fields of fire rulebook general

8/18/2019 Fields of Fire Rulebook General

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Fields of Fire

General’s Rulebook

Introduce Fields of Fire as a whole

As humanities grasp on the mysteries of science tightens the power gained by

technology increases dramatically. This in turn widens the gap between rich and

poor until the two could be thought of as separate species. As mankind spreads

itself throughout the galaxy small empires rise up to try and seie their own

share in new territory. The rich make a pro!t from this expansion while the poor

are obli"ious to the rest of the galaxy. The power the rich wield is so tremendous

that they become godlike# able to make an unstable# "olcanic planet sprout

forests and seas within a few years. They can tra"el across the stars in a blink of

an eye and are practically immortal. They run the galaxy# though the poor

struggle to make their mark on local e"ents.

In Fields of Fire# you take on the role of a leader in your empire. $ou are a

member of the poorer people with access to only limited technologies. The

decisions you make will a%ect your people for all eternity and if you can become

powerful enough# you will be able to in&uence e"ents spanning many millions of

kilometres. The choices you make matter# so make the right ones.

'hat (oes Fields of Fire )ean for the General*

Although the +tatesman is the one that decides what items are purchased and

how the country acts as a whole it is the General who will ultimately decide the

fate of the country when at war. They are responsible for tactical choices like

organisation# distribution of resources# allocation of units and taking care of the

battles. Although Fields of Fire is much bigger than ,ust the Regimental -attle# it

is here where push comes to sho"e and the choices you ha"e made really start

to matter.

ow this book works

This rulebook is one of three books that are used to play Fields of Fire. $ou will

not need to read all three but it may help you make better informed decisions if

you do. There will be places in these rules that one of the other rulebooks are

referred to. This will usually mean that you do not really ha"e to worry about the


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details of this part of the rules if you are only playing as a General. This will

make the rules easier to learn and refer back to should you need to.

There are also /uite a few places where this book will refer to 0(ossiers1 and

02atalogues1. These can be found on the Red +car Gaming website and are

updated as the Fields of Fire game changes. $ou will not ha"e to pay for a new

"ersion of these e"ery time a new one comes out though because on the

purchase of this book you ha"e gained access to these on the website free of

charge.

There may be parts of this book that do not make sense at !rst but don’t worry3

with a little bit of practice and perhaps a reread or two you will be on your way to

mastering the art of war. Fields of Fire has been designed to be as realistic aspossible but still kept simple enough to a"oid getting bogged down in rules. This

means that# while some things may not be entirely accurate compared to real life

circumstances# a balance has been drawn which will hopefully suit as many

players tastes as possible.

Also there are many concepts like night !ghting# guerrilla warfare and morale

that ha"e purposely been left out of the Fields of Fire Rulebooks. This is not

because we don’t think it is important but because it will allow us at Red +car

Gaming to make better and less confusing rules for these later on. 4lans ha"ebeen made and indeed some rulebooks ha"e been written# but they will be

released once testing is complete and it is felt that it is re/uired. In the

meantime# the rules pro"ided still make for a "ery interesting game with limitless

possibilities.

Game Concepts

In the !rst part of this book we will explain some of the concepts that go along

with playing Fields of Fire like turns and dice rolling. This will mean that whenyou get into the nitty5gritty of the rules you can learn them easier and also know

where to refer back to things /uickly.

Time

Fields of Fire# like most other games of this sort# is played o"er a series of turns#

each with their own part or phase. 6ach turn in Fields of Fire is represented by a

day in the life of your empire. 'hen the rules say that something 7will take a

day’# 7per day’ or 7in one day’# it is simply meant that one turn will ha"e to bespent doing that action. The +tatesman will also be familiar with the concept of


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days and likewise many of their actions take a day or se"eral days. 8ikewise#

when it is said that something takes 7one week’ it will take se"en days# thus

se"en turns. 'hether you are playing as only the General or as the +tatesman

as well you will need to make sure that all your records are to the same day# you

cannot ha"e one day going on here and another going on there. If you are

playing as the +tatesman you might be playing Fields of Fire se"eral days or e"en

weeks at a time but as soon as you are at war with someone and thus are doing

regimental battles you will need to do your days one at a time.

+easons pass in Fields of Fire and while the exact season is of little concern to

the general it will ha"e an e%ect on the terrain he is in# thus changing the

conditions the soldiers are faced with. Although the seasons are explained in

more detail in the +tatesman’s Rulebook# the general should know that# like in

real life# winter brings colder weather and summer brings hotter weather. The

exact e%ect this has on your soldiers will be explained later.

(ice and Results

'hen playing out Regiment -attles 9and Team -attles: you will need to consult

the results of dice rolls to determine the outcome of e"ents. This introduces an

aspect of the lack of control that e"en the master tactician will always ha"e.

6"en the most e%ecti"e weaponry may not hit and e"en the softest units may

sur"i"e a terrible battle unscathed. This is ,ust how war works3 there always is

the shadow of chance hanging o"er the battle!eld. This does not mean though

that Fields of Fire is based purely on how lucky you are. $ou will need to

implement a wide range of tactics to get your soldiers into position attacking

where you want them to. $ou will !nd as you get better at being a general that

luck in fact has "ery little to do with Fields of Fire but some good luck will always

be of good use.

Fields of Fire uses many dice but the one you will probably most commonly use

as the General is what is known as a (;


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(;? Twel"e5sided dice(;< Ten5sided dice(@ +ix5+ided (ice( Four5sided dice(B +ix5sided dice#

hal"e result

+ometimes you will be re/uired to add# subtract# di"ide or multiply results of dice

rolls or other scores to get a !nal result. If there are multiple rules that a%ect the

results apply the multiplications and di"isions before factoring in the additions

and negati"es. Also sometimes you will ha"e to add or subtract a percentage

from a result. If se"eral of these rules are in place# say a C?=# a C;?= and a

5>= then total the "arious percentages !rst before applying the result. +o in this

example your score would be increased by D= 9?C;?5>ED:.

+ometimes you will be re/uired to roll a number of dice at once to obtain a

particular result. 'hen you are re/uired to do that a number will be placed in

front of the dice used. For example if you need to roll four six5sided dice you

would see (@ written.

$ou may also be asked or gi"en the option to re5roll a dice or se"eral dice. This

will mean that a dice which has already been thrown can be rolled again to show

a di%erent result. This new result will stand though3 so ,ust hope you don’t get aworse roll.

