GETTING A MOVE ON! THE BASICS OF MOVEMENT
When it comes to moving troops about the battlefield we will ultimately have to consider vehicles of all kinds, anti-grav troopers, and various kinds of machines and suspensors – but to start with we are only concerned with ordinary troopers – humanoid fighters and WarDrones. Of course, many of the same rules apply to all – so this is a good place to start.
Move distances
Although we will no doubt wish to include some variation of movement rates, to start with all humanoid troopers and WarDrones move at the same pace – namely a standard move of 6”. Because a manoeuvre action is a double move this means troops can often move up to 12” at a time.
Measuring a move
I’m not going to worry too much about defining how to measure moves– just measure from a point along the base edge and make sure no part of the base moves further than the maximum distance permitted.
Moving round other models on the same side
When a model makes a move, its base cannot move over the base area of any other models belonging to different units on the same side. Models that begin their move in the same formation can move through each other as they move.
Moving round enemy models
When a model makes a move its base cannot come within 1" of the bases of any enemy models at any point, unless the two units are engaging in an assault – i.e. hand-to-hand fighting.
Turning
Troopers of the kind we are talking about can pivot freely about their midpoint as required as any time – they can pivot as they move and they can pivot to shoot either during an action or reaction. Pivoting in this way does not count a movement and models that pivot and do not otherwise move are counted as not moving (e.g. for purposes of aiming and shooting team-based and static weapons).
Area Terrain
The playing surface can potentially represent different kinds of environments such as crowded urban areas, dense jungles, glutinous swamps, volatile ash-wastes, and much more besides. These kinds of terrain are defined by a delineated areas – for example an area of strewn boulders, an area of scrubland, an area of woodland or jungle, and so on. Players can agree to delineate these kinds of area terrain in anyway they wish.
Different kinds of terrain have different move penalties associated with them, but to start with just treat movement within area terrain as half pace. All movement either wholly or partially made through terrain is doubled – i.e. 1” counts as 2” and so on. This applies to models that are either wholly or partially within the terrain and for so long as they remain so.
Agility check
The kinds of troops we are talking about can make a check to try and avoid the movement penalty for terrain - the test is made as soon as the unit enters the terrain, and then subsequently if the unit begins its move in the terrain. Make the check for the whole unit against its Agility rating. If successful the penalty is waived for that move – if fail the penalty is applied as described. This means troops can often avoid penalties for terrain, but cannot be certain of doing so.
Moving over obstacles
We often include barriers or obstacles such as a wall, wire fence, brushwood stockade, or barricades built of barrels, boxes, or whatever junk is lying around. Such obstacles make excellent defensible positions. In general, a construction of this kind should be no wider that a model’s base, although we have to make concessions to whatever model scenery is at hand and allow up to double a model’s base width so long at these are pointed out before the game so that players are aware.
Obstacles divide into two types for height – those that are low enough to form a defensive barrier or cover – generally lower than the height of a human sized trooper and therefore low enough to see over – and those that are too high to see over but which are not so tall as to be impassable. Once again, it is necessary for such obstacles to be clearly indicated before the game begins.
Low obstacles form no hindrance to movement. The kinds of troopers we dealing with can move over them with penalty and can draw LOS over them.
High obstructions – these are generally up to about double the height of a man – in these cases a unit can cross so long as –1 the unit is making a manoeuvre action, 2 the unit takes and passes an Agility check when it reaches the barrier, and 3 the unit gives up half of its total move that action (i.e. normally 6”). If the agility test is failed the unit does not cross and remaining movement is lost.
Obstructions taller than this are generally impassable to troopers on foot.
Splitting or Amalgamating a Squad
A unit can amalgamate with another unit by being within 6” of the unit and making a manoeuvre action – the unit can them move 6” so that its troopers form together with the merged unit – the remaining 6” of movement is lost.
A unit can split with a manoeuvre action in the same way – the two parts separating so they are more than 1” apart and moving up to 6”.
Merging units of the same combat status retain that status. If units are different status test courage for the lower status unit (it will be ready as exhausted and broken units cannot manoeuvre) and if it passes the whole unit is now the higher status, if fail the whole unit is the lower status.
On the whole the maximum size a unit can be is 10 models and there is no minimum size. These are placeholder values for now – larger units might need some governing rules to make them less easy to control, but for now it is easiest to set the limit at 10.
REACTION MOVES
The following are moves that can be made as a reaction: dash for cover, go to ground, and withdraw. See Reactions.
Dash for Cover
A dash for cover is a reaction move made in response to an enemy unit shooting from more than 12" away.
A dash to cover is a move at double the unit’s move rate with the objective of reaching cover. As many of the unit’s models as possible must attempt to place themselves in or behind cover or out of LOS. Models already in cover will not move out of it unless they can reach alternative cover when they move. The move cannot be used to initiate an assault, and the unit must remain further than 1" from enemy units at all times as is the usual rule.
Go to Ground
Infantry units can go to ground either during a standard manoeuvre action or as a reaction to being shot at a described in the rules for Reactions. Troops that go to ground drop to the floor and find what shelter they can: folds in the ground, street furniture, discarded or broken equipment, shell holes, and such other features as we care to imagine. This reduces the chances of taking hits from enemy fire, but it also makes it harder to move again – as troopers have to get up first!
A unit making a manoeuvre action can go to ground by surrendering half of its total move distance. So, a unit with a Move rate of 6" can normally make a double speed move of 12" and can move up to 6" and go to ground. Once a unit has gone to ground a marker is placed next to it to show this. This marker remains with the unit so long as it remains gone to ground.
A unit that has gone to ground cannot move except by making a manoeuvre action and surrendering half of its total move distance. The unit ceases to have gone to ground status as soon as it moves. The unit cannot otherwise move whilst it remains gone to ground, and cannot make any reactions that allow it to move other than assault (see below).
Once a unit has gone to ground various modifiers apply when shooting at it as described in the Shooting section. In summary:
Target Gone To Ground = -1 to accuracy
Target Gone to Cover = +1 to resist
Hits from Blast Weapons = Total hits halved rounding down.
An infantry unit can go to ground whilst behind cover if you wish – basically ducking back out of sight or keeping a low profile. A unit in this position would benefit from the shooting modifiers that apply to targets behind cover as well as those applying because it has gone to ground.
If a unit is assaulted whilst gone to ground it loses its gone to ground status and takes part in the assault as normal.
Withdraw
A withdraw move is a unit reaction made when a unit approaches to with two of your own unit’s standard moves (i.e. 12” as standard). Note that a unit cannot make a withdraw reaction if the enemy’s action triggers a firefight or an assault – as these are combat reactions and override all unit reactions. This means that withdraw reactions are only likely in situations where one or other side does not shoot.
A withdraw move is up to two standard moves (12”) and cannot bring the unit closer to the enemy unit it is reacting to at any point – i.e. it has to be away from the triggering unit. The withdrawing unit must end its move at least one standard move further from the trigger unit where possible. Where this is not possible the withdrawing unit must move to as far from the enemy unit as it can.
