. Your Aerial Unit must have moved over or finished their movement on the target's Battlefield hex and must be moving at Speed 1, 2 or 3 to perform the Bombing action.
Remove the bottom-most Bomb Token from the Unit's Console or Airship Parts Card and move any remaining Bomb Tokens downwards on the Console or Airship Card to queue up the next Bomb.
Different Bomb Tokens have different effects when dropped on the enemy; roll Explosive Attack Dice or place Flame Tokens based on the Bomb type, as shown in the image:
- Bomb token: roll Explosive Attack Dice.
- Incendiary Bomb token: place Flame Tokens (1 Flame Token, x4).
Note: Enemy Units never receive Cover Bonuses against Attack rolls from Bombs.
Airship Special Rules
Recruiting the Airship
In the Recruitment Phase (Phase 4), purchase Airship Parts Cards by paying the Swill Cost indicated on the card. Place purchased Airship Parts Cards into your Player Area, beneath the Plane Consoles. The Airship's Tail must always be the left-most card and the Nose must always be right-most. Once complete, Airships are placed on to the Battlefield (during the Recruitment Phase). Use the Recruit New Units rules on page 8.
Note: New Airship Parts Cards cannot be purchased while you have an Airship Unit on the Battlefield. Airships do not have to be completed and Deployed on to the Battlefield in the same Round.
An Airship is considered 'complete' if it contains:
- 1 Tail Airship Parts Card, and
- At least 1 Hull Airship Parts Card, and
- 1 Nose Airship Parts Card.
Diagram: These symbols indicate Tail, Hull and Nose Airship parts respectively, from left to right.
Airships can have as many Hull Parts as you can purchase. Only 1 Nose and 1 Tail Card can be in the Player Area's Aerial Zone at any time. Newly purchased Nose and Tail Airship Parts Cards replace existing Nose and Tail cards.
Once Deployed, set the Airship's Speed and Rotation direction by placing Indicators on the Airship's Tail card; one in the Move 1 position and one on any Rotation direction slot that you wish.
Example: This completed Airship has 3 Parts cards, 8 HP and cost 13 Swill (the example cards shown are the P-1G Sail (5), Gun-Sites (4) and Snaffler (4)).
The Airship Console
An Airship's Console is made up of all Airship Parts Cards in your Player Area which are part of a complete Airship. An Airship's health (HP) is equal to the total number of unoccupied Damage Slots across every Parts Card in this Console.
Airships with several Parts may have multiple free actions; these can be performed in any order the controlling player chooses.
Sniper Example Turn
Your Sniper Unit has 2 Action Points (AP) to spend.
There is an enemy Unit 2 hexes away that you want to target with the 'Sniper' Attack. This will cost 1 AP and provide 2 Melee Attack Dice to roll against the target.
Paying 1 AP, after you make this Attack roll, activates the 'Turn a Hit into a Critical Hit' ability, increasing your chance of doing damage. 1 Hit would become a Critical Hit, increasing Infantry damage from 1 to 2 (or allowing you to roll Vehicle Damage Dice if you were targeting an enemy Vehicle).
If you wanted to, you could pay 1 AP before you make this Attack roll to use the 'Swap...' ability; this would allow you to swap your 2 Melee dice for 4 Gun dice instead.
In this situation, you are targeting an enemy Infantry Unit and decide to just spend 1 AP on the Sniper action. You roll 2 Melee attack dice, resulting in a Glancing Hit and Critical Hit. The Glancing Hit cannot be paired with another Glancing Hit, therefore it does not cause any damage. The Critical Hit, however, causes 2 damage to the Infantry Unit, which has 2 HP and is therefore destroyed.
You have 1 AP left, and decide to spend this on a Construct action. You reduce your Swill Total by the Swill Cost of the Deployable (1 Swill) and place the associated Deployable Hex on to an Battlefield hex adjacent to the Sniper Unit, adding the indicated number of Construction Tokens to the Deployable.
