Summer Map Campaign Preview #6
May 18, 2009 12:03:45 GMT -5
Post by Dr Carnivean on May 18, 2009 12:03:45 GMT -5
The Ark; if it is there at Tanis, then it is something man was not meant to disturb. Death has always surrounded it. It is not of this earth.
This one is a little late because I was away last week, and it’s only one preview this time, but since it’s the one that won the territory contest I figure it deserves its own preview anyway. Since I haven’t built any terrain or anything for it yet, I’ve got no pictures to really show, but I think Lord Eric’s awesome write-up gives us picture enough. Also, there’s no need really for the usual Wall of Text, so this intro will be (comparatively) brief. Thanks also to Bob and Eric for helping with the number crunching for coming up with the right difficulty numbers for finding the Treasure Well.
One note on the Bone Ark of Lustria, since it is the one major add to Eric’s original write-up. I had wanted the treasure to be something that could be represented by a model and used in the tabletop game, to increase the coolness factor of an army having it. From the very beginning, I couldn’t get the whole Indiana Jones thing completely out of my mind when it came to this territory (the above quote is from Raiders, by the way) and on another thread talking about the scenery, someone mentioned the idea of a stegadon skull. Then last week when I was thinking of it, out of nowhere I remembered a monster from the old PS game Castlevania: Symphony of the Night that was called a Bone Ark, and basically it was this palanquin with a big dragon skull that was borne by a quartet of skeletons, and the skull would come alive and breathe fire at you. I included a couple of the screenshots I found on the web.
Anyway, here is..
The Treasure Well
[/u][/center]Somewhere within the region of the Old World known as the Forsaken Vale.. What seems to be nothing more than a small abandoned village, may hold secrets from across the world. While sifting through the rubble small ignots of gold shaped into strange images of dragons can be found. And in the center of the town sits an oversized well with no pit to draw water from. What treasures lay buried here? Forgotten by man, but not by those from whom they were taken.
There is a certain bedtime story that almost every child has heard, it goes something like this:
Long ago during the dark times, a group of adventures set out on a quest to find the greatest treasure of all time. They built a fleet of tall sailing ships and set out across the great ocean looking for a place of legend, looking for the temple of the ancients. For many months they seemed lost at sea, wracked by constant storms that destroyed many of their ships. The skies were filled with endless clouds, and without the stars to guide them the navigators had no hope of plotting a straight course. The men had no choice but to pray to the Gods to end their plight, and lead their ships to safety. Then one day the storms broke, and on the horizon they saw it, Land!
Before long the host of warriors were standing on a great beach that seemed to stretch out forever on both sides. Ahead of them a lush jungle forest stood, as think and solid as the walls of a keep. Even from the beach the men could here strange sounds of wondrous creatures calling out, hunting. Well these men were brave, and they had not tempted the fates of the ocean to turn back now. So they gathered together and set off into the forest, knowing that the Gods would surely lead them to their prize. The journey through the jungle was filled with dangers, for giant lizard monsters roamed freely, and even the littlest creatures seemed to have the deadliest of venoms. Many more men died in the endless forests, many disappearing without a noise never to be seen again. However at last the men came to a great temple in the jungle, overgrown and abandoned. The area was littered with dried bones and strange weapons. It looked as if a mighty battle had been fought there once long ago, and that the temple had since been forgotten and left to rot.
What the warriors found there was a treasure beyond reckoning, endless tombs of gold, ancient artifacts of power, and strange machine engines that were simply unexplainable. The band of warriors gathered all they could, filling their ships full till they would barely stay afloat. It is said that the relics they found allowed them to master the jungle around them, and hence travel back and forth to their ships without harm.
Soon they were ready to return to the land of their birth. The journey home was filled with many more perils as they were hounded by Elven corsairs and chased by giant sea monsters... but that is a story for another time.
However during the voyage something about the men changed. Maybe they unlocked some deep secret about the treasure, some even say that it allowed them to transend to a higher state of being. Either way when they arrived back on the mainland, they decided that the treasure was to great, and that mankind was not yet ready to possess the power it held. So the men made a pact to hide the treasure until man was ready to use its power for good. They traveled far north till they found a suitable place. There they used the power of the treasure to create a secret vault, and hid the treasure inside. After the treasure was buried the men traveled the lands of man and beast, leaving behind clues that would lead the worthy to its secret tomb. Some say that strange runes etched in small places around the land may be keys to finding this lost treasure.
The story always ends with what is thought to be the first clue in the puzzle, a simple riddle. "If a man thirsts, he looks for a well to find water. But if a man thirsts to bring light to the world, and peace to his brothers, the well he seeks will have no water, no bottom, no bucket."
Map Campaign Rules[/u]
During the End of Campaign Turn phase of each campaign turn up until the Treasure Well has been found, players may choose to have one of their banners either search for a marker or search for the Treasure Well itself. In order to be eligible to search, the banner must be currently occupying a plain map territory (i.e., not a special map territory). When submitting their orders for the turn, players should specify which banner will be searching, and whether they will be searching for a marker or for the Treasure Well itself.
Searching for Markers
To search for a marker, the player rolls a D6. If a 5 or 6 is rolled, then a marker has been found, and a note should be made recording this.
Searching for the Treasure Well
To search for the Treasure Well, the player rolls 2d6 and adds 1 for each marker that has been found by that player. If a total of 13 or more is rolled, the Treasure Well has been found in that territory that was searched. The map territory is marked as containing the Treasure Well, and no more search rolls need be made for the rest of the game.