)easurements# +cales and -ases

8ike many other wargames# Fields of Fire uses measured distances to determine

how far units can in&uence the battle!eld. These can be determined by a de"ice

such as a tape measure or ruler. The measurements in this rulebook and the

other two that accompany it are gi"en in kilometres and metres. This does not

represent how big your gaming area will ha"e to be to accommodate a game ofFields of Fire but rather the distance the game would take up if it was played at

life sie. $ou can !ght regimental battles at whate"er scale you would like to but

;?


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-ases are another thing that Fields of Fire has in common with most other

wargames. These are what you represent your soldiers with. In many other

games you are likely to !nd that a single soldier or small group of soldiers

occupies one base whereas during a Regiment -attle in Fields of Fire a base

represents the area a regiment occupies or has control o"er. The bases used in

Fields of Fire are circular. They must be at least ?


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0Aeroplane1 and 0+pace essel1. This unit type is what soldiers will become

when they pilot the "ehicle. This also determines what training will be re/uired

to dri"e each "ehicle among other things.

)any "ehicles will ha"e a 08ight1 or 0ea"y1 in front of their unit type. This

gi"es a more speci!c rating of how well their armour will stand up to enemy !re.

-eing a hea"y type will make the unit harder to kill but it will mo"e slower# while

light units are easier to kill but can react faster. 6ach Hnit type has its pros and

cons. +ome "ehicles ha"e such good armour that they may ha"e a 0+uper

ea"y1 in front of their unit type. This may also ha"e light or hea"y in front of it.

+uper hea"ies are much harder to kill than any other "ehicle but they mo"e "ery

slowly. +uper hea"ies will usually be massi"e "essels3 like battleships# space

stations or e"en "ast super5powered tanks.

Initiati"e Jrder

'hene"er a player does anything with their units# it is done in 0Initiati"e Jrder1.

6ssentially# this means that the fastest units perform their actions !rst. -elow is

the Initiati"e order from !rst to last. $ou will also need to refer to this in Team

-attles 9explained later:.

Aircraft

elicopters

+pace essels

ehicles

-oats

Tanks

+hips

Infantry

+uper ea"ies

'alkers

Furthermore# if a unit is of a 08ight1 type it has a higher Initiati"e Jrder than

other units of its type and 0ea"y1 units are slowest. +o# for example# a 8ight

Aircraft mo"es before a +tandard Aircraft which mo"es before a ea"y Aircraft


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which mo"es before a 8ight elicopter. 'hen to use Initiati"e order will be

explained in the )o"ing and +hooting 4hases of the turn.

At the start of e"ery turn you will need to !gure out who 0has Initiati"e1. This

can be done by each player rolling a dice and the person with the highest score

counts as ha"ing Initiati"e. As explained earlier# each unit type has a di%erent

Initiati"e order. The player who has initiati"e may take their actions before other

players do. +o for example# the player who has Initiati"e will mo"e all his 8ight

ehicles then the player who has the next highest initiati"e will mo"e all their

8ight ehicles and so on until all players ha"e completed their actions with 8ight

ehicles. Afterwards# the player who has Initiati"e will mo"e their +tandard

ehicles and the process continues.

Weapons

As you begin thinking about e/uipping your soldiers ready for battle you will

want to think about what weapons to gi"e. $ou will !nd all the "arious military

e/uipment in the catalogues pro"ided on the Red +car Gaming website. $ou can

purchase any of these items so long as you ha"e the funds. The details of

purchasing e/uipment are explained in the +tatesman’s Rulebook. This section

explains how to determine which weapons you wish to purchase and the rules

surrounding them.

It is important to remember that a soldier can only wield one weapon at a time

and cannot change weapons half way through a battle. They can howe"er

change weapons when they are not in combat 9explained later:.

$ou will notice that each weapon is presented in a similar way on the Red +car

Gaming 'ebsite. The information gi"en about each weapon is recorded in !"e

sections. The !rst is the background information. Rarely do these ha"e an e%ect

on the game3 you will not need to know these stats as all the rules to use themare in the next four sections. Think of the background section as being what the

weapon is and the other four sections are what it does. The only thing you will

ha"e to take any consideration of is the 02artridge1 as this determines what sie

ammo you need to buy for each weapon.

Raw +tats

The second section of each weapons stats# better known as the 0Raw +tats1

gi"es a basic rundown of how good a weapon is and how to use it. First of thesestats is 0'eapon Type1. This shows what training will be needed to use this


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weapon and how many soldiers are re/uired to use it. +ome of the 'eapon

Types are called 0+tandard 'eapons1. $ou will notice in the Training (ossier that

some training will gi"e you access to these standard weapons. All the following

weapon types count as standard weapons for the purposes of training3 4istol#

Ri&e# )achine Gun# +ub5machine Gun# +hotgun# 8auncher# Grenade and 8ight

)ortar. Hpon completion of -asic Training you will gain access to one standard

weapon type. This means that you must select one of the standard weapon

types and the soldier can only use that weapon type# though they can use any

"ariety of that weapon type. $ou will notice that if you take Ad"anced Infantry

Training 9along with its prere/uisites: and 'eapons Training you will be able to

use all of the standard weapon types. +ome weapons re/uire more training as

the weapons are a lot more specialised and harder to use. These weapon types

are3 Gun# )ortar and Artillery. $ou can !nd the training re/uired for them in the

Training (ossier.

'eapons are also either a -asic or 2omplex weapon type. -asic weapons

re/uire no further training than is standard for that type of weapon. 2omplex

weapons howe"er are a lot harder to master# though they tend to ha"e either

"ery specialist or "ery powerful stats. These weapons are trained for in a similar

way to basic weapons# ha"ing the same prere/uisites# but you will also need to

train in 2omplex 'eapon Training to use them. $ou will need to designate which

weapon you are training to use though because if you want to use another

complex weapon# e"en if it is the same type# you will need to do the training

again.

-elow the 'eapons type are listed a set of numbers that explain how e%ecti"e a

weapon is. As a general rule# the higher these numbers# the better the weapon.

