List of active and inactive Special Results, for an active quick reference guide, click here.
Active
Big Shield
If you are worried about not finding any cover, best bring it with you to the battle!
All attacks (ranged and melee) from enemies that are in the unit’s front arc treat its defence as 6+.
Blast (Dn)
This rule is used for all weapons that explode on impact with the target or otherwise inflict massive amounts of damage with a single hit.
If the unit’s attack hits the target, the target suffers a number of hits equal to the number in brackets, rather than a single hit.
For example, if a unit suffers a hit from a Blast (D6+3) attack, it will suffer from four to nine hits rather than a single one. Once this is done, roll for damage as normal for all of the hits caused
Breath Attack (n)
This rule is used for dragon breath and other attacks where a great gout of flame or toxic gas fills an area. The unit has a ranged attack for which you roll (n) dice rather than the Attacks value of the unit. This attack has a range of 12” and always hits on 4+, regardless of any modifier.
Crushing Strength (n)
This rule is used to represent the devastating effects of melee hits from creatures of terrible strength or that are equipped with very heavy close combat weapons or even magical weaponry. All melee hits inflicted by the unit have a +(n) modifier when rolling to damage.
Elite
Creatures with this rule are supremely skilled – true masters of the art of war. Whenever the unit rolls to hit, it can re-roll one of the dice that failed to hit.
Fly
This rule can literally represent flying movement (not really soaring high in the sky, however... more like fluttering around, a bit like a chicken), or even a ghostly creature’s ability to move through solid matter. The unit can move over anything (blocking terrain, enemy units, friendly units when charging, etc.), but still cannot land on top of them. As a consequence, in melee it never suffers the -1 to hit penalty for charging a defensive position or for a disrupted charge. The unit also has the Nimble special rule.
Grapeshot
Instead of normal shot, cannons can be loaded with buckets of nails, bullets and other assorted nastiness, which allows them to be fired against enemies nearby like a massive shotgun. The unit may either fire normally or fire a Breath Attack (10) with Piercing (1).
Headstrong
“Wavering’s for little wide-eyed girls with ribbons in their hair... and Elves.” – Dwarf proverb. Whenever the unit begins a turn Wavering, it rolls a die. On a 4+ it shrugs off the effects of Wavering and can act normally that turn.
Heal (n)
Some magical beings can help battered and demoralised regiments, healing individual warriors and shoring up the unit’s courage. For Undead wizards, ‘healing’ involves raising fallen warriors (from both sides!). The unit has a ranged attack that can only target friendly units, including when in melee with the enemy (and not the healing unit itself). You roll (n) dice for this ranged attack rather than using the Attacks value of the unit. This attack has a range of 12” and always hits on 4+, regardless of any modifier. For every hit ‘inflicted’, the friendly unit removes a point of damage that it has previously suffered.
Indirect Fire
The unit fires its shots in high arcing trajectories, which means that the distance to the target is pretty much irrelevant and that most cover is pretty much useless. However, if any enemies get really close, it’s impossible to hit them. The unit fires indirectly, which means it never suffers any to hit modifiers for range or cover (but it does still need to see its target!). On the other hand, it can never shoot targets within 12”.
Individual
A single guy running around the battlefield benefits from having much greater freedom of movement than regimented troops, and is difficult to pinpoint in the confusion of battle (unless he’s sitting on a huge flying beast, that is). Units with this rule are normally made of a single model representing a roughly man-sized individual. These obviously behave in a very different manner from regimented units or very large creatures. The following rules represent this:
- The individual does not have any flank or rear facing. Consequently, it is able to see, and therefore shoot and charge, all around.
- The individual can make any number of pivots around its centre as it moves, including At The Double!
- Enemies never double/treble their attacks when fighting the individual, including War Engines with the Individual special rule. Similarly, the individual does not double/treble its own attacks when attacking an enemy in the flank/rear. It does still treble its attacks against war engines, however.
- When shooting aginst the individual enemies suffer an additional -1 penalty on their rolls to hit.