Excavating the Treasure Well
In order to excavate the ruins, find the Treasure Well itself, and dig up the lost treasure, the banner occupying the territory with the Treasure Well must be given a Hold action while the player announces his intention to excavate the well. This declaration of intention must be made before any orders are submitted (most likely during the End of Campaign Turn phase of the turn in which the well was discovered). This is so that other players may have the opportunity to attempt to jump that player’s claim (as described below)
Note that the player who discovers the Treasure Well may decide (if he is in the middle of a decisive march, for instance) not to dig up the treasure at that time. In this case, any banner from any realm which occupies the territory containing the Treasure Well may be given orders to dig it up.
Claim Jumping
Once the player has declared his intent to excavate the Treasure Well, the closest enemy banner (an allied player may announce the end of an allegiance at this point if he so wishes) may attempt to claim jump. If the closest player declines to attempt a claim jump, the opportunity is then passed to the player with the second closest banner, and so on. If a claim jumping army is currently occupying a space adjacent to the Treasure Well map space, it may invade the adjacent space as normal. If the claim jumping banner is not currently occupying a space adjacent to the Treasure Well, then it must be moved several spaces to get to the Treasure Well, however for each space after the first that a banner must move, it loses 200 points from its army size for that battle. Additionally, if there is any intervening terrain that requires a Difficult Terrain Test, each failed test reduces the banner’s army size by another 200 points. This is representing a general who has learned from his spies of the Treasure Well’s discovery sending his fastest units on ahead to try and get to the treasure before the enemy has a chance to dig it up.
Heightened Magic
High Elf, Wood Elf, and Lizardmen players may add an extra dispel die to their pool during battles so long as the Treasure Well is in their control.
Battles at the Treasure Well[/u]
The treasure well uses special terrain, consisting of a series of ruined buildings, with the excavated Treasure Well itself at the center of the board, equally distant to both deployment zones (if a player is Fortified, then the Treasure Well is placed on their half of the board)
Magical Aura
Lizardmen armies get +1 dispel die for any battles fought at the Treasure Well. (in addition to the +1 die they get if the territory is currently under their control)
Also, any Lizardmen units within 12" of the Treasure Well terrain piece gain Magic Resistance 1.
Special Claim Jumping Battle
The claim jumping battle is fought the same way as described above, with the following exceptions.
- The player who is already occupying the territory is considered to be Fortified.
- The claim jumping player may have a reduced force, as detailed in the Claim Jumping section above.
- The Treasure Well itself is the objective of the game, and whoever has the highest unit strength within 6” from it at the end of the battle will be the winner
The player who wins the Claim Jumping battle receives the special treasure detailed below.
The Bone Ark of Lustria[/u]
A sacred object created long ago by a group of ancient Slann priests. It is infused with their wisdom and a portion of their immense power. An army which carries this powerful relic before them can become nigh unstoppable.
Campaign Map Rules
When the Bone Ark first comes into play, it is attached to the banner which first took possession of it (by winning the Claim Jumping Special Battle)
After that it can be transferred to any friendly banner that is adjacent to the banner with the Bone Ark at the start of a campaign turn. Players must make a specific note in their submitted orders in order to do this.
Losing Possession of the Bone Ark
If the banner possessing the Bone Ark is Scattered during the aftermath of a battle in which that banner has lost, the victorious player has an opportunity to capture the Bone Ark. Both players roll a d6 and add the initiative of their banners’ general. The winner gains control of the Bone Ark. The Bone Ark does not change hands on a tie.
If a banner carrying the Bone Ark is dissolved through loss of territories, the Bone Ark is transferred randomly to another banner from that realm. If a player’s realm is destroyed (eliminated from the campaign) while the Bone Ark is in their possession, it is lost for the rest of the campaign. (the player who last had it may still add it to their victory points total for the campaign results)
The Bone Ark in Battle
The Bone Ark is an actual unit which is deployed along with the banner that carries it. It will be represented by a special custom model.
The Bone Ark is mounted on a chariot base and has the following profile and special rules.
M WS BS S T W I A Ld Sv
Bone Ark - - - - 4 5 - - 9 3+
Bearers (4) 4 4 - 3 4 - 3 1 - -
Undead, Construct, Killing Blow, Terror
Wrath of the Gods – Used in shooting phase, choose a target unit within 18”, roll 2d6+2 against target unit’s Leadership score. If the number rolled is higher, target unit receives number of unsaveable wounds equal to the difference. May be used as a stand and shoot response and during melee combat.
Gift of the Gods – For as long as it is on the tabletop, the Bone Ark adds two extra power dice into the controlling player’s pool each turn.
Other Special Rules
- The Bone Ark must be the first unit deployed by the player that controls it.
- The Bone Ark counts as being Undead, and so it cannot march normally, is immune to psychology, and can be affected by spells that affect undead units (Tomb King and Vampire Counts magic). Also, like all Undead units, it loses a wound for each point it loses combat by (since it is also considered a Construct, it loses one less Wound than normal)
Victory Points Summary[/u]
Players receive victory points for the following.
1 point for discovering the location of the Treasure Well
1 point for fighting in the Claim Jump special battle
1 point for winning the Claim Jump special battle
2 points for possessing the Bone Ark of Lustria at the end of the final campaign turn.