$ou will notice that there are se"eral ranges that weapons can reach to3 Range#

8ong# )edium# +hort and 2lose. ow to use these stats is described later but

,ust know that each range is used in di%erent places and at di%erent times. If

there are any numbers next to 8ong# )edium# +hort or 2lose you will notice that

there are two numbers separated by a 0K1. The !rst number tells how good this

weapon is in attack and the second tells how good it is in defence. The numbersunder Range though are di%erent# the !rst will be a distance and the second will

be a percentage. Again these will be explained in detail later but for now# the

!rst number will be how far the gun can !re and the second will be how e%ecti"e

it is. The higher either of these numbers# the better.

Jccasionally a weapon will ha"e a 0C1 or 050 in front of any numbers is has in its

raw stats. This means that the weapon ,ust pro"ides a bonus to whate"er

weapon the soldier is normally using. This may be because the weapon is easy

to use with other weapons or is indeed attached to them. It does not count as


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switching weapons though you will usually ha"e to supply a di%erent type of

ammunition.

8ogistics

The third section of a weapon’s stats is known as the 08ogistics1. It details how

much money you will ha"e to spend to buy and maintain the weapon and how

much ammunition it will re/uire to operate.

First in this section is the 0'eight1 of the weapon. This is simply how much the

weapon weighs and is important because soldiers and "ehicles can only carry

certain amounts of weight. This weight is how much the weapon weighs without

ammunition or any options# which will ultimately increase the weight. 6ach

soldier# unless gi"en certain training# can carry ten kilograms of weight. 2arrying

capacities are explained in more detail in the +tatesman’s Rulebook. The

carrying capacities of "ehicles are explained in the 7ehicles’ chapter of this

book.

The second stat in this section is the 02ost1. This is how much one of these

weapons will cost to buy. Remember that you can buy as many items as you

want at any one time but regardless of how many you buy they will take a week

to get to a )ilitary -ase you control or one another player has said you can ha"eitems sent to.

The third stat is 0HpkeepKday1. This is how much money you will ha"e to spend

each day on this weapon to keep it in working order. This could represent new

parts ha"ing to be bought# replacement weapons needing purchase or the cost of

rags and oil. 'hate"er the reason# you simply ha"e to pay the amount to keep

the weapons operational. $ou will !nd it a lot easier to group a whole company

or e"en regiment together in terms of upkeep# ,ust to keep things simple. If you

!nd that you cannot pay the re/uired upkeep you will ha"e to discard weaponsand other e/uipment until you can a%ord to pay upkeep.

Lext is the 0Ammunition for 2ombat1 stat. This is the amount of ammunition you

will need to purchase in order to use this weapon. $ou will only need to ha"e a

supply of ammunition if you are !ghting in a combat 9explained later:. 6"ery

time you are in"ol"ed in a combat you will ha"e to expend one lot of

ammunition. If you are unable to do so then you cannot !ght in the combat

using whiche"er weapons you do not ha"e ammunition for. The amount of

ammunition used is meant to be about what the a"erage encounter would

expend o"er one day in combat. 'hile it is true that often a lot more than this is


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used# there are often times when a lot less is used to# so an a"erage is applied to

make things simpler for e"eryone. If you so choose you can !ght with only a

portion of the weapons used to expend less ammunition# but of course this will

a%ect your soldier’s e%ecti"eness.

The last in this section is the 0Rules1 section. This details any extra rules and

e%ects that apply to this weapon. +ometimes these are bene!cial but

sometimes they hinder your e%orts. Regardless of the e%ect you must apply all

of them whene"er you use the weapon# though occasionally you may be able to

replace or upgrade certain rules with options you add to the weapon or training

you gi"e to the soldier. The e%ects rules ha"e on weapons and soldiers are

explained in the 0+pecial Rules1 (ossier.

2apabilities

The fourth section of a weapon’s stats is the 02apabilities Table1. This table is

"ery important and will be highly in&uential in deciding which weapons you will

want to buy. As those who are aware of how military e/uipment works will be

familiar# di%erent weapons are e%ecti"e in di%erent situations. For example# a

hea"y machine gun is great against infantry but useless against tanks while an

R4G is far more e%ecti"e against a tank then an indi"idual soldier.

'hen you roll to in&ict casualties on your opponent 9explained later: you will !nd

that you will not be able to do much damage unless you ha"e the right 0Anti5Hnit

2apabilities1. Jn the 2apabilities table you will notice that some of the positions

are occupied by a percentage. This is the percentage that this weapon has to

make up of the total number of weapons used in a company to gi"e the Anti5Hnit

2apabilities to that company. To explain that a bit more easily here are two

examples.

• A weapon has 0Anti5Infantry 2apabilities# ;


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Anti5Hnit 2apabilities are gi"en to soldiers as a company# so each regiment might

ha"e the same anti5unit capabilities se"eral times o"er. This is not a bad thing

as it will let you be e"en more e%ecti"e against that type of unit. Remember too

that you will need to make up at least the percentage re/uired to gain the

e%ects# so if you re/uire ;;=# ;


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that "ehicles will be an important part of the mobility of your armed forces#

letting you get to the battle!eld on time.

+imilarly to weapons# a "ehicle’s stats are di"ided into a number of sections. The

!rst one is ,ust the background information on the "ehicle and is not re/uired to

play the game. +omething to take note of is that when the rules talk about

"ehicles as a group it will be with a small 7"’ and when talking about the unit

type 0ehicles1# it will be with a capital 7’.

ehicle Raw +tats

The second section of a "ehicle’s stats is called the 0Raw +tats1. These tell

basically how good the "ehicle is and what role it will be best suited for. The !rst

thing you will see in this section is the unit type and the re/uired crew. Any

soldiers dri"ing the "ehicle or passengers in the "ehicle count as that unit type

for all purposes unless otherwise stated. All the soldiers re/uired to crew the

"ehicle must be trained to use the "ehicle which will depend on what it is. This

will be co"ered in greater detail in the 0Training (ossier1

Lext is the "ehicles 0Range1. This is the maximum distance the unit can mo"e

when mo"ing around the battle!eld in one day. Remember that this is also the

distance a "ehicle can mo"e o"er maps and tiles in one day. 'hile thesedistances may seem huge at !rst# you will soon !nd that e"en these ranges ha"e

their limits. The range of a "ehicle can be reduced by the e%ects of terrain#

which is co"ered in more detail in the 0Terrain1 dossier.