Plane Example Turn
With the Flight Screen hiding your Aerial Zone, you move the Indicators on your Plane Console from Speed 3 to Speed 4 and Rotation direction to Left. This means that your Plane has an Initiative Value of 3. You remove the Flight Screen. The extra Speed means that your Plane activates before the Speed 3 (Initiative Value 4) enemy Plane Unit!
First, you must move your Plane Unit the mandatory 1 hex forwards. You then use your Rotation Allowance of 1 to Rotate the Plane 1 hex facing (hex side) to the Left (anti-clockwise).
You have 3 hexes of Movement Requirement remaining, having already moved the mandatory 1 hex forward.
You move forwards 1 hex and fire the Twin MG at an enemy Unit at range 1. The 2 Explosive Attack Dice and 2 Gun Attack Dice are reduced by 1 Explosive as a penalty for moving at Speed 4 (See Flight Screen table).
Following your Twin MG Attack action, you move the final 2 hexes of your Movement Requirement, completing the Plane Unit's Turn.
Diagram: Mandatory move forward, rotate left, move forward and attack.
Terrain
Terrain is represented by Terrain Tiles that are placed on to the Battlefield during setup. Example terrain setups are provided with each Mission in the Campaign Book.
There are 7 types of terrain, with each type affecting Units on the Battlefield in different ways. These are detailed below.
Plains is the default Battlefield terrain type and confers no cover, movement, or ability bonuses. The empty Battlefield is completely covered by Plains terrain. Deployables can only be constructed on Plains terrain.
Example: For example, a Mountain hex provides defence against dangerous Explosive dice. Plains terrain makes up the Battlefield.
Cover Bonuses
Some terrain types confer a Cover Bonus to any Infantry Unit that occupies it.
Cover Bonuses reduce the number of Attack Dice rolled against your Unit during an enemy Attack action.
Cover Bonuses are shown on the Terrain Tile and are applied before an enemy makes their Attack roll.
- Forests provide cover against Guns.
- Swamps provide defence against nasty Melee dice.
Road Move Actions
All Ground Units that activate on Road terrain pay 1 less AP to perform the first Movement action of their turn.
Mountain Move Actions
Movement actions on to Mountain terrain cost twice as many AP than listed on a Unit card.
There is no AP cost increase for moving between adjacent Mountain Terrain Tiles.
Impassable Terrain
Some terrain types are Impassable for specific Unit Classes. Units of the affected Unit Class cannot move through or end their turn on the associated Impassable terrain type.
If a Unit is forced to enter Impassable terrain, it is destroyed immediately as though it was destroyed by an enemy Attack.
| Terrain Type | Impassable for? |
|---|---|
| Plains | - |
| Forest | All Ground Vehicles |
| Mountains | All Vehicles except the Airship |
| Swamps | All Ground Vehicles except the Aqua Tank |
| Rivers / Lakes | All Ground Units except the Aqua Tank |
| Roads | - |
Terrain Tactics (illustrated tips, page 22)
- River and lake: "Don't swim across Grunt; you won't make it! Send over the ingenious Aqua Tank, it makes quick work out of those of Rivers and Lakes."
- Forest: "Stay in the forest Tommys; that Grunt won't be able to defeat you with your -1 Gun dice cover."
- Swamp: "Keep your heads down, Grunts! It may stink but the Swamp's -1 Melee dice cover might save your lives."
- Mountain: "Mountain terrain. Wheezing intensifies."
- Road: "Tanks, use those roads to move quickly and bypass those impassable mountains."
Illustrated terrain tips also describe Beautiful Rivers and Lakes, Sneaky Forests, Swampy Swamp Lands and Speedy Roads.
Deployables
Deployables are Battlefield defences that provide Units with powerful abilities and Cover Bonuses.
Constructing Deployables
Deployables are placed onto the Battlefield by Infantry Units in the Ground Action Phase using the Construct action (see page 13), along with the number of Construction Tokens indicated on the Deployable Hex.
Deployable Cover Bonuses and abilities only become active once all Construction Tokens have been removed from the Deployable. Infantry Units must use a Construct action to remove each of these tokens.
Example: The AA Gun Deployable costs 3 Swill and starts with 2 Construction Tokens.
