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GTM #203 - RuneWars: The Miniatures Game
by Fantasy Flight Games

The tramping boots of marching warriors resounds through the forests and fields of Terrinoth. Soon, your players will have the chance to take their places as generals in RuneWars: The Miniatures Game, a rank-and-file miniatures game of epic fantasy battles for two players!

RuneWars: The Miniatures Game gives two players the chance to enter the fantasy realm of Terrinoth as commanders of massive armies, each battling to complete their objectives and destroy their opponent’s forces. Using innovative command tools, players control every aspect of their units’ actions, while elegant rules for both movement and combat keep the game flowing naturally. Two distinct factions offer utterly unique ways to play the game, and because all RuneWars figures come unpainted, players are free to assemble and customize their army however they choose, offering the perfect gateway into the world of Terrinoth.

~ Take Command ~

In RuneWars: The Miniatures Game, players don’t control small squads of figures, meeting by chance and skirmishing over inconsequential patches of land. Each player is the general of a grand army with dozens of figures arranged in measured ranks and files. Over the course of the game, players will lead these army blocks into battle, carefully wheeling and maneuvering into position, firing at range, and engaging in brutal melee combat.

Precise command of units on the battlefield is crucial to winning any game of RuneWars, and with the game’s innovative command tools, players can carefully control every aspect of their units, without bogging down the game. At the beginning of each round, players must use their command tools to set an action for their units. This could mean marching, reforming the unit, launching a charge, making a ranged attack, or engaging in melee combat. Then, players must select a modifier, helping them tailor their decisions to the exact battlefield situation. These modifiers could boost a unit’s defense, inflict   more damage, inspire panic in enemy units, or even grant additional actions!

What’s more, every unit in the game features an entirely unique command tool, which means that leading Spearmen into battle feels very different from controlling a monstrous Carrion Lancer. Once players have selected their actions, they’ll quickly see the consequences of their choices. Moving units is resolved quickly and easily, using preset movement templates. To move a unit, a player simply aligns his template with the front of a unit, then slides the unit along the template to its end. Movement can be completed in seconds, rather than laboriously measuring and remeasuring movement for every figure.

Combat in RuneWars is similarly streamlined, while sacrificing none of the depth of strategy and realism that sets miniatures games apart. As a player’s units attack, that player will roll dice to deal damage, trigger special abilities, and panic enemy units. The size and composition of a player’s units can also come into play during combat. Obviously, larger units can absorb more damage, but they can also deal more damage or make more consistent attacks, depending on the width and depth of the unit!

~ Customize Your Army ~

The game of RuneWars is not just played on the battlefield, as armies clash in mortal combat. It’s also played out individually, as players carefully choose the figures that they’ll include in their armies. Two distinct factions enter the game in the Core Set — the Daqan Lords and the undead legions of Waiqar the Undying — and each faction has a very unique playstyle. With powerful heroes and units as varied as Reanimates and Rune Golems, players can create an army that’s exquisitely customized to their personal preferences.

Once a player has chosen the units for his army, there are still plenty of choices to make. Units can be upgraded with better armor, terrifying heraldry, or unique gear to give them any advantage on the field of battle. And even after a player has made all of the gameplay choices for his RuneWars army, the blank canvas of unpainted figures means that every player has a chance to create an army with an unmistakable personality.

~ A New Age of War ~

The next great age of war is sweeping over Terrinoth, as Waiqar’s legions threaten the borders of the Daqan Lords. Prepare for a world of epic, rank-and-file miniatures combat with RuneWars: The Miniatures Game!