0FuelKkm1 is the third stat in the Raw +tats section. As the name suggests# this is

the amount of fuel a "ehicle will ha"e to use when it mo"es. It may not seem

like much at !rst but when you start factoring in large numbers# the fuel

eNciency of your "ehicles becomes "ery important# especially to countries that

do not ha"e a good source of fuel. It is best to !gure out how much fuel eachcompany or regiment uses to keep things more simple.

The next three stats are the 02apacities1 of the "ehicle. These are the most

important things on some "ehicles and they usually help de!ne what the "ehicle

will be used for. 02apacity 9Troops:1 tells you how many soldiers you can carry

with you in that "ehicle. The crew will not be counted in this number. +o for

example# if you ha"e a company of twenty trucks that can carry eight soldiers

each you can carry one hundred and sixty soldiers with that company. $ou will

also need to take into account the weight of the gear the soldiers are carrying.

This is dealt with using the 02apacity 9+upplies:1. ehicles can only carry a


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certain amount of weight and e"en the most powerful tank or truck will become

o"erloaded if you put too much on it. This capacity works in the same way as a

soldier’s carrying capacity though it is usually a lot more. +oldiers that are being

transported in the "ehicle do not add to the carrying capacity of it. Any item that

is being carried by the "ehicle# including fuel# weapons and ammunition will take

up room in the 2apacity 9+upplies:. )any "ehicles can also tow a weight behind

them. This is dealt with using the 02apacity 9Towing:1 stat. If an item has a

special rule called 0Towable1# you may tow it along behind 9or underneath in the

case of helicopters:. This is a weight and works exactly the same as the

2apacity 9+upplies:. If a "ehicle wishes to tow something and carry things using

2apacity 9+upplies: then both measurements are hal"ed. It is therefore good to

distinguish between "ehicles that are towing and "ehicles that are carrying in

their cargo holds.

8ogistics

The third section of a "ehicle’s stats is called the 08ogistics1. These tell you how

much the "ehicle will cost to buy and run and any special rules that apply to it.

These stats work exactly the same as those found amongst a weapon’s stats and

are co"ered in the 'eapons section of this book.

Jne of the rules you will !nd often on "ehicles# particularly those that are mostly

concerned with combat# is rules concerning mounts. These rules state which

weapons can be mounted on the "ehicle should the player wish to mount any.

There are !"e types of mount3 4intle# ull# Turret# +al"o and 2argo. 6ach of

these# if the "ehicle has any# has a measurement in millimetres or a weight in

front of them. This is the maximum sie of that type of mount the "ehicle can be

!tted with. If you ha"e a look at a weapons stats or options you may !nd that

you can opt to ha"e a mount on it. This will also ha"e a measurement in front of

it. If you wish to mount a weapon on a "ehicle !rst check that it is of the right

type mount3 you cannot !t a weapon to a mount if it is not the same type. Then

check the sie of the mount. If the "ehicle’s mounting is e/ual to or bigger than

the weapons mount then you may !t it onto the "ehicle. This will usually

increase the weapons stats but you will need to check each weapon for the exact

e%ects. $ou also cannot !t more weapons than you ha"e mounts of course. The

weapon can then be used by the crew of the "ehicle. It does not matter how

many crew the weapon usually re/uires to operate as the "ehicle’s crew is

trained in the techni/ues to use them mounted on their "ehicle. 'eapons can

be !red as per normal when they are attached to a "ehicle3 the only exception is

2argo and +al"o )ounted 'eapons. Also# ull and Turret )ounted 'eapons

cannot use their Range stat unless the "ehicle they are in has the 0Jpen5Topped1

rule.


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'eapons of either +al"o or 2argo )ounts can only be used once before all the

ammunition they ha"e is expended and the "ehicle using them will ha"e to get

some more. In the case of Aircraft type units# this will mean they will ha"e to go

back to base# but in all other cases the unit will often be able to carry extra

rounds with it. In these cases# you will expend one days5worth of ammunition

each time the weapon is used. (uring the -attle 4hase this will mean that you

can only apply the results of a +al"o or 2argo )ounted 'eapon in one round of

combat 9explained in the -attle 4hase +ection:.

The last part of a "ehicle’s stats is the 0Jptions1. These work in exactly the

same way as with weapons. Refer to that chapter of this book.

Other Equipment

There are some items that are not weapons or "ehicles. These items are called

06/uipment1 as they are too "aried to class as anything else. 6/uipment

includes uniforms# special armour# smaller items and some specialist items.

6/uipment usually does not ha"e a stat line though if they do it will look "ery

similar to that of either a weapon or a "ehicle. In those cases it is easy to !gure

out what e%ects these items ha"e on the game. )any items do not ha"e a stat

line though as they ,ust ha"e a simple rule that a%ects the game or they alter a

di%erent rule. These items can be extremely helpful and specialist or for general

use and hardly noticed. Hnless otherwise stated they take up weight and re/uire

upkeep ,ust like anything else but that will be listed with each applicable item.

All e/uipment is bought in the same fashion and under the same rules as all

other items.

Three important items though are the "arious uniforms# +oldiery Gear and

Infantry Gear. Their details are gi"en in the 0-asic 6/uipment1 dossier.

Company and Regiment Stats

After you ha"e organised your soldiers into their companies and regiments you

will ha"e to !gure out what each units stats are based on which weapons and

e/uipment they are carrying. As explained in earlier sections of this book#

weapons ha"e a set of stats which determine how e%ecti"e they are. $ou will

ha"e to refer to the weapons 0Raw +tats1 when determining the stats for your

companies and regiments.

First of all you will ha"e to !gure out the stats for you companies. 6ach soldiercan only use one weapon in a battle and so you will only be able to use# at the


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most# as many weapons as you ha"e soldiers in your company. $ou will ha"e to

add up all of the stats that all of the weapons being used pro"ide and then di"ide

this score by ;


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The thing that a%ects the board the most is terrain. The type of terrain a%ects a

lot of things like soldiers ability to !ght and mo"e and sometimes how much

upkeep they ha"e to spend. The terrain is discussed in detail in the 0Terrain1

dossier. $ou should know that the ri"ers shown on maps should be those that

would be diNcult to cross without specialist gear. There may be other smaller

ri"ers around the main ri"er# but these can be crossed easily and ha"e no e%ect

on the game. Ri"ers shown on the maps are impassable to ground based units.

The only time they can be crossed by land based regiments is at bridges# the

placement of which will ha"e to be designated before the battle starts.