If the constructed Deployable is a Bunker, Trench or AA Gun, indicate that your Faction controls it by placing a Capture Token on the Deployable after removing the last Construction Token. These Deployables can be captured by enemies.
Example: Bunker Deployable captured by Tommy's Trotters.
Destroying Deployables
Deployables are destroyed by 2 or more Critical Hits from a single Attack roll. Destroyed Deployables are removed immediately.
A Deployable that grants a Cover Bonus can make use of this Cover Bonus when it is targeted by an enemy Attack action unless that Attack action is a Bombing action by an Aerial Unit.
Hedge-Hog and Minefield Deployables can only be targeted by Range 1 Attacks.
Capturing Deployables
Capture actions may be used to take control of enemy-controlled Bunkers, Trenches and AA Guns (see page 13). Only Units belonging to the controlling Faction can use the Deployable's abilities.
Types of Deployable
Trenches and Bunkers
Bunkers and Trenches provide a Cover Bonus to all adjacent Battlefield hexes, and this Cover Bonus may be used by Infantry Units instead of (but not in addition to) any Cover Bonus provided by a Terrain Tile.
Units only benefit from a single Cover Bonus when targeted by an enemy Attack. Choose which Cover Bonus to use for your Unit before the enemy Attack roll is made. This includes any Cover Bonuses from terrain.
Example: This Trench Deployable provides a 2 Gun dice Cover Bonus compared to the Mountains 1 Explosive Cover Bonus.
Forward Deploy
Bunkers and Trenches under your Faction's control may be used to Forward Deploy newly recruited Infantry Units (see page 9).
Example: Grunts leading the way, using the Trenches Forward Deployment.
Artillery
Once per Ground Action phase, a single adjacent Infantry Unit can use the adjacent Artillery's Attack action by spending 2 AP.
The Artillery Attack action can only target Ground Units, Base Hexes and Battlefield Deployables in the direction of the weapon's Front facing (denoted by a red line).
Artillery Deployables can be Rotated by an adjacent Infantry Unit by 1 facing (1 hex side) for 1 AP per Rotation.
Example: This Grunt uses 2 AP to Rotate the Artillery twice ("Aim..."). The other Grunt can then fire the newly facing Artillery by spending 1 AP ("Fire!").
AA Gun
The AA Gun helps to protect adjacent Ground Units from enemy Aerial Units.
When an adjacent Unit is targeted by an enemy Aerial Unit, perform a 4 Gun Attack roll against that Aerial Unit and apply any resulting damage before the enemy's Aerial Unit Attack roll is resolved.
The AA Gun must have your Faction Capture Token on it to make this AA Gun Attack.
If your Base Grid contains the AA Gun Building, your Base Hex also acts as an AA Gun.
Example: The enemy Plane (A) targets the Grunt (B) protected by the AA Gun (C). "Incoming!!!" The AA Gun attacks before the Plane (at range 3).
Minefield
Minefields inflict a 4 Explosive Attack Dice roll against any Ground Unit that moves on to (enters) any adjacent Battlefield hex. This Attack roll is carried out by the player who constructed the Minefield.
After resolving the Attack roll, the Minefield Deployable is removed from the Battlefield immediately.
Minefield Deployables can only be targeted by range 1 Attacks.
Note: Minefields are not triggered by Units moving out of (leaving) an adjacent Battlefield hex to a non-adjacent hex.
Example: "Kaboom!!!" and "No mines, no tank!" and "Trapped, haha!" are shown in the illustrated tips for Minefields.
Hedge-Hog
Ground Vehicles cannot Move on to or through Battlefield hexes occupied by a Hedge-Hog Deployable.
Hedge-Hogs have no effect on the movement of Infantry Units.
Hedge-Hog Deployables can only be targeted by range 1 Attacks.
Destroying Buildings
Attack actions may target an enemy's Base Hex as though it was an enemy Unit.
Before making your Attack roll, nominate a single Building on your enemy's Base Grid.
