Have
you spent hundreds on Two Dragons' samurai figures, only to watch them
collect dust for want of a set of samurai warfare rules you can really
sink your teeth into? Well, look no further, because us folks here
at Flagship Games have the ruleset for you!
Written with 15mm figures in mind, Taiko! converts easily
to 6mm and 25mm as well. The rules play to two levels of combat,
1:1 scale, and 50:1 scale. The former is used for small skirmish battles,
and has a fast and chaotic feel to it as units of warriors engage, pursue
their beaten foe, and then perhaps find themselves being beaten and pursued.
The 50:1 scale is ideal for recreating the larger battles of feudal and/or
renaissance Japan, with large formations of infantry and cavalry maneuvering
around the battlefield under the control of their lord or one of his generals.
Besides the "must-have" Flagship Games traits of playability
and speed-of-play, Taiko! faithfully recreates the command and control
methods of the samurai warlord, who, in the period covered by these rules,
typically led from the rear where he could keep a watchful eye on the proceedings
of the battle. While he can join the fray (perhaps to bolster the flagging
morale of one of his units), his ability to control the rest of his army
will suffer, maybe evening failing to follow his orders.
The basic military formation in Taiko! is the unit.
A unit is composed of similarly armed and armored troops who will operate
in a more-or-less cohesive manner throughout the battle. One or more units
are grouped together to form a Tai, or corps. Each Tai is led by a commander,
representing a notable samurai or (hopefully) trusted retainer. Each
army is led by an army commander who will be protected by his own Tai,
typically composed of his very finest troops.
It is the army commander's responsibility to issue orderst
o the commanders of his Tai, giving them directions on how to proceed.
New orders may be issued at the beginning of each turn, at which point
a die roll is made to see if the order is actually received and activated.
If successful, the order may be acted on immediately, if not, there maybe
a delay, or worse...
True to the genre, there is a chance that any Tai commander
rated as being "unreliable" may decided to write his own game plan and
not follow his army commander's orders. He may even decide to change sides
in the middle of the battle!
Play proceeds in turns, with each side activating a Tai,
moving and acting with all its units, before the other side does the same.
Play proceeds back and forth until all Tai on each side have had a chance
to act. Combat is conducted as it occurs during each Tai's activation.
At the end of each turn, each Tai that has suffered 25%
or more casualties will have to check morale, and, if it fails, it will
begin to withdraw. The first side that has 50% or more of its Tai fail
morale and/or defect to the enemy loses.
Taiko! features:
Tired of having to thumb through the rulebook for the
charts and modifiers you need to play? Well, stop your complaining
because here is the downloadable Taiko! cheat sheet (zipped for ease of
downloading)! Free no less!
Here are some shots of a battle in progress. The major protagonists are:
Lord
Ueda, and. . .
Lord
Tomada.
When Lord Ueda devises an excuse to attack the local Ikko-Ikki temple, Lord Tomada decides to ally with the warrior monks in an attempt to destroy his rival. With nearly equal forces, the two great generals face off against one another.
But a third party is on the way, and he will tip the balance in favor of one of them. . .
