¶ Character Movement
To move a character, you simply order them to do so. The order is given by an individual character, and all that is necessary is to select a destination hex. This destination hex must be within 12 hexes of the initial hex location, and not be a sea hex, but movement is regardless of intervening terrain type, so that they can be moved across the sea. Characters will not meet other characters or armies while travelling, but may still meet them at their destination. Note that you cannot move a character from a sea hex in this way – they must continue to move with the navy they are travelling with.
Alternatively, characters can join armies, companies and navies, and will then move automatically when the army, navy or company moves.
¶ Army Movement
To move an army, the army commander issues an order giving the string of directions through which they wish the army to travel, with one direction for each hex the army is to enter. For example, to move three hexes north-west, they would issue ‘nw, nw, nw’. The directions an army can travel in are north-east, east, south-east, south-west, west, and north-west (since the map is divided into hexagons, it is not possible to move directly north or south). In addition, it is possible to issue a ‘home’ movement order, which instructs the army to wait where it is. Each hex is a particular terrain type, and, based on the type of the troops in the army, costs a different amount of movement points to enter. Each army can have a maximum of 14 movement points, each representing a day spent in travel or – in the case of a ‘home’ movement, a day of rest. Please note that moving evasively and/or without food will slow down the army during its movement.
A few things to note with regard to army movement:
- A home movement (a day of rest) costs 1 movement point.
- Armies cannot move from one mountain hex directly into another mountain hex unless there is a road or ford present.
- Armies are also prohibited from crossing major river hex-sides unless a bridge is present. Rivers, both major and minor, run along the sides of the hexes ('hex-side'). Whenever your armies move across a hex-side with a river running along it, they will be considered to be trying to cross that river. Armies can cross minor rivers with only a slight penalty in movement, but cannot cross major rivers at places where there is not either a bridge or a ford. Note that bridges and fords cross only one hex- side and, therefore, you must travel from the hex on one side of the bridge/ford directly across the hex-side to the hex on the other side of the bridge/ford in order to successfully utilise said bridge or ford. Roads work in the same manner, moving through specific hex-sides. If an army does not move exactly as the road does, then it will not be able to avail itself of the enhanced movement rate the road provides. All hex-side features always affect movement in both directions.
- If more than one army of the same allegiance appears at a population centre, only one icon will appear on the turn map.
- If an army enters a hex where there is an army belonging to a nation which is not tolerant or friendly to the army or to whom the army is neither tolerant or friendly, or a fortified population centre belonging to a nation which is not tolerant or friendly to the army, then it will normally be forced to stop in that hex. If the army is large enough, however, they may be able to either force their way past armies and continue onwards, or even ‘overrun’ a smaller army, in which case all troops and characters in the smaller army are killed. It is not possible to force past a fortified population centre in this manner (although armies can still be overrun in the hex), but an army can attempt to pass it by moving evasively (see below). The order of determining these events is as follows: 1. Army enters a hex using normal movement. 2. If the army still has movement, it tries to leave hex. 3. If there are enemy armies are in the hex, they will attempt to force the army to stop. This can result in an overrun, with the enemy army being destroyed. If there are two enemy armies, then which one attempts to block first is decided at random. 4. If enemy fortified population centers are in the hex, they will subsequently force the army to stop.
- Armies can choose to move evasively. This gives them a chance of moving past enemy population centres and armies where otherwise they would be stopped (see above point). It also means that they are less likely to appear on enemy nations’ population centre and army reports. Success is based on their command skill and the size of the army (a high command skill is required for a good chance of success). Moving evasively doubles the movement cost for each hex (applied after a cost for moving unfed troops, if applicable).
- Armies travel at the rate of their slowest troop type. War machines and the amount of items in a baggage train have no affect on travel rates. The following charts show what each type of troop spends in movement points for each different terrain. Movement cost is computed by determining the appropriate terrain cost (for the hex being moved into), then modifying it by any hex-side costs. Fractional costs (for example, those incurred through travelling without food) are rounded upwards for each hex travelled, and are applied to the hex terrain cost after all factors are taken into account (such as crossing a river, ford or bridge). Thus it is possible for an army to find itself unable to move in a direction even for one hex, if the movement cost for that hex is higher than the army’s movement points a turn.
- If an army has no food, the movement cost to move through a sector, and over rivers, bridges and fords, is increased by 1/3 (as shown in the table below), and each time it is issued a move order, the army will lose 1-5 morale. This extra cost is applied after extra movement costs for a hex such as a river or bridge have been added to the movement cost of the hex.
- Armies may also choose to 'stand and defend'. This means that the army will attempt to prevent the passage of enemy armies from their initial hex location through the defended hex-sides, although a large enough army might still push past or over-run the blocking army. The defended hex-sides include the hex-side in the direction chosen along with the two adjacent hex-sides (see details of order 840 – Stand and Defend for clarification on this).
