One of my major pet peeves with games is a rule that exists just because that’s the way it’s always been done. It’s akin to performing some task at work with a process you know isn’t good, though when you ask why you are doing it this way, you are simply told, “Because that’s the way we’ve always done it.”
Why do modern RPGs and war games continue this behavior? Why do RPGs continue to pretend as if studded leather was a real thing? Why do many miniature war games continue to ignore cavalry’s reluctance to charge into a wall of spears? The answer is that’s the way the developer learned. That’s the way they’ve always done it.
And so, when working on a rule for Ages of Conflict, I often ask myself, “Does this rule exist because it’s the best way to handle this situation or because this is the way it’s always been done?”
Which brings us to the topic of this article – movement in Ages of Conflict. The first incarnation of AoC’s movement was merely a reflection (i.e. A copycat.) of everything that came before it. Unit’s had a move score that determined how far it could move with a standard move. If the unit charged, then it could move double.
This rather simplistic system had two issues. First, a natural result is that units charged across the battlefield with no repercussion. This doesn’t reflect reality. Formed units didn’t charge wildly across the field for hundreds of yards as they would soon lose cohesion placing themselves in peril. The Roman writer Vegetius recognized this when he wrote:
“Nor is anything of more consequence either on the march or in the line than that they should keep their ranks with the greatest exactness. For troops who march in an irregular and disorderly manner are always in great danger of being defeated.”
We can skip ahead to 1794 with the publication of, “The Rules and Regulations for Formations, Field Exercises, and Movements of His Majesty’s Forces 1792”. In this British publication, the author mirrors Vegetius.
“A company or division may occasionally run, a battalion may sometimes Quick Step, but the hurrying of a large column or of a body moving in front will certainly produce confusion and disorder. It is never to be risked when an enemy is in presence though it may sometimes be necessary when a post or situation is to be seized”
So, it is clear from contemporary sources that formed units didn’t run screaming across the field as quickly as possible. Rather, they moved at a drilled pace only charging when at a relatively short distance from the enemy.
The second issue was moving over rough ground. Units moving over rough ground did so as half movement. This always seemed to cause issues in determining how far a unit could move after leaving rough terrain. “I moved 2” before entering the terrain. Each inch in the terrain counts as 2” and I’m moving a total of 3”, which is really 6”….” It isn’t necessarily difficult, though why bother with all of that? But why was it this way? Cause that’s the way I learned to play war games.
In short, I was never satisfied with how we handled movement. It felt lazy and overdone. Time for an overhaul!
Units now have three movement paces – ordinary, quick, and double. Units in close formation can move at a quick pace over smooth ground – flat terrain, roads, etc. For most units this is 7 cm.
Any formed unit that enters rough terrain is automatically switched to an ordinary pace, which is 5 cm for most. If a formed unit moving at a quick pace enters rough terrain, then their maximum movement for the turn is reduced to 5 cm. If the unit begins its turn in rough terrain, then its maximum move for the turn is 5 cm.
In the diagram below, a formed unit of Norman warriors begins its move in smooth terrain moving 3 cm at which point it enters rough terrain. The unit’s maximum move for this turn is now reduced to its ordinary pace of 5 cm allowing the unit to move up to two additional centimeters.
The final change is double pace, which is 10 cm for most units. Units moving at a double pace are moving very quickly; too quickly to effectively maintain unit cohesion for an extended period. And so, any formed unit that moves at a double pace and does not enter hand combat at the end of its move risks losing unit cohesion.
In the diagram below, a unit of Normans charges a unit of Persians at a double pace, though fail to make contact as the Persians are further than 10 cm away. The Norman player must now pass a Command test to avoid the Normans losing cohesion.
