Mass Combat

Not all combats are one on one. Sometimes, you'll face an army, using your pawns and followers to help you in a massive, messy melee.

The rules of mass combat are derived from the rules for single combat. Understand those first! But here are some differences.

Combat Tempo
The standard combat tempo rules are modified somewhat for mass combat.
 * 1) You can start with any move, not just Opening Moves, but only if the targeting requirements are met.
 * 2) You still cannot use the same or opposite row as your previous move. This is tracked for each combatant.
 * 3) Opponents are immune to actions from the same row as their previous action. This makes them invalid targets, and prevents them from being affected by area attacks or nontargeted actions such as Trap.

Additional Actions
You cannot take non-combat actions such as Parlay in mass combat. However, you can take additional actions that are not allowed in normal combat (because they would be too weak). All characters can use Hustle to move without generating position bonus, on the same Tempo as Attack. (You can move on successive turns by alternating Hustle and Maneuver.)

Some other characters have other extra actions. For example, Kobolds have Shift, allowing them do defensively move 1 square (safe from Attack and Trap), and typically have Throw, a ranged 4 attack on the same tempo as Feint that beats Defend and Trap but to anyone targetting the kobold.

Positioning and Targetting
Every attack in mass combat has a range limit. You can only attack enemies within your range. Thus you will need to reposition your characters to be able to fight effectively.

Trap does not target an enemy. Every enemy that Attacks you or tries to Maneuver or Hustle into or out of an adjacent square will feel your wrath. In addition, their movement stops when you hit them. Similarly, Defend can protect you from all enemy Attacks.

Movement actions target a square. When chosing a target, the green locations are currently within your reach, while the yellow ones are currently blocked by another character. (Note that flyers such as Redscale have an easier time getting around, unless there is a low ceiling.) When you move, if there is no path to the destination within your movement you will get as close as you can.

Breath targets a cone, and potentially effects everyone (friend and foe) within the arc.

Other actions typically target one foe, which must be in range at the time you target them and at the time of your actual attack.

Orders and Timing
Each round, you will place orders for all of your characters in the battle, and so will the enemy. With no character selected, you can hit one of the mass-order buttons to give default orders to every character you have not yet ordered. Or you can select your characters one by one to select the action and target for them to take. You can change your orders as many times as you like until you hit Done.

When you hit Done, all characters roll initiative based on their actions. Actions in higher rows go first. Magic usually acts before other actions in the same row. (Teleport is an exception.) Each character will attempt to complete their action in initiative order.

Hitting an enemy that is targetting a different character will abort their attack, as long as your attack goes first. Similarly, you can abort movement by attacking first.

Defend acts late, healing the character as usual. However, it protects the user from Attack as usual. Trap is purely reactive, striking enemies that trigger it but doing nothing at the end of the round when the initiative comes up.

Fleeing and Surrender
The borders of the map are colored squares, indicating flee points. Your characters can flee the battle by reaching a red square, or part of a red/green or red/blue alternating border. Likewise, the enemy can flee from appropriate edges. As long as Redscale himself flees (or is not present to begin with), you will not get a game over from losing.

Enemies can be induced to surrender through Fear. Redscale's Fear is reduced based on the distance to the target. If another character is adjacent to the enemy and has a higher fear, that value will be used instead. Depending on various conditions, fearful enemies will either attempt to flee, fight defensively (alternating Defend and Trap), or surrender.

You can only enslave enemies when Redscale is present. (Even if he fled.) If battle takes place at one of your bases, your followers will imprison the enemy if you have a Prison, otherwise they will execute them on the spot.

Leveling pawns
Pawns that survive mass combat will grow in experience and gain basic levels, scaling their stats based on their race's aptitudes. In addition, they give you Pass XP toward gaining a race-wide bonus to all your pawns of that type. (NOTE: Except for kobolds, males and females are treated differently, and levelled separately.) Pawns who perish in mass combat are also informative, giving you Fail XP toward the race-wide bonus.