2 or more Critical Hits will destroy the targeted Building. Remove the destroyed Building from the Base Grid unless it is an HQ or Large Swill Refinery.
If an HQ or Large Swill Refinery is destroyed, do not remove the Building from the Base Grid. Instead, place a Construction Token on the Building. It will need to be Repaired in the Base Phase to become usable again (see page 7).
When a Building is destroyed, all abilities, Swill upkeep costs and Swill Income conferred by the Building are lost until it is Constructed again (or Repaired in the case of the HQ and Large Swill Refinery). Don't forget to re-lock any Unit Cards affected by a Building's destruction.
Flame Effects and Buildings
If an Attack action's stat block contains a Flame effect, substitute it for a Melee Attack Dice and roll the Attack Dice as normal.
If the Attack action is successful and destroys the nominated enemy Building, nominate a new Building and immediately roll the Attack Dice again.
The Attack action ends after the second Attack Dice roll is resolved, even if it is successful.
Mega Buildings
There are 4 different Mega Buildings that can be constructed on your Base Grid. You may only have 1 Mega Building on your Base Grid at any time.
Example: Railway Cannon reference card and Building tile.
To construct a Mega Building, a player must have both the Research and Development R'N'D and Chop Shop Buildings on their Base Grid.
All Mega Buildings are placed on to the Base Grid with an accompanying Construction Token. This token must be removed as an action in the Base Phase before the Building can be used. Some Mega Buildings also have a Swill Cost that must be paid before the Building can be constructed; this is detailed on the Building's corresponding Mega Building Card.
Mega Buildings have a substantial Swill Upkeep cost but unlock powerful late-game abilities for your Faction. These abilities are also detailed on the corresponding Mega Building Card.
Destroying and Rebuilding Mega Buildings
A destroyed Mega Building returns to the shared Mega Building pool along with the corresponding card. The Mega Building can be purchased and built again as with other Buildings.
The Campaign Book
Note: The Mission pages referred to in this rulebook are printed in the separate Campaign Book. This transcription covers the Miniatures rulebook only.
During game setup, you will need to choose a Mission. Missions provide a Primary Objective (1), special rules and the setup conditions for your game.
The Map Key (2) and Additional Player Setup (3) provided will tell you whether any special hexes or Strategic Points are to be added to the Battlefield.
Player Deployment Zones are denoted as A or B (4); these letters are used during 2 player head-to-head games (A VS A) and team games (AB vs AB); see Team Games below.
The First Player chooses a Player Deployment Zone and places their Base Hex and any starting Units wholly within that zone. Continue in player order until all players have set up their own Deployment Zone. In a 2 player game, the second player (opponent) must pick the Deployment Zone with the same letter (A or B) as the First Player.
Example: Mission 1 of the Campaign Book, "Hamburger Hill" (Take and Hold Mission). Map: Hogshead. Primary Objective: In the End Phase, players score 3 VPs if they have a Faction Capture Token on a central Victory Point Hex. Team Scoring: All players within a Team will score the VPs from the Primary Objective if one of their Team is in control of the central Victory Point Hex. Additional Player Setup: Units: 0-5 Grunts, 0-1 Specialist Hogs. Base Buildings: x2 Unit Unlocking Buildings.
Team Games
Team Games are an alternative to free-for-all games at higher player counts.
Choose a teammate, choose a team colour (Pink or Blue) and set up your Player Areas as normal.
1 teammate from each team uses the A Deployment Zone of their chosen team colour, the other teammate uses B.
Scoring
The conditions for scoring VP in team games may differ from those in 2 player head-to-head games. Any such differences are listed under Team Scoring on the Mission page (5).
Friendly Fire
- You cannot target teammate Units with Attack actions.
- You can shoot through teammate Units (there is no friendly fire).
- You can heal and repair teammate Units as though they were your own.
- You cannot move teammate Units.
Sandbox Map Tips
You are strongly encouraged to create your own Battlefield maps instead of using the Campaign Book examples.
- Choose the Mission first to determine which special hexes will be needed for setup.
- Symmetry tends to produce more balanced Battlefields. Use the central hex of the Battlefield to divide it into sections and make terrain placement easier.