¶ Movement Limits
Type |
Movement Points |
Character |
12 |
Army |
12 |
Navy or Army Force March |
14 |
Army or Navy Moving Evasively |
Movement Costs Doubled |
Spell: Long Stride (#302) |
14 |
Spell: Fast Stride (#304) |
16 |
Spell: Path Mastery (#306) |
19 |
Spell: Capital Return (#308) |
Nation's Capital |
Spell: Major Return (#310) |
Nation’s City or Major Town |
Spell: Return True (#312) |
Nation’s Population Centre |
Spell: Teleport (#314) |
∞ |
¶ Mixed Army Movement Costs
Type |
Fed Normal Cost |
Unfed Normal Cost |
Fed Road Cost |
Unfed Road Cost |
Shore |
3 |
4 |
2 |
3 |
Plains |
3 |
4 |
2 |
3 |
Hills & Rough |
5 |
7 |
3 |
4 |
Mixed Forest |
5 |
7 |
3 |
4 |
Desert Wastes |
4 |
6 |
2 |
3 |
Fens & Swamp |
6 |
8 |
3 |
4 |
Mountains |
12 |
Not allowed |
6 |
8 |
Shore/Plains with Bridge/Ford |
4 |
6 |
3 |
4 |
Rough with Bridge/Ford |
6 |
8 |
4 |
6 |
Forest with Bridge/Ford |
6 |
8 |
4 |
6 |
Desert with Bridge/Ford |
5 |
7 |
3 |
4 |
Swamp with Bridge/Ford |
7 |
10 |
4 |
6 |
Mountains with Bridge/Ford |
Not allowed |
Not allowed |
7 |
10 |
Shore with Minor River |
5 |
7 |
4 |
6 |
Plains with Minor River |
5 |
7 |
4 |
6 |
Rough with Minor River |
7 |
10 |
5 |
7 |
Forest with Minor River |
7 |
10 |
5 |
7 |
Desert with Minor River |
6 |
8 |
4 |
6 |
Swamp with Minor River |
8 |
11 |
5 |
7 |
Mountains with Minor River |
Not allowed |
Not allowed |
8 |
11 |
Major River |
Not allowed |
Not allowed |
Not allowed |
Not allowed |
Seas/Coast |
Not allowed |
Not allowed |
Not allowed |
Not allowed |
- Infantry include Heavy Infantry, Light Infantry, Archers, and Men-at-Arms.
- A home movement (a day of rest) costs 1 movement point, designated as ‘h” on the movement order. Armies cannot move from one mountain hex to another mountain hex unless there is a road or ford present.
- Armies cannot move from one mountain hex to another mountain hex unless there is a road or ford present.
¶ Cavalry Only Army Movement Costs
Type |
Fed Normal Cost |
Unfed Normal Cost |
Fed Road Cost |
Unfed Road Cost |
Shore |
2 |
3 |
1 |
2 |
Plains |
2 |
3 |
1 |
2 |
Hills & Rough |
3 |
4 |
1 |
2 |
Mixed Forest |
5 |
7 |
2 |
3 |
Desert Wastes |
2 |
3 |
1 |
2 |
Fens & Swamp |
5 |
7 |
2 |
3 |
Mountains |
12 |
Not alllowed |
3 |
4 |
Shore/Plains with Bridge/Ford |
3 |
4 |
2 |
3 |
Rough with Bridge/Ford |
4 |
6 |
2 |
3 |
Forest with Bridge/Ford |
7 |
10 |
3 |
4 |
Desert with Bridge/Ford |
3 |
4 |
2 |
3 |
Swamp with Bridge/Ford |
6 |
8 |
3 |
4 |
Mountains with Bridge/Ford |
Not allowed |
Not allowed |
4 |
6 |
Shore with Minor River |
4 |
6 |
3 |
4 |
Plains with Minor River |
4 |
6 |
3 |
4 |
Rough with Minor River |
5 |
7 |
3 |
4 |
Forest with Minor River |
7 |
10 |
5 |
7 |
Desert with Minor River |
4 |
6 |
3 |
4 |
Swamp with Minor River |
7 |
10 |
5 |
7 |
Mountains with Minor River |
14 |
Not allowed |
5 |
7 |
Major River |
Not allowed |
Not allowed |
Not allowed |
Not allowed |
Seas/Coast |
Not allowed |
Not allowed |
Not allowed |
Not allowed |
- A home movement (a day of rest) costs 1 movement point, designated as ‘h” on the movement order. Armies cannot move from one mountain hex to another mountain hex unless there is a road or ford present.
- Armies cannot move from one mountain hex to another mountain hex unless there is a road or ford present.
¶ Navy Movement
See Navies.
¶ Movement Orders