'hen choosing the terrain for the board you are playing on take note of what

type of terrain the tile is. If it is# for example# illsKForest# then your board should

be made up of mainly forests and hills. That is not to say though that there

should not be grassland or swamps# but that the tile is mainly made up of that

type of terrain. $ou may want to ha"e certain types of terrain depending on the

season too# like no swamps during the froen winter or more grassland during

the summer. It would also be wise to keep in mind what Focus -uildings are on

that tile# if any. For example# if your tile has two 4opulation Focus -uildings on it

then you might ha"e se"eral large towns on your board# whereas ,ust one might

render a large town and some small ones. Although this is getting into e"en

more detail# you may want to consider what the history of that area is. For

example if it is a newly con/uered tile on the edge of your country then it might

perhaps only ha"e a few small towns. Roads are one other thing that you !nd

will be important across the battle!eld. Roads cut small lines through terrain

that may otherwise be hard to get through and pro"ide great ways to supply

your troops /uickly. Although you of course do not ha"e to put roads on your

boards they will come in handy# are realistic and pro"ide great tactical focus for

your battles. Also# if you !nd yourself !ghting o"er a tile you ha"e already

fought o"er you may wish to set up the board as an exact or "ery little altered

copy to implement tactics again and !ght grudge matches.

ow you set up your board is completely up to those playing on it# but it is

suggested that you use a large piece of paper or cardboard and draw it on. These will not only mean that you can make maps /uickly and put a lot of detail

into them# but it means they can be packed up /uickly and reco"ered easily. $ou

are more than welcome though to make three5dimensional miniature hills#

"alleys# forests and ri"ers to !ght o"er. +o long as e"eryone knows what and

where e"erything is then you can set up a board howe"er you want and at

whate"er scale. ust remember though that the entire area of the board has to

be some sort of terrain as each type has a di%erent e%ect on the battle.

After you ha"e set up the terrain for your battle you will want to place yoursoldiers. This will largely depend on the circumstances faced by each player at


17/33

the time. There are few set rules in regards to placing your regiments down

though there are many things you should consider. If a player owns the tile you

are !ghting o"er then they should probably decide where their soldiers are

placed and where the other player can place his soldiers. If you are pushing your

opponent back through territory you will of course not be able to set up on a new

board behind his lines. 4layers should think hard about these limitations and

perhaps e"en discuss them before battles or e"en wars take place so e"eryone is

clear on them when battle is met. Jf course the main thing to remember is that

soldiers cannot be placed on a tile that they are not on already.

Turn Sequence

8ike most other wargames# Fields of Fire is played o"er a series of turns.

Remember though that each turn e/uals one day and so between turns players

will earn income and be able to buy more troops and supplies. These mattersare dealt with in the +tatesman’s Rulebook. 6ach turn is di"ided into 04hases1#

each of which is further di"ided into 0+teps1. 6ach phase deals with di%erent

aspects of the battle and each step is how these aspects are carried out. The

phases are as follows 0)o"ement 4hase1# 0+hooting 4hase1 and 0-attle 4hase1#

each of which is explained in more detail in the appropriate section of this book.

)o"ement 4hase

(uring the mo"ement phase# players get a chance to mo"e their regiments

around the !eld# trying to get into the best position possible. A skilled general

will be able to put his opponent’s right where he wants them in the mo"ement

phase and the importance of this phase should not be o"erlooked.

'hen the mo"ement phase comes around the player with initiati"e mo"es his

units in initiati"e order 9explained in the Game 2oncepts section:. The !rst unit

type to be mo"ed will be 8ight Aircraft. The player with Initiati"e gets the chanceto mo"e all their 8ight Aircraft and once they ha"e done so# the player with the

next initiati"e gets to mo"e their 8ight Aircraft and so on. This will mean that all

8ight Aircraft will be able to mo"e before e"erything else. After all 8ight Aircraft

ha"e been mo"ed# then the player with Initiati"e gets to mo"e his +tandard

Aircraft and the pattern continues. Regiments do not ha"e to be made up of the

same unit type so if you wish to mo"e a regiment with multiple unit types you

can do one of two things. $ou can either mo"e the Hnit Type with higher

initiati"e out of the regiment thus making two separate regiments or you can

choose to mo"e the regiment as one. If you choose to do this# the regiment

must mo"e at the slowest initiati"e order in the unit. Remember though thatsoldiers being transported in "ehicles become that unit type and so mo"e at the


18/33

same time. Also if you ha"e a "ehicle in a faster "ehicle# you can mo"e at the

fastest "ehicles speed.

To mo"e a regiment all a player needs to do is declare that the unit is mo"ing.

The player will then measure the distance from where the regiment is to where it

is trying to get to. Remember that measuring from the edge of the base is

probably the best bet. $ou do not ha"e to mo"e your regiments in straight lines

either. If you so choose you may want to# say# mo"e your tanks twenty

kilometres north and then !fty kilometres east to a"oid a line of tank traps. That

is !ne# so long as your opponentKs know that you ha"e done so. Remember that

many types of terrain will a%ect the distances a unit can mo"e# so keep in mind

what type of terrain a unit is in. $ou will also ha"e to expend an amount of fuel

when mo"ing "ehicles. 2alculate how far you wish to mo"e and then see how

many litres of fuel you will use in total by looking at the 0FuelKkm1 stat.

If you feel like doing so# you can choose not to mo"e your regiments when their

turn comes around. $ou will then be able to mo"e them along with any of the

units who mo"e later on. All the normal rules regards mo"ing apply. This means

that 8ight Aircraft can mo"e at any time but get the !rst chance to mo"e. There

are many di%erent reasons why you may want to do this# but mostly it will be

because your faster company is grouped in a regiment with a slower company.

If you so choose you may mo"e one of your regiments so as their base comes

into contact with one of the enemies. If this happens# the opponent may choose

to mo"e away during their turn to mo"e. If the two regiments remain with their

bases touching they are said to be 0In -attle1 and you will ha"e to pay attention

to these regiments during the -attle 4hase.