- Ensure that there are Swill Pumps on the Battlefield to provide extra income and an early game goal.
- For a fun approach to Sandbox Map creation, divide the Terrain Tiles by the number of players and hand each player an identical pile. Take turns placing these tiles on to the Battlefield in player order.
- If setting up a Team game, ensure that Deployment Zones are spaced equally (from each other and from the Primary Objective and Special hexes).
Community Maps
New example Battlefield Maps will be published at the publisher's website.
Horde Mission AI Rules
Mission 9 (Paths of Gravy) is a Solo (1 player) or Co-op (2 player) Mission that makes use of Automated Enemy Unit Cards to determine what the AI (simulated) enemy does.
Example: Mission 09, Paths of Gravy (Horde Mission). This Mission must be played cooperatively with 1 or 2 players against the Automated Enemy Team. Map: The Pork-Rind Rivers.
Additional Setup
Choose a single Deployment Zone, A or B, and place your Base Hex and the 4 Spawn Hexes. If you are playing a Co-op game, your teammate takes the remaining Deployment Zone.
Place all 6 Automated Enemy Unit Cards and 2 regular Plane Consoles (4 in Co-op) along the edge of the Battlefield board, along with their associated miniatures. The Enemy AI does not use a Base Hex, Base Grid or Flight Screen and uses the miniatures from the unused Factions. Use 1 set of Faction miniatures for 1 player Solo and 2 sets of Faction miniatures for 2 player Co-op.
Treat the AI as a third player when determining player order; roll a Swill Income Dice alongside your own to represent the AI when deciding who will be the First Player.
AI Behaviours and Actions
- AI Units carry out the actions on their Unit Card that correspond to the symbols on the Mission page (Aggressive / Defensive).
- AI Units only take their Movement Action if doing so wouldn't take them out of range of an enemy (based on their current Behaviour's Attack action).
- An AI's 'Ignore Mountain Terrain' Move action ignores the extra AP cost usually incurred by entering Mountain Terrain tiles.
- If an AI Unit cannot inflict damage on a Unit with their Attack action, that Unit is ignored when determining closest enemy. This includes Units that are too close to target with an Attack action.
- AI Units will always target Units with the lowest remaining HP first if there is a choice of multiple targets.
Example: Automated Enemy Unit cards.
Spawning AI Units
In the End Phase, AI Units spawn from Spawn Hexes.
Roll 1 Melee, 1 Explosive, 1 Gun and 1 Vehicle Damage Dice for each Spawn Hex on the Battlefield.
The results of this roll determine which, if any, AI Units are placed on to the Battlefield adjacent to the associated Spawn Hex (see the 'Automated Enemy Spawning' box on the Mission page).
AI Units are only placed if there are enough miniatures on the Automated Enemy Unit Cards to represent them.
Enemy Planes spawn when a specific VP threshold is reached as detailed in the Mission's Final Wave Rules.
Spawn Hexes are named Alpha, Beta, Delta and Charlie.
Building Tile Types
The back page of the rulebook lists the Building tile types. Each Faction has the same number of Building tiles.
- HQ Building: Unlocks the Grunt Class.
- Large Swill Refinery: +4 Swill Income each Round.
- Small Swill Refinery: +2 Swill Income each Round.
- Research and Development ('R'N'D'): Unlocks Infantry Upgrades. Costs 1 Swill each Round.
- Chop Shop: Unlocks Vehicle Upgrades. Costs 1 Swill each Round.
- Airship Hangar: Unlocks the Airship. Costs 2 Swill each Round.
- Aerial Runway: Unlocks x1 Plane Vehicle. Costs 1 Swill each Round.
- AA Gun: Counter-attacks enemy Aerial Units.
- Tank Factory: Unlocks x2 Ground Vehicles. Costs 1 Swill each Round.
- Military Intelligence Tent: Unlocks the Espionage Class.
- Barracks: Unlocks the Heavy Weapons Class.
- Workshop and MASH Tent: Unlocks the Engineer Class. Unlocks the Medic Class.