Greetings, friends! As I’m sure you’ve all heard, Mantic is currently taking pre-orders for Armada, a naval game set in the Kings of War universe. Needless to say, this is big news. So big, in fact, that the Dash28 editor demanded that somebody write something about it to keep the site relevant. I mean, if you really want to know what’s going on, just listen to Counter Charge…
…anyway, in this article, I’m going to talk about how I think the rules will play, and what you can expect from a game. Please bear in mind, though, that this is all conjecture based on the little that we know about the rules. I haven’t had a chance to speak with any of the game developers directly (like the guys at Counter Charge have), but I do have some relevant experience, so let’s give it a go.
The rules are based on the Black Seas rule set from Warlord Games, with some tweaks to make them fit into a fantasy setting. Now I’m a sucker for historical war games and naval battle games, so I’m very excited for Armada to drop. Besides attending the Kings of War tournament circuit (back when we could do that kind of stuff), I’ve also been known to haunt a few New England historic war game conventions, which has exposed me to a bunch of different naval rule sets. For the most part, historical games fall somewhere along a spectrum with realism (endless charts and modifiers) on one end and easy and accessible gameplay (fun) on the other. Compared to a lot of rule sets out there, Black Seas definitely falls into the accessible category, which should make it an excellent addition to any gamer’s collection.
Black Seas is set in the 1770s-1820s time frame, with French, Spanish, English, and American fleets represented in the rules. The actual ruleset clocks in at under 30 pages, with a few pages of optional rules, so if Armada is anything similar, the gameplay should be easy to learn and relatively intuitive. Like Kings of War, Armada should be a simple and elegant game that rewards good choices on the high seas.
After listening to the inside scoop on Counter Charge, some of the rules have been tweaked to accommodate a fantasy setting. (You really should just go listen to that episode… seriously). I’ll go through the different phases of the game and give an overview of how they work in Black Seas, and give some ideas on how the Armada rules may differ.
First, let’s talk about the ships. In Black Seas, each ship is an individual unit in the game. A ship has a unique unit card that has a top-down look at the ship, with symbols that show the number and types of guns, the turning radius, the speed, and a number of structural points. This is an example of how Black Seas is streamlined compared to other naval games. I’ve played some games where you track the damage to the sails and rigging, hull, cannons, and crew all separately. Those are a bear to play, so I appreciate the use of a single number. The ship also has a damage “breakpoint,” which is the number of structural points below which you start taking checks to stay on the board. This could represent the ship’s morale or the crew’s skill at handling the damaged ship.
The movement phase is relatively simple as well. The first step is to determine the direction the wind is blowing from, which can change every turn. The ships closest to the table edge the wind is originating from goes first, then the next closest ship goes, etc. In Black Seas, a ship would declare how much sail it’s using. The amount of sail multiplies the base movement value by 1 to 3, similar to marching in Kings of War. For example, a ship under Battle Sail that moves 5” base would take two 5” moves. The trick is that the ship must move the full 5” increment every time. This makes planning a turn or two ahead really important. Ships can turn a certain amount with each move, (usually 35 to 45 degrees), and the turning radius for the ship is shown on the unit card. There are special effects if you’re going into the wind, etc. However, Matt Gilbert, in his interview with Counter Charge, mentioned that to accommodate non-sailing elements, like dwarven dreadnaughts, he removed a lot of the intricacies of the wind rules.
Essentially, wind is used in Armada to determine your initiative, but not much else. (Though Matt did mention that there would be some optional/advanced wind rules available.) Another change that’s worth noting is that your ships in Armada are on standard-sized bases for easy measurement and maneuvering on the table. This is a welcome change compared to Black Seas, where measurement can be fiddly.
As you would expect, ships are armed with all types of cannons with different shot options. All shooting is resolved with d10s, and different color d10s are used for the different guns. In Black Seas, rolling lower is better. Target numbers start at a 5 or less, and a series of modifiers are applied. So if you’re within 3” you get a +2 to hit, and you would hit on a 7 or less. Matt Gilbert, in his Counter Charge interview, mentioned that he inverted the to hit rolls so that rolling higher is better.
Targeting is based on your firing arcs and how skilled your crew is. If you have an untrained crew, they must shoot at the closest ship. If you have a trained crew, you may be able to target a ship further away or split your fire between targets. Damage is based on the type of cannon, so heavy guns have a 20” range and cause 2 points of damage. Light guns have less range and cause 1 point. Close range cannonade have the shortest range, but they do 3 damage. In addition, if you roll a 1, you inflict a critical hit that could affect the ship’s steering, reduce its movement, or kill some crew. The cool thing here is that by using the different color dice you can resolve an entire broadside in a single roll. On the heavy ships, you could be tossing 7-10 dice in a single broadside. Black Seas also has optional rules for special ammunition (think chain shot that rips through sails), or ship orientation (you get bonuses for shooting your broadside at the rear of an enemy ship, like the letter T). This may not be part of the Armada rules, but in a world where magic exists, you’d think there’d be something in there for fireballs.
The rules also include sections on boarding actions, special maneuvers, and special rules for each fleet. Black Seas includes 13 scenarios to pick from. Matt Gilbert gave a rundown of the Armada scenarios and they all seem engaging and fun.
Lastly, I have to talk about the models. So far Mantic has announced fleets for Basilea and Orcs, with Tomb Kings and Dwarfs in the next wave. The ships are high-quality resin, with enough details to really make painting easy and rewarding. The ships I’ve seen all seem to have their own unique aesthetic for each faction. It’s confirmed that Armada is using the Vanguard sales model, with base fleets and booster boxes. Based on a quick perusal of the Mantic website and some rudimentary math, ships clock in at $12-$20 each, depending on their size, which isn’t too shabby. All in all, these models look really beautiful and I can’t wait to pick some up.
Well, that’s all I can offer for now. Based on what I’ve seen from Black Seas, Armada is set to be an elegant rule set that’s both tactical and easy to play. It should be a welcome addition to any Mantic fan’s game cabinet. (Now go and listen to Jeremy, Steve, Matt, Alex, and Rob! Those guys are awesome!)