The other main reason to not mo"e your regiment will be to make an

0Interception )o"e1 later on. At any time# regardless of normal initiati"e order# if

an opponent’s regiment comes within half of one of your regiment’s mo"ement

allowance you may mo"e as many or as few of the companies in that regiment

so they are In 2ontact with the opponent# thus stopping them from mo"ing any

further in that direction. $ou may also allow your opponent to mo"e within this

distance and choose only to mo"e your companies when they reach a certain

distance. $ou will of course ha"e to let your opponent know when this is. The

opponent may then continue their mo"e# though this will usually mean that they

ha"e to change course or mo"e backward. There are a few restrictions on how

this can be done though. $ou may only attempt an Interception )o"e if you

could normally mo"e that far anyway# so if you ha"e already mo"ed the full

allocated distance during the )o"ement 4hase then you may not make

Interception )o"es. Also companies cannot make Interception )o"es against


19/33

elicopters or Aircraft unless they are one of these types as well. +pace essels

cannot make Interception )o"es unless against other +pace essels.

+ometimes# regiments will carry other types of soldiers with them# like Infantry

being carried in ehicles. Infantry being carried in this way can be unloaded

from a "ehicle when it is their turn to mo"e and then mo"e as per normal. If

there is a "ehicle in another "ehicle though they cannot mo"e after they ha"e

been unloaded unless a special rule says otherwise

The details of how each unit mo"es and where they can mo"e are explained in

the Hnit Rules section of this rulebook.

+hooting 4hase

+hooting at Regiments

The shooting phase takes care of any long range !ring of weapons that your

regiments can do. This includes artillery# aerial bombing runs and orbital

bombardment along with some others. As with the mo"ement phase# each unit

gets the opportunity to !re their weapons in initiati"e order# so ea"y ehicles

will go before 8ight Tanks who go before Infantry. Also as with mo"ement the

player who has initiati"e for that turn gets the opportunity to shoot !rst# followed

by the player who has initiati"e next and so on until e"ery player has had an

opportunity to shoot.

To !re your weapon at a target# the weapon you are !ring must ha"e a 0Range1

stat. This will be a two part stat with a distance followed by a percentage. The

distance is the maximum distance this weapon can be !red. Remember to

measure from the edge of your regiment’s base to the edge of the opponent’s

base when measuring distances. The percentage is how much damage each gun

will do when it hits the target. Jnce you ha"e selected your target and

determined if it is in range you then select which weapons are !ring and expend

one days5worth of ammunition. $ou can choose as many or as few weapons asyou like# so long as they are all in range. $ou then select a company in the

opponents regiment to be the target of the shooting. $our opponent then rolls a

(@. If they get a score of @ then they may select a di%erent company in that

regiment to be the target. $ou then add up the percentages of all the guns !ring

and in&ict that percentage of casualties on the target company 9casualties are

explained later:. If you ha"e any weapons remaining in that regiment you may

then target another company which may be in another enemy regiment. $ou do

not ha"e to !re all the weapons in a regiment but all shooting that you wish to do

with one regiment must be done before you mo"e onto another regiment. $ou

may choose to !re your weapons this way more than once. ust remember thateach time you !re like this you will expend one lot of ammunition.


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The details of how exactly each unit type and weapon type !res in the shooting

phase will be explained in greater detail in the Hnit Rules section of this book.

+hooting at 2ities

If you cannot defeat your opponent outright you may be forced to try and beat

down his cities# crippling his income and ability to produce new units. $ou can

only !re at 2apitals# which are explained in the +tatesman’s Rulebook. 'hen

you wish to target an opponent’s 2apital you must !rst !nd if you are in range of

it. 'hen you draw up a map to be fought o"er in a regiment battle you should

draw in some representation of all towns and cities# but most importantly you

should draw up some representation of where a 2apital is on the map if there is

one. A regiment can !re at a 2apital using the same rules as if it was !ring atanother regiment. The only di%erence is that rather than in&icting casualties you

do damage to the 2apitals income.

6ach 2apital has an 0In&uence1 as explained in the +tatesman’s Rulebook. 'hen

you !re at a 2apital in this way you reduce one of the Incomes of all the tiles

under the In&uence of the 2apital by the percentage listed. +o for example you

may wish to !re at a 2apital and choose to reduce the Food Income. The player

who owns the capital will then reduce the total food income by the percentage

listed. A player who has a 7damaged’ income of any type can begin repairing itat the start of the next day. Lo matter how much damage an income has

su%ered# it always takes one week to repair it# in which time it continues to gain

the income at the reduced rate. If you begin repairing an income and it su%ers

further damage part way through repairs# you must repair this damage

separately which will take another week. If you ha"e damage to se"eral incomes

when you choose to repair them it will take one week for each repair to be made.

-attle 4hase

As explained earlier# if two regiments come into contact with each other during

the mo"ement phase then they are considered to be 0In -attle1 and are dealt

with during the battle phase. The -attle phase is where the soldiers of each

opposing side conduct the closer manoeu"res and shorter range !ring of

weapons to best defeat the foe. This is where most of the damage will be

in&icted to your soldiers and you can in&ict the most damage to your opponent.

There are two ways you can conduct the -attle 4hase3 using the +ix5+ection

+ystem or !ghting Team -attles. 'hile oNcially you should !ght a team battle#

it is fully understood that you may not ha"e the time# space or desire to do so# so


21/33

the +ix5+ection +ystem has been de"ised to get results of battles /uicker and

easier. Team -attles are co"ered in the +oldiers Rulebook# but the +ix5+ection

+ystem is detailed here. -oth styles of combat will ultimately gi"e similar

results# though a skilled commander might be able to sa"e many of his troops

while in&icting a lot of damage to the opponent. Team -attles also make for far

better stories than the +ix5+ection +ystem# but you of course can make up the

details if you want.

The +ix5+ection +ystem is a faster way of determining the results of a battle then

conducting a Team -attle. It is a stylised and representati"e way of showing

where soldiers are and the o"erall tactics and outcomes that result from the

battle. At the end of the day it doesn’t really matter which system you use# you

will get similar results# but the Team -attle o%er a greater depth and range of

tactical options# but it does take a lot longer to get a result.

'hen your regiments do battle in the +ix5+ection +ystem you !rst create a line of

six parts. This could be drawn on a piece of paper into six s/uares# it could be

six markers placed in a row or something else entirely# so long as you ha"e six

parts in a line and all players in"ol"ed know what the diagram means. 6ach side

then places a marker at opposite ends of this line# taking up the end sections.

'hen referring to distance using the +ix5+ection +ystem you count how many

sections away the opponent is from your marker# which normally when you start

will be !"e sections.