- When charging the individual move into contact with it normally, but after making contact, turn the individual to face the front of one of the units you charged it with rather than individual to face the front of one of the units you charged it with rather than the other way around. In addition, if the individual is routed and the charger decides to advance D6” directly forward, it can make contact with another enemy unit. This is treated as a successful charge and the charger is lined up against the new enemy as normal and can immediately attack again! This rule represents the fact that an individual is often not enough to completely stop a charging unit in its tracks. Note that this rule applies to charging individuals as well.
Inspiring
The bravery of a heroic general, or the presence of a great big flag, can convince warriors to stand their ground a little longer. For creatures like the undead (that don’t care much about banners), the proximity of their general or of a sorcerous banner fills them with supernatural energy. If this unit, or any friendly unit within 6” of this unit, is Routed, the opponent must re-roll that Nerve test. The second result stands.
Nimble
Used for flyers and lightly armed units like skirmishers and scouting cavalry, this rule makes the unit considerably more manoeuvrable. The unit can make a single extra pivot of up to 90 degrees around its centre at any point during its movement, even At The Double!
Phalanx
From the front, these units look like a forest of sharp spikes pointing at you – not the most inviting of proposals for a charging horse… or anyone else really. The unit rolls an extra 5 Attacks in melee if it is a Regiment, or 10 extra Attacks if it is a Horde. These attacks are added after multiplying the Attacks for fl ank/ rear charges. In addition, Cavalry units and units with the Fly special rule that charge this unit’s front suffer from a -1 penalty on their rolls to hit.
Piercing (n)
This rule is used for all ranged attacks that can penetrate armour with ease (such as shots from rifles and war engines), as well as spells and other magical ranged attacks. All ranged hits infl icted by the unit have a +(n) modifi er when rolling to damage. In addition, ranged attacks with a Piercing value of at least (3) are so powerful that they can punch their way through cover easily, so they never suffer the -1 penalty for soft cover on their rolls to hit. They also suffer a -1 rather than -2 to hit when shooting at targets in hard cover.
Regeneration
Creatures gifted with this ability are very difficult to kill, as their wounds heal at incredible speed, their torn flesh re-knitting itself under the very eyes of the enemy. Every time this unit receives an order (including Halt!), before doing anything else, roll three dice. For every result of 4+, the unit recovers a point of damage it has suffered previously during the game. However, if the unit suffers any damage from a Breath Attack or a Zap!, this rule stops working for the rest of the game.
Reload!
Some powerful missile weapons take much longer to reload, making them less flexible. The unit can fire only if it received a Halt order that turn.
Shambling
Braiiinsss… braiiiinnnssss… The unit cannot be ordered ‘At the Double’. In addition, it treats Wavering results as Steady instead.
Stealthy
The unit is extremely adept at hiding or benefits from magical protection that makes it very difficult to target with ranged attacks. Enemies shooting against the unit suffer an additional -1 to hit modifier.
Vanguard
This unit is trained to range ahead of the main force, scouting the terrain and gathering information about the enemy. The unit can make a single At the Double move after set-up is finished, but before the players roll to decide who goes first. If both armies have units with this rule, roll a die. The highest scorer decides who begins to move one of his Vanguard units first, then the players alternate until all Vanguard units have been moved.
Vicious
The unit fights with utter ferocity, resorting to poisoned arrows, serrated blades and wicked hooks, clubs festooned with barbed wire, eye gouging, kneeing in the groin and all manner of other unsporting behaviour. Whenever the unit rolls to damage, it can re-roll one of the dice that failed to damage.
Zap! (n)
This represents all sorts of assorted sorcerous nastiness – “Fireballs from his eyes and bolts of lightning from his…” ahem... The unit has a ranged attack. You roll (n) dice for this ranged attack rather than using the Attacks value of the unit. This attack has a range of 24”, always hits on 4+ (regardless of modifiers) and is Piercing (1)
Inactive
Blast (Dn)
This rule is used for all weapons that explode on impact with the target or otherwise inflict massive amounts of damage with a single hit. If the unit’s ranged attack hits the target, roll a die as indicated in the bracket and multiply the hit by the result of the die. For example, if a unit suffers a hit from a Blast (D6) ranged attack, it will suffer from one to six hits rather than a single one. Once this is done, roll for damage as normal for all of the hits caused.