Troops

This page contains specific rules about running troops, “mass combat“, or “armies” in this TTRPG system.

Troop mechanics are a method for having combat with more than 10 individuals (up to thousands of individuals), without the need to deal with initiative & turns for more than 10 characters.

These mechanics also make it possible for a large army of mere mortals to be a threat to a godlike character.

Troop Statblocks

As with minions, troops don’t have separate statblocks.  Instead, select the statblock of an individual NPC or antagonist that is representative of the troop on the whole.  Use this as a template for your troop’s stats.

Troop Initiative

Troops act as if they were a single entity.  Troops roll initiative as a single entity, rolling only once.

Troops get a single turn per round, regardless of how many of them there are.  This is counter-balanced by Troop Strength and Troop Attack mechanics.

Troops cannot take initiative damage.  Any attack attempting to deal initiative damage instead deals health damage.

Troop Strength

Troop Strength is a rough measure of how many individuals make up the unit.

Each point of Troop Strength increases the approximate number of soldiers in the unit, and thus the combat effectiveness of the unit.

Each point of Troop Strength adds +1 to size, +2 to attack rolls, and +1x multiplier to health.  Additionally, each point of Troop Strength adds +1 dice when resisting fear effects or fear related social actions.

Troop Strength Table

Troop Attacks

When troops attack, they attack every enemy in range of their weapons.  The troop makes 1 attack roll.  Each defender makes their own defense roll.

Troops can only attack once on their turn.

An attack consumes a simple action for troops.

Commanders can grant their troops additional attacks via powers linked with the leadership skill.

Troop Defense

Recalculate troop defense dicepools based on the difference between their size and the attacker’s size.  This effectively grants them +1 to their soak defense for each point of difference in size.

Area attacks and anti-large attacks can bypass some or all of the defense bonuses due to size.

Troop Health

Multiply the base health of the statblock you’re using by the health multiplier on the table above.

Troops heal at the same rate as anyone else.

Troop Spaces & Movement

Troops occupy a number of spaces on the battlefield equal to half their Troop Strength rating.

Troops move the same way anyone moves during combat.

If you have a troop occupying more than one space on the battlefield, you may move each one independently.

Regardless of their map position, they share the same statblock, health, action economy, and attacks.

Troops & Size Mechanics

Size can have big impacts on combat.  Size’s effects on combat are detailed here. Troops start at size 1, as any normal humanoid would.  For each point of Troop Strength, add +1 size, or refer to the Troop Strength table above.

Troops & Vehicles

Troops fighting vs vehicles

Size granted by Troop Strength interacts as normal with the size of enemy vehicles.

As usual, troops attack all enemies in range on their turn, including attacking multiple vehicles.

Troops In Vehicles

There are 2 use cases for troops in vehicles:

1. A fighter squadron (or similar)
   1. A large number of troops are controlling a large number of smaller vehicles (class 1-3 vehicles)
   2. In this case, you run the whole squadron as a single entity in combat.
   3. This use case can scale all the way up to Troop Strength 12 without issue.
2. Gunners on a capital ship (or similar)
   1. Each unit of troops is allotted to one large (class 4-9) vehicle.
      1. The troops aboard a vehicle cannot exceed in Troop Strength the size of the vehicle.
   2. Each capital ship acts as a single entity in battle, attacking all enemies in range whenever they attack.

Suffering A Rout

A rout is an unorganized retreat from the battlefield.  Routing is never a good thing.  A well organized tactical retreat is always preferable to routing.

Routing troops cannot take actions other than fleeing or surrendering.  Routing troops lose half of their defense dicepool when being attacked. Individuals within a routing unit may surrender, but it’s rare for an entire unit to surrender together unless facing impossible odds.

Each time a troop faces something which might cause them to rout, they must spend 1 Energy.  If no Energy remains, a rout is inevitable. Routing has a number of causes, see below.

Routing From Damage

If a troops total health is reduced to 1/2 their maximum health, they may rout.

Routing From Bad Tactical Situations

This cause of routing is entirely up to the Gamemaster to announce.  Below are some guidelines to help.  Any of these may be good reasons for troops to rout:

• Troops are surrounded
• Troops are trapped
• Troops see overwhelming enemy force
  • The overwhelming enemy force may be enemy troops, but it may also be a massive dragon or similar.

Commanders

A commander is a character that is a separate entity from the troops they command.  A commander can be killed, to the great detriment of their troops.  Player characters & NPCs can be commanders. Commanders may use command actions & related powers.

Player Character Commanders

Players get to control the troops that their character commands in combat.

Command Actions

In this system, giving orders to your troops in combat is generally handled via the command action mechanics.  Those mechanics are detailed here.

A commander can make only 1 command action on their turn.  Most command actions are powers linked with the Leadership skill.

Most command actions require the commander to spend a simple action on their turn.

Troops will follow a command given to them immediately in combat.  They do not wait for their turn in the initiative order.

Formations

There are a number of powers which allow commanders to create troop formations.  A unit of troops can only have 1 formation active at a time.  Commanding them into a new formation removes any formation they had before.