'hen your opponent is four or !"e sections away they are considered at 08ong1

range# two or three sections they are at 0)edium1 range# one section away they

are considered at 0+hort1 range. These ranges use the stats that correspond

with the stats of the weapons your soldiers are e/uipped with. +o when your

opponent is at )edium range# you will use your regiments )edium +tat to

determine how e%ecti"e they will be. Also# if during the )o"ement 4hase your

regiment mo"ed to touch the opponents regiment to bring it In -attle then you

use the !rst rating of your stats# the Attack Rating. If you were the regiment thatwas contacted then you use the (efence Rating. The only time this rule is not

followed is when you are contacted by an Intercept )o"e# in which case both

players use the Attack Rating.

4layers may choose at the start of the battle to designate any number of their

companies as 0Lon52ombatants1. These will be left out of the battle for all

intents and purposes and cannot contribute to any results and cannot be killed.

$ou must lea"e at least one company in a regiment as a combatant.


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After setting up for the -attle 4hase# players are ready to start rolling dice to

determine who wins the combat. 6ach combat is di"ided into se"eral rounds.

6ach round will ha"e a winner and at the end of e"ery round a 02asualty 4oint1

will be in&icted 9casualties are explained later:. At the start of each round players

compare the scores that correspond with the range they are at# using either their

attack or defence ratings. )ost of the time# one regiment will ha"e a higher stat.

Reduce the higher stat by the other player’s lower stat and the lower stat

becomes ero. This score# known as the 0-attle +core1 will be needed to !gure

out how easily each regiment can defeat another. 6ach player rolls ?(;


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2ompanies that are captured remain the property of the owning player and can

be controlled as normal# though if you ha"e captured soldiers in a tile your

opponent does not need to declare the presence of any soldiers. Hnless the

04rison1 rule is enacted by some facility or piece of e/uipment the capturingplayer has# the captured soldiers may choose to try and !ght# though they will

ha"e no e/uipment and will probably loose. They simply are placed on a base as

though they were a regiment in their own right and are a%ected by all the normal

rules.

Jne other thing that takes place during the -attle 4hase is 02lose +upport Fire1.

2lose +upport Fire is when artillery pieces shoot at enemies that are close to your

soldiers so they can keep the enemies heads down as your soldiers ad"ance.

This of course will also do some damage to your opponent. 'eapons that ha"e a0Range1 stat of at least ;km can !re their weapons in the -attle 4hase using the

2lose +upport Fire Rule. $ou must do this during a battle and you must declare

you are doing so before either player mo"es along the six5section. (uring the

next round of combat you add the 8ong range stat of the unit pro"iding 2lose

+upport Fire to the total score for the friendly regiment. This can be done at any

time during the battle at whate"er range but the !ring unitKs must obey all the

normal rules for shooting as explained in the +hooting 4hase section of this book.

6"ery time you shoot in this way# the weapons you use expend one day’s worth

of ammunition. $ou may !re the same weapon as many times as you like during

a battle but only once per round# so long as you can keep the ammunition up toit.

+ome units operate slightly di%erently in the -attle 4hase# but any di%erent rules

will be outlined in the Hnit Rules section of this book.

Unit Rules

Aircraft

)o"ement 4hase

Aircraft mo"e in much the same way as e"ery other unit. The only exception is

that they must start and end their mo"ement on a friendly airport. If they

cannot do this they are destroyed 9see 2asualties section:. They may also mo"e

o"er enemy regiments and# unless there is a special rule that says otherwise#

can mo"e o"er all types of terrain without penalty.

+hooting 4hase


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(uring the +hooting 4hase aircraft may perform a number of mo"es called a

0-ombing Run1. This does not necessarily ha"e to be using bombs but it will

/uite often. To perform a -ombing Run# !rst select the regiment you wish to

make the run. It may then mo"e using the normal restrictions and rules for the

)o"ement 4hase. It is important to remember that any mo"ing you do in the

)o"ement 4hase will a%ect how far you can mo"e during the +hooting 4hase.

The 0Range1 of the aircraft is the maximum distance it can mo"e in one day and

because each phase is played out each day then if you# for example# mo"ed half

the maximum distance in the )o"ement 4hase then you will only be able to

mo"e up to half the maximum distance during the +hooting 4hase. Remember

that you will need to expend fuel to make such mo"es.

Aircraft can !re any weapons that ha"e a 0Range1 stat during the +hooting

4hase. To do so an aircraft will ha"e to mo"e into the distance indicated by the

weapons range. In many cases this will be


25/33

If an Aircraft regiment has been intercepted by another regiment while on their

way to do a -ombing Run# Interception )o"e or an Attack Run then you must

!rst resol"e this combat before continuing on to the action you wished to do in

the !rst place. This is the only time you will e"er do the -attle 4hase before the)o"ing or +hooting 4hase. The -attle 4hase for an Aircraft is the same as any

other unit type# though only other Aircraft and elicopters can take part in such a

battle. It can get a little complex if say# you are making a -ombing Run and your

opponent makes an Intercept )o"e against your regiment but then another of

your regiments makes an Intercept )o"e against your opponent. ust remember

to do things in the order in which they appear and it will all be resol"ed /uickly

and hassle free.

elicopters

)o"ement 4hase

elicopters mo"e in almost the same way as aircraft with a few exceptions. They

may end their mo"ement o"er land or an airbase to refuel and resupply. They

can only carry enough fuel to tra"el one /uarter of their total range# so if a

elicopter has a range of M


26/33

Tanks

-attle 4hase

(uring the -attle phase# if your regiment is made up entirely of Tank type or

ehicle type companies and your opponents companies are all Infantry Type then

you may mo"e up to two sections in the +ix5+ection when you get a chance to

mo"e. This represents the superiority of manoeu"re Tanks and ehicles ha"e

o"er infantry.

-oats

)o"ement 4hase

-oats cannot mo"e any further than km from a piece of land and cannot be

counted as In 2ontact with a regiment based on land.

-attle 4hase

A regiment made up entirely of -oat type companies may mo"e up to two

sections in the +ix5+ection if they are against a regiment made up entirely of

+hip type companies. This represents the superior agility and mobility a smaller

boat has.

+hips

)o"ement 4hase

+hips cannot mo"e closer than one kilometre away from a piece of land.

+pace essels

)o"ement 4hase

+pace essels may end their mo"ement o"er any terrain type the controlling

player wishes and o"er enemy regiments so long as they are not other +pace

essels.

