SIEGE CAMPAIGNS

PLAYING THE SIEGE AS A CAMPAIGN

Here, we explain how you can play the siege scenarios in succession to create an entire campaign in which players struggle for control of a mighty fortress.

Playing through the entire siege is a complicated and time-consuming affair. As such, we suggest that you don’t start a full-scale siege campaign unless you are familiar with the siege rules. You should also reserve plenty of time for your deadly struggle. A weekend or a series of evenings should allow you enough time to play the entire siege.

HOW LONG DOES THE SIEGE LAST?

After both players have completed their siege turn, roll a D6 and add the number of siege turns already played to the score. If the result is 7 or more, then time is running out for the besieger, and he must try to storm the castle (though a minimum of 2 siege turns is required before the Final Assault Scenario can be played). Proceed to play Scenario 9 – Final Assault and apply any results from earlier scenarios. The winner of the Final Assault is the winner of the entire siege!

You can also alter the length of the campaign according to the background of your siege. Simply agree with your opponent the number of turns you will play. Three turns before the Final Assault is ideal. Two siege turns is the absolute minimum you can play, but the siege can go on for as long as you like. Another option is to change the score required to end the siege from 7 to 8 or 9 or more.

BEGINNING THE SIEGE

A siege will not begin immediately with an all-out assault. Instead, it is far more likely that either the patrols of the fortress will spot the approaching defenders and send a message to summon help, or the vanguard of the besiegers will clash with these patrols. Roll a D6 to determine how the siege campaign begins. Note that these scenarios do not count towards the calculation of the siege turns.

1-3 Play Scenario 2 – Forlorn Hope
4-6 Play Scenario 1 – Send for Help!

Forlorn Hope. The speed of the besiegers’ advance takes the defenders of the fortress by surprise. They must fight a holding action in order to bring all their forces inside the fortress.

If the besiegers are victorious in this battle, then they can take the defender by surprise. In the Final Assault, the besieged player will lose D6 x 15 points from his points total due to his troops being caught outside the fortress.

After playing this scenario, the besieged player can choose any one of the options from the Besieged Player’s Options list.

Send for Help! The defenders of the fortress detect the advancing enemy columns well in advance and send a messenger to summon help.

If the messenger breaks through, then his allies will be alerted and come to the aid of the fortress. You may add +1 to the score that determines when the siege ends. Also, the besieged player may now choose Bring Reinforcements from his list of options.

After playing this scenario, the besieger can choose any one of the options from the Besieging Player’s Options list.

ADDITIONAL IDEAS

There are, of course, many other ways to arrange these scenarios, and you can even write some of your own! For example, no rules for moats are included, so if you would like to play a siege in which the fortress is protected by a moat, you could write a scenario of your own to cover the special rules for moats. You simply need to add the appropriate choices to the Besieged and Besiegers’ tables. Also, any of the options from pp. 155 and 161 of The General’s Compendium can be included in your siege campaign. Your campaign does not need to end with the Final Assault scenario. You could conclude your siege campaign with the Battle in the Streets scenario, the Bursting Through the City Walls scenario, or both (see pp. 172-173 of The General’s Compendium).

Siege Campaigns | Besieged Options | Besieger Options