Rallying Troops

Troops who have suffered a rout can be rallied by a commander who uses the Rally Troops power.

This power is an interrupt action, which costs 2 energy.

Test: (Social + Leadership) vs (difficulty equal to damage taken by the troops)

Reinforcements

Sometimes you need a bigger army, or to replenish your numbers.  In either case, you call for reinforcements. Reinforcements is a power, granted for free at Leadership skill rating 1.

Test: Mental + Leadership vs GM Difficulty

You need a number of net hits on this roll equal to the troop strength rating 1 above your current rating.  Upon gaining that many net hits, your troop strength increases by 1.

This is an extended roll with an interval and difficulty set by the GM.   The GM sets the interval and difficulty based on strategic context: Are friendly units nearby?  Are there roads, or is it rough terrain?  Are enemy units nearby?  How long will it take just to deliver the message that we need reinforcements?  Taking all of this into account, the GM selects an interval that is the least amount of time they can imagine it taking without being aided by magic.

Reinforcements Example:

Sam commands a troop strength rating 3 unit.  He wants to get his troop strength rating up to 4.  Sam will need 4 net hits on a (Mental(3) + (Leadership (3)) test.

The GM notes the strategic situation: Sam is behind enemy lines, enemy patrols are everywhere, but the friendly main army is only a few miles away over rough terrain.  The GM sets the interval for 1 hour, and the difficulty at 3.  Sam rolls his 6 dice, getting 3 hits, 0 net hits.  1 hour passes and he’s made no progress.  Sam rolls again, getting 4 hits, 1 net hit.  2 hours have passed.  Sam rolls again, getting 5 hits, 2 net hits.  3 hours have passed.  Sam only needs 1 more net hit.  Sam rolls again getting 2 hits, 0 net hits.  4 hours have passed.  Sam rolls again getting 4 hits, 1 net hit, which totals the 4 he needed.  Reinforcements finally arrive, and Sams’ troop’s strength goes up to 4.

Strategic Maneuvers

Strategic maneuvers are performed by commanders before combat is joined and initiative is rolled.

Strategic maneuvers grant bonuses or penalties to troops.  If multiple different units of troops are involved, they all benefit or suffer equally from strategic maneuvers.

Strategic maneuvers cannot be used if you don’t have any troops to command.

Strategic maneuvers are only used if a battle is going to take place on-screen; rolling initiative and having a combat scene.  If a battle would take place, but a combat scene will not happen, you should use the organization warfare mechanics.

Once the GM has called for a strategic maneuvers roll, there’s no way for either side to escape the coming battle.  The battle is inevitable.  That said, some of the benefits of winning the strategic maneuvers roll, detailed below, can cancel or obviate a combat scene.

Test: (Mental) + (Leadership) vs (Mental) + (Leadership)

The table below provides options for the commander who wins the contested strategic maneuvers roll.  They may buy however many of these benefits as they have net hits for.

This list only provides the raw mechanics.  The commander who wins the roll must make an action description, the same as you would for any action.

Troop Action Economy Clarifications

In many ways, troops behave the same in combat as any other entity.  The rules on this page have detailed all ways in which troops differ.  This section is to clarify how the action economy of troops differs from the action economy of non-troop combat entities.

Movement

Troop movement functions the same as any other combat movement.  They move as a single entity, one big group.  They can move up to their speed on their turn, consuming a simple action.  If they want to move up to their speed again, they must spend their last simple action and 1 Energy to do so.  If they move twice on their turn, having spent both of their simple actions, they cannot also attack.  Troops can make use of the Blitz Attack power, that allows you to move and attack in the same simple action.

Attacks

Troops can only attack once on their turn.  This attack is a simple action.  They attack every enemy in range of their weapons, rolling once, with defenders applying their own independent defenses.

Troops can potentially attack more than once per round of combat if their commander uses a command that makes them attack instantly.  All such commands are a simple action on the part of the commander.  Essentially, this additional attack will cost their commander a simple action, which could have been used to make an attack of his own.

Gamemaster Notes On Troops

• Troops don’t necessarily start every battle with full Health & full Energy.
  • Camp sickness, rugged terrain, lack of rations, or suffering past defeats are all good reasons to subtract Health & Energy from troops.
    • It’s entirely up to the GM to decide when it’s appropriate to apply these kinds of penalties
• Some troops may be immune from routing.  It’s up to the GM to decide this, but don’t go too crazy with it.
  • Zombie hordes, automata, & similar.
• Enough Troop Strength can cause mere mortals (Tier 1) to be dangerous to demi-gods (Tier 3).
• Players should be made aware of just how dangerous it would be to engage a large enemy force.
  • Tell them the Troop’s Strength if they do any scouting at all.
• Massive amounts of Troops (high Troop Strength) can serve many purposes in your game, beyond combat.
  • You can force your player characters to explore solutions other than direct combat.
    • Stealth solutions
    • Social solutions
    • Sabotage, etc