Casualties


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Allocating 2asualties

It is no secret that in war there will be casualties. 6"en the winner of a war will

undoubtedly ha"e many soldiers killed or wounded and the loser will probably

ha"e more. In&icting casualties is taken care of at the end of a battle in"ol"ing

opposing regiments. As explained in the -attle 4hase section of this book#regiments will probably take a number of 02asualty 4oints1. These ha"e little

direct e%ect on the battle# though it will determine how long a force wishes to

stay on the !eld.

After one of the players has retreated from the battle that battle is o"er and

casualties will then be totalled. There are two types of casualties3

(eadK(estroyed and 'oundedK(amaged. (ead and 'ounded are the terms

gi"en to li"ing soldiers while (estroyed and (amaged are the terms gi"en to

"ehicles# though the names don’t really matter. For e"ery 2asualty 4oint aplayer has the opponent will 0Roll for 2asualties1. The !rst 2asualty 4oint is

in&icted on a company of the owners choice# the second is chosen by the

opponent# the third by the owner and so on until all 2asualty 4oints ha"e been

allocated. In all but a "ery few cases# both players in"ol"ed in the battle will

ha"e some 2asualty 4oints against their regiment. It is probably best to !gure

out the casualties for one player at a time# ,ust so e"eryone can know what is

going on# but if you feel you ha"e a better system# then by all means use it.

'hene"er you Roll for 2asualties against your opponent you roll a (;


28/33

Anti5Hnit 2apabilities

A company can be e/uipped with a range of weapons that alter the 0Anti5Hnit

2apabilities1 of the soldiers. )ost weapons and e/uipment pro"ide some sort of

additional strength in this regard. The Anti5Hnit 2apabilities a company has

makes destroying an enemy company a lot easier. It will be almost impossible tomake a company that has capabilities in all areas# but if you can build your

regiments well you might be able to make some good combinations. ow to gi"e

a company Anti5Hnit 2apabilities is explained in the 0'eapons1 section of this

rulebook.

If a company has an Anti5Hnit 2apability it essentially passes that rule onto the

regiment it is with. 'hen applying casualties you may declare that a casualty

point is being allocated with a certain Anti5Hnit rule. $ou can only allocate as

many 2asualty 4oints in this way as you ha"e Anti5Hnit 2apabilities. +o forexample if you in&ict six 2asualty 4oints on your opponent and you ha"e three

companies with the Anti5Tank 2apabilities rule# then three of those casualty

points can be allocated as Anti5Tank. 6specially in companies of infantry you will

often ha"e se"eral di%erent Anti5Hnit 2apabilities in the one company. They too

transfer their 2apabilities to the regiment in the same way. An example is if you

ha"e !"e companies and each of them has Anti5ehicle and Anti5Infantry

2apabilities. If you were to in&ict three 2asualty 4oints on your opponent you

might want to use the Anti5Infantry 2apabilities twice and the Anti5ehicle

2apabilities once. If you !nd that you in&ict more 2asualty 4oints than you are

able to allocate you may allocate another 2asualty 4oint using the same Anti5Hnit 2apability only after you ha"e used up all other allocations. For example if

you ha"e three counts of Anti5Infantry 2apabilities and two counts of Anti5+uper

ea"y 2apabilities but you in&ict se"en 2asualty 4oints you must !rst allocate all

of both types and then you may use any of them again.

Also you may only allocate Anti5Hnit 2apabilities if the weapon that pro"ides

them is used in the combat. +o for example# if a !eld gun pro"ides the Anti5Tank

2apabilities rule and only has medium# short and close range stats# if you only

!ght at long range before your opponent retreats then you may not allocate any

2asualty 4oints using the Anti5Tank Rule. 6"en if you only !ght at an appropriate

range once# howe"er# you may use as many Anti5Hnit 2apabilities as that range

will allow# regardless of where the 2asualty 4oints were actually in&icted. +o you

might ha"e one round at long range# the next at medium range and the next at

long range and in&ict 2asualty 4oints at each# but you could in&ict all the

2asualty 4oints on your opponent using the before mentioned example# applying

them all as Anti5Tank 2asualty 4oints.

8ight Hnit +tandard Hnit ea"y Hnit Type


29/33

Type TypeLo Anti5Hnit 2apabilities > @8imited Anti5Hnit2apabilities

? B

Anti5Hnit 2apabilities ; ? B

ea"y Anti5Hnit2apabilities ; ; ?

+pecialist Anti5Hnit2apabilities

O BO ?O

The abo"e table indicates how the Anti5Hnit 2apabilities of a company a%ect the

percentage of casualties in&icted on an opponent’s regiment. The numbers

indicate how many times you roll a (;


30/33

choose the highest result. This is the percentage of total casualties that will

count as 0'ounded1. All other soldiers are 0(ead1 and are remo"ed.

)any of the wounded are not lost fore"er though and may come back to the

battle!eld after some medical attention. 'ounded can mo"e around as per

normal but cannot carry any weight and so basically become numbers on a piece

of paper. They cannot participate in any battles the regiment might become

in"ol"ed in and still count as casualties if the company they are in su%er another

casualty point during another day. The best thing to do with a wounded soldier is

to get them to a 0ospital1. 'hile the exact layout of the ospital "aries#

anything that has the 0ospital1 rule can act as a hospital. After all wounded

soldiers ha"e spent a week in a hospital you then roll another two (;


31/33

In the case of "ehicles of the "arious unit types there are a few di%erent rules.

(amaged "ehicles cannot mo"e but they may be towed. They can be repaired

by )echanics in a 'orkshop. It does not matter how long it has been between

when a "ehicle has been damaged and when it gets to a mechanic# it always rolls?(;


32/33

day and


33/33

allocate them all to one class or spread them across as many as you want#

though it is probably best to focus on getting one skill before you get another.

$ou do not ha"e to allocate eteran 4oints if you do not want to# like if you want

to sa"e up for something big but once you spend them you cannot take them

back. If you !nd that your company decreases in eteran points and this brings

you below the re/uired number of eteran 4oints for a certain skill then you lose

that skill. This is the only way a company will lose a skill# so the skills you buy

early on will determine how your company will function for the rest of its life. $ou

cannot combine two companies if they ha"e spent "eteran points on di%erent

skills unless doings so would reduce the soldiers to ha"ing the same skills.

fields of fire rulebook general

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